My top 10 favorite songs of 2007
This blog is perhaps a tad late but I wanted to put it up before the end of the month. Here, I look back at the songs that made me happy in 2007.
10. "Slut Buffet (Solar City Slutty Radio Edit)" by Shitting Glitter vs. Solar City - I would be remiss not to include this track on the list because I probably didn't hear any other song more in 2007 than I heard this song, and no song gave me more personal satisfaction or enjoyment. Hearing this song being played at The Abbey, at Chi Chi LaRue's Dirty Deeds, at Blender, or any other bar I heard it in always immediately made me feel a whole lot better than before I was hearing it. More people heard my band because of this song than any other song. Having said that, I am sort of now officially "over it" and that's why it's only #10 on my countdown. After all, it's a remix and it's also a song we recorded several times and has appeared on 4 or 5 different Shitting Glitter projects already, beginning with the original version on "Sexy Clown Circus" which we released in 2003. That means this year, 2008, marks the 5 year anniversary of it's original release. Time to move on!!!
9
. "2 Hearts" by Kylie Minogue - Yes, I'm really this gay! Just kidding. Actually, Ms. Minogue's single was less electro-bubble gum and more glam rock. Something different and unexepected. How can you not sing along to the "woo"'s? I wasn't willing to shell out the big bucks for the import version of the album - it hasn't yet been released here in the states yet - but I did pick up a copy at Virgin Megastore at 75% off during their going out of business sale, which was a very bitter sweet moment. I would have gladly gone back in time and paid $30 for it, if it meant the store would not have closed. Alas things didn't work that way, but I did end up finally falling in love with the album, but not until 2008. My other favorite tracks are "No More Rain" and "The One".
8. "Thanks fr th Mmrs" by Fall Out Boy - If I had any "cred" I'd probably lose it for including this on my list, but I'd rather pride myself on the fact that I don't care about anything like that. I love this band and I love this song. I have a remix of it, what the technical name of it is escapes me, but it's even better than the regular version of the song. I remember driving home from the valley once in a state in which I probably shouldn't be driving, but alas I was, and this song came on and I got very happy and started to sing along and someone in the backseat groaned. My boyfriend, who hates the song, defended me and told the person to let me have my moment since I was the one driving. That was so sweet o him! Three cheers for Dylan.
7. "Dance Pattern" by Electric Six - This wasn't a single, and even the "single" from the album wasn't really a single, but what it was was a feel-good, run to the dancefloor and sing-a-long type of song that you'd be hard pressed to not love. I really loved this whole album and it's such a shame to me that this band doesn't get more recognition. When they came to LA to play at the Key Club earlier this year, I feared that no one would know that they had released a new album. Luckily I was proven wrong - the crowd was just as lively and abundant as ever, and I had to admit that many, many of the kids in the pit knew more lyrics from the new songs than I did.
6. "Juliet of the Spirits" by The B-52's - I debated on including this song in here since technically it was not "released" in 2007 - and in fact, has still not yet been released. A track off their forthcoming album "Funplex", I was lucky enough to hear this song live not once in '07 but twice: first, at the LA County Fair, where my friends and I were in literally the last row; and again at The Roxy on the Sunset Strip, where I was about 1000 times closer to the band. I loved ALL the new songs, however this is the one that gets stuck in my head and drives me to repeatedly listen to low-quality cell-phone videos posted on youtube just to get a fix. Here's to 2008 being the year of the B's!!!
5. "About to Happen" by Siouxsie - I have to admit I had reservations about Siouxsie's first solo album before it came out. While I adore Siouxsie and love almost everything she and the Banshees have ever put out, I am less of a fan of her experimental work with The Creatures. Fearing that she may stray more towards the Creatures side of things with her solo forray, I tried to keep an open mind about it. So when I heard "Mantaray" I was blown away - in a good way! Not only was it new, fresh and powerful, but it combined the BEST elements of everything she's done before and melded it with a pop sensibility. I love the first single "Into a Swan", but this is the track that really hooked me - it's also great to work out to.
4. "Just Me" by Tiffany - As a die-hard Tiffany fan, I will love anything the lady puts out. So even with that said, I was very excited about the release of the album "Just Me" this past year as it was said to return to the sound of her 2000 masterpiece "The Color of Silence," which will probably go down as her artistic pinnacle. "Just Me" did mark a return to the rock/pop, singer/songwriter vibe of COS, but also included a lot of country-western vibe which some people hated, but when one considers that Tiff got her start by singing in country bars, it definitely feels like a natural fit. This is best exemplified on tracks like "Mind Candy" and the gospel-piano sound of "Streets of Gold". However, it was the powerful title track that really moved me. The lyrics and Tiff's powerful voice combine to form a standout track that should have been the single.
