Top 100 Songs Of 2010 (20-1)

A look at station to station's top 20 songs of 2010. If you're looking to catch up on some great material from the past year you simply can't go wrong with one or all twenty of these songs. There is something for anyone in here, trust me. If you want to read and listen to the whole countdown before the top twenty, a look back at the links for songs 100-21:

Top 100 Songs 100-81
Top 100 Songs 80-61
Top 100 Songs 60-41
Top 100 Songs 40-21

And here's the final countdown, 20-1:

20. The Gaslight Anthem-American Slang

The opening title track to The Gaslight Anthem's latest offering doesn't come off as anything new but yet it feels fresh for the fact that it's been awhile since I've heard a band tackle the heart and soul of the American dream in quite some time. When Brian Fallon hangs onto the words in the chorus "you told me fortunes/In American slang" you can't help but make the Springsteen comparisons. Just an old fashioned slice of American pie rock that shows sometimes the best gimmick is just to play like your the most important rock'n roll band in the world.
  The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang by jbcapati 

19. Spoon-Trouble Comes Running

An added bonus to Guided By Voices getting back to tour again is this lo-fi gem on Spoon's "Transference". "Trouble Comes Running" is like coming across an old GBV track that you never knew existed. The porduction is much more bare bones than anything else on the album, but makes the deepest impact with Daniel reminding you that "Here it comes running, trouble come running again". I wonder if Spoon could get by with a whole album full of bare bones production this late in their career. It could be fascinating.
  Spoon - Trouble by artsandcraftsmx 

18. Arcade Fire-Sprawl II (Mountains Over Mountains)

Arcade Fire: Living In The Sprawl

Past anthems ("Wake Up", "No Cars Go") from Arcade Fire gave you that feeling of everlasting euphoria. The best anthem on "The Suburbs" is no different styled with an eighties style synthesizer over walloping beats with Regine Chassagne taking the lead vocals. Chassagne hits your heart as well as your head when she states "Living in the sprawl/Dead shopping malls rise like mountains beyond mountains/And there's no end in sight/I need the darkness someone please cut the lights." It plays off as eighties synth pop with some of the best wordplay on "The Suburbs" and that's where it's strength lies through and through.

17. Deerhunter-Desire Lines

There is not another song in recent memory that has had a guitar just slowly go up and down the scale in a simple fashion that all of the sudden turns into this huge vast sound scape of music. "Desire Lines" plays this huge sound so perfectly you can't help but stop and listen and get lost. Bradford Cox hands over vocal duties to Lockett Pundt on this one and he turns in a smooth delivery never getting in the way of the music. On the second half, the vocals are gone and the guitars simply feel like they are multiplying everywhere you listen.
  Desire Lines by mishaz

16. The National-Conversation 16

I have to include the song with the line "I was afraid I'd eat your brains." It's one of the best things on "High Violet" as Matt Berninger paints a picture of family life gone awry with a sense of troubled urgency, "I see the kids are in trouble/I do not know all the troubles for/Give them ice for the fever..." The song pretty much slingshots along a great bassline that leads to Berninger slyly talking about eating his partner's brains and then climaxing with "I am evil!" It's only fitting to put this conversation in the sixteenth spot.
  Conversation 16 - The National by risteardo 

15. LCD Soundsystem-All I Want

Another perfect jaunt from James Murphy on "All I Want", "This Is Happening"'s centerpiece. The song bounces along with Murphy scoring lyrics about a relationship going sour. He comes home to the girl who'll put up with all of his shit and all he wants is her pity and bitter tears. By the second verse the girl has packed up and gone and Murphy's found himself having to start over as shown with the final line "Take me home" being laid down as blips and beeps take over the song. The aggressive beat is accompanied by a fantastic slide guitar that makes the song stand out. So long LCD Soundsystem, it was a short but enjoyable ride.
  LCD Soundsystem - All I Want by Ragged Words 

14. The Roots feat. Joanna Newsom-Right On

The Roots back the book of Right On

I personally couldn't get into Joanna Newsom's "Ys" released a few years ago, an album riddled with over long harp songs. It was admirable at best. But lay down her vocals from "The Book Of Right On" over a Roots back beat and throw in some fantastic rap verses in between, and the thing just takes off. Newsom's wafer voice is the complete opposite to the strong and bold verses "OK, I'm above and beyond hot/My measurement in watts." And sometimes, opposites attract to create something as wonderful as "Right On".
  The Roots feat. Joanna Newsom- Right On by delaneyamach 

