Well, another year has flown by. And while December usually means scrambling for last minute gifts and wondering where the year went, it also means it's time for one of our favorite episodes, Best Songs of the Year! This year we're curating not only our own picks for 2012, but the top choices from our favorite blogs, as well as the songs you wrote and called in as your favorites. And while the choices varied, one thing is clear - 2012 was full great music. So listen, enjoy, reflect, and get ready for 2013

Tracklist
1. "Wildest Moments" -- Jessie Ware, Devotion (Dawson)

2. "Thinkin Bout You"-- Frank Ocean, Channel Orange (Consequence of Sound)


3. "Half Gate"-- Grizzly Bear, Shields (listener - Joshua Griffith)


4. "Climax"-- Usher, Looking 4 Myself (Gorilla VS Bear)


5. "Jasmine"(demo)-- Jai Paul, single (listener - Jamal)


6. "Five Seconds"-- Twin Shadow, Confess (Olivia)


7. "The House That Heaven Built"-- Japandroids, Celebration Rock (PASTE/listener - Josh Hornick)


8. "Oblivion"-- Grimes, Visions (listeners - Lucy/Ardie)


9. "Every Single Night"-- Fiona Apple, The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do (Pretty Much Amazing)


10. "Breathing Under Water"-- Metric, Synthetica (listener - Isabelle)


11. "F.T.F"-- Trust, TRST (Jaime)


12. "I Love It"-- Icona Pop featuring Charli XCX, Iconic EP (The Line of Best Fit)


13. "Elephant"-- Tame Empala, single (listener - Thom Stead)


14. "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings"-- Father John Misty, Fear Fun (Spinner)

In this latest episode, the Noise Pop team brings you the last playlist of new songs for 2012. From Nicolas Jaar to School of Seven Bells, these are ten tracks sure to carry you through the holidays and into the new year.

And on the next episode, the Noise Pop team will be playing the best listener-sourced tracks of 2012! Send us an email with your favorite song of 2012 at podcast@noisepop.com or call in and leave a message on our hotline 585-4NOISE5.

Tracklist:

1. "The Ego" -- Nicolas Jaar and Theatre Roosevelt - single
2. "L.U.V." -- Brainstems, Stryofoam
3. “Light Up Gold” -- Parquet Courts, Light Up Gold   
4. "Snudge (Spaceship Aloha Remix)" -- Night Panther, single 
5. "Cherry" -- Chromatics, After Dark II
6. "Trust" -- Gambles, single
7. "Argonauts" -- The Little Ones, The Dawn Sang Along
8. "Bathroom Laughter" -- Pissed Jeans, Honeys
9. "Secret Days" -- School of Seven Bells, Put Your Sad Down
10. "Night Faces" -- Jessica Pratt, Jessica Pratt

The Noise Pop Podcast is grateful to you, our listeners, which is why we're serving ug up a cornucopia of amazing songs that missed their rightful place in the internet spotlight this year. This episodes is dedicated to the unsung songs of 2012, the ones that didn't get the internet hype they deserved. Throughout the year there is so much music that demands our attention that sometimes we collectively miss, what would otherwise be stand out tracks, so this episode is our way to right that wrong and say "Thank you for the music". Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving.

Tracklist:

1. “Andrew in Drag” -- Magnetic Fields, Love at the Bottom of the Sea
2. “Top Floor” -- TNGHT, TNGHT EP
3.  “Radio Song" -- Esperanza Spalding, Radio Music Society
4. “In the Middle (I Met You There)” -- Matthew Dear, Headcage EP
5. “Scarlet Town” -- Bob Dylan, Tempest
6. “White Chalk” -- Halls, Ark
7. “Big Love” -- Matthew E White, Big Inner
8. “Breakup Songs” -- Deerhoof, Breakup Song
9. "INJR" -- Yalls, Yalls II
10. “Kindred” -- Burial, Kindred EP

This election season has certainly been a stressful one. We've been inundated with campaign ads, speeches, debates, and enough political memes for a lifetime. Now that the season is over, the Noise Pop Team brings you a playlist intent on distracting you from the last few months of election madness. From Kendrick Lamar to Butter the Children, this episode is full of tunes that are completely irrelevant to this important period of time in America's history. You're welcome.

