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[omgkitty]

It's not just you: Over the last five years, there's been a seismic shift in the way we engage with music. We tweet, tumbl, stream, and share our favorite songs; we scour dead links and navigate obtrusive pop-ups for the newest mixtapes; we watch our music videos on Youtube and Vevo. We watched the explosion of EDM, the birth of drill, the rise and fall of chillwave. We debated how to pronounce FKA twigs, whether the album was dead, and where Bobby Shmurda's hat went. We met Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, Grimes, Jessie Ware, Disclosure, Miguel, and Charli XCX. We saw LCD Soundsystem break up, Neutral Milk Hotel reunite, and My Bloody Valentine release a new album—a shooting star if there ever was one.

It's hard to believe that the first five years of the decade are almost over; in just four more months, we'll begin staring down the 2020s. So to mark the halfway point, we've put together our list of the best tracks, albums, and videos of the decade so far. Starting Monday, we’re going to pause reviews and roll out our lists: 200 songs, 100 records, and 50 videos. In the meantime, feel free to revisit our existing year-end albums, tracks, and videos lists from the past four years and take some guesses at how all those selections might (or might not!) come together next week.

CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR THE ENTIRE LIST. I ONLY POSTED THE TOP 20.

Every time we pause to look at the last however many years of music, things seem stranger and harder to pin down. Not the music itself, necessarily, but rather how it reaches us and finds its way into our lives. In 2010, Pitchfork has been regularly using Twitter for just over a year. Streaming music was around but was a minor concern. Smart phones weren't something you took for granted. All of these changes and many more have altered how we experience music, but one thing is certain: great songs never stop coming. Five years on, to mark the half-decade, here are 200 of our staff's favorites.

20. Daft Punk - “Get Lucky” [ft. Pharrell]
19. Beach House - “Zebra”
18. Kanye West - “Monster” [ft. Justin Vernon, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, and Nicki Minaj]
17. LCD Soundsystem - “Dance Yrself Clean”
16. Todd Terje - “Inspector Norse”
15. Nicki Minaj - “Super Bass” [ft. Ester Dean]
14. Sky Ferreira - “Everything Is Embarrassing”
13. Usher - “Climax”
12. Beyoncé - “Countdown”
11. Tame Impala - “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards”
10. Drake - “Hold On We're Going Home”
09. Deerhunter - “Helicopter”
08. Frank Ocean - “Pyramids”
07. Azealia Banks - “212” [ft. Lazy Jay]
06. Robyn - “Dancing on My Own”
05. Kendrick Lamar - “Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe”
04. M83 - “Midnight City”
03. Kanye West - “Runaway” [ft. Pusha T]
02. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - “Round and Round”
01. Grimes - “Oblivion”

CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR THE ENTIRE LIST. I ONLY POSTED THE TOP 20.

It's been an interesting decade for the album. As the 2000s ended, conventional wisdom suggested that the album was on its way out, that the future would all be individual tracks and playlists. And while there's still a certain inevitability to the notion—the way we experience recorded music has never been fixed, after all—you get the feeling that it's going to take a while. The first five years of this decade saw artists playing around with what an album could be—surprise releases, wholes assembled from trickles of fragments, free downloads—but the idea of the single-artist-driven listening experience that lasts between 30 and 90 minutes still has some life in it yet. These 100 records offer a convincing argument.

20. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Before Today
19. Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
18. Joanna Newsom - Have One on Me
17. Swans - The Seer
16. Destroyer - Kaputt
15. Grimes - Visions
14. Beyoncé - Beyoncé
13. Real Estate - Days
12. Drake - Take Care
11. LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening
10. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
09. Sun Kil Moon - Benji
08. Kanye West - Yeezus
07. Tame Impala - Lonerism
06. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City
05. Beach House - Teen Dream
04. Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
03. Deer Hunter - Halcyon Digest
02. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city
01. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Will update as the week goes on.

 

[omgkitty]

I figured I would go ahead and make this thread because as we all know, everyone loves to "discuss" and complain about Pitchfork and their lists. Forget the fact that we aren't even all the way through 2014 yet, and they already have their best of the last half decade list up. Would have made more sense for this to show up during the middle of next year, but what do I know?

