Guidelines for my list: First, I can’t use songs from any of the top albums I’ve listed. Second, song selection is more about my personal favorites and less about what I think are the “best” individual songs of the year – it’s a list reflecting what I listened to most during the year and what I found myself turning to for comfort or celebration.
Some years there’s more looking for comfort, some years more celebration. After sorting through my songs this time and looking at what percolated to the top I did notice a couple unintentional trends.
Genre wise, there’s less variety in my top 10 songs then I’ve had in previous years. With a few exceptions the list is dominated by what I’d describe as fairly straight-up “alt rock” tracks with alternating dynamic structure (i.e. a quiet-loud-quiet type thing). Then lyrically, I noticed common themes around the passing of youth (“Seventeen”, “Run Wild” ) and what it means to get older (“Nullarbor”, “Foreve Cul-De-Sac”, “Big Softy”). And strangely, there’s also a disproportionate number of Australian artists (Floodlights, Angie McMahon, Middle Kids).
Not sure what all this might say about my year but whatever the case I think the music kicks ass.
Happy New Year!
FAVORITE SONGS OF 2019
1. “Seventeen,” Sharon Van Etten – Building up slowly, climaxing almost in a scream, this is future you looking back at past you, this is life-weary adult pleading with naive youth.
2. “Red Shoulder,” Squirrel Flower – Probably my favorite surprise of the year: I stumbled onto this track randomly browsing through some Spotify rabbit hole. Forty-four seconds in the guitar riff comes rolling out and I was hooked.
3. “Nullarbor“, Floodlights – The jangling guitars, muddy bass, and slight reverb on the vocals create a sound perfectly matched to the imagery of contemplating life in the isolated flats of South Australia. “I’m hoping for a grand epiphany, That comes to me, I’m struggling, but if I trek a little further, Into the dust, into the bush.”
4. “Forever Cul-De-Sac,” Ages and Ages – An easily overlooked Portland band put out this combination anthem and funeral dirge for those of us wondering what comes next.
5. “All Kindsa Don’t“, Pan Amsterdam – Utilizing a jazz groove that oozes cool, Leron Thomas skillfully puts down a rap laced with dry humor that always leaves me looking for another verse.
6. “Run Wild“, Twain & The Deslondes – To the casual listener, a hillbilly rocker on the ragged edge, but the song carries a slightly haunting undertone as the narrator knows the struggle to hold onto youth is futile.
7. “Pasta“, Angie McMahon – The first two and half minutes of this song staggers along in a charming shambles of guitar before building into a bedroom dance party release. (Canine dancing companions recommended.)
8. “Big Softy“, Middle Kids – A wonderful slide guitar riff in another rocker from Down Under. “It is sometimes hard to go on, I used to kill it, but now those days are gone.”
9. “Faithless“, Operators – Dan Boeckner is part journeyman rocker, part troubadour. During their show this year at the Doug Fir the driving beat of this synth-lead track was the standout moment and the recorded version does a pretty damn good job as well.
10. “Dylan Thomas“, Better Oblivion Community Center – The best track from an album by two great song writers (Conor Oberst and Phoebe Bridgers) but it’s the unexpected mixing of their voices that captured me.
Not More Music Crap? 