 | ||
 | Album: 1 of 50 Artist: My Bloody Valentine Title: m b v Released: 2013-02-02 Tracks: 18 Duration: 1:33:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 she found now (05:06) 2 only tomorrow (06:21) 3 who sees you (06:12) 4 is this and yes (05:06) 5 if i am (03:54) 6 new you (04:58) 7 in another way (05:30) 8 nothing is (03:34) 9 wonder 2 (05:51) 1 she found now (05:06) 2 only tomorrow (06:21) 3 who sees you (06:12) 4 is this and yes (05:06) 5 if i am (03:54) 6 new you (04:58) 7 in another way (05:30) 8 nothing is (03:34) 9 wonder 2 (05:51) |
| m b v : Allmusic album Review : Even though My Bloody Valentine promised late in 2012 that they would release new music in the near future, when m b v arrived in the middle of a February weekend in 2013, it was hard to believe it actually existed -- and not just because demand for the album kept crashing the bands website. For years, a follow-up to their 1991 masterpiece Loveless seemed impossible, and perhaps even unnecessary. What could live up to Kevin Shields notorious perfectionism, never mind the expectations of rabid fans (some of whom werent even alive when Loveless was released)? With a title that evoked years of scrawling initials on mixtapes and playlists, m b v answered those worries with a set of songs that felt immediately familiar. And, appropriately enough given the 22-year wait, many of these tracks are decidedly unhurried, and maybe even hazier than what came before. "who sees you" and "if i am" churn and hover, full of cloudy vocals and lingering guitars, while "she found now" recalls Loveless "Sometimes" in its whispery bliss. Yet there are differences, too: m b vs production is surprisingly direct and intimate, at times almost insular compared to Loveless panoramas. "is this and yes," which jettisons guitars in favor of organ and brass that evoke Stereolabs regal serenity, is one of the most strikingly different songs in their catalog. Shields and company spend much of the album avoiding the rhythmic heft that made their previous music equally lush and propulsive. Instead, they save m b vs loudest and most daring moments for last. "in another way" pairs a stair-stepping vocal melody with tones that approach free jazz in their dense clusters, while "nothing is" rides a pummeling riff and drums that are almost perversely loud, as if to make up for muffling them elsewhere. The most exciting moment is "wonder 2," which makes the jet engine comparisons to their music more literal than ever before, with rapid-fire beats and streaking sonics that suggest the song is being shot into space. Occasionally, m b vs songwriting doesnt always feel as immediate as before: "only tomorrow" and "new you" are among the tracks that make the most of their poppy structures and Bilinda Butchers sugared murmurs, but as fans know, most of the bands hooks take their time to emerge. More comforting than revelatory, m b v reaffirms that My Bloody Valentine are one of a kind; the subtlety to their melodies, instrumentation, and the way they blur together belongs to them alone. Theyre not trying to re-create Loveless, nor should they, and m b v doesnt have to reinvent music (again) to be worth the wait. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 50 Artist: David Bowie Title: The Next Day Released: 2013-03-08 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:00:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Next Day (03:26) 2 Dirty Boys (02:58) 3 The Stars (Are Out Tonight) (03:57) 4 Love Is Lost (03:57) 5 Where Are We Now? (04:09) 6 Valentine’s Day (03:02) 7 If You Can See Me (03:12) 8 I’d Rather Be High (03:44) 9 Boss of Me (04:09) 10 Dancing Out in Space (03:21) 11 How Does the Grass Grow? (04:34) 12 (You Will) Set the World on Fire (03:32) 13 You Feel So Lonely You Could Die (04:37) 14 Heat (04:25) 15 So She (02:31) 16 Plan (02:02) 17 I’ll Take You There (02:41) |
| The Next Day : Allmusic album Review : Say this for David Bowie: he has a flair for drama. This abiding love of the theatrical may not be as evident in the production of The Next Day as it is in its presentation, how Bowie sprung it upon the world early in 2013 following a decade of undeclared retirement. Reasons for Bowies absence were many and few, perhaps related to a health scare in 2004, perhaps due to a creative dry spell, perhaps he simply didnt have songs to sing, or perhaps he had a lingering suspicion that by the time the new millennium was getting into full swing he was starting to be taken for granted. He had settled into a productive purple patch in the late 90s, a development that was roundly ignored by all except the devoted and the press, who didnt just give Hours, Heathen, and Reality a pass, they recognized them as a strong third act in a storied career. That same sentiment applies to The Next Day, an album recorded with largely the same team as Reality -- the same musicians and the same producer, his longtime lieutenant Tony Visconti -- and, appropriately, shares much of the same moody, meditative sound as its predecessor Heathen. Whats different is the reception, which is appropriately breathless because Bowie has been gone so long we all know what weve missed. And The Next Day is designed to remind us all of why weve missed him, containing hints of the Thin White Duke and Ziggy Stardust within what is largely an elegant, considered evocation of the Berlin Bowie so calculating it opens with a reworking of "Beauty & The Beast," and is housed in an artful desecration of the Heroes LP cover. Unlike his Berlin trilogy of the late 70s, The Next Day is rarely unsettling. Apart from the crawling closer "Heat" -- a quiet, shimmering, hallucination-channeling late-70s Scott Walker -- the album has been systematically stripped of eeriness, trading discomfort for pleasure at every turn. And pleasure it does deliver, as nobody knows how to do classic Bowie like Bowie and Visconti, the two life-long collaborators sifting through their past, picking elements that relate to what Bowie is now: an elder statesman who made a conscious decision to leave innovation behind long ago. This persistent, well-manicured nostalgia could account for the startling warmth that exudes from The Next Day; even when a melody sighs with an air of resigned melancholia, as it does on "Where Are We Now?," it never delves into sadness, it stays afloat in a warm, soothing bath. That overwhelming familiarity is naturally quite appealing for anyone well-versed in Bowie lore, but The Next Day isnt a career capper; it lacks the ambition to be anything so grand. The Next Day neither enhances nor diminishes anything that came before, its merely a sweet coda to a towering career. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 50 Artist: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Title: Push the Sky Away Released: 2013-02-15 Tracks: 9 Duration: 42:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 We No Who U R (04:04) 2 Wide Lovely Eyes (03:40) 3 Water’s Edge (03:49) 4 Jubilee Street (06:35) 5 Mermaids (03:49) 6 We Real Cool (04:18) 7 Finishing Jubilee Street (04:28) 8 Higgs Boson Blues (07:50) 9 Push the Sky Away (04:08) |
 | Album: 4 of 50 Artist: John Grant Title: Pale Green Ghosts Released: 2013-03-08 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:40:46 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Pale Green Ghosts (06:04) 2 Black Belt (04:19) 3 GMF (05:14) 4 Vietnam (05:29) 5 It Doesn’t Matter to Him (06:27) 6 Why Dont You Love Me Anymore (06:12) 7 You Dont Have To (05:54) 8 Sensitive New Age Guy (04:42) 9 Ernest Borgnine (04:54) 10 I Hate This Town (04:04) 11 Glacier (07:38) 1 Black Belt (Hercules & Love Affair remix) (07:48) 2 Black Belt (Gluteus Maximus vocal remix) (08:24) 3 Pale Green Ghosts (Nivolt remix) (05:20) 4 Pale Green Ghosts (No Ceremony remix) (04:48) 5 Why Dont You Love Me (Nivolt remix) (05:48) 6 Why Dont You Love Me (Bon Homme remix) (07:39) |
| Pale Green Ghosts : Allmusic album Review : The title track from the ex Czars frontmans second solo outing, the chilly, electro-kissed Pale Green Ghosts, sounds like a Brendan Perry (of Dead Can Dance)-fronted Kraftwerk taking on a James Bond theme. Like much of the album, its icy, stylish, pompous, and self-obsessed, which is the direct antithesis, at least sonically, of his previous album, the maudlin, confessional Queen of Denmark, which was made with the help of wistful Texas folk-rockers Midlake. Pale Green Ghosts, on the other hand, was recorded in Reykjavik, Iceland with the help of GusGus Birgir Þórarinsson (Biggi Veira) and while Grant keeps the microscope firmly on himself throughout the 11-track set, he does so with more wit and panache than he did on the records predecessor. Populated by slinky electro-pop cuts ("Sensitive New Age Guy" and "Black Belt"), saucy, Harry Nilsson-esque, chamber pop fight songs (the saucy "GMF," one of two tracks to feature backing vocals from Sinéad OConnor), and melodramatic "Return to Oz"-era, Scissor Sisters-inspired ballads ("Vietnam," "I Hate This Town," and "Glacier"), Pale Green Ghosts has a little something for everyone, and while all of the over-sharing can be a little overbearing, Grants huge, expressive, and oddly comforting voice acts as a sedative, turning even the saddest, raunchiest, and most uncomfortable turn of phrase into a caress. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 50 Artist: Laura Marling Title: Once I Was an Eagle Released: 2013-05-27 Tracks: 16 Duration: 1:03:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Take the Night Off (04:12) 2 I Was an Eagle (04:21) 3 You Know (02:30) 4 Breathe (05:00) 5 Master Hunter (03:16) 6 Little Love Caster (05:52) 7 Devils Resting Place (03:14) 8 Interlude (02:16) 9 Undine (03:12) 10 Where Can I Go? (03:40) 11 Once (03:38) 12 Pray for Me (05:05) 13 When Were You Happy? (And How Long Has That Been) (03:53) 14 Love Be Brave (03:04) 15 Little Bird (05:40) 16 Saved These Words (04:27) |
