Charli XCX wasn't the only one who dropped club bangers this year. Yaeji's lone 2024 single, booboo, throbs with minimal, bass heavy production. As the song progresses, those heavy bass hits become more and more resonant, making the groove and the urge to dance all the more potent. Yaeji whispers seductively over the instrumental, delivering an ode to the locked-in ravers who truly live in the moment. The energy is infectious. Makes me want to be that dancefloor hero that Yaeji is singing about.
Not Everyone Gets to Go to Space
English Teacher
A late addition to the list is this adventurous cut from English Teacher. It opens with swirling, sci-fi synthesizers, creating a larger than life galaxy. Although, in the blink of an eye, it is replaced with a despondent guitar and Lily Fontaine's spoken word; a setting that feels a little more close to home. The song stays in this very humble state as Fontaine explains why we can't all go to space; a parable for the economic and opportunity disparity we observe between us and rich billionaires. There's a very satisfying build up in the bridge that re-injects the sense of wonder the song initially opened with, and Fontaine does leave us with a particularly poignant final line. I'm not a huge fan of indie rock, but English Teacher managed to impress me thanks to great songs like this.
Karma Police
cumgirl8
While I couldn't get into this new cumgirl8 record, the opening track was undeniably catchy, zany, and intriguing. The synthetic bell timbres and the heavily chorused guitars remind me of gothic shoegaze bands like The Cocteau Twins, except with a peppy dance-punk drum beat. The vocals might be a tough sell as they are overly eccentric; no importance is placed on staying in tune or emitting an ear-pleasing tone. For me, it's strangely alluring and also pairs well with the cryptic, yet thought provoking lyrics. Karma Police is a very odd collection of ideas that happens to work for me. When it comes on, I have this urge to dance around like an inebriated zombie, and that's a beautiful thing.
Bobby Sox
Green Day
Green Day's music rarely pushes buttons these days, but I won't lie saying that hearing Billie Joe Armstrong practically scream 'do you want to be my boyfriend' or talk about kissing a boy in a cemetery is pretty bold. While the song is certainly open to interpretation on the number of different perspectives Armstrong is incorporating, I like to think that this song is Armstrong embodying his bisexual spirit proudly. The verses are disgustingly sappy depicting a rather domestic moment in the first verse contrasted with a gothic-themed date in the second. The choruses, as I previously alluded to, are deeply impassioned as Armstrong pops that nerve-wracking question with the utmost level of conviction. It's a fantastic, straightforward rock cut that thematically hits close to home.
Coagulated Bliss
Full of Hell
The title track from the band's 2024 record is a surprisingly accessible cut. It has a more approachable rock groove; no blast beats to be found here. Spencer Hazard's hard rock riff is actually quite catchy, sounding like something Slash or any guitar hero from that era would rip. The other section that alternates with the main riff changes each time it is cycled through. The first time, the chord progression is quite hellish. The second time, we have this one string riff that accentuates the punches the percussion delivers. The final time it is played, the band locks in even stronger with the percussion, turning those punches into violent stabs. The vocals maintain that harsh intensity, but the package overall feels a little more agreeable. I don't think this song will be revelatory for non-extreme metal fans, but it is perhaps Full of Hell's biggest attempt for widespread appeal.
All Night
The Dare
I wish I had heard Girls when it was released back in 2022 as that one is definitely worthy of a spot on a year end best-of list. Luckily The Dare's debut album had a couple other highlights that I really enjoyed, like All Night. This one is just a solid piece of synth pop with a great bassline and a hype, gang vocal buildup that leads you to flashing disco lights. The production is top notch, and I also think this song features one of The Dare's better vocal performances. If you're looking for a good party playlist song, All Night would be a pretty safe bet to add.
Forbidden Thing (Kimmotsu)
Hakushi Hasegawa
Hakushi Hasegawa's Forbidden Thing (Kimmotsu) is a hauntingly tender piano ballad that radiates a quiet, intimate beauty. The song is built around agile arpeggios that dance gracefully beneath Hakushi Hasegawa's fragile voice. The piece breathes, shifting fluidly in tempo, bringing an uncharacteristically human element that you don't sense with his more dense and chaotic work. It demonstrates that even with stripped down production, their musicianship alone is still truly captivating.
New! Christianity
The Armed
New! Christianity is the best example of marrying the sweet and sour that I've heard in 2024. The sour comes from the rhythm section, whose busy, crunchy, and aggressive blasts elicit a very visceral reaction. The sweet part is all the harmonic content that plays on top of it: the triumphant lead guitar melodies and the gentle vocals that are kept relatively pristine. I believe the beauty of this dichotomy is also implicitly referenced in the lyrics. A God like figure speaks to us, selling a life that sounds both idyllic, yet monotonously pointless. The meaning I get from this is that life needs balance. The human experience is both blissful and challenging; sweet and sour if you will.
