Top 100 Songs of the Millennium (2000-2019) - #70-61
Posted: March 9th, 2020, 2:31 pm
#70
CHIEN
Gorillaz, Feel Good Inc. (2005)
When I listen to this song, it feels like I’m 23 or 24 again. You couldn’t escape this song back then, and in fact I never wanted to. It’s cool, surprising, it’s mellow and yet it rocks. Some songs are flat, but this one goes up and down, left and right, with a groovy attitude. It’s just great.
GEEZER
Green Day, St. Jimmy (2004)
This is easily the "punkest" song from Green Day's American Idiot (my favorite album of 2004, by the way). Which easily makes it one of the standout tracks from the album. I do have one ranked higher though. This song just really showed that even in an epic pop-punk rock opera, Green Day still had their old school punk roots fully in their back pocket.
JOHNERLE
Bloc Party, This Modern Love (2005)
Like Santigold, this is another case of a black artist defying expectations. I probably listened to these guys for several months before I learned the singer was black, which was definitely a surprise.
LEESTU
FIDLAR, 40oz on Repeat (2015)
A reliably fun garage punk band. Reliable in that all their albums are great, and there is a lot of variety both from album to album, and within each of them. Even when the relatable lyrics are a bit “woe is me”, which is most of the time, there is still an underlying sense of humour to them – one of my favourite lines from this song :-
“And I'll just scream and shout, that I'll never sell out
I'll never sell out, man!
Wait, how much?”
A very clever video too, parodying many famous music videos.
NSPAN
Pillow Fight, Redemption (2012)
Listen to that Goblin sample!! More Automator + Emily Wells
RON B
Bernard Fanning, Wish You Well (2005)
This is short and sharp. Showcasing Bernard Fanning's voice, it was a nice little departure from the more Alt Rock stuff by his former band, Powderfinger.
SCREEN203
Meg Myers, Desire (2013)
Meg Myers is a fucking genius. The disturbing video only caps off her exploration of lust to extreme degrees, sort of a female version of "Closer" by Nine Inch Nails.
Warning: (NSFW)
SHRYKE
Fatboy Slim, Weapon of Choice (2001)
It’s rare that a song is made exponentially better because of its accompanying video, but this is one of those cases. Christopher Walken finally got to put his dance training to use, and the video won awards for its choreography. I double-dog dare you all to watch it and not smile. As for the song itself, well, it’s got a catchy vibe that may never leave your brain once you hear it. And listen carefully… there’s actually a Dune reference in the lyrics, which are sung by none other than Bootsy Collins himself!
SIX
The Arcade Fire, Rebellion (Lies) (2004)
I had been using file sharing programmes since the end of the 90s, but it was always a track here and there (my computer didn’t’ have enough memory to store more than a handful of songs). But that quickly changed, and I believe Funeral was the first album I downloaded every track from, as it wasn’t released over here until 2005. But boy, it was worth being the kid who was telling all his friends to listen out for this new Canadian band, who sounded like the lovechild of Springsteen and the Talking Heads. Rebellion was the first song of theirs I totally fell for, thanks to its rousing music roaring in the face of its angry lyrics. It still gets me, every time I listen. And I owe it all to Limewire.
SURFER
Liars, The Other Side of Mt. Heart Attack (2006)
Liars returned on their third outing with a fascinating concept record which revolved around the yin and yang relationship of two fictionalised characters, Drum and Mt. Heart Attack. One driven and assertive, the other filled with self doubt, it began an intriguing and absorbing listen filled with tribal drums and droning guitars. However, the highlight of the record belongs to its closer, this much more intimate piece, where everything is dialled back and what is left is a sparse and quite beautiful song. It provides a spin on Mt. Heart Attack's less positive stance throughout the record and I feel it suggests that not everything is black and white, there is also so much hope to be found where it feels like there is none.
TRANSFORMERS
Queens of the Stone Age, Go with the Flow (2002)
The first three Queen of the Stone Age records are eccentric, rifftastic rock n'roll masterpieces. The presence of a mighty infectious hook alongside their traditional fuzzy, psychedelic guitars and massive drumming is what gives "Go with the Flow" a slight edge over the rest of my favorite Queen of the Stone Age songs ("The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret", "How to Handle a Rope", "No One Knows").
