New Wave Outpost Forum

Another year over!! Here is a topic dedicated to the best songs and singles of the year 2006. I thought, I place it here, because the top ten thread is overcrowded. everything goes top 10, 20 or so.

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I'll be looking for advice more-so than giving it. I just couldn't get the pulse of 2006 as did 2005, which I thought was a fantastic year for music. Nevertheless, here's some from my own narrow perspective, possibly including 2005 releases that were 2006 in the US. Looking forward to a lot more from others...

The Zutons - Valerie (a plaintif rocker!)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Way Out
White Rose Movements - Alsatian (and not just because they're trying to channel JD/NO)
TV on the Radio - Playhouses (Brooklyn on the map again...Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, In This Home of Ice last year)
Tiga - Far From Home (very retro, very cool)
Subways - Rock & Roll Queen (just kids, but I love elemental 3-pieces)
The Strokes - You Only Live Once (there's a silver lining in any cloud, right?)
Snow Patrol - You're All I have (a really rich album overall)
She Wants Revenge - Red Flags & Long Nights (yeah, it could be the Editors 2nd album which could be Interpol's 3rd album, whatever though)
The Raconteurs - Steady As She Goes (but not digging the album as much as I thought I would)
Pipettes - Pull Shapes (light, fun, retro, um, fun)
Morrissey - You Have Killed Me (FU all...I'm diggin' it)
Hot Chip - And I Was a Boy From School (get the disco ball turning)
Guillemots - We're Here (almost indie meets ELO on this track)
Gomez - Girlshapedlovedrug (my accidental concert discovery of the year...only 8 years after their debut)
The Electric Soft Parade - Stupid Mistake (this part of Brakes are good in their own regard)
The Dears - Ticket to Immortality
The Church - Easy (easy to like, part of a lofty, dreamy album)

Edit - forgot a couple, and haven't yet listened to the whole Yorke album...getting some pretty good raves.

[quote][i]Originally posted by Blir[/i]
<br> I just couldn't get the pulse of 2006 as did 2005, which I thought was a fantastic year for music. Nevertheless, here's some from my own narrow perspective, possibly including 2005 releases that were 2006 in the US. Looking forward to a lot more from others...

[/quote]

How true! I thought 2006 was just an awful year and in trying to come up with my top CD's for the year, I found many of the CD's I listened to most, were actually 2005 releases (Jack's Mannequin was the best album (but released last year)and by far, the best concert I saw this year. There were still many great SONGS though this year!

Surprisingly, I think we will only share one song from the looks of your list!

I'll post my list soon!

[quote][i]Originally posted by coop41[/i]
<br>Surprisingly, I think we will only share one song from the looks of your list!
[/quote]
You know, I wouldn't be surprised if most on your list isn't interchangeable for me...none of these songs really absolustely STUCK to me.

Blir, thanks for the list and particulary the description.The year 2005 was probabaly a better year for music. Here is my list:

The Shins- Phantom Limb
Muse- Starlight
The Killers- When You Were Young
Xiu Xiu- Boy Soprano
Gnarls Barkley- Crazy
Franz Ferdinand- Eleonor Put Your Boots On
Peter, Bjorn and John- Young Folks
The Strokes- Heart in Cage
Kasabian- Empire
Delays- Valentine
Bob Dylan- When The Deal Goes Down
Badly Drawn Boy- Nothing's Gonna Change My Mind
Hot Chip- Over and Over
Arctic Monkeys- When The Sun Goes Down
Regina Spektor- Fidelity
Belle and Sebastian- Funny Little Frog
Jarvis Cocker- ...Running The World
Phoenix- Long Distance Call
Royksopp- Only This Moment
Brainstorm- Thunder Without Rain
The Long Blondes- Once And Never Again
Thom Yorke- Harrowdown Hill
Outkast- Idlewild Blue
The Dears- Whites Only Party
The Kooks- She Moves Her Own Way
The Feeling- Sewn
Melodrom- Counting Days
Camera Obscura- Lloyd I'm Ready To Be Heartbroken
Hard Fi- Better Do Better
Ok Go- Here It goes again
Keane- Nothing In The Way
Massive Attack- Live With Me




http://burningflame.wordpress.com/

Stars Above Us- Saint Etienne
Take Me Back to Your Place-Basement Jaxx (featuring Tina from Dragonette)
New York, New York-Moby (featuring Deborah Harry)
Minimal-Pet Shop Boys
I'm With Stupid-Pet Shop Boys
Fly Me Away-Goldfrapp
Ride a White Horse-Goldfrapp

Ok here is my (huge) list since you asked. The Top 20 in order and then the rest. I’m sure I missed a song or two somewhere.:

