Moving forward with the countdown, I found myself in 2010 spending more time listening to the radio and using Google to my advantage. With this countdown, I truly established a method to my madness. I was coding my blog posts and writing small blurbs to go with each song. I had a better documented list of the songs and I was ready to rock. Without further ado...
20. Dark Tranquility - The Fatalist
I remember thinking that Dark Tranquility was a cool name, and I've never been one to turn a blind ear to Swedish melodic death metal. Unfortunately, I found myself falling asleep to this album until the keys launched "The Fatalist". In listening to the song today, outside of the chorus I find it to be quite dull, and I remember disliking everything after this track from the band as well. Occasionally, a really good metal riff or chorus will stick with me, and that's where this came from.
19. Demon Hunter - Collapsing (ft Bjorn Strid)
I remember writing about the "new" Demon Hunter that was born in the album "The World Is A Thorn". Founding member Don Clark had departed from the band, bringing a dynamically different sound to the string section. In fact, lead guitarist Ethan Luck (of the previous two albums) had jumped ship as well, leaving the band to find yet another new musical direction ( a seemingly album-by-album process). TWIAT is not a bad album at all, but it took me several listens to get used to the re-invented awesomeness that was the post-Don Clark era Demon Hunter. Bjorn Strid, of course is the frontman of another solid Swedish outfit, Soilwork. The album is good, the song is good, but the sound has gradually declined (IMO) over the past two releases. We'll see if they chart in 2014.
18. Rammstein - Frühling in Paris
Ahh, Rammstein. You can do no wrong by me. "Liebe ist für alle da" is just another solid album from the German industrialists. "Frühling in Paris" is a wonderfully composed love song about past love which includes both German and French singing. Till Lindemann shows that he can master any language and make it sound incredible, and Flake's keyboards make the songs post-chorus soar. It may be slower and less explosive than most of the bigger Rammstein songs, but it does it's job well. The only complaint I had about "Liebe" is that it sort of fell off after this song, but it's still a great album. I read a recent article from guitarist Richard Z Kruspe stating that Rammstein was on hold, and unfortunately had no time-table to record new music.
17. Slash - Baby Can't Drive (ft Alice Cooper, Nicole Scherzinger)
Any guitar lover can appreciate Slash's talents, although it's tainted by the fact that most of his recordings have featured the voice of Axl Rose. Slash's Snakepit and Velvet Revolver had their time, but his eponymous solo debut featured guest vocalists on each track, ranging from the likes of Lemmy and Ozzy, to Fergie, Kid Rock, and Adam Levine. The album is done well and the guest vocalists did their part to launch Slash onto a platform of his own. Now, I can't stand the Pussycat Dolls singer, but Alice Cooper is the man. It's a fun song to blare on the highway, but outside of that it's a bit hollow. Slash is currently collaborating exclusively with Alter Bridge frontman Myles Kennedy. I have yet to listen to his newest disc which dropped a few weeks ago, but I'm sure it'll be another solid effort. I kind of like the different dynamics that having guests vocalists brought to this album, though.
16. Gorillaz - Superfast Jellyfish
If you had told me that Blur frontman Damon Albarn would launch one of the most genre-bending and influential acts of the 2000s with a virtual band of cartoons with deep back stories, I would have sent you back to the asylum. Guess what? It works. It works well. A little too well, I fear, as the Gorillaz have done next to nothing since the release of 2010's "Plastic Beach". "Superfast Jellyfish" is the goofiest song off the disc, but it pumps hard and it's a lot of fun to sing along with. The album featured minor hits with "Melancholy Hill" "Rhinestone Eyes" and "Stylo", but it's the cast of musicians that makes it so special. From Snoop Dogg to Mick Jones to De La Soul, Gorillaz brings it all together in a fun little electro-pop piece. Unfortunately, Albarn has been touring extensively with Blur in recent times, and even made his own solo disc that dropped earlier this year. Hopefully, the Gorillaz will "record" again soon.
15. Day of Fire - Lately
I first heard Day of Fire in 2004 with their CCM hit "Detainer", but had all but forgotten about them before seeing them tour in support of Cold and Nonpoint in the spring of 2010. I picked up this album and immediately gravitated towards this track. Lead singer Josh Brown is a really cool dude and this album has a couple of good punching tracks with "Light em Up" and "Hey You", but the sound sadly translated much better live than it did over the album. They have been inactive since that tour, and most of the members have moved on to other projects. I feel as though they had a good hard rock potential, and it's sad to see them discontinue their efforts.
