Lyrically, this might be the shortest song I’ve ever featured on the blog. Just four lines, no more than five words in each.
And yet I uncovered a wealth of conversation about the meaning of those four lines.
The most compelling analysis I read was that this is a song about God, told in a call-and-response style with God speaking the second and fourth lines.
My final entry on the village Voice Pazz & Jop poll features #19 on that list, Janelle Monae’s ‘Q.U.E.E.N.’
I like Janelle Monáe even though I don’t listen to her music. Something about her look, her style and her ambition rub me the right way. I love the weird sci-fi concepts she works into her music (including the video for this track).
The 15th, 16th and 17th songs on Village Voice’s Pazz & Jop poll have already been featured on this blog. They are Miley Cyrus’ ‘Wrecking Ball,’ Phosphorescent’s ‘Song for Zula’ and Kacey Musgraves’ ‘Follow Your Arrow.’ All good choices, as is #18, today’s SOTD.
Vampire Weekend’s Modern Vampires of the City shows up second (to Kanye) on the accompanying list of the best albums of 2013, a sentiment I wholly endorse, having listed the album as my favorite of last year.
Year after year, these Jazz & Pop surveys make it clear how far my tastes are from the critical consensus.
That’s weird, because I tend to think of myself as the sort of cultural snob who likes critically acclaimed work and sniffs at the lowbrow stuff. That seems to be true when it comes to movies.
But music critics obviously love a whole lot of music I find boring. Unimaginative rap and tedious slow-jam R&B tracks dominate these lists.
Arcade Fire’s ‘Reflektor’ tied for 11th on the Villahe Voice Pazz & Jop poll. I featured the song on my own year-end countdown, only the second track I’ve had in common with this critics’ list (the first being Haim’s ‘The Wire’).
In the 13th spot is Tegan & Sara’s ‘Closer.’ I’m curious to hear this song, because I’ve read a fair bit about it.
Meet Me In Montauk 