James Murphy really has a good thing going with his band LCD Soundsystem – their unique minimalist / electronic sound has produced some fantastic tracks. I think the majority of these great tracks can be found on their 2007 release “Sound of Silver”, one of my favourite albums to listen to at the moment. Let’s see how I’d rank the songs.
Good
9 – Watch The Tapes
A perfectly acceptable song in its own right, just not a particularly memorable one.
This track sort of feels like a short, undercooked piece of songwriting by the band. Not bad by any means though.
8 – Sound of Silver
Upon first listen, this 7 minute foray into strange sounds can be a little off-putting, but over time it’s grown on me.
The first half has some great James Murphy vocals, and the second half is admittedly weird but still fun.
7 – Us V Them
It feels a little strange to say this about an LCD Soundsystem song, but I think this track is just slightly too long.
There always comes a point near the end of this where I think “is this song done yet?”. Other than that, a solid effort.
6 – North American Scum
This one is quite a crowd pleaser live, but I don’t share the same kind of fondness.
Don’t get me wrong – this is still a good song, just not as good as some fans would have you believe. Definitely a catchy tune.
Great
5 – Time to Get Away
To me, this feels like a better version of “North American Scum”.
Great vocals as always, and the rest of the band really add their own flair to it as well.
4 – Get Innocuous!
The perfect song to open this record, “Get Innocuous!” is just fun from start to finish.
You can tell you’re in for a great album after you’ve listened to this.
Amazing
3 – New York, I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down
Now we hit the proper classics.
An amazing album closer, it really feels like James is singing from the heart when he rambles on about problems in his beloved New York. A heartfelt piece that will never get old.
2 – Someone Great
One of Murphy’s greatest lyrics, “Someone Great” makes you feel like you’ve also lost someone close to you.
He writes about his pain and grief in creative an beautiful ways “The worst is all the lovely weather, I’m stunned it’s not raining. The coffee isn’t even bitter, because what’s the difference”. Truly inspirational stuff, and I hope Murphy received some sort of closure by writing this.
All-Time Great
1 – All My Friends
This album’s crowning jewel, “All My Friends” will probably go down in history as their best song, and one of the best songs ever made.
The way it builds up to the finale is masterful, and Murphy provides the goods with the vocals and lyrics. This is iconic from start to finish – opening with the piano lick, and finishing the roller-coaster ride off with delayed drums. If this is what LCD Soundsystem will be remembered for, they should be proud.
Aaaaaand that’s it. Check out some of my other lists below:
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