I hadn’t heard of Spiritualized until this week when they released their latest album, entitled Sweet Heart, Sweet Light. I’m usually wary of albums chock-full of 7-minute songs, but the whole thing was a delightful listen, echoing the Velvet Underground at their most accessible. The last track, “So Long You Pretty Thing,” just killed me. I love it. That’s what a big, repetitive, catchy, soaring chorus will do to you. Especially when they go on for a while and fade out at the end of the song. Other notable examples include:

1. Elbow’s “One Day Like This” (Chorus starts at 3:21)
2. Pitchfork’s #1 song of 2010, “Round and Round” by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti (at 3:47)
3. The popular choice, “Hey Jude” by the Beatles

I kind of wish the first minute of the song was chopped off, but oh well. From 1:00 onward, it just builds and builds on the same chords (with great use of strings and a banjo) until the chorus bursts open at 4:17. Check it out.