Top 50 Songs of 2011

30. Cults – “Abducted” (Columbia)
[single; from Cults] Buy at iTunes

Continuing a trend that’s been producing surprisingly strong results for a few years now, with “Abducted,” Cults did a brilliant job of not just emulating ’60s girl groups, but bringing them into the 21st century. Reverb drenched harmonies and glockenspiels are matched with shimmering synths and modern production techniques in a manner that’s keenly aware of the past and present. The song’s twee girl-boy vocal trade-off is reminiscent of “Young Folks,” the most marked difference being how strikingly Madeline Follin’s powerful cries contrast with Brian Oblivion’s even keeled delivery. Evoking the adolescent melodrama that the Shangri-Las excelled at, Cults can’t exactly claim to have the market cornered on heartbreak, but they do have their own special brand and they do it as well as just about anyone else out making music today. – Chris Karman

29. St. Vincent – “Strange Mercy” (4AD)
[from Strange Mercy] Buy at iTunes

Annie Clark made a stunning example of just how proficient she is at making gloriously ugly sounds from her guitar earlier this year when she covered Big Black at the “Our Band Could Be Your Life” tribute concert. On the title track to Strange Mercy, however, she abandoned those punk rock tendencies completely for a tender and heartfelt ballad spoken from the perspective of a single mother. She spares no detail too specific nor too unfortunate, sweetly but matter-of-factly declaring, “Oh little one, your Hemingway jawline looks just like his/ our father in exile.” It’s a scene of remarkable tenderness, underscored by Clark’s gorgeous and gentle guitar melody. And yet there’s a darkness lurking just beneath the surface. As Clark belts, “If I ever meet the dirty policeman who roughed you up, oh, I don’t know what,” there’s a hesitation and a palpable sense of anger that suggests this delicate and elegant scene could become ugly, awkward and unpredictable at any moment. That she changes the words to “fucked you up” live, however, just shows her punk rock side doesn’t stay dormant long. – Jeff Terich

28. Little Dragon – “Ritual Union” (Peacefrog)
[single; from Ritual Union] Buy at iTunes

Little Dragon arrived in the electronic scene much like Passion Pit did three years ago, creating noise that would be laughably childish in anybody else’s hands but uniquely their own twitching, bewitching sound. The best thing they have going for them, besides Yukimi Nagano’s insane chops, is their ability to play two or three gorgeous samples instead of slinging around a bunch of college-kid-with-a-mac type stuff. As the opener to their self-titled release, “Ritual Union” is vocally inviting, but also challenges the listener to pay attention to the reserved instruments punching in and out around Nagano’s enchanting slurs. It’s the best of both worlds, abstract and accessible, and since the four-piece usually avoids tidy accessibility, it’s a down right refreshing addition to their avant-garde catalogue. – Dan Chapman

27. James Blake – “The Wilhelm Scream” (A&M)
[single; from James Blake] Buy at iTunes

James Blake’s interpretation of Feist’s “Limit To Your Love” is not the only cover on his self-titled release. In fact, his breakout track “The Wilhelm Scream” possesses the lyrics and melody of James Litherland’s “Where To Turn,” a song that was produced by Blake’s father more than a decade ago. Naturally the track reflects a classic sounding vibe, the type of deep pining that someone with more than 22 years of life under his belt would mull over, yet Blake’s voice timelessly steams in it’s tragic static: “I don’t know about my dreams, I don’t know about my dreaming anymore.” The track ends in a crescendo of synthesizers and voices that are not far from paralyzing, like a James Dean monologue in music form. In plain view, the old-souled Blake has trademarked a lucid and unsettling style that has never been heard before, and his unique perspective may one day be defined by “The Wilhelm Scream.” – Dan Chapman

26. Destroyer – “Kaputt” (Merge)
[single; from Kaputt] Buy at iTunes

Between Bon Iver’s Bruce Hornsby and the Range homage in “Beth/Rest,” to the sax solo at the end of “Midnight City,” 2011 seemed to be the year many artists started turning to some of the less fashionable aspects of ’80s music for inspiration. The biggest shocker was just how engaging and impressively tasteful a lot of it turned out to be. And no one delved so thoroughly into these influences and came out with gold quite like Destroyer. Kaputt is a cavalcade of jazzed out, ’80s-mining riches and the title track is certainly among the crown jewels. Indie artists used to run from chorus laden guitar riffs, reverb affected saxes and digital synth arpeggiators. But here they provide the perfect backdrop for recounting days spent chasing cocaine and dreaming about once-influential, UK-based music mags. Dan Bejar apparently has a knack for making this kind of sophisticated pop so striking, quite unlike anyone since Bryan Ferry. – Chris Karman

