2015 in Music [100 Tracks; 50 Albums]

[Shaun]

http://i.imgur.com/p6yvCbr.png

You bet your ass you're excited.

[Locke.]

You posted so many, I don't know where to start

[LukeB]

Looking forward to this tbh

[Tom4784]

:clap1:

[Shaun]

We start with...

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

This was a little tougher to come up with since it's been a relatively subdued year for singles and hits, having been dominated by probably like, 10 of them for the whole of 2015. But I've come up with 100 tracks that are definitely worth a listen. So here are the first ten.

#100 - "Weathered" by Jack Garratt
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2016 seems like it's going to be dominated by this chap (perhaps, if we're lucky, in not such a tedious way as 2014 was by Sam Smith); he's won the BRITS Critics' Choice Award already, and is more than likely going to snatch the BBC's Sound of 2016 one too, which basically means "labels are paying a lot of money to make sure he's shoved down your throats". But if the songs are as nice and pleasant and serene as this then by all means go for it (whilst I probably look elsewhere).

#99 - "Firebird" by Galantis
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Obviously they've had two other tracks go stratospheric in 2015 (and one of them will feature in this list later on), but the album is equally solid and this may be one of the best cuts from it.

#98 - "Beauty Never Lies" by Bojana Stamenov
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In a terrible year for Eurovision, one plus-sized goddess brought in a bit of fun and saved it from being a total waste of time.

#97 - "Remedy" by Adele
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Sadly the actual thing isn't on YouTube but I'm fairly sure it's not that difficult to listen to an Adele song nowadays. Obviously anything she releases is immediately "pretty" and "lovely" and "emotional" but this seems one of the best on 25.

#96 - "Me & the Rhythm" by Selena Gomez
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Whilst everyone goes a bit potty over that kinda bland lead single with A$AP Rocky, I'll be over here rolling around seductively to this x

#95 - "Joan of Arc" by Madonna
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Spoiler: her album doesn't make my top 50. It was still too try-hard, still too wont of jumping aboard popular trends and producers and just a little bit too shrill and irritating sometimes. She sounds best now when vulnerable and honest like on this.

#94 - "Bang That" by Disclosure
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The first teaser of 'Caracal' was probably their loudest and most direct-to-dancefloor offering to come, which understandably disappointed a few, but never mind.

#93 - "When the Beat Drops Out" by Marlon Roudette
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The COL1 anthem. More steel drums everywhere please.

#92 - "Daffodils" by Mark Ronson & Kevin Parker
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Obviously nothing was going to follow the chart domination of Uptown Funk in the same vein, so why not go for a slow groove with the lead singer of the coolest psychedelic band around?

#91 - "Love Myself" by Hailee Steinfeld
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It has a great chorus, she looks a bit alright, and IT'S ABOUT MASTURBATION. Sorry.

[reece(:]

Me & the Rhythm :love:

[T*]

Love that logo!!

[T*]

Bonanza!!!!

[T*]

Bojana**!!!

[Pete.]

Not Joan of Arc

[Shaun]

Next up...

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

#90 - "The Wolf" by Mumford & Sons
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Album-wise they've gone a little bit down the toilet, but Wilder Mind still had two stand-out singles that have both made the list.

#89 - "Yoga" by Janelle Monáe & Jidenna
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There was definitely a sense that this was 'selling out' a bit for Janelle, who's more likely to release orchestral pieces than a trap single, but it has the lyric "get off my areola" so that's fine.

#88 - "Trap Queen" by Fetty Wap
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I don't think I'd ever choose to listen to it ahead of whatever else is on offer, but it's super-catchy and inescapable so I had to include it I suppose.

#87 - "Art Deco" by Lana del Rey
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I continue to rapidly lose interest in Lana del Rey, but this was one of the few tracks on Honeymoon that was well-produced and stood out from the rest of her usual breathy nonsense.

#86 - "Dumb" by Jazmine Sullivan & Meek Mill
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It sounds pretty powerful on all levels - her voice, the lyrics, the beat, the dark backing vocals - and kicked off her album finely.

#85 - "Something in the Way You Move" by Ellie Goulding
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WHY THE HELL...would you release 'On My Mind' as lead single when you had this in the bag? Why would you record 'On My Mind' at all? What a sack of ****.

