Introduction to the Project

Hello!

If you're reading this, you've received a little special something in the mail called Aught Hits. As this decade was winding down, Lesley and I were thinking about how crazy this decade was. Many magazines and newspapers published stories about how happy they were that the 00's were ending and how, beginning with Y2K, 9/11 and all kinds of other madness, this decade was one they'd like to forget.

Then we thought about it a little more. And we realized how much incredible music came out of this decade. If you are of a certain age (and you know you are!), this decade was very important to you. You said goodbye to your 20s, maybe got married, bought a house (or a Vespa), got a pet and maybe even lost one, had a baby, lived somewhere you never thought you would, stopped going to shows then realized it and started going again, began to enjoy going to bed at 10:30 or earlier, got a little fatter, etc... Music. Music has been the soundtrack to it all.

Personally, music has always been an extremely important part of my life. I started singing in front of people at age two, then moved on to choir, musicals, and then to singing and playing guitar in several bands, most notably The Pre-Teens. (My band may have been born in the 90s, but it died in the aughts). Music has been my best friend since I can remember, and in the aughts, it was no different. At the beginning of the aughts, I found myself fiercely defending my musical tastes only to find them gradually shifting as the decade wore on. I went from riot grrl to indie to alt-country to electro to beard rock with temporary dabbles in hip hop and even pop.

Aught Hits presents two volumes of my favorite tracks of the decade. Some you will certainly know and love (or hate), but hopefully there will be some new ones you aren't familiar with. That's the thing about Aught Hits - it would be different for everyone. Suffice it to say that every single one of these songs meant the world to me at one time or another. Whether it be searching for meaning in bluegrass and gospel in the days after September 11th. Or discovering my favorite band of the decade, Arcade Fire upon turning 30. I will always associate meeting Lesley with Modest Mouse. Later on was that trip to London when we saw Cat Power perform The Greatest before it was released. Beruit was my first musical discovery upon moving to NYC for grad school. And when I began my fledgling teaching career, I rode the creaky F train all the way to the Lower East Side while listening to Kanye West trying to feel "down". 2009 has left me with a renewed interest in indie pop thanks to Phoenix and Passion Pit - not to mention my baffling obsession with the Jay Z/Alicia Keys song, "Empire State of Mind".

Yes, it's been a long decade, but a great one for music. I hope you enjoy this compilation and the blog as well. Each song has a story - feel free to browse through mine or of course just think of your own stories connected to these Aught Hits.

Jan. 2009