Records of 2014 - 29. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kinds - Give The People What they Want

29. SHARON JONES & THE DAP KINGS - GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT

This was one of the first great records this year. It was a nice, tender soul album that invited one into 2014 with an exceptional musical manifesto.Sharon's voice binds everything together really nicely in a soul stew that smells like vanilla. I love the way The Observer said it:

"The 50-something from Brooklyn is her own diva and sounds at once wounded, defiant and exuberant. Producer-bassist Bosco Mann runs a tight band with its own tricks and which purrs along so joyously the influences fade to leave a core of unadulterated soul."

It's stellar, Vanilla. Thriller .Listen to it will ya?

Records of 2014 - 30. EMA - The Future's Void

30. EMA - THE FUTURE'S VOID

Entering into the Top 30 now, this sophomore album from EMA really distills angst into a pop masterpiece. Wikipedia says it is noise folk and I say that that's not too far wide of the mark. It really packs a big punch.

This is a much more aggressive assertion that technology can be harmful and derogatory than, say Damon Albarn's luscious Everyday Robots, also released this year. It's really heavily and well produced. All the instrumentation and her often double tracked voice are turned right up in the mix.

I never made a good cake before but enjoyed mixing together the flour, milk and eggs a few times.

Records of 2014 - 31. Actress - Ghettoville

31. ACTRESS- GHETTOVILLE 

This artist pops up frequently it seems on Spaghetti Blogonese and he's all good for it. Darren J. Cunningham has had four excellent albums now. He's from Wolves in England and this album is all bleeps and bass and not much melody. I love it. It's definitely nothing like Baby Gaga.

There's a theme of ghetto on this list. There's five albums that go all gangsta and I won't name them all now that are  referencing the life of a thug and this electronica stabs and succeeds at it. I'm in loving with it. Just everything all about at it is nice at the seams. It's hard to get to the centre but I know how to do it. Just go downtown to Ghettoville by listening closely. On headphones.

Records of 2014 - 32. Taylor McFerrin - Early Riser

32. TAYLOR MCFERRIN - EARLY RISER 

A brilliant signing onto the Brainfeeder label, this multi-talented jazz schmoozy beatboxer is so glossy and produced but in a great way. If it was an animal it would be a synth, or a trumpet. Pitchfork went and said on their review that some songs feel like sand slipping through your grasp. I disagree. This album is a lovely jazzy tide to float on. I think it was weak writing. I do weak writing. Just not every week.

The review goes on to say that this album isn't an early riser for morning running and that it's better for lying in bed in the morning. I think this album is best when I'm blue and eating berries but not when I'm in mourning. Sloppy as these reviews on here. It says there's no anchor on the the songs and that most of the album slips away into the atmosphere without you even noticing. I think that I'm not on a dinghy in the water anyway and that it's only a bit deep, so I won't be needing an anchor.  Shit, hand me a contract Pitchfork.

Records of 2014 - 33. Inventions - Inventions

33. INVENTIONS - INVENTIONS 

Eluvium collaborating with one of the members of Explosions in the Sky. Sounds good on paper. And it is! Everything is good with paper. Yea, I know they're cutting down your trees, but your i-Pad is using electricity which burns a lot of renewable fossil energy. I just invented that sentence.

This album is beautiful electronic new-age and the song Entity perfectly captures it with beautiful dissonance and hiss, coupled with crashing waves and vocals better than Enya's. There are two things I just did:

1) Did a conversation ESL class to students about music and I did a genre quiz. I played Enya's Sail Away and they said it didn't touch their hearts. I bet this would.

2) Did a "Which Philosophical School of Thought are you in?" shitty quiz on FB and got Epicurean which means I see the glass as half full. No need to with this. It's full.

Oh ah.

