• 50. Linkin Park – “Shadow of the Day” – Minutes to Midnight
• 49. The Raconteurs – “Steady As She Goes” – Broken Boy Soldiers
• 48. The Letter Black – “Hanging On By a Thread” – Breaking the Silence
• 47. Paper Tongues – “Ride To California” – Paper Tongues
• 46. We the Kings – “We’ll Be A Dream (ft. Demi Lovato)” – Smile Kid
• 45. Breaking Benjamin – “Give Me a Sign” – Dear Agony
• 44. Paper Tongues – “Trinity” – Paper Tongues
• 43. Falling Up – “Moonlit” – Dawn Escapes
• 42. Lifehouse – “Halfway Gone” – Smoke & Mirrors
• 41. B.o.B. – “Airplanes (feat. Hayley Williams of Paramore)” – B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray
• 40. Needtobreathe – “You Are Here” – Daylight
• 39. Sixpence None the Richer – “There She Goes” – Sixpence None The Richer
• 38. Rise Against – “Savior” – Appeal to Reason
• 37. Anberlin – “You Belong Here” – Dark Is The Way, Light Is A Place
• 36. Falling Up – “Searchlights” – Dawn Escapes
• 35. Nickelback – “Far Away” – All the Right Reasons
• 34. Sixpence None the Richer – “Breathe Your Name” – Divine Discontent
• 33. Rise Against – “Audience of One” – Appeal to Reason
• 32. The Gaslight Anthem – “American Slang” – American Slang
• 31. Mumford & Sons – “The Cave” – Sigh No More
• 30. Rob Thomas – “Mockingbird” – Cradlesong
• 29. Weezer – “Buddy Holly” – Blue Album
• 28. Needtobreathe – “Stones Under Rushing Water” – The Outsiders
• 27. 30 Seconds to Mars – “Kings and Queens” – This Is War
• 26. Katy Perry – “Teenage Dream” – Teenage Dream
• 25. B.o.B. – “Magic (feat. Rivers Cuomo)” – B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray
• 24. Paramore – “Turn It Off” – Brand New Eyes
• 23. Maroon 5 – “If I Never See Your Face Again (feat. Rihanna)” – It Won’t Be Soon Before Long
• 22. Mae – “Suspension” – The Everglow
• 21. Needtobreathe – “Nothing Left To Lose” – The Heat
• 20. Dorothy Savage – “As Long As It Takes” – Glorious Mess
• 19. Kerrie Roberts – “Beautiful to Me” – Kerrie Roberts
• 18. Falling Up – “Good Morning Planetarium” – Captiva
• 17. Relient K – “The Lining Is Silver” – The Bird And The Bee Sides
• 16. Needtobreathe – “Shine On” – Daylight
• 15. The Classic Crime – “The Fight” – Albatross
• 14. Train – “If It’s Love” – Save Me, San Francisco
• 13. 30 Seconds to Mars – “This Is War” – This Is War
• 12. Kerrie Roberts – “No Matter What” – Kerrie Roberts
• 11. Nickelback – “Never Gonna Be Alone” – Dark Horse
• 10. Owl City – “Vanilla Twilight” – Ocean Eyes
• 9. Anberlin – “Dismantle. Repair.” – Cities
• 8. Falling Up – “A Guide To Marine Life” – Captiva
• 7. Train – “This Ain’t Goodbye” – Save Me, San Francisco
• 6. Anberlin – “The Art Of War” – Dark Is The Way, Light Is A Place
• 5. Breaking Benjamin – “I Will Not Bow” – Dear Agony
• 4. Kerrie Roberts – “This Love Doesn’t Run” – Kerrie Roberts
• 3. Needtobreathe – “Something Beautiful” – The Outsiders
• 2. 30 Seconds to Mars – “Closer to the Edge” – This Is War
• 1. The Temper Trap – “Fader” – Conditions

“Ride to California” is a highlight.  It opens with a slightly ethnic beat and rap and goes into a more hip-hop/pop/rock groove that you can’t help but bob your head to.  And all along, there are deep, soaring synths and guitar riffs accompanying.  It’s hard to keep their music in a box.  That’s one of the things that stand out to me.  Paper Tongues is original.  Mark my word, I predict “Trinity” will be a radio hit, and “Ride to California” will be popular among clubs, dances, and college campuses.

Be sure to download “Trinity” for free from iTunes.  Also, you can get “Ride to California” for free on the Paper Tongues MySpace page and the music video on the Paper Tongues website by entering your e-mail in the form on the right side of the page.  Definitely check this band out.

For many years, when I was back home, I listened to Air 1 in the car.  They played “You Are Here,” “Streets Of Gold,” “Signature Of Divine (Yahweh),” and “Washed By The Water” regularly.  For various reasons, including the fact that it is usually hard for me to appreciate a song by listening to it on the radio because of the missing frequencies, I dismissed NeedToBreathe as any other band.

A month or so ago, however, I was in a movie theater watching trailers before the feature presentation when I saw the one for Extraordinary Measures.  When I saw it again before another movie, I noticed the song that played in the background of the trailer.  When I returned home, I immediately looked it up and discovered that it was “Nothing Left To Lose” by NeedToBreathe.  Then I thought, “Hey, isn’t that one band that I heard on Air1?”  Though I did not really pay much attention before, I recognized the band’s name.

I looked on their website to find “Nothing Left To Lose.”  I absolutely loved it. I listened over and over.  Discovering that the track was from their album, The Heat, I also recognized “Streets Of Gold,” “Signature Of Divine (Yahweh),” and “Washed By The Water” in addition to the album cover.  I then checked out Daylight and found “You Are Here.”  Then I thought, “Yep, it is them.”

I became addicted to their music, and I think I still am.  Unfortunately, I am currently not in the position to purchase the actual, physical albums from the store, I listened through all three of them on their website.  Bo Rinehart’s voice is just so deep and rich (reminds me a little of Caleb Followill’s), and the music is filled with so much warmth.  You can really hear the band’s small South Carolina town origins in some of their very soulful songs.  Listening to the tracks, I cannot help but be moved with the passion and emotion.

I noticed a transition from a pop/rock sound on their first album, Daylight, to a more folk/country-ish sound on their following two, The Heat and The Outsiders, which is interesting, yet they still seem to preserve some of their original pop/rock roots as well.  I do not usually like the folk/country sound, but NeedToBreathe is definitely an exception.  Somehow, I find their music comforting and fulfilling.  I also did some research on the band and discovered that quite a bit of their songs were featured on various television programs and commercials, as well as feature films including Extraordinary Measures.

NeedToBreathe is definitely a gem, and I am so glad I happened to stumble across them.  Hopefully, I will be able to purchase the albums soon, but for now, I will continue streaming the songs from their website.  This is probably my best find of the year so far.  I would absolutely recommend you check them out.