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redgieapsay-blog · 9 years

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Top Albums 2014

2014 was a phenomenal year of music for me. Here are my favorites.

EPs/Mixtapes

5. Deniro Farrar – Rebirth

Southern rapper Deniro Farrar goes hard on this EP. The absolute highlight is the center track Bow Down featuring Denzel Curry. Fire, fire, fire.

Key Tracks: Rebirth/Hold On, Burning Bills, Bow Down

4. Ben Khan – 1992

This short EP from Ben Khan is a delight to listen to. It's poppy and funky, with a tad electro edge and features some slick guitar riffs. I'm excited to see what he brings on his debut album, which is hopefully soon to come!

Key Tracks: Youth, Savage, Eden

3. Vince Staples – Hell Can Wait

Frequent Odd Future collaborator Vince Staples doesn't mess around. He's a serious dude that wants to share his stories through his music. Hell Can Wait is full of fire beats and laced with Vince's icy delivery. At only 21 years old and with an actual full length still in the works, the future looks bright for Vince Staples as well as the West Coast rap scene overall.

Key Tracks: Fire, 65 Hunnid, Blue Suede, Limos

2. Movement – Movement

I swear to you, in the future, thousands of children will be created with Movement playing in the background. People will go see Movement in concert and immediately afterwards they will rush home to make love. I'm dead serious. Sydney based band Movement create dark, passionate alternative R&B that is spearheaded by the vocals of Jesse James Ward. This dude's voice is INSANE especially live. Movement is on the come up, and I implore you to check them out. You won't regret it. Well maybe you will if you accidentally create a baby in the process.

Key Tracks: Like Lust, Ivory, 5:57, Us

1. Andras Fox – Vibrate on Silent

Easily one of my favorite artist discoveries of 2014, Andras Fox is a Melbourne based producer. This EP is loaded with beautifully crafted daytime, poolside bangers that also sound great in the night. The usage of electric keyboards, pan flutes and horns is great. It's effortlessly cool and insanely rewarding to listen to. Shout out to Alex Sibelle for the recommendation. Miss you cunt.

Key Tracks: THE WHOLE DAMN THING (Ankle Snapper, Driftwood, Rock On, So Glad)

LPs

25. Mastodon - Once More 'Round the Sun

Let's face it: Today's Mastodon doesn't really sound much like their earlier days. However, Once More 'Round the Sun is still a welcome addition to their impressive canon of work. Perhaps this more accessible sound will draw in newer fans who will then discover their gems from the past.

Key Tracks: Tread Lightly, The Motherload, Ember City

24. Warpaint – Warpaint

LA rock band Warpaint's second effort is an improvement over the their debut album. It's a lot tighter, spacier, and features more danceable moments.

Key Tracks: Keep It Healthy, Love Is to Die, Hi, Biggy, Disco//very

23. Rustie - Green Language

Producer Rustie comes through with an album filled with bangers, especially banger of the year Attak featuring my favorite Danny Brown.

Key Tracks: Raptor, Up Down, Attak, Tempest, Lost

22. Aphex Twin – Syro

It bleeps, it bloops, it whizzes, it whurs! It's Aphex Twins new album! After his long absence, his return is a most welcomed one. The closer is a gorgeous piano piece.

Key Tracks: minipop 67, produk 29, PAPAT4, aisatsana

21. Bo Ningen – III

You don't need to know Japanese in order this album. Bo Ningen's third album is a flurry of eccentric guitar playing and the wild vocals of Taigen Kawabe. It will leave your head spinning but still sounds kawaii.

Key Tracks: DaDaDa, Psychedelic Misemono Goya, Inu, Ogosokana Ao

20. Jack White - Lazaretto

Another solid rock album from Jack White. Some may call it safe, but it still hits hard, and Jack reminds us that he still knows how to shred on guitar.

Key Tracks: Three Women, Lazaretto, High Ball Stepper, Just One Drink

19. Temples - Sun Structures

This English rock band's debut is a good one. It may not bring anything new to the table, but it's feel-good psych rock that's well executed. What more can you ask for?

