I compiled this list early in January but it’s taken me this long to get round to finishing the post. I like these lists as a snapshot of what I was into at the time. Check out my 2006 list and wonder why I put ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ down at number 97, or the 2005 list when I put ‘Come On! Feel The Illinoise!’ down at number91.
There are links below to download about 25 of the songs, that I couldn’t find links to buy (DRM free anyway). Click here to download a Zip file with the top 10 from the list. Where possible there are links to buy, download, watch and find-out-about the tracks. Some of the songs here are taken from albums that you medically need to get, like ‘The Cool’, ‘Icky Thump’, ‘Panic Prevention’ and ‘The Magic Position’, so go out and buy them!!
1. LUPE FIASCO (FEAT. MATTHEW SANTOS) - Superstar
“So just take me home, where the mood is mellow, and the roses are thrown, M&Ms are yellow, and the light bulbs around my mirror don’t flicker, everybody gets a nice autograph picture, one for you and one for your sister, who had to work tonight but is an avid listener”
‘Superstar’ is the first track I heard from Lupe’s none-more-anticipated follow up to possibly my favourite album of all time ‘Food & Liquor’. I listened so often, I can rap the thing from start to finish while I’m making a brew. The way Lu stretches out the “Don’t wan’ it ta faaayyyy-duh” line is ice cold.
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2. KLAXONS - Gravity’s Rainbow (Soulwax Remix)
“Come ride with me through ruined lip-lock, across Tangian deserts we’ll flock, madcap Medusa, flank my foghorn, we’ll change four seasons with our first born”
Once again Soulwax succeed in taking the seemingly perfect and making it several hundred times more exciting. But be warned, if you have this on in the car the police will soon be pulling you over for speeding. Listen at 4.06 when it all goes off like a mutherfucka!
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
3. THE WALLBANGERS - Kick The Drugs
“If I smoke Weed I get neurotic, Alcohol turns me psychotic, Heroin’s just a narcotic, S-S-S-Speed makes me despotic, if you’re on Crack-Cocaine you’re goin’ outta your brain, you’ve gotta pull the plug, you’ve gotta kick the drugs!”
The monstrously riff-tastic ‘Kick The Drugs’ has me making devil signs, screeching the chorus and gurning each and every time. I’m just a sucker for list tunes. When Nick Cave’s firing on all cylinders on the Grinderman album and Mick Harvey records tracks like this, you just know that the next Badseed’s album is gonna rock.
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4. FREDDIE CRUGER (FEAT. LINN) - Pushing On
“Hey friend, can you borrow me a hundred grand? No I cannot, ’cause I’m stuck in the same quick sand”
‘Pushing On’ is as smooth as a puddle of Baileys on a slab of marble mopped up with a cloth spun from silk by Barry White himself. Oooh the bass, oooh the beats, oooh the vocals… I’m in heaven. I said “This could be track of the year” back in April… number 4 ain’t bad.
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5. THE WHITE STRIPES - Rag & Bone
“Looking for Technics turntables, to gramophones, so take a last lick of your ice cream cone, and lock up what you still want to own”
‘Rag & Bone’ was clearly the best track on the new album and is quite possibly the best thing they’ve ever done. A band in their tenth year and recording their sixth album, shouldn’t be having this much fun.
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6. HARRISONS - Dear Constable
“The kickin’, punchin’, trigger happy, car crashin’ kids, stink of drink, and think that is just the way life is, the problem lies behind their eyes, their young minds filled with wicked lies”
‘Dear Constable’ is so superior to anything else Harrisons have so-far produced I at first doubted if I was listening to same band. The rate that the savage lyrics come tumbling out of Adam Taylor’s lips is jaw dropping.
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7. ZZT - Lower State Of Consciousness (Justice Remix)
“Instrumental”
This is probably an illicit recording of your office’s printer and fax machine shagging after everyone has gone home. It’s about as far from a “Song” as music can get while still being earth shakingly addictive.
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8. JAMIE T - Pacemaker
“Body bags come back on planes from wartorn Iraq, it’s the stark naked truth, a dark aftermath, Baby T, the juice and the dog just barks, remember man the bully always had the last laugh”
‘Pacemaker’ is easily the best track on Jamie’s album but since he barely stops to take breath, never mind deliver a chorus it wasn’t a contender for a single. Jamie raps as if he’s never gonna be allowed into a studio ever again.
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9. HELLO SAFERIDE - I Was Definitely Made For These Times
“Sure a woman should obey her man, sure when he can do the things I can, I was definitely made for these times, goin’ to church on Sundays, ruining my TV fun day”
Alot of slightly quirky female Pop singers have made it big this year (With precious little talent to justify that success). So will somebody tell me why ‘I Was Definitely Made For These Times’ wasn’t at number one for approximately thirty-seven weeks?!?
