Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti: Fright Night (2010)

There are only so many genuine eccentrics left, but I'd wager Ariel Pink is among the most authentic. Staying cooped up in a studio apartment in LA with vintage gear and a suitcase of pills apparently produces beautiful music. Kids, take note.

The song forgoes a traditional verse-chorus-verse structure for a swirling, reverb drenched ride through an abandoned parking lot in winter. As you stop to kiss your French lover, she breaks off and opens the door.

Wait, you say What did I do?

But the dreamy keys just drone and Ariel croons as she casts you a wan smile and dissolves into the flurry.

Thom Yorke: Hearing Damage (2010)

I don't care if this track was hijacked by a fifth-rate Vampire love saga. You don't have to be running from GQ werewolf models or listening to Edward Cullen's brooding piano runs to enjoy this haunting understated track.

Thom Yorke could have gone the way other successful multimillionaire entertainers have gone. He could have easily signed on to Celebrity Rehab or hosted an MTV Music Awards or "accidentally" tweeted a picture of his dick to fans.

Instead he wrote a nice song.