dont make lists

#4 - Michael Giacchino - Flash Forward Flashback

First of all, I’d like to recommend for anyone reading to watch LOST. More than listen to anything ever posted on this blog - including the number one. To stop reading and getting spoilt and start, rightaway, on the greatest story ever told.

Oh man. I’m not sure where to start. Controversially, I think television might be the greatest art form. Excellent tv combines so many talents that are often only present once in others. Writing, as opposed to film, is given the opportunity to be far more expansive; plot and character development are able to be more nuanced and detailed. Then there’s the art of acting, cinematography, direction. Not forgetting where Mr Giacchino comes in, the art of writing music.

LOST for me, while far from perfect, is the greatest realisation of those elements together. Writing that fully understood the format it was working in and used it to full potential, season openings and climaxes that were never less than profound, moving and thrilling, each season used to explore themes that not only are important to the bigger picture of the story, but of the human condition. An ensemble cast of characters well acted, well developed, totally believable in their own motivations and actions. Terry O Quinn, Michael Emerson, and Elizabeth Mitchell being three stand outs of a legion of skilled actors. Jack Bender often pulling out the best directing television has seen. 

Then there’s the music, which for me, is absolutely pivotal to the success of the show. Had anyone else taken Michael Giacchino’s place, i’m certain it wouldn’t be nearly the same show. It’s a good oppurtunity to point out here that Giacchino has a number of pieces worthy of this list outside of LOST, most notably the heartbreaking score for Up (had anyone else done the soundtrack I’m certain there’d be 1/10th of the tears), as well as other Pixar soundtracks The Incredibles and Ratatouille. But back to his work on LOST, as every great scene is made more incredible by his composing. Every character giving a beautifully fitting theme; Jacob’s, Charlie’s, Ben’s, Jack’s, Locke’s and Claire’s proving the highlights. And then there must be honourable mentions to pieces such as Life & Death, Moving On, and There’s No Place Like Home in particular.

Moving strictly on to this piece though, it’s just one of the cogs in LOST’s most perfect scene, and undoubtedly my favourite scene in anything.

#5 - Jens Lekman - Black Cab

Genuinely think that Jens Lekman is already an indie “great”, the rightful next of kin to the likes of Jonathan Richman, Calvin Johnson or Dan Treacy. Superlatives all round. While I think there’s no doubt that it is a good thing that the average indie kid of 2010 appreciates Good Pop Music™ in a mainstream sense, with Katy Perry, Rihanna, Kanye and countless others creating a myriad of excellent singles this year and every other, I think that it’s a great shame that at times there’s perhaps an almost inverse-snobbery when it comes to great pop songs of the indie-leaning variety, with artists like Jens Lekman going under-appreciated. Choosing my words carefully here, as he is far from the unknown, but for me he’s undoubtedly the best popstar in the world, creating songs no less accessible or “worthy” than the megastars I’ve mentioned, just doing it in a different style.

He encapsulates what great pop music is all about. Most importantly a unique character and personality that comes through in both his lyrics and every between-song-bit you’ll ever witness live, a charm that every wannabe ukelele-wielding lame noah & the whale-lite bands can only dream of and an unparelled knack for storytelling and personal detail. Always with a production job (on his first two records especially) that, though unspectacular, is completely perfect, lending a melancholic beauty to each song. 

Perhaps the biggest superlative I can add is that this was no means an easy choice; Maple Leaves, A Higher Power, The Wrong Hands, Julie, A Sweet Summer’s Night… all aren’t far behind, while slower tracks like The Cold Swedish Winter, Sky Phenomenon, Farewell Song To Rocky Dennis etc, are all too unjustly left in the shadow of the catchier numbers. 

Black Cab is just such an unbelievable force though, easily the best pop song of the decade (spoiler for the remaining four?). Every embarrassing word I’ve written in this entry are so applicable to this song it hurts. 

tl;dr summary - I Like Jens Lekman.

#6 - BARR - Half Of Two Times Two (Newer Version)

Lyrically, I can’t think of any better records over the past decade than BARR’s Summary. This is the closest thing the record has to a pop song I suppose, and i’m pretty sure i’ve heard this a thousand times now.

eyes closed eyes open eyes closed eyes open eyes closed eyes open eyes closed eyes open eyes closed eyes open

#7 - Lil Wayne - A Milli

merry christmas everybody

#12 - Grouper - Heavy Water/I’d Rather Be Sleeping

Just won my first poker tournament, pretty great. Best sleeping music in the world.

