What unites the following songs is the tremendous tension they possess. They chronicle people - or moment's - of fluctuation and stasis, but the issue's never resolved.
5. Radiohead - House of Cards Immense. Wondrously textured. Complicated. Truly seductive. I'll let the dearly departed Stylus Magazine handle it:
Quote:
“House of Cards” is about infidelity, and Radiohead enacts its moral chronology to perfection. The groove is unquestionably the sultriest of the band’s not-exactly-sultry career, and less-attentive listeners very well may put it on to get it on. Thom Yorke, he of the beautifully sexless tenor, actually seduces at the start (“I don’t want to be your friend / I just want to be your lover”), just as the physical allure of a fling is its initial draw. Soon enough, however, it becomes less about desire than surrender (“forget about your house of cards”), which in turn exposes the surfeit of “denial” that brings a person to such a point. Sound familiar? If you’ve lived and loved, I’m guessing “your ears should be burning.”
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4. Sugababes - Denial If the protagonist of House of Cards has already given into to temptation, the hero (or heroine) of Denial is stuck at the moment of discovery. The song bobs comfortably throughout it's three minutes and forty four seconds, but doubt seeps in.
"I didn't want to fall in love with you/I didn't want to know the things I knew/it wasn't till I looked into the mirror/Denial."
Denial gains its strength from pinpointing the exact moment change enacts itself upon us, and all the conflicting emotions that stagger us into shock. This also stands as the greatest song Sugababes v3.0 have ever done - a tremendous structure, beautiful harmonies, and above all, honesty. I hope they listen to this when they make the next album - that way, they won't go wrong.
3. Girls Aloud - Can't Speak French Quite possibly the coolest song they've ever released - and for a band that's turned Sound of the Underground, The Show, Biology and Sexy! No No No into singles, that says quite a lot. Xenomania break their own rules and follow a basic verse-bridge-chorus-middle 8 structure, and the payoff's never been better. Can't Speak French has possibly the greatest climatic build of any pop song this decade - until it leaves you in stone cold silence. The herky-jerky rhythm flat lines - but that's the point. They can't say what they truly feel, or just play a game - so they'll (and, honestly, we'll) let the funky music keep playing.
The top two is next! ANY GUESSES?!?!?