Galkin’s Top 115 of 2009, Part 2

January 23, 2010

Here is part 2 of Galkin’s list.  I know it probably seems sooo behind the times to keep talking about 2009 songs, especially while there is so much new music already out this year (Yeasayer, Hot Chip, Ok Go – dare I even say Ke$ha? – to name a few) but Galkin’s list is easily still my favorite playlist on my iPod right now, and it needs to be completed.  Besides, didn’t you need some new stuff to stream at work?  We’ll get to 2010 soon enough, don’t worry…

85. Eminem – “We Made You”
Much anticipated comeback was good, not great. Good to see he still likes to make fun of people though.

84. The National – “So Far Around The Bend”
On the Dark Was The Night compilation – check it out, seriously

83. Manchester Orchestra – “I’ve Got Friends”
Band that you can distinctly hear maturing over their last 3 albums

82. Muse – “Undisclosed Desires”
Need to see these guys in concert. Will be epic.

81. Say Anything – “Hate Everyone”
One of my favorite bands, but didn’t connect with the new album like previous ones

80. Paramore – “Ignorance”
Hayley Williams is adorable. That is all.

79. Anderson – “Trevor On The Dancefloor”
Fun electronic dance-y song you’ve never heard of from a band you don’t know. It’s my list.

78. Yes Giantess – “Can’t Help It”
Michael Jackson-like sounding lead singer makes me miss MJ…the non-crazy, black version

77. Pony Pony Run Run – “Walking On A Line”
Don’t care for the band name, good thing they make catchy music

76. Classified – “Choose Your Own Adventure 3”
White Canadien rapper, eh? I’m as surprised as you are. Also known as the Steve Nash of rap (may or may not have made that last part up)

75. Jay-Z – “Run This Town”
Excellent chorus by Rihanna along with Kanye kept in check made this a winner

74. Peter Bjorn And John – “Nothing To Worry About”
Including singing kids generally makes things better

73. Shakira – “She Wolf (Villians Remix)”
Heavy breathing also makes things better

72. Taking Back Sunday – “Sink Into Me”
A favorite band from high school still has something left in the tank

71. Flight Of The Conchords – “Carol Brown”
“…hoping that you’ll stick around” – would have enjoyed another season of FOTC

70. Harlem Shakes – “Strictly Game”
Good band that unfortunately broke up…luckily it was after I got to see them live

69. Neon Indian – “Deadbeat Summer”
Trippy.

68. The Sounds – “No One Sleeps When I’m Awake (Viking Remix)”
An already good song, but the additions in the remix put it over the top

67. Norah Jones – “Chasing Pirates”
Classiest song of the year

66. Wale – “90210”
Disappointing live, but still one of the top rappers IMO

65. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Zero”
Spin’s song of the year – not mine, but still really good

64. Simian Mobile Disco – “Audacity Of Huge (Dada Life Guerilla Remix)”
The ones who usually do the remixing get remixed themselves – what’s good for the goose is good for the gander, right?

63. The Big Pink – “Dominos”
Methodically paced and catchy song about girls falling like dominos

62. Glee Cast – “Don’t Stop Believin’”
Best song by a fake Glee club

61. The Bird And The Bee – “Love Letter To Japan”
I feel like The Bird and the Bee are a hidden gem – have always enjoyed their quirky songs.

60. Jay-Z – “DOA”
Electric guitar and soprano sax make this much more than your regular rap song

59. Owl City – “Cave In”
Called Owl City a year and a half ago…you’re welcome

58. Parachute – “Under Control”
Charlottesville/UVA band that is gaining popularity – this should have been a bigger hit

57. Florence And The Machine – “Dog Days Are Over”
Florence’s haunting yet fierce voice make the first track of the album stand out

56. The Drums – “Let’s Go Surfing”
Old school sounding song of the year…think a modern indie Beach Boys


Holiday Weekend fun.

July 2, 2009

I’m off to Virginia Beach for the holiday weekend to enjoy some beach sunshine, good food, drinks, and friends, and probably sitting in tons of traffic haha. More great new stuff this week, so here we go:

  • fun.
    Approachability: Very High

    Megs actually found this band (she’s a sucker for piano and singing…), and then through RP3 it was blasting in our living room. They’re a new band, formed in the winter of 2008 in NYC. Their debut album comes out on August 25th, and hopefully it’s as good as some of the stuff on their space – especially what’s likely their first single, At Least I’m Not As Sad As I Used To Be.

    Enjoy:
    http://www.myspace.com/fun
    (Note that you can listen to 6 of their songs live via youtube, and 1 song via the myspace music player)

  • Miike Snow
    Approachability: Medium

    I had previously heard his song Burial and I liked it a lot. His new self titled album is out now via all the usual outlets. This is definitely a little more electronic than some of the stuff I’ve been posting recently, but I think it’s still quite fun to listen to. You can hear what I’m guessing is the first single, Animal, on his space, as well as Burial and Song For No One. I think they’re all pretty awesome, but Animal is def. the standout.

    Enjoy:
    http://www.myspace.com/miikesnow

  • MJ
    As everyone is now immensely aware, Michael Jackson died last week. I have been pretty much obsessed with the Discovery album ever since I got it a couple of weeks ago, and I find it almost eerie that they included such an awesome cover of the Jackson 5 song I Want You Back on their first LP.As my own little tribute to MJ, here’s that cover:
    Discovery – I Want You Back
  • Ra Ra Riot @ 930 Club
    Ra Ra Riot tickets for October 1st at the 930 Club in DC are now available on Tickets.com. Go buy yours before they sell out!

  • Virgin Mobile’s FreeFest
    So this year in DC, the usual Virgin Fest has moved venues, and tickets are free. Yes, totally free. They apparently went very quickly, as they’re now “free’d out,” but you can still get tickets via volunteering somehow. I’m sure they’ll be on StubHub too for, umm, not free. Apparently all 35,000 tickets were snatched up in minutes. Thank you Richard Branson!

    This is one of those events that I got tickets for totally on a whim, and am looking forward to seeing all the supporting acts (Girl Talk, Franz Ferdinand, The National, The Bravery, The Hold Steady) but pretty much couldn’t give a shit about the headliners (Blink 182 and Weezer). Maybe that means we can get out of there before the traffic really starts? haha

    More info here:
    http://www.virginmobilefestival.com/

  • Concerts
    There are some pretty good concerts coming up, so here’s a little synopsis. I probably will miss more of them than I would like, but hopefully you can make some of these:

    Paolo Nutini @ 930 Club, Thurs, July 23
    Los Campesinos! @ 930 Club, Wed, Aug 5
    Hackensaw Boys @ State Theater, Fri, Aug 14
    Bat for Lashes @ 930 Club, Sat, Aug 15
    Jimmy Buffett @ Nissan Pavilion, Thurs, Sept 3
    Matt and Kim @ Black Cat, Wed, Sept 16
    Passion Pit and Phoenix @ Rumsey Playfield (NYC!), Sat, Sept 26
    Ra Ra Riot @ 930 Club, Thurs, Oct 1
    Dirty Projectors @ Black Cat (I think in Oct/Nov?…don’t remember the date unfortunately)

  • Stillness Is The Move Video
    RP3 showed me this video posted on Stereogum earlier this week. Pretty funny video for a really awesome song. Enjoy the llamas and synchronized dancing!

    http://stereogum.com/archives/video/new-dirty-projectors-video—stillness-is-the-move_076732.html

Have a great long weekend everyone! Hope you get to enjoy some good music with your fireworks and drinks!

-WJ