Records of 2014 - 34. Todd Terje - It's Album Time

34. TODD TERJE - IT'S ALBUM TIME 

This captures that whole Daft Punk let's voyage to the moon thing really nicely. The title of this debut LP and opening intro certainly make it feel like a suite or a foyer into a big electronic cruise in space. It's so linear and one of the best electronic albums of the year and it even has Bryan Ferry on it! This is gonna be the shortest entry this year maybe so here's what it looks like:

Records of 2014 - 35. "Weird Al" Yankovic - Mandatory Fun

35. "WEIRD AL" YANKOVIC - MANDATORY FUN

So much fun that it's sound-tracking my Xmas, "Weird Al" popped in this year on album number fourteen and scored number one spot on the American Billboard charts for the first time ever in the first week of its release.

I've had the jester in my iTunes bank before but I never really sat down and listened closely. There are no other comedy records on this list. This is the first ever I think. From front to back, it's packed full of musically great numbers that are fun as hell. Subtle, direct, endearing, ballsy, free of profanity, really refreshing.  I'll be back for more.

Records of 2014 - 36. Moodymann - Moodymann

36. - MOODYMANN - MOODYMANN

I think the main theme this year on the write-up is how friends inspire me and turn me on to music. I mean recommend. Not turn me on. However, this record turns me on. Don't wet yourself.

Moodymann is Detroit House and my friend who is a gentle giant at 200 cm tall and coming in at 2 on the Richter Scale recommending it to me represents good value and that's not a sentence. I DJ'd a bit on a laptop and played things like Les Sins and How To Dress Well who are also on this list. It's all in a good shift.

I don't know much about Moodymann but my 200 cm tall friend is called Ross McCarry and he's a tall boy. I went to Hong Kong with him and had a good time. Listen to Mooodymann listener, it won't make you feel moody or like a man. Propaply like a woman and happy. :)

Records of 2014 - 37. Perfume Genius - Too Bright

37. PERFUME GENIUS - TOO BRIGHT 

One of the nicest and only concerts I've been to in recent memory would be Perfume Genius in Leeds a few years ago at the time of his sophomore album Put Your Back N 2 It which i still think is his best. However, this one is still great and he really expands his sound.

If you're new to this project, then think tender, wind-blowing-in-your-face-production-turned-up-on-this-one-his-third-album-but-definitely-not-on-the-first-one-and-the-album-I-mentioned-in-the-last-paragraph-was-his-sophomore-and-his-best-yea-think-that.

Writing with hyphens has happened tonight and it's nice to experiment. I guess I'm the Perfume Genius of the blogosphere. Gonna keep this short and sweet, like a midget eating sugar-cubes.

Records of 2014 - 38. TOPS - Picture You Staring

38. - TOPS - PICTURE YOU STARING

Twee indie pop from Montreal. Considering that it comes straight after the murky work of The Bug on this list, it's a welcome invitation for tonight's listening. I've said before that many of the records on these lists flow on the ranking scale depending on my nights listening at the time. The top 20 or so are pretty much set but there's a lot of movement and I'm frequently caught pressing stop, play  and rewind - but never fast forward. This shit takes time. Let it flow.

Letting things flow or forcing the situation has been a big binary opposition that's been floating around my noggin lately. This is one for the former whereas The Bug rams open the safe. Comparison and contrast is what makes like beautiful and if anyone ever tells you to stop thinking too much, tell them to get born.

Records of 2014 - 39. The Bug - Angels & Devils

39.THE BUG - ANGELS & DEVILS

This album is divided into two halves and from the title, you wouldn't be a nincompoop to grasp that. The former half is spare-clutter-dub and the latter cranks it up. Ross would love it. It's been six years since London Zoo but this is even better I feel. When I listen to it, I can smell barbecues down dark alleys. We're all good.

It's so easy to write things like "love-a-dub-dub, I love the yellow duck that popped in Keelung." However, this is not an easy listen by no stretch. I love my new alleys and shit of the red light district in which I live and this is a great LP in which to soundtrack that underbelly in an anti-nightmarish kind of way.

As this list finally gathers momentum again, I can safely spark up and finally get my night started. Thanks The Bug.

