Spotify recently released their most played songs of the summer and for someone who likes alternative music it’s a depressing list. So I’ve decided to make my own list, an antidote to the mainstream, where I’ve listed each song from Spotify's most played and suggested an alternative take. Warning: contains some HEAVY music. Full disclosure I genuinely listened to every song on the Spotify list all the way through. That’s dedication.

If you want to listen along I’ve created a playlist with every track listed. Alternatively here's a purist's version with only the alternative tracks.

Track 1

Spotify

“In My Feelings - Drake”

A fairly uninspiring modern hip-hop track. It features the same muted beats, slightly auto-tuned vocals and laid back aesthetic that has become so prevalent in recent years. Drake seems to be one of the hottest artists around but for the most part I just don’t get it. I miss the jazz, funk and sample laden hip-hop of the 90’s.

The Head Scratcher

“Bee Kind to the Bugs - Culture Abuse”

A wonderful feel good rock song with an infectious, waspish and almost lackadaisical guitar lick throughout. The verse on this track is so much fun to sing along to and the way frontman Davd Kelling says the word “bugs” is fantastic and channels the late great Joey Ramone. Bay Dreams, the album this song is taken from, is well worth your time and definitely one of the highlights of the year so far.

Track 2

Spotify

“Girls Like You (feat Cardi B) - Maroon 5”

It’s Maroon 5 so you know what to expect by now. It’s a saccharine sweet love song with high pitched vocals featuring some “yeah yeahs” and some “ooh oohs”. Oh and it’s modern pop so there’s some rap from a hot new artist thrown in for good measure.

The Head Scratcher

“Suffer - Chastity”

This song has a fantastically subdued intro with solemnly bending notes as the backdrop to Brandon William’s gentle vocals. The chorus bursts into life with massive fuzzed up riffs but with the same gentle vocals and it’s an absolute delight to listen to. The album Death Lust is definitely worth a listen (or several) as it explores alternative genres from indie-rock to post-hardcore.

Track 3

Spotify

“I Like It - Cardi B”

“I Like It” samples the latino infused “I Like It Like That” by Pete Rodriguez which makes for a pretty interesting beat for Cardi B to lay some rhymes over. Unfortunately her rhymes are boring and don’t hold my interest and then to make things worse Bad Bunny or J Balvin or whoever comes in with his auto-tune latino-rap because “Despacito was massive and we need some of that”. It’s just plain bad. Good idea, poorly executed.

The Head Scratcher

“A Boy Named Andrew - Fantastic Negrito”

Please Don’t be Dead is a grimy, funk and soul infused masterpiece and A Boy Named Andrew is one of the best songs on the record. That intro riff and chant makes you feel like you’re off on a monumental journey and the full album is exactly that.

Track 4

Spotify

“Lucid Dreams - Juice WRLD”

I immediately recognised the melody that forms this basis of this song it’s Sting’s “Shape of My Heart” so if you like this you might want to check that out. “Lucid Dreams” is a little more successful than Cardi B’s effort as Juice WRLD’s flow is a bit more competent. Those annoying subtly auto-tuned vocals are present and correct which is disappointing but I actually don’t mind this.

The Head Scratcher

“Storm - MØL”

The opening track of “Jord”, one of my favourite albums of the year, Storm is an astounding piece of music. It’s a layered wall of sound featuring gorgeous lead guitars, crushingly heavy riffs and rasping black metal vocals. Granted, those vocals won’t be for everyone but this is still an utterly beautiful and uplifting song.

Track 5

Spotify

“SAD! -XXXTENTACION”

I listen to some heavy music that can sometimes be tough to get through but usually you come away feeling like it was worth it. Listening to this song was not worth it.

The Head Scratcher

“Power Of The World (S Curls) - Dr Octagon”

For me, this is what hip-hop should be: sick beats, great flow and above all a sense of humour. ‘Nuff said.

Track 6

Spotify

“Better Now - Post Malone”

I don’t get the appeal of Post Malone. He uses the same bland, subdued and of course auto-tuned vocals as everyone else which just makes the whole thing sound artificial. To be fair, I don’t hate this but I just find it boring and don’t understand why he’s so popular.

The Head Scratcher  

“The Hunt - Code Orange”

The complete antithesis of boring, The Hunt builds upon Code Orange’s inventive and abrasive style of industrial hardcore and features harsh guest vocals from Slipknot’s Corey Taylor. A brutal, punishing but incredibly rewarding listen.

