Top 100 Songs of 2010-19: #15
December 20, 2022
#15
Raphael Saadiq – “Go to Hell”
Stone Rollin’ (2011)
First of all, don’t let the title throw you – the song definitely isn’t an attack on the listener (or anyone else for that matter), the opening line reveals that Saadiq is just “Tryin’ to do my best not to go to hell”. That’s what it’s all about on this four-minute slab of finely produced gospel-soul, an ode to doing the right thing, showing the love to your fellow person, and bringing the people together. Blessed with a golden voice and charisma for days, Saadiq effortlessly ladles on the charm while also tapping into some deep emotions, culminating in a jubilant, uplifting finale. When he finally cuts loose and vamps out over the backing choir’s refrain of “Let love bring us together”, well… if you’re anything like me you’ll be feeling chills after one listen and singing along emphatically after two.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #16
November 10, 2022
#16
Joanna Newsom – “Good Intentions Paving Company”
Have One On Me (2010)
Arriving at the beginning of the decade, Joanna Newsom’s Have One On Me saw the idiosyncratic songsmith venture into some pretty ambitious territory. On just her third outing, Newsom delivered a triple album comprising eighteen tracks, most of which pushed well beyond the six minute mark. Between the ongoing refinement of her singing voice, the deployment of a full backing band (often anchored around Newsom’s nimble piano) and tangible lyrics that lean less heavily into folklore and poetic imagery than previous efforts, this was Newsom at her most relatable. When the album first came out I was so absolutely enamored that I wrote perhaps my longest ever review.
The ten minute, multi-movement opus “Good Intentions Paving Company” is the album’s standout. Positively brimming with humour, warmth and romance, it’s an absolute charmer of a song, that perfectly distills the qualities described above into a single, remarkable package.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #17
May 17, 2022
#17
Neneh Cherry and The Thing – “Dream Baby Dream”
The Cherry Thing (2012)
Hip-hop has long had a close and fruitful relationship with jazz, most evidenced by the explosion of popular acts employing jazz samples and instrumentation during the early 90s. So when hip-hop icon Neneh Cherry teamed up with jazz outfit The Thing for 2012’s The Cherry Thing it wasn’t necessarily a groundbreaking fusion, however there’s plenty of interesting elements that set it apart. Cherry makes routine forays into a more traditional singing vocal, The Thing’s backing mixes a minimalist approach with occasional avant-garde stylings, and a number of fascinating genre-crossover covers stand out in the mix. The best of those covers was their rendition of Suicide’s “Dream Baby Dream”, which eschews the cold precision of the original for a blissful reimagining that brims with warmth.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #18
January 13, 2022
#18
Big Blood – “Destin Rain”
Operators and Things (2010)
There’s a four-artist overlap between the top 20 of this 2010s list, and the top 20 from my equivalent list for the previous decade (link over there on the sidebar). Big Blood are the first of those double-ups – their gorgeous experimental folk song “Destin Rain”, which closes the album Operators and Things, was released in the early weeks of 2010 and thereby narrowly sneaks into eligibility. Like many of Big Blood’s finest tunes, it showcases Colleen Kinsella’s wondrous vocals. She has that special blend of passion, power, lightness, skill and idiosyncrasy, where if it lands with you it really lands with you. Her voice positively soars on “Destin Rain”, flying through the sky with wide-eyed fervor. She’s held aloft by the band’s particular style of baroque-drone instrumentation, which quickly reaches a kind of modest, simmering intensity and then maintains it for six spellbinding minutes. For a song that so effortlessly gets under my skin, it comes across surprisingly understated.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #19
December 30, 2021
#19
Sharon Van Etten – “Seventeen”
Remind Me Tomorrow (2019)
I’d been following Van Etten’s career with admiration and interest since her second album, 2010’s Epic, enamoured by her understated guitarwork and the intense pathos of her quiet vocals. It was a huge surprise, then, when her album Remind Me Tomorrow, and the hyper-emotive single “Seventeen” in particular, dramatically changed up the M.O. With a truly commanding vocal performance, Etten addresses her past self at the titular age, with a palpable blend of nostalgic pride and regretful hindsight. The propulsive instrumentation is sublime, a kind of near-future descendent of stadium rock, full of snare snaps, fuzz guitar and squiggly synth accents.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #20
December 7, 2021
#20
Dirty Beaches – “Horses”
Badlands (2011)
It wasn’t a shock to see Alex Zhang Hungtai, who recorded under the name Dirty Beaches from 2007-14, eventually show up as one of the featured musical performers in David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return. Read any review of his enigmatic 2010 release Badlands, and you’re likely to encounter a Lynch comparison (and Hungtai even later confirmed the influence). “Horses” is an unnerving exercise in ghoulish rockabilly with a motorik twist. Atop a metrical chug of looping guitar and drums (reminiscent of Suicide’s “Rocket USA”), Hungtai’s quavering, tic-laden vocal channels early Elvis Presley (or Chris Isaak, for a more apt comparison). Like those singers, Hungtai carries himself with rugged, self-assured cool, yet the song constantly teeters on the verge of some unknowable horror.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #25 – #21
November 27, 2021
#25
My Bloody Valentine – “Only Tomorrow”
MBV (2013)
The idea of My Bloody Valentine’s long awaited third album finally seeing the light of day felt so unlikely that it’s eventual emergence – after more than two decades! – was a downright surreal affair. It’s an inventive album, and the band were surprisingly restrained when it came to overtly referencing their own back catalogue. “Only Tomorrow” is the main exception and sounds like it could have been plucked straight out of the Loveless recording sessions. Undoubtedly my pick as the album’s peak track, it’s the complete package, but in particular that rising and falling guitar riff is spellbinding stuff.
