10. Jake Bugg - Two Fingers
Ever since he exploded on the scene with his song "Lightning Bolt," which you've probably heard on that Gatorade commercial, and was heralded (annoyingly and prematurely) as the "new Dylan," I don't know whether to be irritated or impressed by this 19-year-old brat from Nottingham. Since his music was slow to catch on in the US, he actually released two albums here last year. The second album, produced by Rick Rubin, was somewhat underwhelming, but I still can't stop listening to his debut album. Especially this song, which I love even more than "Lightning Bolt."
Oh, what the hell, here's Lightning Bolt:
9. Nine Inch Nails - Came Back Haunted
As many of you, I was at Nine Inch Nails' epic "farewell show" at the Wiltern Theatre back in September 2009. To absolutely no one's surprise, Trent Reznor decided that he wasn't done writing new music and touring. Hesitation Marks is a killer comeback album, the live show was a mind-boggling light show, and this song was a fantastic first single.
8. The National - I Should Live In Salt
I've loved The National for several years, but for some reason I was slow to warm to their new album Trouble Will Find Me. I'm so glad I gave it several more listens, each listen revealing more and more to adore. Seeing them perform live in a cemetery sealed the deal. I had a tough time deciding between the opening two songs on the album, but it was the gorgeous first song that I finally named my favorite.
But Demons is a close second.
7. Kanye West - Black Skinhead
Yeezus is maddening and brilliant, just like its creator. This song is the most incendiary song on my list, and it was the perfect soundtrack to THE WOLF OF WALL STREET trailer. I do have to point out that the erroneous "300 Romans" lyric annoys me every time I hear it, though.
6. Daft Punk - Get Lucky
No explanation needed. This earworm was everywhere last year.
5. Neko Case - Man
She's no longer the queen of alt-country. She's just a flat-out rocker... that is, when she's not a power pop chanteuse with The New Pornographers. Everything about this song is genius, especially the caustic lyrics. I think it's virtually impossible for Neko Case's voice to ever sound less than perfect, no matter what she's singing.
4. Janelle Monáe - Dance Apocalyptic
So that's a video of Prince declaring Janelle Monáe's album The Electric Lady the best album of 2013, though he may be somewhat biased, since he duets with her on the album's opening song, "Givin Em What They Love." Ever since I saw her open for Of Montreal back in 2010, I've told people to imagine James Brown, Prince, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson all packed into the body of a tiny stylish woman from Kansas. Though she shows off her beautiful, powerful singing voice better on other songs like "PrimeTime," no song captured the insane energy of her already legendary live shows as well as this song.
And here's "Givin Em What They Love."
3. Frightened Rabbit - Late March, Death March
This band from Glasgow, Scotland, played FOUR shows in Los Angeles between November 2012 and October 2013, and I was at all four. Even better, I won free tickets to two of those shows. It should be pretty obvious that Frightened Rabbit are one of my favorite bands as well as one of the most sadly unappreciated bands around. I named their song "Swim Until You Can't See Land" my favorite song of 2010, after all. It was tough deciding which of these two songs from their most recent album Pedestrian Verse was my favorite, so here are both.
And here's The Woodpile
2. CHVRCHES - The Mother We Share
My favorite new band of 2013 are also from Glasgow, and though they're friends with Frightened Rabbit, CHVRCHES couldn't be any more different, with their soaring synthpop stylings and adorable, whipsmart, pixie-ish frontwoman. I've been hyping them since last winter, months before their wonderful album The Bones Of What You Believe was finally released. The album is packed with gems, so it was tough to name just two favorites, but let's just say that according to my Last.fm page, I listened to "The Mother We Share" over forty times last year.
To quote the AV Club's review of the album, "As good as 'The Mother We Share' is, it wouldn’t be enough to carry the album, but CHVRCHES follows it with an even catchier song, 'We Sink'."
1. John Grant - GMF
I don't know whether to laugh or cry when I listen to John Grant. An interviewer once famously asked Bob Mould to respond to a description of Mould as "the saddest man in rock," to which he replied, "He's never met Stephin Merritt (of The Magnetic Fields), obviously." Well, John Grant may have them both beat. Originally from Denver but now residing in Iceland, the hulking, gay, sardonic, HIV-positive former addict and lead singer of The Czars also writes some of the most beautiful melodies and hilarious lyrics this side of, well, Stephin Merritt. As I predicted when this incredibly self-deprecating song was first released last spring, it's my favorite song of the year.
It's also worth checking out the music video, which is a study in amusing awkwardness.
As with last year, I wanted to end my list with my "late discovery" favorite, a song from 2012 that I didn't fall in love with until 2013, but should have been on my 2012 list. This year, that honor goes to a song from an artist whom I failed to appreciate until his brilliant set at Coachella last April.
Father John Misty - Well, You Can Do It Without Me
Finally, here's a Spotify playlist counting down my 20 favorite songs of 2013 (with a few of the runners-up).
That's it for the music, folks! Stay tuned for my annual list of favorite movies of 2013!
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