Wasn't feeling him much this year, the mixtape definitely felt like a mixtape and the other tracks were just ok. Hoping for a better 2016 from him. Still, that mixtape had a few cute tracks on it, such as this one. I really love the production this one, more than I love Drake over it. He does an alright job but the track is just really alluring, and makes it one of the more memorable parts of the whole thing. It made me expect something different that what the rest of the songs offered.
It's definitely a testament to the album's strength that an interlude is on my best songs list. This isn't a Janet Jackson 8 second pointless interlude though, this is longer than most of the regular songs on the album. And it's all the better for that.
Though it functions fine as a full song, it is an interlude in the way it offers a much lighter, brighter sound between two really emotional moments on the album, but then there's also a divide between this sound and the actual lyrical content presented here. It's a complex track for sure, one that doesn't deserve to be written off as just an interlude. It's a shining example of the creativity and effort in the album, and you'll be seeing more of that later.
I don't quite know why everyone decided to start hating Charli this year, Sucker was one of 2014's best efforts. It didn't reach our shores until 2015 though, with two new tracks included as her way of apologising for including Rita Ora on our edition (**** you ruining that song girl).
I like both tracks, but this one is a bit better to me. It's one of the more developed tracks on Sucker, in that it feels finished. I used to complain that Charli would get the chorus and miss the verses and vice versa, but I think she got it here. The bratty sound of Sucker is in full effect here and it really does feel like it could slip in on the main album, maybe replace one of the weaker tracks.
Beacon of talent and hope in this dark world, Carly Rae Jepsen finally appears on my list. Queen of 2015, haters can exit immediately cus she ain't done. There was a lot to choose from, but Warm Blood was one of my favourites from the pop bible and it isn't difficult to see why.
Carly sells this song so well, from her whispery delivery to the distorted vocals and the tenderness and honesty in her voice. She made such a general song feel so special and personal. Not to discredit the song, the lyrics are quite amazing and the production compliments Carly as well as it can. What a legend.
I liked the album a lot, a close call for my list for sure. Difficult picking a best song from this album, but I think this one is my favourite. It's the last real track on there and what a way to end. I love when an album bookends, look at Drowned World and Mer Girl, and this contrasts with the opening Lift Me Up.
There's a lot of emotion on this track, the chorus is an especially poignant moment, there are other songs with better production or better rapping but this is the one which evoked the biggest response from me. Especially in our current times.