I don't really have a huge problem with the top 20 songs, but am annoyed to find some stuff sprinkled through their list that never even reviewed with such things as Carly Rae Jepsen, Skrillex, Miley Cyrus and even Taylor Swift. That's a far cry from my usual annoyance with all the rap inclusions in their year end lists that they also normally don't review.

 

[Korey]

I disagree with this list

How is Royals not on that list?

 

[overdrivex]

Drake - “Hold On We're Going Home”
Nicki Minaj - “Super Bass” [ft. Ester Dean]

right.

 

[caesar]

I figured I would go ahead and make this thread because as we all know, everyone loves to "discuss" and complain about Pitchfork and their lists. Forget the fact that we aren't even all the way through 2014 yet, and they already have their best of the last half decade list up. Would have made more sense for this to show up during the middle of next year, but what do I know?

I don't really have a huge problem with the top 20 songs, but am annoyed to find some stuff sprinkled through their list that never even reviewed with such things as Carly Rae Jaspen, Skrillex, Miley Cyrus and even Taylor Swift. That's a far cry from my usual annoyance with all the rap inclusions in their year end lists that they also normally don't review.

"Not the music itself, necessarily, but rather how it reaches us and finds its way into our lives."

 

[caesar]

before anyone complains...

fall back nerds, give reasons with your own wack list

 

[potam]

Ok, I love Oblivion...but best song of the past 4.5 years? Come on Pitchfork

but Kanye holding 10% of the top 20

 

[Anth0ny]

15. Nicki Minaj - “Super Bass” [ft. Ester Dean]

Also, if any Drake song belongs on this list, it's this.

 

[Psychoward]

They didn't even pick the best Grimes or Kendrick song of the last 4 years, rest of the list isn't too hot either.

 

[terribletwo]

midnight city?
*googles*
oh S=Y was 2008

still that M83 album never reallly did it for me

 

[Mr.Swag]

Got the wrong drake song, but good looks on that "Runaway" love.


Anecdote: Last time I was on an airplane I listened to "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" while in the air, so that in case we crashed it would be the last thing I ever listened to.

 

[ItWasMeantToBe19]

Vertigo by Deafheaven is my favorite song since 2010 so, uhh, I hope it gets on this list, but I'm a bit doubtful.

 

[omgkitty]

They didn't even pick the best Grimes or Kendrick song of the last 4 years, rest of the list isn't too hot either.

Considering what's been in the news and a big deal on the internet in the last year, it's not really a surprise why they picked the Grimes song they did:

If “Oblivion” says anything about our collective psyche at the midway point of a decade already defined by seismic, globe-altering revolutions, it’s that the personal will always be political. The song recounts a specific sexual assault (“One of the most shattering experiences of my life,” Grimes, who was born in Vancouver as Claire Boucher, told SPIN in 2012) by describing the psychic fallout: “And never walk about after dark/ It’s my point of view/ Because someone could break your neck/ Coming up behind you always coming and you’d never have a clue,” she lisps in her high, pinched voice. It’s a dazzling, paralyzing performance, in part because Boucher sounds almost playful, and in part because the skronking behind her—the song’s springy, propulsive synth line was one of 2012’s most unforgettable—indicates something other than victimization. “See you on a dark night,” Boucher repeats.

The song’s video, directed by Emily Kai Bock, features a tiny, pink-haired Grimes lip-syncing “Oblivion” at a McGill football game (and later at a motorcross rally), wearing skeleton gloves and clutching a plastic boom box. There aren’t many women hanging in the stands besides Boucher; one, darting up behind her, swats at the hood of Boucher’s sweatshirt, a vaguely combative gesture that somehow seems more goofy than aggressive. On the field, a squad of taut-bellied cheerleaders, their hair pulled back with candy-colored bows, soar forth and land. Grimes, mouthing the lyrics to “Oblivion,” dances the way people dance when no one is looking: a desexualized, mostly arrhythmic twitching that does not seem to be for the benefit of anyone else at all.

