From the singer, Victoria Bergsman:

"[T]he kind of dream I am referring to in this song is more like a sense of longing, a vision of a place where things are quiet, like floating in the ocean off of Hawaii. I find that very hard, feeling at peace, feeling that things are OK just as they are. In the past I always feared that calm would lead to laziness, but now I see it more as a strength, something I want to achieve."

My first resolution for 2013 is to be less lazy, but I'm glad there are songs like this to argue for the other side.

My second resolution is to listen to more songs like this.

Taken By Trees - Dreams (download)

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Listen to more Taken By Trees 

I'm not good at writing end-of-the-year lists, but this is on the top of my favorite-songs-of-right-now list (my favorite list of all). Thanks Toyboy & Robin.

Toyboy & Robin - In Need (download)

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Slo-mo'd vocals, sensual synths, wavering tempos; these are a few of my favorite things. Thanks for the holiday treat Kastle.

Stream on soundcloud / Free DL on facebook.

photo: Tom Hines

World, meet Denitza Todorova, aka D E N A. Although it's easy to draw parallels of her work to commercially minded alts like Lana and M.I.A, I see a playfulness in the Bulgarian-born, Berlin-based baroness that reads more genuine.

The video has been out since early-summer, but more timely is the EP mini-mix as Kitsune gears up to release the Cash, Diamond Rings, Swimming Pools EP out January 28th. As with any set of remixes, we will all have a few favorites, but it's enjoyable to hear so many interpretations of the song mixed into one mp3.

One of my favorite Aussie artists (and that's saying a lot), Lancelot, released the fifth edition in his KnighTime mix series earlier today. Kept me cranking all day! Get the free download from soundcloud, and check out tracklisting below. 

Tracklisting:

1. Francis Inferno Orchestra - Astral Breeze
2. Hot Natured - Benediction
3. Mario Basanov - Damn Girl
4. Isaac Tichaeur - I Forgive You
5. Lancelot - Higher Ground
6. Elijah Collins - When I'm Around You
7. Danny Daze - Niki and Da Dub
8. Alain Ho - Into a Deep (Hot Toddy Remix)
9. Tensnake - Mainline
10. Bicep, Omar Odyssey - Don't
11. Hot Since 82 - Knee Deep in Louise
12. Scandal - Just Let Me Dance (Maxxi Soundsystem Remix)
13. Audiojack, Kevin Knapp - These Days Feat. Kevin Knapp (Jimmy Edgar Implication)
14. Art Of Tones - Too Much

Photo: Eugenia Loli

Check your ego at the door. Thanks Nicolas!

Nicolas Jaar & Theatre Roosevelt - The Ego (download)

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As a Bon Iver fan, I'm generally quite critical of any remix, but Stop The Car exceeded all expectations with this remix of "Towers." It's dramatically different from the original yet still maintains the sense of solemnity that defines it. 

Photo: John Crawford

I felt like a Tinkertoy kid building my own self out

It is Friday afterall. 

Photo: Morgan Maassen

Remember the "Weapons of Choice" music video? Well if I had a million bucks, I'd remake it with Christopher Walken dancing to THIS track.