|
|
Cut A Rug, Playa: The Best Tracks of 2010Dec 20 '10 Write an essay on this topic.
Popular Products in Music
The Bottom Line Music is great nowadays!
[NOTE: This article has been re-posted on other websites by my own hand, just so you don't think I plagiarized. And if you do, I hate you and we're definitely not going to be Facebook friends ever. So yeah...take that Mark Zuckerman] Normal people like to make Christmas lists, but writers like to make lists of things they already own and want everyone else to. Maybe a bit shameless, but there are greater things to worry about. Like being a professed Marxist and in the same breath trying to peddle "underground" albums to pay for a new Blackberry. And then turning back around and calling those bands sellouts for getting popular (on Facebook via Blackberry) Anyhow, to the list. Whereas dedication and focus makes one want to write a list with order and purpose, laziness and unemployment brings a haphazard list with no order and little organization. These are simply some of my favorite songs from 2010, and by no means a complete list of them. For example, The National would have made it here, but being absolutely trashed fueled my desire to listen to them, which subsequently caused me to forget what song I heard. Rest assured, it was pretty depressing. Also, there's a leaning towards indie rock, so forgive me for missing out on other genres. But as far as my closed-minded listening goes, here's the best of what I heard this year. Honorable Mentions Rihanna, "Rude Boy" (Rated R) She doesn't win any marks for subtlety, but that was never the idea anyway. Reggae-infused sex talk and Rihanna's smirky double-entendres make for a perfect pop song. Wavves, "Post Acid" (King of the Beach) If Wavves were trying to slyly suggest something about hallucinogenic come-downs, "Post Acid" seems to be leaning towards the advice "take some meth, dude". Whether or not that is sound advice, Post Acid is 3 minutes of noise-punk perfection, washed in an psychedelic, ultra-catchy chorus. Drake, "Over" (Thank Me Later) Nasally vocals. Goofy lyrics. Overuse of auto-tune. Apparently 3 wrongs can make a right, because despite everything hedged against it, Drake's lead-off single is pretty great. Trading between a Rocky-themed verse and 70s soul-funk chorus, Drake tries to inflate his ego like a balloon, and its fun to listen to him try. Because for all the criticism, its hard to deny that he does it in style. Local Natives, "Wide Eyes" (Gorilla Manor) It's doesn't quite escape from its debt to Animal Collective and similar bands that have done the same before, but its certainly an improvement over a tried-and-true formula. Dreamy guitar lines and precise polyrhythms make for a swirling, beautiful indie rock number. LCD Soundsystem, "Dance Yrself Clean" (This Is Happening) With a multitude of songs over the 6-minute mark, you'd think This Is Happening was a prog-rock epic. And maybe it is, maybe its progressive dance-punk. But its not much of surprise coming from James Murphy, one of the bona fide pioneers of the genre. Dance Yrself is 8 minutes of rhythmic buildup, starting from a modest percussive beat and shoegazing vocals to a full-blown dance track, keyboards leading the way. Arguably LCD's best album yet, it certainly wastes no time in proclaiming its brilliance with this track as opener. The Actual Best Songs of 2010 Big Boi, "Shutterbugg" (Sir Lucious Left Foot...The Son of Chico Dusty) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWsvkW6rKkQ] Kanye swore undying loyalty to the auto-tune. Jay-Z rejected it. Big Boi? He simply ignored it, because he had a better plan all along. The 70s/80s electro-funk vibe of 'Sir Lucious Left Foot' rings with synthesizers, keys, and Funkadelic-inspired guitar licks, but by far the most impressive tool in Big Boi's arsenal is the talkbox. If he wanted to pick an instrument to represent his album, he sure picked a good one, moving past various technological alterations but always taking the same shape. 'Shutterbugg' wastes no time in entering with an earth-shaking beat that easily marks producer Scott Storch's best effort, driving pounding bass rhythm into 80s-funk synthesizer as Big Boi trades line for line like a prizefighter dodging and weaving in perfect time. In a song so washed in funk excess, its amazing that nearly every layer of the song is a perfect piece to the puzzle. The Eddie Hazel-inspired guitar lines, the Frampton-esque chorus, and that beat relentlessly propel the song into orbit and beyond. Far and away the best party song of 2010. Fang Island, "Life Coach" (Fang Island) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCaojIXbsB0] Self-awareness and post-modernism have killed any semblance of escapism in rock music. Oh yeah, and the economy too. Even the so-called optimists of rock seemed to have a chip on their shoulder this year. With less of King Kong and more of Leaving Las Vegas, the "Great Recession" has somewhat predictably produced a more tempered reflection and less exuberant escapism than compared to its predecessor (not that the The National was there to bemoan the drudgery of 30's life). Which is why Fang Island's self-proclaimed "everyone high-fiving everyone" philosophy came as such a pleasant surprise this year. It's no coincidence that Andrew W.K. made a cameo appearance in one of their videos; one could easily confuse their album as an evolution of his no apologies bender rock. "Life Coach" stands as a highlight among other gems on the album. Hand claps take place of actual high-fives, but they work to the same effect. And to emphasize just how wild Fang Island is intent on being, they're audible over 70's arena rock riffage, thundering drum fills, and euphoric chanting (and those things are even louder than they