My Life in Music: 2010

Disclaimer: this post concerns music I listened to and discovered in 2010, not new releases in 2010. That being said, there are like 5 or 6 new releases represented here.

2010 was one of the most incredible years for music listening that I have ever had. It viciously dwarfs all my musical advancements in '09 and '08, and quite possibly gives classic formative years like 2002, 2005, and 2007 a run for their money. The unprecedented quantity, quality and variety, as well as the gusto with which I was fortunate enough to greet them, truly staggers me. And so I figured a full-blown assessment of this year's haul was in order. First, the awards.

THE ZENNIES

2010 MVP: Neil Young

If you had asked me in November 2009, whether Neil Young would ever rank as one of my favorite artists again, I would have told you "probably not." That was before my shopaholism landed me a copy of the Everybody Knows This is Nowhere remaster, which set into motion a vast chain reaction which has resulted in a new and greater reign of influence for Neil. In fact, the extent to which I liked Neil in the past is a mere footstep compared to the heights he has attained in 2010. With his chameloen powers, he was able to shadow me all along the way, with grim sobriety in winter, alterna-rock fury in my 90s phase, and sentimental pop mentalities in the latter quarters. Since Neil was my favorite artist in 2003... does that make him, like, my double favorite artist in 2010? How can you be better than the best?

2010 Most Promising New Addition: Paramore

I had to make a really tough decision here... Paramore versus Miranda Cosgrove. Make no mistake, in 2010 I unquestionably enjoyed Miranda Cosgrove more. Furthermore, she means a lot more to me, and represents a brand new style (electronic pop) unique to my discography. It's truly up in the air whether Miranda or Paramore will fare better in the coming years. But "most promising" means, to me, future longevity. And so I had to look at my history. Who are the artists who stay strong over years, and who are the ones who fade away? Well, there's no hiding it. Rock music tends to reign supreme. So I had to guess that Paramore would go further. But, frankly, I'm rooting for Miranda Cosgrove. That's not to sell Paramore short, though, their power-pop glory is infectiously empowering to the extent that I can only listen to them in incraments... otherwise I would die of heat exhaustion from rocking out too hard. True story.

2010 Most Important Record: Immaculate Pop Volume One

I never could have predicted the snowball effect this humble little disc would have. I just started to have a nostalgic or bittersweet reaction to some of the things I was being forced to listen to at work, and decided to burn a compilation. What resulted was a truly idyllic little period in the dead of winter where I would alternate between my grim black metal collection and this bubblegum compilation. For a long time, I figured this would be the only pop music I ever listened to seriously. It'd be half a year later until I started getting into pop music as a whole, but Immaculate Pop unquestionably helped transform my perception of pop music to the point where I was able to fully appreciate it.

Now onto the real content. It would be crazy to detail the vast number of amazing bands, amazing albums, and amazing songs I was pleased to enjoy this year. So what I did was compose a terse boxed set which compiles both the individual tracks which really moved my soul, as well as tracks to represent the unbelievable multitude of whole bands and albums that blew my mind this year. Mind you this doesn't represent everything... just the biggest, most major events of this year.

A second effect of this compilation is that it details my life over the course of 2010 down to near-perfection. I started out the year with somber, sober precision, gleaming joy from the tranquility of blizzards and using my sober boredom as an excuse to become one-and-the-same with dense, intricate, powerful music. Then my life became lysergic for a time, and I submerged myself wholly in bittersweet fantasy, living halfway between the real world and some 1990s dream. Following that, stone cold precision became my forte once again, and natural mania overtook all my endeavors. My taste veered to the bombastic and the upfront; to simplicity and pop hooks of impenetrable force.

My Life in 2010 (Boxed Set)

Disc 1
Stone Cold: Winter of Sobering Gloom

1. Jesu Dod -- Burzum
2. My Journey to the Stars -- Burzum
3. Southern Man (Remastered) -- Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4. Sverddans -- Burzum
5. Hand In My Pocket -- Alanis Morissette
6. What's Been Going On -- Amos Lee
7. Love Story -- Taylor Swift
8. What's Up -- 4 Non Blondes
9. Son of Hades -- Aura Noir
10. Il etait une foret... -- Gris

Disc 2
Wistful Revery: Lucid 90s Adult Kitsch

1. Prime of Life -- Neil Young & Crazy Horse
2. Loose Change -- Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3. Pocahontas [YotH] -- Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4. Love And Only Love [Weld] -- Neil Young & Crazy Horse
5. Questioning My Sanity -- L7
6. Rockets -- Cat Power
7. Supernatural Radio -- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
8. Good Enough -- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
9. London Song -- The Breeders
10. Fate to Fatal -- The Breeders
11. Bukarest -- HotChaCha

Disc 3
Manic Euphoria: For The Love of Pop

1. Walls (Circus) -- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
2. My Favorite Mistake -- Sheryl Crow
3. Because The Night -- Patti Smith
4. That's What You Get -- Paramore
5. Headphones On -- Miranda Cosgrove
6. Hide & Seek -- Ani DiFranco
7. Misery Business -- Paramore
8. Bam -- Miranda Cosgrove
9. Better Than Revenge -- Taylor Swift
10. Party Girl -- Miranda Cosgrove
11. Let the Flames Begin (The Final Riot!) -- Paramore
12. Thrasher -- Juniper Tar