Top 20

In the dual interests of 1) feeding the end of the year's appetite for lists, and 2) writing a post without having to do too much work on New Year's Eve, I've decided to provide what my iPod tells me are my top 20 most frequently listened to songs.

1. The Thermals, "Pillar of Salt" (from The Body, the Blood, the Machine)

2. Kanye West, "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (from Graduation)

3. LCD Soundsystem, "All My Friends" (from The Sound of Silver)

4. Arctic Monkeys, "From the Ritz to the Rubble" (from Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not)

5. The Hold Steady, "Massive Nights" (from Boys and Girls in America)

6. Los Campesinos!, "You! Me! Dancing!" (from Sticking Fingers into Sockets EP)

7. The XYZ Affair, "All My Friends" (from A Few More Published Studies)

8. Guided by Voices, "Gold Star for Robot Boy" (from Bee Thousand)

9. Let's French, "Your Name Here" (from Victory)

10. Leaders of the New School, "A Quarter to Cutthroat" (from T.I.M.E.)

11. Los Campesinos!, "Frontwards" (from Sticking Fingers into Sockets EP)

12. The Twilight Singers, "Bonnie Brae" (from Powder Burns)

13. Phoenix, "Long Distance Call" (from It's Never Been Like That)

14. The Breeders, "Safari" (from Safari EP)

15. Guided by Voices, "Buzzards and Deadly Crows" (from Bee Thousand)

16. The Thermals, "Returning to the Fold" (from The Body, the Blood, the Machine)

17. The Hold Steady, "You Gotta Dance With Who You Came to the Dance With" (from Live at Fingerprints EP)

18. I'm From Barcelona, "Treehouse" (from Let Me Introduce My Friends)

19. Morrisey, "Last of the Famous International Playboys" (from Bona Drag)

20. Arctic Monkeys, "A Certain Romance" (from Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not)

So there you have it. Have a happy new year, best wishes for 2009, and Act Surprised will be back with a regular post on Friday, January 2.