Cognitive Dissonance's Top 25 Songs of 2012/Top 20 D-bags of the Year
Yes, I know it’s late. But reasons, ok?
Here’s last nights list of Top 25 songs of 2012:
25. “This Summer” by Superchunk
24. “Bad Girls” by M.I.A.
23. “Good Things” by The Menzingers
22. “Eye for an Empty Heart” by Holly Golightly & The Brokeoffs
21. “We Are Young” by Fun.
20. “Howl” by The Gaslight Anthem
19. “Gun Has No Trigger” by Dirty Projectors
18. “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” by Tame Impala
17. “Cycles to Gehenna” by Aesop Rock
16. “The House That Heaven Built” by Japandroids
15. “Dirty Paws” by Of Monsters and Men
14. “Miss Atomic Bomb” by The Killers
13. “Pay In Blood” by Bob Dylan
12. “Watch the Corners” by Dinosaur Jr.
11. “Werewolf” by Fiona Apple
10. “I Got Nothing” by Dum Dum Girls
9. “Sixteen Saltines” by Jack White
8. “Too Soon to Tell” by Todd Snider
7. “Next Door Neighbor Blues” by Gary Clark Jr.
6. “Thinkin Bout You” by Frank Ocean
5. “Darkness” by Leonard Cohen
4. “Reagan” by Killer Mike
3. “Ho Hey” by The Lumineers
2. “Land of 7 Billion Dances” by The Coup
1. “Wrecking Ball” by Bruce Springsteen
And the year in d-baggery:
20. Barack Obama (NDAA and drones, among other things)
19. Lance Armstrong
18. Mike Huckabee (Saying horrible things all year, defending Todd Akin, etc.)
17. Jerry Sandusky and those who covered up/defended him at Penn State
16. Karl Rove
15. Suzanne Venker
14. Rush Limbaugh
13. George Zimmerman
12. Michele Bachmann (baiting Islamophobes all year, plus not paying her staff since they will not sign nondisclosure agreements)
11. John Boehner
10. Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes and for phone hacking and Fox News chicanery, plus Murdoch’s attempts to monopolize media domestically and internationally.
9. Mitt Romney
8. Paul Ryan
7. Richard Mourdock
6. Todd “Legitimate” Akin
5. Grover Norquist
4. Wayne LaPierre
3. NRA
2. Donald Trump
1. Congress
And there you have it!
Cheers,
Meg
Alison's Top 25 Songs of 2012
Better late than never! Watch the videos by clicking on the song title, mmkay?
Best song of the year, best album of the year. You can try to tell me different, though it won’t do much. R&B is evolving, and it’s because of artists like Miguel.
I’ve listened to this song hundreds of times, and every time feels like the first.
I have respect for any artist brave enough to express feelings of pain and vulnerability through their work. At first I was nervous that Nas was going to take this song and use it as an opportunity to nail Kelis to the floor, but he raps about their relationship with a maturity and understanding that is really inspiring.
4. Major Lazer ft. Amber of Dirty Projectors - Get Free
This was The Song of My Summer 2012. Major Lazer is known for being rowdy and fun, but I think this song showed that Diplo and crew have the ability to really create something beautiful.
5. AlunaGeorge - Your Drums, Your Love
I’m calling it: 2013 is AlunaGeorge’s year. They were building up steam with songs like “You Know You Like It,” but “Your Drums, Your Love” is the single that will push them over. The song is a wonderfully weird combo of production and Aluna’s 90s R&B voice.
Rude bitch, all day. It was hard to pick between this song and “1991,” but I think this was the one that set her apart from the pack last year. It acts as a real showcase for her flow and her way with words. Plus, those steel drums are amazing.
7. The Lumineers - The Dead Sea
“Ho Hey” is a great song, but this is the one that I keep coming back to over and over again.
8. Kendrick Lamar ft. Drake - Poetic Justice
Also known as one of the greatest uses of a Janet Jackson sample.
9. Big Sean, JAY-Z and Kanye West - Clique
I always thought of the word “clique” as a description of a bunch of bitchy teenage girls, but then Ye took it and flipped it on its head, per usual.
