As I was compiling my favorite songs of this year, I realized something: they don’t fit into a linear listing, and several definite themes appeared over and over. And so, I present c.h’s Top 5 Top 5 song lists of 2008. Enjoy.

 5) The Five Best Worst Songs of 2008

These are the songs that I love, but hate to love all the same. They’re catchy to a fault, so ironic they turn themselves inside out, or so bad they make my ears bleed, but I can’t stop listening to them anyway.

5. Wrestlers – Hot Chip

   Much as I hate to admit it now, Hot Chip’s third album just doesn’t stack up to their previous two. It’s just a bit too clean, a bit too unpredictable for unpredictability’s sake. Here’s to their next try, which should be coming out next year.

4. My Freeze Ray – Neil Patrick Harris

   I couldn’t help promote Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog one last time. This is my favorite song from the Superhero Comedy/Tragedy Musical, and the one that holds up best when you haven’t seen the show yet. Which you should go do, now.

3. New Soul – Yael Naïm

   Yes, that song from the MacBook Air commercials. Catchy, but really has nothing going for it. Also, the rest of Naïm’s album was crap. None of that stopped it from getting heavy rotation on my iPod.

2. I Kissed a Girl – Katy Perry

   Fuck you Katy Perry for getting this song stuck in my head. And for being so hot and so not at the same time. DAMN YOU I AM NOW QUOTING OTHER SONGS OF YOURS MUST TURN OFF RADIO!!!!!!!!

1. L’homme – Boy Crisis (off-site download)

   The Best Worst song of 2008! This is a song filled with so much nihilism and irony that it makes kittens cry. It’s also a song I play on repeat frequently. Best taken with a large dose of pot and (as suggested by the Village Voice) icanhasdowntown.

 4) The Five Best Songs to Dance to of 2008

Of all the lists, this was perhaps the easiest to write. So much good dance music, so little time.

5. Je veux te voir – Yelle

   The French electroclash artist Yelle made her US splash in 2008, and this is the song that did it for us ‘Mericans. Featuring yelling, syncopated rhythms, and horribly inappropriate lyrics, this is one that will give you the best kind of weird stares when it’s on your playlist at your next dance party. The video barely missed being put on the next list.

4. Paper Planes feat. Bun B and Rich Boy – M.I.A.

   My favorite version of the many remixes of M.I.A.’s Paper planes. So much has been said of this song that it’s not worth going over again, but this is one mix that shouldn’t be missed, above all others.

3. Gallery Piece (Jon Brion remix) – of Montreal

   Is the remix better than the original in this case? Perhaps not, but it’s one I’d much rather throw on a dance mix. Eventually I’m actually going to throw my of Montreal-themed dance party, and boy, when this song comes on, you’d better watch out.

2. No Pause – Girl Talk

   When Girl Talk’s new album came out this summer, I don’t think I listened to anything else for a week straight. With every genre ever represented in 60 minutes of danceable music, why would I? This song eventually pushed its way into the forefront of my favorite songs from the album, especially for the final mash-up on it (featuring a song from the first list of this list of lists).

1. Future Faberge (MGMT & of Montreal) – AmpLive

   If 2008 is the year the mash-up gained mainstream appeal, then this is the song that would be the theme-song of all mash-ups in “Adrian’s World”, as it so well showcases how the art can bring out the best of both songs that it works on, creating a whole that is greater than either of its parts. AmpLive is also notable for his Rainydayz Remixes of tracks off Radiohead’s In Rainbows.

 3) The Top Five Videos of 2008

The best mix of video and music from 2008, although few would be listed within the best songs without the video. Unfortunately, my favorite video ever is too old to make it, but these will easily do.

5. Beat Control – Tilly and the Wall

   A clip that I spent hours watching over and over again when it first came out. It’s definitely so bad it’s good, and there is just something so tantalizing about Tilly’s (or is that The Wall’s?) facial expressions.

4. Jizz in my Pants – The Lonely Island

   The Lonely Islands have struck gold again, almost exactly a year after Dick in a Box. Why are dick jokes so funny around Christmas?

