2 chainz

It’s nearly impossible for me to do a strict Top 100 Songs of the Year list. Each year, a plethora of new bands/artists release debut records. That’s a lot of songs. On top of that, there are the bands/artists that have already released material, and continue to build their catalogues. That’s also a lot of songs. Songs over songs in between songs topped with songs stuffed into songs. And I can’t help but seek them out — I love music that much. It makes list releasing/curating a hell of a task though, and it will only get harder each passing year. I don’t know what I’ll do in 2020. Perhaps a Top 500 Songs of The Year list will be the way to go.

As for 2013, there are waaaaaaay more than 100 songs that deserve to have a spotlight shone on them, so this year, I’ve made an alphabetical list of the songs that didn’t make my Top 100. Make no mistake, the songs on this Honourable Mention list are really, really good. Some people might even enjoy these tracks more than what will comprise my Top 100 list. To each their own.

This list is for my favourite tracks of the year to have a space to relax and get comfortable, and for insatiable music consumers. This list might not appeal to a lot of people (that’s okay). If one person discovers a song they hadn’t heard before, listing this many songs will have been worth it.

Here, again, are my favourite songs of 2013, Honourable Mention style, in alphabetical order, beginning with A-C.

2 Chainz f. Pharrell – Feds Watching

2AM Club – Too F***ed Up To Call

Ace Hood f. Future & Rick Ross – Bugatti

Active Child f. Mikyk Ekko – Subtle

Albert Hammond Jr. – St. Justice

ASTR – Operate

Atlas Genius – If So

Autumn Hill – Fire

Avec Sans – The Answer

Ballet School – Heartbeat Overdrive

Bell X1 – Careful What You Wish For

Blood Orange – Chamakay

Bosnian Rainbows – Worthless/Mother, Father, Set Us Free

Cage The Elephant – Come A Little Closer/Spiderhead/Telescope

Camera Obscura – Cri Du Coeur

Capitol Cities – Safe and Sound

Cayucas – High School Lover

City and Colour – Thirst/Harder Than Stone/The Way It Used To Be/The Lonely Life

Club 8 – Straight As An Arrow

Clubfeet – Everything You Wanted

Coasts – Wallow

Courtney Barnett – Avant Gardener

Recipe: mash up with down, left with right, off the wall with no way that'll work together and enjoy.

Recipe: mash up with down, left with right, off the wall with no way that’ll work and enjoy.

The proliferation and popularity of mashups has exploded over the past few years. The technology to meld songs together is accessible and the appetite for the style is voracious. Music in general has become more accessible, and as people become exposed to new sounds, artists, and songs, it only follows that they become more and more curious to hear what songs, disparate or otherwise, would sound like when thrown together in a blender. Luckily, for those who dig mashups, there are a tonne of musicians, knob fiddlers, and computer/audio wizards who are seeking to serve such sonic smoothies.

Yeah, there are a million and one mashups out there in the ether. Are they all good? Of course not. For me, the best mashups must: a) be technically proficient, (ideally, technically superb); and b) make the listener say, “Merlin’s beard, these songs fit perfectly together,” or “Son of a snitch, if I didn’t know this was a mashup, I’d have sworn that vocal was created with and for that music.” Does this happen? Not all the time, but when it does, it’s pure magic.

Lastly, as a music fan, I’m appreciative of the gamut mashups can run because there really are no rules when it comes to picking source materials. 1960’s music can be fused with stuff from the 2000’s. Heavy metal can meld with piano pop. Dance can mix with television theme songs. When the mashup is done right, it feels real (and it’s spectacular).

Here then, are my favourite 30 mashups of 2013:

30. The Beatles x Macklemore – Eleanor Rigby Can’t Hold Me Down (The Melker Project)