 | Album: 6 of 50 Artist: Roy Harper Title: Man & Myth Released: 2013-09-20 Tracks: 7 Duration: 51:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Enemy (07:34) 2 Time Is Temporary (04:56) 3 January Man (04:31) 4 The Stranger (05:26) 5 Cloud Cuckooland (05:43) 6 Heaven Is Here (15:24) 7 The Exile (07:55) |
 | Album: 7 of 50 Artist: Bill Callahan Title: Dream River Released: 2013-09-17 Tracks: 8 Duration: 40:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples AlbumCover | 1 The Sing (04:24) 2 Javelin Unlanding (03:49) 3 Small Plane (03:57) 4 Spring (05:11) 5 Ride My Arrow (05:04) 6 Summer Painter (06:31) 7 Seagull (05:39) 8 Winter Road (05:30) |
 | Album: 8 of 50 Artist: Kurt Vile Title: Wakin on a Pretty Daze Released: 2013-04-08 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:12:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples AlbumCover | 1 Wakin on a Pretty Day (09:30) 2 KV Crimes (03:56) 3 Was All Talk (07:41) 4 Girl Called Alex (06:19) 5 Never Run Away (03:24) 6 Pure Pain (05:08) 7 Too Hard (08:03) 8 Shame Chamber (04:46) 9 Snowflakes Are Dancing (03:22) 10 Air Bud (06:29) 11 Goldtone (10:25) 12 Space Dad (Bonus Track) (02:59) |
 | Album: 9 of 50 Artist: Arctic Monkeys Title: AM Released: 2013-09-06 Tracks: 14 Duration: 47:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Do I Wanna Know? (04:32) 2 R U Mine? (03:21) 3 One for the Road (03:26) 4 Arabella (03:27) 5 I Want It All (03:04) 6 No.1 Party Anthem (04:03) 7 Mad Sounds (03:35) 8 Fireside (03:01) 9 Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High? (02:41) 10 Snap Out of It (03:12) 11 Knee Socks (04:17) 12 I Wanna Be Yours (03:04) 1 2013 (02:29) 2 Stop the World I Wanna Get Off With You (03:11) |
| AM : Allmusic album Review : If Arctic Monkeys launched a tentative retreat on Suck It & See, their first effort after being seduced by Josh Homme, the group once again forge ahead into bold new territory on AM, their fifth album. Neatly splitting the difference between the bands two personalities -- the devotees of barbed British pop and disciples of curdled heavy rock -- AM consolidates Arctic Monkeys strengths, a tricky task in and of itself, but the band pushes further, incorporating unapologetic glam stomps, fuzzy guitars, and a decidedly strong rhythmic undercurrent. At times, AM pulses to a distinctly danceable rhythm -- "Fireplace" percolates while "Why Do You Only Call Me When Youre High" simmers and "Knee Socks" nearly rivals Franz Ferdinand in disco rock -- but this isnt an album made for nights out; its a soundtrack for nights in. Too much of Alex Turners mind is preoccupied with love gone wrong, jealousy, and general misanthropy, so even when hes singing about a "No. 1 Party Anthem," hes doing so with a nearly visible sneer. Such an undercurrent of cynicism makes AM an ideal album to listen to under the cover of darkness, but due to the Arctic Monkeys muscular wallop and musical restlessness, it never feels like the band is wallowing in bleakness. Instead, this is vibrant, moody music that showcases a band growing ever stronger with each risk and dare they take. | ||
 | Album: 10 of 50 Artist: Boards of Canada Title: Tomorrow’s Harvest Released: 2013-06-05 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:02:04 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Gemini (02:56) 2 Reach for the Dead (04:47) 3 White Cyclosa (03:13) 4 Jacquard Causeway (06:35) 5 Telepath (01:32) 6 Cold Earth (03:42) 7 Transmisiones Ferox (02:18) 8 Sick Times (04:16) 9 Collapse (02:49) 10 Palace Posy (04:05) 11 Split Your Infinities (04:28) 12 Uritual (01:59) 13 Nothing Is Real (03:52) 14 Sundown (02:16) 15 New Seeds (05:39) 16 Come to Dust (04:07) 17 Semena Mertvykh (03:30) |
| Tomorrow’s Harvest : Allmusic album Review : With long-awaited returns by David Bowie, My Bloody Valentine, the Knife, and Daft Punk in just the first few months, 2013 was already the year of the comeback when Boards of Canada resurfaced. Despite the fact it had been seven years since their last release, the Trans Canada Highway EP, and eight since their last full-length, the uneven Campfire Headphase, upon hearing Tomorrows Harvest, it almost feels like the duo never went away. Unlike some of the work by their returning contemporaries, the album doesnt reveal any dramatic changes; this is undeniably the work of Boards of Canada, filled with the melancholy melodies and subtly edgy rhythms theyve been pursuing since the late 90s. Not that Tomorrows Harvest sounds dated; actually, there are hints throughout it that the duo paid attention to the goings-on in electronic music during their hiatus. The uneasy mood and tight arpeggios that dominate songs like "White Cyclosa" recall Oneohtrix Point Never as much as their own catalog, while the unsettled low end that wobbles on "Split Your Infinitives" nods to dubstep (of the Burial variety, not the kind that filled stadiums). Since that styles originators made music that was nearly as understated yet evocative as their own, it makes sense that Boards of Canada would borrow from them, but most of Tomorrows Harvest underscores that the duo still exists in its own world. If The Campfire Headphase tried to move forward as well as recapture the feel of Music Has the Right to Children -- and ended up doing neither especially well -- then this album could be seen as streamlined successor to Geogaddi. These songs may even offer a more balanced journey than that album did as they move from gentle unease to simmering dread and back again; "Reach for the Dead," the track the brothers chose to introduce this phase of their music, does both. Attention-getting tracks like "Jacquard Causeway," which announces itself with an analog fanfare that harks back to 70s documentaries, and the strangely stately pop of "Palace Posy," which could be a hit single if Boards of Canada were into that kind of thing, are surrounded by vignettes that loom and lurk, like "Telepath"s eerie muttering and "Collapse"s far-off crashes. The most notable change on Tomorrows Harvest may be that the past it evokes feels colder and less innocent than previous reveries; this time, looking back is as much about nostalgia as it is making sure the duo hasnt conjured up something creepy behind you on "Cold Earth" or "Nothing Is Real." This chilly refinement may make the album a more intellectual pleasure than Boards of Canadas earlier albums, but its a masterfully crafted work that feels like a natural progression for them. While this might not sound particularly exciting on paper, the consistent excellence of Tomorrows Harvest is as comforting as a collection of quietly menacing android fever dreams like these could possibly be. | ||
 | Album: 11 of 50 Artist: Matthew E. White Title: Big Inner Released: 2012-08-21 Tracks: 7 Duration: 41:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 One of These Days (05:19) 2 Big Love (04:39) 3 Will You Love Me (04:22) 4 Gone Away (06:53) 5 Steady Pace (04:15) 6 Hot Toddies (05:40) 7 Brazos (09:52) |
 | Album: 12 of 50 Artist: Prefab Sprout Title: Crimson/Red Released: 2013-10-07 Tracks: 10 Duration: 40:47 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The Best Jewel Thief in the World (03:49) 2 List of Impossible Things (03:43) 3 Adolescence (04:27) 4 Grief Built the Taj Mahal (03:28) 5 Devil Came a Calling (03:41) 6 Billy (04:37) 7 The Dreamer (06:00) 8 The Songs of Danny Galway (03:48) 9 The Old Magician (02:51) 10 Mysterious (04:22) |
 | Album: 13 of 50 Artist: Daft Punk Title: Random Access Memories Released: 2013-05-17 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:14:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Give Life Back to Music (04:34) 2 The Game of Love (05:21) 3 Giorgio by Moroder (09:04) 4 Within (03:48) 5 Instant Crush (05:37) 6 Lose Yourself to Dance (05:53) 7 Touch (08:18) 8 Get Lucky (06:07) 9 Beyond (04:50) 10 Motherboard (05:41) 11 Fragments of Time (04:39) 12 Doin It Right (04:11) 13 Contact (06:21) |
