Along with taking a nap after every meal of my family’s Yuletide celebrations, one of my favorite December traditions is cataloging my thoughts as I listen through each of the Pitchfork top 100 tracks in sequence. It can be fun to look back at previous years’ reaction notes and see what favorites of mine I heard for the first time in those lists. Sometimes I am surprised at how a favorite of mine was ranked, or how goofy Pitchfork’s blurbs are, and that’s something I’ll write down as well.
It’s a humbling experience to realize how many quality tracks pass me by without appearing on my radar in the year of their release. Last year, I somehow entirely missed Drake’s “Hold On, We’re Going Home” and was surprised to see it was Pitchfork’s No. 1 song (I’m still bitter that Mikal Cronin’s “Weight” wasn’t in that, or any, slot). Some of my very favorite songs and albums this year were ones I almost entirely missed in 2013. So, the goal here: find new music, celebrate established favorites, and somehow be consistently surprised by Drake.
Let us begin counting down Pitchfork’s 100 Best Tracks of 2014:
100. “Superstitious” by Elisa Ambrogio
I haven’t yet listened to this and just barely know Magik Markers, but I enjoyed this song so much that I don’t think I can sustain that streak much longer.
99. “Milly’s Garden” by Steve Gunn
I’ve also never really listened to Steve Gunn, but this is kind of what I guess I’d expect. Songs like this are hard to feel passionate about the first few times through.
98. “Green Lady” by Merchandise
These days Merchandise are really not “my thing,” but I feel I should pay attention to them just in case that changes, so I know they’re there for me.
97. “Advice to Young Girls” by Copeland feat. Actress
Looking forward to having children so I can play them Copeland in the house in an effort to unlock their potential and make sure they never want to go to a concert with me again.
96. “Pet Sematary” by DJ Quik
I’m fairly confident that I haven’t heard DJ Quik since his last track in one of these lists a few years back. The production on this is a lot of fun.
95. “Jackson” by Cymbals Eat Guitars
I still haven’t heard this!
94. “Out of the Woods” by Taylor Swift
This is a good one, Taylor! It almost makes me want to buy your album, but I’m just too used to things being free.
93. “War on the East Coast” by The New Pornographers
I’m not sure how this happened, but somehow I think this is the first time I’ve heard any song off of this album! What’s becoming of me?
92. “I Don’t Sell Molly No More” by iLoveMakonnen
West coast Makonnen!
91. “Murmurs” by Hundred Waters
I finally got on board with Hundred Waters this year. They’re really something great.
90. “Scum, Rise!” by Protomartyr
Spooky Detroit rock; I’m in! I’m looking forward to seeing them after getting to know them better.
89. “I’m Not Part of Me” by Cloud Nothings
It’s funny to see these songs in sequence considering that they’re playing the High Noon on the same day in January 2015. Moreso than No. 90, I feel I need to do some more homework to adequately enjoy this.
88. “Black Rage (Sketch)” by Lauryn Hill
I like the super-long blurb for this one.
87. “Continental Shelf” by Viet Cong
“Viet Cong” is still a distractingly bad band name, but I can get down with this. RIP Women!!!
86. “Blue Suede” by Vince Staples
I need to spend more time with this guy.
85. “Thievery” by Arca
I somewhat arbitrarily chose this track off of Xen to use on a mixtape, so I feel pretty validated right now.
84. “Bored in the USA” by Father John Misty
Josh Tillman is in such a good place right now. He writes songs like a more wrinkly Mac DeMarco.
83. “Habit” by Ought
I was turned on late to Ought by my Settlers of Catan group, and they’ve become easily one of my most-anticipated SXSW acts. This track is a great one.
82. “Back, Baby” by Jessica Pratt
Man, reading through the last 20 spots on this list has really made me miss booking WUD shows. So many great shows to be produced from these artists!
81. “Faith in Strangers” by Andy Stott
The Hype Williams vocal line always gets me. Bonus: this title comments on some of my post-WUD feelings. Gimme something to believe in!
80. “Dude Incredible” by Shellac
I’ve never listened to Shellac. It sounds like I’d enjoy them a lot, though. This could be the music of old-timey pirates.
