FHM.com.ph

Anger: "Song for the Dumped" by Ben Folds Five

In the Philippines, most people know Ben Folds Five for their heartfelt ballads, but the trio's leader Ben Folds always described his old band's music as "punk rock for sissies." This is most apparent in their 1997 album Whatever and Ever Amen, where they spliced quiet thoughtful classics like "Brick" and "Smoke" alongside raucous numbers that were too melodic to be punk rock and too funny to be angry.

The best of the bunch is the aptly titled "Song for the Dumped" where the singer opens with the line, "So you wanted to have some space? Slow it down and have some space? Well, f—you too!" Then he implores his ex-girlfriend to give him back his money and black t-shirt in a chorus that's every bit as filthy as it is catchy.

Bargaining: "Sleep All Summer" by St. Vincent and the National

Nick Hornby declares "Sleep All Summer" his favorite song of 2009. This is actually a remake of the Crooked Fingers original. Here the sparse instrumentation throws the spotlight to the indie-rock darlings, who've remade the already-breathtakingly gorgeous song: The National lead vox Matt Berninger's rick chocolatey baritone and St. Vincent's soothing voice.

Adds Hornby on the ballad about a dying relationship: "The song itself is perfect, a real heartbreaker: wistful, wry, precise in its articulation of a mood that doesn't get explored very often." Fittingly, the chorus ends with the line, "So why won't you fall back in love with me?" The singers sound like they're earnestly wishing it, even as they betray that they don't really believe it.