RockLists.com

Year-end consensus · Alternative & Modern Rock · seven countdowns combined

The best alternative rock songs of 2011

Seven radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 2011: KROQ, Live 105, WFNX, CD101, CFNY 102.1 The Edge, Studio Brussel and Triple J. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 2011 is “Rope” by Foo Fighters, which appeared on six of the seven countdowns. Five different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster the People (3 stations), “Get Some” by Lykke Li, “Howlin' for You” by Black Keys, “Walk” by Foo Fighters and “Somebody That I Used to Know” by Gotye featuring Kimbra. Foster The People was the year’s most-charted artist, with five different songs placing 13 times across the countdowns.

7countdowns
322songs charted
5different #1s

Top 100 songs of 2011

All 322 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 2011 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Rope Foo Fighters
457		 6 #3 –
2 Walk Foo Fighters
426		 5 #1 1
3 Pumped up Kicks Foster The People
399		 4 #1 3
4 Rolling in the Deep Adele
365		 5 #5 –
5 Shake Me Down Cage The Elephant
348		 4 #4 –
6 Howlin' for You The Black Keys
342		 4 #1 1
7 Helena Beat Foster The People
325		 4 #6 –
8 Cough Syrup Young the Giant
314		 4 #10 –
9 Paradise Coldplay
296		 5 #8 –
10 Lonely Boy The Black Keys
295		 4 #2 –
11 You are a Tourist Death Cab for Cutie
293		 4 #7 –
12 Sail AWOLNATION
292		 4 #2 –
13 Young Blood Naked and Famous
269		 3 #2 –
14 The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie Red Hot Chili Peppers
260		 4 #3 –
15 We Used to Wait The Arcade Fire
258		 3 #7 –
16 Whirring Joy Formidable
254		 3 #4 –
17 My Body Young the Giant
252		 3 #12 –
18 Somebody That I Used To Know Gotye
241		 4 #1 1
19 Under Cover of Darkness The Strokes
235		 3 #11 –
20 Changing The Airborne Toxic Event
225		 3 #7 –
21 Midnight City M83
215		 4 #5 –
22 Every Teardrop is a Waterfall Coldplay
214		 4 #13 –
23 Junk of the Heart (Happy) The Kooks
212		 3 #14 –
24 Roll Away Your Stone Mumford & Sons
206		 4 #16 –
25 What You Know Two Door Cinema Club
191		 3 #3 –
26 Lotus Flower Radiohead
185		 4 #44 –
27 The Sound Of Winter Bush
184		 3 #2 –
28 Not In Love Crystal Castles
184		 3 #26 –
29 Help Is On The Way Rise Against
182		 2 #4 –
30 Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair Arctic Monkeys
181		 4 #11 –
31 Make Some Noise Beastie Boys
172		 5 #21 –
32 Punching in a Dream Naked and Famous
170		 3 #19 –
33 Shake It Out Florence And The Machine
167		 2 #13 –
34 Moneygrabber Fitz and the Tantrums
167		 2 #12 –
35 Machine Gun Blues Social Distortion
165		 4 #16 –
36 The Cave Mumford & Sons
162		 2 #12 –
37 Irresistable Force Jane's Addiction
160		 3 #39 –
38 Holdin' on to Black Metal My Morning Jacket
153		 2 #19 –
39 Colours Grouplove
142		 2 #26 –
40 Panic Sublime with Rome
142		 2 #7 –
41 Techno Fan Wombats
135		 2 #26 –
42 Video Games Lana Del Rey
135		 3 #6 –
43 Waiting For The End Linkin Park
135		 2 #10 –
44 Taken for a Fool The Strokes
134		 3 #36 –
45 Don't Stop (Color On The Walls Foster The People
134		 3 #20 –
46 Got It All (This Can't Be Living Now) Portugal. The Man
130		 2 #25 –
47 Long Time Cake
130		 3 #9 –
48 This Is Why We Fight The Decemberists
129		 2 #20 –
49 Adolescents Incubus
126		 2 #11 –
50 After Midnight blink-182
121		 3 #14 –
51 Up All Night blink-182
120		 2 #8 –
52 L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. Noah & The Whale