3. Wanderlust – Björk

   This is probably the only serious video I’m including on this list (that is, the only one that MTV might actually play). The visuals here really do something for the song, and are unlike any other visuals you’re likely to see anywhere else. Also check out the 3-D version.

2. Kids – MGMT

   While the video for “Electric Feel” might have been a more obvious choice (being by the same director, having an actual budget, and being more self-referential), I can’t get over the video for “Kids”. There’s something beautiful in the simplicity. Not to mention in that girl. So much expression in her face. So much pretty in her face. Anyone have her number?

1. Pork and Beans – Weezer

   Watch it here since embedding has been turned off.

   With Pork and Beans, Weezer released an actually decent song (something they hadn’t done in years). With the video, they created something that had about everything that had made the past year in internet videos awesome, and was awesome for it rather than lame for copying. Yet another in the theme of 2008, that remixes can do right.

 2) The Five Best Songs of 2008 not from 2008

While not officially songs that came out this year, each has made a splash in 2008 for some reason, and thus they get their recognition here. Don’t think any less of them: the last two are some of the best songs on the list.

5. Tie: Je veux te voir – Yelle & Paper Planes – M.I.A.

   I felt obligated to include these songs here due to having included them earlier, even though they are not actually from 2008. However, that Yelle became big in The States this year explains her placement, and

4. Go To Hell Mountain – His Name is Alive

   I really just wanted a chance to put this song SOMEWHERE, since I’ve listened to it so damn much this year, and it was released at the end of last year, and a December release always means hard times finding one’s way onto the best of lists. So here it is. Fuck the rules.

3. Ant in Alaska – Liz Phair

   A song which I have written about before, it was released officially for the first time this year with the 15 year anniversary release of Exile in Guyville. It’s a damn shame Phair can’t make new songs like her old songs.

2. Hallelujah – Jeff Buckley

   Lord knows that it baffles me to no end that Simon Cowell, of all people, has given this song the popularity it’s always deserved, but damn it, I don’t care how it was done, I’m just glad it has been. What is one of my favorite songs ever, and what I think is the best recording of said song, has finally entered the popular consciousness. ‘Bout damn time.

1. 2080 – Yeasayer

   A sad tale: Originally, this was going to be my number one song of the year. It’s been something I’ve been listening to all year, and something that still hasn’t gotten a bit tiresome the more I’ve listened to it. But damn it, it was released in 2007. While Yeasayer has grown very much in 2008, I just couldn’t convince myself to overlook that. However, it’s a damn fine song anyway, one that has set the tone for my year (I sometimes like to think of it as the ultimate Crunchy Con anthem), and one that has only gotten better with age.

 1) The Top Five Songs of 2008

Here they are. The moment you’ve all been waiting for (or not if you just skipped here).

5. Lolita – Throw Me The Statue

   Throw Me The Statue is one of my favorite new bands to come out this year. This is probably the best song off their album. There ain’t much more to say than that. I’m really looking forward to their new release, as I’ve made evident before.

4. Inní mér syngur vitleysingur – Sigur Rós

   I must admit, picking a song off Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust proved to be quite difficult. I knew that I’d have to include something off the album, as with it my favorite Icelandic band showed how strong they actually are, willing to grow in interesting new ways. While “Gobbledigook” was probably the obvious song to showcase the new sound, I feel that this one more faithfully features the feeling of the entire record, being rooted in Sigur Rós tradition while showing off a new upbeat sound.

3. Five Years Time – Noah and the Whale

   God damn this is a catchy song. It’s so twee, while not being dumbly or sickeningly so in any way. Listen to it with your girlfriend the next time you see her, and you won’t be able to help being cute with each other.

2. Close Your Eyes - We Are Blind – Alaska in Winter w/Beirut

   When this song came out at the very beginning of the year, I pegged it as my favorite song of the winter thus far, and as something I was still going to love a year down the road. Well, damn it, I was right. It’s Beirut done with electronic instruments. It’s mucho win. And though it’s been two years since I’ve spent any amount of winter in Alaska, this song brings me back every time.

