Yer Mam!

Yer Mam!'s top albums and tunes of 2007: In full.

Here's those lists in full. Click through on the name of a tune or album to get to my post about them...

Yer Mam!'s Top 50 Albums Of 2007

Yer Mam!'s Top 100 Tunes Of 2007

Labels: top 100 tunes of 2007, top albums of 2007

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (10-1)

10. Kathy Diamond - Over (Permanent Vacation)

'Over' is probably not everybody's choice for a standout track from Miss Diamond To You but with each listen, it's 'Over' that grows in stature past more immediate songs like 'All Woman' or 'Between The Lines'. A distinctly thick slab of smoky soul with slightly fucked-with vocals from Diamond, 'Over' hits the ground running and finds its groove from the get-go, before teasing that carnal groove out for as long as is humanly possible. It's a sensuous, humid grind with a love for the black-and-whites (I'm no keyboard expert, so correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I can hear rhodes, hammond and electric piano all in the mix at different points) and one which burrows further and further into your brain on repeat plays.

Kathy Diamond - Over (mp3)

Bonus: Kathy Diamond - Over (Instrumental) (mp3)

9. Kelley Polar - Rosenband (Environ)

Despite, or in fact, because of all his affectations, Kelley Polar is thought of, in certain circles, as something of a warped genius. For all his strange quirks (this interview for Fact Magazine reveals a lot of them), Polar's music can be strikingly straightforward and disarmingly linear, almost pop-like, but scratch beneath the surface and there's a hell of a lot more going on than just irresistible hooks and operatic disco posing. 'Rosenband' is proof, if it were needed, that the Julliard-trained disco faun is also a shrewd arranger too. It's a masterpiece of intricate layering and button-pushing textures. What looks at first glance to be a rather sugary confection reveals itself to be as dense and multi-faceted as Tchaikovsky further down the line (something which the instrumental remix, also included on the Chrysanthemum EP, adds considerable weight to). The best thing about 'Rosenband' though is that it's merely a taste of the mind-expanding brilliance of Polar's sophomore record, I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling (which takes its title from this track) has to offer. 2008 will be his to own.

Kelley Polar - Rosenband (mp3)

Bonus: Kelley Polar - Rosenband (Magic Tim's Instrumental Version) (mp3)

8. M.I.A. - Paper Planes (XL)

Both a direct comment on what it feels like to be an immigrant in the Western world today and a certified club rocker, 'Paper Planes' perfectly essays what makes M.I.A. such a relevant, brilliant artist. The gunshots and cash till sounds in the chorus can just as easily have their meaning pontificated upon on Newsnight as they can elicit revolver and money-counting hand gestures in sweaty basement bars. Pop songs that have "something to say" are often ridiculed, as pop is obviously the most transient of all genres, but M.I.A. has crafted something that's as for the ages as it is achingly hip. No mean feat. Also, can you hear 'Straight To Hell' without thinking of this anymore? Thought not.

M.I.A. - Paper Planes (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the video on YouTube, complete with cameos from DMX, Ad Rock and Mike D. Also, check out the controversial performance of it on Letterman and, courtesy of Palmsout Sounds... M.I.A. - Paper Planes (Remix feat. Bun B and Rich Boy) (mp3)

7. Of Montreal - The Past Is A Grotesque Animal (Polyvinyl)

You know how when sometimes you get on the bus and sit next to someone who, at first, seems like just a regular person, only to have them regale you with an account of their mental breakdown as soon as your bus leaves the station that doesn't end until you make your excuses and get off the bus two stops before you normally do? Well that's a bit what 'The Past Is A Grotesque Animal' felt like the first time I heard it. It has all the signifiers that have coloured Of Montreal's recent work (a reliance on synthesizers, the increasingly strident vocals of Kevin Barnes), but this is a completely different beast altogether. If Hissing Fauna... was Barnes' break-up album, then this is the manic, drunken-dialling, wailing lowest ebb. And it's earth-shatteringly great, both alien and relatable at the same time. Barnes gets more and more desperate and hurt-sounding as the music gets more squalling and frenetic (even though it actually stays at the same pace all the way through its near-12 minutes). He goes through every emotion on the map before realising that he'll never really lose the girl with the resigned, yet creepy sigh of "No matter where you are, we're always touching by underground wires". You might want to take notice of that nervous, fragile figure next time you're on your way home.

Of Montreal - The Past Is A Grotesque Animal (mp3)

Bonus: A rather touching acoustic rendition of 'The Past...' for aol.com.

