It's The 70 Best Songs of 2010, son!

Well it's that time of year again. The site has been defunct for a while since I jumped ship to GSL, then jumped ship right into the ocean. But considering my OCD nature forces me to list and rank everything, and considering I don't feel like creating a new website (or, God help me, a Tumblr), here go the lists......and who knows, maybe after some fresh inspiration, 2011 will bring a return to proper blogging.

As it stands, I couldn't let the year go by without doing something, as it's easily been the best year for music in recent memory, and found several veteran acts returning to the scene bigger than ever. Small disclaimer: as usual, I count one song per LP or EP, and considering my true favorite track of the year runs over 25 minutes long, I figured it was only fair to leave it out. So with a small drumroll, let's count down the best songs of 2010 (not named "Impossible Soul")!

70.Antoine Dodson & the Gregory Brothers - "The Bed Intruder Song"

Sometimes an internet meme crosses the line from joke to cultural touchstone. I won't go so far as to say that's what happened here, but you'd be a fool not to admit there's genius here, somewhere.

69.Male Bonding - "Weird Feelings"

Many predicted 2010 would spell the beginning of the end for Lo-Fi. Many were wrong.

68.Gayngs - "Cry"

Justin Vernon's had one hell of a year. Between touring with Bon Iver and guesting on several Kanye tracks (besides, obviously, the Bon Iver-sampled "Lost in the World", he also pops up in the scorching "Monster"), he had time for this Sade-shaded (semi-serious?) side project.


67.Ke$ha - "We R Who We R"

The maniacal Dr. Luke gift-wraps the slutcore queen with a song so retarded, yet endearing, that literally no other pop star could pull it off. In the past, the "Tik Tok" singer's grimy boasts sounded forced, but here, in her Declaration of Inde-whore-ance, she sounds fully assured, comfortable standing up for her right to stand for nothing but drugs, dancing, and couch crashing. Can't say she makes it sound enticing to the rest of us; but with such hollow sentiments proudly worn on the song's sleeve (the autotuned, record-skipping chorus is the ultimate inside joke), it's all basically akin to watching animals frolic in a zoo. Wasn't that kind of the intention behind this Ke$ha project to begin with? Mission finally accomplished.


66.Junip - "Rope and Summit"

Jose Gonzales' unmistakable voice leads you to the promised land on the Swiss hush project's debut single.

65.M.I.A. - "Born Free"

A truly tasteless video distracted folks from the fact that this is actually a great track (Bonus member of Suicide backing her up in this clip!).


64.Los Campesinos - "A Heat Rash in the Shape of the Show Me State or Letters From Me to Charlotte"

The British wack-pack matures a bit across many of their new album's tracks. This is not one of those, but sometimes maturity is overrated.

63.Usher feat. Jay-Z - "Hot Toddy"

Jay-Z finally admits he's a puppet of the Illuminati. Now with that out of the way, it's time to dance.

62.ceo - "Come With Me"

As much as I despise the term chillwave, sometimes it just fits...


61.Wise Blood - B.I.G. E.G.O.

Like Girl Talk, if he stopped swimming through his samples, and decided to float in them for a while, wave pool style. But with less urine.

60.How To Dress Well - "Ecstasy With Jojo"

MJ comes back from the dead to serenade MDMA-fueled hipsters. Not as sad as it sounds.

59.No Age - "Fever Dreaming"

The downtown LA wonder duo hit their stride in the rawest cut from their excellent sophomore effort.

58.MGMT - "Flash Delirium

Psychedlia gives way to Zombies-era garage rock in the Congratulations centerpiece.

57.Deerhunter - "Revival"

And the garage rawkin' continues with the weirdo Georgia boys taking things in a slightly darker direction.

56. The Soft Pack - "Parasites"
.....and the garage revival finally meets post-punk depression with the former Muslims' hottest track.

55. School of Seven Bells - "Windstorm"

Pretty girls with pretty voices title this track aptly.

54. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - "Round and Round"

Pitchfork's on fucking crack for naming this the best song of 2010, but it's a surprising progression for the longtime indie nutjob nonetheless.


53. Wolf Gang - "Back to Back"

A bright prospect for the next year gives us a small taste of what's hopefully to come.

52. The Besnard Lakes - "Albatross"

Veteran shoegazers up and show the Echo Park children how it's really done.

51. Cold War Kids - "Audience"

The blogosphere's favorite punching bag keeps on doin' them, to fantastic results.

50. Chad Valley - "Up and Down"

This one's like having sex with a rainbow.

49. PVT - "Window"

This one's a bumpy ride, but more than worth the journey.

48. Mumford and Sons - "The Cave"

I am admittedly a complete sucker for some good banjo pluckin'.


