The first year of post-graduation life sucked.

Actually, the year 2017 sucked in general.

It was the first full year where I was finished with my academic career that defined my life in retrospect.

Several issues from college carried over and when it couldn’t be fixed, I made the ultimatum to ex-communicate with several people if they haven’t done so already.

As a result, the inadvertently consequence of graduating a semester early put me into a life and identity crisis.

For a long time, I pondered if I regretted graduating in Fall 2016. But such thoughts are a distant memory because there’s nothing I can do about it.

Despite the many lows, there been plenty of highs since 2017.

In fact, if it wasn’t for the lows, a few things wouldn’t have been able to do the following things that began in 2017.

First, I made my website that was created via Wix for a college course into a brand. It started off as a platform to do race summaries and opinions in the world of motorsports that led to me joining Motorsports Tribune the following year.

Second, the frustrations led to documenting my life on New Year’s Eve 2017 and to this very day, I’ve written on journals for over 2900 days without a definitive end period at this time. I’ll probably stop writing daily when I finally get married. Time will tell.

Finally, I wanted to document the songs I enjoyed playing that either came out in the calendar year in subject or stuff I finally discovered. The latter was an enigma during my time at KUOI-FM Moscow 89.3 (2013-16) and I still stand by that mindset.

There’s plenty of tunes (and films these days) I’ve yet to discover and when I do, it’s a beautiful feeling most of the time.

Beginning in 2019, I began doing the “100 Songs I Felt the Vibe” series and it’s become a staple of my blogs to do it annually. I’ve done retrospective lists beginning with a 2018 list prior to the pandemic.

Then came along the daunting task of remembering what songs I really liked in both High School (2009-13) and College (2013-16) the past two Decembers.

Now, I’m finally completing the missing year of this series. The year that nearly destroyed me. It’s time to look back at the songs I remembered fondly and in retrospect, don’t care for these days.

Of all my retrospective lists, 2017 was the most difficult because there were some songs that bled into 2018. Several songs had to be removed because I associated with 2018 more than 2017 as soon as I began thinking hard enough.

Therefore, my thoughts aren’t as thorough and it’ll be in the classic format instead of the fresh look I began last year.

Below, you’ll see all my past rankings for you to enjoy after this post!

TOP 100 SONGS: HIGH SCHOOL | COLLEGE | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024

Without further ado, it’s time to look back at the 100 tracks that defined 2017! There’s two acts in particular that dominated the year which symbolized the end of one chapter and the start of another.

100) Brendan Angelides and Eskimo – Riding (2017)

I’ve said this before in previous blogs, 13 Reasons Why became brain rot programming before that term became a common term. It’s one of the shows where if it ended at the source material (Season 1), it would’ve been just fine.

However, there’s one good thing the show did and that’s its soundtrack and scores. Okay, not the fourth and final season because I couldn’t gravitate to any of the tunes compared to the three seasons.

This is arguably my favorite score piece from the show’s “overstayed its welcome” run (until probably season 3 of Euphoria takes the throne). The haunting and soothing vibes was mixed well that reminded me so much of Grand Theft Auto V’s score in a period where I finally played the game from top to bottom.

This is what post-graduate Luis thought in that time period. Much of the stuff I’m going to say is what I felt in 2017.

99) Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx – NY Is Killing Me (2011)

This tune capsulates the title quite well because not everybody can handle the New York lifestyle. Jamie xx’s beat is very upfront about it.

More than any other year, I can relate to this tune but rather than New York being the focal point, it’s a mix bag of both Idaho and Washington because I was entering the post-education world.

98) Future – Wicked (2016)

In college, I thought of this song being a punchline of how bad rap had become and Crank Lucas was a master of pointing out for laughs. I was all about how the style of rap music wasn’t my cup of tea unless made fun of.

Not long after finishing college, I gave “Wicked” a go and tolerate it. Maybe there’s some good to that era of rap music.

97) The xx – Sunset (2012)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 30 (COLLEGE)

If you’ve listened to The xx live, some songs sound different to capsulate a mood. “Sunset” is one of my favorite tunes from them and while the live version when I saw them in Seattle that year threw me off, it hits just as fine.

That said, the studio version holds up real well and when the mood is ideal, it’s even better. This is one of many songs that carried my early 20s.

96) Metallica – Welcome Home (Sanitarium) (1986)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 10 (2020) & 49 (2018)

No year have one artist took over my soul and music taste than Metallica did in 2017. HAIM in 2021 and Taylor Swift in 2023 did as well, but this period was all Metallica, all the time.

The first entry highlights 2017 being the year I began expanding into Metallica’s library further and this tune brought a unique light to what makes the band so iconic.

As time went by, it became an anthem but in 2017, I just liked how dark it sounded in the decade known for vibrancy and futuristic. Metallica found a way to make it 80s but menacing.

95) David Coverdale – The Last Note of Freedom (1990)

I associate this track with 2011 when I “attempted” to do a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series highlight reel with this song focusing on the Chase portion. I didn’t upload it on YouTube because 2011 was that weird period where you couldn’t do highlights without being worldwide blocked or the whole video being automatically muted. Now, it’s easier with some exceptions.

Fast forward to 2017, I was in my Days of Thunder phase. Far from the first and far from the last.

This song has a tremendous build and kind of a shame it’s only heard in the credits of the 1990 film. It did the track injustice in my book.

David Coverdale’s final significant impact during his prime shined bright with this record and I’m thankful for it.

94) Fleetwood Mac – The Chain (1977)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 17 (COLLEGE), 48 (HIGH SCHOOL), 58 (2019), 97 (2023)

What’s there to be said that hasn’t been said about my previous entries? Look back at the other four rankings to get the idea.

Even in 2017, the track got my pumped up across the board!

93) Thalia – Arrasando (2000)

I was watching a Sabado Gigante clip and the song was played during a modeling routine and another childhood core memory was unlocked in 2017.

I’ve not heard this song since the year it came out when my family were driving around god knows where. It dominated my listening experience for a few weeks and the song went dormant once more.

92) Apollo Smile – Thunderbox (1990)

Another track from Days of Thunder was this fairly obscure tune that’s played when Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) and Rowdy Burns (Michael Rooker) decided to smash rental cars around Daytona Beach.

What really give this song a look was hearing this in a classic NASCAR crash compilation video by AdamSc3 in 2006. All I can think of was this is the most 1990 song of all-time.

It made for a great tune for a wrestler I created on WWE 2K17 named Evelyn Valentine that was going to be a part of an all-women’s wrestling promotion. The needle drop kicks in after the USC fight song because the character was based in SoCal of course.

In that period, the song fit a book smart yet mischievously gorgeous personality. That concept of doing Universe Mode of such fictional promotion never came to be. Just like many things in life.

91A) Metallica – Seek and Destroy (Live) (1989)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 72 (2018) & 92 (2023)

God bless Metallica’s concert at the then-named Seattle Coliseum on a pair of hot August nights in 1989.

Jason Newsted really brought this song to life during the live shows. Not as much here, but definitely afterwards and here’s why.

