ILM's Top 77 Tracks of 2014

starting to worry Stara Rzeka won't pull this off after all

or in front of the artillery xp

threw some pts to beautiful
my #1 was a pc music track which I'm guessing won't place but hey ho

Responses right after Hey QT placing are the best thing on this thread so far tbh

I noticed around the holiday that "Blank Space" had become the default hey-Taylor-Swift-isn't-so-bad track among people who avoid her and pop.

curious about the sample size of this study

600 people interviewed b/w Dec. 23 and 31.

"Blank Space" is the one that sounds like Don Henley "Heart of the Matter" right?

well, yeah

nah it's the one whose intro sounds like Club Nouveau's "Why You Treat Me So Bad."

I'm back! Best discovery of the day by FAR is Shamir! :D So exuberant and entertaining! His aesthetic is flippant without losing its groove - it makes for a very engaging play. The critiques of preciousness and irksomeness make some sense, but I am both precious and irksome, so fuck you all ;)

who the devil is taylor swift

― LIKE If you are against racism (omar little), Tuesday, January 20, 2015 4:25 PM Bookmark

Becky.

Shamir was my number 2. I don't really get some of the comparisons, I totally love his voice so much and if you'd speculated to me I'd like a song of his more than 'If It Wasn't True' in the middle of the year I'd have whutted you out of the county.

"212" seems like an incredibly reductive point of reference for the Shamir track. "212" is an aggressive and declaratory punch, whereas "On The Regular" is basically a curtsy.

If we're talking structure then yes, they both feature raps and a sung breakdown, but don't tonnes of songs?

When I first heard "Blank Space", I thought it was the first TS song I'd ever hated. Somehow it managed to grow on me; pretty sure I love it by now.

I still think it sounds like Avril Lavigne and, therefore, I can't stand it.

She always sounded a bit like Avril tbh. I was surprised when I found out she wasn't Canadian.

gonna be livid if sun kil moon places

― emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Tuesday, January 20, 2015 4:01 PM

with you on this

I totally do not understand how people can dislike Shamir. That song has been on rewind for me so much.

Most of the other stuff since I left earlier has been pretty poor - yesterday was a much cooler mix of things.

FYI Dark Horse rules hardcore, I was the #1 vote and there isn't a single song I listened to more this year

Between the deafening bass, the Moments of Love synths and the escalating chorus (do not listen to people who say it has a repeating bridge because they do not know what they are talking about), it's a singularly fascinating piece of music that flips into overdrive about five times during its running time that also is features the best usage of Perry's idiosyncratic voice outside of "Teenage Dream"

Also Taylor hasn't placed yet but my biggest beef with her is that she's a woman in her mid-20s who still sounds like a pitch- and support-challenged teenager, which makes the delivery of her material read to me as wholly disingenuous

Ha, I always thought that her pitch- and support-challenged delivery was 100% genuine!

Still think a top five place could be in the cards for Two Week by Twigsy. Which would be awesome.

― a pleasant little psychedelic detour in the elevator (Amory Blaine), Tuesday, January 20, 2015 7:15 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

I'm with you on this and I'm gonna call Two Weeks for #1 overall

I'm back! Best discovery of the day by FAR is Shamir! :D So exuberant and entertaining! His aesthetic is flippant without losing its groove - it makes for a very engaging play. The critiques of preciousness and irksomeness make some sense, but I am both precious and irksome, so fuck you all ;)

― telling like hot takes (imago), Tuesday, January 20, 2015 7:56 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

Hated Shamir and this cements my hate, my second favorite discovery of this poll outside of saer is finding out that you love AM!, finally we share something in common

can i catch up a bit?

77 NICKI MINAJ "Lookin Ass"
i'm suspecting one's love for all these nicki songs may rest on how one feels about her in general? because i don't hear anything new/different with this, it's just nicki doing her thing which i'm pretty much over.

76 OWEN PALLETT "Song for Five & Six”
i wouldn't have plucked a song other than "the riverbed" off of this album but this is great and i'm very into the layered arpeggios at the end.