BYE BYE
Kim Gordon
It still blows my mind that a 71-year-old Kim Gordon made an album primarily centred around overblown trap beats. It's amazing to see someone more than forty years into their career still pushing boundaries and challenging audiences. The opening track to the record remains my favourite of the collection thanks to its seedy vibe. The open door chime and Gordon rattling off an exhaustive list of travel items makes me feel like we're about to go on the lam. The shots of distorted guitars also connect Gordon back to her no wave past. It's a shockingly brilliant, exciting track.
Nissan Altima
Doechii
Doechii puts on a rap clinic on this Alligator Bites Never Heal single. The Swamp Princess spits at a dizzying pace and miraculously doesn't run out of breath. Contrary to what some people may believe, there's no trickery at play here. Just look at any number of live performances available online and Doechii will show you that she has complete control over her voice. She's the real deal. The instrumental is also fantastic with its chromatic chord progression on the piano and knocking, 808 bass hits. The only crime here is that the song is too short; the second verse really didn't need to be abbreviated.
Labyrinthian EMDR
Fire-Toolz
Fire-Toolz's music, I've learned, is all about the journey. Angel Marcloid's newest record was a little bumpy; difficult to tell where we're going and where we've been. Labyrinthian EMDR, however, was a track where everything seemed to make sense. The track opens with a lengthy, atmospheric intro, where lush vocal synth pads slowly build, preparing the listener for the jump through hyperspace that follows. Once launched, the song hurtles forward with frantic, bit-crushed percussion, spiraling synth arpeggios, and Marcloid's razor-sharp harsh vocals that collectively force you to the back of your seat. As if we've reached our destination, the song shifts gears, coasting to a surprising and serene conclusion on a vaporwave-inspired final leg. I would describe Fire-Toolz's music as confusingly cinematic, although, with Labyrinthian EMDR, I felt like I was able to follow the plot.
BABYS IN A THUNDERCLOUD
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor's BABYS IN A THUNDERCLOUD is a cinematic depiction of resilience. The song's first phase opens with streaming guitars that fly overhead like fighter jets and builds over time into a sonic storm of strings, steady percussion, and weeping guitars. The song collapses going into the second phase only to rise from the rubble with a courageous lead melody that echoes from every corner of the stereo field. BABYS IN A THUNDERCLOUD is a stirring anthem that channels the raw power of collective resistance, an electrifying journey that feels both monumental and deeply personal.
Scar
Melt-Banana
3 + 5's centerpiece, Scar, is just as frenetic as any other Melt-Banana track, but has an unexpectedly uplifting tone. The track builds one guitar layer at a time until this blindingly bright wall of guitar is formed. The driving force of pounding toms joins in, foreshadowing an epic expedition. Yasuko Onuki's alien yelps enter along with revving guitars, and then it's not long before we're thrusted into exhilarating chaos. The song's chorus is triumphant, concluding with a strikingly vulnerable moment where Onuki can be heard without all the modulated effects. Tender is not a word I would use to describe Melt-Banana, but for a few seconds, we can get a glimpse of what that would sound like. I absolutely love it.
I'LL BE RIGHT THERE
JPEGMAFIA
JPEGMAFIA's I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU brought the hype and intensity that I typically look for in his music thanks to the prominent use of rock and metal instrumentation. Oddly enough though, it was the more low-key moments that I gravitated to on the project, specifically the cut I'll Be Right There. Peggy's production is breathtaking as the interstellar, twinkling synths, the drum beat, the bassline, the chopped vocal sample, and the cinematic strings all come together harmoniously. All the elements are perfectly balanced as well, giving him the perfect pocket to flow through, avoiding an issue that I often have with his music. Peggy doesn't waste the opportunity either, delivering a lengthy, cold verse with a cool, measured confidence that is just as intimidating as his typical confrontational intensity. I still haven't found a project of his that I fully connect with, but every year, he at least comes through with one of my favourite tracks of the year, and 2024 is no exception.
Sympathy Is a Knife (Ft. Ariana Grande)
Charli XCX
When the remix album dropped, Sympathy Is a Knife was the song I was most looking forward to hearing as the original was a major standout on brat. When I put it on and heard those new, yet familiar elements, I knew Charli had another hit. Lyrically, the song deals with how quickly everyone can turn on you once you've found success. It provides a very bitter commentary on this phenomenon where audiences love to see an artist's fall from grace almost as much as their rise to fame. One person who has experienced her fair share of harsh criticism is Ariana Grande, who strategically is also featured on the song. The two have great chemistry as Grande uses her vocal prowess to expand on Charli's robotic, hyperpop delivery with stunning vocal runs. The song's deconstruction at the end feels both bold and symbolic. It's a total hyperpop banger.
