This week was a good, if not totally random, week for music. I mean, who groups Daughtry, Jack White’s the Dead Weather, and the soundtrack to 500 Days of Summer in one category? I do. And I love them all.

Though, in totally different ways.

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. Read More »

I like music I can sing along to. Even better is music I only have to listen to once before I start singing along. Sometimes I find myself singing along before I even know the lyrics. Other people get annoyed at my mixture of mumbles and hums, but I can’t help myself.

That’s how this week’s new releases were for me; I loved them right from the start and couldn’t help singing along. Plus, the lyrics to many of these songs pretty much rock. Of course, I already knew all the songs on the Ben Folds album, but I was immediately dancing and singing along to the new versions (and that’s not always easy to do with a cappella music).

I’m pretty sure, in fact, that this week’s new releases have caused my roommate to start packing and my neighbors to buy earplugs. What? I never said I had a good voice, but I really just can’t help singing along. Read More »

From seemingly soft-spoken crooners (Jenny Lewis, Regina Spektor) to loud-mouthed firecrackers (Beth Ditto, Amanda Palmer) it’s no surprise that women have taken the reins from the guys and have proved that, they too, can rock as hard as any man. It’s time to let the ladies take over for a bit, and none too soon. Check out AOLmusic’s top female performers who are currently rocking the stage (and your iPod) right now. Photos after the jump: Read More »

There are so many reasons to root for Regina Spektor. Not only does her music have a unique, refreshing and whimsical sound that will lighten your heart, but the girl has worked tirelessly to get to where she is today.

With the release of her fifth album, Begin To Hope, things are finally starting to take off in the mainstream. Her song On the Radio was featured on Grey’s Anatomy this past season, and despite the decline in quality of the show itself, its soundtrack still manages to make stars out of relative unknowns. And the mainstream is right about where Regina deserves to be—except that we’ll miss her intimate shows at small venues.

Moving to the Bronx from Russia at the age of 9, Spektor had to improvise when she got to the States. The family left their piano behind in Moscow, and Regina was forced to practice on anything she could find upon her arrival here—window sills, and benches included. She ended up honing her craft, and developing her songwriting skills on a piano in the basement of her synagogue. Read More »

Regina Spektor: “Fidelity”