So here we are, the grand finale, the last gasp of the hour. After writing all this up and listening to everything repeatedly over the last week, I'm feeling a little better about this year in music than my initial diagnosis suggested. Lots of breakthroughs, the return of some established stars, and a lot to look forward to in the coming year.
Electronic music was the story of the year, no question, with ambient and disco sounds really shining. Not so much hip hop, and both indie and dubstep feel like they're beating a dead horse. Rock didn't necessarily find any new tricks, but maybe some new expressions.
What will 2014 bring? I think dance music will shift again, possibly to something we haven't quite heard yet, and there's still a place for some soul if the right artist can deliver it. Whatever happens, by this time next year some names I've never heard of will have a place among the best of the best.
On a personal level, it's been a frustrating year. After dropping several EPs last year, I didn't really finish any this year. It's not that I haven't been working on anything, far from it, I just didn't feel like anything was ready to be released. Thankfully that will change pretty soon, as I have a couple releases that should be good to go by the end of January.
It wasn't all bad though, I did manage to record some cool new mixes, got to experience silent disco at Folly Fest, and very recently bought a couple new toys to help with the music making process. The next 12 months should be very fruitful and though there's lots of work ahead, I'm very much looking forward to it after several months of inspirational stagnation.
Anyway, let's get on with it. Here are my top releases of 2013.
Electronic music was the story of the year, no question, with ambient and disco sounds really shining. Not so much hip hop, and both indie and dubstep feel like they're beating a dead horse. Rock didn't necessarily find any new tricks, but maybe some new expressions.
What will 2014 bring? I think dance music will shift again, possibly to something we haven't quite heard yet, and there's still a place for some soul if the right artist can deliver it. Whatever happens, by this time next year some names I've never heard of will have a place among the best of the best.
On a personal level, it's been a frustrating year. After dropping several EPs last year, I didn't really finish any this year. It's not that I haven't been working on anything, far from it, I just didn't feel like anything was ready to be released. Thankfully that will change pretty soon, as I have a couple releases that should be good to go by the end of January.
It wasn't all bad though, I did manage to record some cool new mixes, got to experience silent disco at Folly Fest, and very recently bought a couple new toys to help with the music making process. The next 12 months should be very fruitful and though there's lots of work ahead, I'm very much looking forward to it after several months of inspirational stagnation.
Anyway, let's get on with it. Here are my top releases of 2013.
#3
Daft Punk
Random Access Memories
I was so excited when this album was announced. Then came all the marketing, which one has to admit was frickin ingenious, almost as good as the music itself. When the album finally dropped I was like everyone else - stunned. We all expected a rocking robot dance album, and got something totally different. Thank goodness for that.
Soul, disco, funk, and just about the most incredibly tight production quality I've ever heard on an electronic album, or any album. Almost 75 minutes of awesome. More jams and grooves than you knew what to do with. It has it all, and it only took eight years to happen. Please let the next one come sooner...
Within
Instant Crush
Contact
#2
Disclosure
Settle
Guy Lawrence is 22 years old, and his brother Howard is just 19. Here they are with the electronic world at their feet, and they've barely just begun. This album is essentially a mash up of old school Chicago house with UK garage, and it's the catchiest dang dance record of the year by a country mile.
Numerous collaborators helped out to really give this disc life, including singers Aluna Francis, Sam Smith, and Jessie Ware, among others. Motivational speaker Eric Thomas even lends his distinct voice to once of the year's hottest dance tracks, "When A Fire Starts To Burn". The haters will say this album is repetitive, and it is, but who cares. It sounds fresh and it makes you move. What more do you want?
Numerous collaborators helped out to really give this disc life, including singers Aluna Francis, Sam Smith, and Jessie Ware, among others. Motivational speaker Eric Thomas even lends his distinct voice to once of the year's hottest dance tracks, "When A Fire Starts To Burn". The haters will say this album is repetitive, and it is, but who cares. It sounds fresh and it makes you move. What more do you want?
Latch
F For You
White Noise
#1
Queens Of The Stone Age
...Like Clockwork
The big cheese! After all that bumping and grinding it's time to get serious, and what better way than to crank this 45 minute masterpiece from the best grunge rockers still going strong. Is this a better album than, say, "Rated R"? Not necessarily, but it's certainly worthy of a debate.
Crunchy guitars, creeping bridges, and moaning hooks punctuate the album's best moments, with Josh Homme's semi-casual vocals fitting the script to perfection. It's hard to find any faults at all. Each song leads into the next seamlessly, and the title track closes out the album with such grandeur you have to sit quietly, stunned, in awe, regathering your senses once it ends... and then you press play to start it all over again.
If I Had A Tail
Smooth Sailing
Keep Your Eyes Peeled
EP #1
Jungle
The Heat
Far and away my favorite abbreviated release of the year is this four-track stunner from UK newcomers Jungle. The thing is, nobody really knows who they are. There's two of them, but we don't know their name, where they come from, or what they've done before. All we know is that they're bringing back the soul, and in a big way. I must have listened to this disc close to 50 times already, it's that good. Just check out the videos below and tell me that it ain't dope. Told ya so.
The Heat
Platoon
Lucky I Got What I Want
That's all she wrote! Thanks for checkin' in! Back Monday! Happy New Year!
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