Tuesday, January 28, 2014
The Ten Best Hits of 2013
Although I've always tried to position myself as a non-mainstream, alt-culture guy, I still pay attention to pop music. Specifically, I always enjoy the hits that break the mold, the unlikely hits that rise above the mainstream trends and manage to be popular without sacrificing art. And thus, digging through Billboard's year-end Top 100, I pulled out my picks for the ten best hit songs of 2013.
Did I ever think this would be a hit the first time I heard it? Nope. But there's something about this Swedish duo's bad-behavior anthem that struck a chord with the masses enough to turn this into one of the jams of the summer. Right from the opening electro-roar through the shout-along verses about crashing your car into the bridge and throwing your boyfriend's shit down the stairs, and into the two-line chorus, this song is a testament to the power of a few simple lyrics, a propulsive, thundering beat and a dedication to not giving a fuck.
#9
OneRepublic - "Counting Stars"
Hands down, the best song OneRepublic has ever released. Compared to their history of bland, sub-Snow Patrol adult alternative singles, "Counting Stars" is upbeat without being overproduced. Driven by a tribal-sounding drum beat and lyrics about ditching materialism for a spiritual pursuit, this could almost pass for an Imagine Dragons song. Let's hope they can keep this up.
#8
Of Monsters and Men - "Little Talks"
My Head is an Animal was one of my favorite albums of last year, and thankfully, "Little Talks" managed to find its way into the hot 100. Further proving that Sweden produces damn fine pop music, this bouncing single, fueled by a trumpet hook that digs itself into your head for days, sounds like it could have been recorded in somebody's barn. It's a bit like a cuddlier, Scandinavian version of the Lumineers.
#7
Kendrick Lamar - "Swimming Pools (Drank)"
Kendrick Lamar just may be the new best rapper alive. good kid, m.A.A.d. city is as close to a perfect rap album as you'll ever see, with every song coming right from the heart and not a single dud among them. The album's only real hit, "Swimming Pools (Drank)" is an interesting one; it's a song that explores what drives people to drink and what they do as a result, while also being a pretty good song to drink to. Since rappers have been shouting out to expensive alcohol for so long, it's refreshing to see a track that doesn't entirely buy into the glamorous promises of the hard-drinking lifestyle.
#6
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz - "Thrift Shop"
In an age when seemingly every rapper uses his songs as an excuse to brag about how much money he has, along came an unsigned white guy from Seattle with a song about shopping at Goodwill that managed to become one of the biggest hits of the year. The song's message is that style doesn't need to come solely from the price tag, and you can still be cool wearing someone else's secondhand clothes - admittedly, a far more relatable sentiment than the glam-rap we're used to. The song is also serves as both a major milestone for independent artists (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis released their album, The Heist, without the support of a major label) and an introduction to Macklemore's material, which can get surprisingly deep given the apparent frivolity of "Thrift Shop."
#5
Avicii - "Wake Me Up!"
I'm willing to bet that nobody thought the Swedish DJ behind "Levels" (aka the greatest techno party jam since "Sandstorm") would have a hit bearing the noticeable influence of Mumford & Sons. "Wake Me Up!" may have pissed off some of the EDM purists when it debuted in a live performance at the Ultra Music Festival, but the incredibly unlikely genre fusion proved a winner, seamlessly segueing from stomping folk to arena-sized electronica. Aloe Blacc's verses, describing a search for meaning in life, prove that EDM need not sacrifice lyrical depth for party-jam value; in this song, both are present, moreso than any of this years other arena-sized electro anthems.
#4
Darius Rucker - "Wagon Wheel"
I feel like mainstream country has, at this point, completely lost sight of the Southern and Appalachian folk music that birthed it. The genre that was once about the struggles of poor backwoods folk has given way to a string of hits about drinking, partying, and scantily clad women - not much different from mainstream rap, with more references to trucks. But in 2013, along came Darius Rucker with a cover of what may be Bob Dylan's catchiest song ever, and it was everything that made classic country great. The organic-sounding instrumentation gives the song an intimate, barn-dance feel, and the chorus will have people singing along from the campfire to the stadium. It's the kind of good old-fashioned Americana that you just don't hear on the radio anymore.
#3
Lorde - "Royals"
Between this and "Thrift Shop," it seems like the masses are finally getting tired of pop materialism. Lorde speaks to her audience like she's one of them, while actively mocking how unrelatable songs about drinking patron and driving in the limo are. The song's conceit is clear: riding public transport to a party is something most of us can relate to, while trashing hotel rooms and name-dropping one's area code isn't. It's a bold refusal to buy into the glam-culture that so much of hip-hop subscribes to, and it's sung over a spare, minimalist beat that lets Lorde's dark, goth-pop voice carry the track - to say nothing of the fact that Lorde recorded this at age 16.
#2
Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams - "Get Lucky"
In the summer of 2013, "Get Lucky" was the One Jam to Rule Them All. EDM pioneers Daft Punk enlisted Pharrell Williams and Chic leader Nile Rogers (who, between the two, are probably responsible for half the best summer jams of the past 40 years) for their first number-one hit, a funky, instantly danceable old-school disco anthem that would have been a hit in any year. And there's really not much else to say about it; it's just an absolutely perfect dance-floor anthem, and a career high for everyone involved.
#1
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Mary Lambert - "Same Love"
The first time I heard "Same Love," I was just about moved to tears. It's an incredibly open, honest song about Macklemore's own experiences, his support for marriage equality, and the way that gays are treated in hip-hop culture. It's a true testament to Macklemore's ability to write lyrics of real depth and social value on subjects that few other rappers would dare to touch. It's the kind of song that just doesn't become a hit anymore, a song that isn't just catchy, isn't just clever, but that actually says something significant, that contributes to the conversation about an issue that's changing society. With marriage equality and LGBT rights becoming more widespread with every passing year, this is a song for our times in much the same way as the protest songs of the 60's. "Same Love" isn't just the best hit song of 2013; in my mind, it's one of the great songs of all time.
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