Happy New Year.
I really enjoyed writing this post in December 2023, and my plan was to publish it before New Year’s Eve, but I got busier than expected and couldn’t find the time to do so until now. Better late than never!
Without further ado, here are the songs I enjoyed the most in 2024 (I would have loved to write about all of them on this blog, but sadly I only got the time to do so for a few of them):
- “Swayze“ by Smallpools. Catchy track with strong 1980s vibes that was featured here back in May.
- “in the still” by PRONOUN. One of the songs I really wanted to write about but never got the time. PRONOUN, whose real name is Alyse Vellturo, is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who was named one of Billboard’s breakout indie artists in 2019. “in the still” was the lead single of Alyse’s new EP and the best way I can describe it is as an upbeat hybrid of Shoegaze with pop/rock.
- “Next Semester” by twenty one pilots. I wrote about this track here. I got tickets to see them live for the first time this year. I’m really looking forward to that.
- “Millonaires” by The Snuts. This Scottish band had one of my favorite albums of the year. I featured their track ‘Circles’ here, which—spoiler alert—appears later on this list. ‘Millionaires’ is another example of the multiple radio-friendly gems on the album.
- “Freezer” by PONY. I wrote about this Toronto-based act in 2020, but I’m happy to report that Sam & Co. have kept busy releasing more material since then, including “Freezer” this year, which is perfectly on brand with PONY’s style.
- “Oxford Sky” by Nick Box. If you’re looking for a relaxing piece, this is the track for you. The only bad thing I can say about “Oxford Sky” is that it is too short, because it will definitely leave you wanting more. Nick is another artist who has appeared on these pages before.
- “Falling” by Luttrell . Eric Luttrell is a San Franciscan producer known for his unique blend of melodic techno. I cannot pinpoint exactly why, but I couldn’t get enough of “Falling” in 2024.
- “just stand there” by Fred again.. I’ve got a soft spot for musical tracks featuring spoken words, and when you add the genius electronic touches (particularly around the 1:37 mark) of Fred again.., one of the trendiest electronic music producers in the UK since winning ‘Producer of the Year’ at the 2020 Brit Awards, you get this outstanding track.
- “Anywhere But Dancing” by Lauren Mayberry. Lauren Mayberry of Chvrches fame has released a solo album with a bit of everything: 80s-inspired music, piano ballads, 90s alternative rock, and more. Without a doubt, it’s one of the best albums of the year, despite the fact that I didn’t love some of the lead singles. “Anywhere But Dancing” is one of the 90s alternative rock-inspired tracks, with laid-back production relying mostly on a guitar and Lauren’s sweet voice. I was lucky enough to watch her perform this track live in December, and she did it flawlessly.
- “Pretty Slowly” by Benson Boone. Benson Boone had a big year with several successful hits, including the ubiquitous “Beautiful Things”, which ended up as Spotify’s second most streamed song of 2024. However, my favorite track of his was “Pretty Slowly”. Truly outstanding.
- “If You Never Left” by blink-182. I loved blink-182’s 2023 album “One More Time”, and they released a part 2 last year with some unreleased tracks. In my humble opinion, the best one by faw was “If You Never Left”, which could have easily have been included in the original record.
- “All I Die For” by SWiiMS. Technically, a song from 2023, but since it was released in the last quarter, I’ll allow it in 2024’s list. This indie ‘showgaze’ track can hold its own against any of slowdive’s hits. Featured here in October 2023.
- “Harder” by Twin Atlantic. This Scottish alternative rock band, with sprinkles of punk-rock and power-pop, released a really strong album in 2024 called ‘Meltdown.’ ‘Harder’ was my favorite track, and I played it a lot.
- “Risk” by Gracie Abrams. When I featured Gracie’s beautiful acoustic song “Amelie” back in 2023, I knew she was very talented, but I never imagined she would become a household name so quickly, even opening for Taylor Swift quite a few times on her record-breaking Eras tour. Gracie’s 2024 album “The Secret of Us” was full of pop hits, and “Risk” was one of the best ones. Too bad I didn’t have time to write about it when it got released.
- “WGO” by The Snuts. Technically a much older song titled “What’s Going On”, I loved what the Scottish band did in the version they included in their 2024 album “Millenials”‘ deluxe edition. I think it would be the perfect song to close a live show.
- “Circles” by The Snuts. As promised, here’s the one track from “Millenials” that was featured here before. What a great record!
- “The Emptiness Machine” by Linkin Park. I don’t disagree with the band’s decision to replace the late Chester Bennington with a woman, and Emily Armstrong is certainly a talented vocalist; but I’m disappointed that no other song on the new album comes even close to how good ‘The Emptiness Machine’ is. A certified banger if there ever was one.
- “I Want You To Know Me” by Sea Girls. This band from London, whose track ‘Falling’ was featured here in 2022, came back with their best album yet in 2024, and I’m gutted I wasn’t able to write about it before today. ‘I Want You To Know Me’ is one of its catchiest tracks.
- “Novastar” by The Snuts. What can I say? Another infectious indie rock song from The Snuts. That guitar hook is top notch.
- “Wish You Were Here” by Ourson. As far as hypnotic songs go, they don’t get better than this chill-out track from Montreal-based electronic music producer Dimitri Alary, aka Ourson.
- “Right Hand Girl” by The Snuts.I swear this is the last song from The Snuts on this list. I know it’s not the catchiest one, and I bet it’s not one of the most popular ones either, but something about the vocal delivery, the lyrics, and the slow tempo hit me in all the right places.
- “Paint It Black” by Sum 41. I’m not sure how fair it is to include a cover of one of the greatest rock & roll songs of all time (and my favorite from The Rolling Stones), but I truly loved this rendition of “Paint It Black” by Sum 41. It managed to keep the spirit of the original song while conveying the essence of the punk rock band.
- “I Love You, I’m Sorry” by Gracie Abrams. As good as “Risk” but I give it extra brownie points for the fantastic bridge.
- “Something In The Air” by Lauren Mayberry. As much as I loved “Anywhere But Dancing”, “Something In The Air” is even better because it is anything but predictable. Even though it follows a more or less traditional structure, there’s always some new element or melody popping up that keeps the track fresh from beginning to end. Lauren really wrote a gem here.
- “After Hours” by Sea Girls. Again, this is not necessarily the best song on this list, but there was something in it that kept me coming back for more. Perhaps it was the feeling with which Henry Camomile delivers the vocals, particularly in the chorus, or the emotional turmoil in the lyrics about loving someone who is also seeing someone else, but I kept playing this sweet track over and over again.
