Did you know that today – 11/11/11 – is Nigel Tufnel Day? What? Who? He has nothing to do with Remembrance (poppy) Day. Nigel’s the guitarist in Spinal Tap who had special amplifiers that go up to 11:
In honor of this unofficial holiday, NPR music put together a list of the songs they enjoy cranking up to 11. It’s a mix of punk and alternative (Smiths, LCD Soundsystem, Ramones), funk (Outkast), some surprising pop (Kelly Clarkson) and of course heavy metal (Led Zep).
So of course that gave me a great excuse to compile my own Best Heard Loud list. I’ve gone back to some ’80s metal and ’90s grunge favorites as well as a few alternative and funk choices. Who knew Stevie Wonder would sound so good after Tesla? And I put Sleater-Kinney right before Scorpions, because I can! Soundgarden and Wolfmother are our de facto Led Zeps, and the Pearl Jam tune is not classic PJ from something awesome from the last five years. The closing Radiohead tune is included because the chorus, when played loud, lifts you right up in to Pink Floyd land. It’s huge and it’s gorgeous.
Here’s the list, to be played in order. I welcome any and all comments and contributions, the heavier the better!
1. Powderfinger, “Waiting for the Sun”
2. Jane’s Addiction, “Had A Dad”
3. Wolfmother, “New Moon Rising”
4. The White Stripes, “Fell In Love With A Girl”
5. Van Halen, “Unchained”
6. Tesla, “Modern Day Cowboy”
7. Stevie Wonder, “I Was Made To Love Her”
8. Sleater-Kinney, “Rollercoaster”
9. Scorpions, “No One Like You”
10. Pearl Jam, “World Wide Suicide”
11. Gnarls Barkley, “Run (I’m A Natural Disaster)”
12. The Pretenders, “Precious”
13. Queensryche, “Walk In The Shadows”
14. Soundgarden, “Hands All Over”
15. Radiohead, “Lucky”
I leave you with Wolfmother’s “New Moon Rising” – crank it to 11:
therockmom 
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