I am in love. Her name is Marina Diamandis, or rather Marina and the Diamonds and she’s all I think about anymore. I mentioned her back in July, and my crush has increased tenfold in the time past.

Since discovering this gem (har har, see what I did there?), she’s released two EPs, three singles (two officially for her debut album, I believe) and three music videos to accompany those tracks. In order newest to oldest: Hollywood, Mowgli’s Road, and I Am Not A Robot. On February 22, her debut album, The Family Jewels will drop. Mark it on your calendars.

For those of you who know nothing of Marina, it’s hard for me to explain what she sounds like. Wikipedia lists her as “alternative, indie, new wave, pop”. A very understated description, I must say. There’s really just no one like her. And by the way, it’s just her—Marina & the Diamonds is not a band. She is Marina, and we [ her fans] are The Diamonds.

As usual, here are a few favorite tracks accompanied by poorly-written comments and scattered thoughts of a crazed fanboy.

Shampain — Drinking champagne, a bottle to myself, savor the taste of fabricated wealth — Easily one of my favorite tracks [ if not my absolutely favorite ]. I’ve been in love with the demo version for about a year now and it’s lovely to hear the final studio version. It’s so much louder with pulsing synths and beats. It’s one of those songs that instantly send me into a state of euphoria. Shampain definitely lands on the far electronic / synth end of Marina’s spectrum. I’d say it’s about as loud and synthetic as the album gets.

Hollywood — I’ve been living in a movie scene, puking American dreams — I had never heard this until the music video dropped for it in late November. It was love at first listen, really. Hollywood’s music and structure seemed mild and less bizarre than all the other songs I had known by Marina. Didn’t mean a thing though. Hollywood talks of Marina’s ongoing obsession with American culture. In several blog posts, she mentions her favorite American toys, candies, cartoons, etc. from her childhood.

The Outsider — Is there more to lose than gain, If I go on my own again? — For months I had been listening to a low-quality webrip of the final version—I was that desperate. The intro and bridge of this song really make it. It starts with vocals and piano and at the fourteen-second mark, in jumps a pulsing synth bass line. Three-quarters way through the bridge introduces a dreamy clap / tambourine pattern right before busting into a loud final chorus.

Numb — I feel numb most of the time, lower I get the higher I’ll climb — Numb really proves how diverse this album is. While a good deal of these have a synthetic new-wave sound, this track couldn’t be any further away. The layers of vocals create these beautiful church-choir-like harmonies that send chills.

Mowgli’s Road — There’s a fork in the road, I do as I’m told, and I don’t know who I want to be — I could watch this music video over and over for the rest of my life. It’s so simple and bizarre I just can’t take my eyes off of it. [ Pssst: I posted the link up a little bit. ] The song itself is equally as strange and beautiful with it’s catchy “cuckoo!” and whistling hooks.

Oh No! — TV taught me how to feel, now real life has no appeal … I know exactly why I walk and talk like a machine — Probably my second favorite track. The first time I listened to the thirty-second previews on UK iTunes, Oh No! stuck out and struck me instantly. Maybe because it was my first time hearing the song, while most of the others I had either heard leaks or demos of. Along with Shampain and Hollywood, I imagine Oh No! having some mainstream attention [ hopefully ]. Unfortunately I don’t foresee anything by Marina popping up on American top-forty radio, seeing as how no one really does unless they are Taylor Swift or Lil Wayne. Luckily, shows like Gossip Girl have given emerging indie-pop artists a bit of spotlight, which could be a nice way for Marina to add a few more Diamonds to her collection.

By the way, all of these amazing live photos are by Holly Erskine and Camille Promérat. Check out their flickrs for more Marina shots and lovely photos of other artists!

And what have we done? Another year over, a new one just begun.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! I hope everyone’s having as much fun as I am.

While in the mall the other day, I heard a song by these gals and instantly fell in love. Thank the song-id gods that Shazam picked it up and introduced me to this wonderful duo.

Wait Another Day — I will wait to love you, I will wait another day. For you I’d leave all this behind. I will wait for you tonight, I will waste another dream on you. Always run to you. — Holy crap, I can’t get over how addicted I am to this song. This song has a lovely, relaxed, but powerful sound to it. It’s seductive and sends chills down my spine. It’s the perfect balance between indie rock and synth. Very soft and dreamy sounding. Maybe I’m crazy, but their voices in the chorus sound a little like the sisters of Eisley. The end.

This year has been absolutely fantastic for new music. So far, we’ve had Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Metric, The Sounds, Imogen Heap, Mika, Muse, Spinnerette, Cobra Starship, Owl City, Meg & Dia, and Lily Allen. Now, we have Lights.

Any synthpop lovers out there? Did you just nod yes? Then you should know Lights. Think Donna Lewis vocals mixed with surreal new wave synths—all wrapped up with cute lyrics and infectious melodies. Her debut album, The Listening, gives us fifteen generous tracks. Here are a few of my favorite.

River — I want to go where you’re going, a follower following, changing but never changed, claiming but never claimed — One of my favorite tracks on The Listening, if not my favorite. The production for this song just sounds so much different, louder, and slightly more sophisticated than that of the rest. The pulsing, buzzing electronic music of the chorus is quite powerful sounding and fits the song nicely.

Lions! — lions make you brave, giants give you faith, death is a charade, you don’t have to feel safe to feel unafraid — Another one of my favorites. Not going to lie, the lyrics of Lions! reminds me a bit of World of Warcraft (which Lights is a player of) or Chronicles of Narnia (or any other fantasy story, to be honest). I know I’ve read of others having similar feelings. It’s definitely not a bad thing, though. This song is cute sounding and sort of encouraging/empowering in a nerdy/childish way.

