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Best Songs of 2012: The Shins - "It's Only Life"
Adam King
December 21, 2012
Indie-emo isn't done by anyone better than James Mercer‚ even though these are probably the most straight-forward lyrics he's ever laid out. Sure he fired his whole band (again)‚ and sure this is sad music -- but this is fucking fantastic sad music. At first listen‚ this song and the whole album can seem somewhat trifle in comparison to the rest of his catalogue‚ but that's the brilliant part of the illusion.



Best Songs of 2012: Divine Fits - "Would That Not Be Nice"
Drew Stoga
December 21, 2012
Doing the end of year list thing is tough when you've got a terrible memory like me‚ but I know the Divine Fits record came out in 2012 and I'm pretty obsessed with it. I love both Wolf Parade and Spoon so this album was a natural fit for me.

There are probably four or five tracks off A Thing Called The Divine Fits I could have picked for this list but let's go with "Would That Not Be Nice" since it has a video. It's sung by Spoon frontman Britt Daniel but I'm just as much into the tracks that star Wolf Parader Dan Boeckner‚ so check out the full album.

Divine Fits - Would That Not Be Nice [Official Video] from Divine Fits on Vimeo.

Best Songs of 2012: The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band - "Devil's Look Like Angel's"
Garret K. Woodward
December 20, 2012
When the clock struck the 12th second of the 12th minute of the 12th hour of the 12th day of the 12th year‚ "Devil's Look Like Angel's" was spilling into my ears.

It's kind of poignant‚ actually‚ a melody about noting the injustice and haphazard existence of good people doing bad things‚ and bad people doing good things. In a world of illusion‚ supposed entitlement and endless self-gratification‚ The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band dials it down a few notches‚ sitting your ass down and giving you a well-needed talkin' to on their latest record Between the Ditches.



Best Songs of 2012: Dr. Dog - "Do the Trick"
Adam King
December 20, 2012
Half of the magic in Dr. Dog comes in their ability to hide the heavy shit in a seemingly simple tune. The other magic is that sometimes there's nothing to hide. Scott McMicken may be one of the greatest songwriters of our modern times‚ and "Do the Trick" is a perfect showcase of his wonder. Making a classic out of a catch phrase other writers have just let slide by‚ this cut is a straight up plea for whatever it is we all know we need for ourselves to get by.



Best Songs of 2012: Todd Snider - "In Between Jobs"
Lynn Kestenbaum
December 19, 2012
Released in the spring of 2012, Todd Snider's brilliant Agnostic Hymns & Stoner Fables is a gritty, down and dirty blues-rock-alt-folk-country record, that is kind of an absurdist's look at living life in the dying American Dream. Recorded with a full band, Todd the Preacher opens the record with "In the Beginning," and each song thereafter explores a different character and their struggle to make it in a land of haves and have-nots. Drenched in Snider's keen wit, the album explores the rise and fall of an empire while examining the moral compass of its citizens.

With track 6, we find ourselves in the world of the unemployed. "In Between Jobs" is the theme for everyone who dies a little on the inside, each time they have to write another customized cover letter. I'm a freelancer -- I can relate. It's soulful, bluesy, and features the jaded reflections of a man who's cynical for a very good reason. It seems that our hero has been "in between jobs" for so long, that it now seems to be part of his Identity, yet he sounds strangely optimistic and proud in this, his anthem -- so much so that it's almost celebratory. Perhaps he's finally losing it? He's a bit sick of being condescended to by Plutocrats. His sleep hours are waaay off. He's slightly unhinged, but still together enough to know right from wrong. Or is he?

It's one of those songs you listen to 2-3 times on your way to a job interview to refresh your swagger. Or one of those songs you listen to 4-5 times after sending out 10 resumes in a single week and not hearing back from anyone, just to reassure yourself that you're still cool. It's totally badass.

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