14. Nevermore - Moonrise (Through Mirrors of Death)
Nevermore's seventh album, "The Obsidian Conspiracy" took 5 years to complete and was well worth the wait. It built off of the success of their previous albums and featured Jeff Loomis' phenomenal guitar work and Warrel Dane's incredible power metal voice. The album featured a slightly different sound, more focusing on bigger riffs rather than more technical work. Anyways, with this song I particularly loved the line "Is this soliloquy or psychosis? Or self-hyponosis?". The album kicks hard. "Without Morals" and "The Termination Proclamation" are my other favorite tracks, but the band decided to dissolve after touring to support it. Loomis and Dane have put out solid solo efforts since, and I don't see them getting back together any time soon. But, if "Moonrise" is the last of their great metal tracks, then it is nothing to shun.
13. Haste the Day - White as Snow
...and while we're on the topic of broken up metal bands, here we have Haste the Day. The Christian Metal legends ran a farewell tour after releasing "Attack of the Wolf King" and had been unheard of until earlier this year, when they announced they were re-uniting and called upon fans to help fund. Their recording goal was almost immediately met, showing that in 3 years, the fans had not stopped headbanging to their awesomeness. Now, on an album chock-full of hard-pounding metalcore, "White as Snow" stands alone with it's slower tempo, but it features one of the most crushing breakdowns in all of HTD's catalog. I would consider my neck broken many times since the release of this disc, with standout tracks being "Waking up the Sun", "Crush Resistance", and "The Quiet, Deadly Ticking". I am super excited to hear their next disc.
12. Mumford and Sons - Little Lion Man
Where was I when I first heard this song? I believe I was at Skully's with my sister, and I remarked that Blue October had definitely changed their sound. Upon hearing the song on the radio later that week, I realized that it was most definitely not Blue October, but in fact Marcus Mumford and his traveling band of Englishmen. This folksy track about lost love catapulted the band into super-stardom, but their most recent effort "Babel" fails to live up to the hype brought from this disc. The band is folk first, pop second in all of their songs, and it works to their detriment in a pop-driven world. The almost obsessive need to incorporate a huge banjo piece into every (stinking) track almost kills the slower, softer pace that many of the tracks begin with. But, the band has sold over 5 million records in the US alone and their next disc will surely sell well. What is it about this song that is so great? It's a story we can all relate to, and yell "FUCK" along with. It works! Hahaha...
11. Taio Cruz - Dynamite
I remember when I was piecing together the 2010 countdown, I found myself in very precarious situation when it came to checking each song for video and release date. I wasn't as methodical on this countdown and found that one of my top 10 songs, The Temper Trap's "Sweet Disposition" was released back in 2008, despite it finding better success late 2009-early 2010. I was left to scour the songs I had overlooked to try and find a song that I could insert. I scrambled through the "2010" and "2009" years on my media player and flipped over to the singles chart to see if there was something I had overlooked. And, here it was. In hindsight, I'm not sure why I chose it to be #11, as I have a hard time believing that it was bigger #s 14-12, but it is what it is. That was several years ago, and it stands where it is. A terrible song that finishes a somewhat lacking first 10. Make with it what you will, as things get so much better from here on out.
10. Muse - Resistance
I don't really like Muse. I'd say I'm 50/50 on them, but outside of this song and "Undisclosed Desires", I couldn't stand anything off of this disc. "Black Holes and Revelations" is a good enough album, except that "Knights of Cydonia" is one of the worst songs ever recorded. Fast forward 3 years to "The Resistance", led by the anti-societal anthem "Uprising". The album is trash, and their 2012 disc "The 2nd Law" is even trashier. It's all a bunch of pretty, dressed new "new prog" with a whiny douchebag singer and a legion of hipster fans that don't even know why they like the music (hint, it's because they're ripping off great 80s musicians like Prince). BUT, Resistance, is a wonderful love song to scream along to, so I will leave you with that. It was super big for me in the early mornings of opening the restaurant I was working at at the time.
