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Red's Best of 2011: The YECA
Member Since: 10/13/2003
Posts: 48,022
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Arms 
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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Okay, no more screwing around. We're going to get this bad boy completed by the end of this weekend. Why? Because it's just time to. (Oh, and my birthday is next week. There's also that.)
However...because the post is actually so large that I cannot reply to these posts within the main update...SOME REPLIES!
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You make it sound like "Underground" has already ran its course. I purposely left it off my list, because it was released sort of late in 2011, and the video has yet to be premiered.
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I hope that you're right, but I just don't see it doing much more than it already has.
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Hurry, there is almost no time left for the rest of your countdown 
oh there is still one song more from Jane's Addiction? I hope it is End to the Lies. That was my favorite from the album.
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And now, there's plenty of time. But I still intend to finish this by the end of this weekend. Oh, and as for the other JA song...you'll just have to wait and see. 
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I’ve missed three sets! Damn! Very happy to see you are going full-steam ahead on your list. I could definitely take some cues from you haha.
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Are you kidding? I should be taking some cues from YOU! You're at least about to be done with your albums list! 
EDIT: OH, and here's the list so far, as I have a feeling that THIS would make the post too long as well!
100) The Smashing Pumpkins - The Fellowship
99) Britney Spears - I Wanna Go
98) Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris - We Found Love
97) Foo Fighters - Walk
96) My Chemical Romance - Sing
95) My Morning Jacket - Holdin' On to Black Metal
94) Red - Faceless
93) Lady Gaga - You and I
92) Ladytron - Mirage
91) Eminem - Space Bound
90) Danko Jones - I Think Bad Thoughts
89) Skillet - Awake and Alive
88) Lil' Wayne - How to Love
87) Christina Perri - A Thousand Years
86) iwrestledabearonce- You Know That Ain't Them Dogs' Real Voices
85) Lady Gaga - Born This Way
84) Kasabian - Re-wired
83) Shiny Toy Guns - The Sun
82) Kreayshawn - Gucci Gucci
81) The Drums - Money
80) Rihanna - Man Down
79) Staind - Not Again
78) Evanescence - What You Want
77) Cee Lo Green - Bright Lights Bigger City
76) Lady Gaga - Judas
75) MUTEMATH - Odd Soul
74) Brian "Head" Welch - Paralyzed
73) SONOIO - Enough
72) AWOLNATION - Sail
71) Lady Gaga - Marry the Night
70) Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
69) Katy Perry - The One That Got Away
68) Florence + the Machine - Shake It Out
67) Kaiser Chiefs - Little Shocks
66) Avenged Sevenfold - Buried Alive
65) 30 Seconds to Mars ft. Kanye West - Hurricane 2.0
64) Crystal Castles ft. Robert Smith - Not in Love
63) Foster the People - Call It What You Want
62) Skrillex - First of the Year (Equinox)
61) Five Finger Death Punch - Under and Over It
60) Breathe Carolina - Blackout
59) Alter Bridge - Ghost of Days Gone By
58) Lady Gaga - The Edge of Glory
57) Ladytron - Ace of Hz
56) Chevelle - Face to the Floor
55) Kanye West ft. Rihanna - All of the Lights
54) Gotye ft. Kimbra - Somebody That I Used To Know
53) Jane's Addiction - Underground
52) Christina Perri - Arms
51) Dropkick Murphys - Going Out In Style
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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YECA Countdown #8: Top 100 Singles of 2011 (50-36)
 
 
| Sum 41
Screaming Bloody Murder
#50s of the Past:
2010: Them Crooked Vultures - "Mind Eraser, No Chaser"
2009: Static-X - Z28
2007: Evans Blue - "The Pursuit"
2006: Disturbed - "Land of Confusion"
2005: My Chemical Romance - "Helena"
Sum 41 are at their absolute best when they are performing serious songs. But I'm not really referring to their slower stuff. Oh, sure, they have some absolutely awesome slower songs, particularly "Pieces", but it's their faster-paced serious material that has always been what keeps bringing back to Sum 41. "Still Waiting", "No Reason", "We're All to Blame", and now "Screaming Bloody Murder" are fine examples of what Sum 41 can achieve when at their musical peak. And geez, this song is a BRUISER. It starts off slow, almost like a lullaby trying to lull you to sleep...and then, the song revs up and ROARS out of the gate. This song was a top ten song of 2011 for me at one point of the year. I'm still trying to figure out how this fell so hard at the end of the year. |
 
| Ellie Goulding
Starry Eyed
#49s of the Past:
2010: Chromeo - "Hot Mess"
2009: 311 - "It's Alright"
2007: Stone Sour - "Zzyzx Rd."
2006: P.O.D. - "Going In Blind"
2005: Keane - "Everybody's Changing"
Oh, Ellie Goulding. You continue to be one of my biggest crushes at the moment, with your beautiful and different voice and your incredibly vibrant eyes. And hey, would you look at that, the song that I'm talking about now is called "Starry Eyed"! I'M SO TOPICAL! Okay, steering away from my typical craziness, "Starry Eyed" is just a wonderful little pop song. I love the frantic feelings of both the music and Ellie's vocals, and I really, REALLY love the main beat. That was a common theme for Ellie's songs on her album Bright Lights, and it's especially the case here. I'm finding myself saying this quite often when it comes to the pop songs that I REALLY like, but man, why can't we have more big hit pop songs like "Starry Eyed"? |
 
