Like every December, we close a year of music with our traditional lists. After the Best Albums and Best EPs and Mixtapes, we’re happy to unveil the songs that made 2019 according to our team. Are these the best releases of the year ? Maybe yes, maybe no. But for sure, they represent what we have loved over the 12 months.

2019 is also the end of a decade and, even if the blog did not exist 10 years ago, we will try to share our favourite tracks of this era during the first quarter of 2020.

Finally, I’d like to mention that HighClouds would not be the same without its team of dedicated writers. People don’t always realize it but running a blog and contributing, even only from time to time, requires a lot of energy on top of your full-time job. So thank you to each of you for this.

And now, here are the 100 tracks of 2019, as well as a huge Spotify playlist to go through our selection and discover some other amazing tracks that almost made the cut this year. Thank you for reading us and see you next decade!

[su_spacer]

100. 0171 – “1000 Words”

99. Modern Feelings – “Culture”

98. STAINWASHER – “Joy For Me”

97. Alina Bea – “King of Nothing”

96. Lowly – “baglaens”

95. Yot Club – “no way !”

94. Helado Negro – “Running”

93. BEA1991 – “Did You Feel Me Slip Away?”

92. Deaton Chris Anthony, Clairo, Coco & Clair Clair – “RACECAR”

91. Sandy – “Signals”

[su_divider top=”no”]

90. Common Holly – “You Dance”

89. Teen Body – “Validation”

88. SOPHIE, Doss – “Whole New World (Sophie and Doss remix)”

87. Emily Reo – “Ghosting”

86. Barrie – “Darjeeling”

85. Caroline Polachek – “Pang”

84. 박혜진 Park Hye Jin – “I DON’T CARE”

83. Kraków Loves Adana – “Follow The Voice”

82. Jessica Pratt – “Aeroplane”

81. Ariel – “Dream Team”

[su_divider top=”no”]

80. Spellling – “Under The Sun”

79. MUNYA – “It’s All About You”

78. Von – “Dealer’s Gone”

77. Makthaverskan – “Demands”

76. SASSY 009 – “Maybe in the Summer”

75. Jessie Ware – “Adore You”

74. PAT – “Love Will Find a Way Home”

73. XUXA SANTAMARIA – “Rudos Del Mar”

72. Ascendant Vierge – “Influenceur”

71. Thom Yorke – “Dawn Chorus”

[su_divider top=”no”]

70. Nilüfer Yanya – “Baby Blu”

69. Saeyers – “Cruise”

68. Quinn Christopher – “Erase Me”

67. The Dawdler – “Sylvie”

66. TR/ST – “Iris”

65. Jai Paul – “He”

64. Maria Somerville – “Brighter Days”

63. Morabeza Tobacco – “Orinoco”

62. Eartheater – “Fontanel”

61. Otha – “Tired and Sick”

[su_divider top=”no”]

60. Eugenia Post Meridiem – “Anjos”

59. Vagabon – “Water Me Down”

58. Lala Lala, WHY? – “Siren 042”

57. Jackie Mendoza – “De Lejos”

56. Dorian Electra – “Flamboyant”

55. Crack Cloud – “The Next Fix”

54. Chromatics – “You’re No Good”

53. Hana Vu – “Order”

52. Magdalena Bay – “Only If You Want It”

51. Ebhoni – “TGM”

[su_divider top=”no”]

50. Cherushii, Maria Minerva – “A Day Without You”

49. Maluca – “NYC Baby”

48. Tyler, The Creator – “EARFQUAKE”

47. JPEGMAFIA, Helena Deland – “Free The Frail”

46. Blue Hawaii – “Still I Miss U”

45. Oklou – “Forever”

44. Crumb – “Ghostride”

43. Ariana Grande – “NASA”

42. Weyes Blood – “Movies”

41. Pure Bathing Culture – “All Night”

[su_divider top=”no”]

40. Beauty Queen – “The Only One”

39. Couch Prints – “Tell U”

38. 070 Shake – “Morrow”

37. JORDANN – “Café Speed”

36. Lizzo – “Juice”

35. 100 gecs – “Money Machine”

34. Hand Habits – “can’t calm down”

33. Jenny Hval – “Ashes to Ashes”

32. (Sandy) Alex G – “Gretel”

31. Arlo Parks – “Super Sad Generation”

[su_divider top=”no”]

