Top Albums of 2013: Honorable Mentions

January 14, 2014

Honorable Mentions

Let’s get things started with my Honorable Mentions for 2013. These are not necessarily albums 26-30, but rather just some albums that I think deserve extra attention for one reason or another. I’m also doing things a bit differently this year, by including my most underrated album of 2013 (that doesn’t appear in my top 25), as well as taking a look at a reemerging genre.

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Waxahatchee – Cerulean Salt

3c24b9685631433837babfca419e440a-98The second album from Birmingham, AL native Katie Crutchfield as Waxahatchee is an exquisite collection of alt-folk songs showing off Crutchfield’s impressive songwriting abilities. The songs are intimate like the Mountain Goats, sweetly charming as Kimya Dawson, beautifully sweeping as Cat Power, yet retain some of the feminine angst of a Liz Phair. It’s a pretty impressive fusion of influences that ushers in a new engaging voice in indie rock.

[“Lips and Limbs” – Cerulean Salt]

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Neko Case – The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You

3887635acea0431a8617fb6354203c89-98And then on the flipside, you have an established voice, and boy do I mean voice, with her latest collection of folk songs, this time as honest and personal as anything she’s ever penned. Neko Case’s mouthful of a 6th album (now Grammy nominated) is Case at her most confident with her voice impeccable as always and musically the tightest she’s ever been, but this time there’s a darkness to her songs that give a glimpse of the enigmatic psyche within.

[“Man” – The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You]

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Foxygen – We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic

3b90bb271731f035c6ec9d133ad33b15-98One of 2013’s breakout acts was the L.A. psych-rock duo Foxygen, due in large part to their sophomore album, We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic, as well as their notoriously crazed live shows. It’s a retro album, full of psychedelic songs that retain enough pop sensibility to never veer towards druggy jam band tropes. It’s a pleasant listen that while not doing anything revolutionary, is an example of a band coming into their own as fine songwriters.

[“No Destruction” – We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic]

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Rhye – Woman

d443d6ed8c22a1cdb65df6fe69a750bd-98The debut album from Mike Milosh and Robin Hannibal is a supergroup album of sorts, as both members were busy with their own work before initially meeting in 2010 and reconnecting after they each moved to L.A. separately. Woman is a lush group of sexy R&B songs highlighted by an opening trio of tracks as strong as any to open an album all year. The rest of the album doesn’t quite reach those heights, but it’s still a mesmerizing listen thanks to Milosh’s entrancing vocals and Hannibal’s minimalistic instrumentation.

[“Open” – Woman]

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Washed Out – Paracosm

0f0f08e76758a7b1f5b149f4aaa0531d-98Considered one of the founding fathers of the chillwave genre, Perry GA’s Earnest Greene is now one of its lone remaining members holding strong to the sound as his musical peers veer in other directions. Paracosm is the follow up to his fine 2011 debut and continues down the path of Within and Without and its proceeding EPs. Greene’s patented dreamy soundscapes are in full force here complete with melodies that show off Greene’s songwriting abilities serving as an example of Greene’s progression from producer to full-fledged musician and singer/songwriter status.

[“All I Know” – Paracosm]

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Most Underrated Album: Cults – Static

563abd4537d4e777d7d4ef16d26560db-98Now, my actual most underrated album is probably up in my top 25 somewhere, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least give a shout out to the sophomore effort from Brooklyn pop duo Cults. This album came and went with barely a whimper and coming off their very successful self-titled debut (my #9 album of 2011), that was a bit surprising to me, because it’s a very solid follow up. It’s not quite as immediate as their debut and doesn’t really have a standout track, but much of this album is centered around the breakup of Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion making for an immensely personal album that I have a hell of a lot of respect for. It’s a wonder these two were able to remain professional enough to write and perform these songs side by side, and listening to the album can almost be an uncomfortable experience, but it’s hard to deny its honesty.

[“I Can Hardly Make You Mine” – Static]

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Emo Revival

An interesting development in 2013 was the reemergence of emo as a viable genre of music. Now, when I say emo I’m not talking about the Fall Out Boys or My Chemical Romances who co-opted the genre when it gained mainstream attention about a decade ago. Before that dark time, emo was a subset of indie rock, and really was what started me on my musical journey in my late high school days. In those days, emo was evolving into what became known as the Midwestern Emo sound featuring bands like The Promise Ring, American Football, Mineral, Braid and even early Jimmy Eat World and Death Cab For Cutie among many many others. This grew out of the early D.C. underground hardcore scene which is considered the birthplace of emo and really it’s 1st wave.

