The 50 Best Songs of 2014 So Far
http://youtu.be/WFv5nHtbWeU
Cloud Nothings – “Pattern Walks”
On an album that ceaselessly riffs and thwacks at you, this is the one track they allow to spread out, the only one with space to build textural tics into weird melodic pools, and the only time their maniac drumbeat chills out long enough to earn a cheer upon returning.
Viet Cong – “Bunker Buster” (Rough Mix)
An onstage breakup followed by the tragic death of guitarist Christopher Reimer made the great Calgary band Women one we lost far too soon. So it’s especially gratifying to hear their members finally back in action with such a lean and hungry new project.
The War on Drugs – “An Ocean Between the Waves”
The line between Dad Rock and krautrock is a fine one, apparently, prone to blurring crosss-sweeps. The underpinning thump of this song serves War on Drugs’ sound best, I think, giving it a kind of forward yearning. It suggests that any supposed peak of maturity might just be a pause preceding some next step.
Pure X – “Heaven”
“Heaven is a feeling…” sings Austin psych prince Nate Grace, one that’s pretty close to “stoned off your ass,” I’m willing to wager.
Mitski – “First Love/Late Spring”
This stunning sadcore pop ballad is nowhere near as small as it first seems, blossoming into a candlelight rally against loneliness that’s attended by dozens, at least.