(Buy Digital) (MySpace)
10. HERMAN DUNE - Song Of Samuel
“My princess I can tell, from the beauty of this sound here, that with your instructor Samuel, that true love for you is found here”
Within six minutes ‘Song Of Samuel’ packs in more beauty, character, detail and tenderness than most novels could impart in six-hundred pages.
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11. THE HOLD STEADY - Stuck Between Stations
“He said I’ve surrounded myself with doctors and deep thinkers, but big heads with soft bodies make for lousy lovers”
On ‘Stuck Between Stations’ the The Hold Steady seem to have set themselves a goal to record the most exhilarating Rock song since Springsteen released ‘Born To Run’. If you aren’t trying to simultaneously play air-guitar, air-piano and air-drums at 2.55 then you’re probably clinically dead.
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12. KID ACNE - Eddy Fresh
“Enough men be so short sighted, you say up norf, and they think High Barnet”
‘Eddy Fresh’ is full of brilliant references to things like “Supersoakers”, “Lazerquest” and “Cillit Bang” with music to make Ian Dury proud and a potty mouthed chorus that’ll get stuck in your head.
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13. BEASTIE BOYS - Electric Worm
“Instrumental”
Beastie Boys succeed in creating a new track every bit as funky as the Jimmy Smith classic they sampled all those years ago on ‘Root Down’. Giving something back.
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14. BADLY DRAWN BOY - Promises (Reverso68 Remix)
“Just promise you will remember, a promise should last forever, right up to the dying embers, of a fire that burns so slow”
This is one of those deft remixes that totally enhances a track without changing it’s spirit. Reverso68 turn BDB’s original into a hypnotic house anthem.
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15. DAN LE SAC VS SCROOBIUS PIP - Fixed
“Prancin’ about like they’re the next big thing, cause their cousin’s got an 8-track and their mate Darrell can sing”
Dan Le Sac takes Dizzee Rascal’s only truly genius track ‘Fix Up, Look Sharp’, cuts it up and lays on an awesome John Carpenter synth line. If that wasn’t enough Scroob let’s loose a stream of skillful rhymes in his own deadpan style.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
16. FYFE DANGERFIELD - Well, Love Does Furnish A Life
“So you open up your eyes and you’re underneath the first class seat, your yellow hair and purple eyes are bleeding defeat, your mother always told you, freedom was just a lie, so I’m here to show you, show you what life can be like”
Fyfe Dangerfield takes a good Larrikin Love single and transforms it into a gentle ballad of rare beauty and grace. One of the all time great covers.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
17. LCD SOUNDSYSTEM - North American Scum
“I hate the feelin’ when you’re looking at me that way, ’cause we’re North Americans, but if we act all shy, it’ll make it okay, makes it go away”
James Murphy has created an anthemic song about being resolutely proud of where you’re from, even if others try to make you feel ashamed.
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18. MIKA - Love Today
“Carolina sits on ninety-five, give her a dollar and she’ll make you smile, hook her, book her, nook her, walk away!”
Love Today is like a glorious carnival passing through the space between your ears, with a Pop float, an Indie float, a Disco float and Mika leading the way twirling his conductors baton with megaphone aloft.
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19. PATRICK WOLF - The Magic Position
“‘Cause out of all the people I’ve known, the places I’ve been, the songs I have sung, the wonders I’ve seen, now that the dreams are all coming true, who is the one that leads me on through… it’s you!”
‘The Magic Position’ is pure joy distilled into a Pop song. It’s got pieces of everything from The Beach Boys to Dexys wrapped up with Patrick’s typically passionate vocals.
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20. SONNY JIM - Can’t Stop Moving
“You are, of a beautiful nature, changeable, quite questionable, you are capable of deep intellectual thought”
So close to being annoying but ultimately irresistibly fun, Funky Disco-Pop. I just couldn’t stop playing it, it’s as addictive as a Big McCrack.
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21. MARVIN GAYE VS JOHNNY OSBOURNE - What’s Going On (Truth & Rights Remix)
“Picket lines and picket signs, don’t punish me with brutality, talk to me, so you can see, what’s going on”
This boot is so seamless that it’ll have you believing that Marvin Gaye secretly went to Jamaica to rework some of his greatest hits. Better than the original, believe!