| Random Access Memories : Allmusic album Review : When Daft Punk announced they were releasing a new album eight years after 2005s Human After All, fans were starved for new material. The Tron: Legacy score indulged the seminal dance duos sci-fi fantasies but didnt offer much in the way of catchy songs, so when Random Access Memories extensive publicity campaign featured tantalizing clips of a new single, "Get Lucky," their fan base exploded. But when the album finally arrived, that hugely hyped single was buried far down its track list, emphasizing that most of these songs are very much not like "Get Lucky" -- or a lot of the pairs previous music, at least on the surface. The album isnt much like 2010s EDM, either. Instead, Daft Punk separate themselves from most contemporary electronic music and how its made, enlisting some of their biggest influences to help them get the sounds they needed without samples. On Homeworks "Teachers," they reverently name-checked a massive list of musicians and producers; here, they place themselves on equal footing with disco masterminds Giorgio Moroder and Nile Rodgers, referring to them as "collaborators." That could be self-aggrandizing, yet its also strangely humble when they take a back seat to their co-stars, especially on one of RAMs definitive moments, "Giorgio by Moroder," where the producer shares his thoughts on making music with wild guitar and synth solos trailing behind him. Elsewhere, Daft Punk nod to their symbiotic relationship with indie on the lovely "Doin It Right," which makes the most of Panda Bears boyish vocals, and on the Julian Casablancas cameo "Instant Crush," which is only slightly more electronic than the Strokes Comedown Machine. And of course, Pharrell Williams is the avatar of their dancefloor mastery on the sweaty disco of "Lose Yourself to Dance" as well as "Get Lucky," which is so suave that it couldnt help but be an instant classic, albeit a somewhat nostalgic one. Indeed, "memories" is the albums keyword: Daft Punk celebrate the late 70s and early 80s with lavish homages like "Give Life Back to Music" -- one of several terrific showcases for Rodgers -- and the spot-on soft rock of the Todd Edwards collaboration "Fragments of Time." More importantly, Random Access Memories taps into the wonder and excitement in that eras music. A particularly brilliant example is "Touch," where singer/songwriter Paul Williams conflates his work in Phantom of the Paradise and The Muppet Movie in the songs mystique, charm, and fragile yet unabashed emotions. Often, theres an almost gooey quality to the album; Daft Punk have never shied away from "uncool" influences or sentimentality, and both are on full display here. At first, its hard to know what to make of all the fromage, but Random Access Memories reveals itself as the kind of grand, album rock statement that listeners of the 70s and 80s would have spent weeks or months dissecting and absorbing -- the ambition of Steely Dan, Alan Parsons, and Pink Floyd are as vital to the album as any of the duos collaborators. For the casual Daft Punk fan, this album might be harder to love than "Get Lucky" hinted; it might be too nostalgic, too overblown, a shirking of the groups duty to rescue dance music from the Young Turks who cropped up in their absence. But Random Access Memories is also Daft Punks most personal work, and richly rewarding for listeners willing to spend time with it. | ||
 | Album: 14 of 50 Artist: The National Title: Trouble Will Find Me Released: 2013-05-17 Tracks: 13 Duration: 55:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 I Should Live in Salt (04:08) 2 Demons (03:32) 3 Dont Swallow the Cap (04:46) 4 Fireproof (02:58) 5 Sea of Love (03:41) 6 Heavenfaced (04:23) 7 This Is the Last Time (04:43) 1 Graceless (04:35) 2 Slipped (04:25) 3 I Need My Girl (04:05) 4 Humiliation (05:01) 5 Pink Rabbits (04:36) 6 Hard to Find (04:13) |
 | Album: 15 of 50 Artist: Julia Holter Title: Loud City Song Released: 2013-08-19 Tracks: 9 Duration: 44:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 World (04:52) 2 Maxim’s I (06:07) 3 Horns Surrounding Me (04:46) 4 In the Green Wild (04:07) 1 Hello Stranger (06:16) 2 Maxim’s II (05:28) 3 He’s Running Through My Eyes (02:18) 4 This Is a True Heart (03:30) 5 City Appearing (07:16) |
 | Album: 16 of 50 Artist: Thee Oh Sees Title: Floating Coffin Released: 2013-04-16 Tracks: 10 Duration: 41:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 I Come From The Mt. (04:30) 2 Toe Cutter / Thumb Buster (03:32) 3 Floating Coffin (02:21) 4 No Spell (04:28) 5 Strawberries 1+2 (05:47) 6 Maze Fancier (03:16) 7 Night Crawler (05:47) 8 Sweets Helicopter (02:45) 9 Tunnel Time (04:09) 10 Minotaur (04:53) |
 | Album: 17 of 50 Artist: Kanye West Title: Yeezus Released: 2013-06-18 Tracks: 10 Duration: 40:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 On Sight (02:36) 2 Black Skinhead (03:08) 3 I Am a God (03:51) 4 New Slaves (04:16) 5 Hold My Liquor (05:26) 6 I’m in It (03:54) 7 Blood on the Leaves (06:00) 8 Guilt Trip (04:03) 9 Send It Up (02:58) 10 Bound 2 (03:49) |
| Yeezus : Allmusic album Review : Everyone professionally involved with the creation of Kanye Wests sixth solo effort was sworn to secrecy, and with no preorders allowed, plus the news that producer Rick Rubin was still tinkering with tracks seven days prior to the drop, this instant, no-singles, anti-hype album got pre-release hyped on an Olympic scale. Think of the roll-up as a revolutionary blow against the empire or the supernova ego of West in full effect, and while its probably a little of both, Yeezus the album is a lot of both, with good taste and bad taste both turned up to 11. This aggro-industrial earthquake with booming bass and minimal synths balances groundbreaking hip-hop lyrics ("New Slaves" is a bizarre, layered concept clash where high fashion, slavery, and "Id rather be a dick than a swallower" all collide) with punkish, irresponsible blast-femy (during the draggy, trap track "Im in It," Wests melodious and melancholy voice shouts its dreams to the multitude, pleading "Your titties, let em out, free at last/Thank God almighty, they free at last" as if civil rights and booty calls were equally noble quests), and it all works in an astonishing, compelling manner. Its as if West spent the last year listening exclusively to Death Grips and Chief Keef and all the political, social, and musical contradictions became his muse, inspiring moments like the Keef and Bon Iver meet-up that fuels the mile-high hangover number "Hold My Liquor." "Blood on the Leaves" is recklessly bold as it uses Nina Simones performance of "Strange Fruit" under its snide tale of ex-girlfriends, groupies, and date rape drugs; then theres the obviously volatile "I Am a God" ("Hurry up with my damn massage!/Hurry up with my damn ménage!"), which still outdoes its provocative title with a swelled-head manifesto plus an unexpected, Magic-Mike-meets-Aphex-Twin boom production courtesy of Daft Punk. The closing beauty called "Bound 2" finds veteran singer Charlie Wilson reuniting with that Gap Band bassline but in chilly, new wave surroundings, but the most spellbinding juxtaposition on the album comes on first as claustrophobic electro-clasher "On Sight" offers "Black dick all up in your spouse again/And I know she like chocolate men/Got mo n*ggas off than Cochran" -- stunning because Kanye is family now with the OJ Simpson trials "Dream Team," seeing as how hes dating Kim of the Kardashian family and the couple welcomed a child three days before the albums release. Coming from the man who jumped on-stage and grabbed Taylor Swifts VMA award, or called the American President a racist during a nationally televised charity event, this angry, cathartic, and concise album (punkishly running 40 minutes), and its unconventional road to release seems like a personal quest for the next provocative, headline-making, and unforgettable fix. Thats an unfathomable thing for most and irritating for many, but its Kanyes unbelievable reality, so complaining about Yeezus being unrelatable is like complaining the sky is untouchable. At least he has decided to indulge his giant hunger with the help of art, and if anything, this is the moment he becomes a swashbuckling Salvador Dali figure, chopping down all thats conventional with highly imaginative work and crass, attention-grabbing attitude. Unlike Dalis separate delivery of the two, Yeezus is an extravagant stunt with the high-art packed in, offering an eccentric, audacious, and gripping experience thats vital and truly unlike anything else. | ||
 | Album: 18 of 50 Artist: Parquet Courts Title: Light Up Gold Released: 2013-01-15 Tracks: 15 Duration: 33:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Master of My Craft (03:10) 2 Borrowed Time (02:32) 3 Donuts Only (01:21) 4 Yr No Stoner (01:50) 5 Yonder Is Closer to the Heart (02:59) 6 Careers in Combat (01:07) 7 Light Up Gold I (00:18) 8 Light Up Gold II (01:13) 9 N Dakota (02:19) 10 Stoned and Starving (05:11) 11 No Ideas (02:37) 12 Caster of Worthless Spells (01:18) 13 Disney P.T. (01:12) 14 Tears o Plenty (03:15) 15 Picture Of Health (02:44) |
 | Album: 19 of 50 Artist: Endless Boogie Title: Long Island Released: 2013-02-19 Tracks: 8 Duration: 1:19:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The Savagist (13:32) 2 Taking Out the Trash (06:42) 3 The Artemus Ward (09:18) 4 Imprecations (09:18) 5 Occult Banker (09:17) 6 On Cryology (11:17) 7 General Admission (06:12) 8 The Montgomery Manuscript (14:07) |
 | Album: 20 of 50 Artist: Vampire Weekend Title: Modern Vampires of the City Released: 2013-05-06 Tracks: 12 Duration: 42:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Obvious Bicycle (04:11) 2 Unbelievers (03:22) 3 Step (04:11) 4 Diane Young (02:40) 5 Don’t Lie (03:33) 6 Hannah Hunt (03:57) 7 Everlasting Arms (03:03) 8 Finger Back (03:25) 9 Worship You (03:21) 10 Ya Hey (05:12) 11 Hudson (04:14) 12 Young Lion (01:45) |