30. Grace Ives – “Anything”

29. Burial – “Claustro”

28. Sharon Van Etten – “Seventeen”

27. pronoun – “stay”

26. Requin Chagrin – “Sémaphore”

25. BEA1991 – “My Own Heaven”

24. Billie Eilish – “bad guy”

23. Sorry Girls – “One That You Want”

22. Japan, Man – “Stop Staring”

21. Drauve – “Haunted”

[su_divider top=”no”]

20. Big Thief – “UFOF”

[su_divider top=”no”]

19. MUNA – “Number One Fan”

[su_divider top=”no”]

18. Claud – “Easy”

[su_divider top=”no”]

17. Danny Brown – “Dirty Laundry”

[su_divider top=”no”]

16. Angel Olsen – “Lark”

[su_divider top=”no”]

15. Carly Rae Jepsen – “Want You In My Room”

[su_divider top=”no”]

14. Caroline Polachek – “Door”

[su_divider top=”no”]

13. Boy Harsher – “LA”

[su_divider top=”no”]

12. Magdalena Bay – “Venice”

[su_divider top=”no”]

11. Erika de Casier – “Do My thing”

[su_divider top=”no”]

10. Men I Trust – “Numb”

[su_divider top=”no”]

9. Charlotte Adigéry – “Paténipat”

[su_divider top=”no”]

8. Σtella – “Samba”

[su_divider top=”no”]

7. GEORGIA – “About Work The Dancefloor”

[su_divider top=”no”]

6. Lana Del Rey – “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have”

[su_divider top=”no”]

5. Aldous Harding – “The Barrel”

[su_divider top=”no”]

4. Big Thief – “Not”

[su_divider top=”no”]

3. Charli XCX, Christine and the Queens – “Gone”

[su_divider top=”no”]

2. FKA twigs – “Cellophane”

[su_divider top=”no”]

1. Clairo – “Bags”

[su_divider top=”no”]

Firstly, albums are not a thing of the past! Lof of people have claimed that this format was not relevant anymore in the streaming era, but the artists below have proven the contrary this year. Albums remain the best way to fully express an artistic direction and a vision.

Then again, it’s never easy to definitively rank albums so we guess that this list is only a photography of our tastes at this very moment. In one year, it could be totally different…

Finally, if you like any of these releases, and we’re sure you will, don’t forget to support the artists. Streaming is a good start, but it’s unfortunately not enough.

On Friday, we will unveil our Best Tracks of 2019 and you can already check the 20 EPs and Mixtapes that made our year. But for now, here are our 50 favourite albums of the year (you can also browse the entire list with our Spotify playlist at the bottom of the page).

[su_spacer]
[su_divider top=”no”]

50. Konradsen – “Saints and Sebastian Stories”

49. Sneaks – “Highway Hypnosis”

48. Tobi Duchampe – “The Saddest Game.”

47. Kelsey Lu – “Blood”

46. PAT – “Love Will Find A Way Home”

45. XUXA SANTAMARIA – “Chancletas D’Oro”

44. Toro y Moi – “Outer Space”

43. The Japanese House – “Good At Falling”

42. Dorian Electra – “Flamboyant”

41. Bodywash – “Comforter”

40. Holly Herndon – “PROTO”

[su_spacer]
[su_divider top=”no”]

39. Stella Donelly – “Beware of the Dogs”

38. Black Belt Eagle Scout – “At The Party With My Brown Friends”

37. Carla dal Forno – “Look Up Sharp”

36. Octo Octa – “Resonant Body”

35. TR/ST – “The Destroyer – Part 1”

34. Sharon Van Etten – “Remind Me Tomorrow”

33. Thom Yorke – “Anima”

32. Common Holly – “When I say to you Black Lightning”

31. Jessica Pratt – “Quiet Signs”

[su_spacer]
[su_divider top=”no”]

30. Boy Harsher – “Careful”

29. Two People – “First Body”

28. Charli XCX – “Charli”

27. Nilüfer Yanya – “Miss Universe”

26. Yeule – “Serotonin II”

25. Noah – “Thirty”

24. Crumb – “Jinx”

23. Morabeza Tobacco – “Morabeza Tobacco”

22. Tyler, the Creator – “IGOR”

21. Clairo – “Immunity”

[su_spacer]
[su_divider top=”no”]

