Best Songs of 2019

6. Lizzo – “Juice”

Despite what you think about Lizzo’s in your face, butt-shakin’ attitude, there’s no denying that she released one of 2019’s best pop records. Juice is arguably the best song on the album. Starting with an irresistible guitar riff accompanied by guiro, the song is undeniably dripping with self-esteem, self-love and a tinge of throwback funk. The high point of the song happens towards the end, where the instruments completely cut out, and Lizzo, accompanied by rototoms and cowbells, smirks “Somebody come get this man, I think he got lost in my DMs”. The music may harken back to another time, but this is pop music for the 2010s indeed.

5. Masked Intruder – “Mine All Mine”

Saccharine isn’t the word that comes to mind when you see a picture of Masked Intruder, a pop-punk band who shtick is that they’re criminals. Each Intruder dons a different color mask, and are accompanied live by a police officer, who goes from hardass to hardcore as the show goes on. (At Riot Fest, he was dancing in his Speedo by the end of the set). Costumes aside, Masked Intruder is creating some of the most sickly sweet pop-punk rock in recent memory. Mine All Mine is a prime example, with Beatles-esque harmonies, hand claps, and doo-wops. The song invokes the spirit of early rock and roll by way of Green Day, which wouldn’t work if the musicianship and singing weren’t absolutely on-point. Lucky for us, they are.

4. The Band Camino – “Hush Hush”

It wouldn’t be one of my end of the year lists without The Band Camino on it. This Nashville-based outfit has been consistently creating some of the best rock music for years now, and 2019 saw them sign with Elektra and prepare to release their first physical album, entitled Tryhard. Some of the songs are reworked versions of previous releases, but Hush Hush a is new – and brilliant – piece of music. Jeffrey Jordan’s unique singing soars once again over a shuffle of drums and a chorus of distorted guitars. Also – there’s a guitar solo. A guitar solo! The Band Camino is only getting bigger, and all their recent and future success is completely earned.

3. Pure Bathing Culture – “Devotion”

Portland’s Pure Bathing Culture is a dreamy, two-piece indie pop band who are picking up brilliantly where Chairlift left off. 2015’s Pray for Rain is one of the decade’s best releases, and the band didn’t slow down, releasing Night Pass in 2019. The lead single, Devotion, is an ethereal delight – Singer Sarah Versprille’s voice has never sounded stronger, yet still maintains its otherworldly nature. Perhaps the most noticeable part of the song is Daniel Hindman’s guitar, playing a complex, effected, echoey lead line that morphs throughout the entire song.

2. I Know Leopard – “Heather”

I Know Leopard hails from Sydney Australia, but it’s clear they’ve been studying UK synthpop. However, Heather isn’t a cheap imitation – the song stands brilliantly all on its own. The chord structure is simply hypnotic, the melody perfect, the synth sounds on-point. Singer Luke O'Loughlin hits every note flawlessly, even in falsetto, over an inspired bass shuffle. This is an intrepid piece of songwriting, and a work of a band who knows their influences but has crafted something unique and undeniably addicting.

1. Cody Fry, Cory Wong, Dynamo – “Better”

Cody Fry is a Nashville-based multi-instrumentalist and singer. Cory Wong is a Nashville and Minneapolis-based funk guitarist. Dynamo is a Nashville-based jazz and funk touring band. Together, these three artists have created the best song of 2019. Better is a sonic masterpiece from the very beginning, as an infectious bassline, funky guitar, and blasting drums take us into a full-fledged horn section, all leading up to Cody Fry’s absolutely stunning voice. Every musician here is firing all cylinders – the backup singers, Sharon Cho, Greg Breal, Abigail Flowers and Hollie Hammel are confident and lush, Josh Baylock and Ryan Conners on keyboards are in the zone – and Cory Wong is Cory Wong – bringing his unmistakable brand of funk guitar into the mix throughout. The musical breakdown of the song is incredible, with almost each instrument playing the exact same complex rhythm, until a solo guitar shreds away from the mix. Fry has written something truly unremarkable here.