| Björk
Crystalline
#48s of the Past:
2010: Deftones - "Sextape"
2009: Them Crooked Vultures - "New Fang"
2007: Lily Allen - "Alfie"
2006: Lupe Fiasco - "I Gotcha"
2005: Arcade Fire - "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)"
One song that you WON'T catch me saying "Man, why can't we have more big hit pop songs like (insert song here)" for is "Crystalline". That's not to say that the song is bad. Far from it, of course. But could you really imagine a song like "Crystalline" ever being a big hit on any radio format? Never mind that Björk's days as a chart force are long behind her...her style of music just doesn't really fit on very many radio formats. And yet, I can't force myself to care that a song as brilliant as "Crystalline" will never be a chart success. The song is a brash reminder of how much of a treasure Björk really is. It starts off simply enough, with a simple enough beat. And then Björk's vocals come in and she is just knocking it out of the park on this song. This is how it goes for a while...and then, HOLY ****! Out of nowhere, the song bombs your senses with a beat so forceful and so in-your-face that it is really hard to believe that it can be found in the aftermath of a nice and pretty little song. To say that the moment when that second beat kicks in is one of my favorite musical moments of 2011 would be a pretty massive understatement. |
 
| Example
Stay Awake
#47s of the Past:
2010: Paramore - "Playing God"
2009: Kings of Leon - "Notion"
2007: Nine Inch Nails - "Capital G"
2006: 30 Seconds to Mars - "From Yesterday"
2005: Switchfoot - "Stars"
Unlike Bjork, Example is an artist that is finding quite a bit of chart success nowadays, particularly in the United Kingdom. "Stay Awake" was his second consecutive single to reach the top spot there, and, as you're listening to the beginning of the song, I guess that you can understand why it became a hit. Example isn't necessarily the WORST singer or anything, and it has a nice feel to the song. But it feels like the song is building up to something more...and then, finally, the song explodes into its main form. I absolutely adore the main verse of the song. It's so incredibly fun to rap along to, even if you fail miserably at it. The main chorus is also lovely, as Example sings some more to a nice backdrop. Once the song actually kicks in and begins in earnest, it's easy to see why this song became a #1 hit in the UK. |
 
| Red
Feed the Machine
#46s of the Past:
2010: 10 Years - "Shoot It Out"
2009: The Dead Weather - "Hang You From the Heavens"
2007: Lily Allen - "LDN"
2006: Muse - "Supermassive Black Hole"
2005: The White Stripes - "Blue Orchid"
Red (the band, not the ATRL moderator) has been performing consistently good rock music since breaking onto the scene with their smash rock hit "Breathe Into Me". Since that point, they have released quite a few nice songs (including many that also made my year-end singles lists). Even with their great track history, however, no song has matched the pure power and joy of "Breathe Into Me"...until 2011 and the release of "Feed the Machine". "Feed the Machine" is Red at their absolute best, a five minute epic that begins ominously and then proceeds to rock your face right off with one of the most awesome and powerful rock songs of the year. Of course, just to top the epicness off, the song actually ends with a CHOIR. Are you kidding me? Adding a choir to a song is the absolute #1 way to make me love your song. Okay, the #2 way. #1 has and will always be adding a sax solo to your song. How else would I have fallen in love with "Careless Whisper" by George Michael? /randomRednote |
 
| Mastodon
Curl of the Burl
#45s of the Past:
2010: Bloodhound Gang - "Altogether Ooky"
2009: Marilyn Manson - "We're From America"
2007: Interpol - "The Heinrich Maneuver"
2006: Thom Yorke - "Black Swan"
2005: Rammstein - "Benzin"
It seems like music finds a way to give me my personal motto to live by every year. This year, Mastodon provided me with the ultimate motto, perhaps the motto to end all mottos: "It's just the curl of the burl." It's so carefree, so modest, and so flat-out LAZY that I can't help but love it and feel as if it was made for yours truly. The rest of the song is Mastodon at their most mainstream, while yet still sounding more awesome than most music played on active rock stations nowadays. Given all of this, it's no surprise that it was Mastodon's biggest radio hit yet, while also barely reaching the top fifteen on active rock radio. I guess that mainstream rock radio still isn't ready to become COMPLETELY awesome yet. There's still time, though...there's still time. |
 
| Girls
Vomit
#44s of the Past:
2010: The Ting Tings - "Hands"
2009: La Roux - "Bulletproof"
2007: Static-X - "Cannibal"
2006: Morningwood - "Jetsetter"
2005: The Game - "Put You on the Game"
The song that I constantly compare "Vomit" by Girls to is Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb". It's really not too difficult to see why. It shares a similar structure of starting out very slowly but exploding in volume at the chorus, at once uplifting and powerful. There's also a wonderful solo, beautiful vocals by Christopher Owens, and, to top it all off, a gospel-like ending featuring a female singer yelling at us and a choir hiding in the background. There simply wasn't a song like "Vomit" in 2011. And thank god for that, because "Vomit" would be far less special of a song if other songs like it were released all the time. But that's just it: Songs like this don't come along too often anymore. And, as I've already mentioned, the wonderful thing about Girls is that they're bringing back the classics while also adding new touches to an old formula. "Vomit" is the best example of a classic song getting a new, 21st century sheen. |
 
