All stomp and bombast. A one man ode to dinosaur rock. Jack White is a purposeless energy going nowhere for no reason. What makes him rock? Angst? Rebellion? I have no idea, and neither does he.
19. "You Know I'm No Good" by Amy Winehouse
When this track debuted I thought Amy Winehouse was a cool for cool's sake, double-oh seven, groove-happy ironist. So, I was wrong. The song is a heartfelt ode to the trashy, the dirty, and the carpet burned. Documentary, then.
18. "What's a Girl To Do?" by Bats for Lashes
It's been a while since we've had a good talk-singy song, and well, the other-worldy chorus takes it to a whole 'nother level. Which is just my way of saying I have no idea what this song's about, but I like it. Rabbits on bicycles everywhere clap along.
17. "I Always Say Yes" by Glass Candy
Breathless 70s era disco meets Giallo-style creepiness. This is where we hurt.
16. "The Ride" by Joan as Police Woman
A lovely, affecting performance by Joan Wasser, who having performed with Rufus Wainwright, Antony and the Johnsons, Sparklehorse and others, deserves to be recognized in her own right.
15. "Nag Nag Nag Nag" by Art Brut
Eddie Argos is so good that you forget that you're listening to a song. He's the music fan's music fan. Morrissey meets John Cusack in High Fidelity. Just read this:
I used to have a bedroom to hide in,And that's just the bridge!
but now I’m outside deciding.
Older but wiser,
this song’s the decider.
Is it the sound of a man wrestling with emotion,
or the sound of him losing
and causing commotion?
I’m nothing to my peers,
but envy and hatred.
How many girls have they seen naked?
14. "The Underdog" by Spoon
Strums and horns and a vaguely familiar melody. Britt Daniel and the band blast through this number before it really has a chance to register. It's that sense of urgency and expert delivery that keeps the song tugging at you long after the final fade.
13. "Now, Now" by St. Vincent
The song builds gracefully, at once feminine and ethereal. Then it taunts you with it's childlike "you don't mean that say you're sorry." By the time the guitar kicks in to blast you out of the room, it's too late to admit that Annie Clark's got chops. You've been played.
12. "Heatherwood" by Deerhunter
Everything Deerhunter did this year was cool, but this was the song I kept coming back to. This is shoe-gazer music that does not collapse or deflate. It expands, it embraces, as it sucks you in. Yet the lyrical mystery remains. What "was not seen again"?
11. "Once Upon A Time" by Air
The sound of Air sounding like Air. Piano runs and breathy vocals with all of the Air touches and flourishes. The song itself plays as though it's meant to be heard as you transition from one thing to another. At the airport. On the subway. It's one last chance to catch your breath before hurtling on to the next thing.
NEXT: The Best of the Rest and the Rest of the Best.
PLUS: 2007, what did it all mean anyway? A unified theory.
