Jams of 2010 (so far)

by Katie

Apparently, halfway through the year, music bloggers make lists of their favorite songs so far. Judge me for following trends if you must, but at least this isn’t a shitty trend like mixed prints, right LADIEEEES?

I know I’m missing a lot. I hardly listened to Broken Bells, never bought Band of Horses, and can’t begin to list artists whose names start with the other 25 letters of the alphabet and whom I’ve been meaning to listen to. Didn’t Rufus Wainwright have a new album this spring?? See? I’m even behind on singers I love! Anyway, I leave it up to my devoted commentariat (aka Liz and Ange) to tell me what’s worth checking out.

Please note that I also excluded songs from as-yet-unreleased albums, no matter how excited I am for new stuff from Jenny Lewis or Jukebox the Ghost! (But if anyone knows the chords to the bridge of “Half Crazy” and wants to pass them along… I spent a lot of time before I moved figuring out most of the rest! Let’s tradesies!) It also basically broke my heart to leave Josh Ritter off this list, but there’s not a lot of jamzzz in poetic folk-pop. I highly, highly, highly recommend So Runs the World Away if you’re into lyrics, but the rest of this list is… a little fluffier.

Freelance Whales – Kilojoules

I know you were expecting “Generator (First Floor)” but that isn’t really a jam. It’s a wonderful song, but how do I dance to it? I’m dancing to this one.

April Smith and the Great Picture Show – Terrible Things

April Smith’s to-do list for 2010 must be pretty much finished already. After winning a real-life popularity contest on A Prairie Home Companion and releasing her album, Songs for a Sinking Ship, with the money raised in a successful Kickstarter.com campaign, she embarked on a national tour and had this song featured in Californication and  Weeds promos. As long as she keeps belting out big-band-style love songs, I’ll look forward to whatever’s next in her plan to take over the world.

Vampire Weekend – Holiday

This album was a strong factor in my decision to go West, which tells you that I am easily influenced and place too much stock in the opinions of indie musicians as expressed through their songs. Nonetheless, the cheerful exuberance of songs like “Holiday” made the Pacific sound too good to pass up! In fact, in the days before I left, I spent a lot of time thinking, “To go away on a summer’s day never seemed so clear.” Not because I’m unoriginal, but because I’ve had crippling writer’s block since moving back to DC in 2008. All that said, this looks like a video to a Monkees song, and that just makes me love it more.

Blair – Hello, Halo

Kittens, rainboooooows. I would have gone with “Wake Up, Shake Up” because it’s also the title of a place I’ve been half-assedly tumblring (tumbling??) about Oregon. But there’s no video, and for that blog (unlike this one, oh wait, just like this one), I’ve been completely lazy; I haven’t even talked about how I’m going to see Art Alexakis cut a ribbon next weekend. What I want to know, Oregon, is WHEN AM I GOING TO RUN INTO BRIT DANIEL?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zSMHyMzyu0

Spoon -Got Nuffin’

Speak of the devil! “Got Nuffin’” is the poppiest song off of Transference and, if not technically the “best” (and really, how could I choose the best anyway), it is certainly among the most fun!

MGMT – Congratulations

Bold art is polarizing, and few recent albums have been more polarizing than MGMT’s sophomore effort. The band experiments with sounds and song structure, but no song is an obvious hit the way “Kids” or “Time to Pretend” were. Whether you think its pretentious and aurally offensive or a brilliant refutation of mainstream success in favor of artistic integrity, you have to admit that the title track is a beautiful reflection on success, friendship, and a need for validation. These ideas fully merge in the final verse:

But damn my luck and damn these friends
That keep on combing back; their smiles
I save my grace with half-assed guilt
And lay down the quilt upon the lawn
Spread my arms and soak up congratulations

Janelle Monae – Cold War

The ArchAndroid, you guys. Fuck. That’s a fucking album. And this song! My God! Just listen to it right now.