| Dev
In the Dark
#43s of the Past:
2010: The Gaslight Anthem - "American Slang"
2009: Flyleaf - "Again"
2007: Killswitch Engage - "Holy Diver"
2006: Kanye West ft. Lupe Fiasco - "Touch the Sky"
2005: Jimmy Eat World - "Work"
I bet that it's surprising for some of you to see "In the Dark", of all songs, in the top 50 of this top 100. This just does NOT sound like the type of song that I would fall in love with, right? Well, that would have been true last year...but not this year. Remember, this was the year where Lights Valerie Poxleitner made my favorite album of the year in a year where YECA giants Korn also gave us another great album. This was no ordinary year. "In the Dark" is just the icing on top of it all. There's no reason that I should enjoy this song as much as I do, but I do. I find myself becoming entranced by Dev's vocals, by the mood of the song, and, of course, that incredible beat devised by the Cataracs every time that I listen to this song. You know your beat is ****ing awesome when the artist performing your song flat out gives you a shout out DURING THE SONG. |
 
| Foster the People
Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)
#42s of the Past:
2010: Avenged Sevenfold - "Nightmare"
2009: Julian Casablancas - "11th Dimension"
2007: Bruce Springsteen - "Radio Nowhere"
2006: Slayer - "Cult"
2005: Cold - "Happens All the Time"
There was a time where I absolutely HATED "Don't Stop". I originally quite liked this song, but then grew to hate it when it became a single way too quickly and stunted the radio momentum of "Helena Beat". I mean, sure, the song had potential to be a big rock hit, but, then again, so did "Helena Beat"! I still don't understand why they released "Don't Stop" so soon. But, of course, I realized that this release wasn't any fault of the song really, so I let go of the grudge and fell in love with the song all over again. And hey, let's face it, "Don't Stop" is going to be a bigger hit than "Helena Beat" ever would have been. The beat is infectious, the chorus is pulse-pounding, and the whistling...god, that whistling will NEVER leave my head, at this point. This song is so catchy that I hear that scientists are listening to the song right now to figure out if they can duplicate its catchiness for future songs. |
 
| Incubus
Adolescents
#41s of the Past:
2010: Gorillaz - "Rhinestone Eyes"
2009: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Heads Will Roll"
2007: Atreyu - "Becoming the Bull"
2006: Korn - "Politics"
2005: The Chemical Brothers ft. Q-Tip - "Galvanize"
Why wasn't the rest of If Not Now, When? as awesome as "Adolescents"? I wouldn't even mind that the album sounds like an adult contemporary album if the music itself was special, but, for the most part, it's just not. "Adolescents" is the exception, a song with a subdued power and epic sounds. It's a large-scale song...massive, even, but it's not your typical massive song by any means. At many points of the song, it's relatively low-key and small. And yet, you feel as if the song is going to build to something big...and that's when the chorus hits. The chorus is absolutely MASSIVE, a piece of power that is just plain missing from the album that this song came from. I mean, we'll always have "Adolescents", sure...but this song will be a constant reminder of what If Not Now, When? COULD have been. |
 
| Volbeat
A Warrior's Call
#40s of the Past:
2010: Weezer - "Memories"
2009: Arctic Monkeys - "Crying Lightning"
2008: Bigelf - "Money, It's Pure Evil"
2007: Chevelle - "I Get It"
2006: The Roots - "Don't Feel Right"
2005: P.O.D. - "Goodbye for Now"
2004: Probot ft. Lemmy - "Shake Your Blood"
Given its history, it's no surprise that "A Warrior's Call" feels like a fist-pump-worthy anthem. The song was previously created to be the entrance song of a Danish boxer by the name of Mikkel Kessler, and there are many references to the original intent of the song laden throughout, particularly the shout of "LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!" and the ringing of the bell that immediately follows. "A Warrior's Call" is a song that was meant to be just a song for a Danish boxer to walk to the ring to. How the hell is a song like that #40 on my year-end singles list in 2011? There's one reason and one reason alone: Power. Volbeat themselves are one of the most powerful bands in all of rock music right now, and this song is perhaps the most purely powerful and booming song in their discography. In a discography that features some of the most fierce songs in all of rock, THAT is saying a hell of a lot. |
 
| Thrice
Promises
#39s of the Past:
2010: Silversun Pickups - "The Royal We"
2009: AFI - "Medicate"
2008: The Raconteurs - "Salute Your Solution"
2007: Social Distortion - "Far Behind"
2006: Wolfmother - "Joker and the Thief"
2005: Gorillaz - "Dirty Harry"
2004: Auf Der Maur - "Followed the Waves"
One of the sadder music news stories of 2011 was the announcement of a Thrice hiatus. Considering that Major/Minor was the moment that Thrice asserted themselves as one of a handful of potential saviors of rock music, this was a very sad moment for yours truly. Of course, at least we have that very album to listen to, led by lead single "Promises". This is the kind of song that should have been a breakout hit on rock radio, a powerful piece about divorce and how we tend to treat marriage so carelessly, and it just flat out rocks. The chorus is among my favorites of the year, Dustin Kensrue continues to bring some of the most wonderful vocals in rock, and the music is just impeccable. It's just a shame that this could be the last gasp of one of rock's most stable and powerful bands. |
 