75 TUNE-YARDS "Water Fountain"
even beyond the general embarrassment level of the lyrics and beyond the appropriation stuff, it's such a drag to listen to, all the percussion is super clipped and sounds like garbage.

74 NINOS DU BRASIL "Sombra da Lua"
agree w/everyone, this is very cool.

73 KING "Mister Chameleon"
just sort of floats by, not unpleasant but not memorable either.

72 KATIE GATELY "Pivot"
i listened to this early this morning, it intermittently held my interest. doubt i will listen to it again.

71 ANA TIJOUX Ft. Shadia Mansour "Somos Sur"
i'm probably challenged in general by foreign-language rapping, but this is very maximal and kind of fatiguing.

70 USHER "Good Kisser"
this is ok, i'm just going to listen to "climax" 8 more times tho.

69 NICKI MINAJ "Anaconda"
see above

68 DAVIDO "Tchelete" Ft. Mafikizolo
not bad? it sounds thin, like i could use one more thing going on.

67 RÖYKSOPP & ROBYN "Do It Again"
very bored listening to this.

66 SHAKIRA "Empire"
someone said 90s tori? that's not quite right but this thing is really tacky.

65 ST. VINCENT "Prince Johnny"
still don't get it.

64 DUKE DUMONT "I Got U" Ft. Jax Jones
endearing in a greeting-card sort of way, ftr i'm a sap.

63 CARIBOU "Silver"
more or less unassailable. dude's music is thoughtful, detailed, and beautiful a lot of the time.

62 AGAINST ME! "FUCKMYLIFE666"
obv don't want to just dismiss this completely but the music is so basic and uninteresting it can't hold my attention.

61 HOLLY HERNDON "Chorus"
really liked this, will track more down i guess.

60 MARK RONSON "Uptown Funk" Ft Bruno Mars
smug, self-congratulatory garbage.

59 JENNIFER LOPEZ "I Luh Ya Papi" Ft French Montana
prob way better than 2014 j-lo has any business being. love the arpeggios.

58 AGAINST ME! "Transgender Dysphoria Blues"
see above.

57 NICKI MINAJ "Boss Ass Bitch" ft. PTAF
see above

56 HAIM "If I Could Change Your Mind"
love this song, much more of a 2013 in my mind but no issues with it placing.

55 MIGOS "YRN" Ft. Young Thug
this is so fun.

54 ALVVAYS "Archie, Marry Me"
complained about this already. we've identified the forebears and i definitely never need to hear anything like this again, but her voice grates more than the average one of these songs.

53 SPOON "Inside Out"
funny to see the reactions to this--i like the song and feel strongly that the vocal deserves a ton of love, but spoon is such an albums band that pulling out this song is odd. it's so much better as track 2, following "rent i pay."

52 D'ANGELO AND THE VANGUARD "Sugah Daddy"
i haven't really formed a position on the whole d'angelo album yet, i think there are songs i like more but would prob not argue with any of them placing.

51 FKA TWIGS "Pendulum"
again i wouldn't have pulled a song off the twigs record other than two weeks but i do like this one.

50 QT "Hey QT"
lol

49 KATY PERRY "Dark Horse" Ft. Juicy J
love this song, did nothing to me for months and then finally clicked.

48 JESSIE WARE "Champagne Kisses"
she tends to leave me cold, like i see the talent and appeal but don't have any response to it.

47 ILOVEMAKONNEN "Club Going Up On A Tuesday"
like i said it's cute but wears thin so fast. it's weird enough that i can't totally hate it.

46 RITA ORA "I Will Never Let You Down"
this is ok! there's a weird moment in the chorus, not exactly a stutter but just like a one-beat delay, that i really like.

45 APHEX TWIN "Minipops 67 [120.2] (source field mix)"
not going to listen to this, no chance i'll feel anything at all toward it.

44 TODD TERJE "Delorean Dynamite"
i never choose to listen to stuff like this but am always reasonably happy when i run into it.

43 KATY B "Crying For No Reason"
i don't think katy is enough of a singer to carry this.

42 SHAMIR "On The Regular"
feels like a novelty song, and like this dude has the potential to do a whole lot better.

41 JAVIERA MENA "Otra Era"
sure! i'm down for the annual javiera appearance.

Have honestly never heard of QT or PC music before. On first listen, this is close to my reaction:

Not sure why it solicits so much reaction from either side.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Tuesday, 20 January 2015 13:49 (8 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Since then, I have apparently gotten hooked on this song. I just played it a couple of times in a row.

