FA+
Shop
Verfeuern's 16 Top Songs of 2016
9 years ago
Music is a big part of my life. When I'm drawing, working, going to sleep, or just sitting around--I love having music playing. I think in images and movies, and a lot of my stories and character concepts stem from whatever I'm listening to at the time. So I thought it might be fun to start listening the top songs (for me) of a given year, which I'm gonna try doing every year from now on. By no means is anyone required to read/listen to this, but anyone interested in doing this themselves is welcome to :> Link me to your journals if you do! I always like hearing new music. Songs are in vague order of priority.
1. Murdah Loves John (feat. Tanika and Wretch32) - Idris Elba hip hop, pop, R&B
This song blew my mind when I first heard it and I must've listened to it 40+ times that day. Its the first song in a collaboration album based around the BBC tv series Luther, starring Idris Elba (A great show if you haven't seen it), so all the songs relate to the protag, John Luther. There is such intensity to this song. The lyrics are powerful and the instrumentals (especially in the chorus), just blows you off your feet. This is easily the best find of this year. I never get tired of listening to this. I just wish it was longer.
2. Pale Heart Purification - The Luna Sequence electronic, rock, instrumental
I could easily recommend any song by The Luna Sequence. Literally every single song she's done is intense and flawless, and perfect for conceptualizing scifi characters and stories. Honestly, a lot of my characters were created while listening to TLS. Its such a unique sound, and despite being instrumental, each song sounds complete and self-contained, rather than just being background noise. Extra bonus: The composer is a trans+ woman!
3. Deep Sea Diver - Angel Haze rap, hip hop, pop??
I'm honestly surprised Angel Haze isn't more popular. She's a pansexual black artist whose music centers around important, social, and intelligent topics, rather than just the usual sexualized media BS. She can rap and sing (and can actually do both). She's also endured a lot in her life and is outspoken in her support of other survivors. All that to say--this song is awesome. This whole album is awesome.
4. Battle Royale feat. Panther - Apashe trap, rap, electronic
You need your volume up high for this song. Its just hardcore. I can't NOT move when I'm listening to this, even if I'm sitting alone and drawing lmao. I'm A Dragon is another great song by Apashe, and No Twerk. Easily the best trap I've heard.
5. Kill The Flaw - Sevendust hard rock
I LOVE Sevendust, but this is probably one of the recent songs I've been most into. Again, the whole album is great--the BAND is great. They've got a great blend of melody and hard intensity, plus anyone who doesn't love LJ Witherspoon's voice is wrong. This particular song kind of has a ballad vibe; super inspiring and the guitar rifts in their songs are always A+.
6. The End Is Coming - Sevendust hard rock
Okay my bad, I couldn't resist putting another Sevendust song. This song literally inspired an entire species and story of characters (and by proxy the entire album). The intro of this song is incredible, probably one of the best intros I've heard in a long time. Almost a minute of instrumental before you get to the lyrics, which is intense build up. I LOVE THEM OK.
7. Footsteps In The Lonely Valley feat. Sugizo - Dir En Grey Jrock, violin
I used to be obsessively into Jrock and two of my faves were Dir En Grey and Sugizo (Sugizo blending more into rock/classical/etc). This song on DEG's latest album was my favorite, so it was almost like fate when they later released a version featuring Sugizo's iconic violin. This song is so emotive and beautiful that I don't even know where to begin. Its such a throw back to their older melodic and melancholy works, its like an homage to their long-time fans. Even if you aren't into jrock you should be able to appreciate this piece. Its amazing.
8. Iron feat. Nicky Romero - Calvin Harris electronic, pop
A lot of the songs on this list inspired stories and characters. Iron is one of the main songs I listen to when working on one of my scifi concepts (a collab with a friend). Its just energetic, almost like an anime theme--it sounds like the beginning of something. Not an overly complex song, but its catchy and great for setting a mood.
9. All My Love feat. Ariana Grande etc - Major Lazer electronic, pop, reggae??
I was introduced to Major Lazer by chance this year, during one of several long-ass road trips. I love a lot of their stuff, this not being one I thought I'd be so into. But I am. I'm not a big Ariana fan (she sounds like a chipmunk), but for some reason this song just speaks to me. I listen to it nonstop. Its another one that kinda reminds me of an anime theme song or something, and is just great for envisioning my characters and worlds like mental AMVs. I know that's nerdy...
