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Picks from the Current staff

 

Steve Seel, Host

I've got two first-place songs this year. Since I couldn't decide between them, I'll have to let them duke it out themselves for your love.

1a) Animal Collective, "My Girls"
A delirious, swirling, glow-stick and pacifier romp through a field of electronic daisies. Stay hydrated while listening.

1b) Neko Case, "This Tornado Loves You"
A song with a simple metaphor for destructive, obsessive devotion, but in Neko's hands, the imagery needn't be any more complicated. Plus, she sings what is easily the vocal high-note of the year.

3) The Idle Hands, "Loaded"
A case study in "how to write the perfect power pop song," complete with object lesson on the idea of "hook."

4) Dirty Projectors, "Cannibal Resource"
What in the hell are they doing in this song? How are they performing this? Gob-smackingly complicated arranging between the instrumental and vocal parts that recalls ... are you ready? Yes. That's Yes, the band. But in the good way (which I maintain does exist), and without wanky solos and overlong theme-flogging. Prog rock's resuscitation continues.

5) Dinosaur Jr., "I Want You to Know"
One of the finest examples of just how triumphant this band's return to the scene has been. Not only is it like they never left, but they're putting out some of their best stuff ever right now. Who does that with a comeback?

6) Megafaun, "Kaufman's Ballad"
A great young band, with a haunting song that references Gram Parsons' impromptu funeral director.

7) Halloween Alaska, "Be a Man"
The one truly dark passage from their latest, "Champagne Downtown" ... a brooding free-association on the shadowy corners of the male identity search.

8) Metric, "Stadium Love"
Unashamedly named for what it was apparently designed to be: a concert closer for big, big crowds. When the chorus "oo-oo's" hit, there is apparently a subliminal message encoded in the music that causes the listener to pogo-stick.

9) Bon Iver, "Woods"
That's right: I chose the auto-tune track on Bon Iver's "Blood Bank" EP. Isn't auto-tune over? Doesn't everybody hate it? Probably, and probably. But some artists (like Imogen Heap, for example) have actually used it like true composers - utilizing it to its fullest textural extent. Justin Vernon does that in this song as well, and while the lyrics might be seen by some as regrettably thin, I hear them like a mantra, or a meditation. This is the sound of a man performing self-soothing, as if he were rocking himself back and forth. Funny that I just gave this song the highest word-count so far here. That's how much I like it.

10) The Swell Season, "The Verb"
One more song that has a kind of delirious, levitating quality. A deeper album-cut from the second outing from the Oscar-winning songwriting team of Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova ("Falling Slowly" from "Once"). This tune spins around like a kind of whirling dervish ... I imagine being inside Glen's Irish noggin, stumbling out onto a street after one too many pints, dizzy from beer and love and regret and adrenaline.

Jill Riley, Host

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Zero" - It's Blitz!
Animal Collective - "Summertime Clothes" - Merriweather Post Pavilion
Grizzly Bear - "While You Wait For The Other - Veckatimest
Ladyhawke - "Magic" - Ladyhawke
Mason Jennings - "The Field" - Blood of Man
Megafaun - "The Fade" - Gather, Form and Fly
Sonic Youth - "Antenna" - The Eternal
The Dead Weather - "I Cut Like A Buffalo" - Horehound
The Decemberists - "The Rake's Song" - The Hazards of Love
The Idle Hands - "Secretary" - The Hearts We Broke on the Way to the Show

Barb Abney, Host


Big Pink - "Velvet"
If "goth" was a brand new genre.. this would be the song to launch it.

Brendan Benson - "A Whole Lot Better"
"I fell in love with you and out of love with you and back in love with you all in the same day." It's just the most sing-along-able tune of the year. Once it worms its way into your head, you're hooked!

Depeche Mode - "In Chains"
My side one, track one of the year! I imagine if you're coming out of an ugly relationship, this song could save you some $$ in therapy.

Dirty Projectors - "Stillness Is The Move"
I just adore the "quirk" of this tune. While it is a brand new song, I think it's filling the void left in my life that Ruby used to fill.

Gossip - "Men in Love"
I swear this song is the '00's version of The Weather Girls' "It's Raining Men!" I'm still disappointed that the Music For Men tour didn't roll through The Twin Cities this year. Here's hoping Beth and the gang will be here in 2010!

