My 15 favorite songs of 2024
Hey guys. The year is finally ending. I’ve been making lists, refining them, listening to so much stuff in preparation for this month. You can ask my girlfriend, I’ve been looking at my lists every damn day. I’m so excited to go through all my favorite music this year, I’ve paid more attention to new music this year than ever before and I’m so excited to share with y’all about it! It was a great year to be paying attention because so much awesome music came out this year that needs to be discussed. I’m gonna start with my favorite songs of the year, seems like a good place to start. I’ll add YouTube links below each of the song descriptions so you can hear them for yourself!
#15: SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE - “LET THE VIRGIN DRIVE”
Released June 12, 2024 — Neo-psychedelia, indie rock
This sleeper hit was a song that crept into my brain so effortlessly that it was impossible for me to ignore. To familiarize myself with newer music I threw a ton of it onto a playlist that I’d shuffle occasionally. This one popped up once and I was hooked immediately. It’s a super infectious indie-rock anthem that feels like it’s melting in your ears. It’s such a trip the way they take a traditional indie rock song and make it so multidimensional with such experimental mixing and instrumentation, the autotune-laced refrain in the song being a standout attribute. I find the song to be a really accessible song from SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE in comparison to some of their other stuff and one that has really helped me get into the band in general. Major upbeat fun vibes with this song, but also very unsettling at the same time. To me it’s always important that experimental songs like this have a strong foundation of quality songwriting underneath all of the experimentation, and this song is absolutely unique and would be delightful with or without all of its quirkiness. The song serves as a great introduction to the band and their crazy and unpredictable new album YOU’LL HAVE TO LOSE SOMETHING.
SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE - LET THE VIRGIN DRIVE [Official Video]
#14: Clairo - “Juna”
Released July 12, 2024 — Indie-pop, jazz pop
2024 was the year that Clairo earned herself a new fan in Big Al. I had a hard time picking between songs from her recent album Charm because there are so many great ones. Ultimately I landed on “Juna” for lots of reasons. First of all, it’s the first song I heard from the album and is the reason I went and listened to the album at all. Second of all, I consider the song to be a defining moment for Clairo’s career. It seems like Clairo has fully cracked the code structurally, stylistically, lyrically, and instrumentally on “Juna” where her trademark whisper singing sounds delicately refined over an instrumental that sounds more like a classic jazz or soul song from the 70s than an indie-pop song she’d typically sing on. What makes Juna standout among other songs on the album is the melody, and I know if you’ve heard the song you know what melody I’m talking about. It’s just so cool man. It sounds so fresh but so classic thanks to the retro-style instrumentation and production mixing with such an impactful voice in modern pop. “Juna” is an incredibly ambitious and substantial landmark for Clairo that leaves the world eagerly awaiting whatever she decides to do next.
Clairo - Juna (Official Video)
#13: Father John Misty: “Mahashmashana”
Released November 22, 2024 — Orchestral pop, indie rock
This is actually the first song I’ve ever heard from Father John Misty. He’s been around and poppin’ for a long time but for some reason I never listened. If any of his other songs have the same level of emotional depth that “Mahashmashana” has then he might end up being an artist I really like a lot. The song is a nine minute epic that sounds like an ascend into heaven, which I don’t think is too far off from the theme of the song. The word mahashmashana is a Hindu concept that translates roughly to “the great cremation,” and while I’m not entirely sure what the song is about, it seems to be centered around stories of death and rebirth. The music is driven by a rich and heavenly string section that continuously builds throughout the song until it climaxes at the end of the song, where so many layers of instrumentation come together and create a larger than life spiritual experience. While Josh Stillman’s vocal delivery sometimes doesn’t do much for me, his voice sounds perfect on this song. He has the presence of a preacher or some kind of spiritual leader as he moves us through the song and does so with a weirdly compassionate authority. This song is over-the-top spiritual bliss done with so much passion, I absolutely love it.
Father John Misty - Mahashmashana (Visualizer)
#12: MGMT: “People in the Streets”
Released February 23, 2024 — Neo-psychedelia, adult alternative
Full disclosure: I would have put “Mother Nature” at #1 if it weren’t released before the rest of the album in 2023. It’s been my anthem since the moment it dropped. But fortunately it’s not the only great song on MGMT’s new album. “People in the Streets” shares many of the same musical traits that I love from “Mahashmashana.” While the song at its foundation is a quiet and moody ballad reminiscent of 90’s alternative rock and pop, there are two sections of the song following the choruses that are all full to the brim with MGMT’s signature colorful and cosmic synthesizers. These synths layer upon each other and create a wall of mesmerizing noise and harmony, bringing the song to heights you would never expect. This song among others on their recent album Loss of Life shows MGMT bringing their knack for psychedelia to a sound more emotional and mature than anything they’ve done before. I think of all the songs on Loss of Life, this one may be the most representative of the general sound of the album as well as the most impressive song that exists in that lane. Those synth explosions are absolutely baffling and easily earn this song a spot on this list. Also the music video for this song is so fucking cool. Their videos are always really awesome and unique and this one really continues the trend.
