So, without further ado, my favorite video is as follows. Let me present Rainbow Arabia’s “Omar K.” Do yourself a favor and watch it in HD on fullscreen.

Gaak! I’ve neglected this lil’ weekly feature for quite some time now. It’s too bad, because I actually like posting music, so I’m going to double the number of songs this week only. Now it’s like the Brady Bunch!
Animal Collective: “Peacebone”

Oh how I love this song. It reminds me of a colorful Willy Wonka character peddling a Dr. Seuss-inspired flying machine (like a combination of this and this, but with more stripes, whistles and pipes and a goldfish bowl) that constantly belches steam as it jerkily bops above towns, allowing the driver to shout slam poetry about broccoli and mildew on rice to the citizens below. Also on this flying contraption that we shall call a “Whatsagalloo” are a little blond boy with a bowl cut and a gap between his front teeth who loves to sing, and a cage filled with a tiger, toucan and chimpanzee, who also want to join in the chorus.

Bears: “How To Live”

One of the best 60’s-inspired pop songs to date.

Nedelle: “Ghost Ships”

A delightful Simon and Garfunkel/Belle & Sebastian genre of pop.

Takka Takka: “Draw A Map”

A more appropriate name for this song would have been “Talk Faster,” but I guess that’s why I’m not in a band. This song reminds me of a throwback to early/mid 90’s college rock like Pavement and R.E.M.

France Gall: “Laisse tomber les filles”

I’m not quite sure how I got into this one, but it’s infiltrated my playlist and doesn’t look like it will be leaving any time soon. I’ve always had a fondness for French pop, I guess.

The Mae Shi: “Run To Your Grave”

Getting a new vocalist seems to have done wonders for this band. “Run To Your Grave” is from an album that’s still in the beginning stages from the Mae Shi, and already it sounds like the album could be a winner. If pressed to name my 10 favorite songs released this year, this one would most definitely appear on the list. It’s like that one great song the Unicorns never got around to writing.

The Go! Team: “Grip Like A Vice”

Thunder, Lightning, Strike was one of my very favorite albums of ‘04, and is one I still enjoy listening to. In interviews with the group, Go! Team members hinted that a second album, if they even made one, would probably not be the cheerleaders on speed concoction that the first was. Since the single appeared online last week, it’s been giving my speakers a full-body workout. The best description that I’ve found about the song comes from Pitchfork, which states ” ‘Grip Like A Vice’ sounds like the band is riding a shopping cart with bum wheel as it zooms dangerously down a bumpy hill.” Go! Team, Go!

Ryan Adams: “Everybody Knows”

Ryan Adams gets knocked a lot for his dickish ways, but damn can the guy write some good songs (note: I said some. By no means all). I’m particularly fond of his newest single from one of probably 15 forthcoming albums this year. Adams’ lyrics are exquisite here, and the tune seems to lightly float around like a smoke ring.

Peter Bjorn and John: “Let’s Call It Off” [Girl Talk Remix]

This is one of those weird cases in which I heard the remix before the original, so this is the one I’ve come to rely upon. The truth though, is that Girl Talk — who released one of my favorite albums last year — took an already great song and just improved upon it. It’s boppier and brighter, and all the better.

Let’s Go Sailing: “Sideways”

This is one of those songs that I just can’t stop listening to. Layers of orchestration gently cradle Shana Levy’s airy vocals, while she sings about looking at someone in a different light. It’s a near perfect pre-breakup song.

The White Stripes: “Icky Thump”

Meg and Jack’s newest single is a dandy. Meg White’s drumming is just a primitive as ever, and Jack White’s hot-as-shit guitar riffs are some of the Stripes’ best to date, and his rapid-fire (dare I say rappish) delivery is something seems to suit duo and hint at the tantalizing things to come. It’s certainly gotten me excited for their new album by the same name.

Björk – “Wanderlust”

I’m not a big one for Björk simply because her songs aren’t structured enough for me, but for some odd reason her Volta album is really doing it for me. The second track, ‘Wanderlust,” is a fantastical voyage through a cosmos of horns and electronic beats that seems to endlessly drift through time.

Ghosthustler: “Parking Lot Nights”

The newest band on the Austin scene. All they’ve got is this single, and it’s pretty darn good. A danceable beat, electronic blips, and a singer that sounds like he’s fronting a New York garage rock band. Success!

Refused: “New Noise”

Oh god, did I love this song when it came out. I listened to my picturesque little soundtrack of Collective Soul, Blink 182, Everclear, and whatever other crap was popular in 1998, until one day MTV2 unleashed this futuristic battering ram onto my scene. I love(d) the way the song builds a towering intro of riffage and thundering bass, only to further tease with mellowed out electronica staccato. Then the lyrics “Can I scream?” are shrieked through the mic, and the track explodes with the force of a small bomb.

Some time last year this song began getting some resurgence by people who were discovering it for the first time. This song, and album, were truly ahead of their time.

The Commodores: “Nightshift”

I’m not really sure I’ve been listening to this one so much, but according my playcount, it’s my number 1 most listened to song of the week. Maybe it’s the non-threatening sensual 80s groove, the story of Jackie, or the reassuring fact that I’m “not alone… on the nightshift.” Whatever the answer, thank you for all you did, Commodores.

First and foremost, happy Easter to all of you out there who follow this site!

