When I sat down with the list of final contenders I noticed a trend: multiple songs by the same artist. Lots of bands put out great songs this year, both on the album format and the single format (digital and non), but I feel that a number of albums were just full of so many great songs that I couldn’t just pick one. Eventually, I did, narrowing down a field of nearly 60 finalists to half of that. I am also loving the fact a handful of them are actual singles, not songs from albums or EPs. Refreshing and different to find the best songs not on full-length albums.
But before the list is revealed, let’s talk a little bit about this year’s winner…
Former winners of my much sought after Album of the Year award in 2008 with the melodic bombast of racket known as Skeleton, Abe Vigoda returned this summer with a new single, “Throwing Shade”. A song that was like nothing on their previous album, I am not sure what came to more of a shock first: the opposing production or the summery bliss the song exudes.
Unlike Skeleton, “Shade” and the album it lives on, Crush, abandon the entire formula previously constructed. Gone is the racket, the layers and layers and layers and layers and so forth of reverb. Whereas a song like “Skeleton” found Michael Vidal’s vocals buried beneath every last snap, crackle and pop, “Shade” finds him putting them at the forefront. The tropical guitar work of Vidal and Juan Velezquez now competes for space with something new to the Vigoda fold: pure electronics. Keyboards, drum machines, samplers, etc. Is this in part because of the loss of original drummer Reggie Guerrero or because the band honestly wanted to go down that whole “cold wave/80s goth brit synth what have you” alley? At any rate, the loops and effects going on throughout the song are just some of the fireworks that really do show people they sound like Vampire Weekend after all now and again musically at least (and they’ve toured with them, too!)
That drum/hi-hat loop that sticks throughout; that immediately hook-y guitar line that follows it soon after; the fact that Vidal has gone from snarling punk guy to Robert Smith wannabe. Fucking synths! Who knew this band had it in them! They redefined themselves again, and did it the best way possible: in three and a half minutes.
So, kudos to you, young men of Abe Vigoda, once again making me love something so much. Also, because you evolve and change and didn’t just make another murky record.
The other 29 songs that make up the annual review find more bands going down that whole 80s revival thing, bands I’ve never really spent any time with that I now love, someone I spent time with on the road this year and, yes, Weezer (there’s my apology, Campbell and that’s as close as I’ll get. No one should ever apologize for Raditude. Ever.)
Click on the song titles below to download the MP3s. Zip file would’ve been way too big this year (over 200MB!)
RUSTY GOT UH “THE TOP 30 SONGS OF THE YEAR” 2010 EDITION
01. “Throwing Shade” / Abe Vigoda / from Crush
02. “Revival” / Deerhunter / from Halcyon Digest
03. “Collector” / Here We Go Magic / from Piegons
04. “At My Heels” / Twin Shadow / from Forget
05. “Minors” / Toro Y Moi / from Causers Of This
06. “Ghost Pressure” / Wolf Parade / from Expo 86
07. “Spanish Sahara” / Foals / from Total Life Forever
08. “Bottled In Cork” / Ted Leo & The Pharmacists / from The Brutalist Bricks
09. “Face It” / Beach Fossils / from Face It/Distance 7”
10. “TAOS” / Menomena / from Mines
11. “Cousins” / Vampire Weekend / from Contra
12. “Sweepstakes” / Gorillaz / from Plastic Beach
13. “Dance Yrself Clean” / LCD Soundsystem / from This Is Happening
14. “Put The Days Away” / Sun Airway / from Nocturne of Exploded Crystal Chandelier
15. “Silver Soul” / Beach House / from Teen Dream
16. “We Used To Wait” / Arcade Fire / from The Suburbs
17. “Save Your Love For Me” / Suckers / from Wild Smile
18. “Eyesore” / Women / from Public Strain
19. “Yellow Wings” / Keepaway / from Baby Style
20. “What Dreams” / Signals / from Silverfish/What Dreams 7”
21. “Out Of Tune” / Real Estate / from Out Of Tune 7”
22. “The Mall & Misery” / Broken Bells / from Broken Bells
23. “All Day Daylight” / Morning Benders / from Big Echo
24. “We Have Love” / Hot Chip / from One Life Stand
25. “Everything At Once” / Superchunk / from Majesty Shredding
26. “Trouble Comes Running” / Spoon / from Transference
27. “Barely Breathing” / The Hold Steady / from Heaven Is Whenever
28. “I Remember” / Yeasayer / from Odd Blood
29. “Time Flies” / Weezer / from Hurley
30. “Round The Moon” / Summer Camp / from Young
