The Top 5 Songs of 2005

I was blogging about music as far back as 2003.  But they were on different blogs, sites, and pages that are now either completely forgotten about, or just plain dead.  On January 24, 2006, a few months before I started Audio Overflow, I posted The Top 20 Songs of 2005 to my myspace blog.  But I just listed the songs, without explanations.  I’m surprised how well this list held up too.  I pretty much agree with the Top 5 still, so that’s why I’ve decided to post it here.  Of course, this time, there are explanations.  Not like it matters.  You won’t read them.

#5:  Death Cab for Cutie – “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” – The shining star on Death Cab’s 2005 album and major label debut, Plans, was undoubtedly this song.  About love that transcends the boundaries of this life, “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” is arguably the most beautiful Death Cab song of all time.  Simple, poetic, and gorgeous, you can’t help but love every bit of this song.  Its place on this list is well-deserved. 

#4:  Sufjan Stevens – “The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades is Out to Get Us” – A song with such a silly name should never be this serious, but leave it to Sufjan Stevens to do the exact opposite of what we’d expect.  This timeless story of childhood friendships, loss, and regret is incredibly poignant, and one of the best songs on the Illinois album.  To many, it went unnoticed as “John Wayne Gacy Jr.” and “Chicago” stole the show.  But for me, it remains one of his greatest achievements as a songwriter, and easily one of the best songs of 2005.

#3: Bright Eyes – “Land Locked Blues” – Conor Oberst released two albums in 2005, and this was the best song on either one of them.  I’d be willing to say that it’s probably his best song, which for a guy with such an extensive catalog is saying quite a lot.  With stunning lyrics, somber guitars, and convincing vocal performances, there’s nothing to not love about this one!  Take this line, for example:  “Greed is a bottomless pit/ and our freedom’s a joke, we’re just takin’ a piss/ and the whole world much watch the sad comic display/ if you’re still free start runnin’ away/ cause we’re coming for you!”  It’s followed by a triumphant trumpet solo, which only heightens the impact of it all.  This is truly a perfect song.

#2: Stars – “Your Ex-Lover Is Dead” – This story of two one-time lovers meeting again through chance and reliving old memories in a single night is quite the tale to tackle.  But Stars has never been one to let a difficult subject stop them from making beautiful music.  The lead-off track to Set Yourself on Fire, this is easily their strongest song to date.  Torquil and Amy harmonize beautifully as they sing, “Live through this and you won’t look back,” oh…and the rest of the song too.  If you’ve never heard it, shame on you.  I’ve provided a streaming version below to get you up to speed.

#1:  Sufjan Stevens – “John Wayne Gacy Jr.” – In 2007, I made sure that each artist only had one song on the year-end list.  However, prior to all of that, it was never an issue.  That’s why Sufjan has two songs on this list.  And can you blame me.  With an album as perfect as Illinois, you can’t help but fill the list up with his songs.  Sufjan’s song about serial killer, John Wayne Gacy, is a chilling tale, accentuated by the fact that Sufjan draws comparisons between himself and the killer (“In my best behavior/ I am really just like him/ look beneath the floorboards/ for the secrets I have hid”).  His vocal performance is unfathomably strong.  They grab you and take you for a ride.  Will you be sympathizing with the killer by the song’s end?  Will you be thinking Sufjan is a weirdo?  Either way, you simply can’t deny the beauty of this song.  It is easily the best song of 2005, and by far the strongest on Illinois.

Top 5 Songs of 2005

The 5 Worst Actors Turned Musicians

“Musicians” is  a generous term when describing the following 5 actors who got bored with their day jobs.  If I grab a guitar and sing random crap, does that make me a musician, or does it make me a d-bag with a guitar and a voice?  I’ll leave that deep question to the philosophers out there.  For all us normal folks, here’s a list of 5 actors that need to get out from behind the microphone and act.  For the love of god, just act!!