47. Perfume Genius - "Mr. Peterson"

Classic love story between an unpopular kid and the suicidal teacher that does things to him in a van....

46. Dr. Dog - "I Only Wear Blue"

The rollicking heart of a fine album is both classic Dr. Dog, and something slightly more epic.

45. Robin Thicke feat. Nicki Minaj - "Shaking It For Daddy"

This one fell through the cracks on the club scene, but deserves a second life now that its guest star has become a supernova.


44. Delphic - "Halcyon"
This British import is like Bloc Party trapped in a Sonic the Hedgehog game. There's no way none of that sounds enticing.

43.Wild Nothing - "Chinatown"

The only problem with the chillwave aesthetic is that it becomes rather difficult to describe any of the songs. Thankfully, Wild Nothing went ahead and decided it sounds like Chinatown. They were correct.

42. Cee-Lo Green - "Fuck You"

And, uh, fuck you too...

41. Diamond Rings - "Show Me Your Stuff"

In which a young Torontonian makes like a male, low-budget Lady Gaga except way gayer. Say what you will about his fashion choices; once this song finally gets to its hook, it's got you in the palm of its hand.


40. James Blake - "Limit to Your Love"

Silly Americans. For some reason, in 2010, the masses here finally discovered dubstep about 4 years late. Over in England, they're already moving on to "post-dubstep"(don't get me started) as evidenced by the shimmering base used to round out a fine Fiest cover. Look for this guy to be a very big deal in 2011, since to be fair, he already kind of is....

39. HEALTH - "USA Boys"

The progression of this band from Smell-playing noise rock group to a nuanced, pulse-pounding, Trent Reznor-mentored electronic act has been a thing of beauty. If their second remix album released this year was a victory lap, then this standalone single was the National Anthem played on the podium.


38. Jukebox the Ghost - "Summer Sun"

Much of the DC trio's new album is a distillation of what made the first one work so well, but this track's a brief detour somewhere much more passionate. Next time around, maybe it'll be less a detour and more an actual route.

37. Kid Cudi - "Revofev"

The most stoned man in music (and that's quite an accomplishment) somehow manages to put a single this brilliant and bizarre together in seemingly no time flat. Maybe he's onto something.


36. Crystal Castles - "Vietnam"

By this point in the album, the glitch-core duo have already proven that they're no flash in the pan, but the mood changes yet again halfway through this track, which played on repeat far too many times to count in my car this year. Driving on the 101 at night to this one should come with a personalized warning.

35. These New Puritans - "Hologram"

The British post-post-punkers (again, don't get me started) take a break from Halo-ready attack music and give us a quick glimpse of something even more astonishing.

34. Broken Bells - "The Ghost Inside"

Beautiful song, beautiful video, beautiful leading lady. All 3 are connected to each other now. I can't break them up, nor would I ever want to.

33. Drake feat T.I. & Swizz Beats - "Fancy"

Raise your hand if you quoted this song in 2010. Everyone reading this just raised their hand. Fact.

32.Local Natives - "Airplanes"

New best song to cradle a scotch to at last call. Not that I'd know....


31. The Deadly Syndrome - "Villain"

"Why don't you fuck off and die" has never sounded like a sweeter refrain. Really.

30. Big Boi feat. Cutty - "Shutterbug"

Big Boi even conquers nonstop album delays with a track that'd sound fresh just about any year it was released.

29. Maximum Balloon feat. Theophilus London - "Groove Me"
Sit back, relax and enjoyyyyy....


28. Surfer Blood - "Anchorage"

The vast majority of the Florida surfy/garage-y boys' album had been heard live and through EPs before it was released this year, but this one was a pleasant surprise when the album was played for the first time, already sounding like a deep cut off a sophomore album. If nothing else, it proved these guys are gonna have legs.

27. Titus Andronicus - "A More Perfect Union"

The bastard son Springsteen and Shane McGowan would both be proud to claim.


26. Best Coast - "Boyfriend"

Sometimes, when a song is simple enough, the words hit that much harder. Make no mistake: you will feel every teenage girl's heartbreak in about 3 minutes. But it'll be ok. I promise.

25. Mark Ronson and the Business Intl. feat. Boy George - "Somebody to Love Me"

Speaking of heartbreak, Ronson enlists Boy George for a track that full on tears the organ out of your chest, Temple of Doom style. The stunning video (featuring an unrecognizable Dianne Kruger as the Culture Club singer) drives the melancholy into the open wound. It's tough to shake this one.

24. Foals - "Spanish Sahara"

Foals flipped their game on their sophomore effort, putting away the power-yelping and opting for slow builds and crashes instead. This one should prove it was a wise path to take. Put it on in the background, and it'll sneak up and floor you.