3. "Two Times Blue" by Deborah Harry - I never was a huge fan of Deborah Harry's solo work, despite following it fairly closely most of my life. Blondie being one of my favorite bands since as far back as I can remember, Harry's solo ventures always seemed "hit or miss" to me. So despite the fact that Blondie's most recent disc, "The Curse of Blondie", blew me away back when it came out, I didn't have huge hopes when I heard that Deborah was going to be releasing another solo album. I was soon pleasantly surprised when I got a WAY advanced copy of the disc several months before it came out. Not only did it present a fresh, modern sound, but ALL the songs on the CD were amazing! Usually there had been some really great songs on her solo CD's and then a lot that I skipped or cringed at, but on "Necessary Evil" - which also featured kick-ass artwork - every track was stellar! "Two Times Blue" has it all, though - the new-wave feel of the best of Blondie's hits, an urgency in the vocal delivery, the "high notes", and a powerful beat with great guitar hooks and keyboard licks. There were some great remixes of it, too.
2. "Delay" by Shitting Glitter - Perhaps it's a bit self-indulgent to include two of my own band's songs on this countdown, but if I don't do it, who will? Plus, we worked very hard on this EP despite only including two original tracks. This is one of them, and I remember back in late 2005 when I was driving around LA delivering groceries for a part-time job and this weird demo track we had done would come up on my iPod's shuffle every now and then. When it came time to record some "b-sides" for what was intended to be a "Slut Buffet" maxi-single, I remembered this demo and, since the lyrics were already written, thought it would be an easy number to polish off and include. Little did I know that our producer, Hoagie, would hear something in this track that we had never imagined and took it to a level I couldn't have possibly envisioned myself. Working extensively with Brandon on his guitar lines for this song, he helped us craft something that moved in a direction we had never gone before. I remember the first time I heard a mix of this song, I about fell over. It sounded to me like something that you would hear on Indie 103.1 fm. In May, our whole band went back to my hometown of Paradise, KS and filmed a video for this song, which regretfully I have yet to finish editing.
1. "Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)" by The Spice Girls - Yes, it's not "Wannabe 2007" and I don't care!!! This song is definitely a "grower" - the first time I heard it, I was like, "eh - it's pretty good." The internet was ablaze with people voicing their disappointment with the track and questioning the Spice Girls for releasing a "ballad" as their comeback single. However, to me it's really not a ballad because there are so many different elements to the song. Sure it starts out slow and sparse, with Emma's sweet and low vocals, but by the time Melanie C comes in, she's belting away like the rock star she has become. After many listens, this song still stands up, which is the sign of a truly great song. The textures and harmonies that weave in and out of the last chorus really represent the magic of the Spice Girls, and hearing this song live at "The Return of the Spice Girls" tour in December brought more than one tear to my eye. It's an amazing song that perfectly blends the original allure of the Spice Girls with the individuality of each of the girls as they are today.
10. "Slut Buffet (Solar City Slutty Radio Edit)" by Shitting Glitter vs. Solar City - I would be remiss not to include this track on the list because I probably didn't hear any other song more in 2007 than I heard this song, and no song gave me more personal satisfaction or enjoyment. Hearing this song being played at The Abbey, at Chi Chi LaRue's Dirty Deeds, at Blender, or any other bar I heard it in always immediately made me feel a whole lot better than before I was hearing it. More people heard my band because of this song than any other song. Having said that, I am sort of now officially "over it" and that's why it's only #10 on my countdown. After all, it's a remix and it's also a song we recorded several times and has appeared on 4 or 5 different Shitting Glitter projects already, beginning with the original version on "Sexy Clown Circus" which we released in 2003. That means this year, 2008, marks the 5 year anniversary of it's original release. Time to move on!!!9
. "2 Hearts" by Kylie Minogue - Yes, I'm really this gay! Just kidding. Actually, Ms. Minogue's single was less electro-bubble gum and more glam rock. Something different and unexepected. How can you not sing along to the "woo"'s? I wasn't willing to shell out the big bucks for the import version of the album - it hasn't yet been released here in the states yet - but I did pick up a copy at Virgin Megastore at 75% off during their going out of business sale, which was a very bitter sweet moment. I would have gladly gone back in time and paid $30 for it, if it meant the store would not have closed. Alas things didn't work that way, but I did end up finally falling in love with the album, but not until 2008. My other favorite tracks are "No More Rain" and "The One".
8. "Thanks fr th Mmrs" by Fall Out Boy - If I had any "cred" I'd probably lose it for including this on my list, but I'd rather pride myself on the fact that I don't care about anything like that. I love this band and I love this song. I have a remix of it, what the technical name of it is escapes me, but it's even better than the regular version of the song. I remember driving home from the valley once in a state in which I probably shouldn't be driving, but alas I was, and this song came on and I got very happy and started to sing along and someone in the backseat groaned. My boyfriend, who hates the song, defended me and told the person to let me have my moment since I was the one driving. That was so sweet o him! Three cheers for Dylan.
7. "Dance Pattern" by Electric Six - This wasn't a single, and even the "single" from the album wasn't really a single, but what it was was a feel-good, run to the dancefloor and sing-a-long type of song that you'd be hard pressed to not love. I really loved this whole album and it's such a shame to me that this band doesn't get more recognition. When they came to LA to play at the Key Club earlier this year, I feared that no one would know that they had released a new album. Luckily I was proven wrong - the crowd was just as lively and abundant as ever, and I had to admit that many, many of the kids in the pit knew more lyrics from the new songs than I did.