| Modern Vampires of the City : Allmusic album Review : At the time of its release, Modern Vampires of the City was touted as a "deeper" offering from Vampire Weekend. While thats true to an extent, it downplays the equally heartfelt and clever songs on their first two albums. What is undeniable is that Modern Vampires is a lot less obviously showy than the bands previous work. They trade in Contras bright eclecticism for a less audacious production style and smaller instrumental palette: guitar, organ, harpsichord, and the occasional sample combine into a rarefied sound that suggests a more introspective version of their debut, and the band bookends the album with some of its most literal and insular chamber pop on "Obvious Bicycle" and "Young Lion." Modern Vampires quieter approach also showcases what might be most enduring about Vampire Weekends music -- endearing melodies and carefully crafted lyrics. It also fits Ezra Koenigs preoccupations on this set of songs, chief among them the fact that were all going to die. The band sums up all of this brilliantly on "Step," where the musics hip-hop beats and harpsichords reflect the allusions to Souls of Mischief and growing pains in Koenigs lyrics. Elsewhere, Vampire Weekend tones down the quirks that may have polarized listeners before; songs like "Everlasting Arms" and "Unbelievers" walk the fine line between cheery and grating so well that they could win over those who previously found them too peppy and preppy. Similarly, Modern Vampires of the Citys political allusions are also subtler than they were on Contra, where the band brandished them like college students all too willing to display their awareness of current events: Koenig sounds offhanded when he sings "though we live on the US dollar/We got our own sense of time" on "Hannah Hunt," and even the albums most overtly political song, the darkly verbose "Hudson," adopts a more historical stance as it incorporates everything from 17th century explorers, pre-war apartments, and exclusive New York neighborhoods into its meditations on fate versus free will. Of course, Vampire Weekend cant completely stifle their exuberance, and the albums louder moments stand out even more vibrantly against the subdued ones. "Diane Young"s brash, buzzy mix of doo wop, surf, and punk feels like a nod to Contra as well as Billy Joels "You May Be Right," and Koenig sings "I dont wanna live like this, but I dont wanna die" with so much joy on "Finger Back" that it celebrates life as much as it contemplates mortality. Ultimately, Modern Vampires of the City is more thoughtful than it is dark, balancing its more serious moments with a lighter touch and more confidence than theyve shown before. Even if Koenig and company fear getting old, maturity suits them well. | ||
 | Album: 21 of 50 Artist: Broadcast Title: Berberian Sound Studio Released: 2013-01-07 Tracks: 39 Duration: 37:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 A Breeze Through the Burford Spur (00:36) 2 The Equestrian Vortex (01:21) 3 Beautiful Hair (01:00) 4 Malleus Maleficarum (00:45) 5 Mark of the Devil (00:40) 6 Confession Modulation (00:27) 7 Monica’s Fall (00:24) 8 Teresa’s Song (Sorrow) (00:58) 9 The North Downs Dimension (01:05) 10 Collatina Is Coming (01:22) 11 Such Tender Things (00:47) 12 Teresa, Lark of Ascension (03:37) 13 Monica’s Burial (Under the Junipers) (01:00) 14 Found Scalded, Found Drowned (00:56) 15 Monica (Her Parents Have Been Informed) (00:57) 16 The Fifth Claw (01:26) 17 Saducismus Triumphatus (00:33) 18 The Gallops (01:04) 19 They’re Here, They’re Under Us (00:23) 20 Collatina, Mark of Damnation (01:37) 21 Treatise (01:02) 22 A Goblin (00:32) 23 The Equestrian Library (00:54) 24 The Serpent’s Semen (00:06) 25 Burnt at the Stake (01:33) 26 All Chiffchaffs (00:31) 27 The Curfew After the Massacre (00:30) 28 Poultry in Mind (00:24) 29 The Sacred Marriage (01:12) 30 Valeria’s Burial (Under the Fort) (00:54) 31 Edda’s Burial (Under the Clumps) (00:41) 32 The Game’s Up (00:37) 33 It Must’ve Been the Magpies (00:48) 34 The Dormitory Window (00:58) 35 Anima di Cristo (00:31) 36 His World Is My Shed (00:49) 37 Collatina’s Folly (00:47) 38 Here Comes the Sabbath, There Goes the Cross (00:32) 39 Our Darkest Sabbath (03:08) |
 | Album: 22 of 50 Artist: The Knife Title: Shaking the Habitual Released: 2013-04-05 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:36:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 A Tooth for an Eye (06:04) 2 Full of Fire (09:16) 3 A Cherry on Top (08:43) 4 Without You My Life Would Be Boring (05:14) 5 Wrap Your Arms Around Me (04:35) 6 Crake (00:54) 7 Old Dreams Waiting to Be Realized (19:02) 8 Raging Lung (09:58) 9 Networking (06:41) 10 Oryx (00:36) 11 Stay Out Here (10:42) 12 Fracking Fluid Injection (09:54) 13 Ready to Lose (04:35) |
 | Album: 23 of 50 Artist: Jonathan Wilson Title: Fanfare Released: 2013-10-11 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:18:22 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples AlbumCover | 1 Fanfare (07:05) 2 Dear Friend (07:18) 3 Her Hair Is Growing Long (04:52) 4 Love To Love (04:09) 5 Future Vision (05:54) 6 Moses Pain (06:38) 7 Cecil Taylor (06:30) 8 Illumination (06:38) 9 Desert Trip (04:26) 10 Fazon (05:38) 11 New Mexico (06:40) 12 Lovestrong (06:31) 13 All the Way Down (05:54) |
 | Album: 24 of 50 Artist: Unknown Mortal Orchestra Title: II Released: 2013-02-04 Tracks: 15 Duration: 55:30 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 From the Sun (04:43) 2 Swim and Sleep (Like a Shark) (02:45) 3 So Good at Being in Trouble (03:50) 4 One at a Time (02:28) 5 The Opposite of Afternoon (05:25) 6 No Need for a Leader (05:44) 7 Monki (07:18) 8 Dawn (01:08) 9 Faded in the Morning (04:21) 10 Secret Xtians (02:43) 11 Swim and Sleep (Like a Shark) [acoustic version] (02:42) 12 Faded in the Morning (acoustic version) (03:29) 13 So Good at Being in Trouble (acoustic version) (03:30) 14 Swing Lo Magellan (acoustic version) (02:47) 15 Puttin It Down (acoustic version) (02:34) |
 | Album: 25 of 50 Artist: Caitlin Rose Title: The Stand-In Released: 2013-02-25 Tracks: 12 Duration: 39:39 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 No One to Call (02:37) 2 I Was Cruel (03:33) 3 Waitin (03:19) 4 Only a Clown (03:37) 5 Pink Champagne (04:05) 6 Dallas (03:46) 7 Golden Boy (03:44) 8 Everywhere I Go (03:12) 9 Silver Sings (02:56) 10 When Im Gone (03:28) 11 Menagerie (02:42) 12 Old Numbers (02:31) |
| The Stand-In : Allmusic album Review : In a perfect world, Caitlin Rose would be a big star, and indeed, she may well get there anyway, given that she has a sweet, pure, coy, sassy, assured, and beautiful voice, and writes wonderfully balanced pop-country songs that suggest Patsy Cline, Linda Ronstadt, and the commercial pop end of Fleetwood Mac all rolled together. On The Stand-In, her second full-length, Rose builds on 2010s critically applauded Own Side Now, and delivers a strong and assured collection of songs that poise themselves right at the junction of country and pop, which ought to assure her of some strong radio play across multiple formats, since songs like "I Was Cruel," the gorgeous "Only a Clown," the stunning and precise "Silver Sings," and the melodic and memorable "Everywhere I Go" could fit anywhere into anyones life. Rose isnt trying to be all traditional country here, or even all straight pop either, but somehow she effortlessly melts the two together, and this set is definitely a winner, full of solid playing and, of course, Roses easy and comfortingly wise vocals. In a perfect world, and even in an imperfect world, she deserves a wide and appreciative audience. | ||
 | Album: 26 of 50 Artist: Jason Isbell Title: Southeastern Released: 2013-06-11 Tracks: 14 Duration: 56:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples AlbumCover | 1 Cover Me Up (04:51) 2 Stockholm (02:49) 3 Traveling Alone (04:27) 4 Elephant (03:37) 5 Flying Over Water (03:58) 6 Different Days (03:34) 7 Live Oak (03:35) 8 Songs That She Sang in the Shower (03:56) 9 New South Wales (03:53) 10 Super 8 (03:25) 11 Yvette (04:28) 12 Relatively Easy (04:45) 13 Elephant (demo) (03:55) 14 Traveling Alone (live) (05:19) |
 | Album: 27 of 50 Artist: Atoms for Peace Title: Amok Released: 2013-02-25 Tracks: 9 Duration: 44:35 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Before Your Very Eyes… (05:47) 2 Default (05:15) 3 Ingenue (04:30) 4 Dropped (04:57) 5 Unless (04:40) 6 Stuck Together Pieces (05:28) 7 Judge Jury and Executioner (03:28) 8 Reverse Running (05:06) 9 Amok (05:24) |
