HacksawJimThuggin
All Star
Banks' Goddess is still my favorite album of the year. Nothing even comes close IMO.
Other Official 2014 Alt Music/The Lounge Thread
- Thread starter Adam3000
- Start date
Trojan 24
Veteran
Not even ashamed of playing it front to back a couple times the past week
Late,but anyone ever give that Chet Faker album a spin thought it was
Not even ashamed of playing it front to back a couple times the past week
Late,but anyone ever give that Chet Faker album a spin thought it was
Chet Faker's album is still in my regular rotation. Saw him live a couple months ago. Awesome performance. He did all of the instrumentation himself live too.
Trojan 24
Veteran
Dope, I randomly checked his tour schedule and missed a show he had out here in So-Cal by like a day
But yeah, definitely one of my favorite releases this year
Well, we have hit the dead period of the year when year-end lists start dropping, so here is my personal 2014 roundup:
Note: I still haven't given a thorough listen to Iceage yet, but at first glance its an honorable mention
Overall thoughts on the year: Just like adam3000, a real ho hum year for the most part. No 5/5 material dropped this year, though if Dir en grey cut their album to like tens songs...maybe. AS it stands a bunch of good/great albums but nothing awe inspiring.
2014 Album Of The Year:
Dir En Grey - Arche
Incredibly consistent album with some utterly amazing songs on it amidst a bunch of ones that never delve below "good" level. This is more in vein with their earlier material with a hint of the harder side as well. Melodic as all fukk on some of these songs
2014 Album Of The Year Runners Up:
lamwhoamwhoami - Blue
The Raveonettes - Pea'hi
Freddie Gibbs - Pinata
TR/ST - Joyland
Insomnium - Shadows of the Dying Sun
Circa Survive - Desensus
2014 Honorable Mentions (spoiler tagged for space):
Banks - Goddess
Lana Del Rey - Ultraviolence
FKA Twigs - LP1
Cloud Nothings - Here and nowhere else
El Pintor - Interpol
St. Vincent - St
Run the Jewels 2
Lykke Li - I never Learn
2014 Song Of The Year:
Adam3000
-
I know its a couple years old now but I decided to give The Knife's "Shaking The Habitual" a spin again today and I officially love the album. Even Fracking Fluid Injection. I gave it like 4 or 5 spins when it first came out but I always got annoyed by the length of the songs and though it was very up and down. But I see its genius now
Side note......D'Angelo is my new AOTY. Finally the album I have been waiting for to dethrone St. Vincent.
Side note......D'Angelo is my new AOTY. Finally the album I have been waiting for to dethrone St. Vincent.
porque
Boricua Guerrero
Top Music Albums of 2014
source
Lifehacker
- Associated Press (Mesfin Fekadu): "AP's 2014's best albums list"
- Cosmopolitan (Eliza Thompson): "The 20 Best Albums of 2014"
- Grantland (Steven Hyden): "The Best (a.k.a. My Favorite) Music of 2014"
- New York magazine (Lindsay Zoladz): "The 32 Best Pop Albums of 2014"
- The New York Times (Jon Pareles): "Favorite Albums and Songs of 2014"
- The New York Times (Ben Ratliff): "Top 10 Albums and Songs of 2014"
- Newsweek (Zach Schonfeld & Paula Mejia): "The Top 10 Albums of 2014"
- NPR (Bob Boilen): "Top 10 Albums of 2014"
- NPR (Ann Powers): "Top 15 Albums of 2014"
- Slate (Carl Wilson): "My Top 14 Albums of 2014"
- American Songwriter: "Top 50 Albums of 2014"
- A.V. Club: "The 20 Best Albums of 2014,"
- Billboard: "The 10 Best Albums of 2014"
- Entertainment Weekly: "10 Best Albums of 2014"
- The Guardian: "Best Abums of 2014"
- NPR: "Songs We Loved 2014"
- Noisey: " Top 25 Albums of 2014"
- Paste: "The 50 Best Albums of 2014"
- Pitchfork: "The 50 Best Albums of 2014"
- Rolling Stone: "50 Best Albums of 2014"
- Spin: "The 50 Best Albums of 2014,"
- Stereogum: "The 50 Best Albums of 2014"
- TIME: "Top 10 Best Albums"
- VIBE: "46 Albums From 2014 That Are Actually Worth Your Money"
source
Lifehacker
ThisRightHere
Rookie
Breh gonna put that compilation out again this year?
ill do one today....
on another note listening to el pintor again lately and its def a slow burner. def up there for shyt this year, a 4.5 album for sure to me. best shyt they done since totbl
Updated best of list
1.Dir En Grey - Arche 9.5/10
Perhaps their best effort...ever. Easily matches uroboros in intricacy and has some absolutely superb segments. If not for the last two tracks being a wee bit off this would have been an easy 5* for me since there aren't any week tracks at all. While the language barrier can be jarring if you listen to any type of hard metal I fail to see how you can't get into this since those genres have largely unintelligible lyrics as well. The musicianship on this is supreme and obviously that of a band who has been together for almost 20 years.