1 Nightmare Of You – I Want To Be Buried In Your Backyard
2 Arctic Monkeys- I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor
3 Diamond Nights – The Girl’s Attractive
4 Marty Casey – Trees
5 Raconteurs – Steady As She Goes
6 White Rose Movement – Girls In The Back
7 She Wants Revenge – These Things
8 Pink Spiders – Modern Swinger
9 Say Anything – Alive With The Glory Of Love
10 Victorian English Gentlemans Club – Amateur Man


11 Arctic Monkeys – Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong
12 Art Brut – Good Weekend
13 OK Go – Here It Goes Again
14 Cops – Controller
15 Panic! At The Disco – I Write Sins Not Tragedies
16 Teddybears – Cobrastyle
17 Envelopes – Sister In Love
18 Big City Rock – All Of The Above
19 Ella Rouge – El Dorado High
20 Killers- Bones

The Best Of the Rest (alphabetic)

AFI – Miss Murder
Apparitions – God, Monkey, Robot
Arctic Monkeys – Fake Tales Of San Francisco
Armchair Cynics – Bang
Be Your Own Pet – Bicycle, Bicycle, You Are My Bicycle
Black Bear- Black Bear
Boy Kill Boy- Suzie
Butch Walker – Bethamphetamine (Pretty Pretty)
Cold War Kids – Hang Me Up To Dry
Dirty Pretty Things – Bang Bang Your Dead
____________________________
Editors – Feel Good Inc. (Acoustic)
Fratellis- Chelsea Dagger
Good Shoes – All In My Head
Hard Fi – Cash Machine
Hit The Lights – Bodybag
Keane – Crystal Ball
Keane- Is It Any Wonder
Killers – When We Were Young
Living End – What’s On Your Radio
Long Winters – Fire Island, AK
_________________________

Long Winters – Pushover
OK Go – Invincible
Panic! At The Disco – The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage
Persephones Bees – Nice Day
Pink Spiders – Little Razorblade
Rakes – Open Book
Raconteurs – Level
Red Jumpsuit Apparatus – Face Down
Rock Kills Kid – Paralyzed
She Wants Revenge – Tear You Apart
_________________________

Snow Patrol – Hands Open
Subways – Rock & Roll Queen
Thermals – Pillar Of Salt



Anyone who lives in the U.S. who’d like a copy of this on CDR or a link, send me an e-mail or I will share it on Slsk as well for a short time.

White Rose Movement- Love Is A Number
Franz Ferdinand- Walk Away
Editors- Munich
Hot Chip- And I Was A Boy From School
Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Turn into
The Strokes- You only live once
Keane- Crystal Ball
She Wants Revenge- Sister
Muse- Starlight
Placebo- Song to say goodbye
The Killers- When you were young
Ok Go!- Here it goes again
Thom Yorke- Harrowdown Hill
Morrissey- You Have Killed Me
Kasabian- Shoot the runner
SS- I don't feel like dancing
Tiga- Far from home


Crap!! Why my lists are always similar to Blir's??? [:p]

http://spaces.msn.com/members/mechigc
http://thesesensations.blogspot.com
http://devotionanddivision.blogspot.com

Some great songs listed here.

My [b]song of the year[/b] choice is based on the premises that:

1. it's gotta be something with mass appeal- the more popular, the greater chance the message will be heard and the better the potential to make a difference.

2. It has a message that makes you think, pushing the boundaries of traditional pop subject matter.

3. It's irresistably catchy and rocks hard.

4. Bonus points for great video.


[b]"Dirty Little Secret" by All American Rejects. [/b]

A song that addresses difficult subject matter- the hidden character flaws that drive dysfunction, personal crisis and denial- yet became a wildly popular anthem.

I know it's mainstream and that's the point. That this song became as popular as it did means people "got it". While your average Joe might not instantly grasp the complexity of the message, there's a chance they may be humming along to it for years to come.

<a href= http://

<a href="http://www.djcraig.net/">DJ Craig</a>

[quote][i]Originally posted by djcraig[/i]
<br>Some great songs listed here.

My [b]song of the year[/b] choice is based on the premises that:

1. it's gotta be something with mass appeal- the more popular, the greater chance the message will be heard and the better the potential to make a difference.

2. It has a message that makes you think, pushing the boundaries of traditional pop subject matter.

3. It's irresistably catchy and rocks hard.

4. Bonus points for great video.


[b]"Dirty Little Secret" by All American Rejects. [/b]

A song that addresses difficult subject matter- the hidden character flaws that drive dysfunction, personal crisis and denial- yet became a wildly popular anthem.

I know it's mainstream and that's the point. That this song became as popular as it did means people "got it". While your average Joe might not instantly grasp the complexity of the message, there's a chance they may be humming along to it for years to come.