| Sleeper Agent
Get It Daddy
#38s of the Past:
2010: Deftones - "You've Seen the Butcher"
2009: Paramore - "Brick by Boring Brick"
2008: The Killers - "Spaceman"
2007: Silversun Pickups - "Well Thought Out Twinkles"
2006: Pearl Jam - "Life Wasted"
2005: Kanye West - "Diamonds From Sierra Leone"
2004: Chevelle - "Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)"
I will admit that my reason for listening to this song the first time was solely because they're from my home state of Kentucky. I always try to give special attention to bands from my home state (see: My Morning Jacket), but I never really expect too much greatness...hell, just a fun time would suffice in most cases. I wasn't really expecting much...and the song doesn't really start out all that spectacularly. And then, I hear female vocals...and then, the song picks up with one of the most interesting and fun musical backdrops of the year. I suppose that this shouldn't be too much of a surprise, given that their influences include the likes of The Pixies, but it was still a very pleasant surprise to hear this song for the first time and every time after. While this song enjoyed a moderate amount of success on alternative radio, it probably deserved more. There was no song quite like this song released in 2011. I hope that "Get Burned" breaks Sleeper Agent out in an even bigger way in 2011. |
 
| Christina Perri
Jar of Hearts
#37s of the Past:
2010: Paramore - "Careful"
2009: Dredg - "I Don't Know"
2008: My Morning Jacket - "I'm Amazed"
2007: Linkin Park - "Shadow of the Day"
2006: The Ataris - "Not Capable of Love"
2005: Audioslave - "Doesn't Remind Me"
2004: Finger Eleven - "Stay in Shadow"
I've seen some people absolutely HATE this song, and I've seen others love it in a way that they have loved very few songs before it. Me? I certainly enjoy the song quite a bit, though it's not on the level of my favorite songs ever or anything. As a pop song, though, it's among my favorites in the last couple of years. We need songs like "Jar of Hearts" every so often, these kind of empowerment breakup songs that touch a larger nerve. Christina herself has said that the song was about an ex-boyfriend that tried to hook back up with her after being pretty ungrateful to her while they were together. I won't lie...for that reason alone, this song hit me pretty hard. It's yet another of those cases where I connect with a song on a more personal level. Seems to be a Red YECA Singles list staple to have at least a handful of those songs. |
 
