Here goes:
20. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
"Kinski Assassin"
A combination of the Doors and...a circus? I don't know why this song is so good, but it's just fun to listen to. I used to despise Ariel Pink, taking him for someone who made "bad" music on purpose to make some kind of hipster-point, but when I heard this, I couldn't stop laughing. The lyrics make no sense, the music is ridiculous. Just go with it.
19. Ty Segall Band
"I Bought My Eyes"
If you like punk, take this with a surfer-rock twist and see what you think. Ty Segall Band had one of the year's harder-edged albums and this is the best song from it. You can dance to it, or you can fight to it, whatever.
18. DIIV
"How Long Have You Known?"
The closest thing we'll get to chill wave this year is DIIV, which, I'm still not sure how to pronounce, quite frankly. Like, "dive?" Either way, despite its repetitive nature, "How Long Have You Known?" is one of the more simplistic and yet intriguing songs this year. It poses a fairly simple question, answers it, then gives you a few bars of technically precise, New-Order-style guitar&bass lines. How great is that?
17. Bat for Lashes
"Marilyn"
Natasha Khan, aka, Bat for Lashes has, apart from the best voice in music these days (sorry, Adele), the ability to mix intense drum machines, beautiful string arrangements, and the most moving lyrics that anyone has ever written. In my review of her newest album I called The Haunted Man one of the best albums I had ever heard...ever. Songs like this are a signature of Khan, and she never fails to amaze.
16. Twin Shadow
"Beg for the Night"
If Natasha Khan up there is the best voice in music, George Lewis, Jr., or Twin Shadow, is the best male voice in music (of the pop listening variety, okay, don't talk to me about Josh Groban or Alfie Boe). That said, his music is a pop-dance factory, recalling the best of Hall and Oates without sounding like he's trying too hard. "Beg for the Night" is the highlight of his newest album, Confess, and while the theme hasn't really changed from "meh, we did it, so what?," did you really want it to?
15. Sleigh Bells
"Comeback Kid"
If you were looking for loud, Sleigh Bells' newest album may have disappointed, except for this song. "Comeback Kid" is the Sleigh Bells we're used to, the beat-crazy, loud-ass guitar looping headbanger we all know and love.
14. Purity Ring
"Fineshrine"
So, you thought dubstep could never be good. Well, you're mostly correct, but Purity Ring has done it right--real vocals, complex beats, and no "wumpwumpwumpwumpwumpwumpwumpwumpwumpwump..." This song is equal parts beautiful and horrifyingly creepy. Yes, she is asking you to perform surgery, and it's not an innuendo.
13. Deftones
"Goon Squad"
Don't judge a song by its first 1:10. "Oh god, another boring, turntable song by Deftones," you'll say. "Wait for it," I'll say....wait for it...aw HELL yeah!
12. Bat for Lashes
"A Wall"
It is weird to have such a rocking song like "Goon Squad" up there at number 13 be pushed out by a seemingly calm, woozy song like, "A Wall." Would it help if I admitted that there's just something about the voice? I said it earlier and I'll say it again, Khan has the best voice in music. Here she turns inspirational (sort of?) for once, as opposed to the usual doom-and-gloom. Totally a great song.
11. Beach House
"Wild"
Beach House is the best discovery of the year by far. Victoria LeGrand has one of the most interesting deliveries and writes some of the best lyrics currently being recorded. Did I mention they're from Baltimore, because they are. "Wild" showcases those startling lyrics as well as the most beautiful guitar-organ combo going written by Alex Scally, the other half of this musically mesmerizing duo.
10. Chromatics
"Lady"
In the words of Timothy Leary, "turn on, tune in, drop out." He forgot, "turn up," which is what you need to do here.
9. St. Vincent
"Krokodil"
And...back to the ROCK! What? St. Vincent rocks, you say? Yes, yes she does, and "Krokodil" will make sure you don't forget it. Whether Annie Clark meant to name this kick-ass song after a street term for bathtub heroin that eats away your skin, I don't know, but this song will melt your face off.
8. Crystal Castles
"Kerosene"
The new Castles album is dark, for certain, but far more consistent and well-produced than any of their previous efforts, and "Kerosene" is a massive standout amongst a great set of the duo's most beautiful and stark songs. It's also the one where Alice Glass' heartbreaking, straight-from-the-headlines lyrics actually come through in all their depressing glory.
7. Jack White
"Sixteen Saltines"
Now THIS is the Jack White I remember from high school. None of that "cut like a buffalo" crap. This song is awesome. I think that's all that needs to be said. If you like rock, here you go.
6. Matthew Dear
"Earthforms"
If you don't get up and dance to this song--yes, even if you're on the bus--there's something horribly wrong with you. Stop reading this, get up, and move!
5. Chromatics
"At Your Door"
This band's beautiful music deserves a second song on this list, and "At Your Door" is by a wide margin the best they have written. Listening to this song is like driving through the city when all the Christmas lights are up. It glistens in the cold, steely sounds of Johnny Jewel's production, and Ruth Radelet's lyrics resonate over the machines better than ever. Seriously, at this point, any of these songs are a potential number 1.
4. Bat for Lashes
"Rest Your Head"
If there's one thing Bat for Lashes can do, it's take a sad song and make it better (isn't that a song?). "Rest Your Head" should, by all means, be tear-forming, but Natasha Khan's ability to produce a great beat, haunting backing vocals, and a double-take hook make it the most uplifting song on an album full of beautiful melodies and memorable choruses.
3. Cloud Nothings
"Wasted Days"
For an emo Nirvana, Cloud Nothings do a great job of making one of the most awesome jams of this or several years. At almost eight-and-a-half minutes, "Wasted Days" might look long, but it sounds like a flash. The drums are massive, the guitars are crashing, and the refrain, "I thought I would be more than this," will stick in your head for days...wasted d--no never mind.
2. A Place to Bury Strangers
"Drill It Up"
There is not another song more rocking than this. "Drill It Up" is so awesome it redefines the word. If you look "awesome" up in the dictionary, Oliver Ackerman smashes a guitar over your head like El Kabong. And instead of seeing stars and birds when you regain consciousness, metal plates and kick-drums circle your dome. Listen to this song over and over and over for the full effect, as loud as you can before your ears bleed.
1. Beach House
"Irene"
I know, quite the comedown from A Place, but this song is...inexplicable. This is one of the most beautiful compositions I've ever heard. What seems like an inviting lyric, LeGrand's chorus becomes sad and soulful as it repeats on and on for the 3-minute outro. The music builds and builds, layer after layer until the song bursts with life and sound. A single voice rises above the din..."it's a strange paradise." Indeed it is.
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