Monster - The Almost
Most might know The Almost as the side project of Underoath’s drummer Aaron Gillespie, but they are much more than that. Their second album entitled Monster Monster is an impressive showcase of southern rock style music and punk lyrics. The final track titled “Monster”, is a personal favorite of mine. The acoustic guitars twang while Aaron gently croons over them, a heartfelt emotional cavalcade of lyrics that open up the song. When the chorus hits, even as soft as it is with acoustic guitars, it hits hard in the heart every single time. Try not to find yourself spacing out and just losing yourself in this tune!

Baby - Sliimy
“You look concentrated, watching Gossip Girl”, any song that starts off with this lyric basically has me sold. Thankfully the song from there jumps right into beautifully paced rhythms and a peaceful chorus. Sliimy is a french pop star already, and thanks to the recognition of blogger Perez Hilton - he’s signed to his label - he should be making a splash in America some time very soon. His debut album, Paint Your Face, is filled with many more of these abstract pop gems that make you want to hop on the next plane to Paris.

Back Of My Hand - Down With Webster
There aren’t enough good break-up songs in rap nowadays don’t you think? They are all about falling in love, or mourning lost love, nothing aggressive enough anymore. But thanks to Down With Webster’s latest jam “Back Of My Hand” rocks with heavy guitars and drums that make you want to jump up and down and scream along with them. The anticipation of the first verse building into the guitars is one of the biggest pump-up moments for me at the moment - if not this year.

Everybody Loves Me - OneRepublic
So I guess we’ve moved on from “Apologize” right? The single that sent this band to super stardom has come and gone, and we are now set with a new batch of songs that will have us singing until their next release. One of the strongest tracks is the jam-band feelings of “Everybody Loves Me”, which starts with clap-along drums and a warm acoustic guitar rhythm, rising into an a capella chorus and lyrics you can’t help but sing along with. This band came into music to change the face of pop, and they are proving it with these new tunes once they hit the radio again.

Sweater Song - Hedley
Okay so I’m going to call this before anyone else, because soon enough the lyrics from Hedley’s tune “Sweater Song” will line hundreds of Facebook status updates and photo albums. The cute lyrics and acoustic rhythm sway back and forth in such a way that you can’t help but love it. Hedley are a band that are great at these kinds of songs, with Jacob Hoggard sounding particularly innocent and crooning on this one right here. Try to prove me wrong, but I’m pretty sure I have a safe bet with this one here.