Sexy Beast's Top 15 Closing Tracks

Sexy Beast

Sexy Beast

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The hardest part to write of any story is the ending, something which can succinctly tie the whole thing up in a satisfying conclusion. It is not much different for an album, the ending track can easily make or break an album as much as the first one. If done right it can leave a lasting impression on the listener. Here are 15 of my favorite album closers.



15: Tom Waits - Anywhere I Lay My Head

Off of Waits' seminal album "Rain Dogs", Anywhere I lay My Head manages to capture the whole tone of the album and sums up its running themes in the production. There aren't any artists quite like Tom Waits and this dirty brass piece that is reminiscent of a New Orleans funeral march is where he is at his best.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUPRQDewJpA[/ame]
 
14: Daft Punk - Too Long

The joke here is that a lot of people think this song is to long and clocking in at a solid 10 minutes it almost is to long. The final song of Daft Punk's Discovery album manages to remain entertaining throughout the whole 10 minutes and is great song to play out this great album. That and it gets stuck in your head pretty easily.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6_ZNW1DACE[/ame]
 
13: Portishead - Western Eyes

Portishead's self titled sophomore album has the distinct ability of making me feel like I'm sitting in a smokey cafe some time during the 1950's. Western Eyes manages to keep the same feel as the rest of the album and feels like the perfect conclusion.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ5KwjNvjYU[/ame]
 
12: Future of the Left - Lapsed Catholics

Travels With My Self and Another is the album where Future of the Left manages to distances themselves from Mclusky...which was front man Andy Falkous', pictured left, previous band. Lapsed Catholic manages to hit all the right points from random pop-culture, to a random diatribe about James Murdoch, and a plea for something greater in life. Lapsed Catholic is the perfect conclusion to this album.


Unfortunately this is not up on youtube, there is a video on vimeo with the song...so yeah:


[ame]http://vimeo.com/33141401[/ame]


fotl_travels.jpg
 
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11: Arctic Monkeys - A Certain Romance

Arctic Monkeys debut set up some stratospheric expectations for the band...which they still haven't really met. A Certain Romance didn't help much, since its the ideal finally to that album. Its a song that discusses old friends and the places that we all came from. We know that our old acquaintances and old haunts are not the greatest of people or places, but its what we knew and in the end there is a certain romance to them. Almost like nostalgia. Also this is the song that I played while leaving my high school after graduation.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUGzWETn1HQ[/ame]
 
10: Kanye West - Who Will Survive in America

I know there are a lot of people who did not like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, I did though and Who Will Survive in America almost gave the album a deeper meaning. The revolutionary tone is almost reminiscent of something that you might have heard out of a militant revolutionary group in the 1970s. It has a strange quality to it that is immediately recognizable and engaging.


Due to the lyrics of the song I'm not going to embed the youtube video.


Kanye-West-My-Beautiful-Dark-Twisted-Fantasy-Art-2-500x500-thumb-580x580-246873.jpg
 
9: PJ Harvey - The Colour of the Earth


PJ Harvey's Let England Shake is a scathing endightment of English history and at the same time it is a love letter to the country and the coulture. The Colour of the Earth is a simple song about the ANZAC, or the Austrialian-New Zealand Army Corps. During WWI they fought Gallipoli Campaign, where they suffered massive losses. The focuses on a man who is haunted by the loss of his friend. Its a depressing song but the perfect coda to Let England Shake.


Skip to 1:54. For some strange reason PJ Harvey decided it was best to play the song twice. Album version starts at 1:54

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGFvp3431iM[/ame]
 
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8: Titus Andronicus - The Battle of Hampton Roads


For those who don't know; The Battle of Hampton Roads was the American Civil War battle where the two Ironclads duked it out. The battle ended in a draw, but this song has far more definitive results. Clocking in at just north of 14 minutes, this song covers (more like burns) so much ground that it is nearly impossible to summarize its major themes. Its a great song that works as a brilliant bookend to this brilliant album.



[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZYignZ2HfE[/ame]
 
7: David Bowie - Rock 'n' Roll Suicide

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is widely regarded as one of the best concept albums where pretty much every song on the album became a hit single. Rock 'n' Roll Suicide is after the fall and offers a somewhat positive...well more bittersweet view of life and Rock.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jg4ekLG9Zo[/ame]
 
6: Nas - It Ain't Hard to Tell

Illmatic changed Rap forever and well thats pretty much all we need to say about this one.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI-DRbf_AZk[/ame]
 
5: Spiritualized - Cop Shoot Cop

Ladies and Gentlemen We are Floating in Space is one of my favorite albums and Cop Shoot Cop... is a brilliant song.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddptzaMXKgc[/ame]
 
4: Radiohead - Life in a Glasshouse


This one was a hard one since all Radiohead's albums have great closing tracks. I could have easily gone with Videotape or with The Tourist, but this one hits all the right places for me. Amnesiac gets a bad rap for being that album that quickly followed up Kid A, but I really like it and this track is just the perfect tone for the end of the album. It has this the forlorn quality to it that resinates well with me.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtkZxqTH9tE[/ame]
 
3: The Beatles - A Day in the Life

Obvious choice is obvious.



[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-Q9D4dcYng[/ame]
 
2: LCD Soundsystem - New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down


James Murphy's love letter to pre-Giuliani New York. Its a memorable and poignant track that harkens back to a time that I will never experience.


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eohHwsplvY[/ame]
 
1: The Doors - The End

What else could it have been?


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD74-1G9o_U[/ame]
 
I would have made my radiohead choice The Tourist. To be honest life in a glasshouse is probably my least favorite song on amnesiac, and I really enjoy listening to that album.
 
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQEgZNqa8jE[/ame]


This has the Best Closer of all time end of story.
 
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