Top 119 Songs of 2019, #40 - 31

#119 - #111

#110 - #101

#100 - #91

#90 - #81

#80 - #71

#70 - #61

#60 - #51

#50 - #41

#40. BRING ME HOME

by G Flip

I am breaking down, I am losing my patience

They say that winding roads lead to great destinations

I never expected it when I first heard this song, but sometimes life gives you interesting gifts over and over and you just have to accept them. So when ‘Bring Me Home’ first appeared in one of my social media feeds at the beginning of the year, I proceeded to listen to it a million times over, knowing this was going to be one of those special ones that would stay with me a long time after that first listen. It spoke to me, doing that thing that all the most special songs do, becoming a friend, one I would turn to in those moments alone with my headphones, sending all the goosebumps with every listen. Little did I know how good a friend it would become, now giving me some of the greatest laughs as well, after Matt and I saw GFlip playing at the end of this year, where we witnessed a room full of appreciative fans lift their phones into the air during said song, and one man lift his light up shoe into the air, waving it with such emotion as the sole flashed away in unison with a sea of iphones and androids. What a moment. Live music is unpredictably the best. I will be forever thankful to GFlip for the gorgeous song, and the hilarious fan. (Jo Michelmore)

#39. SHIVER

by Ngaiire

I'm looking right into your eyes

And it feels like I could die

I’m yet to hear a Ngaiire song that I don’t love, and ‘Shiver’ is no exception, it’s quickfire beats and danceable sounds are perfectly Ngaiire, but it was when I read what the shiver in ‘Shiver’ means, it made me love it even more than I originally thought, it being a tribute to her late Grandmother and how Ngaiire remembers her, sees her and knows her presence surrounds make it even more special than just a simple pop song. I can’t help but smile at the thought of someone’s memory floating over dancefloors and making people move for years to come, and I hope Ngaiire gets a giant smile out of that too. (Jo Michelmore)

#38. FINALLY

by No Mono

Finally, I was all I had to be

Mid way through this year, I spent an evening with one of my best friends in which we both accidentally on purpose managed to somehow make our way into a (not so) random gig in a beautiful venue and see No Mono, a name I previously knew very little about, except knowing that my friend liked them. What we witnessed was incredibly beautiful material being performed to a crowd much smaller than their talent deserved, but while we drank gin and were taken away on a gorgeous wave of electronic emotion and a voice from another world, I couldn’t help but appreciate how lucky I was to see Tom Iansek and Tom Snowdon’s project before it ended, as it did with the release of this song. It’s dramatic and its exquisite, it’s a perfect combination of both their connection and their talents and I could write a million positive words about one of the greatest nights of my year, and some of the greatest talent I found in 2019, but they say it all themselves with their last lyrics; “finally, I was all I had to be…” (Jo Michelmore)

#37. CELLOPHANE

by FKA twigs

But I just want to feel you there

And I don't want to have to share our love

On the hauntingly beautiful ‘Cellophane’, FKA twigs wears her heart on her sleeve and shows her vulnerable side like never before. Everything seems to be working against a relationship that’s likely already over and her world is crashing down around her. She takes this to a literal level as she crashes through time and space in the video that’s just as perfect as the song itself. All this and ‘Cellophane’ also gives you the perfect lines to scream at anyone in any situation when it’s not going your way. WHY DON’T I DO IT FOR YOU? WHY WON’T YOU DO IT FOR ME. It’s the little things in life that get you through the day. (Matt Bond) 

#36. LOVER

by Taylor Swift

And there's a dazzling haze

A mysterious way about you, dear

Oh, T-Baby Swift. You know I only like to hear the word lover when it’s used in the name of a particularly meaty pizza. But for you, I’m willing to make an exception, because the title track to Swift’s seventh studio album is the most romantic thing going around. It’s the part in the movie when Kate Hudson says yes to love. It’s the part of the TV show when Ridge and Brooke get married for the 15th time. It’s that feeling you want to have in the real world (the what?) with that special someone. It’s love. Taylor Swift has made love into a song. Feel her love, mortals. Feel it! (Matt Bond)