Tracklist:

1. "Get Off" -- METZ, METZ
2. "Hold Off the Dawn" -- El Perro Del Mar, Pale Fire
3. "Backseat Freestyle" -- Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city
4. "Breakers" -- Local Natives, Hummingbird
5. "Don't Wanna Go the Other Way" -- Cody Chestnutt, Landing on a Hundred
6. "What the Eyeballs Did" -- Atoms for Peace, single
7. "Here We Go" -- Christopher Owens, Lysandre
8. "Lupus" -- Butter the Children, Butter the Children
9. "Chum" -- Earl Sweatshirt, EarlWolf
10. "Luxury Problems" -- Andy Stott, Luxury Problems

The Noise Pop Podcast is putting your musical knowledge to the test again! We’re serving up another game of Six Degrees of Kevin Barnes, this time with a Halloween theme. In case you missed the last game it goes like this: there are eight tracks in this mix and each one is connected to the previous one, identify the tracks and the seven connections between each song and you could win. Email your answers to podcast@noisepop.com, the first person to identify them all, or the person who gets the most correct, will win tickets to see Salem at Elbo Room Saturday October 27th. The winner will be contacted directly, so check your inboxes. After the contest closes, on October 27th, we will post the answers in the comment section of KQED.org/noisepop. Good luck everyone and have fun!

San Francisco doesn't really have much of an autumn. But what our city lacks in foliage its makes up for in festivals. Both Hardly Strictly Bluegrass and the upcoming Treasure Island Music Festival are opportunities to see old favorites, and discover some new ones. And in honor of those headliners and soon-to-be headliners, this episode features some great new music from some festival pros, and some we think you'll be donning dayglo for soon enough.

Tracklist

1. “Here I Am” -- Adam Green and Binki Shapiro, Adam Green and Binki Shapiro
2. "Losing You" -- Solange, single
3. “Time” -- Merchandise, Children of Desire
4. “The Hill” -- Snowmine, Laminate Pet Animal
5. “Nature Boy” -- Young Buffalo, Young Buffalo
6. “Latch” -- Disclosure, single
7. “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” -- Tame Impala, Lonerism
8. “Teardrop Windows” -- Benjamin Gibbard, Former Lives
9. “Fuck You All the Time” -- Jeremih, Late Nights With Jeremih mixtape
10. “Cry For Judas” -- Mountain Goats, Transcendental Youth
11. “Belispeak II” -- Purity Ring + Danny Brown, single    

Alright fellow music nerds (and expert Googlers), this episode is for you. The Noise Pop Team has decided to test your music knowledge by playing a game based loosely on Six Degrees of Separation, or Kevin Bacon. It goes a little something like this: there are eight tracks in this playlist and each one is connected to the previous one, identify the tracks and the seven connections in between each song and you could win! Put your answers in the comments below this episode on KQED.org/NoisePop, and the first person to identify them all or the person who gets the most correct will win select Noise Pop merchandise. Good luck!

The indie song of the summer may well have passed, but there's still a wealth of new music to feast your ears upon this month. This episode, the Noise Pop Team brings you fresh sounds from some promising new acts like Kisses and Elite Gymnastics, balanced with recent releases from reliable indie greats like David Byrne and AC Newman. This well-rounded list suggests a fall full of potential for indie music.

Tracklist:

1. "I'm Not Talking" -- AC Newman, Shut Down the Streets

2. "Rest Your Mind" -- K Flay (feat. Felix Cartal), single

3. "Andreja 4 Ever" -- Elite Gymnastics, Adult Swim Singles Program

4. "Who" -- David Byrne and St Vincent, Love This Giant

5. "Jonathan's Hope" -- WHY?, Mumps, etc.