1. Tiger Mountain Peasant Song – Fleet Foxes

   So this is it. My favorite damn song of the whole damn year. While many others claim other songs from Fleet Foxes’ debut as the best from the album, I think that it is unconditionally this one. It’s haunting and beautiful, has been covered to brilliant effect, and it’s not escaping from my playlist any time soon.

 Bonus List! Top Five Songs I Couldn’t Figure Out Where to Fit in the Top Five Lists of 2008.

A cop-out? Maybe. But there were a few songs I wanted to include that just didn’t fit, to showcase a few new releases. So here they are, mp3’s for most included.

5. Comfy In Nautica – Panda Bear

   Panda Bear’s solo release gave us our much needed dose of Animal Collective this year, and this song works wonders in the right mood.

4. Gamma Ray – Beck

   Beck’s new album was quite solid this year, produced by Danger Mouse (of Gnarles Barkley fame).

3. Black Fur – Fredrik

   Honestly, I can’t even remember where I found this song. But it’s been on a few playlists all year, and Fredrik’s other stuff is worth looking into as well.

2. School of Kraut – Peter Bjorn and John

   PB&J’s sophomore record was an instrumental one, perhaps purposely designed to step around, rather than over, the so frequently seen “sophomore slump”. This song, while unconventional, is quite catchy, and every time I hear it I think of this awesome video (perhaps the only internet meme not to make it into the “Pork and Beans” video).

1. Trance Figure – School of Seven Bells

   As happens, I first heard this song while in my local record shop, and asked for the song title. A bit after that, I began hearing of School of Seven Bells’ other works, which are worth looking into. This is still my favorite, though, sentimental favorite though it might be.

 Fin, or Merry Christmas

Well, this has been quite fun for me. I hope you, too, gentle reader, enjoy the songs, the videos, the mp3’s, and the snark. Keep tuned to c.h in the new year, as I’ll be continuing posting, hopefully eventually upping the frequency with which I do so. I’ll also have some exciting news within the next month about another website I’m working on, so keep in touch about that. Until next time, Merry Christmas and happy holidays.

 Alaska as metaphor

Go ahead and follow the above picture, which is also a link, to the large-format version. Beautiful, isn’t it? The photo was taken a couple of miles from my home town, of a series of mountains across the Cook Inlet. On a clear day they stick out and beckon, dwarfing all surroundings. Seeing these mountains, it is no wonder that Liz Phair’s unreleased song from her Exile in Guyville recordings used Alaska as a metaphor for cold, vast wastelands. The song itself presents a cold, bleak landscape in its first half, featuring just Phair’s hoarse voice and lonely pluckings on her acoustic guitar. The second dabbles more in dispair, with Phair’s lyrics turning dark, and revealing the betrayal and loneliness she feels. Songs like this show that Phair’s reject songs from her first album hold more meaning and feeling than both her two more recent albums combined. A shame.

• Ant in Alaska – Liz Phair

 Cliché doesn’t have to be

Elliott Smith’s song “Needle in the Hay” takes the same rout as Phair’s: Smith singing hoarsely alone with acoustic accompaniment. It’s a pairing that works well to add emphasis to loneliness; although, as with the song’s title, has been used to the point of cliché. Smith showed his talent as a performer by transcending both clichés of this song, producing that is heartfelt and depressing (especially in light of his later suicide[?]). Where it takes the lack of accompaniment and the harsh qualities of Phair’s voice to fully develop the theme of her song, Smith is able to cut right to the chase and, without irony, use the cliché to full effect.

