Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Stilettos and broken bottles"  #10 - - Robyn   Sounds like: Royalty.  Well she is the new queen. In a year in which the pixie-like Swede released no less than three full-length albums, all of good quality, it's hard to argue anybody else as the standout female music artist of the year. Lady Gaga may steal the column inches by wearing meat to awards shows but it's Robyn who commands respect with infectious electro tracks like this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Because I like it when you lose control."  #9 - O.N.E. - Yeasayer   Sounds like: Psychadelia.  This is also on the FIFA 11 soundtrack and I'm still not sick of it despite the worryingly repetitive nature of said soundtrack. When you play that game a lot it can be especially maddening. This is probably the most accessible Yeasayer song I've ever heard. It's clearly an attempt at courting the mainstream and there's nothing wrong with that, especially when it retains their psychadelic sound while adding some pop infection in the process.  I've included the radio edit here as I think it's an improvement on the album version in that it's slightly shorter and crucially, brings the closing chorus forward meaning that not only do you not wait five minutes for it, but you get it twice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Call! Call call call the cops!"  #8 - Jamboree - New Amusement   Sounds like: Something that deserves a wider audience.  Unless you pay attention to the Irish music scene, specifically the unsigned bands sector, you probably haven't heard of New Amusement. That changes right now, for the track above is worthy of your attention. It's been around in one form or another for the past two years but appeared on My Captain; the band's excellent debut album. The changes made were subtle, and thankfully the song still packs the punch it did when it first crept into the public domain. On the surface it's a simple song done well, with a driving guitars, energetic vocals and a ridiculous drum beat. It's not reinventing the wheel, it's not bullshit posturing, it's just a fucking good song. And sometimes that's enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vito Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 I was going to say that I hoped Robyn would make it into the top ten, "Dancing On My Own" is a great tune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Next thing, we're touching."  #7 - - Ellie Goulding   Sounds like: A false dawn.  A real case of "nice song, shame about the album". What a song though. Bit of a sleeper for me I'm honest, in that I heard it numerous times before I really heard it, if you'll allow me to be so pretentious for a moment. It's a real shame that nothing else on Lights came close to this as it's such a blistering track, perfect for a nightclub floor when they're not blaring out Kings Of Leon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 5, 2011 Paid Members Share Posted January 5, 2011 Good call on O.N.E., Sev. Wasn't that fond of Ambling Alp though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "...?" Â #6 - - J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Blinding lights illuminate the scene."  #5 - The Space In Between - How To Destroy Angels   Sounds like: Marital bliss.  When one door closes another opens. So is the case with Trent Reznor and his new musical project; How To Destroy Angels. While it appears Nine Inch Nails are done (at least from a touring point of view), Reznor thankfully hasn't vanished altogether. His new outfit sees him team up with his impossibly beautiful new bride Mariqueen Mandig and his long-time producer Atticus Ross. The result is moody, electro-tinged and methodical. Surprised? Course not. Glad of it? Fuck yes. Added bonus for being the best music video of the year. Incidentially the band's EP is available as a free download from their website, so get yourself there sharpish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "A little vision come, come and shake me up."  #4 - - Wolf Parade   Sounds like: Masters of their craft.  What do Canada's Wolf Parade have to do to break through to the mainstream? It seems every time I recommend them to someone they confuse them with Wolfmother, which let's be honest is a pretty horrible insult. Wolf Parade are thankfully not a shit Aussie Led Zeppelin tribute band. They are something far more original and essential and one listen to this standout track from their excellent third album Expo 86 should persuade you of at least that much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "Swarms of locusts fill the sky."  #3 - A Drowning - How To Destroy Angels   Sounds like: Old dog, new tricks.  This was the first release from How To Destroy Angels, preceding the self-titled EP. Once again it doesn't stray too far from the Reznor blueprint. At seven minutes, and a linear seven minutes at that, it's got the potential to be a long haul but the elevations in the song are subtle, the tone is pleasurable and the outro has the right amount of lift. There is a difference between a minimalist style and just being outright dull, something Reznor and friends absolutely understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "We can never get back what we choose to throw away."  #2 - - The Dillinger Escape Plan  Sounds like: Compartmentalisation.  Over the course of six minutes, The Dillinger Escape Plan go from a wistful piano/lounge crooner introduction into a tribal drum beat which carries the song while the vocals soar before giving way to DEP's trademark controlled chaos complete with aggressive screaming and dizzying time signatures before coming all the way back down again before once again popping back up like a horror movie villain for one last scare. It's utterly schizophrenic. It absolutely shouldn't work. It's the sound of this band distilled into one incredible song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 "My bruises shine."  #1 - When We Collide - Matt Cardle   Sounds like: A champion.  It takes a truly great talent to take a song written and performed by other people and make it their own. Matt Cardle faced a Herculean task when he decided to cover Biffy Clyro's Many Of Horror but he managed to create something special in the process. Why? It's simple. Cardle has something that past X-Factor winners don't have. Something that even Biffy Clyro don't have. Conviction. It should surprise nobody that this humble painter/decorator is already butting heads with Simon Cowell and his management team in a bid to forge his own path. This is a man who lives, eats, breathes and sleeps music. This is a man who has the ability to lead us out of the recession with his challenging and brilliant music. This is more than a man. This is Matt Cardle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members FLips Posted January 5, 2011 Paid Members Share Posted January 5, 2011 Kings of Leon's "No Money" is a shoe in for number one. Â I think you're unfairly overlooking the chances of Whip My Hair, really. Â Surely it's got to be Olly Murs "Thinking of Me" or Matt Cardle's "When We Collide"? Â Â Do I win a prize? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Seven Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Just kidding.   "It takes an ocean not to break."  #1 - - The National  Sounds like: The best song of 2010.  Ok first things first, ignore the opening 40 seconds as it's the band clowning around. Secondly, this is the recently released "alternate version" of the song which made some hugely significant changes, chief of which is the production. Where previously it sounded like it was drowning, this version removes that odd effect and as a result the song comes to life. It was already a very good song before this, but this move and the slightly rockier ending pushes it over into absolutely stunning territory.  I found it quite mystifying that High Violet received the praise that it did. It seemed critics ran out of superlatives when their turn came round to prostrate themselves at its feet. It's a bit of a meandering and clumsy record, nowhere near the level of the preceding Boxer, but Terrible Love is one of the band's finest songs to date. It's got everything you want from a great National song; the soulful heartbreak of Matt Berninger's vocals, the precision pace of Bryan Devendorf's drums and crucially the combustable nature of a National live show. I've lost count of the amount of times I've listened to this, between both versions and every time it ends, every single time, I want to hear it again. If that's not the mark of a great song, I don't know what is. If you can't connect with this, I just don't know what to say.  Thanks for listening and reading. You're all beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members PunkStep Posted January 5, 2011 Paid Members Share Posted January 5, 2011 You absolutely sold me on that Matt Cardle speech as well. It was truly poetic. Â Anyways, good shout on Starry Eyed- made my top list too. Â ANd did Robyn really release THREE studio albums within a year? That is mental! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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