#5:  Juliette Lewis (from Juliette and the Licks) – Juliette Lewis has never really impressed me as an actress.  She was okay in “Natural Born Killers” but I found her more convincing as a mentally handicapped girl.  In Juliette and the Licks, she takes over the ever-daunting job of fronting a rock band.  Fortunately for her, the band ain’t all that bad.  Really the only thing that makes me despise Juliette Lewis as a musician is her “out there” stage presence and her abnormally annoying vocal styles.  It’s like she spends most of her time trying to mimmick Gwen Stefani’s old No Doubt style.  But when it comes to technicality, she can hit the notes and all the inflections fairly well.  For the time being, however, I’ll keep on avoiding The Licks.  I just feel much better with myself that way.

#4:  Keanu Reeves (from Dogstar) – Oh, Dogstar!  There’s a reason we all like to hate on this band, and it has a lot to do with Keanu Reeves.  We all knew the guy was a terrible actor (I mean, who saw “Bram Stoker’s Dracula?”  That movie was hella ballsy.  In Dogstar, Reeves takes over the bass guitar and even adds in some vocals here and there.  The result is even more mediocre then his skills on the big screen.  Of course, it’s not all his fault.  The rest of the band is a strange concoction of suck that few would dare face.  If you need proof, I highly suggest their cover of “Superstar.”  It’s almost as bad as the Sonic Youth one.

#3:  Jada Pinkett-Smith (from Wicked Wisdom) – Ok, so when you hear “Hey, Jada Pinkett-Smith fancies herself a musician,” what genre pops into your head?  R&B?  Hip hop?  Bubble-gum pop?  As it turns out, all of those genres might be perfect fits for J. P-S, but we’ll never know for sure because she sings in the heavy metal band, Wicked Wisdom.  I know, right?  What the hell?  Ok, ok, let’s try to keep an open mind.  Don’t form an opinion until you’ve heard what they sound like.  Fair enough.

Something Inside of Me – Wicked WisdomNow, if you haven’t taken a power drill to your ear canal yet, I’ll give you a few seconds to get the proper materials needed to achieve success in this endeavor.  Believe it or not, there are still two “artists” who I consider to be worse than this.  Take a deep breath.  Moving on…
#2:  Scarlett Johansson – Be honest, who wasn’t entirely let down Scarlett’s “Anywhere I Lay My Head?”  Oh sure, there were the few music critics out there who gave her positive remarks for her efforts, but I have serious doubts as to whether they ever made it past the cover art.  When I heard she was making a CD of Tom Waits covers, I thought it would be – at the very least – interesting.  But I was wrong.  It’s not interesting.  Not even close.  It is boring, simple, downright horrendous music.  Scarlett’s voice is absolutely gorgeous when she’s talking, but when she sings, flowers whither and birds drop out of the sky.  Well, that may be a little harsh.  Perhaps I’ll just say that Sarah Plain and Tall has nothing on Scarlett.  Get it?  Because her voice is plain!  *sigh*  Ok, well I tried.
#1:  Jena Malone (from The Shoe, and other terrible, terrible projects) – I am absolutely a huge Jena Malone fan.  Her work in “Saved!” and “Donnie Darko” is by no means Oscar-worthy, but they were roles that she totally nailed!  Her work as a musician is a bunch of preachy, idiotic, pretentious noise.  She can’t sing at all.  She makes Paris Hilton sound like effing Celine Dion.  Her guitar playing makes Daniel Johnston sound like Eric Clapton.  Jena Malone is a downright awful musician!  The worse part is how indie bloggers and journalists are ranting and raving about her music.  One time I wrote, composed, and recorded an entire 18-track album in 24 hours.  It was 100% better than Jena Malone’s music.  And that’s not me being cocky…because it totally sucked it up.  But Jena…SUCKS. IT. UP!

The 5 Most Awesomely Bad Rap Songs

I feel like a total tool using the term “awesomely bad,” seeing as how VH1 pretty much coined it for their awesomely bad countdowns.  But seeing as how there’s no better way to describe the following 5 rap songs, it will have to do.  Now these aren’t Weird Al rap songs, or anything dumb.  These are legitimate songs that you can’t help but like.  They are so bad, they’re good.  You can’t get enough of them…admit it.  I present to you, dearest reader, The 5 Most Awesomely Bad Rap Songs.  With video.

