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[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2019

Here we are again: my usual end-of-year ritual of returning to this blog and talking about my favourite albums of the past year. It's more of a self-fulfilling activity than one intended to be widely read, but if you're reading this then... thanks!

At the start of the year, I was sure that my favourite album of 2019 would come from either Vampire Weekend or Tame Impala - the two upcoming releases that seemed destined to be brilliant. For different reasons, neither even made my top five, with the likes of Foals, Bon Iver, James Blake, Solange, Nick Cave, and the Mercury Prize-winning Dave also missing out on the top ten.

Let's get to the ones that made it...

10. Helado Negro - This Is How You Smile

I'll confess to not having heard of Helado Negro before this year, despite this being his sixth full-length album. Real name Roberto Carlos Lange, he grew up the son of Ecuadorian immigrants in South Florida - an upbringing that is inextricable from his sound and lyrics. TIHYS is simply beautiful to listen to; awash with delicate vibraphones and strings, and accented by Lange’s soft, humming vocals. He switches between English and Spanish regularly, and the album flows like a film soundtrack, giving you a glimpse into the life of Hispanics in the American South.

Highlights: ‘Please Won’t Please’, ‘Running’, ‘Pais Nublado’.

9. Big Thief - Two Hands

If you asked me to name my artist of the year, it would be Big Thief and truthfully it’s not even close. Two Hands was the second outstanding record the band released this year (more on the first later) and saw them return to the crunchy indie rock of their earlier work. It’s not often that an album this good is only the second best thing a band produces that year, and in some ways there are greater individual tracks here (’Not’, ‘Forgotten Eyes’) than on their previous album. There might not be a more in-form rock band in the world right now.

Highlights: ‘Not’, ‘Forgotten Eyes’, ‘Two Hands’.

8. Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride

All the build up to this album suggested it would be an all-time classic. The lead singles were all brilliant, and everyone seemed convinced they would be just the tip of the iceberg. In a way they were right - tracks like ‘Unbearably White’ and ‘Bambina’ combined all the beauty and bite that VW have become known for. But there’s a lot of filler amongst the gold here; it’s 18 tracks, inside of which is hiding a really excellent 10-track album. It’s still one of my favourites of the year, but somewhat frustrating that Koenig and co. got in their way in its structure and release.

Highlights: ‘Harmony Hall’, ‘This Life’, ‘Unbearably White’.

7. Clairo - Immunity

Claire Cottrill, better known as Clairo, has been on the radar of young music fans for a couple of years already; a bedroom YouTube sensation since her 2017 self-release ‘Pretty Girl’ garnered more than 40 million views on the platform. For her debut LP Immunity, she enlisted the help of producer Rostam Batmanglij, formerly of Vampire Weekend. As such, the album features a much more polished, studio sound than the lo-fi pop of her viral videos. But on tracks like opener ‘Alewife’, a brave song detailing Cottrill’s suicide attempt and the friend that thwarted it, the production takes her sound to the next level. The album tails off towards the end, keeping it out of my top five. But there’s no doubt that Clairo has truly arrived as an indie pop star.

Highlights: ‘Alewife’, ‘Bags’, ‘Sofia’.

6. Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell

This one has topped a few lists I’ve seen and while I think that’s a little too generous, there’s no doubt it represents LDR at her absolute peak. Lana’s style hasn’t changed dramatically since she broke through in 2011 with ‘Video Games’. But the significance of her songs’ subject matter and their arrangement certainly has. She has reached a point in her career where she’s confident enough to include the 10 minute-long epic ‘Venice Bitch’ alongside her always-captivating piano ballads. She takes digs at Trump on the opener and title track, before exploring her own mental health and success as an artist on tracks like ‘Mariner’s Apartment Complex’ and ‘The Next Best American Record’. She’s some songwriter, and this is her at her best.

Highlights: ‘Venice Bitch’, ‘Mariner’s Apartment Complex’, ‘The Greatest’.

5. Big Thief - U.F.O.F.

I’ve written about Big Thief’s prolific year earlier in this post, so I’ll try to avoid repeating myself. As good as Two Hands is, U.F.O.F. feels like the band have found their final form. From the moment a minute from the end of opener ‘Contact’ when a scream pierces the soft, folky tune, it’s clear that the band have kept the fine indie rock elements of their sound and blended them with their newer, folk aesthetic. There’s everything you could want from an indie folk album here: acoustic ballads (’Orange’), soft rock gems (’Open Desert’) and upbeat foot-tappers (’Strange’). And on top of these sit Adrianne Lenker’s unique, fluttering vocals and a production that gives the whole record an amazing warmth.

Highlights: ‘Cattails’, ‘Strange’, ‘Jenni’.

4. Sharon Van Etten - Remind Me Tomorrow

SVE has been threatening to release an album like this for years. Her previous album, 2014′s Are We There, was critically acclaimed and featured her finest individual tracks to date. In the five years since, she’s taken a step back from making albums and turned to scoring films instead. She also became a mother. All this has led to an album that fizzes with a sort of production she’s not used before, and a series of emotional, honest songs that paint of picture of a woman in a peaceful moment of her life - having previously experienced much turmoil. It’s an album that relies more on the piano than the guitar, and yet has produced the finest rock anthem of the year in the sublime ‘Seventeen’.

Highlights: ‘Comeback Kid’, ‘Stay’, ‘Seventeen’.

3. Weyes Blood - Titanic Rising

Another female singer-songwriter that has been on the scene for a while but is finally putting all the pieces together. Natalie Mering’s fourth album is undoubtedly her best; a soaring ode to life, death, and the universe. She sings about the stars on ‘Andromeda’, departed friends on the heartbreaking ‘Picture Me Better’, and movies on... ahem... ‘Movies’. It’s an ambitious array of subject matter, but it’s tied together by an echoey, dreamy production that makes listening to it feel like you’re floating in space (or under water, as the cover art suggests). The arrangements are stunning too, with focus given to Mering’s vocal harmonies and competing slide guitars alongside the ever-present synths. 

Highlights: ‘Andromeda’, ‘Something to Believe’, ‘Wild Time’.

2. FKA twigs - Magdalene

It’s been an extraordinary year for female singer-songwriters (seven of my top ten fall into this category) and Twigs might be the best of the bunch. It’s been five years since she broke onto the scene with ‘Two Weeks’ and her Mercury Prize-nominated debut album, and in this time she’s released another stellar EP and experienced a high-profile relationship with actor Robert Pattinson. Her style remains much the same, though still utterly unique in the music world, and is still both a joy and a challenge to listen to. On Magdalene, she’s enlisted the help of a host of producers and DJs including Nicolas Jaar and Skrillex to create a record full of electronic beats that dance alongside her breathy, ethereal vocals and delicate piano melodies. The results are, in a word, magnificent.

Highlights: ‘Sad Day’, ‘Mirrored Heart’, ‘Cellophane’.