In the last few years, there’s been bands trying to rekindle the Midwestern Emo sound with varying success in what is now considered the 4th wave (or 5th depending on who you talk to). Top Shelf Records came along as a home to many of these groups and is largely responsible for the attention the genre has garnered. In 2013 many of these bands have surfaced from the underground by releasing some damn good albums that feature the sounds of emo’s glory years, and many more bands have albums on the horizon. It’s something I’m looking forward to in 2014. Below, I’m featuring three of the groups who released albums in 2013 that helped legitimize this new wave’s emergence.

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The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die – Whenever, If Ever

homepage_large.96864cf2The best of these emo-revivalists is Connecticut band The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die (often shortened to TWIABP), whose debut album Whenever, If Ever is a collection of passionate and tight songs filled to the brim with melody reminiscent of some of the best emo bands of the 90s. The first thing that jumps out about this group is of course that ridiculous name, which is taken from the lyrics of excellent album closer “Getting Sodas”, but if you’re able to get past how off-putting that is you’ll find some exhilarating tunes that evoke musicianship as deep as Explosions in the Sky while capturing the youthful exuberance similar to that of a Los Campesinos!, all in a nice emo package.

[“Heartbeat In The Brain” – Whenever, If Ever]

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Into It. Over It. – Intersections

4ff529203402e94abcdf6a3c784e972a-98Now here’s an album that probably has the most emo feel for those casual listeners of the genre dating back to right before bands started finding mainstream success. Into It. Over It. is the brainchild of Evan Weiss who is one of the forebears to this emo revival having been a part of numerous Midwestern emo bands the last few years, but with Intersections he’s put together his best group of songs which at times harkens back to Death Cab For Cutie or Hey Mercedes. Lyrically, this is certainly the most emo of the bands I’m featuring here, which isn’t necessarily a good thing, as it highlights the juvenile characteristics of the genre, which is one of its worst tendencies. But the songs are good enough that those lyrics can be overlooked, and heck for some people, it might actually strike that perfect balance. (Note: Into It. Over It. and TWIABP are heading out on tour this Winter along with fellow emo revivalist, A Great Big Pile of Leaves.)

[“A Curse Worth Believing” – Intersections]

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Crash of Rhinos – Knots

homepage_large.3f050240By far the best example of how Midwestern Emo isn’t really a regional identifier comes from British band Crash of Rhinos. The Derby, UK five-piece has created a very American sounding album touching on the more abrasive side of the genre; think Fugazi or Braid. If there’s an example among these revivalist of the emotional hardcore aspect of emo that actually spawned the genre, Knots is it. It’s more on the screamo side of the genre, but more Thursday than Touché Amoré (who released an excellent album this year, but can’t quite be called emo).  For longtime fans of emo, this may actually be the most nostalgic listening experience, but should be enjoyable enough for those with no preexisting knowledge of the genre.

[“Luck Has A Name” – Knots]

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Dishonorable Mentions

For this year’s dishonorable mentions, I’ve added a Most Overrated Album, which shouldn’t really be called dishonorable, but I didn’t have anywhere else to put it. However, the other two albums mentioned fit this section quite well.

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Most Overrated Album: Disclosure – Settle

4709b4817a40933d9e45a9e6131df12b-98Now I’m no expert on dance music, so perhaps I’m not the best judge, but I really just don’t get what’s so special about this album, the debut from English duo/brothers Disclosure. Maybe it’ll eventually click with me, but I listened to Settle a good bit, and save a song here or there, nothing really jumped out at me. It seems like very generic electronic music, that isn’t really doing anything particularly original or interesting. The beats come across rather formulaic and bland to form an enjoyable, but mediocre listen, one not worthy of the critical praise it’s getting.