Watch on YouTube (audio only)
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#24
Elon Katz – “The Rhino Powder of New Sensitivity”
The Human Pet (2016)
Idiosyncratic in the extreme, “The Rhino Powder of New Sensitivity” is totally unlike any other song on this list. Reference points and inspirations aren’t too hard to pin down – Talking Heads, IDM, 80s synth pop, glam, funk and industrial techno all get a look in, to varying extents – but the way Katz blends them together makes for something all at once anxious, weird and thrilling. Factmag put so well, I won’t even attempt to out-critic them: “a synapse-melting barrage of globular synth riffs, twanging strings, tick-ticking rhythms and mangled pop vocals yelped by a cyborgian Prince leaking battery acid.”
Watch music video on YouTube
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#23
Dum Dum Girls – “Coming Down”
Only in Dreams (2011)
Dum Dum Girls initially got on my radar with their infectious blend of scrappy underground rock and retro pop. then stayed there with interesting forays into 80s synth-pop. “Coming Down” doesn’t really fit any of those moulds, instead trading in languid, early-90s, alt-rock balladry. It’s a truly gorgeous song, understated for the most part but big when it needs to be. Mazzy Star is a very suitable frame of reference for this one – the song seems to borrow a little bit of the melody from “Fade Into You”, but retools it into something distinct. If you like that song (and who on earth doesn’t like “Fade Into You”) then this one’s definitely for you.
Watch music video on YouTube
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#22
Seratones – “Don’t Need It”
(single) (2015)
The crunchy riffs and ample distortion place “Don’t Need It” into 90s grunge and alt-rock territory, but lead singer AJ Hanes only needs to let out a note or two, and you immediately know that Louisiana’s Seratones are a blues and gospel-soul outfit right down to their DNA. Hanes’ confident, sonorous voice is simply a phenomenal instrument, trading gutsy wails against enchanting trills. This entry is very much targeted at the early-2015 version of the song, which seems to incorporate some live performance elements and was issued as a debut single and promotional clip. The subsequent album version sadly felt like all the rough edges had been filed off, but the early version remains available and sounds like lightning in a bottle.
Watch music video on YouTube
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#21
The Books – “Group Autogenics I”
The Way Out (2010)
The Books final release opens with one of their trademark, gorgeous sound collages, wherein the band sample an array of self-help audio excerpts and then gently lay them atop a bed of tippy-tapping guitar plucks, soothing cello and vocal hums. Like so much of the band’s catalogue, it’s consistently hilarious, surreal and goofy (“You may just detect from my voice that I am Irish, and now I leap forward in time“, “Unlock the door, and a fountain of ears is available” and so on). This song is imbued with so much warmth and affection, though. It’s telling that something like “We will continue this pattern until we have reached the infinite everything” becomes weirdly profound, almost spine-tingly, when it’s embedded within such an earnest and lovely song.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #30 – #26
November 18, 2021
#30
Sleater-Kinney – “A New Wave”
No Cities to Love (2015)
Having one of my favourite bands return to the scene after a decade-plus absence was quite the treat, and No Cities to Love was a great album that exceeded most reasonable expectations. My favourite track from it was without a doubt “A New Wave” which, with it’s infectious, springy excitement, recalled some of the best moments from One Beat. There’s big guitars, foot-tapping urgency, bold declarations that “no outline could ever hold us” and a “Bob’s Burgers” themed music video that’s far better than it has any right to be.