1. Michael Kiwanuka - KIWANUKA

I had a hard time separating the top two this year, but I’ve gone with KIWANUKA. Michael Kiwanuka was tipped for greatness from day one, when he emerged as a shy folk singer in 2012. His sophomore record, Love & Hate, saw an eye-opening expansion in his sound, and it’s this sound that he’s polished and perfected on his latest effort. Where Love & Hate was sprawling, almost uncontrolled and teeming with ambitious experimentation, KIWANUKA is both expansive and measured. Tracks flow into each other, straddled with newsreel clippings and interludes that inform the wider themes of race and self-purpose. Kiwanuka seems to have realised his position as a successful, black, solo musician, and readily confronts this on songs like ‘Hero’. As an entire record, it’s the closest thing to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On I can remember ever hearing, and I can’t give it a bigger compliment than that.

Highlights: ‘Hero’, ‘Final Days’, ‘Solid Ground’.

If you’re interested, you can listen to a playlist of my favourite songs of the year here. See you this time next year...

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2018

If you know me well, you know I do this every year. It’s not in the hope that people will read it; more a sort of time capsule that I can look back on in the future and fondly remember the music that soundtracked my year. Some years, there’s a clear and obvious number one (Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly in 2015, for example). Others – such as this one – are more of a close-run thing, with the top spots changing sometimes as late as the writing process.

Before I get to my top ten, I would be remiss not to mention a few albums that missed out but have nonetheless been regulars in my rotation this year. Firstly, I should tip my cap to the experimentation shown by Beach House, Ben Howard, and Low, all of whom showed a refreshing intent to break from their norm and make some greatly interesting music. I’m also acutely aware of the lack of representation for R&B and hip-hop in my top ten – I didn’t ignore these genres, it just so happened that they weren’t among my ten favourites. Kids See Ghosts and Earl Sweatshirt in particular came close, and Janelle Monáe was another that I enjoyed greatly. Here’s my honourable mentions list in full:

Beach House – 7; Ben Howard – Noonday Dream; Low – Double Negative; Janelle Monáe – Dirty Computer; Brockhampton – Iridescence; Anderson .Paak – Oxnard; Villagers – The Art of Pretending to Swim; Jeff Tweedy – WARM; Matt Maltese – Bad Contestant; Kids See Ghosts – Kids See Ghosts; Pusha T – Daytona; Earl Sweatshirt – Some Rap Songs; Parquet Courts – Wide Awake; Kurt Vile – Bottle It In; The Beths – Future Me Hates Me; Jungle – For Ever; Courtney Barnett – Tell Me How You Really Feel; Mitski – Be The Cowboy; Hop Along – Bark Your Head Off Dog; Lucy Dacus – Historian.

Also, here’s a Spotify playlist of all my favourite tracks from the year.

Now on to the top ten…

10. Blood Orange – Negro Swan

I’ve got a soft spot for a true album – one that’s greater than the sum of its parts, and should be listened to as a whole. There are actually very few tracks on Negro Swan that hit home outside the context of the album. But there’s so much to like here: the way tracks flow into each other, punctuated by regular snippets of dialogue from the likes of transgender activist Janet Mock. The word that defines this album is ‘introspection’ – there are regular references to the desire to be loved and the fear of allowing oneself to be loved completely. At times the tracks feel frustratingly unfinished, and that’s all that keeps this at the back end of my top ten.

Highlights: ‘Saint’, ‘Charcoal Baby’, ‘Nappy Wonder’

9. Snail Mail – Lush

It’s been a hell of a year for young, female indie rockers (more on that later…), and Lindsey Jordan (A.K.A. Snail Mail) is perhaps the most prodigious of them all. The teenager’s debut, Lush, is a highly impressive record that showcases her signature sound: subtle, twinkly guitar melodies and foot-tapping drum beats. It tails off a little towards the back end of the album, as the novelty of her style begins to wear off. You wonder if this was a record she rushed into making, to capitalise on the considerable hype around her. If that’s the case, it’s a shame as a few more songs to the standard of ‘Pristine’ and ‘Heat Wave’ may have pushed this album up into my top five.

Highlights: ‘Pristine’, ‘Heat Wave’, ‘Stick’

8. The 1975 – A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships

This album is getting a lot of love, and I’ll admit that on first listen I didn’t get the hype. The 1975 are a somewhat controversial band – they face lavish praise and upturned noses in seemingly equal measure. There were moments of their absurdly-titled previous record that I liked, but their overly synthetic sound and Matty Healy’s unique vocal style are occasionally grating. ABIIOR has its flaws, but there’s also much to admire. They’ve incorporated a variety of styles, from stripped-back acoustic to arena pop and even jazz. The obvious themes of life and love in a digital age are well-explored and the production is, at times, gorgeous. Stick with it – it might just grow on you.

Highlights: ‘Love It If We Made It’, ‘Inside Your Mind’, ‘I Always Wanna Die (Sometimes)’

7. U.S. Girls – In A Poem Unlimited

In many ways, this record is a better executed version of the 1975’s. Meg Remy looks at similar themes of our problematic modern world, though in her case she explores them through a lens of feminine anger. Songs like ‘Rage of Plastics’ and ‘M.A.H.’ are direct, furious tirades towards American politics in the Obama era. The instrumentation and production is staggeringly brilliant throughout, with each track demonstrating a different string from Remy’s bow. On ‘Rosebud’, she channels her inner Madonna to produce one of the finest, most listenable indie pop tunes of the year.

Highlights: ‘M.A.H.’, ‘Rosebud’, ‘L-Over’

6. Maribou State – Kingdoms In Colour

My favourite electronic album of the year, Kingdoms In Colour improves on Maribou State’s encouraging debut, 2015’s Portraits. The improvements lie in their balance between the dance-pop hits, where they utilise long-time collaborator Holly Walker on vocals, and the more experimental, sample-based pieces that make up the rest of the album. It’s the latter that leave the most lasting impression, no better than on ‘Vale’, with the sample of Melanie de Baliso’s ‘I Feel You’ dovetailing beautifully with the group’s accompanying melody. If you’re looking for an album to put on as a backing track at your next party, look no further.

Highlights: ‘Beginner’s Luck’, ‘Nervous Tics’, ‘Vale’

5. Big Red Machine – Big Red Machine

A collaboration between Bon Iver and the National was never going to be bad, was it? Big Red Machine doesn’t quite hit the heights you might expect from such a high-profile meeting of minds, but there are enough moments of genius here to make it an album worth revisiting repeatedly. For the most part, Justin Vernon leaves his trademark complex song structures at the door in favour of simpler, more lineal compositions. This leads to some tracks feeling repetitive at times, although even these feature a central hook strong enough to keep you interested. And on 'Lyla', with its polyrhythms and meandering structure, there are hints of the exciting fruits this partnership could eventually produce.

Highlights: ‘Lyla’, ‘Hymnostic’, ‘I Won’t Run From It’

4. Arctic Monkeys – Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

Perhaps Arctic Monkeys’ most divisive album since Humbug, TBHAC is also their bravest and most ambitious. It’s essentially a concept album – tales of a futuristic hotel on the moon brought to life by Alex Turner’s controversial switch from guitar to piano. It’s no surprise that the album has alienated some of the band’s more fundamentalist fans, as there’s a blatant lack of Turner’s usual indie dancefloor hits as well as a side-lining of outstanding drummer Matt Helders. Instead, we’re treated to songs without clear structures and, aside from ‘Four Out Of Five’, catchy choruses. Turner occasionally strays too far towards self-indulgence (‘Batphone’ is a difficult listen), but he’s still a remarkable lyricist and he’s produced an album that cements their status as the band of their era.