MGMT - People In The Streets (Official Music Video)
#11: twenty one pilots - “Next Semester”
Released March 27, 2024 — Pop rock, alternative rock
This feels like a great time and place for me to give twenty one pilots the credit I feel like they deserve but don’t receive from too many people in online music discourse. While the band certainly have many deal-breaking songs where certain underdeveloped lyrics or vocal deliveries take away from the songs’ overall impact, their knack for passionate pop songwriting, their talent as musicians, and their ability to dip their toes into so many different genres of music so successfully really makes them a pretty singular modern pop act, and I think they really do have lots of songs that are quite fantastic. “Next Semester” is probably one of my favorite songs they’ve made to date. The song has an awesome post-punk vibe that feels pretty different for the duo before it morphs into a more pop-oriented tune that feels more like what you’d expect of them. They way they incorporate new styles into this song while still letting their fundamental sound shine through feels effortless and brilliant. Tyler Joseph’s singing is so passionate in all of its dynamic range and Josh Dunn’s drumming absolutely commands the movement of this song. In fact, this song feels like it benefits from Josh Dunn’s rock-centric drumming style more than almost any other song of theirs as this is one of their most rock-oriented songs to date. Their new album Clancy is a fun exploration of genres and emotions with lots to offer, and I think “Next Semester” may be the best song on there to encourage new fans or naysayers to give it a shot.
Twenty One Pilots - Next Semester (Official Video)
#10: Yeat - “Breathe”
Released February 16, 2024 — Trap, industrial dance music
Here’s another artist that I wouldn’t expect to end up here. Mr. Yeat, the man Yeat, the artist currently known as Yeat has cooked up some real shit this year. And when I say real, I mean it’s surprisingly well thought out, conceptually driven, and quite different musically than anything he’s done in the past. Curious what I mean? Listen to “Breathe” and it will all make sense immediately. This song is more like dance music for a club than it is a trap song. He raps about living on top of the world in a dystopian society over a beat that’s mostly upbeat and exciting but also slightly unsettling, perfectly capturing the mood that the lyrics of the song present. Yeat’s voice sounds like the future as he reminds us that he makes a fuck ton of money and that we make none. It’s really cool hearing Yeat in his element this year because I always thought he had a cool voice with lots of potential, and it feels like he’s really starting to learn how to harness it. Anyways, this song is so fun and infectious, and the fact that it came from Yeat of all people just impressed the hell out of me. This song has definitely been on extreme repeat on my phone lately, like I feel like I couldn’t escape this song even if I tried. God bless you Yeat, keep doing what you’re doing.
Breathe [Official Music Video]
#9: Charli xcx - “Club classics”
Released April 3, 2024 — Techno-pop, dance-pop
2024 has truly been the year of Cholly as BRAT has entirely taken over the word. While I never could have expected the cultural explosion of BRAT to amount to what it did in 2024, I did know pretty early on that BRAT would likely end up being my favorite Charli xcx album and a career defining project for Charli. The reason I felt this way was largely because of “Club classics.” While “Von dutch” had been released already, “Club classics” dropped along with “B2b” when the album started popping up on streaming services for pre-saves and all that. At the time both songs felt like a really exciting and effective preview of what the album was going to sound like. Of all of the songs on BRAT, I think “Club classics” is the most authentically techno and electronica inspired, which is a niche I have thought Charli would do really well in for a long time. Pop sensibilities are present here, but they come second to electronic sensibilities. It almost feels like someone took a Charli xcx song and remixed it, with her vocals all chopped up and used more like an instrument during the song’s chorus. The bass in this song is absolutely disgusting and the drums punch super hard as well. There is also a super weird dissonant synth/sample/something that shows up around the 1:20 mark of the song that makes me wanna rage 100% of the time I hear it. This song might be the hardest song Charli has ever made and it feels like the kind of music she was always destined to make.
