Matt's Books and Music

[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.]

Introduction

The dawning of the new decade of the 2010s was marked with a lot of optimism. It was just a year into Obama’s first term as US President — a victory that showed the political clout of a new and progressive generation of voters. And the decade began with the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, which were among the most culturally fun in recent memory. All around, it seemed, good vibes reigned. And yet, the shadow of the Great Recession of the late ‘00s still hung over everything, including the music industry. Perhaps it’s no surprise then that 2010 itself feels in retrospect like a transitional year. There’s still a lot of ‘recession pop’ to be found, R&B and rap retained the cultural centrality they’d gained in the ‘00s, and guitar-heavy rock music still had a big presence on the charts. In fact, 2010 could be the most diverse of my annual retrospective playlists.

Top 10 Albums

1. Speak Now (Taylor Swift): That this came came in first was a huge surprise to me, since it’s not an album I think about. But it’s also fitting, since it marks a huge step forward for the artist that would eventually be named the ‘artist of the decade’. Not only does Swift start to lean away from her country roots here, with songs that feel inspired by the ‘power pop’ likes of Paramore and early Avril Lavigne, but she is also the sole credited songwriter on the album. This decision proved to be the right one, since Speak Now features such canonical songs as “Mine, “Back to December,” and “Dear John.”
2. Kaleidoscope Heart (Sara Bareilles): While these lists are retrospective in nature, this was the 2010 album that I listened to on repeat in 2010 and 2011. For my money, this is the album that best strikes the balance between Bareilles’s theatrical and pop sensibilities. And fifteen years later, it holds up remarkably well.
3. Body Talk (Robyn): Few musicians have had as bespoke a career as Swedish popstar Robyn. After initial success in the ‘90s, she disappeared from at least North American consciousness for much of the ‘00s, before releasing this era-defining album in 2010 — whose success she’s intentionally eschewed in her later albums.
4. The Family Jewels (Marina and the Diamonds): Combining an ironic sensibility with unexpected melodic and lyrical choices, and infectious pop production, Marina and the Diamonds burst on to the scene in 2010 with this weird and wonderful album that continues to be the favourite in her discography for many fans (myself included).
5. The Suburbs (Arcade Fire): It’s easy to forget how big this album was, but it won the Polaris Prize, Juno Award, and Grammy for Album of the Year. And deservedly so. It’s an interesting thought experiment to wonder how things could have gone had rock not been largely subsumed by the ‘stomp clap’ phenomenon a couple years later.
6. The ArchAndroid (Janelle Monae): Perhaps this comment will betray my age, but this futuristic, electro-dance, R&B confection still feels fresh, new, and exciting fifteen years after its release.
7. Teenage Dream (Katy Perry): How big was this album? It was only the second album ever to launch five number one Billboard hits. It’s no wonder Perry keeps trying to return to its well of unserious, lite female empowerment, even as the world has moved on from it.
8. Lights (Ellie Goulding): This is a strong and consistent debut album from the British singer, even if it hasn’t had the lasting legacy of some of the other albums on the list.
9. Raymond v. Raymond (USHER): The only reason why this is as low as it is is because of my own ambivalence towards the R&B genre. Make no mistake: this is an all-time great album, with songs like “Lil Freak,” “There Goes My Baby,” and “Hey Daddy.”
10. High Violet (The National): It’s hard to know what to say about this. This album is perhaps the most “The National” The National has ever been, with obscure lyrics and Matt Berninger’s trademark voice used perfectly, and I love it.

Other Albums of Note

• Sweet Thing (Sweet Thing): Sweet Thing turned out to be a one-album wonder, but you’d never guess it from an album that featured such Millennial touchpoints as “Over You” and “Change of Seasons.”
• Loud (Rihanna): My above comments on the USHER album apply to Loud too. Featuring contemporary R&B classics like “S&M,” “Only Girl,” and “What’s My Name?,” it’s pretty spectacular.
• Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (Grace Potter & The Nocturnals): This could be the best contemporary blues album of the 21st century.