• Needle in the Hay – Elliott Smith (song in m4a format)

 Fleet Foxes done in the woods

First Aid Kit is a duet of two sisters from Sweden. This is a recording of theirs, done the morning after having seen Fleet Foxes in concert, in tribute to them. The Fleet Foxes’ recorded version of this song might be more haunting and lonely, and follows the theme so far of a single vocalist with a single acoustic guitar for accompaniment, but the image of these two young sisters singing their hearts out, isolated but together, about such a sad topic, is really moving. While the narrator’s love might be permanently lost, theirs is not, and with their smiles to each other come hope for him as well as the rest of us.

• Tiger Mountain Peasant Song – Fleet Foxes

In a blast from the past, I stumbled across this article on the hipster party that wasn’t.

“God, this is such a scene. I really just wanted to do something kinda intimate and chill,” said Crystal Perriman, a young waitress with a mohawk, pierced nostril, sleeveless Budweiser shirt, fannypack and Blue Blocker sunglasses.

“Seems like you can’t go anywhere anymore without a bunch of art kids showing up trying to look all cool,” she added, taking a drag of her Parliament then washing it down with a Sparks.

So funny. Thank god I’m not a hipster.

Work is going well. I have my first two consecutive days off tomorrow and Thursday. Because I’m too tired to write anything coherent, here are just some of the things I’ve been thinking about lately.

 So, I finally understand Postmodernism

This post explains why The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” exemplifies Postmodernism in art. Not only is the video great, and the song better than anything Kanye West is putting out now (OMG I hate Kanye sometimes), the write-up at the blog really underscores what the video meant in context of the late 90s. Wins all around.

 GOG Has Landed

Another one for the nostalgia category: Good Old Games is a website that sells legal downloads of old video games. All are DRM-free, and most are $5.99. Check out MDK2, Sacrifice, and the Fallout series. Some really good games to be had here for legit and cheap.

 Gender Roles Aren’t Dead!

The 100 Skills Every Man Should Know made its rounds on the blogosphere a few weeks ago, and now there is a reply in the form of 30 Skills Every Woman Should Have Before Turning 30. No one I know was upset by the sexism of either list, and indeed while the lists are gender-specific, there are “untraditional” skills in both of them. Damn good, I say. It’s just a truth about the world that, over-all, women and men face often different problems, and thus should have different skill sets to cope with those problems, and recognizing that doesn’t mean we are or ought to be placing either gender into a narrowly-defined role.

 Digital Drugs

RjDj is a new App for the iPhone that samples environmental sounds in real-time and then plays back the sounds, remixed according to certain algorithms. It makes a lot more sense when you watch it, thus this video:

There are a bunch more videos on youtube of RjDj in action. While I first thought it kind of over-hyped rhetoric, I’ve begun to like the description of this as a “digital drug”, enhancing and changing sensual perception in real-time by changing what we perceive before it enters the body, not how our processes that input. Granted, by that thinking even sunglasses are a form of out-of-body drug, being a stimulus changer, but I think that one can see how this kind of technology allows for more controlled and specific types of stimulus manipulation. I can’t wait for technology to allow more of these kinds of controlled sensory-changing devices to come into being. Having a soundtrack to your life is finally possible, and is scary/cool.

While I’m a bit too tired after my last two days of work (23 hours of work in two days, splitting my finder open on a mandoline, chain-drinking coffee, making so many freaking spinach salads, watching calluses grow on my hands, and loving every minute of it) for a real post, I wanted to share a band I’ve known for a bit, but recently found again while in the mood to listen to some good punk. Against Me is a good DIY punk band with indie influences and fun politics (and which is currently on tour and should be supported!). I’m hugely digging their song “Baby I’m an Anarchist” right now. Here it is. I’m sure I’ll be singing this and “Surfin’ Bird” to myself for the next few days while I’m working mornings.

• Baby, I’m an Anarchist – Against Me

Check our their website for more music, videos, and tour dates.