Idle Hands - "The Sleazer"
Perhaps I've mentioned that I'm not a fan of falsetto. But when it comes to this song, I take it all back! I imagine if you mixed equal parts T. Rex, Aerosmith and Rolling Stones, it would equal Idle Hands.

Lookbook - "Over and Over"
I have had a girl-crush on Maggie's voice for a few years. I also have a great appreciation for Aphex Twin. This song seemingly brings those elements together perfectly!

P.O.S. - "Savion Glover"
The line "the oval office and the lobby prolly listen to Fugazi" hooked me. And the mentions of Paris Hilton, Klondike Bars and AC Slater just pushed it over the edge with non-sensical pop culture references.

The Dead Weather - "Treat Me Like Your Mother"
I am a fan of every band that each of these artists have taken part in. Loving this project was effortless. This song just happens to be my favorite.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Hysteric"
Not since Jerry MacGuire has a line been so perfect.. "You suddenly complete me.."

Mary Lucia, Host

1. White Lies - "Death"
I love pop music about dying.

2. Eugene Mcguinness - "The Fonz"
Stinkin' catchy, great video too

3. Franz Ferdinand - "No You Girls"
"Meet me where your mind won't kiss me". MEOWZA.

4. Kevin Devine - "I Could Be With Anyone"
This song goes somewhere so unexpectedly and I'm mad about the lyrics. "I'm not saying that it's right and I'm not saying it's a life. I'm just saying it's where I'm at tonight"

5. Glasvegas - "Lonesome Swan"
HUGE romantic and sweeping. (I always love when we edit out cuss words from Scottish bands. What's the point?)

6. The Idle Hands - "The Sleazer"
In the immortal words of Spinal Tap's "Big Bottom Drive me out of my mind" It's the bottom sound of this tune that begs the question, "How could I leave this behind?"

7. Eels - "Prizefighter"
Mark Everett is one of my favorite people breathing air.

8. St. Vincent - "Actor Out Of Work"
"I think I love you. I think I'm Mad." Who can't relate?

9. Brendan Benson - "Whole Lot Better"
Dude knows his way around a hand clap track, I wanna date this guy's songs.

10. Them Crooked Vultures - "Mind Eraser No Chaser"
Heavy Petting zoo music

Mark Wheat, Host

"Album of the Year 09; Home"
Is a 'mix tape' of favorites, not a critical list of the year's best music.
When I started to pick my end of year list this way two years ago, I wanted the resulting group of songs to be a soundtrack for how I experienced the year. This is the first time it has really worked.

I didn't realize it until I had the short list ready for trimming, but all of these songs in some way refer to the concept of home. I can't be sure about the lyrics of the Touareg tribesmen of Terakaft, but as nomadic people they seem to find a sense of home in their music.

During a year when many lost their homes in our country I've felt doubly blessed to have a firm, loving base to share with my wife; I also feel inspired by the creative community in my adopted home of Minneapolis/St.Paul; and after leaving my 'home' country of England 24 years ago I find myself preparing to make the commitment to become a citizen of this country, which I am now proud to call home.

Thanks for listening.

Mark Wheat's
"Album of the Year" 2009
Subtilted: 'Home'

POS "Optimist"
Animal Collective - "Summertime Cloths"
David Byrne & Brian Eno - "Strange Overtones"
Metric - "Help I'm Alive!"
The Decemberists - "The Rake's Song"
Iron & Wine - "Love Vigilantes"
Mason Jennings - "Pittsburg"
Terakaft - "Djer Aman"
Brother Ali - "Fresh Air"
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - "Home"

Bill DeVille, Host

At the moment, these are my top 10 tunes for 2009 in no particular order:

"Kingdom of Rust" - Doves - Kingdom of Rust
This song just has a nice cinematic quality to it. Love the lush strings and the almost Johnny Cash freight train beat!

"I'll Fight" - Wilco - Wilco (the Album)
The simplicity and Jeff Tweedy's vocal make this a highlight from Wilco's latest.

Laundry Room - Avett Brothers - I & Love & You
The Avett's major label debut is slicker and the songwriting is more focused. It all comes together nicely on this one.

"Sixteen" - The Heavy - The House That Dirt Built
Glad this finally sees the light of day! The band performed this one on the Current stage at SXSW in 2008. You can't go wrong with that supercool Screamin' Jay Hawkins sample!

"Your Truly, The Commuter" - Jason Lytle - Your Truly, The Commuter
Killer single from the former Grandaddy frontman. Love the weary heartfelt vocal on this one. His line in the song, "I may be limping, but I'm coming home,"gets me every time.

