Clinic, "Voodoo Wop"
Imagine having the confidence to open an album this way. A distant, chilly vibe, acutal ocean noises, a complete change a minute in in both mood and sound, no vocals until the last five seconds. Just bonkers. It was a true declaration of intent, though, as the whole album basically fulfilled the promise of this opening track.
Cursive, "Driftwood: A Fairy Tale"
One of the fun things about The Ugly Organ, if "fun" is the right word, is that they made great use of the cello in order to really fill out the sounds on the record. Tim Kasher's songs are very good, as always, and the album is one of my favorites of theirs.
Seaweed, "What Are We Taking?"
Another track from Seaweed's swan song, with a real Afghan Whigs vibe going on here. That's OK with me!
Primus, "Pudding Time"
A lot of the focus of Primus is on Les Claypool, both on his unhinged vocals and his incredibly expressive bass playing. But Primus wouldn't have worked without Alexander and LaLonde being able to keep up with Claypool's nonsense, giving a context that makes it all work together and providing tons of brilliant moments of their own as well.
They Might Be Giants, "I Was Dancing In The Lesbian Bar"
The electronic songs by TMBG vary pretty widely in their success. I dunno about this one.