The Best Songs of 2007 - #35 - #31

This is the second part of my end of the year look at the songs that really caught my ear or got stuck in my head. As I said in the last post, this is a rough countdown and the numbering is the least important thing about it. The final ten or fifteen are the songs that really stood out, though. Without further ado, here’s the next batch:

35. “Wonderlust King” by Gogol Bordello – Is fun. Is gypsy punk. Is catchy. Is full of eastern bloc accents. Is worth listen. Me think Borat woulda like.

34. “The Plot” by White Rabbits – I love a good song with nice harmonies (the “he’s not impressed” line) and “whoa-oo-ohs”. I wonder how many snare drums they went through while recording this track? It’s pretty much beaten to death throughout the entire song. The bass drum goes through a decent workout, too.

33. “None Shall Pass” by Aesop Rock – I like his voice and how it sounds like his flow is just about to fall off the beat. Great chorus and a chipmunk choir sample that really got stuck in my head. The keyboard and guitar samples are great and textured.

32. “Everything is Average Nowadays” by Kaiser Chiefs – Sort of a ‘80s throwback British garage rocker, but done well. The bridge kind of loses some momentum, but the cowbell helps (insert Ferrell/Walken joke here).

31. “Tonight I Have to Leave It” by Shout Out Louds – More cowbell! This is the best Cure song never written or performed by the Cure. Shout Out Louds nail the Head on the Door sound almost too perfectly: fast strumming acoustic guitar, loud keyboard line during the chorus, fast drumming with tom rolls, pouty vocals. This singer sounds dead up like Robert Smith with a bit of a lisp (and he sort of slides into a little bit of Bono for the breakdown). Still, a fun number.