Favorite Songs of 2018 - Songs 1-11

As indicated in the last installment of this year's list, I believe the top 11 (and actually 13) songs this year are particularly strong. As befits both of the previous posts, my favorite song this year is a breakup song, sung by my favorite new (to me) artist of 2018 - Lucy Dacus. I hope you enjoyed this year's list as much as i enjoyed listening, compiling, and bringing it to you!

1.  Night Shift by Lucy Dacus.

"You've got a nine to five, so I'll take the night shift
And I'll never see you again, if I can help it
In five years I hope the songs feel like covers
Dedicated to new lovers."

Since I first heard this song early in 2018, it was near the top of my favorites, and ended up perched above all of the others.  Great lyrics, perfectly constructed, building to a crescendo of fuzzy noise, which I think is a positive sign - Lucy's ready to move on. I've actually seen Night Shift at or near the top of "real" music critics' best songs of the year lists, but, as always, I assure you that is purely coincidental. 

2.  Bodys by Car Seat Headrest.

"Everybody's swinging their hips
Everybody's giving the waitress tips
Everybody's dancing all of the dances
Everybody's dancing every dance now (alright)."

Second best concert I saw this year, this one with my spouse and Richmond family. Will Toledo is a genius. But I think I've already told you that.

Car Seat Headrest, Carrboro, NC 9/21/18 (photo by me)

3.  Let Me Down Easy by Gang of Youths.

"Honey, it's no secret that I've been losing my way
In the weirdest of moments and stupidest of ways
But, hey, I'm still young and it's gonna be okay
I've got solipsism, baby, and I brought lemonade."

The lemonade reference works off of an earlier part of the song where frontman David Le'aupepe sings that "not everything is easy as making lemonade." This is the second time in two years that solipsism makes an appearance in lyrics on the list - hope that says more about our current times than me personally.

4.  Ben Franklin's Song by The Decemberists.

"I'm the only American the French want to see
They call me a genius, I can't disagree
They have guns, they have funds
They can set us free
Invest in my reputation."

What's not to like about a song co-written by Lin-Manual Miranda and Colin Meloy? Miranda wrote the lyrics for Hamilton, but it didn't make the cut for the show. He gifted them to Meloy, who put them to music and in turn gifted it to us. For a music loving history major, it can't get much better than that.

Big profanity warning on this one, kiddos.

5.  Bondurant Women by The Texas Gentlemen.

"There was a genuine act of celebration
On the corner of the freight train station
And the sweating man gave a benediction
Said you're looking for a giant (?) foundation."

Love the percussion in this song. No lyrics that I could find, so I did the best I could. Suggestions are welcomed, particularly with the uncertain word above (maybe "jive" instead of "giant?").

6.  Gold Rush by Death Cab for Cutie.

"Digging for gold in my neighborhood
For what they say is the greater good
But all I see is a long goodbye
A requiem for a skyline."

A requiem indeed for Ben Gibbard's Seattle neighborhood. I know, I know, a lot of us in Wild and Wonderful would love to have Ben's problems. But still, gentrification does come with its issues, in a "you kids get off of my lawn!" kind of way that I think he acknowledges as well.

7.  How to Socialise and Make Friends by Camp Cope.

"And I heard it from a friend
That he talks to the primary school kids through the fence
Yeah, you shoulda seen his book collection
It was all 'how to socialise and how to make friends'
Yeah I guess we both got our problems
And areas to improve
And I know one of mine is to go a night without sympathising with you."

As you might guess from the spellings, Camp Cope ain't from around here. Australia, to be exact, is their home. But the raw emotion heard in many of their songs, including this one, is universal.

8.  Not Abel by Hop Along.

"And yet it was not Abel but Cain who got to hear
The voice that for so long had been a stranger
Not one word of all the time they spent growing up brothers
Even love, yes, even love, yes even lose
Something to lose."

Starts out sounding like many Hop Along songs (which I believe to be a good thing), albeit with a less personal theme than most (indeed, the story of Cain and Abel). Then the last minute and a half take it to a whole new, sublime, level, kicked off by a classic rock guitar and bass line.

9.  Fast Talk by Houses.

"So maybe heaven is a ghetto with no bad blocks
Shangri-La dealers at the bus stops
And maybe god is just a cop that we can fast talk
So if you're guilty and you know it, put your hands up
'Cause karma's just a different word for bad luck
And what if death is just another pair of handcuffs?
Then we'd better run."

Heard this song first (and repeatedly) while on vacation in late summer with my better half on Sirius. The above lyrics are among my very favorites of the entire year.

10.  Born in Love by Horse Feathers.

"So color came from grey
It's gone from worse to good then great
Something realigned
Was it destiny and not fate?"

Yep, an honest-to-goodness love song! Sung by a guy in a Carhartt cap and denim shearling vest, no less.

11.  Once in My Life by The Decemberists.

"Oh for once in my
Oh, for once in my life
Could just something go
Could just something go right?"

Very different from most of Mr. Meloy's songs, when I first heard it I thought of it as more of a secular prayer than an ordinary song. I think the video, and Colin's notes about the video, confirm my feelings.

And, yes, we end this year's list with yet another song from The Decemberists. I'm an aged fanboy, what other defense do I have?

Favorite Songs of 2018: Songs 23-33

This year in music was full of highs and lows for me. The highest of the highs was getting to see one of my favorite bands, Frightened Rabbit, in concert in Chicago. The band made a brief tour in honor of the tenth anniversary of the release of their album The Midnight Organ Fight, the album that FR singer, songwriter, and frontman Scott Hutchison credited during the concert as the one that told them that they "might be able to make a living doing this."

