6 alternative songs in 2023 to download today

Check out 6 alternative songs in 2023 you need to be listening to

I’ve been missing for a few…but I’m motivated tonight to tell you about 6 alternative songs in 2023 you need to jump on ASAP! Some of these from spring and summer will make my year-end list of favorite alternative songs in 2023. A few are just in my head and deserve a broader audience.

How to listen to the best alternative songs in 2023

You can stream all of these tunes for free at Bandcamp. You can also buy them there or, even better, buy from the bands’ websites. Most have YouTube videos but I’m not into videos myself. Many also offer free streams at Soundcloud. Even a big dog like Teenage Fanclub is making its brand new album Nothing Lasts Forever available to stream at Soundcloud.

You can listen to ALL of the songs right from this page, and use the handy links to support the artists.

“Fantastic Tales of the Sea” – The Hannah Barberas (Fantastic Tales of the Sea)

Perhaps my favorite alternative song in 2023 is from The Hannah Barberas

“Fantastic Tales of the Sea” may be one the catchiest alternative songs in 2023.

But first, I have to say as a frequent band name critic, let’s give credit to The Hannah Barberas for possibly best band name ever. And double win, best album art of 2023?! (Credit to London designer Sally Kelly). These guys are killing it on the aesthetics.

None of this it to take away from the title track of 2023’s fantastic, Fantastic Tales of the Sea, or my story about hearing it the first time. Among the things I DON’T have to complain about is traveling some this summer. I was listening to Fantastic Tales at Hideaways Beach in Kauai. Yes, I get it, entitled white guy story here. But the moment was still powerful.

View of Hideaways Beach in Kauai as you descend the steep approach
Landing spot about 20 feet above the final descent to Hideaways

It was our last day on the island and I’m at Hideaways with my daughter. It is one of the most picturesque beaches I’ve ever seen. Surreal. Rose is recording an Insta Reel in the water and doing what teenagers do. I was taking in the ocean, listening to The Hannah Barberas’ new album. Near the end, “Fantastic Tales” positively leaped out of the headphones. The chorus was instantly sealed with those last, fading hours of our family vacation, the way some songs are forever connected to a moment in time.

You don’t have to be in Hawaii to enjoy the clear-eyed jangle brilliance of The Hannah Barberas.

Buy Fantastic Tale of the Sea from Darrin Lee’s Subjangle label at Bandcamp.

“This is Gonna Change Your Mind” – Martin Frawley (The Wannabe)

Martin Frawley's new album is the complex The Wannabe

Martin Frawley’s sprechgesang “This is Gonna Change Your Mind” from his second album, The Wannabe, endears itself with repeat listening. Hearing it again, I’m tempted to buy the full album by the former member of Melbourne’s Twerps. Baggy jam at one moment, enigmatic dolewave the next, Frawley’s desultory vocals tie the whole thing together. It’s a nuanced album that begs several listens to really get it.

That said, leadoff “This is Gonna Change Your Mind” is just straightforward infectious pop!

You can sample The Wannabe at Bandcamp — and buy it from Lost in Mind Records.

Oh, and interested in tasty Australian wines? Martin and his fiancé, Lauren, produce Syrah, Cabernet and Vermentino wines using Victorian grapes under the El’More Wines label.

“Vampire in Appalachia” – Phillip Bowen (Old Kanawha)

Will Philip Bowen join a growing list of West Virginia alt country breakthroughs?

Philip Bowen is an up-and-comer in West Virginia’s growing country scene. I’m quite biased, having proudly grown up among the same hills and streams as Bowen. He joins West Virginia’s Charles Wesley Godwin, Tyler Childers and Sierra Ferrell in much-discussed country and alt country circles.

In fact CWG guests on Bowen’s Old Kanawha (modern pronunciation: kuh-NAW), the county of West Virginia’s capital, Charleston, and the Native American word for “white rocks.” Bowen is a renowned fiddle and mandolin session musician but his vocals runs are so light they could fool you into thinking it is auto-tune.

“Vampire in Appalachia” also boasts a champion version of the “Woah oh oh oh oh” bridge mirrored in the past by The Ronettes, Baltimora and Howard Jones. Bowen owns them all with his earnest “Vampire in Appalachia,” one of the best alternative songs in 2023 in alt country.

Get your copy of Old Kanawha from West Virginia’s newest star, Philip Bowen!

“Analita” – Bobsled Team (single)

Bobsled Team's song about a ghost is a suitably haunting indie gem

Words really only detract from pure pop sugar like Bobsled Team’s “Analita.” The whimsical echo of the chorus begins what you think will be Icelandic dream pop, but it builds to a bit of a noisy indie jam. I’m not previously familiar with Belfast’s Bobsled Team but now greatly anticipate their second album!

“Analita,” a song about a ghost, is an instant classic.

Buy Bobsled Team’s “Analita” today from Bandcamp to hear one of my favorite alternative songs in 2023.

“Unchanged” – Dot Allison (Consciousology)

Longtime performer Dot Allison released "Unchanged" in May, one of my favorite indie songs of 2023

Let’s stay in this same ethereal space with Dot Allison’s “Unchanged.” Allison has been around basically forever, originally as part of One Dove. We’re virtually the same age, a discovery I usually find surprising in a contemporary indie artist.

One Dove had just one album, 1993’s Morning Dove White, but Allison has released six albums since then, culminating in 2021’s Heart-Shaped Scars and this year’s Consciousology. If she more closely identifies with the psych/trip hop space, the chorus of “Unchanged” floats weightlessly, very nearly like a country harmonic.

Is “Unchanged” a tender homage to her lover, or bitter realization?

You’re always the same
Always unchanged
So he should walk away
Yet his love remains...unchanged

Unchanged, like a sunrise
Unchanged, like your ghost
Unchanged, once a lifetime
Unchanged, a seed won’t sow
Unchanged, like the fractal
Unchanged, shaping the snow
Unchanged, if statues could move
Oh the stories they could tell

You can also hear the growing trippy beats under the Scottish singer’s single, which she originally released in May.

Buy Consiousology at Bandcamp.

