End-of-Year Music Superlatives: Class of 2017
With just a few hours remaining in 2017, I find it only appropriate for me to subject the Internet world to a list of some of my favorite songs from this calendar year (and why they are my favorites). Behold: my Music Superlatives of 2017.
(Note: I've included my Best of 2017 playlist at the bottom if you've got three hours to kill. Apple Music subscribers can listen by clicking here. Enjoy!)
Best Song to Listen to on a Road Trip
"Near To The Wild Heart Of Life", Japandroids
One of my favorite music-related memories of 2017 was listening to this song on a plane that was about 15 minutes from landing in Germany. It was my first trip to Europe and I’m not sure I'd ever been more excited about anything. For me, the song captures the rush and anticipation of leaving for somewhere new, the thrill of being far away from home, and the beauty in finding things in places you've never been that remind you of where you came from. It was one of those occasions where exactly the right song happened to come on at the perfect moment. I'll always think of that Eurotrip (and the three buddies I traveled with) when I listen to Japandroids.
Most Nostalgia-Inducing
"Rosedale House", Banfi
An esteemed friend and respected opinionator suggested this song sounds like “high school music for adults”, and I thought that was quite an apt description. It may not be as gritty as Taking Back Sunday or as angsty as Say Anything, but it definitely makes me think about sneaking a handful of warm Coors Lights into the woods during the dead of winter and trying to keep our voices down.
Most Rhythmic
"Told You So", Paramore
Clarification required: there’s definitely a difference between “most rhythmic” and “best beat”. To me, beat implies more drum/bass while rhythm implies the total interaction among all musical components — the interplay between drums and guitar, the manner in which certain words/syllables are delivered, etc. There are a ton of intricate things happening concurrently in “Told You So”, and even now I’m still finding new things that I like about it. Also, it's officially been 10 years since Paramore released the album "Riot!"...I feel old. Also also, I still have a crush on Hayley Williams.
Best Amalgamation of Tones
"City Limits", Heat
This song has everything. Guitar riffs like Guns ‘N’ Roses, fuzz like The Strokes, low and airy vocals that somehow sound like both Rancid and The Cure. Yet it all works and sounds melodic AF.
Most Hilarious
“Everybody Knows”, Partner
Any song that references ‘The Big Lebowski’ will always be good in my book, folks. I laughed for an unreasonably long time as I listened to this Canadian duo describe in excruciating detail various situations that represent every stoner’s worst nightmare.
Best for Strutting While Listening on Headphones
“Eyes Wide Open”, Scavenger Hunt
Do you ever feel the need to eschew the illusion of confidence as you walk briskly through a crowd of tourists on West Broadway en route to a very important appointment? Here is a tune for you!
Favorite YouTube Clip of a Live Performance
"Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard", Lorde & Jack Antonoff (Paul Simon cover)
The plucky banter about feet is a joy to listen to, no matter how many times I watch. (No, I do not have a thing for feet. I do have a thing for people not caring about discussing less-sophisticated topics, such as feet.)
When Lorde & Jack actually do start playing the cover at around 3:00, they just look like they're having a boatload of fun and everything seems very genuine. It's also undoubtedly one of my favorite songs of all-time, which helps I guess.
Favorite Chorus
"Fire Escape", Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
Disclaimer: I’ve listened to this song over 200 times (236 to be exact), and still every time that chorus hits my heart beats a little faster. Huge drums, soaring melody, vivid lyrics...it's all here. If invincibility sounded like something, it would sound like this chorus. It's as close to musical euphoria as I've experienced this year. I feel the need to say that I've been an Andrew McMahon fan since Something Corporate and throughout the Jack's Mannequin eras, and I think this song represents him at his absolute best. Pure, unbridled energy.
Best New Artists Who Are Destined for Great Success(!)
Sigrid / Declan McKenna
Sigrid is a 21-year-old singer/songwriter from Norway. She rules and her voice is the equivalent of when extremely flexible people can manipulate their bodies into the form of a pretzel. One example: listen to “Plot Twist” and take a few seconds to marvel at how she does that yodel-y thing with her voice when she sings the word ‘wannabe’. And then watch YouTube videos of her doing it live.
Declan McKenna’s name first made its way around because he wrote a song about soccer (“Brazil”) in protest of the World Cup. The 19-year-old British singer tackles plenty of uniquely mature subject matter in his songs. The title of his debut album (“What Do You Think About The Car?”) is also tremendous.
Music Person of the Year
Jack Antonoff
If you haven’t at least heard of Jack Antonoff by now, you may well have been living under a rock for the past 12 months. His name is actually everywhere. The former Steel Train singer and fun. guitarist produced albums this year for the likes of St. Vincent (“Masseduction”), Lorde (“Melodrama”) and some woman you may have heard of named Taylor Swift (“Reputation”). And as if that somehow wasn’t enough, he managed to find enough time to release an incredible LP (“Gone Now”) for his own project Bleachers. A pretty decent trip around the sun for him, to say the least.
PS - he does a great interview with Zane Lowe on Beats 1 Radio if you can find it. PPS - he occasionally posts YouTube videos where he re-builds his own songs in the studio, and they're fascinating. Here's one for "Don't Take The Money".
Best Comeback
LCD Soundsystem
Someone please tell me who else could possibly compete for this. LCD’s glorious return was initially announced by the release of a Christmas song two years ago, and the music world was waiting on pins and needles ever since. James Murphy & Co. opened Greenpoint’s newest venue Brooklyn Steel (which is sick, as an aside) this past April with a five-show run and with 20+ shows lined up at that venue alone through the end of the year, they haven’t slowed down since. “American Dream” picked up where the band left off with 2010’s “This Is Happening”, which is to say the entire album is a freakin’ party with no shortage of the frenetic synths and monstrous drops we’ve come to expect from them. LCD is back in a big way, and I can only hope it remains that way for the foreseeable future.
Any other oddly specific superlatives you can think of? Let me hear about it.
