Coming up with one of these Top 50 Albums lists is not easy. If I've learned one thing from my first foray into a Top 50 list, it's that you can't possibly give hundreds of albums a good listen. At least one person alone can't. Especially as too many albums come out at the end of the year (cough, cough, BEYONCE!) and the ones that come out early in the year get lost in your memory, or you grow a little tired of them, something I'll call album burnout.
But there's more! Music is insanely subjective. Not just that different people like different things, but the same person likes different things at different times. Mood effects whether an album gets turned off after the first song or whether the whole thing gets put on repeat. I'm notorious for never deleting an album even if I don't like it. The reason for my hoarding is that sometimes months after my first 'spin' and initial mehness, I come back to an album and fall in love. Life may have changed, or the season, and now I'm way more receptive.
There were a lot of good albums this year in genres I'm less into. Sunbather is not on this list. It's made a lot of Top lists. I'm sure it's great. If you're into that sorta thing. Which I'm not. I'm also not hugely into rap, R&B, and hip-hop. Danny Brown, Drake, Kendrick, and Kanye are not on this list, though I'm not saying they're not great albums. Also, Daft Punk is not on the list. I really wanna like them more than I do, I just can't seem to get there. All that said, this list goes beyond indie rock/punk/garage/pop. It just leans a bit more acoustic and Americana because that's my bag.
Lastly, I'm an album girl. Sometimes an album has 8 great songs, but the artist blows it by trying to be artsy and quirky. Janelle Monae, I'm looking at you. Half or more of the songs can be beyond great, but if I have to press skip over and over, it's a fail. If you absolutely must do that, pull an Ok Computer. An album only needs one Paranoid Android.
Overall this was an incredibly good year for music, but nothing was mindblowing. A lot of established bands realeased great new albums and there were plenty of up and coming bands/artists to get excited about, too. Morever, there's been some smart pop released for those of us who can't manage to get excited about the return of Britney, but wanna get out to the clubs and get our dance on. I could have easily made a Top 100 Albums list, but that defeats the purpose of narrowing things down to the grooviest of the groovy. Instead I'm adding a feature: "if you like this album, you should also check out this other album I loved but isn't on the best list" aka the "encore album." Which basically means I've made a Top 100 list. Shhhhh.
So that's the preface and now here's the list--explanations and a playlist to be posted soon.
But there's more! Music is insanely subjective. Not just that different people like different things, but the same person likes different things at different times. Mood effects whether an album gets turned off after the first song or whether the whole thing gets put on repeat. I'm notorious for never deleting an album even if I don't like it. The reason for my hoarding is that sometimes months after my first 'spin' and initial mehness, I come back to an album and fall in love. Life may have changed, or the season, and now I'm way more receptive.
There were a lot of good albums this year in genres I'm less into. Sunbather is not on this list. It's made a lot of Top lists. I'm sure it's great. If you're into that sorta thing. Which I'm not. I'm also not hugely into rap, R&B, and hip-hop. Danny Brown, Drake, Kendrick, and Kanye are not on this list, though I'm not saying they're not great albums. Also, Daft Punk is not on the list. I really wanna like them more than I do, I just can't seem to get there. All that said, this list goes beyond indie rock/punk/garage/pop. It just leans a bit more acoustic and Americana because that's my bag.
Lastly, I'm an album girl. Sometimes an album has 8 great songs, but the artist blows it by trying to be artsy and quirky. Janelle Monae, I'm looking at you. Half or more of the songs can be beyond great, but if I have to press skip over and over, it's a fail. If you absolutely must do that, pull an Ok Computer. An album only needs one Paranoid Android.
Overall this was an incredibly good year for music, but nothing was mindblowing. A lot of established bands realeased great new albums and there were plenty of up and coming bands/artists to get excited about, too. Morever, there's been some smart pop released for those of us who can't manage to get excited about the return of Britney, but wanna get out to the clubs and get our dance on. I could have easily made a Top 100 Albums list, but that defeats the purpose of narrowing things down to the grooviest of the groovy. Instead I'm adding a feature: "if you like this album, you should also check out this other album I loved but isn't on the best list" aka the "encore album." Which basically means I've made a Top 100 list. Shhhhh.
So that's the preface and now here's the list--explanations and a playlist to be posted soon.
- Arcade Fire 'Reflector' (Encore: David Bowie 'The Next Day Extra')
- Vampire Weekend 'Modern Vampires of The City' (Encore: Cayucas 'Cayucas')
- The National 'Trouble Will Find Me' (Encore: Phosphorescent 'Muchacho')
- Veronica Falls 'Waiting For Something To Happen' (Encore: Golden Grrrls 'We've Got...')