43 KATY B "Crying For No Reason"
i don't think katy is enough of a singer to carry this.

I just played it a couple of times in a row.

7 and counting.

i can't actually post while at work so i always miss the roll out live. this batch of songs was better than yesterdays and really looking forward to seeing what is in the Top 40.

i'm 2/20 today and 2/37 overall.

63 CARIBOU "Silver"
more or less unassailable. dude's music is thoughtful, detailed, and beautiful a lot of the time.

I was angry with dude over that "Sun" song that got on my nerves back in 2010, but this does seem cool

"Uptown Funk" - Reminds me of Cameo. Not as good as Cameo. I like watching Bruno Mars dance though.

"I Luh Ya Papi" - Could not get past the vocals.

"If I Could Change Your Mind" - Voted for this because I love the song, but agree it's a 2013 song.

"YRN" - Not sure how this is different from Madlib w/Lord Quas.

"Archie, Marry Me" - Almost something I would like.

"Sugah Daddy" - So this is from the P&J topping D'Angelo album? I feel old.

"Pendulum", "Hey QT", "Dark Horse" , "Champagne Kisses" - These don't do much for me, but the Dawn Richard "Dark Horse" is great.

"Club Going Up On A Tuesday" - OK, now things are getting interesting. Beautifully captures whatever that sad-sack, blissed-out emotion is.

"I Will Never Let You Down" - Not a bad tune while it's playing. Doesn't stick in the mind though.

"Minipops 67 [120.2] (source field mix)", "Delorean Dynamite", "Crying For No Reason" - Snooze.

"On The Regular" - "Tune-Yards R&B" or a 'shameless "212" rip-off'? - whatever it is, sign me up.

I really don't care about male feelings in art tbh.

― lex pretend, Tuesday, January 20, 2015 6:22 PM (4 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

sorry but this is like "try to brainstorm a statement that should disqualify someone from being a critic"

47 ILOVEMAKONNEN "Club Going Up On A Tuesday" - since nothing i voted for placed i thought i would offer my cool take on this hot track since its the only thing today i like. this track reminds me of: licorice bits, airport departure lounges, the wonder whos version of 'dont think twice', 'the pilgrim hawk', white silk skirts, the makeshift ashtrays people leave in their apartments fire escape when theyre trying to quit smoking, 'the cardboard house' and like 10 o clock at night, during the summer.

::jerkoff hand motion::

club going up on a tues is the only track ive voted for to place so far

i can't really figure out what people like Makonnen for other than i guess finding it charming how bad he is at what he does

what a hateful and unnecessary post (xps)

i can't really figure out what people like Makonnen for other than i guess finding it charming how bad he is at what he does

― EVERY HUGH JACKMAN HAS A VAN HELSING (some dude), Tuesday, January 20, 2015 11:29 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i do kind of like this

trying to figure out if no one is ever melancholy in the club according to some attitudes expressed here

43 KATY B "Crying For No Reason"
i don't think katy is enough of a singer to carry this.

i agree here
― Sounds like a forks display name (forksclovetofu)]

lol

i don't think Makonnen is CRYING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CLUB at all personally

60. "uptown funk": into it. possible i first heard it on snl? anyway, moment i heard it, i knew it was kind of awesome. seemed so refreshing for a retro-soul song to mine from the '80s rather than '60s/'70s. not sick of it yet, but i wouldn't rule it out.

59. "i luh ya papi": love the name. "luh"! but i never really got into this?

58. "transgender dysphoria blues": feel like there's always a song in this vein every year that i like, even though i do not ever go out of my way to hear songs in this vein. this is that song.

57. "boss ass bitch": ok, i am currently listening to this for the first time. i like nicki minaj, but i like her mostly for her place in pop culture. every now and then a song catches my ear, but i don't go out of my way to keep up with her. the beat here sounded cool at first, but the song can't hold my interest.