would be on any other rock album). The bouncy verse takes more than a few pages from cheerleading-inspired polyrhythms, but like the album cover, its cheerleading with a slightly psychotic bent. Maybe "everyone high-fiving everyone" was a shortened description. From the sound of Life Coach, the aesthetic is more like "everyone high-fiving everyone while a gas station explodes and a confetti asteroid shoots towards Earth". Deerhunter, "Desire Lines" (Halcyon Digest) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mBSOtdOjoc] Deerhunter's psych-tinged garage rock came to fruition on this year's Halcyon Digest, yet for all its dreamy, ethereal ambitions, the album is marked by an acute sense of precision, stripped of excess and obsessed with preserving only the highlights of dreams and memories, and not the rambling filler. And then comes the nearly 7 minute dissertation that is Desire Lines. The highlight is a 3 minute psych-out guitar jam, slowly building around a steady, hypnotic backbeat. Using simple two-note tradeoffs to wonderful effect, Desire Line's climax makes the listener feel as if they actually are in a dream, a sense of lifting off the ground. But that has been Deerhunter's modus operandi for some time now. Creating complexity of out simple words and simple lines, only to much greater effect here. Of course, the 3 minutes of song that preceed are also pure pleasure. Kanye West, "Monster" [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ona42jz8w0k] If 808s & Heartbreaks was Kanye's Frankenstein, the misguided product of a self-proclaimed mad genius that was destined to implode, then god help us in fending off the creature that is My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Whereas most pop icons take a more detached stance towards their place in history, Kanye seems intent on writing his own eulogy over and over again. He wants to be a phoenix rising from the ashes, he wants to be the mad scientist. He wants to be so unstable and drenched in excess that even the most amoral libertine would blush. Dark Twisted Fantasy certainly comes close to that goal. By far the best mark of his destructive brilliance is the 6 and a half minute epic that is "Monster". Like many of the songs on the album, it is represented not only by the thematic lyrics, but by the song structure as a whole. Kanye is a scientist unconcerned with such trifles as ethical boundaries, and he unapologetically fuses Bon Iver, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, and Nicki Minaj to his own body, welding a creature doomed from birth and cursed by God himself. Jay-Z and Ross play their roles well, providing solid backbone to the song and setting up the true stars of the show: Kanye and Nicki Minaj. Kanye rolls through more unabashed sex and violence, and after all it's his fantasy, right? However his flow and rhyme are leaps and bounds above any previous album, trading stinger for stinger in one of his most memorable verses. It's as if he has finally learned the words to truly write the treatise that is his planet-sized ego ("I'm livin' in the future so my present is the past, my presence is a present kiss my a*s"). However, its Minaj who absolutely destroys the song, bringing out every one of her murderous multiple personalities to come play. She's Minaj the rapper, a sweet-talking Devil in disguise, and a Rasta queen all in one. On the back of a thunderous percussive beat, Monster is Kanye's finest moment of excess. Two Door Cinema Club, "I Can Talk" (Tourist History) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJDCMth8poM] Its hard to fault a band just for following a formula, and its even tougher when they do it very well. Two Door Cinema Club's Tourist History is rife with ideas copied and pasted from indie rock past, down to the calculated flirtation with pretension and quasi-literary lyrics borrowed from art school electives. But "I Can Talk" works so well as a single that it just doesn't really matter. An Animal Collective-esque vocal chant is quickly grounded by a pummeling guitar line, and from there on its pure pop. The song doesn't shy away from its ultimate goal, and the verses just serve as unabashed props for the jittery chorus. The swirling guitar line serves a solid backbone, creating a half-dance, half-indie rock feel that propels the song forward. No merit here for originality, but even some of the best musicians worked solely to innovate instead of invent. And when you can turn gold into even shinier gold, you won't find many people upset. Arcade Fire, "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)" (The Suburbs) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH_7_XRfTMs] Arcade Fire had to be considerably bold to release an album called The Suburbs, and then actually make it about...the suburbs. Just mention of the place brings to mind jaded images of misguided upper-middle class teenagers spouting tired existentialism, but leave it to the complex and challenging band to find something interesting to say. Though nearly everyone one of the exhaustive 17 tracks on The Suburbs works wonderfully, it is quite easy to pick out the highlight, the emotional and physical peak of the album's energies, Sprawl II. The album's true philosophical ingenuity comes not from Win Butler's deceptively simple lyrics, but instead from their wonderfully crafted scores, borrowing from 70's pop radio with an added theatrical flair. It's what other groups have been unable to achieve; a kind of nostalgia that one can actually experience and not just detachedly think about. Sprawl II's sonic muse has already been identified as Blondie's Heart of Glass, layering a synthesizer-heavy keyboard line over a 16th note disco beat, with Regine Chassagne sounding not too far away from Debbie Harry. Chassagne's