Top 5 Songs of 2010

If you look back at my obligatory introduction, you'll see that one of the many topics I envision covering on this blog is music. I haven't gotten any chance to explore that part of pop-culture here (same as comic books, which is also mentioned in the introduction), so I figured there's no better time to finally do so then as a part of my Year Endies set of lists. That's right--it's time for my Top 5 Songs of 2010.

I feel nearly hesitant to even produce such a list. I vehemently stand by my belief that modern music is equivalent to horse excrement and that quality music died during the turn of the new millennium.

Case in point.

However, every year I continue to be astonished by the select catalog of actually good music. Half the time I'm nearly embarrassed to admit it, especially when the songs are in genres that I frankly bitch about. Be they rap, or pop, or whatever. That's not to say that in general modern music isn't dreadful, particularly in comparison to the "Golden Days" of music in the 20th Century, but there are still those actually producing good music these days, and no matter how hard I try and forget this to defend my status on modern music, there's still quite a few triumphs out there.

5. "Fuck You!" by Cee Lo Green

Cee Lo Green, whoever the hell you are, THANK YOU. Thank you for bringing soul back to a generation of Beliebers and California Gurls. Thank you for writing a song about getting rejected that isn't mournful or deep. And thank you for making a really bitching song in the form of "Fuck You!"

"Fuck You!" (or "Forget You!", "F**k You!", "F You!", "Fox News!") is a soul song from Cee Lo Green, some guy I've never heard of but (as stated) I am very thankful for. It explores Cee Lo getting rejected in his attempts to enchant a cute girl, and expresses his anguish in the most cheerful, profane way possible. It's like if Al Green had turrets, but in a really good way. Lyrically, it's outstanding, with clever hooks, inventive rhymes, and actually really nice uses of its profanity, while there's a catchy sound to it and Cee Lo delivers outstanding range and pitch. It all adds up to this incredible sense of liveliness and exuberance. And seriously--IT'S A 21st CENTURY SOUL SONG THAT'S ACTUALLY MAINSTREAM. I love this world sometimes. "Fuck You!" is fucking awesome.



4. "Tighten Up" by The Black Keys

Like Cee Lo Green above, I've never heard of The Black Keys, but I'm truly thankful for them for bringing quality incarnations of old genres (in this case, blues rock) into the mainstream. Their 2010 hit, "Tighten Up", is a top-notch piece of work that flew high this year, peaking at number 1 on the Alternative Rock charts.

"Tighten Up"'s lyrical basis is simple--it's about love, young and old, and your desperation for it--but The Black Keys are able to breath new life into it. The best part of this song is its sound; drummer Patrick Carney and guitarist Dan Auerbach combine to form a garage-style mix of noise that's psychedelic while remaining true to its blues core. Auerbach is an impressive vocalist, truly evocative of the intensity of blues artists like Robert Johnson. I hope these types of songs continue to slip into mainstream, because some nice nostalgia splattered on Billboard is appreciated for us stubborn folks who most of the time want to "turn off that racket!!"

3. "Power" by Kanye West

Stupid Kanye West. Being a complete douchebag that I hate, being apart of a stupid genre of music that I hate...And then pulling out Goddamn MASTERPIECES, like the entirety of his 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and the single from it, "Power."

"Power" is a simply beautiful song; West uses its lyrics to brilliantly convey a self-deprecating message about how much of a douchebag he is ("I'm livin' in the 21st century, doin' something mean to it") and how hated he is ("And they say I was the abomination of Obama's nation / Well, that's a pretty bad way to start a conversation"). I despised how much I loved this song, because it's rap and I hate rap, and it's hip and modern and I hate hip and modern, and it's freaking Kanye West and I hate freaking Kaye West (at least, as a human being).

But "Power" is just so entrancing, so beautifully theatrical, so powerful (boooooo~), it's irresistible. The entirety of "Power" is backed by a chorus of clapping women chanting "Aaaah eh eh", and sliced with samples of King Crimson's "21st Schitzoid Man", Continent Number 6's "Afromerica", and Cold Gits' "It's Your Thing", all while filtering a sort of twisted apology/reflection from Kanye West. It's the most ambitious song of the year and it comes together so perfectly. "I guess every superhero needs his theme music"; which ends up blowing up my expectations of hip hop and becoming a beautifully crafted, ambitious work of ark. You win this round Kanye West.

(I accompanied this entry with the mesmerizing music video for the song, but that's actually only 2 minutes of it, so here's the song in its entirety)

2. "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" by My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance is a band I'm sometimes embarrassed to say is one of my favorites, mainly because people have this silly assertion that they are a prime figure in the "emo" movement. That's not true though. 

The evolution of MCR's musical styling is astonishing--they began with songs that, yes, exemplify the masses' interpretation of emoism, but slowly but surely the band grew more creative, and their music became varying renditions of rock, pop, grunge, even ragtime, and now, punk. Their 2010 album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys is the essentially the new American Idiot--it's a theatrical story that borders on a rock opera oozing with punk awesomeness. A polarizing listen, some songs border on hit-or-miss territory, but what this album succeeds best at are its energetically charged fast punk ballads, like its single "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)".

"Na Na Na" is one of MCR's finest pieces; its lyrics are wild and eclectic, its sound is phenomenal with excellent instrumental work from all members of the band, and washes away all previous interpretations of the band's misinterpreted dark image by producing a loud punk anthem for the ages. There's blistering guitar riffs, the classically snide delivery of Gerard Way, and a beautifully orchestrated arena-filled chanting of the titular na's. "Na Na Na" is an incredible change of pace for MCR, but it's all apart of the band's sense of growth as musicians, and yet it maintains an in-your-face attitude that's like something off of '90s MTV. It's rebellious and genius, like MCR themselves.

And finally, number one...

1. "Cousins" by Vampire Weekend

I hesitated putting this as number one, because I felt as if it was cheating; "Cousins" was released as a single in 2009, but its actual album was released in January of 2010. So basically the single release was a "preview" of the album, so it still counts as a 2010 song and I can continue this post without any guilt strings dragging me down.

"Cousins" is a song from Vampire Weekend, an indie band you might know as "those guys who did the 'Holiday' song for the Honda commercials" (the inclusion of which ruined that song for me). You know that old saying "toe-tapping"? This is it, baby, in all its glory. "Cousins" is ridiculously fast, loud, and unbelievably tightly written. It's electrifying, engrossing, and happy. You come into "Cousins" unknowing of how much joy shall be released onto you by the time it's over; right off the bat it explodes in an eclectic mix of insanely-fast drum beats and insanely-fast guitar riffs. 

In the end, the lyrical meaning of the song would be almost pointless in the sum of its parts (and fittingly, its a celebration of effortless hipsterism) because it's so tightly written and so exuberantly intentioned that the only plausible interpretation of its purpose is to entice you with pure, unbridled, electrifying glee. Music has always been a form of expression, and like most forms of pop-culture its intention is to take you out of reality and make you feel better about yourself; "Cousins" goes one step beyond. It slams your jaw to the floor, then reassembles it before it slits a massive smile onto your face. It's a perfect song in every and exemplifies quality, modern music.

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As usual, this is all my opinion, so please don't flame me for having it. Maybe you've heard this songs, maybe you haven't, in which case I'm happy that I've introduced you to them, as they're all brilliant pieces from a generation where music has hit a rut. Next up is the conclusion of my Year Endies set: "Top 10 Films of 2010". See you then.