Charli xcx - Club classics (official lyric video)
#8: Childish Gambino - “Yoshinoya”
Released June 16, 2024 — Alternative hip-hop
Childish Gambino has never been much of a heavyweight rapper in my opinion. His artistry as a musician can’t be denied, but his skills as a rapper have often been questioned ever since he began his music career in the rap game. Not saying he was awful, but I recently saw an old photo of him standing with Kendrick, Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, and Danny Brown and I immediately thought he looked so out of place among that class of rap royalty. But I didn’t put Gambino at #8 to talk about how much he sucks. “Yoshinoya” features his absolute best rapping to date. His flow is smooth and evolving, and more important his delivery is confident and understated. “Yoshinoya” is broken up into two parts. The first part has a hook and features some more gridlocked bars on a more modern hip-hop sounding beat. It’s a great way to start the song and it only gets better in the second half, where the beat changes to something more boom-bap style and Gambino raps uninterrupted and incredibly confidently for a minute and a half. Gambino poetically observes aspects of fame and growth on the song and does so in a simultaneously humble and braggadocious manner. Part 2 is why “Yoshinoya” is at #8. The way he raps in this part of the song has all the qualities in it that I feel like lots of his old rapping was often missing: subtle wordplay, confident delivery, effortless flow, and a more interesting perspective. If he were able to rap like this in the beginning of his career I think public opinion regarding his rapping abilities would look a lot different. Definitely give it a listen, it won’t disappoint.
Childish Gambino - Yoshinoya (Audio)
#7: The Voidz - “Square Wave”
Releases September 30, 2024 — New wave, experimental indie
I’ve talked extensively about the new Voidz album already in a separate article. A quick synopsis: it got lots of weird, nitpicky, and contrived hate upon its release. I feel like no one has really given the album a chance and have followed popular opinions to form their own, and that is a hill I will 100% die on. I’ll talk even more about the album on my next list, but “Square Wave” is a great song to examine the album’s likeable qualities. This song is ear candy. It's such a simple yet delicately layered exercise in new wave for the band. As I’ve said before, it sounds like an alien race making a new wave song after studying popular human music from the 80’s. You can really hear what I’m talking about in the verses, where Julian Casablancas is singing with a really lo-fi autotune on his voice that makes him sound very authentically otherworldly. I think this song is also structured incredibly well. The song has like two main riffs, a verse, and two choruses, plus a little pre-chorus to one of the choruses. It may seem excessive, but the parts are all very similar with subtle differences that you only begin to notice after a few listens. Everything builds up to a bridge/outro that, again, sounds very similar to everything that comes before but feels more effectively layered instrumentally and ends the song on a real high point. The way this song subtly changes throughout while still maintaining its general tone makes the song a real grower that you can listen to a lot without getting tired of it. Soon you’ll start realizing that all of these little parts are catchy in their own ways and it’ll make you wanna listen to the song more and more. I think it’s an absolutely brilliant song. Don’t listen to the h8ers.
The Voidz – Square Wave (LYRICS)
#6: Quadeca - “Way Too Many Friends”
Released February 15, 2024 — Alternative hip-hop, art-pop
Quadeca is another artist I have written about already, and coincidentally I’ll have watched him play a set at August Hall about four and a half hours after writing this sentence. Hopefully he’ll have some Scrapyard vinyls available. Anyways, I've become a big fan of Quadeca this year, and “Way Too Many Friends” was kind of the start of it all. This was the first song I heard from Scrapyard even though it was one of the last to be released. “Way Too Many Friends” deals with Quadeca struggling to maintain his relationships as he grows older and life grows more chaotic. This song stands apart from the rest of the songs on the mixtape as it sounds more professionally mixed and much catchier and more straightforward than the rest. Don’t get me wrong, I love all the unconventional mixing and abstract songwriting on Scrapyard as well. But it was cool seeing Quadeca kind of return to his roots of more standard rapping and songwriting but update it to fit his more recent art-pop sensibilities. The song not only hooks you immediately with an bright piano-driven alternative hip-hop beat, but it then gives you so much to dissect as the chorus plays into the chaotic themes of the song with discordant piano melodies and layers upon layers of dizzying sound effects that help the track fit in with the rest on Scrapyard. In that sense, the song kind of contains the best of both worlds in which Quadeca is known for. Shoutout Riley from Hivemind for convincing Quadeca to include the song in the mixtape. No matter what kind of song it is you're looking for, “Way Too Many Friends” will throw you something that catches your attention. And at the end of the day, it was the first song I fell in love with from him, therefore it holds a special place in my heart. I hope he plays it later tonight. *FUTURE ALEX HERE — he did play it*
QUADECA - WAY TOO MANY FRIENDS
#5: The Cure - “Endsong”
Released November 1, 2024 — Gothic-rock, new wave
