Two Months Late: 42 Top Songs from 2024

Last year, it was three months into the new year when I finally posted my Top Songs of 2023. This year, only two months have passed. It’s all about progress they say, right?

Now, if you haven’t noticed, I’ve always tried to cram as many songs into one of these playlists under the guise of “+ a Bonus Track,” or a “Japanese Bonus Track Edition.” This year might be the most audacious as I reasoned 42 songs was a sound number because it was “24” backwards, and this is a “Best of 2024.” Skewed logic at best, but it’s serving me well.

I spent a lot of time leaning into indie rock and synthy darkwave over the past 12 months. And to ensure it was a true number, I added to the playlist as I realized a given song might start drilling into my subconscious. And, as always, the track had to be released within the 2024 calendar year.

I mentioned the synthwave and indie rock, but there was also some weird picks. Like, would I ever have believed that in 2024 The Black Crowes and Pearl Jam would be on my year end best of list? Yet, here we are. It’s a real thing. And I’m happy about it. Oh, and that TikTok song “I Like the Way You Kiss Me” by Artemas? I tried to remove that, like, a dozen times, but it keeps coming back, because the song is that good…and it’s a greatly accurate representation of this past year.

Check out the playlist below and, in an even more interesting move, it’s meant to be listened to front to back, not on shuffle. It’s a build, sonic peak, then crash to sparseness. And I’m not even going to get into the featured collage at the top of this blurb. I put way too much thought than is healthy into where those tiny tiles were placed. Just look at the bottom left corner and see the magic that happens when you place Jonah Kagen’s God Needs the Devil next to Ed Harcourt’s El Magnifico album covers.