Citizen Dick Quarterly Report, Postscript

As a bit of an addendum to finish out our lists today, we would like to give a mention to what all three of us have identified as our favorite track from the early portion of 2009.  Amazingly, there was no arguing over this topic whatsoever: not a single one of us can get Dan Mangan’s “Robots” out of our heads.  I hate to use such glaring superlatives, but this may be an absolutely perfect song.  Clearly it’s enormously catchy, and Mangan’s smoky voice pairs in perfect harmony with his delicate guitar and the soft horns in the background, leaving you humming the melodies in your mind for days to come.  Making the song even more amazing is the fact that Mangan is able to pull off such a tender and heartfelt four minutes of musical bliss while singing about loving robots as though they are human beings; all without the slightest hint of kitsch.  And though this makes for a wonderful listening experience, it sometimes creates the random awkward moment when you are standing next to a complete stranger and singing, “robots need love too; they want to be loved by you.”  But these are the sacrifices we make for great music.  Seriously though, we all love this track very much and we think you will too.  If you haven’t listened to any of the other songs we have posted so far this year, please, for the love of God, listen to this one.  Like right now.

Dan Mangan – “Robots”