21 Obscure Pop Songs from the 2000s That I Like

I’ve previously listed 5 Obscure Songs That I Like from the 1960s; 20 Obscure Pop Songs That I Like from the 1970s; 25 Somewhat Obscure Pop Songs from the 1980s That I Like; and 26 Somewhat Obscure Pop Songs from the 1990s That I Like.

 

In the early 2000s, the explosion of digital music sharing, downloading, and the emergence of iTunes created a time of expansion of styles of music. Everyone could find music to fit his or her tastes, the problem was digging through the dreck to get to the good stuff. With radio’s diminishing influence in introducing new music, people might look to tv series soundtracks, iTunes recommendations, or YouTube to find popular music that would otherwise be too hard to find.

 

I consider the 2000s to be the best decade for pop and rock music. Here are 21 songs that may have slipped under your radar:

 

21. “Don’t Let the Nightlight Dance” by Track a Tiger
Acoustic guitar mixed with electronic drums and synthesizers. A lot of Track a Tiger music is constructed like Smashing Pumpkins songs, but with a softer feel overall. “Don’t Let the Nightlight Dance” is fun and a good introduction to Track a Tiger’s catalog.

 

20. “Kid” by Still Life Still

Still Life Still is a Canadian alternative band, and to me their best song is “Kid.” This style of music is different than most of the pop music today.

 

19. “Come On, Come Out” by A Fine Frenzy

A very pretty piano-based pop song.

 

18. “These Fangs” by Say Hi to Your Mom

A simple, yet energetic song, but with a creepy lyric that reminds me a little bit of “Possum Kingdom” by The Toadies.

 

17. “Shine a Light” by Wolf Parade
Another energy song. I enjoy finding little treasures like this song while browsing around on iTunes.

 

16. “After All That, It’s Come to This” by Amos the Transparent
Amy Milan, the lead singer of Stars, has a really inviting singing style. Here, she guest vocals on an obscure song that demonstrates the rise of the man–woman dialog-style duets that seemed to crop up in the 2000s.

 

15. “Nuclear” by Ryan Adams
I saw Ryan Adams in his famously disastrous First Avenue concert in December 2003. (From a synopsis of that concert: Uff da. Railing against the stage monitors, City Pages, and Paul Westerberg—the latter had said in an interview that Adams “needed to get his teeth kicked in”—our fledgling young rock star unmistakably unraveled in front of a sold-out crowd. He switched from full-volume rock to an all-acoustic set on a whim, broke a cocktail glass on stage, bragged about dating actresses, and weepily confessed toward the end, “I just want to go home for Christmas.” Half the crowd had left in disgust by the time he snidely blurted, “This is one of my worst shows ever, but I like it.”) “Nuclear” is my favorite Adams’ song.

 

14. “Let’s Roll” by The Stills
The Stills opened for Ryan Adams at the aforementioned concert. They sounded like rock gods by comparison.

 

13. “Laryngitis Blues” by +/- (Plus/Minus)
An almost great song, but is missing that one element to put it over the top. Still very good.

 

12. “The Boat Song (We’re Getting Loaded)” by Ike Reilly Assassination
The production is really good on this song, and the tune sings itself.

 

11. “Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth” by Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah
A weird, but infectious song. I wasn’t a fan on the first listen, but it grew on me. The warbling vocals actually give this song a fun personality.

 

10. “Summer and Smoke” by Track a Tiger
A quiet, tuneful song with good lyrics. Track a Tiger deserves a bigger audience.

 

9. “Drink the Night Away” by Romantica
Telling the story of a drunk-driving tragedy, this song ends with a theological question. Structurally it is uncommon—a song in two parts and without a chorus.

 

8. “Closest (Look Out)” by Matt Pond PA
Matt Pond PA is not a household name, even in alternative music circles. And this song is not one of his hits, but I like it quite a bit.

 

7. “Tampa to Tulsa” by The Jayhawks
Written by the group’s drummer, this song hearkens back to some acoustic music of the 1970s. For some reason, I am put in the mind of a John Denver song.

 

6. “Not California” by Hem
The song is slow, but it pulls on you. I have listened to this melancholic song many times and have not grown tired of it. 

 

5. “Untitled Duet #3” by Softlightes
Soft, melodic electronic rock is a narrow genre, but this song sounds great to me. 

 

4. “Fiona” by Romantica
Another wonderful song by the Minnesota-based group, Romantica. I enjoy singing and playing along with this song on my guitar.

