My Favorite Songs of 2015 So Far

The first half of 2015, as far as my own personal musical preferences are concerned, has been dominated by two sources: alternative indie/rock music on two different radio stations (WHHZ/100.5/Gainesville and WXXJ/102.9/Jacksonville) and the release of Sufjan Stevens' beautiful new album, titled Carrie and Lowell (largely a tribute to his deceased parents).  As a matter of fact, I prefer his album over Beck's Morning Phase of last year (which I also liked)...a work that garnered him a Grammy for Best Album.  Sufjan (pronounced "soof-yan") should at least get a nomination for his work...

I'm still working through the tracks on Carrie and Lowell.  Sometimes it takes a while for a song to "reach" me, and sometimes I "get it" from the first listen.  I have a feeling that this album features both kinds of songs.  In Carrie and Lowell, Sufjan has abandoned the annoying "bells and whistles" of his electronic musical laboratory and returned to a more acoustic-like sound (well, generally so...he tactfully does use some electronic background arrangements as well on some tracks). For those who tend to be turned off by ear-splitting, screaming rock songs, this album will be easy to digest with its subdued mood...

As for the alternative music I'm hearing of late, there's a lot of good stuff out there. Last year, one of the more minor songs I liked that didn't make my "Top Ten" list was Sail by a group called AWOLNATION (always written with capital letters...no, I don't know why, either).  This year "my" stations are playing another of their songs, Hollow Moon (with the alternate title Bad Wolf).  This is a rather complex song, compared to others getting radio play.  It's fast-paced, with widely divergent musical themes alternating but somehow seamlessly fitting together.  It's danceable...yet there's a bit of the Nirvana sound as well, especially toward the end.  A pretty interesting piece, I'll say...which, besides the important fact that it is just plain fun to listen to, is why at this point of time it's my favorite song of 2015.  Next, at number two, is a song by Bear Hands titled Agora...it actually was released in 2014 but has such a following that it gets regular air time even now.  Other songs I like to listen to are Mess is Mine by Vance Joy, Cigarette Daydreams by Cage the Elephant, Renegades by X Ambassadors, and Saint Motel's My Type, a curious song that sounds like a cross between K.C. and the Sunshine Band and Franz Ferdinand.  Here's my list of favorite songs so far in 2015:

1 HOLLOW MOON (BAD WOLF)...AWOLNATION
2 Agora...Bear Hands
3 Death With Dignity...Sufjan Stevens
4 Mess is Mine...Vance Joy
5 Cigarette Daydreams...Cage the Elephant
6 Should Have Known Better...Sufjan Stevens
7 Blue Bucket of Gold...Sufjan Stevens
8 Renegades...X Ambassadors
9 My Type...Saint Motel
10 Fourth of July...Sufjan Stevens

So, as Casey Kasem used to say on his weekly Billboard Top 40 radio show, there you have it. But don't expect this list to remain static throughout 2015...it's bound to change quite a lot before the year is through...