As we said last year, one of the great joys of being a reviewer is that you get to stand in judgement of others. The feeling of power is intoxicating. Almost as intoxicating as the Guiness we consume when we write our prose. Anyway, it is that time of year and everybody likes a list so we thought that a list of the twenty tracks that impressed us most during 2007 would be appropriate. It was not an easy task this year either with so much quality on offer. We had a go anyway and the list below is sort of like a singles chart without the singles (or the chart for that matter).
So, ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for:
1
Dropkick - "Avenues" (from the Turning Circles album). Roy Taylor's heatbreakingly beautiful song brings warmth and humanity to the Edinburgh popsters.
2
Brother Big Bad - "Daughter of a Debutante" (from the These Are Things You Already Know album). Modern pop rock with a bluesy slide guitar accompaniment.
3
Donna Hughes - "Bottom of a Glass" (from the Gaining Wisdom album). A fingerpickin' good song about the dangers of the demon drink.
4
Storm Large - "Fat Chick's Revenge" (from the Ladylike Side One album). Ironic and in your face, this is the rock equivalent of the ugly duckling fable.
5
The Scuffers - "The Last Dance" (from the The Life I've Had album). A pure, honest, cry in your beer ballad. Class!
6
Kimberly Trip - "#1 With a Mullet" (from the Popularity Contest album). A touching tale of faded dreams perfectly balanced with a measure of bitter sweetness.
7
Wild Billy Childish - "Poundland Christmas" (from the Christmas 1979 album). Social commentary and post punk frustation explode in this new Christmas classic.
8
Yellow Bentines - "Pay Cheque" (from the Yellow Bentines album). British popular music songwriting just does not get much better than this. Cataclysmic.
9
Alexander Murray - "River So Wide" (from the Unaffected album). Ballad from the urban poet. Soulful and moving.
10
Hope Irish - "Tie Your Lips" (from the The Best of the Least album). Melodramatic popular songs meets post feminism or the woes of being a woman.
11
The Bastard Fairies - "Whatever" (from the Memento Mori album). A song about a relationship but not as Woody Allen would know it.
12
Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps - "How Am I Gonna Stop Loving You" (from the The Bottom Line album). A wonderful ballad with a gospel tinge and the essential Hammond B3 organ backing.
13
Acousticbug - "Comfort" (from the The Moon, the Night and the Starlight album). Haunting and so gentle that it caresses you, this one will steal your heart
14
The Rounders - "God Knows I'm Trying" (from the Wish I Had You album). Solid bass, echoing guitars and emotive, gritty vocals.
15
Buttercup - "It's the Bottle Talkin'" (from the Evil For You album). A good old fashioned country song that just reeks of bourbon, cigarettes and trailer parks.
16
Laura Healy - "Cobwebs" (from the Chasing Rainbows EP). A contemplative and insightful song that metaphorically evokes the sights, sounds and smells of cleaning out an old dusty house
17
Meteors - "You Want It" (from the Hymns for the Hellbound album). Bad attitude and maximum energy mixed together to make this song race up the road.
18
The Singles - "Hypnotized" (from the Start Again album). Skilful blend of sixties' pop and modern rock.
19
Sofia Talvik - "Holding Your Hand" (from the Street of Dreams album). Neat, sweet pop song with an undercurrent of something altogether darker. Seriously intelligent songwriting.
20
The Krinkles - "Dirty Girl" (from the 3 The Mordorloff Collection album). A storming piece of pure pop that is tailor made for the airwaves.