Hi. This is my first post on this site after lurking for a few days. I am enjoying the "Best of 2004" discussions and the various threads are helping me to find some new music I might have overlooked.

I'd like to get a discussion going on the best individual tracks over the last five years. I'll start, in no particular order, by listing my favorite tracks from individual artists:

Storm - Godspeed You Black Emporer! (2000)
Chartsengrafs - Grandaddy (2000)
Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeahs (2003)
On the Table - A.C. Newman (2004)
Happy - The Wrens (2003)
Wake Up - The Walkmen (2002)
Hard To Explain - The Strokes (2001)
Anything You Want - Spoon (2001)
From Blown Speakers - The New Pornographers (2003)
Chasing Heather Crazy - Guided By Voices (2001)
Homage - ...And You Will Knows Us By the Trail of Dead (2002)
Neighborhood #1 - The Arcade Fire (2004)
Obstacle 1 - Interpol (2002)
Lazy Line Painter Jane - Belle and Sebastian (2000)
Kissing the Lipless - The Shins (2003)
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart - Wilco (2002)

I could probably go on for a while, but off the top of my head, these are the tracks that I've played over and over for a few years. I'm interest to see the favorites of others.

A slightly confounded thread idea, but I'll play along. Thank you for not linking to your friend's band's website or something douchey like that. Your tastes will fit in well here. Just to let you know, they don't like it when I use racial or homosexual slurs, so you shouldn't either. Fuck, shit, and anything short of that is fine.

The first two are ordered. Everything else was off the top of my head.

1. Mclusky - Collagen Rock
2. Basement Jaxx - Romeo
Sightings - Dudes
Hood - I Can't Find My Brittle Youth
Bardo Pond - Every Man
Spoon - Lines in the Suit
Cannibal Ox - Iron Galaxy
Whitehouse - Wriggle Like a Fucking Eel
The Walkmen - Wake Up
Saturday Looks Good To Me - All Over Town
Tortoise - Seneca
TV on the Radio - Staring at the Sun
Adult. - Glue Your Eyelids Together
The Shins - Caring is Creepy
Kylie Minogue - Love At First Sight
Wolf Eyes - Stabbed in the Face
Boom Bip - Roads Must Roll
1929 - Space Bastard
Enon - Come Into
Comets on Fire - Graverobbers
Architecture In Helsinki - Like a Call
The New Pornographers - From Blown Speakers
Sixtoo - Storm Clouds and Silver Linings
Manitoba - Kid You'll Move Mountains
Recloose - Get There Tonight
Outkast - Roses
Clouddead - Jimmybreeze (2)
The Dirtbombs - Get It While You Can
Grandaddy - Miner at the Dial-A-View

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Originally posted by Buck "Sweetie" McGuck:

1. Mclusky - Collagen Rock

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Some bad news, I'm afraid....

MCLUSKY SPLIT! (Sob)
10 Jan 2005

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McLusky have spilt up.

PlayLouder heard the sad news this morning, and in tribute we're going to frisbee the rubbish new Athlete album across the room and play angry, witty Welsh music instead.

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Two related notes on this thread:

1. I moved it to the best-of threads so it might better belong with its friends and spend time with other like-minded threads.

2. I moved it up because this was posted at Pitchfork today:

http://pitchforkmedia.com/top/2000-04/singles/index.shtml

An interesting list, but subject to all sorts of criticism. Putting Annie in the Top 10 while "Seven Nation Army" lingers at 97 is a crime. If the Annie record was released in 2001, I seriously doubt their memory of that song would be so visceral. And putting Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me A River" in the top 20 just makes me sad...it's not even a very good quiet storm r 'n' b song!

I found this to be the most spot-on Pitchfork list in the history of the publication, although, yes, Seven Nation Army is too low.

In a way I kinda admire their chutzpuh for putting Kylie, Beyonce and Annie in the top 10 and not The White Stripes, The Strokes and Wilco.

So can someone tell me whether it's cool to like Beyonce and Justin Timberlake now? What about U2? Limp Biskit?

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Originally posted by Jasper:
In a way I kinda admire their chutzpuh for putting Kylie, Beyonce and Annie in the top 10 and not The White Stripes, The Strokes and Wilco.

