A Modern Gal musical review

I've had plenty of time to really digest all those songs y'all suggested for me a few weeks ago, and let me tell you I am extremely pleased with the selection. I think I may have found a few new favorite songs out of the bunch.

My rule was one song per Modern Friend, a rule I made to ensure both variety and that I'd get your very best suggestion. For those of you who made multiple suggestions, I took the first one and tucked the rest away for my next MG-inspired album.

Below is a song-by-song review. If anyone is interested in their own copy of the album I've been rocking out to the past two weeks, send your address to themoderngal(at)gmail.com and I'll be happy to burn you a copy.

And now, without further adieu:

1. Frankie's Gun! by the Felice Brothers as suggested by Noelle: When this song first began, I thought she'd snuck Old Crow Medicine Show's Wagon Wheel in. I totally dug this song and found myself singing it over and over as I was chugging through the mountains during my road trip.

2. Empire State by Guster as suggested by Jenn: Guster is one of those bands that I always seem to forget how much I love them. This particular song, as the Modern Beau would say, really brings the hurt and that's a good thing. I love how raw it is.

3. Blow it Out by The Features as suggested by Currer Bell: I swear I'd heard this one before, and maybe I had, but I'm glad to hear it again. It's really freakin' catchy and makes you want to move.

4. Walcott by Vampire Weekend as suggested by Suzy Trotta: I think this is my absolute favorite. The music is unique, the hook is so infectiously catchy and I just want to keep listening to it. It's the perfect song to anchor a mix of summer tunes. Suzy said the song causes her to "spontaneously hop around like a human pogo stick," and I have to say, I'm right there with you Suzy.



5. Gone in the Morning by Newton Faulkner as suggested by Dustin: This song does exactly what I want a song to do. It starts out easy and builds momentum. It too is catchy (I see a theme with this album and I like it). My only complaint is it's way too short. Two minutes, 21 seconds? Only bad songs should be that short.

6. Frank and Ava by Suzanne Vega as (sorta) suggested by Celtic Buffy: Celtic Buffy suggested some Suzanne Vega throwback, but it occured to me when she did that SV has a new album out and I recalled hearing Frank and Ava recently. This song totally works because it's very old-school Suzanne Vega and very comfortable.

7. Lime Tree Arbour by Nick Cave as suggested by Em: Nick Cave is another artist that I forget that I like. I don't know how that happens, but I doubt I'll forget him after hearing this song for the first time. It's so soulful, which is a perfect match for his voice.

8. L.E.S. Artistes by Santogold as suggested by Theron: Theron said something about his songs "blowing my skirt up" and I guess you could say this song did that figuratively. I love Santogold's voice -- it's so refreshing -- and the song has a great beat. I have a feeling that we'll be hearing more from Santogold in the future. And props to Theron for offering a legitimately new tune.

9. Secretariat by Jeffrey Foucault as suggested by Allie: This song was perfect when it came up on my car stereo in the bluegrass hills of Kentucky. It seemed to fit so well. I would probably separate it from the rest of the songs on this album because it doesn't quite flow well from the others, but it stands on its own so well.

10. Unless It's Kicks by Okkervil River as suggested by Hélène: This is the other candidate for my next favorite song. It had me bouncing around in my car seat, which I'm sure was entertaining to the truckers as I passed them. When they break it down towards the end of the song, I stopped bouncing and opted instead for the air microphone. Any song that causes me to humiliate myself is a keeper.



11. Bodysnatchers by Radiohead as suggested by Mickey: I never really get tired of Radiohead's music. The guitar in Bodysnatchers is awesome and if you turn up the volume while listening to it in the car, I swear the guitar does some crazy things with your head. Like musical drugs or something.

12. Stupid Boy by Keith Urban as suggested by Noodles: As a rule of thumb I don't listen to Keith Urban because of his faux brand of country music (read: pop music). His kind of country music is exactly why I didn't much get into country while living in Nashville. That said, I yielded to my dear friend Noodles on this one and downloaded and have to say it's growing on me. If you focus on Keith's pure voice and the strong lyrics, I think you'll like this song too.

13. Mercy by Duffy as suggested by The Modern Gal: Because everyone else had a submission, I figured I got one too. Occasionally while working out, I force myself to listen to the channel tuned to VH-1 at the gym in hopes of picking up on what the kids are listening to. I've heard a lot of subpar songs this way (really, Gavin Rossdale? are you serious?) but was rewarded with Duffy one morning. She's sassy and this song makes me feel like dancing in the middle of my living room floor.