These guys have seen great success over the span of their career with amazing singles like I Want It That Way, Shape of My Heart, and Incomplete. But sadly they've kind of fallen out of favor with the mainstream audiences, as all groups eventually do. So this year, they decided to take more artistic control with their seventh studio album and release it on an independent label. In June, we got this bright, refreshing tune as the lead single. It's certainly not their best work but it's so happy and optimistic that I just couldn't help but love it. Plus they had my boy Jesse McCartney as one of the opening acts on their In a World Like This tour, gotta love them for that haha. This is the only song by Backstreet Boys in the list.
119 Eminem "Berzerk"
It's kind of hard to explain how I feel about this song. Many people may see Eminem as one of my favorite artists, then look at this position and say "oh it must have been disappointing". But honestly, it really wasn't. I will say I'm not a huge fan of the old school Beastie Boys sound, and the song does not have a high replay value. The "background noise" can get annoying after a few consecutive listens. However, I love that Em did something unorthodox by going with this sound on his lead single, and the video is really cool and fun. Objectively, Berzerk is a strong addition to Em's discography. This is a subjective list, hence the lower placement. Did that make sense? I hope so, lol. This is the only song by Eminem in the list.
118 The 1975 "The City"
I think it goes without saying how much I love this band, after all their album is in my avi lol. It's an amazing debut; I won't recommend it to fans of any particular genre because these guys just don't define themselves in that way. While the album's core sound is probably alternative rock, there are numerous other influences to be heard such as electro-pop and R&B. And in all this genre-experimenting, they had to fail somewhere, right? Well, the album is pretty flawless, but it does have its highs and lows, and I would consider The City to be one of the lows. It's kind of their one attempt at a huge arena rock anthem, and their inexperience in crafting such a song really shows. If you want to hear about the highs of the album, you'll just have to stick around a little bit longer. This is the first of three songs by The 1975 in the list.
117 Miranda Lambert "Mama's Broken Heart"
There's no denying that the country scene has become hugely male-dominated over the past few years. In terms of consistently successful female country artists, there's The Band Perry, Carrie Underwood, and Miss Miranda here, and that's about it (Taylor Swift doesn't count). This means that any female who wants to be successful in country has to stand out in a major way. And that's exactly what Miranda did with the fourth single from her fourth studio album Four the Record (so many fours, heh). I would compare it to the sassy and intense sound of two songs from her female country counterparts, DONE. by The Band Perry and Good Girl by Carrie Underwood. She is married to Blake Shelton who basically gives her free promo every two seconds on The Voice, but don't be fooled this girl is very much her own unique artist. I'll certainly be checking for her singles in the future. This is the only song by Miranda Lambert in the list.
116 Anna Kendrick "Cups"
I honestly didn't know how to feel about this song when I first heard it. Mainly because it's unlike anything I've ever heard on the radio before. It takes the basic lyrics and melody of a 1930s country song, adds verses, then puts them over a looping cup-and-xylophone beat. In theory this sounds like quite a bizarre arrangement, but the final product comes off as very cute and simplistic. Plus, the video is definitely one of my favorites of the year. It's so creative, I love seeing everyone in the restaurant do the cups game and it was only shot in one take. If you've seen it you'll know why that's so impressive.
Oh and by the way if you guys want a good laugh head over to Anna's Twitter! She's legitimately funny unlike 99.99999% of people on the site. This is the only song by Anna Kendrick in the list.
115 Alicia Keys "Brand New Me"
I've always been a huge Alicia fan. If I Ain't Got You and Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart are true masterpieces, and the latter deserved so much more success. Plus Girl on Fire was one of my top songs of 2012, and without this forum, I wouldn't have even considered associating her vocal runs with "shrieking". So naturally, I was very excited for this second single release. And...well, it didn't click on the first listen. I'm glad I liked it enough to add it to my playlist, because it is a major grower. But damn, was it a stupid single choice. GoF was a legitimate hit, why wouldn't she want to have a decent sized follow-up? I mean, this one had exactly zero potential for pop success. Maybe it could have been a fourth or fifth single if she really wanted to get her "autobiography" out to the GP, but not a second. Alicia, PLEASE make better choices next era. This is the first of two songs by Alicia Keys in the list.