56. "if i could change your mind": feels like forever since i heard this. haim album rules, though.

55. "yrn": never heard this before. i think someone upthread mentioned something about exotica samples, and that got my interest piqued, but it's not quite as martin denny as i'd hoped.

54. "archie, marry me": another great title wasted. i dunno, i never heard alvvays until EOY lists. this song was on a LOT of them. like every sub-pitchfork indie site and avclub and stuff. and i listened to it and thought ... cool? don't get me wrong, i am v much into scrappy '90s indie-rock revivalism; i have a faux '90s playlist that's just, like, best coast and yuck and joy formidable and stuff. but this didn't do it for me. kudos to whoever shouted out beverly's "honey do," though. that song's great.

53. "inside out": can't imagine voting for a song like this, but i like it as a cool spooky song on a spoon record.

52. "sugah daddy": i like this song, but it's kind of hard for me to think of the d'angelo album in terms of songs. feel like the sum is greater than the parts with that one.

51. "pendulum": man, i feel like i may have mentioned this on ilx before, but there is the one part in "pendulum" where a particular bass note, i think, comes in during the chorus that is one of my favorite single seconds of music in 2014.

50. "hey qt": talked about this upthread iirc.

49. "dark horse": this was the song that i put on my running best-of-2014 playlist early in the year, and then by the end of 2014, i was like "wtf, that was 2014?" not sure i love it so much as i find it hard to deny. and as far as katy perry at her hip-hoppiest, it's a lot better than "e.t."

48. "champagne kisses": i do like this song, but i was surprised that ilm's jessie ware fan club went so nuts over it when the album dropped. tbqh, i was fairly disappointed in the album, considering that "imagine it was us" is was one of the best songs of the decade, but then when i think about it, i thought her first album was patchy, too. the tough love song i gravitated toward from the beginning was "want your feeling."

47. "tuesday": what? i don't get it.

46. "i will never let you down": this seems very vaguely familiar, like a song i would've heard on the radio three or four times without bothering to care who it was. (and since it peaked at #77, that seems very possible.) in this context, though, i appreciate it more.

45."minipops 67 etc.": i think i listened to this song stoned once, and it kind of freaked me out.

44. "delorean dynamite": man, this song is the best. i was reading this thread earlier and someone mentioned "hearing it out," and i was immediately envious of their lifestyle. i want to go to places where "delorean dynamite" is playing.

43. "crying for no reason": effective, though i quietly admire it more than love it, i think. i had another jam from this album.

42. "on the regular": lots of fun. was into this song more than anything on the ep, but i'm excited about his whole deal/style.

41. "otra era": like the jessie ware album, otra era was one of my biggest disappointments of 2014. but i think that's just because of how much i love mena. taken on its own merits, it's really good, and "otra era" is, if not one of her showier songs on the album, a highlight.

re: Otra Era - Yeah, I feel kind of guilty, having been one of JM's biggest backers on ILM since the beginning, that I couldn't really get deep into this album like I have her previous two. I voted for La Joya (which might still appear?), but the album was a minor disappointment. (Feel the same way about Betty Who's as well.)

my guess is "2 On" takes this poll, with "Lifestyle", "No Flex Zone" and "Style" possibly in the top 5. I think "Seasons" could end up top 5 also

I've loved reading this thread, listening to the music and seeing people's reactions even as I voted for so little of what showed up, so thank u ilm!

wish there were more dance tracks to come (and in the poll generally), like the Beep Dee, Hodgson, Jack J, Marquis Hawkes and J Baptiste tracks, but I know it's unlikely for those to place at this point. Lag∞n's suggestion that we should extend the poll down from #77 was a good one! it might be interesting to see a discussion of the higher placed outliers

pushing through the complete list yields a lot of those house tracks; discovering loads that way!