6. "Juliet of the Spirits" by The B-52's - I debated on including this song in here since technically it was not "released" in 2007 - and in fact, has still not yet been released. A track off their forthcoming album "Funplex", I was lucky enough to hear this song live not once in '07 but twice: first, at the LA County Fair, where my friends and I were in literally the last row; and again at The Roxy on the Sunset Strip, where I was about 1000 times closer to the band. I loved ALL the new songs, however this is the one that gets stuck in my head and drives me to repeatedly listen to low-quality cell-phone videos posted on youtube just to get a fix. Here's to 2008 being the year of the B's!!!
5. "About to Happen" by Siouxsie - I have to admit I had reservations about Siouxsie's first solo album before it came out. While I adore Siouxsie and love almost everything she and the Banshees have ever put out, I am less of a fan of her experimental work with The Creatures. Fearing that she may stray more towards the Creatures side of things with her solo forray, I tried to keep an open mind about it. So when I heard "Mantaray" I was blown away - in a good way! Not only was it new, fresh and powerful, but it combined the BEST elements of everything she's done before and melded it with a pop sensibility. I love the first single "Into a Swan", but this is the track that really hooked me - it's also great to work out to.
4. "Just Me" by Tiffany - As a die-hard Tiffany fan, I will love anything the lady puts out. So even with that said, I was very excited about the release of the album "Just Me" this past year as it was said to return to the sound of her 2000 masterpiece "The Color of Silence," which will probably go down as her artistic pinnacle. "Just Me" did mark a return to the rock/pop, singer/songwriter vibe of COS, but also included a lot of country-western vibe which some people hated, but when one considers that Tiff got her start by singing in country bars, it definitely feels like a natural fit. This is best exemplified on tracks like "Mind Candy" and the gospel-piano sound of "Streets of Gold". However, it was the powerful title track that really moved me. The lyrics and Tiff's powerful voice combine to form a standout track that should have been the single.
3. "Two Times Blue" by Deborah Harry - I never was a huge fan of Deborah Harry's solo work, despite following it fairly closely most of my life. Blondie being one of my favorite bands since as far back as I can remember, Harry's solo ventures always seemed "hit or miss" to me. So despite the fact that Blondie's most recent disc, "The Curse of Blondie", blew me away back when it came out, I didn't have huge hopes when I heard that Deborah was going to be releasing another solo album. I was soon pleasantly surprised when I got a WAY advanced copy of the disc several months before it came out. Not only did it present a fresh, modern sound, but ALL the songs on the CD were amazing! Usually there had been some really great songs on her solo CD's and then a lot that I skipped or cringed at, but on "Necessary Evil" - which also featured kick-ass artwork - every track was stellar! "Two Times Blue" has it all, though - the new-wave feel of the best of Blondie's hits, an urgency in the vocal delivery, the "high notes", and a powerful beat with great guitar hooks and keyboard licks. There were some great remixes of it, too.
2. "Delay" by Shitting Glitter - Perhaps it's a bit self-indulgent to include two of my own band's songs on this countdown, but if I don't do it, who will? Plus, we worked very hard on this EP despite only including two original tracks. This is one of them, and I remember back in late 2005 when I was driving around LA delivering groceries for a part-time job and this weird demo track we had done would come up on my iPod's shuffle every now and then. When it came time to record some "b-sides" for what was intended to be a "Slut Buffet" maxi-single, I remembered this demo and, since the lyrics were already written, thought it would be an easy number to polish off and include. Little did I know that our producer, Hoagie, would hear something in this track that we had never imagined and took it to a level I couldn't have possibly envisioned myself. Working extensively with Brandon on his guitar lines for this song, he helped us craft something that moved in a direction we had never gone before. I remember the first time I heard a mix of this song, I about fell over. It sounded to me like something that you would hear on Indie 103.1 fm. In May, our whole band went back to my hometown of Paradise, KS and filmed a video for this song, which regretfully I have yet to finish editing.
1. "Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)" by The Spice Girls - Yes, it's not "Wannabe 2007" and I don't care!!! This song is definitely a "grower" - the first time I heard it, I was like, "eh - it's pretty good." The internet was ablaze with people voicing their disappointment with the track and questioning the Spice Girls for releasing a "ballad" as their comeback single. However, to me it's really not a ballad because there are so many different elements to the song. Sure it starts out slow and sparse, with Emma's sweet and low vocals, but by the time Melanie C comes in, she's belting away like the rock star she has become. After many listens, this song still stands up, which is the sign of a truly great song. The textures and harmonies that weave in and out of the last chorus really represent the magic of the Spice Girls, and hearing this song live at "The Return of the Spice Girls" tour in December brought more than one tear to my eye. It's an amazing song that perfectly blends the original allure of the Spice Girls with the individuality of each of the girls as they are today.
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