6. "Only In My Dreams" -- Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Mature Themes

7. "Cheap Beer" -- Fidlar, untitled LP

8. "French Lessons" -- Levek, Look a Little Closer

9. "False Astronomy" -- Mister Lies, Hidden Neighbors EP

10. "Funny Heartbeat" -- Kisses, single

11 Johnny Greenwood - Application 45 Version 1, The Master Original Soundtrack

It’s been building for 3 months and now it’s finally here, the indie song of the summer! There are several ways to define a song as a great summer song: it can be carefree, sweet, propulsive, lazy, emotional, detached, it can be anything really. The one thing it must have is the collective acknowledgment that “this is the soundtrack to my season; this is what I'm going to remember summer 2012 by" . The following list of songs are what defined summer for many of us and based on the quality of the list it's clearly been a good year for music. So enjoy! 

Tracklist:

1. “Five Seconds” -- Twin Shadows, Confess

2. “All of Me” -- Tanlines, Mixed Emotions

3. “Fineshrine” -- Purity Ring, Shrines

4. “Express Yourself”  --  Diplo featuring Nicky Da B, Mixtape

5. “Super Rich Kids” -- Frank Ocean, Channel Orange

6. “Constant Conversations” -- Passion Pit, Gossamer   

7. “I Love It” -- Icona Pop, Single

8. “Ho Hey” -- The Lumineers, The Lumineers

9. “Let's Go” -- Matt & Kim, Lightning   

10. “Wildest Moments” -- Jessie Ware, Devotion

11. “The House That Heaven Built” - Japandroids, Celebration Rock

In this episode, the Noise Pop Team brings you bits and pieces from all over the web: from punk, to 60s garage rock, to hip hop . With new songs from established acts like Bob Mould to tracks from buzzed about and up-and-coming artists like Riff Raff, there is a little something for everybody in this one. For our next episode, Song of The Summer, we want to hear from you! Go to our KQED page and tell us your favorite song of this season. Just head over to KQED.org/Arts/Programs/Noisepop/ and in the comment section let us know what you want or think it'll be.

1. "Black Mold Grow" --  Levek, Look A Little Closer

2. "Elephant"  --  Tame Impala,  Lonerism

3. "Sunshine"  --  Little Dragon, Single

4. "The Descent" --  Bob Mould, Silver Age

5. "Sweet and Sour"  --  Mvscles,  Single

After a brief foray into pop, the Noise Pop Team is happy to get back to their 'indie' roots. This episode features new music from Divine Fits, the brand new indie rock super group; Cat Power and her highly anticipated new record; Bobby Womack and his fascinating new reinvention; and, as usual, the best that the blogosphere has to offer.

Tracklist

1. "New York" -- Angel Haze, Reservation
2. "Drift Drive" -- Antlers, Undersea
3. "My Love is Real" -- Divine Fits, A Thing Called Divine Fits
4. "Sleep Paralysis" -- Gabriel Bruce, single
5. "Best Friend" -- Dent May, Do Things
6. "Deer and I" -- Skruncha-roo, C'est la vie
7. "Please Forgive My Heart." -- Bobby Womack, The Bravest Man in the Universe
8. "Ruin" -- Cat Power, Sun
9. "Boyfriend" -- Slowdance, Boyfriend/Airports
10. "Sweet Life" -- Frank Ocean, Channel Orange

We know you're out there. In public, you're proudly listening to the latest in indie obscurity. But every now and then, when no one is looking, you're singing along (and maybe dancing a little) to those ubiquitous earworms known as pop songs. Maybe they're your guilty pleasure, or maybe you admire the production and songwriting, or maybe they're just the tune you have stuck in your head even though you've never listened to the song on purpose. Either way, in this week's episode, we're taking a break from the best in indie and indulging in our latent pop tendencies. But don't worry, we haven't completely jumped the indie ship. We've curated a list of indie-approved pop tunes - songs that, in one way or another, have been created, covered, or just embraced by the indie community. Some of these tracks are discussed and analyzed, but others are just pure indulgence, because let's face it -- sometimes, we all just need to hear some Beyonce.