| In Flames
Where the Dead Ships Dwell
#36s of the Past:
2010: Disturbed - "Asylum"
2009: The Offspring - "Half-Truism"
2008: 10 Years - "So Long, Good-Bye"
2007: Paramore - "crushcrushcrush"
2006: Lupe Fiasco - "Kick, Push"
2005: Muse - "Stockholm Syndrome"
2004: Outkast - "Roses"
It's so funny to me that I tend to enjoy certain music from artists that is lambasted by an artist's "true" fans. This happened with Against Me!, and it's now happening to In Flames. A lot of long-time In Flames fans are not happy with the softer direction that In Flames is heading down, but the fact of the matter is that In Flames are evolving. Very few bands can get away with performing the same kind of music for their entire careers, and In Flames are not one of those bands. You have to evolve to survive in the music industry, and In Flames understands that. That's how we end up with a song such as "Where the Dead Ships Dwell", a song that is incredibly tame compared to the "glory days" of In Flames, but is still among the hardest and roughest around the edges songs of 2011. Above all else, I love the chorus. I constantly find myself singing along at the top of my lungs, and I never regret it. Okay, only slightly regret it. My throat hates me after singing the chorus every time. |
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Okay, some good news and some bad news. First, two bits of good news. Obviously, we're done with songs 50-36 (and thank god for that!), but I'm also halfway done with the blurbs for the next set of songs, which will be songs 35-21. Of course, the bad news is that I'm only halfway done with the blurbs for the next set.  But never fear, I'll have the next set up tomorrow (I swear!), and it will feature one of the most critically praised songs of 2011, perhaps the best comeback single of the year, a very scathing song about a different kind of break-up, and the second appearance by an artist that made their first appearance WAY back in the first set. Stick around...please?
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 4/24/2011
Posts: 8,547
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one of the most critically praised songs of 2011
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Kween Midnight City 
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the best comeback single of the year
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Red Hot Chili Peppers, maybe?
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the second appearance by an artist that made their first appearance WAY back in the first set.
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Foo Fighters, for sure.
LIGHTS WILL BE TOP 30
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Member Since: 6/2/2009
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"Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)", I love the video and the song :B
"Adolescents" 
"In The Dark", the saxophone <33333333333333333
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/24/2009
Posts: 70,975
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Perri,Incubus,FTP,Dev,Ellie,Sum 41 
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 7/23/2007
Posts: 35,994
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8/15
Jar of Hearts + Don't Stop (Color On The Walls) + Adolescents + Curl Of The Burl <3
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Member Since: 10/13/2003
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Jar Of Hearts 
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 12/21/2002
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Member Since: 4/25/2011
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Foster The People, Incubus and Christina Perri
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 3/19/2008
Posts: 37,071
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13/15 for 50-36!
Don't Stop, Adolescents, Vomit 
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Member Since: 5/23/2007
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12/15 
OMG The masterpiece of "Stay Awake" 
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It's so incredibly fun to rap along to, even if you fail miserably at it.
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hahaha I know 
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Member Since: 1/19/2006
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Alright let's see here...
#80-#71: I have mixed feelings with 'Man Down'. Sometimes I like it, sometimes it annoys me, just depends on the mood. Also love Gaga x2.
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Originally posted by Bright Lights Bigger City
It's a song that's begging to be blared at full blast in car radios all over the country
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I was one of those people. Downtown Chicago on a nice summer night, i couldn't resist.
#70-#61: I love all those songs, except for Five Finger Death Punch.
#60-#51: I'm began liking Blackout too late into the year for me to include it on my chart, maybe next year. Ghost of Days Gone By just missed my countdown, then again it was helped by a sudden liking for "Open Your Eyes". Arms. Finally, 'All of the Lights' is just amazing track that I thought would be higher.
#50-#36: I've only heard 'Jar of Hearts', 'Don't Stop', & 'In the Dark' but those 3 are great. 
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Member Since: 11/10/2005
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girls - vomit :jammin: and foster the people  nice choices
from the previous sets I LOVE Gotye ft. Kimbra -Somebody That I Used To Know
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Member Since: 1/26/2006
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8/15
Ellie, Girls and Foster The People
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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Before we get to the update, let's take care of some business!
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Originally posted by Not just a Rih fan, but THERihFan
Kween Midnight City
Red Hot Chili Peppers, maybe?
Foo Fighters, for sure.
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As it turns out, you guessed one of the answers correctly...but while you didn't get the answer I was looking for on one of the questions, it turns out that you're actually spot on correct with another of the choices. You'll see what I mean in a minute.
Oh, and thanks for actually guessing! I leave those hints out there purely for people to guess what's about to pop up in the next set in their replies. 
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Originally posted by Jadiem
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Um...THANKS, JOHNALD! I APPRECIATE IT!
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Originally posted by Ze Muzik Freek
Finally, 'All of the Lights' is just amazing track that I thought would be higher.
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Honestly, I thought that it would be higher too. I'm still not sure how that happened.
And, for the second time in a row (but perhaps the last), here's a non-collapsed look at the songs so far!
100) The Smashing Pumpkins - The Fellowship
99) Britney Spears - I Wanna Go
98) Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris - We Found Love
97) Foo Fighters - Walk
96) My Chemical Romance - Sing
95) My Morning Jacket - Holdin' On to Black Metal
94) Red - Faceless
93) Lady Gaga - You and I
92) Ladytron - Mirage
91) Eminem - Space Bound
90) Danko Jones - I Think Bad Thoughts
89) Skillet - Awake and Alive
88) Lil' Wayne - How to Love
87) Christina Perri - A Thousand Years
86) iwrestledabearonce- You Know That Ain't Them Dogs' Real Voices
85) Lady Gaga - Born This Way
84) Kasabian - Re-wired
83) Shiny Toy Guns - The Sun
82) Kreayshawn - Gucci Gucci
81) The Drums - Money
80) Rihanna - Man Down
79) Staind - Not Again
78) Evanescence - What You Want
77) Cee Lo Green - Bright Lights Bigger City
76) Lady Gaga - Judas
75) MUTEMATH - Odd Soul
74) Brian "Head" Welch - Paralyzed
73) SONOIO - Enough
72) AWOLNATION - Sail
71) Lady Gaga - Marry the Night
70) Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
69) Katy Perry - The One That Got Away
68) Florence + the Machine - Shake It Out
67) Kaiser Chiefs - Little Shocks
66) Avenged Sevenfold - Buried Alive
65) 30 Seconds to Mars ft. Kanye West - Hurricane 2.0
64) Crystal Castles ft. Robert Smith - Not in Love
63) Foster the People - Call It What You Want
62) Skrillex - First of the Year (Equinox)
61) Five Finger Death Punch - Under and Over It
60) Breathe Carolina - Blackout
59) Alter Bridge - Ghost of Days Gone By
58) Lady Gaga - The Edge of Glory
57) Ladytron - Ace of Hz
56) Chevelle - Face to the Floor
55) Kanye West ft. Rihanna - All of the Lights
54) Gotye ft. Kimbra - Somebody That I Used To Know
53) Jane's Addiction - Underground
52) Christina Perri - Arms
51) Dropkick Murphys - Going Out In Style
50) Sum 41 - Screaming Bloody Murder
49) Ellie Goulding - Starry Eyed
48) Björk - Crystalline
47) Example - Stay Awake
46) Red - Feed the Machine
45) Mastodon - Curl of the Burl
44) Girls - Vomit
43) Dev - In the Dark
42) Foster the People - Don't Stop (Color on the Wall)
41) Incubus - Adolescents
40) Volbeat - A Warrior's Call
39) Thrice - Promises
38) Sleeper Agent - Get It Daddy
37) Christina Perri - Jar of Hearts
36) In Flames - Where the Dead Ships Dwell
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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YECA Countdown #8: Top 100 Singles of 2011 (35-21)
(Note: Screw you, character limit. Because of you, I had to remove the "of the Past" of the first five songs.)
 
| Hail the Villain
My Reward
In many ways, "My Reward" may be one of the most surprising songs of 2011. This song was a release by an artist that I didn't really care about too much prior to this single. I respected what Hail the Villain was doing, but...yeah, didn't care. On a whim, I decide to listen to "My Reward", and I'm only listening to the song because I wanted to listen to as much new rock music as possible. My ears were not ready for the POUNDING that they would receive at the hands of these Canucks. This song is loud, it's brutal, and it's powerful beyond words. How the hell did I not give these boys more of a chance before now? Good god. And to top it all off, singer Bryan Crouch absolutely DESTROYS his vocals with some of the loudest screaming I've ever heard. Coming from someone that has listened to quite a bit of hard rock and metal screaming vocals over the years, that is a huge compliment. It's such a shame that Crouch quit the band at the end of 2011, because "My Reward" is a sign that Hail the Villain could have been a special band with him at the helm. |
 