This song is quite new in comparison to the songs high up on this list. But I think one listen and you’ll understand why it’s here. I wouldn’t even have to say much about it. It’s just absolutely over the top. This song comes aptly at the very end of their new album Songs of a Lost World. It’s a special feeling when an album is already impressing the hell out of you and then the last song arrives and blows the rest out of the water. “Endsong” feels like an epic mix of the band’s more gothic sound with their pop and new-wave tendencies. The song is a ten minute odyssey that is largely instrumental until Robert Smith’s youthful and timeless voice enters in the last four minutes of the song. Until then, you have six minutes of intense and emotional layering of pop and rock instrumentation that feels whimsically apocalyptic and affirmingly dreadful. The song thematically deals with growing old in the most depressive and bleak way possible, with the mantra “it’s all gone” being the closest thing to a hook you’ll find in the song. It’s honestly so awesome to see the The Cure grow old and handle growing old in the most fucking goth way possible. Also, The Cure haven’t dropped music since 2008, sixteen years ago. To hear them still continuing to grow and develop the sound they’re known for after so much time is insane to me. While I have begun listening to older albums from the band since listening to Songs from a Lost World, there is still a lot of stuff I need to go through. But this sound does feel pretty unique from the styles they've been known for in the past. I’ll be getting more into that later (spoiler alert!!), but even if The Cure isn’t really your cup of tea, you should give this one a shot. The scope of this song is really quite astonishing no matter what kind of music you like.
#4: Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - “Song of the Lake”
Released August 30, 2024 — Orchestral rock, art rock
Just got out of the Quadeca show by the way. It was lots of fun, he’s an awesome performer and put on a great show. Anyways back to the list. I remember exactly where I was when I first heard “Song of the Lake.” I was embarking on a long walk through an oceanside trail near my house and as I was walking through my neighborhood to the trail, the skies clear and the sun bright, I turned on Wild God for the first time ever. The first song, “Song of the Lake,” came on and I was immediately transported to a new dimension inside the mouth of God. I was walking down the street with a big smile on my face looking like an idiot. The song is pure bliss and I can’t get enough of it. Nick Cave tells the story of a man grappling with his own mortality as he encroaches upon a lake that will send him into heaven (that’s how I interpret it at least). The music sounds incredibly heavenly to match the story, with the lead melody coming from a string section and supporting instrumentation including pianos, church bells, and backing vocals from a small choir. Nick Cave delivers his spoken word parts like he was delivering a sermon spoken from the gates of heaven. All of these sounds blend together seamlessly and create an utmost holy and righteous experience that sets up the rest of the album perfectly. It’s been in constant rotation in my music library because it makes me feel so damn good. “Song of the Lake” is simply breathtaking, I am constantly in awe of it as I will forever be in awe of the artistry of Nick Cave himself. His storytelling abilities, his poetic way of words, and his emotional depth are absolutely one of a kind, and all of this is on full display in “Song of the Lake.”
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Song of the Lake (Lyric Video)
#3: Kendrick Lamar - “meet the grahams”
Released May 3, 2024 — Hardcore hip-hop
The #3 slot is taken by none other than the boogeyman himself. Perhaps the most significant moment in music this past year came from the Civil War rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake. If you are unfamiliar with the beef, basically it was started by Kendrick Lamar who threw shade at Drake and J. Cole in Future and Metro Boomin’s song “Like That.” This elicited responses from both Drake and J. Cole, however J. Cole went on to delete his track stating he felt pressured to release something and wasn’t happy with the track or the sentiment behind it. So it soon became a beef between primarily Kendrick and Drake. Everything came to a major head on May 3, when Drake dropped “Family Matters” and Kendrick followed it up with “meet the grahams” AN HOUR LATER. Not only are the circumstances of this release insane, but the content of the song is legit frightening and absolutely ruthless. Kendrick does all of the following in “meet the grahams”: 1) he directly addresses Drake’s son, tells him his father is a disgraceful person, and offers to be a proper father figure in his life, 2) he alleges that Drake’s label OVO is full of registered sex offenders that are part of sex trafficking schemes involving minors, and 3) he reveals to the world that Drake has a second child that he has been hiding from the world. Those are just highlights, there are plenty of other moments on the song that go deeper into other aspects of Drake’s character. But wow! This was the ultimate blow that taught everyone in the rap game not to fuck around with Kendrick Lamar, because he will not hold back if you test him. Of course Kendrick drops the very next morning once again, this time dropping “Not Like Us” which has gone on to be one of the biggest hits of the year. “Not Like Us” was another contender for this slot due to its cultural significance giving the song major credibility and effectiveness as a diss track. However, “meet the grahams” is a song that sounds like a nightmare. It is truly haunting, thanks in large to the beat provided by The Alchemist. The tone, message, and context behind the song and release really did make it the most jaw dropping moment of 2024, and for that it stands tall at #3.