| Amok : Allmusic album Review : Thom Yorkes Atoms for Peace involves longtime Radiohead engineer/producer Nigel Godrich (Ultraísta) and bassist Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), as well as two session veterans in drummer Joey Waronker (R.E.M., Ultraísta) and percussionist Mauro Refosco (Forro in the Dark). For their first public performance, back in 2009, they performed Yorkes Godrich-assisted 2006 album The Eraser in its entirety, as well as some fresh material. Over three years later, theyve come up with this, a product of jam sessions formed -- by Yorke and Godrich -- into a uniform nine-track album. It sounds more like a fleshier successor to Yorkes first solo album than it does a first step, and its presented that way, from Stanley Donwoods woodcut illustrations to the bands name -- the same as a track title on The Eraser. Due to the nature of the recording process, the material is more about sounds -- rippling rhythms, more specifically -- than songs. Attempting to discern the organic from the mutated and the processed is a fools errand yet part of the appeal. Listeners will be either unnerved or fascinated by the use of Fleas low-throbbing lines, which add warmth, rarely propel, and are sometimes obscured beneath piles of shifting percussion. Given all the thick layering of sounds, Yorkes words -- normally enunciated and mixed in such a way to enable transcription with only a slight headache as a reward -- tend to act as another element rather than as a focal point. The lyrics probably werent written at the bassists house after some drunken pool playing. Theyre in typical Yorke character, consisting of vaguely conveyed altercations and conflicts: "You got me into this mess," "I couldnt care less," "But its eating me up," "They try to jump me," "Go back to where you came from," "Im like the wind and my anger will disperse." In other words, this is another Thom Yorke solo album, and it sounds really nice on decent headphones. | ||
 | Album: 28 of 50 Artist: Johnny Marr Title: The Messenger Released: 2013-02-25 Tracks: 12 Duration: 48:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The Right Thing Right (03:41) 2 I Want the Heartbeat (02:47) 3 European Me (03:56) 4 Upstarts (03:38) 5 Lockdown (03:58) 6 The Messenger (04:29) 7 Generate! Generate! (04:21) 8 Say Demesne (05:37) 9 Sun and Moon (03:23) 10 The Crack Up (03:52) 11 New Town Velocity (05:11) 12 Word Starts Attack (03:29) |
 | Album: 29 of 50 Artist: Hiss Golden Messenger Title: Haw Released: 2013-04-02 Tracks: 11 Duration: 41:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Red Rose Nantahala (04:04) 2 Sufferer (Love My Conqueror) (04:48) 3 Ive Got a Name for the Newborn Child (03:14) 4 Hat of Rain (02:16) 5 Devotion (05:19) 6 The Serpent Is Kind (Compared to Man) (03:39) 7 Sweet as John Hurt (04:51) 8 Cheerwine Easter (06:05) 9 Hark Maker (Glory Rag) (01:56) 10 Busted Note (03:14) 11 What Shall Be (Shall Be Enough) (02:22) |
 | Album: 30 of 50 Artist: Yo La Tengo Title: Fade Released: 2013-01-14 Tracks: 10 Duration: 45:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Ohm (06:47) 2 Is That Enough (04:14) 3 Well You Better (02:37) 4 Paddle Forward (02:49) 5 Stupid Things (05:05) 6 I’ll Be Around (04:47) 7 Cornelia and Jane (04:49) 8 Two Trains (04:44) 9 The Point of It (03:38) 10 Before We Run (06:14) |
| Fade : Allmusic album Review : At album number 13, Yo La Tengo are an institution unto themselves, having perfected their craft of slow-burning, unassumingly insular indie rock in incremental baby steps since their formation in 1984. Almost three decades of building a language of wistfully melodic guitar rock without becoming redundant is no small feat, and Fade rises to the unique challenge by striking a middle ground between new territory and recalling YLTs finest hours. Fade is the first album for the band not recorded with producer Roger Moutenot, who had worked with the group on everything they put to tape since their 1993 breakthrough, Painful. The ten songs here were recorded instead with Chicago scene veteran John McEntire (Tortoise, Sea and Cake, Gastr del Sol, etc.) at his Soma studios, and while his influence on the album isnt overwhelming, there are touches of his affinity for orchestration, such as the gleaming strings and horn arrangements on album closer "Before We Run" and the distant trombone on "Cornelia and Jane." Mostly, regardless of production, Fade comes across as almost self-referential before it recalls other reference points, coming closest to the sound and overall feel of their 1997 masterpiece, I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One. The whispery vocals and bed of guitar textures on "Stupid Things" and the extended percussive jamming of "Ohm" definitely seem informed by territory the band was exploring around that era, though the album on a whole lacks any of the spiky rockers that broke up the lush softness on ICHTHBAO. The gentle and romantic wash of sounds that characterizes much of Fade is more in keeping with the bands chilled-out 2003 album Summer Sun, with graceful exploration of different sounds all reined in before they spin into distortion or clamor. Even the slinky groove and weird wah-wah tones of "Well You Better" are subdued, offering a relatively mellow peak in energy. The albums lazy, sunshiny demeanor borders on sleepy at times, but those listening closely will pick up on the subtle shifts in instrumentation and colorful production shifts that the band has grown to excel at over the years. The fingerpicked acoustic guitar and harmonium drones of "Ill Be Around" fade into the spaced-out drum machine pulse of "Two Trains" without spectacle, and the entire album blends in a similar, pleasant way. This fluidity and cohesion is what drives the songs on Fade to stand stronger as a unified mood, and one that grows more satisfying with repeat listens. By this point, Yo La Tengo have developed not just a style, but a voice of their own so distinct that the deeper the details go determines how strong the album can be. Fade is rich with details and grows richer the closer one looks. | ||
 | Album: 31 of 50 Artist: Neko Case Title: The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight, the Harder I Fight, the More I Love You Released: 2013-08-30 Tracks: 15 Duration: 46:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Wild Creatures (02:39) 2 Night Still Comes (03:47) 3 Man (03:31) 4 I’m From Nowhere (03:01) 5 Bracing For Sunday (02:18) 6 Nearly Midnight, Honolulu (02:37) 7 Calling Cards (02:36) 8 City Swans (04:08) 9 Afraid (02:20) 10 Local Girl (02:36) 11 Where Did I Leave That Fire (03:27) 12 Ragtime (05:16) 13 Madonna of the Wasps (03:47) 14 Magpie to the Morning (02:58) 15 Yon Ferrets Return (01:16) |
| The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight, the Harder I Fight, the More I Love You : Allmusic album Review : The cover photo for 2009s Middle Cyclone found indie rock civil defense siren Neko Case warning the masses of potentially deadly weather from atop the hood of a 1967 Mercury Cougar. It was a striking image, and one that perfectly captured both the albums quiet might and her distinctive Patsy Cline-meets-Rosie the Riveter allure. Once again barefoot and wielding a samurai sword, Case squares off against a trio of serpents on the front jacket of 2013s like-minded, yet decidedly more adventurous The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You, a 12-track horn of plenty that taunts, comforts, bruises, and empowers, and like all of her previous offerings, rewards repeated spins with a multitude of riches. Her most vulnerable and permeable collection of songs to date, its not quite Neko Case unchained, but its certainly as emotionally raw as it is willfully enigmatic, especially on quieter numbers like "Nearly Midnight, Honolulu," "Im from Nowhere," and an airy, evocative cover of Nicos "Afraid," all three of which benefit from the barest of arrangements. That said, when Case decides to go big, she doesn’t skimp on the trimmings (guest spots are populated by the likes of M. Ward, Howe Gelb, Mudhoneys Steve Turner, and members of Calexico, Los Lobos, My Morning Jacket, Visqueen, and of course, the New Pornographers and longtime shadow Kelly Hogan), but her version of opulence is mired in great taste, which affords superb, midtempo offerings like "Night Still Comes, "Ragtime," and "Local Girl," straight-up dirt road rockers such as "City Swans," and the punk-infused, delightfully subversive single "Man" ("Im a man, thats what you raised me to be/ Im not your identity crisis/This was planned") the room they need to flex their considerable muscle while maintaining an air of warm, almost casual bombast that invokes names like Sandy Denny and Dusty Springfield. Its some of her most instantly gratifying work as well, perfectly encapsulating all of her personas, from the erudite, whiskey-shooting provocateur to the sweet and soulful, small town crooner who sounds like she was plucked from the pages of a novel set in the antebellum north. Case has proven time and again that she has the songwriting chops to match her earthy, superlative voice, but never with such authority. | ||
 | Album: 32 of 50 Artist: These New Puritans Title: Field of Reeds Released: 2013-06-10 Tracks: 9 Duration: 52:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 This Guy’s in Love With You (03:02) 2 Fragment Two (04:32) 3 The Light in Your Name (06:03) 4 V (Island Song) (09:16) 5 Spiral (06:03) 6 Organ Eternal (05:31) 7 Nothing Else (07:49) 8 Dream (04:14) 9 Field of Reeds (06:28) |
 | Album: 33 of 50 Artist: Richard Thompson Title: Electric Released: 2013-02-04 Tracks: 11 Duration: 50:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Stony Ground (04:42) 2 Salford Sunday (04:08) 3 Sally B (04:04) 4 Stuck on the Treadmill (04:20) 5 My Enemy (05:37) 6 Good Things Happen to Bad People (05:21) 7 Wheres Home? (03:30) 8 Another Small Thing in Her Favour (05:06) 9 Straight and Narrow (04:13) 10 The Snow Goose (05:06) 11 Saving the Good Stuff for You (03:54) |
