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Artists Of The Year CMU Playlists
Playlist: CMU Artists Of The Year 2010
By CMU Editorial | Published on Saturday 18 December 2010
For the last two weeks in the CMU Daily, we’ve been revealing our top ten favourite artists of the year. These are all artists we felt had contributed something a bit special in 2010. Not just people who had delivered a great album (or even an album at all), but musicians who made a real mark on those twelve months just gone.
The resulting list takes us through rock, metal, pop, rap, reggae and more, with ten artists that we reckon are just that little bit extra special, whether that be because they deliver great music on record, or put that bit more into their live shows, or because they go above and beyond the call of duty in some other way. In many cases, it’s all of the above.
Says CMU Editor Andy Malt: “I’m really pleased with how this list has turned out. 2010 has been a really good year for music, as I think the ten artists we’ve selected show – not to mention all the amazing acts who didn’t make it into the top ten. There were a lot of them, and it was an agonising process getting it to this stage!”
Andy has written about exactly why each of these artists made our list and what they got up to in 2010 here (although our number one artist of the year won’t be revealed to CMU Daily readers until Tuesday, so you’re getting a little sneak preview here). And while you’re at it, check out our favourite new acts of the year, too. Now, here are the ten artists in the form of a Powers Of Ten playlist, plus some brief thoughts on each from Andy again.
CMU’S ARTISTS OF 2010 TEN
Click here to listen to the artists of 2010 playlist in Spotify, and then read on to find out more about the tracks included.
01 Tinie Tempah – Pass Out
This year Tinie Tempah went from being relatively unknown to a major star in a matter of months, and this was the song that did it for him. ‘Pass Out’ quietly appeared on YouTube at the end of last year and slowly built up an impassioned following, sending it to number one in March.
02 Janelle Monáe – Cold War
‘Cold War’ is the standout track from the smart, amazingly creative and insanely talented Janelle Monáe’s fantastic debut album, ‘The ArchAndroid’. The album continues the story of Cindi Mayweather, an android from the year 2719, which began on her 2007 debut EP.
03 Steve Mason – Boys Outside
Since The Beta Band split in 2005, Steve Mason has struggled to get his solo career off the ground. The records were great, but he was blighted by depression. But with his first album released under his own name, of which this is the title track, he’s overcome his demons and delivered the best record of his career.
04 Chilly Gonzales – Never Stop
This year Chilly Gonzales has released a new album, a film, performed shows solo and with a full band, provided piano accompaniment to Peaches’ solo performances of Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ and had this track featured on Apple’s iPad adverts. He’s been busy.
05 Warpaint – Undertow
Warpaint, like many of the artists on this list, were responsible for one of my favourite gigs of the year when they played The Scala in London. So good was that, that at times I was actually rendered breathless. Their debut album, ‘The Fool’, from which this is taken, is no less beautiful.
06 The National – Bloodbuzz Ohio
Released as a free download in March, and one of the album’s standout tracks, this track perfectly exemplified the understated rock sound of the album, building a buzz for the record, aided later by support from BBC 6music. It spent several weeks on heavy rotation on the CMU stereo, too.
07 Roots Manuva Meets Wrongtom – Jah Warriors
In creating his Roots Manuva remix album, ‘Duppy Writer’, Wrongtom tried to re-imagine each track as an ‘original’ version from an earlier decade. The result is more than just a collection of remixes, it’s a proper album so good you could think the real originals were the remixes. This track, however, is brand new.
08 Deftones – Rocket Skates
Deftones were preparing to release their sixth album, ‘Eros’, in 2008 when bassist Chi Cheng was seriously injured in a car crash, leaving him in a coma. Seven months later, the rest of the band shelved ‘Eros’ and started another album from scratch. The result sees them on top form, with this being the first single.
09 Marnie Stern – Transparency
Is The New Mystery Marnie Stern plays lightning fast guitar, complemented by Hella drummer Zach Hill’s brain-melting percussion, but somehow moulds all this technical mastery into quirky indie songs that bubble with charm. Her third eponymous album is her most personal and pushes that formula in new directions.
10 Sleigh Bells – Tell Em
This duo make noisy pop songs, so loud that they sound like they’re trying to punch their way out of your speakers. Guitarist Derek Miller’s background is in hardcore, while singer Alexis Krauss was once in a pop group. It’s a match that is somehow perfect. This is their album’s opening track. And what an opening track.