Top 10 Songs

1. “We Used to Wait” (Arcade Fire): This prescient song about the fast pace of change and the disconnection of the world is perhaps the ideal song to start the decade at number one. (Favourite lyric: “I used to sleep at night / Before the flashing lights settled deep in my brain”)
2. “Hello” (Martin Solveig with Dragonette): This song by DJ Martin Solveig is deceptively simple and so much fun. And until Summer 2025, it was my main exposure to Dragonette, whose voice adds a feeling of innocence that works well on the track. (Favourite lyric: “You’re alright, but I’m here, darling, to enjoy the party”)
3. “England” (The National): Sad and gorgeously atmospheric, this if for me the quintessential The National song. (Favourite lyric: “You must be somewhere in London / You must be loving your life in the rain”)
4. “Once and for All” (Clock Opera): Were it not so high in my rankings, this would definitely be in my ‘most surprising’ slot, since no one has heard of this song. It has special meaning to me since it’s about change and disillusionment and came to me at a time when my own life was experiencing a profound rupture. But even without my personal connection to it, I think it’s great. (Favourite lyric: “ When did we grow up and when did we lose / Everything we were so sure of back then?”)
5. “Oh No!” (Marina and the Diamonds): This works as a pop song. This works as a satire of popular media. It’s strange, it’s fun — it’s Marina. (Favourite lyric: “TV taught me how to feel / Now real life has no appeal”)
6. “Dancing On My Own” (Robyn): This song about dancing alone while watching an ex dancing with someone else only seems to grow in impact and reputation as time goes on. (Favourite lyric: “I’m in the corner watching you kiss her / I’m right over here: Why can’t you see me?”)
7. “Without a Fight” (Janelle Monae): As much as I love The ArchAndroid, my favourite Janelle Monae song from 2010 is this hard-to-find (currently unavailable on streaming platforms and so missing from my best-of-the-year playlist) gem from the soundtrack of For Colored Girls. (Favourite lyric: “My Lord keeps sending me the signs /I know this one is gonna be mine”)
8. “In My Eyes” (Robyn): That this is one of the least-streamed songs from Body Talk boggles my mind. With a driving beat and ‘80s-inspired synths, this is so good! (Favourite lyric: “Just say one true thing like you mean it and / Baby, just look into my eyes”)
9. “Dear John” (Taylor Swift): All tea-spilling aside, this is an all-time well-written song. By the end, it leaves you with no doubt that yes, nineteen was too young to be messed with. (Favourite lyric: “Long were the nights when my days once revolved around you”)
10. “Sprawl II (Mountains beyond Mountains)” (Arcade Fire): The sentiment of disillusionment may not be original, but it’s paired perfectly with production that feels like the best of late ‘70s Blondie. (Favourite lyric; “These days, my life, I feel it has no purpose / But late at night the feelings swim to the surface”)

Other Songs of Note

It’s interesting looking through my 2010 playlist what feels the most fresh on it is rock (poppier rock for sure, but rock nonetheless, especially in comparison to mainstream pop), while what feels a bit stale is the R&B and pop. I’d never guess from this that the 2010s would be a decade of pop supremacy that would make many in the industry wonder whether rock was finished for good. Here are three pop rock standouts from the year:

• “Young Blood” (The Naked and Famous)
• “Radioactive” (Kings of Leon)
• “Moneygrabber” (Fitz and the Tantrums)

Most Surprising Inclusion

• “Don’t Let Your Feet Touch Ground” (Ash Koley): This song by Canadian indie artist Ash Koley got a lot of exposure as the official song for the Canadian coverage the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. While the group would only release one further album, I think the song holds up.

Notable Song that Missed the Cut

• “Baby” (Justin Bieber): Sorry to all the fans and stans, but this just isn’t good and at sixteen, Bieber was not ready for prime time

[Note: It’s of course impossible to listen to everything, so while I’ve tried to be as comprehensive as possible, omissions are inevitable. For consistency’s sake, I’ve gone with the year music was released, rather than when it became popular. Any ratings or rankings are my own and entirely subjective. This has nothing to do with objective quality but is simply reflective of my personal taste.]