Aughts Songs: #13 Yo La Tengo - "The Race Is On Again" from I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass ('06)

This song has been for me what "Blank Generation" was for Malcolm McLaren. It has become the foundation for an entire personal movement for me as a listener. It taught me that when a song repeats itself, using mostly only one chord, any changes have a tenfold effect. Here, the big change comes with the crash cymbal at the 2:47 mark, when the song takes off into the stratosphere. If it wasn't for hearing all the incredible songs that preceded this as an influence, this might have ended up being my favorite song. Still, it is easily the best song of this decade that follows that awesome VU formula.