Mapped By What Surrounded Them: 2010 Songs of the Year (Nos. 70-46)

70. Janelle Monae - Cold War

One of the standout tracks from her brilliant album The ArchAndroid, "Cold War," is anything but chilly, it is a call to arms to stand up for yourself and who you are as a person. (See also "Tightrope")

69. Dum Dum Girls - Jail La La

Droney, buzzed guitar, sha-la-la girl band vocals, killer backbeat: catchier than the flu.

68. Kingdom featuring Shyvonne - Mind Reader

Noisy and banging four to the floor deep house.

67. Joy Orbison - The Shrew Would Have Cushioned The Blow

Skittering, glitchy dance music taking cues from dub, dubstep, and deep house.

66. Autechre - Ilanders

Another band that I always tend to want to discard as being past their prime, and yet, their last three albums have been among their most inventive, and dare I say it, catchiest? "Ilanders," is another metal scraping techno horror show from the godfathers of glitch.

65. Terror Danjah - S.O.S.

I love playing this song to people and seeing how long they can stand it. One friend called it Chinese water torture-tronica. I think it is brilliant. (See also "Acid")

64. Major Lazer & La Roux - I'm Not Your Lemonade + Heroes n Villans Remix

One of the most unlikely pairings in mixtape history, Major Lazer and La Roux knocked it out of the park with Lazerproof. Who would have thought "I'm Not Your Toy" and Gucci Mane's "Lemonade" would go so well together?

63. Deftones - Risk

Deftones to me have always been best when they take detours. Diamond Eyes was a lengthy series of them. "Risk" adheres to a typical metal imprint but adds interesting textures from shoegaze and other alternative rock. (See also "Beauty School" and "Sextape")

62. Wild Nothing - Drifter

Taking the 80s revival to glorious new heights, Wild Nothing bets on a gauzy Cocteau Twins-like melody and breaks the bank.

61. The Morning Benders - Promises

The Morning Benders create an enormous sense of drama within their tracks. "Promises" is the standout track from Big Echo.

60. Menomena - Tithe

Menomena are more known for the whiplash inducing pace of their songs. It always comes as a surprise to me how their more gentle moments stick with me longer. The emotion in this song is palpable. (See also "TAOS")

59. Ramadanman - Don't Change For Me

Taking a clattering drum and bass breakbeat, clipping a vocal and stretching it like silly putty, Ramadanman subverts his usual MO of discordant dubstep and creates a warm womb to lose oneself in on the dancefloor.

58. Local Natives - Wide Eyes

The California, sun-kissed version of Grizzly Bear, Local Natives win you over with the glorious harmonies and beautiful, chiming guitars of "Wide Eyes."

57. Salem - Traxx

Blah blah, witch house, blah blah blah. Now that that is out of the way, turn to the music and see an amazing mixture of Dirty South beats and shoegaze drama. (See also "Redlights" and "Release Da Boar")

56. Lone - Moon Beam Harp

Ok, I will admit there is nothing original whatsoever about this track. It is a perfect approximation of acid house and trance techno circa 1990. But I love it.

55. Twin Shadow - Castles In The Snow

Although Twin Shadow's debut cd was produced by Grizzly Bear's Chris Taylor, it couldn't sound any more different if it tried; a gorgeous update of 80s synth-pop, alternative rock. "Castles In The Snow," over a loping drum track, decaying synths, and angular guitar, wears its pathos well. (See also "Slow")

54. Gonjasufi - Ancestors

Part of Flying Lotus' expanding stable of like-minded acts, Gonjasufi takes Flying Lotus' stuffed to the brim aesthetic and tweaks it, using Fly-Lo's futuristic sheen and messes it up, like creating an organic, hippy-esque room in a sleek, glass and steel skyscraper.

53. Deerhunter - Helicopter

Deerhunter get more and more polished as they mature, and that is not meant derogatorily. While their earlier material would go more for bombast, they are now more willing to use delicacy, to stunning effect, on the stunning "Helicopter," which laments on isolation and loneliness. (See also "Desire Lines")

52. John Roberts - Lesser

Marrying Eno like piano chord structures and hissing vinyl scratches over post-dubstep soundscapes, John Roberts, along with James Blake, is not afraid to go down a more ambient path.

51. Skream - Listenin' To The Records On My Wall

Widescreen, technicolor dubstep.

50. Holy Fuck - Red Lights

Holy Fuck is one of the tightest bands out there. When they lock into a fierce groove, it is damn near impossible not to succumb to it. "Red Lights" is seriously funky.

49. Foals - After Glow

From their criminally underrated album Total Life Forever, Foals retreat from their usual angular post-punk and take a much needed detour towards dream pop on "After Glow." (See also "Miami" and "Spanish Sahara")

48. Violens - Acid Reign