Highlights: ‘Star Treatment’, ‘American Sports’, ‘Four Out Of Five’

3. boygenius – boygenius EP

I may be cheating a tad here by including an EP, but given that there’s as much to enjoy here as on many fine albums released this year, you’ll excuse me. boygenius are a supergroup of sorts, featuring female up-and-comers Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus. Individually, all three are well worth a listen. But their collaborative EP propels them to new heights. Each has their own songwriting moments (two each from the six-track EP), and these intertwine through stunning vocal harmonies to form a completely cohesive collection of songs. The finest moments are Bridgers’, with her soft vocal timbre particularly captivating on ‘Me And My Dog’. We can only hope the success of this experiment results in a full-length album in 2019.

Highlights: ‘Me And My Dog’, ‘Souvenir’, ‘Ketchum, ID’

2. Kacey Musgraves – Golden Hour

No album surprised me more in 2018 than this one. After a slew of out-of-this-world reviews, I decided I had to give Golden Hour at least one listen – if only to be able to confirm it as what almost all country pop albums are: ‘not for me’. The thing is, this record transcends genre, and even those who like neither country nor pop will appreciate its beauty and the quality of its songs. Everything on Golden Hour is well-executed: Musgraves sings beautifully; the instrumentation feels minimal yet rounded; the production is absolutely on-point; and the melodies are to die for. There are even psychedelic elements throughout – nods to Musgraves’ use of acid during the album’s production. Give this album a chance, leave your prejudices at the door, and you’ll be treated to a simply perfect collection of pop songs.

Highlights: ‘Slow Burn’, ‘Wonder Woman’, ‘High Horse’

1. Soccer Mommy – Clean

As I mentioned, this wasn’t a runaway number one. But the more I re-listened to my shortlist, the more it became clear that Clean was the strongest candidate for top spot. Snail Mail and boygenius have already taken spots in my top ten, demonstrating what a strong year it has been for female indie vocalists. But Soccer Mommy’s (Sophie Allison’s) album just feels like the finished product that both Snail Mail and boygenius are aiming to eventually produce.

Clean doesn’t just contain great songs with deliciously spiky lyrics (the opening line of ‘Your Dog’ is a belter), it also feels so well balanced. Laid-back, melancholy tunes like ‘Still Clean’ and ‘Blossom’ are countered by catchy indie numbers like ‘Cool’ and ‘Skin’. Allison’s voice seems refined too – perfectly able to handle those two ends of the spectrum. Considering the album centres on a feeling of teenage angst, the sound feels remarkably mature. It’s a worthy album of the year.

Highlights: ‘Cool’, ‘Skin’, ‘Blossom (Wasting All My Time)’

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2017

This awkward limbo period between Christmas and New Year seems an apt moment to reflect on the past year. As such, I’ve made a habit of returning to this neglected blog each December in order to run through the music that has soundtracked my year.

With albums from the likes of Thundercat, Alvvays, Father John Misty, Wolf Alice, Everything Everything, and the National - as well as the remarkable collaboration between Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett - all missing out on the top ten, there’s certainly not been a lack of quality this year. Without further ado, let’s get to the top ten...

10. Perfume Genius - No Shape

Perfume Genius is one of the more idiosyncratic artists around at the moment. His unique style is part art-pop, part synthesised chamber orchestra. If that sounds bonkers, it’s because it pretty much is. The drama and swagger starts right from the word go, with opener ‘Otherside’ teasing the listener with its piano intro, only to explode into life in a haze of glitter and percussion. It’s at times too wacky for its own good. But it’s unwaveringly creative, and fascinating as a result.

Highlights: ‘Slip Away’, ‘Just Like Love’, ‘Wreath’.

9. Kendrick Lamar - Damn

I’ve seen this album atop many end-of-year lists recently. It’s no doubt an excellent album, though it’s incredibly difficult to follow a masterpiece like To Pimp a Butterfly. What Kendrick has done so expertly is to take the components of what made TPAB so special, and repurpose them for Damn. It’s a comedown, of sorts, although nonetheless enjoyable. Race, religion, and relationships are analysed on a nationwide scale, but also on a very personal one. It’s perhaps craving the melodies and the genre-spanning nature of TPAB - and that’s probably the only thing that keeps it outside my top five.

Highlights: ‘YAH’, ‘LOYALTY’, ‘PRIDE’.

8. SZA - Ctrl

R&B is a genre that is, sadly, increasingly veering into the world of manufactured pop music. I therefore have a real soft spot for anyone within the genre who endeavours to bring some of the old R&B into the 21st century. SZA’s music doesn’t just rely on her clearly outstanding vocals; these tracks feature shimmering guitars, jazzy drum fills and melodies that are more subtle than most of her peers. The lyrics, too, are charming. “Somebody get the tacos, somebody spark the blunt. Let's start the Narcos off at episode one” she sings on ‘Drew Barrymore’, with all the rhythm of a rapper and all the cheek of a rocker. This is a debut that hints at a long and successful career.

Highlights: ‘Normal Girl’. ‘Drew Barrymore’, ‘The Weekend’.

7. Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer

When I started writing these lists five years ago, I never expected to be including grime albums. But this is not your average grime album. “Man thought that Stormzy couldn’t sing”, he mumbles playfully at the end of ‘Velvet’. You’re right, Stormzy, we did. We also didn’t think you were capable of making an album that infuses grime with elements of gospel, soul, and R&B. The old Stormzy favourites remain (’Shut Up’, ‘Big For Your Boots’) but the tracks around them see Stormzy really show off his burgeoning talent. The lyrics cover topics such as crime, religion, and mental illness - a watershed not only in grime, but popular music in general. And he’s only 23...

Highlights: ‘Velvet’, ‘Cigarettes & Cush’, ‘Blinded By Your Grace, Pt. 2′.

6. Phoebe Bridgers - Stranger in the Alps

Sometimes there are albums like Stormzy’s that feel like cultural phenomenons, and sometimes there are albums that just sound goddamn beautiful. Phoebe Bridgers’ debut is the latter. The songwriting is prodigious: from the heartbreaking and admirably open ‘Funeral’; to the swaying, Fleetwood Mac-esque folk-pop of ‘Motion Sickness’; to the beautiful back and forth on ‘Would You Rather’. But what really makes this album shine is Bridgers’ voice - an angelic, to-die-for whisper that is produced and double-tracked expertly to make these songs almost meditative.

Highlights: ‘Funeral’, ‘Motion Sickness’, ‘Scott Street’.

5. Fleet Foxes - Crack-Up

I had indescribable trouble placing this record. On first listen, I thought it was poor; after 10 listens, I thought it was possibly a masterpiece; finally, I’ve settled somewhere between the two: it’s a very good album with some frustrating flaws. It has been six years since 2011′s Helplessness Blues, but the extra time in the studio has allowed Robin Pecknold and co. to construct an album that is almost Pink Floyd-esque in its scope and production quality. Songs flow into each other, with beautiful string arrangements providing the backing track. There are moments where Pecknold’s desire to innovate makes for challenging listening. But it’s nothing if not admirable.