#84 - "All That" by Carly Rae Jepsen
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Much of the album was bangers like...well, the singles that are obviously going to feature highly in this list... but this was a lovely, Dev Hynes-produced chilled bit in the middle that made the sugar highs subside for a while.

#83 - "Losers" by The Weeknd & Labrinth
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One of the album highlights. I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of Labrinth being in my list either.

#82 - "Julian" by Say Lou Lou
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In an alternate timeline, 2015 was dominated by Say Lou Lou and everyone is now comparing pencil cases with the two girls' faces emblazoned on them, and getting into arguments about whether or not they're better than the Spice Girls. In this one, they flopped hard and that's just unfair.

#81 - "How Hard I Try" by Filous & James Hersey
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It is super pretty and that is enough.

[Samm]

Art Deco is top 5

[Shaun]

is it though

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

#80 - "Emergency" by Icona Pop
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Had this smashed, like it should have, I may have placed it higher. Instead, I'll cram it in here and expect everyone to ignore it again. At least it made FIFA 16 a bit more fun.

#79 - "St. Jude" by Florence + the Machine
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Her videos for this campaign have been bloody fantastic. The songs have, too, and this is one of three to make the list. It's just lovely.

#78 - "King" by Years & Years
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Another COL1 anthem, that sadly became a bit overplayed and tedious. For the brief few months where it was fresh and exciting, it makes this list.

#77 - "Call It Off" by Shamir
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Wasn't quite as instantly grabbing as 'On the Regular' was, but still super-catchy and a bit of an indie disco LCD Soundsystem vibe going about it that's just always excellent.

#76 - "Go" by The Chemical Brothers
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Otherwise known as that good song with the annoying smug dancer on the PS4 adverts.

#75 - "Bodyache" by Purity Ring
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This is the first time I've seen the video for this and I'm a little bit disturbed if I'm honest. The song is nice.

#74 - "Borders" by M.I.A.
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(Has she stopped doing these silly MATAHDATAH scroll things yet? Is she actually putting out another album soon? idk) If you fancy losing faith in humanity read the comments on this. Apparently white genocide is a thing. Ha ha ha ha ha ha.

#73 - "Where the Sky Hangs" by Passion Pit
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Extremely pretty and lovely and yes download it or something idk

#72 - "Stole the Show" by Kygo & Parson James
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Imagine how much better this would have been if Kygo'd gotten Will Young for the vocal instead of some blatant soundalike? Year-defining, I reckon.

#71 - "Lighthouse" by G.R.L.
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Just, obviously very moving and poignant and sadly the last thing we'll hear from them as "G.R.L." A straightforward, simple song but most likely a very difficult one to record.

[Amy Jade]

Love Myself should be way higher imo

[Smithy]

Expecting to see a lot more Carlegend Slay Jepsaint in this countdown :flutter:

[Shaun]

A block of twenty now because this is taking its damn time isn't it

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

#70 - "Nobody Love" by Tori Kelly
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It sounds like it's been sent into the future from 2004 to snatch some wigs and so on. Imagine a Christina Aguilera comeback with this song. How beautiful.

#69 - "FourFiveSeconds" by Rihanna, Kanye West & Paul McCartney
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"Hated it at first, slowly grew on me much to my chagrin, and now I quite like it" is pretty much my reaction to every Rihanna single post-Loud, and it doesn't always go down that path (it often stalls with "hated it", like American Oxygen/BBHMM), but this is a nice change of pace for Rihanna and ultimately quite catchy.

#68 - "Know Yourself" by Drake
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Much nicer than 'Hotline Bling'. Still some way to go in topping 'Hold On, We're Going Home', though.

#67 - "Glitterball" by Sigma & Ella Henderson
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Probably Sigma's best song yet. Somehow not Ella Henderson's best song. What a world we live in.

#66 - "Mountain at my Gates" by Foals
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I have still never downloaded a Foals album and the late discovery of this song this year may well have to change that.

#65 - "Hurt Me" by Låpsley
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Shura seems to be taking her sweet time in releasing a debut album so this will have to tide me over. Very very very very nice.

