As an avid lover of music, I'm in the process of narrowing down my top 20 all-time favorite songs. This is an impossible task. To break it down, I decided to make several "top" lists first from the genres and artists I've been the biggest fan of. I started with alternative genre, which was so ridiculously challenging, I had to narrow it further to a time frame: 2000-2009. This list took me FOREVER to solidify. There are so many songs from this genre and era that shoot me right back to middle school, and I narrowed it down to twenty-five. These are my personal favorites that I continue coming back to time and time again, even in 2016. What are yours?
Honorable Mention: "Bob and Bonnie" - Houston Calls (A Collection of Short Stories, 2005)
This one is a hidden gem, but when you listen to it there's only one way your mood can to go: up. Not too many songs make me feel more giddy, as it follows a couple whose love has outlasted the triumphs of time.
"Does he still look at you the same way now?
Feel the same as thirty-eight years ago, and how?"
25. "Enjoy This Drive" - Rookie of the Year (The Goodnight Moon, 2006)
This sounds like a song dedicated to a girl, but plot twist: it's from the band to the listeners, asking them to give their album a chance and "let this line win you over". It worked for me, boys. The bridge includes one of their more acoustic tracks, "Consider This Summer".
"Hum along, if you find it in your heart to try it."
24. "Losing Grip" - Avril Lavigne (Let Go, 2002)
Avril was my FAVORITE in 5th grade. I may or may not have performed one of her songs in a talent show that year (don't bring it up again). This entire album is a banger, but this one is the one that brings me right back to the time she inspired teenage girls around the world to wear heavy eyeliner.
"Why should I care?
You weren't there when I was scared
I was so alone"
23. "MakeDamnSure" - Taking Back Sunday (Louder Now, 2006)
This one just never gets old. No other explanation needed.
"I just wanna break you down so badly."
22. "Lullaby" - The Spill Canvas (No Really, I'm Fine, 2005)
If anyone ever serenaded me to sleep with this one I would marry them immediately. Not really. But it's one of those songs.
"You shine so bright it's insane, you put the sun to shame."
21. "Discovering the Waterfront" - Silverstein (Discovering the Waterfront, 2005)
The emotion in this song is so well-portrayed that I feel sympathized with when I listen to it. This one is pretty clearly pertaining to the ending of a relationship that although was painful and manipulative, is one that is hard to leave behind.
"You ask for my heart, you know that I'm down
But not the way you lie to me and tear it all apart, and beg for me to stay
I've sailed off to sea, I'm not coming back"
20. "Everything Is Alright" - Motion City Soundtrack (I Am the Movie, 2002)
If you don't remember this you need to scoot yourself right back to 7th grade and try it again. The meaning behind this song is debatable, from abusing drugs to suffering from an anxiety disorder. Either way, we all need to be told that everything is fine at some point, am I right?
"Because I hate the ocean, theme parks and airplanes
Talking to strangers, waiting in lines..."
19. "Don't Go" - Making April (The Egg Hunt, 2009)
This one is a later/less popular song for them, but it's by far my favorite. Typical "begging to get the girl back" song, but a good "begging to get the girl back" song that stands out to me lyrically (see below). It probably worked.
"The broken sidewalks looked like states
I stood on Tennessee and begged for you to stay
But you kept your eyes down low
And you took the Colorados home"
18. "My Heart" - Paramore (All We Know Is Falling, 2005)
The meaning behind this song is a toss-up: I once heard a rumor that it was about of a friend of the band's who was killed in an accident. However, many think this is about rediscovering God. Either depiction has immense sentimental value, and because of that I get goosebumps whenever I listen to it.
"It's been so long, since I've heard the sound
The sound of my only hope."
17. "Wonderful" - Everclear (Songs From An American Movie Vol. One, 2000)
This song is an anthem for any child who has watched their parents go through a divorce, young but not naive enough to actually believe the sugarcoated comfort they receive.
"I just don't understand how you can smile with all those tears in your eyes
When you tell me everything is wonderful now"
16. "Best of Me" - The Starting Line (Say It Like You Mean It, 2002)
8th grade graduation, anyone?
"We got older, but we're still young
We never grew out of this feeling that we won't give up"
15. "You Had Me At Hello" - A Day To Remember (And Their Name Was Treason, 2005)
He never thought he'd trust again, but look! He's falling in love. And he writes about it beautifully.
"You gave me butterflies at the mailbox"
14. "Amazing, Because It Is" - The Almost (Southern Weather, 2007)
Most people would probably think that alternative + Amazing Grace = ?
The Almost proves most people incorrect.
