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| Ali's 2013: SONGS
The logical sequel to an albums of the year list... ra songs of the year list! rThis was far harder to compile, and I made it on a rone song per artist basis. rWhat are/were your favourites? | | 1 | CHVRCHES
The Mother We Share
The Mother We Share is a classic example of how a song doesn't need to be ten
minutes long, structurally ambitious or sonically inventive to leave you
floored. In
fact, with a fairly standard synthpop base and a classic verse-chorus-verse-
chorus-bridge-chorus structure, it's hard to imagine how it could be any more
simple, so the impact it leaves in its concise three minutes and 49 seconds is
nothing short of remarkable. The key lies in its chorus, and moreover Lauren
Mayberry's delivery, which achieves the type of euphoric, life-affirming high
major
labels waste fortunes in pursuit of - and that's before we even consider that
sensational held note at its conclusion. Packed with hooks, staying power and
immeasurable substance, its the epitome of the perfect pop song, and although I
found The Bones of What You'll Believe to be slightly hit-and-miss, I've every
hope
they'll repeat the trick come its follow-up. | | 2 | The Knife
Full of Fire
I'm convinced there was no real method or structure to Full of Fire's recording,
and
that The Knife simply decided to cram in every last warped, depraved sonic idea
they could muster. The resulting nine-minute rush of electronic brutality is so
incessant it feels practically endless, and in this case that's a very, very
good
thing. I've still no idea what "not a vagina / it's an option / the cock / had
it
coming" is supposed to mean, though. | | 3 | Arcade Fire
Reflektor
Reflektor the album was without doubt my single biggest disappointment of the
year; the sort of empty, overwrought mess Arcade Fire have always been in danger
of producing, but have until now staved off through sheer awe-inspiring
brilliance.
Reflektor the song, however, is coated with the gold dust which eludes the rest
of
the record, and in essence represents everything we hoped an Arcade Fire-James
Murphy collaboration would be - with a hint of Bowie added for good measure. It
takes a little while to get going, but once it does its various twists and turns
are so
glorious they manage to prevent the project from being an entire write-off. | | 4 | John Grant
GMF
It takes balls to make remarks like "I am the greatest mother-fucker that you're
ever going to meet," but then bravery and bluntness are two traits at which John
Grant has always excelled. The subtext, of course, isn't so simple. Indeed, GMF,
and Pale Green Ghosts, the record from which it is taken, are loaded with self-
deprecation, regret and bitterness, and may have set listeners on a downer were
they not also laced with such wry humour. A lyrical masterclass with a corker of
a
chorus, this without doubt represents one of his finest musings to date. | | 5 | Conquering Animal Sound
I'll Be Your Mirror
An intriguing mish-mash of electronic loops and Bjork-like vocals, Glasgow's
Conquering Animal Sound delivered one of the year's underrated gems in their
sophomore set On Floating Bodies, of which this was the outstanding highlight.
It's
foreground may be swathed with bleeps and bloops, but beneath the inventive
exterior are the bones of a great pop song, whose surprisingly hook-laden
melodies
grow more and more prevalent the nearer they reach crescendo. Great stuff. | | 6 | RM Hubbert
Buckstacy
The majority of RM Hubbert's Breaks & Bone could have featured here - it's a
stunning record, and it's had me switching between favourites more so than any
other this year. At present, I'm settled on Buckstacy, a remarkable instrumental
highlight which perfectly demonstrates his incredible ability to ingrain stark
emotion
through nothing but flamenco guitar. Startlingly beautiful and surprisingly
upbeat,
it's the sound of a man finally discovering contentment in a life riddled with
chronic
depression and personal setbacks, and as you'd imagine it's an absolute joy. | | 7 | Frightened Rabbit
Nitrous Gas
Whereas previous Frightened Rabbit records have found Scott Hutchinson wallowing
in his misery, Pedestrian Verse found the singer coming to terms with his
inherent
ways, and ultimately learning to embrace them. This ideological shift came to
something of a head on Nitrous Gas, a typically frank lyrical masterclass.
Kicking off
with the bombshells "I'm dying to tell you that I'm dying here" and "I'm dying
to be
unhappy again," the barenaked lyrics and musical arrangement contribute to one
of
their most powerful emotional punches to date, but it's also one which yields a
happy ending, with Hutchinson ultimately deciding "well if happiness won't live
with
me, I think I can live with that;" a fitting motto for gratuitous miserablists
everywhere! | | 8 | Kanye West
Blood on the Leaves
Yeezus has grown on me more than any other record in the past year, and no track
has displayed that change more than its phenomenal centerpiece, Blood on the
Leaves. On first listen I really didn't like it - mainly because I found the
heavy
autotune grating - but upon repeated exposure I eventually came to recognise its
genius. The beat, of course, is killer, but for me the real trump card is its
eerie
sample of Strange Fruit; establishing a bleak, intense platform for the
combustion
which follows. | | 9 | Jon Hopkins
Immunity
Again, pretty much every track from Immunity is worthy of a place on this list,
but
while the propulsive techno of Open Eye Signal and bruising bass of Collider
were
tough to overlook, I've instead opted for the peaceful serenity of its closing
title
track. If the album as a whole is built around the concept of a great night out,
this
is the moment you step back through your front door, your head still spinning,
the
adrenaline still pumping. You're alone, but the sound of silence is one of pure
bliss
as you grab some food, flick on the TV and eventually stagger to bed, knowing
full
well the morning will bring you crashing back to reality. Well - that's how my
nights
tend to end, anyway! | | 10 | Julianna Barwick
Nepenthe
Julianna Barwick's Nepenthe is an entrancing, ethereal journey from beginning to
end, and no track epitomises its beguiling nature more than Look Into Your Own
Mind. There's not an awful lot to say about it really; just that it floats on a
glorious
sedate cloud of loveliness, soothing the soul and fulfilling the promise of the
record's title (nepenthe, in Greek literature, is a drug which eradicates grief
and
sorrow). Marvelous. | |
AliW1993
12.18.13 | Won't let me do this in reverse order, for some reason. | Artuma
12.18.13 | haven't heard too many of these but i feel the same way you do about 3
my top 3: the pecan tree, brennisteinn, reflektor | AliW1993
12.18.13 | Yeah Brennisteinn/Isjaki/Kveikur came close. Honourable mentions, if you like. | NightProwler
12.18.13 | I love that you seem to dig John Grant as much as I do. Such a talented guy.
Can't really pick a fav off his new album, but GMF is an excellent choice. Pretty cool list, although few of them would rank amongst my favorites of the year. But pos for 3, 4, 7 and 8! | AliW1993
12.18.13 | Yeah, you could easily substitute GMF with Pale Green Ghosts or Glacier, all wonderful songs. I'm surprised the record's not rated higher here. I don't think it's as good as Queen of Denmark, but it's still really excellent. | NightProwler
12.18.13 | QoD sure is better, but agreed, it's really a great release. A hard 3.5 for me, although admittedly, I cannot 4 it. | greg84
12.18.13 | 2 and 4 are my favorite on here. I'd pick out Glacier, though. | AliW1993
12.18.13 | Yeah 3.5-4 is about right. It does lag a bit in its second half. | AliW1993
12.19.13 | I also find it curious that its initial reception was somewhat lukewarm, yet it's been featuring really highly in lots of prominent 2013 lists. Guardian, Mojo, Rough Trade, Q and Uncut all have it in or around their top 5. | ShitsofRain
12.19.13 | only 10? |
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