Top 100 Songs of 2022
Many days late and many bucks short, I have finally completed my Top 100 Songs of 2022.
I couldn’t find a consensus for #1 song. I don’t recall this happening in my previous year end playlists (which now date back a decade!). It came down to songs ranked one though four, and I kept moving the #1 slot amongst them.
My #1 song ended up being “After the Earthquake” by Alvvays. It’s a bright and bouncy song siloed in warp speed, layers of riffs and a constant pounding like someone running faster and faster from the world.
#2, “The Shade” by Rex Orange County (no, he’s British not from the OC) is the catchiest track of the year. His voice, normal, sweet, and real, rings in my ears like the morning tweets of the birds. He’s a talent. I loved last album, and this year’s was a great followup.
Quarters of Change was my favorite new band of the year, hands down. I’m surprised “Ms. Dramatic” wasn’t my #1 song. Damn close.
“Karaoke” by Beach Bunny (#4) and “Matilda” by Harry Styles (#6) will probably have the most future nostalgia. These were my two favorite songs by my little girl. Good taste!
“Gone Girl” seemed big, rhythmic, catchy, and a spotlight of her vocals (which I was less than thrilled to see lip-synched on SNL), but I could have put one of many others from SZA’s new album in this #6 spot, the album was that good.
People talked a lot about MUNA’s new album but not enough about their feature on The Knocks “Bodies” (#7).
Let’s talk Remi Wolf, whose “wyd” (#8) is one of two LIVE recordings that made the playlist. Impressive when you hear how much she wails. Also, Remi spits the verse of the year with her flow and cadence:
All these little bitches telling me what to do /
They really gettin’ me hot /
I got a bone to pick /
Ain’t got a bone to lick
I’m not surprised Beyonce (#9) is so high on this list, she may be the biggest and most talented pop star since Michael Jackson. Speaking of pop stars, Taylor Swift’s “Anti-hero” (#27) and Charli XCX “Yuck” (#36) cracked the list.
Should “Call from You” by Anxious (#14) have been higher? I LOVE this song. It’a a mix of everything I loved from the emo / screamo bands of my youth: The Used, Thursday, New Found Glory, The Deftones, and so on. There’s a fine balance of rock. rhythm, and melody that bands have to take when screaming in parts of the song. Well, Anxious, you did it.
Do you know who Djo is? Listen to “Change” (#18) and then do some quick research. Yeah, that’s Steve lol.
Artist whose popularity exploded this year? Fred again…I’ve never really been into electronic music, but his music gets me (#22 and #52). Same with Swedish House Mafia (#58).
Breakout artist of the year? JVKE. Yeah, he’s a knockoff Post Malone. But he’s melding classical music in a way that Post doesn’t. It’s alluring. Check out “this is what heartbreak feels like” (#24) and Jungle’s remix of “golden hour” (#40).
Compared to most years, this year does not have many rap songs. I just wasn’t captivated by much. But JID (#41) still showed up to show he’s a lyrical switchblade, quick, sharp, and quick. Coast Contra (#16) is another groups I’ve been digging.
Speaking of rap, how good is “Mirrors” (#16)? Maybe it’s nostalgia since it sounds like a Kanye (and did you notice the intentionally ripped flow from Kanye in a verse?) beat rapped by a 90s group in their prime.
It was a good year in music. Not great. Not even close. But good is good.
Top 100 Songs of 2021
After listening to 62,510 minutes of music, 1,377 Artists, and 149 genres, I’ve digested a lot of tunes in 2021! There are so many different sounds and styles to this year’s playlist, it may be the most eclectic mix yet! We have a West African artist (Falle Nioke), a Turkish band with all sorts of influences (Altin Gun), a rock band in Niger (Mdou Moctar), a rapper from Chattanooga, Tennessee (Isaiah Rashad), an indie band from Minneapolis (Hippo Campus), masters in electronic music from across the pond in England (Disclosure), one of the more consistent electro-pop bands out there from Scotland (Chvrches), the best rock band I’ve heard in years, hailing from Baltimore (Turnstile), and so many more!
