As ice cap melt greases the wheels and
As cathedrals burn (flames fanned by open cheque books) and
As the Amazon crackles (flames fanned by Big Macs) and
As Hong Kong will not be extradited and
As Greta the Great sails the rising seas and
As a rebellion of extinguishers sprays beetroot from fire engines and
As a narwhal tusk takes a stand and
As Chuka changes and
changes and
changes and
As a mop is elected and
As a peach is impeached and
As the Earth divides and
As the mercury rises – music plays
I make this playlist as a way of opening my ears to the world.
But it’s probably just another Nero’s fiddle.
100 // Tame Impala / Patience
99 // Sports Team / Fishing
98 // Danny Brown / Best Life
97 // Battles / Titanium 2 Step
96 // 070 Shake / Morrow
95 // Beirut / When I Die
94 // Soccer Mommy / Lucy
93 // Matmos / Plastic Anniversary
92 // Ghetto Sage / Häagen Dazs
91 // Private Agenda / Aura
90 // Wikihow Adventure Cruise / Swear I Wanna Change
89 // Mark Ronson & Angel Olsen / True Blue
88 // Jenny Hval / Ashes to Ashes
87 // Best Coast / For The First Time
86 // Björk & The Knife / Features Creatures
85 // JAY1 / Mocking It
84 // Sleater-Kinney / Hurry On Home
83 // Michael Kiwanuka / You Ain’t The Problem
82 // Girl Band / Going Norway
81 // Vanishing Twin / KRK (At Home In Strange Places)
80 // Taylor Swift / The Man
79 // Caribou / Home
78 // Jessie Ware / Adore You
77 // Holly Herndon / Eternal
76 // Harry Styles / Fine Line
75 // Megan Thee Stallion & Nicki Minaj & Ty Dolla $ign / Hot Girl Summer
74 // Denzel Curry & Sam Sneak / SHAKE 88
73 // Tove Lo & Kylie Minogue / Really don’t like u
72 // Tropical Fuck Storm / Braindrops
71 // Floating Points / LesAlpx
70 // Bruce Springsteen / Hello Sunshine
69 // Hayden Thorpe / Diviner
68 // Mount Kimbie / You Look Certain (I’m Not So Sure)
67 // Richard Dawson / Jogging
66 // Clairo / Bags
65 // Matt Berninger & Phoebe Bridgers / Walking on a String
64 // billy woods / Spongebob
63 // Grimes / Violence
62 // Kanye West & Clipse & Kenny G / Use This Gospel
61 // BROCKHAMPTON / NO HALO
60 // Young Thug & Gunna / Hot
59 // Quelle Chris / Obamacare
58 // Hot Chip / Hungry Child
57 // AJ Tracey / Ladbroke Grove
56 // Jenny Lewis / Red Bull & Hennessy
55 // Flume & JPEGMAFIA / How To Build A Relationship
54 // Julia Jacklin / Don’t Know How To Keep Loving You
53 // Kano & D Double E & Ghetts / Class of Deja
52 // Manchester Orchestra / My Backwards Walk
51 // Sudan Archives / Glorious
50 // The 1975 / Frail State of Mind
49 // PUP / See You at Your Funeral
48 // Tyler, The Creator / A BOY IS A GUN
47 // These New Puritans / Into The Fire
46 // Dua Lipa / Don’t Start Now
45 // Stormzy / Vossi Bop
44 // Jay Som / Superbike
43 // Freddie Gibbs & Yasiin Bey & Black Thought / Education
42 // KH & Four Tet / Only Human
41 // The Japanese House / You Seemed So Happy
40 // Georgia / About Work The Dancefloor
39 // Ariana Grande / break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored
38 // Charly Bliss / Capacity
37 // Mac DeMarco / Nobody
36 // Jamila Woods / ZORA
35 // black midi / 953
34 // slowthai & Skepta / Inglorious
33 // Katy Perry / Never Really Over
32 // Solange / Almeda
31 // Jai Paul / Do You Love Her Now
30 // Anderson .Paak & Brandy / Jet Black
29 // FONTAINES D.C. / Boys In The Better Land
28 // Metronomy / Salted Caramel Ice Cream
27 // Róisín Murphy / Incapable
26 // Carly Rae Jepsen / Julien
25 // clipping. / Blood of the Fang
24 // Angel Olsen / All Mirrors
23 // Local Natives / When Am I Gonna Lose You
22 // Caroline Polachek / So Hot You’re Hurting My Feeling
21 // Big Thief / Not
20 // HAIM / Now I’m In It
19 // The Comet Is Coming / Summon The Fire
18 // Little Simz / Venom
17 // Mannequin Pussy / Drunk II
16 // Fat White Family / Feet
15 // Rosalía & J Balvin & El Guincho / Con Altura
14 // FKA twigs / Cellophane
13 // Sharon Van Etten / Seventeen
12 // Lizzo / Juice
11 // Normani / Motivation
10 // Dave / Psycho
“Brother I’m a careful, humble, reckless, arrogant, extravagant
Nigga probably battlin’ with manic depression
Man, I think I’m going mad again”
9 // Charli XCX / Gone
“(Cruels Endroits)”
8 // Weyes Blood / Movies
“Some people feel what some people don’t
Some people watch until they explode
The meaning of life doesn’t seem to shine like that screen”
7 // (Sandy) Alex G / Gretel
“I don’t wanna go back
Nobody’s gonna push me off track
I don’t wanna be this
Good people gotta fight to exist”
6 // The National / Where Is Her Head
“And I will not come back the same
(Where are her hands?
Where are her eyes?
What is she thinking?
Is she sleeping?
What did she say?)
And I will not come back the same”
5 // James Blake & Andre 3000 / Where’s The Catch?
“We build and discover gold
Alchemists make it silver before you know it
Negative nickels until it’s void
Aluminum foil it back to soil, oh yeah”
4 // Bon Iver / Naeem
“More love, more love, more love”
3 // Black Country, New Road / Sunglasses
“I’m more than adequate
Leave Kanye out of this”
2 // Beyoncé / Before I Let Go
“I did the damn thing”
1 // Vampire Weekend / Harmony Hall
“We took a vow in summertime
Now we find ourselves in Late December
I believe that New Year’s Eve
Will be the perfect time for their great surrender
But they don’t remember”
Onwards.
ARBITER OF TASTE 