2019 was kind of an amazing year for singles and tracks—so much that I thought about doing another countdown in addition to my top ten albums list. However, with the end of the decade approaching, I need to save some brain cells to assess that in a few weeks, so instead, here’s the annual playlist.
The first two songs are my favorites, both by new artists and completely out of left-field. Orville Peck is a queer, fringed-mask Canadian cowboy crooner, while Kelsey Lu is a Charlotte-born, African-American freak-folk original. Peck’s vocal on “Dead of Night” blatantly recalls Roy Orbison, Morrissey and Chris Isaak but when he shifts into his higher register on the chorus, it gives me chills like nothing Roy or Chris ever did (and like the Moz hasn’t in decades.) “Poor Fake”, on the other hand, instantly achieves soulful dancefloor splendor when the beat kicks in at 0:34 and approaches Kate Bush-levels of delightful eccentricity in its subject matter (counterfeit art) and bonkers spoken-word section.
Other discoveries this year: Cate Le Bon’s pleasant/peculiar avant-pop where at times her vocal recalls no one so much as Patti Smith (!); Weyes Blood’s own brand of avant-pop, as if Aimee Mann and Brian Eno had a daughter; Steve Lacy’s Prince-meets-Daryl Hall comedown; Maggie Rogers’ compulsively singable declaration of desire; Yola’s retro-baroque-complete-with-harpsichord-soul (“Faraway Look”, an inspired choice to conclude the rebooted, fourth season of Veronica Mars.)
Albums that nearly made my top ten (Vampire Weekend, Hot Chip, The Divine Comedy) are represented by their best songs, as are spottier full-lengths that were slight let-downs (Jenny Lewis, Marina (now “and the Diamonds”-free, to her detriment), Carly Rae Jepsen, The New Pornographers.) Also, more tracks not attached to an album at all: Sufjan Stevens’ released-for-Pride-month chillout anthem, another superb Jessie Ware single (when is that fourth album coming out?), an orphaned Florence + The Machine song preferable to anything on last year’s High As Hope, and best of all, another fantastic, delirious disco epic from Roisin Murphy, who actually released two of ’em this year—the other’s called “Incapable” and would also be here if I didn’t limit this playlist to one song per artist.
Go here to listen to my favorite tracks of 2019 on Spotify:
- Orville Peck, “Dead Of Night”
- Kelsey Lu, “Poor Fake”
- Vampire Weekend, “This Life”
- Robert Forster, “No Fame”
- Bat For Lashes, “Kids In The Dark”
- Tegan and Sara, “Hold My Breath Until I Die”
- Jenny Lewis, “Wasted Youth”
- Steve Lacy “Hate CD”
- Deerhunter, “What Happens To People?”
- Marina, “Handmade Heaven”
- Andrew Bird, “Manifest”
- Belle & Sebastian, “Sister Buddha”
- Cate Le Bon, “Home To You”
- Raphael Saadiq, “This World Is Drunk”
- Of Monsters and Men, “Wild Roses”
- Calexico & Iron & Wine, “Midnight Sun”
- Roisin Murphy, “Narcissus”
- Carly Rae Jepsen, “Want You In My Room”
- Lana Del Rey, “Norman Fucking Rockwell”
- Cigarettes After Sex, “Heavenly”
- Chromatics, “You’re No Good”
- The New Pornographers, “Falling Down The Stairs Of Your Smile”
- Guster, “Don’t Go”
- Jessie Ware, “Adore You”
- Holy Ghost!, “Heaven Forbid”
- The Divine Comedy, “Absolutely Obsolete”
- Weyes Blood, “Everyday”
- The Mountain Goats, “Younger”
- Hot Chip, “Spell”
- Yola, “Faraway Look”
- Alex Lahey, “Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself”
- Florence + The Machine, “Moderation”
- The Dream Syndicate, “Bullet Holes”
- Maggie Rogers, “Burning”
- Sufjan Stevens, “Love Yourself”
- Michael Kiwanuka, “Piano Joint (This Kind of Love)”
- Sharon Van Etten, “Seventeen”
- Charly Bliss, “Chatroom”
- Imperial Teen, “How To Say Goodbye”
- The National, “Light Years”
Haunted Jukebox 