6. Holy Ghost! - Hold On (DFA/EMI)

From the opening strutting drum break, through to the near-frantic close, via all the staccato synth throb, ear-tickling clav and everydude vocals in between, 'Hold On' is close to being DFA's finest pop moment thus far. Previously known as indie-hoppers Automato, Nick Millhiser and Alex Frankel have fully embraced both the arty disco-not-disco of ZE and the all-out hedonism of Prelude and West End to make the ultimate New York retro disco hit. There's no way it could have come from anywhere outside the five boroughs as it's shot through with just the right amounts of both confidence and neurosis that comes from being a genre which has cocaine and fashion as equal outside influences. Even though it's only the first fruits of their labour, Holy Ghost! feel like the perfect fit for DFA Records in 2007 and the next evolutionary step in the Big Apple's mirrorball-lit lineage. Colour me excited to find out where they go next.

Holy Ghost! - Hold On (mp3)

Bonus: Check out footage of Holy Ghost! recording future material in their Woodstock retreat. 'Static On The Wires' already sounds like a classic.

5. Hatchback - White Diamond (THISISNOTANEXIT)

Although I originally fell in love with the excellent Prins Thomas remix (talked about here and posted here), the more enduring love affair has been with the sterling original. Although there's almost nothing original about it - it cribs from Harmonia, Neu! and Eno to name but three - there's something just so brilliantly fresh about it. The west coast American cats have a different take on cosmic disco from their Scandinavian comrades (as I outlined in my blurb for Sorcerer's White Magic album. Sorcerer, incidentally, is one half of Windsurf with Hatchback), it's more sun-drenched, more inviting and alluring. After all, who would choose fjords over beaches? 'White Diamond' would crumble under too much scrutiny, so your best course of action would be to download it and let the easy, laidback vibes wash over you. As good as 21st century Balearica gets.

Hatchback - White Diamond (mp3)

Bonus: Hatchback - Everything Is Neu (mp3)

4. Still Going - Still Going Theme (DFA/EMI)

2007 was officially The Year The Piano Came Back. Whereas in recent times, percussion had been the thing to get right in dance music circles, be it the clicky micro-snares of minimal techno or the rowdy cowbells and handclaps of disco-punk, but this year producers really fell back on the strength of a good keys lick. There was the hammering, Reich-esque simplicity of 'All My Friends', the upfront, running disco scale of 'Sooner Or Later' and Hot Chip even wrote a song about theirs. More than any other release in 2007, 'Still Going Theme' sang the praises of ebony and ivory (no traces of Stevie or Macca to be found) so eloquently and powerfully that it didn't need words. A refrain so natural it sounded as if it had been idly banged out by the cleaner in Still Going's studio while she dusted the faders moves the whole thing along so fleet-footedly, as dreamy ambient synths bubble away in the background and a stop/start, insistent b-line gives it an irresistible bottom-end. From its first appearance on Lindstrom & Prins Thomas' Essential Mix (easily the most zeitgeist-capturing mix of the year), it was obvious it had class stamped right through it and dancefloors the world over suddenly became populated with goofs playing air keys. What more could you possibly ask for?

Still Going - Still Going Theme (mp3)

Bonus: More pianos: !!! - Yadnus (Still Going To The Roadhouse Mix) (mp3)

3. Chromatics - In The City (Italians Do It Better)

'In The City' is easily Italians Do It Better's finest moment to-date and it's as perfectly simple an example of their downtempo, chilling, Italo-disco-referencing sound as they're likely to ever produce. Equal parts John Carpenter, Goblin and P. Lion, the incessant drip-drop of the watery synth arpeggio provides the anchor for Ruth Radelet's drugged vocal and Adam Miller's choppy new wave guitar line to embellish upon. Even though it sounds frosty and distant, 'In The City' actually comes across as almost comforting, like huddling in a darkened doorway with an illicit love on a cold, damp night. This comes from Chromatics' knowledge of and genuine affection for their sources. Other, lesser artists can do easy-to-please facsimiles, but Chromatics are the condensation-breathing, chain-smoking, leather-clad real deal. Embrace the ennui.

Chromatics - In The City (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the gloriously cheap-looking video for 'In The City'.

