Best of 2K10

Well, it's that time of year. Tis the season for sorting, organizing and ranking the best music of the year. And it's certainly been an interesting year. Big releases by big artists. Smaller artists getting much bigger. Bigger artists getting much smaller. Electro-operas. Witch House (yes, I too rankle at the imprecision of this descriptor). The return of shoe-gaze. And thank goodness, a whole lot less chillwave.

Tonight on my radio show (6:00 - 9:00 p.m. EST), I will be counting down my favorite fifty-ish songs of the year. Three hours of the finest music 2010 has to offer. Artists include (in no particular order): Jens Lekman, Elite Gymnastics, Fever Ray, The Knife, Beach Fossils, The Drums, Karl x Johan, The Radio Dept., Robyn, ceo, Vampire Weekend, Real Estate, Deerhunter, Arcade Fire, The Morning Benders, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Glasser, Yeasayer, Houses, How to Dress Well, Active Child, Summer Camp, Oneohtrix Point Never, Games, Memoryhouse, jj, Tamaryn, Joel Alme, Tanlines, Sleigh Bells, Zola Jesus, Toro y Moi, Local Natives, Girls, Crystal Castles, Kisses, Balam Acab, Owen Pallett, Beach House, Panda Bear, Das Racist and Korallreven.

For those of you who will be in and/or around the greater Lexington, Virginia metropolitan area this evening, tune in to the broadcast on 91.5 WLUR FM. And, of course, for those of you further afield but near the internet, you can stream the show here.

If you have followed this blog for any length of time, you know of my great affinity for all things Swedish. In the spirit of this sentiment, behold: My fourteen favorite songs by Swedish artists released this year. One for every island in Stockholm. Is it possible to miss an entire country? I suppose so. Sweden I love you, and it's bringing me down.

Unlike last year, 2010 was not the strongest year for the Swedes. While they released some truly beautiful records (see: Tallest Man on Earth, The Radio Dept., ceo, and, of course, Robyn's seemingly endless Body Talk series), this year's singles pale somewhat when compared to past efforts. But then again, what I am really complaining about? So many great songs from a nation of nine million people? Perhaps a little perspective is in order.

14) The Knife - Colouring of Pigeons

13) Korallreven - Truest Faith

12) The Knife - Annie's Box (Alternate Vocal)

11) Joel Alme - You Remember the Good Times, But the Good Times Don't Remember You

10) jj - Let Go

9) Jens Lekman - The End of the World (Is Bigger Than Love)

8) The Tallest Man on Earth - Like the Wheel

7) Fever Ray - Mercy Street

6) Robyn - Hang with Me

5) ceo - Come with Me

4) Karl x Johan - Flames

3) Pallers - The Kiss

2) Korallreven - Honey Mine (ft. Victoria Bergsman)

1) Radio Dept. - Heaven's on Fire

And one to grow on. The Knife's live version of "Heartbeats." While the original is an absolute classic, this twinkling, spare reading of their 2005 breakthrough "hit" reflects, for me the true power of this group. Like all great bands, they trade in seemingly mutually exclusive extremes. Synthetic yet human. Cold yet affecting. Icy yet emotional. Their 2010 electro-opera Tomorrow, In a Year, is, in my opinion, one of the truly misunderstood releases of the year. But more on that later.