Sarah's favorite songs of the yeaer

At the beginning of this year, I told my mother excitedly that I had found a blog that had listed Frightened Rabbit's "The Midnight Organ Fight" as the best album of 2008 (which, in my opinion, it was). My mom just laughed at me and asked me why I didn't make my own lists of these sorts so I could put "The Midnight Organ Fight" at the top of mine.

Well, now I have a blog that no one reads, so now I can! On the one hand, lists are silly, but on the other, I like many silly things and lists in particular, so these are my ten favorite songs of 2009. They're all excellent. They might not be the "best," but they're the ones that I've listened to most, and I love them all.

1. "Soldier" by Ingrid Michaelson
This whole album, "Everybody," is wonderful. "The Chain" is another one of my favorites from it. I like the chorus on this song, even though it's simple: "And so it goes, this soldier knows, the battle with the heart isn't easily won; but it can be won." Almost every song on "Everybody" has the same theme: that this man she's in love with has left her, but she will take him back if he chooses to come back (as she says in "The Chain," "...and if you come around again, then I will take the chain from off the door") even though she knows it's a bad idea. I think that honesty is incredible, and something you don't often find.

2. "Three Rounds and a Sound" by Blind Pilot
This is an achingly beautiful song, and I'm not sure how you can get past loving it. The link is to the mp3 they recorded at Daytrotter; there are other free and legal mp3's of theirs and other bands to be found there.

3. "Dance Anthem of the '80s" by Regina Spektor
This is the reason it's wonderful. I'm talking about the section at 2:03 in particular:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zd0RZusvJk]

4. "Two" by the Antlers
Potentially one of the saddest songs I've ever heard. The lyrics tell the story in a way that is perfectly clear yet poetic.

5. "Love Don't Let Me Go" by Catch the Rabbit
I like this song because it was written for me, the end.

6. "Hot Mess" by Cobra Starship
This is a thoroughly ridiculous composition. Ben made me watch all the Cobra Starship videos he could get his hands on, and he's right - they really don't take themselves seriously at all. "Hot Mess" was the entire reason I made a CD to drive home to, even though driving home only takes me about half an hour, just so I could turn the volume up really high and dance a lot. It's so wonderful.

7. "Moth's Wings" by Passion Pit
"You come beating like moth's wings, spastic and violently, whipping me into a storm, shaking me down to the core. But you run away from me, and left me shimmering, like diamond wedding rings spinning dizzily down on the floor." And it continues like that for a while.

8. "Strictly Game" by the Harlem Shakes
The Harlem Shakes are broken up after less than a year together, but this song is still one of the happiest ever. "Stay game, stay game, stay game!" Apparently they were amazing live - I'm sad I didn't get to hear more of their music. (To be fair, this is the only one of their songs I really, really love.)

9. "The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid" by the Decemberists
Track 8 is just my favorite snippet of the massive concept album the Decemberists released in "The Hazards of Love." Really, the album is one very long, continuous song, and I could put it here as my favorite song instead of this five-minute section. Shara Worden (of My Brightest Diamond) plays the Queen, and her voice - especially in person - is breathtaking.

10. "Barlights" by Fun
This is just good happy fun. (Hee hee.) It also takes me back to the Format, which makes me smile.

<3 Sarah