Highlights
In days of old, I ran the best-of as a subtractive list, taking tracks away from the full album as I went through it. It’s less picky than subsequent years, but still tosses anything I didn’t consider, ooh, let’s say, excellent.
- Album of the year: Devin Townsend – Empath
- Most tracks in the list: Vampire Weekend – Father of the Bride
- Honorable Mention to check out: Snail’s House – Scenery
227 songs, 15 hrs. 42 mins. Total Time
| TITLE | ARTIST | ALBUM | TIME | |
| 1 | Everybody Wants to Rule the World | Weezer | Weezer (Teal Album) | 4:05 |
| 2 | Take on Me | Weezer | Weezer (Teal Album) | 3:44 |
| 3 | Mr. Blue Sky | Weezer | Weezer (Teal Album) | 4:46 |
| 4 | No Scrubs | Weezer | Weezer (Teal Album) | 3:10 |
| 5 | Cosmo Funk | Snail’s House | エイリアン☆ポップ II – EP | 4:48 |
| 6 | New India | Kinski | Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle | 7:00 |
| 7 | Newport | Kinski | Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle | 5:02 |
| 8 | Montgomery | Kinski | Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle | 7:19 |
| 9 | One Ear in the Sun | Kinski | Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle | 6:27 |
| 10 | Wake Up | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:35 |
| 11 | UnAmerican | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:01 |
| 12 | Love Don’t Ask | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:14 |
| 13 | Cascadia | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:40 |
| 14 | Shame | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:24 |
| 15 | Old Soul, Young Heart | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 2:34 |
| 16 | Record Shop | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:16 |
| 17 | Moonlight | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:05 |
| 18 | Gambier Island Green | Said the Whale | Cascadia | 3:30 |
| 19 | Malfunction | Cavern of Anti-Matter | Hormone Lemonade | 16:34 |
| 20 | Outerzone Jazs | Cavern of Anti-Matter | Hormone Lemonade | 4:28 |
| 21 | Toro | Liily | I Can Fool Anybody in This Town – EP | 3:39 |
| 22 | The Weather | Liily | I Can Fool Anybody in This Town – EP | 3:30 |
| 23 | I Can Fool Anybody in This Town | Liily | I Can Fool Anybody in This Town – EP | 3:29 |
| 24 | Nine | Liily | I Can Fool Anybody in This Town – EP | 3:45 |
| 25 | Headspinnin’ | Mamahawk | Brain Invaderz! | 5:02 |
| 26 | Lioness | Mamahawk | Brain Invaderz! | 4:36 |
| 27 | Moonride | Mamahawk | Brain Invaderz! | 5:09 |
| 28 | Baby Blues | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 4:47 |
| 29 | Dance Floor | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 3:59 |
| 30 | Home Alone | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 4:18 |
| 31 | Forever Gone | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 5:15 |
| 32 | ADD Heart | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 4:22 |
| 33 | Beautiful Sad | Moving Panoramas | In Two | 4:13 |
| 34 | 寒い朝 | Snail’s House | Scenery | 1:02 |
| 35 | いつもの道 | Snail’s House | Scenery | 4:05 |
| 36 | Market | Snail’s House | Scenery | 2:21 |
| 37 | Stray Cat | Snail’s House | Scenery | 2:39 |
| 38 | Walk (Interlude) | Snail’s House | Scenery | 2:48 |
| 39 | Floret | Snail’s House | Scenery | 3:03 |
| 40 | Détour | Snail’s House | Scenery | 6:47 |
| 41 | 17 | Traffik Island | Nature Strip | 5:04 |
| 42 | Mary Winter | Swervedriver | Future Ruins | 6:12 |
| 43 | Future Ruins | Swervedriver | Future Ruins | 4:45 |
| 44 | Theeascending | Swervedriver | Future Ruins | 4:19 |
| 45 | Drone Lover | Swervedriver | Future Ruins | 3:25 |
| 46 | Spiked Flower | Swervedriver | Future Ruins | 2:52 |
| 47 | Something Sweet | Traffik Island | Nature Strip | 2:50 |
| 49 | Lazy Cat | Traffik Island | Nature Strip | 3:42 |
| 48 | Dolphin | Panda Bear | Buoys | 3:48 |
| 50 | Cranked | Panda Bear | Buoys | 3:20 |
| 51 | Token | Panda Bear | Buoys | 3:37 |
| 52 | I Know I Don’t Know | Panda Bear | Buoys | 2:51 |
| 53 | Master | Panda Bear | Buoys | 4:04 |
| 54 | Buoys | Panda Bear | Buoys | 2:34 |
| 55 | Crescendo | Panda Bear | Buoys | 3:10 |