120		 2 #32 –
53 Go Outside The Cults
118		 2 #39 –
54 Skip the Charades Cold War Kids
118		 2 #39 –
55 The Suburbs The Arcade Fire
118		 2 #33 –
56 People Say Portugal. The Man
118		 2 #18 –
57 Sick Of You Cake
117		 2 #27 –
58 Around My Head Cage The Elephant
114		 3 #40 –
59 These Days Foo Fighters
113		 4 #30 –
60 If I Had a Gun... Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
109		 2 #35 –
61 Money Drums
106		 2 #45 –
62 The Roller Beady Eye
103		 3 #46 –
63 Future Starts Slow Kills
102		 2 #17 –
64 Tongue Tied Grouplove
102		 2 #16 –
65 Brother Matt Corby
98		 1 #3 –
66 All I Ever Wanted The Airborne Toxic Event
98		 2 #38 –
67 All this dancin around Triggerfinger
98		 1 #2 –
68 Monarchy of Roses Red Hot Chili Peppers
97		 2 #37 –
69 Feeding Line Boy & Bear
97		 1 #4 –
70 Calgary Bon Iver
96		 2 #37 –
71 Will Do TV on the Radio
96		 1 #5 –
72 Awkward San Cisco
94		 1 #7 –
73 Boys like You 360
93		 1 #8 –
74 Constant now dEUS
93		 1 #4 –
75 Endless Summer The Jezabels
92		 1 #9 –
76 I Love It Hilltop Hoods
91		 1 #10 –
77 Listen to Your Love Mona
91		 2 #49 –
78 Love lost in love Triggerfinger
90		 1 #5 –
79 Feel So Close Calvin Harris
90		 1 #11 –
80 Post Break-up Sex Vaccines
90		 2 #43 –
81 Fragile Bird City And Colour
89		 2 #22 –
82 Contact High Architecture in Helsinki
89		 1 #12 –
83 Aberdeen Cage The Elephant
89		 3 #61 –
84 Second Chance Bjorn Peter and John
88		 1 #13 –
85 In want of something School is Cool
88		 1 #6 –
86 Get it Daddy Sleeper Agent
87		 1 #14 –
87 Call It What You Want Foster The People
87		 1 #14 –
88 Take the World She Wants Revenge
86		 2 #32 –
89 Let it ride Triggerfinger
85		 1 #7 –
90 Even Though I'm a Woman Seeker Lover Keeper
84		 1 #17 –
91 I Don't Know The Sheepdogs
83		 1 #18 –
92 Shake It Out Florence + The Machine
83		 2 #19 –
93 Jump Into The Fog Wombats
83		 1 #18 –
94 Delay Intergalactic Lovers
83		 1 #8 –
95 Promises Nero
82		 1 #19 –
96 Swim Surfer Blood
82		 2 #42 –
97 I Feel You Sam Roberts Band
81		 1 #20 –
98 Going Out in Style Dropkick Murphys
81		 1 #20 –
99 Act Yr Age Bluejuice
81		 1 #20 –
100 Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites Skrillex
80		 1 #21 –

Every station’s number one of 2011

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ Pumped Up Kicks Foster the People KROQ Top 30 Songs of 2011
Live 105 Get Some Lykke Li Live 105 Top 50 Songs That Didn't Suck in 2011
WFNX Pumped Up Kicks Foster the People WFNX Top 101 Songs of 2011
CD101 Howlin' for You Black Keys CD101 Top 102 Songs of 2011
CFNY 102.1 The Edge Pumped Up Kicks Foster the People 102.1 The Edge Top 102 Songs of 2011
Studio Brussel Walk Foo Fighters Studio Brussel De Eindafrekening 2011
Triple J Somebody That I Used to Know Gotye featuring Kimbra Triple J Hottest 100 of 2011

All 2011 countdowns in this ranking

About the 2011 ranking

Radio stations count down their listeners’ favorite songs at the end of every year. Each station’s list reflects its own audience, so a song that ruled Los Angeles could miss the top ten in Chicago. To find the songs that defined 2011 everywhere, RockLists gives every appearance percentile-based points (a number one earns 100, the last position earns close to zero) and adds them up across all seven qualifying countdowns. Each radio format is ranked separately, so classic rock and hard rock countdowns never shift the alternative results; use the tabs above to switch formats. Read the full methodology.