So, it’s pretty clear that like at least 60-70% of the songs on our favorites list are on other favorites lists as well and most of these tracks you will certainly be familiar with already, but we’d really be interested to hear which tracks, if any, really surprised you by their inclusion or which of these you had never heard of. Which of our picks did you not expect to see in a year-end list (i.e. which of these are we overrating). Just a curiosity on our part.
At our number 75 spot we’ve put Sharon Van Ettan’s truly sing-along-able “I Give Out” from her epic^2 2012 LP Tramp. We’ve designated “And It Was You” by How To Dress Well as the #75 on our list, and I must say that HTDW’s follow-up Total Loss is really breathtaking and in no small part due to the uptick in production value over its predecessor. Matthew Dear comes in at 73, with his second showing, “Her Fantasy”, which perhaps should be ranked higher, but.. (as I’ve said) it’s been a really great year for music. Fiona Apple reemerged in 2012 to tremendous critical acclaim and most blogs (ours included) are claiming that “Werewolf” is the standout track on her new LP; we put it at #70 for the year. DIIV (formerly Dive) are badass and “How Long Have You Known” comes in at 69 on our list just behind Purity Ring’s “Fineshrine”. Dent May’s latest release may not be for everybody, but “Best Friend” struck us immediately as a great track and it is certainly one of the tracks that saw near endless rotation in the illComp camp throughout 2012. The Presets were another group that we were largely unaware of until 2012 and we were really excited to find out that they had a fairly extensive back catalog that we could dig into. Their excellent LP, Pacifica, is full of goodies, but “Youth In Trouble” stood out in our minds as the best and comes in at 66 on the illComp countdown. At 65 we’ve got Lemonade with “Neptune”, a track that shocked pretty much everybody familiar with Lemonade’s prior output. Bear In Heaven’s “World of Freakout” stands out to us as the best offering off of their 2012 LP and comes in at 63 in our countdown. Kwes put out the really beautiful “Meantime” EP this year and we thought that the overall reception was, undeservedly, luke-warm. We’ve chosen “Bashful” for our #62 spot with it’s catchy, yet challenging vocal stylings and excellent overall concept. Mikky Ekko’s haunting “Pull Me Down” comes in right ahead of Kwes at 61 and is followed closely by my personal favorite band of the year, Wild Nothing, with “Shadow” at number 60. Yeasayer put out, what we thought was a very solid record, with Fragrant World, but critics were pretty divided; we’ve chosen the pop connoisseur’s “Longevity” as standout and it’s getting ranked at 59 in our list. At 57, super indie group Ghost Beach (try to wiki them, they’re too indie for wikipedia!) impressed the hell out of us with their incredibly infectious “Been There Before,” and we are eager as H to hear more from this group in 2013. A little further up the list, we’ve inserted Bat For Lashes’ beautifully epic and incredibly lovable track, “Laura” from her wonderful 2012 LP, The Haunted Man. ”Laura” comes in at number 53 in our countdown. Finally, the last track we’ll mention tonight is “Millions” by Eternal Summers, which just missed the top 50 at number 51.
So how are we doing? What are we missing? What are you all expecting to see in the next 2 days? Chime in below, if you get a second, and give us your thoughts. until tomorrow.
075. Sharon Van Ettan: “I Give Out”
074. How To Dress Well: “And It Was You” Download (left click)
073. Matthew Dear: “Her Fantasy” Download
072. Mansions On The Moon: “Radio” Download
071. MS MR: “Hurricane” Download (left click)
070. Fiona Apple: “Werewolf” Download
069. DIIV: “How Long Have You Known” Download
068. Purity Ring: “Fineshrine” Download
067. Dent May: “Best Friend” Download
066. The Presets: “Youth In Trouble” Download
065. Lemonade: “Neptune” Download
064. Tame Impala: “Apocalypse Dreams” Download
063. Bear In Heaven: “World of Freakout” Download
062. Kwes.: “Bashful” Download
061. Mikky Ekko: “Pull My Down”
060. Wild Nothing: “Shadow” Download (left click)
059. Yeasayer: “Longevity” Download (left click)
058. Anna Meredith: “Nautilus”
057. Ghost Beach: “Been There Before” Download
056. Dum Dum Girls: “Lord Knows” Download
055. Veronica Falls: “My Heart Beats”
054. The Fresh & Onlys: “Presence of Mind” Download
053. Bat For Lashes: “Laura” Download
052. Passion Pit: “Take A Walk” Download
051. Eternal Summers: “Millions” Download