Highlights: ‘If You Need To, Keep Time On Me’, ‘Fool’s Errand’, ‘I Should See Memphis’.

4. The War On Drugs - A Deeper Understanding

The War On Drugs topped my 2014 list with the brilliant Lost in the Dream. As I’ve described already with Kendrick Lamar, it’s a tough task following such a record. A Deeper Understanding doesn’t break down any boundaries laid out by LITD, instead it repeats the formula with minor tweaks. The Springsteen-inspired sound remains, but there’s a touch more synth and electronic instrumentation here. Above all, the production is sublime - Adam Granduciel has a remarkable talent for turning a good song into a great one simply through exceptional production. Oh, and in ‘Thinking of a Place’, he’s also written the finest song of the year.

Highlights: ‘Thinking of a Place’, ‘Holding On’, ‘Pain’.

3. LCD Soundsystem - American Dream

Boy, it’s good to have James Murphy back. Seven years since 2010′s This Is Happening and, much like Fleet Foxes, LCD appear to have used their time off wisely. This is still the same band, but Murphy has tapped into his skill as a writer of melancholic music better than ever before. Opener ‘Oh Baby’ sets the tone, with a retro, distorted bass line later accompanied by glistening synths. Other tracks, like the unashamedly rocky ‘Emotional Haircut’, nod to LCD’s more live-friendly back catalogue. Murphy must have wondered whether the band could live up to their extraordinary pre-hiatus success rate. He need not have worried.

Highlights: ‘Oh Baby’, ‘Tonite’. ‘Emotional Haircut’.

2. Sampha - Process

In many ways, Sampha’s story is rather similar to that of the aforementioned SZA. He, too, was a regular feature on the hits of Pop and R&B’s biggest names. He, too, has cut an identity of his own by crafting his own sound on a debut album that could make him a star. Process is an album soaked in grief and insecurity. Whether he’s singing about the death of his mother, his own potential illness, or unrequited love, he balances dark subject matter with upbeat arrangements - and vice versa. And, while the War on Drugs’ ‘Thinking of a Place’ is my song of the year, Sampha’s ‘(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano’ sure runs it close.

Highlights: ‘Blood On Me’, ‘Incomplete Kisses’, ‘(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano’.

1. Moses Sumney - Aromanticism

Moses Sumney is an absolute star in the making. He’s the total package: a stunning, falsetto voice; a fine guitarist and pianist; superb songwriting talent; and an extraordinary ability to transform his complex recordings into a jaw-dropping live show. Aromanticism, too, is a complete album. 

Sumney balances songs like the wondrous ‘Lonely World’ - an odyssey of finger-picked guitar and ethereal falsetto howl - with simpler, beautiful ballads like ‘Plastic’ and ‘Indulge Me’. ‘Doomed’ ditches the usual instruments altogether, with Sumney’s incredible vocals accompanied only by an ever-growing, groaning synth. There are not-so-subtle nods to Stevie Wonder on the meandering ‘Quarrel’, and these lengthier tracks are expertly tempered by the album’s interludes.

As with Lost in the Dream in 2014, and To Pimp a Butterly in 2015, this year’s number one was simply a class above the rest.

Highlights: ‘Lonely World’, ‘Quarrel’, ‘Indulge Me’.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2016

It’s become something of an annual ritual for me to return to this blog in the final few days of the year and run through my favourite releases from the past twelve months. This year, it feels like a particularly necessary endeavour. At the end of what has been, on the whole, a truly rotten year, can we at least look back on a soundtrack that redeems some of the ugly chaos that 2016 has thrown up?

The answer, thankfully, is yes. With artists like DIIV, Nick Cave, James Blake, Mystery Jets, Childish Gambino, and Kanye West failing to crack the top ten, as well as impressive returns from Bloc Party, Red Hot Chili Peppers and A Tribe Called Quest, this is a list that features some seriously brilliant records. Let’s get started…

10. Angel Olsen - My Woman

When I listen to My Woman, I can’t help but think back to last year’s end of year list, which featured Courtney Barnett’s superb debut album. There are many similarities between these two; both strong, uncompromising female rockers who sing about issues that matter to them, and nod to ‘90s garage rock influences like Nirvana and Pavement. This is Angel Olsen’s second indie rock album, having previously been a folk singer. On My Woman, it feels like she has perfected the balance between all-out grunge and delicate alternative textures, and produced some of the year’s finest songs.

Highlights: ‘Shut Up Kiss Me’, ‘Heart Shaped Face’, ‘Those Were The Days’

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9. Iggy Pop - Post Pop Depression

When a record features Iggy Pop, Josh Homme, his Queens of the Stone Age buddy Dean Fertita, and Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders, you just know it’s going to be good. Post Pop Depression comfortably lives up to its reputable billing, and finds Iggy sounding better vocally than he has since the turn of the millennium. There are some undeniably brilliant songs here - most notably ‘Gardenia’ - but what really stands out is the production. Josh Homme brings an ultra-cool, desert rock swagger to the record that he knows all too well from his work with QOTSA, but has perhaps never executed it as well as he does here. If this truly is Iggy’s final album, it’s a fine way to bow out.

Highlights: ‘Gardenia’, ‘Sunday’, ‘Chocolate Drops’

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8. Car Seat Headrest - Teens of Denial

I discovered this album relatively late in the year, but it instantly became a contender for this list. I spent my teenage years listening almost exclusively to indie rock, a genre that was in it’s heyday at that time. It feels like the genre has been in a bit of a rut since, but albums like this demonstrate that fantastic indie rock albums can still be produced. Teens of Denial draws greatly on early ‘90s influences; there are Black Francis-esque howls and Pavement-inspired guitar riffs throughout. There’s also a distinct Weezer vibe, particularly on the tongue-in-cheek ‘Drugs With Friends’. Car Seat Headrest have channeled their influences perfectly to produce one of the year’s finest rock records.

Highlights: ‘Fill In The Blank’, ‘Drunk Drivers / Killer Whales’, ‘Cosmic Hero’

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7. Bon Iver - 22, A Million

Whenever Bon Iver release an album, it’s a safe bet that it will feature on my end of year list. 22, A Million finds Justin Vernon and company in a more creative, innovative mood than ever before, making use of electronic instrumentation and samples to expand the scope of their already wonderfully crafted songs. When it works, like on ‘8 (circle)’ and ‘33 “GOD”’, it produces some of the best works of the group’s brief but incredible career. But this isn’t as polished as Bon Iver’s previous albums - there are two of three very forgettable tracks here, and Vernon’s cryptic lyrics and song titles (more extreme than ever before) have become rather jarring. This is nonetheless a wonderfully ambitious and gem-filled record from a group who continue to push themselves.

