Here are my top 5 picks for the G train song contest

Photo via www.communitybasedplanning.wordpress.com

In case you haven't already heard, Brooklyn Brewery recently held a contest calling for Brooklyn's best bands and singers to submit their G-train related songs in order for a chance to win a trip to a music fest in Brooklyn, Sweden. The beer people picked their top 10 favorites, and now there are 5 days for us to vote for the best (which you can do, if you so desire, on their Facebook page). In the meantime, I've narrowed down their top 10 to my top 5.

1. Abby & Chris: "We take the G"

I love the Moldy Peaches-esque sound of this song, not to mention their awesome construction paper animation. I actually listened to it several times, continually wanting to watch the stories unfold. Also, someone needs to make a "w/ lyrics" version of this and post it on youtube so that I can learn the words. Aside from the awesome clapping breakdown where the G train takes a tour through a psychedelic river, the recurring Pac-Man-faced paper guy that ends up screaming "G Train! You gon' wait so long!" really completes me.

2. "I'll wait for you (G Train Song)"

I just KNEW someone was gonna' end up using some sort of auto-tuney shit in a song, and of COURSE it had to be the guy that was wearing the G Train T-shirt. Even though I immediately became annoyed the moment I pressed play on this video, I let it ride for a little bit, just to give it a fair chance. And boy was I happy that I did, because the shot changed and he was suddenly wearing a puffy vest and breaking out into a rap -- just hardcore reppin' the G train. While humping the air, he made it clear that even though the schedule's way off, he is gonna keep riding (get it: ride=hump, hey-oooo) the G train because "Eff you F train, suck my D train, kiss my A train, L train hell train, it ain't nothing but a G train baby." Nailed it.

3. Teen Commandments: "No Burning Headlight"

This track has somewhat of a Morrissey vibe, which automatically wins points in my book. Of all the songs I listened to, this had the most abstract lyrical take on the G train. With only subtly using the term "G train" once during the song, cleverly referring to it as "brooklyn's spine" and repeating the phrase "will it ever come" in the chorus, if not listened to closely, I feel like the lyrics could have been altered slightly and repurposed to be about anything else. Although I did like the song, I have to admit I was slightly disappointed by the lack of visual stimuli. Now, I know that the contest was to submit a good song and not necessarily a spectacular video, but they could've given us SOMETHING other than just a still frame of what appears to be their album cover. 

4. The G Train: "A reluctant love song"

With a Postal service-y/Junior boys-like sound, this song references the heat, coupled with waiting for the G and how it makes you say to yourself, "I should've known better." This is a feeling we're all too familiar with. As for the video, there's some great crayon-work going on with that single "G!" The heart around it, not so much. But love isn't perfect, and neither is the G, so I think it works.

5. "G-Train Paradise"

In this song "G" stands for "Groovalicious"…and, also, "Grimy." Like, pineapples-being-fished-out-of-the-train-tracks grimy. Basically, pineapples everywhere. This video makes it into my top 5 solely because the creators somehow manage to enjoy the G train so much that they equate it with some sort of tropical paradise, and in turn show us their love for it with a super weird, coconut-clanging sound. If I didn't know better, I'd say they wanna' be stuck in a cabana with Ween living on bananas and blow.