NPR Music's 35 Favorite Songs Of 2018 (So Far)
June 25, 2018 9:54 PM Subscribe
Yas Cardi B (although I would have gone with Bickenhead) and YAS Janelle Monae! I Like That is one of my favorites off Dirty Computer although who the fuck would rate her a six?! Oh me oh me oh me oh my.
posted by supercrayon at 2:16 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by supercrayon at 2:16 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
Won tickets to see Lucy Dacus next month, am excited.
posted by octothorpe at 4:26 AM on June 26, 2018
posted by octothorpe at 4:26 AM on June 26, 2018
Some great stuff, some I knew and others that were new to me. Flasher's Pressure was right up my alley. (Kinda sounds like a reworking of GbV's "Underwater Explosions" but Bob Pollard probably cribbed that riff from somewhere, too, so no harm no foul.) I'm going to have to check out that entire record by Black Pumas.
I loved seeing Car Seat Headrest on here. Twin Fantasy is a record so special that when it came out in February, I already knew it was my album of the year. See also Bodys, my personal fave from the record, a perfect example of Will Toledo's weird gift for mixing right-this-minute pop sounds with 90s-era indie rock riffing, and of his ability to make the particulars of his life (gay, millennial, anxiety-ridden) universal and relatable for anybody. As the uncool rock kid dancing at a gay club, he is overcome with a sense of both vitality and mortality. "Don't you realize our bodies could fall apart at any time?"
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:12 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
I loved seeing Car Seat Headrest on here. Twin Fantasy is a record so special that when it came out in February, I already knew it was my album of the year. See also Bodys, my personal fave from the record, a perfect example of Will Toledo's weird gift for mixing right-this-minute pop sounds with 90s-era indie rock riffing, and of his ability to make the particulars of his life (gay, millennial, anxiety-ridden) universal and relatable for anybody. As the uncool rock kid dancing at a gay club, he is overcome with a sense of both vitality and mortality. "Don't you realize our bodies could fall apart at any time?"
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:12 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
I don't want to go too far down a rabbit hole of why doesn't this small list by people who aren't me contain all of my personal favorites? but given NPR's tastes, I was fairly surprised not to see Courtney Barnett's "Nameless, Faceless" on this list. It's a perfect song for MetaFilter, too, as it's a cheerful, sunny guitar pop song... about sexism and online harassment. In typical Barnett fashion, it manages to be empathetic ("You know you got lots to give and so many options/I'm real sorry 'bout whatever happened to you"), pointed/funny ("He said 'I could eat a bowl of alphabet soup and spit out better words than you'/But you didn't"), and still finds time to lay things bare and even work in a Margaret Atwood line "I wanna walk through the park in the dark/Men are scared that women will laugh at them/I wanna walk through the park in the dark/Women are scared that men will kill them."
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:19 AM on June 26, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:19 AM on June 26, 2018 [7 favorites]
That Kidjo song had an FPP before. The whole album is now out, and it's as good as I'd hoped.
posted by DigDoug at 5:56 AM on June 26, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by DigDoug at 5:56 AM on June 26, 2018 [5 favorites]
It's Rainbow Kitten Surprise's Fever Pitch that won my attention on first listen through. Unexpected fun!
posted by gusottertrout at 5:59 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by gusottertrout at 5:59 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
I have to say that G Flip song has been a stunner from the moment I heard it. Ditto the Lucy Dacus song, which just builds and builds.
posted by dw at 6:59 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by dw at 6:59 AM on June 26, 2018 [2 favorites]
Soccer Mommy is the only thing I've heard this year that really spoke to me. I'm hoping the new Mitski will kill it as well.
posted by grumpybear69 at 7:55 AM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by grumpybear69 at 7:55 AM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
from completely out of ... well, another field, here's something I stumbled across yesterday that I suspect is not remotely in NPR's wheelhouse, and yet ...
Ninja Sex Party - Danny Don't You Know
Step on stage and you come alive
No one cares that you're thirty-five
You're a rock star
On a centaur
posted by philip-random at 8:10 AM on June 26, 2018 [6 favorites]
Ninja Sex Party - Danny Don't You Know
Step on stage and you come alive
No one cares that you're thirty-five
You're a rock star
On a centaur
posted by philip-random at 8:10 AM on June 26, 2018 [6 favorites]
I've heard four (and liked three), which is actually more than I expected. I appreciate the Spotify link; I have my soundtrack for the day. That Leon Bridges album took me a little bit to get into, because it sorta felt like he was doing an Anderson .Paak pastiche on some of the songs, but I've come around on it. And Dirty Computer is amazing. I still love The ArchAndroid, but Monae's development as an artist has been incredible to see.
posted by protocoach at 8:11 AM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by protocoach at 8:11 AM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
Every day is This is America day.
posted by wotsac at 8:28 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by wotsac at 8:28 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
Even without looking at the list, I would have wanted to include Lucy Dacus, Soccer Mommy, and Snail Mail. Snail Mail just came out with their first full length album (do I use they? It's mostly just her). She's like 18 or something and is my current favorite artist. I would have picked Pristine from that album tho.
Not on the list is:
□Petal, who just released another album. I haven't listened to it enough to pick a favorite track, but if you like the above artists I'd suggest giving them a try.
□Hop Along - Not Abel, a weird journey.
□Saintseneca - Frostbiter first and only single that's out from their upcoming album which comes out at the end of august.
talk to me 'bout music, y'all!
posted by FirstMateKate at 8:28 AM on June 26, 2018
Not on the list is:
□Petal, who just released another album. I haven't listened to it enough to pick a favorite track, but if you like the above artists I'd suggest giving them a try.
□Hop Along - Not Abel, a weird journey.
□Saintseneca - Frostbiter first and only single that's out from their upcoming album which comes out at the end of august.
talk to me 'bout music, y'all!
posted by FirstMateKate at 8:28 AM on June 26, 2018
Ah, serendipity - lots new to me and lovely listening!
posted by progosk at 8:45 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by progosk at 8:45 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
Technically not one song, but it is one video. Behold, Tierra Whack - Whack World.
posted by nikoniko at 10:08 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by nikoniko at 10:08 AM on June 26, 2018 [1 favorite]
It's probably worth mentioning that there's been some plagiarism controversy regarding This is America.
posted by kickingtheground at 11:20 AM on June 26, 2018
posted by kickingtheground at 11:20 AM on June 26, 2018
The new Dear Nora album is the bee’s knees.
“Morning Glories”
posted by D.C. at 11:54 AM on June 26, 2018
“Morning Glories”
posted by D.C. at 11:54 AM on June 26, 2018
So happy to see Mitski's Geyser on this list. I love her so much.
posted by xiasanlan at 8:29 PM on June 26, 2018
posted by xiasanlan at 8:29 PM on June 26, 2018
Damn. G Flip's About You is legit. Can't wait to hear more of her!
posted by sacrifix at 8:28 PM on June 27, 2018
posted by sacrifix at 8:28 PM on June 27, 2018
Good lord, last year's list is awesome as well.
Yes, I just started using Spotify.
posted by Gorgik at 3:54 PM on July 4, 2018
Yes, I just started using Spotify.
posted by Gorgik at 3:54 PM on July 4, 2018
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posted by ZaphodB at 10:31 PM on June 25, 2018 [8 favorites]