#2: Vampire Weekend: “Mary Boone”
Released March 28, 2024 — Indie rock, chamber pop
At #2 we have a brand new classic from legendary indie heroes Vampire Weekend. This song was my most listened to song of the year that was released during the year. “Mary Boone” feels to me like the most quintessential song the band has released in like ten years. It’s full of classic Vampire Weekend instrumentation, including an elaborate string section, pianos, and what sounds like a full church choir. While this kind of instrumentation is to be expected from the band, there are also lots of samples in the song that seem like new territory for the band, including the drums in the chorus as well as a vocal sample in the chorus (a simple and distorted “WOOO!”). This feels like the band aiming to add some hip-hop into their repertoire. These little bursts of hip-hop in the choruses work really well between the verses that are more akin to church music. It kind of reminds me of “Harmony Hall,” another song of theirs that has juxtaposing verses and choruses. What has always made Vampire Weekend so cool to me is the way they take not-so-cool highly-educated upper class themes, esthetics, and instrumentation and make them really cool, inviting, and relatable to anybody listening. This is no exception on “Mary Boone,” where the sentiment behind the song according to frontman Ezra Koenig revolves around the experience of young people trying to make a name for themselves in New York City and attempting to earn the attention of the people who have the gone through the process before them, like the art dealer the song is named after. This theme matched with the music resembling both church music and hip-hop music shows Vampire Weekend’s ability to make music that appeals to everyone while still embracing their roots as a crew of upper class students from New York City. They are truly brilliant and this is one of my favorite songs of theirs to date. I hope they continue to make music forever.
VAMPIRE WEEKEND – MARY BOONE (OFFICIAL VISUALIZER)
Before I go into my #1 pick, here are some honorable mentions that I didn’t talk about but deserve a listen:
Magdalena Bay - “Death and Romance”
Tyler, The Creator - “St. Chroma”
The Lonely Island - “Sushi Glory Hole”
Joey Valence & Brae - “NO HANDS (feat. Z-Trip)”
ScHoolboy Q - “Yeern 101”
The Last Dinner Party - “Beautiful Boy”
#1: A$AP Rocky - “HIGHJACK (feat. Jessica Pratt)”
Released July 26, 2024 — Alternative hip-hop, psychedelic hip-hop
As we all sit in limbo awaiting the elongated release of A$AP Rocky’s upcoming album DON’T BE DUMB, all I can say is this: at least we have “HIGHJACK” to hold us over. I’m just gonna say it. This is A$AP Rocky’s best song. It is pretty much perfect. What drives this song to me is the beat. While Rocky has been known to play around with psychedelic beats for a long time, this song feels not only like him moving deeper in that direction, but also like him visualizing a way no one has ever conceived of doing it before and executing his vision perfectly. I think A$AP Rocky is done being looked at as just another rapper. I think he wants to be looked at as an artist that is capable of going beyond the scope of hip-hop to create something that hasn’t been made before, and “HIGHJACK” is his thesis. The song is broken up into two parts. Part one belongs to Rocky, who raps just as confidently and cocky as ever but with a new perspective of being a grown man, a husband, and a father. This all feels incredibly clever, considering this song can be looked at as a shot at Drake, who previously took shots at Rocky on “Family Matters.” The reason why this can be interpreted that way is because so many of Rocky’s bars in the song end with the words “like that,” which to me feels like Rocky championing the initial diss track that started the entire beef and first took shots at Drake. What better way to assert your dominance than to show all the ways you’ve grown, as a man and as an artist? Anyways, Rocky sounds better than ever on this track. Part two of this song belongs to Jessica Pratt, who sings like an angel over a piano driven beat switch. This section of the song contains the faintest drums imaginable and really feels more like an alternative song as Pratt brings the listener into the gates of heaven. I know I’ve talked about heaven a lot in this article. It’s not my fault all of these songs sound so heavenly. This section of the song in particular really shows the growth and ambition of Rocky’s music. I’ll listen to this song in the car and then start it over once it’s finished. It’s locked in my brain. It’s absolutely phenomenal. This song was originally in the #2 slot. But after writing this and listening to the song again, I decided it truly deserved the title of #1. It’s unprecedented in every single way and leaves me with an entirely new level of respect for A$AP Rocky. Anyways, give this song a listen if you haven't yet, and pray tonight that we’ll hear some news soon about DON’T BE DUMB.