10. Elle Varner ft. J. Cole - Only Wanna Give It To You
If you don’t know Elle Varner, now you know. Her voice is pure bliss.
I know a lot of End of Year lists had “Bad Religion” as Frank Ocean’s standout track on Channel Orange, but I disagree. “Pyramids” goes on for like 20 minutes, sounds like rock, goes back to rap, and everything in between. It’s very ambitious for a debut album, and it works.
12. The Raveonettes - She Owns The Streets
This is my “I’m going to have that extra glass of wine and then dance around my room in my PJs like no ones watching” song. Try it - you won’t regret it.
13. Jhene Aiko - For My Brother
Discovering Jhene Aiko was one of the musical highlights for me last year. Also: this song makes me cry like a baby.
14. P.O.S ft. Mike Mictlan - Get Down
“A club song making fun of club songs” is how one YouTuber described it. Spot-on.
Leave it to Lupe to rap eloquently about the representation of women in music today.
16. David Byrne & St. Vincent - Who
Never in a million years would I put these two together, but man, they make it work. Plus the horn section on this entire album is crazy.
17. Diplo ft. Nicky Da B - Express Yourself
TWERKTWERKTWERKTWERKTWERK(that’s all I hear when this song plays)TWERKTWERKTWERKTWERKTWERK
18. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Wanz - Thrift Shop
Seattle reppin’. Of course this song blew Macklemore up on a national level. It’s about thrift shopping, it’s got great horns on it (I like horns, ok?) and a guy singing that sounds incredibly similar to Nate Dogg.
19. Melanie Fiona - Change the Record
The most underrated album released last year.
20. Sky Ferreira - Everything is Embarrassing
This song is an 80s-sad girl-pop extravaganza.
21. Cody ChesnuTT - Til I Met Thee
Cody takes it to church on this one.Even the way he says “First verse” is amazing.
22. Brandy ft. Chris Brown - Put It Down
THE RETURN OF MOESHA! Brilliant song, perfect video (just ignore Chris Brown).
I love when a song and movie form such a happy marriage. Adele was meant to sing a James Bond theme.
24. Esperanza Spalding - Crowned & Kissed
I hear so many songs calling out men for being dogs and jerks that it’s nice to hear a Grammy Award-winning jazz artist praising her man for being so lovely.
You may or may not have noticed that I have a thing for Diplo, and you are absolutely correct. In any case, the production on this song paired with Usher scream-singing “AT AAAAAAAAALLLLLLLL!!!!” makes you feel every emotion under the sun.
What was your favorite song of 2012?
My Top 25 Songs of 2012
1. This Girl- Punch Brothers
2. Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings- Father John Misty
3. Alone- Trampled by Turtles
4. The Once and Future Carpenter- The Avett Brothers
5. Little Talks- Of Monsters and Men
6. Old LA- New Multitudes
7. Yet Again- Grizzly Bear
8. Call Girl Blues- Diamond Rugs
9. When I Was Young- Nada Surf
10. Bad Luck- Langhorne Slim and the Law
11. Ho Hey- The Lumineers
12. Money Saves- Delta Spirit
13. Simple Song- The Shins
14. Where Are You Now- Mumford and Sons
15. Watch the Show- M. Ward
16. Sign- Harriet
17. New York City- Among Savages
18. All the Wine- Andrew Bird
19. Blue- First Aid Kit
20. Oh Woe- Ben Gibbard
21. Rapture- Everest
22. It Hurts Every Time- Good Old War
23. You and Me- Sara Watkins
24. A Little Biblical- Band of Horses
25. I Don’t Wanna Pray- Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Honorable Mention: Parted Ways- Heartless Bastards, Landline- Greg Laswell ft. Ingrid Michaelson, New Ceremony- Dry the River, Heaven- The Walkmen, Serpents- Sharon Van Etten, Minimum Day- Cold War Kids, Full Moon Rising- Neil Halstead, Wrecking Ball Heart- Jack’s Mannequin, Somebody- Jukebox the Ghost, Para- Calexico, Don’t Tell Your Friends About Me- Blake Mills, Stubborn Love- The Lumineers, When It Pleases You- Sara Watkins, Time Bomb- Delta Spirit, It’s Only Life- The Shins, Brother- Green River Ordinance, The Frost is All Over- The Chieftains ft. Punch Brothers, Dark Days- Punch Brothers, King of the World- First Aid Kit ft. Conor Oberst, Autumn Tree- Milo Greene, No Fear- New Multitudes, DIY- Ben Sollee, Watching You Watch Him- Eric Hutchinson, Somebody that I Used to Know- Gotye, I’ve Been Accused- Corey Chisel, Shut Up- Corndawes (aka Jonny Fritz w/ Dawes)
Finished lists:
Since I am too lazy to finish writing reviews for the last songs of my favorite songs of 2012, here they are in a list form:
6. “I Belong In Your Arms” — Chairlift
5. “Silver Springs (Fleetwood Mac Cover)” — Lyyke Li
I’m not afraid to say it’s better than the original. Lykke Li’s voice is drenched in reverb, along with the instrumentation, and that combination allows the longing feeling that pervades the song to create the effect it always desired.
