Honorable Mehntion #2

She & Him: "Sentimental Heart" (from Volume One)

I was excited when I found out that one of my favorite songwriters, M. Ward, was recording an album with one of my favorite actresses, Zooey Deschanel. The album as a whole didn't quite live up to my expections. The opening track, though, has an endearing simplicity that makes it shine. Zooey sounds a lot like Joanna Newsome here (a good thing). I hope that Volume Two has more tracks like this.

Excepter: "Kill People" (from Debt Debt)

This song sounds like You've Got Foetus On Your Breath or Cabaret Voltaire. If you don't know who these bands are, ask your cool post-goth aunt. It's nice to hear something besides shoegaze or post-punk in new music, as much as I love those sounds. Maybe the world is overdue for an early industrial (1976-83) revival.

Billy Bragg: "O' Freedom" (from Mr. Love & Justice)

I think the folk protest song is a lost art. Here we are, five years into an unnecessary and unpopular war, and the younger artists can't seem to write a direct and insightful song about it to save their lives. It makes me long for a songwriter with the talent and passion of Woody Guthrie. The four words emblazoned on his guitar, "This machine kills fascists," testify more credibly to the power of music to change the world than any song about the war in Iraq. In Woody's absence, though, it's great to hear a song like "O' Freedom". It has the classic structure of a protest song and its chorus is both a memorable slogan and a play on words. Its message is clear and effective. The younger generation of songwriters should take a lesson from Bragg.