9. Dan Black - Symphonies
Here we find Dan Black, former lead singer of the English rock group The Servant, reaching out on an album that I learned was dubbed "Wonky Pop"; quirky, catchy and credible. In reality, it means that they can't find a positive name for it, so the Brits gave it something that sounds meaningful. The album is definitely wonky, but "Symphonies" shows that Black has a skill at rhyming words that do not seem to go together, and launching orchestral synths over a simplistic drum machine. It's good for what it is, and it was a song that I loved to sing along with that year.
8. 30 Seconds to Mars - Kings and Queens
Speaking of bad bands with douchy singers and legions of hipster fans that occasionally put out phenomenal songs, here is Jared Leto and 30 Seconds to Mars. There's no denying the explosive power of this song and the forceful video that accompanies it. This one goes perfectly with "Resistance" as 5am songs that I just could not stop singing to get me pumped up for the drone of the upcoming day. The album doesn't have much more to lean on, but this song is a fitting apex to the year it was released. Leto enjoys playing around with musical concepts but isn't very good at executing them. But, who doesn't love to sing along to "Whoa-oh's"? In the end, most of their music is annoyingly over-produced and over-whined. However, this sing-a-long chorus has stuck with me in the years to follow, making it one of the few to stick with me from this year.
7. Iyaz - Replay
As critical as I was to Taio Cruz's track falling at #11, some might find it surprising that Iyaz's "Replay" fell in at #7. I have no good response to that. The grammatical failings of this song and the corniness of the lyrics is overwhelming, in hindsight at least. The beat is incredibly catchy, and at the time I really enjoyed Iyaz's islander accent. Throw in a few "na-na-na's" and some bouncy synths, and you can overlook the awful lyrics. It's a plain and simple love song where Iyaz "sings" about his lady, and most of us can relate to that in some way or another. It's a time-honored formula for crossover hip-hop, and it does it's part for 2010. And for all the flack I give these artists, their music is so much better than the gizzards'n'grits that is served to us on a shovel from these "urban" stations anymore. I'd take Iyaz over Rihanna and Lil Wayne any day of the week.
6. Them Crooked Vultures - Mind Eraser, No Chaser
There's no denying that anything Josh Homme puts his mind to turns to gold. Dave Grohl has a similar effect. Oh, and I guess to round out this trio we could add the bassist from Led freakin' Zeppelin. The result? Them Crooked Vultures. I cannot complain about the complexity and all-around fun nature of this album, which reaches it's crescendo with "Mind Eraser, No Chaser". Other standout tracks are the hit single "New Fang", "Dead End Friends", and "Reptiles". Of course, these days Grohl is doing any and everything he wants with the Foo Fighters, and Homme just put out another tremendous Queens of the Stone Age disc. The trio have stated that they'd love to do a future collaboration, and I for one am definitely hoping it comes to fruition. Until then, I can enjoy everything that the members do independently and wait.
5. Matt and Kim - Cameras
The craziest thing about "Cameras" is that the album dropped in November of 2010, with the single being released a few weeks previous. THAT'S how big it was. And to this date, "Sidewalks" is the only album to chart two different hits, with "Good to Great" reaching #3 in 2011. "Block after Block" and "Wires" are also great hits from the disc, which features goofy synth-pop from the duo who are exclusively a drummer and keyboardist. They make a lot out of a little, and a lot of it is so intriguingly cobbled together that you have to listen to it twice. Anyways, the bass on Cameras hits hard, the synths bounce around perfectly, and the beat works you through a fun little ditty. The concept of "No time for cameras, we'll use our eyes instead" is outstanding, and the video features the two members in an all-out war.
4. The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio
I'm not sure what more I can say about The National that I haven't said before. Just because their 2013 release "Trouble Will Find Me" did not chart on that countdown doesn't make it a great disc, it was just simply impossible to follow up the amazing piece of craftsmanship that is "High Violet", and it's lead single "Bloodbuzz Ohio". Again, driving to work at 5am, I heard this song and just sat in awe. Bryan Devendorf's percussion and Matt Berninger's baritone. What else can be said? The piano seamlessly works through the song, and the guitar and keyboard work fill in when needed. The song drives on, with Berninger's unbelievable voice peaking and falling and piercing every ounce of your soul. I would go ahead and say that this song is one of the greatest songs I have ever heard, and I say that without hesitation. It would almost be considered a tragic shame that it finished at #4, except that the next 3 songs were even bigger in 2010. As far as the album goes, you can take your pick. "Lemonworld", "Terrible Love", "Anyone's Ghost", "Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks", "England", etc. You cannot go wrong, and I set myself up for failure thinking that their 2013 release would reach these heights. The future looks good for these boys from Cincinnati, however, and I nervously anticipate another release in the next two years.
