Daveportivo's Cultural Evaluation Facility

2008 wouldn't be kind to Franz Ferdinand, they'd stayed away too long (or perhaps not long enough) and there third album while far from stellar never got it's just deserts. Lucid Dreams was the clear stand out, Alex and co reworked the one of single from a rather generic free minute pop song into a sprawling seven minute thematic epic. The track was oozed it drip it was dirt sexy intelligent dance music made by a rock band who kick started the indie disco revolution in the UK. At seven minutes it was a beast and would have been a risk, but a song of this quality deserved a re-release and a music video. Hear It Here

In 2005 it appeared that Trent Reznor was desperate to regain his mojo and he damn close, The Hand That Feeds felt like the more generic offspring of original breakthrough single Head Like A Hole. It laid it's electronic grooves and simple hook over a rather bland guitar line, it create a wonderful pulsating dance beat but fell short of greatest, it simple aped the past to shameless. Yet despite all the draw backs it easily remains Trent's best pop single of the last ten years. Hear It Here

We're not even half way through the countdown and already the dark lords at Xenomania are already making their presence felt with yet another mind blowingly brilliant single. The Show was just so irresistable, but behind it's divine hooks was a great deal of lyrical punch "Should Have Known, Should Have Cared, Should Have Hung Around The Kitchen In My Underwear Acting Like A Lady...Should Have Fluttered My Mascara Like A Butterfly, You Should Have Made Me". The track was a bold threat built ontop of a slick electro beat and my god how many hooks could one track have, they even included a nod to the sun drenched Ibiza hooks and I refuse to believe that anyone in the UK at one point in their life hasn't put on a falsetto and sung the "That Special Something" line. More pop genius, and trust me there's much more where that came from to look forward to. Hear It Here

After Yoshimi Batlles The Pink Robots it felt as though the Flaming Lips had earned the chance to have a good time and that's exactly what they did on At War With The Mystics. As a result they indulged their influences and interest creating some remarkable tracks that didn't hang together in a single LP. Two joyously fun tracks came out of this period the Prince tribute Free Radicals and the Sabbath sized The W.A.N.D. it still feels as though it's the Lips carefree answer to War Pigs, the track rides the on the back of a tsunami sized riff. Hear It Here

A Victim Of Conformity? A Causality of Your Society? Was this Muse, Trent Reznor....Pennywise? No in 2001 Sum 41 (don't laugh please) were the trying to be the arch anti-conformity pop punks, of course this whole notion seems absurd when your making one of the catchiest bounciest pop tracks of the decade. Pop punk never really got this big again, well not under that name at least, and Fat Lip remains a high point even with it's cringeworthy raps it had a playful free spirit that can only be admired. Hear It Here

There have been few more triumphant tracks this decade than Radio Nowhere when that first clanging riff boomed out of speakers world wide it felt like an awakening, the Boss was back, he was pissed off and he was about to give you his state of the union as he desperately cried "Is There Anybody Alive Out There". This track would complete Springsteen's comeback to stadium superstar, cultural icon and the unlikely spokesperson for a generation of American's sick and tired of the Bush Administration. This was Springsteen's desperate and pounding call to arms. Hear it Here

There hardly seems much to say about this track or about Electric Six, it truly is a case of if you've heard this track you know why it's here. The only note I need to make is that while it was a comedy track it equally works as a conventional rock track, boy do I regret putting the Lonely Island so low down :( Hear It Here

The Kaiser Chiefs burst onto the scene in 2005 with a serious of singles too catchy anthemic to be resisted. The Kaiser's made tracks to get huge festival fields singing in unison. Yet more than just being catchy pop the Kaiser's first album had some neat lyrical flourishes and a strong sense of humour, Everday I Love You Less And Less title alone was a triumph, let alone Ricky's attempt at justifying breaking up from his girl friend (his parent's love is enough for him, who needs a girl friend). Hear It Here

Prior to release I rather unfairly gave this track a lukewarm review, I stressed it's structural exellence, it's sublime lyrical content but criticised it for not being the next Umbrella but in hindsight those remarks seemed shallow. Russian Roulette remains a remarkable piece, Rihanna's vocals are divinely pitched building to a power house chorus, this track is more than just a single, it marks Rihanna's transition from a pop star to a full fledge diva. So this is my official apology for criminally underrating one of this decades finest tracks. Hear It Here

The Killer's b-side collection Sawdust served to highlight the Killer's weakness rather than showing off their song writing prowess. Tranquilize was the one exception, how it failed to make the cut for Sam's Town is beyond me. The track is brilliant, Lou Reed adds some stature to the track allowing Tranquilize to feel like a great American epic. There'd been alot of talk of the Killer's being influenced by Springsteen but this was the track that carried the great wide screen sense of American song writing. It's a string that sadly seems to have been lost from The Killer's bow. Hear It Here

