Music

So I'm wondering what's new in the music world that's worth a listen. If anyone has input, feel free to contribute.

One of my youth group guys just discovered "Falling Slowly" a song from the indie film Once that won the Oscar for Best Original Song this year. I still haven't found the film, but I would like to. The song is decent, and the premise seems promising. (A promising premise! Eh? Eh?) [update 1/8/09: I got the film on DVD for cheap, and it's pretty great. Lots of f-words, but I think that's because Irish people say f-words just to make sure they're still breathing. Great plot and some very funny moments.]

Ben Folds' newest effort is a fine one, but then whaddya expect? One of my favorites was the collab with Regina Spektor called "You Don't Know Me." It's quirky and fun. Beware the language though...

Speaking of Regina Spektor, the soundtrack from Prince Caspian also contained her song "The Call." She didn't write it, but her performance is meltingly lovely. Her voice is doing some pretty technical stuff and making it sound effortless.

On the strength of those two songs, we got Spektor's latest album Begin to Hope. It's a bit esoteric at times, but her musicianship and songwriting are pretty impressive. That, and she draws on her eclectic heritage as a Russian-born Jewish-American for inspiration. "Apres Moi" is one of my favorites on the album. We got the iTunes version, which includes a few bonus tracks.

One of the surprisingly good albums I've found lately is Chris Rice's newest, What A Heart Is Beating For. Despite the fact some precise personalities might insist that a more correct title would be That For Which A Heart Is Beating, this is a good album. Even more encouragingly, it's getting no radio play on KLOVE that I've heard. "Here Come Those Eyes" is great stuff for romantic occasions, and "Punch Lines and Ironies" has some of that great lyric and melody combination I love about Chris. "So Much For My Sad Song" is a warm tune that Cindy refers to as "anti-emo." I think the world could do with a bit more music of that description.

Not especially new, but still good, is the latest from Sanctus Real, We Need Each Other. This guy's voice is one of the best, and their songwriting is very solid. This is a band that I would hit the road with as a touring keyboardist tomorrow if they called. From the offbeat timing of the opening rocker "Turning on the Lights" to the solid ballad "Lay Down My Guns," this album is in danger of getting over-played on my iTunes playlist.

I could go on ad nauseum, but I'm curious about your input.