| 56 | Home Free | Panda Bear | Buoys | 3:07 |
| 57 | November | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:52 |
| 58 | Baltimore | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:34 |
| 59 | Model Trains | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:39 |
| 60 | Baedeker | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:26 |
| 61 | 8980 | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:13 |
| 62 | Little Love | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 3:12 |
| 63 | Port of Hamburg | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 4:19 |
| 64 | Singing with a Stranger | Gabriel Kahane | Book of Travelers | 2:18 |
| 65 | Spit | IAN SWEET | Crush Crusher | 3:14 |
| 66 | Question It | IAN SWEET | Crush Crusher | 4:01 |
| 67 | Borrowed Body | IAN SWEET | Crush Crusher | 3:21 |
| 68 | Belziger Faceplant | Stephen Malkmus | Groove Denied | 4:25 |
| 69 | Forget Your Place | Stephen Malkmus | Groove Denied | 3:34 |
| 70 | Love the Door | Stephen Malkmus | Groove Denied | 3:09 |
| 71 | Boss Viscerate | Stephen Malkmus | Groove Denied | 2:41 |
| 72 | Grown Nothing | Stephen Malkmus | Groove Denied | 4:21 |
| 73 | Genesis | Devin Townsend | Empath | 6:06 |
| 74 | Evermore | Devin Townsend | Empath | 5:30 |
| 75 | Sprite | Devin Townsend | Empath | 6:37 |
| 76 | Hear Me | Devin Townsend | Empath | 6:30 |
| 77 | Why? | Devin Townsend | Empath | 4:59 |
| 78 | Borderlands | Devin Townsend | Empath | 11:03 |
| 79 | Requiem | Devin Townsend | Empath | 2:47 |
| 80 | Singularity | Devin Townsend | Empath | 23:33 |
| 81 | bad guy | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 3:14 |
| 82 | you should see me in a crown | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 3:01 |
| 83 | all the good girls go to hell | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 2:49 |
| 84 | wish you were gay | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 3:42 |
| 85 | my strange addiction | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 3:00 |
| 86 | bury a friend | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 3:13 |
| 87 | goodbye | Billie Eilish | WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? | 1:59 |
| 88 | Bango | The Chemical Brothers | No Geography | 4:08 |
| 89 | Gravity Drops | The Chemical Brothers | No Geography | 4:31 |
| 90 | We’ve Got to Try | The Chemical Brothers | No Geography | 3:36 |
| 91 | MAH | The Chemical Brothers | No Geography | 5:36 |
| 92 | Sister Golden Hair | Jonathan Coulton | Some Guys | 3:21 |
| 93 | On and On | Jonathan Coulton | Some Guys | 3:04 |
| 94 | The Things We Do for Love | Jonathan Coulton | Some Guys | 3:33 |
| 95 | If You Could Read My Mind | Jonathan Coulton | Some Guys | 3:52 |
| 96 | Crazy Love | Jonathan Coulton | Some Guys | 3:00 |
| 97 | Under the Knife | Daniel O’Sullivan | Folly | 2:51 |
| 98 | Time Elapsing Blue | Daniel O’Sullivan | Folly | 3:45 |
| 99 | Rattleman | Daniel O’Sullivan | Folly | 5:09 |
| 100 | Run Down | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 3:11 |
| 101 | Rock & Roll | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 3:24 |
| 102 | Graveyard | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 3:19 |
| 103 | Stay Afloat | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 3:28 |
| 104 | It’s Dark Now | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 2:56 |
| 105 | Crying at the TV | Tom Williams | What Did You Want to Be? | 3:07 |
| 106 | Can’t Find My Heart | Broken Social Scene | Let’s Try the After, Vol. 2 – EP | 5:09 |
| 107 | Heavy Meta | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 6:52 |
| 108 | Hitchin’ Man | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 3:46 |
| 109 | Canoe Song | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 4:07 |
| 110 | Beauty Won’t Fail You | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 3:43 |
| 111 | Longplay | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 3:02 |
| 112 | Burning Money | Mounties | Heavy Meta | 3:25 |
| 113 | Chaos from Within | Bad Religion | Age of Unreason | 1:50 |
