This full list first appeared in pieces on my Facebook page over the past few weeks ...
First off: Listen to the music you like, the stuff that makes you happy. Just because I loathe twenty one pilots and would be OK if I never again heard Imagine Dragons’ “Thunder” or that Chainsmokers/Chris Martin song “Something Just Like This” doesn’t mean you can’t like those songs. I’m fully aware I have off-kilter tastes. (Still, I HATE those songs.)
I listened to so much music the past few weeks to make sure I heard most of what 2017 had to offer, and I’m still positive I missed some good stuff. I also came to some conclusions:
* A lot of the dominant hip-hop/rap hits out there right now have a similar sound, and I’m not a huge fan. It’s all gotten much darker than it used to be in that genre. That said, Kendrick Lamar’s “HUMBLE.” and “DNA” stood out to me. But those didn’t quite make my favorites list. I want more hip-hop that sounds like A Tribe Called Quest or De La Soul or Public Enemy or Kid Cudi.
* There’s a lot of alternative music out there that’s greatly written, competently produced and … still bores me to tears. I listened to large parts of Father John Misty’s new one, The National’s new album and even the new one from Fleet Foxes (who I sporadically like) and was impressed with the craftsmanship. But they still made me want to nap rather than listen more.
* My favorite new band of recent years, Public Service Broadcasting, put out an album this year and it was, uh, just OK. Moving away from your distinctive sound isn’t always the best idea.
Additionally, for better or worse, the crazy things that have happened in this world undoubtedly influenced my favorites this year. This is a list that veers between angry allusions to current events and songs that I liked because they made me forget about those current events.
With that preamble out of the way …
No. 20: Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile are having lots of fun here. I don’t know Vile’s work too well, but Barnett always is great, which is what got me to listen to their joint project. This, the lead single, is charming as heck, and “Over Everything” may describe me after this year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KNsBCf34fQ
No. 19: When current events frustrate me, I often turn to my louder music -- including Nine Inch Nails -- to soothe my soul. This year, I didn't have to listen exclusively to classic NIN, as that band put out some new songs. This chorus seemed relevant: "So what are you waiting for? / You got what you asked for / Did it fix what was wrong with you? / Are you less than?" Not a groundbreaking song, but a good one. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDV-dOvqKzQ
No. 18: I won't try to defend this pick. This song by new band Superorganism, "Something for your M.I.N.D.," actually made a few "best songs" lists I've seen in recent weeks, so I listened to it, and it was goofy enough to make me laugh. On repeated listenings, this song has continued to endear itself to my ears. But I fully understand if you hear it and hate it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPS-Cq4uMFs
No. 17: This isn't my favorite M.I.A. song ever; it's not even my favorite song of hers from the past 18 months. But it's still a good one that, for me, toes that line between catchy and too sing-songy. And, of course, it's political, which is what I expect of M.I.A. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zkkr-HhnwS8
No. 16: The Horrors are way better known in their native U.K., but this song broke through the year's musical clutter for me. This band's sound is firmly rooted in the revival of '80s-sounding music (embrace the synths!), but with a 21st-century twist. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e38KoYlHDTA
No. 15: I actually like this song, which is probably the best known one on my list, so much that it could be in my top 10. But I fear I will get a tad sick of this one soon, as it's already been overplayed on radio and elsewhere. For an indie band that originated in Wasilla, Alaska, and has connections to both Portland and Seattle, though, this is such a catchy, well-done song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBkHHoOIIn8
No. 14: Without its catchy hook, this song would not make my list. But it's a fun, brainless tune, and sometimes that's what I need. To my ears, this Ofenbach single sounds like the dance-friendly version of an Eagles of Death Metal song, and I mean that as a compliment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Bb0iron4jg
No. 13: I've spent more time reading over recent years about Paramore -- its switch from emo rock to pop, endless band drama -- than I've actually spent listening to its music. But many critics recommended the band's new album this year, so I gave it a listen. It's pretty good, led by this song, which is firmly rooted in an '80s new wave sound. Imagine if the Talking Heads did a song with Debbie Harry as the lead singer. This fun one kind of sounds like that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEB6ibtdPZc
No. 12: Moby and the Void Pacific Choir put out an album this year aptly titled "More Fast Songs about the Apocalypse." If despair was one of this year's themes, Moby is on that wavelength. And it led to this rather bleak but well-done single. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmi-MtP969M
No. 11: Hey, remember how much I've raved over Public Service Broadcasting as one of my favorite bands of recent years? Well, the band put out its third album this year and it was ... uh, disappointing, at least to me. Sometimes, straying from your unique sound is a bad idea. Which is why only one song -- one that is closer to the band's old sound -- from that album is on my list. In this song's favor is Camera Obscura's Tracyanne Campbell singing the chorus. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1ZbdGBAqZQ
No. 10: Now we're getting to my "mostest" favorite songs. When this song came out last spring, it was our first listen at what LCD Soundsystem had been up to since reforming. James Murphy and his band reportedly hung out with Bowie before he died, and this song shows it, from the "Heroes"-like sound at the song's start to the backing vocals style on the chorus. The feeling of building chaos on this song, along with relevant-sounding lyrics ("The old guys are frightened and frightening to behold"), made me fall for this song quickly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWKIWNJnlzI
No. 9: Torres' new album is one of my favorite of this year, and there were three songs from that disc I considered including in my top 20. But "Skim" is my favorite and includes a good guitar solo. The song's video is, uh, more lascivious than I typically post, but it's the only one I could find with the album version of the song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mSaYRd3iIo
No. 8: If all you have heard of Lorde's second album, which came out this year, is "Green Light" or maybe "Liability," you're missing out. Which brings me to this charming song, which is representative of the album. I love the lyric about judging someone's punctuation use, as well as the line about the Louvre itself. A great song from a great album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaJST4R9eog
No. 7: I really like some of Goldfrapp's previous work, and this single off the band's newest album is no exception. It's catchy with a heavy, crunchy dance beat and a sound that I would describe as "robotic." Though that may be because I was listening to this song a lot while writing about industrial automation for work this past summer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5Ez77lTEWg
No. 6: German DJ Robin Schulz almost always makes pop songs that hit the right spots of my brain, and that's true again this year. And this year was ripe for a song that reassures it's going to be OK. The video produced for this song echoes "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," one of my favorite movies of all time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9-4xHVc7uk
No. 5: Many of this year's songs saw strains of '80s and '90s music coming back. And then the Breeders, led by legendary Kim Deal, came back, released this song and showed all the young punks how it's REALLY done. I LOVE this song, from the old-school attitude Kim brings ("I got business!") to the simple but loud guitar melody. It sounds like an early '90s bomb thrown into the middle of 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=10&v=5i76b0OrdIQ
No. 4: Hot Chip, one of my favorite bands, didn't release an album this past year. But Joe Goddard, a primary member of Hot Chip, released his first solo album, and it included this song, which suggests that music is the answer to much of life -- something I tend to agree with. If the chorus rings a bell, it borrows from a late '90s song of the same title, though that song and this one have little in common otherwise. If you like this version of the song, seek out the full version, which is longer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwPLvt6BFPg
No. 3: I saw somebody refer to this as the most quotable song of the year, and I don't disagree. LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy is just 10 months older than I am, and he nails that post-ironic weariness that pervades our culture, and especially Gen X, right now. It's also darkly funny and the only song this year that includes the phrase "dialect of negation." Two of my favorite lines: "You've lost your internet and we've lost our memory" and "Oh good gracious, I sound like my mom." On top of that, the instrumentation has a nice '80s touch (vintage synths!) and builds to a climax just like all the best LCD Soundsystem songs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqq3BtGrpU8
No. 2: OK, so this song originally was released in late 2016. But it got renewed attention this past fall with the release of a new, very moving video for the song. So I'm counting it as this year; my list, my rules. This song is about the end of Leonard Cohen's romantic life, but because of his death, the words have taken on so much more meaning. I've listened to this song scores of times, but it still nearly chokes me up on each listen. It sounds like Cohen's resignation from the world, and it's one of the best sung songs on his final album; his trademark voice sounds almost whole over the melancholy guitar and strings. The video references his life's work in many ways, both obvious and sly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOrdWbqp85E
No. 1: Making a sophomore album is tricky. The Sundays did it well; The Clash did not (no sane person cites "Give ‘Em Enough Rope" as the best Clash album). And there was every reason in the world for Lorde to come out in her second album sounding more like Taylor Swift or the other pop stars ruling the world. She didn't, and her new album is great. From the upbeat opener "Green Light" to the somber "Writer in the Dark" (song's message: don't get involved with writers), it's a great sophomore effort. And this song, "Supercut," is my favorite. It's got the same fast piano as "Green Light," but more heft as a song. And the refrain of "In my head, I do everything right" is very, very relatable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDzfWzORry8
Finally, five more songs I like that didn’t quite make my top 20 …
“Isotype” by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. OMD may be nearly 40 years old, but the band’s newest album is solid, and this may be my favorite of its songs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp_Du6uO9V4
“My Name is Ruin” by Gary Numan. Speaking of making music for 40 years, Gary Numan turns 60 in March. After his great hits of the late ‘70s and the first half of the ‘80s, I wasn’t a fan of his musical direction for a while. But this one’s good, and it shows why Nine Inch Nails and a whole host of other noisy electronic bands have long idolized Numan. The backing vocals and video feature one of his daughters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHomCiPFknY
“Century” by Feist. I’m a casual fan of Feist; I like her hits and a few more, but I don’t own her albums. This song from her newest record swoops up and down, with periods of loud and quiet. And then Jarvis Cocker of Pulp (one of my favorite bands) shows up for the end. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xQoem0ApXc
“HUMBLE.” by Kendrick Lamar. See my notes above about the current hip-hop sound, which call out this song as standing out. It’s hard to resist this one, and I understand all the critical praise for Lamar’s newest album. Be warned: NSFW language here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvTRZJ-4EyI
“Horse with no Name” covered by Patrick Carney and Michelle Branch. I like this one because it was featured in one of this year’s most memorable episodes of “BoJack Horseman.” It’s also a beautiful cover version; unfortunately, they couldn’t improve on the lyrics of the original ‘70s song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v59f_HrHCEc