2.Interpol - El Pintor 9.25/10
Who expected Interpol to sounds this fukking cool after the dreary ST they released a few years back? All the rage back home is right up there with obstacle 1, slow hands, and any other single they ever put out. This album hearkens back to the seedy streets of new york ToTBL did and I love it for that. Its like they figured out they are good at a certain sound so embrace it. The only song on here that isn't great is the closer but after the amazing Tidal Wave its pretty forgivable. At least half of this album has some material that would sound at home on their first album which is huge praise from me as that album is life to me.
3.FKA Twigs - LP1 9/10
Pretty much took her style and refined it from her EPs. The whole ethereal RnB shtick has been getting tired as everyone thinks they can do it. Very few actually bring something of worth to the table and would rather just stan the weeknd and be redundant. FKA instead chose to go into a even darker spot than anything The Weeknd did and the outcome gave life to one of the most consuming records this year. Honestly just off the strength of two weeks and pendulum this album would be on this list but the rest of the album holds up to those behemoths surprisingly well. Its sound is very focused on earnesty imo. when she speaks it sounds as if she is completely earnest and open. Its a lovely record and gets points for leaving hipster bytches open
4.Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Pinata 9/10
In a era when "real hip hop" is at a loss this shyt came out of nowhere and crushed buildings. Mixing gibbs smooth flow with the genius of madlibs sample laden piff was a recipe for greatness. While lib didn't dissapoint the biggest surprise was the skill of gibbs on these tracks. I was a "fan" of the nikka before this but would call him inconsistent. On this record though he hit every mark, on every song. TBH the only missteps on this record come from the production
. Like shytsville gibbs spits fire but the beat is rather uninspired. Other than about two tracks tho this is utterly hip hop and amazing.
5.TR/ST - Joyland 8.75/10
I have to admit. I'm a huge TR/ST stan. For W/E I generally fukk with everything this dude drops immensely. It probably has to do with the gothic girl I messed with that got me to really listen to him but thats for another time brehs
. As far as the music tho this is much less "danceable" than most of the stuff on his first effort. There really is no huge standout like Sulk or Heaven but what that forfeits is absolute consistency. This is clean, dark, nuanced EDM right here. His baritone voice floats over these tracks and there are some great grooves hidden in here.
6.Insomnium - Shadows of the Dying Sun 8.5/10
As far as death metal goes I'm a sucker for melodic. And few bands do it better than insomnium. The biggest knock against this band is the fact that they make the same album every time. In my honest opinion if the quality is this good why is that a detriment. Superior instrumentation, great vocals, and some great sections make this record. This band is the definition of consistency.
7.The Raveonettes - Pea'Hi 8.5/10
Another band I stan quite a bit. These swedes can do little wrong in my eyes ever since Lust Lust Lust. This is perhaps their most complete album since that one. It has all facets of their discography covered. Noise, Pop, Slow Burners, in your face aggression and feedback. All here. Sisters is one of my favorite tracks of the year for its completely unabashed deluge of sound on the chorus. Its wonderous if you are into that sort of thing. If you aren't then this album will probably grate on you a bit more than it should despite the melodies enveloped in the wall of sound. this is shoegaze as fukk and earns its spot on here off that alone.
8.St.Vincent - St.Vincent 8.25/10
I love St.Vincent. Love. Not many people are able to have such a enthralling personal and musical aesthetic at the same time. All of her albums sound very different as well which is a plus since she is great mood music. This one is her foray into funk I'm guessing? While a lot of it would not sound out of place on her previous albums something such as bring me your loves is definitely a new step for her. Not a bad song on this tbh, only reason it isn't higher because while everything is good only a few songs are mind blowing to me.
9.Lykke Li - I Never Learn 8/10
When this dropped I believed it wouldn't be topped and lauded it as a modern day classic. Its just probably because I was going through some shyt and it resonated in that way
. Now that I am in a better spot I can listen to it from a purely musical aspect and well, its still good. Not classic good however. If you are in a good mood this is not the album to throw on because it 30 minutes of pure self loathing and sadness. Done very well mind you. Everything up to love me like i'm not made of stone is fukking insane how good it is. After that though it tapers off quite a bit until the closer. If she maintained the momentum of gunshot though I shudder to think how ill this would have been. As it stands about half of this is ridiculous with the other half being aight, unless you in the feels then you will end up putting this on repeat and sipping drinks as you cry
10. Tk From Ling - Fantastic Magic 7.5/10
I'm pretty sure I've gone on record as saying Ling Tosite Sigure is far and away the most technical and talented post-hardcore group out there currently. The fact that three people can create intricate sound they do is crazy to me. So lo and behold I find out the Lead has a solo record. While some of it is by the numbers jrock with crazy guitar skill, some of the songs on here are greatness.
I'll up a song comp later
1.Dir En Grey - Arche 9.5/10
Perhaps their best effort...ever. Easily matches uroboros in intricacy and has some absolutely superb segments. If not for the last two tracks being a wee bit off this would have been an easy 5* for me since there aren't any week tracks at all. While the language barrier can be jarring if you listen to any type of hard metal I fail to see how you can't get into this since those genres have largely unintelligible lyrics as well. The musicianship on this is supreme and obviously that of a band who has been together for almost 20 years.