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I guess it could be admirable, but I think it's just a calculated move to be more cutting edge than the next guy. It's the old "go SO far into the counterculture that you can (unironically) utilize what would otherwise be uncool because it's popular" move. Ahh...the economy of cool is a fascinating world.

I like what I like.

F**k cool.

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Originally posted by storm_chaser:
I like what I like.

F**k cool.

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I totally agree, and my question was meant to be retorical. I didn't mean I actually want someone to tell me whether I should like Limp Biskit.

I don't mind a bit of Beyonce or Kylie if I'm in a club or something but I can't understand why Justin Timberlake was ranked so high. What's so good about "Cry my a river?" I just don't get it.

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Originally posted by philosopherEric:
An interesting list, but subject to all sorts of criticism. Putting Annie in the Top 10 while "Seven Nation Army" lingers at 97 is a crime. If the Annie record was released in 2001, I seriously doubt their memory of that song would be so visceral. And putting Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me A River" in the top 20 just makes me sad...it's not even a very good quiet storm r 'n' b song!

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If you must compare the two songs, and I don't see why, I'd choose "Heartbeat" over "Seven Nation Army" in... a heartbeat, or something.

Yeah, I'm a bit perplexed about Justin Timberlake's presence on the list, too.

A few other things:

(1. "There There" by Radiohead should have been much higher on the list, frankly.
(2. I thought that "Love At First Sight" was released some time last millenium. Obviously, I'm wrong, but still.
(3. "Chasing Heather Crazy" may be the best song to ever go unnoticed in my MP3 library for at least two months.

john peel said it himself...commercial pop is more intersting than commercial rock is.I dont really know where his boundaries are...but he said it when refrencing 'stroke of genious'.Which was the mashup of the strokes and gaguilera.

I am not saying i agree with it...but I can see myself listening to Annie over The white Stripes any day.Not because she is better or more influential.More likely because it is fun...It is easy to listen too.Of course there is a time for both.

As far as the list goes I like it alot.I own 53 of the top 100.Does that make me a tragic hipster trying to keep my green and blue custom nike dunks on the ground.I dont think so.I just must have similar interests as the pitchfork.

I also like stylus' list better.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Imprezu21,

quote:

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Originally posted by Jasper:


I totally agree, and my question was meant to be retorical. I didn't mean I actually want someone to tell me whether I should like Limp Biskit.

I don't mind a bit of Beyonce or Kylie if I'm in a club or something but I can't understand why Justin Timberlake was ranked so high. What's so good about "Cry my a river?" I just don't get it.

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Whats so good about 'thriller' then?

I think they are comparable.They are both extremely well selling pop albums.They have numerous number 1 hits.

Of course thriller is much much older and had had time to sell more records than anyone except the eagles.

Once again i like the Justin Timberlake album.It is fun and makes me laugh.So i listen to it occasionally.

I think ya'll are afraid of what u will be percieved as if u are rolling down the street bumping Cry me a River or whatever.The girls will laugh at you?
Maybe point and stare a bit?

Who cares...if ya like the album ya like it.If ya dont then you dont.But you cannot deny its wide varying and very dense popularity.Not just 12 year olds.

quote:

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Originally posted by Jasper:
I don't mind a bit of Beyonce or Kylie if I'm in a club or something but I can't understand why Justin Timberlake was ranked so high. What's so good about "Cry my a river?" I just don't get it.

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I don't put "Cry Me a River" anywhere near "Thriller." I'm not slagging Justin...personally, I just don't think that's such a hot track. Certainly not a track that deserved the high placement it got from Pitchfork. It's not bad...but after seeing a St. Louis dance club (read: CRUNK AS F**K!) go nuts for "Seven Nation Army," I renew my objection that it's a fine track, as a rock song and a dance song.

I think "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" and "Beautiful Day" from U2 should make the list, but it's not cool to like U2, so they don't.

