Part 2 of the Facebook migration
50. Logic — Under Pressure
Under Pressure has some great ideas under its surface — federal housing, addiction, family vs. fame — but at times its emcee fails to deliver. Logic is entertaining for sure, but sometimes lacks the storytelling ability to fully bring his visions to life. Compare Metropolis to Kendrick Lamar’s Sing About Me (both use the same drums) and you’ll see what I mean. Still, the album shows promise and has some excellent production, and Logic does have some technical ability for rapping, making this still one of the better hip hop albums this year.
49. Kool A.D. — Word O.K.
Word OK is a nice return to KOOL’s Das Racist roots. He’s always better when his lyrics lie on the playful side, and he does a good job here of blending his more serious/conscious bars with humor and tongue-in-cheek references. Some great features here from Talib Kweli and frequent Das Racist guest Lakutis (who dropped a hilariously dark and off-kilter album this year as well).
48. Homeboy Sandman — Hallways
I’d never listened to Homeboy Sandman before this album, but it was recommended through a friend so I gave it a shot. The strength in Hallways lies in its flexibility. The beats are all pretty different, and Homeboy switches up his flow quite a bit which helps everything remain fresh. Sometimes things fall apart on the sonic side however, like in the track Loads which features a mediocre verse from Blu. The beat is just too simple for either emcee and neither sounds comfortable over it. Still, overall Hallways is a great experimental hip hop record.
47. Damien Rice — My Favourite Faded Fantasy
Damien Rice’s first release in what seems like an eternity is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s nice to get some more material from the extremely talented songwriter. On the other hand it feels like he’s lost a step since Lisa Hannigan departed. Her unique voice is sorely missed on this record, as well as her ability to temper Rice when he becomes a little too self-indulgent. There are moments of brilliance on this album, like the ending of It Takes a Lot to Know a Man, that remind me why I love Rice in the first place — his music embodies raw emotion.
46. Taylor Swift — 1989
Though Swift’s lyrics sometimes border on middle school poetry — “I was thinking that you could be trusted/Did you have to ruin what was shining, now it’s all rusted” — her melodies and hooks make the album one of the most infectious records of 2014. Her choice to focus on synthpop arrangements rather than the top 40 style pop instrumentals makes a huge difference, though she never really lets the tracks breathe — every track is the standard verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus that you’d expect — which stifles the creativity of the album. For your synthpop homework, Taylor Swift, I recommend listening to more M83.
45. Sun Kil Moon — Benji
Mark Kozelek’s latest album is extremely heartfelt, beautiful, poetic and boring. I’ve probably listened to this album the least out of any on this list. It’s a hard journey to take not only because of the dark subjects of tragedy and loss, but also because it feels like it drags on at times. I know many people would have put this album much higher, and while it might deserve it on a lyrical level, I just can’t avoid the inevitable sleepiness that comes from listening to Benji more than once. I know it almost sounds like I dislike the album, but I assure that the first listen to Kozelek’s stories is enough (obviously) to warrant it a position on the list.
44. Alcest — Shelter
This album is somewhat of a departure from Neige’s previous efforts, as he pretty much completely abandons black metal for shoegaze and ambient post-rock. Kind of a downer — the juxtaposition between harshness and beauty are what makes blackgaze records so great, as Deafheaven showed us last year. Still, Shelter contains some entrancingly beautiful music, even if not as impressive as his previous releases.
43. Death Grips — The Powers That B: Pt. 1
This project feels like the album Government Plates wanted to be — very experimental with off-kilter beats and a focus of Flatlander’s production. The difference is that this time around there is more M.C. Ride, which helps a ton. Great lyrics here as well, Black Quarterback is a good example, and Ride seems very comfortable over some beats that most other emcees would not even touch. The Bjork samples do get a little old after a while, but they’re definitely part of what makes this record so intriguing.
42. Sturgill Simpson — Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
Metamodern Sounds in Country Music pushes the lyrical boundaries of its genre by singing about aliens, turtles, and love. Sure, it’s got everything you’d want from an outlaw country record, too — slide guitar, shuffling drums, and Sturgill’s swoon, but the explorations on this record make it so much better.
41. Caribou — Our Love
Our Love is about exactly what you’d think. Caribou’s first record in four years is incredibly uplifting and positive. It’s also a lot like love structurally, moving from melancholy to bliss with fluidity rather than precision. I still prefer Swim’s less digital feel, but Our Love is another solid entry in Dan Snaith’s catalogue.