3. Fear Factory - Final Exit
This song is #1. I don't care that it finished at #3, there was no song that received more airplay in 2010 than "Final Exit". With Burton C Bell and Dino Cazares coming together for the first time since 2001, and the addition of the human drum machine Gene Hoglan behind the kit, Fear Factory pounded out a tremendous comeback album. Feature tracks also include "Controlled Demolition", "Fear Campaign", and "Designing The Enemy", but it was the incredible euthanasia-themed track "Final Exit" that blistered through 2010 and beyond. The opening quotes haunt you. Dino's thrashy chorus and chiming verses. Hoglan's precision and power. And the impossible-to-resist third verse, which reminds you that this is FEAR FACTORY. I listened to this song over and over and over again, and as far as lasting effort goes, only "Bloodbuzz Ohio" has had a bigger one. The song's meat and potatoes cut down around the 4:40 mark, but the final 3+ minutes feature the industrial sounds that distinguish the band from all others.
2. Periphery - Icarus Lives!
Let metal reign, let metal reign. The world "djent" is tossed around in the metal society these days. The palm-mute technique, made popular by Fredrik Thordendal of Meshuggah, has spread almost like a cancer through the metal scene. Very few bands do it well, or do anything to distinguish themselves from their metal forefathers. Periphery is a band that is unbelievably experiment and does a lot to flash and dash and explode in your face. They've spent millions of making their live shows as explosive and bombastic as possible, but after seeing them live I was highly disappointed. What works as an exciting progression through this eponymous debut, it at times cluttered and clunky live. It's a great album, with songs like "The Walk", "Light", and "Zyglrox" leading the way, but in the end it's just Misha Mansoor's amazing vision mixed with other musicians. To make up for the fact that Mansoor is doing such intriguing things with his strings, the band actually has two other guitarists, a totally unnecessary number. But it made for a fun and interesting album, and the lead single tells the forever familiar tale of Icarus, who perished after flying too close to the sun, simply to prove that he could fly. It's an absolutely explosive song with screaming vocals that blast you through every workout and 100mph drive down the highway you could ever imagine. As much as I dislike he "djent" genre these days (also, #tangent and /soapbox), Periphery does a good thing well on this album, and it's worth a listen if you like prog-experimental metal.
1. Hockey - Song Away
Remember what I said about alt-rock's dominance and metal's secondary nature? Here it is again. We find the alt-rockers Hockey and their debut disc "Mind Chaos". As much as the previous 3 songs deserve to be #1, there wasn't a song that influenced my life more than "Song Away" in 2010. No song brought me happiness when I was lower. It didn't matter how depressed I was - the moment i heard this song, it immediately became my happiness anthem. The guitars lead you through an interesting tale of the fallacies of the lead singers life as a musician and lover, and is a constant reminder that no matter what happens, "tomorrow's just a song away". It's a perfect anthem, but in the years since I've found that this song is so 2010-centered that it's hard to listen to it a lot any more. It doesn't help that, just like the previous #1, the album doesn't offer much more than this track. "Too Fake" is a fun little ditty that was featured on NHL 2K10, but for all it's fun poppy ideas, the album just dies off after the first couple tracks. "Song Away" may be Hockey's only saving grace, but I will never forget what it meant to the year 2010 - the year I persevered through to find my fiancee and eventual path in life.
The ultimate relevance of the 2010 countdown is that it was the last (so far) to have a solid line of pop music, leaning more heavily upon alt-rock and metal. I listened to more CD101 and sought out more heavier albums as time progressed on, and found myself less intrigued and more apathetic towards rap and hip-hop.
These days, I don't even bother scanning through the "urban" stations any more, and rarely dabble through the pop junk.
SO, next Thursday, 2011! An infamous and unforgettable countdown year, which featured (quite possibly) the worst song ever featured in a top 20 countdown, and was topped off by the fact that the order of #2 and #1 were not decided until the day of announcing. Stay tuned and as always, enjoy the music!
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