#17 - Surf City - Free The City

It shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone who knows my love of all things New Zealand and specifically Flying Nun Records to see this placing so high, given their self-titled EP back in 2008 is the closest we have today of a modern day The Clean (in their prime, i know theyre still going and were one of the most fun bands I saw this you massive indie pedantics). Honestly do think that this EP is the strongest four-white-bros-with-guitars-playing-unrevolutionary-indie-rock record of the decade and holds it’s own against the pop sensibilities of all of classic Flying Nun bands 30 years ago, if not wildly delving from their formula.

Take the closer, Free The City, an epic five and a half minute pop jam, the purely instrumental latter half is euphorically reminiscent of The Clean’s rare forays away from ‘the pop song’; Point That Thing Somewhere Else, for example.

While i’m totally aware that for a good few years guitar music has neither been at it’s most creative or exciting, thank god the Surf City EP serves as one completely perfect diamond in the rough.

#19 - Marnie Stern - Transformer

God bless Marnie Stern.

#22 - Former Ghosts - The Bull And The Ram

Without a doubt the musical project that excites me more than any others right now. Take one of the best modern performers going in Freddy Ruppert, add contributions from the beautiful vocals of Zola Jesus (third track in the top 50 for her, this one) and the most important figure indie-rock has seen in a good ten years in Jamie Stewart and you’ve got yourself an amalgamation of ridiculously talented individuals. And that’s without mentioning the more recent addition of Yasmine Kittles whose fragile singing helped make Winter’s Year one of the best tracks across two near-perfect records.

The difference between Former Ghosts and most (every?) supergroups though is that the talent is used to it’s full potential, and I think in part that is due to Freddy Ruppert’s ability to write perfectly for those that are contributing, as well as excelling, himself; I find it a real shame that Pitchfork has such influence with its reviews and that many will be put off because of their recent lukewarm review of New Love - and subjectivity, innit - but to use his vocals as a particular point of criticism I couldn’t disagree with more, in particular on Fleurs his vocal takes on This Is My Last Goodbye and Mother being two of the most heartbreaking and powerful put to tape. I’ve also had the pleasure of seeing Freddy perform three times this year including one for a gig I booked myself, and perhaps unsurprisingly, they’ve accounted for some of the most incredible performances I’ve ever seen.

I actually think of Former Ghosts being something of a modern This Mortal Coil in set-up, with Freddy Ruppert effectively being a modern day (and more prominent) Ivor Watts-Russell; Kittles, Danilova and Stewart being a smaller group of contributors. This Mortal Coil feels especially like a fitting analogy because on The Bull & The Ram, Danilova gives a devastating vocal turn that makes the song all about her in the same way that Elizabeth Fraser made Song To The Siren hers all those years ago - the only, hugely impressive, difference being that a song this beautiful was made from scratch, and not reinterpreted. 

#23 - John Maus - Do Your Best

Oh man, John Maus. Last summer I spent a lot of nights listening to Jeff Mangum’s WFMU archives of the weirdest sounds imaginable, over 24 hours of material and there was no consistency but it was nearly all awesome if almost totally ungoogleable. Due to that inconsistency I can’t really say that John Maus is at all representative of the music you’d find on those radio shows, but for me he sounds like a manic depressive genius half-singing over the more ambient tracks there (though the music is far from ambient). This is a pretty absract and ridiculous description but I think it’s as close as anyone can come to describing the batshit world of John Maus.

#24 - Hefner - Painting And Kissing

There’s a great scene where towards the end of series 3 of Breaking Bad where Gus and Walter are discussing how certain smells or sounds can be linked so vividly with memory, and one of them explains how it’s because of some fancy cortex in the brain, but some bit of biology will never explain how the atmosphere of listening to We Love The City non-stop during winter 2008 (halcyon days) is so hugely linked in my mind. Except that it does, but it feels ridiculous to be able to explain something like that.

hey this wouldn’t be a post on Don’t Make Lists without making some grand statement - no finer british band than Hefner has ever existed. I’m completely 100% serious.