Track 7

Spotify

“One Kiss (with Dua Lipa)”

A cheesy 90s-esque club anthem but an awful one. I heard this on the radio in the car once and hated it but 5 mins later I caught myself humming the “one kiss is all it takes” verse. Terrible but catchy. I can see this being a club DJ staple for some time.

The Head Scratcher

“Rats - Ghost”

From cheesy club anthems to cheesy heavy metal. I’m not a massive fan of Ghost, it’s all a bit too theatrical and dramatic for me but Rats is fantastic. That chorus of “Rats oh-woah-oh” is joyous. If you like Rats, make sure you check out the rest of Ghost’s latest album; Prequelle.

Track 8

Spotify

“Solo (feat. Demi Lovato)”

Unfortunately not a song about everybody’s favourite scruffy looking nerfherder, Solo really does nothing for me. It features a watered down caribbean-island-esque beat with awful lyrics and annoying whooping throughout. Utterly forgettable. Baffling popular.

The Head Scratcher  

“Stress (WWW) - Justice”

A newly reworked version of the classic track from Justice’s debut album Cross. Uncompromising, uncomfortable and befitting of its name but also, somehow, DAF (that’s danceable as fuck). Check out Justice’s latest album World Wide Woman featuring many more classic tracks reworked to perfection.

Track 9

Spotify

“Taste (feat. Offset) - Tyga”

Despite still having many of the aspects of modern hip-hop I dislike and terrible backing vocals I found myself actually enjoying this as Tyga is an accomplished rapper. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll never put this on through choice but if it came on the radio I wouldn’t frantically reach for the tuner like my life depended on it, for a few seconds at least.

The Head Scratcher

“Bone Dry - Eels”

A wonderfully evocative track featured on the latest album from Mark Oliver Everett’s Eels. Bone Dry is a down and dirty rock song that exudes cool and wouldn’t sound out of place playing in a club lounge in a gritty crime caper. The song does feature some cheesy “shoobie-doobies” but somehow “E” gets away with it.

Track 10

Spotify

“Youngblood - 5 Seconds of Summer”

Despite having an upbeat bouncy chorus this is just totally uninteresting copy and paste pop music. I really have nothing else to say about it. Utterly forgettable.

The Head Scratcher

“Turnstile - Generator”

And now for something completely unforgettable. Turnstile are reinventing the art of hardcore by writing furiously catchy, varied and powerful songs. Time & Space has quickly become one of my favourite albums of all time and Generator is probably my favourite track on there. Crushing riffs, pounding drums, irresistible shouted lead vocals, inventive backing vocals and THAT “generator by my side” chorus make this one of the most essential tracks of the year.

Track 11

Spotify

“God’s Plan - Drake”

It’s that fella Drake again. He’s good isn’t he? Um, if God’s Plan is anything to go by then no, no he’s not.

The Head Scratcher

“So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish - A Perfect Circle”

With it’s pounding drums and uplifting opening guitar riff So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish just immediately puts you in a good mood. An absolute joy to listen to from start to finish and one of many standout songs on A Perfect Circle’s new record Eat The Elephant. This is a song that gets more and more rewarding with every listen. We’ve been treated to some outstanding albums this year and this is one of the very best.

Track 12

Spotify

“Nice For What - Drake”

Two Drake songs in a row? This is getting ridiculous. Nice For What is slightly more interesting featuring some female backing vocals throughout but ultimately ends up being a cacophonous mess. A tough listen.

The Head Scratcher

“QYURRYUS - The Voidz”

And now for something else ridiculous but delightfully so. QYURRYUS infuses 80’s synths with a pounding eastern inspired beat and a deliciously over the top vocal chorus. A song I can’t believe exists. After listening to this you may think I’ve lost it and maybe I have but this is easily one of the most unique and exciting songs I’ve heard in years. Virtue, the album, ain’t half bad either.

Track 13

Spotify

“Te Bote - Remix - Nio Garcia et al”

NEXT!

The Head Scratcher

“Don’t You Dare - Zeal & Ardor”

I needed to cheer myself up after that “Te Bote” track so here’s possibly my favourite song of the year so far Don’t You Dare by Zeal & Ardor. An impeccable merging of black metal and southern soul music which is haunting, foreboding, brooding and face meltingly heavy. An incredible song and an incredible album.

Track 14

Spotify

“Jackie Chan - Tiesto”

The name of this track had a lot of promise but instead of being versatile, technically brilliant and with perfect comic timing we have Post Malone going through the motions with some by the numbers funk guitar and off-the-shelf-electronica playing behind him. Don’t bother with this.

