Ooooooh…Friday the 13th. <insert superstition here>. But seriously, we’ve already had our bad luck here back in January with all sorts of bandwidth issues and what not. But our bad luck seems to be over now (ironically), and we’re back bringing you the best of new and old music :)

BTW, for those of our followers on hype machine, be sure to click that little heart next to the songs you love. I’ve been using them as a guide for what kind of stuff to post in my Friday Fixes, so please help us bring you guys music you’ll like!

On with the show! Enjoy!

Ben Lee – I Love Pop Music (2009, Bondi, Australia) With his brand spankin’ new album just released, Ben charms us with this poppy, yet depressing song (well, the lyrics) from “The Rebirth of Venus”. Having several albums under his belt, he’s also worked with Ben Folds and Ben Kweller in a band called “The Bens”, and took lead vocals for a 90s band called “Noise Addict”.

Lily Allen – The Fear (2009, London, England) Yet another poppy song…sue me. ;) Lily Allen has an amazing voice to accompany her dance-y songs. You can find this little ditty on “It’s Not Me, It’s You”, which was just released.

Badly Drawn Boy – Nothing’s Gonna Change Your Mind (2006, Lancashire, England) What’s not to love about Damon Gough singing along with the piano? I really need to get more stuff by this artist. I’ve got an album and a few singles by him, but everything I’ve gotten so far has been amazingly solid works. This song can be found on his latest album, “Born in the UK”. 2006? Really? Damon, c’mon! You’re killing me here! Release some new stuff already…please? :)

The Helio Sequence – Can’t Say No (2008, Portland, Oregon) Perhaps one of the most over looked albums of 2008, “Keep Your Eyes Ahead” by The Helio Sequence is an amazing album released early in the year. Not their first album, this band has been producing albums steadily since 2000. Brandon Summers takes vocal/guitar duties, while Benjamin Weikel accompanies him with keyboard/drum duties.

Burning Hearts – I Lost My Colour Vision (2009, ???, Finland) Have I found an awesome Finnish band before Flint? No..it can’t be. I fully believe he’s heard of Burning Hearts before myself. At any rate, this can be found on their debut album “Aboa Sleeping”. Consisting of Jessika Rapo and Henry Ojala, the band members were also members of “Cats on Fire” (Henry, drums) and “Le Futur Pompiste” (Jessika, vocals).

Here We Go Magic – Tunnelvision (2009, Brooklyn, New York) I’ll admit that this song just seemed mediocre to me at first, but this song has really grown on me. You can find “Tunnelvision” on their soon released self-titled debut album on the 17th.

Wow. It’s been a few weeks. With the bandwidth overload and holidays, I’ve just been hard pressed to find the time to write these. Shame…Shame on me! Fear not though, as I will resume these starting now! :)

You might notice that this was posted a few days before Friday, and that’s because I’ll be out in San Jose at FC this weekend relaxing and such. If you’re there, look me up! :)

Enough talk, on with the tunes!

The Long Blondes – Once and Never Again (2006, Sheffield, England) The sound of this song really takes me back to that of “The Pretenders”, perhaps with a bit of “Blondie” tossed in. At any rate, this enjoyable little ditty can be found on their 2006 debut release “Someone to Drive You Home”. The band broke up in 2008 shortly after Dorian Cox (guitar), their lead song writer, suffered a stroke.

Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele – Meet me in the Garden (2009, Oxford, Mississippi) Perhaps this style of music won’t be enjoyed by all. Perhaps it will. *shrugs* Honestly, music is subjective to taste, and I personally really enjoy this song by Dent May & his Magnificent Ukulele. A bit laid back, a bit poppy, a bit packed with ukulele, this song will be available once his debut album is released on February 3rd. If you dig this song, you should also check out “You Can’t Force a Dance Party”.

Voxtrot – Trouble (2006, Austin, Texas) Another super sweet band from my hometown of Austin, Texas, Voxtrot reminds me of “Belle & Sebastian” and that’s a good thing. This song can be found on their “Your Biggest Fan” EP, the band followed this release with their full length self titled album in 2007. I’m really hoping that these guys release a new album in 2009.

A.C. Newman – Submarines of Stockholm (2009, Vancouver, British Columbia) Ya know, the first few times I heard this song, I wasn’t much of a fan, but like some great songs tend to do, they grow on you, and this song was definitely in that category. Found on the latest solo album from this lead vocalist of “The New Pornographers”, this album is released today.

Mark Ronson featuring Lily Allen – Oh My God (2007, London, England) This great track features great trumpet and vocals. I’m a sucker for songs that use good trumpets and vocals. I should stop drooling over this song…*cough* Found on Ronson’s second album, “Version”, he fuses a range of musical genres from Santogold to Ol’ Dirty Bastard to Phantom Planet with an up tempo contemporary funk sound. All the songs on this album are covers of previous Billboard top-10 pop songs, with a jazzy twist.