ILM'S TOP 77 TRACKS of 2010

I hate gays, gangbangers, and fuckin vampires.

(But seriously vampire boy is terrible.)

I like "Wut" and rather like Lunice's "Hitmane Anthem" which seems to be the biggest-hyped post-"Wut" track, but it's kind off strange to see this sound emerging as a fully-fledged trend. One track in a DJ set with these psuedo southern rap beats would be the maximum sustainable I would have thought. OTOH I'm not so into DJ sets where the nature of the beat keeps changing up so maybe it's for the best that it becomes its own thing?

I haven't seen the "Dynamite" video, it's really a car radio song for me. Most Guetta-ish material sounds best of all via car radio (though whether that means it actually sounds good is a different question - on a case by case really). "Who's That Chick" works excellently in that context too, which I would never have imagined when I first listened for review purposes.

it's really a car radio song for me. Most Guetta-ish material sounds best of all via car radio (though whether that means it actually sounds good is a different question - on a case by case really). "Who's That Chick" works excellently in that context too, which I would never have imagined when I first listened for review purposes.

^^^v v otm

Also the other thing I've just realised about this poll is NO JAMES BLAKE. HIGH FIVES ALL.

ha! yes i realised that last night too

yeah good thing u all saved two spots for kesha and like eight for taylor swift

could not possibly ever be moved to feel shame by plax's disapproval itt tbh

No Die Antwoord
No Salem
No Yeasayer
No The National
No James Blake
No Deerhunter

why is non-ukfunky dance the most un-danceable stuff always

actually get why in isolation, and out of a club context, people wouldn't think "wut" is danceable, but in every set i've heard it's used to rupture a set, to take it suddenly up to another level rather than keep the same groove going. the moment when the bass drops is incredibly danceable, which you probably don't get on a youtube. anyway british non-uk funky dance that's more traditionally danceable -

ikonika - psoriasis
funkineven - heart pound ( <= the one song that, if i could redo my ballot, i'd put on or near the top, and that i'd rep for a lot more on ilm - ACID)
jam city - arpjam
t.williams ft. terri walker - heartbeat
ikonika - they are all losing the war
joy orbison - ladywell
floating points - people's potential
deadboy - if u want me
braiden - the alps
doorly ft. lady chann - the one
optimum - crash riddim

idk if you don't find any of those compulsively danceable the problem is with you.

also comparing girl unit and james blake, and knowing the latter is where indie audiences and critics are actually throwing their weight, just makes me even prouder of ilm for putting "wut" top

actually get why in isolation, and out of a club context, people wouldn't think "wut" is danceable, but in every set i've heard it's used to rupture a set, to take it suddenly up to another level rather than keep the same groove going.

yeah I thought this was the idea which is why I'm wondering how this style will translate as a full-blown "thing".

also comparing girl unit and james blake, and knowing the latter is where indie audiences and critics are actually throwing their weight, just makes me even prouder of ilm for putting "wut" top

"Wut" is much better obv but to be fair I think that these are still 90% the same audience at this point.

what i meant was that james blake is going beyond that core audience to the mainstream/indie press in a way that girl unit isn't (and within that common original audience there are pleeeeeenty of james blake detractors; i can see him becoming much more of a nme/pfork fave rather than someone djs and producers get excited over)

Okay I agree with that.

Not that it matters particularly, but I think Girl Unit is, long term, more likely to become an NME tip than James Blake, especially if he starts working with vocalists. There's probably a Blake backlash coming quite soon. Jam City more likely than both of them.

You can tell that Wut is intended for the dancefloor because it has AIRHORN NOISES. End of debate.

You can tell that Wut is intended for the dancefloor because it has AIRHORN NOISES.

Pretty solid argument tbh.

Thanks J0rdan, JF and seandelai! Really enjoyed watching this unfold. Not heard either #1 or #2 yet. But I already had plans to remedy that.

Oh and a request: any chance of posting a list of the results for some of the runners up here in list form? (Just #78-#200 would do!) Or make the results available as a text file like the noms list? As you know, some of us can't access google.spreadsheets.com @ work.