vocals, however, go much further, and take the song to a completely new plane. Her impassioned pleas climax to a jaw-droppingly beautiful chorus, both a primal scream and a desperate cry, bringing Butler's lyrics to life (And there's no end in sight / I need the darkness someone please cut the lights). It's suburban life dressed in FM nostalgia, properly reflective and devoid of the egoism and pretension that derails less worthy reflections on the suburbs. Sleigh Bells, "Run the Heart" (Treats) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aA9LyxbA6GI] Did The Go Team just get a speedball to the vein? Did jock jams just get a switchblade and a license to kill? Whatever it is, Sleigh Bells dedication to smashing speakers into oblivion and doing it with angel-faced vocals makes for one hell of a rock album. Run the Heart brings the formula to drug-induced freakout levels. Alexis Krauss's sugar-sweet vocals and a shrill siren lead the song in to a deceptively calm start, but from there on, it's a complete demolition derby. Overblown bass drums crash and burn while vocals dance with a rotating keyboard line. The lyrics are built around vague, rambling sentences, but it all just adds to the overwhelming effect. Maybe the song is about a relationship, or maybe its about vengeance against an ex-lover. Whatever the hell its about, its loud and it rocks. Some want to explore the nuances of rock music, but Sleigh Bells just wants to make it loud as f*ck. And the Run the Heart shows just how fun that can be. Surfer Blood, "Harmonix" (Astro Coast) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jh7WN7vrJ8s] Critics are quick to point out a Pixies reference when they see one, but you won't hear many people complaining about it. Surfer Blood does it one better, making a Pixies-inspired number with much to love. A simple use of harmonics drives the song forward under heavily distorted vocals, and like the Pixies' finest moments, it uses pop simplicity to great effect. Like the band's name, the song's divergence comes from its beach-themed musings, although the lyrics bring to mind darker moments and hidden regrets more than it does sun and surf. For most of the album, Surfer Blood are content to belt out laid back anthems, more concerned with the basics than all the bells and whistles of rock music. And with such a solid formula, there's not much more you can ask from a song like this. Les Savy Fav, "Appetites" (Root For Ruin) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yse4ezWaY8w] 2007's Lets Stay Friends was the darling of many a music critic and listeners. Art-rock group Les Savy Fav had been crunching out poetic verse and high-flying riffage for nearly a decade, but 2007 was their year, where the stars really did align in an album that didn't miss a beat and showcased a band at its absolute, perfect best. Their follow-up, however, made the previous album look like the twilight of their career. But that certainly didn't mean it was completely devoid of bright spots, and in fact, Root For Ruin contains some of their best songs to date. The evidence is clear from the absolute beast of a song that is Appetites. Channeling the Dead Kennedys and maybe even outpacing them, Appetites kicks off in classic LSF style, based around a wildly catchy guitar line and frontman Tim Harrington's relentless screams and signature sardonic attitude. Lyrically, its classic Les Savy Fav, turning the lowbrow into high art (show us your teeth and show us your tits, and show us the scars from the sh*t that you did). The deal-closer, however, is Andrew Reuland and Seth Jabour's immaculate guitar work, which brings to mind the best moments of Thin Lizzy's signature axe duels. The final minute of the song is a rollercoaster ride of high flying guitar lines, cult-like chanting, and enough possessed rock and roll to melt any faces that managed to survive the preceding moments. A high contender for 2010's best rock song. Gorillaz, "Stylo" (Plastic Beach) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhPaWIeULKk] Gorillaz have had as many descriptions as they've had incarnations, but "aggressive" is certainly one not too often thrown at them. Plastic Beach, however, was all about change. Freed from the thematic constraints that marked its inception, Albarn stripped his pet project down to a far more liberal platform, and it worked wonderfully, creating the best Gorillaz album yet. And yes, it gets aggressive. Stylo kicks off with a razor sharp synth line (so forceful that its completely devoid of any nostalgia or kitsch) and like a bullet is so single-minded and determined with getting to its destination that it cant be bothered with simple digressions. The song isn't shy about its ambitions either; from the outset we know we're headed to a hallucinogenic acid-trip of a finish. Albarn's wistful singing brings to life the dark scrap metal that makes up "Stylo" (a '69 Camaro in the video), with ever-creepier chants of "overload" leading in to Bobby Womack's stunning performance. Womack rambles, screams, digresses, and screams some more in an almost fire-and-brimstone sermon. Like most of the album, its rather vague with some kind of loose theme tying things together, but its sonic effect is undeniable. Stylo is Gorillaz at its' peak; dark, quirky, acidic, and a proud product of the devious Damon Albarn.  |
| Read all comments (2)|Write your own comment |
by kiwifella
![Revelation [Digipak] by Journey Reviews](http://di1.shopping.com/images/pi/73/9c/e0/2046466476-100x100-0-0.jpg?p=p11.83f252ce718328fd3e66&a=2&c=1&l=8071320&t=120604180003&r=1)
![Irony Is a Dead Scene [EP] by The Dillinger Escape Plan Reviews](http://di1.shopping.com/images/pi/6b/71/9f/2005398205-100x100-0-0.jpg?p=p4.87f04f2a8b40085fc9d8&a=2&c=1&l=8071320&t=120604180003&r=2)