“Beggin’ For You” – Hurry (Don’t Look Back)

Teeanage Fanclub and Big Star fans, check out "Beggin' For You" by Philadelphia's Hurry

At some point, I realize I could do these playlists all night. Let’s wrap back in the states, with Philadelphia’s Hurry.

“Beggin’ For You” sounds like a Teenage Fanclub lost classic with thrilling chamber pop flourishes. There is absolutely nothing to dislike about Matt Scottoline’s ode to 90’s power pop and its influences. He owns every Norman Blake vocal peak, Big Star guitar solo and jangly Byrds chorus.

Check out how it comes together on “Beggin’ For You.”

You can’t do much better than Hurry’s Don’t Look Back! Buy it at Lame-O Records.

The best alternative songs in 2023 are yet to come

Listen to 6 top shelf alternative songs from 2023 right here

Look, we’ve got 95+ days left in 2023. These 6 songs were basically some of the last 8 or 10 I put in my phone for a post just like this — an update. I have dozens of favorite alternative songs in 2023 that I’ll catalogue at the end of the year. Last year, I listed 22 of my favorites from 2022.

Subscribe for updates as we wind up another terrific year in alternative music!

Stop and listen to these 15 alternative songs new to January 2023

Listen to these indie songs new in 2023

I made a deliberate decision to jump start 2023 by listening to the first great alternative songs new to January.

That’s what you’re going to hear below. While the first couple weeks of the year always seem to be catchup mode on Best Of lists for the year before, you will 100% fall in love with the new music already dropping in 2023.

Let’s have a listen!

Alternative songs new for your January playlist

Each of these songs shot out of the cannon in the first four weeks of the new year.

I haven’t finished listening to all the indie songs new to January, but these are the ones that caught my immediate attention. Each tune comes with a link to buy the song or album and support the artist. Make that a new year’s resolution in 2023! Support independent musicians by paying them for their art!

1. “Dark Moon” – GRMLN (Dark Moon)

You can hear GRMLN's new dream pop song, "Dark Moon" here.  One of the best alternative songs new to January 2023!

We were just four days into the new year when Yoodoo Park of Kyoto, Japan, released Dark Moon and its tasty title track. Park’s GRMLN has been at this for a decade and doesn’t find these dream pop guitar lines by accident. I didn’t hear an entire album of these hooks on Dark Moon but the title track is one of the promising alternative songs new to January 2023.

Listen to more of Dark Moon and buy a copy from GRMLN at Bandcamp.

HEY! – Check out my very favorite songs of the Year 2022

2. “Mile Marker 29” – The Bad Ends (The Power and the Glory)

REM's Bill Berry returns with a new album with band, The Bad Ends

You know who you don’t hear a lot about in the year 2023? REM drummer Billy Berry.

Bill’s been taking it easy – the royalty checks probably still clear. After a health scare in the 90’s, Berry has been hay farming outside Athens the last 25 years. A chance meeting with Mike Mantione lead to new band The Bad Ends and Berry’s return to music. Have a listen to “Mile Marker 29.”

Order your copy of The Power and the Glory from Bandcamp.

3. “Falling Apart” – The Rills (After Taste EP)

The Rills upcoming EP includes several alternative songs new to January. For Franz Ferdinand fans!

The Rills have a super dancy Franz Ferdinand thing happening.

It was especially clear on “Landslide,” which The Rills released last fall. Two weeks ago, they dropped “Falling Apart.” The Rills’ second EP, depending on where you get your info, will be available in February.

Get your copy of the After Taste EP here.

4. fine. – “New Skin/Good Life” (Love, Death, Dreams and the Sleep Between)

Check out Boston's indie pop band called "fine." Clearly one of the best alternative songs new to January

What I really dig about Boston’s fine. is this grade school choir sound they’ve perfected.

Bubblegum pop songs by Alice Kat and Liam James Marsh will wake you from your winter doldrums and get you dancing again. Although I’m including fine. in my January list of tunes…Love, Death, Dreams came out three days before Christmas, so sue me. Hit play and fall in love!

Buy Love, Death, Dreams and the Sleep Between from Subjangle.

5. “Ethel” – The Murder Capital (Gigi’s Recovery)

The Murder Capital include a tribute to LCD Soundsystem in "Ethel"

The Murder Capital don’t care if search to find the melodies in Gigi’s Recovery. But the Dubliners are also so good at what they do, they can’t keep the hooks from bursting through the dissonance.

You’ll hear TMC winking at James Murphy’s masterpiece “All My Friends” in their drooping cacophony, “Ethel.” It’s a slow build, so don’t give up on this one.

They come to Kilby Court in April!

Get ready for The Murder Capital’s SLC show and buy Gigi’s Recovery.

6. “Past Tense” – The Spooky Boys (single)

Portland's The Spooky Boys aren't spooky, they rock!

Let me tell you what I know about The Spooky Boys, which is close to nothing. They’re billed as “Portland’s premier indie/surf rock group featuring jangly dripping wet guitars, relentless driving rhythm, and insatiable catchy melodies.” Admittedly I didn’t know “jangly wet guitars” was a thing, nor that The Spooky Boys were Portland’s exemplar.

I DO KNOW superior power pop when I hear it. So check out one of the best indie songs new to 2023, “Past Tense.”

Buy “Past Tense” at the Spooky Boys’ website.

7. “White Shirt” – Priestgate (One Shade Darker EP)

If you like The Cure and the pop appeal of The Alarm, you're going to love Priestgate

If Priestgate look miserable, their single “White Shirt” is a delirious balance of pop sugar and darker 80’s Cure vibes. I’m looking forward to hearing Priestgate’s second EP due on March 3. I have to say I love the rhythm and vocal desperation of “White Shirt.”

Pre-order One Shade Darker at Bandcamp.

8. “Huge New Her” – F*cked Up (One Day)

F'd Up, the hardcore band who redefined the genre, have a new album

I get it, a band with a name and sound like Toronto’s FU is not going to appeal to everyone reading this post, and that’s a shame.

The arrangements and (honestly) melodies underneath Damian Abraham’s vocals are second to none. It is remarkable hardcore guitar rock. Hang with it for two minutes and think about what songs like “Huge New Her” would sound like with actual singing.