The particular kind of masculinity that gets amplified by organized sporting events—the same feral, drooling aggression Bill Buford made infamous in Among the Thugs, his harrowing account of hooliganism among English soccer fans—would be an easy target for a feminist with a video camera, but Grimes is received warmly by the crowd. In that sense, it is a triumph—of perseverance, if not humanity—and it feels consistent with her mission. The subversion of expectation is a part of Grimes’s founding aesthetic, and she frequently marries more defiant genres like noise and punk with propulsive pop production, outfitting her dissent in studio glimmer. The melody can be so sweet as to feel bubblegum, and when Boucher sings a bit like “I will wait forever”–a line that always jumps out–“Oblivion” starts to seem like a very different kind of lament.

But what “Oblivion” ultimately offers is victory. It’s the sound of one woman turning personal devastation into not just a career-making single, but a lasting anthem of transformation. —Amanda Petrusich

It's good song, but not the best song of the last 5 years.

 

[Honey Bunny]

Deerhunter is the only one I like there. That's ok.

 

[potam]

Considering what's been in the news and a big deal on the internet in the last year, it's not really a surprise why they picked the Grimes song they did:



It's good song, but not the best song of the last 5 years.

I'll be honest, I've never even paid attention to the lyrics.

 

[akachan ningen]

I agree with 5 3 and 1 but I haven't heard everything on that list. I can't believe they chose Monster over some other Kanye tracks though.

 

[omgkitty]

I'll be honest, I've never even paid attention to the lyrics.

Neither have I, which is why I was kind of shocked and had to go back and listen to that song again. I'd always liked that album, but the second half really kind of drags which keeps me from going back to it.

I agree with 5 3 and 1 but I haven't heard everything on that list. I can't believe they chose Monster over some other Kanye tracks though.

Besides "So Appalled", "Monster" is probably my least favorite song on that album. At least they got "Runaway" right. They should have "Power" in for "Monster".

 

[dmshaposv]

best kendrick song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72mrfnyc8Dg

 

[Minus_Me]

Never thought I'd see the Olympic Stadium in a music video, but here we are. Oblivion is great but not the best of the last five years.

 

[caesar]

20. Daft Punk - “Get Lucky” [ft. Pharrell] - Yes, obviously.

19. Beach House - “Zebra” - Wasn't feeling this album.

18. Kanye West - “Monster” [ft. Justin Vernon, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, and Nicki Minaj] - 2 MBDTF songs? This is better than Runaway though, should be New Slaves.

17. LCD Soundsystem - “Dance Yrself Clean” - I still haven't listened to this, will do so.

16. Todd Terje - “Inspector Norse” - Cool song,but Talabot is better.

15. Nicki Minaj - “Super Bass” [ft. Ester Dean] - Don't know it.

14. Sky Ferreira - “Everything Is Embarrassing” - I always liked this track, wasn't a fan of much after this though.

13. Usher - “Climax” - Dat Diplo.

12. Beyoncé - “Countdown”- eh.

11. Tame Impala - “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” - Great song.

10. Drake - “Hold On We're Going Home” - Nice, but disposable.

09. Deerhunter - “Helicopter” - Everything Deerhunter does is good.

08. Frank Ocean - “Pyramids” - Top 3 for me.

07. Azealia Banks - “212” [ft. Lazy Jay] - She will never top this, but yeah fyah track.

06. Robyn - “Dancing on My Own” - Don't know it.

05. Kendrick Lamar - “Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe” - Best on the top 20.

04. M83 - “Midnight City” - Euphoric.

03. Kanye West - “Runaway” [ft. Pusha T] - Out of all the Kanye they could have picked, no.

02. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - “Round and Round” - Brilliant song.

01. Grimes - “Oblivion” - 2nd best on the list.

These are all singles by the way, seems deliberate.

 

[squidyj]

dance yrself clean was this decade? It feels so long ago.

 

[Soma]

Not surprised to see Oblivion at #1. I still really like it too.

Midnight City, Pyramids and Don't Kill My Vibe are still great to me as well. Not a bad list, imo.

Vertigo by Deafheaven is my favorite song since 2010 so, uhh, I hope it gets on this list, but I'm a bit doubtful.

