The 50 Best Local Songs of 2019

Around this town, mercurial crooner Sequoyah Murray has already enchanted us with his kaleidoscope of talents. But thanks to the ever-expanding prism of Thrill Jockey, these dancing lights can now shine across the globe. With “Penalties of Love,” our colorful adept weaves the natural and synthetic worlds into one blissful cascade, where we can meditate together on how to part ways with a former lover. Murray guides us through the dazzling array with his voice, a powerful beacon that cuts through the fog and promises serenity to those who listen. – LA

Lurking near the center of Shantih Shantih’s enchanting new LP, “Radio Dream” occupies a space somewhere between a time warp and a somnambulant haze. It’s a lush, moody ballad that draws a straight line from the Shirelles soulful doo-wop to Dum Dum Girls’ cavernous pop. And yet, rather than basking in all that bright girl-group gloss, the band draws the shades and floods the room in dancing shadow. The intersection between reality and dreams can be a disarming place; fortunately Shantih Shantih understand its spectral mysteries well. – GC

If there’s another song that does a better job of reminding white cishet Americans that we love to lie to ourselves about history I haven’t heard it. “Your Imagined Past” is a sharp critique of the American Dream, American exceptionalism, and pretty much every aspect of the country’s history that plasters red, white, and blue over hate and injustice. Oh, and did I mention that it’s a total jam, retaining the sharp syncopation that makes every Shepherds track such a satisfying listening experience. – RR

The angular rhythms and spastic grooves that comprise “Bed” skitter the line between heated frenzy and cold persistence. It’s this balance between wild spontaneity and bloodless calculation that makes Shouldies’ erratic synth-punk such an arresting ride. Despite its scant running time, “Bed” is by turns bombastic and claustrophobic, an anxiety-ridden examination of love via terse guitars and shattered techno fragments. – GC

If I had to drill down to why Aidan Burns’ “post-yacht rock” concept album works so well, it’d be in the first half of “…For Comfort.” As the sashay of paradise teases us in the distance, we sail in a majestic fog, guided only an aura that wavers like candlelight. Here, we can hear the ghost of the exotic, the faded photograph of the seaside resorts that fewer and fewer of us can afford; and instead, as we hear in the sleepy second half, we make do with whatever mundane pleasures we can summon before bedtime. The rich and wealthy never had to ponder about self-care, after all. But we do, and the way that Slicke’s Majestic 6 mystifies this daily meditation still leaves me awestruck. – LA

There’s something undeniably wonderful and primal about a kick-ass guitar riff. On “Holy Mother,” Starbenders explore the tension and anxiety inherent within budding sexuality (“fear you like a god, your holy fingers bringing me home“) while riding an explosive and persistent groove. Driving and infectious, the track combines the undeniable charisma of the Runaways with the pop provocations of Madonna’s “Like a Virgin.” Whatever you do, don’t miss the powerful key change during the affirmative consent coda. – EF

You might not expect a humble marimba player to break out the slow jams on his first night out. But then, Will Lackey isn’t your ordinary marimba player. With a history in DIY gigs and professional jazz ensembles, this percussionist extraordinaire draws from a wide pallet of sound and style. While you can find all sorts of gems inside Lackey’s first EP under the Sweet William moniker, “Freely Take Freely Give” shows off the most impressive curveballs in his repertoire. From the mad fiddlin’ intro that dares to rip the speakers, to the sparkling moment of zen at the midpoint, to the steamy R&B toward the end, this is a heady trip into Lackey’s imagination. – LA

Throughout “The Eternal,” Thayer Sarrano’s voice swells with the gentleness of Hope Sandoval and the passionate trepidation of Chelsea Wolfe. Few songwriters seem to have the same capacity for world-weary feeling as the Athens songstress, and fewer still are able to translate that into their songwriting without it sinking into an ocean of overwrought sentimentality. “The Eternal” perfectly demonstrates that intentional fragility. – RR

With its luxuriant synths and undulating ambiance, “Flu Punks” finds True Blossom wholeheartedly embracing their love for ’80s synthpop. On the surface, the track is coated in an icy sheen and shimmering textures, but the snappy funk of the underlying bassline keeps things gliding along at a bubbly pace. Wrapped as they are in such a rapturous glow, it’s easy to succumb to the siren’s call of Sophie Cox’s dreamy vocals, but beware, there are some sharp barbs hidden in the mist: “Oh, I hope you feel it / I wanted to hurt you.” – GC