I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that this is not Ms Swift’s best song. But when someone has as much fame and chart success as Ms Swift does, one can’t deny that even my least favourite song isn’t that bad. And what does it matter if I despise it, she’s written a song that I’ll no doubt hear for years to come in soundtracks and at amateur theatre and weddings and engagement events, so she’s done a Mariah and insured she’s certainly not going to go broke any time soon. Well done Ms Swift. This song isn’t the greatest song I heard all year, but it is the greatest business move I’ve heard for years. She’s a smart one that Swift. (Jo Michelmore)

#35. REAL THING

by Middle Kids

Two trains and a bus to get home
Sleeping on each other's shoulders

Hopeless romantics, anxiety tragics and the sounds of Middle Kids. What more does one need? Nothing. That’s what. ‘Real Thing’ is a rocking and rolling heartbreaker of a track that puts those questions out there that run through all of our heads when we’re falling in luuuurve. Is this the real thing? Could this be it? The opening lines are full of hope and possibilities and then it turns so quickly that you barely have time to catch your breath. Hannah Joy sells the performance brilliantly, like she’s confessing a secret that’s not supposed to get out. Middle Kids continue to spoil us with their emotionally layered tracks, while also firmly establishing their place as the best of the best when it comes to storytelling. (Matt Bond) 

#34. CHARLIE

by Mallrat

I'm gonna love you forever

I hope you warm up to me

I remember hearing this song for the very first time, listening to those oh so warm first notes and words, desperately reaching for some kind of technology, anyone’s technology so I could remember it forever, manically remembering lyrics while trying to unlock my phone, all the while trying to lose myself in the words, because I knew this one was a special one. One of those songs that finds some part of your life and plays it back to you with every sound, I don’t know who Charlie is but if I was to have enough talent to write a song for all the people I have adored in my life, then this would be the song that I would write.  Instead, I only have the ability to write about this song, which has made itself onto a list of all the songs I have adored in my life. (Jo Michelmore)

#33. EYES WIDE

by Bec Sandridge

And I've got plenty of heart

But is there limit to us?

Manic pop with an 80s throwback twist has become Bec Sandridge’s speciality. ‘You’re a Fucking Joke’, ‘Animal’ and ‘Stranger’ have all showcased how amazing Sandridge is when she’s rocking this vibe and you can most certainly add ‘Eyes Wide’ to the list too. I’ve said this before about Sandridge’s songs, but they really do get you feeling like tonight’s a good night to get yourself out on the town and have some of this ‘fun’ you’ve heard so much about, dancing the night away until the sun comes up and heading home with a large Big Mac meal at 5am to watch whatever bizarre true crime documentary Netflix has decided you need to see. That’s what fun is right? If you said no you’re still young, you’ll change. But we don’t ever want Bec Sandridge to change, because she keeps on bringing the actual fun to the music world and we couldn’t be loving it more. (Matt Bond)

#32. LET IT OUT

by Seeker Lover Keeper

I can see you're struggling

But it won't be long, 'til I'm home

How many years was it between Seeker Lover Keeper albums? Seven or eight? To be honest, I didn’t expect we’d be hearing another album from the Sarah Blasko-Holly Throsby-Sally Seltmann supergroup and then this quiet, moving number ‘Let It Out’ was released and everything just seemed right in the world. You can find a thousand songs out there with a vague message about being true to yourself, but it’s rare to find one as genuine and heartfelt as this. A celebration of the unique with a healthy side of the best kind of friendships. It’s the music we need and deserve and it’s all thanks to Seeker Lover Keeper. Even if it takes another seven, eight or twenty years, I hope we hear more from Seeker Lover Keeper. The world’s a kinder, brighter place with them in it. (Matt Bond)

