2014 Album of the Year
This year was probably the toughest year yet for me to crown a winner. Not because there was so much good music. It's because there was so much mediocre music. Nothing really got me going this year. In years past, there was always one album that I was in lesbians with, but not this year.
This year there were a handful of albums that I wanted to crown as the best album before they even came out. Then I got them and, for some reason or another, it just fell flat for me. You may feel differently. I can almost assure you that you will feel differently...and that's ok. We can disagree without being disagreeable. Right? Variety is the spice of life. If we all liked the same thing, then there wouldn't be different genres of music, colors in a box of crayons, or Starbucks flavors (Why in the great name of everything that is holy did they discontinue the Signature Hot Chocolate!? WHY!!!?) But I digress. Below is a list of albums that I will rate on a scale from MEH to OK to YEAH MAN! (The Album of the Year will come from the YEAH MAN! category.)
When ranking these albums and trying to decide which is my choice for Album of the Year, I looked back at the previous winners and I started to question why they were winners. Was it because of their musical innovation? Was it because it was a social movement? Was it because someone paid my $5 to say it was the best album of the year? And when I boiled it down....the simplest way to tell you how I decide on the Album of the Year is by asking myself this single question. "When I don't know what I want to listen to, what album do I turn on the most?" The album of the year should be an album that you want to listen to again and again. The album should be one that you will still be listening to a year, two years or ten years from now. Not just some flash in the pan. Looking back on the past winners I have chosen, (2010 Co-winners: Brandon Flowers and My Chemical Romance, 2011: Big Talk, 2012: Bruce Springsteen, 2013: FM Attack) I can honestly say that I still spin these albums regularly. And by spin these albums, I mean ask Siri to play them while I drive my car or mow my yard. I don't collect vinyl so, I don't "technically" spin any albums. You know what I mean! Sheesh! So enough of my incoherent ramblings...here is the list.
MEH
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Pharrell - GIRL
By this point we've all heard "Happy" no less than a million times. While it is a very catchy song and so are a couple other tracks from this album, as a whole, Pharrell's GIRL just doesn't cut it. In my opinion, I'd like to see a lot less solo work from Pharrell and a lot more N.E.R.D.
Tony Bennet & Lady Gaga - Cheek to Cheek
I was very excited when I heard that this album was being released. It's not terrible but for some reason it just didn't meet my expectations.
Foxy Shazam - Gonzo
I first learned about Foxy Shazam last year when a group of friends kept playing the album The Church of Rock and Roll. That album is epic! An amazing rockshow of an album of the likes we haven't seen since Queen. Gonzo does not live up to the magnum opus that is their previous release. I kept trying to get into this album but I just couldn't. Good thing it was a free download from the band.
OK
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Maroon 5 - V
I am a big Maroon 5 fan. Have been since I first heard "Harder to Breathe." I can see where people don't care for Adam Levine's voice or their poppy sound. I get it, but for me, I really dig it. This album is good, but not great. Several catchy songs that I enjoy but I don't want to spin this album over and over. The weirdest part of this album is their cover of Marcy's Playground song "Sex and Candy." I never cared for that song before, this cover is just like the rest of the album, it's ok.
Coldplay - Ghost Stories
I have been burned by Coldplay in the past. I bought Viva La Vida and enjoyed two songs on it. The rest of the album was dull and boring. But then there was Mylo Xyloto, and that album was great. So I was conflicted when I heard their first song released from Ghost Stories, "Midnight" it was kind of dull. So I wasn't really looking forward to this release. Then Apple had the album on iTunes Radio First Play. I gave it a listen and really enjoyed it. The first two tracks grabbed me, especially "Magic." I can see where people would call this album slow and dull. But for some reason I really enjoy the slowed pace of this record. It's not album of the year caliber but it's good. Worth a listen.
U2 - Songs of Innocence
This album got a lot of publicity this year because Apple made it available for free to all iTunes users. People freaked the freak out! Which I thought was kind of dumb. I understand if you don't like U2 or you don't want the album but just don't download it. If they would have given away an Iggy Azalea album, I would have hated it but I just wouldn't have downloaded it...but I digress. This is actually a pretty good album, especially the first track "The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)." While the album is good, it didn't make me want to listen over and over...other than the first track.
Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels 2
Killer Mike and El-P are back and are still awesome. This is a really good record but not album of the year quality. The first six tracks will freaking blow your mind, including "Close Your Eyes (And Count to F*ck)" featuring Zack De La Rocha from Rage Against the Machine. That could be the song of the year. This track is beyond sick! The other half of this album just kind of falls flat for me. It's not terrible, just not as good as the first half. Give it a listen, you may enjoy it more than I do.