#64 - "The Less I Know the Better" by Tame Impala
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It does seem impossible for this band to release something I am not impressed by, and yet I would probably list about 40 bands I enjoy before I got to remembering them. And for that I apologise, Tame Impala. Oh and this video has cunnilingus in it so there's that.

#63 - "Where Are Ü Now" by Diplo, Skrillex & Justin Bieber
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The first sign that 2015 would be Bieber's year. A rather good video, too.

#62 - "I'm Yours" by Alessia Cara
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The album's already out, so I can't quite see her creeping into the BBC's top five on their usual out-of-touch "Sound Of 2016" nonsense. Which is a shame, because it's full of excellent pop songs and this is one of them. Maybe she'll get a bigger video budget though.

#61 - "Omen" by Disclosure & Sam Smith
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Wasn't quite the epic as 'Latch' was but that's not to say it was thoroughly unenjoyable. It just took a couple of listens to enjoy.

#60 - "Huarache Lights" by Hot Chip
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Bit odd. Bit groovy.

#59 - "L$D" by A$AP Rocky
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Makes the list just for the whole "Marks & Spencer advert" vibe going on at the start. The rest doesn't quite stay on that message but it's just as nice.

#58 - "Runnin' (Lose It All)" by Naughty Boy, Arrow Benjamin & Some Girl Called Beyoncé
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She has some nerve, dropping all of these vocals and albums without any notice. September had every right to pass by uneventfully but then this gorgeous masterpiece pops up and everyone gradually warms to it and it stays in the top ten forever. As things should be.

#57 - "Make Them Gold" by CHVRCHES
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Apparently YouTube doesn't believe in allowing actual audio files of the year's best synthpop tracks stay online so here's a live performance instead.

#56 - "Love Me Like You Do" by Ellie Goulding
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If she'd just launched this as the lead single of her 'Delirium' campaign it might not have been such a damp squib. Instead, it came 6 months prior and soundtracking a terrible movie. Oh well. It's strong enough to be forgiven.

#55 - "I Can Change" by Brandon Flowers
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I think it's actually written into law somewhere that Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy" must be reworked into a new pop song every year. And I have no problem with that. Especially if Neil Tennant (of the Pet Shop Boys) makes a cameo.

#54 - "The Hills" by The Weeknd
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Imagine if you could do this after having just been a car accident.

#53 - "Right Here, Right Now" by Giorgio Moroder & Kylie Minogue
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It probably wasn't very likely that the Chemical Brothers would be overtaken in having "the best song called Right Here, Right Now", but by god they have done it.

#52 - "Your Type" by Carly Rae Jepsen
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Just excellence.

#51 - "Treasured Soul" by Michael Calfan
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"Yes let's just ignore the most summery-sounding excellent dance single of the summer and put David Zowie in at number 1", said some very ****ing stupid people in the middle of the year.

[Shaun]

Let us bravely venture into the top half. With another twenty. Because I need to hurry this up. :inamood:

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

#50 - "Believe" by Mumford & Sons
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After the snoozefest that was Babel, it was incredibly unlikely that the band would release something this year that caught my interest. This did and then some - it's soppy, overblown and wildly sentimental but that is just what the doctor ordered sometimes :hee:

#49 - "Rebel" by Sharks
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It says a lot when even Icona Pop's career looks more promising than theirs. At least they're throwing bop after bop out, and this was the most fun of the lot.

#48 - "Love Me Like You" by Little Mix
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Even if it owes 90% of its appeal to the Ronettes, this is still bloody lovely. Plus the bit where they start off by making you think they're about to say "cock" in a pop song is a bit shocking isn't it.

#47 - "Want to Want Me" by Jason Derulo
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It was everywhere and inevitably going to stick (and much less irritating than Trumpets/Talk Dirty). Probably his best yet. Sorry 'It Girl'.

#46 - "Delilah" by Florence + the Machine
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Sometimes she takes herself so seriously that you begin to worry she's never going to release something as fun and catchy as 'Dog Days Are Over' again. Thankfully, 'Delilah' came along and put those fears to bed.

#45 - "Turn the Music Louder (Rumble)" by KDA, Tinie Tempah & Katy B
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Ultimately this makes the list because of Katy B, obviously, but I suppose the other two are helping out however they can.