(Mp3) (MySpace)
22. CSS VS TOM TOM CLUB - Let’s Make Love (Streetlife DJ’s Rappinhood Remix)
“Callin’ me high on the telephone, came by plane, all alone, spend the afternoon making a speech, speech made you nervous that you couldn’t eat”
This mash-up works so well you’d swear there was some freaky time-travel involved in it’s creation. These two records were born to be bootlegged together.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
23. THE EIGHTIES MATCHBOX B-LINE DISASTER - In The Garden
“But then as soon as we did take a bite, I’m feeling tense and something was not quite right, I turned to Eve and said what have we done, she said, she don’t know but it feels so wrong”
The bass on this Phychobilly monster is of Biblical proportions which is lucky because the lyric concerns the temptation of Adam & Eve. Thank Lucifer TEMBD are back to shake up the music scene… roll on the new album.
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24. MR HUDSON & THE LIBRARY - Too Late, Too Late
“Why must I always play the clown, it makes it too easy for them to put you down”
A perfect fusion of Reggae, Jazz, Soul and Pop with a great rumbling Bass line and tinkling Steel-Drums.
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25. THE HOT PUPPIES - King Of England
“How dare you sharpen your claws, with the word, with the word of God, is this really how the west got won, by throwing ashes out in a snowstorm, I wanna creep, I wanna creep and crawl, where the thoroughbred won’t tread, where the papers don’t get shred, and where the new Apollo’s not dead”
Frighteningly intelligent, witty Punk-Funk-Indie-Pop. If The Hot Puppies can produce a whole album at this level of creativity, world domination becons.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
26. OPERATOR PLEASE - Just A Song About Ping Pong
“I got my, got my, got my, got my, racket in hand, not leaving till I play, don’t think you understand, with that dirty, dirty, dirty, dirty, look on your face, I bet you know beef jerky has an after-taste… go!”
‘Just A Song About Ping Pong’ has all the Punk-Rock vim of Be Your Own Pet but with a vocal so fast you could technically call it Rap.
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27. DAVID E. SUGAR - I Still Like Your Clothes
“Even though you screw up, I still like your clothes, I like your look”
Genius steals… blah blah blah. David E. Sugar is the genius in question and the subject of the theft is the riff from ‘Smoke On The Water’. Deep Purple go Disco… holy mother of god this rocks!
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28. PASE ROCK - So Fucking Disco
“I’m so fuckin’ Disco, motherfucka I’m doing fine, they pilled me up and burned me 1979, I’m so fuckin’ Disco, motherfucka I’m doing fine, I turned myself into Hip-Hop in 1979″
As yet unreleased, but I’ll be throwing money at the guy behind the recordstore counter when this comes out. All the flavour of LCD Soundsystem with added Hip-Hop juice.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
29. HOT CLUB DE PARIS - You Can Call Me Al
“He looks around, around, he sees angels in the architecture, spinning in infinity, he says Amen! and Hallelujah!”
If Hot Club De Paris can improve upon Paul Simon’s original then surely they’re capable of anything. A simple no-nonsense cover extracting every drop of fun from this celebrated composition. The thinking man’s Indie band.
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30. ARCTIC MONKEYS (FEAT. DIZZEE RASCAL) - Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend
“I don’t ever want to hate you, it’s not part of the plan, so keep your charm where I can’t see it, and your hands where I can”
‘Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend’ takes an honoured place among the pantheon of great Rock/Rap hybrids. The best thing both acts have done in a while and this was left on the B-side.
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31. AKALA - Comedy Tragedy History
“Wise is the man that knows he’s a fool, tempt not a desperate man with a jewel, why take from Peter to go and pay Paul, some rise by sin and by virtue fall”
Akala Raps the works of Shakespeare at breakneck speed over a Gypsy-Electro beat. Pure insanity and pure bliss.
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32. THE HAT - Open Hearts
“Solid like a drummer’s snare, strong like Tupperware, now dancing round like Fred Astaire, and if I get it right by next year, I’ll probably be a millionaire”
Distinctively odd vocalists trade lines over a bizarre yet catchy blend of Gypsy, Indie, Hip-Hop and Jazz.
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33. JARVIS - The Loss Adjuster
“Now we’ll all be gone by Monday morning, this is it, your final warning, you never did see Dog Day Afternoon”
A true epic relegated to the B-side about what you might do if the world was about to end. You could well spend your last minutes sampling Jarvis Cocker’s delightfully rambling narrative and consider it time well spent
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34. ARCADE FIRE - Keep The Car Running
“There’s a fear I keep so deep, knew it’s name, just before I could speak”
I’m still not entirely sold on Arcade Fire’s second album but from the first second I adored the unrelenting beat of ‘Keep The Car Running’. Paranoia never sounded so appealing.
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35. LINDA THOMPSON - Versatile Heart
“Was the screw worth turning, was the bridge worth burning, you so and so, on your high moral ground, worth less than the pound, and your halo”
The brass-band on ‘Versatile Heart’ warms you up like a whiskey on a cold night. The strings, Guitars and of course Linda’s gorgeous vocals are damn fine too.