CHIEN
Gorillaz, Feel Good Inc. (2005)
When I listen to this song, it feels like I’m 23 or 24 again. You couldn’t escape this song back then, and in fact I never wanted to. It’s cool, surprising, it’s mellow and yet it rocks. Some songs are flat, but this one goes up and down, left and right, with a groovy attitude. It’s just great.
GEEZER
Green Day, St. Jimmy (2004)
This is easily the "punkest" song from Green Day's American Idiot (my favorite album of 2004, by the way). Which easily makes it one of the standout tracks from the album. I do have one ranked higher though. This song just really showed that even in an epic pop-punk rock opera, Green Day still had their old school punk roots fully in their back pocket.
JOHNERLE
Bloc Party, This Modern Love (2005)
Like Santigold, this is another case of a black artist defying expectations. I probably listened to these guys for several months before I learned the singer was black, which was definitely a surprise.
LEESTU
FIDLAR, 40oz on Repeat (2015)
A reliably fun garage punk band. Reliable in that all their albums are great, and there is a lot of variety both from album to album, and within each of them. Even when the relatable lyrics are a bit “woe is me”, which is most of the time, there is still an underlying sense of humour to them – one of my favourite lines from this song :-
“And I'll just scream and shout, that I'll never sell out
I'll never sell out, man!
Wait, how much?”
A very clever video too, parodying many famous music videos.
NSPAN
Pillow Fight, Redemption (2012)
Listen to that Goblin sample!! More Automator + Emily Wells
RON B
Bernard Fanning, Wish You Well (2005)
This is short and sharp. Showcasing Bernard Fanning's voice, it was a nice little departure from the more Alt Rock stuff by his former band, Powderfinger.
SCREEN203
Meg Myers, Desire (2013)
Meg Myers is a fucking genius. The disturbing video only caps off her exploration of lust to extreme degrees, sort of a female version of "Closer" by Nine Inch Nails.
Warning: (NSFW)
SHRYKE
Fatboy Slim, Weapon of Choice (2001)
It’s rare that a song is made exponentially better because of its accompanying video, but this is one of those cases. Christopher Walken finally got to put his dance training to use, and the video won awards for its choreography. I double-dog dare you all to watch it and not smile. As for the song itself, well, it’s got a catchy vibe that may never leave your brain once you hear it. And listen carefully… there’s actually a Dune reference in the lyrics, which are sung by none other than Bootsy Collins himself!
SIX
The Arcade Fire, Rebellion (Lies) (2004)
I had been using file sharing programmes since the end of the 90s, but it was always a track here and there (my computer didn’t’ have enough memory to store more than a handful of songs). But that quickly changed, and I believe Funeral was the first album I downloaded every track from, as it wasn’t released over here until 2005. But boy, it was worth being the kid who was telling all his friends to listen out for this new Canadian band, who sounded like the lovechild of Springsteen and the Talking Heads. Rebellion was the first song of theirs I totally fell for, thanks to its rousing music roaring in the face of its angry lyrics. It still gets me, every time I listen. And I owe it all to Limewire.
SURFER
Liars, The Other Side of Mt. Heart Attack (2006)
Liars returned on their third outing with a fascinating concept record which revolved around the yin and yang relationship of two fictionalised characters, Drum and Mt. Heart Attack. One driven and assertive, the other filled with self doubt, it began an intriguing and absorbing listen filled with tribal drums and droning guitars. However, the highlight of the record belongs to its closer, this much more intimate piece, where everything is dialled back and what is left is a sparse and quite beautiful song. It provides a spin on Mt. Heart Attack's less positive stance throughout the record and I feel it suggests that not everything is black and white, there is also so much hope to be found where it feels like there is none.
TRANSFORMERS
Queens of the Stone Age, Go with the Flow (2002)
The first three Queen of the Stone Age records are eccentric, rifftastic rock n'roll masterpieces. The presence of a mighty infectious hook alongside their traditional fuzzy, psychedelic guitars and massive drumming is what gives "Go with the Flow" a slight edge over the rest of my favorite Queen of the Stone Age songs ("The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret", "How to Handle a Rope", "No One Knows").