#5:  Master P – “Make ‘Em Say Uhh” – There’s no denying the badness of Master P’s only somewhat decent song (and really only that good because of Mystikal).  The hook of the song is completely inane in the same way that “gettin’ jiggy with it” is.  It doesn’t make a lick of sense, it’s spoken, and hearing 5 voices say “uhhhh” in 5 completely different keys is far too much for my poor fragile ears to handle.  But I’ll be damned if that isn’t one of the most infectious beats of all time.  And then there’s Mystikal.  Dude needs to get out of prison ASAP and make at least one more hit on the same level of “Danger.”  That would make me the happiest boy in the world.

#4: Akinyele – “Put It In My Mouth” – Possibly the most sexually explicit rap song ever written, including everything by 2 Live Crew and ICP (gawd!).  The thing about Akinyele is that this song is actually kind of tame compared to his other stuff.  It’s just that this one is the only one that I can actually listen to.  Partially because it’s hilarious (I mean, what kind of legitimate female vocalist sings the lyric “I was sprung once I feel your tongue in the crack of my ass?”).  Meanwhile Akinyele is barking out some of the nastiest stuff you’ll ever hear.  It’s so bad I wouldn’t even feel right posting a video here.  But here’s a link.  Ummm….NSFW.
#3: Freak Nasty – “Da’ Dip” – Ugh.  It’s such a bad song and I can’t help but love it.  Of course, I’ve got all those sentimental feelings for it (5th grade dances for the most part), but I think the main reason that song could be qualified as awesomely bad is due mainly to the video.  What the hell is up with that robot thing?  That’s got to be the dancing baby’s demon mother.  Oh, and let’s not forget Princess Leia and her friend, the disco ball.  Who could forget that?

#2:  Skee-Lo – “I Wish” – Old school rap  beat?  Check.  Old school boombox?  Check.  Forest Gump reference?  Check.  This is, honest to god, one of my favorite rap songs of all time.  Why?  Mainly all of the reasons above, plus the fact that the lyrics of Skee-Lo’s only song that anyone knows are straight up hilarious.  Rappers are always talking about what they have, be it bling (remember bling?), grills, rims….shiny things really.  And weed.  Skee-Lo was man enough to rap about what he didn’t have, namely height.  So while he’s busy rapping about his inadequacies and awkward time sitting with the ladies “who came to watch their man ball,” I’m over here bobbing my head, throwing my hand up, and hoping to Jesus that no one walks in and sees me.  

#1:  Coolio – “1,2,3,4 (Sumpin’ New)” – When we’re really honest with ourselves, we can admit that that Coolio is a fairly terrible rapper.  Oh I know, “Gangsta’s Paradise” really moved you back when you were growing up in the suburbs, but that doesn’t change the fact that his lyrics are almost as bad Will Smith’s.  In this song, “1,2,3,4,” he even uses the term “lookie loos” which is tearing me apart on the inside.  I just can’t decide whether it’s laughably bad or incredibly badass (I’m leaning towards the latter).    

Top 5 Friday: 5 Movies with semi-decent Alternative Soundtracks

5. Clueless:

I love it when people don’t realize that Clueless is basically Jane Austen’s novel Emma. It’s one of the few Alicia Silverstone movies I’ll watch and the irony of the entire thing never fails to amuse me. Under that clueless, vapid exterior lies a smart, witty, sensitive Cher that makes a few lifestyle and spiritual changes at the end all orchestrated by a great soundtrack. You’ve got some Cracker, some Lightening Seeds, the Counting Crows, some Radiohead. There’s lots of what I would consider some one-hit-wonder Alternative songs in here, which are the standout tracks for me: Jill Sobule’s “Supermodel” and Luscious Jackson’s “Here”. It’s a charming soundtrack, much in the way the movie is, and nice for when you want a little randomness mixed into your regular listening habits, whatever they may be.