13. Crystal Castles feat. Robert Smith-Not In Love

A cover song from another cover song from an eighties band called Platinum Blonde. Crystal Castles first version from their 2010 album "Crystal Castles ii" has a nice experimental noise beat going on with lead singer Alice Glass' vocals buried amongst a voice synthesizer. The version that brings this song to a completely new level is when they decided to call on Robert Smith of the Cure to lend his voice over the song. Smith hasn't sung with this much conviction in years and the material suits him fine: "And we were lovers/Now we can't be friends...I'm not in love".
  Crystal Castles - Not In Love (feat. Robert Smith) by deefreitag 

12. The Morning Benders-All Day Day Light

Maybe it's the percussion fills or the get up on this guitar line that catapults this song as a favorite of the year. All i know for sure is it is a winner on a hot summer night to be driving home with the windows down and with lead singer Chris Chu singing in a positively giddy tone "Somewhere someone's calling out my name/somewhere they're can't see me." It's an upbeat, fun song, my favorite from their album "Big Echo" which has a lot of sleeper tunes on it.
  Morning Benders - All Day Day Light by zar 

11. Avi Buffalo-What's It In For

The peaceful, easy feeling that the young ones from Avi Buffalo conjure up on "What's It In For?" drips of adolescent poetry, "Your lips are like little pieces of bacon" or "Should I take you to a function or would you rather be lonely?" But all is forgiven once it gets to a glorious chorus that speaks volumes of how ready for the world the just out of high school Avi Buffalo is. "What's it in for, someone with nothing to do/What's it in for me?" The multi layered vocals fly the ending of this song to the blue sky like a kite on a magnificent day. Yeah, the kids are alright.
  Avi Buffalo - What's In It For by musicmule 

10. Belle & Sebastian-I Didn't See It Coming

B & S write about love

Love doesn't always need to be a complicated thing. In "I Didn't See It Coming", everything is laid out on the table individually to try and figure out. Each instrument and vocal is brought in at specific times to add layers to this poignant song. Sarah Martin's lead on vocals is simply beautiful as she sweetly sings "Money makes the wheels and the world go round". Lead man Stuart Murdoch's counterpart vocals by the end of the song feel so natural "Make me dance I want to surrender" that you really didn't see this song coming...as complicated as love can be, it's even more of a feat to make it into a simple, mature and wonderful song about the complications of love.
  I Didn't See It Coming- belle and sebastion by ThisBandIsSick.com

9. Local Natives-Sun Hands

There is simply one thing that makes "Sun Hands" standout more than anything else on "Gorilla Manor". It's the mid section when everything but the percussion and the vocals are muted and they chant the chorus "And when I can't feel with my sun hands/I promise not to lose her again" and then the instruments come back in full force, heavy and demanding your attention. The rest of the song is much more subdued and enjoyable with a guitar that simply intertwines itself in the percussion, but that midsection is the the catastrophic boom that makes this so special.
  Local Natives - Sun Hands by TAtunes 

8. Tame Impala-Solitude Is Bliss

Without a doubt, the spaciest and trippiest single of the year that still can score nods from casual fans or anyone who appreciates a good rock song. The opening guitar line reminds you of Cream and the vocals scream John Lennon. The chorus "You will never come close to how I feel" plants you in the middle of a hazy, drugged up mind as lead singer Kevin Parker reminds you of "The cracks in the pavement underneath my shoes" and the party going on in his mind. Tame Impala have shortly mastered the trick of good psychedelic rock without being pretentious. Here's to hoping they can continue to harness that energy.
  Tame Impala - Solitude is Bliss by arielwaves 

7. Cee Lo Green-Fuck You

As far as profanity laced tirades from neo-soul artists go, Cee Lo Green takes the prize. It's just about as catchy as Outkast's 2003 "Hey Ya!" and the lyrical wordplay is witty , spunky, and smart: "I guess he's an X-box, and I'm more Atari." But the key thing that holds it all together is Green's convincing vocal delivery, a man who's heart has broken and he wants you to understand the pain he feels. Everyone's been dumped one way or another, "Fuck You" is the most appropriate response that comes to your mind first no matter which way you cut it. Even if throwing in "Forget" in the edit tones it down, it's an all around smash.
  Cee-Lo Green: Fuck You by eradicator