Nah but Dream House is #52 at least

 

[Surface of Me]

M83 being 3rd invalidates any other choices.

 

[potam]

Besides "So Appalled", "Monster" is probably my least favorite song on that album. At least they got "Runaway" right. They should have "Power" in for "Monster".

Nah, Monster has some killer verses, even from Nicki. Worst part of that album is Fergie's "verse" on All of the Lights.

 

[lush]

Dancing On My Own is the best song on the list. Dead at Climax being on the list. Wild card choice is Heavy Metal Lover, fuck with me. Also surprised at no We Found Love.

16. Todd Terje - “Inspector Norse” - Cool song,but Talabot is better.

What is this?

edit: Sosa?

 

[omgkitty]

Sometimes I wish Pitchfork would just post the top 10 or 20 or whatever, and then just a bunch of honorable mentions. After that, the list always seems to kind of meander and lose focus, and I usually just scroll through looking for the songs or albums I felt were misrepresented on the list and scoffing about how it was much better than the number they gave it. I'm sure there will be a lot of butt hurt when the albums list is released, I haven't really agreed with their top pick for the last 5 years, so it will be interesting to see if they stick with those albums. Going back they were:

2010. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
2011. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
2012. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city
2013. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City

 

[caesar]

Dancing On My Own is the best song on the list. Dead at Climax being on the list. Wild card choice is Heavy Metal Lover, fuck with me. Also surprised at no We Found Love.



What is this?

edit: Sosa?

Do you mean the Terje song or Talabot. By Talabot I mean John Talabot, I think his output as a 'deep house?' artist has been better lately.

 

[big ander]

I mean, it's a whatever list. I guess I don't really get why they've chosen now to do this. year end lists already collate individual years best they can, this just feels like several of those mashed together at an insignificant juncture. They're not re-summing up 2010-2014 in a meaningful way with new perspective; it's too soon for that. the entire list is a rephrasing. I might like or dislike the songs on it but as a piece of criticism/web journalism it's useless. light to decent 2

 

[Abraxas]

Where are Earl Sweatshirt-Chum or DJ Rashad-Pass that shit?

Also, no Jai Paul? Inexcusable.

 

[omgkitty]

Do you mean the Terje song or Talabot. By Talabot I mean John Talabot, I think his output as a 'deep house?' artist has been better lately.

I like both Talabot and Terje, but Terje's new album It's Album Time is definitely much better as a whole than ƒIN, but then I don't really think the two are that similar. Talabot is definitely a bit darker in sound. IDK I just think "Inspector Norse" is a damn good song, and one of my favorites this year from one of my favorite albums this year.

Where are Earl Sweatshirt-Chum or DJ Rashad-Pass that shit?

Also, no Jai Paul? Inexcusable.

If I remember correctly, all of those are in the 200. I just posted the top 20. I'm way too lazy to copy the entire list in here. If you click on the Top 200 image, it takes you to the list.

 

[Angelus Errare]

Man Yeezy's All of the Lights should be in the top 20 as well.

 

[DominoKid]

MBDTF will be at #1 where it belongs.

 

[a posh hammer]

Do you mean the Terje song or Talabot. By Talabot I mean John Talabot, I think his output as a 'deep house?' artist has been better lately.

Todd Terje makes nu-disco, Talabot I guess you could almost say is indie-dance. I dunno, John Talabot's drum patterns don't really excite me, they just sort of sit there behind the hooks. Inspector Norse is great and will be remembered a decade from now though I'm sure.

 

[ReturnOfTheRAT]

I, I, I don't know what to say.

 

[sqwarlock]

Sometimes I wish Pitchfork would just post the top 10 or 20 or whatever, and then just a bunch of honorable mentions. After that, the list always seems to kind of meander and lose focus, and I usually just scroll through looking for the songs or albums I felt were misrepresented on the list and scoffing about how it was much better than the number they gave it. I'm sure there will be a lot of butt hurt when the albums list is released, I haven't really agreed with their top pick for the last 5 years, so it will be interesting to see if they stick with those albums. Going back they were:

2010. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
2011. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
2012. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city
2013. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City

Bon Iver won't even be top 20. It seems like his style of music has quickly fallen out of favor with Pitchfork. (Note: that may not be true, since I don't read Pitchfork often)

 

[lush]

Do you mean the Terje song or Talabot. By Talabot I mean John Talabot, I think his output as a 'deep house?' artist has been better lately.