78 Glasser Mirrorage
79 MIA XXXO
80 Beach House Norway
81 young jeezy lose my mind (ft. plies)
82 alicia keys try sleeping with a broken heart
83 Magnetic Man Perfect Stranger (ft. Katy B)
84 yg toot it & boot it
85 Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Can't Hear My Eyes
86 Mark McGuire Brothers (for Matt)
87 yahzarah why dontcha call me no more
88 Far East Movement Like a G6
89 Underworld Always Loved a Film
90 Robyn Don't Fucking Tell Me What To Do
91 Best Coast Boyfriend
91 trey songz bottoms up (ft. nicki minaj)
93 The Books A Cold Freezin' Night
94 Zola Jesus Night
95 Sleigh Bells Tell 'Em
95 The-Dream F.I.L.A.
97 Owen Pallett Lewis Takes Off His Shirt
98 Sky Ferreira One
99 Deerhunter Desire Lines
100 Gorillaz On Melancholy Hill
101 Oneohtrix Point Never Returnal (ft. Antony Hegarty)
102 kingdom mind reader (ft. shyvonne)
103 M.I.A. Space
104 The Chemical Brothers Swoon
105 dj zinc wile out (ft. ms dynamite)
106 Taylor Swift Enchanted
107 Warpaint Undertow
108 Lady Gaga Alejandro
109 Goldfrapp Rocket (original)
110 Bubble Club Violet Morning Moon
111 underworld scribble
112 Gil Scott-Heron New York Is Killing Me
112 School of Seven Bells Windstorm
112 The Crystal Ark The City Never Sleeps
115 Gorillaz Empire Ants
116 hot chip i feel better
117 Janelle Monae Oh, Maker
118 Gorillaz Stylo
119 James Blake CMYK
120 Glasser Apply
121 Autechre r ess
121 Tracey Thorn Oh The Divorces
123 Rangda Plain of Jars
124 Yelawolf Pop the Trunk
125 Delia Gonzalez & Gavin Russom Track 5
125 Kingdom Fogs
127 sleigh bells infinity guitars
128 Curren$y King Kong
129 Lindstrom and Christabelle High and Low
129 Mark E You (Full Vocal Mix)
129 School of Seven Bells Heart Is Strange
129 Yeasayer O.N.E.
133 Ciara Gimmie Dat
134 earl sweatshirt epaR
135 The National Bloodbuzz Ohio
136 Marnie Stern For Ash
137 Miranda Lambert The House That Built Me
138 Jam City Arpjam
139 Kylie Minogue Get Outta My Way
140 Katy Perry California Gurls (ft. Snoop Dogg)
141 husalah you neva know
142 Oni Ayhun OAR004-A
142 rick ross super high remix (remix ft. wiz khalifa & curren$y)
144 cali swag district teach me how to dougie
145 Kvelertak Mjød
145 The Fresh & Onlys Waterfall
147 Kelis 4th of July (Fireworks)
148 Deerhunter Helicopter
149 storm queen look right through
150 Adele Rolling in the Deep
150 Rihanna Hard
152 Vampire Weekend Taxi Cab
153 Ciara Speechless (ft. The-Dream)
154 Janelle Monae Wondaland
155 Joy Orbison BRKLN CLLN
155 Taylor Swift The Story of Us
157 Perfume Natural Ni Koi Shite
158 wild nothing summer holiday
159 My Chemical Romance Na Na Na
160 Hallogallo 2010 Drone Schlager
161 james blake limit to your love
162 Paramore The Only Exception
162 Vampire Weekend Cousins
164 The Radio Dept. Heaven's on Fire
164 We Love No Plane, No Train
166 Oneohtrix Point Never Pelham Island Road
167 Goldfrapp Alive
168 Vampire Weekend I Think Ur A Contra
168 Yeasayer Ambling Alp
170 Diddy-Dirty Money I Hate That You Love Me
170 Dominique Leone 40/60
172 The Fall Bury Pts. 1 + 3
173 Daft Punk Derezzed
173 Joker Tron
175 Demdike Stare Forest of Evil (dawn)
175 Gucci Mane You Know What It Is
177 Robyn Cry When You Get Older
177 waka flocka flame luv them gun sounds
179 Zola Jesus Sea Talk
180 Ramadanman Don’t Change For Me
180 Tyler, The Creator AssMilk (ft. Earl)
182 Shy Child Dark Destiny
182 The Bug Skeng (Autechre Remix)
182 Triptykon Shatter
185 Four Tet Angel Echoes
185 ne-yo one in a million
187 Mock & Toof Farewell to Wendo
187 New Pornographers Crash Years
187 Wild Nothing Golden Haze
190 How to Dress Well Decisions (ft. Yüksel Arslan)
190 Roll Deep Green Light (Ill Blu Remix)
192 Of Montreal Famine Affair
192 Teengirl Fantasy Cheaters
194 Mary Kate & Ashley Olson Gimme Pizza Slow
195 Kurt Vile Invisibility: Nonexistent
196 lil boosie top to the bottom
197 Delorean Stay Close
197 Zinja Hlungwani N'wagezani My Love
199 Kayo Dot Stained Glass
200 Andre Nickatina & The Jacka My Middle Name is Crime

Oof, Mirrorage

"mirrorage" is obv amazing but i'm not bothered about it just missing, b/c i expect the album to have a very good showing next week.

lol at no national track until 135 btw. even the third single off the ciara album beat it.

Out of those, I think I voted for:

91 trey songz bottoms up (ft. nicki minaj)
93 The Books A Cold Freezin' Night
95 Sleigh Bells Tell 'Em
117 Janelle Monae Oh, Maker
119 James Blake CMYK
121 Autechre r ess
124 Yelawolf Pop the Trunk
161 james blake limit to your love
192 Of Montreal Famine Affair

4 of my votes are in the dozen or so after the cutoff :/

I'm especially sad that Oh, Maker didn't make it and Cold War did. Sure, it's kind of schmaltzy and maudling, but in a perfect lump-in-the-throat way.

ta, Lex :)

i dont understand how the ballots were weighted, certain things are listed as having 44 points but one vote

= one fourth place vote in a weighted ballot?

