New Music I Love

I will freely admit I don’t listen to popular music.  My radio in my car almost never gets played – I’m usually listening to audiobooks.  About the only time I put on the radio is when I know our local AM station will be doing a traffic report.

So I typically find my music through alternative channels.  Who’s playing on “Saturday Night Live” this week?  What’s that song being danced to on “So You Think You Can Dance.”  What’s that song playing during that scene on “Vampire Diaries?”  Let me watch the credits of this movie so I can see what this end titles song is called.

Yep, that’s where I find new music.  It may not necessarily BE new, but it’s new to me.

And so here is a list of songs I recently fell in love with, and how I discovered them.

“Rivers and Roads” by The Head and the Heart – this was the final song to play in the final episode of one of my favorite TV shows, “Chuck.”  This song – even 20 years from now – will remind me of Chuck and Sarah sitting on the beach while he tells her of their life together (which she no longer remembers).

“I’m All Over It” – Jamie Cullum – I discovered this watching clips of “Never Mind the Buzzcocks” on YouTube (a fabulous British comedy game show about pop music).  He was a guest on the special Doctor Who episode of the show, and I really like the clip they played over his introduction.  I hopped on iTunes, and after listening to a few of his songs, I’m a fan.  He’s much more diverse than Michael Buble, but I’d put him in the same category.

“IO” – Helen Stellar – I heard this song at the end of the movie “Love Happens” which I recently watched via my Netflix account.  The movie was only so-so, but the soundtrack was good, and the movie ended with this one in the final scene.  This is currently on heavy rotation for me.

“We Don’t Eat” – James Vincent McMorrow – oh how I adore this song!  I played on “Vampire Diaries” last season during a scene featuring Elena and Damon.  This is another one on heavy rotation for me and for me has grown past just being a song featured on a TV show.  It’s just a GREAT GREAT song.

“All Roads Lead Home” – Golden State – finding this song is what made me realize how much the Internet rocks.  This was playing at the end of a recent episode of “American Idol.”  I could BARELY hear it, but I know from the instrumental that I would love the song if I could just find it and hear the whole thing.  I caught ONE SMALL phrase from the song (“a kiss goodnight”) and hopped online.  It took about 15 seconds to find the answer.  Apparently it was also on the “Dolphin Tale” soundtrack, the “Henry Poole Was Here” soundtrack and featured on the TV show “Deadliest Catch,” but I haven’t seen either of those.

“A Beautiful Exchange” – Hillsong – about the only station on the radio I DO listen to is our local Christian radio station.  I hear a lot of music I like on there.  However, it was at church that I heard this song a few weeks ago.  Our worship leader and his wife are amazing when they sing together, and this song was done during a service that was VERY powerful and moving for everyone.

So those are some of my current favorite songs, and how I found them.  I’m sure there will be many other songs that I “discover” and begin to listen to.  As my kids get older they are starting to play the radio in their rooms as they get ready for school, and Cootiegirl has even come to ask if she can download a song or two that she’s heard that I’ve never heard (and after a quick listen I determine if we’ll download it or not).

Got any music recommendations for me?  If you listen to these songs you can get an idea of the kind of music I like, so lay it on me!