Get the latest gossip

The Best Songs of 2024


A staggering amount of good music went mainstream this year.

“I carry God so I fear nothing,” she sings over an indelible acoustic guitar loop, before providing a quick and easy guide to dealing with the gossip of those who continue to doubt you: “Energy wrong, I log off.” Even when she’s brushing her haters aside, the singer’s soprano hugs the melody like a soft pillow. And later, “Why bleed when we don’t have to?” It sounds undeniably dour when you consider the year Gordon’s had, having morphed from niche indie artist and Dijon collaborator to SNL performer and music journo-approved “Guitar God,” praised by the likes of John Mayer and Eric Clapton (the latter of whom called him a “young Prince”). The anthem builds from a whimper to a full-throated cry, amplified by wailing electric guitars and pounding drums: “I’m not some narcissistic God / Abandon this self-sabotage.” Pruitt may fashion herself a folky country singer in the vein of her hero Brandi Carlile, but here she sounds closer to the exposed indie-rock songs of Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus.— J.C.

Get the Android app

Or read this on VULTURE