 

3. “Hurry Up Let’s Go” by Shout Out Louds
Howl, Howl, Gaff, Gaff, might be the best album of the decade. Starting with “Very Loud,” “The Comeback,” “Shut Your Eyes,” and this rocker makes that album both deep and excellent.

 

2. “Wild Mountainside” by Eddi Reader

This song was written by the guitarist from the ’90s alternative group, The Trashcan Sinatras. It is given a beautiful rendition by Eddi Reader. It sounds both ancient and brand new.

 

1. “Remember When (California)” by Tim Myers

One trend I really liked in the new millennium, was the increased numbers of male–female duets. Here is one of the best. Tim Myers, songwriter and former bassist of One Republic, pairs with Schyler Fisk to make a wistful and nostalgic song. 

A Good Comment from Power Line Blog Post

John Hinderacker wrote a blogpost, “We Have Always Been at War with Eastasia,” which touched on the left’s efforts to tie conservatives to being supporters of Russia in their war with Ukraine. I have seen people argue why Russia feels the need to invade, but I have not seen any conservative of note rooting for Russian to prevail.

 

A reader named Tennhauser wrote a comment to that post that summed up my understanding of the situation very well (it also has 39 upvotes, which is the most I’ve seen for any comment on Power Line). 

 

I am Ukrainian. My parent emigrated here. I have family in Ukraine and have visited them.

 

And let me just say, I feel a certain . . . discomfort with how many people are behaving. Just a lot of people jumping on a bandwagon and saying, “rah, rah, rah, let’s go to war!” I’m also not remotely hostile to people saying Ukraine is corrupt (it is) or there are issues there with fascist groups (there are). I’m fine with people pointing that out, and I don’t think they are “tools of Putin.” They are just reminding us of things we should remember. Ukraine isn’t perfect.

 

Good news is the Ukrainians can beat the Russians with minimal involvement from us—they need some money, some supplies, and some weapons. There are loads of countries supplying all that, so, while things are rough right now, I have zero doubt the Ukrainians will prevail.

 

What we can do is drill for oil and natural gas, reduce energy prices worldwide, and supply Europe with the energy so they can say goodbye to Russian oil and gas. I’d also repeal the renewable fuels standard, and free up as much corn as possible for export to keep food prices low. These actions benefit us as well as Ukraine and should be a no-brainer. And like I said, just keep supplying the Ukrainians with what they need to keep fighting—they’ll do the rest. Heck, 3–4 weeks Russia will give up and give in. They won’t have a choice—Russian losses are unsustainable.

 

To me, Tennhauser’s comment is a common sense, non-controversial take on the invasion.

What Game Is Xcel Energy Playing?

Driving my kids to various events after school, I typically listen to KFAN, the local sports talk radio station in the Twin Cities.

Recently, KFAN has been airing a bunch of ads from Xcel Energy, the company that provides electricity to the Twin Cities and surrounding areas. Amazingly, the basic thrust of the ad campaign is to inform customers that Xcel’s goal is to be “carbon-free” by 2050. 

As a resident of Minnesota, a customer of Xcel Energy, and a shareholder of Xcel Energy, I have to say that I disagree totally with that idea. Instead of worrying about being carbon-free in 28 years, I think they should reaffirm their commitment to “reliable energy for our customers.” 

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the number of other countries that have gone down the “green” path, we can see the danger of that approach. And as my electric utility company, I think Xcel should not follow that lead.

The most recent radio ad from Xcel was the stupidest of the bunch. In looking online, I can see that it also has a video version.
Here is the narration:

At Xcel Energy, we’re going carbon free by 2050. We’ll use the energy of the wind and the sun. But other things too—all kinds of energy. Because energy is everything. It’s intelligence and it’s vision and it’s imagination. Sometimes energy even comes in 16 fluid ounce cans of caffeine. You know, just to get us through. Energy is good vibes. It’s a road trip powered by electricity. Energy is science, like really high-tech super science. And it’s you, your energy, super-charged by a bajilliion, million, zillion volts of optimism. Together we’ll get to cleaner, safer, less-expensive energy for a carbon-free future. Everything is energy. Energy is everything.

I do not see myself as the target audience for this ad (although I am in the main demographic of sports talk radio: men ages of 21–54), but I have so many issues with it. Let’s break it down.

At Xcel Energy, we’re going carbon free by 2050. 
In the early 21^st century, there are many ways to generate energy: coal, natural gas, petroleum, hydro, nuclear, solar, wind, geo-thermal, biomass, and even burning wood. It seems to me that if you are a utility company like Xcel Energy, you should be looking at all ways to generate reliable energy for your customers, and not limiting your company to just one or two energy-generating avenues. Carbon-free means no coal, no natural gas, and no petroleum. These are reliable ways to generate power in all seasons and weather conditions.