Highlights: ‘33 “GOD”’, ‘29 #Strafford APTS’, ‘8 (circle)’

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6. Michael Kiwanuka - Love & Hate

In a Dylan-esque transformation, Michael Kiwanuka has ‘gone electric’. And boy has it worked for him. Love & Hate feels like a coming of age record for Kiwanuka, as he pushes past the limitations of his acoustic, neo-soul origins and delves into a Motown-inspired sound featuring funky bass lines, a plethora of percussion, and of course his own captivating voice. Arriving in a year when hate and division have been so prevalent, the themes explored on Love & Hate feel particularly poignant and timely.

Highlights: ‘Cold Little Heart’, ‘Love & Hate’, ‘One More Night’

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5. David Bowie - Blackstar

Phew. Where to start with this one…

Could any other artist have handled his own death as beautifully and pragmatically as David Bowie did in January 2016? Rather than fade away while looking back on a legendary, enduring career that began in the 1960s, Bowie chose to treat his death as an opportunity to create a remarkable piece of art. Blackstar acts as a eulogy to himself; a final gift from a dying man who knew that his impending death could exorcise one final masterpiece from within. From start to finish, the album is vintage Bowie: bold, ambitious, unconventional, and spectacularly timely. ‘Lazarus’, the album’s shining moment, is particularly poignant, with its nod to resurrection and haunting opening line: “Look up here, I’m in heaven”. It’s a fitting finale to an incredible career.

Highlights: ‘Blackstar’, ‘Lazarus’, ‘I Can’t Give Everything Away’

—

4. Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool

Sticking with the theme of negative life events provoking masterful pieces of art, Radiohead’s A Moon Shaped Pool continued the extraordinarily high standard the band have set for themselves with their past releases. Prompted by the break up of his 23-year relationship with lecturer Rachel Owen, Thom Yorke penned some of the finest songs of his glittering career. To no surprise, the record has a downbeat, sombre feel, with many of the songs dominated by twinkling piano or delicate acoustic guitar. If you’re a Pablo Honey kind of Radiohead fan, there’s not much for you here. But if, like me, you’ve always loved the band’s softer side, you’re in for a treat. There’s even a stunning rendition of the previously unrecorded ‘True Love Waits’, an unquestionable highlight that emphasises the astounding depth of the band’s back catalogue.

Highlights: ‘Burn The Witch’, ‘Daydreaming’, ‘True Love Waits’

—

3. Chance The Rapper - Coloring Book

Three or four years ago, it would have been ludicrous to think that hip-hop albums would feature in my end of year lists at all - let alone so high up. But since being blown away by Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, artists like Chance The Rapper have fallen onto my radar. Coloring Book is the best hip-hop album I’ve heard since TPAB, and for similar reasons. There are comparable references to racial inequality and injustice in America, though Chance’s focus diverts as much to black history as to current affairs. The influences are widespread and rich, too: funk, soul, ‘90s hip-hop and, above all else, gospel. His relationship with God is the vein that runs throughout the album, and it feeds into several of its highlights. Chance has found his niche in an increasingly crowded and competitive hip-hop scene. He must now be seen as one of the genre’s rising stars.

Highlights: ‘No Problem’, ‘Same Drugs’, ‘Finish Line / Drown’

—

2. Solange - A Seat at the Table

Solange has lived and created in the shadow of her superstar elder sister for years, but ASATT suggests for the first time that she deserves just as much attention. From the minimal R&B openings of ‘Rise’, to the jazzy, bass-led rhythms of ‘Weary’, and the sublime ‘Cranes in the Sky’ - easily one of the songs of the year - the album feels mature and perfectly restrained in its sound. Despite clocking in at nearly an hour and 21 tracks, it doesn’t drag - helped much by its many interludes and Solange’s expert use of guest features. The best of these is undoubtedly Lil Wayne’s snappy contributions to ‘Mad’, an ideal hip hop compliment to the laid-back R&B vocals that Solange is known for. This won’t be the last great album she delivers, you can be sure of that.

Highlights: ‘Cranes in the Sky’, ‘Mad ft. Lil Wayne’, ‘Don’t You Wait’

1. Frank Ocean - Blonde

In 2014 and 2015, my number one album of the year was an easy choice; a runaway, outstanding record that left the others trailing in its wake. This year, there was no record like that. The gap between my top five albums was tiny, but Frank Ocean edged it because, when you look back on 2016 in music, Blonde is the album you will think of first.

You won’t find the foot-tapping, catchy pop of Channel Orange - this would feel inappropriate in 2016 anyway. Frank is in a different place now; a more solemn, meditative place. Blonde is not so much an album to put on during a house party, rather one to sit and listen to alone, intently, while sipping a glass of something strong. It’s a moody, mysterious album on which Frank explores heartbreak, religion, and mortality. Many of the tracks feel sparse, almost empty, but their depth becomes apparent the more attentively you listen. In fact, the album as a whole grows sweeter with each listen - a testament to the finer details of its tracks.

Like many albums this year, it’s a tad too long. Had he trimmed the fat, we could have had a near-perfect twelve track album on our hands. But that’s nitpicking. This is a fascinating, entrancing record that features enough highs to make you forget the minor lows. Welcome back, Frank.

Highlights: ‘Pink + White’, ‘Self Control’, ‘Nights’

—

[benjaminjamestaylor]

The annoying part of putting together end-of-year lists is that you inevitably discover months later that you’ve neglected a vital piece of music from the year. Every year, there’s at least one song and one album that I unearth fractionally too late.

For the year 2014, it was Sharon Van Etten’s ‘Every Time The Sun Comes Up’, the breathtaking closing track on her fourth album, Are We There. The track has that dark-yet-beautiful feel that’s reminiscent of Nick Cave and PJ Harvey.

It took me until early 2015 to find it, but here we are in early 2016 and I still can’t get enough of it...

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Whenever someone asks me if I like country music, I have to pause. “What do you mean, ‘country music’? If you mean Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Waylon Jennings, then sure - it’s great stuff.” They usually don’t. "Nah, I mean like Carrie Underwood, y’know?!” Shoot me now...

There’s a lot of music giving country a bad name at the moment, so it’s always refreshing to hear someone like Sturgill Simpson. He seems to have captured all the best elements of old school country music - particularly from the aforementioned Waylon and some of Kenny Rogers’ country-orientated records - and brought them into the 21st century. It’s a truly ‘70s inspired form of psychedelic country, complete with trippy effects and thick instrumentation. His lyrics are beautifully honest and profound, too.

Here’s a tune of his called ‘Turtles All the Way Down’. Enjoy.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2015

It’s a shame I don’t have the time to regularly post on here anymore - I’m no longer blessed with the free time I had when I was a student. Still, end-of-year lists have always been something I’ve loved putting together. So I decided to return to Tumblr, albeit briefly, to shout about my favourite albums from the past year.

It’s been a great year for albums, so picking a top 10 was excruciatingly tough. Just missing the cut were the likes of Beach House, SOAK, Grimes, and Father John Misty. Here are numbers 11-20, in no particular order:

SOAK - Before We Forgot To Dream; Beirut - No No No; Beach House - Depression Cherry; Blur - The Magic Whip; Father John Misty - I Love You, Honeybear; Grimes - Art Angels; Kurt Vile - B’lieve I’m Goin’ Down; Mumford & Sons - Wilder Mind; Ryan Adams - 1989; Thundercat - Beyond / Where The Giants Roam.