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36. SKEEWIFF (FEAT. YOUNG MC) - Bump Bump
“No doubt if yer ready, we’re gonna rock it steady, and have the party jumpin’ from here to the Serengeti, your body will be sweaty, from movin’ around, but you know it’s gonna happen when we’re puttin’ it down”
‘Bump Bump’ is all summer vibes, party beats and crowd pleasing rhymes. It’ll bring a big smile to your face.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
37. LUKE TOMS - Peace By Myself
“It’s the darkness I hate, alone and afraid, you being here helps a bit, she sits, but that’s not enough for her”
‘Peace By Myself’ is an achingly delicate Piano ballad that’s both intimate and hauntingly beautiful. Oooh feel the chills when he delivers the above line.
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38. HOLY HAIL - Born Of A Star
“Touch not shattered, attacked on the matter, and the congregation hastened to keep me on the ladder”
‘Born Of A Star’ is certainly for fans of CSS but vocalist Cat’s rap takes it to another level.
(Buy DRM Free Digital) (YouTube) (MySpace)
39. THE DINING ROOMS - Thank You? (Skwerl’s Ungrateful Love Mix)
“My son went to war in the name of peace, I hope you’ve seen he’s a hero, because he gave his life for freedom, so I suppose I should say thank you, once again”
Hypnotic and chilling anti-war house anthem perfected on Skwerl’s Remix.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
40. PARTY BEN - Galvanize The Empire
“And you shouldn’t even care, ’bout those losers in the air, and their crooked stares”
‘Galvanize The Empire’ combines two of my favourite things, The Chemical Brothers and ‘Star Wars’ in one glorious whole. I’ve spent quite some time mentally editing footage from Star Wars to fit the music.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
41. THE DRAYTONES - Keep Loving Me
“You keep coming back for more, until I tell you stop-ah, don’t want you anymore”
‘Keep Loving Me’ is the definition of 60s retro, with brutal Drums and raw, fuzzy Guitars worthy of Garage-Rock maestros The Sonics.
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42. [RE:JAZZ] - People Hold On
“Everybody’s looking for a meaning, everybody’s doing their own thing, and nobody’s solving the problem, ain’t nobody helping each other”
[Re:Jazz] have recorded an exquisitely minimal Jazz/Soul take on Coldcut & Lisa Stansfield’s 1988 protest song.
(Buy DRM Free Digital) (YouTube) (MySpace)
43. THE ANOMALIES - Employee Of The Month
“You can’t be certain, which bar I’m lurkin’, I’m employee of the month, ’cause I’m the hardest workin’”
‘Employee Of The Month’ is a mix of everything from Jazz and Latin to Hip-Hop and Soul with a fantastic Rhumba break in the middle.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
44. MILK KAN (FEAT. DOLLY PARTON) - Here Ya Come Again & Again
“The night is dark, he’ll keep it low key, the moon smirks, whilst the stars spit on me”
Milk Kan takes a lesser known Dolly Parton gem and throws it into the gutter with new lyrics about drug dealing. Go check out the majestic Dolly original too.
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45. THE GO! TEAM - Grip Like A Vice
“The blast from the past, superb in every word, super female rockin’, just the best you’ve heard, I make the brothers sweat, cos I keep their bodies hot, it’s a woman’s world, you gotta give it what ya got”
Mad Drums worthy of Keith Moon combine with The Go! Teams ear for a great sample and superb skills on the mike.
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46. MR BENN (FEAT. SOULS LIBERATION) - The Jump
“We entertain wid unity, love and da peace, so the vibes that we carry, shall surely increase, give thanks and praises to the most high and we sing this-a song while we look up to the sky”
A summery slice of feel-good, party-starting, Jamaican flavour Hip-Hop.
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47. TAGGY MATCHER - Rapoors Delaaght
“How dare you ever try to step on my suede shoes, top Gun shut down your firm like Tom Cruise, please let me get down and blow a fuse, actin’ fools, breakin’ shit down to molecules”
An incredible mashup of Busta Rhymes’ ‘Woo Hah!’ and a Reggae take on ‘Rapper’s Delight’.
(Mp3)
48. GRINDERMAN - Honey Bee (Let’s Fly To Mars)
“Cancer, rabies, S.A.R.S, hairy beards and hurtling stars, won’t somebody touch me?”
‘Honey Bee (Let’s Fly To Mars)’ is one of the best things Nick Cave’s ever done. 21st century paranoia soundtracked by roaring Guitars and maniacal Organs.
