#1 - Jane Remover - "52 blue mondays" and "kodak moment" (tie)
#1 - Jane Remover - "52 blue mondays" and "kodak moment" (tie)
The idea that teens are melodramatic is a popular myth in our culture; we see it in television shows and movies, the numerous stock tropes of the “annoying teen with overblown feels,” or the “emo kid” who no one takes seriously. After being fed these stereotypes of the hormonal overdramatic teen, we internalize the notion that our emotions are insignificant and trivial.
But in the moment, those sadnesses feel enormous. I remember curling up in my bed at 16, feeling psychic walls caving on me, brain buckling under an avalanche of friendship issues, crush worries, school problems, and hopelessness about the future. I wish I’d had Jane Remover’s “52 blue mondays” then. Its alloy of claustrophobia and catharsis is like a big fuck-you to high school self-hate: it uses sound as an escape mechanism against dread.
Jane’s solution to insecurity is to bury it under walls of sound. That’s what they do on “52 blue mondays,” incinerating their anxious voice and self-doubt in a whirlwind of static and rippling breakbeats. Despondency is a weapon in Jane’s nimble producer fingers; their tormented repetition of the phrase “can’t have no fun with no one,” moaning like someone staring off the edge of an abyss, leads perfectly into an explosion of electric chaos.
Less cramped but just as chaotic and cleansing, “kodak moment” unfurls like a movie with different acts. You can feel the progression since “52 blue mondays,” from a person overwhelmed with insecurities to someone who’s capable of making sense of it all. The song is not only genre-oscillating but makes a nonsense of genre divisions — you could consider it a bunch of micro-songs with myriad textures (emo rock, industrial bass music, utopian video game soundtrack) woven together. At over 6 minutes long it’s not fit for any auto-generated or curated Spotify playlist. It evades both cheap imitation and instant replayability. I need a gulp of air after I hear the main drop, which sounds like the best and worst thing ever happening at once — someone breaking your heart while you find out your dream college has accepted you.
The first time I listened to “kodak moment” and reached the song’s final passage — no vocals, no mayhem, just pastoral keys and bittersweet vibes — I was convinced it sampled Pokémon. It has the exact same sound palette, and Jane confirmed that the video game’s chiptuney soundtrack was an inspiration on this record. It’s such a sweet way to conclude a song marked with so much churning, angst, and head-banging brutality. It’s like settling in on the couch with loved ones after experiencing a world of hurt.
The list (thank you for reading!):
#20 - aya - "what if i should fall asleep and slipp under" and "Emley lights us moor"
#19 - rrodney - Jersey club remix of Trippie Redd ft. Playboi Carti’s “Miss the Rage”
#18 - aghast - “thas wut i do” (prod. lungskull & wavebird)
#17 - Yves Tumor - “Secrecy Is Incredibly Important To The Both of Them”
#16 - kaystrueno - “PRETTY B!TCHES NEVA DIE”
#15 - kurtains - “spawn”
#14 - Ecco2k - “PXE”
#13 - vertigoaway ft. schizoscriptures - “Break This The Breaking Point 2”
#12 - Baby Keem & Kendrick Lamar - “family ties”
#11 - Summrs - “put out fye” + “Blood Always Thicker” (prod. Goyxrd)
#8 - piri & Tommy Villiers - “soft spot”
#7 - L’Rain - “Blame Me”
#6 - osquinn - “and most important, have fun” / “from paris, with love” (tie)
#5 - Dry Cleaning - “Scratchcard Lanyard”
#4 - Luci4 - “dying in xxtyle (trendxxetter 3)” / “Dead n Gone” (prod. HollywoodJ) (tie)
#2 - Playboi Carti - “Stop Breathing,” “On That Time,” “JumpOutTheHouse”