91B) Metallica – Seek and Destroy (Live) (1999)

STING!

It’s a bummer the Woodstock ’99 version of “Seek and Destroy” isn’t available for streaming platforms because it’d make this track eligible for a proper entry.

Anyways, the second verse is where Jason shines. It’s a shame how his tenure with Metallica ended which wouldn’t be too long after this performance.

Even when I worked the show at Lumen Field in 2017, it sounded so damn good. Especially, the breakdown at the end of the song. This is why I love the live version of “Seek and Destroy” all the time. Regardless of what time period, but mainly from 1989 onwards.

90) Crank Lucas – Isssa Moe (2017)

The man that provided amazing comic relief throughout college was Crank Lucas. His material was pure gold in that period that I figured to give his album, Rapgoals a go.

“Issa Moe” just stands out where you can get the vision of his skills and storytelling (namely the DMV region) beyond the skits.

The beat is addicting as it can get! Really great in the nighttime if you want to get away from the madness you might be dealing with. Plus, a laugh or two along the way.

89) Metallica – Fuel (1997)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 73 (COLLEGE)

There was nothing great than hearing this track live in 2017. Also, catching up on the older Brock Beard starting grid videos.

The one in subject is the 2008 Ford 400 starting lineup video. For some reason, I wanted to hear the track at 0.75 speed and it was addicting.

As much as I dislike 2008 across the board, the video painted the NASCAR season in a good light. If you’re into the madness!

88) The Human League – The Sound of the Crowd (1981)

This was more or less about attempting to do a KamikazeGames style of Kurt Busch’s “fuck” audio clip with a song. I should have it somewhere at a hard drive that’ll remain dormant.

On that note, “The Sound of the Crowd” is one of the most underrated 80s tunes ever. There isn’t a track quite like it from The Human League’s arsenal in that time period.

Slap this track and build an F1 crash compilation from 1980-1995 out of it! No? Just me? Okay.

87) The Chain Gang of 1974 – Witch (2014)

“Get out of my mind…get out of my life!” — truer words to live by when you hate a person so damn much like I did with one from 2016-17.

Before the year ended, we were no longer on speaking terms. Let’s keep it that way because the mental damage was irreversible.

This is one of a few tracks I associate to such person.

86) Metallica – The Four Horsemen (1983)

This song just rules! There’s no other way to describe when I heard it from time-to-time in 2017!

These days, I still laugh at the fact in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, starring Zac Efron as Ted Bundy, this song plays when James Hetfield’s character beat that tar out of him. So out of nowhere, but necessary.

85) INXS – New Sensation (1987)

Not so much today because I’ve not heard it in quite a long time, but what I said about “The Four Horseman” applies here! It ruled in 2017.

84) Motörhead – No Voices in the Sky (1991)

The days when I watched nothing but Beavis and Butt-Head roasting and sometimes praising music videos on the internet.

It gave me more exposure to the metal music scene and other hidden gems such as this track from 1991. I think I will share those roasts and appraisals on this blog!

83) Suicidal Tendencies – Subliminal (1983)

The first song from ST I’ve heard took place in 2017. Thanks to Grand Theft Auto V. Some of their music became an “institution” of my ranked tunes over the years. See what I did there?

82) Arman Cekin feat. Paul Rey – California Dreaming (2016)

The only reason why this song even made it into my consciousness was because there’s this one YouTuber I didn’t care for at all. Many people within a group didn’t either.

With me, it’s the awful editing, thumbnails (worsen now) and bullshit audio censorship!

Worse of all, not only was this song used, the channel intro that accompanied the tune screams “get hyped boi, OMGOMG MLG” slop! I fucking hated a lot of channel intro videos that came out in the late 2010s. It’s just so fucking bad!

It’s an alright song that even Snoop Dogg had a guest verse in a remix, but I don’t give a shit about that one!

I miss the channel named “Bill Elliott Sadler” and its wannabe 70s porno jazz tune!

81) Moon Taxi – Two High (2017)

That reminds me, I need to finish the final season of Atypical…and watch season 2 of Hazbin Hotel.

Anyways, I heard this song somewhere and fell in love with it throughout 2017. It gave me strong San Diego beachy vibes with the sport of beach volleyball setting the tone.

I liked the tune at the time for those reasons.

80A) Metallica – No Remorse (1983)

ATTACK!

The whole song kicks ass and makes me wanna lay the bumper on someone and cause a 20-car pile-up.

Sheer utter chaos!

You can say that about many tracks of Kill ‘Em All, but “No Remorse” is that damn tune for me to describe such chaos.

80B) Metallica – No Remorse (Live) (1985)

I don’t think I heard the live version from 1985 until a year or two later, but it’s important to me to include this performance! It’s muffled but Metallica were that hungry AF band in this period!

79) MC Hammer – Pumps and A Pump (1994)

When MC Hammer tried to be a “cool gangster.”

Not my proudest tune I’ve heard, but I do like the beat though.

There’s multiple music videos of this song. One is the “street” version and the other one is my guess why MC Hammer was ridiculed throughout the 1990s. You’re not seeing either one!

78) Lazerhawk – King of the Streets (2013)

Before “’86 Baby” became a thing, there was something about ’86 that ruled in a fictional universe.

Thanks to watching a GTA V mod that emulates how Los Santos would’ve looked like in 1986, I was first introduced to this track.

It was in that point I felt like owning one of those Group B rally cars.

77) The xx – Say Something Loving (2017)

I See You showcase a mixture of the old and new style The xx attempted in what remains their latest album to date.

This track is one of those examples of the band’s maturity and style changing, but not fully alienating what made them a beloved group.

76) Twin Shadow – Old Love/New Love (2013)

I don’t know why I loved this track in 2017 other than Twin Shadow’s soothing voice and the delivery of it all.

Maybe it was the euphoric SoCal feeling I was wanting heavily in the late 2010s and this track reminded me of those feelings.

Good tune, but one I’ve not gone out of my way of hearing because the phase of loving GTA V is long gone. Thanks to Rockstar Games becoming what they’ve ridiculed for a long time (cough, cough GTA Online). It’s not even funny at this point.

75) Blood In Blood Out – This Fight We Fought (2005)

In an alternate universe, loud CM Punk chants echoed at every “ECWWE” program when he came out to this obscure ass track in early YouTube meme lore instead of Killswitch Engage’s “This Fire.”

Think if Randy Orton kept “This Fire” and not went to CM Punk.

The very track carried by fantasy and one particular video that unfortunately (and pissed off about it) isn’t on the platform anymore.

So, let me say this to revive your memory — “don’t fuck with AC Slater!”

74) The Spencer Davis Group – Gimme Some Lovin’ (1966)

The last of what I’ll call the Days of Thunder phase tunes is a classic!

For some reason, the film version is pitched but it’s fine. It makes it unique because the cover that accompanied the soundtrack isn’t good. Not even close.

An adored tune back in middle school (I may do one down the road) resurfaced in my post-college life and relatively right away after graduating. This song never fails to pump me up, regardless of the tune being different.