2. UGK feat. OutKast - Int'l Player's Anthem (Sony BMG)

The perfect mainstream hip-hop moment of this and many other years was remarkable for more than just being a great song. It marked the return of Andre 3000 and Big Boi as a force to be reckoned with - even though they rap at different ends of the track, they've rarely sounded so in tune with each other - it also showed that UGK are as adept at grin-inducing euphoria as they are at mean-mugging gangsterism. Plus, let's not forget that the tragic death of Pimp C last month couldn't help but lend the track a weight of poignancy. 'Int'l Player's Anthem' covers the thug love spectrum from Dre's heartstring-tugging, salty romanticism in the opening verse, mirrored by Bun B's disarmingly sweet take on the "what's a pimp with no ho'" allegory, while Big Boi lays bare the perils of getting with a gold digger ("Ask-ask Paul McCartney"), giving the song a bittersweet finale. Perhaps fittingly, it's Pimp C's forceful holler that makes best use of Willie Hutch's florid horns and his verse is easily the year's most enduring hands-in-the-air moments. What better legacy is there to leave?

UGK feat. OutKast - Int'l Player's Anthem (I Choose You) (mp3)

Bonus: Andre 3000 in a kilt? Business as usual then. Watch the best video of the year.

1. LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great/All My Friends (DFA/EMI)

Cop out! Look, one of the main rules I set myself when compiling this list was that there could only be one song per artist, which made selecting the number one a real chore. I was going to have to leave one of them out. Then I invoked the "my blog - my rules" adage and chose not to choose, so a joint number one it is. For me, these two songs are inseparable anyway, despite being yin and yang. They combine to make the most devastating one-two punch on an album in years, they complement each other so well. There's the heartworn intimacy of 'Someone Great', then the balls-out inclusiveness of 'All My Friends'. Plus, these two songs mark out the newfound maturity in James Murphy's songwriting better than anything else on Sound Of Silver, so it seems natural not to bisect them. Gone is the snarky, narcissistic uber-hipster of 'Losing My Edge' in favour of a genial, reflective, baggy-trousered philanthropist. I'll write more about them tomorrow (hint-hint), but for now, just revel in the two best songs of the year once again.

LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great (mp3)

LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the videos for both 'Someone Great' and 'All My Friends'.

Top five albums of 2007 to come tomorrow. Keep watching these pages.

Labels: top 100 tunes of 2007

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (20-11)

20. Grinderman - No Pussy Blues (Mute)

Proving that impotent fury can be the most potent kind of fury, Grinderman's 'No Pussy Blues', a hilarious account of the trials and travails concerned with getting someone in the sack when they "just never wanted to" is both Grinderman's most immediate and unrestrained moment. For a four-minute scuzz-rocker, it's got immense repeat play value too, with Cave's wooing attempts getting more uproarious and desperate with each listen. When everything drops down to just Cave and that insistent fuzz-bassline, before kicking back up with a gigantic squall of feedback and hollering, you can almost see the curmudgeonly antipodean kicking out at nearby inanimate objects like a petulant child. And all for a spot of how's-your-father. The lengths people go to...

Grinderman - No Pussy Blues (mp3)

Bonus: 'No Pussy Blues' live on Later...

19. Kanye West - Flashing Lights (feat. Dwele) (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)

West has a knack, when he chooses to use it, for making the simple sound complex, such is the case with 'Flashing Lights'. Staccato synth swooshes (like a hip-hop Daft Punk, unsurprisingly) share airspace with a boom-clap beat and John Barry-esque strings to create this affectingly melancholy, fiendishly addictive standout from Graduation. As it is for most of that album, West dials back the grandeur to smaller-scale, more off-kilter thrills, a bit like Steven Spielberg when he stopped being all about dinosaurs and aliens and started rocking the millennial angst via stories about Mossad agents and wartime horrors. That might be the most overstretched analogy to ever grace these pages, but, y'know, just think about it a while. It'll make sense.

Kanye West - Flashing Lights (feat. Dwele) (mp3)

Bonus: Clipse - Flashing Lights (Remix) (mp3)

18. King Khan & The Shrines - Welfare Bread (Hazelwood)

Ever the gentlemen, King Khan gives the object of his affections the first word on 'Welfare Bread' (actually it's just Khan affecting a falsetto but you get the drift), before going on to recount the oft-told adage that you don't need money in this world, only love. It's a time-worn sentiment with time-worn trimmings, as the redlining mix, blaring saxophones, tickly hammond and doleful tambourine are all beamed in from another time, one more innocent than the one we're in right now. Sometimes re-treading old styles in such a perfectly accented manner can be as refreshing as taking something wholly new for a test-drive. Thank the lord for King Khan and his Sensational Shrines for keeping the flame alive.

