Look, I get it, 2024 was ten thousand years ago. We've all moved on to bigger and... uhh maybe just bigger... things. And no, I DON'T have the excuse that I spent the last few months digging around for deep cuts. I finished this list in January! I haven't changed it one inch from where it stood since then. However, in the interest of learning basic coding and having my own odd little web nook, I figured this already existing list would be a good place to start. I added descriptions that maybe give context to each song's placement or just ramble about whatever's on my mind, plus some video embeds that you'll be cursing for slowing the performance on this already vacant-looking site. That's just something we'll have to live with.
If you disagree with any of these choices, funnel that energy into trying to influence my future lists. Send me tracks for the current year (2025 as of writing this, but this offer stands for any future year so long as I am alive and have functioning ears), and hopefully with a good enough understanding of what gets me going specifically, you can use that to your advantage and basically predict my list before I make it.
I have a mid-year list for 2025 dropping next month probably? So keep an eye out for that.
If you like what I do and have money to spare, one American dollar is probably worth like one hundred Canadian. It means a lot, plus it's easier to bribe me into taking your recommendations that way. I'll take them for free regardless, but it's still worth thinking about.
One-man jangle pop outfit out of Sacramento. Two albums deep and already seemingly a master of creating good riffs.
Not part of the Windmill Scene to my knowledge, but if you listen to a lot of Shame and the like, these guys have been a frequent guest in algorithmic recommendations since they started dropping EPs. This track is not from an upcoming album, but is supposed to represent things to come for the band. We'll see what happens.
Looking for material outside the usual Anglosphere, this one was a must-listen based on cover alone. Another infectious riff, one so good it makes me think they must have stolen it. Like something so good, it must have been from before our time. I like stuff of that sort. Keeps me going.
...the Brockhampton guy? Those dudes really are just kicking around in random spots, hey? I don't know, I liked some of Ameer Vann's solo output in spite of his ever-worsening reputation as a person. Champion hasn't quite won me over as a solo artist just yet, but I like this track a lot. Just bizarre enough to not give awkward flashbacks to Rex Orange County and his weird toothy persona.
Contrary to my expectations, this is not a debut album. MICHELLE have apparently been kicking around in some form or another since at least 2018, but they've completely passed me by until – who else – the all-knowing algorithm pushed them upon me. A good find from Atlantic Records of all labels.
As embarrassing as it is to admit, a big part of this track's appeal for me comes from that early-Timberlake-sounding hook. And while both him and Timbaland have become downright boring in recent years (barring a few exceptions), Elmiene picks up the slack and has gotten major momentum as a result. A full-length LP will almost certainly become a critical darling once it finally drops.
In the divide between car radio listeners and internet hipsters, few country artists have bridged that gap quite like Zach Bryan. Remarkably prolific in both music and in controversy, like a critical darling version of Morgan Wallen, God forbid. And yes, too much of that latest album felt a bit redundant in song structure, but when it works, it's exceptional.
That Nintendo-sounding beat is such an inspired choice that it almost makes me angry. A risk of becoming downright corny, instead it's infectious beyond belief. Would have been a bigger hit had this been 2007 indie radio, but alas, time stops for no band.
This cute tiger thing knows you'd dig footwork if you just gave it a chance (if you haven't already.) Complex in the subtler aspects, while remarkably simple with what most immediately hooks you. I don't live near any cool city beaches, but if I did, this would be essential.
Beautiful? Ominous? A lot of both in Rufous Nightjar's harmonies. Apparently they've been kicking around for a few years prior, though this appears to be their debut album? Already a mastery in their restraint.
Maybe Lenae's sweetest song to date, and more evidence to Ty Dolla $ign being a massively underrated feature when done right. Maybe with some distancing from Ye, he can go back to being a bright spot on other people's records.
Effortlessly sensual, and endlessly adaptable. Feels suited to your mood, whether you choose to rock with it or chill beside it.
Grande reckons, intentionally or otherwise, with her worsening public reputation. As stellar a performer as always, and with the production to match, and right at the point where the cracks in her persona meet the possible flaws in her character. No place better to explore that, I feel.