The Head Scratcher

“Flames - Protoje”

I had never heard of Protoje before I stumbled across his latest album A Matter of Time but I was immediately blown away by opening track Flames. It’s a proper down and dirty reggae infused rap song with some serious grooves going on in the background and a seriously overblown intro (in a good way).

Track 15

Spotify

“Back To You - Selena Gomez”

A catchy, uplifting and inoffensive pop song. Not for me but I can see why it’s popular.

The Head Scratcher

“Nameless, Faceless - Courtney Barnett”

Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett writes infectious alt-rock songs and Nameless, Faceless is a prime example. Whilst it’s fun and uplifting musically, lyrically it’s quite dark with the chorus “I wanna walk through the park in the dark, Women are scared that men will kill them” and pre-chorus “I hold my keys, between my fingers”. A fearless and fiercely honest track and a truly essential listen.

Track 16

Spotify

“No Tears Left To Cry - Ariana Grande”

One thing’s for sure, Ariana Grande can really sing. That one thing aside, I’ll put this to one side and forget about it. It’s another pop song squarely aimed outside my demographic and I’m happy for it to remain exactly there.

The Head Scratcher

“Habits - Marmozets”

Rebecca Macintyre, lead singer of Marmozets, can also really sing. Habits is a storming track with an opening riff that channels Songs For The Deaf era Queens of the Stone Age and a soaring chorus that really shows off the frontwoman's vocal talents. This is just one of the many brilliant songs on Marmozets sophomore album Knowing What You Know Now.

Track 17

Spotify

“Moonlight - XXXTENTACION”

Ah it’s XXXTENTACION again. Is this any better than the last one? Yes it is but it’s still shit.

The Head Scratcher

“Black Nails - Tierra Whack”

I could have picked a number of songs from Tierra Whack’s Whack World an astonishingly creative album for the Instagram generation. Each song is only a single minute in length and is accompanied by an appropriately bizarre music video. Whack World is best viewed in one sitting and it only takes 15 mins so you have no excuse. Black Nails is the perfect album opener, bright and poppy and most of all it leaves you wanting more unlike most of the other songs on this list. It does end really abruptly so just go and listen to the rest of Whack World.

Track 18

Spotify

“Don’t Matter To Me (feat. Michael Jackson) - Drake”

Hi Drake, long time no see. What you got for me this time? A brooding urban soul track featuring Michael Jackson from beyond the veil!? No thanks. It might not matter to Drake but if Michael Jackson were still alive I think it would matter to him.

The Head Scratcher

“Ghost - Gouge Away”

A pondering bass driven hardcore behemoth. I only heard this a couple of days ago but it instantly became one of my favourite songs of the year. Ghost features a slow paced but absolutely huge chorus with some of the hookiest screamed vocals I’ve ever heard. Gouge Away’s next album is due at the end of this month and I can’t wait to hear it.

Track 19

Spotify

“Rise - Jonas Blue”

Saccharine pop with some woodwind, piano, weird out of place electronica and boring drum machine loops. Again, I don’t think this is aimed at me.

The Head Scratcher 

“Sequels, Remakes & Adaptations - Spanish Love Songs”

Fast-paced, upbeat, heart-on-your-sleeve, contagious, euphoric and exhilarating. Everything pop-punk should be and Spanish Love Songs hit it right on the nose. Their album Schmaltz has been getting rave reviews this year and deservedly so.

Track 20

Spotify

“Nonstop - Drake”

Drake, you’re back for the final track, I feel like we’re friends now. Nonstop is the same beat over and over and over nonstop for four minutes? That’s cool but I’m tired. If I stop listening after one minute will I miss anything? No? That’s cool. Keep in touch? Sure, we’ll Skype.

The Head Scratcher

“You Without End - Deafheaven”

A sprawling, dreamlike track featuring sun-kissed guitar tones, twinkling piano and scathing black metal vocals. Wait, what? Deafheaven’s Ordinary Corrupt Human Love was dubbed the future of metal upon its release and it’s easy to see why. There’s some seriously great musicianship on offer here (especially those drums) and somehow the vocals just work.

Phew, getting through that Spotify playlist was a slog but at the same time I've had a blast writing about some of my favourite songs of the year so far. Obviously there were tonnes I had to miss out so let me know your favourites in the comments. Let me know if you think I've been too dismissive of some of the Spotify Songs of the Summer too and if there are any songs by those artists that I should be checking out.

Until next time.         

Peace.