March (Twenty-)One-Offs: Josh Rouse, Tunng

When blogging against the clock as I do each night the process of weighing every single thing against every single other thing too often gets in the way of appreciating a single song. Today I present two very good tracks from respectable records that on the whole just didn't set my music-loving soul ablaze. However, just because an entire set may not catch our fancy doesn't mean they didn't feature individual tracks that made me internally exclaim something akin to "hot diggity!"

Josh Rouse is making waves in the blogosphere and the NPRosphere with his forthcoming Nettwerk release Subtitulo, which streets March 21. Mr. Rouse's brand of airy pop can be a bit too feather-light for my taste; I have the same issue with some of Archer Prewitt's solo stuff. Even so, Rouse's music reminds me of certain great tracks on Sean Lennon's splendid solo set Into The Sun. Check out the cut "The Man Who...," which has arresting girl/guy vocals and a nice dynamic chorus. The whole package, right down to the whispered "1-2-3-4," is really delish.

Josh Rouse -- "The Man Who..." -- Subtitulo [buy it!]

Also hitting American racks March 21 is Tunng's Mother's Daughter & Other Songs [Ace Fu]. The UK-based act does the folktronica thing as well as any, and Tunng's record has already piled up accolades in the UK when it was released a year ago. The various elements at work in the pretty track "Beautiful And Light" are optimally balanced. Acoustic guitar emerges from a passing train and catches a ride on insistent bass and clicks and tones; Warm, fuzzy (not in the Hallmark (c) manner) vocals provide a more comprehensible narrative than you may be used to getting in your light electronic diet. This is a great track for a quiet summer morning at the beach.

Tunng -- "Beautiful And Light" -- Mother's Daughter & Other Songs [buy it!]

Bonus:

Sean Lennon -- Into The Sun -- Into The Sun [buy it!]
Archer Prewitt -- In The Sun -- In The Sun [buy it!]