King Khan & The Shrines - Welfare Bread (mp3)

Bonus: Well, there isn't much in the way of decent YouTube-age when it comes to the Shrines, so why don't you go over to their MySpace, where you can watch some weird videos and listen to some kickarse tunes? There're worse things you could do.

17. Shit Robot - Chasm (DFA/EMI)

What a year for the DFA. This is the first DFA release from 2007 to make the list, but it sure as hell ain't the last, which should give you some idea as to what the rest of the list looks like. When I say that Shit Robot's 'Chasm' is a dirty, malevolent little builder, I don't mean it's a scruffy, height-disadvantaged brickie carrying a knife (good lord, I'm bringing the wit tonight!). I mean that it grows from the smallest elements into a huge, funky slab of grimy acid-tech (think Carl Craig, only punkier and harbouring more dirt under his fingernails) that mutates and shifts in such an insidious way it's almost frightening. Marcus Lambkin is one hell of a crowdpleasing producer, one only wishes he was more prolific, as this makes him two-for-two on making my top 20 of the year now.

Shit Robot - Chasm (mp3)

Bonus: Do yourselves a favour and head over to Beats In Space to download Shit Robot's excellent guest mix from June 26th.

16. Glass Candy - Miss Broadway (Italians Do It Better)

It's perhaps fitting that an outfit as retro as Glass Candy should make the list with a cover version, but GC put in more work than most to make this their own. When measured up against La Belle Epoque's camp classic, the first thing you notice is that Glass Candy's is the classier take. Ida No vamps and sashays where Evelyn Lenton stomped and growled, the original's perky, skanking guitar line is transformed into something more downcast, but the whole feel of the track is no less decadent than its predecessor and while its pulsations and shimmers hark back to disco's golden age, in looking back, Glass Candy have crafted something very now, very fresh. Watch them shine even brighter in 2008.

Glass Candy - Miss Broadway (mp3)

Bonus: La Belle Epoque - Miss Broadway (mp3)

15. Spoon - You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb (Anti-)

Spoon have always been as much about what lurks - or what doesn't lurk - in the corners of their songs, as what's front-and-centre and '...Cherry Bomb' is no exception, even if at first it strikes you as a brightly coloured, ersatz Motown swinger. On further inspection, it's the little details that start to bloom, like the eerie falsetto backing vocal or the way the hitherto-underplayed piano riff strikes a minor chord that looms up in technicolour, or the fact that it seems the band are having a conversation at points in the background, as if to demistify the magic, but only ending up making it all the more intriguing. That said, treated as a joyous piece of no-frills soul-pop, 'You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb' still stands head-and-shoulders above most other indie-rock dancefloor shakers this past year.

Spoon - You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb (mp3)

Bonus: '...Cherry Bomb' live footage. Warning, it's very amateur.

14. Metro Area - Read My Mind (feat. Phillip Owusu) (Environ)

Oh good lord, you would not believe how happy I was when I heard that Metro Area were going to release a new EP! New stuff from one of the acts of the century! I could hardly contain my glee. Then I heard 'Read My Mind' and was, initially, a little disappointed. What was this new sound? Is this pop? Where's the downbeat disco I know and love? Vocals?! Shit a brick!! Then I listened again and a light went off; it was just the vocal that threw me. This is essentially 'Caught Up' with singing. And what singing! Phillip Owusu (Denmark's answer to Michael Jackson) drips honeyed come-ons all over Morgan and Darshan's fabulously crisp production, to make this one of the year's best underground disco-pop tunes. Meet the new Metro Area, same as the old Metro Area, only with bells on.

Metro Area - Read My Mind (feat. Phillip Owusu) (mp3)

Bonus: Metro Area - Read My Mind (RMM Special Dub) (mp3)

13. Justice - D.A.N.C.E. (Ed Banger/Because Music)

Although the sight of the words Ed and Banger so high up this list can't help but elicit a shudder from me, you just can't deny the brilliance of 'D.A.N.C.E.'. Every shit group/label/producer is allowed at least one moment in the sun and, even though I'll admit that Justice do what they do a lot better than anyone else right now, I just can't listen to † without coughing up blood and having some sort of seizure. Call me old, but I much prefer this less noisy, more refined, danceable, poppy side to them. 'D.A.N.C.E.' distils the best bits of The Go! Team, Daft Punk circa Discovery and late-70s NY disco into one easy-to-swallow, floor-slaying chunk. Okay, that's enough love, can I go back to hating Ed Banger again now? Alright, let's "Do the dance" just once more and then I'm banning the phrase 'new French touch' from this blog forever.

