The Top 100 Songs of 2004

2004 was my last year before I had an ipod, meaning it was the last full year I went to Vinyl Fever and purchased new and used CD’s.  Some I got that year included Mouse’s comeback Good News For People Who Love Bad News; The Beastie Boys comeback To the 5 Boroughs, Franz Ferdinand, Wilco, and Arcade Fire.  Possibly more notable is it seemed like everyone I know was geeking out about Elliott Smith.  It wasn’t exactly MTV releasing Nirvana’s Unplugged, but Smith’s From a Basement on a Hill was given the Heath Ledger treatment by Tampa’s musical elite.  Most of it was worth it. 

100.  Yeah – Usher, L’il Jon, Ludacris

Obviously, this only makes this list because Dave Chappelle is funny.  

99.  Me Plus One – Annie

98.  We Got The – Beastie Boys

Every time MCA rhymes, he’s pushing views.  That’s why early Beastie pro-mayhem rhymes are better. 

97.  Reflector – Medeski, Martin & Wood

This is kind of their last real album.  From here, they started doing kooky side projects and series albums and what not.  I imagine they knew that was the plan at the time, hence the name End of the World Party (Just in Case)

96.  Blinded By the Lights – The Streets

95.  Gjort Bort Sig – Dungen  

94.  Art of Nice and Gentle – Black Keys

93.  The Dark of the Matinee – Franz Ferdinand

92.  Time to Build – Beastie Boys

As fun as it was in 2004, the B-Boys dated this album horribly by basically making it an anti-George Bush album. 

91.  The Good Times are Killing Me – Modest Mouse

90.  Anonymous Skulls – Medeski, Martin & Wood

89.  Family Tree – Loretta Lynn

88.  This Fire – Franz Ferdinand

87.  Hostile, Mass. – Hold Steady

86.  Company in my Back – Wilco

85.  Tornadoes – Drive-By Truckers

84.  Panda – Dungen

If I knew what the lyrics meant, I may love this music. 

83.  Strung Out Again – Elliott Smith

82.  Love and Some Verses – Iron & Wine

81.  Take Your Mama Out – Scissor Sisters

80.  Memory Lane – Elliott Smith

79.  Undermind – Phish

78.  The Transfiguration – Sufjan Stevens

77.  End of the World Party – Medeski, Martin & Wood

Granted  they don’t sing, but their music ages better than most jam bands. 

76.  Girl is on my Mind – Black Keys

75.  Everything Is Everything – Phoenix

74.  The Rat – The Walkmen

73.  That Dress Looks Nice on You – Sufjan Stevens

72.  Twilight – Elliott Smith

71.  Danko/Manuel – Drive-By Truckers

70.  One Chance – Modest Mouse

69.  All Lifestyles – Beastie Boys

68.  Tits on the Radio – Scissor Sisters

67.  Killer Parties – Hold Steady

Ah, a song about a girl named Charlemaine and waking up in Ybor City.  I love when bands REALLY let you into their worlds with great lyrics, and the Hold Steady always does that. 

66.  Chewing Gum – Annie

Definite guilty pleasure song.   I have no reason why I like this song, but I do. 

65.  Naked as We Came – Iron & Wine

64.  Daddy’s Cup – Drive-By Truckers

63.  Mr. Brightside – The Killers

62.  I Predict a Riot – Kaiser Chiefs

61.  Evil – Interpol

60.  Free Until the Cut Me Down – Iron & Wine

59.  Luna Sea – Vetiver

58.  In the Devil’s Territory – Sufjan Stevens

I love this one so well because parts of it remind me of my favorite hotel, the Neutral Milk one. 

57.  Fit But You Know It – The Streets

56.  The Devil’s Workday – Modest Mouse

55.  Most People are DJs – Hold Steady

54.  Have Mercy – Loretta Lynn

Loretta Lynn and Jack White is one of rock’s finest odd combos. 

53.  Walk Idiot Walk – The Hives

52.  Wake Up – Arcade Fire

I’m guessing I get this confused with the Flaming Lips because it’s been in commercials. 