40. Have a Nice Life — The Unnatural World
The Unnatural World is like the moment in a horror movie right before the monster jumps out. Waves and waves of droning guitar, eerie vocals, and industrial drums circle around you as Tim Macuga and Dan Barrett pull you into their bleak world. Not as bombastic or epic as their debut, Deathconsciousness, the Unnatural World still manages to fascinate with all its unrelenting doom and beauty.
39. Agalloch — The Serpent and the Sphere
Portland’s black/folk metal outfit delivers another solid album this year. It’s evident from the first track that the Serpent and the Sphere offers a tighter version of the blend of folk and metal that has been Agalloch’s M.O. so far — the album opens with a beautiful guitar arpeggio that ramps up into an epic wall of sound, punctuated by John Haughm’s shrieks. However, at times things can feel overdone. The experimentation that was apparent in The Mantle and earlier albums has been replaced by a dedication to perfect their sound. Which is great, but since it’s no new territory, it can feel soulless and bland. It’s still a beautiful record though; I just wish it offered more.
38. The Roots — …and then you shoot your cousin
I expect so much from the Roots that this album was actually a bit of a disappointment. It’s hard to follow up what were, in my opinion, the two best albums of their career (How I Got Over and Undun), and the new album does fall slightly short. It’s a really good record on its own though, and a departure from the soulful sounds of its predecessors. The albums instrumentation borders on spooky at times and Black Thought occupies a grittier place — both lyrically and sonically — than usual. The commentary on violence in both hip hop and American society also seems especially relevant this year after the events in Ferguson and New York. Great record, but I wish they had taken more time to hone their stories and compositions.
37. Woods of Desolation — As the Stars
As the Stars is an incredibly beautiful and captivating album. Walls of guitars descending, frenzied drums, and howls all swirl together and build, almost never relenting until the album finishes. Anyone who loved Deafheaven’s Sunbather from last year will certainly dig this record.
36. The Hold Steady — Teeth Dreams
I’ve loved Craig Finn’s boozy croons from the first lines of Almost Killed Me, so naturally I was excited for a new record. Teeth Dreams is a return to form from their last album, and the addition of Steve Selvidge from Lucero is a welcome one. The only beef I have is that Finn’s lyrics don’t have quite the same poetic punch they did back in the day, but a bad Craig Finn line is usually better than a good line from anyone else.
35. Beck — Morning Phase
Morning Phase plays like Sea Change’s fraternal twin — same father, different face. The latter is one of my favorite Beck albums, and while Morning Phase doesn’t quite live up to its older brother, it’s a nice revisit to singer/songwriter Beck.
34. Mac DeMarco — Salad Days
Salad Days consists of wonderfully goofy stoner-rock mixed with Real Estate or Beach House. Mac’s voice goes perfectly with the reverb soaked guitar and 60s pop melodies, and here he crafts the perfect summer record — an afternoon spent on the boardwalk with beer and a few friends in the sun.
33. Angel Olsen
Olsen’s beautiful and enchanting voice punctuates this album in every song. She takes risks in song-writing as well, but the themes in the album remain tight. Loneliness has never sounded more comfy.
32. YOB — Clearing the Path to Ascend
Clearing the Path to Ascend is a monstrous record. In just four songs, it clears over an hour, each packed with thunderous, sludgy metal. Scheidt’s vocals are as amazing as the instrumentals, as he is able to switch between melodies, howls, and bombastic growls, and he keeps things interesting throughout the sludgefest.
31. Busdriver — Perfect Hair
Perfect Hair is a great album from the art rap vet Busdriver. He handles most of his own production on this album, which is incredibly impressive as the beats are probably the best thing about the record. The lyrics are phenomenal as well and can be incredibly personal at times while skirting the line of cheese a lot of rappers cross — I’m looking at you, J. Cole.
30. Perfume Genius — Too Bright
Too Bright is a wonderful singer/songwriter record. I wasn’t familiar with Mike Hadreas before this album, so seeing reviews calling it pop and some calling him a songwriter really confused me. After listening to the record, he’s both. Hadreas does a great job of mixing the infectious energy of his pop melodies with personal lyrics and heartfelt emotion.
29. Shabazz Palaces — Lese Majesty
Here we enter into the top 10 of hip hop for the year. I was a little bit disappointed because Lese Majesty doesn’t quite deliver on the same level that Black Up did, but Ishamel Butler still delivers a fantastic LP. Sonically this album is a little more polished than the previous, which lends itself to some of the bigger tracks. Butler also lays back a little bit on the vocal side, preferring to let the beats breathe and create the atmosphere more than his lyrics.