Records of 2014 - 40. Les Sins - Micheal

40. LES SINS - MICHEAL 

The side-project of Toro y Moi finds its way onto this list by some way of a detour. Now, I'm a big fan of that man and all his light soul and funk that really came into effect at the start of the decade but I heard Les Sins as a completely different artist on my favourite radio show; BBC Radio 6's Gilles Peterson and his  weekly 3 hour extravaganza that "connects the musical dots."

I played music in a bar in Taipei about a year ago and there were a couple of Les Sins tracks that I dropped and I thought they were extremely funky and they came up in Traktor as being white labels so I thought it was some unknown stallion. I thought it was from London. I was wrong. It was the bull and me.

I just googled Les Sins before writing this and bang, it's Toro. Now by detour de force I'll wake up more to this South Carolinian master and this much richer project in terms of funk and diversity. It's full-fat dub, funk and hip-hop and this debut sounds mega. Soz Toro.

Records of 2014 - 41. Real estate - Atlas

41. REAL ESTATE - ATLAS 

Look at the name of this band. Look at the name of the album. If you're from Kazahkstan and don't have critical thinking, don't worry - I'll have a bath with ya! It's about American sprawl. I think Tyson's reach was thick. All the good thing about American that I have learn have been through people who like to sell Real Estate.

One day you'll grow up and get it. You won't get patronized. Any More. My editor right now is called Todde Williams and he's taught me a lot about how to regain voice and I'm thankful for that. There's loads of if. But if Baltimore is famous for the bands Beach House and Wye Oak who also feature prominently on this blog. Real Estate come from New York and they make nice lilty indie. You young duckling.

Records of 2014 - 42 - Dream Police - Hypnotized

42 - DREAM POLICE - HYPNOTIZED 

Records of 2014 - 43. John Hopkins - Asleep Versions EP

42. - JON HOPKINS - ASLEEP VERSIONS EP

I've made lists about albums since 1999 and red hot Chili Peppers blew me away as a teenager with Californication. My lists are flawed. It's not like the best technically gifted football player is the first name on the team-sheet Last year I DJ'd with a few Jon Hopkins tracks that were pure techno and forgot to stick his album on the list for 2013. Forget is the wrong word.

Anyway, here we are and there's some classical reworkings of great songs of techno from that album Immunity on this here EP. I love the way I make excuses for being lazy and forgetting about a load of stuff but it's alright. I think that it'll be cool in the end. Sorry John.

Records of 2014 - 43. The New Pornographers - Brill Bruisers

43. THE NEW  PORNOGRAPHERS - BRILL BRUISERS

A household name of a band. A superband. The longevity has spanned. AC, Neko, Dan, Kathryn, John, Todd and Blaine. It's on. Vancouver right? How you doing? You alright? I love your new album. you have a song called The Champions Of Red Wine and it's pretty colossal.
If you played a show in my head around Christmas, it'd be acesome.

If the reader were to scroll back guys, they'd see I say many times that this could be the album of the year. The reason it ain't is cuz this is pure sugarcane and when I write this I order the albums according to my mind. There's no flaws when you're so pumped on sugar. Jesus. It's ace.

Records of 2014 - 44. Damon Albarn - Everyday Robots

44. DAMON ALBARN - EVERYDAY ROBOTS 

I don't know where to start with this. I love Blur. They are one of my favourite bands of all time. Everyday Robots is gentle like some of the late Blur back catalogue. Here, Damon uses soul, gospel and a lot of electronic production really turned on in the mix. He's lamenting our current posture of delving into our smart-phones and 95 per cent of the time the results are flawless.

I luuuuurve it. It's a short one. I better finish the entry. <3 br="" nbsp="">

Records of 2014 - 45. Hiss Golden Messenger - Lateness of Dancers

45. HISS GOLDEN MESSENGER - LATENESS OF DANCERS

45 is one of my favourite numbers. It's a Brimful of Asha. It's a bar in Taipei. Wasn't Winehouse 45? 45 screams out rock & roll to me. 45 is the amount of times I've gone to the bathroom in winter. It's the number of times if I high-fived you nine times. 45 deserves a good standing for this band. They're so good.

Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky. Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky.Hiss Golden Messenger. Pure folk. Nothing complex. Whisky..

