My Top 2014 Albums
Here is a list of my favorite albums of the year |
| 30 |  | Every Time I Die
From Parts Unknown
This album totally took me by surprise, Every Time I Die continue to progress into a truly
amazing band that's carving their way into the textbooks. |
| 29 |  | Ariel Pink
Pom Pom
"Hey, I like your Ariel-a's...baby" |
| 28 |  | S
Cool Choices
First time listening to S, and now I'm wondering why I've never heard her music before. Each
song offers something different to the table, while showcasing great song-writing skills. |
| 27 |  | Plunge
Plunge
Great sludge-doom from Texas that follows suite of acts like Electric Wizard, but are in fact a
very cool and awesome DIY band. |
| 26 |  | Damien Rice
My Favourite Faded Fantasy
Truly a depressing yet beautifully arranged album by Damien Rice who recently ended a long
hiatus. |
| 25 |  | Botanist
VI: Flora
This is my first introduction to Botanist, but I loved it immediately. The fact that he crafted a
black metal album with a hammered dulcimer instead of guitar is mind boggling to me. It
sounds so precious and uplifting as well as crushing. |
| 24 | | Todd Terje
It's Album Time
It's Album Time is an adventurous, playful, and extremely danceable album. Dance music has
recently become a favorite of mine, and Todd Terje's latest album is easily the best dance
record of the year. |
| 23 |  | Warren of Ohms
The Wolf and the Fox
Mathy hardcore goodness that I recently just discovered and had to make room for on this list.
It's a fantastic album and a very rare and special album in the hardcore genre. |
| 22 |  | Casualties of Cool
Casualties of Cool
Devin Townsend's project Casualties of Cool was definitely a slow burner for me, until I took a
midnight drive on a full moon with this blaring out the window. I felt connected with the night,
and this album definitely clicked with me at that point. |
| 21 |  | The Body
I Shall Die Here
Holy shit, this album is terrifying. From the hella creepy tape recorded voices to the repeated
shrieks that get forever drilled into your head. I Shall Die Here reaches a whole new level of
wtf in black metal. |
| 20 |  | Weary Eyes
WWGBBYW
This record is a fantastic instrumental/post-rock effort from the Russian band Weary Eyes. The
guitars shred and the sonic soundscapes on this thing are gorgeous. |
| 19 |  | Sun Kil Moon
Benji
So...most depressing album ever award goes to...Benji. But for real, Sun Kil Moon's latest
album is one that will cut into your heart until it bleeds out (sorry it's 3:30 AM and I don't
know what I'm saying). It's an incredible album with a new brand of folk that's new to my ear
but incredibly effective. |
| 18 |  | Owen Pallett
In Conflict
Owen Pallett's music is a music-theory-nerd's dream, and In Conflict is a perfect showcase of
Pallett's great skill of song-writing. |
| 17 |  | La Dispute
Rooms of the House
La Dispute craft yet another amazing story-driven record, but with songs like "Woman (in
Mirror)" and "Objects in Space" that point the band in a totally new direction that is very
exciting. |
| 16 |  | Flesh Born
Han
Amazing melodic grindcore from Denton, TX that's a very short listen, but hugely impacting. |
| 15 |  | Ought
More Than Any Other Day
Ought nail the sound that I love from 90's indie classics like Built To Spill and Pixies while
putting their own Talking Heads-y spin to it. |
| 14 |  | Nouns
Still
My "bandcamp" album of the year. Nouns makes one of the most disturbingly self-destructive
albums I've heard in a long time, while still showing great song-writing. |
| 13 |  | The Great Old Ones
Tekeli-li
There's something about that French spoken word used throughout Tekeli-li that just haunts
me every time I listen to it. The record is almost a straight hour of non-stop brutality and
amazing production. |
| 12 |  | Spoon
They Want My Soul
One thing about Spoon that differentiates them from all other bands I listen to, is that no
other band hits the pocket of the groove quite as hard as they do. They Want My Soul is from
start to finish chalk full of hits, and very memorable ones at that. |
| 11 |  | Aphex Twin
Syro
I was ecstatic when I heard the news Aphex Twin would be releasing a new album this year. I
was also a little skeptical though. You never know how such an innovative electronic artist
from the 90-00's will translate 15-20 years later. But Syro blew those worries out of the
window. It's a labyrinth of synth-sounds and drum patterns that navigate you from the dance
floor to outer space. And it's solid as hell. |
| 10 |  | Sharon Van Etten
Are We There
Are We There is a soul-crushing album. It makes me smile, it makes me cry, and it makes me
