1. Reverse Cowgirl – T-Pain – Sure, autotune grew old fast but except when T-Pain uses it. His first new song since forever and he rides a chorus and a full orchestra for the same old sexual double entendres and horny love. Great, great, great song.
2. Angeles – Elliott Smith – The late alt-folkie reminds us why we loved him the first placein a double play ode to love and angels.
3. I Am Not A Robot – Marina And The Diamonds – Helen got it wrong, the quirkiness is earned and the chain smoking guy is having his defences weakened by a systematic love of tsomeone who is other.
4. Did She Jump – Richard and Linda Thompson -Speaking of systematic, the entire album is the systematic self-destruction of love, and it ended after the album is over with Linda leaving the tour in the middle and an ensuing divorce. Here, Richard has his wife condemn herself.
5. The Echo Will Fade – Doug Keith – Actually, Keith has something of the Elliott Smith in him. This is very clever song with the back up vals transmogrifying the sang sentiments to sound.
6. You Got Me – Nicole Simone – Everything on Simone’s recently released EP is a must hear. Though it sounds like a Kurt Weil ballad -all smoke and mirrors, the song works like a dream when you think you’re in the past and yet so much is anachronistic you are not sure when you are: “you have got me… youhave fucked me, how you’ve fucked me, and every day I waste away from loving you”. Cool shit.
7. Gangsta Luv (feat Mayer Hawthorne) – Snoop Dogg – Of all the reasons to love blue eyed soul boy Mayer one should be all the money he has made for the great indie label Stones Throw. This song is prime Snoop and Mayer completely carries the song.
8. Omaha – Moby Grape – Souds like a song off “Nuggets” and a blast from begining to end -a raging guitar and a drummer who is flaying as though his life depends. The only dated thing is the vocals.
9. Disappearing Ink – Deerhunter – So much better in background than foreground, when you hear the band outta the corner of your ear (if you ee what I mean) they attrack as they distract but when you watch em play it live they feel even further away. It drones by not having any one instrument take the center, not by melodic indifference.
10. Heart – Modern Hut – If this is what is left of my beloved For Science, it’ll do. I thought this was the onewith Marissa on but apparently I got it wrong!! Nevermind, the medical emergency, lyric is hysterical and I don’t mean funny. The racking open of a heart to flip the any one who had one wuldn’t consder ope heart surgery metaphor is pure Steinhardt. Ps It’s “Louis St” that features Marissa singing lead. Not sure but sure but you can try youtube…