Top Songs of 2012 (20-11)

20. "Fineshrine" - Purity Ring
Purity Ring was one of the most mysterious acts to come out this year to me. At first, I just assumed they were some indie-pop act that fell in with the rest. But then I actually downloaded their album, and realized how heavily hip-hop influenced (and even a little dubstep) the album is. Also, there were songs with titles like "Crawlersout" and "Belispeak", but the way the singer delivers these abstract lyrics so easily and comfortably, it's almost like these songs titles are common nomenclature in Purity Ring world. I also saw a video of these guys performing at Pitchfork Fest and their stage set up and instrumentation was almost like something out of a Dr. Seuss book. The one stand out track from the break out album was "Fineshrine" where the song explains loving someone so much that you physically make room in their chest cavity to move in with their heart...brutal.




19. "Don't Die" - Killer Mike
"Fuck the Police." It's a saying that gets thrown around a lot, and was made popular by none other than Public Enemy. But lately, there really hasn't been much say to police brutality in the past years. The Police (not the band) have a history of abusing their badge, and no one objects to it; out of fear. Luckily, Atlanta's very own Killer Mike comes along and has a bone to pick with the men in uniform. "Don't Die" consists of a beginning audio clip of an african american woman explaining how the media only cares about police brutality when it pertains to white victims. Then once Killer Mike get's on the track, the song is part narration of Killer Mike's experience with police brutality, while the last third of the song, he ties everything together and shares his true feelings towards cops. This song couldn't have been pulled off without Mike's brilliant match up with producer/MC El-P. Give the song a listen, and think twice about the people that society points out as "heroes".




18. "Heavy to the Touch (think about tonight, forget about tomorrow)" - Dads
Dads had an amazing year this year. They had an amazing full length debut, which many people have pointed out to be one of the best albums of the year (including me), they had some 70 day long tour across the country, including tour mates Have Mercy and Koji, and they have been pointed out to be one of the leading acts in the emo revival scene. If you haven't heard of them I strongly suggest checking them out. The most striking song on the album was the last track "Heavy to the Touch" which was nothing short of an anthem. The song weaves in and out through an opening guitar lick that feels physically heavy. My personal favorite moments were when John sings falsetto. The track is definitely evidence that Dads have a very promising future.




17. "Every Single Night" - Fiona Apple
There are two kinds of spaces in art; positive and negative, or foreground and background. Most music focuses on the first of the two, mostly because it's just easy to do. It takes a great deal of talent to focus and zone in on the latter. "Every Single Night" will probably be the closest to achieving that. On the surface, there is almost nothing happening in the song. The only voice in the foreground is that of Fiona's, which covers all ranges of pitch and emotion ("I just want to feel everything"). The instruments in the background try to be as minimal as possible. And there is little to no percussion. The result? One of the biggest payoffs your senses will ever thank you with. Us as humans now are so used to experiencing everything at once that it's rare to stumble upon a song like "Every Single Night" that is so close to nothing, it's breathtaking.




16. "Pineal Gland" - Ab-Soul
The rap game right now is so vast that it may seem impossible to stand out. The rappers out there right now are also really good, and this is because the increase in caliber from producers encouraged MC's to also step up their game. An aspect that really helps you stand out in the crowd is mysteriousness, and Ab-Soul is the primary candidate. Soul's greatest track this year "Pineal Gland" perfectly mixes brag-adociousness and paranoia. Going from "Play the fool, you jealous dudes are just a plate of food. Tell the truth i'm the coldest cat, sabortooth" almost directly to "Enjoy your mind trip but don't trip on your mind, no man is safe from the war going on outside". There's definitely something important that Ab-Soul wants us to take from this track. Never underestimate how powerful the brain is, because remember; you have three eyes.