Now I want to eat ice cream!

No, Luis! Fight the temptation dammit!

73) Metallica – Hardwired (2016)

At what point in your life you first experience super loud live music?

The summer of 2017 at Lumen Field.

As soon as the rapid riffs began, it was deafening in Seattle and probably damaged my ears. Metal!

The line “We’re so fucked! Shit out of luck!”

It was so relatable then and it’s more relatable now than ever before in a period of destruction across the board. Man did “Hardwired” aged blissfully under unideal circumstances.

72) Scandal feat. Patty Smith – The Warrior (1984)

When did Alison Brie became a crush of mine at one point?

2017 — the year GLOW premiered and haven’t fully committed in watching the entire series unfortunately.

I’ve heard this tune every now and then at a distance, but it finally drew my attention in 2017.

The show and the history of GLOW (Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, an 80s wrestling promotion) became an influence of doing a WWE 2K16 and WWE 2K17 Universe Mode of fictional female characters with this track being the theme.

Empowering for its time and to this day. That said, I’m curious to know where does this song factor into the remaining four episodes of Stranger Things 5.

Yeah, I found out this song will be in the show. Thanks to a vinyl I bought at Target on Black Friday that’s related to the final season.

71) The Hellecasters – Back On Terra Firma (1993)

ESPN used this track throughout the 1990s during their race segways before going to break. Notably, the 1996 Food City 500.

This was the beginning of my search for cool ass production themes that I’ve found from 2017 onwards.

Chill tune. Good for a 90s race intro.

70) Daft Punk – Robot Rock (2005)

There’s a bad ass drum cover I saw that year and it reignited my interest of “Robot Rock” at an all-time level.

Forget the generic ass rap and EDM tunes, slap this during driver intros. Again, only me? Okay.

69) Moby – Lift Me Up (2005)

ITV’s Formula One coverage. That’s all.

Moby does have a way to have a tune that comes into my consciousness and stay with me for a period of time.

That said, it typically lasts a year and becomes a distant memory.

68) Ennio Morricone – The Ecstasy of Gold (1966)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 68 (COLLEGE)

The iconic track from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is forever a part of Metallica’s lore.

Another thing that played a role on this tune staying relevant in 2017 was the Modelo commercials which played a remix of the tune.

When I tried to save my career by doing highlight reels of high school football, I used the remix for the first game I did.

Plus, there’s a Paulstretched version which made the song 800% slower and more menacing.

By menacing, I do mean in a depressive state because towards the end of the year, I was fighting demons. Namely, the failures of not having any trajectory of my career.

Things would turn around not long after, so all is good looking back on it.

67) Metallica – Hit the Lights (1983)

The song that started it all!

Metallica’s motive was to kick ass right out of the gate and they certainly did. Little did people knew how much they’d kick ass going forward, especially hearing this cutting edge tune for the first time ever.

I envy those who were around in 1983 that got to experience it right out of the gate. Similar to how I feel about those around in 1978 when folks heard of Van Halen’s “Eruption” for the first time.

66) The Doors – My Wild Love (1968)

Jim Morrison’s voice can do many things to a person’s soul and probably saying that is a massive understatement. I really love this gem.

65) Calvin Harris – Summer (2014)

The music video is quite shit which is why you’re not seeing it here, but the song isn’t quite shit.

It’s quite iconic to this day.

64) Mobb Deep – Get Away (2001)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 79 (2018)

When Prodigy passed away, I was in the mood of hearing some Mobb Deep tunes for the rest of 2017.

“Get Away” was one of the tracks I resonated the most in terms of the theme and storytelling. Even thinking about it now, the track holds up across the board.

63) Holy Oysters – Fire Dancing (2017)

Another tune that symbolized my dreams of leaving Washington and head to California.

Unlike “Too High,” “Fire Dancing” is a tune I’m open to listen without skipping it when the mood is perfect. It’s an overall better song.

62) Metallica – Moth Into Flame (2016)

My favorite tune from Hardwired…to Self-Destruct!

Granted, I heard the botched live version from the Grammys first, but the tune itself sounds so damn good! The S&M 2 version sounds great as well.

61) Ricky Martin feat. Maluma – Vente Pa’ Ca (2016)

There was gal from college that was from Europe who I associate with this track in a good way. I call it complimentary, but that’s mainly the tune over the lyrics.

She’s married and probably full of wealth as far as I’m concern.

I hate 2017 lol.

60) Nirvana – Come As You Are (1991)

A great tune to hear on an early foggy morning in Washington. It checks out.

Some days, “Come As You Are” is my favorite Nirvana song from Nevermind. Other days, it’s “Breed,” but for the sake of the year 2017, it’s the former by a landslide.

59A) Bon Jovi – It’s My Life (2000)

At around the tail end of 2017, I watched the 2001 ESPYs video highlighting the 2000 sports season which featured this Bon Jovi classic. One of the tracks that’ll find a way to grab me by the throat and enjoy.

59B) Bon Jovi – It’s My Life (Live) (2003)

From 2003 to 2014, I hated Super Bowl XXXVII.

The Raiders losing to the Bucs angered me as a Bay Area kid. Unlike Super Bowl XLIX (fuck that game), I watched that game the night Super Bowl XLVIII (love that game). I realized that Tampa Bay just owned Oakland and there’s nothing that could’ve been done.

Funny enough, what happened to Oakland in 2003 happened to Denver when Seattle smoked them.

Okay? What does this have to do with 2017?

In spite of hating the game for a long time, I always remembered the post-game performance Bon Jovi had after the game and haven’t heard it until 2017.

Such concept of having a mini post-game concert is best never to be done again if you ask me.

58) Cañaveral – Tiene Espinas El Rosal (1997)

It’s mainly my mom that influenced me to figuring out this legendary cumbia track a decade after it came out.

I’ve always heard it, but never remembered the name. Fortunately, I now know it. Yeah, this track was a frequent listen at the time.

57) The Eastsidaz – Big Red Machine (2000)

I was obsessed with this fan made video of prime Kane coming out to his WWF Aggression theme during this period.

What always stood out with this song is somebody saying “this Kane would destroy Brock Lesnar.” Lives rent free.

To me, prime Kane was from 1997-2001.

56) Metallica – Nothing Else Matters (1991)

If you’ve seen the documentary showcasing the process of making “The Black Album,” you can see the tensions building between the band and Bob Rock.

It took a toll, but Rock wanted to challenge the group that became ad nauseum over time.

This made me appreciate how one of my favorite Metallica ballads came to be and cemented themselves as legends in the music industry.

Kirk Hammett truly shined here! Arguably, one of my favorite solos he’s done and it’s not easy sticking to one because he’s had so many, but “Nothing Else Matters” is well up there on the list.

Not only it got me through 2017, but it’s a song I’ll listen if things are in the pits when it’s necessary.

55) The xx – Infinity (2009)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 1 (COLLEGE), 94 (2019), 95 (2024)

At the time, my life felt complete when hearing “Infinity” live in Seattle after years of anticipation. If and when The xx hit the states, I’d love to hear this track in person again because this song meant the world to me in college.

