Musically, 2024 marked a turning point for me. Swept up a little too much by the comfortable decor of YouTube Plan With Me videos, I noticed sometime in the autumn that 90% of my listening activity revolved around lofi beats. A far cry from how I’ve come to enjoy music, which is through serendipity, laborious searches, and time spent hanging out at record shops.

Still, amid all the lofi beats, there were songs that spoke to me the way music is supposed to.