| M83
Midnight City
If I had caught on to "Midnight City" any sooner, it would have been a top 20 single. At least. Hell, given how much I've grown to love this song, it could have been in the top 10 or even higher than that! This is, BY FAR, my favorite song at the moment, and it's not hard to see why a song such as "Midnight City" would be my favorite song right now. If you don't understand why, there's one thing that you need to know about me: I'm an unabashedly HUGE fan of 1980's music. I mean, over the last couple of years, I would say that nearly half of the music that I have listened to regularly has come from the 1980's. That one fact means that I've been ready for an 80's revival for quite some time, and "Midnight City" is the best of many singles in 2011 that brought back the 80's in style. The beat is 80's, the vocals are 80's, and, by god, that AWESOME sax solo at the end is 80's. It's all so reminiscent of the best pop music from the era, and there's no easier way to get into my good graces than to make a song that does a fantastic job of recreating one of music's greatest periods in 2011. |
 
| Red Fang
Wires
I'm still trying to figure out how to make sense of what Red Fang sounds the most like. Mastodon meets Queens of the Stone Age is the best comparison that I've come up with so far, but it almost seems as if Red Fang are a unique entity. They're a complex hard rock band that also calls back to a simpler time of hard rock where the best bands of the genre overwhelmed you with sheer power. "Wires" is the best representation of that power, a near six minute beast that rumbles from the start and ends with a roar. I was blown away by this song and its sound the first time that I listened to it, and I'm still blown away after 200 listens to the song (give or take). |
 
| Paramore
Monster
The direction that Paramore is heading down with the departure of the Farro brothers is something that is genuinely exciting. Instead of resting on their laurels after such a huge change and instead of not trying to take any risks, they give us "Monster", a song that is a SCATHING look at the Farro situation from the viewpoint of Hayley Williams. I'm sure that there are many people that thought (and still think) that Hayley wasn't capable of writing a song this hateful and this spiteful, but one look at this song's lyrics proves that statement wrong pretty quickly. "And we started drowning, not like we'd sink any farther"? "But I'll get a new one and come back for the hope that you've stolen"? And look at the lyrics of the chorus, where Hayley basically tells the Farro boys that their departure from the band has made the band stronger. I mean, OUCH. |
 
| Bush
The Sound of Winter
After listening to the first song released by Bush in a decade, "Afterlife", I just wasn't all that interested in a full Bush comeback. It's obvious, then, that I wasn't quite prepared for the quality of the single that followed "Afterlife". "The Sound of Winter" doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it does do two things: It establishes that Gavin Rossdale has always been the driving force behind Bush, and it establishes that Bush's sound remains just as powerful and as timely as it was in the mid-1990's. This song transports me back to the days when I was ten years old and having to listen to Bush because my brother was playing Sixteen Stone at full blast in his room. It honestly feels as if they never left. If their comeback continues to produce such fine music, then I will also hope that they never leave, either. |
 
| Rammstein
Mein Land
#30s of the Past:
2010: Arcade Fire - "The Suburbs"
2009: Rancid - "Last One to Die"
2008: Serj Tankian - "Sky is Over"
2007: Placebo - "Running Up That Hill"
2006: P.O.D. - "Goodbye For Now"
2005: The Bravery - "Unconditional/Fearless"
2004: Taking Back Sunday - "A Decade Under the Influence"
Honestly, Rammstein could release an album of white noise at this point and I'd still love it because it would be RAMMSTEIN'S interpretation of what white noise would sound like if it were performed by scary German guys. They really do not need to do too much more than they already are for me to enjoy their sound. Only a few bands can honestly say that their sound just flat-out CLICKED with me from the first listen, and Rammstein is one of them. (Also among this rare list: Motorhead, Muse, Korn, and, surprisingly, The Misfits.) "Mein Land" doesn't rewrite the book of Rammstein whatsoever. It's a safe enough (and perhaps even generic) song for a band that performs music that is anything but safe for the untrained ear. It's not going to change anyone's preconceived notions of the scary German band. But you know what? It doesn't need to. The sound that Rammstein has created will always be a joy to listen to, no matter how safe or unoriginal it may be to stick with that sound, and "Mein Land" is yet another incredibly fun and powerful tune from a band with a litany of them. |
 
| Britney Spears
Criminal
#29s of the Past:
2010: B.o.B. ft. Hayley Williams - "Airplanes"
2009: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Zero"
2008: Serj Tankian - "Lie Lie Lie"
2007: Blaqk Audio - "Stiff Kittens"
2006: Depeche Mode - "Suffer Well"
2005: Depeche Mode - "Precious"
2004: Green Day - "American Idiot"
You want any more proof that 2011 was the year of the Red Pop Renaissance? Look no further than #29. Does this song even make the top 100 of 2009? Hell, does this song even make the top 70 in 2010 in what was an admittedly weak year for music? I don't think so. But here we are, and a Britney Spears song is in the top 30 of a year-end singles list by yours truly. Surely, the end times are at hand. Of course, if she had released a song as awesome as "Criminal" in 2009, maybe she would have been pretty high on that list. Hell, if "Criminal" had been a 2010 release, could it have been top 20? Given the sad state of music in 2010, it's certainly a thought to consider. But yeah, "Criminal"...man. Love the vocals, love the musical arrangement, love the chorus, love EVERYTHING about this song. And, of course, I can't finish talking about this song without mentioning one of my most quoted lyrics of 2011 (and perhaps one of the most random lyrics I've ever quoted multiple times): "Mama, I'm in love with a criminal." |
 
