Listen to all of our Best Songs of 2015 on Esquire Spotify
Leon Bridges, "Flowers"
SOUNDS LIKE: A roadtrip to Al Green's Full Gospel Tabernacle.
WHY WE LIKE IT: This is the official mic-drop on the "Is Leon Bridges the truth?" question.
Desaparecidos, "Golden Parachutes"
SOUNDS LIKE: The gray space between Steve Earle and Minor Threat.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Payola from Conor Oberst's side project is the year's most venomous protest record, and this denunciation of derivative-dealing insiders playing the Wall Street long-con brings the fury most fiercely. And because Laura Jane Grace of Against Me!.
Miguel, "The Valley"
SOUNDS LIKE: NSFW. As in, "My Neck, My Back" NSFW.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Sure, it's just the Internet, but when NPR streamed it as a First Listen, it immediately became the filthiest, FCC-violating three minutes ever to have an NPR logo next to it.
Kacey Musgraves, "Fine"
SOUNDS LIKE: The least kitschy Kacey Musgraves moment yet.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Like Kiss' "Beth," it's about the perils of separation anxiety, only it's three shades gloomier because he's probably moved on, or worse still, it's actually about mourning—the worst kind of separation anxiety.
Heartless Bastards, "Hi-Line"
SOUNDS LIKE: Our second song of the month about separation anxiety.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Nobody else breaks words in half and slurs out the remaining syllables as warmly, and interestingly, as lead Bastard ErikaWennerstrom.
Dawes, "All Your Favorite Bands"
SOUNDS LIKE: An early Billy Joel piano ballad.
WHY WE LIKE IT: We watched 2,000 people sing the entire chorus back at 'em the other night in Austin, Texas. You might consider learning the chorus, too. It might come in handy next time you're trying to gracefully move on.
Fraser A. Gorman, "Shiny Gun"
SOUNDS LIKE: Ben Kweller fronting Whiskeytown at a Midnight Ramble session.
WHY WE LIKE IT: With all due respect to Leon Bridges, when it comes to revitalizing old sounds, this Courtney Barnett-approved Australian is the month's most important discovery, even if we're not just sure it's folk or country he's gonna save.
Robert Glasper, "Got Over"
SOUNDS LIKE: Somber, but timely, jazz.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Our conversation about race is loud and messy, but meaningful moments still manage to cut through the din. And in this short spoken-word piece, Harry Belafonte cues up a bunch of those moments, including "I'm one of the ones of color who got over. I'm one of the ones your bullet missed."
Florence + the Machine, "St. Jude"
SOUNDS LIKE: Restraint. Finally.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Slow-simmering Florence > manic-seething Florence.
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, "Live This Long"
SOUNDS LIKE: If you don't know by now...
WHY WE LIKE IT: They're clearly thinking about mortality, but we're the ones lucky to be alive at a time where these two are still making records.
Mates of State, "Staring Contest"
SOUNDS LIKE: Lush, stop-on-a-dime pop so sharp it actually stops on a dime at the word "stop" in the chorus.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Unlike the Oscars and the Grammys, there are no eligibility requirements or release-date cutoffs for Song of the Summer. This late entrant should be shortlisted.
Ike Reilly, "Born on Fire"
SOUNDS LIKE: Todd Snider practicing The Secret.
WHY WE LIKE IT: This is the letter every son yearns for his father to write for him. Not unrelated: If only somebody did a Kickstarter for a literary companion, The Quotable Ike Reilly, we'd be in at the highest reward level.
FFS (Franz Ferdinand, Sparks), "Call Girl"
SOUNDS LIKE: Franz Ferdinand. But Sparks is reportedly here, too.
WHY WE LIKE IT: It's a reminder that before Craigslist, you had to let your fingers do the walking.
Sharon Van Etten, "Just Like Blood"
SOUNDS LIKE: The door hitting someone on the ass.
WHY WE LIKE IT: As betting men, we'll take the likelihood your relationship is in better shape than this one.
Dale Watson, "Burden of the Cross"
SOUNDS LIKE: Johnny Cash.
WHY WE LIKE IT: We know of no other song that's so specifically about the white memorial crosses loved ones place on highways at the scenes of fatal accidents. None at all.
Listen to all of our Best Songs of 2015 on Esquire Spotify:
