Guilty Pleasure

I'm almost ashamed to admit this.  But I'm going to admit it.  Because I'm not a music snob.  I like what I like.  And it turns out, I like Selena Gomez's "Love You Like A Love Song."  There.  I said it.  And I'm not taking it back.  You can't make me.  It's kind of like when I went through my Miley Cyrus phase a few years ago.  I couldn't get enough of her song "7 Things."  And Ke$ha's album.  I may or may not have worn that album out.  It's just good fun.  And so it "Love You Like A Love Song."  Now the question is: do I download it?  Or will I soon get tired of hearing it on the radio?  Hmm...

Lyrics of the Day

"And the heart is hard to translate
It has a language of its own
It talks in tongues and quiet sighs
And prayers and proclimations
In the grand days of great men
And the smallest of gestures
And short, shallow gasps."

-Florence + the Machine, "All This and Heaven Too"

Lyrics of the Day

 "Heartbeats" - (I love the Elllie Goulding version, but The Knife version is pretty awesome, too)

One night to be confused
One night to speed up truth
We had a promise made
Four hands and then away

Both under influence
We had divine scent
To know what to say
Mind is a razor blade

To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn't be good enough
For me, no

One night of magic rush
The start, a simple touch
One night to push and scream
And then relief

Ten days of perfect tunes
The colors, red and blue
We had a promise made
We were in love

Dream Collaborations

 Okay, I'm gonna make this short and sweet.  These are the folks I would LOVE to see collaborate on any sort of musical project:

Me with Dallas Green of City and Colour.

City and Colour with Sade.  I know it sounds weird, but if you heard Dallas Green (the man behind City and Colour) sing the mashup of his song "Sometimes I Wish" and Sade's "Ordinary Love," you would want this collaboration, too!

Florence + the Machine with Adele.  Come on.  Two sultry Brits with killer voices?  Arrange a tour together, ladies.  Or record a song.  Anything!

Naya Rivera with Ne-Yo.  Yes, I'm a huge Gleek and Santana (Naya Rivera) is my favorite.  How cool would it be if she  not only released a solo album, but also collaborated with my favorite R&B artist.  Besides, Naya + Ne-Yo.  Come on!  The Naya/Ne-Yo tour. It just rolls off the tongue.

Jenny Lewis with Jenny Owen Youngs.  My two favorite Jennys.  East coast Jenny (Owen Youngs) and West Coast Jenny (Lewis).  The Biggie and Tupac of the girls with guitars world.  I'm salivating just thinking about it.

Ingrid Michaelson - Up Close and Personal

Ingrid!

Ingrid is back!  And I'm one of the lucky few who was able to attend one of her intimate "pop-up" shows in support of the release of her new album, Human Again.  She played at Hotel Cafe in Hollywood - probably the venue I've been to the most.  I love the intimacy of Hotel Cafe.  The maximum occupancy is approximately 150, so you know you're gonna get a truly personal show. 

I can't even express how amazing this show was.  I had only downloaded her new album a couple days ago, so I didn't have too much time to learn the songs she was going to perform, but the one song I found myself listening to on repeat (and the song I almost teared up to when she played it live) is called "Ghost."  That is by far my favorite song on the album.  It's one of the most heart-wrenching breakup songs I've ever heard.  Sample lyrics:

"Do you remember when the walls fell
Do you remember the sound that the door made when you closed it on me
Do you know that I went down to the ground
Landed on both my broken-hearted knees
I didn’t even cry
'Cause pieces of me had already died"

Trust me.  It's a tear-jerker.

The most exciting part of her show?  She invited one lucky fan up on stage to sing with her.  The song is called "The Chain."  It's off one of her previous albums and I think it's safe to say that it's my favorite Ingrid song.  It's sung in a round and Ingrid only had bandmate Allie Moss with her on stage, so she needed another voice for that song.  She asked for a volunteer and only two people raised their hands.  I was one of those two people.  The thought of maybe being able to sing on stage with Ingrid Michaelson was enough to make my heart beat out of its chest.  It's always been my dream to be invited on stage to sing with one of my favorite singers.  And who did she choose to sing with her?  The other girl that raised her hand.  Yup.  Story of my life.  But that's okay.  The other girl did a great job and I was genuinely excited for her.  My day will come...sooner or later.

Ingrid played the majority of the songs on her new album, while sneaking in some old fan favorites.  She had the crowd in the palm of her hand.  (Which, incidentally, is the name of one of her new songs, "Palm of Your Hand," which was just featured in an episode of Grey's Anatomy).  I've seen Ingrid four times in concert and every time, I'm captivated.  Not only by her voice and her music, but by the stories she shares with her audience.  She's known to vamp a lot between songs, sharing funny and engaging stories and she constantly keeps the audience laughing.
 
Once the show was over (too soon, if you ask me), I met up with her back stage and had a really nice conversation with her.  It's actually my second time meeting her and I really love how genuine and sweet she is.  They always say "Don't meet your heroes" but with Ingrid, thankfully, I wasn't disappointed.  She was open and honest and funny and I'm so thankful that I had this opportunity to talk to her.  She's playing at the Wiltern in April and of course I already have my tickets.  After the first time I saw her in concert, I made a solemn vow to never miss Ingrid when she's in LA.  I'm sticking too that vow.

Coachella 2012

So here's the Coachella lineup.  I have to admit, I've never actually been to Coachella.  I always want to go every year because of how many incredible bands are there, but I usually can't afford it and the thought of being in the desert in the searing heat and bright sun probably isn't the best for my fair, Irish skin.  But this is an impressive lineup. And it's TWO weekends!

The acts I'm most pumped about?  The Black Keys, Florence + the Machine, La Roux, Bon Iver, Martin Solveig, Mazzy Star, Cat Power and of course Feist!

Lyrics of the Day

Sometimes I wonder why
I'm so full of these endless rhymes
About the way I feel inside
I wish I could just get it right.

- City and Colour