My song of the day, "It's Nice to Be Alive," by Ball Park Music, is a fun, sweet and happy pop tune.
I know. It's pretentious and glib to make musical comparisons. But you've got to start somewhere.
There's a touch of the Strokes' elegant and timeless soundscape in this Australian indie rock band. Their coolness is also abetted by a secret weapon: the harmonic marriage between the tinny, wistful and vulnerable vocals by frontman Sam Cromack (he sounds more than a bit like Radiohead's Thom York) and the girl-group cute backup provided by bassist Jennifer Boyce.
--Sarah Torribio