Now that the decade is over I have the proper perspective to judge the top ten songs of the last ten years. Here are the best songs from the aughts:
10. Things the Grandchildren Should Know--The Eels
9. Fans--Kings of Leon
8. Real Good Looking Boy--The Who
7. Wake Up--Arcade Fire
6. Nancy ('Cos It Already Is)--Pete Yorn
5. Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors--Editors
4. All These Things That I've Done--The Killers
3. Come Pick Me Up--Ryan Adams
2. Best of You--Foo Fighters
1. Maps--Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs
Player hate. Player participate. Share your favorite songs from the '00s in the comments section below.
Killers- All these things I have done.
I think the Killers remind me of the New Wave bands of my college years in the mid-80's.
Excellent stuff!
10) Staring At The Sun--TV On The Radio
9)On The Table--A.C.Newman
8)We'll Make A Lover Of You--Les Savy Fav (disorienting surf/math guitar work is amazing)
7)The Way We Get By--Spoon (fantastic piano, due to copyright restrictions only live video)
6)For The Widows In Paradise, For The Fatherless In Ypsilanti--Sufjan Stevens
5)The Beginning And The End--Isis (masters of hardcore melody and dynamics)
4)Glad Girls--Guided By Voices (Midwest; represent!)
3)Let's Get Lost--Elliott Smith; RIP (heartbreaking song from a heartbreaking genius)
2)One More Time--Daft Punk (very gay, very good)
1)Leif Erikson--Interpol
As mentioned earlier, because of limited time searching and such some songs are live recordings.
Dan, why no love for Interpol? Have you given them a chance, as in more than 2 complete listens? Does Interpol's similarity to Joy Division turn you off? Give them a chance.
I gave Interpol a listen, and for the first three minutes it was pretty pedestrian--it got good at the end. The singer sounds like somebody you might hear in church, i.e., he is not very talented at singing. If they sounded more like Joy Division, I would like them better (my favorite '80s song is "Love Will Tear Us Apart"; my favorite '90s song is "Regret"). I preferred the GBV, Elliot Smith, and TV on the Radio songs from your list.
That's the way Interpol's songs work; they get better and better, peaking at the end. Good to know, I wouldn't have taken you for a big Joy Division fan.
PMA: If you're interested, here's a FlynnFiles flashback on Ian Curtis and Joy Division:
http://www.flynnfiles.com/archives/pop_culture2007/just_cant_function_no_more.html
When I mentioned Joy Division something in the back of my mind was saying "Hasn't he blogged about them before?" Thanks for the flashback and Happy New Year
I actually don't have a good voice either. I iced myself so I get a free pass for this. But, although my voice may be bad, it makes a cool sound that compliments our dark bass lines and jangly guitar riffs well. Paul Banks' vocals do the same for Interpol. Also, just because we predate Interpol doesn't make us better than them. Interpol are more superior than we as are any of the projects that were started after my death. Joy Divsion were actually very overrated. We are nestled in between Blind Melon and Jeff Buckley on the most overrated alternative acts that get too much cred because someone died list. Thank you for your time. Disorder is our best song.
The first point is valid: Ian Curtis didn't have the best voice out there (see [hear?] "Atmosphere"). But it's haunting, and fits the music and the words. Jeff Buckley's album is certainly one of the best of the 1990s. I understand the general point, and have made it many times in the past, that dying young is a good career move for rock stars. I just don't think it applies here. Joy Division is one of the most influential bands. (Yes, pronounce that period). Listen to "Atmosphere" and you can get a feel for so much that followed. The Cure seemed to have cribbed about half there sound from that one song. Joy Division literally created the template for '80s alternative.
Also, the surviving members carried on as New Order and made some of the best music of the next three decades, suggesting that Joy Division's prominence has as much to do with the talent in the band as it has to do with its lead singer's tragic choice. Like Curtis, Bernard Sumner's voice is often off key. But is there a better bass player than Peter Hook? I don't think there is (Maybe John Entwhistle). Is there any band that did more with that '80s synth sound than New Order? I don't think there is.
I don't think "Love Will Tear Us Apart" can be overrated. Ditto for New Order's "Age of Consent," "Regret," or "Siren's Call." When you look at New Order's success that followed Curtis's suicide, it's hard to claim that Joy Division's success stemmed from their singer killing himself. Did the members of Blind Melon go on to worldwide success after their singer overdosed?
This list helped nudge me along to being a hardcore eels fan. I loved "I Like Birds" so I had to click on "Things The Grandchildren Should Know."
Wow. What a song.
It's nice to know there's still people out there making music that's both original and enjoying. Thanks for turning me on to this song.
