THE TOP 105 SONGS OF 2010 AT HALFTIME!
By Kevin Kilker

Well it is past the halfway marker for 200, and there has already been an influx of amazing music out there, from surprising to non-surprising…new and exciting and of course old and tired. And although I wanted to make this list much more detailed with descriptions and everything I just haven’t had the time to do so, and therefore can only list them out for you. Either way this is one of the more interesting lists I have ever put up, which makes me wonder what the second half of 2010 has in store for us.

There are a lot of factors that determine how I put my lists together and how they are ordered, but the most important thing is that every song is where it is at for different reasons. I only list official singles, because if I tried to base it off of every song off of every album it would come out three or four years from now, negating purpose, especially for a halftime list. I base my decisions based off the overall impact the song has had in the musical world in the given year, whether it be for sales and airplay reasons or for critical acclaim, or in some cases even both. The list goes on and on but in the end it all depends on the overall package. I went with 105 songs instead of 100 because in December it will be the Top 210 of 2010, so why not divide it by two for a halftime list. Makes sense right? Either way in the end you must realize that although I like to consider myself a music expert it is still MY opinion, and NO ONE will agree with the list 100% Nor should you. So although I would love to hear feedback on everything…even recommending that you do, (and explain myself if necessary for certain tunes) it will do nothing to change it. Either way I hope you like it and be on the lookout for The Top 210 of 2010 in December!

TOP 105 SONGS OF 2010 AT HALFTIME

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THE TOP 65 ALBUMS OF 2009 By Kevin Kilker

Well 2009 continues to be the year of bigger and better things. And while originally attempting to make a Top 50 Albums of the Year I found that there were too many good albums to fit them into just 50…so like everything else I narrowed down a list of 150 albums down to 65, making it the largest best of albums list I have ever made. The Year End Albums List is much different from my songs list in the sense that it is less extensive but focuses much more on actual critical praise and viewer feedback, so indie bands tend to dominate the list. Though there are still many mainstream albums on the list they are judged on a much more equal level than with the songs charts, which is so extensive that a variety of factors have to be weighed to determine where it is ranked. Case in point…this is MUCH easier for me to do. But like my song chart this is based solely on my amateur opinion (though I like to think that when it comes to music I am more than an amateur) and not one person will agree with it 100% …so if you don’t like something I value your opinion but it will not change my list or sway me in any way. Either way I hope you DO enjoy my list and value your opinion, so please let me know hat you think

65. Sonic Youth- The Eternal
90’s indie alternagods prove that they can still make great music

64. Japandroids- Post-Nothing
A band that invented a new genre of music entitled Noise Pop. You be the judge.

63. Flight of the Conchords- I Told You I Was Freaky
Kiwi comedy folk duo prove that their sophomore album can be just as funny as the first…well almost

62. Norah Jones- The Fall
Certainly a fall compared to her previous albums, but Jones’ worst is better than most bands’ best

61. Ida Maria- Fortress Round My Heart
Female punk rock at its rawest and most beautiful

60.Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson
One of indie rock’s most promising new acts come out swinging Read the rest of this entry »

‘Tis the season to be tipping new artists, and next week the BBC Sound of 2010 list will showcase emerging acts.

But which albums from the past year flew under the mainstream radar and also deserve to be discovered by the wider world in 2010?

A selection of tipsters from the Sound of 2010 panel have chosen the most underrated albums of 2009, which they believe did not get the critical or commercial love they merited in the last 12 months.

Check it out here: BBC News – The best albums you never heard in 2009.

THE TOP 209 SONGS OF 2009

Written By: Kevin Kilker

First off I would like to thank everyone for taking time out to read my list. Now on my fifth year doing these charts I have seen them get progressively better as years go by, becoming more and more balanced as my music tastes continue to develop. This year was no exception, after sifting through a record 613 songs only to cut 2/3 of them to make this year end list the most competitive and ultimately best one released yet! But then again it is all about opinion, so while I may think this is the best year end list yet it ultimately falls on your opinions to determine whether or not it truly is. 2009 was an interesting year in music, slow to start but picking up in a big way in the second half of the year, it featured some tragic events, some surprising hits and misses, along with some amazing musical breakthroughs. In the end it was a great close to the first decade of the new millennium, and brings a high level of excitement for what’s in store for the next 10 years!

HOW THE LIST IS COMPILED

First off regardless as to how I decided to rank these songs it does ultimately boil down to MY opinion and expertise, so Im sure no one will be 100% satisfied with the list and they shouldn’t be, although I try to be as non biased and equal as possible. Still, if you disagree with a track or several you can feel free to let me know about it, but in the end I will not change anything nor take your opinion into account. So in other words, you can talk shit on it all you want, but I will care 0% about what you think.
First off in order for a song to make the list it had to be officially released as a single. Had I not done that I would be working on this list well into next year, and therefore defeating purpose. Also, you will see several songs that were technically released last year, however if the song made a bigger impact in 2009 than it did in 2008 then that was taken into consideration as well. The list was compiled based on several different areas of musical expertise: Critical praise, popularity, indie credibility, crossover success, my opinion, your opinions combined in endless ways to determine where exactly a song would end up on the list. Also, certain criteria that made one song appear on the list may be completely different than the next song above or behind it. For example, a song like M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” (used because it was featured on 2008’s list) had everything working for it, but her ability to cross over into several genres successfully as what ultimately gave her the head up above the rest, but a song like Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” relied heavily on the massive popularity the song had achieved. In the end the yins balance with the yangs, and the list is therefore compiled in a manner that is as fair as possible. In the first few years I worked on these list there would occasionally be a song that wouldn’t make the list because I simply forgot to put it on there, but over the last few years that has been worked on to avoid such a confusion. Simply put, if a song that you like on there isn’t there then chances are it didn’t make the cut and won’t even with your arguing, so don’t bother. Either way, I hope you enjoy the list and although I may not change anything based on your opinions I am still interested in hearing feedback, so please let me know what you think. And of course, enjoy the list!

THE TOP 209 SONGS OF 2009!

209. Phish- Backwards Down the Number Line

America’s favorite jam band reunites, puts a hippie twist on birthdays Read the rest of this entry »