28. Vince Staples — Hell Can Wait
Coming off the coattails of a great mixtape, Stolen Youth (produced entirely by Mac Miller), and his noteworthy appearances on Earl’s Doris, Staples delivers his best work yet. Hell Can Wait touches on typical gangsta-rap themes with precision and actual conscience — he never pretends that ‘the life’ is magical, but rather paints the picture with a realistic brush of pain, loss, and struggle.
27. Marissa Nadler — July
A simple yet beautiful album, July is full of gothic imagery against a folky background. Marissa Nadler’s voice soars and guides you through a world of Poe and Woolf references. By far the best folk release this year.
26. Grouper — Ruins
The piano riffs and ambient noise that fill Ruins make it feel like an ideal album for a night in the country, maybe with a cool breeze across the back of your neck and your feet in the grass. Beautiful, beautiful album.
25. Protomartyr — Under Color of Official Right
A vigorous post-punk/garage-punk album, Under the Color of Official Right is the best straight punk album this year. Reverb soaked guitars carry the dynamic compositions and the lyrics/vocals of Joe Casey bring it all home. Bankrupt Detroit managed to deliver some gold this year.
24. This Will Destroy You — Another Language
The best thing about Another Language is its ability to marry the ‘crescendo-core’ of the band’s earlier releases with the pseudo-ambient noise rock of Tunnel Blanket. There’s a lot of empty space here, but instead of being buffeted by the harsher sounds that were present on their last release, Another Language is characterized by the aching hope of their Young Mountain EP. The result is breathtaking at times.
23. Sadistik — Ultraviolet
Part of me feels like the only thing I need to mention about this album is that it has a posthumous verse from the great Eyedea, but I think that might undersell what Sadistik offers as well. Don’t get me wrong, the Eyedea verse is killer, but Sadistik has some great lines of his own on the same song — the opening lyrics are “Veins like a roadmap, black cold/grasp on a throat that/won’t hold back old habit Kodak/moments go past.” Witching Hour is also a brilliant song with a great feature from Nacho Picasso, and the last verse in which the two emcees swap lines is incredibly fun to hear. The bottom line is that Ultraviolet showcases some amazing rapping by Sadistik over punchy atmospheric beats.
22. Open Mike Eagle — Dark Comedy
Another great release from Hellfyre Club. Open Mike Eagle has some great wordplay and humor in his fourth album. The material is really best when it’s focused on Mike’s personal issues — he raps about being a father, being stuck in traffic, etc. — but there is some great social commentary mixed in with his humor as well. In fact, the entire thing is a great blend, pitting hip hop flashiness vs. the uncool-ness of everyday life. It’s also got some amazing one-liners.
21. milo — A Toothpaste Suburb
A Toothpaste Suburb moves from racial tension to movies to music and then back to the politics of everyday American life. The album begs to be listened to multiple times in order to extract everything. Milo’s words are like vignettes that leave you thinking about them days later, only to rewatch them about a million times on youtube and scour every forum for conspiracy theories and ideas. The production here fits Milo’s laid-back timbre perfectly. A Toothpaste Suburb is an amazingly satisfying record from an artist to watch.
20. Ought — More Than Any Other Day
A fantastic post-punk record that draws on post-rock, funk, and new wave, and one of the most passionate records of 2014. You OUGHT to give it a listen…okay, I’ll stop while I’m ahead. Seriously though, if the punk of the 80s was after tearing down the system, Ought is about building it back in order to make something good — positive punk.
19. Pallbearer — Foundations of Burden
Foundations of Burden is a massive record with incredible guitar riffs. It’s also quite beautiful with layers and layers of sound washing over everything. Probably the best metal album this year to introduce to fans of non-metal, as Brett Campbell chooses soaring melodies rather than harsh grunts and screams.
18. FKA twigs — LP1
An amazing debut album, LP1 is a cascade of drum-machines and electronics with FKA twigs’ voice soaring over it all. It’s an experimental deconstruction of pop and R&B that works on every level.
17. Swans — To Be Kind
To Be Kind was an incredibly difficult record for me to get into. I hadn’t listened to their previous release, the Seer, before, so the entire thing was a new experience — a very painful experience. Then, something clicked on about the third try and I made it through the entire album. To Be Kind shouldn’t be listened to as a rock album, but almost as a spiritual journey. The steady riffs and chanting vocals swirl around over and over and over again, building and building only to drop off and release you into catharsis. It’s like watching a David Lynch or Darren Aronofsky film for the first time — incredibly frustrating but also very fulfilling with a little time and thought.
