The 101 Most Vital Tracks of 2014 | 50 – 41

50. Röyksopp & Robyn : “Monument” [Dog Triumph]

49. Martin Garrix, Sander Van Doorn, & DVBBS featuring Aleesia : “Gold Skies” [Spinnin’]

This track might not have gotten much traction if it didn’t feature Martin Garrix. But it does and so it did! And rightly so. What better way to counter impressions of inexperience than partner with a seasoned pro like Van Doorn? The topline is lovely but probably unnecessary and it’s not clear what DVBBS are doing but it hardly matters. This is EDM 2014 at its finest.  – ZR

 

48. Anamanaguchi : “Pop It” [dream.hax]

Cutesy to the point of utter insanity, “Pop It” is two minutes and 50 seconds of baby voices, glitched-out bleeps, and sugar-coated melodies. A sure-fire hit amongst the post-kawaii crowd (or Porter Robinson fans), this is the closest thing to crawling into a Japanese arcade game and living there for a little while. – ML
 

47. Alison Wonderland : “I Want U” [Astralwerks]

If you were at a festival or warehouse rave this year, you’ll recognize “I Want U” as that track everyone collectively lost their shit to. It told us that even though Alison Wonderland is p cute and has great style, she still knows how to do “turn up,” as the kids say. – ZR

 

46. Redinho : “Playing With Fire” [Numbers]

With glistening synths, an abundance of heartfelt emotions, and a vocodered voice so slick it could be sliding on oil, “Playing With Fire” quickly became the funky earworm that you couldn’t get out of your head. It also proved that no one revels in 80s nostalgia better than this British talkbox-obsessed crooner—whose sound we hereby dub “haute-cheese.” -ML

 

45. Hudson Mohawke : “Chimes” [Warp]

TNGHT’s genre-warping contributions to dance music were over almost just as soon as they begun. Thankfully, its two members have continued their solo careers—each starting off on the right foot. Everyone’s favorite Glaswegian, Hudson Mohawke, still knows his way around a horn sample, with a colossal, looming track that wouldn’t be out of place in a Kurosawa film. -GH
 

44. Skrillex featuring Diplo, G-Dragon & CL : “Dirty Vibe” [OWSLA/Big Beat/Atlantic]

43. Sigma : “Nobody to Love” [3Beat]

Storied drum ‘n’ bass act Sigma catapulted well into pop territory with this tune, by far their biggest hit to-date, and by far their biggest stylistic departure as well. Any semblance of underground breakbeat grime is scrubbed out with pop sheen and, just like that, the world took notice. Well, that was easy, huh? – JK

42. Alesso featuring Tove Lo : “Heroes (We Could Be)” [Def Jam]

41. Slaptop : “Sunrise” [Ensemble]

Cheery chimes and a trumpet appropriately adorn the upper register of this unexpected debut from the Bay Area. If San Francisco has been overrun with Silicon Valley scum, Slaptop’s ode to all night rabble-rousing and party-starting is a better “fuck you” on behalf of the city’s maligned young artists than we could have said ourselves. -ZM

Words by THUMP Staff: Zel McCarthy, Jemayel Khawaja, Michelle Lhooq, David Garber, Ziad Ramley, Josh Baines, Olyvia Salyer, Gabriel Herrera and Joel Fowler.

The 101 Most Vital Tracks of 2014 | No. 101 – 91 | No. 90 – 81 | No. 80 – 71 | No. 70 – 61 |
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