Top Songs of 2017: 21-40

Apple Music link
Spotify link

40. “Song” 

Slyvan Esso 

What Now

39. “Real Death” 

Mount Eerie 

A Crow Looked At Me

As another music fan noted in their top song list, this is a weird track to be part of a lighthearted forced ranking. Hopefully the song and album gave Phil Elverum some peace. "When real death enters the house / all poetry is dumb ... and I don't want to learn anything from this"

38. “Love” 

Lana Del Rey

Lust for Life

37. “Spent the Day in Bed” 

Morrissey

Low in High School

"Stop watching the news / because the news contrives to frighten you"

36. “Young Blood” 

Noah Kahan

35. “A Phantom” 

Ramona Falls
Coils

34. “Oh Lord, Pt. 3” 

Josh Ritter 
Gathering

"Been kidnapped and ransomed / just a little too handsome"

33. “Elodie” 

Ten Fé

Hit the Light

32. “Andrew Eldritch Is Moving Back to Leeds” 

The Mountain Goats 

Goths

"A few old building gone to dust / and some new ones in their way / they'll look just like the old ones / when the winds have had their say"

31. “Something for Your M.I.N.D.” 

Superorganism 

A whole lot of wonderful weirdness in the early tracks released from this 8-piece collective, but the story of the band itself is just as strange. Looking forward to the debut album in March. 

30. “When You Were Mine” 

Lambchop 

29. “Dear Life”  

Beck 
Colors

28. “Belong” 

San Fermin
Belong 

27. “Sugar for the Pill” 

Slowdive
Slowdive 

Probably one of the best albums ever by a band after a 22-year hiatus. 

26. “Young Dumb & Broke” 

Khalid 

American Teen

Among the things to like about this song is the lack of comma in the title. Young dumb. 

25. “First Caress” 

Spoon 

Hot Thoughts

24. “Turning the Screw” 

Generationals 

23. (tie) “This Song” / "Bike Dream" 

RAC with Rostam / Rostam 

Ego / Half-Light

Rostam takes a shot at double representation on the list but the "one song per artist per year" rule is sacred, so we'll call it a draw between a "guest spot" on an RAC track and our favorite selection from his very long-in-the-making, debut album (which has a song that appeared on this list 6 years ago!). 

22. “Ben Franklin's Song”

The Decemberists 

Pretty seamless pairing between Lin Manuel Miranda and The Decemberists, though the profane chorus seems a bit out of character for both. 

21. “Looking for Knives” 

Dyan 

Looking for Knives

Well shit. Apparently this came out in 2016. But we aren't going to slot in song #101 here to cover our error so enjoy the track and unbundle Rostam if you must.