"Nobody Could Change Your Mind" - Generationals - Con Law
Pure 60's and 70's pop bliss from this New Orleans duo's debut.

"To Save Me" - M. Ward - Hold Time
Love this driving rocker from M. Ward. He has this special knack of blending new and old music that totally works for me!

"Kaufman's Ballad" - Megafaun - Gather Form & Fly
Great stories often make great songs. This one is about Phil Kaufman, the guy who stole Gram Parson casket and burned it in Joshua Tree, CA.

"The Field" - Mason Jennings - Blood of Man
After seeing his late November show at First Avenue, realized how amazing and powerful this song is. This is the best song he has ever written.

"Summertime Clothes" - Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion
Between the Brian Wilson styled "pocket symphonies," the lush production and those spot on harmonies made this one endless summer!

Other worthy contenders:
"Losing Yo Head" - Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk
"Up to Our Nex" - Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 - Goodnight Oslo
"No Turning Back" - Son Volt - American Central Dust
"At War With the Sun" - The Big Pink - A Brief History of Love
"Crystalized" - The XX - XX
"Nothing to Hide" - Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
"Hung Out" - Red Pens - Reasons
"1901" - Phoenix

Mac Wilson, Host

I decided to take my top 10 songs from this year and put them into 'mix' format. 10 songs, 40 minutes. Somewhere, happy tears are streaming down Mark Wheat's face. Enjoy.

1. "1901" - Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
An instant classic that led to the Francophones' well-deserved U.S. breakthrough.

2. "Heads Will Roll" - Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
Captured the zeitgeist of our recent recession, with its depiction of the omnipresent guillotine hanging over all our heads. And we could dance, dance, dance!

3. "Dominos" - The Big Pink - A Brief History of Love
To examine its psychoanalytic layers is to reveal a startling commentary on the instant-gratification aspect of this new media age, in which consumption of ideas is supplanted...wait, where was I? Oh, right: DA-MEE-NOES! DA-MEE-NOES!

4. "11th Dimension" - Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young
As he sings, "I've got music coming out of my hands and feet and kisses." At least 5 gigantic hooks jostle for position at once, helping to make the Strokes frontman's solo album one of the year's most pleasant surprises.

5. "Gimme Sympathy" - Metric - Fantasies
We all needed some optimism, too. Metric delivered by looking at both the past (the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?) and the future. It's possible that no other song this year sounded better on the radio.

6. "Pieces" - Dinosaur Jr. - Farm
Leave it to the rock vets to craft the year's best blend of brawn and melodicism.

7. "Percussion Gun" - White Rabbits - It's Frightening
I'm impressed how each instrument — guitar, bass, piano, and, yes, drums — leave their own distinct impression on the song.

8. "Daniel" - Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
One of my friends derisively said it sounded "like the '80s threw up." Who said that was a bad thing?

9. "Two Weeks" - Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
Driven by the king of all keyboard parts, with vocal harmones that ain't bad, either.

10. "You Saved My Life" - Cass McCombs - Catacombs
This is where I issue an apology on behalf of all of us here at the Current. We were remiss to ignore this gem from McCombs' superb "Catacombs" release. That's fine, though: I predict by 2019, this will be a wedding first-dance staple. A brutally honest, yet beautiful look at love, its imperfections, and its glory.

Jacquie Moody-Fuller, Host


Animal Collective - "My Girls" - Merriweather Post Pavilion
"My Girls" takes you right up to the brink of a booty shake, then pulls back. It holds you in what-in sexual terms-is called the "plateau phase" for all of its blissful five minutes and forty seconds. Maybe it's kind of creepy for me to use a sexual analogy on a song with such innocuous lyrics, but I can't help it. This song is musical Tantra.

Cass McCombs - "Dream Come True Girl" - Catacombs
On paper, the concept of Cass McCombs singing with Karen Black from Easy Rider sounds like a joke. It's no joke, and it's gorgeous. Black's voice pulls a sonic Jeckyl/Hyde move — jarring and throaty at the start, angelic and soaring above the song's finish. Also: a great song for dancing the cha cha.

David Byrne and Brian Eno - "Strange Overtones" - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
I am guessing that fans of My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (ahem, Seel) aren't fans of this track. But I like to close my eyes and imagine what the world would sound like if musical geniuses wrote all the fluffy pop songs. Give the guys a break-this is a perfect, little snow globe of a song.

Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros - "Home" - Up From Below
This just might be my favorite song of 2009. The very first time I heard this sweet, soaring, June-and-Johnny-style love epic, it just about knocked me off my horse. This song is in widescreen.

Grizzly Bear - "While You Wait for the Others" - Veckatimest
My first love from this album was "Two Weeks," a song I found so perfect, I didn't think any other track on the album would outrank it. But "While You Wait for the Others" snuck up on me. If "Two Weeks" won my heart over, this song slowly messed with my head. I found myself returning frequently to its strange little guitar hooks and choirboy harmonies. The way this song, melodically, coalesces, then falls apart, then comes together again—it's fascinating.

Megafaun - "The Fade" - Gather, Form and Fly
Sunny harmonies, sweet banjo plucking and wistful lyrics. This song is golden, like memories of autumn when you were a kid. Every time I hear it, I find myself wishing I could grow a beard.

Neko Case - "This Tornado Loves You" - Middle Cyclone
I've always thought of Neko Case as a force of nature. On this song, she makes it literal. Dark, scary, yearning—I get goosebumps when she howls, "what will make you believe me?" It's a song that makes me, guiltily, reckon with the intensity of my own desires. I can't imagine that Neko wrote this for anyone in particular, but if she did, I'd advise him to change his name and move to Costa Rica.

Dirty Projectors - "Cannibal Resource" - Bitte Orca
After a few beers, I developed what I thought was a brilliant theory about what makes Dirty Projectors great. In pop music, the female voice is either foreground (an object for male enjoyment) or background (in the service of the male voice). This band exists in a totally egalitarian middle—where the female voices truly become instruments, and David Longstreth's falsetto, at times, erases his maleness. "Cannibal Resource" embodies the band's sexy, sexless sound. (I told you I'd been drinking.)

White Rabbits - "Percussion Gun" - It's Frightening
I liked White Rabbits before the lead singer of my favorite band produced their songs. I like them even more now. This is still a White Rabbits song, but Britt Daniel's playful brand of avant-garde is evident here, too.

Wilco - "You Never Know"- Wilco (The Album)
George Harrison-esque, peppy ... god, I don't know. I just love this song. Don't make me explain it.

Honorable Mentions:
Camera Obscura, "Honey in the Sun;" Dirty Projectors, ??; Girls, "Hellhole Ratrace" Heartless Bastards, "The Mountain;" Phoenix, "1901;" The Flaming Lips, "Silver Trembling Hands;" The Rural Alberta Advantage, "Don't Haunt This Place."

Jade, Host

This was probably the hardest list I have ever put together. There were so many awesome songs that my initial list was 3 pages long and not at all helpful. So I decided to go with my favorite live acts that I've seen this year and my favorite songs from those shows. Then I added in a few that I just couldn't get out of my head. In no particular order, my Top 10 Songs of 2009:

"1901" - Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
"Hysteric" - Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
"Drain The Blood" - The Rural Alberta Advantage - Hometowns
"Lack of Height" - Caroline Smith and the Good Night Sleeps - Backyard
"Tent Set Collect Call" - Metric - Fantasies
"Ulysses" - Franz Ferdinand - Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
"While You Wait for the Others" - Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
"Optimist (We Are Not For Them)" - P.O.S. - Never Better
"Dominos" - The Big Pink - A Brief History Of Love
"Raindrops" - Basement Jaxx - Scars

David Campbell, Host


Animal Collective - "My Girls" - Merriweather Post Pavilion
Heartless Bastards - "The Mountain" - The Mountain
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - "Inspiration Information" - Dark Was The Night comp.
Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks" - Veckatimest
Camera Obscura - "French Navy" - My Maudlin Career
Royksopp - "Happy Up Here" - Junior
Glasvegas - "Geraldine" - Glasvegas
Bon Iver - "Woods" - Blood Bank EP
Free Energy - "Dream City"
Jason Lytle - "Yours Truly, The Commuter" - Yours Truly, The Commuter

A few thoughts on this list:
These songs are not the best or the most innovative or the smartest or anything like that. These are simply ten songs from 2009 that I just could not quit. As I've gotten older, I tend to be a little more fussy. Things get tired. What is exhilarating at first soon find it's way into the realm of simply no longer interesting, or in the most severe cases, totally annoying. Nothing is can escape my tractor beam of I'm-totally-over-this-ness. In 2009, I was especially finicky. Man, I was hating on everything. The only things I could stand by Nov. 20th were pizza, this one girl I know, and these ten songs. And maybe the television program It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. That's a fantastic program.

