BEST OF 2014: Songs For Rebellious Girls

In 2014, strange days have found us. I toyed with the idea of creating a Best of 2014 playlist for sad chicks, but then was all, “Cut the crap Sophie.” If you’ve gone out and gotten laid rather than cried after a break-up, if you don’t have an office job and are poor but happier for it, and if you’ve decided to make friends with the voices inside your head, these songs are for you.

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The majority of the artists involved in this list are chicks, but not for the sake of grouping vaginas together, in this, dare I say, male-dominated industry perhaps I’m just being rebellious.

10. Perfect Pussy “Interference Fits” 

Perfect Pussy’s “Interference Fits” is so wham, bam, thank you m’am perfect for the anthem to rebellious women everywhere I could embed this track ten times on this page and we’d be good to go. Setting aside the fact that simply with a name the Syracuse noise-punk band forced an array of bloggers still scared of the word “pussy” to get over it, no song captures the tumultuous inner-dialogue of the nearing-30 years than “Interference Fits.” “Since when do we say yes to love?” questions Meredith Graves, in a hard to make out (and empathetically, a hard to figure out) inner female dialogue.

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9. Banks  – “Goddess” 

The title tune off Jillian Banks’ debut studio album, “Goddess” ebbs and flows with such beautiful scolding you could die to it. “She’s a goddess, you never got this.” The scorned lover thing has been done of course, as Banks seems warily aware of based on the traces of boredom found in her voice. If you close your eyes and allow the lyrics to dissipate the song is rather seductive in nature, like what a praying mantis would put on to make love to before biting her mate’s head off.

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8. Copeland feat. Actress – “Advice to Young Girls”

“Pretend to go to sleep, while your parents argue in the kitchen. Put on some makeup and dress up, you sneak out of the window…” encourages Hype Williams’ Inga Copeland off her new LP Because I’m Worth It. “The city is yours” she promises on this disjointed spiny track. A desolate ravaged urban future is imagined, perhaps one we’re already living in, awaiting the rise of our heroines from the ashes.

7. Bets – “Don’t Give A Fuck” 

This delightful tune off of BETS upcoming 2015 debut LP Days, Hours, Nights had the honor of being our very own Track of the Week. Brooklyn’s own, she makes warning about potentially sociopathic tendencies (“Everybody knows, I never fall in love”) seem down right adorable. I said it once and I’ll say it again, not giving a fuck is a crucial part of the path to enlightenment.

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6.FKA twigs – “Two Weeks” 

The best word I can think to describe FKA twigs is mesmerizing. If the year 2014 means we’ve made it to the future, she is our poster child. The self-proclaimed ex “Video Girl” evolved into an icon this year, different in a manner that challenges the current pop star quo but rings true to FKA twigs. Her weirdness never seems staged, yet more of like she’s been this way all along and now only letting in an audience. See: This Queen of the Damned-themed video. A virtual high five for the lyrics “Motherfucker get your mouth open know your mine.”

5. Pharmakon – “Bestial Burden” 

A little more noise, please! In this tense, minimalist, creepy track Margaret Chardiet entices and bewitches, keeping you looking over your shoulder for a looming attack that never comes. Like a great horror flick, the art of the title track of Bestial Burden lies in the anticipation rather than the reveal.

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4. Azealia Banks – “Heavy Metal And Reflective” 

What is rebellion if not controversial? Azealia Banks silently dropped the anticipated Broke With Expensive Taste with slurs, beef, and tears, but in a landscape of processed foods she remains apologetically, perhaps brutally, raw. The forever banger “212” continues to be hard to live up to but “Heavy Metal And Reflective” sure gets me going.

3. Tove Lo – “Habits (Stay High)” 

There’s two paths one can go down after a break up, crying in bed watching sappy chick flicks with a pint of ice cream, or getting fucked up and fucked. Well, I suppose one could responsibly process their emotions and exhibit gratitude for their time spent with their respected ex-partner before accepting life has taken them down different roads, but what are we, adults? (Editor’s note: This song was originally released in 2013 as a single off the Swedish darling’s debut 2014 album Truth Serum but the sleeper took a bit to blow up). This song’s the one we can all sing along to, and you know I’d have to include anything with the lyrics “I eat my dinner in my bathtub/Then I go to sex clubs watching freaky people gettin’ it on.”

