Television shows have never been bigger or better than they are now. With this comes an element of competition between networks and creators; who is making the coolest shit and how are they doing it? It's a great situation to be in if you're a lover of TV.

Recently it seems that even the credibility of the TV theme is vital, as cool bands get the chance to have their song, or a snippet from it, heard by viewers week in week out. Or, in our case, 11 times in the space of one hungover Sunday afternoon.

After hearing The Handsome Family's Far From Any Road while watching the new HBO drama True Detective, we've decided to pick five of the best, but there are stacks more in the below playlist if that's not enough for you.

Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter

THE BEACH BOYS – GOD ONLY KNOWS [THEME FROM BIG LOVE]

An absolute classic song like The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds classic God Only Knows needed to be accompanied by a pretty special title sequence and thankfully HBO's Big Love did the Brian Wilson classic sufficient justice. Well, they did until Season Four when they replaced it with Home by Engineers, which was kinda charming but had far too big shoes to fill.

If you're wondering what's going on in the above video, you should know that all of those ladies are the dude's wives. It's a great show, whether you find that super creepy or not. David Byrne did all the music in the show, so there's plenty of great stuff in there.

WASHED OUT – FEEL IT ALL AROUND [THEME FROM PORTLANDIA]

This hip and breezy track takes just the intro to Washed Out's 2010 track Feel It All Around as they flash through scenes of Portland, where the hilarious show is based. It makes sense Portlandia would be well and truly up there when it came to TV themes; Carrie Brownstein of Sleater Kinney and Wild Flag is one of the show's creators and main stars and the show has featured guest appearances from the likes of Eddie Vedder, Jack White, No Doubt, J Mascis, Aimee Mann, St Vincent and heaps more.

THE SAINTS – (I'M) STRANDED [THEME FROM SPIRITED]

The Mess Hall's Jed Kurzel did a great job of composing the score for the Australian TV drama Spirited, but you must give the ultimate kudos to whoever's idea it was to shoot for, and get, one of the biggest and best punk rock songs in the history of time; The Saints' (I'm) Stranded.

It's iconic, it's Australian, it's gritty and it kick arse - what more could you want in a theme song?

ALABAMA 3 – WOKE UP THIS MORNING [THEME FROM THE SOPRANOS]

Alabama 3 have had a minor degree of success through their career, but there's little doubt that they will always be remembered as the band who did the song from The Sopranos. Given the importance of that TV show in the whole scheme of the television landscape as we know it now, almost every decision they made became kind of critical and influential.

Sure, Alabama 3 don't have the cred of Brian Jonestown Massacre (Boardwalk Empire) or The Rapture (Misfits), but the song was super bad arse, just like protagonist Tony Soprano.

JOAN JETT – BAD REPUTATION [THEME FROM FREAKS & GEEKS]

Given that Freaks & Geeks was a look at the tumultuous teenage years in the life of a group of school students in 1980 and 1981, choosing Joan Jett's Bad Reputation was something of a masterstroke. Not only was the song perfectly of the time – it was released on an album of the same name in 1980 and as a single in '81 – it captured the angst and frustration that permeates the show's every theme.

The show followed characters who couldn't fit society's norms, whether they wanted to or not, and the song speaks volumes about that same sentiment.

BONUS THEMES:

Here are two that aren't real songs – they were written for the shows – but can't be left off the list.

BILL LYNCH – THIS IS THE THEME TO GARRY'S SHOW [THEME FROM IT'S GARRY SHANDING'S SHOW]

Nothing about this theme song is cool, but it has to be one of the funniest theme songs ever written; it's completely stupid, but catchy and, well, it gets its point across.