#44 - "Cowboy Guilt" by Torres
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The actual thing is a lot heavier than this but yes she's too unknown for studio-quality YouTube videos I guess.

#43 - "Figure 8" by FKA twigs
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Ugh she's the best thing to happen in 2014.

#42 - "Stonemilker" by Björk
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I may be losing everyone's interest bar Scott's now by putting her straight after FKA twigs so let's mix things up a bit.

#41 - "Cool for the Summer" by Demi Lovato
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In a year of surprising pop evolutions, Demi's might not have been the most noticeable but going to this from Skyscraper/whatever else she was doing, is nothing short of a miracle. And what a bloody video.

#40 - "Lonely Town" by Brandon Flowers
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Thus ends my campaign to shove Brandon Flowers' solo career down your throats.

#39 - "Begin Again" by Purity Ring
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<3

#38 - "Easy Love" by Sigala
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Generally, whenever a classic soul/disco song is reworked into something current, I detest it. See: Philip George. This, however, was inspired and a fresh lease of life on one of the best pop songs of all time.

#37 - "Powerful" by Major Lazer, Tarrus Riley & Ellie Goulding
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Not terribly sure why this hasn't smashed the charts but such is the world we live in.

#36 - "Sweet Escape" by Alesso & Sirena
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In my spare time I cut out pictures of Zayn Malik on Photoshop and impose them onto photos of me with friends and imagine myself running away with him to this song and now you don't even know if I'm joking.

#35 - "I Know There's Gonna Be (Good Times)" by Jamie xx, Young Thug & Popcaan
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Realistically everything from his album could make my top ten at some point in alternate timelines but we'll show restraint for a bit and just pretend this is "only 35th".

#34 - "Genocide" by Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Marsha Ambrosius & Candice Pillay
Frustratingly only on Apple Music so no YouTube video I'm afraid.

#33 - "Kill v. Maim" by Grimes
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> careers

#32 - "Firestone" by Kygo & Conrad Sewell
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Didn't really make any impact on me the first two or three times I heard it but it's been the biggest sleeper hit of the year for me.

#31 - "Someday at Christmas" by Stevie Wonder & Andra Day
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The best thing released at Christmas time since Coldplay's "Christmas Lights".

[Pete.]

Cool for the Summer forever underrated?

[Z]

Gonna check all the ones I don't know out tomorrow <3

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

i love these countdowns :flutter:

[Tom4784]

:clap1:

[Z]

I've spent most of today listening to pretty much every song on the countdown so far because it turns out I was asleep for most of 2015. Bravo sir

[Z]

FKA Twigs is the musical equivalent of walking into an art gallery and seeing a canvas that has been painted entirely red and being sold for £1,000,000 and everyone is fawning over it talking about how incredible it is and I'm just standing there like but it's a ****ing red bit of canvas??????? Do not get it. At all.

[Shaun]

Leave

[Z]

Leave

No. Not until someone explains to me why she's so rated?! I watched that performance in the spoiler above and I just sat there thinking this is utter ****e

[Black Dagger]

Leave

Drag ha

[Z]

Drag ha

FKA my friend Lucas

[Black Dagger]

Bit forward!

[Z]

Bit forward!

http://s2.quickmeme.com/img/29/29400906864463534892eba62acd68b166d1b083df61ba77f9 11180a63973378.jpg

[Shaun]

Another twenty before I kick off the top ten and get you all very very excited.

http://i.imgur.com/0OLlgCH.png

#30 - "Lush Life" by Zara Larsson
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This has technically not yet been released in the UK, and given her slow-burning success on that MNEK track you would think that a song this excellent will also (eventually) smash, but I am feeling pessimistic. Perhaps it's too summery for this time of year. Perhaps people won't care about a Swedish popstar as much as they should (see: Robyn, Icona Pop). Perhaps people are terrible.

#29 - "Kiss & Tell" by Ciara
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I don't think this was even a single. What the ****, Ciara? This is probably the 2nd best thing she's ever done (after Body Party).

#28 - "Kamikaze" by MØ
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In what was the year's best "you scratch our back, we'll scratch yours" moment, the ever-unGooglable MØ managed to secure an excellent Diplo production in return for her feature on the song of the summer. It doesn't seem to be shifting records at all but then what does?

