The Top 50 Songs of 2024 – Part I (50-31)

So here we are! Wrapping up the Top 50 Songs of 2024! Songs must have been released after 1/1/24, and only one entry per artist allowed!

This is Part I!

50. Damn the Weather – glowcloud

Having dropped all the way back in January, Damn the Weather’s ‘glowcloud’ marked a drastic change in sound for the Arizona band. Pushing them into a dreamy indie pop direction, whilst the accompanying planned EP did not arrive this year, the impact of this gorgeous single hasn’t waned in the slightest.

49. NEONshe – Seasons

With the release of her gorgeous sophomore album ‘Butterfly’, NEONshe has provided fans with plenty of joyously constructed and emotionally charged pop music this year. It is one of the singles of this record that lands at 49; between the gorgeously constructed electronic backing that gradually builds, to the wonderfully earnest lyricism, ‘Seasons’ is a mantra for perseverance.

48. Bonk! – Preserve

Between their explosive live shows and brilliantly fun debut EP, it has been a fantastic year for Merseyside jazz-fusion four-piece, Bonk!. Whilst this position could easily have gone to any of their wonderfully creative 2024 tracks, it is ultimately their weirdest and most cinematic effort that deserves the highest commendation. The expansive prog-rock nature of this behemoth defies all expectations of the band.

47. Carleigh Mack – Crop Circles

Indie-pop icon in the making, this year saw the release of Carleigh Mack’s brand new EP, which offered a gorgeous folk-tinged rumination on existential dread and the female experience. ‘Crop Circles’ is a simple yet captivating listen, with its tender vocal performance and gently fantastical lyricism set against a stripped back acoustic backdrop.

46. The Drivers Club – Y R U SO LOUD?

The Drivers Club continued their march towards indie rock domination with their killer third single, ‘Y R U SO LOUD?’. With swaggering rhythms that alternate through brilliantly funky rhythms, and a playfully theatrical vocal delivery, this infectious number once again shows the fierce potential this band possesses.

45. Strelitzia – Sara

The most recent addition to this list is the intense and cinematic ‘Sara’, from Strelitzia’s incredible debut record, ‘Winter’. This ten minute behemoth of a track is a masterclass of fusing ideas, sounds, and styles into a wonderfully cohesive piece of heartbreaking art; prog rock, jazz fusion, and shoegaze are just some of the creative highlights here.

44. Lynskey – m-m-m-METAL

Lynskey’s weird and wonderful third EP, ‘here this is for you’, offered an eclectic mix of sounds that pulled from mathcore, post-punk, and nu-metal, among many others. ‘m-m-m-METAL’ encapsulates this brilliant chaos perfectly, as the band tear down the culture of outrage that conservatives feast upon. The rhythmic switch-up in the back half will have you spin-kicking the nearest person, so please listen with caution.

43. Bouquet – In The Creek

Feeling emotional? Well, if you weren’t before, you will be now. This gorgeous track is a beautiful, heartbreaking ode to the impact our pets have on our life. Not only that, the band have provided one of the most tearjerking music videos in a long time. You cruel, cruel band!

42. Garden Home – False Spring

Garden Home’s eponymous debut record put the Wisconsin outfit firmly on the map for DIY music fans, with their brutal yet beautiful emo-tinged sound speaking to your soul. With its wonderfully delivered spoken word climax, and lyricism that reminds you to keep love through all trials, this is an incredible closer to an electrifying musical experience.

41. Love is Noise – Soft Glow

Sometimes there is a beauty that can be found in heaviness, and Love is Noise are a project that understand that perfectly. The lead single of their long-awaited debut album is a gorgeous, shimmering, summer-toned love-song that is delivered with both a euphoric exuberance and a genuine, shiver-inducing tenderness. With songs like this, ‘To live in a different way’ looks to be one of 2025’s most exciting albums.

