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Burgo’s Best Songs of 2012

The usual caveat applies: these are “Burgo’s Best Songs of 2012″, so of course it’s a subjective list. Enjoy.
Oh… and despite the numbers, these really are in no particular order.

1. The Gaslight Anthem – 45
Pretty much a masterclass for other bands on how to open an album. A fantastic, straight-forward, fist-pumping rock tune. 3:30 of pure musical joy.

2. Robert Francis – Eighteen
Super tough call between this one and “Some things never change”. Really, I can’t tell you how I picked “Eighteen” between the two, apart from the mood I was in on the day. 5 years after first writing about Robert Francis, the guy is still soundtracking my life.

3. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Same Love
It says something about Macklemore & Ryan Lewis that the dudes can flip from the hilarity of “Thrift Shop”, and land with “Same Love”. There’s something incredibly warm about this tune, that keeps it from lapsing into the “society issue song” territory. It’s a heartfelt tale, and is one of my favourite songs of the year, both from a personal level and a musical appreciation level.

4. Polica – Wandering Star
Just a great, great album, but this track is undeniably the highlight. If anything, this live version is even better, but the recorded release still gives me shivers.

5. Frank Ocean – Lost
Man, it was a tough call between this one and “Bad Religion”. Both are amazing, but how awesome is this track from Frank Ocean? Just killer.

6. The Presets – Promises
You know, it’s not often you hear dance tunes on this blog. But “Promises” from Aussie outfit, “The Presets” is an exception. This is a tune, plain and simply. Dare you to not sing along.

7. Asta – My Heart is on Fire
So Asta was this year’s winner of Triple J’s “Unearthed High” competition. The “High” refers to “high school”. Yep, a high school girl wrote this song. Hard to believe, right? Honestly, one of the catchiest songs of 2012, high school student or not.

8. The Lumineers – Flowers in Your Hair
When that percussion picks up around 60 seconds into the song, I fall in love every time. Another great album opener, this tune clocks in at just 1:51… but for those last 50 seconds, I relive every happy memory in my lifetime. It’s that kind of feeling.

9. The Oh Hellos – Second Child, Restless Child
Damn near to album of the year for me, The Oh Hellos make me love music again every time I listen to them. Off their debut full-length album, “Through the Deep Dark Valley”, it should be noted that the album is a concept album and really should be listened to in its entirety to get the full value out of each song… but “Second Child, Restless Child” stands out as its own story.

10. Walk the Moon – Anna Sun
Seriously, if you can listen to this song and not sing along with the “What do you know? this house is falling apart/What can I say? this house is falling apart/We got no money, but we got heart” lines, then please leave a comment below. I want to know what it’s like on your home planet.

11. Milo Greene – 1957
Really surprised this track has slipped under the radar… it should be showing up on more end of the year lists. That “I’ll Go I’ll Go I’ll Go I” refrain is just killer.

12. Michael Kiwanuka – I’ll Get Along
Smooth, velvety, warm, funky… yeah, I can live with this tune.

13. Lord Huron – She Lit a Fire
The understated guitar lines in this song are a thing of absolute beauty. She Lit a Fire is a standout track on an album full of great tunes.

14. Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks
Of course this song had to be on this list. Of course, commercial radio stations did their best to ruin this song for everyone, but despite that, I had to include it.



15. The Tallest Man on Earth – 1904

As usual, Kristian Mattsson just kills it with nimble guitar picking and emotion-tinged vocals that just trip right all over your heart.

Full playlist:

2 replies on “Burgo’s Best Songs of 2012”

Hey DamnGuru,
Sorry, I realise that some might not be able to partake but Spotify’s my streaming service of choice. As I’m based in Australia, and the bulk of my audience comes from the US, UK or AU, most people are catered for. But I realise that I won’t be able to please everyone all the time :)

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