#27 - "Body Talk" by Foxes
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When she appeared as an uncredited singer in Doctor Who, after a pretty dull debut album campaign, I pretty much wrote her off entirely. Then she goes and has one of 2015's famous pop turn-arounds. It's not quite the miracle Drew is trying to make it out to be but it is pretty bloody good.

#26 - "Runaway (U & I)" by Galantis
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I get to be a bit smarmy here and say that I remember hearing its debut play on Radio 1 and instantly loved it and beat everyone to it, sorry, so go home. Obviously, Jack_ had already made a thread about it a month before, so I can't boast too much. This is a bit of an anthem isn't it.

#25 - "No More Tangles" by John Grant
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No studio copy on YouTube, smh. It contains the lyric "no more tangles, no more tears, no more reindeer games from narcissistic queers", which really is my approach to TiBB lately.

#24 - "Pretend" by Seinabo Sey
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If someone were to ask me "what is your thing, Shaun?", my answer would be "this sort of dark-pop (the defining song of which was V V Brown's "The Apple"), tied into a music video in my head that consists of voguing all over the place with a girlfriend like a scene from Broad City." And, what do you have it, that thing exists! And it is ****ing fantastic.

#23 - "Fourth of July" by Sufjan Stevens
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So the whole of his album this year was about the death of his mother, and this song seemed the most moving lyrically - it documents being with her as she died, and is just a terribly sad blend of childhood sentiment and bleak grief. At the same time, it's quite beautiful (the idea of someone nicknaming their son "my little Versailles"). For personal reasons (the other parent), it stuck with me.

#22 - "Jealous" by Nick Jonas
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Again - never expected to enjoy something done by a Jonas Brother (unless it was a scene from his TV show where he's ****ing a bloke, obviously), and yet here we are. I hear the remix is better but who has the time? The standard is more than fine.

#21 - "Leave A Trace" by CHVRCHES
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I'm not entirely convinced this is my favourite track on the record, it's probably just the one I've heard the most and therefore will remember the most. That said, what a lovely memory.

#20 - "Black Lake" by Björk
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I can occasionally be a sucker for some dramatic strings.

#19 - "I Really Like You" by Carly Rae Jepsen
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Even I, a man who makes very few mistakes, can initially hate a song that turns out to be excellent. "6 reallys? How dumb!" I sneered, before delving into something a bit pretentious (probably). Then Tom Hanks happened and questions were raised, it begun to stick around in my head, and by listen number 10 it became a case of "how long until it's listen 100?" Answer: not very long at all. This song has ruined lives with how good it is.

#18 - "Baby Love" by Petite Meller
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Every year the UK tends to adopt a European pop song that it will briefly fall in love with but not enough for it to be a hit. Last year was Saint Motel, this year was this. The video is striking in terms of appearance, choreography and setting, but the song is just incredibly uplifting and catchy.

#17 - "WTF (Where They From)" by Missy Elliott & Pharrell Williams
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The best (and most unexpected, really) comeback of the year. The music video is as daring and dazzling as they always are from Missy, her choreography is still on point, and the Miley Cyrus shade is real. The Pharrell bit lets it down a tad, but if that saves it from being a total flop then no worries.

#16 - "Coffee" by Miguel
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The uncensored version has the subtitle "(****ing)", and it's not really hard to see why. There probably isn't a man making sexier music right now than Miguel.

#15 - "Let It Happen" by Tame Impala
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It's hard to nail the middle ground between "catchy" and "trippy" but Tame Impala are pretty much the best at it. It's eerie, moody, unsettling and marvellous.

#14 - "The Scene Between" by The Go! Team
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With every The Go! Team album comes an underrated, incredibly cheerful-sounding lead single that just seems to make every worry seem immaterial. The video is cute too. In a "VHS tape advocating you joining their environmentalist cult" way.

#13 - "Flesh Without Blood" by Grimes
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Well it's in my avatar and signature for a reason. After a brief moment of worry that she'd sell out and go for the trap route as she did on 'Go', she returns with a more Grimesy killer track (that is to say: it's weird, the vocals are difficult to pick up, and the backing is bewitching).

