This is probably the most we've ever liked a song for which we can never seem to remember the lyrics or melody. Seriously, in 10 minutes we will not be able to hum a bar.
"There were misled misfits / teething biscuits / fountains full of penny wishes / parties full of pretty fishes"
Ghost on Ghost is probably the weakest Iron & Wine album to date, and its still pretty good.
"Thought I always had to win / or I wasn't anything / guess it's a point of view"
There is a thin line between gorgeous folk rock and boring folk rock. For our money, Fleet Foxes' and Grizzly Bear's second albums crossed over to the wrong side of the line. Smith Westerns' did not.
"When you feel like you're out there on your own / know there is someone watching over you"
Child choirs in pop music, awesomely creepy or creepily awesome?
"I've gotta know / can we work it out?"
Funeral was our #4 album of the 2000s. Neon Bible and The Suburbs, meanwhile, were critically beloved (and placed songs on this list) but felt impaired by Win Butler's gloomy seriousness. So the lighter feel of Reflektor is a welcome change. As is the very present Talking Heads and Sandinista-era Clash influence. But the double album, sub 75-minute runtime thing is weird.
"And it's hard / when I'm playing 'Love Tear Us Apart'"
Strange year for Young Galaxy. They released a pretty OK album in Ultramarine. Then they released a deluxe edition of Ultramarine that added five new songs, all of which were (somewhat objectively) as good or better than the best song on the original version.
"Sell lies like they're only drugs / it'll pick me up"
An excellent debut album from San Fermin, even if very little of it sounds remotely like "Sonsick", starting with the fact that most tracks have a male singer.
"You n*****s ain't breathing / you're gasping"
Yeezus is fine as a showcase to appreciate Kanye's ridiculous production skills, but outside of a few tracks it feels like a significant step backwards in songcraft and features half an album's worth of lazy sexual prowess boasting. Maybe we all just love loving Kanye a bit too much. (Pretty negative for our #13 track, huh?)
"I'm feelin' groovy on another one's dime"
One of the hardest albums to pick a single track off of. "No Destruction" or "San Francisco" could have easily taken a comparable spot. This may be a better Jagger-esque falsetto than Jagger ever had ("Fool to Cry" kind of sucks, "Sweet Thing" is awesome, though).
"hey hey hey"
Inescapable, but deserving. Robin Thicke (co-worker's brother-in-law) is the first zero or one degree of separation artist to make the list. Others in play include Capital Cities (went to high school with one of the guys) and John Legend (shared an office with Mrs. Hummed of Mystery at Boston Consulting Group, because John Legend was once John Stephens and a consultant)
"Just because I lost it doesn't mean I want it back"
Danger Mouse quickly debunks the theory we put forth last year that hiring him as a producer is a sure fire way to create one of your better albums, but never your best. Evil Friends is a career high point for P.TM.
"I'll reveal myself invincible soon"
Including her work on the New Pornographers, this is the 5th top 25 appearance for Neko Case.
"I don't wanna be there tonight / you make me low / you make me crawl"
This song has a great chorus, but it's the 1:40 - 2:05 section that is one of our favorite vocal snippets of the year.
"But I know the look in his eyes and I know all the old signs / just a couple more curves before his own road unwinds "
The most positive track on an album of heartbreak. Is the "she" that is hopeful the old girl, the new girl, or both?
"I was born in September / and like everything else I can't remember / I'll replace it with scenes from the film / that I / will never make"
If the album cover is a Rorschach test, we see Tanzania. Which validates the whole theory of the test. Also, Tanzania looks a lot like Wisconsin. Also, only five of these damned things left.
"This part / right here right now right here / this part my shit"
The best rap album of 2013 was a debut mixtape (available here). Stream the track here.
"Whether they diamonds / Madonna / designers / iguanas / Rihanna / vaginas / piranhas / hit it!"
What the fuck was that? This insane tribute to James Brown brings the funk, but is also ridiculously quotable. Runners up for the quote:
5. "That n***a is sicker and slicker than oil on a pelican"
4. "We go together like stanky & smelly / tummy & belly / peanut butter jelly"
3. "Say it proud / I'm black and I'm loud"
2. "I’m the maestro / I’m the n***a with the stick in this bitch"
(you tube link)
5. "That n***a is sicker and slicker than oil on a pelican"
4. "We go together like stanky & smelly / tummy & belly / peanut butter jelly"
3. "Say it proud / I'm black and I'm loud"
2. "I’m the maestro / I’m the n***a with the stick in this bitch"
(you tube link)
"And I looked down and my hands were trembling"
We are big fans of Sun Kil Moon, but have found his recent albums a bit dull musically. We are big fans of The Album Leaf but don't love the addition of vocals to his instrumentals. So combining the best of both artists in Perils from the Sea is a perfect match.
"Let me take you up these stairs / let me take you to my life / let me take you like a lamb leading the slaughterer to the knife"
Spencer Krug does an Alphas tracks, but with slightly more hopefulness than the doomed Mountain Goats couple. Someone is going to use this as a first dance song at their wedding and the couple in question will be awesome. Spencer just misses out on a #1 with a fourth band (Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown, Swan Lake) and makes an 11th top 10 appearance on this list. Stud.
"Maybe she's gone, and I can't resurrect her / the truth is she doesn't need me to protect her / we know the true death / the true way of all flesh / everyone's dying, but girl you're not old yet"
