Lots of Robyn and lots of females. Obvi. I think this list also reflects my preference for “uptime” (as opposed to downtime) because I associate most of these songs with running, dancing, skiing…
1. Robyn, Indestructible - I loved the acoustic version and I was sure it was going to get remixed on Body Talk Pt. 3, so I was so glad when it actually was. I love the imagery of the lyrics.
2. Robyn, Dancing on My Own - Obviously. This is destined to be a classic.
3. Rihanna, Only Girl - Oh, how I love this song. It’s got so much energy that it just instantly makes me happy. Her voice, the bass, the fact that the bass ramps up earlier the second time she sings the chorus than it does the first time thus giving the song more energy as it progresses… I could talk about this song for hours.
4. Kaskade (featuring Dragonette), Fire in Your New Shoes - I was surprised when I saw that this song is only 2 min 40 sec because it packs so much into those 160 seconds. A lot of female pop singers have more of a purr, but Dragonette’s lead singer has a feminine growl that I love.
5. Nicki Minaj, Girls Fall Like Dominoes - This wins for gender-bending lyrics and perfectly blending in the Brit power chorus.
6. Robyn, Hang with Me - Awesome lyrics. Also love it because it followed the acoustic-to-remix formula that tied the three parts of Body Talk together.
7. Alphabeat, Telephone/Bad Romance Cover - Two words: A-mazing. This is by far my favorite rendition of Gaga by someone other than Gaga and even better than a lot of original Gaga.
8. Robyn, Fembot - I love this song because it brings together so many of her recurring elements (e.g., over-the-top parodies of hip-hop boastfulness, technological imagery, female strength).
9. Sophie Ellis Bextor, Bittersweet - This song is both thumping and sexy. Her voice is both powerful and slinky and I love how it blends with the slinky build of the music.
10. Miike Snow, Animal - This and all its litter of remixed offspring are great. (Get it? Animal? Litter? ha!)
11. Robyn, Don’t F**king Tell Me What to Do - This song is on here partly because it was the first song on Body Talk Pt. 1 so it’s the first song you hear off of the album and you’re just like, “WTF did she just do?!?” With this song, she was like, “Hey, pop music, don’t f**king tell me what to do…do.”
12. Robyn, Time Machine - Also wins for best/most creative line of the year in a pop song: “All I need is a time machine…All I want is a DeLorean.” Best Back to the Future reference EVER.
13. Nicki Minaj, Massive Attack + Blazin + Monster (her part) + Roman’s Revenge (her part) - I couldn’t choose just one other song in addition to Girls Fall Like Dominoes, but together all of these definitely rank.
14. MGMT, Song for Dan Treacy + Flash Delirium - These two songs win for building complexity and energy as the songs ramp up, which I’m a huge fan of.
15. Major Lazer, Keep It Going Louder - Probably the poppiest of the Major Lazer album. What can I say? I hugely prefer female vocals.
16. Lykke Li, Get Some - I’ve got a weakness for fast-paced “tribal” beats (I don’t know how else to describe it).
17. Florence and the Machine, Dog Days Are Over - Heavy percussion + steady build of energy until the end. My favorites.
18. LCD Soundsystem, You Wanted a Hit (Keljet Remix) - This song does what male voices rarely do for me when he slips into power mode and just makes me want to sprint and/or dance.
19. Robyn, Dancehall Queen - This song is so fun and paints a vivid story.
20. Rihanna, Rude Boy + Rude Boy (Cosmic Dawn Remix) - This song was awesome and the high-energy Cosmic Dawn Remix (as most Cosmic Dawn remixes are) is a nice tweak.
20.1 Royksopp (featuring Robyn), The Girl and the Robot - This technically came out in 2009, but I just discovered it in 2010. Thus it’s 20.1 on my list of best 20 songs of 2010.