78 Glasser Mirrorage
83 Magnetic Man Perfect Stranger (ft. Katy B)
102 kingdom mind reader (ft. shyvonne)
104 The Chemical Brothers Swoon
105 dj zinc wile out (ft. ms dynamite)
110 Bubble Club Violet Morning Moon
111 underworld scribble
116 hot chip i feel better
190 Roll Deep Green Light (Ill Blu Remix)

Voted for this lot, really surprised at Scribble and I Feel Better both placing below Violet Morning Moon.

Wut winning this year makes me wonder if "Windowlicker" could have won an ILM poll in the year it came out.

Alt. maybe it means I should start the campaign for this to win next year's poll.

"windowlicker" seems fairly ilm canon to me (though er i'm not sure i've ever actually heard it myself)

im sure you would have

There'd have been some stiff competition - Baby One More Time, No Scrubs, Hey Boy Hey Girl, Genie In A Bottle, Bills Bills Bills.

poll

Baby One More Time, No Scrubs, Hey Boy Hey Girl, Genie In A Bottle, Bills Bills Bills.

looking at these makes me so fucking sad about chart pop in 2010.

dorian noted it upthread, but i think this is the first ilm list that doesn't have multiple pop smashes at and near the top - "rude boy" is the only one that counts, really. but what's worse is that i can't really think of any that SHOULD have been up there.

"telephone" and "rude boy" (and "try sleeping with a broken heart" i guess) - all hangovers from 2009 albums, pretty sure gaga and alicia would have been higher w/o that
"pass out" and "katy on a mission" - placed but too british-interest to go higher
"whip my hair" and "hold yuh" could have placed higher i guess. katy and ke$ha are way more divisive (among pop fans i mean, not just people who dislike most chart pop) than any of the '99 crop you cite.

i can't really think of any other chart pop hit that "should" have been on the list.

Ah was "Windowlicker" 1999? It feels more recent than that. It wouldn't be my number 1 obv ("Bugaboo"/"Bills Bills Bills" or "Jump & Shout" or "All 'n' my Grill" perhaps, would have to think on it) but I reckon it's great.

katy and ke$ha are way more divisive (among pop fans i mean, not just people who dislike most chart pop) than any of the '99 crop you cite.

You're saying this from a comfortable position of 11 years' hindsight. Britney and Xtina would have been considerably more divisive in 1999.

Actually I think the Windowlicker video alone would probably ensure a 2000-post 'OMG' thread which might have been enough to push it over the top.

Yeah most people were pretty down on Britney until "Oops" at the earliest, some people liked "Genie In A Bottle" by comparison but after that Xtina was a joke to most people until her second album also.

Destiny's Child weren't divisive really but (despite having chart hits) I don't think people who weren't absolute pop/R&B fans started to notice them until "Say My Name" which came out in early 2000 IIRC.

Wut winning this year makes me wonder if "Windowlicker" could have won an ILM poll in the year it came out.

It was in the top 10 in that 1990s singles poll we had a few years ago, so probably.

Hadn't heard 'Wut' before, it's nice and I feel the vibe, but after a couple of listens I can only deem it a completely forgettable number one. Which is a shame.

Especially considering that in 1999 there hadn't yet (as far as I can remember) been a big backlash against IDM.

(x-post)

You're saying this from a comfortable position of 11 years' hindsight. Britney and Xtina would have been considerably more divisive in 1999.

yeah i know britney and xtina were mocked by many who just didn't have time for the idea or sound of manufactured pop at all, but katy and ke$ha seem to get significant hate from actual pop fans too.

I'm thinking about making this an excelsior:

Wut winning this year makes me wonder if "Windowlicker" could have won an ILM poll in the year it came out.

It was in the top 10 in that 1990s singles poll we had a few years ago, so probably.

― Tuomas, Friday, January 28, 2011 8:47 AM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Hadn't heard 'Wut' before, it's nice and I feel the vibe, but after a couple of listens I can only deem it a completely forgettable number one. Which is a shame.

― young depardieu looming out of void in hour of profound triumph (Le Bateau Ivre), Friday, January 28, 2011 8:49 AM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Especially considering that in 1999 there hadn't yet (as far as I can remember) been a big backlash against IDM.

― Tuomas, Friday, January 28, 2011 8:50 AM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

im a pop fan who thinks that genie in a bottle is abject trash

Genie on tap or gtfo

Excellent work Nick.

I'm thinking about making this an excelsior:

Wut winning this year makes me wonder if "Windowlicker" could have won an ILM poll in the year it came out.

It was in the top 10 in that 1990s singles poll we had a few years ago, so probably.

― Tuomas, Friday, January 28, 2011 8:47 AM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Hadn't heard 'Wut' before, it's nice and I feel the vibe, but after a couple of listens I can only deem it a completely forgettable number one. Which is a shame.

― young depardieu looming out of void in hour of profound triumph (Le Bateau Ivre), Friday, January 28, 2011 8:49 AM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Especially considering that in 1999 there hadn't yet (as far as I can remember) been a big backlash against IDM.

― Tuomas, Friday, January 28, 2011 8:50 AM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

I don't get it?