In my off hours I host a one-hour general music show on CFBU, Brock University Radio (streaming here; m3u file). It’s on Tuesday nights from 9-10 pm Eastern Time, if you’re so inclined. The genre, such as it is, is “left-field pop,” so chosen for its vagueness.

Every December, as a condition of our CRTC licence, general music hosts must, by law, provide the listening public with our top songs or albums of the year. I split mine up over the past two weeks; I’ll post the actual shows to Mixcloud and link to them here, if I get around to it. In the meantime, here’s my list of the top 30 songs of 2015.

Quick note on #2: In any other year, Grimes’ Art Angels would’ve been easily my top choice. As a musical and artistic statement, it’s at least on a par with Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. It’s exhilarating.

But if you know anything about Australian history and the Stolen Generations, Briggs’ The Children Came Back is like a punch to the gut. One of the most moving and hopeful songs I’ve ever heard. (Seriously, watch the video.) Best tune of the year.

30. Sleaford Mods, Key Markets, No Ones Bothered

29. Danko Jones, Fire Music, Piranha

28. No Zu, Ui Yia Uia

27. Downtown Boys, Full Communism, Wave of History

26. TV Freaks, Bad Luck Charms, Thirteen

25. The Beverleys, Brutal, Bad Company

24. Scary Bear Soundtrack, Ovayok Road, Ovayok Road

23. Simcoe, Simcoe EP, Afterglow

22. Day Ravies, Liminal Zones, Fake Beach

21. East End Radicals, Zero Hour, Ylpd

20. Rebel Tears, I Hate the Beach

19. OK Badlands, Good Logic

18. ttwwrrss, ttwwrrss_2, Rooftop

17. Hello Seahorse!, Nada Extraordinario

16. Lazertits, Gender Studies

15. JuliaWhy?, Wheel, Turntable

14. Windfall Found, Pulling for the Heavens, Soaring (Pulling for the Heavens Pt 1)

13. Podiums, New Club Banger

12. Raised on DJs, Steady Diet, Already Forgot

11. Angie, Free Agent, Down for the Count

10. The Drones, Taman Shud

9. Victories at Sea, Everything Forever, Up

8. Courtney Barnett, Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, Aqua Profunda!

7. Speedy Ortiz, Foil Deer, Mister Difficult

6. Old Kid, This Echo, OK, Okay

5. FFS, FFS, Police Encounters

4. Sahara Beck, Bloom EP, Brother Sister

3. US Girls, Half Free, Damn that Valley

2. Grimes, Art Angels, Kill v Maim

1. Briggs, The Children Came Back (feat. Gurrumul, Dewayne Everettsmith)