<a href= http://

<a href="http://www.djcraig.net/">DJ Craig</a>
[/quote]


Struck me out looking!![:0] Never saw that coming!![:D]

I actually liked that disc quite a bit but it was released in the middle of 2005 so it didn't meet my stringent requirements to be included this year! [:p]

[quote][i]Originally posted by coop41[/i]
<br>[quote][i]Originally posted by djcraig[/i]
<br>Some great songs listed here.

My [b]song of the year[/b] choice is based on the premises that:

1. it's gotta be something with mass appeal- the more popular, the greater chance the message will be heard and the better the potential to make a difference.

2. It has a message that makes you think, pushing the boundaries of traditional pop subject matter.

3. It's irresistably catchy and rocks hard.

4. Bonus points for great video.


[b]"Dirty Little Secret" by All American Rejects. [/b]

A song that addresses difficult subject matter- the hidden character flaws that drive dysfunction, personal crisis and denial- yet became a wildly popular anthem.

I know it's mainstream and that's the point. That this song became as popular as it did means people "got it". While your average Joe might not instantly grasp the complexity of the message, there's a chance they may be humming along to it for years to come.

<a href= http://

<a href="http://www.djcraig.net/">DJ Craig</a>
[/quote]


Struck me out looking!![:0] Never saw that coming!![:D]

I actually liked that disc quite a bit but it was released in the middle of 2005 so it didn't meet my stringent requirements to be included this year! [:p]
[/quote]

Ooh you're right it was... although Billboard.com shows "Dirty Little Secret" released as a single a couple of times. Dec. 22, 2005 and the latest being June 19, 2006. And it peaked on the charts this year so I'm going with it!

I noticed a strange thing when I was making two mix CDs for a brother in law last night. He's a big music fan but hadn't kept up in the last couple of years, so he asked me to throw together whatever "indie" related came to my head for each of those years. Those lists are below (not in the mix but just alphabetized):

2005:
Beck/Girl
Billy Corgan/DIA
Brakes/NY Pie
British Sea Power/It Ended On An Oily Stage
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah/In This Home of Ice
Echo & The Bunnymen/All Because Of You Days
Editors/Blood
Franz Ferdinand/Eleanor Put Your Boots On
Goldfrapp/Fly Me Away
Heaven 17/Don't Fear The Reaper
Iron and Wine with Calexico/History of Lovers
Kaiser Chiefs/Saturday Night
Ladytron/Destroy Everything You Touch
M83/Don't Save Us from The Flames
Metric/Glass Ceiling
New Order/Turn
Nightmare Of You/The Days Go By Oh So Slow
Richard Hawley/The Ocean
Simple Minds/Home

2006:
Arctic Monkeys/Fake Tales Of San Francisco
The Church/Easy
Corinne Bailey Rae/Put Your Records On
The Dears/Hate Then Love
The Electric Soft Parade/Stupid Mistake
Gomez/Girlshapedlovedrug
Guillemots/We're Here
Hot Chip/And I Was a Boy From School
The Killers/When You Were Young
Morrissey/You Have Killed Me
The Pipettes/Pull Shapes
She Wants Revenge/Red Flags and Long Nights
Snow Patrol/You're All I Have
The Strokes/Heart In A Cage
Subways/Rock & Roll Queen
Tiga/(Far From) Home
TV On the Radio/Playhouses
White Rose Movement/Love Is A Number
The Zutons/Valerie

After he left, I put them both on and listened to a lot of it. They each had a distinct nature, something more than just the different bands and songs, but I can't really put my finger on it. 2005 just seemed more melodic, and possibly not just because there were some great comebacks by new wavers. 2006 just seems way crunchier, as if everyone's trying to turn up their amps to 11. The mix is louder, and they all seem to want to go "anthemic" on just about every track...at least in this set of songs I gathered.

What do people think? Have I just been drawn more toward the rock element this year, or is this a real trend? If it is, like I've said before, it's hurting my ears. This isn't the way to go BIG imho. Just look at masters of going BIG like Led Zeppelin. They weren't just BIG all the time. They knew about song structure, peaks and valleys, lulls and crescendos. Some of this new stuff feels assaultive to me.