79. “In Love With Useless (The Timeless Geometry in the Tradition of Passing)” by A Sunny Day in Glasgow
What an amazing group for preposterous track titles for wonderful songs.
78. “Attak” by Rustie feat. Danny Brown
This is already one of the essential Danny Brown songs.
77. “No Flex Zone” by Rae Sremmurd
For the last few years I’ve done exceedingly poorly at keeping up with even the most popular rap tracks. This is a good one, though, and at least I’m familiar with it.
76. “Do It Again” by Röyksopp / Robyn
Yaaaaaa!!!
75. “Bestial Burden” by Pharmakon
This is a great track, but not as terrific/terrifying as “Body Betrays Itself.” It’d be great to see that one in the top 30 tracks!
74. “Chorus” by Holly Herndon
I like that half the blurb examines another song of Holly’s, because lack of context in this sort of list is inherent and problematic. Good blurb, Grayson!
73. “Asleep” by Makthaverskan
I hadn’t heard this band, and I liked it.
72. “The Singer” by Ty Segall
I hadn’t heard this song, and I liked it.
71. “Sunbathing Animal” by Parquet Courts
Pitchfork continued to give glowing BNT reviews to tracks from Sunbathing Animal after the album was released. It was an interesting thing to see, and I look forward to finding more tracks on this list.
70. “Chasing Time” by Azealia Banks
Augh, I just remembered that I’ve only heard this album once. I’ve fallen so far!
69. “Lifestyle” by Rich Gang
Pretty sure I haven’t heard this yet, but it’s alright!
68. “Clearing” by Grouper
Ah, what a great album this is! This is another track on the mix I just made. The other 2014 tracks from that mix: Panda Bear—“Faces in the Crowd,” TOPS—“Sleeptalker,” Beck—“Wave,” Fennesz—“Paroles,” Sun Kil Moon—“I Watched the Film The Song Remains the Same.” Of those, the one that will actually be on this list: “I Watched the Film The Song Remains the Same.”
67. “Face Down” by White Lung
66. “Words I Don’t Remember” by How to Dress Well
I’m sort of amazed, but somehow I haven’t listened to either of these albums despite really liking these bands’ earlier material and live performances. I will do right by you, White Lung and HtDW! I promise!
65. “The Lord’s Favorite” by Iceage
This new album slays! It is so terrific. I hope to see them again soon.
64. “Goodthing” by Leon Vynehall
Whoa, yeah!
63. “Return” by Eno/Hyde
That we’re at No. 63 and there are still long swaths of tracks I’ve yet to even hear is a pretty good sign that I might not be able even keep up the charade of being “up to date” much longer. This was a lot of fun to hear.
62. “Left, Right” by YG
DJ Mustard is a national treasure!
61. “Fool” by Perfume Genius
Every year that passes brings Perfume Genius closer to the top of my “most anticipated live shows” list. Maybe 2015 will bring me to him!
60. “Picture Me Gone” by Ariel Pink
One of the most SMiLE Ariel Pink tracks I’ve heard. Listening to this song feels like falling into a laundry pile.
59. “Archie, Marry Me” by Alvvays
A striking time capsule from 2009.
58. “Transgender Dysphoria Blues” by Against Me!
+1 for being one of the sweatiest shows I attended this year; this is a great song from a great new direction from a consistently great band.
57. “Try Me” by Dej Loaf
Only heard this recently, in a late-night YouTube sharing session that reminded me that the way to stay up on things is either to spend a lot of time foraging or to just participate in YouTube sharing sessions with the right people.
56. “Fight Night” by Migos
The Migos flow has been such a comforting presence these past two years or so. Reclaim the triplets and adlibs!
55. “i” by Kendrick Lamar
Possibly the only song on this list that I heard for the first time on the radio.
54. “Inside Out” by Spoon
Camouflaged in what could be too consistent an oeuvre. These guys are such a cool band.
53. “Interference Fits” by Perfect Pussy
How does one select this song over others? A question I have often on these lists—this sort of selection is solid given the album’s rightful merit, but unclear in its justification over its peers.
52. “Delorean Dynamite” by Todd Terje
This is perhaps the first track in the list I find appallingly underrated. No. 52? I’m hoping for both “Johnny and Mary” and another upbeat track in the top 50.
51. “I Am Not Afraid” by Owen Pallett
God, this is so dreamy!