2.Interpol - El Pintor 9.25/10
Who expected Interpol to sounds this fukking cool after the dreary ST they released a few years back? All the rage back home is right up there with obstacle 1, slow hands, and any other single they ever put out. This album hearkens back to the seedy streets of new york ToTBL did and I love it for that. Its like they figured out they are good at a certain sound so embrace it. The only song on here that isn't great is the closer but after the amazing Tidal Wave its pretty forgivable. At least half of this album has some material that would sound at home on their first album which is huge praise from me as that album is life to me.
3.FKA Twigs - LP1 9/10
Pretty much took her style and refined it from her EPs. The whole ethereal RnB shtick has been getting tired as everyone thinks they can do it. Very few actually bring something of worth to the table and would rather just stan the weeknd and be redundant. FKA instead chose to go into a even darker spot than anything The Weeknd did and the outcome gave life to one of the most consuming records this year. Honestly just off the strength of two weeks and pendulum this album would be on this list but the rest of the album holds up to those behemoths surprisingly well. Its sound is very focused on earnesty imo. when she speaks it sounds as if she is completely earnest and open. Its a lovely record and gets points for leaving hipster bytches open
4.Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Pinata 9/10
In a era when "real hip hop" is at a loss this shyt came out of nowhere and crushed buildings. Mixing gibbs smooth flow with the genius of madlibs sample laden piff was a recipe for greatness. While lib didn't dissapoint the biggest surprise was the skill of gibbs on these tracks. I was a "fan" of the nikka before this but would call him inconsistent. On this record though he hit every mark, on every song. TBH the only missteps on this record come from the production
. Like shytsville gibbs spits fire but the beat is rather uninspired. Other than about two tracks tho this is utterly hip hop and amazing. 5.TR/ST - Joyland 8.75/10
I have to admit. I'm a huge TR/ST stan. For W/E I generally fukk with everything this dude drops immensely. It probably has to do with the gothic girl I messed with that got me to really listen to him but thats for another time brehs
. As far as the music tho this is much less "danceable" than most of the stuff on his first effort. There really is no huge standout like Sulk or Heaven but what that forfeits is absolute consistency. This is clean, dark, nuanced EDM right here. His baritone voice floats over these tracks and there are some great grooves hidden in here. 6.Insomnium - Shadows of the Dying Sun 8.5/10
As far as death metal goes I'm a sucker for melodic. And few bands do it better than insomnium. The biggest knock against this band is the fact that they make the same album every time. In my honest opinion if the quality is this good why is that a detriment. Superior instrumentation, great vocals, and some great sections make this record. This band is the definition of consistency.
7.The Raveonettes - Pea'Hi 8.5/10
Another band I stan quite a bit. These swedes can do little wrong in my eyes ever since Lust Lust Lust. This is perhaps their most complete album since that one. It has all facets of their discography covered. Noise, Pop, Slow Burners, in your face aggression and feedback. All here. Sisters is one of my favorite tracks of the year for its completely unabashed deluge of sound on the chorus. Its wonderous if you are into that sort of thing. If you aren't then this album will probably grate on you a bit more than it should despite the melodies enveloped in the wall of sound. this is shoegaze as fukk and earns its spot on here off that alone.
8.St.Vincent - St.Vincent 8.25/10
I love St.Vincent. Love. Not many people are able to have such a enthralling personal and musical aesthetic at the same time. All of her albums sound very different as well which is a plus since she is great mood music. This one is her foray into funk I'm guessing? While a lot of it would not sound out of place on her previous albums something such as bring me your loves is definitely a new step for her. Not a bad song on this tbh, only reason it isn't higher because while everything is good only a few songs are mind blowing to me.
9.Lykke Li - I Never Learn 8/10
When this dropped I believed it wouldn't be topped and lauded it as a modern day classic. Its just probably because I was going through some shyt and it resonated in that way
. Now that I am in a better spot I can listen to it from a purely musical aspect and well, its still good. Not classic good however. If you are in a good mood this is not the album to throw on because it 30 minutes of pure self loathing and sadness. Done very well mind you. Everything up to love me like i'm not made of stone is fukking insane how good it is. After that though it tapers off quite a bit until the closer. If she maintained the momentum of gunshot though I shudder to think how ill this would have been. As it stands about half of this is ridiculous with the other half being aight, unless you in the feels then you will end up putting this on repeat and sipping drinks as you cry 10. Tk From Ling - Fantastic Magic 7.5/10
I'm pretty sure I've gone on record as saying Ling Tosite Sigure is far and away the most technical and talented post-hardcore group out there currently. The fact that three people can create intricate sound they do is crazy to me. So lo and behold I find out the Lead has a solo record. While some of it is by the numbers jrock with crazy guitar skill, some of the songs on here are greatness.
I'll up a song comp later
Killakidkano
Rookie
wheres the compilation breh