June was a great month for new music. Here are the songs I listened to most in June:
20. Django Django – Shake And Tremble
19. My Morning Jacket – Big Decisions
18. A Silent Film – Strong Enough/Message In The Sand
17. Walk The Moon – Different Colors
16. Mumford and Sons – The Wolf
15. Waitress – Hop Along
14. Brandon Flowers – Diggin’ Up The Heart
13. Ratatat – Cream on Chrome
These Brooklyn cats are such bad asses.
12. Muse – Dead Inside
Will and Kathryn from SYTYCD!
11. Death From Above 1979 – White Is Red
Probably my favourite tune this Canuck duo have ever done.
10. Jamie XX – Loud Places/I Know There’s Gonna Be Good Times
9. Awolnation – Woman Woman
One of the many catchy tunes on Awolnation’s latest LP.
8. A Silent Film – Paralysed
I’m miffed and sorry that this song and the EP from whence it comes have not not received more attention/YouTube views.
7. The Chainsmokers f. Great Good Fine OK – Let You Go
Massive dance anthem deservedly getting a tonne of play.
6. Tame Impala – Cause I’m A Man
So unique, so fresh, so good.
5. Best Coast – Feeling Ok
Took me maybe 4 or 5 listens before I was hooked.
4. Beirut – No No No
Welcome baaaaaack Mr. Condon! So happy new Beirut music has arrived.
3. Awolnation – I Am
What a great album from Aaron Bruno and company. Even this sort-of ballad sounds raw and rife with energy. Love the vocal harmonies on this track.
2. Ed Sheeran – Photograph/Photograph (Felix Jaehn Remix)
I guess I was out to lunch, as I didn’t know about “Photograph” until recently. I’m not surprised it’s become a worldwide smash; Ed Sheeran is damn near incomparable at writing simple yet affecting melodies and lyrics. The original is great, but I might even dig the remix more. Felix Jaehn is on fire right now.
1. Miguel – Coffee
It’s his voice. It’s that melody. It’s that this ‘clean’ version is more hard-hitting than the explicit one. It’s that, “word play, turns into gun play, gun play, turns into pillow talk, pillow talk, turns into sweet dreams, sweet dreams, turn into coffee in the morning.” It’ll go down as one of my favourite lyrics of the year. One of my favourite songs too.
March was such a good month for music it couldn’t help but bleed into April. I took my time getting to know March songs, taking them out for coffee, flirting with them, skirting the line of appropriateness between a guy and his songs, and before I knew it, the end of April had arrived and burst our little love bubble (April’s a killjoy, no wonder there’s always so much rain). As such, my list of the Top 10 Songs of April is heavily indebted to March, with a few new releases peppered in for flavour.
I also found myself listening to a few older songs — a lot. To shine a light on these tremendous older/oldish songs that captured my ears and attention so, I’ve made a mini list (directly below), and followed that with my favourite newer/newish songs.
Silversun Pickups – The Pit
The only song I found to be immediately and eminently gratifying on SP’s latest, Neck Of The Woods, was “Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)”. It took months over months to finally click to the pretty awesome, brooding, and electronic-tinged “The Pit”. Better late than never.
Thee More Shallows – Oh Yes, Another Mother
From 2007, it’s still the number one song on Saturn’s Titan. Criminally overlooked here on Earth. A crying shame.
Pat Benatar -We Belong
Sing it Pat. Still sounds great almost 30 years later.
Green Day – Redundant
In my top 3 Green Day songs of all-time. Quite possibly the most vulnerable Billy-Joe’s ever sounded lyrically. Replete with an awesome, mind-funking video, featured below.
Biffy Clyro – Many of Horror
I’m convinced this is one of the best songs of the past five years. I’ve recently discovered that Biffy Clyro have a jaw-droppingly good back catalogue. Still, “Many of Horror” is their crowning achievement, and I bet it always will be. That riff. My god. (Check out the unbelievable live performance of the song below.)
Top 10 newish:
10. Demi Lovato – Heart Attack
It doesn’t break any new ground, but it’s catchy as hell. Good lead single in an ultra-competitive environment.
9. The Knife – Raging Lung
I’m still developing my thoughts on the incredible, difficult, political, dense, off-putting, personal, beautiful new Knife album, Shaking The Habitual. What I do know though, is that in such a (fracking) fluid environment, “Raging Lung” weighs the whole experience up (gravity does not apply in The Knife’s world) like an anchor. It’s a masterpiece, sure, but it’s also much, much more. I’m just not sure what else to call it. Exactly how The Knife want it.
8. How To Destroy Angels – How Long?
My favourite tune on Trent’s latest effort. I like it more every time I hear it. Mr. Reznor has a preternatural ability with synthetic sound.
7. We Are Wolves – Sun
So flipping catchy. The explosion at the end seals it for me. I can say without pause this is and will be one of the best songs released in 2013.
6. Surfer Blood – Demon Dance
The guitar work. The melody. Sen-bloody-sational. I can’t seem to get enough of this song. Like its cousin (in name and vibe) below, it’s been on repeat for weeks and weeks.
5. Wavves – Demon To Lean On
Wavves have made a splash before, but they’ve never released a tsunami like the one they roll in on here. The guitar riff. The playful vocals. The sound of summer, and the sound of not giving a shit that it’s summer. The live version, featured below, from Letterman, is also a fantastic experience.
4. Psy – Gentleman
I wondered how in the world he’d follow up his ubiquitous, galactic smash. The answer is relatively simple: with something even bigger. “Gentleman” is so catchy he’s already blown way past any reasonable categorization as a one-hit wonder. He’s at two mammoth tunes and counting. And he looks like he couldn’t be having more fun doing it.
3. Muse – Panic Station
“Panic Station” is several months old now, but I’ve fallen so deeply for it only recently. I’d liked it before. Now I love it. Maybe it’s that it sounds nothing like anything else on The 2nd Law, or any other Muse song for that matter. Maybe it’s the unmistakable 80’s gitch. Maybe it’s the pomposity. Maybe it’s the guitar riff. Maybe it’s Bellamy. (It’s always Bellamy.) The whole proposition just got a shit-tonne more weird by the release of the absurd, hideous, car-crash-like, balls to the wall video, featured below.
2. Phosphorescent – Song For Zula
I would issue strong odds that “Song For Zula” will end up the most beautiful song released in 2013. Or maybe any year. I have such a voracious appetite for, and commit the time that I do to, finding new music because once in a while — once in a blue moon — something like this finds my ears. Simple, haunting, wondrous aural magic.
1. Daft Punk – Get Lucky
It was never going to be anything else. The kings are back — finally. And to boot, “Get Lucky” is unquestionably their catchiest/best song in over 12 years. The wait was unbearable. The joy is immeasurable.
The Pun Is Sure 