There’s rap, rock, soul, ballads, electro-pop, electronic, spoken word, funk, and who knows what other “genres” Spotify might class these songs as.
Nonetheless, there’s something for everybody, and hopefully a ton of new music* to discover.
*If you really like a song, check to see if that artist’s album is on my Top 25 Albums of 2021, and that’s a good indicator it’s a great album :)
Top 25 Albums of 2021
In mid-December, I stumbled upon an album that blew me away. One of those mesmerizing albums to listen over and over. I won’t forget where I was listening to this, when, and it’s impact on me. The band is Turnstile. The album is their third, GLOW ON.
Turnstile isn’t a rock band, they’re not hardcore, they’re not 90s grunge, they’re not punk, they’re not screamo. They’re an amalgamation of the best of all of these genres being played at the perfect times during songs. It’s raw and unique, influenced by previous generations, yet no one has made music like this.
Each band member’s instrument stands out on so many tracks. And the sounds, lyrics, and emotion explain the rest.
This is an album for you to experience. It’s for the opener, “MYSTERY” to blast off your speaker doors. It’s for the cowbell to break down on “BLACKOUT” and the piano to explain on “DON’T PLAY.” It’s a relaxing state of calm on “ALIEN LOVE CALL” amidst the surrounding chaos, culminated in the massive mosh pit that is “T.L.C.”
And only after the album ends to you fully exhale…
As for the other 24 albums, Isaiah Rashad’s The House Is Burning, his third album, continues to astound me. His music is on his terms. There are songs that people unfamiliar with Rashad would scoff at because it doesn’t sound like it’s supposed to, but those are the true artists you have to pay attention to. The more time you spend with all of Isaiah Rashad’s three albums, the more you’ll fall in love.
Speaking of falling in love, Faye Webster is a gem. Her low-key, maximum chill albums are meant for sunsets with your feet up. Her music is epitome of “state of mind” music where it just relaxes me. She’s not catchy, no songs get stuck in my head, but I’m always coming back.
Vince Staples self-titled album comes in at #4. It’s my favorite album he’s released in a discography with great quality control. Like Rashad, Staples is underrated (though not nearly as ignored by critics as Rashad) because of his lack of “hits” and “star power,” yet that’s his exact strength. He is who he is. He makes the music to express himself, nothing more, nothing less.
Staples’ 2021 album is melancholy and trauma. On first rep, the album sounds chill, but digging deeper it’s haunting. Staples is lonely and in a dark place. He can’t escape (mentally or physically) his hometown of Longbeach, CA, where his traumatic past of murder, gangs, guns, and survival still ring inside his head today.
As always, the artist says it the best:
Fuck a friend, I don't want no friends with no open hands (Fuck 'em)
Count my bands, all alone at home, don't you call my phone (Fuck 'em)
Everyone that I've ever known asked me for a loan
- “Law of Averages”
When I see my fans, I'm too paranoid to shake they hands
Clutching on the blam, don't know if you foe or if you fam
I don't got a plan, I'm just out here thugging 'til the end…
I am tired, tired, over again.
- “Sundown Town”
Don’t get murdered, lil’ niggas out here with no purpose…
It's not what you think
I could be gone in a blink
I don't wanna leave
Yeah, it's not what you thought
We dying broke or live with broken hearts
- “The Shining”
Verse 1
I don't wanna die, but I will for the cause…
I don't wanna rebound, I just wanna sleep sound
Don't wanna dream 'bout the shit I done did
You know these trips come with baggage, been all 'cross this atlas
But keep coming back to this place 'cause they trapped us
I preach what I practice, these streets all I know
And there's no place like home
Verse 2 (The BEST verse on the whole album!)