16. iceage — Plowing Into the Field of Love
Plowing into the Field of Love finds the Danish post-punk group dabbling in country. Somehow the combination between their old brand of aggressive and powerful punk and the new rollicking shuffle of Americana they’ve put together completely works. Ronnenfelt’s vocals feel strangely at home too here, his shouts and moans reminiscent of Conor Oberst on his worst day. Plowing is one of the most interesting albums this year.
15. Hail Mary Mallon — Bestiary
Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic team up again to bring us Bestiary, which is a much more complete album than HMM’s first record, Are You Gonna Eat That? It’s also the funniest Aesop has ever been — his lyrics include a Ponyo reference and the entire framework for the album is about a fundraiser concert for a bowling alley that has, spoiler alert, already been closed for 10 years. The production is incredible as well, almost all of it is handled by the two emcees, and is reminiscent of sounds you’d find on Aesop’s Skelethon or El-P’s catalogue.
14. Ryan Adams — S/T
Over the course of his prolific career, Ryan Adams has volleyed back and forth from the alt-country he’s famous for and his love for 80s rock. His self-titled album from this year is the best representation of both sides being brought together. Overall, this record seems much more cohesive and passionate than Ashes and Fire, and is his first truly great record since 2005’s Cold Roses. The lyrics don’t always live up to the expectations the singer/songwriter has set for himself, but the guitar tones and songwriting make this album one of his best.
13. Andy Stott — Faith in Strangers
Despite its title, Faith in Strangers is a very dense and dark record. It seems simple at first, beginning with a building drone and the airy vocals of his former piano teacher, Alison Skidmore, but the slow moving textures slowly build into something else entirely. Stott takes everything but the IDM kitchen sink and bends it all to his will, sometimes almost breaking it in the process. The beat breaks aren’t smooth transitions, but rather jagged textures of damaged bass and smashed drums. All of this comes together to make the best IDM album of the year — and it really isn’t even close.
12. Snarky Puppy — We Like it Here
We Like it Here is a fantastic album and one of their best. Interestingly, the entire thing was recorded live in the Netherlands. Mike League’s basslines are great as ever, and some of the solos on here will give you goosebumps.
11. Hundred Waters — The Moon Rang Like a Bell
From the opening moments on this album, you can tell it’s something special. Haunting vocals are intertwined with precisely cut electronic pop melodies throughout the album, but the best is when they let things open up and breathe.
10. Cloud Nothings — Here and Nowhere Else
This might be the most energetic release this year. The almost schizophrenic guitar riffs and raw vocals will have you trying to sing along to every word with a fist in the air and your head bobbing. The lyrics aren’t anything to write home about, but their delivery is so fierce and urgent, it makes the entire record seem incredibly insistent. My only problem with Here and Nowhere Else is that I wish it was a little longer.
9. Spoon — They Want My Soul
For a band that’s been recording music for 20 years, Spoon is remarkably consistent. They Want My Soul has Spoon going in a little bit different of a direction — it’s hard to imagine a song like Inside Out on Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga or Kill the Moonlight — but due to their unwavering talent, the album pays off. The tracks here build off of their predecessor’s sound, pulling the best things about Transference into the light and perfecting them, getting rid of all the filler. That desire to keep things tight — the runtime is less than 40 minutes long — is what drives this venture. It also always helps to have someone like Britt Daniel at the forefront pushing things in the right direction.
8. Kairon; IRSE! — Ujubasajuba
Kairon; IRSE! is a Finnish band that combines shoegaze with post-rock and indie influences to create crashingly huge soundscapes. The vocals are also mixed perfectly and are able to cut through the roaring guitars and provide light, airy melodies a la Sigur Ros. The best part? It’s a pay what you want download on the band’s bandcamp page.
7. RATKING — So It Goes
So It Goes is a hip hop album with New York at its very heart. Sporting Life’s beats are often wrought from chaos, shuddering from one drum beat to the next, almost coming undone at the seams only to drop back into a singular focused image. Wiki’s delivery is reminiscent of cabbies yelling in traffic, or a street corner prophet screaming out for anyone to listen, while Hak’s downplayed raps embody the political conversations between friends over a slice of pizza or a cup of coffee. It all comes together to create an aggressive panoramic view of the city and its inhabitants struggles. So It Goes is one of the most ambitious projects this year, and it can only go forward from here.