Note to Santa:
I don't own Animal Collective, Heartless Bastards, or Glasvegas on wax. Just sayin'.

Jim McGuinn, Program Director

Top 10:
The Avett Brothers - "I and Love and You" - I and Love and You
Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros - "Home" - Up From Below
Art Brut - "DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake" - Art Brut vs. Satan
The Idle Hands - "Loaded" - The Hearts We Broke On The Way To The Show
The Big Pink - "Dominos" - A Brief History Of Love
Free Energy - "Dream City" - Stuck on Nothin'
M. Ward - "Never Had Nobody Like You" - Hold Time
Mason Jennings - "The Field" - Blood of Man
P.O.S. - "Savion Glover" - Never Better
Eels - "Prizefighter" - Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire

Melanie Walker, Music Director

My favorite tracks of 2009!

1. Glasvegas - "It's My Own Cheating Heart"
2. The Big Pink - "Velvet"
3. Animal Collective - "My Girls"
4. Delphic - "Counterpoint"
5. Wild Beasts - "Devil's Crayon"
6. Eels - "Fresh Blood"
7. Jack Penate - "So Near"
8. Bat For Lashes - "Daniel"
9. The Gossip - "Heavy Cross"
10. Junior Boys - "Parallel Lines"

David Safar, Assistant Music Director

Dinosaur Jr - "Pieces" - Farm
Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks" - Veckatimest
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Zero" - It's Blitz!
Girls - "Lust For Life" - Album
Fever Ray - "Seven" - Fever Ray
Animal Collective - "My Girls" - Merriweather Post Pavilion
A Place to Bury Strangers - "In Your Heart" - Exploding Head
The Big Pink - "Dominos" - A Brief History Of Love
White Rabbits - "Percussion Gun" - It's Frightening
Gossip - "Heavy Cross" - Music For Men

Lindsay Kimball, Assistant Producer


Song Title - Artist - Album

1. "Don't Haunt This Place" - Rural Alberta Advantage - Hometowns
2. "Island, IS" - Volcano Choir - Unmap
3. "I and Love and You" - Avett Brothers - I and Love and You
4. "1901" - Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
5. "Collect Call" - Metric - Fantasies
6. "Shiny Shoes" - The Pines - Tremelo
7. "Northern Lights" - Bowerbirds - Upper Air
8. "The Longest Day" - Megafaun - Gather, Form & Fly
9. "Love Vigilantes" - Iron and Wine - Around The Well
10. "Hard To Be" - David Bazan - Curse Your Branches

Bethany Barberg, Intern


Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - "Home"
Mason Jennings - "The Field"
Grizzly Bear - "All We Ask"
Bowerbirds - "Ghost Life"
Daredevil Christopher Wright - "We're Not Friends"
Metric - "Help I'm Alive"
Peter Wolf Crier - "Crutch and Cane"
Rural Alberta Advantage - "Deadroads"
Wilco - "I'll Fight"
Andrew Bird - "Fitz and Dizzyspells"

Peter Valelly, Intern


1. "Stillness is the Move" - Dirty Projectors
2. "So Good" - Electrik Red
3. "My Girls" - Animal Collective
4. "Tron Legacy Theme (Reworked by Cryda Luv)" - Daft Punk
5. "Bonkers (ft. Armand van Helden)" - Dizzee Rascal
6. "Ecstasy" - jj
7. "Isaiah 45:23" - The Mountain Goats
8. "Rollerskate" - Matias Aguayo
9. "Play With Fire (Rolling Stones Cover)" - Dum Dum Girls
10. "Sheila" - Atlas Sound

Honorable Mentions: "Digidesign" by Joker, "Cannibal Resource" by the Dirty Projectors, "This Is Our Lot" and "Hooting and Howling" by Wild Beasts, "Golden Phone" by Micachu and the Shapes, "Chainsaw Calligraphy" by 16Bit, "Convinced of the Hex" by the Flaming Lips, "Hazel" by Junior Boys, "In the Flowers" by Animal Collective, "If I Had a Heart" by Fever Ray, "Love Long Distance" by Gossip

