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Word on the street is that we’re in the dead of winter right now. (Another compelling reason to be at Sundance right now is that it’s actually warmer in Park City than it is in New York.) Summer music may be more fun, but this is the time to curl up with a mug of cider and songs that come from cold places.

After a successful 2011 which saw the release of their successful sophomore album, Helplessness Blues, 2012 has gotten off to an odd start for Fleet Foxes, but luckily, one that's yielded some new music. The Foxes' drummer, J. Tillman, left at the beginning of the year to pursue a solo career under the name Father John Misty and released a haunting, cinematic single about the graveyard-turned-venue Hollywood Forever Cemetery and a corresponding trippy video starring Parks and Recreation's Aubrey Plaza. Then they were an answer on Jeopardy!, which made us wonder how many Jeopardy! contestants were up on their emotionally-present acoustic indie folk tunage. Then, this week, they were nominated for a BRIT Award for Best International Act but lost to Foo Fighters.

Aubrey Plaza has already firmly established herself as Hollywood's most visible alternative darling, but here's a further way to stay on top: by appearing in this music video for ex-Fleet Foxes drummer J. Tillman's song, "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings." She plays a goth brat intent on throwing a fit at a wacky funeral, eating flowers, throwing chairs, and stumbling around in a drunken, bloody mess. You can watch the video at EW.com, or listen to the mp3 after the click.

● Elton John didn't think Madonna had "a f-ing chance" of beating him in the best original song category at last night's Golden Globes, but then she did, and John's husband David Furnish joined the fight via Facebook. "Madonna winning Best Original Song truly shows how these awards have nothing to do with merit," he wrote in a vengeful post, adding also that "Her acceptance speech was embarrassing in its narcissism" and her recent criticisms of Lady Gaga "desperate." It's on! [NYDN]

Have you always wanted to hear watered-down acoustic versions of pop hits like Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" and Robyn's "Dancing on My Own"? Do you think every song should sound like it was recorded by a poor man's CSN&Y? Well, now you can! A dude with a pretty voice has formed a Fleet Foxes cover band—sort of—with himself. He's posing as Fleet Foxes on a blog called Fleet Foxes Sing and, man, people really are into this sort of thing.

Sure, it may be a brand-new year, but that doesn't mean we can't take some time to reflect back on what was awesome and what was terrible from last year. People love giving their opinions and others love to hate said opinions! It's pretty much the only thing to read on the internet in the last two weeks of the year, so it's unsurprising that it'll carry over to the first business day of the new year. Take Pitchfork's year-end lists, for example: the staff lists were full of considerate and well-written criticism, which is somewhat dissimilar to the point-of-view of most of the site's detractors, who still associate Pitchfork with pretentious hipster snark. The 2011 Pitchfork Readers Poll, on the other hand, does without the commentary, and instead compiles lists of the so-called best albums of the year, as well as the most underrated and overrated albums. 

After three days of battling excruciating heat, rain storms, and the escalating crowd size at Austin’s Zilker Park, I was actually very sad to see Austin City Limits end. Similar to years past, I’ll leave the great state of Texas with a deepened appreciation for the “weirdness” of Austin, Tex Mex cuisine, and the wealth of opportunities for a good ol’ fashioned adventure this festival has to offer. For more ACL accounts and a gallery of the weekend's festivities, read on.

Odd Future: 1, Protesters: 0

Austra, Feel It Break (Domino) The debut album from this versatile Canadian three-piece has a singular sound, at once electronic and danceable, but with minor keys, austere chord progressions, and rainy-day vocals that sound goth at first, but are actually operatic—lead singer Katie Stelmanis (center) is classically trained.

A couple years ago, all the hipsters in Williamsburg grew giant beards, started playing obscure string instruments, and kept saying they were going to leave this suffocating city for the misty mountains of the Pacific Northwest. One of the main reasons for this mass appropriation of hippiedom was the success of a bunch of folk-inspired bands who sing pretty harmonies. And one of the best of those bands is Fleet Foxes; their long-awaited next record is coming in May. Can't wait?