The first of four posts unveiling my favorite songs of the past year, with a few words to honor each. I'd love for you to post any of your own favorite songs in the "comments" section, as there's always more good music out there in the aether, waiting to be found.
#40 jj – are you still in vallda?
A lightly strummed tune that goes beyond last summer's glo-fi/chill-wave trend by channeling every bit as much wistfulness (and half as many strings) as Stars' 2005 heartbreaker Set Yourself On Fire. Like the lost lover in vallda, your thoughts are sure to turn to jj and this song again each time you smell the sweet summer air.
#39 Basement Jaxx – Raindrops
A vaguely Middle Eastern intro builds effortlessly into a propulsive rhythm, bringing in and casually discarding whirling classical strings, bits of auto-tune, and a sexily simple metaphor. Need to add some quirk and whimsy to your online dating profile? Looking For: "Someone who will feel so good upon my lips. Just like raindrops!" Thank me later.
#38 Bat For Lashes – Daniel
Maybe it's a result of being born in 1984 and growing up on early 90's Seattle grunge (which I have always maintained mercifully killed the eighties' attempts to linger), but I'm always skeptical of artists heading straight to the 80's for their inspiration. Natasha Khan, however, writes epic poetry that just happens to sound like it was a stroke of genius from two-plus decades ago. If I had a Delorean, I would go back to Marty McFly's teenage years and bring him this cassette to reassure him that his era will live forever. And if my reckless time travel brought on the apocalypse, perhaps someone would write of it "The smell of cinders and rain / perfumed almost everything."
#37 Mos Def – Casa Bey
Mos Def is way overdue on this one. While he's been monkeying around in Hollywood with a moderately successful acting career, he has failed to drop an album that comes close to rivaling his work and hunger on Black on Both Sides or the Talib Kweli collaboration Black Star. This year's The Ecstatic isn't a masterpiece, but we can safely call it a comeback. Closer "Casa Bey" grabs a South American funky hip hop line and chops it into party oblivion, giving Mos the spark he needs to lay it down right and correct.
#36 Clues – Perfect Fit
The "other half" of early aughts indie phenoms The Unicorns won't match the prolific nature of the more well-known Islands, but "Perfect Fit" shows that they may be truer heirs to The Unicorns' schizophrenic songwriting style. Stick through the antsy intro and Clues will reward you with multiple crescendos, earning each crashing payoff with their attention to detail.
#35 Yo La Tengo – Here To Fall
Ira Kaplan has taken elder statesmen Yo La Tengo in many directions over the years. When he's decided it's time to write a song about being ready to go 'all in' on a relationship, and he orchestrates it with strings, a surprisingly significant bass rumble, and wah wah-ing guitars, it's worth taking notice. The world can always use more mixtape fodder that comes without extra cheese.
#34 Washed Out – Feel It All Around
A mildly electronic ambient groove, swelling and ebbing smoothly with distant, gauzy vocals. Even viewing it as a direct tribute to the Avalanches' "Since I Left You," it's a worthy inclusion on any list of the year's best songs. Put it on the headphones and you'll probably zone out, but you'll also play it again.
#33 Sparklehorse – Insane Lullaby (f/James Mercer)
Deconstructing pop music is a risky business. Kanye's 808's & Heartbreak was a favorite of this blogger, but "Bad News" (a track emulating a scratched and skipping CD) was still a constantly evolving and challenging listen. "Insane Lullaby" pits vocals no different than James Mercer's usual fare with the Shins against a backdrop of guitar so fuzzed out it's on the verge of disintegrating entirely throughout the song. Also, it's fucking gorgeous.
#32 Vitalic- Terminateur Benelux
The instrumental track of the year may not actually involve any instruments, but it's got a hell of a groove with a raspy bassline and layers of funk on top. A disembodied voice exclaims "ha ha" several times during this banger, and it's got a well-deserved a ring of achievement to it.