45.

Records of 2014 - 46. DFA 1979 - The Physical World

46. DFA 1979 - THE PHYSICAL WORLD 

THERE'S JUST SOME BANDS THAT ARE SO PUNK THAT I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. I SAW DFA 1979 DJ AS MSTRKRFT IN MIAMI IN 2007 AT THE WINTER MUSIC CONFERENCE AND THEY PACKED MORE ENERGY INTO IT THAN AN ENERGY DRINK LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THIS ALBUM IS ONLY THEIR 2ND!!! IT'S RELENTLESS. YOU'D DO A GOOD JOB TO GET INTO IT. BUT PLEASE DON'T ENTER VIA LINKIN PARK OR LADY GAGA DADA PAPA ROACH. CHEERS BEANS.

Records of 2014 - 47. How To Dress Well - What Is This Heart?

47. HOW TO DRESS WELL - WHAT IS THIS HEART?

My friend Tristan didn't treat me how to dress swell. He wears these kind of hippy pants. One day he didn't shower I remember. But I'm just of the thinking that if one tries to hard in fashion in men it's not. Looking good is feeling good and if Tristan's beard was a rug in the ground, we'd dye it red with a cherry hue and welcome drag queens.

I've dressed well once in bandcamp. So've all of us.You're not part of the plastic tree you'll be wellcomed by Tristan and Aurelius. Tread lightly on the beard and you'll get static ping pings especially if you wear nylon. You've been told.

Records of 2014 - 48. Wye Oak - Shriek

48. WYE OAK - SHRIEK

I can categorically say that this is one of the most biggest transformations and large style welcomes I've sawn. Another indie duo from Baltimore of course made comparisons with Beach House but their horse-gallop thrill of their track Civilian three years ago made for absolute sheer total abandon. Mate.

Now they've terrificly reinvented themselves into this electronic pop plastic entity with layers of vogue devotion set for the year. It works all out. Jenn Wasner's voice is another synction of Andy Statt's production and you're sounding good Wye Oak. Thanks. Nice reinvention. Yelp.

Records of 2014 - 49. Amen Dunes - Love

49. AMEN DUNES - LOVE

This is folk drenched in lilting vocals and makes me want to do mushrooms. Makes me wanna grow a beard. Makes me want to drink red wine. Makes me want to be autumnal. Makes me wanna start the day feeling uber-fresh like a crunchbag. Have you grown a blonde beard yet Lance?

Damon McMahon has done a hugely expressive thing here, hence the title and is far from stolid folk
like I'd make. If you're down for folk, get this. If you like reading this entry, get this. This is album number 3 for the artist and I look forward to more.

Records of 2014 - 50. Jungle - Jungle

 50. JUNGLE --- JUNGLE 

Just a recent discovery for me which is good timing for this list. These London producers have retro-futuristic funk in their trunk.  From wikipedia: "tropical percussion, wildlife noises, falsetto yelps, psychedelic washes and badoinking bass" which is about right. I'm not quite sure of how I missed this in Summer. I guess I was still going mental over The War on Drugs record  and by the time October came around I got all my funk kicks from Caribou.  I wish i didn't work full-time and that i had more time too listen to music so I could like multiple boogies from multiple artists seeking my exposure. Whoever has the funkiest junk at that given time usually gets the monopoly on my ear canals. Welcome to the jungle.

albums of the year 2013

2013 IN MUSIC - RECORDS OF THE YEAR

 2013 WAS A GREAT YEAR FOR MUSIC. FROM THE ELECTRONIC MUSIC THAT HITS THIS LIST TO THE NODS OF MY HEAD MEANT FOR SAMPHA AND FUCK BUTTONS, YOU’RE IN FOR A TREAT IF YOU ACTUALLY HAVE SOME RETROSPECT AND GO WANDER. MY GIG OF THE YEAR WAS DEFINITELY THE DODOS @ REVOLVER IN TAIPEI. INDIE FOLK AT ITS BEST!  MANY HEADS WILL THINK THE NATIONAL SHOULD’VE GONE AND WON THE ALBUM OF THE YEAR BUT THE TOP 3 SEEMED TO JUST SORT ITSEF OUT. UNTIL NEXT TIME WHICH AT THE TIME OF WRITING IS JUST A FEW DAYS. POO.