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49. THE RUMBLE STRIPS - Motorcycle
“But it’s all just a dream, I’m actually moving quite slowly, the air is nice and clean, but my bicycle seat is so lonely”
The Rumble Strips turn one of the best demos of yesteryear into one of the most perfectly produced, tightest, exciting and thrilling singles released in recent memory.
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50. THE WORLD DOMINATION Vs ADAM SKY - Galactic Lover (Version 1)
“Walk the Milky-Way with me, you’ll be infinitely mine, there’s as many stars in my cosmos, as there’s things for us to do, you know you’re in love when I put my… tentacles around you”
Ludicrously repetitive but when you’ve got a beat as good as this, who needs variety. The mental lyrics (Concerning a sex crazed astronaut) are awesome too.
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51. PRINCE - Guitar
“Gettin’ dirty at the club again, use it round your waist like a chain, but then, I got the call, so I jumped in my car, I love you baby, but not like I love my Guitar!”
You could call it Prince-By-Numbers but there’s no denying that this song has got one hell of a Riff and one hell of a chorus.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
52. SIMPLY LUKE LEIGHFIELD - The Rain Will Come Again
“I woke up this morning, saw another of those days of ambitions destroyed and hopes washed away, I woke up this morning and I prayed for rain, to brighten up monotony and help me live again”
A huge ‘Purple Rain’ style, life-affirming Indie epic from Luke Leighfield.
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53. KORMAC - Scratch Marchin’
“One of the most original and unusual acts you’ll ever see, particularly on a record album”
A cunning blend of dusty old 78s, a whole load of scratchin’ and erm.. Kermit The Frog. Your Grandad and Grandson will both love this.
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54. EDITORS - Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors (Acoustic Version)
“I can’t shake this feeling I’ve got, my dirty hands, have I been in the wars, the saddest thing that I’d ever seen, was smokers outside the hospital doors”
I found Editor’s second album to be a touch overblown in the production department. I don’t want too much clutter to obscure Tom Smith’s operatic tones, so I love this atmospheric acoustic track. You could here an atom drop at 3.05.
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55. BEVERLEY KNIGHT - Black Butta
“Got me excited, my fuses have blown, you got me delighted now, don’t leave me alone, you got me ignited, I’m ready to blow!”
I’ve been waiting years for Bev to record some records as good as her live appearances. ‘Black Butta’ is a roaring, funky and totally sexy performance that’d put most of the old Soul legends to shame.
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56. Hot Chip - Shake A Fist
“I’m ready to try this, I move underwater, there’s so much to see here, I eat what I slaughter”
Cramed full of countless vocal hooks and more ideas than a quantum physics dissertation.
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57. KINGS OF LEON - Fans
“Oh the London scene, cos England’s the Queen, who makes you love the tales I breathe, those rainy days they ain’t so bad when you’re the King, the King they want to see”
Kings Of Leon keep coming up with the goods, album, after album. Caleb Followill’s vocal is as wonderfully incomprehensible as usual and the yelping bits make it sound like somebody jabbing a pin into his eyeball.
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58. MARVIN THE MARTIAN Vs CALVIN HARRIS - Acceptable In The 80s
“Before Bobby and Whitney were out gettin’ high, passin’ the Dutchie on the left hand side, Eddie Murphy couldn’t be too rude, language colourful as Rubic’s Cubes”
Calvin came up with a great beat but did little with it. The legendary Marv saves the day by adding a whole new nostalgic Rap.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
59. YEAH YEAH YEAHS - Down Boy
“I’ll stand kind of pushed, kind of bent, on this heavy land, I’ll stand for the sake of my friends”
Yeah Yeah Yeahs second album was a disappointment. The EP that followed was anything but, as violent, sexy and exhilarating as the first time you heard Karen O screech.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
60. THE PAN I AM - The Final Ecstasy Of Jeremiah Ghost
“I’ve evacuated my friendship, with understanding, my soapy life is a dish rag, of acid vapour”
The demise of Larrikin Love was very sad but if Ed Larrikin comes up with more songs as good as this for his new project… who really cares.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
61. THE HEAVY - That Kind Of Man
“I been thinkin’ ’bout our love, show me something, cos what you give is not enough”
Heavier than heavy Led Zeppelin music meets sweeter than sweet Curtis Mayfield vocals. A winning combination.
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62. LACK OF AFRO - Spooky
“Instrumental”
The brilliant Lack Of Afro do a vibrant take on the Dusty Springfield Organ led classic, adding brutal Drums to the mix.
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63. BOBBY CONN - King For A Day
“A drunken face in terrycloth, unzips the front and takes it off, I guess your scars just turn me off, I’d rather be alone”
‘King For A Day’ is an eerie, oddly unsettling and subtlety funky record.