Scott Hutchison (center) and his FR bandmates in Chicago
(photo courtesy of me).

The low was when, less than two months later, Scott Hutchison took his own life. He was 36, seemingly at the height of his career and in the prime of his musical life. Even a casual listener of FR's songs could not mistake the references to depression and suicidal thoughts that ran through nearly all of the band's five albums. But it was still a shock, particularly to me since Hutchison seemed in such a good place during the concert. His last public words, in a Tweet, summarize all that was good about him and all that is so terribly awful and unrelenting about depression: "Be so good to everyone you love.  It's not a given.  I'm so annoyed that it's not.  I didn't live by that standard and it kills me.  Please hug your loved ones.  I'm away now.  Thanks."

I soldiered on after that shocking event and once again dedicated myself to bringing to you my favorite songs of the past year. You will, as always, recognize several of the artists here from past years. You will, with very few exceptions, have never heard them on your local Top 40 radio station.  But I hope that you enjoy many of them, and perhaps go to see at least one of them if/when they come to your town.

23.  Drink About You by Kate Nash.

"I'm sick and tired of being such a hypocrite
I'm kinda over being over it all
I think I hate yourself
I think I hate me even more
I can't remember what happened before."

Kate has always been a favorite in our family. Her clever, witty lyrics are usually amusing and always thoughtful. One of several break-up songs on this year's list (and in fact this edition of the list).

24.  About You by G Flip.

"Yeah, we got crazy, yeah, it did phase me
When you just went and took off
Yeah, I know I pushed you
Didn't think you'd follow through and leave me on the rocks."

Another break-up song that perfectly captures the yin-yang of feelings that go with it. Which, I believe, purposefully matches her black and white sneakers in the video.

25.  Ancient Names (Part I) by Lord Huron.

"Far out past the astral plane
I cast you back from whence you came
Cosmic ash and blackened brain
I call you by your ancient names."

Our boys from the Mitten State seem to have taken a turn from pseudo-cowboy rock to Raymond Chandler-esque indie noir with their latest album (maybe my first hint was its name, "Vide Noir"). No official video or official concert video for this one as far as I can tell, so let your imaginations run wild with fortune tellers and soothsayers.

26.  Without Applause by Horse Feathers.

"Mama's here and nothing can be done
No other thought meanwhile something thaws
Dad to rise, there to fix something
It's not the drinking but the worry that does him in."

First heard this band on KEXP, one of my favorite radio stations. A song, I think, about the daily grind for working for a living and the toll it takes not only on the wage earner, but on his/her loved ones as well.

27.  Fell In Love by The Pollies.

"Fell in love with the one I love
When she's starin' back at me.
Fell in love with the one I love
And now she gives her love to me."

The Pollies were high on this list a few years ago with the politically charged "Jackson."  "Fell In Love" is less dramatic as far as subject matter goes, but certainly not as far as musicianship goes. 

28.  Give Yourself A Try by The 1975.

"And what would you say to your younger self?

Growing a beard's quite hard

And whiskey never starts to taste nice

And you'll make a lot of money, and it's funny

'Cause you'll move somewhere sunny and get addicted to drugs

And spend obscene amounts on f**king seeds and beans online."

A sneaking feeling that The 1975 are becoming (or at least trying to become) this generation's The Beatles.  Ambition is sometimes a bad thing, but for me not in this instance.

29.  better off by Sjowgren.

"I'm down low and I'm nothing without you
I'm better off to stay, I'm better off to say
I'm better off with you."

Kind of a love song, kind of a regretful "I can't help but be in love with you" song.  Sjowgren has appeared several times before on the list, but each time they've given a little more of a hint of who they might actually be.  I'm fine with the mystery, as long as they keep making great music.

30.  Plimsoll Punks by Alvvays.

"When I chip through your candy coating
You're stuffed with insulation
Just strawberry ice cream floating
With a sprinkle of indignation."

Yes, Alvvays (pronounced, of course, Always).  Saw them when they opened for The Decemberists a few years back.  They sound like an '80's girl group (The Go-Go's?), but with better musicianship (including a fuzzy grunge guitar) and much sharper lyrics.

31.  Call It Dreaming by Iron & Wine.

"'Cause the sun isn't only sinking fast
Every moon and our bodies make shining glass
Where the time of our lives is all we have
And we get a chance to say
Before we ease away
For all the love you've left behind
You can have mine."

Finally!  An honest-to-gosh love song instead of a broken love song.  Also saw Iron & Wine, many moons ago now, and frontman Sam Beam appeared to be trying to turn them into a "jam band" (I believe my line at the time was "trying to be another Phish - don't bite").  Nice to see him back to doing what he does best.

32.  Quarter Past Midnight by Bastille.

"We keep on running

Running through a red light

Like we're trying to burn the night away

Away-way, oh, away-way oh

Why are we always chasing after something

Like we trying to throw our lives away?

Away-way, oh, away-way oh."

Dan Smith, Bastille's lead singer, has a great voice.  And if you're a list regular, you know that I'm a sucker for big choruses.

33.  Everybody Lost Somebody by Bleachers.

"I waited 'til the night was over
Cursed the sun for coming up all over
Cashed the checks I had, I didn't own
Standing on the corner, God I wonder when
I'll give myself a break (hey)."

The winner in Facebook voting for this year's number 33 song. It appears that in this song our boy Jack Antonoff is beating himself up, instead of allowing others to do it as seems to be a frequent theme in Bleachers' videos.

So that's it -- the first 11 songs from my favorites of 2018.  Stay tuned for the next 22.  And while you're waiting for the next installment, hug someone you love.  For me, and for Scott.