My FU collection goes back, if not to their origin, to their remarkable David Comes to Life. Abraham sang a bit more on David than on One Day. So, for context, a bonus track: “The Other Shoe” from 2011’s landmark David Comes to Life.

Here’s how to get F*cked Up (heh).

This year’s One Day is at Merge Records while 2014’s Glass Boys is at Matador Records. You can sample and buy dozens of other FU releases, including David Comes to Life, from Bandcamp.

Okay, do you trust me now to hear my favorite albums of 2022? They’re right here!

9. “Cuchillos” – LISASINSON (Un Año De Cambios)

Spanish language indie songs new in January inclucde LISASINSON's "Chuchillos"

On no planet was I going to suggest a batch of my favorite alternative songs new to January without some of the best Spanish-language indie pop (*makes note to subscribe to Rosetta Stone). “Cuchillos” is the fourth single from LISASINSON’s pending full length. I’ve already started following Elefant Records to make sure I don’t miss the album by the Valencia, Spain art students.

Buy “Cuchillos” or the upcoming album Un Año De Cambios from Elefant Records.

10. “Skeleton Boy” – Strange Neighbors (Party of None EP)

Strange Neighbor's "Skeleton Boy" is an alternative party song waiting to happen

Let’s stick with the power pop sound. I bet Strange Neighbors are a fun show. Just look at them, having fun with a camera like good self-entertaining kids. The Party of None EP came out two weeks ago, and I recommend you download and inject one of the indie songs new to January that will get your party started.

Strange Neighbors’ Party of None awaits at Bandcamp.

11. “Palm Trees” – Fran (Leaving)

Chicago's Fran released the lovely album Leaving in January.  Listen to "Palm Trees" here

This month Chicago singer-songwriter Maria Jacobson released her second album, Leaving. It’s sweeping acoustic folk with song titles like “Winter” and “God.” Those feel like difficult motifs to live up to. Much of this rests on Fran’s voice and lyrics, like Weyes Blood striped bare of the chamber orchestra.

Buy Leaving from Fran’s website.

If you like Fran (above) and alt country generally, check out my favorite albums last year!

12. “Still Life” – R. Ring (War Poems, We Rested)

Kelley Deal is back with a nbew album in January with R. Ring

Kelley Deal, Kim’s twin and most famous sister, delivers on R. Ring with partner Mike Montgomery.

Deal is involved in a ton of stuff in addition to R. Ring, including Breeders reboots and Protomartyr. I love Kelley’s comeback story, the Breeders’ icy cool baked into R. Ring and her indie rock confidence. Check out the payoff halfway through War Poems’ lead, “Still Life.”

Get War Poems, We Rested from Bandcamp. Buy some of Kelley’s scarves at her website.

13. “Hungry Mouth” – appleseeds! (single)

If you haven't heard "Hungry Mouth" then you haven't heard one of the best alternative songs new to January 2023!

I confess, another 2022 song but – come onnnn! — Denmark’s appleseeds! dropped this song on December 31. You were probably already asleep, so it’s officially one of the alternative songs new to January in my book. Too Good to be True Records indicates appleseeds! will release æblefrø on February 3.

Check out “Hungry Mouth” and get set for what promises to be an album of jangle pop perfection!.

“Hungry Mouth” is one of the top indie songs new to January and the album æblefrø will be full of them!.

14. “Joiner” – Blondshell (Blondshell)

Blondshell releases here S/T debut in April. Have a listen to "Sepsis." It is one of the top alternative songs new to January

Sabrina Teitelbaum is LA’s Blondshell, who writes about her toxic relationships with a candor that couldn’t care less. Dark indie rock echoing influences like PJ Harvey and Courtney Love. Some of it is sexualized, some of it is just dysfunctional emotion like “Sepsis.”

Blondshell comes out April 7. Pre-order your copy from Teitelbaum’s website.

15. “Anglepoise” – The Happy Somethings (A Gathering of Sorts)

The best 90 seconds of alternative rock I've heard so far this year...The Happy Somethings "Anglepoise."

Let’s finish this list with 90 seconds of fist-pumping guitar rock. England’s The Happy Somethings roll the rhythm from Bow Wow Wow’s “I Love Candy” under bubblegum guitar fuzz and twee Bangles vocals.

You’ll be singing “Anglepoise” all day, and you’re welcome.

Anglepoise was released January 1 and is still one of the catchiest alternative songs new to January and the New Year!

Listen to these 22 essential alternative songs in 2022. Because 2,022 songs will take way too much time

old people dancing

A bit more than a baker’s dozen, here are 22 alternative songs in 2022 out of a few thousand that I listened to this year. Most have streams of the full songs that you can play right from your phone. I hope you fall in love with them and buy them!

First things first, these are in no real order other than what I can readily find on my Best Songs list on Evernote and scrolling through downloads or discs I’ve already bought. It’s a mess, frankly, but I’m going to try and bring some order to the chaos. And for you, that means curated top shelf listening. Most, not all, are not from albums that will end up on my Top 10 or 20 list. But they’re all amaze.

These 22 alternative songs in 2022 are numbered, but just help me keep track of when I get to 22 tunes. They are not in order of preference or awesomeness!

1. “Wild” – Spoon (Lucifer on the Sofa)

Alternative songs in 2022: Spoon delivers one of the best with "Wild"

How many bands can compare to Spoon, album for album, for almost 30 years? It’s rarified air. Having said that I liked, didn’t love, Lucifer on the Sofa. Several bangers, and Spoon remain an American original. Here is early single “Wild,” which I cannot be on drugs, is an absolute straight-up tribute to INXS.

I can’t imagine a better way to start a list of the best alternative songs in 2022.

Buy Lucifer on the Moon from Spoon’s website.

HOLD ON A SECOND BUSTER! Check out these top songs already out in the New Year…you’ll love them!

2. “(Wishing I Had) Tickets for Saint Etienne” – The Photocopies (Holiday Romance EP)

Listen to (Wishing I Had) Tickets for Saint Etienne by The Photocopies

Michigan-by-London songwriter Sean Turner has released probably 100 songs as The Photocopies since the start of the year. They come in batches of singles, b-sides, EP’s, full-lengths and remixes.