23. Wavves - "Baby Say Goodbye"

In which a formerly overrated hype-bag gets punctured, falls down to Earth, and finally creates something worthy of hype. And then some.

22. The Walkmen - "Angela Surf City"

Oh, he's just bein' Hamilton...


21. Glasser - "Home"

Dreamy doesn't even begin to describe every aspect of this song.

20. Gorillaz - "On Melancholy Hill"

It's a tough and diverse choice amongst Plastic Beach's many outstanding tracks, but this one, with all the guests, bells, and whistles removed, is the one I come back to the most all these months later. There must be a reason for that.

19. Scissor Sisters feat. Sir Ian McKellan - "Invisible Light"

In which Jake Shears attempts to create a super-gay Thriller and enlists Gandalf as his Vincent Price. He succeeds.


18. Janelle Monae - "Cold War"

This blistering single is a highlight of a ridiculously ambitious album, taking a break from robots and symphonies to deliver a shot of adrenaline that could bring a corpse back from the dead.

17. The Black Keys - "Everlasting Light"

You will get laid if you play this song, 9 times out of 10. Another fact.

16. The National - "Terrible Love"

You may know the song, but it's worth clicking the link to see this performed live. As usual for the band, it's drunken, messy and altogether brilliant.

15. Beach House - "Walk in the Park"

The most epic of Teen Dream's hazy little masterpieces packs more romance, drama and life into its 5 minutes than most films do in two hours.


14. Salem - "King Night"

One of my favorite moments in music this year was around the 2/3 mark of this song, when I finally realized what I'd been listening to the entire time. Let's just say once the distortion lifts, you may have a mini-religious experience.

13. Wolf Parade - "In the Direction of the Moon"

Expo 86's freakiest track is of course a Krug-penned number about being a wall slowly choked/embraced by ivy. Yes, it's okay to be awkwardly aroused.

12. Sleigh Bells - "Tell 'Em"

As with Surfer Blood, most of Treats had been heard in one form or another last year. But the day this single was released, you could hear the tops blown off music nerds nationwide. Running away from the low-fi aesthetic of their early EP, it was immediately clear these guys had bigger plans in mind. And they want everyone else to do their best too.

11.Yeasayer - "Madder Red"

The first great track of 2010 still holds up, even if the album was ultimately uneven.


10.Givers - "Up Up Up"

These guys deserve to be fucking HUGE in 2011. Like a deep-south Dirty Projectors (whom they toured with) blasted with hippie dust (whatever that is), they bring an energy to their live shows that really has to be experienced to be believed. A trickle of EPs and singles just isn't enough. This is one album I want right now.


09. LCD Soundsystem - "Dance Yrself Clean"

Another musical highlight of the year is what happens about 3 minutes into the This Is Happening opener. Press play and let it just happen....


08. Robyn - "Dancing on My Own"

No matter who you are, you've probably felt this way more than once in your life. Blast this and let all the built-up angst out in two fist pumps. Or in whatever manner you desire.


07. Vampire Weekend - "Diplomat's Son"

Contra is all killer, no filler, but the boys outdo their own cleverness on this soaring climax, crafting an inverted "Paper Planes" while singing about weed, rock, and homoeroticism. Where Diplo took a famous Clash guitar riff and looped it for the M.I.A. smash, they take an M.I.A. sample and title the whole thing in honor of Joe Strummer. Witty stuff, but it'd be hollow if the song itself fell flat. Luckily, it doesn't, instead veering wildly between dub, dancehall and (of course) Afropop, crafting its own rhythm as it goes. If nothing else, it's truly saying something for 2010 if a song this genius, that could top a milllion lists any other year, lands at #7 here.


06. Sufjan Stevens - "Vesuvius"
Choosing one song from Age of Adz is a difficult task, considering no two sound the same, but seeing this one live pushed it over the edge. Click the link and try to imagine seeing and feeling this right in front of you. The guy behind me who breathlessly muttered "whoah.....that was fucking intense!!!" pretty much summed it up better than I could here. Just watch this shit.


05. Cults - "Go Outside"

Along with Givers and James Blake, Cults stand equally tall as one of the Great Hopes of 2011, for the sheer fact that they seem to be making music in a bubble. Nobody sounds like them, or writes like them. They're a creepy (check the Jim Jones monologue embedded in the song's opening) young powerhouse that's demonstrated versatility and well-earned shock value this year. Let's hope the LP lives up to the promise.


04. Katy Perry - "Teenage Dream"

I realize some of you may think ranking this as high as it is might qualify as insanity, but if that's the case, consider me gleefully nuts, as this is hands-down, one of the best pop songs of the (admittedly short) century so far. A perfectly aimed bass line, lyrics that simultaneously conjure nostalgia and anticipation, and delivery that somehow remains cheese-free all combine to make a nuclear bomb of a pop tart; one I've heard about 4000 times on the radio at this point, and haven't even come close to getting sick of. Black magic is at work here...


