RockLists.com

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

The best alternative rock songs of 2012

Six radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 2012: KROQ, 91X, CD101, CFNY 102.1 The Edge, Studio Brussel and Triple J. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 2012 is “Little Talks” by Of Monsters And Men, which appeared on six of the six countdowns and was voted number one by one of them. Six different songs were voted number one somewhere: “We Are Young” by Fun., “Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye, “Little Talks” by Of Monsters And Men, “I Will Wait” by Mumford & Sons and “R U Mine ?” by Arctic Monkeys and others. The Black Keys was the year’s most-charted artist, with three different songs placing 15 times across the countdowns.

6countdowns
287songs charted
6different #1s

Top 100 songs of 2012

All 287 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 2012 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Little Talks Of Monsters And Men
541		 6 #1 1
2 I Will Wait Mumford & Sons
529		 6 #1 1
3 Gold On The Ceiling The Black Keys
440		 6 #2 –
4 Madness Muse
406		 6 #5 –
5 Somebody That I Used To Know Gotye
388		 4 #1 1
6 Tongue Tied Grouplove
353		 4 #4 –
7 Ho Hey Lumineers
341		 5 #5 –
8 Midnight City M83
326		 4 #4 –
9 Take A Walk Passion Pit
316		 5 #3 –
10 Little Black Submarines The Black Keys
312		 5 #11 –
11 Lonely Boy The Black Keys
295		 4 #6 –
12 Runaways The Killers
287		 5 #5 –
13 Burn It Down Linkin Park
275		 3 #4 –
14 It's Time Imagine Dragons
267		 4 #14 –
15 Hold On Alabama Shakes
254		 4 #9 –
16 Some Nights fun.
251		 4 #13 –
17 45 The Gaslight Anthem
244		 5 #9 –
18 Too Close Alex Clare
233		 3 #3 –
19 Everybody Talks Neon Trees
223		 3 #7 –
20 Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings) Silversun Pickups
219		 4 #11 –
21 Anna Sun Walk the Moon
217		 3 #2 –
22 Oh Love Green Day
213		 4 #14 –
23 Simple Song The Shins
204		 5 #8 –
24 Trojans Atlas Genius
194		 3 #5 –
25 We Are Young fun.
194		 2 #1 1
26 Freedom At 21 Jack White
193		 3 #20 –
27 Get Free Major Lazer
193		 2 #2 –
28 We Are Young f/Janelle Monae fun.
183		 2 #5 –
29 Youth Without Youth Metric
174		 2 #7 –
30 Kill Your Heroes AWOLNATION
171		 3 #13 –
31 These Days Foo Fighters
163		 3 #12 –
32 R U Mine? Arctic Monkeys
161		 2 #1 1
33 Shake It Out Florence + The Machine
154		 3 #21 –
34 Days Go By The Offspring
148		 3 #23 –
35 Sixteen Saltines Jack White
146		 3 #23 –
36 Don't Stop (Color On The Walls Foster The People
146		 3 #21 –
37 Paradise Coldplay
146		 2 #16 –
38 Default Django Django
145		 3 #19 –
39 Thrift Shop Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
144		 2 #1 1
40 Disparate Youth Santigold
133		 3 #12 –
41 Days Are Forgotten Kasabian
132		 2 #32 –
42 Top Of The World Slightly Stoopid
130		 2 #10 –
43 Reunion M83
130		 2 #33 –
44 Love Interruption Jack White
128		 4 #44 –
45 Satellite Rise Against
125		 2 #17 –
46 California Delta Spirit
124		 2 #30 –
47 Itchin' On A Photograph Grouplove
123		 3 #38 –
48 Chained The xx
121		 3 #23 –
49 We Come Running Youngblood Hawke
110		 3 #34 –
50 Spread Too Thin Dirty Heads
105		 2 #26 –
51 Octopus Bloc Party
104		 2 #21 –
52 Mountain Sound Of Monsters And Men
103		 4 #47 –
53 Sleep Alone Two Door Cinema Club
103		 4 #28 –
54 Jump Into The Fog Wombats
101		 2 #10 –
55 Not Your Fault AWOLNATION
99		 3 #44 –
56 Breezeblocks Alt J
98		 1 #3 –
57 Adventures Of Rain Dance… Red Hot Chili Peppers
98		 1 #3 –
58 Holdin On Flume
97		 1 #4 –
59 Keep You Close dEUS
95		 1 #3 –
60 Elephant Tame Impala
94		 1 #7 –
61 Lost Frank Ocean
93		 1 #8 –
62 Warpaint School is Cool
93		 1 #4 –
63 Feels Like We Only Go Backwards Tame Impala
92		 1 #9 –
64 My Gun The Rubens
91		 1 #10 –
65 Sweet Nothing Calvin Harris
90		 1 #11 –
66 Wait For Me Rise Against
89		 2 #27 –
67 Strange Attractor Animal Kingdom
89		 1 #12 –
68 Lost In Forever P.O.D.
89		 1 #11 –
69 Sleepless Flume
89		 1 #12 –
70 I Love It Icona Pop
87		 1 #14 –
71 Breathing Underwater Metric
86		 3 #41 –
72 Same Love Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
86		 1 #15 –
73 This Head I Hold Electric Guest
85		 1 #16 –
74 Home Again Michael Kiwanuka
85		 1 #7 –
75 Not Giving In Rudimental
85		 1 #16 –
76 Headlights Morning Parade
84		 1 #17 –
77 Clair de Lune Flight Facilities
84		 1 #17 –
78 HyperParadise (Flume Remix) Hermitude
83		 1 #18 –
79 Crazy Sufferin' Style Selah Sue
83		 1 #8 –
80 Angels The xx
82		 1 #19 –
81 How It Starts The Features
82		 1 #20 –
82 Feel the Love Rudimental
81		 1 #20 –
83 Fire Escape Civil Twilight
81		 1 #21 –
84 Dark Horses Switchfoot
80		 1 #19 –
85 Latch Disclosure
80		 1 #21 –
86 The Pit Silversun Pickups
80		 2 #40 –
87 Trembling Hands The Temper Trap
79		 1 #22 –
88 No Light, No Light Florence + The Machine
78		 2 #56 –
89 Coming Down Ball Park Music
78		 1 #23 –
90 Look Around Red Hot Chili Peppers
78		 2 #37 –
91 Space Absynthe Minded
78		 1 #10 –
92 I'm Into You Chet Faker
77		 1 #24 –
93 Bangarang Skrillex
76		 1 #25 –
94 Tallulah Company of Thieves
76		 1 #26 –
95 Dear Science Seth Sentry
75		 1 #26 –
96 It's Only Life The Shins
75		 1 #27 –
97 Surrender Ball Park Music
74		 1 #27 –
98 The Sound Of Winter Bush
73		 2 #38 –
99 Sail AWOLNATION
72		 1 #15 –
100 Viking Death March Billy Talent
72		 1 #15 –

Every station’s number one of 2012

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ We Are Young Fun. KROQ Top 50 Songs of 2012
91X Somebody That I Used To Know Gotye 91X Top 91 Songs of 2012
CD101 Little Talks Of Monsters And Men CD101 Top 102.5 Songs of 2012
CFNY 102.1 The Edge I Will Wait Mumford & Sons 102.1 The Edge Top 50 New Rock Songs of 2012
Studio Brussel R U Mine ? Arctic Monkeys Studio Brussel De Eindafrekening 2012
Triple J Thrift Shop Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz Triple J Hottest 100 of 2012

All 2012 countdowns in this ranking

About the 2012 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 2012 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 six 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.