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64. MANIC STREET PREACHERS - 1404
“If R. S. Thomas was compulsory, and Saunders Lewis was for free, Owain Glyndwr our history, and Dylan kept the memories, but 1404 got left behind, and we were trapped and stuck in time”
The new MSP album had great singles and even better B-sides. This beautiful acoustic song about Welsh nationalism is the best of them.
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65. LOS CAMPESINOS! - It Started With A Mixx
“Trying to find the perfect match between pretentious and Pop, some crappy artwork that took way, way to long to draw”
I loved ‘It Started With A Mixx’ the instant I heard it a year ago. A punk edge, a Pop punch and a delightfully childish sense of fun.
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66. JENS LEKMAN - Friday Night At The Drive-In Bingo
“I want the people in the country to be open and kind, but most times they met us with a narrow mind, with the big black dog to bite your behind, if they ever find out you’re not one of their kind”
Like Acker Bilk covering ‘All Time High’ with Belle & Sebastian thrown in to the mix.
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67. JAMES YORKSTON - Woozy With Cider
“I Watch the park quieten from the hotel window, I hear you softly sleep amongst the cars and saluting songbirds”
A thoughtful, personal and self-deprecating spoken-word piece from James Yorkston.
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68. BLOC PARTY - I Still Remember
“And our love could have soared over playgrounds and rooftops, every park bench screams your name, I kept your tie, I’d have gone wherever you wanted, I still remember”
I’m not a big fan of the slicker sound on Bloc Party’s second album but there’s no denying the anthemic majesty, yet intimate beauty of this single.
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
69. NOAH & THE WHALE - 5 Years Time
“Oh well in five years time, we could be walking round a zoo, with the sun shining down over me and you, and there’ll be love in the bodies of the Elephants too, and I’ll put my hands over your eyes but you’ll peak through”
The best use of whistling on a record since last years ‘Young Folks’. Quivering Strings, Ukuleles and Flutes combine to make charmingly odd Pop.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
70. THE VIEW - Same Jeans
“I’ve had the same jeans on for four days now, I’m gonna go to a disco in the middle of the town, everybody’s dressing up, I’m dressing down”
Like Nirvana covering ‘Brimful Of Asha’. It’s Kyle Falconer’s slurred and exhilarating vocals that get me. Listen to him suddenly yelp “Amazed!” at 2.10.
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71. RICHARD HAWLEY - Vickers Road
“Do you remember Fridays and the pop wagon, sold by dodgy lads fresh out of prison, it was s’posed to last us all through the week, we’d drink it all in one night, then we couldn’t get to sleep”
I found the overblown production on Richard’s new album obscured some fine songs. This wonderfully understated and nostalgic B-side doesn’t have that problem.
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72. MURDER MYSTERY - Love Astronaut
“I’m the captain of a ship, boy an astronaut in space, travelling the universe, and searchin’ for a pretty face, I’ve been looking on high, checkin’ below the lows, but the only thing I find is myself still alone”
Surely this would be a hit if they gave it a major release in the UK. It’s glorious repetitive Bass laded Pop fun.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
73. LARRIKIN LOVE - Good Luck
“We arranged to meet black suited, at a quarter past seven, I was inexperienced, due to living in Devon”
Sadly it was to be Larrikin Love’s last recorded output but boy did they go out on a high with this lyrically twisting complete remake of an Alterkicks single.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
74. ANONYMOUS TWIST - Respect That
“Respect due if you’re down for the cause, the effect worth more than applause”
Sounds every bit as good as Jurassic 5 which of course makes it essential Funky Rap.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
75. ABDOMINAL - Pedal Pusher
“Don’t contest the champ with consecutive wins, clockwise wheel motion, like a record it spins”
If Lupe can Rap about skateboarding then why can’t Abdominal spin a tune about his love of Cycling. The detail in his rhymes is delightfully nerdy with a tasty ‘Salt ‘n’ Pepa’ sampling beat.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
76. THE KILLERS - Read My Mind (Pet Shop Boys’ Stars Are Blazing Mix)
“The teenage queen, the loaded gun, the drop dead dream, the chosen one, a southern drawl, the world unseen, a city wall and a trampoline”
As usual Brandon Flowers lyric is at times annoying suedo-poetry aching with self-importance. But luckily his band have put together an unstoppably brilliant tune that the Pet Shop Boys sprinkle with their own brand of Electro glitter.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
77. LEEROY - Drummies
“Instrumental”
‘Drummies’ combines Bollywood, Funk and Dance in one spy-movie-set-in-Jaipur whole. How could a combination like that fail? There’s a cool ‘Outer Limits’ sample thrown in too for your listening pleasure.
