Top 100 Songs of 2018

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Adrianne Lenker essential track cradle40. Adrianne Lenker – “Cradle”

from abysskiss (Saddle Creek)

“Cradle,” the defining song of Adrianne Lenker’s immersive and reflective solo debut abysskiss, is coated with slick layers of piano and acoustic arrangements, and Lenker lets her vocal range soar in a hushed and supremely impressive demeanor. Lenker channels a poetic nature on “Cradle”: “Baby, you’re still too proud to come down / Maybe I’m still too loud to hear / All the waves ascend and disappear,” remaining still and infinitely tranquil. “Cradle” is one of the finest moments of the Big Thief frontwoman’s still-progressing career. – Timothy Michalik


Sons of Kemet Your Queen Is A Reptile review39. Sons of Kemet – “My Queen is Harriet Tubman”

from Your Queen Is a Reptile (Impulse!)

It’s not often that jazz from Europe gains a foothold here in the United States. London’s Shabaka Hutchings and this band of his devising kick DIY holes in every available wall, with this song as the musical boot. The dual-drummer rhythms suggest high-octane soca, while Hutchings’ bleating saxophone recalls the hallucinogenic and political horn narratives of the 1960s and 1970s. Theon Cross’ killer tuba, meanwhile, feels like a theoretical New Orleans second line played at 45 RPM. – Adam Blyweiss


best albums of 2018 so far Saba38. Saba – “Prom/King”

from Care For Me (Self-released)

All of Saba’s Care for Me deals implicitly with the fallout of the death of Saba’s best friend, John Walt, but this is the song on the record that deals most directly with Saba and Walt’s relationship. Over a winding, nostalgic piano figure, Saba recounts how he and his cousin went from picking on each other as kids to being each other’s best friend, how their goals aligned and their lives grew closer, until, one day, one of those lives just stopped. You can hear Saba processing in real time, remembering Walt fondly and cursing his death at the same time. And then, just as Walt’s light goes out in the song’s narrative, Saba cuts in some of Walt’s vocals, ending his song about his friend with his friend’s voice. I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like to write this song, but I’m grateful that I get to hear it. – Ben Dickerson


most anticipated albums of spring 2018 Shopping37. Shopping – “Asking for a Friend”

from The Official Body (FatCat)

The moments of call-and-response swagger on Shopping’s excellent cut “Asking for a Friend” amount to tumbling, eccentric dance punk in its purest form. Gliding guitar hooks intertwine with jittery percussion and pulsating bass lines for a few minutes of ripping, freaky dance rock that often questions the nature of self preservation: “Why is it so hard / To know what I need / Why is it never enough / To satisfy me.” – Timothy Michalik


best songs of 2018 Snail Mail36. Snail Mail – “Pristine”

from Lush (Matador)

“Pristine” is probably the best song on Lindsey Jordan’s excellent Lush, but only insofar as every song on Lush is the best song on the album. In a lot of ways, the song is a study in contradictions. It’s an immaculate car singalong song about the heaviness of very private feelings; it’s a song that’s animated both by sarcasm and by genuine sentiment; it’s a song with a dead catchy chorus, but also, any part of the song could be the chorus because it’s all that catchy. And the guitars are bright and they churn through the track and Jordan’s performance manages to be sincere and self-effacing and melodramatic at the same time. But no description of the song matches up to how good it sounds with the windows down in a car on a hot day, all catharsis and composure. – Ben Dickerson


No Age Snares Like a Haircut review35. No Age – “Stuck in the Changer”

from Snares Like a Haircut (Drag City)

Los Angeles dream-punk mainstays No Age returned to form in early 2018 with Snares Like a Haircut, doubling down on their gleaming, sun-soaked pop appeal after a reinvigorating five-year break. In quintessential No Age fashion, “Stuck in the Changer” sets a backdrop of percussive stipples and blinding effects while maintaining an ambient haze so commonly found on the band’s finest tracks. The chorus snaps, swathing Randy Randall’s massive, reverberating overtones and wailing noise over Dean Spunt’s relaxed but driving percussion. It’s an aesthetic so singular to the LA duo, so irreplicable, that it’s a practically a tactile pleasure to hear “Stuck in the Changer” execute what No Age does best. – Patrick Pilch


Marissa Nadler For My Crimes review34. Marissa Nadler – “Blue Vapor”

from For My Crimes (Sacred Bones)

She might not come right out and take a stab at rock on “Blue Vapor,” but on this track Marissa Nadler has a more commanding deliberation, backed by a booming addition of drums. The song possesses a great deal of emotion, however there’s some room for interpretation what those emotions are; there’s both sadness and romanticism here, and whether one’s listening for either, they’re here to be found. The sonic drone of the song wraps you in a narcotic blanket with its sweet pulse, the kind of darkly sweet dirge I could play endlessly. – Wil Lewellyn


best songs of 2018 Asap Rocky33. A$AP Rocky/Tyler the Creator – “Potato Salad”

(Columbia)

