Vitamin String Quartet to Release Modern Rock Hits 2011

Check out Vitamin String Quartet’s line-up on their latest album due out this summer, Modern Rock Hits 2011 and school yourself on the stories behind these hottest tracks of the year (so far). Just Stay Here Tonight: This plaintive jam from San Diego rock quartet Augustana emotes a solid Springsteen-style, pop-rock ethos and was used in a recent episode of the television show Private Practice. Augustana has toured with bands including Maroon 5, The Fray and Snow Patrol.

Under Cover of Darkness: This lead single from The Strokes’ fourth LP Angles is the band’s first single release in five years. That’s how long it’s been since the New York City band released an album. Call it a return to form, but Julian Casablanca’s note-bending caterwaul sounds just like it did on “Last Night.” It makes sense then when he sings, “I've been all around this town/Everybody's been singing the same song for 10 years.”

Rope: The first single from the Foo Fighters’ Wasting Light was written two years ago after sessions for the band’s last album Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace. Although the Foos typically release a more radio friendly song as their first single, frontman Dave Grohl insisted the band use this Butch Vig produced track as the lead off from Wasting Light, because he thought it best captured the mood of the album’s recording sessions. It must have been pretty loud in there.

You Are a Tourist: “When there’s a doubt in your mind/’Cos you think it all the time/Framin’ rights into wrongs/Move along,” is what Ben Gibbard croons on the uplifting single from Death Cab for Cutie’s forthcoming Codes and Keys. Whether or not Gibbard’s outlook on life has been a bit brighter since landing Zooey Deschanel as his wife, he did tell the audience during a VH1 “Storytellers” taping that the lyrics in the song were "a series of affirmations in an otherwise dark and cruel world."

The Cave: The London folk quartet, Mumford and Sons, stole the show at this year’s Grammy awards with a rousing rendition of “The Cave,” which they performed before jamming on “Maggie’s Farm” with none other than Bob Dylan. “I got out of bed and ran outside and jumped around like a madman,” says singer Marcus Mumford, upon hearing the news that the group would be playing with the rock legend. “You can imagine the reaction of someone who probably wouldn't be playing music at all if it wasn't for Dylan.”

Helplessness Blues: The lead single from Fleet Foxes’ sophomore LP focuses more on singer Robin Pecknold’s quavering falsetto than any tracks on the band’s mega-hit debut ever did. However, the rest of the band joins in on this track’s second half to contribute to the intricate harmonies that have become the Foxes oh-so-pretty trademark.