I’m feeling guilty enough not including the Holiday Romance EP among my favorite EP’s of 2022 — an oversight — that I want to highlight “Saint Etienne” from that EP. Fuzzy jangle pop without fuss or needless ambition. Just a perfect pop song, like almost everything Turner does.

Have a listen to everything The Photocopies have published in 2022!

3. “Wrong Side of the Sun” – Best Bets (On An Unhistoric Night)

Alternative songs in 2022:  Best Bets' "Wrong Side of the Sun" may be the most catchy song of the year

Voted by me the #1 song to see live in 2022, I present Best Bets‘ “Wrong Side of the Sun.” They must call the riot police and water cannons when the kids hear this insanely catchy chorus. Growing out of New Zealands’ Transistors, Best Bets rockin’ On An Unhistoric Night belongs on the shelf of every post punk fan of The Ramones or Replacements.

Has to be one of the catchiest alternative songs in 2022. Hit play and rock.

Release your inner 19-year-old with Meritorio Records’ “On An Unhistoric Night.

4. “Dressed in Black” – Ezra Furman (All of Us Flames)

Transgender artist Ezra Furman

I ultimately didn’t put All of Us Flames on my list of records to buy this year. You can’t own everything.

But I love this musky 60’s love song, “Dressed in Black.” Transgender woman Ezra Furman’s lyrics throughout reflect darker tensions of love, sex and gender. The album is sometimes distorted and menacing but still frequently reinterprets AOR.

You can buy All of Flames and Ezra Furman T’s at her website.

5. “End of the Empire IV (Sagittarius)” – Arcade Fire (WE)

Arcade Fire delivers in 2022 again with the song "End of the Empire" from WE

Arcade Fire’s 6th album WE adds to the Montreal legends’ nearly 20-year legacy since the influential Funeral, Neon Bible and The Suburbs. It will also inevitably be conflated with the allegations of sexual misconduct by founder Win Butler. When looking for top alternative songs in 2022, WE has moments, if not the consistency of their early records.

The instrumentation and art rock arrangements, like the 4-part “End of the Empire” sound very much like The Flaming Lips here.

“End of the Empire IV (Sagittarius)” – Arcade Fire (WE)

Get your copy of Arcade Fire’s WE.

OBVIOUSLY you need to critique my Top 20 albums of 2022. Listen, comment and disagree!

6. “Old Picture of Ourselves” – The Boys with the Perpetual Nervousness (The Third Wave of…)

The band you've never heard of and need to know about.  The Boys With the Perpetual Nervousness

Next, a multi-continent jangle pop supergroup of sorts, The Boys With the Perpetual Nervousness may actually end up on my best album list. But I had to share one of their songs from The Third Wave of… TBWTPN are Scotland’s Andrew Taylor, also in Dropkick…and Spain’s Gonzalo Marcos, who plays in El Palacio de Linares. (Note to self: check out El Palacio de Linares.!)

For fans of Teenage Fanclub and lovers of all things jangle.

Do you dig it?! Buy The Boys third album from Bobo Integral Records!

7. “Sick of Everything” – Gorgeous Bully (Am I Really Going to Die Here)

Gorgeous Bully song "Sick of Everything"

Daniel Johnston, exemplar of melodic sincerity to Kurt Cobain and Yo La Tengo, grew up in West Virginia and is revered in many circles as an Appalachian prodigy. An acquaintance of mine actually gave him a place to live in the late 80’s. This was either before or during some of Johnston’s drug use and increasing mental health struggles, which eventually saw him committed.

Does Manchester’s Gorgeous Bully mimic Johnston’s arch low fidelity cassette recordings? Mostly, no. GB builds more traditional song structures of bedroom pop. The lo-fi soundscapes and lyrics are relatively dynamic compared to Johnston’s arrested development.

And Thomas Crang recognizes a pop hook when he finds it. “Sick of Everything,” originally a 2021 single, is a cleaned-up version of Gorgeous Bully that leads off 2022’s Am I Really Going to Die Here. Just 90 seconds makes it one of the top alternative songs in 2022.

Johnston and GB do share a bit of the same strumming DNA that you can hear in some of Johnston’s touching live performances. Also you can watch the excellent The Devil and Daniel Johnston on Amazon.

Buy “Am I Really Going to Die Here” by Gorgeous Bully.

Okay kids HERE THEY ARE: The very best songs from summer 2022! Listen and tell me I’m wrong!

8. “Watercolours” – Neil Brogan (Things Keep Getting in the Way)

Listen to indie pop wonder Neil Brogan sing "Watercolours."  Guaranteed to make your day!

Irish musician, host of this year’s new music podcast Brogan’s Run and former Sea Pinks lead Neil Brogan writes perfect, economical guitar pop on his new album Things Keep Getting in the Way. Brogan will take you back to pristine 90’s indie pop like The Lucksmiths and Trash Can Sinatras.

Download your ray of sunshine from 2022 with Neil Brogan’s Things Getting in the Way.

9. “Our Songbird Has Gone” – The Chesterf¡elds (New Modern Homes)

Alternative songs in 2022: Possibly my favorite song of the year...The Chesterf¡elds' "Our Songbird Has Gone"

Let’s stay in this tasty indie pop space for a moment so that I can share one of my very favorite songs of the last year.

Cult favorites The Chesterf¡elds reunited in 2022, despite the untimely death of their band mate Davy Chesterfield in 2003. This delightful tribute to Chesterfield namechecks and evokes everything about C86 bands that birthed The Chesterf¡elds nearly 40 years ago.

Clearly one of the best alternative songs in 2022. I have probably sung the chorus to “Our Songbird” in my car more than any other this year.

Buy New Modern Homes by The Chesterf¡elds at Bandcamp.

10. “Pana-vision” – The Smile (A Light for Attracting Attention)

Radiohead side project The Smile kill with single Pana-vision

In the winter and spring of 2022, I bought a clutch of new releases by well-known artists sight unseen. I rarely do that — I sample almost everything. However, a few artists I will buy on faith. As it turned out, I was unimpressed by many of them…including The Smile’s A Light for Attracting Attention.