20. Angel Olsen – “All Mirrors”

[su_divider top=”no”]

19. Aldous Harding – “Designer”

[su_divider top=”no”]

18. 100 gecs – “1000 gecs”

[su_divider top=”no”]

17. Danny Brown – “uknowhatimsayin¿”

[su_divider top=”no”]

16. Carly Rae Jepsen – “Dedicated”

[su_divider top=”no”]

15. JPEGMAFIA – “All My Friends Are Cornballs”

[su_divider top=”no”]

14. Sir Babygirl – “Crush on Me”

[su_divider top=”no”]

13. Chromatics – “Closer To Grey”

[su_divider top=”no”]

12. Men I Trust – “Oncle Jazz”

[su_divider top=”no”]

11. FKA twigs – “MAGDALENE”

[su_divider top=”no”]

10. Lana Del Rey – “Normal Fucking Rockwell!!”

[su_divider top=”no”]

9. Weyes Blood – “Titanic Rising”

[su_divider top=”no”]

8. Jenny Hval – “The Practice of Love”

[su_divider top=”no”]

7. Maria Somerville – “All My People”

[su_divider top=”no”]

6. Requin Chagrin – “Sémaphore”

[su_divider top=”no”]

5. Big Thief – “U.F.O.F.”

(It was really not easy to decide and it could have been “Two Hands” as well)

[su_divider top=”no”]

4. Caroline Polachek – “Pang”

[su_divider top=”no”]

3. Grace Ives – “2nd”

[su_divider top=”no”]

2. BEA1991 – “Brand New Adult”

(and artwork of the year)

[su_divider top=”no”]

1. Erika de Casier – “Essentials”

Like every year, our lists don’t have the pretention to be objective, or exhaustive. We only list the favourite releases of our staff. Also, we probably forgot some very cool stuff and we’re sorry about that. Before unveiling our favourite albums and tracks of 2019, here are the 20 EPs and mixtapes that made our year, as well as a Spotify playlist to (re)discover all these projects.

20. Liss – “Second”

19. Ana Roxanne – “~~~”

18. Chela – “Delivery”

17. Kilo Kish – “REDUX”

16. Andy Stott – “It Should Be Us”

15. Malibu – “One life”

14. Cherushii & Maria Minerva – “Cherushii & Maria Minerva”

13. Hana Vu – “Nicole Kidman / Anne Hathaway”

12. Toro y Moi – “Soul Trash”

11. Christelle Bofale – “Swim Team”

[su_spacer]

10. Jackie Mendoza – “LuvHz”

9. Kate Bollinger – “I Don’t Wanna Lose”

8. Kate Teague – “Kate Teague”

7. Magdalena Bay – “mini mix vol. 1”

6. NOIA – “CRISÀLIDA”

5. MUNYA – “Blue Pine”

4. Saeyers – “Saeyers EP”

3. Sandy – “Traces”

2. Dear Japan – “Hollow Hearted Hands”

1. Charlotte Adigéry – “Zandoli”

Any Danny Brown fans who missed hearing the rapper at his most playful can rejoice: “Dirty Laundry”, the Q-Tip produced single from his upcoming album uknowhatimsayin¿ is a wacky romp through the city that keeps it real while still having a laugh at itself.

About his upcoming album, Danny said “this is my version of a stand-up comedy album”. Lines like, “Once got a ho, ain’t had money for the room, so we did the humpty hump in a Burger King bathroom”, combined with the outrageously unpredictable music video definitely make this ring true, all while Danny’s rap chops remain as sharp as ever. With drugs, sex, and a hell of a rock & roll attitude all deeply woven into every bar of “Dirty Laundry”, it’s hard not to crave a little debauchery just listening to it.

The beat here calls to mind the point in every good party when sensibilities go out the window. A little bit of chaos and a lot of lip-curling grooves make Q-Tips production work on “Dirty Laundry” feel equal parts modern and classic: a perfect fit for Danny if there’s ever been one.

The follow-up to 2016’s critically acclaimed Atrocity Exhibition, uknowhatimsayin¿ drops October 4th on Warp records, and includes features by JPEGMAFIA, Blood Orange, Run the Jewels, and Obongjayar. To make a long story short, mark your calendars and watch the Simon Cahn-directed video below.