4. “Bad Religion” — Frank Ocean
A lot of songs are about unrequited love (especially songs by the two artists above) but some songs can actually capture how it feels. When Ocean repeats,”Love me, love me, love me…” it fucking tears you apart, because you know exactly why he is repeating himself.
3. “Talking To You” — How To Dress Well
Tom Krell (aka How To Dress Well) has a beautiful voice, but his lyrics are usually indecipherable—seemingly created for his own experience. In this song, he takes a step further and sings a duet with himself. You can’t always understand him, but you feel the gravity of his sentiment when he sings,”World I need you, won’t be without you.” His album is called Total Loss, and totality is certainly critical here—if he’s going to make it, he is going to need everything.
2. “Werewolf” — Fiona Apple
Everyone around the world was a bit surprised when they heard the children screaming in this song. They may have even been more surprised when they realized that Fiona Apple was taking some of the blame for a ruined relationship. But that’s why the lyrics and screaming sample work so well together—among all the madness, you can’t always tell who is more wrong. Sometimes it’s better to just end the song, and move on.
1. I’m going to write a real review of this one.
Animal Collective - Applesauce
TOP 25 SONGS OF 2012: #7
“Applesauce” — Animal Collective
Avey Tare is one of my favorite song writers—I hardly understand his metaphors, but through his delivery, I can feel them. I could guess that “Applesauce” is about taking time for granted and mourning its passing, but that hardly communicates what this song achieves. Avey’s voice is modified throughout the entire song, reaching extreme points in his usual howl. Other moments, the lyrics become muddled in the sonic alteration—they become mumbles about apples, mangoes, and star fruits. The starkest moment comes in clear delivery: “I’m losing things so fast” Avey tells us, a moment that comes later in the song after a series of fruitful metaphors. Things almost start to make sense here, and the anguish that is heard through his delivery ties things together.
Mourning is a very strange process; Freud tells us that mourning ends with the passing of time and a return to normalcy. But what happens when you are mourning time itself? As “Applesauce” demonstrates, it is a near impossible situation to get over—a rotting away through reflection. The mourning of time encompasses a removed state of being as life continues, which is heard as Avey screams,”WHY DO I RUSH TO BLOW UPON THE FIRE?!” It’s a moving moment, and you can’t help but feel his pain as he reflects on the way he has hushed his own passing of time. It’s no wonder that now he’s screaming, and he can only conclude by taking control of time itself. The song ends with a list, or a countdown: “One the eagle, two the noble, three the lizard, four the soul..” I have no idea what these images mean, but that doesn’t matter. The effect stands strong—in order to get through the mourning of time, take control of numbers and imagery to create your own timeline. Taking this process into your own hands is difficult, but these earthy images against a burning fire are effective here. At least for the moment they are, and if “Applesauce” teaches us anything, it’s that the passing of each moment is not to be taken for granted.