6. Freddie Gibbs + Madlib — Piñata
Piñata is a throwback to not just the old school Mafioso-rap albums of the 90s, but to Mario Puzo, Coppola, Sicily, and the classic idea of the mob. Gibbs isn’t Gangsta Gibbs here as much as he is ‘Freddie Corleone.’ Over some of the best, smoothest beats Madlib has ever made, he raps about hustling and being real in the smoothest flow you’ve ever heard. Gibbs isn’t afraid to throw some punches either — he takes shots at Jeezy and Lil’ Wayne, and questions other rappers who would judge him for his lifestyle in Real, Uno, and Shitsville respectively. There are a few weird moments in the album, like a terrible feature from Ab Soul and an off-topic verse from Mac Miller to end the album, but I suppose every Corleone has a Fredo. Madlib’s production is nothing to scoff at either. The old school vet pulls some amazing tricks out of his hat — check out the beat switch on Real. It’s hard to go wrong with one of the greatest producers in hip hop.
5. Run The Jewels — RTJ2
For a long time, I couldn’t decide between Piñata and RTJ2 taking the top hip hop spot. Both are incredible albums that I believe will have cult followings in the following years, much the same way Madvillain and Company Flow have had. Both contain boisterous rapping by talented emcees that, on the surface, seems vulgar but often veers into conscious/social territory. Both are produced by underground hip hop legends. I decided to put RTJ2 before Piñata for two reasons: One, I felt like El-P’s production was really on a completely different level than anything he’s put out before. The synths and 808s he uses are unrelenting, and his sound is really unlike any other producer out there. Two, I felt like RTJ2 more fully represented the direction of hip hop culture in 2014. El-P hardly uses any samples and when he does, they’re so distorted it isn’t obvious, taking it out of the realm of traditional hip hop and into a more futuristic experimental sound that is insistent and aggressive. The lyrics are also aggressive and braggadocios, but they come from a place of paranoia and rapid-fire survival. El-P and Killer Mike are interested in tearing down the system rather than ruling it, and that’s what makes this album hit so close to home in 2014.
4. D’Angelo + The Vanguard — Black Messiah
I’m not a huge R&B fan generally, so D’Angelo (other than maybe How Do You Feel) was hardly on my radar. However, I am a pretty big Sly and the Family Stone fan, so when I tried Black Messiah, I was thoroughly impressed. The grooves are funky, the vocals are a little bit Marvin Gaye and a lot of Prince, and the songs sound classic. Yet for all its vintage magic, the subject material is incredibly relevant. The New York Times published an article about Black Messiah’s release date being pushed up in response to protests over the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, and D’Angelo himself even spoke out to give meaning to the record’s title: “It’s about people rising up in Ferguson…every place where a community has had enough and decides to make change happen. It’s not about praising one charismatic leader but celebrating thousands of them…Black Messiah is not one man. It’s a feeling that, collectively, we are all that leader.” The first album D’Angelo has released in 15 years uses old soul and funk standards from the Civil Rights Era to create R&B about a different kind of love — a love of communal change and social justice.
3. Flying Lotus — You’re Dead
You’re Dead is the jazziest album yet from the nephew of Alice and John Coltrane. FlyLo trades in some of his triphop tendencies for frantic jazz solos and frenzied drum beats, and enlisted a lot of help. The guest appearances on this album include Kendrick Lamar (whose feature is so good it has me begging for a FlyLo produced Kendrick album), Thundercat, Brendon Small, Snoop Dogg, and the legend Herbie Hancock himself. There’s also Captain Murphy if you want to count him as a ‘guest.’ I know a lot of people wouldn’t consider this a jazz album, but it’s pretty great to see Herbie on another album that pushes the limits of jazz and blurs the boundaries between genres. I really hope FlyLo continues in this direction.
2. Ambrose Akinmusire — The Imagine Savior is Far Easier to Paint
Listening to The Imagined Savior is in some ways a cinematic experience. Each track tells a story, and Akinmusire’s gorgeous arrangements captivate the audience throughout each one. He doesn’t always stick with traditional Jazz arrangements — the album includes a strings section, vocalists, reverb soaked guitar, and plenty of surprises — which causes it to feel fresh. It’s rare to see a modern jazz album that is built on the classics but doesn’t confine itself to them, but Akinmusire does exactly that. Blue Note has another classic under its belt.
- The War on Drugs — Lost in the Dream
Here we are at number one. I listened to this album a lot when flying to Portland this past May, and it really stuck with me. Lost in the Dream seems so quintessentially American — it’s new-wave mixed with Americana, a road trip record, and vocals that sound like a subdued Bob Dylan crooning. Listening to it simply puts you into a different place, a giant journey across America through your headphones. The best thing you can ask an album to do is cast a spell on you, to invoke your imagination, and Lost in the Dream does exactly that.
