Sometimes I love a band so much, I just sit and wait for them to come out with something new. Well, I don’t literally sit and wait, but I do get really excited when I know a release date is near. And this week, my long and painful wait was over.

This week’s new releases left me pleasantly surprised. From an album by an artist I had never heard of, to one I thought I knew very well, to one I resisted listening to for oh so long. Sometimes you need to open up a bit and take a few risks in order to find joy, and that goes for music, too.

This week might be the most random mix of reviews ever. Seriously, ever. I even surprised myself a bit. I was ready to love who I already loved and hate who I wanted to hate, but that’s not at all what happened. The one album I was most excited for fell flat. And the one I barely even wanted to listen to, well, I kinda liked.

Chris Daughtry I love in a good-boy rocker kind of way. Jack White I love in a creepy weirdo fascination kind of way. And the 500 Days of Summer I love in a Zooey Deschanel kind of way. I love music in lots of different ways and this week is a prime example of how much my love can vary.

This week was all about men and, what can I say? I love me some men. With guitars. Who make good music. (That last one is key.) Yup, I had a big, beautiful music orgy this week and I just want more. Bring on the boys!

Do you ever feel like you’ve heard so much about an artist that you don’t even bother to listen to them? Maybe it’s just that I like to discover music on my own, but if someone over-talks a band or a musician, I sometimes feel like I know them and don’t take the time to listen to them.

Call me crazy, but I truly believe you can put a season label on most albums. I mean, think about it – certain songs are best for snuggling under lots of blankets during a snowstorm. And some songs are just perfect for sitting in the sun or cruising with the top down (if you happen to be so lucky to own a car in which the top can come down).

Sometimes I think the toughest part about being a musician isn’t all the fans throwing their undies at you on stage or all the money you make from touring…it’s got to be be finding yourself in such a giant industry. Out of all the possible genres and sounds, you need to pick the one that’s best for you and stick to it.

This week was all about utilizing what I learned in Girl Scouts all those years ago. No, not building a fire or navigating my way out of a forest, but that whole “make new friends but keep the old” adage.

You know those artists that just seem to disappear all of the sudden? One minute they’re in your life (and in your head) and the next, you don’t really know where they are and you spend your days wondering if they took some office job somewhere.