[“Latch” – Settle]

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Yuck – Glow & Behold

0e8aa118ea3d223b63f1e7dda9888f3c-98Oh my, what a massive disappointment this album was. Part of me wants to give them a pass due to the ugly departure of frontman Daniel Blumberg right before recording of this album, but no. I feel like many bands have survived similar situations, but Yuck just couldn’t recapture what it had on that self-titled album in 2011 (a top 15 album for me then), and regressed mightily on Glow & Behold. Rather than find a new lead vocalist, the group decided to promote from within, and Max Bloom just doesn’t have what’s required of a frontman. He seems so disinterested in these songs, creating a passionless and just plain boring listen. And it’s not all his fault; the songs themselves are uninspired and devoid of any ambition. It’s a purposeless album with no direction that seems to have no reason for existing.  In a year of numerous disappointing follow ups to breakout albums (Smith Westerns, Surfer Blood, Free Energy, Christopher Owen’s post-Girls solo debut) this one makes those look like masterpieces.

[“Middle Sea” – Glow & Behold]

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The Avett Brothers – Magpie and the Dandelion

b2c00a93b39c87b129fbeff41a56677d-98When Rick Rubin teamed up with The Avett Brothers to produce their 2009 breakout album I And Love And You, I thought the results were actually quite good. Sure, it was polished to a mirror sheen, but the songs showed maturation and an improved songwriting that made the album a success, while still retaining the energy that gave the songs so much of their charm.  The returns weren’t quite as successful on 2012 follow up, The Carpenter, as Rubin’s style started to rob the band of that patented energy, and on Magpie and the Dandelion, the band’s 8th studio album, that energy is completely gone.

Now, part of the problem with this release is that these songs are essentially b-sides that have no business being on a proper album. These tracks were recorded during the same studio session that spawned The Carpenter, and while I’m not against using such songs to build another album (Heck, Timberlake did it this year, and Radiohead did it very successfully with Kid A & Amnesiac), when they feel so much like leftovers, it comes across a rather large miscalculation. Yes, these are songs that have been part of The Avett Brothers’ setlists at live shows over the years, and I’m sure hardcore fans of the band are excited to have these recorded, but there’s just not enough heft to warrant a brand new album. Make it a b-side or rarities release for those fans to complete their collection, but it’s pretty insulting to the casual fan to package these songs and call it a new LP.

However, what really cements this album as the worst I heard in 2013 is the inexplicable inclusion of a live version of “Souls Like The Wheels”, a song that already appeared on The Second Gleam EP back in 2008. Make it a bonus track, and that’s perfectly fine. Heck, I could maybe even forgive it if it was the final track on the album, but to place this song in the middle of its second half is as jarring and bizarre a moment I can remember on any album in quite some time. It has absolutely no place on this album, or any album that a band is trying to bill as their latest studio release and renders what was already a failure, an absolute disaster.

[“Another Is Waiting” – Magpie and the Dandelion]

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Posted by Hawkins

A Round of Sound: 2011 Mixtape

January 24, 2012

Finally, it’s time for the annual playlist that caps off my little countdown. Rather than do a ranking of favorite songs, I choose to compile what I think is a good representation for the year in music, all on an 80 minute CD-R. There’s plenty of songs I had to leave off the mix due to their length or lack of fit, so this is by no means my top 19 songs of the year. I do want to give a shout out the bookends of this disc which are from a couple bands who I finally found a way to get on my year end mixtape. Martime is not the kind of band that will ever challenge for high ranking in my albums list, but they are still one of my personal favorites because they write damn good pop-rock songs with “It’s Casual” serving as a great example. Human Hearts was another very good album from them and it’s been long overdue finding a place for one of their tracks on my mixtape. Likewise for The Mountain Goats, who are pretty much a top 25 staple for me when they release an album. John Darnielle is one of the best songwriters in the world today, and “High Hawk Season” is one of the more stunning songs of his career and the easy standout on All Eternals Deck. Also, kudos to Los Campesinos! who make their third appearance on one of my year end mixtapes, breaking a tie with numerous other bands to give them the overall lead.

Other notes: As I said, I managed to squeeze 19 tracks onto this years mix, up one from 2010. The lowest ranked album that has a song appear on the mix comes from the aforementioned Human Hearts by Maritime which was my #40 album of the year. In addition to that track, there are 3 other songs coming from albums outside my top 25. There are six tracks representing my #11-#25 albums, and 9 tracks from my top 10 albums. The only top 10 album not represented on the mix is Burst Apart from The Antlers. And as usual, the order of the Mixtape is not a ranking, but rather just the best order I came up with.