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okqvhq7ZaI”]

“Dirty Laundry” is also featured in our Spotify playlist: Best Tracks of 2019.

As the first single released after announcing her highly anticipated third studio album titled Charli, “Gone” evokes the restless thoughts and feelings of feeling like a stranger to the world. In comparison to the upbeat banger “1999” with Troye Sivan, and the more sonically radio-friendly “Blame It On Your Love” featuring Lizzo (which has been a track in the making for several years now), “Gone” presents itself as a timeless synth-pop track polished in its own unique form for all the like-minded people who just feel as if they don’t belong. 

There’s something blissfully manic about the single — from the rigid basslines to the glitchy vocal outro, the songs lonesome and self-isolating narrative contradictory provides comfort and relatability. “I feel so unstable f***ing hate these people, how they’re making me feel lately, they’re making me weird lately,” she bluntly sings. 

Charli XCX gives us a promising glimpse of what’s to come on her self-titled record. With heavy production by PC Music head A.G. Cook, “Gone” revisits the sound Charli once delivered with her critically acclaimed mixtape Pop 2, where the meaning of pop music was redefined and reconstructed. 

The release of “Gone” was accompanied by the premiere of a sultry and intimate music video where Charli XCX and Chris (from Christine and the Queens) are seen embracing one anothers independence from “fitting” in with social cliques under pouring rain and surrounded by flames. The director of the video, Colin Solal Cardo, also directed videos for artists like Robyn – remnants of such choreographical and passionate dancing and singing can be seen between the two talents. Watch below.

Listen to “Gone” and some other of our favourite tracks of the year so far in our Best Tracks of 2019 playlist.

Shedding off the excess is just as important in music as it is in life. With her debut solo album Essentials, Erika De Casier has put forth a collection of songs that are both endearingly pure and effortlessly effective, imbuing a chronologically complex brand of R&B with a dose of zen that would have even the Dalai Lama tapping his foot.

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqiQhM39B58″]

Hailing from Copenhagen by way of a handful of other cities across the globe, Erika first cut her teeth on Denmark’s house scene, having collaborated extensively with the collective Regelbau and served as one half of Saint Cava. As a solo artist, she’s focussing on the styles she grew up loving – those first musical memories that echo in your head for a lifetime. By the time you’re a quarter of the way through Essentials’ first track, “The Flow”, it should be exceedingly clear that Erika de Casier’s childhood consisted of more than its fair share of 90’s R&B, with hints of TLC, Sade, and Aaliyah all shining through.

And yet, there’s nothing cloyingly retro about the album whatsoever. The influence is crystal clear, but the innovation is even clearer. Modern pop songwriting mingles with G-Funk throwback vibes before going for a relaxing spa day on Essentials, with the result being a fresh collection of comfortable love songs and misty, heartache-tinged ballads alike, all marked by pristine vocals and Darkchild-reminiscent instrumentation as light and refreshing as air itself. Add in the rich layering appearing on nearly every track, and Essentials is an atmosphere in and of itself, minimalistically intimate in a way that so much of today’s overproduced contemporary R&B fails to achieve.

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEmRS_mr9yk”]

There’s a healthy balance between slow-jams and upbeat bops throughout the album, and a wide range of emotional temperatures to match. Songs like “Rainy” and “Intimate” capture some of the more fragile, spiny aspects of relationships with lyrics like “Only time I hear the sound of your voice: ‘Please leave a message after the tone’”, while setting the mood with synth pads and chimes that evoke some New Age vibes, minus the dream catchers and crystals. On the flip side, “Do My Thing” and “Story of My Life” show just how much nostalgia Erika’s able to infuse her music with, as harpsichord and acoustic guitar lines straight from the ‘90s underscore empowering verses that are unmistakably modern, and which demand a spontaneous bedroom dance session.

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYcw4CnvmVA”]

All in all, Essentials is a stunning debut brimming with personality, depth, and texture, managing to simultaneously channel the past while charting a course for the future with as much assertiveness as watershed R&B records like The Weeknd’s debut trilogy or Aaliyah’s self-titled masterpiece. In an interview with i-D, Erika de Casier said, “I want to make music that people connect with, and I want to be able to do it full-time without a side job. I’d also like to live in a house so I can have a cat”. If this first album is any sign of what’s to come, it’s time to start shopping for a scratching post.

