My music listening this year was very focused and depth-oriented. I find I just don't have time for anything that doesn't really move me. There's too much music coming out that DOES move me for me to find the motivation for purely intellectual listening. No, life is too short; I need to dance, and I need to rock. In that context, here are five albums and five songs that I fully loved this year.
CONTENT NOTE: Pacific Northwest rock is glaringly missing from this list. That's because I listened to and loved so much of it that it deserves its own post. Please click here to read my post about our amazing regional rock scene.
Santigold - 99 cents
This one sounds like summer to me. The dub influence, the bright vocals, the clear bows to the party gods. My go-to for every warm day we had.
PJ Harvey - The Hope Six Demolition Project
Fearlessly fortifying us against all this year turned out to be, this band is in a clear artistic prime right now. If anybody can predict the future, it's Polly Harvey, and we should be listening.
Tribe Called Quest - We got it from Here... Thank you 4 your service
This is the one. The standout, head-and-shoulders, definitive album of the year. I've listened to this album to start my day nearly every morning since it was released. The Tribe here shows us both the past and the future of hip-hop with this timely, appealing, and original record. I seriously can't get enough.
Dillon & Paten Locke - Food Chain
The surprise underground rap magic of this record properly enriched my year. It's packed top to bottom with big hooks, boom-bap beats, and food and drink based rhymes. Hoping we hear more from this duo!
Against Me - Shape Shift With Me
Refreshingly personal, their latest is Against Me's most fun album. Not the band I expected to have the least political album of the year, but it's kind of the perfect moment for it.
J-zone "Go Back to Sellin Weed"
This Bandcamp darling kept me laughing and dancing with its admonition for wack MCs to get back into the drug game. Zone's cool confidence never fails.
DJ Shadow - Nobody Move
My pick for best video of the year, this is a clear moment of inspiration between Shadow and RTJ. I love the video's juxtaposition of the familiar and the absurd, and I love how it sets the performers up not as the instigators, but as the shocked bystanders.
Jidenna - Long Live the Chief
I love Jidenna's irresistible style and sly consciousness, but this is his fattest hit to date for sure. The spare beat makes me want to move, and the rhymes are empowering and forward-thinking.
Boulevards - Move and Shout
My favorite retro jam of the year, this jam was another of my go-to palate cleansers. Plenty of haters will say otherwise, but I know disco will never die.
Kevin Gates - Really Really
I did not want to be down, but this song really grew on me. Gates sounds hungry, and the chorus is rightfully catchy. Apologies as usual for the earworm.
No comments:
Post a Comment