I’ve never really done one of these before, but I feel like 2014 was the year I listened to the most music out of all my years living. There were plenty of songs that I revisited after long absences, new songs that really got me going, and songs that just made me feel some type of way, good or bad. Here are 100 songs that I had profound extrasensory experiences to. Get ready to read A LOT.
SPRING SEMESTER, JUNIOR YEAR (Testing the 2014 Waters, SXSW & Good Spring Vibes)
Not too much to say about this semester. I made a ton of new friends during this semester which I’m pretty happy about. I listened to a ton of really good music – 2014 started off extraordinarily strong. Mac DeMarco, Have A Nice Life, Future Islands, Perfect Pussy, Frankie Cosmos, Saintseneca, etc. I also went to SXSW for the first time, which was easily one of the best times I’ve ever had in my entire life. I know I was in Austin, TX, during an artificially fun time, but damn, I’d probably opt to live there. I’m sweaty enough here, might as well get real sweaty down there. Overall, I was really happy by the end of my spring semester. Still in love, optimistic for the summer, etc. Not even the dreadful, soul-destroying Connecticut winter could bring me down, from what I can remember.
Tirzah – “Inside Out”
I started 2014 on a badass, groovy note with Tirzah’s off-kilter dance jam “Inside Out” off of her I’m Not Dancing EP from late 2013. This could be considered a 2013 pick, but I was consistently jamming this into this year, so it’s my inaugural song of the year.
Mac DeMarco – “Passing Out Pieces”
The first taste of new DeMarco was an interesting one. The teaser video he put out for Salad Days was the music video for this song, only slowed down quite a bit so it sounded a bit like a drunk Beach House song. The addition of the synth took a little getting used to, but soon I was feeling woozy with DeMarco’s snide, smirking cadence.
Have A Nice Life – “Music Will Untune The Sky”
The winter of 2014 was a brutal one. One that makes climate change deniers go “SEE??” But nah, it was rough. The eternally flint skies and voracious winds of CT really tore at my soul, so I just picked up the “if you can’t beat em, join em” mentality, put on this song and let the eternal worm of darkness devour me as I look up into the void.
Hurray For the Riff Raff – “Blue Ridge Mountain”
The other side to the darkness of hell winter abandon all hope is the delightful, playful, nostalgic sense of winter. This song is the first on Hurray For The Riff Raff’s great LP Small Town Heroes and it really caught me off guard. It totally reminds me of the kind of fiddle music I listened to and played in high school, bringing me back to good times of gigs and jamming around a small room on a simple tune.
The Casket Girls – “Day To Day”
Around this time, the sun started to come out a bit more, which made me a bit happier. The huge, abrasive synths in this track made a nice pair for the blinding sun reflecting off the mounds of snow littered across campus, making for a sensory overload that I was pretty into.
Mosca – “Square One VIP”
This track came off of a Night Slugs compilation, a great label that specializes in a new strain of grimy dance music that seems to be blowing all the way up. This track bangs in the whip and has a simple, infectious beat. It’s the closest I’m going to get to a Jersey club.
Malcolm McLaren – “Madam Butterfly”
If I were to choose songs that defined my entire year, this would be one of them. I discovered this hidden gem in Fred Armisen’s “What’s In My Bag” segment that Amoeba Records does and I was instantly intrigued by the sick beat and 80s flair. Little did I know that this track was a fucking trip and a half, containing weird spoken word, opera & possibly one of the most stereotypically 80s-sounding beats & vocal performances I’ve ever heard. There’s this one bit where the singer really gets into it and the song just nails me every time. I’m pretty sure I annoyed the hell out of my girlfriend, who studies vocal performance, with this song. I will always love this song, unfortunately for her. She’ll come around someday.
Trust – “Are We Arc?”
I was moderately excited for the new Trust album at the beginning of the year, but when I heard this beautiful piece of work it catapulted the entire album into the hype stratosphere. Like I said in my “Best Songs of 2014” post, this song makes me feel like I’m floating up some giant, sci-fi chasm with pulsating lights surrounding me, like something out of an anime or video game. Listening to it while driving in the dark is also an excellent sensory experience as well.
Palehound – “Pet Carrot”
There isn’t one Exploding In Sound band that I won’t check out. It happened to be time for me to check out Palehound in mid-February and was thoroughly obsessed with their one EP from 2013, Bent Nail. This song especially was a force that I couldn’t stop – with its playful melody and eventual explosion into a great rock song, it fucking rules.
Holly Herndon – “Chorus”
So what if this sounds like a Oneohtrix Point Never R Plus Seven-era b-side. I think it sounds like a chilling piece of modern electronic music that just so happens to follow similar cues as the 0PN album. As I’m listening to this track while I’m typing, I’m connecting with the track. Herndon’s MO is dissecting the connection between human consciousness and computers – we are more connected than ever in this digital age. The vocal manipulation of Herndon’s voice paired with the synthesized noise from her computer and other technology sound perfect together, even when it sounds like they’re fighting.
Future Islands – “Seasons (Waiting On You)”
I mean, this is the song that made Letterman try and make a meme. This was the song that gained this band thousands of fleeting followers and got the band a tour documentary. It got me through a super stressful period of being stuck in the Austin, TX airport. It’s P4K’s Song of the Year. It’s a damn good song. That’s it.
