Best Songs of 2011

2011 was one of the first years I endeavored to make myself, at the end of the calendar year, a 100-song playlist that encapsulated all that I listened to and loved over the previous 12 months. As such, this list, published five years later, varies little from that one I made back in December ’11.

Fewer than 10 songs were dropped from that original list, replaced by ones I discovered in 2012 and 2013. Because that original list was as finely tuned as this mix, sequenced for more than 6 hours of continuous playback, it was quite difficult to find space for these new tunes. But I did, and this new playlist is the result of that effort.

Though I have listened to some of these songs dozens of times, the truth is that, when you have a music library as big as mine, five years is not quite enough to truly gain an appreciation of a song. There are too many other tracks to listen to, both new and old, to properly delve as deeply into these as I would like. As such, I am still finding my way through parts of this playlist, seeing where the songs play best in the soundtrack of my life.

If I made this list five years from now, I may find that the sands have shifted yet again, and a few more songs drop out, to be replaced by ones I had underestimated before, or had somehow missed in my first two tries to encapsulate the year 2011. More likely still, I may find that my favorite song from this list has waned, only to be replaced by one I enjoyed previously, but did not truly love until its secret was unlocked.

Often that secret can be as simple as finding an application to my own life where there was none previously, but most fruitfully, the secret is revealed from within the song itself. Maybe I suddenly hear the words fully, as if for the very first time. Maybe some chord strikes me with a new nostalgia that did not previously exist. Maybe an association between the song and a memory becomes even more poignant with the passage of time. Maybe it’s going to be a combination of all of these things? Whatever the reason, I am very excited for what the future of holds for these songs, and their place in my life.

For these year-end lists, I like to undertake the seemingly impossibly task of creating an hours-long mix. The order you see below represents that effort, which you can listen to via Spotify. Sadly all 100 tracks aren't available, but you get the general idea. Track notes to come eventually or maybe never.

December 12, 2016

Show Grid

With Love

Elbow

Build a Rocket Boys!

Downtown

Notes
Keep Your Heart

TV on the Radio

Nine Types of Light

DGC

Notes
King of Diamonds

Motopony

Motopony

self-released

Notes
Blue Skies Again

Jessica Lea Mayfield

Tell Me

Nonesuch

Notes
Good

The Dodos featuring Neko Case

No Color

Frenchkiss

Notes
Another Sky

Akron/Family

S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT

Dead Oceans

Notes
Secret Mobilization

Deerhoof

Deerhoof vs. Evil

Polyvinyl

Notes
Something Came Over Me

Wild Flag

Wild Flag

Merge

Notes
Bizness

tUnE-yArDs

w h o k i l l

4AD

Notes
Rumour Has It

Adele

21

Columbia/XL Recordings

Notes
Future Starts Slow

The Kills

Blood Pressures

Domino

Notes
Louder Than Ever

Cold War Kids

Mine Is Yours

Interscope

Notes
Circuital

My Morning Jacket

Circuital

ATO

Notes
Give Up the Ghost

U.S. Royalty

Mirrors

Family

Notes
These Days

Foo Fighters

Wasting Light

Sony

Notes
Your Past Life as a Blast

Okkervil River

I Am Very Far

Jagjaguwar

Notes
This Is Why We Fight

The Decemberists

The King Is Dead

Capitol

Notes
Walking Far From Home

Iron & Wine

Kiss Each Other Clean

Warner Bros.

Notes
100 Other Lovers

DeVotchKa

100 Lovers

Anti

Notes
Strange Negotiations

David Bazan

Strange Negotiations

Barsuk

Notes
Lookin’ Good

Say Hi

Um, Uh Oh

Barsuk

Notes
Clownin’ Around

Deer Tick

Divine Providence

Partisan

Notes
Morning Son

Country Mice

Twister

Kanine

Notes
Is It Done

J. Mascis

Several Shades of Why

Sub Pop

Notes
Almost Running Out of Everything

Joseph Giant

Joseph Giant

self-released

Notes
Middle of Love

Ron Sexsmith

Long Player Late Bloomer

Ronboy Rhymes

Notes
Chains of Love

Ryan Adams

Ashes & Fire

Pax Am

Notes
Sophia

Laura Marling

A Creature I Don’t Know

Ribbon Music

Notes
I Know

Blind Pilot

We Are the Tide

Expunged

Notes
Jejune Stars

Bright Eyes

The People’s Key

Saddle Creek

Notes
All Land Crabs and Divinity Ghosts

The Cave Singers

No Witch

Jagjaguwar

Notes
Hope You Know

Megafaun

Megafaun

Hometapes

Notes
Payne’s Bay

Beirut

The Rip Tide

Pompeii

Notes
Juniper

Y La Bamba

Lupon

Tender Loving Empire

Notes
Mercedes Blast

Centro-Matic

Candidate Waltz

Undertow

Notes
Blue Eyes

Middle Brother

Middle Brother

Partisan

Notes
Everybody Needs Love

Drive-By Truckers

Go-Go Boots

ATO

Notes
Love Is Eternal Sacred Light

Paul Simon

So Beautiful or So What

Hear Music

Notes
Grown Oceean

Fleet Foxes

Helplessness Blues

Sub Pop

Notes
Hard Times

Gillian Welch

The Harrow & The Harvest

Acony

Notes
Ghost Woman Blues

The Low Anthem

Smart Flesh

Nonesuch

Notes
Runner Ups

Kurt Vile

Smoke Ring for My Halo

Matador

Notes
Forget You All the Time

Cloud Nothings

Cloud Nothings

Carpark

Notes
Green Aisles

Real Estate

Days

Domino

Notes
At Your Door

Alexi Murdoch

Towards the Sun

Zero Summer

Notes
Video Games

Lana Del Rey

Video Games/Blue Jeans 7"