#31. DANCE MONKEY

by Tones and I

And how I beg to see you dance just one more time

For some, it seems an impossible task to celebrate the success of Australia’s musical exports. But the backlash against Tones and I as ‘Dance Monkey’ dominates charts and airwaves worldwide has been on another level. Instead of dwelling on that, let’s just celebrate Tones extending her record breaking run at the top of the ARIA singles charts for another week. Be happy for an artist that has the longest running solo, female number one in the UK of all time. Applaud a new artist smashing her way into the top ten of the US Billboard charts. Relish in the possibility of the biggest Australian song of the year topping the Hottest 100, from a triple J homegrown act no less. Because why wouldn’t you? Tones and I’s achievements in 2019 have been astounding. Oh, and ‘Dance Monkey’ is a BANGER too. So there’s that. (Matt Bond)


Anyone who hasn’t been living off the grid in the last six months has definitely heard this song, and most probably heard about the amount of records it has broken in it’s chart topping positions across the world, even though I have no idea who or what makes a chart these days. And whether you liked this song in the first place or not, I only hope for T and I’s sake it doesn’t carry the number one curse, where everyone loves it for a while, then groans in annoyance a few months later because they’ve heard it far too many times and couldn’t stand those opening notes one more time. Just like another song I used to know, although I’m not sure whether Tones or I is Gotye or Kimbra. Fingers crossed we hear more from all of them. (Jo Michelmore)

Top 119 Songs of 2019, #110 - 101

#119 - 111

#110. I FEEL BETTER BUT I DON'T FEEL GOOD

by Alice Skye

It might not seem like much but I'm hurting now

I’ve said this sentence so many more times in my life than I care to admit. Alice Skye says it in a much, much prettier way than I ever could and makes me feel much more better-er and almost close to good-er-er when I hear it. And this is why music is so important and this is exactly why I love so much music so much. (Jo Michelmore)

#109. DEMON

by Mark Harding





And people say it's the land of opportunity

Mark Harding has this amazing talent, a way of painting pictures with sounds that transport me to familiar places I’m not sure I’ve been, beats of confident hesitation and slow notes I almost mistrust. Lyrics that transport me to so many places, some of them beautifully bathed in golden light, some of them hazy and gloomy; his music is so comfortably Australian it makes me homesick for places I’ve never been. If only I had his talent I could explain how much talent he has. (Jo Michelmore)

#108. GIVE ME THE NIGHT
by Essie Holt





I won't find the key to your feelings
But I know that I'm going to break in

“You look up, you look down, you look up, you look down (repeat)” It was those words that hooked me on this song from the first time I heard it, which is funny because it’s exactly how the whole song feels; poppy and light, with a shadow overriding, dancing with your back against a wall. Essie Holt has managed to capture atmospheric and equally grounded, moody and overjoyed all at the same time and she’s managed to squish it all into two minutes and fifty one seconds of greatness. (Jo Michelmore)

#107. IN MY ROOM
by Frank Ocean


 


Quit being violent with me
You make me violent

I’m not going to pretend I’m on the Frank Ocean can do no wrong bandwagon, but I’m not going to pretend I don’t at least sorta kinda maybe like pretty much everything he does. Last month a couple of new Ocean tracks were released to much twitter fanfare, but as hopefully everyone has figured out by now, Twitter is pretty dire as a platform (said by someone who uses it to get the ‘news’). I probably couldn’t tell you the name of the other one (DHL?) but ‘In My Room’ holds a nice vibe, it’s pretty chill, dope one might say. Or not?  (Matt Bond)

#106. SKIN
by San Cisco





Was it the way I behaved
To try and make you stay?

San Cisco, you reliable teen babes. Sure they’re likely young adults now, but they’ll always be teen dreams to me. Remember when they were releasing stalker anthems and then super dreamy indie bops and it’s like 10 years later and now here they are... releasing stalker-y, super dreamy indie bops. I can dig it. Like their contemporaries, Ball Park Music, San Cisco only get better with age as they bestow gems like ‘Skin’ on us that reflect their maturing world view. There’s beautiful guitar lines in this too. What more do you want? (Matt Bond)

#105. SAD DAY
by FKA twigs





Take a chance on all the things you can't see

Art. What is it? What’s it all about? Is there such thing as musical art? Yes, obviously. That’s why we callperformers musical artists. It’s not like how Subway has sandwich artists who are unable to express themselves in any unique ways. Musical artists can get all experimental if they want and as an example of this, here’s FKA twigs and her trippy beats and it’s all very arty... but it’s also just good music that, like the title suggests, is going to make you have a sad day. Or since art is subjective, maybe you’ll take this in a completely different interpretive direction and be happy? See. Art. (Matt Bond) 