2. White Lung – “Face Down” 

Captivating in the VHS-shot video, Mish Way is a goddess per usual in this perfectly titled track off Vancouver punk White Lung’s debut album with Domino. “All the world’s pretend,” she reminds us, sneering in leopard stockings whilst burning scarecrows on a beach. It’s brash, it’s feminist, it’s frenzied rebellion by nature of simply being.

1. Childbirth – “I Only Fucked You As A Joke” 

I’m going to be real with y’all, at first I had Jessie Ware at this spot and then I was all, “Why so serious…!” 2014 was the year of the anti-needy-chick “I don’t want to be your girlfriend” anthem, summed up hilariously with Childbirth’s (Chastity Belt/Tacocat/Pony Time supergroup) “I Only Fucked You As A Joke.” Whatever gender pronoun you identify with and no matter how 2014 sat for you on the rebellion spectrum, I think we can all relate to the line “I can’t make good decisions every day!” Let’s bring in the New Year with that.

SST out.

 

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BEST OF 2014: Best Tracks from NYC Bands

There were a lot of great songs released in 2014, and many came from bands who are from New York City (or, like many of us here, just currently call it home). Here are some of the year’s best tracks from the city that never sleeps.
Ava Luna: “Plain Speech” from Electric Balloon (Western Vinyl, March) 
Ava Luna is an eclectic quintet based in Brooklyn. Practically three tracks in one, this hipster love song involving fixies is an example of how the band can switch seamlessly from funky, offbeat rhythms to heartfelt, soulful anthems. Expect a new album from them soon.

Celestial Shore: “Gloria” from Enter Ghost (Hometapes, November)
This Brooklyn-based band released their second, more polished album in November. On Enter Ghost’s second track, they transition easily from complicated drum beats and snarling guitars to soft melodies. “Gloria” builds up and pulls back constantly, never quite resting on any one type of sound.

Hospitality: “I Miss Your Bones” from Trouble (Merge Records, January) 
The trio’s second album toes the lines of psychedelic/garage rock and guitar pop with songs about the subtleties of relationships and everyday insecurities. “I Miss Your Bones” is one of the album’s most energetic tracks, with shifting rhythms, perfectly synced guitars, and spot-on lyrics sung with Amber Papini’s charismatic lilt.

LVL UP: “DBTS” from Hoodwink’d (Double Double Whammy/Exploding in Sound, September) 
LVL UP’s hometown is Purchase in Upstate New York, but they’ve recently joined the roster of emerging Brooklyn bands. They’re masters at crafting quick songs, sung with a tired drawl and lively metaphors reminiscent of David Berman. Hoodwink’d is a short, bittersweet showcase of mid-twenties angst.

Mitski: “Townie” from Bury Me At Makeout Creek (Double Double Whammy, November) 
How do you describe Mitski? You could say she’s like Brooklyn’s edgier version of Angel Olsen, with more grit and fuzzier guitars. That’s not all, though. With lyrics like “I want a love that falls as fast as a body from the balcony” and “I’m holding my breath like a baseball bat,” you can’t help wanting to know exactly what’s going on in her head.
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Parquet Courts: “Ducking and Dodging” from Sunbathing Animal  (What’s Your Rupture?/Mom & Pop, June)
These punks originally from Texas play an intense form of something falling between blues, punk and rock. They recently turned Webster Hall into a mess of mosh pits and attempted stage-diving, which reached its best point (or worst, if you were the incredibly unamused bouncer) with “Ducking and Dodging.” The lyrics are more spit than sung, punctuated by sharp guitar chords and a constant, pounding bass.

