Andy St. Pierre
“Divisionary: Do the right thing”- Ages and Ages

This song is so simple and blissful with a great choral build up, you’ll be singing along after the first time you hear it. Throw in some meaningful lyrics that totally pull on your heart strings and you have yourself an utterly perfect folk song.

Mo Kelly
“Archie, Marry Me” – Alvvays

This song expresses twentysomething love perfectly, an age when you can’t afford to pay for gas but willingly drive across the country to see the idiot who stole your heart. Here’s to Alvvays, and the lovesick fools of 2014.

Daniel Schiffer
“Woke Up Feeling Like Sleeping” – Juan Wauters

Nina Corcoran 
“The Great Crocodile” – Ovlov

When Ovlov (almost) broke up, I played this song on repeat all day because it felt like someone simultaneously stealing my breath and giving it back to me. It’s wonderfully numbing. So turn the volume up all the way and then break the knob just to make sure. This is best heard loud, if only just for that guitar solo.

Andrew Stanko
“Seasons (Waiting On You)” – Future Islands

Last year, I dealt with an unusual bout of anxiety that left me frazzled for a few months. When I first bumped the song, it was incredibly calming, and I used to listen to it whenever I was feeling rough. While I’m not as anxious anymore, this song is still amazing and accessible; its appeal transcended some genre boundaries this year and is a prime example of an indie rock number that doesn’t sacrifice poignancy and creativity for ear-worm appeal.

Toni Tiemann
“Jamaica Plain” – Skinny Bones

I was recently talking to the band about the making of the Noise Floor album, and their explanation was really quite moving to me. (I promise, I’ll get to the individual track soon.) The album was created using field recordings, with some of the recordings more heavily distorted than others. In doing so, they were hoping to evoke a sense of appreciation for the natural sounds around us. By showing us not only how beautiful the distorted, melodically straight-forward recordings are, but also the mundane and naturally discovered songs. This track really highlights a wide variety of those sounds and opens up into a quite powerful build. It’s really quite remarkable to me everytime I hear it now.