This summer, a friend persuaded me to revisit The Smile and some of my other impetuous purchases. I can report, of the 4 or 5 discs, I was most glad to return to The Smile. I had listened to Attention probably a half dozen times on earbuds. This is a terrible way to consume dense production, particularly a Radiohead side project.

In the end, however, the sum is less than the parts.

Thom Yorke is one of the two or three most influential songwriters of the last 50 years, so I think it’s fair to hold him to a high standard. Attention is front-loaded and musical ideas are hit or miss after the first five tracks. Attention reminds me of Yorke’s debut solo The Eraser in some ways. Tom Skinner’s complex syncopation is a revelation and it is rewarding to hear Jonny Greenwood playing guitar again for God’s sake.

Ironically, though, my favorite songs are keyboard numbers…”Open the Floodgates” and April single “Pana-vision.”

Add The Smile to your Radiohead collection!

11. “No End to Love” – Orlando Weeks (Hop Up)

Why haven't you listened to Orlando Weeks' alternative album Hop up and the song "No End to Love?!" You can hear it here

Don’t let the absence of blog coverage of Maccabee’s singer Orlando Weeks dissuade you from buying his second solo, Hop Up. Brimming with the joys of fatherhood and watching his young son emerge as a new personality, it is far too loving and un-ironic for beat hipsters to tolerate. The album has been criminally ignored.

Light as air and irrepressible with new life, it is impossible not to hear Roxy Music’s Avalon on songs like “No End to Love.”

“No End to Love” – Orlando Weeks (Hop Up)

You can buy Hop Up from large retailers worldwide.

12. “I Wish I” – Arlo McKinley (This Mess We’re In)

Listen to a song from my favorite concert of the year.  "I Wish I" from Arlo Mckinley's This Mess We're In

It has been a damn fine year for alternative country. New music by Wilco and genre-defining releases by Big Thief and Angel Olsen…what a time to be alive!

My favorite show of the year, not even close, was Cincinnati’s Arlo McKinley playing This Mess We’re In at Salt Lake City’s Urban Lounge. One of several highlights was “I Wish I,” as McKinley narrated the eternal tension between the comfort of known things and the progress of growing old.

“I Wish I” lyrics

Thinking about settling up,
Kicking off the dust,
Removing all the rust that keeps me still.
I think it’s my time to go.
Say goodbye to everyone I know
And I hope someday I’ll be forgiven
For the bonds that I broke
.

I wish I could take you with me,
But this road I must walk alone.
I gotta get out of the city.
Good God,
I gotta lose myself just to find my way back home
.

Every song, like “I Wish I,” on This Mess We’re In is genuine and moving.

This may be another album that creeps into my Top 20 of the year. Indulge your inner Southerner this Christmas with This Mess We’re In.

SPOILER ALERT! Arlo McKinley (above) gets more love in my top 7 alt country albums of 2022 (:

13. “Teeth” – Perfume Genius (Ugly Season)

Alternative songs in 2022: Perfume Genius song "Teeth" from Ugly Season

I’m a little late to the Perfume Genius party but was quite enthralled by his 5th album, 2020’s Set My Heart on Fire Immediately. For fans looking for relatively simple song structures after that album, Ugly Season may not satisfy. The album is a score to the dance performance The Sun Still Burns Here. Much of it reflects the abstraction of dance.

I try to post only audio streams but here you’ll need to rely on the video. The brittle melody and especially Mike Hadreas’ delicate falsetto are a marvel that place it among the top alternative songs in 2022.

Ugly Season, Set My Heart on Fire Immediately and other Perfume Genius items are available to buy at his website.

14. “Windowpane” – Aluminum (Windowpane EP)

Some shoegaze for your 2022.  Aluminum sing "Windowpane"

San Francisco’s gazey power pop outfit Aluminum released the Windowpane EP about two months ago. Their guitar pop and electronica is smartly interspersed with pedals worthy of My Bloody Valentine. For examples, listen to “Solar” and early single, “Windowpane.”

Get a vinyl version of the Windowpane EP from Oakland’s Dandy Boy Records.
You can buy the cassette from SF’s Discontinuous Innovations.

15. “Celebran Por Nosotros” – Mañana el Espacio (Casi Nada es Para Siempre)

Don't miss out on some of the best alternative songs in 2022 because you don't speak Spanish.  Listen to "Celebran Por Nosotros" by Mañana el Espacio

How have I gotten this far into my list of alternative songs in 2022 without a Spanish language tune? This is like my signature thing now, and I speak barely a word of Spanish beyond “carnita.” Stupid American.

This year I’ve absolutely fallen in love with bands like Mañana el Espacio (South America) and Torres Satélite (Spain). It is so connecting and universal — and something needed right now — to know that Mañana singer Ricardo José Vergara is creating these pop gems, possibly raised on the same Sonic Youth records as you and me.

“Celebran Por Nosotros” lyrics

Ricardo is a gifted lyricist and has been kind enough to send the translation for his lovely album Casi Nada es Para Siempre. He plans to post them on Musixmatch and Spotify as well. The translated opening of “Celebran Por Nosotros”…

We watch the stars mutliply.
The city looks peaceful from here.
The moment is unforgettable
But I’ll have to wake up.

Color gets all over our faces.
I’m sure better times will come
And meanwhile,
I ask myself,

Do they celebrate for us?
Is that why they’re lighting the city up?
Or is it my imagination?
Is that why they’re lighting the city up?
Or is it my imagination?

Okay I’m going to cheat on my 22 songs and drop an extra Mañana song here, because they range way outside of shoegaze to the most delightful indie pop. Check out the crazy flanged guitar at the end of “Yo No Ma Haces Falta,” (“I Don’t Need You Anymore.”)

Buy Manan’s Casi Nada es Para Siempre from Bandcamp. ¡Es excelente!

Did you love that jangle from Mañana el Espacio?! WHO WOULDN’T?! Click here for more Spanish indie pop!

