Choice Cuts: Franklin Avenue's Favorite Tracks of 2010, Part 3

7. "Not in Love" -- Crystal Castles feat. Robert Smith

This is a very late addition to the end-of-year mix -- but I can't get this song, or the vocals by the Cure's Robert Smith, out of my head. It's a cover of a 1980s song by Platinum Blond, updated by Crystal Castles -- with the genius addition of Smith's vocals. Better than anything The Cure has put out since the early 1990s.



8. "Little Secrets" -- Passion Pit

First off, you gotta love the fact that Passion Pit -- formed in 2007 -- took their name (allegedly) from Variety's slanguage dictionary. (Variety used the term in the past to refer to drive-in theaters). I enjoyed Passion Pit's CD for much of 2009, actually, but this song snuck onto my January 2010 mix. It's such a catchy, delicious slice of electro pop (I also love the use of PS22 chorus for the "higher and higher" riff).



9. "Heard It on the Radio" -- The Bird and the Bee

Back in May, we took our first major road trip since the birth of Blogger Baby 2.0. During the drive north to San Francisco, we probably listened to the Bird and the Bee's "Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Hall and Oates" four or five times. It was the perfect, breezy soundtrack for our drive up the 5. "Heard It On the Radio" stood out to me, perhaps because the original Hall & Oates song isn't as overplayed as some of the others that Bird and the Bee (Inara George and Greg Kurstin) covered.



10. "Shyness" -- Thieves Like Us

Gotta love a band that takes its name from a classic New Order track. Thieves Like Us, which boasts members from both the U.S. and Sweden (but is based in Paris), came up with this solid pop song.

More tomorrow! Previously:

Choice Cuts: Franklin Avenue's Favorite Tracks of 2010, Part 1

Choice Cuts: Franklin Avenue's Favorite Tracks of 2010, Part 2