2024 - Top Five... Songs?

What a contrast 2024 was to 2023. In '23 I enjoyed a lot of good music and many albums I was into. This year was the driest in memory in terms of new albums I really liked. While perusing my monthly mixes for albums, there was just one that stood out during the entire year - TWRP's Digital Nightmare. All others may have had a song or two I really liked, but none that consistently made me want to hit the play button again when the album finished. Luckily there were a lot of singles I liked and as a result, the playlists I made became my music lifeblood. 

So, for the first time, I'm going to forgo the album review and list my top five songs of the year.

TWRP - A Human's Touch - 2024

TWRP teased the single A Human's Touch in advance of their album Digital Nightmare and it immediately got my attention. As I mentioned last year, TWRP is an "unabashedly ridiculous and fun Canadian band. Going strictly by their costumed and disguised band personas, TWRP plays funky, 80's tinged jams and is fronted by Doctor Sung, who uses a talk box for his vocals. Bassist Commander Meouch and guitarist Lord Phobos play virtuoso riffs and drummer Havve Hogan keeps time, with each musician likely being limited in how much they can see through their masks". A Human's Touch includes McKenna Rae vocals processed similarly to Doctor Sung's, and the song is reminiscent of an Abba song from the early 80's. 

Big Wreck - Alibi - 2019 (2023 Remaster)

This song resurfaced for me due to multiple plays it got while skiing this year. My ski experience was taken to a whole new level when Craw gifted me a helmet with built-in bluetooth speakers on the ear pads. I had used wired ear buds in the past to listen to music while skiing but it was not ideal. The helmet's controls on the side make adjusting volume and song selection so easy. Perhaps the only rival to this top notch experience is snorkeling with my waterproof headphones. I soon discovered that Big Wreck was a great fit for the energetic and exhilarating ski moments I was having. Having made a 2nd Big Wreck 12-Pack with songs from their more recent albums and EPs, the song Alibi stood out each time it played. The harmony laden chorus is great on it's own but the stand-out section is when Ian Thornley sings his soaring signature vocals like a guitar solo over the top of the already exciting chorus. This section when combined with high speed racing through empty slopes made for epic moments. 

Goose - Arcadia & Jive II - 2016

I couldn't decide between these two Goose songs so I'm listing them both. Arcadia became a favorite while enjoying the backyard hot tub. When I saw Goose live at Edgefield this year I didn't expect to hear it. Apparently Goose mixes up their setlist every night so there was no way to know it was going to be their closer during the encore. After a funny solo experience at the show that included tripping and nearly crushing a fellow fan's newly purchased vinyl LP, I left the venue before the encore, knowing I'd hear it from the parking lot. When Arcadia came on I was bummed to not be in the venue but I then had a unique solo experience listening and grooving in the adjacent grass field with the moon rising in the distance. 

Jive II became a favorite near the end of the year. The cool thing about Goose is while they are a free flowing jam band in concert, their studio albums are tightly produced. This song sounds fantastic and the harmonies near the end of this seven minute track get me every time. 

Die With a Smile - Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars - 2024

Bruno Mars has a knack for creating classic songs and I've been a real fan since he and Anderson Pak teamed up as Silk Sonic. Die With A Smile came out as a standalone single duet with Lady Gaga, and it caught my ear immediately. Soaring vocals, great harmonies, and a tight production along with some interesting melody changes near the end has left me thinking this is one of most perfect pop songs of all time. After doing a lot of karaoke in the last year with our home setup, Jess and I tried to get this one nailed down but the high notes and flip flopping main melody made it difficult. Perhaps I should just leave it to the professionals to do what they do best. The song won the 2025 Grammy award for Best Pop Duo and was nominated for Song of the Year. 

Kylie Minogue - Padam Padam - 2024

Padam Padam popped up on one of Rowe's monthly playlists and I was instantly hooked. I had forgotten that Australian Kylie Minogue was a global sensation in the 80's. I've read that her career included acting and theater and that she's maintained some level of popularity ever since the 80's, creating 17 albums. Now at age 56, Kylie has had another resurgence due to songs like Padam Padam from her Tension album. This song is not one I'd typically get so into but it's super catchy, and has a subtle low, male vocal harmony that is so satisfying. The song is so short in length I often just hit play again when it was done. Good thing a longer remix was released. Padam Padam is definitely associated with our family's summer vacation in Vancouver, B.C. As part of a playlist made a couple months before the trip, it was part of the soundtrack for my planning and anticipation for the trip. I can also picture listening to it on the patio of the AirBnb we rented in Vancouver.