| Kasabian
Days Are Forgotten
#28s of the Past:
2010: Kanye West ft. Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver - "Monster"
2009: (hed)p.e. - "Ordo (Ab Chao)"
2008: Kanye West ft. Dwele - "Flashing Lights"
2007: Justice - "D.A.N.C.E."
2006: Gnarls Barkley - "Gone Daddy Gone"
2005: The Killers - "Smile Like You Mean It"
2004: Muse - "Time Is Running Out"
I'm just going to come right out and say it: This song sounds like a Bond theme. I mean, really, that's what we're all thinking, right? It has a sexy riff and passionate vocals, as well as an immediately recognizable chorus. Those Bond writers missed out on a golden opportunity by not naming their next film "Days Are Forgotten" instead of "Skyfall", if you ask me. I've always at least mildly entertained by these crazy sons of bitches, dating back to the days of "Club Foot", "L.S.F." and "Empire", but "Days Are Forgotten" (and their latest album Velociraptor!) did a great job of nearly making me forget about those relatively exciting old days and moved forward with some of the most epic and awesome music of 2011. You're not QUITE on a Muse level of epicness yet, boys...but you're getting closer. |
 
| Against Me!
Spanish Moss
#27s of the Past:
2010: Serj Tankian - "Left of Center"
2009: The Killer and the Star - "Starts When You Fall"
2008: Gnarls Barkley - "Going On"
2007: Shiny Toy Guns - "You Are the One"
2006: Army of Anyone - "Goodbye"
2005: Moby - "Lift Me Up"
2004: Franz Ferdinand - "This Fire"
One of two Against Me! singles to make the top 30, "Spanish Moss" also shares something else with its fellow top 30 single: Both songs were much higher at one point in the year before dropping to their respective places. "Spanish Moss" was competing for a TOP FIVE position earlier in the year. As always, competition can be a dirty bitch, especially in a year such as 2011, where the competition was fierce throughout the year. Against Me! continues to bring the goods despite their lack of luck, and "Spanish Moss" is yet another sign that their move to a softer sound was the best move they could have ever made. Their sound just feels right, it fits. In other words, it's exactly the sound that they were put on Earth to perform. And geez, what an uplifting song this is. If you need a song to pick you up and make you feel happier about your life, "Spanish Moss" is a worthy contender for "Happiest Sounding Song Ever Made". |
 
| Robyn
Call Your Girlfriend
#26s of the Past:
2010: Disturbed - "The Animal"
2009: Flyleaf - "Beautiful Bride"
2008: TV on the Radio - "Golden Age"
2007: Killswitch Engage - "The Arms of Sorrow"
2006: In Flames - "Come Clarity"
2005: 311 - "Don't Tread on Me"
2004: Chronic Future - "Time and Time Again"
God damn, what a beat. "Call Your Girlfriend" has more than just a beat, sure. It has the lovely vocals of former teen queen Robyn, and the lyrics are among the best of the best for singles in 2011, as they tell a story about a woman who is telling her lover how to carefully and gently end his relationship with his soon-to-be ex-girlfriend. It's certainly a DIFFERENT perspective, as we usually look at things from the perspective of the jilted lover in these kind of songs. As awesome as both of those aspects are, however, the beat still wins out. Unlike some of the other beats on her Body Talk album, it's not incredibly overwhelming. It tends to stick in the background as a force to keep the song on track. But it absolutely STICKS with you in a way that few other beats from 2011 will. Tell me, what do YOU remember most from this song?...Exactly. |
 
| Evanescence
My Heart Is Broken
#25s of the Past:
2010: Paramore - "The Only Exception"
2009: Slipknot - "Snuff"
2008: Coldplay - "Violet Hill"
2007: Incubus - "Dig"
2006: Stone Sour - "Through Glass"
2005: The Game - "Dreams"
2004: Sum 41 - "We're All to Blame"
I've mentioned this already in this year-ender alone, but Evanescence has always been more enjoyable to me when they perform slower material. The reason is obvious: The slower music gives Amy Lee's astounding vocals room to breathe and shine on their own. "My Heart Is Broken" is not quite as soft as a song like, say, "Swimming Home". Actually, it's more along the lines of the band version of "My Immortal", only if the band was a constant aspect of the song and not a supplement included at the end for emphasis. Amy's voice is clearly the focus here, though, and she knocks it out of the park yet again, as she so often does. It's Evanescence doing what they do best and doing it very, very well. What's not to like? |
 
| Foster the People
Pumped Up Kicks
#24s of the Past:
2010: Disturbed - "Another Way to Die"
2009: Mastodon - "Oblivion"
2008: Slipknot - "Psychosocial"
2007: Red - "Breathe Into Me"
2006: Rammstein - "Mann gegen Mann"
2005: Franz Ferdinand - "Do You Want To?"
2004: The Offspring - "(Can't Get My) Head Around You"
There's a couple of you out there who know that I used to not really care about this song too much...at all. I thought it was kind of boring and dull, and I couldn't understand how this song was so popular on rock radio. It had its charms, sure, but it just sounded like just another average tune that somehow hit it big in a series of them in recent years. But then, the song started to break out beyond rock radio and hit pop radio in a HUGE way. It would eventually spend two months at the #3 spot on the Hot 100, breaking out in a way that no one could have ever expected. How could this be? How could a song that I thought was so dull break out in such a big way? Well, I decided to revisit the song...and, slowly, I began to understand. Quite contrary to my original belief, the song really wasn't dull at all. It just APPEARED to be dull on the surface. The musical backdrop is surprisingly complex, complete with clashing sounds all over the place and even a whistling section at a couple of points. But the main thing that "Pumped Up Kicks" has going for it is just how surprisingly catchy it is. This is the kind of song that you listen to once or twice and it becomes stuck in your head for months after the fact. I was a fool to think that this song was dull. It's anything BUT dull. |
 
