From The Air To My Ears

James Rabbit “Red, Blue, Violet” – This is a cheerful song, but it’s very restless. The singer is infatuated with a girl, but deeply frustrated because he can only advance his flirtation in fits and starts, so way too much of his time is spent anticipating the next move, the next step, the next possibility for total disaster. The song is barely even about her — it’s more about finding a way to kill the time when she’s not around. He alternates between a feeling of stasis and moments of sincere — though obsessive — inspiration. There’s a lot of romance and sweetness in Tyler Martin’s words, but the most affecting line is very simple and blunt: “I need to be near you, I need to be near you!” In another context, it’d be a pretty ordinary line, but here, the frustration has less to do with needy co-dependence, and everything to do with despising all the long, boring stretches between the good parts in life. (Click here to buy it from James Rabbit.)

Quando Quango “Love Tempo (Remix)” – The rap at the start is a bit pleading, but within a few seconds, the invitation to dance, make out, go out, whatever, becomes much more, well, inviting. The singer’s job in this song is to spell out his intentions, but the music handles all the expression, and conveys his generosity, sweetness, optimism, and good-natured excitement. There’s a lovely glow to this song that grows brighter as it moves along towards a climax that — lucky for us! — hits a few times over: “Heartbeats, heartbeats, heartbeats…a love tempo!” (Click here to buy it from Dance Tracks Digital.)