Tracklist:

1. "Dancing On My Own" -- Robyn, Body Talk Pt. 1
2. "Lovestoned" -- Justin Timberlake, FutureSex/LoveSounds
3. "Climax" -- Usher, Looking For Myself
4. "Boyfriend" -- Justin Bieber, Believe
5. "2012 (You Must Be Upgraded)" -- The Flaming Lips feat. Ke$ha & Biz Markie, The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends
6. "Toxic" -- Britney Spears, In the Zone
7. "Since U Been Gone" -- Kelly Clarkson, Breakaway
8. "Trapped in the Closet Ch.1" -- R. Kelly, TP.3 Reloaded
9. "Call Me Maybe" -- Carly Rae Jepsen, Curiosity
10. "Countdown" -- Beyoncé, 4

Enjoy the latest batch of new music hand-selected by the Noise Pop team. At the beginning of each month they scour the web for the 10 best tracks and serve it up on a podcast platter for you to enjoy. On this episode they offer new music from indie mainstays such as The Walkmen and Dan Deacon as well tracks from exciting new artists like Ms Mr and Icky Blossoms.

Tracklist:

A few weeks ago, NPR asked us to come up with a list of definitive Noise Pop (the genre) songs for their website, NPR.org. It was a tall order and a fascinating challenge for us, and of course, we eagerly accepted. With tunes from the early '70s to modern songs released just a few months ago on our radar, we studiously dove into the decades to find the top 100. We sorted them chronologically in order to to show the evolution of the sound. The full list will post on NPR later this month, but for now we've assembled a teaser podcast episode that chronicles the genre's migration over the past 4 decades. Enjoy this sampler platter and stay tuned for the announcement of the full list coming soon.

Tracklist:

1. "Rock & Roll” – The Velvet Underground, Loaded (1970)
2. "Radio Free Europe" – R.E.M, Murmur (1981)
3. "Makes No Sense At All" – Husker Du, Flip Your Wig (1985)
4. "Bastards of Young" – The Replacements, Tim (1985)
5. "Freak Scene" – Dinosaur Jr., Bug (1988)
6. "Gigantic" – Pixies, Surfer Rosa (1988)
7. "Barnaby Hardly Working" – Yo La Tengo, Fakebook (1989)
8. "Shine On Sweet Jesus" – The Flaming Lips, In A Priest Driven Ambulance (1990)
9. "Only Shallow" – My Bloody Valentine, Loveless (1991)
10. "Three Years Ago Today" – Built To Spill, Ultimate Alternative Wavers (1992)
11. "Summer Babe (Winter Version)" – Pavement, Slanted & Enchanted (1992)
12. "Web In Front" – Archers of Loaf, Icky Mettle (1993)
13. "Natural One" – Folk Implosion, Kids OST (1994)
14. "Seven" – Sunny Day Real Estate, Diary (1994)
15 "Rebound" – Sebadoh, Bakesale (1995)
16. "Heart Cooks Brain" – Modest Mouse, The Lonesome Crowded West (1997)
17. "Holland, 1945" – Neutral Milk Hotel, Aeroplane Over The Sea (1998)
18. "You're Pretty Good Looking (For A Girl)" – The White Stripes, De Stijl (2000)
19. "Fever Dreaming" – No Age, Everything In Between (2004)
20. "The Rat" – The Walkmen, Bows + Arrows (2004)
21. "Queen of Hearts" – Fucked Up, David Comes To Life (2011)
22. "Open Your Heart" – The Men, Open Your Heart (2012)

It's May, and while spring isn't technically over for another month or so, it's fair to say the search for the elusive song of the summer can officially begin. It might be a little too early to make the call, but Dawson thinks he's found a contender for that coveted title. Later this summer you can expect an episode that exclusively tackles this topic, but for now you can consider this a teaser. And either way, if these ten songs are any indication of the summer to come, you're going to like the sound of it. Enjoy this mix of 10 new songs you need to hear now...

Tracklist:

1. “Get Got” -- Death Grips, The Money Store
2. “How Do I Know“ -- Here We Go Magic, A Different Ship
3. “Down the Lane” -- Royal Headache, Down the Lane
4.  “Obedear” -- Purity Ring, Shrines
5. “Hook You Up”  -- Sylver Tongue, Creatures 
6. “Pretend You Love” -- Sonny and the Sunsets, Longtime Companion
7. “(Into the) Atmosphere” -- Dusted, Total Dust  
8. “Reverse Inverted” -- Torche, Harmonicraft
9. “Doused” -- DIIV, Oshin
10. “F.T.F.” -- Trust, TRST

There is an unofficial game music nerds play online; it's silly, it's futile and it is incredibly addictive, it's 'guess the festival lineup'. Music fans spend hours researching what bands are likely to play what festival and they share their predictions online where they argue endlessly about it. The best predictions are usually based on record release dates, tour schedules, the last time a band played a certain festival, what kind of sound they a band is, etc...

