Top 35 Songs of 2005: Top 10 Songs

And now the moment you’ve all been waiting for. My unveiling of the top 10 songs of 2005. As always scroll down, the last to posts were songs 35-21 and 20-11. I apologize for the sleepless night most of you probably experienced waiting for the completion of this list. I’m sorry and here you go.

10. Iron & Wine( Feat. Calexico) - History of Lovers: When I first heard that Iron and Wine was making an EP with Calexico I was pretty nervous. For one Sam Bean had a great thing going on by himself and I remember listening to Calexico in High School and being completely under whelmed on just about every level. So when this EP came out my worries far exceeded my expectations. But as it turns outs, this EP was really good, and this particular song was the high light from it. I was both shocked and amazed that Bean’s voice could not only hold up but excel with a full band backing him. Maybe the most amazing part of this song is that Bean still maintains the whisperiness (to make up a word) of his voice despite the added musicians.

9. Of Montreal - Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games: Simply put this is the best neo-psychedelia song to come out this year. If you’re unaware of what neo-psychedelia is don’t worry, I have no idea either, but I’m pretty sure it applies to this song. In simpler language this is probably the best dance song of the year. Now dance pop usually gets a bad rap, and it usually deserves it. But this song is just a great song which makes you want to dance, even if you hate dancing. Of Montreal perfectly channels old-school New Order and Art Garfunkle’s I Shall Sing.

8. Matt Pond PA – Halloween: A general criticism of Matt Pond is that while his music is beautifully constructed and his lyrics are good, neither leaves a lasting impression. Generally speaking this criticism is spot on (although it should be noted I don’t think that’s a justifiable reason for disliking the band, but that’s neither here nor there.). With Halloween, that is not the case at all. While it seems Arcade Fire could sue them for plagiarism over the piano riff, the rest of the song is wholly Matt Pond PA (MPPA for short.). MMPA critics will still say this song doesn’t have enough of an edge, but really it doesn’t have to. It perfectly personifies the autumn season and moves beautifully. So finally MPPA have found a way for their music to leave an impression, give it a hint of sounding like someone else’s.

7. Sage Francis – Crumble: I truly believe this is one of the best break up songs I’ve ever heard. What’s even more amazing that it’s not even the most emotionally powerful song on Sage’s album. But that’s neither here nor there. The song starts with a slow Jon Brion esque piano then the final 30 seconds it moves to a techno/pseudo trance hop beat. For the longest time this musically switch pissed me off. However I now see that the switch is done to so that the music parallels itself to the breakdown of the character in the song*. So now the song is even more amazing. I’d tell you more but you should probably just listen to it yourself.

6. The Boy Least Likely To – Be Gentle with Me: On the first listen to the Boy Least Likely, you’d think you’d stumbled upon Kid Bop Volume 9, or something like that. Their music sounds, at first, like VBS music. But it eventually becomes just great pop music. And while the kiddish feel slightly diminishes the beauty of the music and lyrics, you should be able to get by it. Hopefully all of you can get by the fact that when you hear this song you feel like some middle aged house wife should be teaching you hand motions to it with one of the fakest smiles you’ve ever seen plastered to her face. Seriously, this is a really good song.

5. Sufjan Stevens – John Wayne Gacy, Jr.: If an artist writes a hauntingly beautiful** song about a serial killer, it’s probably going on my top 10 list. Since song starts out with Sufjan trying to view Gacy in a reasonable light. He looks at things from Gacy’s point of view and seems truly sympathetic for the man. Eventually so he’s overcome by the horrors of the murders Gacy committed. While all of this seems a little corny, Sufjan shows his genius by pulling this song off and not only making the listener take it seriously, but also creeping the hell out of them. Just a phenomenal song.

4. Andrew Bird - Tables and Chairs: It seems that Andrew Bird likes to take a cliché song ideas and put his own unique twist on it. Such was the case with Fake Palindromes (which ranked 21st on this distinguished list) where he took a love song viewed through the eyes of a psycho. With Tables and Chairs Bird takes the idea of Utopian society and tongue and cheekly names its attributes. After talking about all the benefits a society with no government or economic system Bird tells us that this utopia will also include snacks. Really I’m still not sure what to do with this song other then just enjoy it.

3. Gorillaz – Feel Good Inc.: Outside of the fact that the first verse is often mistaken for a Cake song, this song is amazing. Easily the best radio hit of the year, and the the best radio hit since Hey Ya. Some of you may wonder how an elitist such as myself can place a hit single so high, if at all, on my top songs list. To answer that question I’ll have to counter with another question: Have you heard this song? It’s unbef*ckinglievable. I really don’t care if elitist shone and blacklist me for liking this song, it’s that good.

2. Decemberists – Engine Driver: 8 short months ago I rated this song as one of my all-time favorites. I think I even put it as high as 12th, I really don’t remember. Clearly I jumped the gun, as this song is good but not that good. Still though, this is an amazing love song. Colin Meloy looks tells a love story from the vantage point of a writer. While I change my interpretation of the song on every listen, it’s still amazing. I find I’m out a loss of words now when trying to describe it. So I’ll stop trying to and just implore all of you who read this to go out and immediately listen to it.

1. Common – Be: One of the best rap songs I’ve ever heard. At first it sounds like an Al Green song, then Common comes in raping over the beat and you’re not really sure what to do with yourself. This is the type of song that makes you want to respond to it with more then just a head nod or fist pump. So you try countless things, but none of them seem satisfactory. So instead just sit back and let it sink in. Allow it to wash over you. Just enjoy it. Songs as great as this one don’t come along very often, so just be grateful that you found it, or more appropriately that Common found it***. This is a truly transcendent song, just allow it to effect you. Just listen to Common’s advice: The present is a gift, and I just want to be.

* It should be noted that the lyrics are pretty much indecipherable during the trance part, but after 100+ listens I finally figured out what he was saying, pretty good sh*t actually.
** I realize I’ve used beautiful or beauty far to many times when describing songs or albums, but ever since I enrolled in a community college I’ve found myself unable to use any adjectives I learned after 1st grade.
*** Regarding the song Tupelo Honey Bob Dylan said that it was always out there, Van Morrison was just the first one to find it. I feel the same way about this song.