Ice — what I mean is, all I need is, just a little emotion — This, along with Drive My Soul, February Air, and The Last Thing On Your Mind were tracks included on the album that also appeared on her first EP. While the other stayed the same, Ice saw a bit of a makeover. Certain synths sound a little less stringy and a bit more abrasive. Also, it sounds like there is a hint of vocoding/robotizing on the vocals in the chorus. In the end, most people probably wouldn’t notice a difference, but if you pay attention to those sort of things, you can appreciate the dancier approach this time around.

Saviour — stand me up and maybe I won’t be so small, free my hands and feet and maybe I won’t always fall — The lead single off The Listening. I was highly addicted to this track when it was made available for download before the album dropped. Now that I have a whole list of new songs to listen to, Saviour has slowly slid away. It’s still a great listen though. Actually, scratch that. After listening to it just now, it crawled back towards the top.

Upon discovery, I fell in love instantly with Swedish indie-pop duo The Sound Of Arrows. Or, atleast this song. Not much to say here, but give them a try. Think of this song and video as the love child of Pet Shop Boys and The Neverending Story.

I hope everyone remembers Mika—you know, the guy with who topped charts with songs like Grace Kelly and Relax, Take It Easy in 2007. Well, if for some odd reason you don’t recall such a person, it’s about time you experience his music.

Here, have a listen to his upcoming single, We Are Golden, and let the euphoric choir put you into a musical coma.

I can’t think of any adjective to describe this song with other than EPIC. It’s got it all—Mika singing in falsetto, loud guitars, screaming choirs—the whole shebang. My favorite part of the entire song is the last chorus, specifically at the 2:56 mark. If you make it past that segment and haven’t experienced chills down your spine, something might just be wrong with you.

Download: Mika - We Are Golden (mp3)

Expect a lot of posts about this wonder-woman. Her new album, Ellipse, drops August 24/25 and the closer we get, a little more is known.

Today, the opening track and lead single off Ellipse made its public debut on KCRW today and has now made its way onto blogs and the like. I’m in love. That’s all I can say.

If you’re an Immi fan, and haven’t heard this, I highly suggest you get your ass in gear and hitting play. Think Speak For Yourself mixed with Frou Frou and a whole new organic sound. If you have no idea who I’m talking about, I suggest you take a look at what she’s done. It’s really quite remarkable how almost all the work for her music (writing, recording, producing, mastering, etc) is done by literally no one but herself. Anywho, on to the track…

Download Imogen Heap - First Train Home (mp3)

I Am Not Robot — You are so magnetic, you pick up all the pins — I was definitely shocked a little when hearing this song. It’s not as robotic sounding as I had imagined. Rather, Marina’s operatic vocals are mixed with piano, strings, and a few twinkles and a minimal synth beat resulting in a beautifully mixed song. As the song starts, I’m reminded a bit of Regina Spektor, but as the track progresses it definitely takes on a sound of its own.

I Am Not Robot (The Aspirins For My Children Remix) — Better to be hated, than loved loved loved for what you’re not — All I can say is that this is a really nicely done remix. The song’s original mood is retained but livened up a bit with added synths and beats. This version brings on a surreal sound without overproduction.

Ellipse soon approaches—but not soon enough in my book. That’s right. Imogen Heap’s third album drops August 24/25 in the UK/US and from the what everyone seems to be saying, it’s epic.

Before I actually start talking about the music, I’d like to blab a little bit about this first photo. Found on Flickr, the shot is of Emily Haines of Metric by user crazybobbles. I can’t even being to describe how beautiful this is. Take a look at the rest of their sets—there are a lot of really good photos from live shows and concerts.

Ah, Metric. This is going to be hard to limit how much I write simply because I am madly in love with every single track on Fantasies.

Gimme Sympathy — we’re so close to something better left unknown — Possibly my favorite track off the album, and also one of my favorite songs ever. The song’s perfection lies within its first thirty seconds—the first verse.

Help I’m Alive — if i stumble, they’re going to eat me alive — First single and probably most interesting sounding off Fantasies. Something about the strange beat and sound effects used as the skeleton of the song draws me in. I hate to sound repetitive, but i think this track’s hook is in the first segment of the song also.

Twilight Galaxy— did they tell you you should grow up, when you wanted to dream — I think the title word “twilight” is probably the best idea to associated with this song. The dream-like synth sequence in combination with Emily’s calm vocals is very reminiscent of sunset/sunrise tranquilit. Definitely one of the slower tracks on the album, but definitely a gem.

I’ve been waiting for this for ages. Crossing The Rubicon, the new album from Swedish synth-rock-pop group The Sounds. 2009 has been a good year in music so far and it will only get better.

I have nothing to say really other than this album is truly epic. There’s a great mix of upbeat dance songs and a few beautiful rock ballads. What makes everything even better: a majority of the tracks have a very 80s-rock influenced sound.

No One Sleeps When I’m Awake — standing in the shadows I hear people say I’ve got confessions to make — The incredibly infectious lead single off Crossing The Rubicon is sure to please fans of The Sounds, alternative rock listeners, and then some with its catchy guitar hook.

Beatbox — turn it up and break it down, come on bring that beatbox back — This song is so energetic and fun it’s almost ridiculous. Maja’s rapping is a bit funny sounding, but I guarantee the beat will have you dancing in your seat. Promise.

Midnight Sun — I will be coming with you, tonight you’re all that I want — A beautiful and euphoric sounding rock ballad that screams midsummer love. A great track to listen to on a warm night with the windows down and moonroof open.