Before your well-deserved holiday break, we come up with a playlist loaded with good music only. We are aware that it’s not always easy to keep up with all the daily releases and posts. Therefore our team made everything easier just for you. Enjoy our 50 favourite songs of 2019 so far and don’t forget to follow our Spotify playlist to check future additions.

1 GEORGIA – “About Work The Dancefloor”

2 BIG THIEF – “UFOF”

3 ARLO PARKS – “Super Sad Generation”

4 CRUMB – “Part III”

5 REQUIN CHAGRIN – “Sémaphore”

6 YOT CLUB – “No Way !”

7 CARLY RAE JEPSEN – “Julien”

8 070 SHAKE – “Morrow”

9 MEN I TRUST – “Numb”

10 TEEN BODY – “Validation”

11 HAND HABITS – Can’t Calm Down”

12 MARIA SOMERVILLE – “Brighter Days”

13 ERIKA DE CASIER – “Do My Thing”

14 SHARON VAN ETTEN – “Seventeen”

15 BEAUTY QUEEN – “The Only One”

16 MORABEZA TOBACCO – “Ally McBeal”

17 GRACE IVES – “Mirror”

18 BARRIE – “Darjeeling”

19 KEVIN ABSTRACT – “Georgia”

20 ALDOUS HARDING – “The Barrel”

21 EMILY REO – “Ghosting”

22 BOY HARSHER – “LA”

23 AUGUSTINE – “A Scent Of Lily”

24 PURE BATHING CULTURE – “All Night”

25 ΣTELLA – “Samba”

26 CELESTE – “Father’s Son”

27 CHARLOTTE ADIGERY – “High Lights”

28 LALA LALA, WHY? – “Siren 042”

29 PRONOUN – “Stay”

30 STAINWASHER – “Joy For Me”

31 LANA DEL REY – “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have…”

32 JACKIE MENDOZA – “Mucho Más”

33 BASEBALL GREGG, PECAS, WILLIAM CORDUROY – “The Movies”

34 BEA1991 – “My Own Heaven”

35 GRACIE GRAY – “Morphine”

36 ROSALÍA, J BALVIN – “Con Altura”

37 WEYES BLOOD – “Movies”

38 HATCHIE – “Without A Blush”

39 PECAS – “T-Shirt”

40 FKA TWIGS – “Cellophane”

41 OMAR APPOLO – “Ashamed”

42 MAKTHAVERSKAN – “Demands”

43 SANDY (ALEX G) – “Gretel”

44 CLAUD – “Easy”

45 JAI PAUL – “He”

46 JAPAN, MAN – “Stop Staring”

47 THE DAWDLER – “Sylvie”

48 ARIEL – “Dream Team”

49 EUGENIA POST MERIDIEM – “Blue Noon”

50 0171 – “1000 Words”

A google search for ‘Cigarette band’ will show you that this is an act very much in need of an introduction. Save for a few tracks by another band with the ‘After Sex’ suffix, and a stunning Sofar Sounds performance available on YouTube, recorded in Washington D.C. where they’re based, the quartet seem to exist solely, and shockingly, on their Facebook and Bandcamp. Luckily, there you’ll find artsy promotional videos, tour dates, and today, most excitingly, “Mood,” the latest single from their new album “Light Blues.”

On this new offering, Cigarette spark a very particular kind of moving calm, charging each jangled note poignancy and precision. You’d be forgiven, on first listen to “Mood,” to mistake the track for a new Beach House release, owed to the lingering, dream-pop state it builds around itself. Still, there’s no attempt at mimicry on “Mood,” and each sonic ingredient proves to be very much their own. Breathy, rippling vocals carry over the bright and languid guitar-driven melody, sounding like the recollection of a memory. And in many ways, it is. The track’s pensive spirit is rooted in its devastating backstory, the death of a close friend in a motorcycle accident. The melody builds and unravels alongside the jumbled feelings of regret, confusion and grief that come with such an event.

The track touches on the feeling of wishing, wishing that something didn’t happen, says the band. Given the tumultuousness of the emotions underpinning the track, it manages to lend itself to be equally melancholic as it is sweetly reminiscent. Reveling not in the sadness of loss, Cigarette gently and beautifully connect vulnerability of a life cut too short to a celebration of the life already lived. At just over three minutes the track feels quick to end, though its cathartic aftermath rings well after the last note.