I know they’re performing at Coachella, but I’m talking about an outright tour here!

Even in the year I was done with my education, “Infinity” stuck with me because it’s a huge part of my life and music taste.

54) U2 – Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix) (2001)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 68 (2018 – ORIGINAL VERSION)

For some reason, I stumbled on the CART race from Milwaukee in 2001 and heard this version of “Elevation” and slowly influenced using the term “feeling the vibe” in my annual blog posts.

As much as I like the original, the “Tomb Raider Mix” is superior and screams early 2000s beyond belief. It’s why I loved it back then.

53) Mobb Deep – Quiet Storm (1999)

PREVIOIUS RANKING: 32 (2019)

Sinister track. Really good for mucky weather.

If you’re into serious telenovelas, that works too. Genre permitted.

52) Phil Collins – I Don’t Care Anymore (1982)

The perfect anthem for 2017!

As the year was winding down, I started not to care and became jaded about a lot of things. Going back to “Witch,” that person largely influenced my mood and proved to be toxic for my health.

So the best way to press on was to play songs that symbolized drifting away from the toxicity and grow up.

51) ZAYN & Taylor Swift – I Don’t Wanna Live Forever (2016)

The fact I’ve never heard this song on cam shows is blasphemous looking back. I’d think this song would’ve been the predominately used track, but it was just European electro pop tunes.

My mental state went into watching erotic crap and this track didn’t do me wonders of escaping those vices. Good tune, but not wise for my health at the time where I was dealing with isolation across the board.

50) Icky Blossoms – Living In Fiction (2015)

Here’s another 13 Reasons Why tune for you!

When I hear this song, I don’t think of the school dance scene. I think about life and excess with a dose of high speed machines jumping through hills while maintaining car stability.

Fun vibes. Nothing but fun vibes.

49) HAIM – That Don’t Impress Me Much (2017)

An amazing cover of Shania Twain’s 90s classic!

It was the early days of recognizing the sassy personalities of the trio.

On top of the fact of how mellow the cover truly is compared to the exhilarating country jam. A sense of aura that makes it unique to the Haim sisters.

48A) Metallica – For Whom The Bell Tolls (Live) (1989)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 33 (COLLEGE – STUDIO VERSION)

“Sit your ass down, Lars! Play the drums like you’re supposed to!”

Then a YouTube comment would say something like “say it louder for those at the back!”

Find someone that’ll defend Metallica like Beavis did because Butt-Head was a bit out of line on purpose.

48B) Metallica – For Whom The Bell Tolls (Live) (1985)

What’s there to be said about Cliff Burton that hasn’t been said already?

He’s a 1 for 1 in this world and his impact was nothing short of brilliance!

47) 38 Special – Like No Other Night (1986)

I think about Idaho when I hear this track instead of the 1993 Bud 500 at Bristol which used this track. It took over once graduating from there.

Slow motion memories of what happened and didn’t happened galore. There some nights that felt unlike anything else, even if those were few and far in between that didn’t include my unforgettable days at KUOI.

46) Drake – Madiba Riddim (2017)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 19 (2018)

More Life is the only reason Drake was my top Spotify artist in 2017. It has since been my destiny to not let a bad album define my Wrapped at all costs.

Yeah, this mixtape sucked except for “Madiba Riddim!”

It’s the reason why I consider Drake a two-way street artist. It’s either a good track or a bad track. Never an in between in my book.

This track was such a god damn mood in the best way when I first heard it at the time. A taste of the party life that I consider to be the anthesis of, but certainly wanted that year.

When it comes down to it, this was the only highlight of More Life and nobody will tell me otherwise. Instant classic my ass!

Fortunately, Scorpion was eons better with several classics when it came out a year later!

45) Lorn – SEGA SUNSET (2013)

The year 2017 was the beginning of the never-ending saga of Northwest Wildfires. It started to dreadfully arrive in the region towards the end of each summer.

During that window, this Lorn track hit different after hearing it from my brother multiple times throughout the year. But once I asked for the name of the track, it’s never left me.

There’s an extended version that I played a lot in my phone that embodied two imaginary moments.

The first being a bloody tense feud with the person I detested in college. In one of my dreams, it was a smoke haze surrounded by dark orange skies as both of us were prepared to wage war at Monza in 1994.

As if someone was going to perish that day like in the 1966 film Grand Prix. Henceforth, the Monza setting. One of us will die and we felt it. The long stare down as we strapped into our cars at the dummy grid.

It felt like forever because of the impact the song had on me at the time.

The other setting being something straight out of 28 Days Later which would lead to Blue State’s “Season Song” playing afterwards. Personally, it correlates well but again, it’s only me that connotates “SEGA SUNSET” and “Season Song” together.

44) The xx – A Violent Noise (2017)

A borderline hidden gem of The xx right here! This track was probably one of the only twos that stuck with their original style of xx and Coexist.

As a result, “A Violent Noise” resonated with me but after seeing them live.

43) Sean Price – Monkey Barz (2005)

SEAN P!

Not a lot to say about this track other than it’s a damn mood. One for the gym if you need something fresh.

It’s borderline personal some of the lines because there’s some folks in my life I feel a certain way that’ll remain dormant.

42A) Jamie xx & Romy – SeeSaw (2015)

If and when I ever do cover the Rolex 24 at Daytona, “SeeSaw” will more than likely be played on repeat for x-amount of hours.

I don’t know why in 2017, I felt like associating timelines or the night portion of the race with this track. The beginning and overall vibe of the track just hit right with North America’s most prestigious endurance race.

Similar to what I felt about HAIM’s “I Know Alone” when I first heard it years later.

42B) Jamie xx, Four Tet and Romy – SeeSaw (Club Version) (2016)

The “Club Version” further capsulates the endurance racing feeling that I struggled remembering which version I liked the most in 2017.

In order to find a happy medium, I picked both versions for you readers to listen.

However, this version is the one that sounded so good in that period because it’s a longer build which I love the most about many tracks I’ve heard in my lifetime.

41) System of a Down – Chop Suey! (2001)

Memes! Memes! Some more memes! And some more memes!

Yeah, this classic track was defined by memes. Accept it!

When I want to hear the track, sometimes in slow motion, it’s one of those tracks that rules across the board once it hits you like a truck with tremendous force!

40) Phil Collins – In the Air Tonight (1981)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 10 (HIGH SCHOOL) & 86 (COLLEGE)

Similar to “The Ecstasy of Gold,” a remix defined the vibes I felt in 2017.

Again, football being the focal point when I used a remix of the all-time Phil Collins classic. To me, the remix fit the mood of the high school I graduated from pulled the upset against King’s. It was quite the big deal in my book.

It was the last good moment I ever had in my old hometown because the following year, it fell apart that I consider irreversible. Worsen by the summer of 2023 and now want little to do with my past unless it’s people that haven’t done me wrong in any capacity from 2013 onwards.

The original on the other hand, I still vibe with it and perhaps may creep into my Top 100 tracks this year. Time will tell.

