Worth a good listen: Appealing to your inner ear and hungry mind one song at a time

Spring has arrived in splendid fashion ~ and there's plenty of promise as the weather warms up for most of us around the world. What better way to celebrate the new season than by spinning some enjoyable new tunes.

Whether you're looking to create a mood or, simply, be in the mood, here's a multicultural playlist (U.K., U.S., Australia, Germany, Switzerland) of some of my favorite music I've been in tune with via KCRW.com, and exploring through my iPod, that's worth a good listen. 

Hopefully, these songs not only will appeal to your inner ear and hungry mind. They'll make you smile, too. After all, these days everyone want something to smile about. 

Happy listening!

My Spring Multicultural Playlist

Laura Mvula - Can't Live With the World ~ England

British neo-soul singer/songwriter Laura Mvula's music has been labeled by The Guardian as "gospeldelia", calling it a new music genre. "Can't Live With the World" is from her just-released album Sing to the Moon. The song and the artist are garnering positive vibes here in the U.S. via KCRW.com's Morning Becomes Eclectic show. Hear here for yourself. 

Ivan & Alyosha - Running For Cover ~ U.S.

Formed in 2007, Ivan & Alyosha is a folk pop/indie rock band from Seattle, Washington, fronted by Tim Wilson and Ryan Carbary, who generated good buzz at this month's SXSW (South by Southwest) Festival in Austin, Texas. (For the record, none of the band members are named Ivan or Alyosha.) Their first full-length album is All the Times We Had.

Emma Louise - Boy ~ Australia

Emma Louise is an indie singer/songwriter from Brisbane, Australia, who was a featured artist on "The Austin 100: NPR Artists to Discover at SXSW 2013. Her lovely harmony is what will make you want to listen to "Boy" more than once.

Bibio - Á tout á l'heure ~ England

From the forthcoming album Silver Wilkinson, "Á tout á l'heure" (French for At the time) is by the Midlands, U.K. group Bibio, the moniker for Stephen Wilkinson, whose music is primarily electronic and experimental in nature. 

BOY - Little Numbers ~ Germany and Switzerland

Swiss singer Valeska Steiner and German bassist Sonja Glass are BOY and fans of Feist or Jenny Lewis will enjoy this Zurich-Hamburg indie-pop duo, whose album Mutual Friends, sung in English, was just released in North America after receiving good props in Europe. The song "Little Numbers" was featured in Lufthansa Airline's Business Class advertisement last summer.