dance all at once. Songs like "Your Love is Killing Me" and "Our Love" are some of the best of
the year. It's only been half a year, but it already feels like a classic. |
| 9 |  | Gridlink
Longhena
Grindcore isn't necessarily a genre of music I'm very familiar with. The closest I get to it is
Converge, and Dillenger Escape Plan (if you even consider those grindcore bands). However,
upon discovering Longhena, I was extremely surprised and impressed with this album. It pulls
off such poise and elegance while also beating you to a pulp. |
| 8 |  | Alex G
DSU
Alex G quickly became one of my favorite song writers this year. I had the pleasure of having
him and his band crash at my house and hang out after a show and he truly is such a down to
earth while simultaneously having his head in the clouds kind of guy. I've cried multiple times
to many different songs on DSU, and it's really something that resonates with me. |
| 7 |  | Gazelle Twin
Unflesh
I love 80's horror movie soundtracks. That driving analog synth really elicits fear within me,
and I felt that same way when I stumbled upon Gazelle Twin's new album Unflesh. In a year
where paranoia is running rampant (Ebola scares, Ferguson protests, etc), Unflesh seems all
too familiar and really compliments the current environment. |
| 6 |  | Iceage
Plowing Into the Field of Love
I'm not the only one to say this, but Iceage come waay out of left field with their latest album,
but in the best possible way. The first single, "The Lord's Favorite", almost gave me whiplash
with their switch from chaotic guitar-drenched post-punk to Buddy-Holly-Esque rockabilly.
Every song on here is gorgeously arranged, with instrumentation including trumpets, violins,
piano, and more. My favorite track however has to be "Against The Moon" which finds Iceage
writing the best ballad of 2014. The lyrics are immensely poetic and dramatic, and extremely
impressive considering English is frontman Elias' second language. |
| 5 |  | Hundred Waters
The Moon Rang Like a Bell
Every year, I tend to have one, maybe two albums that I consistently fall asleep to every
night. An album that I can escape into dreamland with. The Moon Rang Like a Bell was that
album for me in 2014. The album starts with "Show Me Love", a beautiful acapella piece that
acts as the best album opener of the year. It's a record that I get lost in every time I play, and
that's what keeps me coming back to it. |
| 4 |  | FKA Twigs
LP1
When I first watched the music video for "Two Weeks", I was in complete awe. I then
continued to watch the video another 10 times. And then I started counting down the days
until FKA Twigs' debut album LP1 would leak. When it did, I couldn't stop listening to it. LP1 is
a beautifully eerie and heartbreaking album that details the struggles in relationships. It's also
one of the most forward-thinking albums to come out this year. |
| 3 |  | Swans
To Be Kind
Never before has such a challenging, eye-brow raising, and terrifying album evoked so much
inspiration in me. I've spent countless hours trying to depict this album and try and put the
puzzle pieces together to come up with a resonant theme, but alas I still get lost in the
screaming and...what IS that thing in the middle of Bring The Sun? A horse being processed
through a meat grinder? I will never know, and that's the beauty of To Be Kind. It will always
have me guessing. |
| 2 |  | Prawn
Kingfisher
It's been a while since I've obsessed over a modern emo album. The last I can remember is
either Snowing's I could do whatever i wanted when i wanted, or Glocca Morra's Just Married.
The genre itself is imploding and filling up quickly with filler bands. However, Prawn's
Kingfisher hit me harder than most albums this year did. The whole thing is solid as hell and
the production is flawless. They're the sole reason I still have slight interest in Topshelf.
Kingfisher is such an attractive album to me because it showcases something so many other
emo bands fail to expose, and that's maturity. |
| 1 |  | St. Vincent
St. Vincent
On St. Vincent's self-titled album, she is more focused and hard-hitting than ever. Her song
writing has reached its peak, and she is sonically standing apart from anything out there. She
was the musical guest on the season finale of SNL this year, and arguably had the greatest
world tour this year, including overshadowing Pitchfork Music Festival's hyped-headliner
Neutral Milk Hotel. Needless to say, it was the year of St. Vincent, and I couldn't think of a
better album to represent it than her electrifying self-titled. |
|