03. Kanye West - "All of the Lights"

On an album of beautiful clusterfucks, this one's a gorgeous 405 gridlock: Rihanna, Fergie, Elton John, Kid Cudi, Alicia Keys and I'm sure at least 5 people I'm leaving out all guest on Kanye's narrative epic about a down-on-his luck loser who keeps shooting himself in the foot. Kanye gets a lot of well-deserved flack for being an egomaniac in real life, but as an artist, he's downright generous with his collaborators, crafting a collective experience for the listener before ever stooping to create a showcase for his own vanity. Proof positive is right here, where he gives everyone else the best parts of the song, and seems content to sit back and watch the out-of-control party he's just created.


02. Sufjan Stevens - "All Delighted People"

While Age of Adz showcased Sufjan breaking into bold new territory, the All Delighted People EP proved that the Sufjan of old is still alive and well, beneath the futuristic exterior. The crushing title track, a call-and-response to Simon & Garfunkle's "Sound of Silence" (we need to start crafting bigger adjectives than "ambitious" just for this guy) folds over ten minutes like a Mad Magazine "What Me Worry" riddle, leaving you awash in a great many thoughts that only begin to make sense as the song spins wildly to the finale. When it's over, you feel like you just survived a mini-apocalypse. And survival is the thing it seems Sufjan wants you to take note of.


01. Arcade Fire - "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)"

I don't think I've ever listened to one song more times in a row than I have this. Not only does "Sprawl II" display supernatural replay value, but it only seems to grow with every listen. With Regine taking the reigns (as she seems to do at least once or twice an album) on vocals, and syth and drum machines boldly put to use in a grand experiment, the band's trademark rage against the dying of the light has never sounded more beautiful, or more hopeful. The song joins the grand pantheon of classics this band has cranked out, like "Rebellion (Lies)" and "Wake Up", but where those songs were a call to arms against a deadening force, this one feels oddly re-assuring. The world may be going to hell in a handbasket, but so long as a few of us have each other, the time we have left will be fine time indeed. The kiss between Regine and Win that's ended more than one live performance of this seems to highlight this tiny epiphany, and colors a band we thought we all knew with a whole other layer of romance. Fighting for something is admirable, but remembering what you're fighting for is most admirable of all.

50 Best Songs of the Aughts, Part Two

Here's the second half. By the way, for the sake of covering more ground, I tried to limit the list to one track per artist, including side projects and solo work, if that explains why songs from some obvious names aren't on here. And with that said, here we go:

24. Justin Timberlake - "Lovestoned/I Think She Knows" from Futuresex/Lovesounds (2006)

If we were handing out Producer of the Decade acolades, Timbaland would obviously have to be considered. And the apex of his career can pretty much be pinpointed in the last third of this track (or the transition between tracks, depending on how you look at it), which brings a near-apocalyptic hue to the song, and feels like seeing a new color for the first time.....but in the listening way. If that makes any sense. Anyway, it's pretty solid stuff for a pop song about hooking up with a hot girl at a party. I'm not gonna take the easy way out and only praise Timbaland's production though. Click the performance above to see Timberlake prove why he was one of the decade's biggest icons.

23. Peter Bjorn and John - "Young Folks" from Writer's Block (2006)

Insanely catchy and oddly potent at catching a specific moment in the decade before "twee" became a bad word.

22. TV On the Radio - "Wolf Like Me" from Return to Cookie Mountain (2006)

Brooklyn was obviously a hotbed of talent in the aughts, but no one in that particular scene rocked harder or more menacingly than TV On the Radio did here.


21. Beirut - "Postcards from Italy" from Gulag Orkestar (2006)

Zach Condon managed to emerge from the masses with an unmistakable sound, and no obvious contemporary influences. He's as original as they come, which is pretty remarkable, considering he wrote this one when he was eighteen. By the way, check this out if you're a fan of either him or the La Blogoteque series, as he turns "Nantes" into a real-life slice of musical theater.

20. The Strokes - "New York City Cops" from Is This It (2001)

Figures that the best song on the album would be banned from the US version, though considering it was released just after 9/11, it's tough to get worked up. The song features the kind of low-fi garage rock the group helped champion (and which influenced everyone and their mom), as well as the snot-nosed rich kid-playing-poor sensibility that still polarizes their audience. But what do you expect from true rock stars if not shameless arrogance?

19. Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone from Breakaway (2004)

And like that, suddenly it was okay for cool kids to sing along to pop again.

18. The Horrors - "Sea Within A Sea" from Primary Colours (2009)

I wrote a veritable essay on this one last month, so just scroll down. Suffice to say, it's a good song.


17. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Maps" from Fever to Tell (2003)

Maybe this one counts as a "lovelorn ballad" too. In that case, consider me corrected. Karen O and crew can rock very hard, but when they slow things down, it's always magic.

16. Jay- Z - "99 Problems" from The Black Album (2003)

Jay-Z entered the decade as a star and left as a supernova. Whether he was running his own record label, launching a blueprint that others tried in vain to follow, retiring, un-retiring, or letting the hottest chick in the game wear his chain, everything he did (save for a few missteps....see "un-retiring: the first couple years") he did with grace and fervor. But never moreso than on his Rick Rubin-enhanced standout from 2003. With the exception of a few ultra-PC types who misunderstand the song entirely, it's one that everyone and their mom rightfully lost their mind to.

15. Guillemots - "Sao Paulo" from Through the Windowpane (2005)

The song's too long to properly fit in any youtube clip is that rare opus that may go on for 10+ minutes, but feels like 3 at the end of it all. Guillemots are a polarizing band, but it's tough to deny the earnestness this song is born from- it's epic, but not bloated, and by the time the band crawls to the bombs-bursting finale, they've earned every note.

14.Modest Mouse - "Float On" from Good News for People Who Like Bad News (2004)

The veteran indie act finally broke into the mainstream with this little ditty. As a long-term fan, I'd love to play it cool and nominate something else as their career standout, but I'd just be lying. Nothing tops the melody gold mine found right here.

13. Panda Bear - "Comfy in Nautica" from Person Pitch (2007)

Animal Collective's turning point actually came from a single member when Panda Bear (aka Noah Lennox) hopped to the turntables and channelled the band's psychedelic frenzy into bold new electronic territory, informing both Merriweather Post Pavillion and Fall Be Kind to come, not to mention creating a whole sub-genre in the process.

12. M.I.A. - "Paper Planes" from Kala (2008)

Picking up the Producer of the Decade argument, Timbaland might have made the most obvious splash, but no one was a bigger innovator than Diplo, whose coute de gras was this little hit, which took about a year and a half to inexplicably hit top 40 radio, but changed things forever once it did. Proving to be inescapable (and a new kind of challenge to would-be censors), it made an unlikely mainstream success of indie darling M.I.A., who seemed completely uninterested in the spotlight (see her mainstage performance from Coachella last year as proof). By refusing to compromise, however, Myia dragged a lot of casual fans deep into intelligent, thrillingly new music, and made pop radio a little more savvy......not to mention giving The Clash's "Straight to Hell" a whole new life.

11. LCD Soundsystem - "Someone Great" from Sound of Silver (2007)

You know those feelings you get sometimes that can't be summed up with words, but that, every once in a while, get captured by the right song? Here ya go. And if that last sentence was a little cheesy, then just wait til you get a load of the melodramatic Swedish fan video.


10. Beyonce - "Get Me Bodied (Extended Version)" from B'Day (2006)

I get confused whenever I read arguments on why Britney, Christina or even Lady Gaga was the queen of pop for the last decade. However you wanna break it down: genuine quality, innovation, sales figures, prevalence, or amount of imitators, no one can touch Mrs. Jay-Z, whether solo or part of Destiny's Child. The woman's a genuine superstar for our time, who might well be protected by a layer of PR (google the "If I Were A Boy" story), but is hardly a puppet. Unlike the Ciaras or, dare I say, the Rihannas of the world, she's got a soul all her own that just feels authentic, no matter how hard her handlers try and package her. For me, the highlight of an already intimidating career is 2006's "Get Me Bodied", produced by Swizz Beats. In truth, I'm kind of shocked Swizz didn't sue the pants off the team responsible for "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" two years later, considering "Bodied" might as well be that song's first half. Sure, there's less of a gimmick involved (the lyrics basically just concern going out to the club and wanting to have a good time; admittedly not novel), but the insane percussion (itself a refinement of 2004's Destiny's Child anthem "Lose My Breath"), combined with B's crescendoing refrains and the extended version's borderline-meltdown of a coda, easily wins out over the more popular tune. On top of that, the video's pretty fucking awesome too (though it subs early-90s camp and extravagance for the latter song's black-and-white minimalism). If you can listen to this and resist the urge to at least nod your head, you're a stronger person than I ("tick tick fight" gets me every time).


09. The Knife - "Heartbeats" from Deep Cuts (2005)

It's tough to pick one standout track from the duo's outstanding work the past decade, but when in doubt, go with the one that made them stars. There's obviously progressive thinking at work here, but underneath all the bells and whistles, it's simply a beautiful love song (as later excavated by Jose Gonzale's cover, which for whatever reason became more well known than the original that's managed to inspire countless more mainstream artists in the later parts of the decade.


