The Best of 2010 (So far): Track 1's

Bands putting one of their best tracks at the start of an album is no new thing, but in 2010 there have been some absolute fire crackers. Opening tracks that shock, shimmer and shine. Tracks that pulsate, permeate and penetrate. Tracks that...well you get the point. Here are Rip It Up's best (non-single) opening album tracks.

LOCAL NATIVES – Wide Eyes
From the album Gorilla Manor (Liberator)

Whatever I originally had Local Natives pegged as (some sort of Fleet Foxes mimics, if memory serves) got completely turned on its head with this song. This is just raw, emotive indie muscle. It travels from high to low and back again, taking no prisoners on its journey. It’s like dying man’s confession echoing through a cavernous mount range.

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM – Dance Yrself Clean
From the album This Is Happening (DFA/EMI)

The beginning of the end – the first track from LCD Soundsystem’s last album – encapsulates everything that ever made James Murphy’s pet project great in the first place. For starters it’s long, but never loses your attention. It’s quiet, but gets very loud. Just when you think you’ve got this song, and this band, figured out, they go and upend the present table sending all sorts of colours and shiny things flying into the stratosphere.

FOALS – Blue Blood
From the album Total Life Forever (Warner)

Foals dished us up something we weren’t expecting for their sophomore effort. Total Life Forever takes their inital indie disco palette and turns it on its head, starting with this song. Blue Blood builds slowly around Yannis Philippakis’ lowly wail, gradually reacquainting us with Foals’ mathy guitars before unleashing a firestorm of sonic fury. What a way to kick-start your album.

CLOUD CONTROL – Meditation Song #2 (Why, Oh Why?)
From the album Bliss Release (Ivy League)

The beautiful harmonies between Al Wright and Heidi Lenffer croon you to Cloud Control’s mountain paradise on the opening track to their already acclaimed Bliss Release record. It’s a psyche-infused, blissful fuzz fest – the archetypal Cloud Control song. Relax as it puts you to sleep before shocking you to attention.

THE GOLDEN FILTER – Dance Around The Fire
From the album Völuspá (Inertia/Remote Control)

Though the rest of Völuspá could have and should have been reduced to EP size, its first track was one of the clear stand-outs. Penelope Trappes’ waif-like whispers lure you into her fiery trap while the tense violins and Stephen Hindman’s synthy dalliances initiate the ethereal tribal dance. The Golden Filter’s hypnotic spell is only just beginning.

SURFER BLOOD – Floating Vibes
From the album Astro Coast (Kanine/Spunk)

It’s vibrating bass strings on this track that do it. The effortless melody satiates your senses and John Paul Pitts takes you on some nostalgic guitar cruise, but it’s the opening two chords emanating from Brain Black’s bass that makes this song. Instant attainability has been Surfer Blood’s key to success so far and in just two notes they achieve this like a well-thought out plan.

CRYSTAL CASTLES – Fainting Spells
From the album Crystal Castles (Shock)

For some it’s little more than a twitchy, glitchy mess of garbled computer lit, but it’s the perfect reintroduction to Crystal Castles’ electro punk. It’s a levelling of the playing field, as if all the pointed words and abuse hurled at them for their debut has been shaken off with a magnetic impulse. Welcome to Crystal Castle mark II.

FIRE! SANTA ROSA FIRE! – Ghostress
From the album Sea Priest (Dot Dash/Remote Control)

With its fiery guitar squeals and robotic drum pattern, Fire! Santa Rosa Fire! cast the doubters aside from the outset of debut album Sea Priet. Caitlin Duff sings with restrained power, combining with Dave Williams’ expert guitar play to form F!SRF!’s tour de force. It glows in ghost colours.

DELPHIC – Clarion Call
From the album Acolyte (Modular/UMA)

Delphic’s introductory track to their debut album is an explosive, jittery jolt of digitalised post-punk. In its angsty three minutes Clarion Call almost makes the rest of Acolyte totally redundant. If it weren’t for the equally brilliant rest of this album, that is.

TAME IMPALA – It Isn’t Meant To Be
From the album InnerSpeaker (Modular/UMA)

It Isn’t Meant To Be doesn’t so much blow you away with a bolt of psychedelic lightning, but it carries you away on an electrical journey of self-discovery. Kevin Parker’s rippling phasered guitar, Dominic Simper’s metronomic bass, Jay Watson’s heady drumming – they all join force to justify Tame Impala’s absurdly hyped debut album.

What's the best introduction to an album you've ever experienced?

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