2013 - the year's best music

It's that time of the year again, the time before Christmas, where I and other music nerds publish our lists of the best music from the year that's passed. 2013 has been remarkable in many ways, with incredible and surprising comeback records from acts such as David Bowie and Prefab Sprout, not to mention Daft Punk's groundbreaking new album. It has also been a year with fantastic pop music, fine singer/songwriter albums, lots of exciting stuff in what's dubbed as the more alternative genres, and so on and so forth.

Here then, are my picks for 2013. There are two lists, one featuring the 25 best albums, the other featuring my favourite 50 songs, regardless of whether they have been singles or not. Most of these also come with links to videos, so please check out anything you're curious about. They are all great.

Album

1. Daft Punk – Random Access Memories
2. Prefab Sprout – Crimson/Red
3. Elvira Nikolaisen & Mathias Eick – I Concentrate On You
4. Bill Callahan – Dream River
5. Stein Torleif Bjella – Heim for å døy
6. Jason Isbell – Southeastern
7. Chvrches – The Bones Of What You Believe
8. Aaron Neville – My True Story
9. Teha Teardo & Blixa Bargeld – Still Smiling
10. Monica Heldal – Boy From The North
11. Blood Orange – Cupid Deluxe
12. Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds – Push The Sky Away
13. Midlake – Antiphon
14. Disclosure – Settle
15. Goldfrapp – Tales Of Us
16. Justin Timberlake – The 20/20 Experience
17. Daughter – If You Leave
18. Iron & Wine – Ghost On Ghost
19. Kacey Musgraves – Same Trailer Different Park
20. Sigur Rós – Kveikur
21. David Bowie – The Next Day
22. Cass McCombs – Big Wheel And Others
23. The National – Trouble Will Find Me
24. Arcade Fire – Reflektor
25. Tythe – & Also With You

 

Playlist - 23 songs from 25 albums in WiMP (Bill Callahan and Teho Teardo & Blixa Bargeld not avaliable)

 

 

Playlist - 24 songs from 25 albums in Spotify (Bill Callahan not avaliable)

Songs

 

 

 

1. Naughty Boy feat. Sam Smith – La La La
2. Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams – Get Lucky
3. Robin Thicke feat. T.I. & Pharrell Williams – Blurred Lines
4. Justin Timberlake – Mirrors
5. Kim Cesarion – Undressed
6. Prefab Sprout – Billy
7. Ine Hoem – When We Collide
8. Erlend Øye – La Prima Estate
9. Lindstrøm & Todd Terje – Lanzarote
10. Arcade Fire – Reflektor
11. Envy – Am I Wrong
12. Chvrches – The Mother We Share
13. Arctic Monkeys – Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?
14. Haim – Falling
15. Pet Shop Boys – Love Is A Bourgeois Construct
16. Daughter – Youth
17. Indiana – Mess Around
18. Empire Of The Sun – Alive
19. Ellie Goulding – Burn
20. Mayer Hawthorne with Kendrick Lamar – Crime
21. The Strypes – Blue Collar Jane
22. John Newman – Love Me Again
23. Ylvis – The Fox
24. Rudimental feat. Ella Eyre – Waiting All Night
25. Lars Vaular – Gary Speed
26. Disclosure feat. Eliza Doolittle – You & Me
27. Lady Gaga feat. R. Kelly – Do What U Want
28. London Grammar – Wasting My Young Years
29. Lily Allen – Hard Out Here
30. Le Youth – C O O L
31. Ms Mr – Dark Doo Wop
32. Thomas Dybdahl – But We Did
33. Broken Bells – Holding On For Life
34. Donkeyboy – Triggerfinger
35. Lorde – Royals
36. Miley Cyrus – We Can’t Stop
37. Jonathan Wilson – Dear Friend
38. Captain Gone – Juliet
39. The Captain & Me – Linda Thompson
40. Robbie Williams – Go Gentle
41. Mary Jane Coles feat. Karin Park – Everything
42. Primal Scream – It’s Alright, It’s OK
43. Son Volt – Hearts And Minds
44. San Fermin – Sonsick
45. Asbjørn Ribe og De – Birkeland
46. Andy Burrows – Maybe You
47. Elvis Costello & The Roots feat. La Marisoul – Cinco Minutos Con Vos
48. Phosphorescent – Song For Zula
49. Thea & The Wild – Hots For You
50. Truls – Out Of Yourself

Playlist - 50 best songs in WiMP

 

Playlist - 50 best songs in Spotify