51.  Coast 2 Coast – Elliott Smith

50.  Sodom, South Georgia – Iron & Wine

49.  A Satisfied Mind – Johnny Cash

I never knew this, but apparently the first time Johnny Cash’s version of this appeared on a recording was the Kill Bill Vol. 2 soundtrack.  Score another one for Tarantino’s soundtrack selecting. 

48.  Come on Down – Franz Ferdinand

47.  Une Annee Sans Lumiere – Arcade Fire

I can say, with a couple years of French and zero German, that French words are easier to spell than German. 

46.  Crowd Control – Phish

This is the perfect last Phish song.  It’s very rare to hear them desperate, uncaring and even a little pissy, as you do here.    

45.  The View – Modest Mouse

44.  It Was Supposed to be so Easy – The Streets

43.  The Brouhaha – Beastie Boys

42.  Sunset Soon Forgotten – Iron & Wine

41.  Take the Bit Between Your Teeth – Electrelane

This song is the only reason why I still have this band on my ipod. 

40.  Du Ar For Fin For Mig – Dungen

That’s German without the accents added to the letters and I have no idea what it means.  I do know, that there’s some fantastic guitar playing going on here. 

39.  Surfing on a Rocket – Air

It’s always nice to hear a band that your friends love on your own time. 

38.  About Her – Malcolm McLaren

Kill Bill is arguably one of the best soundtracks ever.  If you take away the songs that went on to have great commercial success (and I mean commercial literally as a couple appeared in multiple commercials and still do), you still have other fines songs, like this Zombie’s remake. 

37.  Hey Fuck You – Beastie Boys

36.  Portland Oregon – Loretta Lynn

35.  Heartbeat – Annie

34.  Don’t Go Down – Elliott Smith

From a Basement on a Hill seems like a really deep hole, with each song just digging it deeper and deeper and at the bottom lies Elliott Smith.  

33.  10 AM Automatic – Black Keys

32.  Crawlspace – Beastie Boys

31.  Puttin People on the Moon – Drive-By Truckers

I know it’s over done, but this is the perfect picture for this song …

30.  Stand Up Tall – Dizzee Rascal

When you hear this song, at first, it’s like, ick … gross … but keeps growing as it goes along.  I have no freaking idea what he’s saying, but it doesn’t really matter. 

29.  Bukowski – Modest Mouse

It’s time for a new album already.  Seriously. 

28.  Van Lear Rose – Loretta Lynn

It’s almost like Loretta Lynn herself knew how shitty pop country was so she enlisted Jack White and went to a great alt-country route. 

27.  Float On – Modest Mouse

Hearing the Kid’s Bop version of this song was quite a surprise to say the least. 

26.  The Late Greats – Wilco

25.  Stack Shot Billy – The Black Keys

Beautifully done blues rock here. 

24.  Lookout Mountain – Drive-By Truckers

I’m usually more of a fan of their alt-country stuff, but this is an all-out rocker here.  I’m starting to believe The Dirty South is their best album. 

23.  Culture For Dollars – Dalek

This act was kind of a one trick pony with the lo-fi distortion thing they got giving ambiance to the rhymes.  It almost reminds me of what Terminator X did for Public Enemy on Nation of Millions meaning, it’s either really irritating or awesome.  On this song, it’s awesome. 

22.  High on a Mountain Top – Loretta Lynn

21.  Let’s Get Lost – Elliott Smith

20.  Neighborhood #2 – Arcade Fire

Do you think when we look back at the early Aughts, there will something known as “The Canadian Invasion?”  It would be similar to the British Invasion, only the bands would only be popular in an “Indie” sense as opposed to the “pop” sense the British Invasion had. 

19.  There She Goes, My Beautiful World – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

There’s nothing like artists that perform rock music the exact way it’s supposed to be done.  I gotta listen to Nick Cave more. 

18.  Where the Devil Don’t Stay – Drive-By Truckers

This is one of those songs that reminds me I’ll never be one of those wicked cool southern rock gambling types.  I’d love to write a low down song.  The Dead did that well. 