50. “Style” by Taylor Swift
Pitchfork’s tired refusal to review Taylor Swift’s albums despite a consistent inclusion of her tracks in their end-of-year lists is one of the more baffling aspects of the site’s flirtation with pop reporting. Stop pretending you don’t care!
49. “Blockbuster Night Pt. 1” by Run the Jewels
One of the 11 best tracks on this album. There’d better be two more coming—I’d be surprised if “Count” isn’t a top 15 track.
48. “Gunshot” by Lykke Li
I don’t think I’ve heard this album yet!
47. “Says” by Nils Frahm
I really don’t know anything about Nils Frahm. This is really great to hear, though.
46. “In the House of Yes” by Mr Twin Sister
So groovy! I’m really glad this band is back.
45. “Put Your Number in My Phone” by Ariel Pink
I’m pretty surprised this isn’t much higher on this list.
44. “Lights Out” by Angel Olsen
I like this, but still don’t feel passionately about Angel Olsen. Maybe next year!
43. “Love Me Harder” by Ariana Grande feat. The Weeknd
One of the most predictable 2014 stars. Good work, AG!
42. “Prince Johnny” by St. Vincent
So crispy!
41. “An Ocean in Between the Waves” by The War on Drugs
All three of the first tracks on this album had better be on this list. “Red Eyes” should definitely be a top 5 pick!
40. “Tough Love” by Jessie Ware
Snoozy!
39. “Talking Backwards” by Real Estate
Swoooooooon.
38. “Hot Neighbor” by Bobby Shmurda
OK!
37. “Boom Clap” by Charli XCX
Despite hearing this many times in various places, I had no idea this was Charli XCX. I think that is a good sign for Charli XCX’s career? I think?
36. “Passing Out Pieces” by Mac DeMarco
Such a wonderfully fat song! It’s got the best heavy trod. Did this really come out this year?
35. “Pendulum” by FKA twigs
You know? (You don’t.) I haven’t really listened to this album enough to be familiar with many individual songs, as I am now realizing. This song sounds like LP1, though, and I like LP1, so I like this.
34. “True Love” by Tobias Jesso Jr.
Whoa!! Where did this come from? I am really into this one.
33. “Problem” by Ariana Grande feat. Iggy Azalea
I had forgotten about this one. No. 33’s a fair ranking, though. It is somewhat of a Top 40 triumph.
32. “Oxygen” by Swans
A true triumph, this is my song of the year. No. 32 is passable, but still a big upset in my mind/predictions.
31. “minipops 67 [120.2][source field mix]” by Aphex Twin
This is a very high ranking of the album’s lead single. A bit suspect (is it really that great? I haven’t decided either way).
30. “Beautiful” by A. G. Cook
YES! PC Music Trance. such a good ‘un!
29. “Do You” by Spoon
Yeah! This is a great spot for this track. I’m glad it wasn’t snubbed.
28. “Holding” by Grouper
Another one I wasn’t expecting! This is great. I’m happy to see her up in the 20s.
27. “Your Love is Killing Me” by Sharon Van Etten
Man, how did so many artists that came from the early 2010s release great, sweeping tracks this year without my noticing?
26. “Partition” by Beyoncé
Oh ‘yoncé! Historically, this sort of placement is key in throwing me off (see: Drake / Vamp Weekend tracks last year). Is this their top pick from this album? After reading the blurb, it’s pretty hard to say. Could there be a 2014 tracks list without “Drunk in Love”??
25. “Down on My Luck” by Vic Mensa
Yaaaaaaa.
24. “Digital Witness” by St. Vincent
This is great. I haven’t thought about this much as an individual track (or looked into its lyrics) but I see myself enjoying this even more as I give the record more attention, as I’ll inevitably do in 2015.
23. “Never Catch Me” by Flying Lotus feat. Kendrick Lamar
A solid pick from this album. That said, I feel like the brilliance of Flying Lotus is often under-reported in hip hop journalism, and including his track with Kendrick makes this feel a bit more like Kendrick’s the one getting the No. 23 slot here.
22. “Don’t Wanna Lose” by Ex Hex
Ex Hex had better not end up being a one-off, as Wild Flag was. We need more of this!