39) The xx – Dangerous (2017)

If there’s a track I would’ve loved to have played at KUOI had I not graduated early, it would’ve been the opening track of I See You.

The album came out less than a month after graduating from Idaho, denying me from “Dangerous” ever making the Moscow airwaves. It would’ve made for an excellent track to yap before the vocals kicked in.

An excellent tune that highlights the transitional period of Oliver Sim, Romy and Jamie xx’s tastes in music. It’s more of a jam for the club than what they’ve put out previously as a collective trio.

It’s why I ranks very high on my list.

38) Sonny & Cher – I’m Leaving It All Up To You (1966)

Christine was one of my favorite films that came out around that time period. Solid performance by Rebecca Hall by the way.

This song sounded so beautiful and part of the reason was because I heard Grupo Yndio’s 1972 cover as a kid. It took me years to realize the connection which is why I gravitated to the Sonny and Cher tune.

Furthermore, I learned while putting this list together that this song was a cover! The original was done by Dale & Grace in 1963.

37) HAIM – You Never Knew (2017)

The song that introduced me to this sister trio band!

It was either a Target in Everett or a Starbucks in Downtown Seattle where I heard this unique deep cut from Something To Tell You.

I loved the synth used in this record and pondered who are they. I used one of the track ID apps and it said “You Never Knew” by HAIM. I quickly put the song on YouTube and life wasn’t the same in the greatest way imaginable.

Only for the HAIM phase to fade away after 2018…

Then fast forward to 2021, life really wasn’t the same in the greatest way imaginable.

Live strong to this day!

36) Eric Burdon & War – Magic Mountain (1976)

The bassline sounded so good. The song itself is a trip.

One of the better gems Rockstar Games used for the Grand Theft Auto V tracks that stood out while playing the main campaign.

Loud and very 70s coded!

35) Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein – Stranger Things (2016)

The synth is what hooked me to Stranger Things before even seeing the show. Thanks to OSW Review, it was my first exposure to the TV series theme and saying “The Cuntery of Hulk Hogan” every single Stranger Things episode!

It was perfect for an afterhours skit I did in my final show at KUOI that lasted 24 hours. Look around my site enough, you’ll find it.

Once I started watching the show in 2017, I was hooked! While the drama and justified bullshit (not about the show starting the practice of seasons being spread out) has put a cloud on the final season hype, I always look forward of seeing new episodes.

I NEVER skip the intro! This is one of the TV themes that’s meant to be played all the way through. Knowing the series finale will be played in theaters, I may go see it. Just for the theme alone!

34) Killing Joke – Eighties (1985)

Angst 101!

The song Nirvana used for “Come As You Are” was played on repeat! It gave me tremendous energy of the title that I felt like skateboarding or running onto other cars around Downtown San Francisco (the Embarcadero Era) like I’m Dale Earnhardt.

It’s the best way to describe this song because Killing Joke provided that kind of mood into my brain when I heard it a lot back in the day.

33) The Chain Gang of 1974 – Sleepwalking (2013)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 3 (COLLEGE)

There’s really one thing to say about this song — euphoric.

It’s really the only way to describe one of the best tracks of the 2010s.

32) HAIM – Want You Back (2017)

To my absolute shock! “Want You Back” NEVER made my Top 100 blogs at any point and I frequently play this song all the time. Especially, the summer period after an AquaSox loss!

The music video is iconic for the legendary walk that’s been a part of HAIM lore.

Forget Beverly Hills, Ventura Boulevard was “the place I want to be” (Weezer is meh). I didn’t knew that back then, but I did years later with “Summer Girl” playing a key role as well.

After my duties of covering the 2022 Busch Light Clash at the LA Memorial Coliseum were finished, the first thing I did was go to the place the “Want You Back” music video was shot.

Just for a walk while playing the tune with my headsets — on the sidewalk of course, not on the literal streets from Casa de Cadillac to the 76 gas station with a functionable 76 ball.

This was a song I really enjoyed playing in 2017 and at the time my favorite song from Something To Tell You.

If you ask 2025 Luis, I’d say “Night So Long” and “Little of Your Love” have surpassed this staple tune, but that varies in how I feel in a certain period.

31) Mobb Deep feat. Nas – It’s Mine (1999)

Despite being more into film culture than ever before, Scarface still remains one of my favorite films of all-time.

This song played on True Life, but I’m not sure which episode played a rap version of the opening track of the 1983 film. My guess was the street racing episode, but the story of it all was that it sounded real cool and had to figure out where the sample came from.

I heard this tune months before Prodigy passed away and mostly played the instrumental in this period. Sooner than later, I gravitated to the vocals, especially Prodigy’s verse I think about from time-to-time.

Mobb Deep really did the Scarface tune justice! It wasn’t even their first dab at it either. Give “G.O.D. Pt. III” a listen!

30) Metallica – Orion (1986)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 27 (2019) & 80 (2021)

At the time when I saw SMIFF TV’s crash compilation video came out in January, I didn’t think much of “Orion” because there wasn’t any vocals. That was a mistake!

When I really got into Metallica later in the year, I gave “Orion” another go and appreciated how their instrumentals rule, especially when Cliff Burton was around.

Is it safe to call it the Cliff Trilogy with “Orion” being the final follow-up to tracks such as “Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth)” and “The Call of Kutulu?”

I say so.

This was another track I used for the football highlight reel I did. It’s an adventure like any Cliff Burton centric tune and I’m blessed for its existence.

For some strange reason, Power Rangers Time Force on the PS1 is what I think of when hearing Cliff’s opening riff. Namely, the “Peril on the High Seas” level where certain notes gave me that impression.

29) Lynyrd Skynyrd – That Smell (1977)

Here’s another song I associate with a dream!

I was in a late night road trip with a girl from BYU and a few other folks when this song played. It became a karaoke session as we were heading to a nice Issaquah home to live the life like a bunch of college kids would do on a summer night before the new semester begins.

Except, it wasn’t taking place in 2017. Instead, it was the late 1970s with films such as Licorice Pizza (retrospective as the film came out in 2021) and Dazed and Confused level of vibes. Of course, That 70’s Show was coded into this dream.

Fun dream man!

Really damn good track as you’d expect from any Lynyrd Skynyrd tune in that period!

What’s the girl even up to these days anyway?

28) Three Days Grace – I Hate Everything About You (2003)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 46 (COLLEGE)

I’ve said it before in my “100 Songs I Felt the Vibes in College” entry, but I’ll give the spark notes version.

The person I hated in college. This is the song I associate with back in 2017!

This was in October when I realized that if the person wasn’t going to give me the courtesy of forgiveness, then fuck you!

Never spoke with the person again after that point! My brain wanted to be like Ice Cube at the end of Friday, but I took the high road.

Moved on to another person and began being picky with folks I want to be friends with. This song was therapeutic! It really was because I really hated everything about that person that’s out of my life.

Moved on to another person and began being picky with folks I want to be friends with. This song was therapeutic!