Justice - D.A.N.C.E. (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the still-mesmerising video for about the 1,379th time, if you must.

12. Hercules & Love Affair - Classique #2 (DFA/EMI)

'Classique #2' is a delicious red herring, all Chicago sheen, jackin' drum kicks and orgasmic vocal snippets to throw you off the scent before Andy Butler (aka Hercules & Love Affair) unleashes some seriously extravagant disco on our arses with his full-length. As diversion tactics go though, it's a beauty. In fact, it's a damn shame he isn't going to release a separate album of acid house-referencing old school workouts alongside the main attraction (due in February), as 'Classique #2' shows a producer with a flair for updating and freshening up bygone styles in such an exciting way. Watch out Murphy, DFA have a new uber-talented retro-filtering genius in their ranks.

Hercules & Love Affair - Classique #2 (mp3)

Bonus: Take another little trip over to Beats In Space and download Butler's natty mix from September 11th.

11. Lee Douglas - New York Story (Rong)

Falling just outside our top ten is another New York-based producer with retro-leanings. Lee Douglas doesn't put out anywhere near enough releases (this is one of only three 12"s in as many years), but everything he does put out is gold, Jerry, gold! 'New York Story' is a conflicted epic, in that it lands somewhere between Paradise Garage hedonism and Balearic chill. It's a song at odds with itself, not knowing when to give it some and when to hold back. Douglas plays this up and when it goes for the jugular, it really goes, but it's just as relaxed during its troughs. This makes for remarkable tension and interplay and what you're left with is a cast-iron, multi-faceted modern classic for the ages. Nice work.

Lee Douglas - New York Story (mp3)

Bonus: La Belle Epoque - Bamalama (Lee Douglas Edit) (mp3)

Labels: top 100 tunes of 2007

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (30-21)

30. Radiohead - Reckoner (Self-released)

Of all the songs that Radiohead gave away over the internet this year, 'Reckoner' was easily the most beautiful. Clanging, cascading percussion hammers away whilst Thom's gorgeous, sinuous falsetto pines for something or other (I'm not bothering to parse the lyrics) and a snaky, meandering guitar line pushes its way through to an ambiguous climax. 'Reckoner' doesn't really go anywhere, but it doesn't have to. It just hangs there, radiating warmth and light for just short of five minutes. If there's something negative to be said, it's that it should be longer.

Radiohead - Reckoner (mp3)

Bonus: Live version of 'Reckoner' recorded for that there New Year webcast.

29. The National - Fake Empire (Beggar's Banquet)

Now that it's soundtracking trails of the new season of ER on More4, I guess that The National are no longer rock's best-kept secret. This can only be A Very Good Thing, in my opinion, as the cathartic uplift of 'Fake Empire' is something that anyone with a working set of ears can get behind. Baleful, staggering piano starts the song, before Matt Berninger's woozy, boozy croon looms up out from underneath (apologies for the drunk allegories, but I just can't help it when it comes to this band). When the bass and drums come in so ominously, you have a glimpse of the special place that the song is taking you to, but when you get there, it's heart-burstingly beautiful. Putting this song at the start of Boxer was a bold move and one that the album never fully recovers from, as far as I'm concerned (very good though it is), but taken on it's own terms, it's one of the most bewitchingly grand moments in indie-rock for many a year, not just this last one.

The National - Fake Empire (mp3)

Bonus: The band do 'Fake Empire' on Letterman.

28. Roisin Murphy - Overpowered (EMI)

I think Roisin's (first name terms) at her best when she's being all strident and schoolmarm-ish and the title track from her latest is a perfect example of that. She vamps about the track, staring the listener down with laser-guided epithets, but at the heart of it all, she's actually quite vulnerable. Much like the architectural costumes she wears in her videos these days, the bolshiness seems like something of a front. You wouldn't believe it during that ice-cold, stern bridge however, when she intones "Oxytoxins flowing ever into my brain" with all the iron-clad demeanour of Grace Jones at her best. Brilliant. Top marks to Seiji for the suitably fidgety production too.

Roisin Murphy - Overpowered (mp3)

Bonus: Watch Roisin perform the song at that Fashion Rocks thing (introduction by Sam Jackson, no less) and check out the superb video too.