21. “Lemonade” / “Hard” by SOPHIE
While listing two songs in one slot screams “cop out,” I feel like I get this. They’re elevated in each other’s context, and they’re both so darn great it’s hard to choose one or the other.
Alright. I didn’t do too well on this last year, but I’m feeling pretty good about my predictions for the top 20 slots. Here are the songs I suspect will fill P4K’s top 20 songs, with a bonus reserve of 10 backups:
Parquet Courts—“Instant Disassembly”
Hannah Diamond—“Every Night”
Ben Frost—“Venter”
Real Estate—“Crime”
Frankie Cosmos—“Birthday Song”
FKA twigs—“Video Girl”
“Body Betrays Itself”
Sheer Mag—“What You Want”
Burial—“Come Down to Us” (snubbed last year—on this year’s list????)
Sia—“Chandelier”
20. Swans—“A Little God in My Hands”
19. Todd Terje—“Johnny and Mary”
18. Vince Staples—“Limos”
17. Tinashe feat. ASAP Rocky—“Pretend”
16. Lil B—“No Black Person is Ugly”
15. Mas Ysa—“Shame”
14. Perfume Genius—“Queen”
13. Panda Bear—“Mr Noah”
12. “Shmoney Dance”
11. Sleater Kinney—“Bury Our Friends”
10. Future—“Move That Dope”
9. Run the Jewels—“Close Your Eyes”
8. Young Thug—“Danny Glover”
7. SKM—“Song Remains the Same”
6. QT—“Hey QT”
5. Caribou—“Can’t Do Without You”
4. Beyoncé—“Flawless” (or “XO” or “Drunk in Love” or “7/11”)
3. The War on Drugs—“Red Eyes”
2. iLoveMakonnen—“Tuesday”
1. FKA twigs—“Two Weeks”
20. “Boss Ass Bitch (Remix)” by Nicki Minaj feat. PTAF
Wups, forgot about Nicki Minaj.
19. “Carissa” by Sun Kil Moon
Hmmmmm. This is what my friend Will said would be on the list. It’s No. 19, though—I feel like that secures a SKM track in the top 10.
18. “Mr Noah” by Panda Bear
This is soooooo goooooooooood. I can’t wait for the album!
17. “2 On” by Tinashe feat. ScHoolboy Q
Aah! I guessed the wrong Tinashe track. W/E dude. This is a better pick, anyhow.
16. “Stoner” by Young Thug
Aaah! I guessed the wrong Young Thug track. W/E dude. This is a better pick, anyhow.
OW, that hurt—one out of five, and even that 20 percent was five off. Re-ranking:
15. Todd Terje—“Johnny and Mary”
14. Lil B—“No Black Person is Ugly”
13. Mas Ysa—“Shame”
12. Perfume Genius—“Queen”
11. “Shmoney Dance”
10. Sleater Kinney—“Bury Our Friends” (is this too destined for next year’s list?)
9. Future—“Move That Dope”
8. Run the Jewels—“Close Your Eyes”
7. Sun Kil Moon—“Song Remains the Same” (still holding out on this)
6. QT—“Hey QT”
5. Caribou—“Can’t Do Without You”
4. Beyoncé—“Flawless” (or “XO” or “Drunk in Love” or “7/11”)
3. The War on Drugs—“Red Eyes”
2. iLoveMakonnen—“Tuesday”
1. FKA twigs—“Two Weeks”
15. “No Black Person is Ugly” by Lil B
Yes!!! Thank you Lil B for giving me something to believe in
14. “Hey QT” by QT
I guess No. 6 was pretty ambitious for this song. Looking back at old lists, most top-ranking QT-like songs were in the 11-20 range.
13. “Johnny and Mary” by Todd Terje feat. Bryan Ferry (Robert Palmer cover)
Hey hey! Things are getting better (for my guesses and also for the songs listed)
12. “0 to 100 / The Catch Up” by Drake
LEAVE IT TO DRAKE to come out of nowhere (OK, I get it—he and this song is everywhere and it’s my fault) and foil my attempts to get a hold on what’s quality these days.
11. “On the Regular” by Shamir
Iiiiiiiiiiinteresting. This one just narrowly missed my 21-30 “reserve” despite the fact that I don’t really know it well. Maybe, then, Shamir will be for me next year what Sophie was this year—an artist I more or less fell in love with after I listened to him the first time when he popped up out of nowhere in this list exercise.