17.  At Least That’s What You Said – Wilco

Wilco nearly changing into a jam band on A Ghost is Born is still a little unsettling to me, but when you have a weapon like Nels Cline, you have to use him.  It’s like the Germans using the Red Baron even though there was a scarf involved.    

16.  Staring at the Sun – TV on the Radio

These guys are so hit or miss with me, and this one is a home run (though not out of the park).   

15.  Galang – MIA

I’ve never had such a tough time loving an artist so many people hate, and right fully so.  She’s almost like a wanna-be gangsta version of Justin Bieber.  Ugh, I can’t believe I just said that, but she’s becoming such a pop music brat.  The middle finger during a shitty Madonna song MIA?  Really?  I think the Who’s Super Bowl protest by refusing to play like they knew how was more effective.  If she never said one word outside of her albums, it would’ve been good thing.  Some people should just never open their mouth unless they’re singing.  I must warn though, in 2005 and 2007, she’s going to do quite well on my lists. 

14.  Blame It on the Tetons – Modest Mouse

When this album first came out, I thought Isaac’s lyrics weren’t up to snuff compared to his previous work.  I was obviously wrong when this song is considered because it’s one of Isaac’s finest pieces lyrically. 

13.  Neighborhood #1 – Arcade Fire

This song builds the entire time.  If it didn’t have to end, basically it’d be perfect perpetual motion, thought I’m not sure it ever gets faster, which is the genius of it. 

12.  King’s Crossing – Elliott Smith

If they made The Last Days 2, and tried to compete with Cobain’s lonely desperation that they did quite well in the first installment, do you think Smith’s would rival that?  Or do you just film someone playing Layne Staley’s dead body for an hour and a half? 

11.  Yeah (Crass Version) – LCD Soundsystem

It’s rare I say this about a 9 minute long song, but I almost don’t want it to end, and then they have the other version, which is even longer and that’s great too … and the beat never changes. 

10.  Drop It Like It’s Hot – Snoop Dogg

This song pushes the envelope between being a guilty pleasure and a really cool song.  Not sure which it is, but it’s a lot of fun either way. 

9.  Ch-Check It Out – Beastie Boys

To the Five Boroughs may be their weakest album to date, but when they get away from how much they hate Dubya, they do some amazing stuff.  Now where’s a rap band coming out with an anti-Obama album?  Yes, that was  a joke … in the reign of Queen Dick I imagine. 

8.  Hell is Chrome – Wilco

Ah, the peaks and valleys of A Ghost is Born.  I almost prefer these songs on their live recording Kicking Television because they don’t have the huge changes from quiet to loud.  It’s nearly impossible to listen to the beginning of this album without being near the volume control. 

7.  Wagon Wheel – Old Crow Medicine Show

I’m going to have to listen to these guys more.  Now that I’ve heard this song on my now infamous “Ashy Chill” ipod playlist umpteen times, I can’t help but love it.  (That’s Ashy as in Asheville, not Ashy Larry). 

6.  Neighborhood #3 – Arcade Fire

How long will this band be around?  They almost seem like they have no ceiling.  Though I haven’t enjoyed their last two albums as much as I enjoyed the first, they seem to be almost bigger.  It’s going to be exciting to see what they do next. 

5.  The World At Large – Modest Mouse

After a 4 year break from the last album, this was the first song on the new album and they hadn’t lost a beat.  We all love songs about drifters and books about the same.  They’re the best. 

My thoughts were so loud I couldn’t hear my mouth. 

4.  A Fond Farewell – Elliott Smith

Very few songs make me as sad as this one does, and somehow, that’s a good thing. 

3.  Take Me Out – Franz Ferdinand

In 2004, hell, many years of the new millennium, it’s very hard to find a good pure rock song.  This is one of the best. 

2.  Muzzle of Bees – Wilco

To great friends getting married. 

1.  The Ocean Beathes Salty – Modest Mouse

In retrospect, it’s probably not a good idea to go to a ball game in St. Pete, then kill the town afterwards, end up on a park bench, then drive back to Tampa.  Even if you’re not the driver.