TOP 25 SINGLES OF 2019 (PART II)
(PART II)
As tradition dictates, we rummaged through some 200 singles we’d reviewed over the past 12 months and narrowed it down to 25. Here’s what we learned in 2019: Thai fusion is still very much a go-to for most up-and-coming bands including Southern Boys and Suthep Entertainment, who both look to their roots for inspiration. This year also had its fair share of blazingly political moments, thanks to Solange, Lana Del Rey and our own rap troupe Rap Against Dictatorship. One final note, even though this list is split into two parts spreading across this and next week, these tracks are not ranked and their order is completely arbitrary in nature.
SUTHEP ENTERTAINMENT / CHAI NAT DAN SAWAN
Hailing from Chiang Mai, homespun quartet Suthep Entertainment took us back to the carefree days of Thai oldies with Chai Nat Dan Sawan (Paradise Chai Nat). Set to a jaunty 70s production, the joyous ditty finds frontman Wicha Teddaroon singing high praise about the eponymous province, listing all the wonderful things that made it a paradise. We said it before and we’ll say it again, this is the kind of pop music we’ve been missing.
IGGY POP / JAMES BOND
Lifted from the punk icon’s 18th studio album Free, James Bond features a crawling bassline and glorious trumpet supplied by renowned jazz musician Leron Thomas. “She wants to be your James Bond/ Well, it’s not for a price and it’s not to be nice/ She wants to be your James Bond,” he repeats alongside guest vocalist Faith Vern. Playful, yet sinister, and wholly Iggy Pop.
TAME IMPALA / IT MIGHT BE TIME
On It Might Be Time, Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker zeroes in on a brand new anxiety with the same energy that fuelled hits like Solitude Is Bliss. “You ain’t as cool as you used to be, no/ You won’t recover/ You ain’t as young as you used to be,” he muses over roaring drums and washed out 70s prog-rock production.
TEN LAYERS OF AIR / PARALLEL WORLD
Singer/songwriter Sirata “Plubploy” Nitipanont and DJ/producer Chote explore the realm of chill electronica and moody downtempo on Parallel World. Here, hazy synth melodies, percussive elements and Pubploy’s frosty vocals come together to form an otherworldly soundscape befitting the themes of hope and multiverse: “I wonder if someday we would cross/ It gives me a little light/ Gives me a little hope/ Maybe I want to live.”
LANA DEL REY / LOOKING FOR AMERICA
“I’m still looking for my own version of America/ One without the gun, where the flag can freely fly/ No bombs in the sky, only fireworks when you and I collide,” Lana Del Rey sings it like it is on the sparse Looking For America, a track written in response this year’s mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton. Leave it to Lana Del Rey to give us a bittersweet anthem that succinctly sums up what’s wrong with America today.
CHARBLUES / OOK HAK JAAK DUCK CAFÉ
While other Thai fusion bands often take themselves a little too seriously, Charblues are not afraid to let their hair down and have fun with their hysterical interpretation of blues and old school Thai pop. Even their love ballad Ook Hak Jaak Duck Café, supposedly inspired by Sayan Nirandorn’s luk thung classic Ook Hak Jaak Café, drips with the same cheeky humour previously heard on How Do You Know My Father’s Name? and Rao Ma Rian Pid Wan (We Came To Class On A Wrong Day).
TWAIN / INNER BEAUTY
To be rewarded with the ultimate exquisiteness of Twain’s Inner Beauty, patience is key. The near eight-minute offering starts off with dissonant piano chords and Twain’s wistful, laconic singing. It’s all deceptively monotonous until he suddenly switches gears into a flawless falsetto. “I can see so clear/ I can see/ In a beauty now,” his voice soars, accompanied by the piano crescendo.
DIIV / BLANKENSHIP
In much the same manner as Foals’ Exits, DIIV’s Blankenship paints a vivid scenario where climate change deniers would eventually drive the planet and human species into an apocalyptic doom. “Armageddon is a product/ And one we choose to buy/ Dwell on that for a moment/ With Paradise on fire… Children lead the cry,” goes the propulsive verse with an allusion to teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg.
CHROMATICS / YOU’RE NO GOOD
This year saw the return of the glam-noir synth-pop outfit along with their first LP in seven years. Taken from their latest Closer To Grey, single You’re No Good goes to prove that when it comes to romanticising a toxic relationship, these guys are the certified experts.
COCOROSIE / LAMB AND THE WOLF
Another return worth cheering about in 2019 is none other than CocoRosie’s. Lamb And The Wolf marks their first new material following 2015’s Heartache City and boasts a cacophony of militaristic drum samples, synth hooks and a cheerleading chant.
SLEATER-KINNEY / THE FUTURE IS HERE
The message of St. Vincent’s Digital Witness has clearly rubbed off on Sleater-Kinney’s The Future Is Here as the two share themes of disconnectedness in the smartphone-dominated era (“I start my day on a tiny screen”) and how we’re deprived and craving genuine human connection (“Never have I felt so goddamn lost and alone… I need you more than I ever have/ Because the future’s here, and we can’t go back”).
MUUNJUUN / SOME DAYS IN TIME
Muunjuun is a solo project by Northern Californian musician Curtis James, a sound alchemist blending psychedelic jazz with pop and prog-rock. Clocking in at just two minutes, Some Days In Time captures the live jazz feel with an indie edge in the same vein as Badbadnotgood and Adult Jazz. Layered, yet subtly irreverent, this deserves a giant Italian chef kiss.
ROOTSMAN CREATION / SATI (CONSCIOUSNESS)
Who would have thought that one of the most important lessons on mindfulness would come straight from a reggae band? Well, as it happened, Rootsman Creation’s swaying Sati (Consciousness) taught us to “keep the cool from deep within” and “do away with feelings of rage”. A useful reminder especially in an age when every little inconvenience can often feel aggravating.