 | Album: 34 of 50 Artist: White Denim Title: Corsicana Lemonade Released: 2013-10-29 Tracks: 10 Duration: 37:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 At Night in Dreams (04:04) 2 Corsicana Lemonade (03:20) 3 Limited by Stature (02:29) 4 New Blue Feeling (03:18) 5 Come Back (03:19) 6 Distant Relative Salute (03:16) 7 Let It Feel Good (My Eagles) (03:44) 8 Pretty Green (04:09) 9 Cheer Up / Blues Ending (05:33) 10 A Place to Start (04:37) |
 | Album: 35 of 50 Artist: Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle Title: Perils From the Sea Released: 2013-04-30 Tracks: 11 Duration: 1:17:29 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 What Happened to My Brother (05:15) 2 1936 (05:10) 3 Gustavo (06:58) 4 Baby in Death Can I Rest Next to Your Grave (08:12) 5 Ceiling Gazing (08:09) 6 You Missed My Heart (05:40) 7 Caroline (06:17) 8 He Always Felt Like Dancing (07:56) 9 By the Time That I Awoke (07:26) 10 Here Come More Perils From the Sea (05:52) 11 Somehow the Wonder of Life Prevails (10:32) |
 | Album: 36 of 50 Artist: Mark Kozelek & Desertshore Title: Mark Kozelek & Desertshore Released: 2013-08-20 Tracks: 10 Duration: 44:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Mariette (03:01) 2 Livingstone Bramble (05:00) 3 Hey You Bastards Im Still Here (04:03) 4 Katowice or Cologne (03:44) 5 Seal Rock Hotel (02:58) 6 Tavoris Cloud (03:33) 7 You Are Not of My Blood (05:58) 8 Sometimes I Cant Stop (06:41) 9 Dont Ask About My Husband (02:27) 10 Brothers (06:56) |
| Mark Kozelek & Desertshore : Allmusic album Review : With 2013 shaping up to be one of his most prolific years, singer/songwriter Mark Kozelek followed a series of live albums with a collaborative studio album with Album Leafs Jimmy LaValle and now Mark Kozelek and Desertshore, a collection of new songs made with members of his former bands Red House Painters and Sun Kil Moon. In his earlier days with those bands, Kozeleks songs were dreamy and wistful, sadhearted but luxurious slowcore rooted to reality with his painfully honest autobiographical lyrics. In his numerous live solo albums, Kozeleks focus on the naked storytelling aspect of his music has come more into focus, with the chord changes from a spare guitar sometimes feeling like little more than an obligatory musical backdrop for his wordy, diary entry-like lyrics about the loneliness of traveling and growing older as an indie rock lifer. Made up of former Red House Painters guitarist Phil Carney, drummer Mike Stevens, and pianist Chris Connolly, Desertshore returns Kozeleks often raw lyrics to a rich bedding of narcotic folk-rock not unlike his work in the mid-90s. What feels different is just how much he has to say, and the amount of direct details that make it into his songs. "Livingstone Bramble" manages to include scenes of talking with a panhandling crackhead, watching a boxing match on ESPN next to a sleeping girlfriend, and even buying a bottle of water at the corner deli before getting into a list of which guitarists make the grade and which the narrator dislikes. While Kozelek recites what could be a boring laundry list of what he did minute to minute over a Crazy Horse rhythm, the delivery somehow renders every mundane detail essential to the song. "Katowice or Cologne" fades out with him still spitting out lyrics about what hes daydreaming about doing on his vacation. He sometimes pulls the rug out from under himself with a stark dose of heaviness, jumping from lines about what he had for dinner to sad laments about the passing of friends like American Music Clubs Tim Mooney and Magnolia Electric Co.s Jason Molina. The country & western bounce of "Dont Ask About My Husband" offers a lighthearted tale of devious infidelity, switching up the narration from Kozeleks sometimes uncomfortably specific songs about his own life to that of a possibly fictitious character running around the world behind her spouses back. Finding a midpoint between the lushness of the full-band arrangements and Kozeleks increasingly intricate and plainspoken songwriting approach, the album changes moods and colors song to song but offers so much emotional insight, both musically and lyrically, that the shifts are almost necessary to punctuate each overflowing statement. Nuanced, dark, funny, harrowing, but also amiable, Mark Kozelek and Desertshore is one of the more digestible and entertaining documents of what could stand as the most prolific writing period of Kozeleks already inspired career. | ||
 | Album: 37 of 50 Artist: Eleanor Friedberger Title: Personal Record Released: 2013-06-04 Tracks: 12 Duration: 46:11 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 I Don’t Want to Bother You (03:56) 2 When I Knew (03:45) 3 I’ll Never Be Happy Again (03:19) 4 Stare at the Sun (02:55) 5 Echo or Encore (04:50) 6 My Own World (03:37) 7 Tomorrow Tomorrow (03:20) 8 You’ll Never Know Me (03:24) 9 I Am the Past (03:27) 10 She’s a Mirror (03:46) 11 Other Boys (06:06) 12 Singing Time (03:46) |
 | Album: 38 of 50 Artist: HAIM Title: Days Are Gone Released: 2013-08-05 Tracks: 11 Duration: 44:17 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Falling (04:18) 2 Forever (04:05) 3 The Wire (04:05) 4 If I Could Change Your Mind (03:50) 5 Honey & I (04:11) 6 Don’t Save Me (03:51) 7 Days Are Gone (03:33) 8 My Song 5 (03:53) 9 Go Slow (04:17) 10 Let Me Go (04:08) 11 Running If You Call My Name (04:02) |
| Days Are Gone : Allmusic album Review : There is nothing cool about Haims music, and thats why its so refreshing. While many of their contemporaries engaged in a contest to find the most obscure influences, and 80s revivalists sucked synth-pop and new wave dry, the Haim sisters dug up the decades biggest, poppiest sounds and fashioned a captivating debut album out of them. Days Are Gone sounds all the more unusual precisely because its so mainstream; a list of their influences -- Stevie Nicks, Phil Collins, En Vogue, Shania Twain -- looks like a glance at the Top 40 from about 25 years before the albums release. Likewise, these songs revel in that eras sometimes-cheesy flourishes without a trace of irony, and the gated drums, gleaming synths, and muted guitars that dominate Days Are Gone havent sounded so good since their original heyday. Not that Haims approach is unstudied; the trio obviously did their homework to revive and embody these sounds so perfectly, and it took them five years of recording and re-recording these songs until they had just the right mix of smoothness and immediacy. The hard work paid off: Days Are Gone is full of should-be hits like "The Wire," which boasts a big, fist-pumping beat and sassy guitar licks (they can only be called that). Compared to the thin voices of so many 2010s pop stars, singer Danielle Haims rich alto only adds to the groups throwback feel, but like her sisters, shes remarkably versatile. Over the course of the album, Haim captures and explores the nuances within the styles theyre reviving: theres the sweet soft rock of "Honey & I" or "Dont Save Me," the title tracks tight synth-pop, and the dark, driving territory of "Let Me Go" and "My Song 5," which, with its slinky melody and hard-hitting beats, makes the most of the trios much-touted R&B influences. This song, along with much of Days Are Gone, features production by Ariel Rechtshaid, whose work with Usher and Vampire Weekend proves he has the breadth to help Haim unite their ideas into a coherent sound. Still, its the writing that ultimately prevents Days Are Gone from being just an extremely accurate exercise in nostalgia. The best moments here, such as the bookends "Falling" and "Running If You Call My Name," would be great pop songs regardless of when they sound like theyre from. A debut album that could pass for a greatest-hits collection, Days Are Gone will provide musical comfort food for some, and possibly an introduction to irony-free pop for others. | ||
 | Album: 39 of 50 Artist: Earl Sweatshirt Title: Doris Released: 2013-08-20 Tracks: 15 Duration: 44:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Pre (02:52) 2 Burgundy (02:07) 3 20 Wave Caps (02:12) 4 Sunday (03:26) 5 Hive (04:37) 6 Chum (04:04) 7 Sasquatch (02:48) 8 Centurion (03:04) 9 523 (01:32) 10 Uncle Al (00:53) 11 Guild (03:54) 12 Molasses (02:16) 13 Whoa (03:16) 14 Hoarse (03:52) 15 Knight (03:14) |
