TV on the Radio: Wolf Like Me. More than just about any other band, TV on the Radio makes music that makes me want to dance. And not shuffle-from-side-to-side dance, more like jump-in-the-middle-of-the-dance-floor-and-lose-my-sh*t dance.

I wouldn’t even qualify TVotR as a dance band, but the New York-based quintet certainly knows how to produce music that makes you want to move. Their sound is eclectic, ranging from trip-hop to a cappella to jazz and Wolf Like Me (from 2006’s Return to Cookie Mountain) is as dark and sexy as it is fun.

Talking Heads: This Must be the Place (naïve melody). This song has special meaning to me because it is my and my boyfriend’s “song”. It captures the uncertainty and exhilaration that accompanies love with David Byrne’s beautifully eccentric voice and the delicate musical arrangement.

My favorite version is from the 1984 documentary/live performance Stop Making Sense. In the film, David Byrne says that this is the only love song he’s ever written and as such, he is singing it to a lamp. Weird, wonderful, transcendent, just like the Talking Heads and just like love.

The Roots: Rising Up.
I thought it was best to discuss The Roots with a live version of one of their many kick-ass songs. This is from their most recent album, Rising Down, and really shows how dynamically the members of the band interact with each other and their material.

The Roots are true to their name, working with moving, earthy beats that surround the listener like a warm day. I’ve seen them live before and it was one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to in my life. You listen to The Roots and feel constantly surprised and compelled to move. It’s like audience-interactive jazz, and a total blast to listen to.

Bat for Lashes: Horse and I. Bat for Lashes singer Natasha Khan has a very pleasant voice and really eccentric songs that seem to work despite themselves. I say this because it’s difficult to pull off a song about a mystic journey and a magical headdress and a horse-friend but Khan manages and creates an intricate and sort of earnest piece of music that is more lovely than laughable. Really, every song on her album Fur and Gold is amazing and totally original.

Eagles of Death Metal: I Only Want You. Unlike the impression I get from Bat for Lashes, Eagles of Death Metal don’t seem to take themselves very seriously at all, which makes for a seriously enjoyable listening experience.

All of their songs hearken back to classic rock and dirty rock and roll about sex and, well, mostly they are all about sex. I Only Want You has a kick-ass beat and the listening is as fun and simple as the song itself.