With the recent rush of fall premiers, many of us have been crowding around the television, somewhat guiltily, when we ought to be studying for that midterm. And with shows like “House M.D.,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “The Office” gracing the small screen, who can blame us (you know, other than our professors)? In between freaking out over Jim and Pam and swooning over McDreamy, I’ve watched a few commercials and have noticed a pattern in this recent batch of overly-played advertisements: good music. Here are a few of the tunes that they’ve gotten stuck into my head:

1. “1234” - Feist

Apple is beginning to get a reputation for exposing the public to new music. Their newest commercial features a hand which removes the newest iPod only to reveal another, brightly-colored model below. The music video being played on each iPod is “1234” a catchy indie-pop tune by rising adorable soprano Feist, who has been a darling of the indie scene for the past few months. Her music is creative and fetching, but beware you’ll have to hop on this bandwagon ASAP before she starts selling albums, appearing on MTV and getting pegged as a sell-out.

2. “Perfect Timing (This Morning) - Orba Squara

Speaking of Apple, the past few months of television advertising have been dominated by one of the coolest gadgets available: the iPhone. I remember the first time I saw a commercial for it (the one that goes from watching Pirates of the Caribbean to finding a sushi restaurant nearby to getting a phone call) I rewound five times just so I could watch it again and again. The ads were so completely captivating, in fact, that it was nearly impossible to notice the music in the background. Go look it up on YouTube right now; that little guitar and bell plinking in the background turns out to be a real song with lyrics and everything, and a damn good song at that. Orba Squara’s “Perfect Timing (This Morning)” has a Sufjan Stevens-like quality to it, but with more mandolin. This song and other Orba Squara music can be found on their MySpace page and on iTunes.

3. “The Way I Am” - Ingrid Michaelson

The newest Old Navy commercial for its new sweater collection is difficult to miss. A break away from their usual campy, sugar-coated ads, this commercial’s jazz-era-inspired tune “The Way I Am” by Ingrid Michaelson is a refreshing alternative to the commercial norm. Michaelson channels Dinah Washington with incredible, jazzy vocals and sweet lyrics like this line from the commercial: “‘Cause I love the way you call me baby / And you take me the way I am.”

4. “How Can I Tell You” - Cat Power This is one of those commercials that I cannot stop thinking about. I’ll set the scene, a couple lies asleep in bed before the man gets up, leaves the room, and when he comes back he lays this beautiful diamond necklace around his wife’s neck, then gets back in bed and pretends to be sleeping. She wakes up, sees the necklace, and they kiss. It’s adorable. Perhaps the only thing more adorable than the ad itself is the simplistic, lullaby-like “How Can I Tell You” playing in the background. This is a cover of Cat Stevens song by Cat Power (the stage name of Charlyn Marshall) who has quite an underground following and has been threatening to break into the mainstream for a few years.

Unfortunately, it seems Marshall only recorded 30 seconds of the song for the ad, and her record label refuses to release it. Disappointing as that is, I would suggest listening to the original as well as a lovely cover by Gary Jules to tide you over. And, of course, check out Cat Power’s other music. “The Greatest” is one of my favorites.

5. “Music Box” - Regina Spektor

“Music Box” by Regina Spektor is the focal point of a recent JC Penny commercial. Honestly, I don’t remember anything about the commercial except for that song; I had to use Google just to figure out who the ad was for. This quirky staccato tune dominates the television, if only for thirty seconds. So, while it might not be benefiting JC Penny quite as much as they’d hoped, Spektor is certainly reaping the benefits. With her hit “Fidelity” last year, Spektor is dancing on the edge of extreme popularity. Her incredible soprano voice, combined with lush piano playing and a flair for the unusual, makes her worth investigating.

6. “Le Disko” - Shiny Toy Guns

A recent Motorola commercial features a man and a woman fighting in a subway station using their razor phones as knives. The perfect soundtrack to this technological battle royale? The commanding techno hit “Le Disko” by Shiny Toy Guns. The band was recently featured on VH1 as an “Artist on the Rise.” With vocals on this track reminiscent of those of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O, this song is definitely worth downloading.