Laws – Hold You Down (Remix)

Forget for a moment that the hook of this high-octane hip-hop massacre sounds like it’s sung by Optimus Prime (which is awesome in and of itself); what I really love about the track is Laws himself. Born in Brazil and raised in Florida, this budding rap star rounds up a hot trio of featuring Big K.R.I.T. and Emilio Rojas (who kicks things off going like a million miles an hour).  This is hot, hot heat, people. Hot, hot heat.

A Fine Frenzy – Electric Twist

Alison Sudol is officially my new celebrity crush, and I’ve got the music video for “Electric Twist” to thank for that. The song itself is perfect—upbeat but patient—a snazzy, thumping rock track that croons and soothes and boogies all at the same time, and Sudol’s subtle dance moves in the video are the epitome of sexy. Talented gal, great song, perfect video.

Simon Webbe – Grace

It’s hard to sing in the lowest registers of the male voice and maintain a legitimately poppy sound, but Webbe just pumps out hit and after hit without having to trill like Christina Aguilera or drill super-high notes like (ugh) Adam Lambert. The man just sings it and means it, and so many of his tracks are rife with positive messages that it’s hard not to just enjoy the whole Simon Webbe experience. “Grace” might be a couple years old, but it’s been getting a lot of play in my iPod lately. Gorgeous melodies drive this track from start the finish, but it’s catchy and moving enough to leave you affected well after the facts.

It’s not often you come across a single person that has an entire band name.  I mean, I guess there’s Prince and Owl City and Moby and Girl Talk.  But other than that, it’s pretty rare.  A Fine Frenzy is actually the secret code name/actual artist name for Alison Sudol, the alternative singer-songwriter pianist from Seattle and, to be honest, the name fits the bill.  Granted the name was taken from a Shakespeare verse (because apparently Ms. Sudol is quite the literary word wizard), but it fits eerily close to what I imagine my description of her music would be if I had to explain it in three words from a Shakespeare verse.  Weird…

She currently has two albums on the market; the first released in 2007 and the second, Bomb In A Birdcage, released  less than a month ago in September 2009.   If I had to compare her music to someone, I’d probably say that she’s a mixture of Ben Folds and Regina Spektor with a splash of Paolo Nutini (see “Electric Twist” off of the new album) and a whisper of Norah Jones.  Her music is generally upbeat and paints a vivid musical landscape that’s easy to follow, but musically complex in its own right.  Whoa, that was pretty deep.

A Fine Frenzy is also currently busy touring across the country and is also extremely busy being good-looking (see caption on picture.)  But even with all that working overtime, she still finds time to have over 1,300,000 Twitter followers.  I guess you could say she’s “Seattle’s Best.”

Best Tracks: “Blow Away”, “What I Wouldn’t Do”, “Electric Twist” and “The Beacon.”

Check out her new single “Blow Away”:

If you like A Fine Frenzy, check out Zee Avi!