Parkay Quarts: “Pretty Machines” from Content Nausea (November 2014, What’s Your Rupture?)
Andrew Savage and Austin Brown made this list twice, with another recently released album under a slightly different name. “Pretty Machines” has a catchy, bright guitar hook, Savage’s deadpan vocals, and a surprisingly uplifting horn section. Every verse in the song is a quotable gem, with lyrics such as “ Whiskey sips upon me as my secrets escaped/ In the skyline of hell there are no fire escapes.”
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Sharon Van Etten: “Taking Chances” from Are We There (May, Jagjaguwar) 
Known for being kind of a downer, Are We There is probably not an album you want to listen to when you’re in a good mood. “Taking Chances” was the album’s first single and one of its best tracks. Van Etten’s sleepy voice, gloomy guitar and electric piano make this a good song for days when you’re not quite ready to force a smile.

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BEST OF 2014 LADY FRONTED POP ACTS: Raquel’s Picks

The Used & My Chemical Romance

1. Jenny Lewis – “Head Underwater”

One of the best tracks off of one of the year’s best albums, “Head Underwater” is a

doozy of a pop song. Lewis sings conspicuously dismal lyrics (“My own mortality, I

contemplated”) over a bubbly, dynamic beat (that she also produced herself), creating

interesting tension within a sublime melody. Who doesn’t love a song you can have a

good cry to while also dancing?

Sylvan-Esso

2. Sylvan Esso – “Hey Mami”

It’s tricky to deal with a subject like catcalling, especially through pop music, but Sylvan

Esso pull it off gorgeously. Amelia Meath’s vocals are luxe and silky as she sings

“Sooner or later the dudes at bodegas will hold their lips and own their shit” over Nick

Sanborn’s bass-heavy, booming beat. A very welcomed “hey mami” that I’ll gladly listen

to as I walk down the street.

Jessie-Ware

3. Jessie Ware – “Keep On Lying”

Jessie Ware’s impressive sophomore album contained quite a few pop gems, but “Keep

On Lying” is a standout. The weirdly magnetic song features a dramatic and opulent

choir of voices paired with a rinky-dink keyboard sound that, together, conjure

minimalistic pop magic.

 

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4. Alvvays – “Archie, Marry Me”

Another powerfully catchy and sunny song that boasts quite a forlorn narrative. The

lyrics of this romantic plea are unassumingly genius in the way they roll off singer Molly

Rankin’s listless tongue (“You’ve expressed explicitly your contempt for matrimony”),

but they also hit a nerve that feels incredibly generationally relevant (“You’ve student

loans to pay and will not risk the alimony”). The push and pull between hopeless

romantic and practical realist has never sounded so blissful.

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5. Chumped –Hot 97 Summer Jam”

Chumped ooze nostalgia for ‘90s and early ‘00s punk pop without ever losing their

originality. “Hot 97 Summer Jam” is a fun and quick listen with endearing “ooh”s over

gritty guitars.

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6. St. Vincent – “Psychopath”

Amongst a roster of outstanding and complex tracks, “Psychopath” is notable for its

slightly more pared down sound. It hooks you instantly, with its quick repetition evoking

an OCD tick that you can’t quite shake, but the spaced-out chorus balances that quality

perfectly.

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7. TOPS – “Change of Heart”

TOPS’ music sounds like pure summer. “Change of Heart” dazzles with ‘80s influences,

but it’s also got a slight shoegaze-y sheen to it that allows the infectious ditty to stand

apart from the sea of dreamy indie-pop out there.

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8. Sabina – “I won’t Let You Break Me”

Brazilian Girls’ chanteuse Sabina debuted her solo efforts this year to little fanfare, but

Toujours was a solid record with the catchy “Won’t Let You Break Me” tucked in near its

end. Pulling from French Yé-Yé and rock a la Velvet Underground, this song is proudly

alluring pop rock with worldly charm.


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9. Banks – “Beggin’ For Thread”

Banks’ industrial R&B leans most heavily towards pop with “Beggin for Thread.” It’s

confidently aggressive and also playful in both its lyrics (“So I got itches that scratch /

And sometimes I don’t got a filter”) and its sound, making it a perfect dance number.

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10. Mr. Twin Sister – “Out of the Dark”

After a little musical reincarnation, the new Mr. Twin Sister gifted us this funky electro-

pop banger that begs to be played on a dark, sweaty dance floor. Andrea Estelle adopts

a monotone, robotic voice but, thankfully, nothing can shake her seductive qualities.