10. Demi Lovato. "Here We Go Again"
Being a pitch-perfect piece of pop-punk from a teenage girl not named Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato’s “Here We Go Again” was overshadowed in 2009 by the ubiquitous “Party in the U.S.A.” This is unfortunate: Lovato uses her angsty sneer of a singing voice to imbue the anthem with a pathos that Cyrus’ offerings lack, something that helps the track appeal to more than just tweens and Top 40 junkies.
09. Woods. "Military Madness."
A cover off of Woods’ fantastic Songs of Shame, this protest song is a Dylan-quality exercise in folk agitation. Falsetto, acoustic guitar and tape hiss all help construct a track that would’ve fit like a missing puzzle piece into a classic Neil Young album, and Jeremy Earl’s vocals sounds like they could have been phoned in from the same era, blurred by the trip across time.
08. Mario ft. Gucci Mane and Sean Garrett. "Break Up"
I heard this song for the first time, and I liked it. I heard it again, and, surprisingly, I still liked it. And I liked it more and more every time from then on out. A surprisingly nuanced, complex fusion of r&b and hip-hop, “Break Up” rides a simple and spooky synth beat—it’s hard to appreciate the instrumental’s sheer strangeness until you hear it without the constant vocalizing, an opportunity afforded by Lil Wayne’s No Ceilings mixtape—that gives unusual contours to Mario and Sean Garrett voices. Gucci Mane delivers a characteristically punchline-heavy pair of verses, highlighted by his kiss-off boast, “Girls are like buses/Miss one next fifteen one comin’.”
07. Buck 65 ft. Sufjan Stevens and Serengeti. "Blood Pt. 2"
This track, from the Dark Was the Night compilation, belongs to Serengeti; his straighforward, inquisitive flow is mesmerizing, and leads well into the wailing choruses. The standout cut from a very strong collection.
06. Passion Pit. "Little Secrets"
The song of the summer, hands down. “Little Secrets” is joy as music, from the gallivanting synths to the almost celebratory lead vocals to the raucous children’s choir comprising the song’s chanting backbone. I feel like this song should be played at every happy event in my life from here on out.
05. Julian Casablancas. "11th Dimensions"
If this song doesn’t sound like a comeback, I don’t know what does—just listen to the bombast of those first synth blasts. Casablancas’ cocky croon floats atop bubbling drum machines for a solid four minutes, reminding everyone that Is This It and Room on Fire were no flukes. Out of all the songs on this list, “11th Dimension” was definitely the most welcome, because it reaffirmed Casablancas as a giant of modern music.
04. WHY? "This Blackest Purse"
If an award was given for best overall production in 2008 and 2009, Yoni Wolf’s band would win easily. “This Blackest Purse” is the stellar first single off of this year’s Eskimo Snow, a heartbreakingly pretty, keenly observational near-ballad. I can’t remember the last time a song brought me as close to tearing up as this one did; they’re may not even be a last time.
03. Dead Man's Bones. "Man in Stone."
Dead Man’s Bones is Ryan Gosling, Zach Shield and a mess of children’s voices. I actually found the album very disappointing, and I think it’s because of how high this song set the bar. “Name in Stone” is an unreleased, live-performed track that I’ve only ever seen on pitchfork.tv. It has a musicality that the band’s other songs lack, overwhelmed as they are by horror-movie indulgences and “haunting” effects. “Name in Stone,” on the other hand, is a pure-bred acoustic-guitar stomp with mourning, soulful vocals and some serious doo-wop backing. Rousing, in the best way—if you listen to the literal chorus of voices that sing the refrain and fail to feel stirred, then you need to have your pulse checked.
02. Drake ft. Lil Wayne and Trey Songz. "Successful"
“Successful” is the best of Drake’s pre-debut output, an impressive body of work on its own. It shines thanks to the subtle, understated beat, Trey Songz’ sad and desperate hook as well as a solid contribution from Lil Wayne, but most of all because of Drake himself. He raps with a confidence not immune to vulnerability, a brave choice from an artist yet to drop his first album. This vulnerability, this awareness of the difficulties that are beginning to confront him as a commercially successful artist, shows that Drake recognizes the Kanye West school of self-doubt, but with “Successful” he also shows the verbal chops that mope-rap contemporary Kid Cudi still hasn’t demonstrated.
01. Girls. "Lust for Life"
This basically perfect pop song is so far and away the best track of the year that making this list was almost an afterthought. There is nothing complicated, nothing overdone about what makes “Lust for Life” great; it is true to its title, giddy with feeling, its lyrics a string of vignettes that all sound more desirable than whatever you might be doing at the time. Frontman Christopher Owens’ cooing, playful voice is a perfect fit for the hyperactive guitar riff, and when the fantastic bassline kicks in about halfway through it’s almost unnecessary, only serving to make a great song tremendous, monumental. It might be unnecessary because Girls don’t sound like they’re aiming for transcendence with this song, or like they even realize they’ve created a new adolescent anthem; they’re just playing music in the sun, and for the band, a pizza and a bottle of wine would truly be enough.
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