Below, you’ll see the tracklist, and after the jump you can listen to every track if you so choose. If you’re one of those super-cool Spotify users, I’ve also created a Spotify playlist of my Mixtape, which you can link to below. Also included is a link to my Amazon.com list which has my entire top 25 albums of the year, nice and neat in a one page form (as well as access to my lists from the previous 10 (!) years). Last but not least, Amy Boyd has once again stepped up to create some very fine album art for my Mixtape. This is the 4th straight year she’s helped me out, so as gratitude, I’ve included a link to her pop-culture blog as a permanent fixture over under my links section. She likes to call me Don Draper during the design process, which I consider much more of a compliment than I think she’s intending, so it’s the least I could do. You’re welcome.

So, that’s a wrap for 2011, and if you’ll excuse me I’m already behind on the 2012 releases…seriously.

Top Albums of 2011 (Amazon.com link)

2011 Mixtape (Spotify playlist)

1) “It’s Casual” – Maritime :: Human Hearts
2) “Need You Now” – Cut Copy :: Zonoscope
3) “Baby’s Arms” – Kurt Vile :: Smoke Ring For My Halo
4) “Abducted” – Cults :: Cults
5) “Get Away” – Yuck :: Yuck
6) “Ice Cream” – Battles :: Gloss Drop
7) “Midnight City” – M83 :: Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
8) “Cruel” – St. Vincent :: Strange Mercy
9) “The Wilhelm Scream” – James Blake :: James Blake
10) “It’s Real” – Real Estate :: Days
11) “Hello Sadness” – Los Campesinos! :: Hello Sadness
12) “Amor Fati” – Washed Out :: Within and Without
13) “Holocene” – Bon Iver :: Bon Iver
14) “The Words That Maketh Murder” – PJ Harvey :: Let England Shake
15) “Civilian” – Wye Oak :: Civilian
16) “Vomit” – Girls :: Father, Son, Holy Ghost
17) “Bizness” – tUnE-yArDs :: w h o k i l l
18) “Helplessness Blues” – Fleet Foxes :: Helplessness Blues
19) “High Hawk Season”  – The Mountain Goats :: All Eternals Deck

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Top Albums of 2011: #6 thru #10

January 21, 2012

#10) The Antlers – Burst Apart [Frenchkiss; released 5/10/2011]

“I’m not gonna die alone…I don’t think so.”

“Putting The Dog To Sleep”

It’s impossible to discuss Burst Apart without first mentioning this album’s predecessor Hospice, my #2 Album of 2009. Perhaps that’s a bit unfair, but when you release an album as stunning as Hospice, there’s bound to be some call backs, and well, concerns as to if a follow up release can vindicate all the praise lavished upon this young group. With Burst Apart, The Antlers have proven their music can be just as emotionally resonant without the help of heavy subject matter in highly conceptual form. Part of that is due to Peter Silberman’s falsetto which is still as fragile as ever while remaining inviting. The songs on Burst Apart are more standard in their song structure making this disc an easier listen than Hospice, but it doesn’t give up the haunting atmospherics that makes their music so striking. Now a fully realized band, Burst Apart is their first album written as a whole, not just Silberman, and it’s easy to see how this group has gelled together to form a band that can now stand on their own merits as musicians and not just kings of sorrow.

[“I Don’t Want Love” – Burst Apart]

#9) Cults – Cults [Sony; released 6/7/2011]

“I think I want to live my life and you’re just in my way.”

