SO LAST YEAR: A 2006 round -up (pt.1)

SO LAST YEAR 1-10
1. Over and Over - Hot Chip [The Warning]
I know technically that this came out in 2005, but it was everywhere this year and it was the one song that I never tired of hearing. It is a minimalist pop masterpiece, a song about repetition that repeats itself over and over and over and over. Extra points for the cool video and the most bizarre spelling section in a song - kissing, sexing, casio, poke, you, me. (?) Fantastic.

2. Emily - Joanna Newsom [Ys]
The sheer lusciousness of Van Dyke Parks' strings just bowled me over the first time I heard this, the second time I heard it I was amazed at the refrain about the meteorites, and the third time I followed the lyrics in all their extraordinary glory. To hear a record like this in our lo-fi mp3-obsessed world in 2006 is simply astonishing and I am awed by it. Give it time, and please don't dismiss it on first listen. It'll be your loss.

3. Roscoe - Midlake [The Trials Of Van Occupanther]
Midlake stopped sounding like Radiohead meets Flaming Lips and instead took influences from 70's California, and on 'Roscoe' they recreated the feel of Buckingham/ Nicks era Fleetwood Mac. That opening keyboard is almost 'Rhiannon' reborn.

4. Thursday - Asobi Seksu [Citrus]
The indie-pop/ shoegaze tune of the year for me, an absolutely sublime track from this New York based band. Guitars, buckets of effects and reverb and sweet female vocals driving the whole thing along. Reminiscent of early Lush but a lot harder. I hope they go on to great things.

5. New Year's Kiss/ Cold White Christmas - Casiotone For The Painfully Alone [Etiquette]
I'm cheating here, shoehorning 2 songs into the one slot, alnd although Cold White Christmas is probably the better song, I have a soft spot for New Year's Kiss. I love the way it sounds so tired and hung over, the lazy drum machine and understated arrangement perfectly complimenting the lyrics. There is little point picking out lyrical highlights from this album because it is all so good, so many great lines. Cold White Christmas is one of the bleakest, loneliest Christmas songs you will ever hear, by the way.

6. Let's Get Out Of This Country - Camera Obscura [Let's Get Out Of This Country - Elefant]
More gorgeous indie-pop, what was it about 2006 that meant that genre surprised me so much? I hadn't really rated Camera Obscura too highly before this year, but their album was great and the title track is my fave track on it. A song about escaping your dreary surroundings, I love the bit about finding finding a cathedral "so that you can look handsome/ Ill be pretty".

7. Crazy - Gnarls Barkley [St Elsewhere]
Earlier in 2006 I set about collecting the music contained in John Peel's Record Box, and although I haven't finished listening to it all (real life caught up with me!) I was impressed by how well the soul music had stood the test of time, as opposed to say, the punk stuff. This is why I'm putting this so high in my list, one of the best singles of the year and an absolute classic for years to come.

8. Stuck Between Stations - The Hold Steady [Boys & Girls in America]
You have to have a bit of classic rock now and then, and the Hold Steady fill that gap left by Rocket from the Crypt, except they are even more in love with power chords and big arrangements. Think of a kind of alternative Thin Lizzy/ E Street Band/ ACDC crossover, and you will get a rough idea of what they do. I'm not sure if their records get released in the UK yet, but 2005's 'Separation Sunday' was one of my faves of that particular year. Unlike 'SS' this album doesn't have a story as such, it's just a collection of fine rock songs, of which this is the best.

9. Little Brother - Grizzly Bear [Yellow House]
Another album I came to late in the year, as I noticed they were due to play in Dublin so I thought I would have a listen to their music. They are always compared to the Animal Collective and I can see where that comparison comes from, though this track hints at a spaced out Beach Boys feel. The album is great, lots of varying influences and some very impressive arrangements.

10. European Oils - Destroyer [Destroyer's Rubies]
I could have picked any track from Rubies really, but I love this one cos of the way he sings 'her father, the fucking maniac!' and it goes into a solo. It gets me every time. I still don't know what he is on about most of the time, but it's fun finding out.