25. Austra – “The Beat and the Pulse” (Domino)
[single; from Feel It Break] Buy at iTunes

For the last few years I’ve had some token but quite worthy female-centric electronica in my year-end best-ofs: Janelle Monáe, Sleigh Bells, The xx, School of Seven Bells, you know the drill. Austra fill that role this year, Canadian chanteuse Katie Stelmanis backed up by Maya Postepski and Dorian Wolf with the kind of minor keys and muted beats Karin Dreijer Andersson enjoys in The Knife and Fever Ray. This lead single from Austra’s debut Feel It Break has that same incredibly dark synth-pop, borderline industrial feel, with significantly airier and accessible vocals, and an undeniably heavy pulse. – Adam Blyweiss

24. Jay-Z and Kanye West – “Otis” (Def Jam)
[single; from Watch the Throne] Buy at iTunes

Maybe their narcissistic mores haven’t changed much in the past decade, but even so, Kanye West and Jay-Z make magic happen on their sample-heavy track “Otis.” The multi-generational fusion of Otis Redding crooning away in his Southern soul style, and Jay-Z and Kanye West rapping about how obnoxiously rich they are is a sound to behold. Without blowing it up too much, there is some sense of poignancy in how the track quasi-bridges the Civil Rights era sounds of soul with West and Jay-Z’s lyrics about achieving the American Dream. “Otis” is an important recording for hip-hop, and to the credit of these two masters of the genre, the song displays an ingenious use of samples that bridge two critical decades in music. – Dan Chapman

23. Florence and the Machine – “What the Water Gave Me”
(Universal Republic)
[single; from Ceremonials] Buy at iTunes

Even in a sea of female pop stars defined by their individuality, Florence Welch is unmistakable and “What the Water Gave Me” provides an apt aide-mémoire of what makes her and her collaborators special. Hauntingly detailing the suicide of English author Virginia Woolf and mysteriously dropping references to Greek Mythology and rusting ships, “Water” is filled with some cryptic imagery. The song starts off as a darkly ethereal ballad with an ominous chant for a chorus and morphs into a gripping epic by its finish. As Ceremonials‘ lead single, it was too opaque to storm the charts (that’s what “Shake It Out” was for), but it did provide the album’s most thrilling moment all the same. – Chris Karman

22. Cut Copy – “Take Me Over” (Modular)
[single; from Zonoscope] Buy at iTunes

If I had to muster one complaint about Cut Copy’s “Take Me Over,” it’s that it might be too infectious. From the catchy right-speaker-only guitar plucks, shimmering synths, hallowed-out ’80s-style drums and of course the “ooo-ou-oh,” Cut Copy make striking synth-pop gold seem as easy today as it was in ’85. If you’ve had the pleasure of seeing them live then you know firsthand how well Zonoscope‘s lead single fits in with the rest of the Australian band’s stellar library. “Take Me Over” definitely captures the essence of what made 2008’s In Ghost Colors so superb but also fits well within some of the more complex song architectures found on Zonoscope. As one of the earlier releases on the list, “Take Me Over” has lost none of its initial appeal and should remain a repeat favorite going forward. – Donny Giovannini

21. Tyler the Creator – “Yonkers” (XL)
[single; from Goblin] Buy at iTunes

So much has been said and written about Odd Future, it’s neither odd nor the future anymore. As the outfit became better known for its divisible parts, Tyler the Creator’s shrewd, bilious persona spent the year as a third rail for hip-hop and culture. “Yonkers” is a suitably nasty bit of proto-gangsta that also happens to be extremely funny; for all the controversy, Tyler’s an underrated humorist, or maybe I’m the only one who lol’d at the image of Stevie Wonder going wide right. (Sorry, Stevie). Not only is the beat on “Yonkers” bigger than any backlash, the gnashing of its teeth on the chorus was one of the legitimately scariest tones in any song this year. – Anthony Strain