16. “Dreamin of the Past” – Pusha T (It’s Almost Dry)

Alternative songs in 2022 include Pusha T's "Dreamin of the Past"

Kids I have to tell you.

As I wind into my 50’s, it is harder to find hardcore bands or rap music that I authentically connect with. Possibly, just possibly, I’m not the target audience. But I did find a few hip hop releases that I liked which specifically DID NOT include Kendrick Lamar. Both Radiohead and Lamar could publish 50 minutes of fax noise and the bloggers swoon.

I did super enjoy Pusha T’s “Dreamin of the Past,” which he did on Fallon in the spring. Hiphopdx recounts Pusha T’s story to Charlamagne Tha God about how he persuaded Kanye West to let him release Ye’s beat on King Push’s It’s Almost Dry instead of last year’s Donda.

“I begged for the beat,” he said. “It was just one of those ones that I kept going back to and was like, ‘Listen, man, I need this. I need this record.’ And I was like, ‘You know what? You should be on the record too.’ That’s the compromise.”

Here is “Dreamin of the Past” featuring a few bars of Kanye at the end as “the compromise.”

You can buy “It’s Almost Dry” from just about any store on Earth.

17. “Coke Jaw” – Infinity Knives and Brian Ennals (King Cobra)

Listen to Infinity Knives and Brian Ennals on this list of 22 top alternative songs in 2022

Let’s establish up front that by posting two hip hop songs in a row, I am in no way implying I have street cred in urban music. But I really did sample a good bit of rap this year. Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals is one I want to spend a little more time with before the end of the year for my favorite albums list.

These guys have all the buzzy descriptions, experimental hip hop…fusion. It’s a bit hard to categorize but I kind of dig it. Infinity Knives (NPR’s Tariq Ravelomanana) provides the electronics and Baltimore’s Brian Ennals brings the rhymes. If there is a bridge too far, it is incorporating Infinity Knives’ orchestration into the album and not hearing them simply as interludes.

“Coke Jaw” is a good example of the mashup that makes them so different.

Get a digital copy of King Cobra and learn more about Infinity Knives and Brian Ennals from the Phantom Limb label.

18. “Doers” – Bodega (Broken Equipment)

Brooklyn's Bodega sings "Doers" from 2022's Broken Equipment

“Doers” is the maddeningly catchy portrait of modern life by Brooklyn punks Bodega. I bought Broken Equipment early in 2022. It was such a joy to come back to it tonight and hear the ramped intensity in “Doers,” the extension beyond sprechgesang.

If “this “Doers” doesn’t encapsulate work life in 2022, I don’t know what does:

“Doers” lyrics

Ten minutes : calendar
10 minutes : Bandcamp
Ten minutes : wiki browse
10 minutes: planning my next ten minutes
It’s all about auto bio of Benjamin.

Ten minutes: Ted talk
10 minutes: Notepad
Ten minutes: Amazon
10 minutes : planning my next ten minutes
To thine own shelf be true.

This city’s made for the doers. The movers. shakers. Non-connoisseurs.
This city’s made for the doers. The humors. Tubers. entrepreneurs.

You didn’t know you needed Bodega until you heard “Doers.” An angry song for angry times, as we explore the best alternative songs in 2022.

Finish your fiscal year working for the man listening to Bodega’s Broken Equipment.

19. “Backseat Politic” – Eades (Delusion Spree)

A little-heard gem...Eades post punk "Backseat Politic" from Delusion Spree

Can we give a song one minute to build in 2022?

Look, I’m not entirely crazy about the arrangement on “Backseat Politic” but behold Mike Ness fans, the locomotive of fun that Leeds’ post punk bank Eades creates on Delusion Spree. Give them just. one. minute. and dig the groove. More mathy than Social Distortion but HOLY CATS what a churning beat on that chorus!

Buy Delusion Spree at Bandcamp!

It is a CRIME AGAINST MUSIC if you haven’t checked out these songs! Hear some music I bet you missed!

20. “Shotgun” – Soccer Mommy (Sometimes, Forever)

The best alternative songs in 2022 include Soccer Mommy's "Shotgun" from Sometimes, Forever

Sophie Allison checks all the boxes.

Her songs are indie perfect, cagey and cynical. On Sometimes, Forever she has sharpened her hooks and her knives. Both “newdemo” and “Shotgun” show off the singer-songwriter who has emerged since 2018’s Clean. “Shotgun” also displays Allison’s sweeping hooks and Soccer Mommy at her most accessible.

Your Soccer Mommy superstore is here.

21. “Fatal Folly” – The Silent Boys (Sand to Pearls, Coal to Diamonds)

Listen to the stream of Richmond, Virginia's The Silent Boys' "Fatal Folly" from "Sand to Pearls, Coal to Diamonds"

A late entrant on my best music dashboard this year, Sand to Pearls, Coal to Diamonds came out November 4. Richmond, Virginia indie pop veterans The Silent Boys’ ninth album is getting tons of recognition that it rightly deserves. A little twee, a lot of jangle, The Silent Boys hit on just about every song here.

If you don’t fall in love with the simple joy of “Fatal Folly,” then we have nothing further to discuss.

You can buy the digital release from the band or get the disc from French label Too Good to be True Records.

Listen to EVEN MORE top alternative songs from around election day! 2022 was SUCH a great year!

22. “Velvet Sun” – Semiwestern (single)

Semiwestern's remix of "Velvet Sun" is probably my #1 alternative song from 2022

Finally, my last song for you is a bit of a cheat. I found out this weekend it was originally released a decade ago.

Still, I could listen to this November single by Semiwestern 1,000 times and still feel teary about it. The haunting guitar on the chorus to “Velvet Sea” hearkens to Dean Wareham’s post-Galaxie 500 luminaries Luna. The transcendent line hits at 1:15. It is guaranteed to be the best five minutes of your 2022.

That said, I learned from The Google that this is a remix of an earlier “Velvet Sun” released in 2012 by Austin’s The Vliets. Semiwestern is the new incarnation of The Vliets (pronounced VLEETS).

