Ingrid Michaelson: "The Way I Am"

Would you laugh at me if I told you I wasn’t able to sleep after my nightly dose of Conan one fine September evening? Would laugh even harder if I told you I actually watched the entirety of Last Call with the insidious Carson Daly? Unfortunately, Carson Daly isn’t (at all) the equivalent to a soothing glass of nocturnal milk but I was grateful for the musical act he played host to that night.

Ingrid Michaelson may best be described as a sedated Regina Spektor meets Lisa Loeb, a sort of soothing/pop concoction that can be both relaxing and exciting to your nerves. It’s an odd effect really – one that, as I was soon to find out, would be thrust upon unsuspecting hoards of people sitting in front of their televisions. Barely even a week after her Sept. 21 appearance on Daly’s show, a recognizable snippet was soon making appearances for Old Navy’s latest fashion line. In the style of iPod loved Feist’s “1234″, Michaelson is the latest independent musician to gain exposure via chic advertising gurus.

[MP3] Ingrid Michaelson – The Way I Am

Driven by a strong bass line and simple bongo beats, this smooth, romance themed song is nothing short of catchy. Once you get past the advertised line “If you are chilly, here take my sweater” you’ll find handclaps and backing vocals that seem to strongly encourage listener participation. She’s cleverly composed the song to a short 2:14, not overdoing it on affectionately redundant lines.. although the embarassing line, “I’d buy you Rogaine when you start losing all your hair” is either 1) totally cheesy or 2) eccentricly romantic. You decide, but don’t lose all your hair doing so.