#12 - "Love Me Badder" by Elliphant
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A lot of songs were released this year that were intentionally written for Rihanna. Her rejecting this (along with Zara Larsson's "Lush Life") may just well be the worst decision she's ever made. Granted: there is still room for Elliphant to "do an Iggy" and become super-entitled, dumb and annoying in her rise to fame (along with some tiring "She's white why has she got a patois accent?" comments I'm sure), but so long as this the output from her I am a fan.

#11 - "What Kind of Man" by Florence + the Machine
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Listening to this on headphones (whilst, presumably doing something mundane like the shopping) turns everything into a frightening music video in your head. Or maybe just mine. But when the drums and guitar kick in after the intro it just becomes phenomenal. This would be an excellent lip-sync for your life on Drag Race.

[Shaun]

Right then. Let's do this.

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#10 - "When We Were Young" - Adele
Obviously, 'Hello' was the big hit and a pretty excellent comeback but seemed to be missing something. It was big and overstated and windswept and exciting, but I generally prefer my Adele to be sombre and understated and reflective. This was the best side of that Adele on '25' and might just be her best song yet.

[Shaun]

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#9 - "Sorry" - Justin Bieber
It may be quite telling that the best Justin Bieber song doesn't actually have him in its video. Whilst he is still a bit of a prize tit from time to time, as most popstars are, this is still the best #1 single of the year and there isn't really any arguing against it.

[Shaun]

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#8 - "Lifted Up (1985)" - Passion Pit
The critics kinda turned their backs on Passion Pit this year which is a little bit baffling since the album was of almost equal quality to their other two. They are probably the best at producing joyous electro/pop music and I shall heart them forever.

(feel free to actually comment that makes this seem much less pointless)

[Smithy]

WWWY > Sorry tho :worry:

[Black Dagger]

Passion Pit make me realise life is worth living.

[Shaun]

(I understand smithy </3)

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#7 - "The Blacker the Berry" - Kendrick Lamar
(Sadly not on UK YouTube which is a recurring theme)
It's excellently produced, viciously political and another compelling series of voices and thoughts from the best man in hip hop right now :clap2: (I say this as if I'm super-informed on hip hop don't I?)

[Shaun]

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#6 - "Strange Hellos" - Torres
On the face of it this sounds like the average output of Hole in the mid-90s and that is a fair comparison: it's angry, it's grungey and it's very female, but there's something about the lyrics that's just super dark and nasty and fun. The introduction - where she references a bitch she hates having a mum whose illness means she forgets her name, the kind of "taking off my earrings" lines in the chorus, but most of all the screaming towards the end just make it powerful.

[Shaun]

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#5 - "Realiti" - Grimes
I'm not sure if I prefer this version or the album's (which has a slightly longer intro and a generally bouncier vibe to it), but I do know that I prefer it to Flesh Without Blood. The chorus in particular - with her singing about climbing mountains as the music does just that - flows amazingly and just showcases her ability to make something both catchy and confusing.

[EspeonBB]

I prefer Flesh Without Blood but both are holy songs so :clap2:

[Shaun]

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#4 - "Here" - Alessia Cara
It was a sleeper hit in the US and it looks set to do the same, uh, here. It's sitting pretty at #36 on iTunes right now and I would hope it should eventually chart at somewhere mildly satisfying like "#15". The Portishead sample (which itself was a sample) is inspired and the perfect cool backdrop to an endless flow of everything that is wrong with house parties (and I hope you're taking notes Locke, because this will be me this time next week - "next to the boy who's throwing up 'cause he can't take what's in his cup no more".) It'd sound whiney but she luckily possesses a gorgeous voice.

[Shaun]

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#3 - "No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross" - Sufjan Stevens
For a while this was the only real candidate for song of the year for me (and I accept that on TiBB this won't be a popular sentiment). For me I guess the track is about being unable to find comfort in his religion (he's quite Christian I believe), or anything in particular, when his mum died. It's kinda blunt by Sufjan standards - the whole "**** me, I'm falling apart" bit is a touch surprising - but the whole classic, simple, pure nature of the track is lovely.