6. Vampire Weekend-Cousins

Vampire Weekend...and their cousins

Coming in around just two and a half minutes, "Cousins" is the song on "Contra" that holds closest to the band's self titled debut. But it ups the ante just a bit by being a little more polished without losing the raw energy found on Vampire Weekend's first album. Drums whiz by quickly, guitars sound like sirens running down the scale and then have the nerve to throw in some church bells at the end. Ezra Koenig's vocal delivery along with the percussion in the verses is the most delightful part of the song. "Contra" had favorites pop up month in and out, "Cousins" held the weight of being the best the longest.
  Vampire Weekend, Cousins by metrobarquisimeto

5. Frightened Rabbit-Swim Until You Can't See Land

A song for the nautical lover in all of us. "Swim Until Can't See Land" conjures up images of North Sea waters, salt in the air and floating on your back. All of these images have a perfect soundtrack as the guitars are just this side of a shanty and lead singer's  Scott Hutchison's very Scottish voice all lends to a song that is majestic and bold as well as warm and cold. It creeps up on anthem quality but doesn't over-blow it. The line "Are you a man or are you a bag of sand?" is perhaps the best introspective question in a song this year. I'm rooting for Frightened Rabbit's career to keep evolving.
  Swim Until You Can't See Land by Frightened Rabbit 

4. Beach House-Silver Soul

With all the great songs on "Teen Dream", I had to step back for a second to figure out which one hit home the most. Remembering how much "Silver Soul" threw me into the mix the first time I heard it, it seemed an obvious choice for the number four spot. A drum that drunkenly marches along like it's about to fall off a cliff, a slide guitar that sounds completely warped as it wobbles along, and Victoria Legrand's haunting vocals in the chorus "It is happening again", all equal one of the most thrilling things I've heard since Mazzy Star's "Fade Into You". I think my heart just skipped a beat.
  Silver Soul-Beach House by jclittlespy

3. Foals-Spanish Sahara

A song that starts off soft and whispered with a sound of a needle hitting the end of a vinyl record and simply lulls you into a relaxed trance. The big payoff is when the song opens up in the middle and it feels like the giant wave you've been staring at in slow motion for the last four minutes has simply engulfed you and the sounds you hear are the ebb furiously crashing onto a beach around you. Yannis Philippakis gives a ghost like vocal reminding you "I'm the ghost in the back of your head." Foals are known to be math rockers because everything is calculated, "Spanish Sahara" breaks that tradition being one of the most free flowing and simply luscious songs of the year.
   Foals - Spanish Sahara by subpop

2. Yeasayer-O.N.E.

Yeasayer: O.N.E.'s enough for number two.

"Odd Blood" by Yeasayer wins the "Hit And Miss" album award of the year. When they missed, it was at times embarassing. When they hit, they brought some absolute stunners to the speakers. "O.N.E." can be found right in the middle of all the mayhem and is the strongest song of the set. It's a pop showing off catchy rhythms and 80's style synthesizers in the vein of New Order when they went completely house on "Technique". The song's theme of overcoming addiction, whether it be to drugs, alcohol, or someone you just don't want to be around anymore, it all works: "You don't move me anymore/And I'm Glad that you don't/Cause I can't take it anymore." Throw in some straight up auto-tune dance beat near the end and it becomes the most dazzling display of music of the year. A song that simply makes you feel alive.
  O.N.E. by Yeasayer by Jordan Chesney

1. The National-Bloodbuzz Ohio

Anyone who is familiar with the National knows that they are probably never going to be a traditional singles band. The song structures usually don't scream the verse-chorus-verse of most singles material. "Bloodbuzz Ohio" is the closest thing they've released to a bona fide single, and what a song it is. The mournful undertones of Matt Berninger low voice set the tone perfectly with a frenzied back-beat and some absolutely stunning horns. "I still owe money, to the money, to the money I owe" is something that any middle class, middle aged American can relate to, debt that piles upon debt, and when Berninger follows it with "I never thought about love, when I thought about home" it shows the cracks of the American dream in true colors. My favorite thing to do was sing a couple octaves higher than Berninger through the song as his low end voice becomes the perfect duet partner of any combination. I was extremely excited when I first heard "Bloodbuzz" and it stayed at the top for a good part of the year as my favorite song. And it pays homage to Ohio, a state I've traveled though WAY too much in my lifetime so it's close to home. "I'm on a blood.......buzz" into 2011.
  Bloodbuzz Ohio - The National by clubthemammoth

Source: http://www.jhostation.com/2010/12/top-100-songs-of-2010-20-1.html

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