4. The Wedding Singer:

To borrow a quote from Empire Records, shock me, shock me, shock me when I discovered the other day that someone turned The Wedding Singer into a Broadway musical. We all know of my love of musicals but my first question was “Why??” I had to rewind it to make sure it wasn’t a joke and my question still stands, why?

It’s your charming, typical love story of a Cater-Waiter and a really bad wedding band front man engaged to other people who meet and eventually realize that they were meant for each other. (Hello basic plot-line of chick flicks.) The Wedding Singer has a great soundtrack though…The Presidents of the United States of America, The Culture Club, New Order, The Thompson Twins…while it’s not an entirely Alternative soundtrack, its great for those songs that are oddly peppy and make you want to sing along. (I mean really, who doesn’t love singing along to Adam Sandler belting out “somebody kill me please…” while in the car with the windows down?) Standout tracks are “Everyday I Write the Book” by Elvis Costello and “China Girl” by David Bowie, but you really shouldn’t miss or dismiss Ellen Dow plus the Sugarhill Gang doing “Rapper’s Delight”. No, it’s not Alternative, but it’s amusing and well worth the listen.

3. Empire Records:

“This music is the glue of the world Mark. It’s what holds it all together. Without this, life would be meaningless.”

In my house, all things stop and no opportunity is lost to watch Empire Records if it’s on television. With commercials, without commercials, in Spanish…it doesn’t matter. Empire Records is an important movie in my household and around here, you stop what you’re doing to watch it, no matter when it started. And you also know what “Happy Rex Manning Day” means should it be said randomly. We’ve never been able to figure out why, exactly, we have such a great love for the movie, but we do. Independent music store, smart-alecky employees, Rex Manning, and an Atlantic City putting the store at risk of being sold to a large chain all make for a quirky good time. The music is fitting for the movie and it’s got a sort of laid back, relaxed, almost sad Alternative vibe to it. Standout tracks include “Liar” by The Cranberries and “Ready, Steady, Go” by The Meices. What really makes me love this soundtrack, though is “Sugarhigh” by Coyote Shivers, on the soundtrack sans Renee Zellweger. It’s jump-around-on-my-bed goodness that describes a mood I can often be found in.

2. Pretty In Pink:

Okay. Let’s just get this out of the way: did anyone really buy into the idea that James Spader and Andrew McCarthy were young enough to be high school boys? Molly Ringwald and John Cryer were a bit more believable in their roles as Andy and Ducky, but really. James Spader as a high school senior? Even in 1986 he looks so…old. Like 2 packs a day old, but I digress.

I admit it Pretty In Pink isn’t the greatest movie ever. It didn’t really stand the test of time, as it were, for me. I loved it when I was in high school because Andy was just so cool and I desperately wanted to distance myself from the real life Steffs and Blanes that I knew. And she wore a lot of pink, which really, is never an issue for me. What did stand the test of time, though, is the soundtrack. Made up of songs that I loved then and still love now. If I drop off “If You Leave” by Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, which I loathe, it’s probably my most favorite movie soundtrack ever. It uses the less popular “Shell Shock” by New Order and “Pretty In Pink” by The Psychedelic Furs is still an Alternative standard for me. There’s Suzanne Vega, there’s Belious Some, there’s Echo and the Bunnymen creating an atmosphere of love, longing, and the awkwardness of not managing to fit in anywhere, even with those that are your own “kind.” The soundtrack ends with probably the saddest Alternative song ever, “Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want” by The Smiths…so simple. So heartbreaking. Exactly perfect for the movie and exactly perfect for pretty much everyones lives.

I can do without seeing Pretty In Pink anymore, but I’ll never give up the soundtrack.

1. Cruel Intentions:

Oh, how I love Cruel Intentions. Everyone always remembers it for it’s famous in the park kissing scene, but it’s really the dramatic, sad event towards that always gets me. It’s dark, it’s amusing in it’s own way, it’s explicit verging on socially unacceptable, it’s unexpected, it’s sexy. It’s evil. It’s got a perfect soundtrack.