27. Mark 7 - Sermon (Serotonin Edit) (Creative Use)

Mystery goes a long way on the edits/beardo circuit and, for a minute there, there was nothing more mysterious than Creative Use's fourth collection of edits. With a spiritual vibe and a wide range (gospel, house and balearic disco are covered on its three tracks), there was definitely somewhat of a clamour to find out where this came from. It wasn't long before it came out that this was the work of beardy legend, Mark 7 when people realised that one of the tracks ('Higher') was something he'd been playing out for quite some time. That was the track that got most of the recognition, but in my opinion, it's this, the a-side, that's the crowning achievement. A superb blend of late-80s chill-house and, oddly enough, a Martin Luther King-like sermon over the top, it sounded a little like Primal Scream's 'Come Together' (album version) and a lot like nothing else released this year. That's why it gets the nod for Token Edit in this year's list (in case you weren't paying attention, edits aren't necessarily allowed as there is a separate list for those forthcoming). That and the fact that it's a certified party-starter.

Mark 7 - Sermon (Serotonin Edit) (mp3)

Bonus: Mark 7 - Higher (Editnot) (mp3)

26. Studio - Out There (Information)

Never ones to consolidate and stick to one honed style, Studio like to jump about a bit from genre to genre, often during the course of one song. Never is that more evident than on 'Out There' (actually originally released last year, but held back by my stupidity in not putting anything by them on last year's lists), which starts off in a jerky, early-80s pop fashion, before the focus is relaxed for a foray into blissed-out beach music, before they go all balearic reggae on us and skank off into the horizon, clicking their heels like some twin-headed Dorothy, offering forth possibly the best use of kettle drums on a track in living memory (if you disregard The Knife). Spectacularly strange.

Studio - Out There (mp3)

Bonus: Shaky-cam footage of the guys doing 'Out There' live.

25. Escort - All Through The Night (Escort)

"Give it to me, say it to me, work it with me, if you're ready I'm about to pop!", so starts Escort's most forward moment in their nascent career thus far. A sexy, borderline corny (but never less than totally classy) statement of carnal intent, 'All Through The Night' makes good on the pre-coital promise offered by the sensual come-ons of early singles 'Starlight' and 'Love In Indigo'. It's less obviously organic than their other singles, by virtue of its liberal use of horny, porny synths, but it's still clearly the work of some kind of disco hydra. It also gave rise to the best YouTube fan video of the year. That full-length couldn't come soon enough.

Escort - All Through The Night (mp3)

Bonus: As knobwrangler puts it in the comments, "this is so ill i gotta go to the doctah": The Muppets do 'All Through The Night'.

24. Matthew Dear - Deserter (Ghostly International)

Some songs seem purpose-built for the nighttime and that's most definitely the case with 'Deserter'. Warm, echoey pads and raindrop keyboards, twinned with Dear's rich, unvarnished vocal mean that 'Deserter' is best served whilst pining for a lover and watching the moon move in the sky. Verbosity be damned, but that's all that really needs to be said of this song of rare, fragile beauty.

Matthew Dear - Deserter (mp3)

Bonus: Dear performing 'Deserter' with his Big Hands. That's the name of his backing band, by the way, not a medical complaint.

23. Bloc Party - The Prayer (Wichita)

'The Prayer' seems to distil all of Bloc Party's strengths into one mini-powerhouse of a modern rock song. The pummelling drums and sinewy bass are allowed as much time in the spotlight as Kele Okereke's soulful tones and Russell Lissack's choppy guitar. With retro-futurist synth swathes and incongruous Gregorian-like chanting on top of it all, it's a straight-up classic and as good as British rock music gets these days. In an age when 'gritty' has become a by-word for insincere fakery, Bloc Party's heartfelt romanticism, as corny as it can sometimes be, stands out from the increasingly-uniform crowd.

Bloc Party - The Prayer (mp3)

Bonus: 'The Prayer'! Live!!

22. Ame - Balandine (Innervisions)

Another good year for Innervisions and their well-honed brand of soul-drenched tech-house then, with top-line releases from Marcus Worgull and Tokyo Black Star, as well as this forcerful, almost violent banger from Kristian Beyer and Frank Weidemann. It's a relentless, pulsing, subtly shifting beast of a track and became the go-to floorfiller for right-minded techno and house DJs the world over this summer. It's a horse of a slightly different colour than Ame's other classic, 2005's 'Rej' (also on Innervisions). It's less refined, less gentlemanly than that track, but one thing that you have to say about 'Balandine' is that it goes for the jugular and has you up against the wall, menacing you with threats of all manners for 11-plus minutes and that is very rare in this day and age.