| Doris : Allmusic album Review : With the 2010 drop of his debut mixtape, Earl, rapper Earl Sweatshirt became one of the main reasons the underground rap crew Odd Future went from obscurity to everywhere. Then, Earls mom decided he was an "at risk" kid (not because of his ugly, ugly music, but because he was "getting in trouble"), so off to the Coral Reef Academy in Samoa he went, quickly falling into the category of "more of a legend than rapper" as Odd Future broke out the "Free Earl" T-shirts with no other explanation for his absence. As such, his official debut falls into the category of "highly anticipated," but the real story behind the murky and free-flowing -- almost globular -- Doris is that the morbid horror-show rapper heard previously has grown into an observational maverick-style artist, offering downtrodden and even dour rhymes that come off like MF Doom recounting his visit to the Grand Guignol. Swaying slowly with Tibetan monk vocals in the distance, the ghostly "Hive" with Vince Staples and Casey Veggies offers the vivid "Come around we gun em down/Bodies... piled... Auschwitz," while the Tyler, the Creator feature "Whoa" kicks off with the Odd Future leader declaring "This aint no 2010 sh*t," which Earl proves by dropping crooked rhymes about pot ("Steaming tubes of poop and twisted doobies full of euphemisms") and Harry Potter ("Bruising gimmicks with the broom he usually use for Quidditch"). MF Doom fans will be familiar with the style, and while the rumored Doom collaboration does not wind up on the final Doris, another obvious influence, RZA, is here, appearing on the aptly titled "Molasses," a slow, rich mix of Wu-Tang and Wolf Gang flavors. Mac Millers recent embrace of the underground pays dividends during the bent and broken "Guild," while Frank Ocean influences Earl to sing his own blues on the great "Sunday" ("Nightmares got more vivid when I stopped smoking pot/And lovin yous a little different, I dont like you a lot"). Underneath all this mumbled madness are some truly wonderful sounds -- much of it made by Earl under his alias randomblackguy -- as "Chum" runs like an underground indie suite of excellent ideas while "Centurion" twists a Krautrock and Can sample into something thug and stately. All that said, Doris is unsettled, messy, and takes a bit to sort, but there are codes to crack and rich rewards to reap, so enter with an open mind and prepare to leave exhausted. | ||
 | Album: 40 of 50 Artist: Chris Forsyth Title: Solar Motel Released: 2013-10-29 Tracks: 4 Duration: 41:30 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Solar Motel Part I (11:41) 2 Solar Motel Part II (10:07) 3 Solar Motel Part III (12:17) 4 Solar Motel Part IV (07:25) |
 | Album: 41 of 50 Artist: Low Title: The Invisible Way Released: 2013-03-19 Tracks: 11 Duration: 41:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Plastic Cup (03:01) 2 Amethyst (05:20) 3 So Blue (04:23) 4 Holy Ghost (03:06) 5 Waiting (02:38) 6 Clarence White (03:47) 7 Four Score (02:56) 8 Just Make It Stop (04:08) 9 Mother (02:52) 10 On My Own (05:43) 11 To Our Knees (03:08) |
| The Invisible Way : Allmusic album Review : An institution of slowcore, one of indie rocks more bittersweet subsets, Low began making huge and haunted sounds out of the most minimal means in the early 90s. The Invisible Way finds the trio 20 years into its craft and returning to parts of its roots while at the same time branching into new sounds. The most noticeable shifts in the bands sound come with the production of Wilcos Jeff Tweedy, working with the band for the first time here. While much of Lows work clung to a formula of reverb and echo that their earliest records took to extremes, the 11 songs here are roomy but not obscured by cavernous sounds. Instead, tracks like "Holy Ghost" and "Amethyst" glow with an earthy sheen, finding their spaciousness more in subtle touches of acoustic instruments and perfectly placed accents of guitar than post-production techniques. The songwriting here harks back somewhat to the understated pastoral majesty of early Low records like Long Division and The Curtain Hits the Cast, with the band creating mysterious and lush beauty by slowing down and lingering over long, thoughtful chord changes and glimmering harmonies. Following more aggressive sidesteps in the bands discography like 2005s The Great Destroyer and 2007s bleak and cacophonous Drums and Guns, the return to basics is refreshing, and the even more naked production is a perfect complement to the songs. Drummer/vocalist Mimi Parker sings lead on an unprecedented five songs on this album. Her layered harmonies, pristine but never brittle, make songs like "So Blue" and "Four Score" stand out, at once familiar to Lows melancholic grandeur but with a new confidence not heard before. Parkers sure-footed vocals anchor the Yo La Tengo-channeling upbeat push of standout track "Just Make It Stop," delivering desperate lines over hopeful melodic chord shifts. Guitarist/vocalist Alan Sparhawk continues his part of the bands evolution as well, offering quizzical and sometimes meandering lyrics for tracks like "Plastic Cup" and "Clarence White," both of which are epic in contrast to the single-line couplets that defined earlier Low albums. With its brilliant production values and carefully curated arrangements, The Invisible Way shows a band decades into making music but still in a very real state of evolution. While not quite a career-definitive statement, much like the aforementioned Yo La Tengo, Wilco, Belle & Sebastian, or any of the early-90s bands still exploring their sound, Low give us a definitive chapter for where they are presently, and present it with more clarity and joy than weve heard from them in some time. | ||
 | Album: 42 of 50 Artist: Arcade Fire Title: Reflektor Released: 2013-10-25 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:15:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Reflektor (07:33) 2 We Exist (05:44) 3 Flashbulb Eyes (02:42) 4 Here Comes the Night Time (06:30) 5 Normal Person (04:22) 6 You Already Know (03:59) 7 Joan of Arc (05:26) 1 Here Comes the Night Time II (02:52) 2 Awful Sound (Oh Eurydice) (06:13) 3 Its Never Over (Hey Orpheus) (06:42) 4 Porno (06:02) 5 Afterlife (05:52) 6 Supersymmetry / [unknown] (11:16) |
| Reflektor : Allmusic album Review : After stunning the mainstream pop machine into a state of huffy, new school e-disbelief by beating out Eminem, Lady Antebellum, Lady Gaga, and Katy Perry for the 2011 Album of the year Grammy, Arcade Fire seemed poised for a U2-style international coup, but the Suburbs, despite its stadium-ready sonic grandiosity, was far too homespun and idiosyncratic to infect the masses in the same way as the Joshua Tree or Achtung Baby. Reflektor, the Montreal collectives much anticipated fourth long-player and first double-album, moves the group even further from pop culture sanctification with a seismic yet impenetrable 13-track set (at 75 minutes it’s one minute over standard single disc capacity) that guts the building but leaves the roof intact. Going big was never going to be a problem, especially for a band so well-versed in the art of anthem husbandry, and theyre still capable of shaking the rafters, as evidenced by the cool and circuitous, Roxy Music-forged, David Bowie-assisted title cut, the lush, Regine Chassagne-led “Its Never Over (Oh Orpheus),” and the impossibly dense and meaty “We Exist,” but what ultimately keeps Reflektor from sticking the landing is bloat. The stylistic shifts, courtesy of LCD Soundsystems James Murphy, aren’t nearly as jarring as the turgid and Tiki-colored, almost seven-minute “Here Comes the Night Time,” the six minutes of rewinding tape that serve as the coda for the otherwise lovely “Supersymmetry,” or the unnecessarily drawn-out fountain of white noise that should seamlessly connect the Gary Glittery “Joan of Arc” with the Flaming Lips-ian “Here Comes the Night Time, Pt. 2,” but doesn’t because the songs are on separate discs. Flush with artistic capital, they went on a bender, and in the process lost some of the warmth, jubilation, and capacity for empathy that made their first three efforts so inclusive. Nevertheless, Reflektor is as fascinating as it is frustrating, an oddly compelling miasma of big pop moments and empty sonic vistas that offers up a (full-size) snapshot of a band at its commerical peak, trying to establish eye contact from atop a mountain. | ||
 | Album: 43 of 50 Artist: Okkervil River Title: The Silver Gymnasium Released: 2013-08-30 Tracks: 11 Duration: 48:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 It Was My Season (04:26) 2 On a Balcony (03:04) 3 Down Down the Deep River (06:32) 4 Pink-Slips (03:39) 5 Lido Pier Suicide Car (05:31) 6 Where the Spirit Left Us (03:47) 7 White (03:06) 8 Stay Young (04:19) 9 Walking Without Frankie (05:00) 10 All the Time Every Day (04:36) 11 Black Nemo (04:58) |
 | Album: 44 of 50 Artist: Fuzz Title: Fuzz Released: 2013-10-01 Tracks: 8 Duration: 36:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Earthen Gate (05:01) 2 Sleigh Ride (03:12) 3 Whats in My Head (03:55) 4 Hazemaze (05:50) 5 Loose Sutures (06:13) 6 Preacher (02:21) 7 Raise (03:43) 8 One (06:06) |
