I NEED SUGAR

In honour of the terrifically mediocre Junos, belatedly continuing the decade review, tracks 21 through 25. And look, no less than two Canadian artists in the mix here, one of which had an album that surely could have been nominated for the 2010 Junos but, no, no mention of Tiga anywhere. (Though Tiga did win in '07 for Sexor so I suppose I shouldn't complain. Still Deadmau5? Is this about music or popularity? And a "Recording Package Of The Year" nomination for Patrick Watson, but no love for the actual music? Come on!) But, hey, at least I now know who Justin Bieber is. But I digress. So here's number 25 of the 2000s and, as always, just select the track name to listen on blip.fm:

Naughties.25 Tiga - Beep Beep Beep (Extended Mix) Fantastic groove building up to some terrifically unsubtle LCD Soundsystem flavoured drums (and yet not one of the two James Murphy produced tracks off the album) followed by some subtle space disco and back. A huge '09 vibe.

Naughties.24 The Whitest Boy Alive - Golden Cage (Fred Falke Remix) The man with the smoothest voice in the game meets the man producing the smoothest basslines. A massively uplifting '08 progressive house track.

Naughties.23 Hercules & Love Affair - Blind featuring Antony (Frankie Knuckles Remix) I'm actually not a huge fan of this album, but there's no denying that Blind is a great disco track. But Frankie Knuckles takes Blind and turns it into an exceptional house track. Bringing up the bass, warms up the track with some added synth and piano, and tightening up the percussion. So, so good. From 2008.

Naughties.22 Cat Power - Metal Heart My brother doesn't dig the Cat Power. Especially the covers. But on this reprise of her own '98 track from her '08 covers album, that smokey voice, those power chords, and that lyrical earnestness kick my ass hard.

Naughties.21 K-OS - Crucial K-OS has said and done some incredibly stupid things throughout the years, but he's also put out the odd gem on his albums. Crucial is a great summer reggae Can-rock vibe, showcasing a surprisingly fantastic confluence of genres.

Listening to Bamnan and Silvercork for the first time in 2009 is like realizing you've found the love of your life and you've got this heartache for missing all those years you could have been together had you only met sooner.

And, since Canadians can't buy this album on iTunes, emusic, Amazon or at the Midlake or Bella Union websites (WTF people?!?!), here, here.