I’m only highlighting this because it’s how I felt at the time. Those thoughts are long gone as we’re close to a decade from graduating at Idaho. Damn, I’m old!

27) Tangerine Dream, Woody Jackson, The Alchemist, Oh No & DJ Shadow – Minor Turbulence (2013)

The one from the soundtrack is good, but I fell in love with the song heard in the actual mission. Especially, when Trevor had launched the parachute. That’s when the song really takes off as you ascend down to the ground.

All you hear is the frantic strings accompanied by the dominant piano notes. Like ‘this is it mate, you’re in the end game now!’ Long before that term became mainstream.

It’s chaotic across the board and the one mission score I’d pick out of the entire GTA V catalog.

26A) The xx – Performance (2017)

The studio version takes time to really get good, but it’s an amazing song. The one I really love is the live rendition where the guitar tune provides tremendous emotions.

Let’s go back to my trusty festival, Glastonbury!

26B) The xx – Performance (Live) (2017)

I can tell this was a song Romy really had a passion for!

There’s a lot of tracks where she provides a beautiful and vulnerable tone, but “Performance” at Glastonbury is a prime example of what makes her one of a kind.

Such an emotionally beautiful record!

There was another live version The xx did the day before I See You came out that was streamed live that took my breathe away.

However, it may be lost media now because as soon as the stream of a few songs from the album (“I Dare You,” “Dangerous,” “Lips,” and “On Hold” were played), including “Performance,” the performance is gone.

You had to have been there! That’s one way to say it.

25) HAIM – Forever (2013)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 37 (2018) & 87 (2023)

That drum kick! Inject that into my veins!

From Danielle’s vocals at the bridge to the 80s centric rhythm, “Forever” was a cornerstone to HAIM’s debut album Days Are Gone. It was the second tune I’ve heard from them and damn it shifted my mood!

Made me want to samba so bad and when I knew this group are something special!

Like how can I not relate to “Get out of my memory” and “I don’t have the energy?”

That was so me in 2017! Of course I was going to love this jam!

24) The xx – Shelter (Live) (2017)

No matter how many times I’ve heard this version from their Glastonbury set and other video clips that year, I love the build to this track!

“Shelter” is a great track from Coexist, but the live remix took it to a whole new level to highlighted Jamie xx’s master craft of a live routine!

I’m so glad the live version from that period came out years later because it deserves its flowers across the board! Plus, if memory serves correct, “Shelter” led to my personal favorite Jamie xx tune of all-time, “Loud Places.”

23) Metallica – One (1988)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 3 (2019) & 96 (2021)

No “butt munch,” the first part of song doesn’t suck!

It never failed to pump me up back in the day. Hell, it still applies to this very day!

Someday, someone will have the nerve and use this song for a movie. Think Alfred Molina in Boogie Nights for this fantasy scenario. Need I say more?

22) Kauf – When You’re Out (2013)

The number-one reason why I created a Spotify playlist called “SoCal Vibes” back in 2017. What was supposed to be a playlist I wanted to create should I ever go there in the future became my never ending traveling playlist.

Totally defeated the purpose within the next few years, but if you wanted to know how the playlist became to be. “When You’re Out” is the reason!

Nocturnal, mischievous vibes is the best way to summarize this record! Great tune to hear on the road as you’re about to head to the airport before 5am.

21) Scenic – Mesmerised (2013)

Similar to “When You’re Out,” this record also embodies a sexy yet unpredictable nightlife in Southern California.

I may not care for Grand Theft Auto V in 2025, but if there’s one thing they did right, it’s their indie tunes for the game. I really loved this song when I first heard it in the game and looked forward to hearing it throughout the year.

The indie tunes carried the game for quite some time before I realized how badly flawed the game was to where I began associating the game with Metallica’s self-titled black album.

Look at the main GTA games and compare it to the first Metallica albums. Think about it! People say Master of Puppets is their best album like many say the best GTA game is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Oh boy! Does this mean GTA VI will emulate Load in 2026? Time will tell. I like Load, but there are other better albums Metallica put out. Just like how I feel about GTA where GTA V isn’t as good as the other ones.

20) NF – Motivated (2015)

This shit was my anthem back in the day!

I needed this track in my life!

In a time where I really liked NF’s music, “Motivated” was the record that resonated with me that year. Thanks in large part of hearing some of the songs on Bruce Blitz’s website back in the day.

The following year, some of NF’s tune took over my consciousness where a few songs highlighted a fractured friendship with a girl (look back at No. 29).

But before that went down, this song just ruled and were words to live by when I was trying to save my career and my life across the board.

19) The xx – Replica (2017)

A sense of vulnerability and driftless was highlighted in this song.

Slow, smooth but if you think about the lyrics, there was a sense of reality that was highlighted in an article I’ve read leading up to the album’s release.

All three were beginning to find other music passions which proved to be true. They’ve each released solo materials and after 2017, The xx wouldn’t do a track as a collective trio until 2024 with “Waited All Night” that was featured in Jamie xx’s album In Waves.

The song really took off during the fall period, especially when I had long and boring nights. Whether it was out of town or in my home, it didn’t matter because this song had a tremendous presence in my life.

18) Toto – Africa (1982)

PREVIOUS RANKINGS: 55 (2019) & 61 (2018)

That one scene in Stranger Things when Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) and Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer) were alone in the latter’s room.

Big reason why “Africa” reemerged into my 2017 consciousness.

This also must’ve been the period where the song became a popular meme tune. Furthermore, the very friend I’ve talked about in “That Smell” must’ve been studying abroad which did include a stop in Africa.

Yeah, that one scene certainly didn’t do me favors of trying to not think about the girl honestly. I took too many head bumps that must’ve fried my train of thought when telling how I felt in that period.

17) Anthrax – Hy Pro Glo (1993)

“Anthrax kicks ass!”

I’m trying to remember the Beavis and Butt-Head clip that talked about “Hy Pro Glo” was before or after seeing the Metallica clips. Either way, this song rules!

Fuck 2017 Monday Night Raw! I’m hearing “Hy Pro Glo” for three hours if I felt like it!

The line “I bash my head against the wall every day” is so damn legendary in my book because I felt that way each time my teams sucked. As recent as 2023, I thought about that line when the Seattle Mariners couldn’t get their head out their ass.

If you don’t mind, I’m going to listen to this song again at full volume!

16) SonReal – Soho (2016)

I alluded it when I talked about “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever,” but there were songs I heard at cam shows with one I followed on Snapchat via subscription.

This song played at one of those “sex show” clips where I had to pause and figure out the name of the song. It’s so Drake coded, but in a way was better than him.

After 2017 came to a close, I didn’t hear this song until a year ago just because I was looking at the videos I either liked or favorited on YouTube. The nostalgia of the song kicked back in, minus the sex shows and cam girls.

15) The xx – Lips (2017)

This is probably the closest tune from The xx I can associate to lust. Everything about this song hit the right kind of nerves and it arrived in an ideal time period where lust and love was all I thought about.

What else was I thinking about after graduating from college besides finding a media job?

