Hey all,
Hope you had a great holiday season, and rang in the new decade with pomp, circumstance and most of all safety! First blog post of the new decade, and I thought I’d look back at the last 10…nothing to do with Salesforce this time – just some good ol’ music talk!
Now, those who know me realize that music plays a large part in my life. I now listen to music almost all the time, but at one point and time I used to write and play music as well. I still do play, just not in a band, and certainly no longer up on stage – my days of that have long since past, much like my hair I used to have back then has gone as well! I spent some time thinking back to the songs that really stood out from the ‘naughties, and I’ve come up with a list of 13 – the top 10, and 3 honourable mentions!
10. Queens of the Stone Age – Song For The Dead
One of the best live bands I have ever seen. Period. (And easy to go see for my wife, as she is drop dead in love with Josh Homme…)
How I wish Bloc Party was still awesome, and didn’t put out their last album of suckitude. I think Q said it best – “Remember when Bloc Party didn’t suck balls?”. Yes…yes I do – and this song is when they didn’t.
8. Postal Service – Such Great Heights
Yes – it’s now a UPS song, which demerits it slightly, but the song (and the album) is super awesome amazing. How they recorded the album is just as amazing too (the band’s name was chosen due to the way in which it produced its songs. Tamborello wrote and performed instrumental tracks and then sent the DATs to Gibbard, who edited the song as he saw fit (adding his vocals along the way), sending them back to Tamborello via the United States Postal Service. – from Wikipedia’s note on the band)
7. Wolf Parade – Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts
A Canadian band from Vancouver and Montreal, this song from their first album sticks out as their best, and also as one of the best of the decade.
One of the top 10 songs of the 90’s becomes one of the top ten songs of the naughties thanks to this haunting cover by a cowboy legend. The video can drive you to tears.
5. Radiohead – Everything In It’s Right Place
So, at the beginning of the decade, OK Computer was still fresh in everyone’s head as one of the albums our generation has to own from the 90’s. Radiohead could have ruled the world. Kid A was announced, and….it completely took a left turn from where OK was, and solidified Radiohead (to me) as a band that can do what they want, and still be absolutely awesome doing it!
Not one of their biggest hits, but it has everything in it as to why I love Interpol as a band. The lyrics, the syncopation, the build, and the craziest video I have seen in some time.
Although they were super-hyped, this band (whom we saw open for U2, and blew me away for the few songs I heard) lived up to it. Although they seem to have fallen off the face of the earth (I believe they were working on a soundtrack or something) their first album is one of the best Canadian albums ever released! (BTW, the lead singer still reminds me of Patrick Roy every time I see him).
I am so excited to finally be able to see Muse live in March (in Montreal). This is the song that made me run out and buy every album I could!
1. Arctic Monkeys – I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor
This song just makes me want to jump around, and from the look of the lads who play, they look like they’ve had some fun before recording as well (with a pint or five!). Why is it number one? Just cause I find myself still singing it every once in a while.
So, there is my top ten. As for the extra three – there are three songs that could have been #10, and so I add them as honourable mentions:
Green Day – Holiday (the best Green Day song. ever. period.)
Slipknot – Vermillion Part 1 (Slipknot is a guilty pleasure, but this song has some very powerful lyrics)
Billy Talent – Try Honesty (the first single ever by one of the best Canadian bands of the century…so far!)
So, there you have it – the top 13 of the naughties, in my humblest of opinions. But now, time to get back to work….
Take care all,
Nik
4 Comments
Ahh… I can’t help but agree with the majority of these.
I’m surprised that #2 is #2 instead of #1, but it’s your list and you can have it your way…though I’m pleased to say I’m as uber-pumped to see the Muse boys in March. For me, I’d have to say Apocalypse Please had me sold right from the start when I was first handed the disc unintroduced with a simple “you NEED to hear THIS”.
Not surprised to see Radiohead in your charts – I’d have to tip my hat to Myxamatosis as their track o’ decade for me. That one still pops into my head from time to time with seemingly magical randomness.
And awesome pick at #10 – my all time favourite QotSA track.
Now, two questions for you:
1. No love for Tool this decade? I’d have to sneak Lateralus into my list, were I so bold to make one.
2. Were these last 10 really called the “‘naughties”? When did that come about? Was I so far under that rock that I’ve first heard of the decade’s nickname 4 days after it’s passing?
Thanks Scott. Arctic is #1 just as I feel it wraps up the last decade nicely – short, fast, direct, manic and them it just ends. That and u drive my family by breaking out into it on a more regular basis then muse!
As for tool, an amazing band but no one song sticks out for me. Schism would be close, but not more than the 13 I chose. Their albums however, breathtaking. They are amazing as a whole, not as singles.
And for the naughties thing, I read it in a couple of British mags I went over and really like it – loved it compared to the ‘ohzies’ or whatever we’ve called it here in north america – so now I use it (posthumously of course…isn’t that always the way!)
as for Radiohead, everything was the first track on the first album where they went left and kept going. It will always stick in my head as the moment I went “holy crap! That was unexpected, unique and awesome. Play it again!!!”
n
Great article . Will definitely copy it to my blog.Thanks.
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