1.       BURIAL – RIVAL DEALERS

2.       FOREST SWORDS – ENGRAVINGS

3.       THE FIELD – CUPIDS HEAD

4.       THE NATIONAL – TROUBLE WILL FIND ME

5.       JAMES BLAKE – OVERGROWN

6.       BOARDS OF CANADA – TOMORROWS HARVEST

7.       NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS – PUSH THE SKY AWAY

8.       KURT VILE – WALKIN’ ON A PRETTY DAZE

9.       GHOSTFACE KILLAH – TWELVE REASONS TO DIE

10.   ELUVIUM – NIGHTMARE ENDING

11.    MBV – MBV

12.   VAMPIRE WEEKEND – MODERN VAMPIRES OF THE CITY

13.   DEAN BLUNT – THE REDEEMER

14.   INC. – NO WORLD

15.   DARKSIDE – PSYCHIC

16.   DEAN BLUNT – STONE ISLAND

17.   ONEOHTRIX POINT NEVER – R PLUS SEVEN

18.   COLIN STETSON – NEW HISTORY WAREFARE VOL 3: TO SEE MORE LIGHT

19.   THE DODOS - CARRIER

20.   SAMPHA – DUAL EP

21.   JOHN TALABOT – DJ KICKS

22.   MATANA ROBERTS – COIN COIN CHAPTER 2

23.   LONE – AIRGLOW FIRES EP

24.   RHYE – THE FALL

25.   FUCK BUTTONS – SLOW FOCUS

26.   NEKO CASE – THE WORSE THINGS GET, THE HARDER I FIGHT……

27.   APPARAT – KRIED UND FRIEDEN (MUSIC FOR THEATRE)

28.   ATOMS FOR PEACE – ATOMS FOR PEACE

29.   DAFT PUNK – RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES

30.   JAMES HOLDEN – THE INHERITORS

31.   DUSTIN WONG – MEDITATION OF ECSTATIC ENERGY

32.   RUN THE JEWELS – RUN THE JEWELS (RTJ – RTJ)

33.   TORO Y MOI – ANYTHING IN RETURN

34.   PRIMAL SCREAM – MORE LIGHT

35.   JENNY HVAL – IMPS OF PERVERSION

36.   DELOREAN – APAR

37.   THE KNIFE – SHAKING THE HABITUAL

38.   LUCKY PIERRE – THE ISLAND COME TRUE

39.   BRITISH SEA POWER – FROM THE SEA TO THE LAND BEYOND

40.   JOHN WIZARDS – JOHN WIZARDS

41.   THE DIRTBOMBS OOEY GOOEY CHEWY BLOOEY

42.   BLONDES – SWISHER

43.   BOMBINO – NOMAD EP

44.   CLASIXX – HANGING GARDENS

45.   THE ROOTS & ELVIS COSTELLO – WISE UP GHOST

46.   BILL CALLAHAN – DREAM RIVER

47.   GHOSTPOET – SOME SAY I DO I SAY LIGHT

48.   THE MEN – NEW MOON

49.   PARQUET COURTS – LIGHT UP GOLD

50.   THUNDERCAT - APOCALYPSE

albums of 2012 - 1. Killer Mike - R.A.P Music

1. KILLER MIKE - .R.A.P. MUSIC


You got Public Enemy. You got Wu Tang. Man, you can add Killer Mike to the cannon. Vital hip-hop isn't hard to come by, but it's not my most known about genre.

This album combines beats from El-P and the callaboration is one to be. Future. They bitch about Reagan. They travel in a Batmobile. They lament shootings of innocent familes. They go to clubs. Hell, this is inferno!

You're loving it. You're blazing - but only for a bit non-weed-heads- and you're glued - fucking glued to the seat of the best hip-hop album since I rapped in my shower. This takes the crown. I pout.