While Coldplay have never shirked from the ambition to be as big as U2 they've desperately tried to be something more and do what U2 could never do; creatively evolve. Viva La Vida cannot be classed as a success but it wasn't a failure either, Coldplay stretched their creative wings, played around with varied instrumentation and song structure but still managed to retain their irresistible hooks a feat U2 never managed. Violet Hill was the first single, it felt familiar and yet different, it was both thrilling and cosy, it was the type of statement we want are modern Stadium MOR specialists to make. Hear It Here

In 2004 the Scissor Sisters created the definitive camp anthem. Filthy Gorgeous was a mission statement, and with this track they painted the pop charts rainbow coloured with a bass line of Noel's House Party proportions. Jake Sears sang the entire track in a ludicrously high Prince like falsetto this was the ultimate nasty sticky sweat club jam, there was nothing subtly about it, they were throwing their sexuality in your faces and you just had to react, and it seemed the vast majority decided to put on their dancing shoes. Hear It Here

We talked earlier about the great history of American storytellers and the 21st Century saw a great popular revival of this long and storied tradition with the Gaslight Anthem and The Hold Steady. The Swish burst onto the seen with it's gritty rock and roll riffage and Craig Finn's urban poetry. Craig Finn would end this decade as one of America's great storytellers and he painted images of dark streets laid with drunkards, drug addicts and damn good times, while in the back ground The Hold Steady turned themselves in the worlds greatest bar room band. It was a tremendous song writing journey and The Swish was the first sign of their genius. Hear It Here

When it comes to my favourite protest track of the decade the can only be one. None was more direct, more powerful and bang on than Jarvis Cocker's Cunts Are Still Running The World. Originally debuted at Reading festival on the big screens in between acts this track was beyond hilarious. Yet behind the huge sloganeering laid a surprisingly accurate, witty and well written rant, this wasn't a whiny college student this was an intellectual statement wrapped in a glorious blunt sentiment. The track was loaded with unforgettable lines but my favourite line will always be the opening gambit: "Well Did You Hear, There's A Naturally Order? Those Most Deserving Will End Up With The Most, That The Cream Cannot Help But Rise Up To The Top. Well I say "Shit Floats"". Hear It Here

T.I's ambition always radically outstripped his talent, don't get me wrong T.I is a fine rapper and one of the better stars to emerge in this decade but he's not one of the elite, no matter how hard he tries to position himself as such. Luckily one man whose sky high ambition has never outstripped his bottomless pools of talent is Mr. Timberlake, and Justin promptly carries this track on his back transforming it into a powerful epic, full of emotional hooks and sweeping arrangements. T.I. just about manages to keep pace as Justin Timberlake steals the show. Hear It Here

So even though Kate wasn't too thrilled at being constantly reminded of the fact but in 2007 we saw a sleugh of artist break through the shattered remainder of the door kicked open by Lily Allen. We had a new generation of deeply emotion highly personal singer songwriters and Kate was one of the first true success she followed up smash hit Foundations with the bold cold light of day honesty of Mouthwash. This tracks honesty struck a chord with many and it cemented Kate Nash as more than a one hit wonder. The tracks lyrically highlight came at the end of the first verse with the excellent line "And, This Is My Brain, It's Torturous Analytical Thoughts, Make Me Go Insane", I've certainly been there. Hear It Here

Ah Jay Z's simultaneous love sound to all the girls of the world and his love rat anthem. Of course it was largely an excuse to roll through as many ridiculous scenarios and punch lines as humanly possible. Ultimately this track was just alot of fun, built on a slow jam beat and super serious vocal whining before over the top they lay some sleezy sing along vocals. This track also hold the record for the most stereotypes in single track, just sit back and enjoy if you can get passed the comedy sexism. Hear It Here

Some tracks grab you within the first five seconds and that's certainly the case with Radiohead's tremendous Go To Sleep. At times it feels like the forgotten track in Radiohead's back catalogue but the minute that riff kicks in all the memories come flooding back just before Thom Yorke maniacally croons "Something For The Rag And Bone Man, Over My Dead Body". This was Radiohead at their most terrifying, they've always been bleak and emotionally wrought but this track was dark, ominous and it felt like it encroached upon with it's bleakness. It remains one of Radiohead's most bold and brilliant singles even if it was unfortunately sandwiched between some big hitters. Hear It Here

So on occasion a remix comes around that's so superb it surpasses the original, and while I'm not quite bold enough to say that of Shameless grindie remix of When The Sun Goes Down he certainly created something different. He made this track authentic, Shameless sheer urgency and his dark and visceral perfectly suited the track as he fired his vocals at a super sonic pace. He brought the violence and anger of the streets to the tragic nightmare that Alex Turner had created. Shameless transformed this track into something real and terrifyingly brilliant. Hear It Here