Don’t think about it! It was love and lust.

14) Billy Joel – Sometimes A Fantasy (Live) (1987)

“STOP LIGHTING THE AUDIENCE!”

Curious to hear the song where Billy Joel lost his shit because certain folks were trying to stop people from having a good time, I checked out the live performance.

One of the best live performances I’ve heard. It helped the sound quality was damn crisp and one of the closest times a track made me felt like I was there in 1987.

Bad ass stage presence that damn Billy Joel!

13) Van Halen – Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love (1978)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 62 (2018)

This song screams a 90s Handford Device CART machine ripping it around Indianapolis at over 250+ mph if “The Split” never happened just before the gunshot to symbolize qualifying is over.

I often think about that dream vision when hearing this all-time Van Halen classic.

Not just that, but a few grand prix motorcycles sliding around the streets of Los Angeles during golden hour. The setting was 1984 with a crap ton of cigarette billboards covering the damn joint.

Oh and some hot chicks because of one YouTube video I couldn’t find! That too! Had to have been nuked along with the “Hair of the Dog” video from the very same uploader that used this Van Halen jam.

12) The xx – On Hold (Jamie xx Remix) (2017)

Had I gone to Moscow the day I was named for an award by the folks at KUOI, this was going to be the song I wanted to jam to going there.

Unfortunately, that took place midweek and had to wait until the weekend to visit Idaho in what turned out to be the very last time I did.

Besides a visit to Meridian in 2018, I’ve not been back to Idaho after May 2017.

What I loved about this remix is how party coded this song was. It took the original tune and made it a new track. I’ve yet to hear this song on the road and when that time comes, I fully intend to blast this shit at max volume with the windows down.

Maybe I should do that in 2026. I just need to find the right time for it because 2017 Luis would’ve done it already had I had my license back then.

11) Michael Bolton – Everybody’s Crazy (1985)

That Michael Bolton? No way!

Yeah, before becoming every woman’s heartthrob in the 1990s, Michael Bolton was a metal artist in a period where he couldn’t stand out because of the oversaturation of the glam metal scene.

The music video even has that Bobby Knight clip with the chair! Yeah, maybe Michael Bolton rules?

I don’t think this song sucks if you ask me, Mike Judge.

If anything, “Everybody’s Crazy” made me paranoid because I thought it was the song from Snow Dogs. It wasn’t by the way! Now let me shut up Chester because Cuba Gooding, Jr. said so. His rules, not mine!

Editor’s Note: “Dance With Me” (the song played in Snow Dogs) sounds like Bolton’s attempt at Marc Anthony, Ricky Martin and Supernatural era Santana. Maybe B&B have a point lol!

10A) Kleerup & Robyn – With Every Heartbeat (2007)

This must’ve been the song I relished in Grand Theft Auto V when I began finally playing the whole campaign early in the year. I did play some of the missions during college, but didn’t get far because academics were more important.

Once I was done, I had a bit of time under my hands and “With Every Heartbeat” was an anthem during the early portions of the game. I still like the record after all these years because Robyn is that artist who’s known for legendary tunes that’ll stick with you forever.

10B) Robyn & The xx – With Every Heartbeat (Live) (2017)

For my last B-track of this entry, I remembered about this special live performance Robyn had with The xx! I was worried it was gone, but thank goodness it wasn’t.

Now the video begins midway of The xx performing “Shelter,” but when they brought Robyn to the stage to play “Every Heartbeat,” the song took off in the most euphoric feeling imaginable. It hasn’t faded away after all these years.

9) Metallica – Harvester of Sorrow (Live) (1991)

The Monsters of Rock show in Moscow is one of the most important shows in music history. Metallica played a massive role in that and the live version was the epitome of “EET FUK.”

For those wondering what “EET FUK” is, look it up on Google because it’s on James Hetfield’s ESP Explorer during the …And Justice For All era. Granted, this version was during the self-titled album era, but I still stand by how I feel about “Harvester of Sorrow.”

It made for a great crash compilation tune I attempted to do, but once again, it never made it past the completion phase. However, this was the live version that made me pay attention to Jason Newsted’s contributions to the band.

No matter how much they tend to downplay Jason’s tenure, you can’t deny his role on live shows. You just can’t!

These days, I occasionally hear the studio version of the song at work. Namely, when a certain team have allowed three goals. It’s a kick ass tune, but I’d rather think about the good vibes of hearing it in 2017.

8) Pantera – Domination (Live) (1991)

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again — this fucking rules!

Wait? How has this track not made my Top 100 at any point? Even when it finally became accessible to be considered eligible?

Okay then, I have some explaining to do!

If there was a track I constantly played throughout the second half of 2017, it was another Monsters of Rock performance. Only this time, it’s Pantera on the stage and they wasted zero time to make their presence known and annihilate the stage in front of over a million people.

Dimebag Darrell’s breakdown — hang it in the Louver or whatever the audio equivalent is! Super GOATED performance!

This live version just capsulated every sense of anger and adrenaline I dealt with and I didn’t care how loud it was, it’s meant to be played loud. Max volume is the only way to hear it!

7) J. Balvin & Willy William – Mi Gente (2017)

The only song from 2017 that made my Top 10 that wasn’t by The xx or HAIM. Yeah, mainstream songs from that year either sucked, were underwhelming or it didn’t caught my interest.

This is the only version I’ll hear because the one with Beyonce is lame. I hate the fact that version is the one that made the top-five charts when you have the far more superior original where you can sense the fucking passion.

Beyonce weighed the entire song down and felt like she didn’t even want to be here. It belongs in a special list I may do one day, but I’ll spare that jargon.

This version was a whole vibe where you want to go to a club and hook up with the baddest chicks nearby. There was one that was into that life, but it never led to anything between us.

Anyways, this began the movement of reggaeton records transcending into the Top 40 charts. Not long after, the floodgate opened with Bad Bunny leading the way.

A great tune to dance and just vibe. Need I say more?

6) Lord Huron – The Night We Met (2015)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 58 (2018)

In my 2018 entry, I said had I started tracking songs and telling you stories, “The Night We Met” would’ve been my number-one song of 2017.

Well, it’s the not case at all. Perhaps it was the song I was thinking of at the time, but as you’ll see, there are five tunes that carry the torch much more than the song that defined 13 Reasons Why.

Take the show out of the picture, it’s a great tune that also became the song used in the heavily altered and censored Dale Earnhardt, Jr. tribute by Budweiser at the end of 2017. I’m glad Junior owns that “8” again, but in that time period, it was owned by “The Wicked Witch of the Southeast.”

So there are two ways to look at the song and it’s a beautiful tune with a deep message. It sounded like something that would’ve come out in the early 90s when R.E.M. and Mazzy Star were at their a-game.

5) The xx – I Dare You (2017)

During the final Thanksgiving break before graduating, I watched Saturday Night Live which was hosted by Kristen Wiig with a live performance by The xx.

“On Hold” was the first song to be played and then the second song was a then unreleased tune called “I Dare You.”

