a Year in Music

2024, for me, was more of the year of the song than the album. There weren't a ton of full disks that truly got my attention.  It's kind of the time we live in, I suspect. The iTunes world where the full album means less and less. 

There were a decent amount of songs I liked. Some I've featured over these past 12 months, so not. 

Let's get going. 

ALBUMS

I only have two of note. 

Hands down, the Cure's new disk, Songs of a Lost World, is my overall favourite. It's pure Cure and it has a great sound. It sticks mostly to their signature style but still expands on that. Truly enjoying this. 

The second and only other is Laurie Anderson's Amelia. As I stated in the review, it is more performance art than a record. Yes, there is some incredible music, but very little singing. Sonically, this still amazes me. 

I suggest for both disks, using headphones if possible. Not necessarily ear pods, but headphones. Pods will do, but they're both great disks. 

SONGS

These are almost in no order, though number 1 is number 1. In my book, anyways.

The Hives get the top slot. I still love the song, a lot. The video, which I originally said I was amazed at how well they can dance, is more than likely AI generated. But I can live with it. 

I'll give it to Hozier's "Too Sweet", it was played 1,023,873 times and it hasn't grown old. It's a close to perfectly constructed song. The bass line is perfect. The verses are extremely well constructed. I'd say it would be better if there were one more verse and one less chorus, but I'm quibbling. 

Technically, "Crumble" from the National and Rosanne Cash came out at the end of 2023, but I put off listening to the album with focus until early '24.  The band has worked with a lot of female singers and not a lot of them have paid off - but it does with Cash. I played the song a LOT. 

I featured the Bleachers' "Modern Girl" earlier in the year. The song continues to grow on me. There is a little messy part in the middle. but other than that it is one of those great song with which to run.

I am still catching up on Jason Isbell's discography, which kind of explains why "Molotov" is from 2017. I just found it earlier this year. The studio version is fine, this Tiny Desk Concert version is better. It's a great testament when live versions surpass the studio stuff. Isbell's soon to be ex-wife does backing vocals, that if isolated would seem harsh, but they work in this context. 

Isley put out a song - probably more, but this is the only one that landed with me. "No California" is one simply executed. No big production or anything. Also one of those song where you seemingly know all the words after two plays.  .....though I know my mind doesn't work like others this way. 

I listened to a lot of Milky Chance this last year. Still digging their last single, "Naked and Alive". 

And I wouldn't be queer without one dance-y tune.  I'm not quite as enamoured of Chapelle Roan and Sabrina Carpenter as some are. It took me a long time to even warm up to some Dual IPA songs from four years ago. but there are a handful of her songs I like, such as "Physical".  It's good gym music.

 

As I don't use Spotify, I don't have their year-end list, but I have ones from the Apple music I play. Not much of it is a surprise - to me. There are a few things that slightly threw me. 

The National album came late in '23, so I played it a lot at the beginning of '24. New Order surprised me. I honestly don't remember playing that so often. 

I used a playlist for training for marathons - that came to fruition and ones that didn't due to injury - which at least explains Dual IPA. 

4 and 5 stump me. Morissette is a few years old, and I don't remember playing it a lot. Yeah, the Killers come up for the gym and stuff, but it being in the top 5 seems off. 

Yep. Yep. Yep. Yup. Yep. 

Nothing completely out of the ordinary here. 

I guess we'll have to see what 2025 brings.