9: Los Campesinos! - We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives

It was the pace with which I fell in love which startled me the most. I'd never heard of Los Campesinos! before the final week of May 2007, let alone heard any of their songs. Within a month, I'd seen them play two live shows - one at the Scala in London, and the other in a torrential downpour at Glastonbury. They were on the brand new Park Stage at the Somerset festival, and it was a testament to my burgeoning admiration for them that I was willing to drag myself out of my sleeping bag at Way-Too-Early o'clock to stand in a thunderstorm and watch their set.

'You! Me! Dancing' came first... on the radio initially, and then in a club on a balmy late-May evening. That was like the first date, whereas 'We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives' felt more like the engagement. As soon as I heard it, I knew we were meant to be together. I mean, what's not to like about Gareth's opening line? "When you play 'Pass the Parcel' with human body parts, somebody might get head but someone will get hurt". It was love at first... listen.

And then Alexsandra's sweet sweet chorus, playful and charming and witty and everything I was looking for from an indie band. As an introduction to the prolific* seven-piece (often referred to as Welsh, even though none of the band actually hails from the country where they met at university), 'We Throw Parties...' was perfect. It even goes to the trouble of describing their fancy dress outfits of choice - "Team Campesinos trick-or-treating on the driveway in the middle of August, one of us dressed as a zombie, one of us dressed as a pirate, one of us dressed as a ninja, four of us dressed as schoolgirls". LC are fun, both on record and in the live setting, and music is meant to be enjoyed.

*Third album, 'Romance Is Boring' is released next week, less than 2 years after their debut.

100 - 11

In true chart fashion, as we enter the top 10, let's just refresh our memories of the previous 90 songs in my countdown. Click on the link for an individual entry. Also, you can listen to a Spotify playlist featuring the songs in my countdown here.

100 The Streets – Blinded By The Lights
99 The Libertines – Time For Heroes
98 Ian Brown – Fear
97 Infernal - From Paris To Berlin
96 White Lies - Death
95 Sweet Female Attitude - Flowers
94 Doves – Pounding
93 Franz Ferdinand – Take Me Out
92 Placebo - Meds
91 Foo Fighters - Best Of You
90 Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero
89 Panic at the Disco - Nine In The Afternoon
88 Maximo Park - Going Missing
87 Girls Aloud - Call The Shots
86 Prodigy - Omen
85 The White Stripes – Seven Nation Army
84 The Automatic - Monster
83 Modest Mouse - Dashboard
82 Gangstarr - Battle
81 Wheatus – Teenage Dirtbag
80 Outkast – Ms Jackson
79 Darude - Sandstorm
78 Green Day - American Idiot
77 Panjabi Mc – Mundian To Bach Ke
76 Good Charlotte - Keep Your Hands Off My Girl
75 MGMT - Kids
74 Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps
73 Nelly Furtado - Maneater
72 Fischerspooner – Emerge
71 Andrew W.K. – Party Hard
70 Santigold - L.E.S. Artistes
69 Dizzee Rascal - Holiday
68 Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc.
67 Lostprophets - Shinobi Vs. Dragon Ninja
66 Destiny’s Child – Bootylicious
65 Radiohead - Idioteque
64 Pussycat Dolls - Buttons
63 Ash - Burn Baby Burn
62 Cypress Hill - (Rock) Superstar
61 Electric Six – Danger! High Voltage
60 Muse - Knights Of Cydonia
59 Jimmy Eat World – The Middle
58 Sonique - It Feels So Good
57 We Are Scientists - Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt
56 Kaiser Chiefs – I Predict A Riot
55 Outkast – Hey Ya!
54 Sugababes - Push The Button
53 Eminem & Dre - Forgot About Dre
52 Mystery Jets featuring Laura Marling - Young Love
51 R Kelly - Ignition (Remix)
50 Ladyhawke - My Delerium
49 So Solid Crew – 21 Seconds
48 Arctic Monkeys - Leave Before The Lights Come On
47 Queens Of The Stone Age – Go With The Flow
46 Britney Spears - Break The Ice
45 Hot Chip - Hold On
44 Prodigy - Warrior's Dance
43 All Saints - Pure Shores
42 Royksopp & Robyn - The Girl & The Robot
41 Biffy Clyro - Saturday Superhouse
40 White Stripes - My Doorbell
39 Operator Please - Leave It Alone
38 Eminem - Lose yourself
37 Arctic Monkeys - 505
36 M83 - Don't Save Us From The Flames
35 Hard-Fi - Living For The Weekend
34 The White Stripes – Fell In Love With A Girl
33 Daft Punk - One More Time
32 Linkin Park – In The End
31 Kelis – Milkshake
30 Dizzee Rascal - Fix Up, Look Sharp
29 Rage Against The Machine – Sleep Now In The Fire
28 Incubus - Megalomaniac
27 Bloc Party - Banquet
26 Kings of Leon - Sex On Fire
25 The Coral – Dreaming Of You
24 Roots Manuva – Witness (One Hope)
23 Mis-Teeq - Scandalous
22 Interpol – Evil
21 La Roux - In For The Kill
20 Sigur Ros - Hoppipolla
19 Muse – Plug In Baby
18 Noah & The Whale - 5 Years Time
17 Queens Of The Stone Age - Little Sister
16 Hot Chip - Over & Over
15 Jay-Z – 99 Problems
14 Missy Elliott – Get Ur Freak On
13 The Hives – Hate To Say I Told You So
12 Kylie Minogue – Can’t Get You Out Of My Head
11 Jordin Sparks - Battlefield