And now on to the top ten...

10. Tobias Jesso, Jr. - Goon

I came across this one late in the year, but I love it more and more with each listen. Jesso has put together a truly lovely collection of ballads that nod towards the Beatles and Badly Drawn Boy in their beauty and delicacy. From the twinkly piano of ‘Can’t Stop Thinking About You’, to the folky guitar of ‘The Wait’, it’s as good a break-up album as I’ve heard since Noah and the Whale’s The First Days of Spring.

Highlights: ‘Can’t Stop Thinking About You’, ‘The Wait’, ‘Bad Words’

9. Mac DeMarco - Another One

The hipster prince of Vancouver continued his prolific music-making this year with mini-album Another One. The style is still classic Mac - jangly guitars and simple rhythms behind the wacky lyrics and vocal melodies (DeMarco himself calls it “jizz-jazz”). But there’s a newfound maturity to Mac’s songwriting, and this record focuses more on love and anxiety than house parties and getting high. A fine progression in his career.

Highlights: ‘Another One’, ‘I’ve Been Waiting For Her’, ‘No Other Heart’

8. Wolf Alice - My Love Is Cool

There aren’t many bands around as exciting as Wolf Alice right now, and their debut LP is testament to the talent they’ve got. It’s not perfect as a cohesive record - the second half tails off a bit, and it relies rather heavily on the strength of its poppier tracks. But those poppier tracks (’Bros’, ‘Freazy’) are to die for, and are complimented nicely by a handful of snarly, punk rock gems (’Moaning Lisa Smile’, ‘You’re a Germ’). An impressive debut.

Highlights: ‘Bros’, ‘You’re A Germ’, ‘Freazy’

7. Courtney Barnett - Sometimes I Sit And Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit

What a songwriter Courtney Barnett has become. Sometimes I Sit... is an absolute pleasure to listen to, and it’s largely down to Barnett’s captivating lyrics. Whether she’s singing about dreams and aspirations (’Elevator Operator’), self-confidence issues (’Pedestrian At Best’), or the dull inevitability of suburban family life (’Depreston’), she writes and sings with such style that it invariably brings a smile to your face.

Highlights: ‘Pedestrian At Best’, ‘Depreston’, ‘Dead Fox’

6. The Maccabees - Marks To Prove It

Four albums in, the Maccabees are yet to produce an album that I don’t love. Their peak may have been 2012′s Given to the Wild, but their fourth effort brings an aggressiveness that hasn’t been felt so strongly since their frantic debut. And it’s balanced with a stunning delicacy, expressed through piano and string arrangements. What’s notable here is their ability to build a song up; beginning with light keys and Orlando Weeks’ unique vocal, and finishing in a haze of echoey guitars and wild drum fills. They’re now deservedly being spoken about as one of the country’s finest groups.

Highlights: ‘Spit It Out’, ‘Slow Sun’, ‘Dawn Chorus’

5. Villagers - Darling Arithmetic

Each year there’s an album that I discover that appears to pass the critics by, and is therefore absent from seemingly every major end-of-year list. And so the responsibility falls on me to fly the flag for Darling Arithmetic. Villagers are a band that have been making excellent music for several years now, without garnering the acclaim or success they deserve. The restrained ballads on this record flow together beautifully, and there’s just the right amount of effects to make the relatively basic instrumentation compelling.

Highlights: ‘Courage’, ‘Hot Scary Summer’, ‘Darling Arithmetic’

4. Everything Everything - Get To Heaven

Everything Everything might be slightly too wacky for their own good at times. Perhaps more than any of their previous albums, Get To Heaven shows off the unearthly falsetto of lead singer Jonathan Higgs, his own eccentric (often nonsensical) lyrics, and the band’s jumpy, cluttered instrumentation. But if you can deal with the group’s quirks, you’ll be treated to an outstanding third album. Some of the year’s finest and catchiest songs are found here - ‘Regret’, ‘Distant Past’, ‘Spring/Sun/Winter/Dread’), and are mixed in with some slow-burning masterpieces, such as the brilliant ‘No Reptiles’. It’s not perfect - the second half is considerably weaker than the first - but nonetheless one of 2015′s true highlights.

Highlights: ‘Regret’, ‘Spring/Sun/Winter/Dread’, ‘No Reptiles’

3. Foals - What Went Down

I’ll admit to not being bowled over by lead single ‘What Went Down’. Were Foals about to produce a thrash album and abandon all the intricacies that made them so great in the first place? Thankfully, What Went Down sees them balance the two styles majestically. Tracks like ‘Snake Oil’ provide the snarling thrash that the title track promised, while the likes of ‘Birch Tree’ and ‘London Thunder’ prove the band can still pen a melodic, math rock classic when they want to. It’s not the groundbreaking jaw-dropper that many hoped for, but it certainly feels like Foals have perfected their blend of delicate and heavy styles.

Highlights: ‘Birch Tree’, ‘London Thunder’, ‘A Knife In The Ocean’

2. Tame Impala - Currents

When we look back on this era of music, one of its most revered figures will surely be Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker. With Currents, Parker has produced another sonically astounding piece of work, packed with waves of synths and harmonies between instruments that will have you pressing the headphones to your ears to check you heard it correctly. It’s not all difficult, arty noise either - there are some genuine pop treasures (’Cause I’m A Man’, ‘The Less I Know The Better’) littered amongst the lengthier epics (’Let It Happen’, ‘Eventually’). It’s difficult to pick out a weak moment, and in any other year it would most likely sit on top of my rankings.

Highlights: ‘Let It Happen’, ‘The Less I Know The Better’, ‘New Person, Same Old Mistakes’

1. Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly

It takes a special hip-hop album to catch my attention (I’ve never been a great lover of the genre). Even Kanye’s critically acclaimed recent albums have failed to impress me. But with To Pimp A Butterfly, Kendrick has set a new standard not only in hip-hop, but in music in general. It’s a truly complete album - themes, repeated melodies and phrases, and songs that flow into each other and don’t sound nearly as strong when listened to away from the structure of the album (always a sign of a great record). There’s the mind-blowing experimentation of ‘For Free?’, the fascinating sexual insinuations of ‘These Walls’, and the racially charged ‘The Blacker The Berry’ and ‘Alright’ (the song that became the soundtrack to the furore surrounding Ferguson earlier this year). It’s impossible to list the countless intricacies and moments of genius from this record here. Suffice to say that it’s the album of 2015, and one of the finest of the 21st century.

Highlights: ‘King Kunta’, ‘Alright’, ‘These Walls’

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Review: Tame Impala - Currents

Tame Impala will likely never escape the comparisons between themselves and the Beatles. Their debut, Innerspeaker, was enjoyable despite being almost painfully Beatles-esque. 2012′s Lonerism embraced the sound and, critically, the structure of a Lennon and McCartney record, with songs flowing in to each other and dreamy, drawn-out instrumental sections. But Currents is perhaps the climax of Kevin Parker’s ‘60s psych rock odyssey. It’s where he channels all these inescapable Fab Four influences and develops a truly 21st century sound.

