Aaron's Best of the Decade: #90-81

#90
Regina Spektor - On The Radio
Album: Begin To Hope
Year: 2006

"On The Radio" is the first song I heard by Regina Spektor, and still the best. I found her idiosyncratic style completely infectious and only slightly obnoxious (like an inverted version of Natalie Portman's character from Garden State). The song came back to me again and again for two reasons: her subtle wording change in the chorus from "it's a pretty song" to "it's a good refrain" and the fun of vocally imitating the "bum ba-dum ba-dum bum" sounds she and her instruments make throughout.

#89
Thom Yorke - And It Rained All Night

Album: The Eraser

Year: 2006

I used to play a computer game called Diablo II. To this day, I have never encountered a video game half as addictive or enjoyable (note: I have specifically avoided World of Warcraft, another game created by gaming juggernaut Blizzard with an even deadlier reputation). The Eraser, Thom Yorke's solo album, came out during a brief stretch when I was gaming heavily and it soundtracked many an epic Mephisto run. Something about the dark, grinding pitter-patter of "And It Rained All Night" still conjures up memories of fighting my way through Blunderbores and Ghoul Lords. I have confirmed reports of people who don't play Diablo II also liking this song, so if you weren't hip to the slang and jive-talk in this post, don't worry about it.

#88
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Biomusicology

Album: The Tyranny of Distance

Year: 2001

One of my all-time top ten sunny day songs. Ted Leo pulls out a simple, sparkling riff and uplifting vocals, layering in percussion as he continues to smile sing. Whatever, listen to him, he is clearly smiling at least as loud as he is singing. An interlude with peaceful strings in the middle feeds back into a Ted Leo vocal stretch with amped-up intensity, ending with elegant swirls of feedback and brief guitar fireworks.

#87
Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes

Album: Santogold

Year: 2008

Santogold (now Santigold) burst on to the scene with "L.E.S. Artistes" and the M.I.A. meets Yeah Yeah Yeahs comparisons began. The song is just plain catchy, packed with attitude and seeming remarkably straightforward until you notice the little touches - the handclaps at the end of each measure of the verse, the high-pitched sighs offering counterpoint to her chorus vocals, and the ballsy, instantaneous fade to nothing at the end.

#86
TV on the Radio - Family Tree

Album: Dear Science

Year: 2008

TV on the Radio may top my personal list of the most talented artists alive and recording (I certainly view them as having the highest potential to record the Next Great Album). Combining Tunde Ademipe's versatile baritone with Dave Sitek's brilliant arrangements for guitar and keyboard, they possess limitless permutations in terms of song form. The Brooklyn band's newest album, Dear Science, takes advantage of this, hopping all over the musical map. On "Family Tree" they marry a bed of strings reminiscent of Stars' orchestration with some of Tunde's most evocative lyrics and tender vocals.

#85
Exploding Hearts - Modern Kicks

Album: Guitar Romantic

Year: 2003

The Exploding Hearts are a sad story. The young Portland punk band was on tour for their first album, the incendiary Guitar Romantic, when their van crashed, prematurely ending the lives of all three primary members. Their legacy leaves us just one album of blissfully perfect punk (think Ramones and Buzzcocks, not Greenday and Offspring) and opening track "Modern Kicks" has earned a spot in the punk pantheon next to "I Wanna Be Sedated" and "Ever Fallen In Love."

#84
M83 - Kim and Jessie

Album: Saturdays=Youth

Year: 2008

The golden era of the shoegaze genre appears to be past us, with defining albums like My Bloody Valentine's Loveless, Ride's Nowhere, Slowdive's Souvlaki Space Station and virtually anything by the Jesus and Mary Chain emerging in the late 80's and early 90's. My interest in the gauzy sound was resuscitated by the wonderful Lost In Translation soundtrack, centered by Kevin Shields of MBV pedigree. The next great hope? Probably versatile electro-shoegaze peddlers M83, whose recent anthem "Kim and Jessie" should by all rights act as a gorgeous sign-post pointing the new generation back to these sleepy, overlooked gems.

#83
Gang Gang Dance - House Jam

Album: Saint Dymphna

Year: 2008

Gang Gang Dance are pretty weird. They are into some serious tribal shit, with crazy rhythms and wailing vocals. Extrapolating from their trippy live show, I am guessing they spend time reading Tarot cards on the tour bus and pretending that they are fundamentally different from all of the other hipsters in Brooklyn (I mean, those losers think clothing from the 80's is retro - try the Ottoman Empire). "House Jam" sticks out from their catalog despite fitting in perfectly, representing a perfect melding of dance-punk (via The Rapture) with psych-folk (by way of Yeasayer).

#82
The Dismemberment Plan - Time Bomb

Album: Change

Year: 2001

I've never liked Interpol. Lots of people do - I don't. This may seem like a random topic to discuss here, but I think I recently realized why, and it's because of The Dismemberment Plan. Songs like "Time Bomb" and "Gyroscope" utilize the same ultra-repetitive riff and disaffected lyrical style, but add in painfully sharp lyrics and a real sense of purpose (a lesson learned from Ian Curtis of Joy Division - if you're going to sing robotically, do it about matters of the heart).

#81
Delorean - Seasun

Album: Ayrton Senna EP

Year: 2009

I've written about this song before (here and here) so I'll be brief. This song embodies the Delorean Barcelona sound, and there is nothing quite like it for a relaxing time when the sun is shining. New album Subiza is fantastic, but I'm afraid these Spanish lads are destined to equal "Seasun" for the rest of their career, as besting the very template for their sound is out of the question.