Perfect Pinterest Garden
Porter Robinson
Porter Robinson's new record has a handful of great songs that have really layered, full sounding productions. However, it was the tightly produced Perfect Pinterest Garden that I found to be the album's biggest standout. Robinson keeps things very simple on this track by only involving a few elements, although each element has the perfect tone. I'm a total sucker for the vocal edits that open the track; the rhythm of the stuttering edits and the melody they create are excellent. I also love the chord progression on the guitar. It has a slightly funky character, but the feel and the warm direct input-sound maintains the computerized aesthetics that fall very much in line with the rest of the record. The drum pattern is very reserved and rigid which does a great job of keeping the beat without drawing too much attention to itself. These are pretty much all the elements in the song, save for the introduction of ideas in a short pre-chorus section. It's a very short song, but it is ultra sweet, supremely catchy, and perfectly demonstrates Robinson's knack for pop songwriting and production.
rollercoaster
Four Year Strong
This late cut from Four Year Strong's 2024 album feels like it was made just for me. We have this explosive metalcore passage that is packed with obnoxious guitar heroics. The over-the-top use of harmonics, whammy pitch shifting effects, and dive bombs provide a feast for the ADHD ear. The band couples it with these 80s thrash-styled rhythm guitar passages; paying homage to the past while keeping things firmly in the modern present. This song is aptly titled too as the band will tear things down to an ambient guitar and clean(er) vocals before thrusting you into another helping of heavy goodness. The song concludes with a really disgusting hardcore breakdown that features one confusingly angular guitar phrase after another. It's a tremendously fun track.
NO FUN
blink-182
Do you ever wish you could go back to a simpler time, when you had less responsibility, fewer people depending on you, had more time to explore your passions, and didn't feel the stress of living the rat race that is our modern capitalistic society? That's what this blink-182 extra is appealing to. Tom DeLonge's lyrics are nostalgic for the past, reminiscing about the time when punk rock led him on a tour of self-discovery and connected him to a burgeoning, like-minded community. It also recounts the transitional moment when punk became commodified, which added the pressure to do or say certain things in order to maintain the machine that was propelling them. Suddenly one cannot derive any enjoyment from their passions as it becomes something you have to do instead of what you want to do. The song also touches on the social void we slip into as we get older. Our friends start families, establish careers, and we lose touch. The resulting feeling of isolation and loneliness weighs heavy. This song could have easily come across as an unrelatable, bitter rant from a rich rock star, but actually, DeLonge excels in making this song fairly universal to your average person's experience. At least I found it relatable. Musically, the song opens with a fairly epic, arena rock introduction that features soft organ pads and layers of echoing vocals. The song later kicks in to the usual blink affair with nursery rhyme guitar riffs, palm-muted verses, and loud choruses. It's simple and formulaic, but it's the tried and true vehicle for a song's message to hit home.
Case D
Melt-Banana
This track has everything I love about Melt-Banana. It opens with a killer hardcore punk section played at a breakneck tempo. Yasuko Onuki's vocals are doubled up giving them a very alien quality and before going into the bridge, we get these massive crescendos that are exhilarating. The bridge throws us on this intergalactic voyage captained by guitarist Ichiro Agata. Revving guitars, lasers, and computer blips collide over the band's typically aggressive bassline and inhuman percussion. Melt-Banana reenters into hardcore punk territory with an epic, bright wall of guitar before reprising the opening section; finishing full-circle. It's the best track on an already stacked album. That should tell you everything you need to know.
KYÕFUNOHOSHI
Hakushi Hasegawa
This track is the most insane thing I have heard in the 2020s so far, and it will be incredibly tough to match. Hakushi Hasegawa has crafted this overwhelming cacophony out of speedy, skittering percussion, blaring horns, warped layers of vocals, as well as imperceptible rhythms and melodies. While some of the tempo defying EDM can be downright terrifying, KYŌFUNOHOSHI comes across more like a joyful and celebratory explosion. Despite its cheery mood, I know this is going to really challenge and confuse a lot of listeners, but if you value work that is truly unique, then you have to at least give this a shot. There is nothing else in the world that sounds like this, and in the internet age, that is an amazing feat. Bravo to Hakushi Hasegawa for continuing to push boundaries.
