The world has been ending, though. Apocalypse is tired, and part of the fun of “Hell of a Ride” is that it sort of understands that. We partied like it was 1999 and here we still are. “Still call my ex girl when I go half crazy,” belts Brown. In times like these, who wouldn’t? –Will Gottsegen
Listen: Nourished by Time, “Hell of a Ride”
13.
Addison Rae: “Diet Pepsi”
The cultural idea of a Lana Del Rey song—sexy baby, American flag, rap-lite beat—hasn’t really aligned with the kind of music Lana actually makes for nearly a decade now. Thank god, then, that Addison Rae sped into 2024 armed with “Diet Pepsi,” a Lana-type-beat that’s as laconic, seductive, and conceptually mind-boggling as the real deal. The core elements of the sound are all there—cheeks that are “red like cherries in the spring,” product-placement-as-Americana, a dinky sense of poeticism pushing up against genuine, heart-rending yearning—but Rae juices things a little with shimmering chillwave synths and the kind of startling, almighty key change that’s been missing from pop for years now. It’s a confluence of brilliance and ridiculousness that made “Diet Pepsi,” and the idea of Rae as a genuine ascendant pop star, impossible to ignore this year. A good star would play this song off with a wink; a great one, like Rae, plays it straight. –Shaad D’Souza
Listen: Addison Rae, “Diet Pepsi”
12.
Nick León / Erika de Casier: “Bikini”
Listening to “Bikini” feels like sipping a frothy French 95 while taking in a gorgeous last-day-of-vacation sunset. The slinky collaboration between Miami dance producer Nick León and Danish R&B experimentalist Erika de Casier conjures up its sun-dappled scene through walloping bass, hyaline synth melodies, and a sprightly pace to match the song’s sunkissed lyrics, complete with a deliciously memorable invitation of a hook: “Meet me at the beach/It’s me in the bikini/The one I always wear/Find me daydreaming,” de Casier coos, just before León pitch-shifts her words down into a frantic, intoxicating demand. Who could possibly say no? –Eric Torres
Listen: Nick León / Erika de Casier, “Bikini”
11.
Geordie Greep: “Holy, Holy”
The newest Broadway production of Jesus Christ Superstar stars Geordie Greep as SATAN, fresh out of Hell in time for happy hour at LOCAL BAR, where his transferable skills from centuries of soul-snatching—seduction, manipulation, general wickedness—meet their match in UNNAMED WOMAN, the silent object of his desperate monologuing. Satan, it turns out, is quite lonely in Hell, which is why his pathetic pleas for banal connection are backed by a sprawling jazz-fusion ensemble. As his musings grow increasingly delusional, the stage musicians tumble down a slippery slope beginning with Boz Scaggs and ending with a scorched-earth take on Return to Forever’s Where Have I Known You Before. “We understand that this sounds batshit crazy on paper,” executives involved with the production said in a statement, “which is why we are pleased to inform you that it sounds even more batshit crazy on stereo.” Simultaneous face-scrunching, moral questioning, foot-tapping, and appreciation for complex jazz chords, or your money back, guaranteed. –Sam Hyland