Lenker's most vulnerable work tends to be kept safe within the confines of her solo work – even when adapted into full on Big Thief tracks, they tend to play more formal than they do by herself. That said, this feels closest in spirit to 2017's 'Mary', which is similarly heartbreaking.
If Playboi Carti has tunes warranting a cult-like fanbase, ZelooperZ might very well deserve one as well for how eclectic and distinct he's been for the past decade. Even at his calmest, his mind tends to go in some strange directions.
For how abstract and even off-putting FKA twigs is sometimes willing to be, the beauty and the influence of her work is never not evident. If anything, Eusexua feels like one of her more approachable tracks despite maintaining that feeling of unfamiliarity she's so good at delivering.
Whenever I feel worried that Ezra Koenig might be hinting at Zionism in his lyrics, I'm reminded that few if any Zionists would be willing to be this abstracted and this conflicted. I still consider Father of the Bride a masterpiece, in case you were curious.
I tend to lean skeptical toward the sort of Internetcore artists you'll see RateYourMusic users propping up as the next big thing. But sometimes those guys really know what they're talking about — this hook is practically angelic.
If you're going to go for Yes worship in the year 2024, a lengthy a cappella intro is a great way to capture that same oddball energy before jumping into what all the other bands fail to imitate. Ugly playfully carve their way into the scene with an influence on their sleeve without feeling too derivative.
Somehow one of Skee Mask's 'dubbiest' releases, yet also one of his most danceable. A ridiculous underlying energy on this track in particular, but really the whole EP stands as his finest work to date. Yes, I even prefer it to Compro. Sue me.
Vocal samples really are a cheat code to making one of my lists. That, and some very funny punchlines.
Sometimes you just want to have a party underwater; the various dub genres are my go-to, and Loidis is in a rare category of melding that sound with house in a way where his best tracks sound like the melody is somehow carried over from five blocks away, echoing off anything and everything in its path.
I'd call it a magnum opus of sorts, but I suppose it's just as fitting as the opener to a monolithic 83 minute album reevaluating old eras and eulogizing old friends. Intricate in a way that's sometimes hard to even imagine being made by a fellow human being.
Cryptic, unnerving, and then all of a sudden, it manages a vicious mechanical groove that must make for an anxious dance floor.
Broom is a veteran of house music, though he may be easier to take for granted as a playlist-filler than the legends with steadier established fanbases. But don't be mistaken, Broom has material that would crack many publications' own lists had it been under the name DJ Koze or Against All Logic instead.
Having already made a name for themselves prior to their debut album with some especially strong live shows and killer singles, they might run the risk of annoyance but exist beyond the irony in a way I felt lesser, snarkier bands never could.
Sombre, understated, but with a pulse. Great for anyone in their post-emo phase and still need something to scratch the itch that they left behind with Evanescence.
Consistently and increasingly making waves in the electronic sphere, including a collaboration with the already mentioned FKA twigs. Their stuff always rewards headphone-listening, though it's most rewarding when they use that power for dance floors specifically.
Some brilliant amalgamation of what Aftab has been building for the past decade: jazz, ambient, and folk aesthetics combined rather effortlessly and continuing to establish her as a proficient and effective mood-setter within those scenes.
Speaker-breaking, city-destroying party music explicitly designed to kill you in two minutes or less.
Feels almost like an inverse of Holly Herndon's work — instead of classical elements being warped beyond recognizability, Bianca Scout leaves them in sparse, empty places to layer and intertwine in clever little ways.
Shelley's work already tended to be defined by an almost fragility, though Fire of the Morning feels like one of her most patient and quiet songs to date. She somehow retains that feeling even in her more uptempo work over the years, but this song in particular more so emphasizes the small dark rooms the introverted folk singers tend to dwell in.
Endearing beyond belief. The vocals sound like how a smile looks, or rather you can hear her smiling as she sings. Lovely stuff either way.
Lush, lively, and tropical in a way that feels specific rather than coasting along in vibes. The way the guitar floats over and through the vocals is especially satisfying.