I walked into the local record place last night after work, figuring I’d reward a good day at a new job with an impulse buy. Wandering around, something amazing was playing, a folksy blues. I found myself whistling along, snapping my fingers. I picked up a DVD that I’ve wanted to own for a while, went up to the counter, and asked who was playing, and bought Rodriguez’s Cold Fact along with my DVD. As I was told by the girl at the counter, Rodriguez was from Detroit, and in the 70’s he put out an album which hadn’t gotten much play until 10 years later. His story gets weirder, but I want to leave that for Wikipedia to tell so I can get on to the music. The whole album is available to stream at last.fm. This is an album that is best taken as a whole. Sugar Man, the lead track, was also the biggest song from the album, so I leave it here in MP3 form for those two lazy to bother going to last.fm to stream it. Do check it out, especially if you like modern Detroit rock (The White Stripes, Brenden Benson) or 70’s folk rock (Dylan, Cohen, Donovan). Rodriguez mixes the best of both of these.

• Sugar Man – Rodriguez

This is something a record shop still does so much better than the internet when it comes to music, the song overheard, the impulse buy. The atmosphere created inside can make purchasing that album that you’re hearing on over the speakers that much more compelling, and can make the music more compelling as well. I know this isn’t a thought original to me (hell, High Fidelity touches on it when Cusack’s character decides he’s going to sell 5 copies of The Beta Band’s Three EP’s simply by putting on the album at the right time), but it feels great to be reminded of it in so visceral a way. The point? It’s good to stop reading us music blogs, get out, and discover some music in the real world sometimes.

So, I’ve been relatively silent recently because I’ve been working on a website for a friend’s new music video. The video, which is quite entertaining, is a rap video about Martin Luther and the Reformation, inspired by Jay-Z’s “99 Problems”. It’s below, and the website, with info on the video, cast, and crew, is at 95ThesesRap.com. If you like it, pass the website along. I’m sure Xander will appreciate it. And, if there are any embarrassing formatting snafu’s in the website, let me know in a comment, and include your OS, browser, and browser version.

From the redesigned Atlantic comes this wonderful and shocking essay on the TSA. From the article:

“The goal is to make sure that this ID triangle represents one person,” he explained. “Here’s how you get around it. Let’s assume you’re a terrorist and you believe your name is on the watch list.” It’s easy for a terrorist to check whether the government has cottoned on to his existence, Schnei­er said; he simply has to submit his name online to the new, privately run CLEAR program, which is meant to fast-pass approved travelers through security. If the terrorist is rejected, then he knows he’s on the watch list.

To slip through the only check against the no-fly list, the terrorist uses a stolen credit card to buy a ticket under a fake name. “Then you print a fake boarding pass with your real name on it and go to the airport. You give your real ID, and the fake boarding pass with your real name on it, to security. They’re checking the documents against each other. They’re not checking your name against the no-fly list—that was done on the airline’s computers. Once you’re through security, you rip up the fake boarding pass, and use the real boarding pass that has the name from the stolen credit card. Then you board the plane, because they’re not checking your name against your ID at boarding.”

What if you don’t know how to steal a credit card?

“Then you’re a stupid terrorist and the government will catch you,” he said.

This is so worth reading. Between the airlines making flying terrible (buy your own water and meals, pay for any checked luggage, etc.) and the huge hassle that is airport security, I’ve more or less given up flying, and haven’t flown since January. Give me a 24 hour train ride over 10 hours standing in line at the airport then getting on a flight any day. Now, if only we had a better train infrastructure in the U.S.

Well, I have a week left before I start my new job. In the mean time, I’ve begun writing a bit for money, and am finishing up some web development stuff; enjoying my last week with constant computer access before I begin my long hours in the kitchen. I’m excited to begin, but I want to make the most of my free time now.

One of the things I’ve been doing lately is reading up a bit on the Crunchy Cons, since parts of their movement really appeal to me. The general idea of the movement (also called Granola Conservatism) is that eating well, living frugally, and caring for the environment are not in any way antithetical to traditionalist, God-fearing, family valuing conservatism. John Schwenkler is someone who has been taken by the philosophy in a way that I can really understand, and even though I don’t agree with him or others in the movement on all issues, including faith, from reading his articles I have come to truly appreciate the movement.