- Waxahatchee 'Cerulean Salt' (Encore: Swearin' 'Swearin'')
- CHVRCHES 'The Bones of What You Believe' (Encore: Germany Germany 'Last Summer II')
- Blood Orange 'Cupid Deluxe' (Encore: Disclosure 'Settle')
- Superchunk 'I hate Music' (Encore: Surfer Blood 'Pythons')
- Haim 'Days are Gone' (Encore: Those Darlins 'Blur The Lines')
- The Knife 'Shaking The Habitual' (Encore: Julia Holter 'Loud City Song')
- Dearhunter 'Monomania' (Encore: Chelsea Light Moving 'Chelsea Light Moving', and Marnie Stern 'The Chronicles of Marnia')
- Caroline Rose 'America Religious' (Encore: Jason Isbell 'Southeastern, ' and The Avett Brothers 'Magpie and the Dandelion')
- Keaton Henson 'Birthdays' (Encore: These New Puritans 'Field of Reeds')
- The Julie Ruin 'Run Fast' (Encore: Super Wild Horses 'Crosswords,' and Bleached 'Ride Your Heart' )
- Volcano Choir 'Repave' (Encore: Andew Cedermark 'Home Life')
- Baths 'Obsidian' (Encore: Jon Hopkins 'Immunity')
- Sparrow and the Workshop 'Murderopolis' (Encore: Yeah Yeah Yeahs 'Mosquito')
- Milk Carton Kids 'The Ash and Clay' (Encore: Jesse Woods 'Get Your Burdens Lifted')
- Joanna Gruesome 'Weird Sister' (Encore: PINS 'Girls Like Us')
- Rhye 'Woman' (Encore: James Blake 'Overgrown,')
- King Krule '6 Feet Beneath The Moon' (Encore: Torres 'Torres')
- Ty Segall 'Sleeper' (Encore: Foxygen 'We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic')
- Courtney Barnett 'The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas' (Encore: Beach Fossils 'Careless')
- William Tyler 'Impossible Truth' (Encore: Bill Callahan 'Dream River')
- My Bloody Valentine 'mbv' (Encore: Mood Rings 'VPI Harmony')
- Kurt Vile 'Wakin On A Pretty Daze (Encore: Cass McCombs 'Big Wheel and Others')
- King Khan and the Shrines 'Idle No More' (Encore: Dog Day 'Fade Out', and King Tuff 'Was Dead')
- Mount Moriah 'Miracle Temple' (Encore: Houndmouth 'From the Hills Below the City')
- Savages 'Silence Yourself' (Encore: Fuzz 'Fuzz')
- Yuck 'Glow and Behold' (Encore: Beach Fossils: 'Clash The Truth')
- Youth Lagoon 'Wondrous Bughouse' (Encore: Local Natives 'Hummingbird')
- Sky Ferreira 'Night Time, My Time' (Encore: Charli XCX 'True Romance')
- Speedy Ortiz 'Major Arcana' (Encore: Nico Vega 'Fury Oh Fury')
- Tegan and Sara 'Heartthrob' (Encore: The Strokes 'Comedown Machine')
- Thee Oh Sees 'Floating Coffin' (Encore: Wavves 'Afraid of Heights')
- Lorde 'Pure Heroine'(Encore: CSS 'Planta')
- Caitlin Rose 'The Stand-In' (Encore: Kacey Musgrove 'Same Trailer Different Park,' and The Lone Bellow 'The Lone Bellow')
- Palma Violets '180' (Encore: Parquet Courts 'Light Up Gold')
- Telekinesis 'Dormorian' (Encore: Grouplove 'Spreading Rumours')
- Pure Bathing Culture 'Moon Tides' (Encore: Future Bible Heroes 'Partygoing')
- Dott 'Swoon' (Encore: Sonny and the Sunsets 'Antenna to the Afterworld')
- Typhoon 'White Lighter' (Encore: Frightened Rabbit 'Pedestrian Verse')
- Justin Timberlake 'The 20/20 Experience' (Encore: Janelle Monae 'The Electric Lady')
- Thao and The Get Down Stay Down 'We The Common' (Encore: Wild Belle 'Isles')
- Richard Swift 'The Atlantic Ocean' (Encore: Eleanor Friedberger 'Personal Record')
- Arctic Monkeys 'AM' (Encore: Polvo 'Siberia')
- Neko Case 'The Worse Things Get, The More I Love You' (Encore: Smith Westerns 'Soft Wills)
- The Field 'Cupid's Head' (Encore: Boards of Canada 'Tomorrow's Harvest')
- Yo La Tengo 'Fade' (Encore: Dr. Dog 'B-Room')
- Washed Out 'Paracosm' (Encore: Efterklang 'Piramida')
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