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78. THE INDELICATES - The Last Significant Statement To Be Made In Rock ‘n’ Roll
“Once in a corridor in Memphis, was a singer took a breath, and wrote the birth of the teenager, now we come to write his death”
With an album coming out in 2008, The Indelicates will finally take over the world (If the world has any sanity left that is).
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
79. GOODBOOKS - Hiding Away
“He never quite recovered since his son brought the boyfriend home, he only ever wanted an heir to his heir, to sit on the family business throne, his daughter found a man with a turban, while travelling in India, and maybe that’s what finished him off”
A great B-side that’s full of achingly sad imagery and intense music.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
80. CALVIN HARRIS - Merry Making
“Come into my house, you’re invited into my house, entering the back of my house, welcoming you into my house”
The first Calvin Harris track I heard and still the best. Basically just a huge twanging Bass line with repetitive James Murphy style vocals. But what more do you need?
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
81. JEGSY DODD - Only Football Can Truly Break Your Heart
“That last minute goal off a wicked deflection, that horrid feeling of utter dejection, and when you see the joy in the away fan’s section, it’s hard to take, it’s hard”
I’m not a football fan but I can still enjoy the lyrical genius of Liverpool’s finest poet, Jegsy Dodd. I can’t wait for his next LP.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
82. MISTY’S BIG ADVENTURE - I Can’t Bring The Time Back
“One night when it’s pitch black, I’ll lie on the train track, ’cause I can’t bring the time back no, oh no, and I can’t bring you back”
Yet another magical Pop single from Grandmaster Gareth, yet another time when they fail to go to number one in the charts. Hello?!?!
(Buy Record) (Buy DRM Free Digital) (MySpace)
83. AMY WINEHOUSE - Back To Black (The Rumble Strips Remix)
“I love you much, it’s not enough, you love blow, and I love puff”
An improvement on the original in every way, taking the track in to rarefied Ennio Morricone territory.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
84. EXAMPLE - Take What I Want
“This ain’t cheap sex, it’s something fresha, one off payment for ‘Luscious Lorreta’, fellas let’s get your shit together, blow up ladies are getting better”
I love it when an artist puts tracks as good as this on the B-side. The best song about blow-up-dolls since ‘In Every Dream Home A Heartache’.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
85. KOKOLO - Our Own Thing (Instrumental)
“Instrumental”
‘Our Own Thing’ is as funky as James Brown and as tight as Ebenezer Scrooge. The vocal was good, but for me it got in the way of enjoying the pure, intricately orchestrated groove.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
86. LAURA MARLING - New Romantic
“I made you leave her for me, and now I’m feeling pretty mean, but my mind has fucked me over more times than any man could ever know”
As graceful as Joni Mitchell and as lyrically quirky as Regina Spektor, sheer intimate acoustic bliss.
(Buy DRM Free Digital) (YouTube) (MySpace)
87. PETER, BJORN & JOHN - Young Folks (Datassette Remix)
“If you knew my story word for word, had all of my history, would you go along with someone like me”
The best bit about last year’s ‘Young Folks’ was the whistling right? So how come this whistle-free remix is utterly brilliant.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
88. THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT - Does This Mean You’re Moving On?
“From the balcony you call my name, I see you standing in the rain, your words so dry, your face so wet, a broken heart, but it hasn’t happened yet”
A terrible name, but oh such wonderful Pop-Rock music.
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89. RADIOHEAD - Bangers + Mash
“Whatever turns you on, whatever gets you off, Chief of Police, the Vice-Chancellor, Lord and lady blah, blah, the Vicar and the Judge, you’re dancing to my little red book”
The best track from ‘In Rainbows’, but you had to fork out for the ultimate-mega-ultra-deluxe-boxset to get it. Money well spent for the savage Guitar attack and vitriolic vocals of ‘Bangers + Mash’.
(Mp3) (YouTube) (MySpace)
90. ZOOK - Blue Monday
“Those who came before me, lived through their vocations, from the past until completion, they will turn away no more”
A wonderfully creepy stalker-esque Blues take on the perennial New Order hit.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
91. MALCOLM MIDDLETON - A Brighter Beat
“Now you’ve gone and left me and there’s nothing here, but a tenner in my pocket and a fridge full of beer”
Moody and brutal solo Blues-Rock from Arab Strap’s Malcolm Middleton.
(Buy Record) (Buy DRM Free Digital) (YouTube) (MySpace)
92. THE CRIBS - Men’s Needs
“Have you noticed, I’ve never been impressed by your friends from New York and London, I’ll level accusations like the press, ’til you realise that you’ve dressed yourself in tatters”
The Crib’s second truly brilliant single after ‘Another Number’. Catchy Guitar-Pop combined with red-raw anti-scenester vocals.
