Diandra’s Top 20 Music Moments of 2013

20. Charles Bradley – Strictly Reserved For You

Soulful retro R&B.

It’s also available on YouTube.

19. Kollektivet – I Wanna Be the Little Spoon

Since September, I’ve had a Norwegian comedy situation. As comparisons go: Ylvis is to nightblogging as Kollektivet is to continuing to blog at the crack of dawn, when sleep might not make a difference.

Kollektivet is a Norwegian sketch comedy show with its hits and misses, but some of those hits include ridiculously brilliant music videos. These include the German techno parody Compliments [1] and the oddly inspirational I’m Stuck [1]. Who hasn’t done the “na-na-na” whine from Don’t Spoil It [1] to avoid hearing spoilers?

My favorite of their songs from 2013 is I Wanna Be the Little Spoon [1], which enlists lyrics like “But man, I have to man boy up and do it” for its spooning revolution. The song I want to showcase, though, is their 2012 viral hit, the most infectious educational earworm ever sung about Norwegian (and Danish) vowels: ÆØÅ (Size Matters).

For an extra challenge, play the song on three hour loop!

18. Ylvis – Janym (Жаным)

My aforementioned Norwegian comedy situation began with Ylvis.

On an exhausting tour of Fox performances, the highlight was their collaboration with Korean girl group Crayon Pop for Bar Bar Bar (빠빠빠) at the 2013 MAMAs in Hong Kong[1].

After The Fox, they presented two more songs on their talk show I Kveld med Ylvis: the slow jam The Cabin [1] and the anthem Massachusetts [1]. They also opened each episode with covers like I’m Blue [1] and Rhythm is a Dancer [1]. Co-host Calle Hellevang-Larsen even broke out a Fuck You, Ylvis [1].

To me, Ylvis’ best musical moment this year is when they performed their 2012 Kyrgyz hit Janym live at the 2013 Gullruten Awards.