Alex Clark, Intern


1. Bowerbirds - "Northern Lights"
2. Seawolf - "Wicked Blood"
3. Metric - "Gimme Sympathy"
4. The Avett Brothers - "I and Love and You"
5. Phoenix - "Lisztomania"
6. David Bazan - "Hard to Be"
7. Royksopp - "Happy Up Here"
8. Coconut Records - "Microphone"
9. Passion Pit - "The Reeling"
10. Decemberists - "The Rake Song"

Derrick Stevens - Production Manager

The Dead Weather - "Hang You From The Heavens"
M. Ward - "Never Had Nobody Like You"
Brother Ali - "The Preacher"
Spoon - "Got Nuffin"
Neko Case - "People Got A Lotta Nerve"
Moby - "Pale Horses"
The Avett Brothers - "I and Love and You"
Imogen Heap - "First Train Home"
Death Cab For Cutie - "Meet Me On The Equinox"
Brandi Carlile - "Dreams"

Michael Wells, Web Producer

In no particular order:

Eels - "Prizefighter"
P.O.S. - "Savion Glover"
The Dead Weather - "Hang You From The Heavens"
Rural Alberta Advantage - "Don't Haunt This Place"
Wild Beasts - "Devil's Crayon"
Decemberists - "The Rake Song"
Dinosaur Jr. - "I Want You to Know"
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - "Home"
Andrew Bird - "Anonananimal"
Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson - "Relator" (Yeah, I said it and I'm not apologizing)

Ali Lozoff, Marketing Manager

This was the year of melancholy music for me, and also of some surprises both good and bad. A couple of my all time favorites put out records this year that didn't really resonate with me; While it's always good when Wayne Coyne and the Flaming Lips go on tour and invade late night television, overall the new record hasn't stuck with me the way their past releases have. And yes, I was undeniably moved by the hook-laden urgency of U2's "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight", it doesn't quite make my list this year. That being said, there were plenty of other songs that made me a little crazy this year; here are my top 10 in the order I would put them onto a mix CD:

Wilco: "Wilco (the song)"
What a great message! A band sending unconditional love out to their fans and being unabashed about it. That sonic shoulder to cry on was just the thing this year. The world may feel a bit crushing at times, but Wilco will love you, baby.

The Avett Brothers: "I and Love and You"
An urgent plea from a man searching for peace of mind and body that brings you along for the ride. This is what I love most about Americana: easy, haunting, true, narrative.

Grizzly Bear: "Two Weeks"
A really, really gentle rebuke; basically the nicest way possible to say "I need a little space."

Eels: "That Look You Give That Guy"
"Prizefighter" is a catchier song, but the wistful nature of this unrequited love song has haunted me all year.

Phoenix: "1901"
This was a total surprise to me, and a complete feel-good hit. So feel-good it got made into a car commercial, which just gave me more opportunities for it to be an ear worm. I would buy that car just to play this song REALLY LOUD on its stereo.

The Gossip: "Heavy Cross"
A very successful reference to and updating of 70s power rock, as if Stevie Nicks and Ann Wilson were influenced by the punk scene. Plus if you're in the mood to sing along, this chorus gives you a chance to really belt it out.

The Fiery Furnaces: "Even In The Rain"
This is totally a one-hit wonder for me as I'm not a huge fan of FF, but the hand claps and the loping piano part just get me every time. Another blatant nod to 70s AM gold, and I'm totally fine with that.

Neko Case: "This Tornado Loves You"
The confessional and pleading refrain and the slightly off-kilter phrasing and pacing of this song, combined with Neko's piercing high notes, brought to mind everything I always loved about Patsy Cline and Dusty Springfield.

Mark Olsen and Gary Louris: "Turn Your Pretty Name Around"
The reunion of two of my favorite singers and songwriters produced some of the loveliest and saddest harmonies of the year.

Bon Iver: "Beach Baby"
For me, Justin Vernon picks up just where Elliott Smith left off. Heartbreaking beauty and melancholy that is deceivingly simple. A nice fade out for a mix designed to make you cry and rejoice at the same time.

Christina Schmitt, Public Relations Manager

Here are my Top 10 songs (no order)

Spoon - "Got Nuffin"
Bat For Lashes - "Daniel"
Jarvis Cocker - "Angela"
Mason Jennings - "The Field"
Obits - "Widow of my Dreams"
The Chambermaids - "Lily"
Chooglin' - "Take Your Sweet Time"
Iran - "I Can See the Future"
Eyedea and Abilities - "Spin Cycle"
Two Harbors - "You Pulled the Rug Out"
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