I’ll touch on two things. First, by any measure this remix is a superior, more mature and elegant version of the original. BUY IT! Second, ten years later, it begs the question: Why now? Should we look forward to a longer release from Semiwestern soon? No word yet from California lo-fi label Spirit Goth but I will let you know!

A boy can dream, can’t he?

November indie music: Vote for these songs!

Tampered ballot evidence

Was democracy REALLY on the ballot, or was it some diabolical plot to trap us in political season until Christmas? Never you mind…I have just the tonic to wake you up from this political fugue state. Here is a bunch of terrific November indie music you can read about and listen to all in one convenient, non-partisan package.

Let’s do this!

“Ricochet” – Preoccupations (Arrangements)

November indie music:  Preoccupations

It is an indisputable law of physics that rock and roll suffers from a lack of drum solos. At what time have you ever heard someone rage on the kit and thought, “well that was loud and excessive.” NEVER, that’s when, because drum solos are self-justifying. They don’t need your permission.

Calgary’s Preoccupations, née Viet Cong, released Arrangements in September. It includes a mad percussive walkaway on the shimmering “Ricochet,” not unlike Terry Chambers violent hammering on XTC’s “Travels In Nihilon.”

Buy Arrangements from Bandcamp.

Click to listen to more of my favorite songs from earlier this year

Top indie songs of 2022: soundtrack of summer! (Volume 1)

All things considered, summer 2022 is still miles ahead of 2020. No corona…just a divided country, peak anxiety and climate change. Good times! So, for the balance of July and the torpid month of August, here are some of my top indie songs of 2022 to bump until Labor Day.…

“Carl Sagan” – Torres Satélite (Mundos y Estrellas)

November indie music:  Mundos y Estrellas

How could I let more than 2 or 3 weeks go by without another love letter to Spanish-language indie pop?!

I haven’t tracked down a ton of information about Spain’s Torres Satélite. Their latest, Mundos y Estrellas has been on my “Must Buy” list since I heard it last month. At the least, here is a review of 2020’s La Ventana Discreta when Torres Satélite first popped onto the scene with the Discos de Kirlian label. And who needs much more background? Everything you need to know is wrapped inside the 2 minutes and 52 seconds of pop bliss that is “Carl Sagan.”

Download Mundos y Estrellas and follow Discos de Kirlian today!

“The Sir Tommy Shovell” – Robyn Hitchcock (Shufflemania!)

Robyn Hitchcock Nashville

A couple of things about Robyn Hitchcock.

First, he is British rock royalty. Robyn isn’t David Bowie but he is absolutely an extension of the same conversation. Why haven’t I heard of him, then?” you ask. Fair question. He came of age in the late 70’s leading The Soft Boys, whom you also haven’t heard of. I honestly can’t recall if I’ve actually bought the Soft BoysUnderwater Moonlight, so I guess we’re all in the same boat. Suffice it to say, 22 albums later, REM and bunch of other musicians you enjoy today grew up listening to his eccentric catalogue.

Second, I had the occasion to meet and be gently accosted by the legend. Hitchcock, Billy Bragg and REM played NPR’s “Mountain Stage” in 1991. I don’t have a super clear memory of seeing REM that day, so I don’t recall if I was manhandled by Hitchcock after that show or a later concert. But the story goes like this: I was holding and possibly reading from a textbook at an afterparty. Hitchcock grabbed the book from me and began reciting from it and embarrassing me/secretly delighting me. Also I will never forget looking up at him, he must be seven feet tall.

Shufflemania! came out about three weeks ago and includes this delightful song you need to hear today, “The Sir Tommy Shovell.”

Add Shufflemania! to your Robyn Hitchock collection today.

Side Note: The sometimes enigmatic Billy Bragg

Finally, have you forgotten where you know the name Billy Bragg? He revises the lyrics of “The Great Leap Forward” about every two years, not always to great effect. The shared humanity is in the audience sing-a-long with the chorus. Here is the post-performance of “Leap Forward” on Mountain Stage in 1991 after the national broadcast has ended. Michael Stipe makes a cameo.

“Ships in the Night” – Anthony D’Amato (At First There Was Nothing)

November indie music:  Anthony D'Amato

Let’s stay on this Mountain Stage theme, shall we?

Two weeks ago, Anthony D’Amato released At First There Was Nothing. D’Amato had moved from New York to Utah to record his fifth album with Joshua James. He appeared on Mountain Stage in October, where I got to see him in an after-show performance at Charleston’s Empty Glass pub.

At First There Was Nothing is a collection of disparate styles from folk to soft rock and, a little strangely, 70’s Blue Oyster Cult-style AOR. Here is D’Amato at his strongest, in the straight-forward American folk tradition of “Ships in the Night.”

Recorded at American Fork’s own Willamette Mountain, you can buy At First There Was Nothing here.

“Neon Memories” – Death’s Dynamic Shroud (Darklife)

Computer AI

We’re still following a thread here, even if it isn’t obvious. I picked up on Death’s Dynamic Shroud out of Los Angeles as a recommendation from the kids at my college radio station in October. Kids these days.

I didn’t get all the way with September’s Darklife, but enjoyed the warm harmonies and Panda Bear theater-of-the-mind of “Neon Memories.”

November indie music for all ages!

Get your copy of Darklife from Death’s Dynamic Shroud!

“(Herman’s) House” – Special Interest (Endure)

November indie music:  Special Interest

We’re at that point of the night where I could just keep going and going. Need to bring this home.

What November indie music post would be complete without a review of the first week of blog buzz about Special Interest?! The New Orleans group has earned band-of-the-moment status with the terrific no-wave Endure. They’re like an angry B-52’s but with darker, roiling political statements. Original single “(Herman’s) House” tells the story of Black Panther Herman Wallace, who died three days after decades of solitary confinement for a crime he claimed he did not commit.

If it only sounds like house music (pun intended, sorry not sorry), don’t be deceived. “(Herman’s) House” is an angry song for angry times.

Get Endure today from Rough Trade.

“Greatest Hits” – Jockstrap (I Love You, Jennifer B)

Dark eyeliner tips

Yes, I understand this band decided to name itself Jockstrap. I need to write an entire post on awful band names. But suspend disbelief for this delight.