Your titular side dish is a hand-spun mix of ingredients you like by themselves that get elevated to another level when put together: food-borne synergy. Similarly, getting these two knuckleheads to form WANG$AP is scary natural. A boast that plays with timing as much as it does with guns, it’s loose, skillful, and about as fun a three-minute rap as was released this year, especially from Tyler; it’s humorous, but not darkly so. Bonus: if you ever needed clarification on satchels versus purses, Rocky’s your man. – Adam Blyweiss


Blood Orange Negro Swan review32. Blood Orange – “Charcoal Baby”

from Negro Swan (Domino)

“[Dev] Hynes’ anxious lamentations on depression and loneliness betray the warm summer feel of hazy synths and a leisurely guitar line that brings to mind funk greats in the vein of Prince or James Brown,” I wrote when “Charcoal Baby” was first released in the build up to Blood Orange’s fourth studio album. They’re thoughts that take on even wider scope after the full release of Negro Swan, and remain true within that context. No doubt Hynes is making some of the coolest music around, and “Charcoal Baby” drips with swagger, style and sultry saxophone solos. But scratch that surface and the depths of his longing are laid bare revealing him to be a true artist of profound complexity. – William Lewis


songs for summer 2018 parquet courts31. Parquet Courts – “Almost Had to Start a Fight/In and Out of Patience”

from Wide Awake! (Rough Trade)

Since 2010, Parquet Courts have continued to set an admirable pace as the hardest working 21st century rock band. And it seems like the hard work is paying off. In 2018 alone, the New York City cohort released their fifth studio album, performed on Ellen and landed an NHL 19 soundtrack spot with Wide Awake! standout “Almost Had to Start a Fight/In and Out of Patience.” But this is far from a sellout operation. Parquet Courts’ newfound duality pits peppy funk-punk against the band’s angriest record yet, making their widespread broadcast especially exciting. Most likely inspired by a MAGA-hat donning PC-fan, “Almost” questions the limits of civility when confronted with hatred, while “Patience” hones in on society’s minor inconveniences through A. Savage’s exasperated existentialist humor. The double track is classic Parquet Courts, glued together by the choice of producer Brian Burton (Danger Mouse). – Patrick Pilch


best albums of 2018 Sumac30. Sumac – “Attis’ Blade”

from Love In Shadow (Thrill Jockey)

Sumac don’t write songs so much as plot spiritual journeys. Of the four tracks on new album Love In Shadow, not a one is less than 10 minutes apiece, and that “Attis’ Blade” could arguably be considered a “single” at more than 15 is a testament to the distances they’ll go. But “Attis’ Blade” is also more than merely a song because it feels like three different songs: One a rumbling sludge-metal onslaught, one a dark ambient interlude and one a jazz-influenced improvisational groove session. It’s a track that subverts the conventional wisdom about metal because it’s not a song that simply progresses with forward momentum. It’s reflective and, at times, still. Here, Sumac sound like they have the power to break apart the surface of the earth, but still allow themselves a moment to soak in the scenery around them. – Jeff Terich


Julia Holter Aviary review29. Julia Holter – “I Shall Love 2”

from Aviary (Domino)

Julia Holter’s latest release is visceral, atmospheric and reactionary—a maddening gut response to the pre-apocalyptic reality of the past two years. Its centerpiece, “I Shall Love 2,” breathes melody into Aviary’s dissonant landscape, culminating in a singular cinematic climax. Both versions exhibit defiance and growth, assembling with each layered instrument and discreetly intensifying under Holter’s utmost composure. The piece is seemingly infinite, building and blending over an increasingly euphoric musical timeline before biting its own ethereal tongue. “I Shall Love 2” is one of Julia Holter’s most rewarding tracks, securing victory over the paradoxically overwhelming constraints of love. – Patrick Pilch


songs for summer 2018 Anderson Paak28. Anderson .Paak – “Bubblin'”

(Aftermath)

Anderson .Paak’s third album Oxnard has its share of flaws, but the biggest one of all was not featuring “Bubblin’.” A cartoonish, exclamation-addled song-length flex, “Bubblin'” is .Paak lyrically delivering a single worth all the Kendrick Lamar comparisons that have followed him for so long. His skills are on point, and by his account, it’s good to be Anderson. He’s got a safe full of cash, and a mouthful of one-liners: “I’m gonna need all the fries you can give me,” “I’mma take your mama to the Marriott and belly flop,” etc. It’s a bit of a walk from the warmer, feelgood sounds on Malibu‘s best moments, an eye-popping stunt track that would have been a throwaway in lesser hands but ended up lapping the album cuts. – Jeff Terich


best songs of 2018 Stephen Malkmus27. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks – “Middle America”

from Sparkle Hard (Matador)

The former frontman of Pavement proves with “Middle America” that his fondness for cutting-edge wordplay layered behind dream logic interpretation still proves effective when married to fluttering, jazzy chord progressions and teeter-totter percussion. And hey, let’s all agree as Malkmus sardonically sings “Men are scum I won’t deny/ may you be shit faced the day you die” that both sentiments are deeply shared, and deeply true. – Brian Roesler


