This isn't your 13 year old sister's Mandy Moore...

I have found a new artist, and, yes, her name happens to be Mandy Moore. Okay, so maybe it's just Mandy Moore. But, I swear, Ms. Moore's new album is nothing akin to Candy...er, right, I don't know the names of any of Mandy Moore's old stuff....

Right. This blog is called Guilt Free Pleasures. No need to preface my post about Mandy Moore. (Still, I can't help but feel that my street cred has taken a considerable hit.)

I stumbled upon Mandy Moore's new album while fiddling with my co-worker's iPhone the other day (heelllllloo gadget lust!) and wandered into the iTunes app. I listened to some samples, and found my head bopping along to the soulful, slightly Lilith-Fair-esque quality. Home I went, and happily so, to download Moore's new album, "Amanda Leigh." Mandy shows much versatility on this album, as she can just as easily sound ethereal and breathy (a la Sarah McLaughlin) as she can folksy. 

Fern Dell [mp3] (iTunes)

Pocket Philosopher [mp3] (iTunes)

Theme Thursday - Halloween

In honor of the holiday yesterday, I thought I would do Halloween for our theme today.

Halloween [mp3] - Aqua - "Aquarius" (iTunes). Oh Aqua. So silly, all the time.

Halloween [mp3] - Jade - "Jade" (iTunes unavailable). A little less silly, but can you really take a song about Halloween seriously?

Halloween [mp3] - Original Broadway Cast of Rent (iTunes). Ok, so I guess you can have a serious song about Halloween. It's not really about Halloween though.

Candy [mp3] - Mandy Moore - "So Real" (iTunes). I had to put a song about candy on here, since that's the best part of Halloween. I also could've put "Candyman" by Aqua, but I thought 2 Aqua songs might be a bit much.

Hope everyone's in a lovely state of sugar bliss. Happy (belated) Halloween! Tata dahlings.

Wacky Wednesday - 8.8.07

Today I'm going to post songs that I like because they are just really funny or wacky or silly. Because, like this article I read in Entertainment Weekly today, I agree that sometimes music shouldn't have to be about "high art," but it should just be whatever makes you happy. And these songs make me smile.

Grace Kelly (mp3) - Mika - Life in Cartoon Motion (iTunes). I don't really feel the need to say anything about this song. Just listen to it. You'll see.

Two for the Price of One - Abba - The Visitors (iTunes). Ok, so I can't actually post this one because I only have it in a protected file (stupid iTunes...) and I can't find it anywhere in a post-able format. But I wanted to tell you guys it's out there and it's great and most people have never heard of it because it's not really one of their better known songs. It's a song kind of about the personal ads. And it's also one of the catchiest songs ever. Seriously, it will get stuck in your head for days.

What You Want (mp3) - Mandy Moore - So Real (iTunes). Best underage stripper song ever... I think at one point Mandy Moore offered to reimburse anyone who bought this CD. While I can kind of understand why she might not be so proud of it, I still love the CD because it's hilarious and fun. And she was like, what, 15 and completely not in control of her own career? So don't worry Mandy, you have nothing to be ashamed of. And frankly, I like her better as an actor anyway.

It's Raining Men (mp3) - The Weather Girls - Success (iTunes). I always knew this song (everybody at least kind of knows it), but I had never really listened to it very closely until recently and I actually laughed out loud on the subway listening to it a few days ago and people looked at me like I was crazy. Listen to the beginning. I love the talking in the background. "How low girl?" "What sources now?" haha. Maybe I'm really easily amused, but I mean, the premise of the song is pretty funny too.

Ok, hopefully these songs provided you a little laughter to get through the rest of the week. I know I needed it today. It was a rough day, what with the crazy storms last night and all. I spent more time commuting today than actually working... So yay for fun music that gets us through the 2-hour subway ride that is only supposed to be 25 minutes. Tata dahlings.