The Top 40 Songs of 2010: 20-11

(All week we’re counting down the top songs of 2010.  For previous entries on the list, click here or simply scroll down.  We hope you enjoy the music.)

20. Vampire Weekend – “Giving Up The Gun”

Vampire Weekend can do no wrong. Their eponymous debut was a flawless blend of catchiness, sophistication, and highbrow humor. Their sophomore album comes damn close, with another round of preppie Afro-pop, a few new forays into Auto-Tune, and more hooks than a tackle box. Choosing one favorite song was harder than choosing our favorite flavor of ice cream. The tiebreaker was the “Giving Up the Gun” video, which includes a tennis match featuring Jake Gyllenhaal, L’il Jon, RZA, and some Jonas Brother.  PS. Ezra Koenig must have read our journal before he penned this line:  “When I was seventeen/I had wrists like steel/And I felt complete.”  -KM

19. Of Montreal – “Coquet Coquette”

Kevin Barnes and Of Montreal relentlessly evolve.  “Coquet Coquette” opens with a few bars of Spanish guitar before the entrance of pounding rhythm and lyrics lamenting the frustrations of anger and heartbreak.  The drums and guitar trade heartbeats that grow louder and faster while Barnes sings “I don’t want to catch you with some other guy’s face under your eyelids/Something must be wrong/You give emotional artifacts that can find no purchase.”  We never learn what the protagonist will do about his dilemma, but, from “My Coquet, my teenage lust for you is so pitiful” we can expect it won’t end well.  -PJB

18. How To Dress Well – “Decisions [ft. Yüksel Arslan]”

It is admittedly a bit tricky to take seriously a man who looks like this and loudly professes his admiration for the genius of Keith Sweat.  But Tom Krell, a.k.a. How To Dress Well, makes the type of music that deserves serious recognition.  Providing the listener with a decidedly minimalist take on the maximalist genre of 90s R&B, Krell’s songs are consistently haunting, moving, and eerily sublime.  The best song off his impressive debut Love Remains, “Decisions” will leave you feeling like you’re floating away.  -LVL

17. Cee-Lo Green – “Fuck You”

Nothing makes us happier than an expertly constructed sugary pop gem that hinges on obscenities and contempt.  -PL

16. The New Pronographers – “Crash Years”

In May I was challenged, “listen to ‘Crash Years’ and I guarantee you’ll like it, even if you were disappointed by the previous New Pornographers album.”  How true.  “Crash Years” is musical comfort food.  It opens with lilting rock n’ roll that suggests a clean-cut band playing earnestly in jackets and ties.  Neko Case’s soothing vocals give way to an appealing whistled melody.  This simplicity provides cover for some serious musical complexity – specifically lots of cellos.  Sadly the song’s lyrics are too opaque to determine whether the “crash years” are meant to have happened decades ago or if we are living through them right now.  If it is the latter,  I hope the band will have more to say.  -PJB

15. Baths – “Plea”

If Aphex Twin and Madlib got together to write a love song, it would probably sound like this.  What do you mean “what the hell are you talking about?”  Just trust me and listen.  -LVL

14. Ra Ra Riot – “Too Dramatic”

Oh, falsetto! Oh, violins! Oh, tambourine! Somebody call The Police.  -KM

13. Sleigh Bells – “Tell ‘Em”

Just when you thought that loud rock music that your parents hated couldn’t transition into the 21st century.   I had the pleasure of seeing this duo in a rather small, crowded space earlier this year, and I still can’t hear properly.  I will admit to doubts about Sleigh Bells’ longevity, but their debut LP Treats is a true original, and lead single “Tell ‘Em” is as infectious as it is pummeling.  In a good way.  -LVL

12. Kanye West – “Runaway”

If the term “emo-rap” should ever be used, it’s when talking about “Runaway”. Not that there’s anything wrong with emo, but this type of self-degradation is usually reserved for the Chris Carrabas and Jeremy Enigks of the world. Years down the road, we suspect “Runaway” will be seen as a turning point for hip-hop, with its embrace of ambient, swelling beats and its lyrics that admit incompetence with the fairer sex.  -PL

11. Titus Andronicus – “To Old Friends and New”

If Kanye West’s “POWER” represents the barking mad side of American confusion, “To Old Friends and New” represents overwhelmed submission. As a pivotal part in the narrative of 2010′s The Monitor, “To Old Friends and New” is the dispassionate foil to the rest of the album’s call to arms. The song serves as a brilliant reminder that, despite all our differences, we’re in this together.  -PL

Be sure to check in tomorrow for the conclusion of our Top 40 of 2010 Countdown.