Once again, a New Year is only hours away. Every music blog posts an obligatory list of top songs of the year, so who am I to stray from that standard? I’m not going to base my choices off of record sales or any other marketable figures. Instead, I like to list the songs I loved to listen to, the ones that I will hear on the radio five or 10 years from now and remember how incredible this year was for me.

I think a list of 10 songs is entirely too short, so I picked 17 (I also have a fondness for the no. 7). You can probably scour my older posts for audio or video on most of these. Without further ado, here is the list (in no particular order):

• Arcade Fire, “We Used To Wait” (Difficult to choose one song to stand above the rest on such a solid album, but I’m partial to this one.)
• The Black Keys, “Tighten Up” (When I hear the whistling, I get extremely excited for the singing to begin.)
• The Limousines, “Internet Killed The Video Star” (Local love! Such a great dance tune.)
• The Maine, “Inside Of You” (Waiting for this song to come out was pure agony, but the guys didn’t disappoint. Definitely worth the wait, and I’m digging their new sound.)
• This Century, “Hopeful Romantic” (For a good month or two, this was the first song I wanted to hear when I woke up in the morning. It was stuck in my head.)
• LCD Soundsystem, “I Can Change” (Sad that this is probably their last album, but at least they’re leaving this 80s-esque beauty behind.)
• Yeasayer, “Ambling Alp” (This one took a while to grow on me, but quickly became a top played track in my iTunes library.)
• Brighten, “Without You” (Can’t go wrong with this one. Nothing but love for these boys.)
• The Love Language, “Heart To Tell” (This song is the second most-played track in my iTunes library. I like to dance to this song in my room, but don’t tell anyone.)
• Band of Horses, “Dilly” (Most people probably would have gone with “Laredo”, but this one jumped out at me when I listened to the album for the first time.)
• Mumford & Sons, “Little Lion Man” (I was immediately drawn to the sound of the banjo — no joke. Plus, there is so much emotion in the words.)
• OK Go, “This Too Shall Pass” (First of all, they are one of the best bands to see live. Second, this is my go-to song whenever I’m feeling defeated or melancholy.)
• A Day To Remember, “Have Faith In Me” (There has to be at least one punk song on the list!)
• Temper Trap, “Fader” (Honestly, I think this song is way better than “Sweet Disposition”, and that’s a pretty bold statement.)
• Neon Trees, “Animal” (Even though it’s on the radio every 10 minutes, I have to admit that I still love it.)
• The Futureheads, “Heartbeat Song” (This song has a fun, bouncy beat. Cute love song.)
• Matt & Kim, “Cameras” (This duo always has a positive outlook in their lyrics. I LOVE that.)

While I’m at it, the seven albums I couldn’t get enough of this year are:

• The Maine, Black & White
• Arcade Fire, The Suburbs
• The Black Keys, Brothers
• Mumford & Sons, Sigh No More
• Miniature Tigers, Fortress
• Vampire Weekend, Contra
• OK Go, Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky

Happy New Year!