#31 Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Heads Will Roll
Karen O is done apologizing and pleading. She's in full-out rock goddess mode here, going from sighing siren - "shut your eyes / realize " - to femme fatale - " off off off with your head / dance dance dance 'til you're dead" in mere moments. And in this case, resistance is highly overrated.
#'s 30-21 coming soon...
#40 jj – are you still in vallda?
A lightly strummed tune that goes beyond last summer's glo-fi/chill-wave trend by channeling every bit as much wistfulness (and half as many strings) as Stars' 2005 heartbreaker Set Yourself On Fire. Like the lost lover in vallda, your thoughts are sure to turn to jj and this song again each time you smell the sweet summer air.
A vaguely Middle Eastern intro builds effortlessly into a propulsive rhythm, bringing in and casually discarding whirling classical strings, bits of auto-tune, and a sexily simple metaphor. Need to add some quirk and whimsy to your online dating profile? Looking For: "Someone who will feel so good upon my lips. Just like raindrops!" Thank me later.
Maybe it's a result of being born in 1984 and growing up on early 90's Seattle grunge (which I have always maintained mercifully killed the eighties' attempts to linger), but I'm always skeptical of artists heading straight to the 80's for their inspiration. Natasha Khan, however, writes epic poetry that just happens to sound like it was a stroke of genius from two-plus decades ago. If I had a Delorean, I would go back to Marty McFly's teenage years and bring him this cassette to reassure him that his era will live forever. And if my reckless time travel brought on the apocalypse, perhaps someone would write of it "The smell of cinders and rain / perfumed almost everything."
Mos Def is way overdue on this one. While he's been monkeying around in Hollywood with a moderately successful acting career, he has failed to drop an album that comes close to rivaling his work and hunger on Black on Both Sides or the Talib Kweli collaboration Black Star. This year's The Ecstatic isn't a masterpiece, but we can safely call it a comeback. Closer "Casa Bey" grabs a South American funky hip hop line and chops it into party oblivion, giving Mos the spark he needs to lay it down right and correct.
The "other half" of early aughts indie phenoms The Unicorns won't match the prolific nature of the more well-known Islands, but "Perfect Fit" shows that they may be truer heirs to The Unicorns' schizophrenic songwriting style. Stick through the antsy intro and Clues will reward you with multiple crescendos, earning each crashing payoff with their attention to detail.
Ira Kaplan has taken elder statesmen Yo La Tengo in many directions over the years. When he's decided it's time to write a song about being ready to go 'all in' on a relationship, and he orchestrates it with strings, a surprisingly significant bass rumble, and wah wah-ing guitars, it's worth taking notice. The world can always use more mixtape fodder that comes without extra cheese.
A mildly electronic ambient groove, swelling and ebbing smoothly with distant, gauzy vocals. Even viewing it as a direct tribute to the Avalanches' "Since I Left You," it's a worthy inclusion on any list of the year's best songs. Put it on the headphones and you'll probably zone out, but you'll also play it again.
Deconstructing pop music is a risky business. Kanye's 808's & Heartbreak was a favorite of this blogger, but "Bad News" (a track emulating a scratched and skipping CD) was still a constantly evolving and challenging listen. "Insane Lullaby" pits vocals no different than James Mercer's usual fare with the Shins against a backdrop of guitar so fuzzed out it's on the verge of disintegrating entirely throughout the song. Also, it's fucking gorgeous.
The instrumental track of the year may not actually involve any instruments, but it's got a hell of a groove with a raspy bassline and layers of funk on top. A disembodied voice exclaims "ha ha" several times during this banger, and it's got a well-deserved a ring of achievement to it.
Karen O is done apologizing and pleading. She's in full-out rock goddess mode here, going from sighing siren - "shut your eyes / realize " - to femme fatale - " off off off with your head / dance dance dance 'til you're dead" in mere moments. And in this case, resistance is highly overrated.
#'s 30-21 coming soon...
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