5) "Holy Roller Novocaine" by Kings of Leon. This band is pretty hit or miss for me, but this song, man. It kind of creeps up on you and then all at once it's the soundtrack to a messy heist or a high speed chase or a brutal bar fight. Gotta love songs that make you crave a little bit of trouble in your life.
10) "Romulus" by Sufjan Stevens. The lyrics of this song make me feel as if someone stuck a meathook into my heart and pulled. It's not achingly sad, not full of blatant loss or regret, but something about the familiarity of a dysfunctional family, and hearing the words "I was ashamed of her" sung so quietly, almost guiltily... just. Ugh. My heart feels so heavy whenever I think about it.
15) "Whatever You Like" by Anya Marina. I love Anya Marina's voice, and the fact that some of her music is so ridiculously explicit. Nothing like hearing a woman who sounds like a Powerpuff Girl sing the words "lick my pussy."
20) "Magnolia" by Chris Dorman. So, the first time I heard this song was only a year ago, and at the time it hadn't been anything terribly special to me. It was a nice song by a lovely musician that my band played a show with randomly, enjoyable but not really my type of music. It didn't stick with me. Fast forward a year later, and my band was featured in a festival that's incredibly important to the music community in our area-- it happens in the fall at the end of festival season and feels a lot like a family reunion for musicians. Chris Dorman is a staple of that festival, a close friend of many in the community and just a wonderful man all around, and it's tradition that he closes out the 4-day-long festivities. I heard "Magnolia" again on that last day, and it was then that I realized how much of my life had changed in the past year (getting engaged, growing closer to my bandmates, being part of the MI music community, feeling like after years of being completely unlovable I finally had a place to belong)... the sense of togetherness in the song hit me hard, and ever since it's been something that never fails to make me feel good to hear. /longest most boring story ever
25) "Waltz #2 (XO)" by Elliott Smith. Honestly, I could use this song for every single number you prompted. It's a song that has meant a lot to me for years, and I've never found another artist that spoke to me as deeply as Elliott. His music is what Sylvia Plath poems would sound like if someone wrote them into melodies, just a little bitter and tired and so sad. He killed himself in 2003, which only adds a haunting sense of hopelessness to his music, but goddamn it's so good. So good. He's probably my favorite singer-songwriter of all time.
30) "I Feel It All" by Feist. I'll let you draw your own conclusions here. <3
