Joshua Radin - Simple Times - Sky, Brand New Day, You Got Growin Up To Do (featuring Patty Griffin)

All in all a really great album, but those three songs I find particularly catchy. I find it hard to write, or read with lyrical music in general, but this album somehow breaks that rule (I wrote a couple of my very final seminary papers to this album). It's got a pleasant, folky, productive feel to it.

Two Star Symphony - Danse Macabre ...

My favorite sermon writing music is a station that I have created on Pandora Radio, seeded with the soundtrack by Clint Mansell from the movie "The Fountain." I get all kinds off eerie orchestral music, and I love it. This song "The 9th Level" popped up sounding like it had come from a Tim Burton film, but it took a lot of digging to find anything about it, or the band. I clicked the "buy it on Amazon" link Amazon didn't have anything by "Two Star Symphony." This of course made them all the more intriguing. After finding the official website/blog I found that this track was written as part of the "sophisticated and dark puppetry art (theater) in the three-part collaboration, Danse Macabre."

They Might Be Giants - Here Comes Science

I've been really digging "Here Comes Science", TMBG's 4th children's album, the last few weeks.  Their other children's albums were varying degrees of ok.  But this one stands out from the others.  I think I actually like it better than their last "grown-up" album, The Else.

M.I.A. - Kala

I heard "boyz" a few times on the current, but thought it sounded like just some passing teen fad.  I became more intrigued when I independently ran across this amazon.com editorial review:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TJ6CM2/ref=dm_dp_cdp?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1234414132&sr=102-6#productDescription

Now, I think I'm hooked.  I was pleased also to hear "Paper Planes" in Slumdog Millionaire.

"Weird Al" Yankovic - Straight Outta Lynwood - Close But No Cigar

I was listening to this song on an airplane ride, and it dawned on me that this song borrows so much (musical styling) from Cake, that it is clearly no accident.  I think I didn't notice at first because I listen to enough Cake that their sound is more of a genre to me than an artist's sound.

Mason Jennings - Simple Life

Mason Jennings has released two albums since last I checked.  Simple Life and In The Ever are both solid albums, as far as I'm concerned.  They both have the same thing I liked in Boneclouds.  (Maybe that thing is Mason Jennings.)

The Rapture - Pieces of the People We Love - Get Myself Into It

If you're looking for something with some notable grove goin' on, check out The Rapture. The whole album's really quite good within the genre.

The Magnetic Fields - Distortion

There's a very Stephen Merritt-ish (typically trivial?) play between album cover, name, and noisy album sound.  But after a few times through at half volume (sleeping baby), I conclude this album is quite listenable.  I think it's going to grow on me.  Immediately, my fav song is "Drive On, Driver".

They Might Be Giants - Here Come the 123s

Technically, children are the primary audience, but some of these songs stand on their own as well as any other album.  Upon a few listens, probably not as good as Here Come the ABCs, but I've had "Seven" in my head all day.

Also, this doesn't seem to be available on streaming services, but Rhapsody & Amazon sell DRM-free mp3s.  I'll go out on a limb and blame Disney.

Jim Noir - Tower of Love

Heard the song "Tell Me What To Do" on The Current.  Listening to this album the last few days.  I like it, though I can't tell yet if I'll like it even more as I listen more.