37: Arctic Monkeys - 505

There's this bit in '505' which, when the Arctic Monkeys played it as part of their encore at Glastonbury 2007 (see video below), was one of the most euphoric moments I've ever experienced at a live show. It's at the end of the bridge, when they've reduced the volume and slowed the pace of the song right down, and then Alex Turner bursts back in, full pelt, with one of the most beautiful and poetic verses ever written - "but I crumble completely when you cry, it seems like once again you've had to greet me with goodbye, I'm always just about to go and spoil the surprise, take my hands off of your eyes too soon". I think it was about that moment, the penultimate song of a devastatingly good headline set, that I realised just how important this band have become.



It's easy to dismiss the Arctic Monkeys as being a product of the lad-rock, Britpop generation that preceeded and surrounded them, but tracks like '505' really distinguish them from the Fratellis and the Enemys of this world. Their songs are exquisitely constructed, with meaningful lyrics sung with real power and emphasis by their enigmatic frontman. They have had a huge impact on British music this decade, and with no signs of slowing up after three sensational albums, we can expect to see them cropping up in plenty of end of decade lists ten years from now.

41: Biffy Clyro - Saturday Superhouse

Surprise success story of the decade must surely be the Scottish rockers, Biffy Clyro. After five years and three albums for Beggars Banquet, Biffy were well known on the rock scene. Four singles charted between 2003-2005, although none made the Top 20. They were well-known, but hardly well-loved. Perennial underachievers, if you will.

Then in 2006, Biffy left Beggars Banquet to sign for a Warner Music offshoot, 14th Floor Records. They spent the year recording in Canada, and early in 2007, released 'Saturday Superhouse', the song that would catapult them from being everyone's favourite support act to becoming headliners in their own right.

I can't quite pinpoint the exact day I first heard 'Saturday Superhouse', but I know that it took all of six seconds for me to become a fan. They won me over with that heavy stop-start intro, so simple but sooooo effective. Of course, the rest of the song is great too, with a singable chorus ("if we don't know where we belong, it'll make no difference where we started"), that led to cries of "sell-out" being levelled at Biffy.

And there's no doubt that this, and the other songs on 'Puzzle', and those on the recently released 'Only Revolutions' album are more commercial than their early work. But isn't that the point? After five years of struggling and failing to even break into the Top 20 singles, six of the eight they've released since have reached those dizzy heights, with 'Mountains' earlier this year providing them with a Top 5 hit. That success all started with this giant of a rock song from 2007.

42: Röyksopp feat. Robyn - The Girl & The Robot

The phrase "work-life balance" was first coined in 1986, yet its usage in modern day parlance trebled in 2000 and has continued to grow through this decade. So it's apt that a song dealing with the pitfalls of an unhealthy work-life balance makes my list.

This pan-Scandinavian collaboration between the Norwegian electronic dance act and the Swedish pop star failed to chart anywhere outside of their native countries. But it's the standout track on Royksopp's fabulous 2009 album. Set over a techno-lite beat, Robyn bemoans the heavy workload and long hours of her partner ("the robot") and wonders when they might be able to spend more time together.

After the success of 'With Every Heartbeat' in 2007, Robyn can allow herself to be more selective about which songs she decides to record. We should all be grateful, therefore, that she partnered up with one of the finest electronica acts of the decade to record this instant classic.

46: Britney Spears - Break The Ice

The most talked about popstar of the decade has had plenty of ups and downs in the past 10 years, but in professional terms, she hit all the right notes on 2007 "comeback" album, 'Blackout'. Her least commercially successful work (with fewer than a million sales in the US up to July 2009), it divided the critics, but made a fan of me.

'Break The Ice' might have only been track 4 on the album, and the third single released, but it definitely sounded like the most important comeback song on 'Blackout', maybe even her entire career. 2006-7 had been rough on her, Britney the villain, the focus of intense media coverage, idle gossip and pure speculation. There was the driving incident in Feb 2006 (when she was photographed driving, with her baby son on her lap); the divorce from K-Fed played out in the media; rehab; the head-shaving; an umbrella attack on a pap photographer; that dreadful VMA performance; and wall-to-wall coverage of her custody battle. There's probably some truth to the stories that emerged in that period - it would be understandable in light of her life in the glare of the paparazzi flashbulbs. I felt sympathetic towards her, but what I didn't expect was that she would return, only 9 months after the aforementioned head-shaving, with the finest pop album of her life.