Not only is today a special day because of its religious association, but also because for the first time, Audictive is featuring its first (of hopefully many) mixtapes. Now you too can have an Easter-themed playlist on your iPod to rock out to. The tracklist is as follows:

(01) The Shins – ”Red Rabbits”
(02) Neutral Milk Hotel – ”King of Carrot Flowers, Part 2 & 3”
(03) Lavender Diamond – ”Rise in the Springtime”
(04) Bright Eyes – ”Down A Rabbit Hole”
(05) The Magnetic Fields – ”Let’s Pretend We’re Bunny Rabbits”
(06) Animal Collective – ”Sweet Road”
(07) Apollo Sunshine – ”The Egg”
(08) Of Montreal – ”Everyday Feels Like Sunday”
(09) Bishop Allen – ”The Rabbit”
(10) My Brightest Diamond – ”Magic Rabbit”
(11) Midlake – ”We Gathered In Spring”
(12) The Hold Steady – ”How A Resurrection Really Feels”

The mix comes as a zip file, and is correctly labeled (so it’ll show up right on your iPod). It also comes with a custom painted bunny cover. Enjoy!

Audictive’s “An Easter Sunday” Mixtape (59 mb filesize)

The Rolling Stones: “Thru and Thru”

I’ve mentioned before about my parents taste in music, and how thanks to them, while other kids were listening to whatever it is kids listen to, I was listening to songs like “Sympathy For the Devil” and “Wild Horses” with my Dad while he explained the importance of the song to me. We always disagreed over the Stones’ Voodoo Lounge as he didn’t like their less blues influenced sound, but I thought their grittiness remained intact. “Thru and Thru,” the second to the last song, was always the song I tried I tried to make him like, because it is, I feel, an updated version of their song “Waiting On A Friend.”

The reason I like this song is simple: it’s powerful. Keith Richards vocals (he sings on this one instead of Mick Jagger) sound raw and compliment the song’s climatic build until the wave of blues-rock crashes down. Today I can also appreciate the line “I’m a lover, baby, through and through,” as if Keith’s trying to convince himself that it’s true.

Hello Saferide: “The Quiz”

I just can’t help but find this song completely lovable. It’s just singer Annika Norlin rambling off a list of questions to a potential love interest over three simple acoustic chords and handclaps. Simple and honest. I also enjoy how underneath all of her quiz criteria her vulnerability begins to show through. Quite possibly one of the best songs I own.

Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul: “Inside of Me”

Another one of my all-time favorite songs. “Inside of Me” is a jubilant soul anthem about still being in love.

Updates may still be a little limited this week since I’m just working off of my jump drive, and I’m pretty sure I didn’t load all the music I wanted to on it.

The Rosebuds: “Cemetery Lawns”

Ever since Paula introduced me to the Rosebuds almost a year ago, they’ve been a constant on my iPod and in my car stereo. After reading that the duo had decided to take a more dark, electro-dance approach to their upcoming album, Night of the Furies, I was pretty worried that their sing-along harmonies and bright melodies would be completely lost. Thankfully, songs like “Cemetery Lawns” and “Get Up and Get Out” are still bouncy despite their “goth” lyrics. I like this one because Ivan and Kelly both sing.

Derek & the Dominos: “Layla”

I’ve been reading Chuck Klosterman’s Killing Yourself To Live, and there’s a passage where he and his girlfriend are arguing about how the piano coda that ends “Layla” was written by a guy who murdered his mother. Long story short, it just got me thinking about how smashingly good this songs still is, even after 30 years.

CocoRosie: “Rainbowarriors”

CocoRosie are known for being freak-folk purveyors, but to my best knowledge this is the first time freak-folk and hip-hop(?!) have actually attempted to share the same limelight. I also think this is the first time CocoRosie have attempted to rap over one of their songs. I can’t help but feeling a little like Alice falling as she visits the giant ganja-smoking caterpillar.

Nathan Asher & the Infantry: “Turn Up the Faders”

A staple as the opening track on some of my mixes, the variable mix of anxiety and frustration in the vocals over synths and the twinkling piano give “Turn Up the Faders” a wonderful late night vibe. If I was to describe this song with imagery, I would say it’s like being in a damp parking garage at 2:30 in the morning, a soft rain outside, and the car headlights making a ghostly red haze over falling water droplets.

Feist: “I Feel It All”

Another late night song brimming with lovely vocals, harsh electric acoustic guitar and a sparkling xylophone.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: “The Sword Song”

I wish I could say I was a bigger fan of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, but I just can’t get into their whiny vocals and often peaked-out song production. With that being said though, “The Sword Song” is easily the best thing they’ve ever written, which is a shame since it was cut from the US release of their latest album, Some Loud Thunder. Again the sound levels are maxed out (not nearly so much as in other songs), but the melody is really catchy, and becomes even more so when the “doo doo doo” bridge comes in over a strange guitar riff. The stuttering at the end is what really sells it, though.

Continuing my posting of three random songs that I’ve been repeatedly listening to this week, Audictive presents Week #2 of My Three Songs.

Squeeze: “Up the Junction”

I was one of those kids that was lucky enough to grow up with my parents’ music. Besides the Raffi and Disney tapes that Mom and Dad bought me to listen to, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Eric Clapton, Lyle Lovett and Bonnie Raitt, among others, were always music I was exposed to through my parent’s record collection. Squeeze’s “Up the Junction” was one of my favorite then because it sounded like a Beatles song, and I enjoyed the boppy drumbeats. Some 20 years later, not much has changed about why I still love this song, except now I can add the lyrics. It’s a love song the Beatles never wrote, but should have.

Emmy the Great: “Paper Trails”

Simple, straight-forward lyrics over a folksy acoustic guitar. What could be any better.

Ghostface Killah: “Run [Ratatat remix, ft. Jadakiss]“

Ratatat remixes are something to behold, as the duo is one of the few artists who can take a song and churn out a remix that’s comparable to, and in many cases, better than the original. Ghostface’s “Run” is a great song by itself, but when composed over Ratatat’s music, it’s superb.