This is one of those soundtracks that seemed to be tailor made for the movie in every way. The songs picked were appropriate for the scenes they played in, meaning plot and music manage to go hand in hand. The Counting Crows “Colorblind” manages to capture the sad trek Ryan Phillippe makes and “Bittersweet Symphony” from The Verve brings you out of the emotional tension the movie pretty much puts you through. It’s a soundtrack that I think best sums up the emotional parts to movie, the Alternative genre especially…it’s got a mix of (musical) acts that talk about love and sex and obsession and the darkness that is sometimes life. If those are the main themes to Alternative music, then I don’t know what is. There’s nothing upbeat about this soundtrack, not really, not even the peppiest of songs manage to cast a happy light to the whole thing.

Standout tracks, even though they all standout in their own ways, must not be missed: “Every Me, Every You” by Placebo and “Comin’ Up From Behind” by Marcy Playground, which is so, so much superior to their “Sex and Candy” single. As far as Alternative soundtracks go, you absolutely cannot go wrong with the Cruel Intentions soundtrack.

The Top 5 Alternative Hits by One Hit Wonders

So, in lieu of the missed Retro Review last week, Cale and I agreed that I would take charge of Top 5 Friday so that I could get over an illness and grace you with my opinions, yet again. Therefore, this week, as the headline states, it’s my favorite alternative hits by one hit wonders. While I’m a huge fan of successful artists who produce multitudes of life altering albums , I must also pay homage to those who have fallen. Thus I present you with the magic…please behold.

5. Nine Days – “Absolutely (The Story of a Girl)”
I know what you’re thinking…and you’re right. It is a bit of the lighter side of alternative rock. A little more pop and a little less, “with the lights out it’s less dangerous”. I get that. However, the lighter side is exactly why I love this song. I can’t tell you the number of times it has popped into my head and stayed there for days…ironic, huh? It’s a great piece that tells about the solemness of this girl that lead singer, John Hampson, is truly fond of, and even as he lays out all her “imperfections”, he claims to “absolutely love her when she smiles”. “Absolutely (The Story of a Girl)” is a happy song that takes me back to fond memories of listening to and singing this song in my first car. It’s cheesy, I know, but memories often play a huge part in musical selections and is the reason for this song being brought to the forefront of my mind. BTW, in case you’re planning on checking, Wikipedia will list them as having 2 hits. “Absolutely (The Story of a Girl)” and some track called “If I Am”… Let’s be honest, has anyone ever really heard it, and more importantly, would you remember it?

4. Spacehog – “In the Meantime”
I gotta be frank with you all… I know nothing of this band. Nada. What I do know is that “In the Meantime” is one of my absolute favorite songs ever. It’s one where you may understand the lyrics as being one thing, while I’m hearing words that are completely different. It’s a song where I’ve probably given it entirely new lyrics. However, lyrics aside, it’s a great song for several reasons. The vocals are so unique that I feel if we’d ever heard more from Spacehog, it would’ve been easily identifiable. The song has great hooks, verses, chorus, bridge, ending…I mean, it has unbelievable structure. The ending is totally separate from this vocal/guitar driven song in that it scrapes away all other musical factors, save the piano, and plays what could almost sound like an adult lullaby. It’s a beautiful melody that will always stand out in my mind as being a perfect ending to an amazing song. Seriously, if I could give “In the Meantime” a true rating, it would be an easy 10.