08. Daft Punk - "One More Time" from Discovery (2000)

Like The Knife, it's a tall order to pick the Daft Punk track that best sums up their work last decade, but this is probably the most nuanced track they've dished out yet; blending foreboding with nostalgia in a way that's perfectly complimented by the goofy (though progressively less so) music video. If we're given at least 5 minutes' notice before the end of the world, I imagine a healthy portion of Earth's populace will be blasting this.


07. The White Stripes - "The Air Between My Fingers" from Elephant (2003)

Jack White was unquestionably one of the most important names in rock for the last ten years, but not so much for innovation. Sometimes, instead of progressing the medium, however, it's good to have someone around who can simply pay tribute to the past while making it sound like the present. In other words: artists like Jack White are why rock & roll was created. Over the course of three bands and countless records, Mr. White demonstrated a wide variety of talents, but never moreso than with his "little sister" Meg in the band that made him famous. On "The Air Near My Fingers", Jack exposes the sheer terror of being too close to the girl of his dreams, in the simplest and most direct way. And while our attention's briefly stolen by the lyrics, the floor drops out from under us and the song's insane middle beat takes over. Actually, now that I think of it, this one song might encapsulate all of Jack White's talents in one. And that's no small feat.


06. Outkast - "B.O.B." from Stankonia (2000)

At the beginning of the decade, Outkast threw down the gauntlet with the most insane hip hop concoction ever mixed. Too bad no one else was able to pick that gauntlet back up.


05. The Walkmen - "The Rat" from Bows + Arrows (2004)

"When I used to go out, I'd know everyone I saw/now I go out alone if I go out at all": The Strokes won the battle with Is This It, but three years later, The Walkmen won the war with a single song. And if anyone on the planet sings with more passion than Hamilton Leithauser, then I don't ever want to meet them. Because I'll likely be terrified.


04. Arcade Fire - "Wake Up" from Funeral (2004)

Redefining "anthemic", this song has a unifying power when performed live that most church hymns could only dream of. Now that the NFL, K-Rroq and Warner Bros have all joined forces to make the public think this song was released late last year, the band seems ready to rock the stadiums and fields they've always seemed destined for. Here's hoping the rest of the world proves worthy enough to really listen. PS: even if you know the song, click the link for a performance that'll knock your socks off all over again.


03. Wolf Parade - "I'll Believe in Anything" from Apologies to the Queen Mary (2006)

If "Wake Up" were buried under a pile of dirt, and became that much more desperate to claw its way up and make a point, it might resemble this track, which spins a sad tale over the course of over four minutes before working itself into a spinning frenzy toward the end, fooling the listener into thinking it might just go on forever. Which, in truth, might not be so bad. Desperation never sounded so good.


02. Sufjan Stevens - "Chicago" from Illinois (2006)

And the "EPICCC!!!" train rolls forward, though unlike the last two acts, Sufjan's less interested in shaking you to life here than nudging you awake through subtler means. In the end, a potentially sad discovery that life affords no such thing as a clean slate doesn't sound so bad when it's sung so beautifully. Over the last ten years, Stevens has proven himself to be both timeless and original, and honestly, has had probably the best track record of any artists mentioned on this list, but it now looks at least possible that Illinois slowly broke him, as he's released scant new material for himself in the past few years. As one of those tracks ("Majesty Snowbird") demonstrated, however, he hasn't lost either his skills or his penchant for the grandiose, so we can only pray the next decade will find him matching (or at least complementing) his output from the past one. Just a note for the "Chicago" link above: it's possibly the best recording I've ever heard, but Suf's intro runs a bit long, so fast forward to just before the 2 minute mark to skip right to the song.


01. Explosions in the Sky - "Your Hand in Mine" from The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place (2004)

When it's operating at its fullest, music should be able to tap some deep recess in your brain or your heart, and communicate beyond words that whatever you feel there is being felt by at least one other person. That being said, everyone can only share that feeling when they can each interpret the song in their own way, relating it in the most personal way that they can. It may then be cheating to give Song of the Decade to Explosions in the Sky, since they have no lyrics to muddy this whole process up. Other than the title, the song is literally yours to interpret however you wish. But on the flip side, whenever this song's done playing, you can't help but be impressed by what it stirred in you, lyrics or not. It's a rollercoaster of a track that reminds you why classical music has endured so long: arrangements that crescendo and peak can hit us harder than sometimes even the best lyrics can, and for a few minutes (in this case, a little over eight), you can experience everything the song stirs up in you, and trust that someone else is feeling the exact same emotions. That's heavy talk concerning the work of an Austin shoegaze band, but at the end of the day, these guys have truly crafted an indelible moment that every listener can claim as their own.