114 Macklemore & Ryan Lewis f/Mary Lambert "Same Love"
After releasing two upbeat, fast-paced singles, rapper Macklemore and producer Ryan Lewis decided to tone it down a little bit with this ballad in support of equality for same-sex couples. It's a very beautiful and well-written song; however, many people questioned the motive in releasing it, believing Macklemore was only trying to capitalize on the "hot issue" of the day to get a quick hit. The thing is, even if every single dollar of profit from the song went straight into Macklemore's pocket, its message undeniably had an impact on the public. Not by changing the minds of those who are hard-set in their anti-gay views, but by making the case for same-sex marriage that much stronger. I could pick this song apart further because I believe it's very interesting lyrically, but for the sake of not taking up 100000 lines it's probably best that I don't lol. More from Macklemore is coming. This is the first of four songs by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis in the list.
113 The Rolling Stones "Doom and Gloom"
I hope that everyone commenting here has at least heard of this band. If you haven't then I would suggest expanding your musical horizons beyond the 1990s and 2000s but anyways. Lol. TRS just celebrated their 50th anniversary as a band last year and released a Greatest Hits album in commemoration; this was its lead single. And it basically fits right in with the rest of the tracks. Mick's voice really hasn't changed at all over the years; it suits the classic gritty blues rock sound in a way that no other voice in modern rock music can. The Greatest Hits album, fittingly titled GRRR!, also reminds me that I like The Rolling Stones more than The Beatles but that's a story for another day. This is the only song by The Rolling Stones in the list.
112 Tegan & Sara "Closer"
Recently I've seen a fair share of year-end lists by notable publications and I was (pleasantly) surprised with the number of high mentions for Closer. HAIM's Falling and The Wire also got a lot of high mentions so maybe the critics just like that 80s synthpop throwback sound. Well, one thing is for certain: this song is a ton of fun. It presents the idea of falling in love as a wonderful, euphoric experience, and the video perfectly illustrates that. I mean, who doesn't love a gigantic house party complete with balloons, karaoke, and a super bouncy trampoline? Sadly, for some reason the song didn't have great longevity in my playlist. But I do love the overall sound and I hope T&S continue to pursue it in their future singles. This is the last of two songs by Tegan & Sara in the list.
111 Bruno Mars "Gorilla"
Definitely the most interesting single from Bruno this era. I almost feel like he knew it would flop, but still wanted to release it because 1) it was a fan favorite and 2) fourth singles rarely do that well anyways so why the hell not. Personally I'm glad it got the single treatment because this resulted in the only good video from Bruno so far this era. It's a short film that details a stripper's relationship with the leader of the strip club's house band (Bruno). She first puts on quite the show for him at the club, and afterwards they "get it on" in the backseat of his car. Finally, there is a very interesting ending scene in which Bruno transforms into a gorilla as he runs towards his girlfriend in a dark alley. The mood throughout the video is very dark, intense, and sexual, much like the song itself; it always keeps you on edge and wondering what will happen next. I'm certainly here for Bruno exploring more of his "dark side" in the future. This is the second of three songs by Bruno Mars in the list.
Cups, Closer, Gorilla
Berzerk was a big letdown at first... but hey, it's a grower, now I love it
Same Love is ok, it has a nice message but the song is pretty boring for me
I liked the Berzerk sound and the craziness of this song. It just doe s not having lasting value that is all. Aww The City is where I get my soothing from. like how Miranda tells like it is in her vocals in Mama's Broken Heart. Brand New Me is such a nice song. Same Love just sounds so heavenly all-around and Macklemore rap it like a true rap poet would and Mary's vocals just speaks volume and set a lite mood. Doom and Gloom is nice song. Closer is just a fun song to enjoy the randomness of it all. Gorilla was really good as an album. Still it has a really good-looking video. Great set.
This is the first of three songs by The 1975 in the list.
GoF was a legitimate hit, why wouldn't she want to have a decent sized follow-up? I mean, this one had exactly zero potential for pop success. Maybe it could have been a fourth or fifth single if she really wanted to get her "autobiography" out to the GP, but not a second. Alicia, PLEASE make better choices next era. This is the first of two songs by Alicia Keys in the list.
If you haven't then I would suggest expanding your musical horizons beyond the 1990s and 2000s but anyways. Lol. TRS just celebrated their 50th anniversary as a band last year and released a Greatest Hits album in commemoration; this was its lead single. And it basically fits right in with the rest of the tracks. Mick's voice really hasn't changed at all over the years; it suits the classic gritty blues rock sound in a way that no other voice in modern rock music can. The Greatest Hits album, fittingly titled GRRR!, also reminds me that I like The Rolling Stones more than The Beatles but that's a story for another day. This is the only song by The Rolling Stones in the list.