Damien Rice - My Favourite Faded Fantasy
It took eight years to get a new album from Damien Rice and we only got eight tracks. I'll admit that they are eight good tracks, especially the title track. But I really wish we would have got 12, 15, or 22 tracks from Mr. Rice. These are good songs but again, like many others in this list, if it's compared to his previous two albums this is number three in my list of favorites.
Broken Bells - After The Disco
I had mixed emotions going into this album. I enjoyed the two radio songs "Holding on for Life" and "After the Disco," but just didn't know if I could enjoy a whole album with this new 70s, Disco, Bee Gees style. That's never been my genre of music. And I was right. Each song is good individually, but all together, I just can't take that much of this style of music.
YEAH MAN!
The Silver State - Outside
This was a surprise. Mostly because I had never heard of The Silver State before this year. I found out about The Silver State from an Instagram post by Big Talk. I gave it a listen and was hooked. I don't really know how to explain this album. I got the same feeling listening to Outside as I did when I first heard Descended Like Vultures by Rogue Wave. They have a chill sound but without being boring. It's a great album to listen to on a nice relaxing summer day.
Neon Trees - Pop Psychology
I came up with a theory this year. My theory is that it takes three albums to really get to know an artist (and in some cases, for them to really know themselves). This is a very clear case for that theory. When Neon Trees came onto the scene with their first album Habits back in 2010, I thought they were going to be the next coming of The Killers or at least have the same style. But then their second album, Picture Show, was released back in 2012 and I was kind of thrown off. It didn't sound like the Neon Trees that I was expecting (except for maybe "Everybody Talks"). When I go back and listen to that album now, I can hear the band maturing into who they are today. A band that released Pop Psychology. Picture Show was a pre-courser to this piece of pop genius, 80s infused, synth soaked, glamorous, alt-rock. This album never gets old. I've listened to it from before the album was actually released by streaming it via Apple's First Play. I remember listening to "Sleeping With A Friend" the day that single come out on January 11, 2014 (according to Wikipeida) and I am still spinning it late into December...and will probably be listening to it for many years to come.
The Fray - Helios
I received this album as a either a Birthday or Father's Day gift. I don't remember, those two days intersect occasionally for me. Nevertheless, I had heard "Love Don't Die" on the radio several times and it was very catchy. I honestly thought it was a One Republic song at first. Then after some research I found that Ryan Tedder (from One Republic) produced that song. During my research I found out that this album also included Stuart Price as a producer. This really peaked my interest as Stuart Price produced The Killers Day & Age album. The Fray had surrounded themselves with Grade-A talent on the production side of this album and it shows. From the first song to the end, this album is pretty amazing. When I get to the end of this album, I immediately want to start it over again. My favorite track on Helios is probably "Closer to Me." Within the first 9 seconds of this track it reminds me of a song from The Cure. Just simply amazing.
Jack White - Lazaretto
I've never been a huge fan of The White Stripes. They had some good songs but I never bought a full album. I also enjoyed some of The Racounters' songs. Then, I heard Jack White's first solo album, Blunderbuss, and I thought it was just OK. Then there came Lazaretto. I'm not even sure why I decided to give it a try, with my past experiences with Jack White. I could assume that I would like a couple songs from the album but probably not the full album. Boy! Was I wrong! This is an epic album. I probably would have changed the order of songs though. I think "Lazaretto" needs to be the album opener, not "Three Women." But other than that, this album is flawless. The best song on the album is "That Black Bat Licorice." This album has a very strong blues influence to it, which I love. Jack White is a great musician. One of the best of our time. Not to mention, all that he is doing to help further the resurgence of vinyl records.
The 2014 ALBUM OF THE YEAR is...
I stressed and stressed over this choice. There were really two main albums that I was choosing between. Do I choose the album that is musically and technically significant or an album that I want to listen to over and over again? Do I choose something that is more indie or mainstream? At the end of the day, this is MY Album of the Year. So I guess it should be what album I believe is the best album. This choice may not be very popular but to me, no other album compares. Every time I hear this album it brings a smile to my face and I want to listen to it again and again. The album of the year is...
NEON TREES - POP PSYCHOLOGY
There is just something about this album that caught my ear. It may not be the popular choice for album of the year, based on all of the other album of the year lists that I have seen but for me, there is no better album from 2014. There are many good albums but this one is the best. Typing this blog is making me want to turn it on right now. Enjoy these four videos below from Pop Psychology.
I hope that you enjoy my choice for the
2014 ALBUM OF THE YEAR.
See you next year!
2014 ALBUM OF THE YEAR.
See you next year!
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