Grilling N****s II
cupcakKe
If you think cupcakKe is only good for outlandishly raunchy bars and tawdry shock value, then you have to dig a little deeper into the Chicago rapper's discography. Might I recommend beginning with the lead track from her most recent record, Grilling N****s II. Here, cupcakKe trades salacious sex rhymes for fiery and confrontational punches; three minutes of heat, no hooks necessary. Fittingly, she delivers one of the most aggressive performances I think I've heard her spit, and the writing shows that cupcakKe is just as witty as she is crass. It's easily my favourite hip-hop track of the year.
Martyr Song
The Armed
The Armed gets double the love on this list because the EP they dropped this year (at least the new songs, not so much the remixes) was incredible. Instead of launching you right into the fray like on New! Christianity, Martyr Song lets you settle into a fairly crunchy, yet catchy piece of noise rock. Tony Wolski delivers his strongest vocal performance yet as he nails some pretty high notes, all while maintaining his distinct fried texture. The explosiveness you'd typically expect from the band comes later in the form of a brief chorus where blasts of drums, cathartic screams, and futuristic guitar leads clash. What's even more impressive is that the band still manages to reach new levels of extremity with the destructive conclusion. Layers of distorted guitars, throat shredding screams, and blaring horns form this thick wall of noise played over a sluggish quarter time drum part. Taking it one step further, drummer Urian Hackney lays waste to the scene with machine-gun kick drums on the second go around, amping up the intensity. With no more air left in the lungs for horns or screams, the song finally comes to a close with the band letting all the instrumentation fizzle out. The dust can finally settle.
Sixth Cents (Get It?)/secondgradefoofight
Origami Angel
This might be cheating, but I'm lumping together these two tracks from Origami Angel's strong Feeling Not Found. My reasons are as follows: these two tracks were released as a double single, they're similar in lyrical themes as they both air tech-related grievances, and I love them both so much that I couldn't keep one off the list, let alone rank one above the other. If you didn't catch the reference to price per stream, Sixth Cents (Get It?) pushes back on the horrible business practices of music streaming services, namely Spotify, whose models do not fairly compensate a majority of artists on their platforms. This track exemplifies the duo's adventurous and playful qualities that attracted me to them last year. At one point, the song unexpectedly breaks into a kooky syncopated groove while Ryland Heagy begins his lecture. With some fancy metric modulation, the duo expertly transitions into a fantastic half-time groove. By comparison, secondgradefoofight is a more straightforward rock cut that unpacks the overwhelming pressure to be continuously online. The verses are super aggressive with Heagy lashing out angrily over dissonant guitar chords. The chorus, however, is a brilliant foil; an ultra-sweet section that reaches the anthemic levels of the catchiest Foo Fighters tracks (not sure if there's a connection given the title). Heagy revels in going off the grid, technologically speaking, and it makes for a fairly cathartic listen.
History
Drinking Boys and Girls Choir
Drinking Boys and Girls Choir have had difficulties finding a guitarist that can match the commitment and passion that Meena Bae (bass and vocals) and Myeong-jin Kim (drums and vocals) have demonstrated by keeping this project alive. This might finally change with the addition of Scottish guitarist and singer Megan Nisbet, a fan who moved to South Korea to join the band full-time. The lone 2024 single History, the first to feature Nisbet, gives us a taste of what the band can be when all the stars have finally aligned. Nisbet easily comes across as the band's most competent guitar player by ripping these very classic-sounding rock riffs played at the band's typical skate-punk tempos. The chemistry is also clear to see in the moments where Nisbet and Bae trade brief solo phrases, or how all three members sing in a heavenly three-part harmony for a majority of the song. Amidst the hard rock riffs and 'circle-pit' pacing, the vocals contribute a great deal to the song's sweetness. On a technical front, History is hands down the best written, performed, and produced song the band has released. If the band can stay on this trajectory with Nisbet, then the next Drinking Boys and Girls Choir record has the potential to be not only their best, but a landmark pop-punk record.
360
Charli XCX
The brat single is not the most layered or has the grandest presentation of the collection, but it's the effortlessly cool and confident swagger that made this track totally infectious in 2024. It's steeped in 2000s pop, emulating the 'it' girls of that era (Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, etc.), but elevating it to surpass today's hyperpop standards. A.G. Cook's contributions help a great deal in this endeavour as the synth riff is extremely effective, and the subtle variations in the timbre of the bass are awesome. Sometimes it pops with more resonant frequencies, other times it's all sub frequencies designed specifically to move large speakers and push large volumes of air. Charli rides this instrumental perfectly, delivering a piercing attitude often with just one pitch. The moments where we do get a small vocal lick feels like finding water on the brink of dehydration. No other song had this much mileage for me in 2024, so I guess that would make this track my song of the year.
