Mixtape 1-23-09

Deerhunter continues its dominance of the top spot. In addition to the four weeks on top this year, "Nothing Ever Happened" spent the last eight weeks of 2008 on top as well. Old Mixtape vets Wolf Parade are looking to follow up their number one song of '08 - "Fine Young Cannibals" - with another numero uno in the form of "Language City." I mean, seriously. Their album came out last June and I'm still obssessing over songs on it. Deerhunters' biggest threat realistically comes from Animal Collective who just keeps flying up the 'Tape. Their new album, Merriweather Post Pavilion, has gotten amazing reviews and will be on many top ten year-end lists in about eleven months. Listening to MPP is akin to riding a theme park roller coaster - a rush of unbridaled exhiliration which engulfs the senses before ending entirely too soon. Just like the coaster enthusiasts, I find myself going back to it right after it finishes - fortunately without the hour-long wait in line.

Other bits this week. Sassy lassy Katie White (one-half of the Ting Tings) takes out her frustrations with ADD-riddled admirers on "That's Not My Name," which finds itself at number five after only three weeks. For the first time in a decade, Oasis find the top ten again with "I'm Outta Time." Noel and Liam must have actively been seeking to re-create the sound that shot them to "bigger than Jesus" status in the nineties, because this song sounds more like a lost track from Morning Glory than a late fourth-quarter shot at reclaiming lost relevance.

A quick glance at the bottom of the 'Tape reveals an exodus of November / December staples from Kanye, TV on the Radio, and Wolf Parade. It's out with the old (except for the three top-twenty TVOTR songs that won't die) and in with the new. The Points' punk jam, "Never Trust My Heart," "Starting Over" by the Black Lips, and In Endeavors' "You've Got Your Friends, I've Got Mine" all make big moves upwards and just may see top-ten territory in the coming weeks. Not to mention, all three song titles sound ripe for inclusion on a post-breakup mixtape.

1. Nothing Ever Happened / Deerhunter (4 weeks @ #1) iTunes MySpace
2. Language City / Wolf Parade iTunes MySpace
3. Last Believer, Drop Dead / Secret Machines iTunes MySpace
4. My Girls / Animal Collective iTunes MySpace
5. That's Not My Name / The Ting Tings iTunes MySpace
6. Saved By Old Times / Deerhunter iTunes MySpace
7. Street Lights / Kanye West iTunes MySpace
8. I'm Outta Time / Oasis iTunes MySpace
9. Lover's Day / TV on the Radio iTunes MySpace
10. Perfect Games / The Broken West iTunes MySpace
11. Sleepyhead / Passion Pit iTunes MySpace
12. White Noise Melody / The Whore Moans iTunes MySpace
13. Love Dog / TV on the Radio iTunes MySpace
14. Stolen Shoes & a Rifle / Blitzen Trapper iTunes MySpace
15. DLZ / TV on the Radio iTunes MySpace
16. Now You're Gone / Secret Machines iTunes MySpace
17. The Kids Don't Stand a Chance / Vampire Weekend iTunes MySpace
18. Never Trust My Heart / The Points iTunes MySpace
19. Starting Over / Black Lips iTunes MySpace
20. Sleeping Sickness / City and Colour iTunes MySpace
21. Now I'm a Fool / Eagles of Death Metal iTunes MySpace
22. You've Got Your Friends... / In Endeavors iTunes MySpace
    
23. In the Hospital / Friendly Fires iTunes MySpace
24. Nowhere's Nigh / Parts and Labor iTunes MySpace
25. Oxford Comma / Vampire Weekend iTunes MySpace
26. Snowblind / +/- iTunes MySpace
27. I'm a Lady / Santogold iTunes MySpace
28. An Eluardian Instance / of Montreal iTunes MySpace
29. Trashcan / The Delta Spirit iTunes MySpace
30. Wishing Well / Love Is All iTunes MySpace
31. Get On Your Boots / U2 iTunes MySpace
32. Daylight / Matt & Kim iTunes MySpace
33. Golden Age / TV on the Radio iTunes MySpace
34. Love Lockdown / Kanye West iTunes MySpace
35. Whatchadoin? / N.A.S.A. (ft. Spank Rock, MIA, Santogold, and Nick Zinner) iTunes MySpace
36. The Rake's Song / The Decemberists iTunes MySpace
37. Dancing Choose / TV on the Radio iTunes MySpace
38. Fine Young Cannibals / Wolf Parade iTunes MySpace
39. Heartless / Kanye West iTunes MySpace
40. Heretic Pride / The Mountain Goats iTunes MySpace