Against All Logic 2012-2017 review26. A.A.L. (Against All Logic) – “This Old House is All I Have”

from 2012-2017 (Other People)

Too many electronic and hip-hop tracks to name have the ingenious placement of a David Axelrod to thank for gluing them together, going back to DJ Shadow’s “Midnight in a Perfect World” and beyond. Nicolas Jaar’s opening track from his sublime new house/techno collection as Against All Logic follows suit, the towering fanfare of “The Warnings Part II” providing a guiding light through hellaciously distorted beats and production. It feels like the last disco at the end of the world, with enough funk to make this apocalypse party keep going until the needle breaks off. – Jeff Terich


Leon Bridges Good Thing review25. Leon Bridges – “Bad Bad News”

from Good Thing (Columbia)

Leon Bridges perfected retro soul. Then he transcended it. On his sophomore album Good Thing, the Georgia-born, Texas-based singer easily squeezed himself out of a pigeonhole, and “Bad Bad News” provided the biggest boost. A late-nite slice of extra-funky, club-ready neo-soul, “Bad Bad News” is a testament to charming one’s way into the hearts of naysayers—or at least giving them a good what-for: “I don’t worry, don’t worry, don’t worry about the people in my face/I hit ’em with the style and grace, and watch their ankles break.” Bridges sounds so cool that the rancor seems to brush right off, and why shouldn’t it? There’s no denying a groove and a croon like this. – Jeff Terich


best albums of July 2018 Deafheaven24. Deafheaven – “Honeycomb”

from Ordinary Corrupt Human Love (Anti-)

Pick up your phone, open your preferred music listening service, click on Deafheaven’s “Honeycomb” and slide the bar to 4:38. Here, you’ll find one of the best musical moments of the year. It’s when all that pent up, blackgaze anger comes bursting out in a glorious guitar solo. It’s the moment when Deafheaven abandons the black metal seriousness of New Bermuda, and it’s the moment when I knew that Deafheaven was about to drop all pretenses and become their own unique, inimitable band. Alt-rock, California folk, dream pop: It’s all here. Even if all the accusations of their being “false” were true—which they’re not—”Honeycomb” kicks ass. – Ben Cohn


Boygenius EP review album of the week23. Boygenius – “Me & My Dog”

from Boygenius EP (Matador)

Supergroups are more often publicity stunts than anything—just ask the Dudes of Wrath, featuring Paul Stanley, Tommy Lee and…Guy Mann-Dude? That’s not so much an issue for Boygenius, the trio of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus. Each of the three singer/songwriters is given their time in the spotlight, but more crucially, their music feels intimate rather than spectacular, personal instead of unnecessarily showy. “Me & My Dog” could have fit comfortably alongside any of the ballads on Bridgers’ Stranger in the Alps from last year, her post-breakup narrative taking her from breaking down at a rock show to disappearing inside her own spaceship with a canine companion. During the chorus, Baker and Dacus lend their voices, building up into a sublime, heartbreaking harmony that soars high enough to high-five Laika. Bridgers finds solace in escape and a Very Good Boy, but maybe sometimes all you need is a couple of good friends to have your back. – Jeff Terich


best songs of 2018 Idles22. Idles – “Colossus”

from Joy as an Act of Resistance (Partisan)

Idles are the sort of band as prone to being unapologetically silly as they are to speaking truth to power or opening up uncomfortable wounds. But they also know that when you name a song “Colossus,” it better fucking deliver. And boy, does it deliver. It builds. It keeps building. Yeah, it builds some more after that even, until the band is seemingly punching holes through their instruments, a menacing dirge gradually living up to the threat that it poses. For a moment, the Bristol post-hardcore brutes give the impression that they’ve stopped, but that’s where it gets interesting. The tempo kicks up, the volume surges and Joe Talbot begins preening from inside the ring: “I’m like Stone Cold Steve Austin/I put homophobes in coffins.” “Colossus” is big hearted with bloddy knuckles—it goes and it goes and it goes. – Jeff Terich


best songs of 2018 Parquet Courts21. Parquet Courts – “Total Football”

from Wide Awake! (Rough Trade)
It’s no secret that Parquet Courts can craft a stunning, anthemic punk tune (“Stoned and Starving,” “Black and White,” “Dust”), but nothing has come close to “Total Football,” the tight, driving opener on Wide Awake! “Total Football” exhibits Parquet Courts’ chemical balances as a band: Sean Yeaton’s ripping bass line as its vehicle, Andrew Savage’s relentless howl as its guide. The underlying political nature of Total Football becomes more blatant as the track progresses, with Savage yelling “Collectivism and autonomy are not mutually exclusive / Those who find discomfort in your goals of liberation will be issued no apology,” finding a balance that’s never too overbearing, never too man-splainy. Oh yeah, and what Savage says: “fuck Tom Brady! – Timothy Michalik

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