My Album of the Year

Every time I listen to a new album, I think to myself "Is this going to be my album of the year?" Most of the time, it ends up with a "No." Until that one fateful day when I turn on an album and something magical happens. My brain begins to tingle, the hair on the back of my neck stands up, and a feel a rush of euphoria. It the feeling that can only come from listening to amazing music. Not just a single great song but an entire album. There are hundreds of great songs every year but there can only be one Album of the Year. (Ok...that's not completely true. There can be more than one. See 2010 co-winners .) This list is based on the albums I have purchased. There may be other great albums but I don't own them and I'm not writing about those. I'm writing about what I know. So...enjoy. There were several albums that I had high hopes for but they just didn't pan out. Here is a list of albums that are good...but not "Album of the Year...

This blog has become a year-long obsession of mine. I honestly don't know if two people read this blog or if two-hundred people do. What I do know is that every time I listen to a new album, I think to myself "Is this going to be the album of the year?" Sure, it may only matter to me and the few friends of mine that will disagree with my choice, but it's still become this monster that must feed. This year was no exception. Looking at the list of albums that I bought in 2015, some of my all-time favorite artists released music; Def Leppard, Fall Out Boy, Brandon Flowers (of The Killers) Big Talk (featuring Ronnie Vannucci of The Killers), TobyMac, Neon Indian, Hurts...just an absolute plethora of music. As I listened to each one of these artists' albums, I placed them under a microscope and tried to really determine if their album was worthy of being called the best album of 2015 and not just me being a fanboy and picking my favorite artist. You know, like th...

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...

It's that time of year again. The time where I tell you what I've been listening to during the past year and I announce my winner for the 2013 ALBUM OF THE YEAR! Are you excited? You should be. Last year I did the announcement "award show" style. This year I am going to do it " Top Ten List " style. So, without further ado...here is the list. •  Honorable Mention -  New Arcades  - New Arcades EP [video] I found New Arcades on ElectronicRumors.com . They have a vintage 80s synth sound that is nostalgic and captivating. This album is really great. The only issue I have is that it's way too short. I know, it's just an EP. I get it. That's why it's hard to consider it to be on this list. If New Arcades were to produce a full album of this caliber, it's VERY likely it would be top five, and possibly number one. And now onto our Top Ten Albums of 2013. Let me remind you that I have not listened to every single album that...

The last couple years that I have done this, it's been pretty easy. There are typically one or two albums that stand out above the rest. This year, there was some really good music. Even as I type this, I am stressing out on which album I am going to praise as the 2012 Album of the Year. I'm going to do this "awards show" style. I'll give a list of the albums in the running and at the end we'll see who wins. Let's start with some albums that just missed the cut of being one of the nominees. These are still good albums but not quite upper echelon. Matt & Kim - Lightning (video) As with all the other Matt & Kim albums, this is a fun adventure into the world of indie pop rock. It is exactly what you want it to be. TobyMac - Eye On It (video) Filled with positive uplifting music, TobyMac doesn't disappoint. Though not as good as  Welcome to Diverse City or Tonight , it's still a solid album. Bruno Mars - Unorthodox Jukebox   ...