I sometimes get tired of publications hyping up songs that sound authentically 90s but in a way that more closely resembles the mediocrity rather than the classics. Pillow Queens feel like an exception in this case, though I might be biased as someone who has been keeping up with them since State of the State.
Tresor Records really keeping the spirit of decades' old electronic music alive with some of these releases. A lazy comparison, but fans of Homework-era Daft Punk in particular will likely appreciate this one.
Could this maybe be considered a new-ish wave of Irish folk music? Namely the crossover with industrial, drone, ambient, etc. Folk is a genre that you really wanna be purposeful about if you're going to twist it in your favor, and Rois I'd say is an example of doing so meaningfully.
This may or may not have been intended for Savage's previous album, but it's hard not to envision it as the first single to some distant future project of his. Certainly one of my favorites of his, be it solo or even with Parquet Courts.
Clarity has been ahead of his time for so long that it only feels like in recent years has there been a consistent set of artists beyond him capable of doing what he does (besides those already in his immediate vicinity, of course.) And while he has more competition in that field now than he once did, he's still one of the best in the business when it comes to making melodies out of chaos.
Though this track and even this artist haven't blown up relative to how quality their sound is, I can absolutely imagine the same scenes presently worshipping the likes of PinkPantheress will eventually find this sort of thing in their playlists as an extension of our need for bright retro electronic aesthetics. I think they pair well. Dare I say euphoric? Ehh I shouldn't. Forget I said anything.
Between the time I made this list and the time I'm writing this description, Lola Young appeared to go viral in some Twitter discourse. I had Chappell Roan in the honorable mentions of my 2023 list, so maybe I can go for three in a row? I stand by this placement for the record, placing angst in this almost mechanical groove exploding part way through into something more rock-ish. Hopefully her increasing level of fame finds her well.
Perhaps the most frequent artist to appear on these lists of mine, and yet their identity remains a mystery and their motivations for toying with our collective nostalgia remains unknown. I fear DJ Sabrina's influence, and judging by that production credit on that (great) The 1975 track a few years back, it will continue to grow until all that's left is lengthy saxophone solos.
Fans of the now disbanded The Maccabees will be pleased to know their former frontman still sounds like if Kermit the Frog fronted Future Islands. The album is damn good, but this second-to-last track is his most cathartic.
While not an original song of Polachek's, she wears it so well that I wonder how it could get buried as a bonus track... or that this isn't even the only bonus track to make the list. Not of Polachek's, mind you, just in general. But still!...
Darvin Ham's favorite house artist. And if you understood that joke, what the hell are you doing on this website.
Yeah, yeah, I get it, Doyle peaked with Your Wilderness Revisited, but that's like saying [insert your own stupid punchline about how something good peaked with something perfect, don't pester me about these things you worm.] Thankfully he's always got something worthwhile to find on each record, even if it sounds nothing like how you'd expect a William Doyle song to sound. Case in point, this almost new wave-y cut from a guy I associate more with baroque or even experimental sensibilities. But I dig pop music, so it's cool. Just don't tell him I said any of this.
Hopefully the list thus far has conveyed to you that my taste in genres can be a bit eclectic. That being said, nothing hits quite like dub techno for me. It's like I always say – Balearic beat in the streets, dub techno in the sheets. I'm always saying this.
Tinashe just barely missed the list proper as a leading artist, but that's okay because I think her feature here is some of her best work regardless. Such a satisfying collaboration especially in a lane where one or both artists could have phoned it in. Instead, they work off each other brilliantly.
More industrial of a sound than I'm accustomed to from Iglooghost, but I honestly dig the direction. His prior sounds have been great but that level of complexity risks burying itself a bit rather than enhancing what works. Here however, the layers of his production seem to sneak up on the song instead of simply being the song. Even if it's a one-album thing, it's cool to hear all the same.
Beautiful, but also strangely nervous? Maybe it's the tango-type tempo giving me flashbacks to Moulin Rouge. Hopefully we get a full-length LP from her sooner than later, as I imagine it'll really get her some added attention as an artist.
