I’ve been reflecting on my favorite songs of 2015… I always
find it difficult to narrow down anything to a list, but that’s especially true
of music. There is just so much good
stuff out there! After much debate,
these are the ones I think I really enjoyed most this year, in no particular
order. Surprisingly, one of my favorite
bands, Shinedown, did not make the cut this year… I haven’t been duly impressed
with their newest material. Same goes
for Pop Evil, though initially I liked “Footsteps (Go Higher)” until they
played the hell out of it. If you haven’t
heard some of these, you should!
1.
“Do You Know Who You Are?” – Atreyu --- the
perfect blend of hard and melodic + amazing lyrics! If you haven’t heard it, go find it NOW!
2.
“This is the Time” – Nothing More --- I loved
this band when I heard Mr. MTV, likening them to FTM… When “This is the Time”
and “Jenny” came out, I fell really hard for this band and all their music. My
favorite song off the album is probably “God Went North”. We took an overnight trip to see these guys
earlier this year. Most energetic,
dynamic rock show I’ve seen in ages. If
you like their sound, check out their previous album, “The Few Not Fleeting”! You won’t be sorry.
3.
“Failure” - Breaking Benjamin --- I picked this
song because it was the first from them in a REALLY long time. This was
followed by the release of “Angels Fall” and then the whole album. It worked out that we got to see them play
The Orange Peel in Asheville, NC this summer and I have to say, I love the new
band members and the vibe. So thankful
Breaking Benjamin is back on the scene.
4.
“Save Today” --- Seether --- this is my favorite
so far off the newest album. I admit it
took awhile to grow on me, mostly because their previous album, “Holding on to
Strings” is my favorite from them and I always tend to be a little hyper
critical of new material, holding it in measure… however, I can say I truly do
love this. I find with Seether a lot of
their music grows on me, rather than resulting from a love at first listen.
5.
“I Am
the Fire” – Halestorm --- I’m haven’t been a huge Halestorm fan, but I really
really dig this song! It has a grit and
passion about it, combined with killer lyrics that just pull you in… Lovin’ it!
6.
“Lydia” –
Highly Suspect --- this song came at a good time, when I needed something
unique. I also like their follow up
“Bloodfeather”… there is something about them that I haven’t quite pegged. They are a little heavy on the language, (not
FFDP heavy, but more than a sprinkling) so be careful of your audience.
7.
“Just Be Held” – Casting Crowns – Sometimes a
simple reminder that our focus is what trips us up, and that He is in control
and on the throne is what I need to make my day better, more peaceful and
positive. This song definitely gets me there.
8.
“Your
Words” – Third Day – Strong lyrics and harmonies. Working on getting Luke to learn it so we can
duet.
9.
“All That He Says I Am” – Cody Carnes and Kari
Jobe – Not sure when this song came out, but the reminder that we are His plus
more intricate harmonies make it fun to sing!
10.
“This
Probably Won’t End Well” – All That Remains – Honestly, I’m not sure what it is
about this song but I always find myself cranking it up.
A few for good measure, because there can never be too much
music!
11.
“Until the World Goes Cold” – Trivium --- I
didn’t immediately love this song, but after hearing it on Octane a few time, I
stopped tuning it out and actually found myself enjoying it. Sometimes those songs that come to you softly
are the ones that have staying power on the favorites list. It will be
interesting to see how this goes.
12.
“Jekyll and Hyde” – Five Finger Death Punch ---
truthfully this is a band I would love to love, but the lead dude’s attitude
and the heavy language kind of turns me off.
I find I only like about one of every 5 songs these guys put out. I’m not against a carefully placed word for
emphasis, but the ignorant sounding every other word is just not
necessary. On a positive note, however,
my favorite FFDP are “Remember Everything” and “Cantu 34”.
13.
“The Light” – Disturbed --- the lyrics to this
song are stellar and thought provoking… Really happy David Draimin is focusing
on Disturbed again because Device never really grabbed me.
14.
“Stars” – Sixx AM --- so it’s not the most intricate, and perhaps a bit cliché in the lyric
department, but the hard driving rhythm really gets me going and keeps me
motivated!
15.
“Come as You Are” – Crowder --- this song just
blessed me. It’s so simple and real.
“Come out of sadness from wherever you’ve been, come broken hearted let rescue
begin, come find your mercy, oh sinner come kneel, earth has no sorrow that
heaven can’t heal…” What a powerful
reminder.
16.
“Oceans” – Hillsong United --- Yes, I know it’s
cliché’ EVERY one loved this song when
it came out. I was a little late to the
game, but I did like it enough that I learned to play and sing it. ;-)
Okay, I’ve really gotta stop… the list just goes on and on…
So what songs did you rock out to, find comfort in, or would
recommend to your friends, and why?
-d
