Boy, 2011: there sure was a lot of music, wasn't there? A lot of good music, even! But probably not even you, Cool Internet Guy, who heard all the cool and good music, have listened to all of it. It's okay! Here are ten great music things from this year that you should have heard—and for some reason didn't.

Caveat: I tried to choose songs that didn't chart, were released in odd ways, didn't get critical attention, or for whatever other reason never reached the audience they deserved. But: this is the internet, and you are all Internet Cool Guys who have heard All The Music. So! If you've heard any or all of the songs on this list, or are otherwise disappointed, show me up by posting your favorite music from 2011 in the comments!

Nine Awesome Songs...


"Kush Groove" by 151 Feva Gang
Listen to while: Driving to Wawa with friends from high school, buying Mounds bars at Wawa, trying to breakdance in the Wawa parking lot.
Accompany with: Humid summer nights; open car windows; just, like, unbelievable amounts of weed.
"The Laziest River" by Destroyer
Listen to while: Moping around your Hollywood Hills home, staring pensively out the windows of your Hollywood Hills home, solving a mystery that could reasonably be described as an "erotic thriller."
Accompany with: Hideously-named amaretto cocktails, white bathrobes, three to four days beard growth.
"Kelly" by When Saints Go Machine
Listen to while: Thinking about someone you have a crush on, getting dressed to go out, being the subject of a montage in which you get dressed to go out and see someone you have a crush on.
Accompany with: Wine in a paper cup, a sense of purpose.
"No Ordinary Love" by Diddy & Dirty Money
Listen to while: Having empty sex in an expensive hotel, brooding on your private jet as you wait for it to take off, traversing a techno-futuristic wasteland in an immaculately clean tuxedo.
Accompany with: Whatever is in your private jet's mini-fridge.
"Snooze 4 Love" by Todd Terje
Listen to while: Floating miles above earth, lounging in pink sunrise clouds, sweating a lot and insisting that everyone touch you.
Accompany with: Ecstasy, a beach, a sunrise, nothing to do until 7 p.m. tomorrow.
"Killer Dope" by DJ Quik
Listen to while: Driving around your old neighborhood, telling stories about all bad shit perpetrated by the kids you knew growing up, wishing you had good stories to tell about yourself.
Accompany with: Poorly-rolled blunt, easily-triggered nostalgia.
"We Have Everything" by Young Galaxy
Listen to while: Waiting for the last bell of the school year, trying to make eye contact with that guy in trig, endlessly practicing saying the words "hey, what's up?," feeling unbelievably good when you pull off a three-line conversation with him without barfing.
Accompany with: Wine spritzers you stole from your parents, Accutane, butterflies in your stomach.
"Break My Heart" by Estelle
Listen to while: Wearing enormous sunglasses, walking down the red carpet, insisting that no photographs be taken.
Accompany with: Large bodyguards, painkillers, an inflated sense of how glamorous your sadness is.
"The Violet Sequence" by Hatchback
Listen to while: Riding your motorcycle into the city at dusk, driving past hauntingly beautiful run-down buildings, thinking about the sexually-charged noir-referencing mystery you just solved.
Accompany with: Cigarettes, closing credits.

...and One Great Mix


"The Perfect Lullaby" by Nguzunguzu (for Dis Magazine)
Listen to while: Working, driving, walking, cleaning, doing really anything that will not result in embarrassment when you inadvertently start bobbing your head
Accompany with: Good neck/head dance moves.