I think this year was a year of 2nd/3rd albums from many recent rock bands like The Killers, The Rapture, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kasabian.
I'm not sure that we're gonna enter a phase in which more people are into rock and roll because hip hop seems to still be in the public eye. Not sure if this was a rock and roll year cos bands like Hot Chip are sort of experimental.
Then, you've got bands like Keane with a new album which have a strong melodic sound and are really important in the musical scene. There's something which makes me think of them as the new Smiths... with the exception that I believe that The Smiths made anthems for reduced groups of people back in the 80s and Keane songs seem to be anthems for everyone (sort of what U2 songs are since The Joshua Tree album).

http://spaces.msn.com/members/mechigc
http://thesesensations.blogspot.com
http://devotionanddivision.blogspot.com

[quote][i]Originally posted by Blir[/i]
<br>I noticed a strange thing when I was making two mix CDs for a brother in law last night. He's a big music fan but hadn't kept up in the last couple of years, so he asked me to throw together whatever "indie" related came to my head for each of those years. Those lists are below (not in the mix but just alphabetized):

2005:
Beck/Girl
Billy Corgan/DIA
Brakes/NY Pie
British Sea Power/It Ended On An Oily Stage
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah/In This Home of Ice
Echo & The Bunnymen/All Because Of You Days
Editors/Blood
Franz Ferdinand/Eleanor Put Your Boots On
Goldfrapp/Fly Me Away
Heaven 17/Don't Fear The Reaper
Iron and Wine with Calexico/History of Lovers
Kaiser Chiefs/Saturday Night
Ladytron/Destroy Everything You Touch
M83/Don't Save Us from The Flames
Metric/Glass Ceiling
New Order/Turn
Nightmare Of You/The Days Go By Oh So Slow
Richard Hawley/The Ocean
Simple Minds/Home

2006:
Arctic Monkeys/Fake Tales Of San Francisco
The Church/Easy
Corinne Bailey Rae/Put Your Records On
The Dears/Hate Then Love
The Electric Soft Parade/Stupid Mistake
Gomez/Girlshapedlovedrug
Guillemots/We're Here
Hot Chip/And I Was a Boy From School
The Killers/When You Were Young
Morrissey/You Have Killed Me
The Pipettes/Pull Shapes
She Wants Revenge/Red Flags and Long Nights
Snow Patrol/You're All I Have
The Strokes/Heart In A Cage
Subways/Rock & Roll Queen
Tiga/(Far From) Home
TV On the Radio/Playhouses
White Rose Movement/Love Is A Number
The Zutons/Valerie

After he left, I put them both on and listened to a lot of it. They each had a distinct nature, something more than just the different bands and songs, but I can't really put my finger on it. 2005 just seemed more melodic, and possibly not just because there were some great comebacks by new wavers. 2006 just seems way crunchier, as if everyone's trying to turn up their amps to 11. The mix is louder, and they all seem to want to go "anthemic" on just about every track...at least in this set of songs I gathered.

What do people think? Have I just been drawn more toward the rock element this year, or is this a real trend? If it is, like I've said before, it's hurting my ears. This isn't the way to go BIG imho. Just look at masters of going BIG like Led Zeppelin. They weren't just BIG all the time. They knew about song structure, peaks and valleys, lulls and crescendos. Some of this new stuff feels assaultive to me.
[/quote]

I have very similar feelings when comparing the years and I do think the mastering issue is having a bigger and bigger impact. I do think the 90's are beginning to take hold in a lot of ways as we possibly finish passing through the retro 80's phase. Maybe it's the programming and consolidation of radio (which always seem to be a great and easy target) as well.

Also, if you'd really like to feel assaulted, pop in the new Senses Fail or As I Lay Dying or Name Your Screamo Band Here and take a listen. Ah, the joy of having teenagers!

Thanks to coop41, I have enough songs to make a top 10 list. His contributions are marked with asterisks.

1. "Medicalement" - The Prototypes. I can imagine Parisian strippers wearing nurse costumes using this song to ply their trade. [:D]

2. "Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind" - Yo La Tengo. I don't normally like long, noodly songs, but this rocks.

3. * "Bethamphetamine (Pretty, Pretty)" - Butch Walker. Good old fashioned power pop, complete with hand claps.

4. "Jetsetter" - Morningwood. I like the shifts between good girl soft chorus/riot grrl verses. I'm thankful they didn't spell out the band's name in this song.

5. "Gentleman" - The Prototypes. Another bouncy tune from this French trio.

6. * "I Want to Be Buried in Your Backyard" - Nightmare of You. I'm something of a sucker for songs where the tempo or mood of the song doesn't quite match the lyrics.

7. "Here It Goes Again" - OK Go. I wonder if anyone would have heard this song without that video.

8. "The Room Got Heavy" - Yo La Tengo. Begins all drone-y, but ends with some furious organ playing.

9. "Steady, as She Goes" - The Raconteurs. I'm not that big of a fan of Jack White, but I like this one.

10. "Chasing Cars" - Snow Patrol. I hate this kind of song that fills the playlists of the local Mix station. Every year, one of them gets through to me.

Honorable mention:

*"Good Weekend" - Art Brut
*"Chelsea Dagger" - The Fratellis
"The Minstrel's Prayer" - Cartel
*"Fine Day" - Persephone's Bees
"Crazy" - Gnarls Barkley
*"Modern Swinger" - Pink Spiders