Currents opens with the outstanding ‘Let It Happen’, a track that is easily underrated due it being the promo single for the album. It’s the sort of epic that could - and perhaps should - close out a record. But where it sits in the track-listing is probably the nearest thing to criticism that can be aimed at a song like this.

It is followed by the first of several interludes that perform a vital role in breaking up what is a thirteen-track album full of complex, ambitious compositions. ‘Nangs’ and ‘Gossip’ are brief segues that add to the album’s flow, particularly on its melody-heavy first half. ‘The Moment’, which sounds dangerously similar to Tears For Fears’ ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’, is a nonetheless catchy affair. 

‘Yes I’m Changing’ flashes an insight into Parker’s own mind (”They say people never change but that’s bullshit - they do”), reminding us that this is a band that’s proud of their new sound, before the ultra-cool, plodding ‘Eventually’ (much like fellow promo track ‘Cause I’m a Man’) proves that Parker can still pen a perfect pop song.

A personal highlight comes in the form of ‘The Less I Know The Better’, a funky delight that feels like a tribute to ‘80s disco - in a profoundly good way. Parker has revealed that the inspiration for Currents originated from the moment during a drug-fuelled car journey through L.A. when the Bee Gees came on the radio. It feels like ‘TLIKTB’ might have been the song that his swirling mind conjured up at that instant.

‘Past Life’ will draw yet more Beatles comparisons, unfolding like a futuristic ‘A Day in the Life’ with effect-laden spoken word vocals that feel like a diary entry. Genuine album tracks like this are a rarity these days, and it’s a wonderful inclusion.

The album tails off slightly towards its close, though ‘Reality In Motion’ is a catchy sing-along in the mould of Lonerism. Closer ‘New Person, Same Old Mistakes’ is a worthy ending, however. It’s a smooth, drifting track that sums up all that is great and progressive about Currents. There’s very little guitar throughout the record, but there is no void left behind. The clutter of previous efforts has been tossed aside and it truly feels like Parker has sculpted the sound he wanted from day one. A fine piece of music that only improves with every listen.

8.5 out of 10

[benjaminjamestaylor]

In case you missed it, Beirut released the first single from their upcoming fourth album of the same name, which will be their first in four years.

‘No No No’ is classic Beirut. Creative instrumentation, syncopated rhythms, scattered melodies, and Zach Condon’s uniquely gorgeous voice. They continue to be one the hidden gems of the music industry.

The album doesn’t come out until September, but you can check out the typically quirky video for ‘No No No’ above.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Let’s take a closer look at a few new releases from the past couple of weeks...

Foals offered up the first teaser for their forthcoming album, What Went Down, in the form of a single of the same name. It seems we’ve officially seen the last of the intricate guitar harmonies that brought the band their original success. They’ve now turned to full garage rock, with thrashing guitars and howling vocals galore. It’s fine, but for me it doesn’t have the uniqueness and appeal of their previous work.

The Maccabees continued the promo for their new album by posting ‘Something Like Happiness’. Unlike ‘Marks To Prove It’, which suggested the band were returning to the frantic, punky sound of their debut, this track sees them revisit the wonderful use of brass that made their second album so great. The lyrics also suggest that Orlando Weeks is as content and peaceful as he has ever been.

Newcomers Beach Baby released their second single, ‘No Mind No Money’. I absolutely love this tune and I really expect these guys to take off very quickly. They’ve got an incredible sound that blends a wide range of styles, and their guitar sound in particular is irresistible. Without doubt, a band to get very excited about.

But my song of the week goes to the undisputed king of dreamy Canadian jangle pop, Mr. Mac DeMarco (undisputed because nobody else is making that genre of music). Usually famed for his laid back, carefree sound and tongue-in-cheek lyrics, Mac seems to be dealing with some sadness in his life as he puts together his new mini-LP (also entitled ‘Another One’). There’s some definite melancholy here, but my word does it bring out some of his best work to date.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

It’s taken more than three long years, but the Maccabees have finally released some new material. And considering they’ve had plenty of time to perfect it, “Marks To Prove It”, the lead single from the band’s upcoming fourth album, should be a cracker.

Well, it’s not too shabby. It certainly still has that unmistakable Maccabees sound - exuberant indie rock driven by messy guitars and frantic drumming - but there’s a real punkiness and edginess to the track. The chorus isn’t the catchiest, but the melody on the verse more than makes up for it. It’s no “Pelican”, which blew me away as the lead single from Given to the Wild, but there’s real promise here.

The album, according to drummer Sam Doyle, is out in “a few months”. An actual release date would be nice, fellas...

[benjaminjamestaylor]

So Mumford & Sons are back, and they've tossed their banjos to the curb in favour of echoey electric guitars and dancey drum beats. Essentially, they've pulled a Coldplay. Whether that's a good or bad thing is entirely up to you.

Personally, I like it. I like Coldplay, and I like how their sound has developed over the course of their career. Mumford & Sons truly needed to shake up their style a bit, after a sophomore album that saw little change from their debut. 'Believe' sees them do that, while maintaining their recognisable vocal arrangements that 

It has certainly got me far more interested in their forthcoming third album than if they had simply released another indie-folk foot-stomper.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Review: Peace - Happy People

6 out of 10

[benjaminjamestaylor]

The first month of the year is always a busy one. It has been for me, and it has been for many of the artists I follow - January is traditionally when artists with new albums coming out like to release a teaser single to get everyone riled up about it. 

We've had some good and some bad on the singles front. Death Cab For Cutie's new tune, 'Black Sun' was a pleasant surprise. Though I didn't love it as much as other critics seemed to, it's got me somewhat excited for future releases, and has a teasing electronic influence. The Vaccines' new single, 'Handsome', was far more forgettable, and to be honest they're a band that I lose a little bit of interest in with each passing day. That's a real shame given how much I liked their debut album.

The best of the best was undoubtedly Django Django's new release, 'First Light', an echoey, electronic tune that continued their focus on synthesisers and vocal harmonies, but nonetheless felt like a progression from their debut album. One can assume there's a sophomore album on the way, and judging by this single it promises to be a fine record.

However, the video I've attached is something completely different. It's the latest offering from the Wombats, who have been promoting their forthcoming album Glitterbug for what seems like years now. They're something of a forgotten entity right now as a result. The song itself is very decent, but it's the video that really caught my attention. It rapidly turns from nice and harmless to dark and violent. Have a look for yourself...

I'll be making these sort of updates/'Song of the Week' posts a more regular thing from now on, as well posting a few more album reviews (starting with Peace's Happy People) whenever I can.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Let's kick off 2015 with a notable omission from my end of year lists: Sun Kil Moon's "Carissa".

I downloaded Sun Kil Moon's album, Benji, some time ago but never got round to properly listening to it. The other day I made amends, and by the end of the opening track I was nearly in tears, so staggering was the song's beauty and melancholy.

That song was "Carissa", a ballad recounting the tragic and untimely death of singer Mark Kozelek's second cousin (guess what her name was), the subsequent shock felt by his whole family, and the way in which such a catastrophe leads us to examine the fragility of our own existence.