I’ve used the word euphoric already, but this tune symbolized that euphoric feeling more than any tune that either came out in 2017 or otherwise. It’s a soothing tune and a reason why The xx was that band in that period.

They just new how to make an unforgettable tune and “I Dare You” was no different.

4) Metallica – Battery (Live) (1989)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 24 (2018)

I wish I could go back to the day I first heard this version of “Battery” because I can’t quite remember how it went.

I’ve already heard the studio version from 1986 and liked the ending a lot. Then I heard the Seattle ’89 performance and damn! It blew me away!

This was prime Metallica. Let me say it again, THIS WAS PRIME METALLICA!

Hungry AF and determined to rule the god damn world!

The ending kicks ass and it’s a total adrenaline rush. More importantly, this was the go-to song if I heard that retched vomit of a tune called “Work” by Rihanna and Drake. I did everything to cancel that trash tune with “Battery ’89” and it mostly worked.

It’s one of the reasons why “Battery” is arguably my favorite Metallica tune of all-time and definitely my favorite all-time live record across the board.

Forget Motionless in White, this shit is my fucking brutality!

3) Metallica – Fade to Black (Live) (1991)

The wildfires and a dark mental state led to connecting to this live performance in Moscow.

The opening lines of “Fade to Black” is what I was feeling in the fall and because the amount of failed moments I had was eating me up.

It was the right song to hear at the right time to get me out of the massive rut. Yes, the lyrics are dark but the song is powerful.

“Fade to Black” lifted me up rather than the opposite, especially when the song kicks into high gear. Again, some of Metallica’s early material are legendary and you can say could do no wrong (“Escape” included).

2) Zack Hemsey – Lost and Found (2016)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 90 (COLLEGE)

If it wasn’t for the amount of support I had from the Idaho volleyball team, “Lost and Found” would’ve been just another song that would’ve stayed in 2016.

I was shocked that my highlight reel video with this track accompanied by it caught wind on Twitter. I just posted it for the sake of posting it because I was super proud of my work.

To this day, it’s the one video I’ve been trying extremely hard to top but with the way my career trajectory had gone, it may never be topped.

Licensing and venue restrictions is a big reason why I could never do a reel of the Iowa vs. Louisville Elite 8 game in Seattle 2023. But with the volleyball reel, it was my way of saying thank you.

Looking back, the lyrics made fuck all sense but everything else just fit the theme which was the struggle of finding a sense of urgency. Moreso, when they were fighting for a Big Sky Conference tournament spot which they were able to do so. It’s why I went with the song in the first place.

Here’s the video in subject which I normally don’t do because this is about music talk. However, it’s too important to why I felt the vibe at the time.

1) Metallica – The Unforgiven (1991)

PREVIOUS RANKING: 52 (2018 – LIVE VERSION)

This song was my anthem for a long time!

It was the very tune that summarized the angst, pitfalls and bitterness I’ve held with how 2017 shaped out to be. Some of it even goes as far back as 2013 because alienation is a damn plague that’ll challenge any human.

What it comes down to is how you harness the matter in order to press forward. That took awhile, but “The Unforgiven” was the starting point of overcoming those demons.

We live in a society where it’s all about the now rather than the buildup of getting to such now. People will clamor for instant success and leave the hard workers in the dust. That’s been one of my main struggles and while it’s not as bad as it was in 2017, it still lingers in my brain every single day.

I’ve not listen to this song in a long time, but what I do know that in the year 2017, this was my safe space tune. My comforting tune, but also my way of coping the struggles. My time isn’t up and it won’t be for awhile.

Fuck those people who left you for dead or not given a damn about you for a long period of time. I had to learn the hard way to recognize the patterns of people who only used me for clout or other things.

They weren’t meant to be around at my highest of highs. I still think of that today.

If you were to tell me which is my favorite song from Metallica, this is the tune by a landslide! It holds a special place in my heart.

SONGS PER DECADE:

• 1960s – 4
• 1970s – 4
• 1980s – 19
• 1990s – 18
• 2000s – 14
• 2010s – 41

TOP 10 SONGS THAT WERE RELEASED IN 2017:

• “I Dare You” by The xx
  • Ranked 5th
• “Mi Gente” by J. Balvin & Willy William
  • Ranked 7th
• “On Hold (Jamie xx Remix)” by The xx
  • Ranked 12th
• “Lips” by The xx
  • Ranked 15th
• “Replica” by The xx
  • Ranked 19th
• “Shelter (Live)” by The xx
  • Ranked 24th
• “Performance” by The xx
  • Ranked 26th
• “Want You Back” by HAIM
  • Ranked 32nd
• “You Never Knew” by HAIM
  • Ranked 37th
• “Dangerous” by The xx
  • Ranked 39th

ARTISTS WITH MULTIPLE TOP 100 SONGS:

• Metallica – 16
• Jamie xx – 13*
• The xx – 11
• HAIM – 4
• Mobb Deep – 3
• Phil Collins – 2
• The Chain Gang of 1974 – 2

*Jamie xx is a member of The xx with two solo tracks making the Top 100

ALL-TIME NUMBER ONE SONGS:

• High School — “Dream On” by Aerosmith
• College — “Infinity” by The xx
• 2017 — “The Unforgiven” by Metallica
• 2018 — “Pray for Me” by The Weeknd feat. Kendrick Lamar
• 2019 — “Never Surrender” by Corey Hart
• 2020 — “Fade Into You” by Mazzy Star
• 2021 — “Falling” by HAIM
• 2022 — “Enjoy the Silence” by Depeche Mode
• 2023 — “Never Let Me Down Again (Live)” by Depeche Mode
• 2024 — “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish

There you have it. The saga (for the time being) is now complete. Every single year from 2009 to the present day is represented. When I look back at music taste eight years ago, it was the start of a massive transition period.

The xx symbolized my college days and their album, I See You truly felt the end of an era. Funny enough, the long-awaited fourth album might be on the cards for 2026, so it’s going to feel great hearing brand new material from The xx sooner than later.

A new chapter began as you can tell, Metallica came into my life big time. No longer was I listening to the same 3-5 songs, but expanded my horizons. Especially, the live tracks with Seattle ’89 being a pinnacle of the band’s history in my opinion.

It also the year I was introduced to HAIM. While it took until 2021 to fully gravatas their work which carries onto today, I’m forever thankful for 2017 being my introductory point to them.

In some ways, 2017 wasn’t all that bad than I make it out to be as far as music is concern.

Hope you enjoy looking back at a vulnerable period in my life with 100 of the tracks and the usual Track A and Track B’s I like to share!

By the way, the reason why I have “for the time being” in parentheses in the post-list introductory is simple, there’s a Top 100 list for 2025 to be shared before the year ends!

While I have work to do on that, including finalizing my rankings and backstories, there’s a few things you can do in support of these blogs!

Outside of discussing about music, I have my main photography page. Feel free to check out my works and if you’re generous, donations are welcomed to keep my business alive.

Tips via Venmo

Until we meet again, doubt me if you insist, prove me wrong if I give consent.

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