"autotuned crying"

This is definitely the problem and the antithesis of a genial vibey atmosphere that contributes towards wellbeing

Crying while driving a car at night, crying with $50 bills around the table, crying at the beach, crying at the top of Sears Tower, crying while smoking a cigarette with a tie loosened

I see you enjoyed "Pyramids"

crying at the anomie that success brings as it removes me from my peers and into a world where everyone seems fake and the modern world is confusing but i dont know how to admit to it, im not sure if im sad if im autotuned its not really me its this other sad me that lives inside, there are two me's the successful one and the one that only shows emotion in my car at 4am and its raining you'll end up running someone over soon if you drive like that

And without further ado, another episode of my unsolicited hot takes on today’s tracks:

Mark Ronson - Uptown Funk ft. Bruno Mars
Another track I’ve heard, but don’t know where. Well-produced pop populism carried by the bassy vocal sample hook. Fresh sounding synths and vocals, and nice touches with the slap bass and horns. Sounds a bit out of left field though. Without context. I guess that’s the case with a lot of music today. Almost sounds like a remix or something. Nice, climatic, James Brown sounding outro. Okay, 6/10

Jennifer Lopez - I Luh Ya Papi (Explicit) ft. French Montana
Infectious chorus; nice, sparse, verse hooks. Groovin ideas going on throughout the track. Like the vibe JLO is going for, and nice production flourishes too. Think I’ve heard better from French Montana though. And I’m not convinced the whole thing hangs together in the end. 6/10

Against Me! – Transgender Dysphoria Blues
Already like this more than the one ranked above. Nice guitar tone and good feels. Song doesn’t really go anywhere though. 5.5/10

Nicki Minah – Boss Ass Bitch ft. PTAF
Great flow. Falls somewhere in between Anaconda and Lookin’ Ass for me. I dunno. 5.5/10

HAIM – If I Could Change Your Mind
Nice, musical, pop. Sounds just right. Again, not sure how I feel about music so referential and simultaneously decontextualized. An era unlived, renewed here 6/10.

Migos ft. Young Thug – YRN
Neither my favourite Migos or Young Thug track from the year. Elevated given its cross-over appeal. Lots of fun here. Definitely more Young Thug than Migos? 8/10

ALVVAYS – Archie, Marry Me
I feel like I am stuck in someone’s garage and want to go home. Relies on echoes from a past that it cannot possess. It ended nicely. 4/10

Spoon – Inside Out
This is the one track I’ve heard off the album. These guys are still together? The thrust of my comments above apply to this too, a bit, though the modern compression and production update it. I like the sparseness of it all. I’ll never listen to this again. 7/10

D’Angelo – Sugah Daddy
Play it again, D’an 9/10

FKA Twigs – Pendulum
Right. Like what’s it doing, but hard to get into for me overall. Too disjointed. Though not so disjointed that I appreciate it in the abstract. It has some really nice moments. 7/10

Hey QT – QT
It’s as if the pitch of the track (drums included) was increased to veil its mediocrity. A quick YouTube of a slowed down version confirmed my suspicions. This track is awful. 3/10

Katy Perry – Dark Horse
Bizarre and problematic video, but clearly a memorable track from the year. The first half of the Juicy J rapping over the chorus hook takes it home. 6.5/10

Jessie Ware – Champagne Kisses
Beautiful song 7.5/10

ILOVEMAKONNEN - Club Going Up On A Tuesday
Got the Club going up! / on a Tuesday! 7.5/10

Rita Ora – I Will Never Let You Down
Production a bit over the top on this, but the verse riff is infection. It works! 6.5/10

Aphex Twin - Minipops 67 [120.2] (source field mix)
It does it all 9.5/10

Todd Terje – Delorean Dynamite
This track really takes halfway through until it opens up and rains all its brilliance down 8.5/10

Katy B – Crying For No Reason
This flows really nicely from the Terje track. Liked the energy a lot 7.5/10

Shamir – On The Regular
I like the mid-section with the pads and pingy toms. But the bass doesn’t really do it for me. And the breakdown is nice. I wish the flow wasn’t so predictably on the beat though. 6/10

Javiera Mena - Otra Era
Nice, something I was looking for — a gem I hadn’t heard yet. 7/10

Not quite as many new songs I enjoyed this time around like yesterday. Looks like my favorites were songs I’d already heard prior, unfortunately. Maybe I need to let some of these newer finds sink in. Still like listening to this spectrum of new music though. Looking forward to what gifts tomorrow brings.