Are you an album person or a song person?
It’s a loaded question that gets even more so depending on how big of a music head the individual asking it is.
If you’re cornered by such a query at a holiday party, you might be better off pulling the ol’ “hey look over there” and then running to hide in the bathroom.
If you’re the asker, you do you. Because albums are the truest measure of an artist’s consistency and ability, and creating a project that consists of several otherwise disparate elements yet still hangs together in a coherent fashion, thus delivering a more impactful message around a particular theme, is a far more demanding task than merely tossing together a 3-minute “bop” that will find its way into a soulless algorithm.
I am, obviously, an album person. As a result, I look at year-end songs lists as a sort of zoomed-in examination of the past 12 months. Based on the best-of collection below, it appears the music team at 88Nine does something similar. A good chunk of their selections come from a record they loved in 2024, making this an Old Country Buffet of music for you to sample before deciding which ones you want to return to for a bigger helping.
Speaking of big helpings, we've got a giant bowl of 2024's best songs coming your way on 88Nine this New Year's Eve. All day long, we're counting down our 200 most-played tracks of the past year, starting with "The Moon Is In The Wrong Place" by Shannon & The Clams and working our way up to ... well, best not to spoil the surprise.
If you want to be there for the entire list, Dori will get things going on the morning show at 6 a.m., Arya will wrap it up during his evening shift, and Erin and Carolann will fill in the middle as part of the midday show and afternoon drive. Then, right after we play No. 1, Kenny's coming through with a special In the Mix to help you ring in the New Year.
Dori Zori
Abby Jeanne, “Propaganda Machine”
Hypnotic beats, psychedelic guitars and piano flourishes mix with the smooth but funky basslines in this track from Milwaukee-born, NYC-based poet and vocalist Abby Jeanne. I love the honesty in her songwriting as she weaves semi-autobiographical tales into songs that sound like they could have been HUGE radio hits decades ago but somehow still sound fresh and now.
The power in her voice grows stronger as she ramps up to the chorus, “There’s a ghost in this house / What a haunted place full of empty lies in lawless times.” She delivers the lyrics as someone who’s not afraid to confront truths and won’t hold secrets for the ghosts of the past any longer.
St. Vincent, “Broken Man”
St. Vincent was born to be an artist and use her powerful voice to cut through a sea of toxic masculinity that exists beyond the world of music. These lyrics are full of angry questions that make me feel all the things: “What are you looking at?” and “Who the hell do you think I am?”
Punctuated by her signature distorted vocals and the Annie Clarke-brand guitar riffs (seriously, she created her own brand of electric guitar), you can’t help but shout your answers back to these questions, feeling empowered that at least someone is listening to your angst.
Erin Wolf
Youth Lagoon, “Lucy Takes a Picture”
"Songs were a lot harder to write when I hated myself," Trevor Powers of the Boise-based project Youth Lagoon shared this year. "When my soul changed, my music did, too.”
"Lucy Takes A Picture" — one of Powers’ most poignant songs to date — rides a wave of self-love, radiating healing vibes wrought from true growth. “My only concern now with music is bringing the inner world to life,” he added. “It’s not about making something better; it’s about making something true."
This track truly does radiate, grounded by simple piano and percussion, wrapped in the mystery of electronics and poetry. “Once in a while, there’s a song that feels like I’ve been trying to write it my whole life," Powers concluded. “‘Lucy’ is one of those."
It's the rare song that first stopped me in my tracks and then sent me on a journey of repeat-listens. Maybe it found me at the right time, too.
Jessica Pratt, “Life Is”
I was first introduced to San Francisco singer-songwriter Jessica Pratt in 2015 when she released her beautiful sophomore album, On Your Own Love Again. That simple collection of songs was bolstered around finger-picked guitar and Pratt’s wise, understated voice that called to mind Nick Drake and Joan Baez.
Fast-forward almost 10 years, and Pratt has filled things out on 2024's Here In the Pitch, adding elements of ’60s pop to her folk foundation. Mamas & the Papas, Beach Boys and The Byrds all echo on lead single “Life Is,” which Pratt says is about life not landing you where you thought it would. “It’s the third act, and you’re trying to climb back on the horse before it gets dark,” she said of the song’s themes, singing cryptically “time is time and time and time again."