| 114 | The Approach | Bad Religion | Age of Unreason | 2:26 |
| 115 | Faces of Grief | Bad Religion | Age of Unreason | 1:05 |
| 116 | Blown to Bits | Charly Bliss | Young Enough | 3:38 |
| 117 | Hold You Now (feat. Danielle Haim) | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 2:34 |
| 118 | Harmony Hall | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 5:08 |
| 119 | Bambina | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 1:43 |
| 120 | This Life | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 4:29 |
| 121 | How Long? | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:32 |
| 122 | Rich Man | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 2:30 |
| 123 | Married in a Gold Rush (feat. Danielle Haim) | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:42 |
| 124 | My Mistake | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:19 |
| 125 | Sympathy | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:47 |
| 126 | Sunflower (feat. Steve Lacy) | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 2:18 |
| 127 | Flower Moon (feat. Steve Lacy) | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:57 |
| 128 | We Belong Together (feat. Danielle Haim) | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 3:11 |
| 129 | Stranger | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 4:09 |
| 130 | Jerusalem, New York, Berlin | Vampire Weekend | Father of the Bride | 2:55 |
| 131 | Deutschland | Rammstein | Rammstein | 5:23 |
| 132 | Sex | Rammstein | Rammstein | 3:57 |
| 133 | Fyrsti Stormur | Yagya | Stormur | 6:33 |
| 134 | Annar Stormur | Yagya | Stormur | 5:33 |
| 135 | Fimmti Stormur | Yagya | Stormur | 5:43 |
| 136 | Sjötti Stormur | Yagya | Stormur | 5:19 |
| 137 | Áttundi Stormur | Yagya | Stormur | 6:03 |
| 138 | The Unseen Earth | Northaunt | Istid I-II | 8:00 |
| 139 | Extinction Event | Northaunt | Istid I-II | 8:30 |
| 140 | Real Life | Interpol | A Fine Mess – EP | 4:27 |
| 141 | Thrones | Interpol | A Fine Mess – EP | 3:13 |
| 142 | Done Bleeding | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 4:38 |
| 143 | Younger | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 5:52 |
| 144 | Doc Gooden | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 4:19 |
| 145 | Going Invisible 2 | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 3:05 |
| 146 | Waylon Jennings Live! | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 3:15 |
| 147 | Cadaver Sniffing Dog | The Mountain Goats | In League with Dragons | 3:55 |
| 148 | Cool People | Chloe x Halle | The Kids Are Alright | 3:38 |
| 149 | Last Century | SUSTO | Ever Since I Lost My Mind | 2:56 |
| 150 | Ever Since I Lost My Mind | SUSTO | Ever Since I Lost My Mind | 3:14 |
| 151 | Frontier | Bethany Curve | Murderers! EP | 4:40 |
| 152 | phantom | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 2:24 |
| 153 | vacation | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 2:07 |
| 154 | stunned | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 2:26 |
| 155 | raging river | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 3:12 |
| 156 | sunshine | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 3:30 |
| 157 | act surprised | Sebadoh | Act Surprised | 3:11 |
| 158 | Canaan (Live Training) | Holly Herndon | PROTO | 1:37 |
| 159 | Eternal | Holly Herndon | PROTO | 4:45 |
| 160 | Frontier | Holly Herndon | PROTO | 4:29 |
| 161 | Godmother (feat. Spawn) | Holly Herndon & Jlin | PROTO | 2:30 |
| 162 | 1616 | Flaural | Postponement | 3:31 |
| 163 | Move Many (Joints) | Esperanza Spalding | 12 Little Spells (Deluxe Edition) | 2:55 |
| 164 | It Doesn’t Matter Why | Silversun Pickups | Widow’s Weeds | 4:08 |
| 165 | Morning is My Godmother | Bill Callahan | Shepherd in a Sheepskin Vest | 2:11 |
| 166 | Overexcited | Guster | Look Alive | 3:13 |
| 167 | Sunday Driver | The Raconteurs | Help Us Stranger | 3:39 |
| 168 | Twist | Thom Yorke | ANIMA | 7:03 |
| 169 | Wide Right | Bad Bad Hats | Wide Right – Single | 2:36 |
| 170 | Liz Phair | Bad Bad Hats | Wide Right – Single | 3:38 |