[Shaun]

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#2 - "Run Away With Me" - Carly Rae Jepsen
I would imagine that even ABBA can no longer sleep at night knowing that they didn't write this pop masterpiece first. It is just excellent. That 80s throwback saxophone caving into a mellow foot-tapping verse that just builds and builds into that chorus? With lyrics that adorable? Ridiculous.

[Ninastar]

-wets pants-

[AProducer'sWetDream]

:flutter: No.1 must be mind blowing to topple this under-rated (thankfully not on this forum) masterpiece.

[Shaun]

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#1 - "Loud Places" - Jamie xx & Romy
In the absence of a proper 'The xx' comeback (even their second album falls drastically short of this track's standards), the pair teaming up for a couple of tracks on his excellent solo album this year was a very nice remedy indeed. Her voice on this is probably the most calming thing I have ever heard, and the whole way it just rattles along with bottles clinking against each other, a small brush of house music influences, and the gradual introduction of a bit of a gospel choir, clapping enthusiastically, just turns the whole thing into a bit of a religious experience for me (which I know is silly but shut up and let me have my fun).

[Ninastar]

ohh i'm listening to that now and i'm loving it on first play :flutter:

[Kizzy]

It reminds me of the everything but the girl 'Missing' a bit :)

[Braden]

I'm copying your music taste from now on, Shaun.

I'm sick of having S Club on repeat.

[Shaun]

Both ways are fine Braden

[Z]

Thank you for doing this Shaun I have as always discovered about a dozen tunes I never knew I needed in my life

[Shaun]

Oh I forgot about this oops erm

http://i.imgur.com/92GJhnr.png

so I'll rush this now yes

#50 - Panda Bear - Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper
#49 - Say Lou Lou - Lucid Dreaming
#48 - Jeremih - Late Nights
#47 - Jess Glynne - I Cry When I Laugh
#46 - Marina and the Diamonds - FROOT
#45 - Madeon - Adventure
#44 - Blur - The Magic Whip
#43 - Roisin Murphy - Hairless Toys
#42 - Major Lazer - Peace is the Mission
#41 - Ciara - Jackie

#40 - Mumford & Sons - Wilder Mind
#39 - Years & Years - Communion
#38 - Hot Chip - Why Make Sense?
#37 - The Weeknd - Beauty Behind the Madness
#36 - Alesso - Forever
#35 - The Chemical Brothers - Born in the Echoes
#34 - Ellie Goulding - Delirium
#33 - Florence + the Machine - How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
#32 - Drake - If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
#31 - FKA Twigs - M3LLI5X

#30 - Galantis - Pharmacy
#29 - Shamir - Ratchet
#28 - A$AP Rocky - At.Long.Last.A$AP
#27 - Jazmine Sullivan - Reality Show
#26 - Justin Bieber - Purpose
#25 - Adele - 25 (lol)
#24 - Giorgio Moroder - Deja Vu
#23 - Alabama Shakes - Sound & Colour
#22 - Seinabo Sey - Pretend
#21 - The Go! Team - The Scene Between

#20 - Indiana - No Romeo
#19 - Tame Impala - Currents
#18 - Mark Ronson - Uptown Special
#17 - Alessia Cara - Know-It-All
#16 - Brandon Flowers - The Desired Effect
#15 - Janet Jackson - Unbreakable
#14 - Disclosure - Caracal
#13 - Purity Ring - Another Eternity
#12 - Miguel - Wildheart
#11 - Torres - Sprinter

#10 - Passion Pit - Kindred
#9 - CHVRCHES - Every Open Eye
#8 - John Grant - Grey Tickles, Black Pressure
#7 - Carly Rae Jepsen - EMOTION
#6 - Jamie xx - In Colour
#5 - Grimes - Art Angels
#4 - Dr. Dre - Compton
#3 - Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell
#2 - Bjork - Vulnicura
#1 - Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly

(I actually ended up listening to 102 albums last year and Laura Marling, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Beach House, Mikal Cronin, Lana del Rey and Madonna all came kinda close to the top 50 but not really close enough... although I haven't actually posted any music reviews this year I just ended up writing down a score I'd give it in a big word file and then just rearranging them in order throughout the year as new albums appeared...)

(And I'm sure there's a whole bunch of others I'd probably like if I bothered to give them the time like Courtney Barnett/Dawn Richard/Father John Misty/etc but oh well)