10. Throat Full of Glass - Combichrist electronic, grunge, rock
I'm not sure how to classify Combichrist lmao. I first heard this song as the intro to the DMC reboot; I just love the vibe. There's something kind of dirty about it? Mostly I just love the instrumentals, I could honestly take or leave the singer's voice. A lot of the songs on the DMC OST I love, others not so much, but this is one I could listen to all day.
11. Survival- TesseracT hard rock, ambient
I love TesseracT so much. All of their music is pretty solid. Its kind of a fusion of hard rock and post-core, since there are long super ambient/melodic sequences in some of their songs. On their latest(ish) album, this is easily my favorite. Its just so intense and somehow beautiful. I'm not sure how they manage to blend so many different influences, but it works and I love it. Please, if you like this song, listen to all their work.
12. Frozen Twilight - God Is An Astronaut post-core, ambient, rock
Speaking of post-core, I love God is an Astronaut. I could literally link any song by them since, honestly, I don't know many of them by name. But their music overall is just gorgeous. Its melodic, peaceful, and at other times has this kind of spacey intensity. I listen to them a lot when I'm gaming or just sitting around. This song is one of my favorites.
13. A Different World feat. Corey Taylor - Korn hard rock
Korn has always been a guilty pleasure. I've listened to them since I was 12?? They're always great when you need something hard. I'm actually a big fan of their latest album, especially this song. Feels like a throwback to some of their older stuff. There's not much to say about it...their songs aren't deep, but its a quality hard rock song.
14. Is She With You? - Junkie XL & Hans Zimmer movie score
I'm pretty sure when everyone heard this song in BvS: Dawn of Justice, they shit their pants. This song is the best possible blend of the styles of Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL (two composers I'm in love with). Its Wonder Woman's theme and you can tell--its intense, aggressive, and confident. I can't wait for the Wonder Woman movie, in part just to hear more of this throughout the score <3 Junkie loves his drums and so do I. Also while I'm geeking out about moving scores, can I just praise how effortlessly they fused the Man of Steel score into this one? MoS was one of my favorite all time Hans Zimmer (and Junkie XL) scores, and this movie made it better.
15. The Funeral - Band of Horses rock, 2000s
This is an older song (2006), but one I heard again in a show I was watching and I got hooked on it. I don't know what tf he's saying half the time, but its such an emotional song, I can see why its constantly used in cop dramas. Especially the chorus. God damn. I'm gonna go deaf with how loud I turn this song up every time its on.
16. Funk Hole VIP - Excision & Space Laces dubstep, electronic
Lastly, another hugely inspiring song. This song just sounds like some super intense space battle to me. I could listen to this on repeat nonstop for days. The ending is the best part...please listen to the end. It starts at around 3:25 and its a masterpiece.
1. Murdah Loves John (feat. Tanika and Wretch32) - Idris Elba hip hop, pop, R&B
This song blew my mind when I first heard it and I must've listened to it 40+ times that day. Its the first song in a collaboration album based around the BBC tv series Luther, starring Idris Elba (A great show if you haven't seen it), so all the songs relate to the protag, John Luther. There is such intensity to this song. The lyrics are powerful and the instrumentals (especially in the chorus), just blows you off your feet. This is easily the best find of this year. I never get tired of listening to this. I just wish it was longer.
2. Pale Heart Purification - The Luna Sequence electronic, rock, instrumental
I could easily recommend any song by The Luna Sequence. Literally every single song she's done is intense and flawless, and perfect for conceptualizing scifi characters and stories. Honestly, a lot of my characters were created while listening to TLS. Its such a unique sound, and despite being instrumental, each song sounds complete and self-contained, rather than just being background noise. Extra bonus: The composer is a trans+ woman!
3. Deep Sea Diver - Angel Haze rap, hip hop, pop??
I'm honestly surprised Angel Haze isn't more popular. She's a pansexual black artist whose music centers around important, social, and intelligent topics, rather than just the usual sexualized media BS. She can rap and sing (and can actually do both). She's also endured a lot in her life and is outspoken in her support of other survivors. All that to say--this song is awesome. This whole album is awesome.
4. Battle Royale feat. Panther - Apashe trap, rap, electronic
You need your volume up high for this song. Its just hardcore. I can't NOT move when I'm listening to this, even if I'm sitting alone and drawing lmao. I'm A Dragon is another great song by Apashe, and No Twerk. Easily the best trap I've heard.
5. Kill The Flaw - Sevendust hard rock
I LOVE Sevendust, but this is probably one of the recent songs I've been most into. Again, the whole album is great--the BAND is great. They've got a great blend of melody and hard intensity, plus anyone who doesn't love LJ Witherspoon's voice is wrong. This particular song kind of has a ballad vibe; super inspiring and the guitar rifts in their songs are always A+.
