Late to the Party & On to the Next - Part One: Top 100 Songs of 2013

Looking Back at 2013 and Looking Ahead to Late 2014

So I'm more than a little late to the party. In fact, when I showed up, the hosts had already cleaned, packed up, and moved out. At least I made it.

I had a simple goal for 2013: make and publish lists of my favorite songs, albums, and movies of the year. The movie list was ready in January. The music lists, however, took much longer. You see, this is only the second year I have attempted to publish year-end music lists. Last year, I finished in January. This year, I decided to be more ambitious.

I made a list of all the albums I wanted to listen to and refused to come up with my top 100 songs or top 10 albums until I made it through each and every one of those albums. And I wanted to listen to hundreds of albums.

We're a  little over halfway through 2014, and I am finally ready to be done with 2013. I learned a lot of lessons from that year. Start early. Don't procrastinate. Be picky. Don't underestimate disco.

So without further ado, let's get started with my Top 100 Songs of 2013, cut down from a long list of 924 songs:

1. “Step” by Vampire Weekend

2. “Ribs” by Lorde

3. “Over the Love” by Florence + the Machine

4. “Do I Wanna Know?” by Arctic Monkeys

5. “Roar” by Katy Perry

6. “We Can’t Stop” by Miley Cyrus

7. “Swan Dive” by Waxahatchee

8. “The Wire” by Haim

9. “Ways to Go” by Grouplove

10. “I Was an Eagle” by Laura Marling

11. “Chocolate” by The 1975

12. “Mirrors” by Justin Timberlake

13. “Bound 2” by Kanye West

14. “Everlasting Arms” by Vampire Weekend

15. “Blood on the Leaves” by Kanye West

16. “Young and Beautiful” by Lana Del Rey

17. “You’re Not the One” by Sky Ferreira

18. “Hannah Hunt” by Vampire Weekend

19. “I Need My Girl” by The National

20. “Afterlife” by Arcade Fire

21. “Royals” by Lorde

22. “Reflektor” by Arcade Fire

23. “Unbelievers” by Vampire Weekend

24. “Sex” by The 1975

25. “Black Skinhead” by Kanye West

26. “I Should Live in Salt” by The National

27. “Tell Tale Signs” by Frank Turner

28. “Get Lucky” by Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers

29. “Latch” by Disclosure feat. Sam Smith

30. “I Love It” by Icona Pop feat. Charli XCX

31. “Brave” by Sara Bareilles

32. “Pompeii” by Bastille

33. “Drunk in Love” by Beyonce feat. Jay-Z

34. “Merry Go ‘Round” by Kacey Musgraves

35. “My Songs Know WhatYou Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)” by Fall Out Boy

36. “Diane Young” by Vampire Weekend

37. “***Flawless” by Beyonce

38. “Harlem” by New Politics

39. “Team” by Lorde

40. “You’re Damaged” by Waxahatchee

41. “Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood

42. “Go Slow” by Haim

43. “Saved These Words” by Laura Marling

44. “Supersymmetry” by Arcade Fire

45. “Let it Go” from Frozen (performed by Idina Menzel)

46. “Closer” by Tegan and Sara

47. “Goodness Gracious” by Ellie Goulding

48. “Tennis Court” by Lorde

49. “Ya Hey” by Vampire Weekend

50. “Hold On, We’re Going Home” by Drake feat. Majid Jordan

51. “Safe and Sound” by Capital Cities

52. “Kemosabe” by Everything Everything

53. “Just What I Am” by Kid Cudi feat. King Chip

54. “Don’t Save Me” by Haim

55. “The Way I Tend to Be” by Frank Turner

56. “Still Sane” by Lorde

57. “Kapuskasing Coffee” by Justin Rutledge

58. “San Francisco” by Foxygen

59. “Falling” by Haim

60. “Sea of Love” by The National

61. “You Know” by Laura Marling

62. “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” by Arctic Monkeys

63. “New Slaves” by Kanye West

64. “The Phoenix” by Fall Out Boy

65. “If I Could Change Your Mind” by Haim

66. “I Sold My Bed, But Not My Stereo” by Capital Cities

67. “Love Be Brave” by Laura Marling

68. “The Way” by Ariana Grande feat. Mac Miller

69. “This is the Last Time” by The National

70. “We Exist” by Arcade Fire

71. “Started from the Bottom” by Drake

72. “Dark Horse” by Katy Perry feat. Juicy J

73. “Renee” by Laura Stevenson

74. “Peace and Quiet” by Waxahatchee

75. “Your Life is a Lie” by MGMT

76. “Youth” by Daughter

77. “Blurry Nights” by Hayden

78. “Hollow Bedroom” by Waxahatchee

79. “Down Under, Mining” by Dear Reader

80. “Still Into You” by Paramore

81. “Master Hunter” by Laura Marling

82. “Burn” by Ellie Goulding

83. “Ghost” by Katy Perry

84. “Joan of Arc” by Arcade Fire

85. “Counting Stars” by OneRepublic

86. “Never Wanted Your Love” by She & Him

87. “Ain’t It Fun” by Paramore

88. “Suit & Tie” Justin Timberlake feat. Jay-Z

89. “A World Alone” by Lorde

90. “Recovery” by Frank Turner

91. “Honeymoon Avenue” by Ariana Grande

92. “My Number” by Foals

93. “It’s Never Over (Hey Orpheus)” by Arcade Fire

94. “Drive Darling” by BOY

95. “You Can’t Be My Girl” by Darwin Deez

96. “Out of My League” by Fitz and the Tantrums

97. “You’re Not Good Enough” by Blood Orange

98. “Song for Zula” by Phosphorescent

99. “Glory and Gore” by Lorde

100. “Open” by Rhye