| 171 | Without a Blush | Hatchie | Keepsake | 4:59 |
| 172 | Unwanted Guest | Hatchie | Keepsake | 4:56 |
| 173 | Come for Me | Sunflower Bean | King Of The Dudes – EP | 3:29 |
| 174 | Fear City | Sunflower Bean | King Of The Dudes – EP | 3:21 |
| 175 | Shine A Little Light | The Black Keys | Let’s Rock | 3:17 |
| 176 | Go | The Black Keys | Let’s Rock | 2:27 |
| 177 | Someone Just Like You | Pretty Vicious | Beauty of Youth | 3:31 |
| 178 | Dead Lotus, Pt. 3 | Merzbow | Dead Lotus – EP | 4:50 |
| 179 | Staying In | Juliana Hatfield | Weird | 3:52 |
| 180 | Broken Doll | Juliana Hatfield | Weird | 3:21 |
| 181 | Invader | Snail’s House | Alien Pop III – EP | 2:28 |
| 182 | All Right, Yeah | Juliana Hatfield | Weird | 5:00 |
| 183 | Minotaur Forgiving Knossos | Moonface | This One’s for the Dancer & This One’s for the Dancer’s Bouquet | 4:58 |
| 184 | Twin Flame | Marquis Hill | Modern Flows, Vol. 2 | 6:01 |
| 185 | Smoke Break | Marquis Hill | Modern Flows, Vol. 2 | 1:55 |
| 186 | Tokyo | Donny McCaslin | Head of Mine / Tokyo – Single | 7:57 |
| 187 | Planet B | King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Infest the Rats’ Nest | 3:56 |
| 188 | Perihelion | King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Infest the Rats’ Nest | 3:11 |
| 189 | Hollywood, Pt. 2 | Psyk | Neon Demon | 4:13 |
| 190 | Pin It Down | Madison Cunningham | Who Are You Now | 4:06 |
| 191 | Plain Letters | Madison Cunningham | Who Are You Now | 3:38 |
| 192 | Something To Believe In | Madison Cunningham | Who Are You Now | 3:57 |
| 193 | Voices | Big Wreck | …but for the Sun | 4:57 |
| 194 | Locomotive | Big Wreck | …but for the Sun | 5:01 |
| 195 | Fear Inoculum | TOOL | Fear Inoculum | 10:20 |
| 196 | 7empest | TOOL | Fear Inoculum | 15:44 |
| 197 | Can’t Find My Way | Tony Molina | Songs From San Mateo County | 0:48 |
| 198 | Been Here Before | Tony Molina | Songs From San Mateo County | 0:58 |
| 199 | Omega Days | Moon Tooth | Crux | 3:00 |
| 200 | Awe at All Angles | Moon Tooth | Crux | 4:02 |
| 201 | Cinnamon | Snail’s House | Love Magic – EP | 4:18 |
| 202 | Mint | Snail’s House | Love Magic – EP | 3:56 |
| 203 | Swimmer | The Utopia Strong | The Utopia Strong | 4:12 |
| 204 | I’ll Have What She’s Having | WOOZE | I’ll Have What She’s Having – Single | 3:15 |
| 205 | Life’s a Joke | The Faint | Egowerk | 4:52 |
| 206 | Skeleton Key | Omni | Networker | 3:42 |
| 207 | The Surprise Knock | The New Pornographers | In the Morse Code of Brake Lights | 3:12 |
| 208 | Colossus of Rhodes | The New Pornographers | In the Morse Code of Brake Lights | 4:04 |
| 209 | Hole in My Life | Juliana Hatfield | Juliana Hatfield Sings the Police | 4:25 |
| 210 | De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da | Juliana Hatfield | Juliana Hatfield Sings the Police | 4:16 |
| 211 | Ghosteen | Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds | Ghosteen | 12:11 |
| 212 | Hey, I’m Just Like You | Tegan and Sara | Hey, I’m Just Like You | 3:09 |
| 213 | I’ll Be Back Someday | Tegan and Sara | Hey, I’m Just Like You | 3:13 |
| 214 | Heaven | Charly Bliss | Supermoon – EP | 3:33 |
| 215 | Dead Fingers Talking | Working for a Nuclear Free City | Businessmen & Ghosts | 3:30 |
| 216 | Donkey | Working for a Nuclear Free City | Businessmen & Ghosts | 4:08 |
| 217 | Part of the Math (Digital Mix) | Panda Bear | A Day with the Homies (Digital Mix) – EP | 5:44 |
| 218 | The Dark World of Humans | Heifervescent | Firebird | 4:15 |
| 219 | White Nightmare | Heifervescent | Firebird | 3:32 |
| 220 | English Weather | FEET | What’s Inside is More Than Just Ham | 3:26 |
| 221 | Depression! Despair! | Jeffrey Lewis & the Voltage | Bad Wiring | 4:14 |
| 222 | In Certain Orders | Jeffrey Lewis & the Voltage | Bad Wiring | 3:26 |
| 223 | Hyperlife | Beck | Hyperspace | 1:37 |
| 224 | Uneventful Days | Beck | Hyperspace | 3:17 |
| 225 | Everlasting Nothing | Beck | Hyperspace | 5:00 |
| 226 | Pay for the Piano | The Dismemberment Plan | Change | 3:24 |
| 227 | Secret Curse | The Dismemberment Plan | Change | 2:50 |