Ame - Balandine (mp3)

Bonus: Ame - Fiori (mp3) Ame's other big track of 2007.

21. Burial - Archangel (Hyperdub)

For all Burial's shadowy subterfuge, one thing that can be said about him is that, whoever he is, he's most definitely a humanist. In spite of all it's studio trappings (vinyl crackle, misshapen, distorted vocal samples) a gorgeous warmth radiates from 'Archangel', the nominal stand-out track from Untrue (an album full of stand-out tracks). Those string sweeps help a great deal, but even without them, the keening vocals, fucked up as they are, put flesh on this stepper's bones. Sparse, moving and alluring, 'Archangel' is certainly angelic.

Burial - Archangel (mp3)

Bonus: Nifty little fan video for 'Archangel'.

Labels: top 100 tunes of 2007

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (40-31)

Apologies for the break, but xmas got in the way, then minor illness, then internet problems, yada yada yada. I'm back now though...

40. Panda Bear - Take Pills (Paw Tracks)

A song of two halves, 'Take Pills' starts off on some bucolic, heavy-psych Brian Wilson tip before segueing into a submerged, Buddy Holly-like, sock-hopping bop with all the sonic detritus that coloured Person Pitch so brilliantly. Noah Lennox's greatest strength is filtering all his influences through a kaleidoscope of his own making and 'Take Pills' is his most immediate moment. It's most certainly not pop music but it's born of it.

Panda Bear - Take Pills (mp3)

Bonus: Live footage of Panda Bear playing 'Take Pills'.

39. Elektrons - Get Up (PIAS/Genuine)

Maybe it's "the London bias of the music media" that's to blame but it kind of saddens me that Elektrons didn't get more coverage this year than they did. Especially so when you hear 'Get Up', a song that surely would have been a massive party hit had it been given a chance. Close to Basement Jaxx and The Go! Team in spirit but more soulful and classier than either of them, 'Get Up' is the most fun call-to-arms of the year, it's just a shame that not more people heard it.

Elektrons - Get Up (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the video for 'Get Up'.

38. R. Kelly feat. T.I. & T-Pain - I'm A Flirt (Remix) (Sony BMG)

I'm of the opinion that R. Kelly is, most of the time, a stupid arse. He's ridiculously self-involved, often overbearingly mawkish and, as his legal problems in recent years are anything to go off, a very bad person indeed. BUT, every now and then, he just comes out with something just so exceedingly larger-than-life and massively colourful that it's hard not to believe even his most self-aggrandising statements. File 'I'm A Flirt (Remix)' alongside other triumphs such as 'Ignition (Remix)', 'Feelin' On Yo Booty' and, naturally, Trapped In The Closet, as its irresistible bounce just burrows its way into your cerebellum, takes up residence and convinces you of the man's genius. That in itself is vindication of Kells' abilities.

R. Kelly feat. T.I. & T-Pain - I'm A Flirt (Remix) (mp3)

Bonus: "Let me remind you that I am the king of r'n'b". Watch the video over at YouTube and while you're there, do yourself a favour and check out as many episodes of Trapped In The Closet as you can.

37. Lindstrom & Solale - Let's Practise (Feedelity)

Lindstrom takes a more Italo-disco tack with his new side-project, a collaboration with Swedish chanteuse, Solale (aka Christabelle, with whom Hans-Peter released 'Music' a few years back). Yes, it's still very kosmische, but it's more in the vein of Moroder or Vangelis than the soft-pop touches of his work with Prins Thomas or the more club-wise stuff he releases by himself. It's a slo-mo groove that insidiously does its stuff almost without you noticing, before it explodes in a morass of colour and flourish around the eight minute mark. Truly brilliant and if it's a precursor for next year's album then we're in for something very special indeed.

Lindstrom & Solale - Let's Practise (mp3)

Bonus: L&S do Vangelis: Lindstrom & Solale - Let It Happen (mp3)

36. Busdriver - Sun Showers (Epitaph)

Busdriver's almost nauseatingly 'indie'. A backpacker rapper signed to Epitaph, who tours with Deerhoof and rhymes about Noam Chomsky and Lou Reed should be nigh-on unbearable. The fact that Busdriver manages to be likeable and relatable (almost) is down to the frequent humanist touches on his latest record, Roadkillovercoat, of which this track is the one most likely to receive repeat plays. A world-weary treatise on the futility of hip-hop elitism, with a steady-thumping, downtempo house beat and downcast guitar, it's witty, insightful and infectious. Great stuff from an artist on the grow.