We’ll use the energy of the wind and the sun. 
Even I, who is not an expert when it comes to electricity, know that wind and solar are not silver bullets that will by themselves be able to supply energy for a population the size of Minnesota. There are limits to the amount of wind and sun that can be converted into electricity. And what happens when the sun is not shining or the wind is not blowing. Well, maybe we can store the energy in batteries. (Don't bet on it.)

But other things too—all kinds of energy because energy is everything. 
Don’t hold back! Please tell us all the other “things” that will supply carbon-free energy for Minnesotans in 2050. They can’t tell us what they are, but be assured that it’s “all kinds of energy.” And then the stupid branding line that appears here and at the end of the ad: “energy is everything.” Which looked at logically doesn’t make any sense because is means equals, and everything does not equal energy. I also am not a fan of the totalitarian overtones of this glib, Ministry of Information phrase.

It’s intelligence and it’s vision and it’s imagination.
It’s also a tell that you’re making this all up as you go along. If you knew what carbon-free in 2050 looked like, you would tell us.

Sometimes energy even comes in 16 fluid ounce cans of caffeine. You know, just to get us through. Energy is good vibes. It’s a road trip powered by electricity. 
Ah! Energy drinks—I get it! Whatever energy drinks have to do with Xcel is trite. This little section is just blah, blah, blah. It is meaningless, but meant to make people feel that Xcel is cool—that they are on the cutting edge of things like electric cars and going heading off into the future.

Energy is science, like really high-tech super science. 
Whoa! Don’t confuse us with the “like really high-tech super science.” Maybe you guys at Xcel should just go ahead and do that wacky science and let us non-science types know when we can hit the light switch.

And it’s you, your energy, super-charged by a bajillion, million, zillion volts of optimism. 
Yea! I’m a part of science! Thank you, Xcel Energy for noticing me up here in row 12 of section 218. I’ll just cheer you on with all your crazy super-science words and ideas.

Together we’ll get to cleaner, safer, less-expensive energy for a carbon-free future. 
“Cleaner,” maybe. “Safer,” not for the birds. “Less expensive,” no way. Also, call me old-fashioned, but I’d like to see something about reliable here (but then they’d be lying instead of just making marketing claims).

Everything is energy. Energy is everything.
And the creepy, totalitarian, focus-grouped tagline reappears: Energy is everything.

A few final thoughts:

• I know that this is aimed at kids and young adults (thus running on a sports talk radio station), so it’s meant for a younger demographic. But all the hip, with-it language and imagery is so calculated and so patronizing, it makes the whole thing feel smarmy. It also makes me feel like something unpleasant is being forced on us.
• Nuclear energy is not mentioned at all in this ad, but nuclear is the cleanest, most reliable energy out there. If Xcel is planning on nuclear expansion, I’m all for it. In fact, I will go so far as to say that without nuclear energy as part of the plan, their goal of carbon free by 2050 is unreachable.
• And on that subject, who came up with the directive for a carbon-free Xcel Energy? Was this mandated by the legislature or some government agency? If so, they should say so in their ads so voters know who to blame when their power goes out in the middle of the winter and all their pipes freeze. If it comes from the leadership of Xcel, I can only say shame on them—they should know better. Again, as a stockholder and customer of Xcel Energy, my two main requests are simple: I want reliable energy, and I want low-cost energy. The green part of it is a distant third.
• Power Line Blog is one of my daily go-to sources for commentary on current issues. Most of the links in this go to Power Line articles. So here are two more links just for fun.

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2021/08/the-disaster-of-green-energy.php

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2021/07/more-evidence-of-the-uselessness-of-green-energy.php

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2021/02/wind-and-solar-energy-dont-work.php


The old joke is apropos here: Q: What did socialists use for light before candles? A: electricity.

UPDATE: Dennis Prager wrote an article last year that explained how he now understood the "good German"—how regular, not evil people in WWII Germany could not speak up about the killing of 6 million Jewish people. In that vein, I think I can now understand how the Soviet Union was able to kill millions and millions of their own people through overt killing and allowing people to die through starvation. I never thought I would see a time in America where the leaders of of the country are absolutely driven to the politics of scarcity. They want to make gasoline, food, and money scarce in pursuit of their policy goals, even if it means misery for the people of the US. It is shocking to me.