Best 50 Songs of the Aughts, Part One

So yes, I realize releasing this in February 2010 is ridiculously late, but whatever. We just went through one hell of a musical decade, and if you read pretty much anyone's opinion, none of it would have been possible without the Godsend of Radiohead and, specifically, the release of 2000's Kid A. So.....since it's already been said elsewhere, I don't need to repeat it here. On top of that......I kind of disagree. I'm not knocking the concept of Kid A, or its impact on a lot of artists, but as an isolated album, it's just never really spoken to me. On top of that, I think it's folly to believe that Radiohead was the only band doing something truly interesting for the last ten years, as...well, I don't want to spoil the fun. Disagree if you must (and I'm sure some of you will), but it's my list, so I can compose it the way (or however late) I want to. So there. On with the show:

50. Arctic Monkeys - "From the Ritz to the Rubble" from Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)

These guys paint pictures of strained, suburban youth in '00s England the way Nirvana painted pictures of strained, suburban youth in '90s America. And nowhere is the band's brush more vivid than on their debut LP's ode to a Saturday night gone very wrong. Over the span of a handful of albums (including side projects), Alex Turner established himself as one of the decade's cleverest wordsmiths, but here, when he allows the band's rage to slowly creep up & overtake his lyrics, he achieves full liftoff.


49. Kings of Leon - "King of the Rodeo" from Aha Shake Heartbreak (2005)

By the end of the decade, the rural Kentucky boys had become arena-rocking megastars with sweet threads and snappy haircuts. But listening to this, you can't help but yearn for when they were just....rural Kentucky boys. PS: I watched this with the onscreen lyrics option on Vevo (if you tell me you knew he was saying "good time to roll on" before now, you're lying), and I'm just as confused as I've ever been with this song, ella ella.

48. Architecture in Helsinki - "Heart it Races" from Places Like This (2007)

One of the most bizarre songs of the aughts was this little Australian ditty, which starts whimsically and seems ready to segue straight to quirkster hell, before making a left turn and going somewhere very dark and imminently danceable instead. Who knew the cheerful koala-folk had it in them?

47. Justice - "Waters of Nazareth" from Cross (2007)

I wandered into the Echoplex one night, just to check out the new space, and was wholly unprepared for the French asskicking I was about to receive from the evening's surprise guests. Closer resembling a scene from the golden era Sunset Strip than a dj set, Justice proceeded to make noises I had never heard before, but promptly fell in love with. "D.A.N.C.E." was the only taste I'd had before, but on meatier tracks like "Nazareth", the duo proved that dance music's maturing into something else these days. Not sure what that is, exactly, but if this song's any clue, it's going to kick ass.

46. The National - "Secret Meeting" from Alligator (2005)

Boxer finally established The National as breakout stars, but Alligator's opening track is the one that displays all the crossover promise later fulfilled. The bitter lyrics, echoing chords and sing-a-long chorus established a killer trifecta that the subsequent album made mined on practically every song.

45. M83 - "Don't Save Us From the Flames" from Before the Dawn Heals Us (2005)

Much like "Secret Meeting" informed the direction of Boxer, "Don't Save Us From the Flames" served as a bridge to Saturdays = Youth, and looking back, contains all of that album's promise in a mere four minutes, taking M83's symphonic brand of electronica & slowly pushing it into John Hughes-era nostalgia territory.


44. Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks" from Veckatimest(2009)

This track just about topped my 2008 list of best songs on the strength of one televised live performance alone. By the time it had been put through the studio ringer and released on the band's 2009 album, it carried the weight of added percussion and cleaner vocals, and resembled the sort of cheery Phil Spector-era pop that we've been craving for a while - minus Phil Spector, of course. PS: definitely a nominee for creepiest and best video of the decade.

43. Lykke Li - "A Little Bit" (2008)


Best lovelorn ballad of the decade? Didn't think of it that way until I realized it's the only one I put on here. Fair enough.

42. Hot Chip - "Boy From School" from iTunes' Live Session EP (2006)

Pretty sure this is the only track on the list I recommend listening to outside of its original context, but if you can plunk down 99 cents for the iTunes studio version, it's worth it, as the result is richer and, well, sadder than the original. Good sad. (And on that note, I finally understand "emo")

41. Radiohead - "Kid A" from Kid A (2000)

Again, I'm gonna catch a lot of flack for putting these guys so low, but honestly.....here's the deal: I respect Radiohead. I really do. I just don't think we really needed them last decade the way everyone and their mother seems to think we did. It was novel to back away from rocking arenas and instead go on an epic quest to re-invent rock music, but they weren't the only band playing that game. They just did it in the most obvious way. Remove bridge here, muffle sound there, etc. After the nu-metal nightmare culminated in 2000, the deconstruction of rock was inevitable; it didn't take Radiohead to lead the way. Now with THAT said....Kid A's title track is actually pretty brilliant, and unlike some other stuff on the album, is something I'm always in the mood to listen to.