All festivals get this treatment, but no festival is obsessed over quite as much as Coachella. It's the white whale of lineup predictions and it seems to start earlier each year. So, with this year's festival coming to a close we decided it would be novel to take the first known stab at next year's festival lineup. We brirefly discuss this year's artists and then dive right into our logical choices for 2013. Of course, nothing is confirmed, these are merely guesses, but as you'll hear it's a hell of a lot of fun to play this guessing game.

And another one! This week's episode features an ecelctic and powerful mix of popular tracks circulating the web right now. Ranging from the exciting neo-soul duo THEEsatisfaction, to the abbrasive garage rock of FIDLAR, this mix runs the gamet of tone and emotion. Tune in and get up to date on the latest music buzzing around right now.

Tracklist:

1. "No Future/No Past" -- Cloud Nothings, Attack on Memory
2. "Queens" -- THEEsatisfaction, QueenS
3. "Oh" -- Fidlar, DIYDUI
4. "Normal Song" -- Perfume Genius, Put Your Back N 2 It
5. "I'll Never Know" -- Charli XCX, Single
6. "Life of Crime" -- Geographer, MYTH
7. "Tuck the Darkness In" -- Bowerbirds, The Clearing
8. "The Fox" -- Niki & the Dove, Instinct
9. "In The Same Room" -- Julia Holter, Ekstasis
10. "Crew Love" -- Drake F/The Weekend (Shlomo Remix), Single

Another episode of the best new music... The Noise Pop Podcast team digs up a batch of the most buzzed about tracks circulating the internet right now. This collection features moving female vocal performances and sublime sample-heavy tracks. Leave a message with your own requests at the Noise Pop Podcast hotline 585-4NOISE5, we just might play your song. You can also subscribe to the podcast via iTunes and the next episode will automatically be delivered to you when it's released. 

Tracklist:

1. "Weekend" -- Class Actress, Rapproacher

2.  "Walk With Me" -- Memoryhouse, The Slideshow Effect,

3. "Mighty Love" -- Roman Ruins, Homebuilding

4. "One Second of Love" --Nite Jewel, One Second of Love

5.  "Love Interruption" -- Jack White, Blunderbuss

6. “In the City” -- Chromatics, In The City EP  

7. "It’s my part (co la remix)" -- Jonquil 

8. "Giants of Canaan" -- Air Drops, EP

9. “Sparkly” -- Young Magic, Melt 

Hard to believe it's almost time for Noise Pop 2012! The Noise Pop Team has been busy gearing up for the festival's 20th anniversary, but not to worry, there's always time for trolling the Internet... for the best new tunes, that is. Enjoy this week's mix which includes new music from Chairlift, Cloud Nothings, and a surprisingly talented celebutant. 

Tracklist:

1. "Met Before" -- Chairlift, Something

2. "Brains" -- Lower Dens, Nootropics

3. "And I Say" feat. Scout La Rue and Will Epstein-- Nicolas Jaar, Single

4. "Lost Weekend" -- Tiny Victories, Those of Us Still Alive

5. "Stay Useless" -- Cloud Nothings, Attack On Memory

6. "Lay Your Cards Out" -- Polica, Give You The Ghost

7. "Deep Ocean" -- Some Ember, Dope Mountain Fuck Vol. 2.

8. "Youth" -- Daughter, The Wild Youth

9. "La Grande" -- Laura Gibson, La Grande

10. "Watertight" -- We Have Band, Ternion

in honor of the Bay Area comedy festival, Sketchfest, The Noise Pop Podcast is dedicating this episode to the relationshiop between music and comedy. We've invited guest hosts Shawn Robbins, of Kata Rokkar and Snob Theater, and Ivan Hernandez, of Boars, Gore and Swords, to show Jaime the best musical comedians, the funniest musicians, and everything in between. Because all the songs are clips there is no tracklist for this week's episode.