15. "Movie Star" - Swearin'
Sometimes, things are just too complicated, and you just need a call out to something simple, something to just forget everything and enjoy being in the moment. Swearin', from New York, are the answer to your call. Now, i'm not saying simple in a negative connotation. Simple is most definitely better in most cases, and Swearin' have it down to an art. Plus the self-titled release they had this year had the best guitar tones I've heard all year. The last track, "Movie Star", is definitely the most charming of all on the release. The song starts with loud and abrasive guitars that definitely could be heard in the whole Brooklyn neighborhood when the song was recorded. Then, at the chorus, the volume control gets turned down quite a bit so that Allison's voice can get the spotlight. To me, Swearin' will go down in my books as one of the unnoticed greats that were around in the wrong time period. I think they match bands like Weezer and The Lemonheads in terms of song-writing, but sadly won't get the same attention. Hopefully I'm wrong about that, but for the mean time, we can all jam together.




14. "Love in Vain" - Drop Out Venus
There's kind of a reoccurring theme going on here, and that's simplicity. I want to reiterate that we live in a time (at least in american culture) where everything has to be oversized, over the top, and unnecessary. But whenever something comes along that feels completely genuine, striped down, and simple, it's a breath of fresh air. This is where "Love in Vain" comes in. The track is extremely simple, about as simple as you can make a song. It only has about four chords at the most, and not very mentally exhausting lyrics. The track is very special, it's almost like when you come across the things in life that are so beautiful it makes you want to cry (or maybe that's just me). The song features definitely out of tune guitars, and poorly mixed drums. But right at the center, is the female vocalist's piercing-yet-calming beautiful voice cutting through all of it, even as everything around her is spiraling into insanity.




13. "Dead as Dreams" - Radiator Hospital
Being a teenager is a point in everyone's life that is the most intriguing. You have the knowledge that most adults have, but yet aren't taken seriously at all. This frustration, along with obvious changes in hormones, causes what can be called as "angst", and this thing called angst is the source of some of the greatest songs ever. Take "Dead as Dreams" for example. Every line in this song could come from a wide-eyed, ambitious teenager who acknowledges their naive nature and embrace it, with lines like, "I wanna be the poster boy hanging on your wall" and "I wanna die in your arms". This song is fueled by an unstoppable force caused by heartache, pain, and also love, if I could be anymore trite. But that's the thing when it comes to "Dead as Dreams", It's okay to be trite, as long as it's how you feel.




12. "Y'all Boots Hats? (Die Angry)" - Glocca Morra
"Glocca Morra saved twinkle", read one of the reviews of the bands first full length debut. I find this statement to be pretty funny, because sadly it's true. The music that has been termed "twinkle" is doomed to not progress ever outside what has been laid out in front of modern "twinkle" bands, from bands who originated it like American Football and Cap'n Jazz. Even the term "twinkle" was started as a joke, the origins of the term didn't even take it seriously. But there is no doubt that "twinkle" has captivated bands across the midwest to make half-baked, passive-aggressive lyrics about girls with a complex guitar melody over it. So in a sense, Glocca Morra did save twinkle. I really like their take on the emo genre, it's much less pretentious and more...fun! The first track off their full length Just Married is the best way they could've started off the album; aggressive, loud, and a little drunk.




11. "Higher Ground" - TNGHT
Remember what I said earlier about producers stepping up their game? This is what I was talking about. I first heard this track when I went to go see Flying Lotus in Chicago. Once that brass lick came in, the whole crowd erupted into a frenzy. That was the moment I knew that TNGHT was going to captivate the rap scene and hold it for ransom. If you don't know, TNGHT is a producer-duo of Hudson Mohawke and Lunice. Those two names, specifically Hudson Mohawke, kind of became a household term when talking about the subject of producers. They deserve every bit of the hype. The beat on "Higher Ground" is so ground-breaking that even one of the greatest rappers out there Kendrick Lamar couldn't keep up with how great the beat was. Take a listen for yourself and you can decide, but if you don't want to stomp through the floor when you get to the 0:48 mark, I'd make an appointment, not for anger management, but for an anger specialist.