| Foo Fighters
White Limo
#23s of the Past:
2010: Social Distortion - "Machine Gun Blues"
2009: Linkin Park - "New Divide"
2008: Scars on Broadway - "World Long Gone"
2007: Avenged Sevenfold - "Almost Easy"
2006: Beck - "Think I'm In Love"
2005: Sum 41 - "Pieces"
2004: Hoobastank - "The Reason"
There are plenty of moments on Foo Fighters' Grammy nominated album Wasting Light where the Foos go balls to the wall and rock out. "Bridge Burning" is a powerhouse, a wall of sound blasting into your face and into your ears. "A Matter of Time" has one of the most awesome choruses of the year. And "Rope"...I mean, GEEZ. That song is just "rock out, rock out, and then rock some more". But when it comes to pure ferocity, none of the other songs on Wasting Light can ever hope to match "White Limo". Heavily influenced by the sounds of Queens of the Stone Age (where Dave was the drummer for the Songs for the Deaf sessions) and Them Crooked Vultures (where Dave shows up as a drummer yet again), "White Limo" is infused with muscle and masculinity. It roars at the start, it roars in the middle, and it roars LOUDLY at the end. There are no punches pulled. Every uppercut and haymaker that can be thrown is thrown. By the end, you're bloody all over and your face is swollen...but you still want more.
(Oh, and I was referring to Britney, RihFan...but, as you can see, you're also right about the Foos as well!) |
 
| Florence + the Machine
What the Water Gave Me
#22s of the Past:
2010: Arcade Fire - "Ready to Start"
2009: Depeche Mode - "Perfect"
2008: M.I.A. - "Paper Planes"
2007: Kanye West - "Stronger"
2006: Nelly Furtado - "Say It Right"
2005: The Killers - "Mr. Brightside"
2004: Slipknot - "Duality"
Speaking of powerful songs, let's go to the opposite side of the spectrum, to a song that's not really ferocious at all and waits to exert its power until the end as a means of building to something rather large at that end point. "What the Water Gave Me" is Florence + the Machine at their most epic, without a doubt. Florence Welch brings her standard awesome vocal performance, helping to build up to that explosion at the end through the sheer command of her voice. This time, however, "The Machine" aids her voice with their own buildup. Together, they create a piece of music that stands at the counterpoint to, say, "White Limo". It's not the kind of song that roars from the get go, but the kind of song that builds up to something greater...and when that build up ends and the explosion occurs, it is nothing short of glorious. |
 
| Against Me!
Because of the Shame
#21s of the Past:
2010: Chromeo - "Don't Turn the Lights On"
2009: The Gaslight Anthem - "Old White Lincoln"
2008: Weezer - "Pork and Beans"
2007: Paramore - "Hallelujah"
2006: Pearl Jam - "World Wide Suicide"
2005: Bloc Party - "Banquet"
2004: Jay-Z - "99 Problems"
I am a sucker for piano...so, if you've been counting at your homes, among the things that I am a sucker for in music: 80's music, saxophone solos, choirs, and now pianos. When your song starts out with a piano piece, I am IMMEDIATELY hooked, no matter the artist that is performing the song. When it happens to be Against Me!, I'm even more interesting. Pianoes and Against Me! are a combination that I wasn't quite expecting...but I wasn't rejecting the possibility, let me tell you. If the piano was the only thing that I enjoyed about this song, though, it wouldn't amount to much, as the piano is only the primary focus in the first couple of seconds of the song. The rest of the song focuses on a combination of Tom Gabel's powerful voices, the harmony shared between Gabel and his bandmates, and the glorious music that pours out of that harmony. Any other year (and I mean ANY other year), and this song is a shoo-in for top 20. |
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Well, thank goodness that set is out of the way, because we have FINALLY reached the top 20! The top 20 will begin soon (and by "soon", I mean "I'm not entirely sure of when the set will be posted, as I have some homework to do throughout the weekend...but I'll try to find the time to do the set.") with songs 20-11, featuring not one, but TWO songs from the most popular artist of 2011, the first of two singles from a YECA staple, the final singles from a couple of rock giants, and perhaps the toughest omission from a Red Singles Top 10 in the history of the YECA. #11 is absolutely KILLING me right now...and I'll tell you why soon enough.
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Member Since: 3/18/2008
Posts: 25,895
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8/15
Midnight City and I also caught on too late, I'm JUST getting into the track now...
Criminal
Call Your Girlfriend  but again, it took me WAY too long to get into this track
My Heart Is Broken is BEAUTIFUL 
Pumped Up Kick
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
Posts: 14,726
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#50-35. Absolutely love Dev, FTP, and Incubus. Those trio of songs alone show how much diversity you had on your chart and just in general with music this year. Nice stuff.
#35-21. Holy fack. So much. Agree about "Afterlife" and Bush. Did not get me pumped at all. But "Sound of Winter"? Holy **** what a surprise. And I agree that Paramore are on the right track, they honestly just keep getting better. Hmm... Britney. I'm glad you're recognizing great pop tunes, but "Criminal" is my least fav of her four this year. Nonetheless, it's definitely a big departure for her. FTP PUK - the essential song of 2011, way to recognize. Ok - so "White Limo" used to be my least fav Foos song on the album, but I heard it at the gym yesterday, and it was ****ing great. So there you go. Oh, and FATM and Kasabian? Icing on the top my friend.
Great ****ing stuff. Nuff said.
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Member Since: 10/13/2003
Posts: 48,022
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