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
93. DIESLER (FEAT. TESTAMENT) - Restless (Lack Of Afro Remix)
“Start to finish, I’ll be rippin’ it well, hit you with my old English, like the Canterbury Tales”
Featuring a flavorsome Stevie Wonder Organ sound, crackling Blues Guitar and well aimed rhymes from Testament.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
94. VARIOUS PRODUCTION - Phortune
“There’s fortune in my name, currency in letters, if this life is just a game, I’ll try to play it better”
A acidicily grimey remake of Emma Pollock’s ‘Fortune’ contrasting with sultry vocals.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
95. WOJTEK GODZISZ - The Moon & The Yew Tree
“Down we go, into the fog below, yeah down we go, so keep your head down low”
A wonderfully strange combination of psychedelic Folk and TEMBD style Metal.
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
96. S.M.O.V. - Quality Soul
“While underground doesn’t like you, the media might, but we the elite will change that, as we bridge gaps in this lyrical grudge match, brothers we slug back”
Jurrassic 5 versus ‘Tainted Love’, so obviously this track’s like Ronseal.
(Mp3) (MySpace)
97. THE BAMBOOS (FEAT. OHMEGA WATTS) - Get In The Scene
“We’re all in together now ha, let’s make it happen, from the project blocks, to estates out in the Hamptons”
The funky groove on this summery slice of Hip-Hop is truly irresistible.
(Buy Record) (Buy DRM Free Digital) (MySpace)
98. THE NEW ROYAL FAMILY - Anyone Fancy A Chocolate Digestive?
“Anyone fancy a chocolate digestive? No thank you, it sounds suggestive”
A one line song, but what a line. An enormously charming and preposterously silly Indie single.
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
99. BATTLE - North Sea (Russell Lissack Remix)
“Oh my darling, I could sell my soul gladly, I could tell you all the things, you never thought to ask”
Bloc Party’s Russell Lissack turns in an essential Remix transforming this track into one of the best things Battle have so far released. I love the “Ooooh Ooooh” bits.
(Buy Record) (YouTube) (MySpace)
100. BILLY RUFFIAN - Music Vs Money
“We’re sure you’ll pay attention, and try hard to be fair, and not just dismiss us because of how we style our hair”
A good old fashioned Indie-Punk declaration sneering at the music industry.
(Buy Record) (MySpace)
I’m already regretting not including a few tracks but it’s too late, the list is set in stone. Roll on 2008!
Mute CDMUTE377: 18th February 2008
I haven’t totally got into the British Sea Power album yet, but riff-tastic, chugging rocker ‘A Trip Out’ knocked me for six on the first listen.
As with David E. Sugar’s last single the better track is on the B-side. Check out the twitching electronics of instrumental ‘The Big H’.
One of the better promos I’ve been sent in the post featured this inspired cover of The Maccabees single ‘First Love’ from NiTasha Jackson. She sounds like a female Sufjan Stevens to me. She’s turned an average Indie-Pop single into 3 and a half minutes of shimmering wonderment.
I picked up a copy of Dylan Donkin’s ‘Make A Choice’ single based on the cool artwork. I was rewarded by the discovery of this Arthur Lee influenced track from the B-side.
The new Nitin Sawhney produced Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly album is nearly upon us. Sam was kind enough to give ‘Waiting For The Monster To Drown’ away free to wet our appetites. I’m still mopping up the saliva.
After being starved of new songs on the B-side of The White Stripes’ last single Jack came back with 3 brand new gems on their latest release. The best of the three was this super fun song about celebrity madness recorded in Beck’s living room.
Firstly, I’ve been listening to allot of Springsteen as usual, especially 7 minute epic ‘Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)’. Saxophone legend Clarence Clemens’ playing makes me leap around and punch the air. Check out the vid below, which has to rate as one of the most exhilarating performances ever captured on film.
I picked up a copy of the deluxe remaster of Jona Lewie’s brilliantly titled 1978 album ‘On The Other Hand There’s A Fist’. Apparently this bonus track was a huge indie hit but it was new to me.
I’ve been getting into Nilsson after I was blown away by the unbelievably modern sounding Punk-Funk delight that is 1971’s ‘Jump Into The Fire’. It could’ve been a track from LCD Soundsystem’s new album (In fact James Murphy has covered it before).
Gangsta-Rap isn’t exactly my favourite genre, but after immersing myself in all 5 seasons of the acclaimed cop-show The Wire, this tale of gang-bangin’ and police corruption from Snoop & Dre makes so much sense.
Speaking of The Wire, here’s the latest version of the theme song from, guest star Steve Earle (Incidentally Clarence Clemens has also made a couple of guest appearances on the show).