London’s Jockstrap are Taylor Skye and violinist Georgia Ellery, who have been putting out music since 2018. Ellery in particular keeps busy. Besides finishing art school, she also performs with Black Country, New Road and Goat Girl.

Their full-length debut is I Love You, Jennifer B, on which Ellery layers sung and whispered PG-13 lyrics over the top of a fairly complex concoction of ambience, EDM, and jazz. If challenging, it is more accessible than the neurotic, halting beats of earlier Jockstrap experiments like 2018’s “Charlotte.”

Standouts for me are “Greatest Hits” and first single “Glasgow.”

Buy I Love You, Jennifer B at Bandcamp.

“Dressed in Black” – Ezra Furman (All of Us in Flames)

November indie music:  Ezra Furman

How about some wistful American glam rock as a closer?

“Dressed in Black” by Ezra Furman has all of the things you want from a girl group condensed into a torchlit piano ballad. Her August album All of Us in Flames is a slow burn but gets better with each spin. Furman has been at this for 15 years, but at least not on my personal radar. Furman reached greater audiences as she expanded from her solo work to the soundtrack for Sex Education on Netflix.

Here is “Dressed in Black,” and the 50’s love songs it updates in such a muscular and confident way. Love this.

You can still buy Furman’s music bundled with merch at her website!

The election is still going, and so is a great month of November indie music

delicate arch utah

The Republic will survive and at the end of this long year you’ll want to appreciate the best she has to offer. Spend a little money, love your kids and listen to the best music mankind has ever produced. It gets better year after year, if you only have the patience to find it.

November indie music is just the latest chapter….maybe we’ll do this again before the new year and another election cycle!

Top indie songs of 2022: soundtrack of summer! (Volume 2)

sun fire hot research

A few more suggestions for top indie songs of 2022, summer edition!

“Holiday Romance” – The Photocopies (Holiday Romance EP)

Top indie songs of 2022, summer edition: "Holiday Romance" by The Photocopies

I don’t know how there could be more perfect jangle pop for the summer. Fuzzy guitars, a bubblegum hook and shimmering harmonies. The Photocopies’ “Holiday Romance” is Teenage Fanclub playing from your neighbor’s garage in a fever dream. Download “A Holiday Romance from exiled London artist Sean Turner and play at top volume.

“One Easy Thing” – TV Priest (My Other People)

Listen to "One Easy Thing" by TV Priest

Next, TV Priest has moved into more melodic territory with their second release, My Other People. Charlie Drinkwater’s bellicose Johnny Cash baritone grows into the opener “One Easy Thing” as he bellows the terrific refrain, “I am waaaaiting.”

TV Priest available to purchase now.

“Blood in the Wine” – Aurora (The Gods We Can Touch)

Top indie songs of 2022, summer edition: "Blood in the Wine" by Aurora

At a certain age, you start to care a lot (okay, a little?) less about what people think about you. I am clearly not the target for Aurora; I honestly don’t care if she appears on the Frozen 2 soundtrack. Any woman in 2022 who is the President and CEO of her music and personal brand deserves the world’s respect.

Aurora’s hooks are undeniable. Kate Bush would be proud.

“Blood in the Wine” by Aurora (from The Gods We Can Touch)

Learn more about Aurora and The Gods We Can Touch at her website.

“Silver Spring” – PEEL (PEEL EP)

Listen to "Silver Spring" by PEEL

Counting both Vol 1 and Vol 2 of my top indie songs of 2022, we’re at least ten songs in without a real shoegaze tune. Obviously that has to be remedied: I downloaded PEEL by happy accident last year, so I direct you to their criminally ignored EP from 2021.

The PEEL EP is a filthy marriage of Ride and The Stone Roses. Maybe you chanced upon “Memory Loop” in the last year or two? It is all top shelf. You can’t listen to “Silver Spring” or “DYNA” too often or too loudly.

Buy the PEEL EP.

“Best Life” – Alex Cameron (Oxy Music)

Listen to "Best Life" by Alex Cameron

I don’t know a ton about Alex Cameron, something of an iconoclast and provocateur. But “Best Life” is about as summery as summer gets, from Cameron’s fourth album Oxy Music, which you can find here. His ironically titled, Oxy Music marries a bit of the 80’s with some of the social conflict of the 2020’s.

“Gary Borthwick Says” – Neutrals (Bus Stop Nights EP)

Top indie songs of 2022, summer edition: "Gary Borthwick Says" by Neutrals

Hey it’s getting too serious in here. How about some post-punk with brainy lyrics from Oakland’s Neutrals. The very best part of “Gary Borthwick Says” is the picture it draws of someone we’ve all known from our past, and a part of ourselves we may not want to admit to. Garage band entry for one of the top indie songs of 2022.

Buy Neutrals’ smart post-punk from Bandcamp.

“Wild Eyed & Loathsome” – Crows (Beware Believers)

Top indie songs of 2022, summer edition: "Wild Eyed & Loathsome" by Crows

Let’s take a trip back in the hot tub time machine to the fall of 1991, shall we, when little-known grunge rocker Kurt Cobain said he wanted to write a Pixies knockoff. I can still remember taking the yellow vinyl promotional 12″ of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and cranking it in our college radio station’s production room.

THAT is what I hear in multiple spaces when I listen to Crows engrossing Beware Believers. Something very atmospheric and Interpol-y is happening, along with the knockdown of early 1990’s grunge. “Wild Eyed and Loathsome” also ends with a tasty little walkaway during the last ten seconds.

Get your copy of Beware Believers at Bandcamp.

“Goodbye Mr. Blue” – Father John Misty (Chloe and the Next 20th Century)

Top indie songs of 2022, summer edition: "Mr. Blue" by Father John Misty

Finally, let’s wrap with a delightful song for a summer evening. I have no real prior history with FJM, though he keeps good company with Fleet Foxes and Damien Jurado. Chloe and the Next 20th Century is charming from start to finish but “Mr. Blue” has particularly delicate vocal touches to highlight the sweetest lyrics.

End your summer evenings with Choe and the Next 20th Century.