“Go Outside”

The concern with bands who land a major label deal due to an internet hit in their infancy is pretty obvious. Does this band really have the songwriting chops to produce an entire album of this stuff? Or will they just be another one-hit internet wonder that’s all too common these days? (We’ll soon get that answer about Lana Del Rey.) It’s a question that unfairly sets a band up for failure, with seeming loads of criticism heading their way from the start due to all the skepticism. For Cults, they put any of those concerns to bed immediately on their debut album with opening track “Abducted”, one of the best songs of the year, and followed it up with an album full of potential singles that can all stand right up there with “Go Outside”, the song that catapulted them to the forefront of indie-pop. Cults is an album that displays all the catchiness and hooks of a band sure of themselves, and well, extremely good pop songwriters. Are the songs derivative? Sure. But the use of 60’s girl-pop influences do convey a sense of nostalgia on this record that makes it so charming and deeper than what you hear on the surface. There’s a bit of tragedy and heartbreak in the lyrics and a sense of vulnerability in Madeline Follin’s vocals, but she doesn’t beat you over the head with it like some of her genre peers can’t help but do. Cults is a mature and masterful album, the year’s best debut, from a band that still has a lot of room to go. They’re here to stay.

[“Abducted” – Cults]

#8) Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues [Sub Pop; released 5/3/2011]

“So now I am older than my mother and father when they had their daughter. Now what does that say about me?”

“Montezuma”

The sophomore album from these woodsy harmonizers is one that overcame quite the obstacles to even see the light of day. After their highly successful debut album in 2008 (my #3 album that year), Fleet Foxes began work on their follow up, but a bout with writers block from lead man Robin Pecknold didn’t help things along. Neither did the scrapping of every song after the initial recording, which meant starting from scratch in the studio. This well-documented recording process for Helplessness Blues is a testament to the painstaking efforts put forth by Fleet Foxes in creating their art. But when released, the final product is an album full of lush folk songs that sonically expands on everything these guys were doing with their debut, creating a truly beautiful album. The songs on Helplessness Blues have been polished to perfection, while not sacrificing their intimacy and contain all the majesty that made these guys so endearing in the first place.

[“Grown Ocean” – Helplessness Blues]

#7) St. Vincent – Strange Mercy [4AD; released 9/13/2011]

“Best, finest surgeon, come cut me open.”

“Surgeon”

I’ve always wondered what it would be like if a successful but relatively non-mainstream artist showed up on American Idol in front of the audition panel.  It would kind of be a dream of mine to see the panel have no idea who the artist was, get on their high horse and criticize in their usual condescending way, unaware the whole time that the musician in front of them has already seen loads of success and contains more talent in his or her pinky finger than any of American Idol’s winners in its run. The thing is though, this isn’t what would happen with with Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent. Clark has a gorgeous face, a killer voice, and can absolutely whale on the guitar, all of which is pretty evident right away. That’s why it’s so refreshing to hear such complex yet accessible tunes coming from an artist like St. Vincent. Strange Mercy is her third full-length and contains all her usual sweet yet anxiety filled songs that make her one of the most sophisticated songwriters going today. The formula remains the same on most her songs here: a tender verse/chorus buildup into a freak-out of sorts all the while capturing the introspection of a songstress at the top of her lyrical game. With all due respect to Adele (and others), there isn’t a female artist creating more interesting music in the world today. And it’s getting time that we need to start thinking about dropping the female qualifier.

[“Surgeon” – Strange Mercy]

#6) tUnE-yArDs – w h o k i l l [4AD; released 4/19/2011]

“There’s a freedom in violence that I don’t understand, and like I’ve never felt before.”

“Riotriot”

Let’s get this out of the way: this is a weird album and Merril Garbus is a strange woman. But that’s what makes her tUnE-yArDs project so appealing and intriguing. This is the second album from Garbus following up her breakout debut BiRd-BrAiNs in 2009 which announced her presence as an experimental-pop artist, but limiting her to just a pop musician doesn’t do nearly enough justice to the type of music Garbus is creating here. What she’s done on w h o k i l l is create an “everything but the kitchen sink” album, blending so many genres that it’s really too many to even list. She has a clear knack for songwriting and despite all the bizarre tunes, they really are some damn good pop songs. Garbus carries a confidence on w h o k i l l that is evident throughout, but never once hints at self-indulgence, and dismissing Garbus as another freak-folk musician is to dismiss her talent in some of the simplest ways, most notably her voice. All you have to do is listen to a track like “Powa” with it’s lo-fi production and numerous musical techniques throughout which all leads to an fantastic vocal breakdown where Garbus hits a note that can only be described as Mariah Carey-esque. Weird yes, but when it’s this fascinating, it’s a welcome oddity.

[“Powa” – w h o k i l l]

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Posted by Hawkins