3. The Proclaimers – “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)”
I assume that when one thinks of Alternative Rock, the bands Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc. come to mind, but what about it’s predecessors. Sure The Proclaimers (please don’t confuse with The Pretenders) don’t pop out as significant, or maybe even alternative rock, but you can’t deny that “I’m Gonna Be (500 miles)” didn’t break the mold from other bands that were around in 1988. This song was so different from anything out there at that time and was so original, that I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to honor the Scots. “I’m Gonna Be (500 miles)” is a brilliantly talented, goofy song that was featured in the film Benny & Joon (why does that feel like it was 10,000 years ago?). The song is an upbeat and lighthearted display of complete devotion. The patterns of “when you do this, I’m gonna do this” make up the spirited song and make it easy to sing along with and easy to fall in love with. And let’s face it…you’ll never forget the lines “and I would walk 500 miles, and I would walk 500 more” and the composed chorus of “duh duh duh duhs” that make this song worth remembering and/or hard to forget.

2. The Verve – “Bitter Sweet Symphony”
I do feel slightly guilty for listing The Verve in this category, because to be fair, I believe they’ve had several hits in the UK. However, if you glance up to the address bar on your screen, you’ll notice we’re not in Kansas anymore and being an American based musical opinions blog, I’m exercising my right to add them. I’ll say this…”Bitter Sweet Symphony” is not only an awesome song, but the video is great too. I love to watch him plow through literally every person he passes down the street like they’re not even there. Being that this is about the song, not the video, I’ll move on. “Bitter Sweet Symphony” was not even close to being an instant favorite of mine. In fact, it wasn’t even until I heard Lucas Rossi perform it on “Rockstar Supernova” that I even appreciated it as a good song, much less a favorite of mine. However, when I heard it under a different voice, I realized what an intricate composition it is, both vocally and instrumentally. It has the ability to be vocally ornamented, which is exactly what Rossi did with it. Once I heard his version, I went back and reexamined my feelings for the original…I loved it. I listened with a fresh set of ears and it was as if I’d heard it for the first time. It’s a beautifully written alternative rock song that makes you feel melancholy and malicious at the same time. If you’re having doubts about appreciating “Bitter Sweet Symphony”, I would encourage you to find a version of Rossi’s and then reevaluate The Verve’s masterpiece.

1. Tracy Bonham – “Mother Mother”
So while this is my fav, it’s hard for me to lump Tracy into this category because I love more of her music than just this one song. A few of them even got air play, but it’s “Mother Mother” that brings home the bacon. “Mother Mother” is a sarcastic tale of a girl and her phone conversation with her mother in which she makes small talk, asks some questions, and recalls some unexpected details. In the chorus, she sings/screams “I’m hungry, I’m dirty, I’m losing my mind, everything’s fine”. The song’s use of guitars and strings, which come prior to the chorus, don’t even set you up for when she goes berserk during the chorus. It’s a great surprise! Bonham is a phenomenal vocalist and with a hit like this and a voice like hers, it’s a travesty that she’s being classified as a one hit wonder. She’s truly masterful and “Mother Mother” proves it. This song is also one of the first tracks where I had ever heard a female vocalist scream, as it was very uncommon for women during that period in music. I remember loving how pissed off Bonham seemed, especially since I felt I could relate in all my teen angst. I always swore up and down that if I was in a band, I would cover this song, as have The Veronicas. “Rockstar Supernova” alum, Dilana even performed it on the show (though not by choice) and killed it (in a good way). It’s a fabulous song that deserves every bit of recognition it gets and more. It is my hope that you will enjoy it along with me.

Top 5 Friday: My Favorite Favorite Female Voices of Alternative Rock

Let’s face it, the women of the music world are sometimes overlooked in favor of their more popular counterparts. When you get into a genre like Alternative Rock, as we are this month, it’s the men that come immediately to mind. I’ll be honest, it took me a few minutes to come up with a list of women in Alternative Rock that I even liked. I’m slightly disappointed by this, but I do think I came up with some gems.