| Fuzz : Allmusic album Review : The word "prolific" comes up in almost every discussion of San Francisco songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and garage-psych wonder Ty Segall. With a discography that grew almost exponentially ever since he came onto the scene in the late 2000s, productivity with uncommonly strong results became one of his calling cards. With Fuzz, Segall joins longtime friends and collaborators Charles Moothart and Roland Cosio to create a band deserving of its own entity status, channeling the (aptly) fuzzy guitar tones, tin-can drums, and saturated psychedelia of early-70s proto-metal gods like Blue Cheer, the Groundhogs, and Jimi Hendrix. Segall, usually known for his guitar-wielding antics, actually makes an incredible showing as the drummer for Fuzz, still joining guitarist/vocalist Moothart with his distinctly sneery vocals. Were it not for the meeting of the pairs decidedly punkish unhinged voices, Fuzz would give no clues that punk, indie rock, or any non-heavy music after 1976 ever happened. With the exception of the fast-paced "Hazemaze," the songs here largely fall into an overblown swagger, with scuzzy distorted guitar tones, wailing witchy harmonies, and an elastic heaviness that owes most of its charm to the blueprints of Black Sabbaths classic first six albums. The quick-shifting tempo changes and fluttering blues-scale solos of "Loose Sutures" take their cues directly from Tony Iommis playing, and the meandering jam that falls in the songs middle even finds bassist Cosio loosely quoting Geezer Butlers basslines from Sabbaths earliest, evilest jams. "Raise," with its demonic backing vocals and druggy, spiraling lead guitars, calls to mind hints of the early San Francisco psychedelic scene in the 60s, leaning only slightly away from the primordial metal and biker rock flavor of the rest of the album. Fuzz, on the whole, is a heavy, greasy, stoned affair, with enough of a foot in the past to cast a sepia-toned haze over all the songs, but still a boldly creative and original set of room-demolishing tunes. The main success of a band connected to Segalls enormous musical personality is to not be overwhelmed or outshined by it, and in its best moments, Fuzz will have listeners forgetting Segall is part of the equation at all, the albums brooding heaviness more immediately moving than any of his distinctive sonic ticks. | ||
 | Album: 45 of 50 Artist: Manic Street Preachers Title: Rewind the Film Released: 2013-09-13 Tracks: 29 Duration: 1:50:30 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 This Sullen Welsh Heart (04:13) 2 Show Me the Wonder (03:18) 3 Rewind the Film (06:36) 4 Builder of Routines (02:28) 5 4 Lonely Roads (02:54) 6 (I Miss the) Tokyo Skyline (03:46) 7 Anthem for a Lost Cause (03:51) 8 As Holy as the Soil (That Buries Your Skin) (03:20) 9 3 Ways to See Despair (03:16) 10 Running Out of Fantasy (04:09) 11 Manorbier (04:31) 12 30-Year War (05:07) 1 This Sullen Welsh Heart (demo) (03:56) 2 Show Me the Wonder (demo) (03:19) 3 Rewind the Film (demo) (06:15) 4 Builder of Routines (demo) (02:42) 5 4 Lonely Roads (demo) (02:45) 6 (I Miss the) Tokyo Skyline (demo) (03:11) 7 Anthem for a Lost Cause (demo) (03:22) 8 As Holy as the Soil (That Buries Your Skin) (demo) (03:19) 9 3 Ways to See Despair (demo) (03:14) 10 Running Out of Fantasy (demo) (04:05) 11 Manorbier (demo) (03:27) 12 30-Year War (demo) (04:56) 13 There by the Grace of God (live at the O2) (04:00) 14 Stay Beautiful (live at the O2) (03:19) 15 Your Love Alone Is Not Enough (live at the O2) (03:50) 16 The Love of Richard Nixon (live at the O2) (03:33) 17 Revol (live at the O2) (03:35) |
 | Album: 46 of 50 Artist: Factory Floor Title: Factory Floor Released: 2013-09-09 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:10:15 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Turn It Up (06:13) 2 Here Again (08:07) 3 One (00:46) 4 Fall Back (07:22) 5 Two (01:03) 6 How You Say (06:25) 7 Two Different Ways (08:13) 8 Three (01:41) 9 Work Out (06:34) 10 Breathe In (06:36) 1 Green (05:32) 2 Pink (06:32) 3 Blue (05:08) |
 | Album: 47 of 50 Artist: Phoenix Title: Bankrupt! Released: 2013-04-19 Tracks: 10 Duration: 40:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Entertainment (03:40) 2 The Real Thing (03:22) 3 S.O.S. in Bel Air (03:43) 4 Trying to Be Cool (03:48) 5 Bankrupt! (06:57) 6 Drakkar Noir (03:22) 7 Chloroform (04:04) 8 Don’t (03:16) 9 Bourgeois (04:53) 10 Oblique City (03:30) |
 | Album: 48 of 50 Artist: Iron & Wine Title: Ghost on Ghost Released: 2013-04-13 Tracks: 12 Duration: 44:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Caught in the Briars (03:13) 2 The Desert Babbler (03:27) 3 Joy (02:30) 4 Low Light Buddy of Mine (03:29) 5 Grace for Saints and Ramblers (03:35) 6 Grass Widows (02:53) 7 Singers and the Endless Song (03:38) 8 Sundown (Back in the Briars) (02:17) 9 Winter Prayers (03:11) 10 New Mexicos No Breeze (04:27) 11 Lovers Revolution (05:39) 12 Baby Center Stage (05:40) |
| Ghost on Ghost : Allmusic album Review : After expanding his intimate indie folk sound about as far as it could go on the last Iron & Wine album, Kiss Each Other Clean, Sam Beam (and trusty producer Brian Deck) take a step back on Ghost on Ghost and deliver something less suited for large arenas and more late-night jazz club-sized. The arrangements on that album were stuffed with instruments and seemed built to reach the back row; this time there are still plenty of horns, violins, and female backing vocals in the mix, but they are employed with a much lighter touch. Working with jazz drummer Brian Blade and a standup bass and mixing together elements of country, jazz, indie rock, and soft rock, the album has a much more intimate feel that suits Beams quietly soulful vocals much more naturally. Its still very slick and pro-sounding, but not to the point of distraction. It sounds like the work of two highly skilled craftsmen making the kind of album they should make, instead of guys trying to make something relevant and "big." Beams songs this time are more diverse than usual; he delivers the kind of songs an Iron & Wine follower would expect, nocturnal and hushed confessionals (the echoing "Joy," "Winter Prayers") and cinematic ballads ("Baby Center Stage") that sound like they would have fit in well on the last couple albums. Balancing these against gritty and intense songs that seethe with barely controlled drama and emotion ("Grass Widows," "Lovers Revolution") and a couple almost happy-sounding uptempo tracks (like the rambling, very Belle & Sebastian-influenced "Grace for Saints and Ramblers") shows that Beam is really expanding the kind of songs he is writing and doing it with a large degree of success. Anyone who has been with I&W since the beginning might find it hard to believe they would ever record a song as lightly soulful and sweet as the almost jaunty "The Desert Babbler" or as easy on the ears as "New Mexicos No Breeze," which sounds like a dusty indie pop take on Seals & Crofts, or as musically complex as the very hooky "Caught in the Briars." Bringing the scale back down to something human while injecting some jazz and sunshine into the I&W sound proves to be a very good strategy for Beam, and it makes Ghost on Ghost one of the most satisfying albums the group has done to date. | ||
 | Album: 49 of 50 Artist: Mazzy Star Title: Seasons of Your Day Released: 2013-09-23 Tracks: 10 Duration: 49:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 In the Kingdom (05:14) 2 California (05:23) 3 I’ve Gotta Stop (04:04) 4 Does Someone Have Your Baby Now? (04:08) 5 Common Burn (05:09) 6 Seasons of Your Day (03:41) 1 Lay Myself Down (04:31) 2 Sparrow (04:04) 3 Spoon (06:09) 4 Flying Low (07:36) |
| Seasons of Your Day : Allmusic album Review : Mazzy Stars first album since 1996s Among My Swan, 2013s Seasons of Your Day reunites guitarist David Roback and singer Hope Sandoval for a set of hazy, psychedelic songs that bring an unexpected country influence to their familiar dreamy sound. Having broken through with the dream pop anthem "Fade Into You" off 1993s So Tonight That I Might See, Mazzy Star became the poster children for a specific brand of atmospheric, melancholic pop that combined the fairy-like qualities of 60s folk, the lo-fi melodicism of the Velvet Underground, and the fuzzy guitar atmospherics of early-90s shoegaze. After further cementing their status as cult favorites with their third album, Among My Swan, Mazzy Star became displeased with the direction of their career and went on indefinite hiatus. Sandoval stayed busy performing with former My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig as Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions, and even released two solo albums with 2001s Bavarian Fruit Bread and 2009s Through the Devil Softly. However, despite the many ensuing projects between Among My Swan and now, Seasons of Your Day still sounds very much like previous Mazzy Star albums. Here we get Robacks spacy mix of acoustic and electric guitars that frame Sandovals gentle, yearning vocals. Whats new here is a world-weariness and maturity, both in style and in overall feel. Roback displays a much more pronounced country and blues influence with several cuts, including "Ive Gotta Stop," "Sparrow," and "Flying Low," built largely around his deep string bends, serpentine country-rock riffs, and liberal use of a guitar slide. The result sounds quite in tune with 70s Laurel Canyon artists like Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris. It also brings to mind a lo-fi, psychedelic version of the late, legendary Texas singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt. In essence, the album is everything you could want, finding Mazzy Star older and wiser, but still as dreamy as ever. | ||
 | Album: 50 of 50 Artist: Houndstooth Title: Ride Out the Dark Released: 2013-07-16 Tracks: 10 Duration: 40:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Thunder Runner (04:14) 2 Baltimore (02:34) 3 Canary Island (03:49) 4 Bee Keeper (03:23) 5 Strangers (04:57) 6 New Illusion (04:13) 7 Wheel on Fire (04:03) 8 Francis (04:51) 9 Dont I Know You (04:16) 10 You Wont See Me (03:45) |