One reason I like John’s writing so much is the way he writes about food. He has a great article up on Plenty Magazine’s website that discusses the problems with the ways in which we’ve politicized food, taking for example poor arugula. What is a delicious green has been turned into something only liberals should enjoy due to an admittedly stupid gaff made by Senator Obama earlier in the campaign. The article explains all this, and goes further into the virtues of arugula (or rocket, as it’s often known). It also brings me to my second Note from the Kitchen.

The article struck a chord with me because, god damn it, I love arugula. I first discovered how wonderful a green it was while working in my last restaurant job. I worked for a good friend of mine, Mike Hiller, at the Spit-Fire Grille. We always had a good lunch crowd, so we had a lot of hot sandwiches on the menu. One thing Mike insisted on was having fresh arugula to put on every sandwich. Arugula is a strong, crisp green when fresh, and it added a great crunch and spice to the sandwiches. We would buy arugula by the bagful, several times a week, from the local farmers.

At Spit-Fire, which was essentially a small, local restaurant, we used a lot of local greens and vegetables, usually as many as we could buy from the local farmers (and yes, there are farmers in Alaska: the long summer days and rich soil make for decent growing conditions). While a previous job at a health food store working produce helped me to appreciate organic produce, working at the restaurant helped me to learn the beauty of fresh-picked produce. The local produce we got was almost always more fresh and more delicious than even the organic stuff we got shipped from Seattle. The joy of shittakes picked and sauteed on the same day was a privileged to experience. Potatoes, arugula, bok choy, broccoli; all could be had locally. This isn’t even to mention the fresh fish and seafood available.

Working with local food, buying directly from and interacting with the farmers, seeing the freshness directly influence the final meal, all helped me develop relationships with people, food, and the land, and shaped my passion for food. Without that job, and without such a wonderful chef, I would not be where I am today, excited for a job that again lets me work with food and confident in the abilities of local communities and economies to do good things for the soul. As my chef, Mike not only taught me about produce and instilled in me a passion for food, but also showed me all my knife skills, introduced me to libertarianism, and was about the best boss a guy could ask for.

The thing is am most grateful for, though, is this passion for food. It’s something that I wish I could let others experience. I try to every time I cook a meal for people: to let them see my movements, my pleasure in the process of making the food, as well as to give them the knowledge I have about the ingredients I use, and finally to make them something tasty. It’s this passion and experiences with local food that put me in, to some degree, with the Crunchy Cons. More than just a political movement, the Crunchy Cons are largely united by their passions for localism, food, and community, and their willingness to live as they preach. Many conservatives and libertarians would do well to look towards them for their goals and their passion, and to remember that just because “the liberals” do it does not make it wrong, and caring about food, Earth, and community should not be looked down upon. Indeed, it is what we should be striving to attain.

 ’Sup, America?

Wondermark is one of my favorite comics of all time. Today’s comic just goes to show why. Check out the archives, and make sure to catch the hover text.

 Dziuba is back

Official crotchety old man of the internet, Ted Dziuba, has brought back his old website, Uncov. A place for angry rants about the internet and the dumb people who try to make money off it, his site offers multiple lulz a minute, and now has the added irony of being partially user-content-driven.

 This is a picture of the surface of the sun; look at it with wonder

 In which I blog a comment

Matthew Cropp has had an article published at C11 on the secessionist movement of Vermont. As he explained to me when I met him earlier this week, it’s a young but possibly influential movement. I also have posted a comment on the thread about the Alaskan Independence Party, and Palin’s non-involvement. I can’t link to the comment, so I’ll post part of it here instead. Go ahead and find the rest at the article.

The [Alaskan Independence Party] isn’t necessarily a secessionist party, as their website helpfully lays out. Also, I’m pretty sure that the Palins’ involvement has always been pretty low-key. To call Sarah Palin “intimately involved” doesn’t sound right considering any of the sources I’ve read about it. There is a video of Mrs. Palin, as governor, addressing the AIP on their website. She doesn’t sound like a fervent supporter, more a politician politicking.