Busdriver - Sun Showers (mp3)

Bonus: Watch the eye-fucking video for 'Sun Showers'.

35. Animal Collective - Peacebone (Domino)

Between them, Animal Collective (Panda Bear included), Battles and Deerhoof have injected a fair bit of fun into cerebral indie art-rock this year. 'Peacebone' is a brain-damaged pop song which marks AC's move into more immediate, less challenging fare. That's not to say that they've lost any of the feverish imagination and innovation that made them such a good band in the first place, just that they've learnt how to channel that into something more palatable to people who aren't used to music like this. Some might comment that this is exactly the kind of thing bands like Animal Collective should be shying away from, but under those junky electronic burbles and crazed screams lies the beating heart of progress and that's something to be admired and revered.

Animal Collective - Peacebone (mp3)

Bonus: 'Peacebone' live in Malta video.

34. Girls Aloud - Can't Speak French (Universal)

Finally, the Girls put their name behind something that can stand up to 'Biology'. The ersatz, electro-Motown swing of 'Can't Speak French' is arguably the classiest moment of a very classy bunch on Tangled Up, with all the girls putting in noteworthy performances. It's classic GA really, with Nadine, Kimberley and Nicola going tag-team on the opening verse, before Cheryl and Sarah raunch it up on the second. Who really cares who sings what though? This, like all the best Girls Aloud songs, sees them form into a perv-pop Voltron with consummate ease. They know that when any of them hogs the limelight for too long, they begin to crumble under the weight of it all, but the sum of all their magnificent parts (oo-er!) always adds up to nothing short of brilliant. Textbook girl-pop from the best proponents we have.

Girls Aloud - Can't Speak French (mp3)

Bonus: Watch Nadine having a seriously off night on The Friday Night Project.

33. Trus'me - Nard's (Stilove4music)

When this turned up unnanounced earlier in the year, not much was known about Manchester's Trus'me and now, two more 12s and an album down the line, he's still leaving us very little to go off. What I do know however, is that 'Nard's' is probably the best Moodymann track that KDJ never produced. He'll probably despise the Moodymanc title by now, but he's going to find it hard to escape it. To be honest though, there are some of his own personality in 'Nard's' that's for sure. KDJ would have definitely stretched the ominous first half out even longer, but Trus'me can't resist going all out for the dancefloor and he does it with considerable aplomb. Not bad for a shadowy 20-something from the rainy city.

Trus'me - Nard's (mp3)

Bonus: Download an exclusive Trus'me live mix from Cosmic Disco. Also, while you're at it, you could try to work out a little more about the guy from the interview he did for Another Night On Earth.

32. Battles - Atlas (Warp)

Critics have spent the best part of 2007 trying to get a handle on Battles' Mirrored and in particular its lead-off single, 'Atlas'. Some have even gone so far as to call it hip-hop. It ain't that, but it's refreshing to hear something that has the capacity to sound so familiar and alien at the same time. In a gloriously clumsy, yet confident manner, Battles apply math-rock to glam, disco, pop and, yes, even at a push, hip-hop to make one of the year's most surprisingly engaging leftfield delights. Bravo, you eggheads!

Battles - Atlas (mp3)

Bonus: 'Atlas' live on Jools Holland.

31. Partial Arts - Trauermusik (Kompakt)

The augur that Kompakt was going to have a decent year was 'Trauermusik', released by Partial Arts (Al Usher and Ewan Pearson) back in January. A chiming, ultimately uplifting slab of electro melancholy, replete with warm synths, cellos and drums that Pearson himself as described as sounding like "cannons going off", it laid the foundation for the likes of Justus Kohncke, Supermayer, The Field and Gui Boratto to build on, making it the best twelve months the label has had since about 2003. It was the first warning shot and still the best 12 to come from Cologne in the past year.

Partial Arts - Trauermusik (mp3)

Bonus: Partial Arts - Trauermusik (Alter Ego Mix) (mp3)

Labels: top 100 tunes of 2007

Yer Mam!

Monday, January 14, 2008

Yer Mam!'s top albums and tunes of 2007: In full.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (10-1)

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (20-11)

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (30-21)

Friday, December 28, 2007

Top 100 Tunes Of 2007 (40-31)

About Me

What the hell am I doing?

Blogs and that

The old blog

Be My Friend

Previous Posts

Archives