Perhaps I haven’t been paying as much attention as I should, but I’m unsure what happened to FKA Twigs in the years between LP1 and her second album, Magdalene, released late this year. The reason I mention this is because I’m unsure at what point exactly she became Kate Bush. For the younger kids playing along, Kate Bush was an art/baroque rock/pop singer/songwriter from the 70s and 80s who sounded much like….FKA Twigs. Has anyone seen either of them in the same room at the same time? No? Has anyone noticed bushes are made of sticks and...twigs? The FKA Bush conspiracy theory continues. (Jo Michelmore)

#104. SILVER
by DMA'S





It's funny that I think of you right now
Knowing all the years that turned to clouds

Never one to shy away from admitting they are extremely late to the party, I can finally say in 2019 I’m a big fan of DMA’S. I can’t even explain how I’ve managed to avoid them all this time. Not listening to the radio much helps. But I did hear ‘Silver’ and now I’m kicking myself for not getting into them sooner because this makes me really, really happy. Like smile on the face happy. Are all the DMA’S songs this romantic? I look forward to finding out for myself. (Matt Bond)

#103. NICK CAVE
by Thelma Plum





I don't hate her, I hate you
It's not her fault, this one's on you

A little bit awkward and a whole lot sad. This reminds me of some of Thelma Plum’s earliest releases that captured that first sentence so well, as only she can. It’s kind of crazy to think Plum has been releasing for the last decade and we’ve only just seen the release of her debut album, but it’s also genuinely amazing to see an artist that can still capture the same magic in a song after all this time. ‘Nick Cave’ finds Plum is the role of the other woman, albeit reluctantly and willing to call old mate out on being a dick for putting her in this position. Unenviable and forgivable...  but working at Mrs. Flannery’s? Don’t know about that, Ms. Plum. So much to love and one of the best singalong choruses of the year. (Matt Bond) 

 

 

There is a special something that incredible artists and incredibly good pop songs all share – the ability to be relatable. There is a line in this song that tells the tale of one of the most relatable situations anyone with a social media account will have either been in, or dread. And if you’ve heard the song, you know the line, which is as amusing as it is horrifying, much like social media itself. Thelma Plum's brand of pop is exactly as pop should be; totally relatable, totally incredible, totally the best. (Jo Michelmore)

#102. THE REAL THING
by Client Liaison





Everybody's a winner
But there's more to reach than just the finish line

I’ve never been quite sure whether Client Liaison are absolutely taking the piss and have made a very successful career out of it or whether they’ve managed to travel through time and bring their fashion to the future, that is now, with them, or whether the other option, they just really like the 80s. To be honest, I’d be happy with any of these options, because those 80s synths and mullets are a welcome feel, in any decade. They manage to make pop positive without being overbearing, keeping dance battles and funk riffs alive in a world that can sometimes feel too much number 101 than number 102. Don’t tell me you don’t love it. No offence Lana. (Jo Michelmore)

#101. CALIFORNIA
by Lana Del Rey





You said to a friend that you wish you were doing better
I wanted to reach out, but I never said a thing

Over the past couple of releases, Lana Del Rey has really carved out her own space in the musical world. She knows what her brand of music is and she’s not afraid to stick to it... in fact she keeps getting better at making the music that is so uniquely her with each new album. Maybe that’s why “Fucking Norman Rockwell” finds itself on the nominees list for Album of the Year at the next Grammy Awards. And it’s really no surprise it’s up for top honours when it has songs like ‘California’ that take a detour from your standard pop fare to tackle how to be a good friend to someone struggling with their mental health. There might be the standard Lana Del Rey dreamy vocals and vintage references in the lyrics for days but it’s sweet and effective and worth every single replay it has you hitting. And it’s probably the least California inspired song to have California in the title, so that’s a nice change of pace too. (Matt Bond)