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Kate Earl - "Melody"
A little bit of Adele, a little bit of Amy Winehouse, a little bit of Lily Allen. Alaska-reared Earl's reggae/doo-wop/turntable-scratching single is proof that there's no shame in liking music that's simply pretty.

The Drums - "I Felt Stupid"
Stupid? Brooklyn's Drums shouldn't be so hard on themselves! After all, their music has been described as "contagiously energetic," "immediately infectious," and, on this very site, "instantly catchy." But after falling hard for this buoyant, new-wavey cut, we think a simple "bangin'" (get it? punny!) should suffice.

Rhett Miller - "Nobody Says I Love You Anymore"
A few key facts about the singer-songwriter: (1) he's the lead singer for the alt-country band the Old 97's; (2) he just released an excellent fourth solo album this summer; and (3) he's reaaaaally easy on the eyes. Thankfully, he's also easy on the ears—as exhibited by this charming lament about love and heartbreak.

Mr. Hudson - "Lift Your Head"
Hudson is actually Ben McIldowie, a buddy of Kanye West's who popped up on the rapper-raconteur's track "Paranoid." (Sidebar: Do we forgive the loosed-lipped Yeezy yet?) The debut from the U.K.-based singer drops in November. But in the meantime, we offer you one of his best tracks, and challenge you to keep its gospel-pop hook out of your head.

SALEM - "Frost"
SALEM (as featured in NYLON's August 2009 issue) are an electro-goth trio who write songs about…well, we're not exactly sure what they're about. But let's just say given that co-vocalist John Holland is pretty upfront about his hustler/crack-addict past, we're fairly confident these ditties are not about, like, rainbows and unicorns. "Frost," side A of their latest seven-inch, is quite possibly one of their most atmospheric, somnambulant compositions yet.
NISHA GOPALAN



This story was published on September 25, 2009.