Sad day, Davy Jones of The Monkees passed away 
Anyone else remember watching The Monkees TV show as a kid? As a tribute, I play you my favorite Monkees song, and an all time classic, “Daydream Believer”
***All Time Favorite*** Painted By Numbers
So I figure from now on I’ll highlight some songs that are on my list of all time favorites. These are songs that I feel best capture my musical preferences or really connected with me or a time in my life. This song is definitely on that list, and its “Painted By Numbers” by Swedish indie rock band The Sounds.
I dont even recall how I was introduced to this band, but it was in NYC circa 2007 and they’re songs remained on the PH3 party mix ever since. Aside from being in love with their lead singer Maja Ivarsson, they do a killer live performance and their indie rock/new wave fusion makes you feel like you are rocking out in a European club circa 1984.
Check out “Painted By Numbers” and let me know what you think!
Glass
One of the albums that really flew under the radar in 2009 was Julian Casablanca’s debut solo album “Phrazes for the Young.” For those that dont know, Julian is the lead singer of the group that was the former darling of the music industry and hipsters around the world, The Strokes. As he stepped out and released this album, it didnt receive too much praise from the critics and I can accept why. The album is a bit of a loathing, its a little jumbled in its sound (he basically throws the entire kitchen sink of sounds at you throughout the course of the album), and its a bit difficult to put your finger on exactly what there is to love about it. That said, there are some gems, and here is my favorite, “Glass”.
The Summer Set
I dont know what to say about The Summer Set other than just check out this song “When We Were Young” and theres a good chance you will like it 
PS: Wait til you see the twist at the end…hahaha
New 2AM Club! First Listen…
Take a first listen to this new track off of what will be 2AM Club’s sophomore album. Tell me you cant imagine yourself cruising around in the spring/summer listening to this while hanging out with your friends? Love it and cant wait for the new album. Maybe I should organize Peteapalooza 2 and have them come out and play again???
Need a song you might hear at a riot, during a war or while entering a boxing match? :)
Damian Marley’s “Welcome to Jamrock” album was one of the best albums to come out of Jamaica since his father passed. Part reggae, park rock, part rap, part smooth, part hard…the album had it all. Most people are at least familiar with the title track as that got some US airplay, but there were a number of gems on the album. Two of my favorites were “Confrontation” and “Road to Zion” featuring Nas. I really got into this album during a trip to Jamaica when I committed myself to listening to some of the albums I had in my music collection from Jamaican artists that I hadnt spent much time with yet. Im glad I did!
Whenever I hear “Confrontation” it sounds to me like the song you might hear a boxing entering the ring to, or the soundtrack to a revolution. What do you think?
“Road to Zion” was a staple at PH3 in New York (my old apartment) and is the the song that first brought Nas and Damien together for what ended up being a long term partnership that resulted in a great duet album between the two.
Coeur de Pirate = Pirate Heart
Coeur de Pirate (translates to Pirate Heart) 
is a singer from Quebec who recently released her second album which this track, “Wicked Games” is off. This is a tranquil cover of the song originally performed by The Weeknd. I was put on to this artist by Viktoria from Paris who has a great blog you can follow by clicking here. Coeur de Pirate has garnered some success in Canada and Europe, do you think she will take in the US? Its up to you if you decide to share this post
Im in the Pursuit of Happiness…
Kid Cudi’s debut album “Man on the Moon” is a must have for anyone that even dabbles in liking hip hop music. The album brings with it a creativity and refreshing approach to hip hop that has been adopted by many artists since. His lyrics are honest, rapping about everything from his mental stuggles to his passion for herbal remedies, but all the while you never doubt that you are getting the real Cudi versus someone who is rapping to sell albums. His honesty is set to continue this year with the upcoming release of his new album which just came out under the name WZRD. I need to listen to it a bit more, but in the meantime check out “Pursuit of Happiness” off his debut album.
Management
A lot of songs have great lyrics, melodies, beats and so on, and that is why we love them. I often gravitate towards songs that either have a complexity to them and/or I really connect with the songwriting. In the case of MGMT, I think its the former that drew me to them. Their songs are irreverent and often complex, but not over done. Lyrically though, I must admit that in many cases I remain confused. Check out two of my favorite MGMT songs, “Time To Pretend” (which to me was a theme song of sorts to life in the East Village/Lower East Side of NYC) and “Weekend Wars” (whose lyrics are included on the YouTube page for the video and offer a glimpse as to why I simply dont get their lyrics at times). I saw them play a show in NYC before I moved which was a blast. It included the 2AM Club gents and sitting in the grass in Prospect Park in Brooklyn on a nice July night catching the show. Not much better than the outdoor summer concert in NYC. Check em out, and enjoy!
Time To Pretend
Weekend Wars
Can you relate to this one?
I was reminded in my yoga class of an absolute classic that is a brilliant piece of songwriting. David Gray came on to US music scene and blew up almost immediately. I remember his first show in NY was a sold out performance at Radio City Music Hall…not a bad way to start! This song of his “Say Hello and Wave Goodbye” is probably my favorite. Just a timeless piece about a relationship that he wanted to work, but it just wasnt meant to despite their best efforts. I can definitely relate to this one more than I want to.