40. Gorillaz feat Bootie Brown- "Dirty Harry" (2005) from Demon Days


Who knew Damon Albarn had this kinda thing in him? The Gorillaz' first album was a fun side-project, but with Demon Days, the Blur frontman began blazing new trails for himself: dark, creepy, dark, spooky, DARK trails. And this one was the album's crown jewel...or its smoldering crater, depending on how you look at it. Oh yeah....and Bootie from the fucking PHARCYDE's on it.

39. Coldplay - "Amsterdam" from A Rush of Blood to the Head(2002)

Best late-song guitar kick in ever. It's enough to make you realize there's more to this band than Chris Martin.

38. Bloc Party - "Like Eating Glass" from Silent Alarm (2005)

And like that, the Gang of Four-channeling, hard-to-define rockers exploded onto the scene. Nothing Bloc Party attempted after this rush of an entrance could live up to such early promise, but then again, they aren't exactly pushing elderly yet. And if nothing else, they've earned unlimited patience from listeners like me.

37. Cold War Kids - "Hospital Beds" from Robbers & Cowards (2006)

The controversial Long Beach rockers are good when they go hard, but as proven on their debut's stand-out track, are often even better when they slow down. I've got a rather unique (and unpopular) interpretation of this one, so I won't share it, but listen closely, and draw your own conclusions...

36. The Darkness - "Love is Only a Feeling" from Permission to Land (2004)

Come 2010, you can look back and laugh at the Darkness all you want, but six years ago, I defy you to say that you weren't laughing with them, except on this track, which injects a bizarre earnestness into an otherwise tongue-in-cheek album. If only the guys had gotten the balls to recapture this tone for One Way Ticket, they coulda been contendahs.

35. Andrew WK - "She is Beautiful" from I Get Wet(2002)

Speaking of totally earnest, I give you Mr. Andrew WK. And just a warning: this song is crack.

34. Band of Horses - "Funeral" from Everything All the Time (2006)


If you're gonna make a depressing song, at least make it incredibly epic.

33. Electric Six - "Danger! High Voltage" from Fire (2003)

The ultimate pregaming song is the stuff of ironic masterpiece.


32. The Killers - "Mr. Brightside" from Hot Fuss (2004)

In one album, the gritty glamor passed from the Velvet Underground to Depeche Mode was passed down again, and placed in very capable hands. "Mr. Brightside" has probably remained the most prominent of Hot Fuss' impressive hits, and the accompanying video was probably one of the most stylistically influential videos of the decade, considering it made straight dudes everywhere reach for the guyliner to crib Brandon Flowers (I only did it once, and for an 80s party, I promise).

31. The Streets - "Fit But You Know It" from A Grand Don't Come for Free (2004)

Mike Skinner never gained the US success that some predicted, but it's easy to see why: not for any lack of talent, but for things lost in translation. As a result, a song like this isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if it is, you're in luck.

30. Dirty Projectors - "Stillness is the Move" from Bitte Orce (2009)

It took ten years, but indie rock finally bridged the gap to R&B.

29. Hercules and Love Affair - "Blind" from Hercules and Love Affair (2008)

In 2008, proper disco returned to hipster clubs with this barn-burner of a tune from the makeshift band. Anchored by Antony Hegarty's unmistakable voice, it's a song that takes disco from the 70s, and turns it into something timeless. And to those not in love with it, hear it on a dancefloor, then come back to me.

28. MGMT - "Electric Feel" from Oracular Spectacular (2008)

And if disco was never your 70s relic of choice, MGMT was also on hand in '08 to single-handedly revive plastic soul.

27. Franz Ferdinand - "Take Me Out" from Franz Ferdinand (2004)

Clever Scottish bastards: with a wink and a nod, the boys begin their trademark staple sounding like the umpteenth Strokes clone band, before throwing up a middle finger and letting loose one minute in, trumpeting themselves for all the things they're not before showing you all the things they are. While their third LP fell short of standards, anything they release from here on out will still be met with fervor.

26. Eminem feat Dido - "Stan" from The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)

Eminem achieved superstardom on the strength of his pump-up jams and pop-friendly joke songs, but on "Stan", he made something truly iconic. No one's tried to top what he did here since, and for good reason: no one would be capable of doing it better.


25. Kanye West - "Stronger" from Graduation (2007)

While his track record is actually spottier than he'd have you believe, it's tough to deny Kanye's influence on mainstream hip hop in the aughts. Most notably came this tipping point, where he finally retired his sped-up soul samples in favor of re-tooled Daft Punk. This would quickly pave the way for Europop's American hip-hop invasion (see: producer David Guetta), but don't hold that against this.