Yeah, I'm on PCH, going south, blower on the seat
With the windows down, music loud, let 'em hear the beat
When it's quiet out, I hear the sound of those who rest in peace
Tryna drown the violence out, but let 'em say that they want beef
And we riding out, finding out where them niggas be
If they hanging out, lay 'em out, airing out the street
Then it's out the way, out-of-state, please don't tell on me
Don't need no more felonies, all these broken memories
I be solo dolo, never know who working with police
When I hit the set, it's loaded; I don't know who envy me
I'm the only one who made it out—you remember me?
Is you a frenemy? You plan on killing me? No?
Finally, my #5 Album of 2021 is a veteran, one that was my #16 (criminally underrate by me!) Album in 2017 and #2 Album in 2014, The War on Drugs. It’s a great album yet only their third best album. Check it out.
And some quick hits on the other 20:
The Deafheaven album is a must-listen if you enjoyed “Great Mass of Color”
The Floating Points album is the only instrumental album this year. Great study music.
CHVRCHES continues to put good music out.
Black Country, New Road is for a very specific crowd, but it was one of the most unique albums I heard this year.
Arlo Parks has been hailed by every critic for this album, rightly so. It’s worth checking out.
Lute is a rapper who tells it like it is and sounds like he means it. I loved this album, and there are so many great features (like JID, Little Brother, Saba, and Cozz) on it.
Big Red Machine is a super duo (Justin Vernon and The National’s Aaron Dessener) who got a ridiculous amount of performers (Taylor Swift, Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes, and Sharon Van Etten), and the album is very mellow. A great weekend play.
Benny the Butcher is one of my favorite new rappers out there. He’s “drug rap” which isn’t everyone’s thing, but the man played the game to get to this point and tells the tales.
Parquet Courts keeps making their unique blend of rock sound compelling.
Little Simz should probably be higher, she’s a phenomenal MC, lyricist, and storyteller. This album was on all the big publications’ year end lists.
Speaking of artists on big publications lists, Tyler, the Creator’s album this year was rated as the best album or in the top five by a number of the most noteworthy publications. I did not feel their love of the album nearly as much, but the album is great from front to back, and no one sounds like Tyler.
Last one I’ll mention is Doja Cat. I seem to have one album on the pop spectrum every year (last year, it was Dua Lipa), and this album is ridiculous entertaining, upbeat, and enjoyable. She’s a great performer and rapper. I listened to this album all the way through and was wowed.
That’s it for the year of 2021! Thank goodness. But at least we had music. Here’s to 2022!
Top 25 Albums of 2020
Taylor Swift - folklore
BENEE - Hey u x
Mac Miller - Circles
Tame Impala - The Slow Rush
Beach Bunny - Honeymoon
Run the Jewels - RTJ4
Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
Fleet Foxes - Shore
SAULT - Untitled (Rise)
HAIM - Women In Music Pt. III
Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia
Georgia - Seeking Thrills
Glass Animals - Dreamland
Delta Spirit - What Is There
Caribou - Suddenly
Amine - Limbo
Marlowe - Marlowe 2
Samia - The Baby
The Neighbourhood - Chip Chrome & The Mono-Tones
Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Statik Selektah - The Balancing Act
Kota the Friend - EVERYTHING
Dogleg - Melee
21 Savage & Metro Boomin - SAVAGE MODE II
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Sideways to New Italy
Top 100 Songs of 2020
Video Game – Sufjan Stevens
WHATS POPPIN – Jack Harlow
Supalonely (feat. Gus Dapperton) – BENEE
august – Taylor Swift
Blue World – Mac Miller
Your Love (Déjà Vu) – Glass Animals
Is It True – Tame Impala
The Wheel – SOHN, Metropole Orkest
Pretty Please – Dua Lipa
Cherry Flavoured – The Neighbourhood
Promises – Beach Bunny
Gamesofluck - Parcels
ooh la la (feat. Greg Nice & DJ Premier) – Run The Jewels
Kool – BENEE
Everybody – Mac Miller
Light One Write One – Elzhi
Can I Believe You – Fleet Foxes
Joy Of My Life – Chris Stapleton
Borderline – Tame Impala
the last great american dynasty – Taylor Swift
SMELLS LIKE INCENSE – Jack Harlow
Woodlawn – Aminé
The Good Ones – Widowspeak
People, I've been sad – Christine and the Queens
Edge of Town – Middle Kids
Tangerine – Glass Animals
Santos Party House – Smoke DZA, Wiz Khalifa, Curren$y, Big K.R.I.T., Girl Talk
Eugene – Arlo Parks
Starting Over – Chris Stapleton
Kawasaki Backflip – Dogleg
Hammond Song – Whitney
Sunblind – Fleet Foxes
The Things We Do – Foster The People
Better Distractions – Faye Webster
If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know) – The 1975
April – Beach Bunny
Don't Wanna – HAIM
Déjá Vu – The Dead Tongues
I Don't Belong – Fontaines D.C.
