The Obvious:
1. Hey Ya - Outkast
It won't be denied. As soon as that beat hits, things start happening to your body that you can't control. It only gets wilder from there.
2. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) - Arcade Fire
I don't know if there's a song that ever worked a metaphor better. It felt like a statement of purpose for one of the classic albums of the century so far.
3. Wolf Like Me - TV on the Radio
A howling bit of lust. It brings the house down and makes me want to do things.
4. Idioteque - Radiohead
If there's a song that better encapsulates the century so far, I don't know what it is. It's also the song / album that got me back into Radiohead, after I missed the boat on OK Computer.
5. This Modern Love - Bloc Party
It's a perfect guitar pop song. Technicolor, as Kele Okereke described that first Bloc Party album, which is an all-timer.
6. Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Captures the sound of a heart breaking in a way few other songs ever have.
7. Archie Marry Me - Alvvays
Irresistible big pop hook. Heavenly female vocals. Noisy feedback-laden guitars. All of my favorite things, done perfectly.
Sleepers:
8. 2 Wrongs Make 1 Right - Mogwai
Cinematic, sweeping, somehow conveys a compelling epic saga without any (audible) words. I was obsessed with it for a long time.
9. In the Dark Places - PJ Harvey
I joked last year that I would just spam PJ next time around. I didn't do that, but she needs to be included. Her Mercury Prize-winning Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea was well represented on the countdown. Her other Mercury Prize-winning album, Let England Shake, was not. It's chock full of songs that wouldn't be out of place on this list, but this one is the most harrowing. Somehow when that bridge hits, I'm suddenly in a trench--cold, tired, and afraid.
10. Middle America - Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
Malkmus at his best, sweet melodies cascading into one another, throwing out gems that are both cleverly amusing and emotionally-resonant. Will always be a delight.