A little bit better (3/5) but at this point I couldn’t be surprised more than another time or two, right???? I’m going to reluctantly take out the “Shmoney Dance” and Perfume Genius. Waah! I hope I’m proved wrong on this.
10. Mas Ysa—“Shame”
9. Sleater Kinney—“Bury Our Friends”
8. Future—“Move That Dope”
7. Run the Jewels—“Close Your Eyes”
6. Sun Kil Moon—“Song Remains the Same”
5. Caribou—“Can’t Do Without You”
4. Beyoncé—“Flawless” (or “XO” or “Drunk in Love” or “7/11”)
3. The War on Drugs—“Red Eyes”
2. iLoveMakonnen—“Tuesday”
1. FKA twigs—“Two Weeks”
Here we go:
10. “Love Never Felt So Good (Original Version)” by Michael Jackson
LOL. Not sure this is fair, but whatever.
9. “Move That Dope” by Future feat. Pharrell, Pusha T, and Casino
Off by only one in my original ranking! Not bad.
8. “Queen” by Perfume Genius
Yay! This is good. Six off from my initial ranking, but I’m relived to see PG here after Pitchfork’s appalling snub of “Hood” in their end of year tracks list.
7. “***Flawless” by Beyoncé feat. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi
Yes!! Three off in the initial ranking. I’m not sure if I can keep her in my ranking for the top 5. We’ll see when we get there.
6. “Close Your Eyes (And Count to Fuck)” by Run the Jewels feat. Zack De La Rocha
Yes! Three spots off in the initial ranking as well. This is a “real barn burner.”
Re-ranking the top 5, dropping Sleater Kinney (see you on this list next year!), Mas Ysa, and Sun Kil Moon (I want to drop Beyoncé to keep it in the ranking, but it’d be risky move):
5. Caribou—“Can’t Do Without You”
4. The War on Drugs—“Red Eyes”
3. Beyoncé—“Drunk in Love”
2. iLoveMakonnen—“Tuesday”
1. FKA twigs—“Two Weeks”
5. “Red Eyes” by The War on Drugs
WOOOOOOOO! For those keeping track at home, this blurb is where P4K makes a nod to the WoD/SKM garbage tossing. I knew it’d happen, even though I really wanted it to not come up. (two spots off in original 30; one off in last five)
4. “Can’t Do Without You” by Caribou
Mmmm!!! So good. (One spot off in original 30; one off in last five). These last five have been fairly solid (though I wasn’t sure which Beyoncé track to rank highest) since the beginning—I’m still confident about including “Tuesday” and “Two Weeks,” but I’m not sure about the third and its placement.
3. “Two Weeks” by FKA twigs
OH GOD!!!! This is not what I wanted. Now I have no idea what to put in the mystery slot. I’m going to stick with Beyoncé, because to put “Song Remains the Same” and “Tuesday” as No. 1 or No. 2 would just be too good. That said, it’s as possible as ever that something will come out of nowhere at me, like Drake did last year. (Two spots off in the original 30 and in the last five.)
2. “Club Goin Up on a Tuesday” by iLoveMakonnen feat. Drake
This is such a beautiful ranking. 10/10, perfect track. (Zero spots off in the original 30 and last five.)
Uuuuuuuuuuuugh—if it’s not Beyoncé, I have no idea what to think about anything any more.
1. “Seasons (Waiting on You)” by Future Islands
WOW. If you would have asked me what 2014’s top song was at any point this year, even(/especially!) in January, I would have given this answer with no hesitation. A funny thing happens when you make lists like this, though—it’s easy to focus on things in front of you without realizing what you’d missed. In this instance, “Seasons” by Future Islands somehow wasn’t one of the 60 songs I wrote down for the long list of 30 candidates for top 20, so I didn’t include it in any of my calculations or anticipations. I feel a strong temptation to just edit all of my answers to include it here, at the first place spot where it obviously belongs. I also feel a strong temptation to just not publish this dumb post. That said, it’s whatever, so here it is, as an act of public self-shaming: I’m a big ol dummy, and I’ve been waiting on you!