17 – Pink Sweat$
Laugh Now Cry Later (feat. Lil Durk) – Drake
Ode to a Conversation Stuck in Your Throat – Del Water Gap
I Feel High – Poolside, Ben Browning
Rich Nigga Shit (feat. Young Thug) – 21 Savage, Metro Boomin, Young Thug
Nebraska Dreams – Joshua Lee Turner
Making Sense – Delta Spirit
Landslide – Sufjan Stevens
Small Business – Marlowe, L'Orange, Solemn Brigham
Keep It Moving (feat. Nas, Joey Bada$$, & Gary Clark Jr.) – Statik Selektah
Minnesota – Samia
Afterthought – Joji, BENEE
Started Out – Georgia
I Know The End – Phoebe Bridgers
The Climb Back – J. Cole
Rare Air – Mildlife
Shiva (with JID & EARTHGANG feat. Benji. & Jurdan Bryant) – Spillage Village
Yesterday – Dan Croll
FEDS – Nick Grant, Tae Beast
Hit Different – SZA, The Neptunes, Pharrell Williams, Ty Dolla $ign
Mr. Man & K.i.D – KYLE
Give It To Me – Pink Sweat$
Swimming Pool – Eliza & The Delusionals
Real Love Song – Nothing But Thieves
Savage Remix (feat. Beyoncé) – Megan Thee Stallion
out of sight (feat. 2 Chainz) – Run The Jewels
Drifter – Tree Theater
Feel You – My Morning Jacket
Introduction – Joshua Lee Turner
Preach Honest – Marlowe, L'Orange, Solemn Brigham
Graceless Kids – Best Coast
anywhere – Jonah Yano
Windows Cry – REASON
VERY ALONE – Zaia
Dionne (feat. Justin Vernon) – The Japanese House
Extinct – REASON, Isaiah Rashad, JID
Underneath – Public Practice
Lo Mein – Lil Uzi Vert
Moments / Tides – Goth Babe
RIP Luv – 21 Savage, Metro Boomin
Falling Thunder – Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You) – Bombay Bicycle Club
She Knows This – Kid Cudi
OK – Wallows
And It's Still Alright – Nathaniel Rateliff
Cuba – Theophilus London
Sign – Roosevelt
Black Habits I (feat. Jackie Gouché) – D Smoke
Canyonheart – Israel Nash
Thank God I Made It (feat. Queen Naija) – Benny The Butcher
Every Tradition – Bully
Opaline – Jeff Tweedy
Mustang – Bartees Strange
B.Q.E – Kota the Friend, Joey Bada$$, Bas
honey – boy pablo
Bluebird – Gus Dapperton
Fits – Do Nothing
Life – Dom Kennedy, 24hrs, Casey Veggies
anything – Adrianne Lenker
Lifetime – Romy
King – Ark Patrol
Top 25 Albums of 2019
My favorite albums of 2019 are here! As happened with the Top 100 Songs of 2019, there really wasn’t a clear cut winner for me. I almost wanted to give it to Vampire Weekend for being so damn consistent, but their album was too long with a few weak tracks that kept them out of the #1 ranking.