"I was so scared of everything you put in front of me,
I've been marching to every part of me"
13. "The Ocean" - Mae (The Everglow, 2005)
If you didn't have this in your AIM profile at some point, you probably never had an AIM profile.
"I need you here tonight just like the ocean needs the waves"
Because it's just a classic and I relate to it, alright?
"Your vows of silence fall all over,
The look in your eyes makes me crazy"
11. "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot" - Brand New (Deja Entendu, 2003)
This song is another piece of proof to their lyrical brilliance, this one written with incredibly subtle references to Greek mythology:
"Petrichor": the smell of rain
"-Ichor": the fluid that runs through the veins of gods
"You are the smell before rain, you are the blood in my veins"
I know, right?
10. "I'm Still Here" - Vertical Horizon (Go, 2003)
This one is from one of my favorite bands of this time, and in my opinion they're severely underrated.
"Where you are I'll never know
But I'm still here."
9. "What Sarah Said" - Death Cab For Cutie (Plans, 2005)
Holy moly. This an incredibly convicting song and a dagger to the HEART. I once took a sociology course in college in which we had to complete a project analyzing a song about death. I chose this one, because boy does it have a lot to pick apart. This song is about the sharp reality of losing someone and how it forces us to reflect upon the impact another's life may have one us.
"Love is watching someone die, so who's gonna watch you die?"
8. "You Be The Anchor That Keeps My Feet On The Ground, I'll Be The Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds" - Mayday Parade (A Lesson In Romantics, 2007)
Say that five times fast! One line in this song can change the entire meaning behind it: "And El, I'll have you know I'm scared to death." El could be a girl, but could also be "God" in Hebrew. This song covers all the bases when it comes to fear and doubt in diving into faith, and the vulnerability it takes to do so.
"I could stand here for hours just to ask God the question
'Is everyone here make believe?'
With a tear in his voice He says 'son, that's the question'
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?"
7. "Konstantine" - Something Corporate (Ready... Break, 2000)
I used to scoop ice cream with a guy who had an impeccable taste in music like me, so one weekend we switched ipods. This was the best find.
"Did you know I missed you?"
6. "Walking By" - Holiday Parade (This Is My Year, 2007)
Some may think this is ranked way too high because the lyrics are pretty basic, but it makes my heart all gross and fluttery and ugh I'm sorry.
"Every time you walk in the room,
Can't help myself, I wanna be with you"
5. "Where Do You Go" - National Product (Luna, 2007)
I used to be obsessed with their song "Love Me", but this one turned out to be their song that I continue listening to years later. Mainly because they spell out an entire line and I love screaming it in my car... I mean, what?
"Do you m-i-s-s-m-e-a-t-a-l-l?"
Their old stuff is good, their new stuff is good - Yellowcard continues to slay after all these years, and their music will continue to even when they say their goodbyes to the music industry (did you cry too)? This is my favorite song off of the album we all came to love in 5th grade and continue to love to this day.
"Follow me there, a beautiful somewhere
A place that I can share with you"
3. "Say Goodnight" - The Click Five (Greetings from the Emrie House, 2005)
I know what you're thinking - really, Molly? A song by The Click Five is in your top 3? Yes, really. When it comes to this song I'm rather biased as it pulls hard at the heart strings, but this one-hit wonder of a band deserves some credit on this one even if it's a bit poppy. Give it a chance!
"Your voice is heaven, but it hearts
Your words are memories, but they burn."
2. "Hear You Me" - Jimmy Eat World
If you haven't cried tears to this one you may not be human and should seek medical attention. I say this for two reasons: 1. Its lyrics provoke the memory of someone who we've loved and lost, and 2. It captured the hearts of teenage America when it played as Austin finally kissed Sam in A Cinderella Story. He's still sorry he waited for the rain.
"And if you were with me tonight, I'd sing for you just one more time
Sung with a heart so big, God wouldn't let it live."
And here's the moment you've all been curious for (or just skipped straight to, no judgment if you did)...
The number one of its time:
1. "Blinded (When I See You)" - Third Eye Blind
Not my all-time favorite song by these guys (their best was from pre-2000), but its up there. They still killed it with this song especially in the next decade. This song is a sunny day with the windows down and it never gets old for me. The reason it's number one is because I don't know why I love it so much - I just do.
"Time passes and it tells us what we're left with,
You become the things you do
Me I'm a fool, spent from defiance, yeah you got me but
I didn't give up on you."
So, how'd I do everybody? Feel free to comment below on songs you think I missed, ones you commend me for including, or one maybe you had never heard before but now love.
With love,
M
