Best of 2024: Cool Songs

Welcome to the first installment of The Elite Extremophile’s Best of 2024. Today we’re starting off with Cool Songs, to be followed by the Top EPs tomorrow and the Top Albums on Wednesday and Thursday.

Before we get to it, let me give my usual Best-Of disclaimers. This is a one-man operation, in regard to writing the reviews. My proofreaders Kelci and Dan are very helpful, but I’m sure there was plenty of great music I just simply couldn’t get around to. I’ve also got my own personal biases against certain styles and trends.

And as a reminder, these year-end lists cover music released between December 2023 and November 2024. I spend much of December compiling and editing these lists, so I don’t bother searching for new music released in December until the new year. 

This segment is meant to show off great tracks that do not appear on my other year-end lists. If a release makes my best EPs or best albums list, it is disqualified from appearing in this particular segment.

Without further ado, let’s get to it!

Albion – “Arthurian Overture”: This huge instrumental is epic and over-the-top, but the band manages to sell the grandiosity.

AKU – “The Foolish Samurai”: Ranging from gentle to glitchy to foreboding, this instrumental takes the listener on a memorable journey.

Custard Flux – “Valentine”: Melodic and impassioned, Custard Flux mixes in some electric grit to their usual psych-pop sound here.

The Decemberists – “Joan in the Garden”: Over a decade after their last real prog release, The Decemberists have dipped their toes back into it. This 19-minute opus is a bit slow to get going, but it’s well worth the wait. The final four minutes are some of the best music released all year.

Meer – “This Is the End”: The closing track from Meer’s latest album is grandiose, powerful, and impactful.

Mildlife – “Return to Centaurus”: Mildlife’s new album is good, but it went in an overall-less-proggy direction than Automatic. “Return to Centaurus”, though, shows they still know how to lay down a spacey, jazzy, krauty jam.

Perséide – “Équinoxe”: This song blends murky late-60s psych sounds with a krautrock-inspired buildup.

Sotomonte – “Gambit”: Strawbs-y prog-folk and fuzzed out heavy psych blend to make a strong cut.

The Twenty Committee – “Recodified”: Weird and wonky riffs abound in this jazz-tinged epic.

Vylet Pony – “The Wallflower Equation”: This dark and driving composition is tense, exciting, and bombastic, with plenty of electronic influences.

Yobrepus – “The Enabler”: This slow-moving cut blends art rock, post-rock, and even a dash of glam.