6. The End Is Coming - Sevendust hard rock
Okay my bad, I couldn't resist putting another Sevendust song. This song literally inspired an entire species and story of characters (and by proxy the entire album). The intro of this song is incredible, probably one of the best intros I've heard in a long time. Almost a minute of instrumental before you get to the lyrics, which is intense build up. I LOVE THEM OK.
7. Footsteps In The Lonely Valley feat. Sugizo - Dir En Grey Jrock, violin
I used to be obsessively into Jrock and two of my faves were Dir En Grey and Sugizo (Sugizo blending more into rock/classical/etc). This song on DEG's latest album was my favorite, so it was almost like fate when they later released a version featuring Sugizo's iconic violin. This song is so emotive and beautiful that I don't even know where to begin. Its such a throw back to their older melodic and melancholy works, its like an homage to their long-time fans. Even if you aren't into jrock you should be able to appreciate this piece. Its amazing.
8. Iron feat. Nicky Romero - Calvin Harris electronic, pop
A lot of the songs on this list inspired stories and characters. Iron is one of the main songs I listen to when working on one of my scifi concepts (a collab with a friend). Its just energetic, almost like an anime theme--it sounds like the beginning of something. Not an overly complex song, but its catchy and great for setting a mood.
9. All My Love feat. Ariana Grande etc - Major Lazer electronic, pop, reggae??
I was introduced to Major Lazer by chance this year, during one of several long-ass road trips. I love a lot of their stuff, this not being one I thought I'd be so into. But I am. I'm not a big Ariana fan (she sounds like a chipmunk), but for some reason this song just speaks to me. I listen to it nonstop. Its another one that kinda reminds me of an anime theme song or something, and is just great for envisioning my characters and worlds like mental AMVs. I know that's nerdy...
10. Throat Full of Glass - Combichrist electronic, grunge, rock
I'm not sure how to classify Combichrist lmao. I first heard this song as the intro to the DMC reboot; I just love the vibe. There's something kind of dirty about it? Mostly I just love the instrumentals, I could honestly take or leave the singer's voice. A lot of the songs on the DMC OST I love, others not so much, but this is one I could listen to all day.
11. Survival- TesseracT hard rock, ambient
I love TesseracT so much. All of their music is pretty solid. Its kind of a fusion of hard rock and post-core, since there are long super ambient/melodic sequences in some of their songs. On their latest(ish) album, this is easily my favorite. Its just so intense and somehow beautiful. I'm not sure how they manage to blend so many different influences, but it works and I love it. Please, if you like this song, listen to all their work.
12. Frozen Twilight - God Is An Astronaut post-core, ambient, rock
Speaking of post-core, I love God is an Astronaut. I could literally link any song by them since, honestly, I don't know many of them by name. But their music overall is just gorgeous. Its melodic, peaceful, and at other times has this kind of spacey intensity. I listen to them a lot when I'm gaming or just sitting around. This song is one of my favorites.
13. A Different World feat. Corey Taylor - Korn hard rock
Korn has always been a guilty pleasure. I've listened to them since I was 12?? They're always great when you need something hard. I'm actually a big fan of their latest album, especially this song. Feels like a throwback to some of their older stuff. There's not much to say about it...their songs aren't deep, but its a quality hard rock song.
14. Is She With You? - Junkie XL & Hans Zimmer movie score
I'm pretty sure when everyone heard this song in BvS: Dawn of Justice, they shit their pants. This song is the best possible blend of the styles of Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL (two composers I'm in love with). Its Wonder Woman's theme and you can tell--its intense, aggressive, and confident. I can't wait for the Wonder Woman movie, in part just to hear more of this throughout the score <3 Junkie loves his drums and so do I. Also while I'm geeking out about moving scores, can I just praise how effortlessly they fused the Man of Steel score into this one? MoS was one of my favorite all time Hans Zimmer (and Junkie XL) scores, and this movie made it better.
15. The Funeral - Band of Horses rock, 2000s
This is an older song (2006), but one I heard again in a show I was watching and I got hooked on it. I don't know what tf he's saying half the time, but its such an emotional song, I can see why its constantly used in cop dramas. Especially the chorus. God damn. I'm gonna go deaf with how loud I turn this song up every time its on.
16. Funk Hole VIP - Excision & Space Laces dubstep, electronic
Lastly, another hugely inspiring song. This song just sounds like some super intense space battle to me. I could listen to this on repeat nonstop for days. The ending is the best part...please listen to the end. It starts at around 3:25 and its a masterpiece.