Polydor

Notes
Coming Down

Dum Dum Girls

Only in Dreams

Sub Pop

Notes
The Circle Married the Line

Feist

Metals

Cherry Tree

Notes
Putting the Dog to Sleep

The Antlers

Burst Apart

Frenchkiss

Notes
Why Is It So Hard

Charles Bradley

No Time for Dreaming

Daptone

Notes
Progress

Booker T. Jones featuring Jim James

The Road to Memphis

Anti

Notes
Kool On

The Roots

undun

Okayplayer

Notes
Lovin’ I Lost

Common

The Dreamer, The Believer

Warner Bros.

Notes
Stone Rollin’

Raphael Saadiq

Stone Rollin’

Columbia

Notes
Stop Stop

The Black Keys

El Camino

Nonesuch

Notes
Try Me Out Sometime

Broncho

Can’t Get Past the Lips

Cop Friendly

Notes
Blow It Up

The Vaccines

What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?

Columbia

Notes
Dig a Little Deeper

Peter Bjorn and John

Gimme Some

Almost Gold

Notes
Dressed Sharply

An Horse

Walls

Mom and Pop

Notes
Trust

Generationals

Trust

Park the Van

Notes
It’s Casual

Maritime

Human Hearts

Dangerbird

Notes
Squareneck

Thao & Mirah

Thao & Mirah

Kill Rock Stars

Notes
WACS

Fruit Bats

Tripper Bonus Track

Sub Pop

Notes
Street Joy

White Denim

D

Downtown

Notes
One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley’s Boyfriend)

Wilco

The Whole Love

DbPM

Notes
Überlin

R.E.M.

Collapse Into Now

Warner Bros.

Notes
In the Dark Places

P.J. Harvey

Let England Shake

Vagrant

Notes
Common Burn

Mazzy Star

Common Burn / Lay Myself Down 7"

Rhymes of an Hour

Notes
Kaputt

Destroyer

Kaputt

Merge

Notes
Michicant

Bon Iver

Bon Iver

Jagjaguwar

Notes
Separator

Radiohead

The King of Limbs

XL

Notes
California Sunrise

Dirty Gold

ROAR

Autumn Tone

Notes
Daydream

Tycho

Dive

Ghostly International

Notes
Champagne Coast

Blood Orange

Coastal Grooves

Domino

Notes
Don’t Move

Phantogram

Nightlife

Barsuk

Notes
Cover Your Tracks

Young Galaxy

Shapeshifting

Paper Bag

Notes
Eyes Be Closed

Washed Out

Within and Without

Sub Pop

Notes
Where I’m Going

Cut Copy

Zonoscope

Modular

Notes
Young Blood

The Naked and Famous

Passive Me, Aggressive You

Universal

Notes
Up Up Up

Givers

In Light

Glassnote

Notes
Pumped Up Kicks

Foster the People

Torches

Columbia

Notes
Happy Birthday Party

Dom

Family of Love

Astralwerks
Two Cousins

Slow Club

Paradise

Moshi Moshi

Notes
Who Are You

Kathryn Calder

Bright and Vivid

File Under Music

Notes
Year of the Tiger

St. Vincent

Strange Mercy

4AD

Notes
Civilian

Wye Oak

Civilian

Merge

Notes
Daphne

Lia Ices featuring Justin Vernon

Grown Unknown

Jagjaguwar

Notes
The Wilhelm Scream

James Blake

James Blake

Republic

Notes
Some Children

Holy Ghost! featuring Michael McDonald

Holy Ghost!

DFA

Notes
Hanging On

Active Child

You Are All I See

Vagrant

Notes
I Wrote the Book

Beth Ditto

Beth Ditto

Sony

Notes
Can’t Hold Us

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton

Can’t Hold Us

self-released

Notes
Gotta Have It

The Throne

Watch the Throne

Roc-A-Fella

Notes
Sail

AWOLNATION

Megalithic Symphony

Red Bull

Notes
I’ll Take Care of U

Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie xx

We’re New Here

XL

Notes
Let’s Go Back

Kraak & Smaak featuring Romanthony

Electric Hustle

Jalapeño

European release
Still Sound

Toro y Moi

Underneath the Pine

Carpark

Notes
Midnight City

M83

Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming

Mute

Notes
Ritual Union

Little Dragon

Ritual Union

Peacefrog

Notes
You Da One

Rihanna

Talk That Talk

Def Jam

Notes