Comparing John Talabot to Inspector Norse/Todd Terje, just weird.

Inspector Norse is a timeless classic. Ragysh and Eurodans both flames as well.

 

[Steamlord]

That, uh...that's a list all right.

 

[caesar]

Todd Terje makes nu-disco, Talabot I guess you could almost say is indie-dance. I dunno, John Talabot's drum patterns don't really excite me, they just sort of sit there behind the hooks. Inspector Norse is great and will be remembered a decade from now though I'm sure.

Comparing John Talabot to Inspector Norse/Todd Terje, just weird.

Inspector Norse is a timeless classic. Ragysh and Eurodans both flames as well.

Yeah not the best comparison, but I dunno - guess I'm not as convinced by Inspector Norse.

I even prefer Strandbar.

 

[aku:jiki]

Any Drake song in any top 10 list of anything is just wrong. Unless the list is of the top 10 lamest songs by the softest fakers in the rap game. I am outraged and will now proceed to flip every table I see today.

 

[Abraxas]

Pitchfork have such a hard-on for Kanye. Yeezus is a 7.5/10 at best, and yet it got in their top ten for last year.

Parquet courts should be higher than 184.
Miley Cyrus at 131, come the fuck on. They do a little write up about how the song isn't really about the controversy, and then put it there because of the controversy.
Saddening lack of Mac Demarco at the top.

 

[Ivan 3414]

Any Drake song in any top 10 list of anything is just wrong. Unless the list is of the top 10 lamest songs by the softest fakers in the rap game. I am outraged and will now proceed to flip every table I see today.

You seem softer than Drake right now. Grow up.

 

[omgkitty]

Bon Iver won't even be top 20. It seems like his style of music has quickly fallen out of favor with Pitchfork. (Note: that may not be true, since I don't read Pitchfork often)

Well Bon Iver hasn't had anything come out since 2011, but if there's anything in that list that could fall, I'd say it's that album. Kanye and Lamar will be in the top 5 easy though. I'm hoping This Is Happening will sneak into the top 5 as well, which it should as it was #2 behind MBDTF in 2010.

 

[Timedog]

Kendrick Lamar sucks. His only good songs are "Lamborghini Angels" and "The Pursuit of Happiness".

 

[caesar]

Bon Iver won't even be top 20. It seems like his style of music has quickly fallen out of favor with Pitchfork. (Note: that may not be true, since I don't read Pitchfork often)

Nah dude, that album was legit great. Also they liked the Volcano Choir album.

 

[Abraxas]

Kendrick Lamar sucks. His only good songs are "Lamborghini Angels" and "The Pursuit of Happiness".

Not sure if trolling, but neither of those are Kendrick.

Also, good kid, m.A.A.D. City wishes to disagree with you.

 

[sqwarlock]

Nah dude, that album was legit great. Also they liked the Volcano Choir album.

Oh, I agree that it's great, but considering one Bon Iver song made top 50 of this list (from what I can recall) I just don't see that album doing too well. I'd like to see it make top 20 though, since I can't say I'm a fan of 90% of the songs on their current list.

 

[potam]

Nah dude, that album was legit great. Also they liked the Volcano Choir album.

eh...For Emma is in a different league (arguably a completely different sound too) than Bon Iver.

 

[caesar]

eh...For Emma is in a different league (arguably a completely different sound too) than Bon Iver.

I thought Bon Iver was far better. Eh, opinions.

 

[amnesiac]

Oh, I agree that it's great, but considering one Bon Iver song made top 50 of this list (from what I can recall) I just don't see that album doing too well. I'd like to see it make top 20 though, since I can't say I'm a fan of 90% of the songs on their current list.

I don't know, Bon Iver's music is more "album-oriented" rather than hit after hit. I'd bet that Bon Iver, Bon Iver will make the top 20.

 

[Witchfinder General]

Thanks for posting this, I needed the laugh.