Singles File

A weekly playlist for the listener with a one-track mind.

Totally Michael: "Winona" Remember when it seemed as if all songs written by winsome indie rock boys were about Winona Ryder? And now all of them are about Kirsten Dunst, and it's just not the same? Anyway, here's some guy from Indiana, finally doing what Conor Oberst should have done a long time ago.

Ben Folds Five: "Army" (live snippet) The good news: Ben Folds Five got back together! The bad news: It was only for one night, to play songs from an album so uneven that they broke up soon after releasing it, out of shame. Or because they hated each other; it's unclear. Either way, here's one of the only decent clips to emerge from their reunion show last Thursday. (Warning: May induce "Cloverfield"-like sensations of nausea.)

The Ritz featuring Racecar of Modill: "Langston Bukowski" Chicago hip-hop duo the Ritz fashioned their debut disc out of classic R&B beats, samples, strings and stray bits of dialogue from old film noir. Their new track features an anti-alcohol rap that's both instructive (it turns out that nothing rhymes with "cirrhosis of the liver") and oddly entertaining.

I'm Not Jim: "Uncomplicated" It was probably only a matter of time until music-obsessed novelist Jonathan Lethem formed a band. He and Silos leader Walter Salas-Humara now front a crackerjack four-piece devoted to fun-killing exercises in experimental spoken word, and endearingly rootsy rock tracks like this one.

Keri Hilson featuring Lil Wayne: "Turn Off" You know who just doesn't get enough attention these days? Lil Wayne. Seriously, he's pretty good. In his latest walk-on part, he promises an amorous encounter that sounds awkward, unpleasant and unintentionally hilarious. To say nothing of smelly. Suffice it to say, you'll never watch the Weather Channel in the same way ever again.

-- Allison Stewart