5. Sleater Kinney: Are they Indie? Are they Alternative? Some people have them on one list, some people on the other, and a few have them on both. Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein broke up with the bands they were in (which are so unnotable I don’t even know what they are) and formed Sleater Kinney in 1995. They put out 7 albums in 10 years and are no longer a group. That’s pretty much all I know about them. I admit, I am not the biggest Sleater Kinney fan in the world. They’ve always been a take it or leave it kind of band for me. Seeing them live really helped bolster my opinion of them, though, so now every so often I find myself dragging out a few Sleater Kinney albums for things like house work and really angry painting sessions. Sometimes they fit into that need for angry girl music that isn’t something like Tori Amos or Ani diFranco; something that’s got a lot more of a rock edge to it. “All Hands On the Bad One” is a great album, but it’s the single “Jumpers” from 2005’s “The Woods” that makes me really happy. Writing this I realized what Sleater Kinney is for me: a female version of Rage Against the Machine. Only a little tamer.

4. Liz Phair: I remember when Liz Phair made a little bit of a mainstream splash when she released her album “Liz Phair” in 2003. I saw her on Letterman doing “Why Can’t I?” and it just seemed to go downhill from there for her. She was no longer an Alternative darling for the media and was labeled as a sell out. That’s what happens when you go with a production team, it seems, that puts out albums for people like Avril Lavigne and Hillary Duff. “Liz Phair” wasn’t that great of an album, but if you go further back and dig out “whitechocolatespacegg” or “Exile in Guyville” you’ll find some true pieces of art. “Polyester Bride”, “Fuck and Run”, “Gunshy”, “Only Son”, and “Go On Ahead” are my Liz Phair staples. She’s bold, she’s honest, and she’s got a humorous approach to otherwise touchy subjects.

3. Siouxsee Sioux: Her name is really Janet. She helped form Siouxsee and the Banshees in 1976 and then broke them up, as many female lead singers are wont to do, in 1995. (And apparently got them back together for a reunion tour this year because reunion tours are big money.) But that wasn’t before she netted herself some critical praise and put out nearly 15 albums. As a teenager, I was so in love with Siouxsee’s voice and her look. The bright pink dresses coupled with the heavy black eyeliner and nail polish. The dyed dark black hair. And her voice…deep, sultry, commanding, dark. She sings as if she doesn’t care what the world thinks of her and she does a cover of Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger” that to this day sometimes still gives me goosebumps. (And does it far better than Iggy Pop ever did it.)

2. Dolores O’Riordan: After I submitted my list of my favorite Alternative Albums to Cale, like two days after it was made official, I was kicking myself for a glaring omission: The Cranberrie’s “Everyone Else Is Doing It So Why Can’t We?” I always forget about The Cranberries, even though “Zombie” pops up often on my iPod. (Is random really so random if it’s playing the same 50 out of 14,000 songs?) The firs time I heard Dolores O’Riordan I said “Wow. Her voice kicks ass” and that’s a sentiment I hold to this day. She’s got this distinctive voice that somehow never managed to lose the Irish accent the more she sang. She can screech with the best of them and she has the ability to draw you into her voice and keep you there until she’s done with you. “Linger” is such a poetic song driven by her vocals and who doesn’t love the chorus of “Zombie”? My favorite though, and always has been, is “Liar”. Genius lyrics and you really get a taste of that amazing Irish accent.

1. Natalie Merchant: There’s a lot to be said about 10,000 Maniacs and that’ll come at another time. This moment belongs to Natalie Merchant. I have a very vivid image of her live and this sums it up best: I should have just tacked her picture up on the wall and played her cd’s on a loop. She doesn’t move, she doesn’t have much stage presence, and she just belts out one song after another. Oh. And in person, Natalie Merchant is so incredibly striking it’s startling. If it weren’t for the voice she has it would have been a total waste of money to see her live. She’s got a voice like no other and she knows how to use it. There are songs like “San Andreas Fault” and “Ophelia” that have a very lullaby quality to them and when she sings about pioneer women moving across the country via covered wagon, her voice really puts you there. Natalie Merchant manages to tell a story with her lyrics and uses her voice to illustrate it. For me, Natalie Merchant can make me weepy, make me happy, and she never fails to make me want to hear more. Her voice is just so different that if you haven’t sought her out, you really should. Natalie Merchant is an Alt Rock goddess and should not be ignored.