40. STR^NGE – Timestuck

STR^NGE live up to their name on this fantastically bombastic number that feels like the very best aspects of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club brought into the modern era. Accompanied by a wonderfully weird EP and a headline show at Birkenhead’s Future Yard, STR^NGE end 2024 as one of the brightest rising stars of Merseyside.

39. Thornhill – Obsession

Whilst 2024 was yet another year without the hotly anticipated LP3 from Thornhill, that’s not to say it has been anything other than an immense year for the band. Between debut headline UK shows, support slots across the globe, and two vicious singles, this feels like the start of Thornhill’s biggest era yet. ‘Obsession’ emphasised this perfectly, with its thick grunge sound dominated by monstrously distorted guitars and an effortlessly cool vocal performance.

38. India Arkin – Senseless

Having already caught the attention of plenty of bigger artists and promoters, India Arkin made even more of an impact this year with her sumptuous single ‘Senseless’. Between a gorgeous vocal performance, and a luscious instrumental marked by a magical guitar solo, this dreamy track remains indicative of an artist destined to be an indie icon.

37. El Moono – Screw Loose

El Moono’s brilliantly fun debut record was packed with plenty of highlights, from expansive progressive set-pieces to a surprisingly emotional closer. It is their shockingly danceable ‘Screw Loose’, however, that takes the crown, with its thumping rhythms, crushing distorted guitars, snarling vocal performance, and soaring choruses. An infinitely replayable beast of a track.

36. POPSTAR – Afterparty

The lead single of their debut EP, ‘Obscene’, noise rock duo POPSTAR kicked off their career with a gaudy, overblown, bombastic single that remains one of the most infectious things you can listen to from this year. Between the distorted, shouted vocals and crushing riffs, ‘Afterparty’ is drunken excess in sonic form.

35. Noise Beneath the Floor – wasted potential

Existential dread has never sounded so resoundingly celebratory; this whimsical yet gorgeously performed number from Ohio’s Noise Beneath the Floor is one of the catchiest entries on this list, with a chorus that simply refuses to leave your mind. Just don’t pay too close attention to the lyrics, or you will end reviewing all of your life choices and regrets.

34. Kerosene Heights – Night Walk Ultra

This scrappy punk number is the closing number of Kerosene Heights’ latest EP, ‘Leaving’. Catchy melodies are layered atop punchy riffs and immense rhythms, whilst the bittersweet lyricism and anthemic backing vocals gives this raw cut a distinct and surprising cinematic feeling. A perfect slice of suburban midwest summer.

33. Casey – I Was Happy When You Died

Whilst it’s not been the easiest of years for Wales’ Casey, with vocalist Tom Weaver’s recovery from major heart surgery putting touring plans on hold until at least 2025. However, the band can remain proud of their visceral and vulnerable third album, ‘How To Disappear’; it is ‘I Was Happy When You Died’ that serves as the highlight, with its beautiful vocal performance and surprisingly euphoric instrumental work providing a wonderful rumination on the confusing nature of grief.

32. Careful Gaze (feat. mory) – Jackfruit

This year saw Careful Gaze release potentially the most aggressive track to date, with their blistering ode to religious disillusionment, ’Jackfruit’. Thunderous guitars thrash out oppressive walls of distorted sound, as vocalist Gabriel Reasoner alternates between tense, wavering melodies and visceral screams. The rapped verse from mory cuts through the noise with a razor-sharp slickness that perfectly captures the track’s snarling aggression.

31. Take Breath – Promise Me

‘Promise Me’ would mark the first step in a year of reinvention for Take Breath, a band whom have since removed much of their discography from streaming services, and in its place released a superb new EP in the form of ‘See The Light Leave Me’. It is this lead single, however, that still remains their finest work to date. With crushing, swaggering grooves, vocal work that alternates between ferocious and angelic, and devilishly catchy hooks, Take Breath remain one of the brightest hidden gems of the UK alternative scene.

Part II (30-11) will be arriving tomorrow, so keep an eye out for that! What did you think of this year? Have you heard any of these tracks, and what would you include in your list? Let me know