AR Rahman & MIA - O... Saya

Sorry for not posting for so long, it's reading break and I've hardly had time to get on the computer.

This is the Oscar winner, AR Rahman with O... Saya, the first song from the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack, which I just picked up and have been listening to for days, driving my family slightly loco. It's a remarkable piece of work, I can't even begin to describe all the elements Rahman used. There's a touch of tribal feel with MIA's techno mix, it's a great celebration of a song, beautifully reflecting the theme of the movie. Enjoy.

--Vivian

Sam Hart - Mario Kart Love Song

Okay, this is a less serious post, but absolutely awesome. I received a link to this for Valentine's Day, and it's one of the cutest and dorkiest love songs I've ever heard. Here's to all the nerds out there.

--Vivian

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong - Cheek to Cheek

In my mind, there are very few things more romantic than a little Ella and Armstrong, some 50's jazzy love songs. There's just something so genuine and beautiful about old-school love. So here's wishing you a happy Valentine's Day.

--Vivian

P.S. I'm turning 20 today!

Lionel Richie - Hello

This is the first song I sang to Vivian.
I just wanted to say: Happy V-Day, I love you

--Jeff

Demi Lovato - Lala Land

Yeah I must admit, I've been quite in love with the Disney teen stars lately. There's something so great about good wholesome pop. Anyway, so here's Demi Lovato, best known as Mitchie Torres from Disney's Camp Rock. This little lady is only 16, but don't underestimate her voice. She's got one of the most amazing pop vocals I've heard in quite a long while, and not just for her age.

This song was the first title on her solo debut album, Don't Forget. It was my first encounter with this upcoming pop star, and let me tell ya, it blew me away. Before you come up with any biased notions about Disney's exploitation of young talent and yada yada, before you put her in the same category as Miley (and Miley is great but...) give this girl a chance. Just click play and you'll see what I'm talking about.

--Vivian

Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton - The Maid Needs a Maid

About 99% of people in the indie music scene should know about Emily Haines: the talented lead singer of Metric. Well, since Metric is already the over milked poster child for indie music, I've decided to post a song from her side venture instead. This song has been stuck in my head all day.

Haines once said during an interview that as she was writing this song, she gained an understanding of WHY men need women, and why women need maids. She realized that what she really needed in life was a good wife (despite being completely straight), just to take care of her. I was just having the same discussion this morning with my roommate about how great it would be to have a good wife to cook and clean for me. (Don't worry Jeff, this is not a hint.)

--Vivian

Ambulette - When I See You

It's always sad when you find a great band that you love, find their EP, eagerly await their first full-length debut album, and then find out they broke up before such a cd was even produced. Such is the case with Ambulette, the indie band started by Maura Davis. Or so I thought. Prior to Ambulette, Maura Davis was also a part of another band, Denali. After some research, I found that Ambulette isn't exactly broken up? Or this was the indication on their Myspace page. I'm still a little cloudy on their status. The good news is that Maura Davis is also singing in another band Glös, for certain, I'll post both Denali and Glös music later on. Meanwhile, please enjoy the existence confused Ambulette.

--Vivian

Carolyn Dawn Johnson - Don't Let Me Die of a Broken Heart

Hey! So, I have had this song in my head for the last few days... so I thought I would share it. Sorry about the lame "music video". She doesn't actually have one for this song, this is the best youtube so that you can actually hear the lyrics. Boo for broken hearts.

--Karah

Passion Pit - Cuddle Fuddle

Passion Pit is a synth pop group originated from Cambridge, Massachusetts (did I get the genre right?) The first time I heard them, their sound blew me away. There's just so much going on, and above all, it's sooooo catchy! This song will have you singing Rapunzel for the rest of the day.

I've shown this group to a few of my friends, and some really like them, but most found the singer's voice a little too whiny and annoying. It doesn't bother me at all, I'm thoroughly impressed with this band and I can't wait to see more from them.

--Vivian

Miley Cyrus - Wake Up America

Yeah yeah yeah, everyone and their mother has an opinion about Miley Cyrus, I like her, get over it. This is number 3 of our list for Mr. President. There's so much potential in the field of environmentalism; creating new industries for green technology and power could really be the boost our economy needs, it'll create the much needed jobs that America needs. I know President Obama has talked about green technology a lot, and he appointed some very capable and green people in charge of energy, but the real change for this field is coming slowly. I understand there are more pressing matters to take care of right now. I just hope the president doesn't forget about this.

Anyway, I'm not going to do an intro about Miley Cyrus. 90% of you guys should already know who she is and you've probably all made your conclusions about this girl already. Yes The Mix Tapes is a diverse atmosphere where we will include trendy pop alongside heavy metal. We don't discriminate =).

--Vivian