January 30, 2019
Favorite Songs of 2018
I figured I should put this up before 2019 is over.
Overall this wasn’t a particularly good year for music. There were songs I cut from last year’s list (posted these on Fb previously) that would have been 2019 Song of the Year. Last year’s list went 17 songs long; this one’s only six. In no particular order (though I think it’s unintentionally in order of release):
Caroline Rose – “Soul No. 5”: Some songs sound like having fun feels. It doesn’t hurt that the video’s hilarious.
Jealous of the Birds – “Plastic Skeletons”: The lyrics are a mosaic of little thoughts and don’t always seem to relate to each other but they’re nevertheless entrancing as she descends the scale singing them.
Death Cab for Cutie – “Gold Rush”: Ben sings about the old mainstays of Seattle culture being demolished in favor of condos and parking garages. As someone who lived in Austin for years, I can empathize. So many of my old haunts have been lost as the once-modest skyline grew into a jungle of high-rise apartments. Lots of new and exciting stuff has taken root, and I still enjoy the town very much, but it’s certainly changed. Whether it’s for the better or not is really up to you.
Billie Eilish – “You Should See me in a Crown”: Her soft voice floats over a driving bass line in this song about being totally bomb. I don’t know if you ever read the book, The Girl Who Would Be King, but this is absolutely Lola’s theme song. This would be my favorite track of the year.
MØ – “Blur” ft. Foster the People: I love her cottony voice and those synths that come in after the chorus.
Grimes – “We Appreciate Power”: Grimes can be a bit of an acquired taste but this fierce industrial track really speaks to my former rivetkid self. Can’t say I’m as optimistic as she is about living under the rule of an all-powerful self-aware computer but I suppose that appeals to some folks.
There’s a couple of tracks that released in 2017 but I didn’t hear until 2018 that I’d like to at least mention here. I can’t get enough of the bassline in Sir Sly’s “High.” Saw them at ACL Fest and they played a 10 minute version that I could have listened to forever. I want that bassline to play anytime I enter a room.
And I am hypnotized by Dennis Lloyd’s nod-inducing “Nevermind.” The only thing wrong with this song is that it’s only 2:35. It leaves me wanting more every time I listen to it.
Welp, that’s it for 2018. I’m hoping 2019 will contribute more songs but I’ll settle for a few that I absolutely love.
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