Tenacious D's "Tribute" should have made the list. Ok it's not the greatest song in the world, it's just a tribute. Also it has some of the best lyrics ever:

"gee, ooh de flliga goo gee ooga fligoo giggoo ooh fligoo giggoo ge gee oogah
goo gee oogah geegoogegegee, fligoo giggoo,oh flig, oh mama Lucifer"

I'm glad they put Basement Jaxx - Romeo on the list. I'd actually put that at number one. Best. Song. Ever.

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Originally posted by Buck "Sweetie" McGuck:
I'm glad they put Basement Jaxx - Romeo on the list. I'd actually put that at number one. Best. Song. Ever.

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Its almost a perfect pop song.I like it also.Not as much as you do.But you are tight it at least deserved the position it was given.

pE, can you please cut it out? Your schtick about Pitchfork is getting old, fast.

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Originally posted by Vykromond:
pE, can you please cut it out? Your schtick about Pitchfork is getting old, fast.

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What schtick is that? Is there some reason why I'm not permitted to comment on Pitchfork? Because I disagree with them? Someone doesn't like their sacred cows to be challenged, I guess. I think all of the Pitchfork boot-licking that goes on (not only here, but in the music world in general) is getting just as old as my criticism of them. And my comments here were in relation to their list...not about the site in general. And I'm CERTAINLY not the only one on these Forums who has said negative things about them. When a list called "Best Songs: 2000-2004" gets posted, that's a topic waiting to happen...and most of my comments here were directed at specific songs that I disagreed with them about.

If you don't like what I say, feel free to challenge it. But I'm not going to avoid commenting on something merely because you disagree with me about it.

But, since you said "please," and for the sake of domestic tranqulity, I'll try to avoid saying anything bad about the Almighty.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: philosopherEric,

The only comments I'll make now are that I'm listening to Side 2 of "The Beatles" ("The White Album") right now, so I couldn't be in a better frame of mind. Now, I seem to recall this is "Best of this New-Fangled Millenium, not Pitchfork Blah Blah, so I'd personally like to see some members' song choices without even mentioning the 'Fork.

In fact, I believe a moratauriun of at least one page in this post even mentioning ........ should be enforced. (CENSORSHIP!!! Ha!Ha!Ha! No. Just use a little discretion; it can't take that long to get through a whole page.) Who knows? We might actually share something REAL!

Can't we all express ourselves for ONE WHOLE PAGE without flippin' out on that whatchamacallit?

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Originally posted by mark f:
The only comments I'll make now are that I'm listening to Side 2 of "The Beatles" ("The White Album") right now, so I couldn't be in a better frame of mind. Now, I seem to recall this is "Best of this New-Fangled Millenium, not Pitchfork Blah Blah, so I'd personally like to see some members' song choices without even mentioning the 'Fork.

In fact, I believe a moratauriun of at least one page in this post even mentioning ........ should be enforced. (CENSORSHIP!!! Ha!Ha!Ha! No. Just use a little discretion; it can't take that long to get through a whole page.) Who knows? We might actually share something REAL!

Can't we all express ourselves for ONE WHOLE PAGE without flippin' out on that whatchamacallit?

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Fair enough. I thought I was commmenting on the song choices and not ....... itself, but I'll let it go. I'll have to think long and hard about songs I'd pick. Part of the problem is remembering back to 2000.

I'd certainly put "Beautiful Day" on there. I'd pick "Last Nite" by the Strokes. "Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone" by Ted Leo. "Portions for Foxes" and "Does He Love You?" by Rilo Kiley. "Working Girls" by the Pernice Brothers. "All Kinds of Time" by Fountainss of Wayne. "Choked Up" by Minibar/Whiskeytown. "Lose the Dress" by Kevin Tihista. "Theologians" by Wilco. "Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand.

Here's some more, on further review:

"I'm the Man Who Loves You" Wilco
"Crashpad Number" Marc Carroll
"Get Your Kisses from Me" Joe Firstman
"God Said No" Dan Bern
"Wop a Din Din" Red House Painters
"A Break in the Clouds" and "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" The Jayhawks
"Best Place I've Ever Been" World Party
"Here's One for You" Witness UK
"Strange Condition" Pete Yorn
"Firecracker" Ryan Adams

This message has been edited. Last edited by: philosopherEric,