There's an unmistakeable Bon Iver vibe to Sun Kil Moon's sound, especially when the backing vocals kick in, but Kozelek's voice is almost Nick Cave-esque, both in the way his 'singing' sounds more like talking, and in the way he uses poetic techniques in his lyrics. I must say, too, that his voice and words provoke similar feelings in me to those of Nick Cave himself.

It's somewhat embarrassing that I allowed this gem to sit, unplayed, for so long. But I couldn't possibly let it pass by without comment, even as we approach a year since its release.

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2014

Christmas time is just great. Food, drink, family, friends, presents... and end of year lists. And anyone who knows me knows that, like High Fidelity's Rob Gordon, I love a good list.

It has been a bloody good year for music, if you ask me. As pleasing as this is, it serves to make my job as list-maker all the more difficult. Nothing demonstrates the toughness of competition this year better than the handful of wonderful albums that eventually missed the cut: Jungle and Royal Blood - both nominated for the Mercury Prize - fell short, as did the likes of Foster the People, Mac DeMarco, Broken Bells, George Ezra and even Jamie T's remarkable comeback record.

But enough about those unlucky few, and onto the best of the best...

10. The Antlers - Familiars

I absolutely loved 2011's Burst Apart, which seemed to establish the band's new, elegant, melodic sound. Familiars continues this ethos, and is equally as soothing and delicate. The group dabble with instrumentation to a greater extent, introducing orchestral arrangements and more detailed electronic elements, yet still manage to maintain the simplicity of their sound. The brass parts in particular are gorgeous. If the metaphorical indie rock cabinet has an 'ambient' drawer, Familiars belongs in it.

Highlights: "Palace", "Hotel", "Parade"

9. Jack White - Lazaretto

The former-White Stripes man's solo career is quickly becoming as successful as his time in bands. Given free reign, he has been able to fully utilise his talents as a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, while incorporating new instruments and inspired backing vocals. On Lazaretto, his riffs are as good as ever, and he continues to exhibit his ability to pen a beautiful ballad ("Entitlement").

Highlights: "Lazaretto", "High Ball Stepper", "Alone In My Home"

8. The Horrors - Luminous

Whenever the Horrors decide to release a new record, it invariably ends up on my end of year list. Luminous is a more complete album than 2011's Skying (no mean feat) and has the feel of a band that have a clear and defined vision of the kind of artist they want to be. It's a strong record throughout; they've found a happy balance between effects and acoustic instrumentation, and even Faris Badwan's voice has become a thing of beauty.

Highlights: "So Now You Know", "Jealous Sun", "Change Your Mind"

7. Real Estate - Atlas

It's so difficult to make jangly indie pop sound relevant these days, but my word have Real Estate managed it. It's warm, rich and, in many ways, quite complex. The density of the arrangements make it so, and the mixing and production is so stunningly perfect that you wonder if the album would be half as good without it. Real Estate are proving that, given the right songs and production, guitar music does indeed have a future.

Highlights: "Had To Hear", "Talking Backwards", "Primitive"

6. Alt-J - This Is All Yours

Alt-J topped my albums list in 2012 with their outstanding debut. Now they're back, weirder and more wonderful than ever. TIAY doesn't have the sing-along singles of An Awesome Wave - it's almost a concept album - but it maintains the beautiful harmonies and ethereal oddness that the band are now associated with. It also captures a band who clearly have the faith of their label, and are therefore able to experiment without having write top ten hits. A fascinating record, and one that gets better with every listen.

Highlights: "Left Hand Free", "Warm Foothills", "The Gospel of John Hurt"

5. Ben Howard - I Forget Where We Were

What a musician this fella is developing into. His debut album was brilliant, but IFWWW is a far more ambitious and challenging piece of music. Howard is no longer afraid to cast aside the trusty acoustic guitar - on occasion - and have some fun with pedalboards and effects. The result is modern folk music with an echoey, ethereal twist. At some times catchy, at others haunting, but captivating throughout.

Highlights: "I Forget Where We Were", "Time Is Dancing", "The End of the Affair"

4. Beck - Morning Phase

I'll willingly confess to not having listened to much Beck prior to this year. I knew him for quirky rock tunes like "Gamma Ray" and "Loser". But Morning Phase is delicate, folky and emotional. It's an album driven by acoustic guitars and warm vocal harmonies, and above all exceptional songwriting. There are neatly timed interludes to break up the tracks, and he maintains an exquisite balance between the personal and the atmospheric throughout. 

Highlights: "Morning", "Heart is a Drum", "Blue Moon"

3. Wild Beasts - Present Tense

Wild Beasts need never change significantly. Their sound was so unique to begin with that minor changes from album to album will always suffice. On Present Tense, they introduced minor electronic elements to beautiful effect, ensuring they kept the balance right between these and the acoustic sounds on each track. The band's USPs - the interplay between the two lead singers, and the inventive drumming - not only remain, but are more expertly harnessed than ever. For me, they are one of the country's finest acts.

Highlights: "Wanderlust", "Pregnant Pause", "Palace"

2. Bombay Bicycle Club - So Long, See You Tomorrow

As in previous years, an album released in the first few weeks of the year set the bar high early on. I'm a huge fan of BBC, and this album is outstanding from start to finish. They take us around the world, influence-wise, from R&B to dance and even bhangra. It's an adventure of a record, but never feels like its jumping around too much. The melodies and instrumentation are incredible and the crescendos on tracks like "Eyes Off You" and "Whenever Wherever" are spectacular.

Highlights: "Luna", "Come To", "So Long, See You Tomorrow"

1. The War On Drugs - Lost In The Dream

Having spent a year in Philadelphia recently, it gives me great pleasure to say that the year's finest album came from a Philly band. It's fully deserved too, as Lost In The Dream might be one of the best albums of the last ten years. There are Springsteen-inspired elements here, but also - significantly - ones from New Wave acts like Talking Heads and World Party. Its subject matter is melancholic and brooding, and yet the music is somehow warm and uplifting. Adam Granduciel's voice aches throughout, while the music surrounding it flows with a beauty and serenity that will knock your socks off. It just doesn't get much better than this.

Highlights: "Under The Pressure", "Suffering", "In Reverse"

Stay tuned for my Top 10 songs of 2014 post, which I will publish over the next couple of days!

[benjaminjamestaylor]

Allow me to explain where I've been for the last two or three months...

I've been writing my dissertation, entitled ""Running for our lives": The changing vision of "the road" in the music of Bruce Springsteen". It has been a big project, and I've had to listen to Springsteen's back catalogue fiendishly for weeks on end (life is so tough). The side effect of this has been that I've felt guilty whenever I've listened to anyone but Springsteen, making reviewing and blogging a bit tricky.

Anyway, today I handed in the hefty project and can feel content listening to new music again. In a few days I'll be publishing my traditional end of year lists, but first here's a relic from the project itself. The album version of 'Racing in the Street' is well known - and brilliant - but this demo version just has a power and heart that I fell in love with. It became the centrepiece of my dissertation playlist. Enjoy.