Real Estate – “Suburban Dogs”
Yeah I know Real Estate put an album out this year. I thought it was very pleasant, but boring. This band is great, I can’t deny that. Their newest album, Atlas inspired me to look back at my introduction to the band with their 2009 self-titled record. The songs are slower, more lo-fi and have a more “authentic” sense of chill, whatever that means. But fucking “Suburban Dogs,” man. This really beat the winter blues right outta me. Another great sensory experience I had with this track is listening to it while walking to downtown Austin, TX from my AirBnB about two miles outside of the city. There was a nature path that lead almost directly from my BnB to the city, with a delightful river flowing next to it and was shrouded by the perfect amount of foliage. Listening to this song while watching people lazily glide down a river in MARCH was insane to me. We’re just about ready to get into the SXSW feels soon! Get ready!
Ava Luna – “Prpl”
Imagine listening to a weird, freaky rock record with a few groovy bits here and there and then getting thrown this slick majesty here. Slow jams, in my 2014? Unheard of, at this point in the year. This song is perfect in every way and I played it almost every single week on my radio show for two or three months.
Hundred Waters – “Down From The Rafters”
The first track to come into the 2014 realm from my AOTY is a great one, obviously. I loved the weird accordian-like synth that guides the track through and of course Nicole Miglis’ crystalline vocals gliding through this ice palace of a track. It didn’t sell me on the album right then and there, but it got me pumped.
Frankie Cosmos – “Sad 2”
I mean, honestly what can be said about this track that won’t make me cry? Also, the damn marimbas. “I just want my dog back, is that so much to ask? I wish that I could kiss his paws.” This song made too many of my friends cry. It’s brilliant.
Perfect Pussy – “Interference Fits”
I wrote a ton about this track in my “Best Of” list, but I’ll just say this – it’s a damn near-perfect song.
Wave Racer – “Streamers”
I got into this song around the time that UConn was getting real turnt in the March Madness bracket. I was going over to my friend’s place to watch the games and the school was actually having planned parties to celebrate the victories outside in the main stretch of campus. At one of those was the first time I drank outside in public (sorry parents, good thing I’m legal & everyone else was doing the drunken tomfoolery that got the police eyes away from me and onto the hooligans in the trees.) This song gets me turnt like no other. It’s nerdy and video game like, but also goes hard and is fun as hell.
Saintseneca – “Blood Bath”
The one song I remembered Saintseneca playing when I saw them in 2013 was this song. It was a new one, they said, out on their 2014 record. It went on to be one of my favorite songs of the year and one that I shouted out the lyrics to when I saw them live a second time. It’s a track that I would sing with my girlfriend in moments of passing. She’d always get the harmony parts cause she’s a much better singer than I am. It’s a song that defined a lot of my jubilant existence in 2014.
White Hinterland – “Ring The Bell”
I had the pleasure of having my first ever phone interview with Casey Dienel, AKA White Hinterland in March of this year and I thought it went really well. I was super excited about it because I was super in love with this track and was really excited to talk to her about her creative process in making a thunderous pop song like this one. We talked about songwriting, her gear, what touring is like for her, and WAY more. It was awesome. I hope she thought the same!
Tony Molina – “Don’t Come Back”
I remember listening to this track as I walked to my 9AM class in the blistering cold wind. I have a coat that zips up to my lips and when I put my hood on, I look like a penguin. Listening to this badass solo and riff while surrounded by all these people getting destroyed by the weather was an experience.
Jessica Lea Mayfield – “Pure Stuff”
This was also on my “Best of 2014” list – for good reason. I was turned on to this record by my other music director friends who told me “Yo don’t pass this one up, it’s so good.” They were right. This whole record is the bomb, especially this song right here. The guitar tone really begs to be listened to louder and louder, while the calm, soothing vocals almost ask for the track to be listened to quieter. It’s a battle during this track, but the guitar usually wins. That deep, bassy texture! It’s too good!
Future Islands – “Vireo’s Eye”
At this point in the year the allure of Future Islands’ newest had started to wear off, so I ventured into their back catalog to see what I could find. Their 2010 album, In Evening Air, is probably my favorite album of theirs thanks to the deeply emotional, cutting songs that they put on there. Damn! There’s some gold on this record. There’s one moment in this track around the 1:50 mark where Sam Herring’s vocals deviates from the main melody a bit in a flurry of emotion, which really sold it for me. Woof.
Sylvan Esso – “Dress”
After being bombarded by hype from others about Sylvan Esso, a group that apparently only had two songs out at the time of the conference but somehow garnered enough buzz to be one of the most sought after acts at the massive festival, I tuned my full attention into their self-titled debut, which effectively wowed me with simple, sassy synth pop. I more liked showing it to my girlfriend & roommates, who loved it. The allure eventually wore off throughout the year, but at the time, this song was my shiiit.
Shabazz Palaces – “They Come In Gold”
The last song to soundtrack my junior year the first taste of new Shabazz Palaces and damn – was it a good taste. There’s no one out there who’s making hip hop, or any type of music, that comes close to the forward-thinking nature of this. Perhaps Arca or other electronic producers, but this is seriously so good. The non nonchalant braggadocio hooked up with a weird, stretched beat is essential Shabazz, which was much needed at the height of exam season.
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