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#29
Saagara – “Uprise”
Saagara 2 (2017)
The sophomore release by Saagara – a fascinating quintet who blend Indian and European musical traditions with elements of folks, classical and jazz – was my favourite surprise discovery of 2017, an album that landed on my radar by total chance and instantly wowed me. “Uprise” is an exceptional blend of the understated and the dramatic, a slow-boiling, seven minute instrumental build up that ultimately crescendos with incredible syncopated bursts of saxophone.
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#28
Ought – “Desire”
The Room Inside the World (2018)
The independent music community loves a good story of artistic progression, the ol’ “talented but raw caterpillar emerges from between-albums slumber as an unexpectedly sophisticated butterfly” bit. I joke, but Ought’s transformation was genuinely remarkable. The shift was already noteworthy between albums one and two, but they became near-unrecognisable on “Desire”, trading jittery punk and dense noise-rock for dreamy synthesizer, crooning vocals and languid melody. It’s an absolutely gorgeous song in its own right, but in the context of the group’s catalogue it’s genuinely eye-opening stuff.
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#27
Jenny Hval – “Innocence is Kinky”
Innocence is Kinky (2013)
Jenny Hval has gone on to bigger and bigger acclaim since Innocence is Kinky, but it remains my favourite albums from the Oslo-based songwriter and academic. The title-track opens the album in the most perfectly confronting manner, with Hval confessing a whispered “Last night I watched people fucking on my computer” as a weirdly disquieting buzz of electronic distortion hums beneath her. Weaving expressively around fractured post-punk guitar, Hval’s vocal performance is remarkably dynamic, as she explores concepts of sex, sensuality and the body. The video delves further into these themes (and although not particularly explicit is probably NSFW).
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#26
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – “Gamma Knife”
Nonagon Infinity (2016)
You could argue that some of the shine wore off their output over the ensuing years – releasing five albums in a year is some pretty bold market saturation – but Nonagon Infinity was absolutely peak-Gizz. Lead single “Gamma Knife”, with it’s mind-bending, cultish video clip, was a wild delight, with tight guitar lines and some dynamic vocals. It also boasts a fantastic structure, switching up between tense repetition and bursts of off-the-hook energy, with a percussive interlude that nicely showcases the band’s twin-drummers setup. Also, bonus marks for that terrific, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it harmonica breakdown right near the start.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #35 – #31
March 16, 2021
#35
Cheveu – “Polonia”
BUM (2014)
“Polonia” is such a delightfully odd tune from the French group Cheveu. It starts off unassumingly enough, with twinkly electronic backing and sparse electric guitar strums, plus some spoken word vocals in French. But those element are quickly swept up in layers of weirdly sinister intonements (quite nicely harmonised, though!) and synth pulses that strike through with increasing urgency. I’m having a hard time describing it in a way that I think really does it justice – there’s not much out there that sounds like it.
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#34
The King Khan and BBQ Show – “Alone Again”
Bad News Boys (2015)
I’ve been a huge fan of garage-rockers King Khan and Mark Sultan (a.k.a BBQ) for many years, following their individual careers while also immensely enjoying their wonderful collaborations as The King Khan and BBQ Show. Their fourth album together, Bad News Boys, arrived in 2015 (ending a six year hiatus). Opening track “Alone Again” is a giddy burst of rollicking guitar and doo-wop vocals with a thick layer of scuzz – a pure distillation of their shaggy appeal.
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#33
Four Tet – “Lahaina Noon”
Anna Painting EP (2019)
“Lahaina Moon” by Four Tet is the electronic music equivalent of gliding through crystal clear water – the beats are so crisp and the melodies shimmer beautifully, the whole thing feels perfectly composed and organically pure. Then every so often it turns a little corner – a strident synth emerging from the calm, or a glitch beat dancing over the melody – only for the diversion to fade away as suddenly as it appeared. Those little changes may have caught me off-guard on the first play through, but by the the second listen they already felt essential to the song’s DNA.
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#32
Deerhunter – “Helicopter”
Halcyon Digest (2010)
I think Deerhunter were probably my favourite of the high-profile, indie-rock stalwarts of the 2010s. They’re certainly the ones whose career trajectory I’ve found the most fascinating, evolving from their raw psychedelic/shoegaze beginnings into some pretty refined output. Halcyon Digest was just a fantastic album, endlessly replayable and offering new wrinkles on each listen – demonstrated by the fact that “Helicopter” is the fourth or fifth song I’ve decided at some point was my favourite on the album. The song has a swimmy, disorienting beauty that both suits and juxtaposes its tragic subject matter. The lyrics are described in detail in the album’s liner notes, and they the story of a Russian teenager who was drawn into the world of pornographic acting, prostitution and organised crime, and who eventually disappeared under mysterious circumstances (the song’s title alludes to a rumour that he may have been thrown from a helicopter by a Russian mob boss).
