A Taste:

Regina Spektor, Bon Iver, Erykah Badu, Delta Spirit

Olivia Thirlby could very well be a tastemaker.

She burst into pop culture’s collective consciousness as Ellen Page’s “cool” friend in Juno, and now she’s adding edge, wit and sass to What Goes Up and The Answer Man. However, at the moment, she’s scanning her iPod for some solid playlist suggestions. Scrolling through a smorgasbord of tunes, she laughs, “I’m going to show you some really good stuff!”

She knows “good” too, and her selections are all over the map.

Nevertheless, she sees each and every song as a tool for her own art. Olivia explains, “Music is part of the essence of being alive. There’s no doubt that it can affect or alter your mood or atmosphere. If I have an audition for a character that’s a stretch for me, I’ll go out of my way to play music before the audition that I feel will get me into the right headspace.”

Check out Olivia’s playlist below and be sure to catch her in What Goes Up!

Olivia Thirlby’s Playlist:

1. Regina Spektor — 11:11

I’ve been obsessively listening to Regina Spektor’s 11:11. It’s not new by any means, but I can’t stop listening to it because I’m completely obsessed with her. She inspires me every single day, and I love absolutely everything that she puts out. I saw her this summer, and that was pretty life changing. She played McCarren Pool in Williamsburg.

2. The Cave Singers

I’ve been listening to The Cave Singers a lot. I actually saw them live a month or two ago. Seeing them changed my whole appreciation of their music because they’re such a tight little band. There are only three people, and the singer’s voice is so super-unique.

3. Bon Iver

Bon Iver’s music is just beautiful! It’s the perfect music to listen to in the morning. I’m always trying to match my music with times of the day. This is really good morning music [Laughs].

4. A.A. Bondy

You’ve got to get into A.A. Bondy! I find his voice to be sort of haunting, and his lyrics are unsettlingly beautiful too. I appreciate what he’s singing about, and he really resonates with me.

5. Modest Mouse

There’s so much on my iPod. As always, I’m listening to Modest Mouse. I just rediscovered their album, Everywhere and His Nasty Parlor Tricks. I love that album, and I always listen to tons of Modest Mouse.

6. Broken Social Scene

Along the same lines, I’m always listening to Broken Social Scene a lot.

7. Chet Baker

I love to listen to jazz, and I’ve been listening to tons of Chet Baker lately.

8. Jerry Mulligan

9. Dave Brubeck

10. Delta Spirit

I love those guys! I’ve been spinning them a lot lately too. You can see I’m going through a folk rock phase!

11. The Beatles

I grew up on The Beatles, Eric Clapton, Billy Joel and show tunes. That’s the music my dad was always playing. Then I went through a period in my teens where I was really into current pop music. Then I was like, “Wait a second, this shit sucks!” [Laughs] Then I got really into jazz, R&B and hip hop. I think jazz, R&B, soul and blues will always be in my heart as my favorite my kind of music.

12. Jill Scott

Lately, I’m on a major indie rock kick. However, there’s always a healthy smattering of Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and all of those ladies.

13. The Books

I’m into some electronic stuff. I love the Books.

14. Prefuse 73

The electronic artists are like the outliers on my iPod.

15. CocoRosie

16. The Black Keys

I also saw them at McCarren Pool, and that was probably one of the best concerts that I’ve ever been to. They’re so good live. I saw a lot of good concerts last summer! I also saw DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist together at McCarren Pool. It’s pretty much the best concert venue that exists and of course they’re closing it now. They’re turning it into a pool again which I think is bullshit. I went to some good concerts there though. It’s a really old pool, and it’s enormous. It’s a hole in the ground with no steps, but there’s a slant. There’s a stage on one lip of the pool and, because you’re in a hollowed out cement hole, the acoustics are incredible. It’s outside, which is also nice. I don’t know about it turning back into a pool though [Laughs].

—Rick Florino
05.29.09