And 'Break The Ice' was a confident song, a statement of intent, opening with Britney whispering "it's been a while, I know I shouldn't have kept you waiting, but I'm here now." Her breathless vocals never sounded better, whilst Timbaland's right-hand man, Danja did an immense job on production duties with that earworm of an electro tune.

Unfortunately, Britney's aforementioned "issues" meant that she wasn't able to record a video for the song, and the excellent animated version that was created seems to be something of a rarity on the interweb. So instead, here's the work of a dedicated fanboy (not me, I hasten to add).

76: Good Charlotte - Keep Your Hands Off My Girl

Yeah yeah, I know, Good Charlotte, what am I thinking, etc. But 'Keep Your Hands Off My Girl' is unlike anything else they've recorded, and for a while in 2007, it was on constant repeat on my iPod. I've always liked the grey area where rock crosses into rap, and that's what we've got here, courtesy of Mr. Nicole Ritchie on lead vocals and the former Mr. Paris Hilton on backing vocals. The relentless flow of lyrics is undoubtedly the strong point, even if those lyrics happen to be fairly lame.

The story of the song is pretty straightforward... those tough Good Charlotte boys are all covered in tattoos and high-end fashions (note the hypocrisy of this song's lyrics versus their biggest hit to date, 'Lifestyles Of The Rich & Famous'). And if you try and steal their girlfriends, they'll kick your ass. Why you'd want to steal either Ms. Hilton or Ms. Ritchie from them remains beyond me.

But there's just something I like in the way that they deliver this message of overprotective threatened violence. I particularly like the line "I've got brass knuckles hanging from my neck and my chain". It is a more aggressive sound, courtesy of Don Gilmore, the man responsible for Linkin Park's 'Hybrid Theory', and on this particular track, it just seems to work.

83: Modest Mouse - Dashboard

What would the music industry be like if it had a transfer market like the football world? Would the Sun be plastered with headlines about rumours of a surprise £20m move for Liam Gallagher to The Saturdays? Would Green Day and U2 get involved in a bidding war to secure the services of Lily Allen on a long term contract? Luckily, we need wonder no more, and that's because, not content with being an integral member of one of the most popular British bands of all time, Johnny Marr has recently decided to embark on a sort of job-hopping that we might expect from a journeyman striker. He's currently a member of The Cribs, but his career revival began in the summer of 2006, when he started recording with Seattle indie stars, Modest Mouse.

'Dashboard' was his debut with the group, the first single from their gold-certified 'We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank' album, released to much fanfare in early 2007. The band had been swirling around the indie underground for over a decade, and had even achieved some mainstream success with 'Float On' off their previous album, but the "signing" of Marr was the equivalent of Bolton Wanderers signing Jay Jay Okocha and Ivan Campo in August 2002. World-renowned stars in the twilight of their careers don't sign for unfancied clubs very often, and Marr's arrival was a coup for Modest Mouse.



This is an unusual song, to my ears at least, because of the lack of any semblance of structure. There aren't really any verses or choruses. It just rumbles along, at a consistent, reasonably rapid pace. In many ways, it's unexceptional, and I did briefly question my inclusion of 'Dashboard' in this list. But then I asked myself the following question: "Will I still enjoy listening to this song ten years from now?" The answer was a resounding "yes", which is why 'Dashboard' keeps its place as my 83rd favourite song of the past 10 years.

87: Girls Aloud - Call The Shots

In terms of chart success during the Noughties, Kimberley, Nadine, Nicola, Cheryl and Sarah are second to none. Twenty consecutive singles entered the UK Top 10 from their breakthrough 'Sound of the Underground' in 2002 up to this year's 'The Loving Kind' - a run that was only broken when 'Untouchable' peaked at #11 in April 2009. Two albums hit top spot in the charts, and they are probably the most successful reality TV stars ever. £25m of career earnings, six platinum albums, a Brit award, and countless TV spin-offs would certainly suggest so.

Popjustice founder and NME journalist Peter Robinson, in the liner notes for the Girls Aloud singles boxset described 'Call The Shots' as "the greatest pop song of the 21st century". His website also awarded the song with the Popjustice £20 Music Prize. What's interesting, at least from where I'm sitting, is that it's probably the most conventional sounding single that GA released this decade. The Xenomania-Girls Aloud partnership has been massively successful, and yet that success has been built on an unorthodox style of pop song, from the drum'n'bass of 'Sound Of The Underground', to the audacity of 'Biology' (no chorus until a minute from the end of the song). Yet 'Call The Shots' is straight-ahead, old-fashioned pop, crafted to perfection and maximising the vocal talents of the girls.

Here's a live performance of the song from their spring gigs at the O2.