Pratt is a songwriting wizard, with co-producer Al Carlson acting as her sound-witch, materializing uncannily timeless songs that could be as relevant 40 years ago as 40 years from now.
Carolann Grzybowski
MJ Lenderman, “Wristwatch”
If I had to pick one showstopper from sad-boy modern masterpiece Manning Fireworks, “Wristwatch” takes the cake.
In a literal sense, MJ Lenderman argues that his decision to choose fame and fortune is just. After all, he’s got a wristwatch that defies modern technology with a “pocket knife and a megaphone.” Contradiction then creeps in by boasting, “I’ve got a houseboat docked at the Himbo Dome,” realizing his is the same fate that has befallen so many who want success at the cost of meaningful connection.
Ultimately, he decides the latter is the most valuable of all. There’s something about an anti-hero admitting he’s wrong through a twangy indie-rock headbanger that has me playing this song on repeat. That, and I celebrate anyone who can use the phrase “Himbo Dome” so eloquently.
Cindy Lee, “Always Dreaming”
Cindy Lee has become almost synonymous with the tone of their cherry Fender Telecaster — a familiar sound accompanied by a harp-like dreamscape to open this memorable track from Diamond Jubilee.
“When the tears start falling, I just keep rolling,” Lee sings in the midst of a steadily marching bass line. Then the dreamscape returns, and it becomes clear that the rising and falling glissando is also meant to depict Lee’s falling tears. They let us in on their false perception of something so beautiful, provoking their pain, “I can’t turn back, I’m always dreaming, Nothing’s at all the way I’m feeling.”
The vocals on “Always Dreaming” come from Patrick Flegel’s drag persona, a reverb falsetto in a ’60s style. It’s a perfect example of the world-building paramount to Cindy Lee, as well as a pillar of one of 2024’s most critically acclaimed albums.
Arya Ahmadi
Gum & Ambrose Kenny-Smith, “Dud”
As a self-proclaimed super fan of both Tame Impala and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, it was pretty hard not to fawn over the surprise formation of this psych-rock duo out of Australia. If you wanna know how much of a man crush I have on Ambrose Kenny-Smith, I nearly convinced my wife to name our puppy Amby.
“Dud,” the opening track on their debut album Ill Times, is anything but. Jay Watson’s production prowess coupled with Amby’s audacious vocal range is just *chef’s kiss.* Something’s definitely in the water down under, and I’m ready to lather up and soak in all the hazy retro deliciousness these two produce.
Yannis & The Yaw, “Walk Through Fire”
Yannis Philippakis, the frontman of the band Foals, joined forces with the late, great Afrobeat legend Tony Allen to release five tracks of pure sonic bliss on their 2024 EP, Lagos Paris London. Each song is well worth your time, with “Walk Through Fire” standing out as the centerpiece of the project for me.
Allen’s drumming style is so unique and unmistakably his, as soon as you hear those intricate beats and technical polyrhythmic subtleties, you instantly know who’s on the throne. If I’m being honest, it kinda feels like you’re listening to a raw, edgier Foals album with a drum machine, and that sounds like a recipe for success to me.
Allen’s legacy lives on through his prodigious contributions to the world of music, and Philippakis says he plans to return to the Yannis & The Yaw project with “inspiring musicians from across the globe.”
Kenny Perez
Angélica Garcia, “Color De Dolor”
Gemelo is a masterclass in musical expression and energy, and on “Color de Dolor” (“Color of Pain”), Garcia effortlessly blends pain and beauty. Her voice weaves through layers of haunting wordless vocals, shiny synth sounds and infectious drum beats, building in intensity until it erupts into a cathartic release of raw emotion. The result is a sonic experience as stunning as it is transformative.
Micah Emrich, “maybe hell is a better place?”
Micah Emrich’s “maybe hell is a better place?” has been stuck in my head since summer 2024, and for good reason. This layered masterpiece begins with a haunting acoustic intro, flows effortlessly into a smooth indie vibe with fresh drums, and explodes with electrifying rock star energy. It’s a sonic roller coaster you’ll want to ride on repeat.