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#31
Crack Cloud – “Swish Swash”
Anchoring Point (2017)
The Calgary-based, experimental post-punk collective Crack Cloud were one of the most interesting bands I discovered during the 2010s. They’re highly reminiscent of (and essential listener for fans of) groups like The Ex, The Fall, Talking Heads and Gang of Four. Their songs feel dense and dangerous, sociopolitical commentary layered up with dubby bass, droning guitar, atonal strings, sharp stabs of jarring keyboard and off-kilter vocals, all underpinned by rigid percussion. The terrific music video includes scenes of all the players in close proximity, and really gives a great sense of just how much is going on. “Swish Swash” was my introduction to their work and it’s amazing stuff – as confronting and unconventional as you’d hope from this kind of music, but it also straight-up rocks. The repeating, lock-down drums and guitar bursts (which remind me of “Ascension Day” by Talk Talk – high praise indeed) are key, as they turn a seeming display of anti-music into something urgent and downright groovy.
Top 100 Songs 2010-19: #40 – #36
December 24, 2020
#40
Blockhead feat. Billy Woods, Open Mike Eagle & Breezly Brewin – “Slippery Slope”
Free Sweatpants (2019)
Despite Blockhead’s long and successful career in hip-hop production, I’d never heard of him until stumbling upon the fantastic stop-motion animated clip for 2019’s “Slippery Slope”. What a terrific find it was – a surreal amalgam of soul and sci-fi, featuring excellent vocal turns from two of my favourite rappers in Billy Woods and Open Mike Eagle. The video really is a creative treat, worth a watch (link below) even if you’re not especially into hip-hop.
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#39
Cornelius – “If You’re Here”
Mellow Waves (2017)
1997’s Fantasma album made me a lifetime Cornelius fan, but his subsequent releases tried but never quite succeeded in recapturing that same magical blend of creativity, humour, energy, emotion and elasticity. Landing twenty years on, Mellow Waves feels like it’s recaptured that peak form. It’s far from a Fantasma retread in terms of style and content, but the spirit is absolutely there. The tracklist opens with the slinky and serene “If You’re Here” (also the lead single) and it’s absolutely my favourite track on the album.
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#38
Makthaverskan – “Asleep”
Makthaverskan II (2013)
Based on previous entries from the likes of Tamaryn, Zola Jesus, Hatchie and CCFX, you won’t be at all surprised to learn I have a bit of a thing for 80s and 90s style, dreamy post-punk and dream-pop tunes with airy female vocals. Well, here’s exhibit-number-whatever-we’re-up-to-now, the Swedish post-punk outfit Makthaverskan and their bouncy 2013 dream-pop tune “Asleep”. Those airy vocals get a whole lot punchier in the song’s soaring chorus, so that when Maja Millner belts out “It’s not me you’re dreaming of!” – hanging onto that final syllable for what seems like forever – the heartache is palpable.
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#37
Angel Olsen – “Lark”
All Mirrors (2019)
“Lark” is an exercise in sheer intensity, the musical version of 6 minutes of unbroken eye contact. The song immediately feels like a brewing storm, slowly but continuously escalating as Olsen dissects and contemplates a failing relationship that hasn’t progressed the way she envisaged – “Walking down that path we made when we thought what we had was such a good thing.” Every lyric is simple, direct and incisive. The song’s woozy, rising and falling strings alert you that something is coming but never quite tell you what or when. The catharsis finally comes not as a sudden jump, but more fittingly as an inevitable boiling over. It’s a genuinely breathtaking moment, as Olsen unleashes everything she’s been holding back and howls “What about my dreams?”
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#36
Blanck Mass – “D7-D5”
Adult Swim Singles (2016)
Speaking of intensity! If “Lark” is six minutes of unbroken eye contact, “D7-D5” might well be eight minutes of the same, only maybe the other person has a knife and is slowly walking towards you? This slab of unrelenting industrial techno was first released as part of Adult Swim’s always fascinating singles program and later as a vinyl single. From start to finish and without reprieve, “D7-D5” is sinister and frenetic, an array of mechanically precise beats and basslines that are eventually balanced out with diced-up vocal cuts in the song’s second half. Locked in top gear and yet somehow still constantly escalating, the track is an oddly thrilling synthesis of laser-like focus and overwhelming anxiety.
Halibut Threesome 