What's this song with a jaunty melody?

September 30, 2009 7:57 PM

What's this song with a jaunty melody I just heard playing in Lowe's?

It's a midtempo, happyish mildly whimiscal indie-band sounding tune. The instrumental hook caught my ear, with a couple playful orchestral instruments - maybe trombone and some strings - playing jauntily alternating root and third notes several times at the start of a repeating phrase. Not much to go on, but since I heard it in Lowe's just now, maybe it caught the ear of someone else out there.

The only lyrics I managed to catch were the (statistically probable) phrase "head in the clouds"... and it's not Mark Owen, or Backseat Goodbye, as Google and my friends guess.

Artists it sounded like it could have been, to help hone in on the sound:
Vampire Weekend (my first instinct)
Death Cab for Cutie
Polyphonic Spree

It's a shot in the dark, but I thought I'd try. Anyone work at Lowe's?

posted by scrowdid to media & arts (9 comments total)

Can you record yourself humming the melody?
posted by CharlesV42 at 8:28 PM on September 30

If you can hum it, try Midomi. I've had a lot of luck with that in the past (and the iPhone app version is awesome).
posted by wackybrit at 8:35 PM on September 30

"Feet in the Clouds" by Paul McCartney? It's a little light on the instrumental hook, but the strings are there, and it certainly mid-temp and jaunty.
posted by Benjy at 8:44 PM on September 30

Unfortunately I can't remember the melody well enough to recreate it, all I can remember is that it did something like E-C-E-C-E-C-E before moving up to something like GAGD-lowG or something like that. The rhythm and timing escape me, so I'm not sure I could hum it or Midomi it. I might try nonetheless though.
posted by scrowdid at 8:45 PM on September 30

It's not the McCartney, but thanks for the link, that's a cool vocoder break in that tune. I should have mentioned that "head in the clouds" seemed like it was a very unimportant phrase in the lyrics, and not anything that the song would likely be named.
posted by scrowdid at 8:49 PM on September 30

I know this is a really, really, really long shot, but mayhap it is 'Dirty Old Town' from David Byrne's 'Rei Momo'?

(I said it was a longshot)
posted by MiggySawdust at 8:51 PM on September 30

Here's a list of 118 songs that contain the snippet of "head in the clouds" in their lyrics, from Leo's Lyrics. Good luck!
posted by amyms at 8:56 PM on September 30

Jaunty tunes with trombone and strings make me think of Architecture in Helsinki. Unfortunately, I don't know their oevre well enough to say if "head in the clouds" makes a lyrical appearance.
posted by kwaller at 9:26 AM on October 1

I was thinking Architecture in Helsinki myself - perhaps "Do the Whirlwind"? Though I really doubt you'd hear AIH at Lowe's...

Other ideas:
Bishop Allen - "The News From Your Bed"
Lykke Li - "Little Bit" (unlikely - you didn't say but I get the impression the singer was male based on your references)
Thao - "Bag of Hammers" (not orchestral at all but hey)

Man, I feel like there's so many songs I've heard that fit this description but I'm having troulbe remembering them...

Any more clues to go on??
posted by sprocket87 at 7:49 PM on October 1