After some debate, I realized the album that I enjoyed the most was PUP’s Morbid Stuff. It’s one of those great rock albums, and PUP is such a fun and loud band that loves being loud. They’re the musical man child of Japandroids and New Found Glory. Their live shows must be nuts.
As for the remainder of albums, there’s a number of notables, including my favorite newcomer (for me), Rex Orange County, a singer/songwriter without a great voice or much notable traits that I can point to other than the fact that he sounds like his own. It’s not always about some amazing voice or guitar licks, sometimes it’s just being yourself that makes music so great.
Read MoreTop 100 Songs of 2019
My Top 25 Albums of 2019 is pretty much complete (and will be released next week!), but I had difficulty choosing a favorite album. Nothing really hit that #1 spot. Most years, the #1 album is a totally obvious answer. Last year’s Golden Hour by Kacey Musgraves, Frank Ocean’s Blonde from 2016, and Tame Impala’s 2015 Currents. But this year, not so much.
While I didn’t have a clear cut favorite track of the year coming into compiling these tracks, there were a ton of songs that could have been #1 to me. A ton of new artists creating layers upon layers of sound.
After consideration, Denzel Curry’s “Zuu” is worthy of the crown. It’s unlike any rap song I’ve heard. Listen to this song in a car - and LOUD - and you’ll hear the wailing synth almost declaring a warning on all who listen, which builds up to the energy and viciousness of the beat drop: “Carol City n**** boy I’m coming out the…ZUU” (BOOOOOOM!!! as the drums come in).
What a beginning before Curry comes in and establishes himself as an up and comer with some serious talent.
Read MoreTop 25 Albums of 2018
If you’ve been following my blog at all, you could have probably guessed Kacey Musgraves’ "Golden Hour would be the #1 album of 2018. It is a flawless work of songwriting. Musgraves delicate dreamlike voice juxtaposes her lyrical vices, like smoking week and zoning out. Not coincidentally, it’s a total “zone out” of an album, one that flows perfectly from start to finish with stoner jams, funky beats, and her pristine tone. What an album.
Number two, perhaps surprisingly, is the late Mac Miller’s Swimming. I wrote about his death and created a Best Of in his memory, but needless to say, Swimming was his best work by far. It was the furtherst he’s pushed himself musically, as can be seen with songwriting credits to Thundercats, Pharrell, John Mayer, and many more. Ultimately, it’s a very sad album. Miller dives in and out of a lifeboat floating in a rocky ocean, tempting fate to stay alive. He knows he’s playing with the devil and all his drugs, and he really sounds like he doesn’t know which way it’s going to end. It all ended terribly for him, way too soon, too young a talent for Miller to create greatness and have people separate his real gifts from his class clown persona. I’ll miss him a ton.
Read MoreTop 100 Songs of 2018
We finally made it! It’s my favorite playlist of the year, a playlist that I come back to years later to remember the highs and lows of decibels, depths, and soul. It’s a list that means so much to me because these songs shaped an entire year for me - a year that I spent listening to music for 68,780 minutes!
If you break that down, that’s 1,146 hours of music, which is either 48 straight days of listening to music or 143 days listening to music eight hours a day. I have to gloat, that is pretty cool! Though it doesn’t beat my record of a couple years ago of 103,000 minutes of music. I will NEVER top that.
ANYWAYS, you came here for music. As you can see, Mac Miller was my “Top Artist,” meaning I listened to him the most of any artist, and specifically, for 37 hours, according to Spotify. There’s a reason three of his songs from his last album, Swimming, are on the Top 100. Kacey Musgraves is the only other artist with three songs on the Top 100.
There are so many different genres and sounds to climb through on this list, I just know you’re going to have a great time exploring and investigating. PLEASE keep an open mind with this stuff, and if you don’t like it the first time, it doesn't mean it won’t warm up on you. I listened to Drake’s “In My Feelings” countless times, not loving it, but gradually getting there as time went on. There’s a lot of that kind of music on this playlist, so open your ears and your mind, people!
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