Key Tracks: Shelter Song, Move With the Season, Test of Time

18. OFF! - Wasted Years

Punk supergroup OFF! Is back with another hard-hitting, rapid fire hardcore punk album. It's only 23 minutes long, making it easy to put on repeat.

Key Tracks: Void You Out, Red White and Black, Hypnotized, Wasted Years

17. The War on Drugs - Lost in the Dream

The War on Drugs' latest album lives up to it's name. It's a long and dreamy journey that sounds like pure bliss, but deals with the darkest moments of Adam Granduciel's life.

Key Tracks: Under the Pressure, Red Eyes, Suffering, Lost in the Dream

16. Caribou - Our Love

Starting off with the best dance tune of 2014, Can't Do Without You, Caribou returns and explores the forays of love all while keeping us dancing through the night.

Key Tracks: Can't Do Without You, All I Ever Need, Our Love, Your Love Will Set You Free

15. D'Angelo & The Vanguard - Black Messiah

In the final moments of 2014, D'Angelo makes a triumphant and sneaky return to music with an impecabbly produced album. Even Q-Tip and Questlove lend a hand on this album! Both soulful and funky, Black Messiah is sheer esctacy for our auditory orifices.

Key Tracks: Ain't That Easy, Sugah Daddy, Really Love, Betray My Heart, Another Life

14. Behemoth - The Satanist

Not even leukemia can stop Nergal and Behemoth from conjuring exceptional death/black metal. The Satanist is a beast of an album, featuring pummeling and crushing songs that would make the Father of Lies grin in absolute delight.

Key Tracks: Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel, Messe Noire, Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer, O Father O Satan O Sun!

13. King Dude – Fear

Seattle based TJ Gowgill defines his music as “Luciferian,” and after listening to Fear, it will all make sense. Fear is a solid collection of macabre songs that dabbles in rock, rock-a-billy and folk, all in the name of Lucifer.

Key Tracks: Fear is All You Know, Devil Eyes, Cloven Hooves (Of Fear), Demon Caller Number 9, Bloody Mirror

12. Step Brothers - Lord Steppington

Easily the most underrated hip-hop album of the year, rapper Evidence and producer The Alchemist come together to form Step Brothers. Lord Steppington features great boom-bap beats and skillfully traded bars from the duo as well as numerous guests such as Action Bronon and Styles P.

Key Tracks: More Wins, Legendary Mesh, No Hesitation, Swimteam Rastas, Step Masters

11. First Aid Kit - Stay Gold

Beautiful Swedish sister duo First Aid Kit once again give the world an album that clearly shows their influences, but still maintain their own signature sound. Filled with their famous soaring vocal harmonies and produced at a much higher level this album is not to be missed.

Key Tracks: My Silver Lining, Stay Gold, Cedar Lane, Waitress Song

10. Future Islands – Singles

It is near impossible to talk about Future Islands without bringing up their landmark performance on Letterman many months ago. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and watch it. Marvel at the performance of front man Samuel Herring. Future Islands have been around for years and already have three albums in their discography, but on their breakout fourth album Singles, Future Islands have crafted a much more straightforward and efficient album.

Let's just state the obvious already: Seasons (Waiting On You) is the best song of the year, hands down. The sentiment of the song is so relatable, and tied with Herring's impressive performance, a driving bassline, and so much synthy delight, it is nearly impossible to dislike this song. This song has been on repeat for me all the way throughout the year, and I am sure for many other around the world as well. It's just that damn good. The songs on Singles are so personal AND relatable, and I believe that is what makes it so great. On Back In the Tall Grass, Herring croons about the things he loves about home while on the road. After studying abroad in Copenhagen for months, I completely understood where he was coming from. Then there is the beautiful closer, A Dream of You and Me, which next to Seasons, features the best poetry on the album.

I wrestled by the sea

A loneliness in me

I asked myself for peace,

and found it at my feet

Staring at the sea

And also:

People lie, people love, people go

But beauty lies in every soul

I mean, do I really need to break it down? As personal as this album is to the members of Future Islands, this album was incredibly personal to me, and I am confident it meant a lot to others as well. I recall reading an article where Herring talks about how after every live show, someone confronts them and tells them how much their performance really touched them. After years of hard work, it's inspiring to see a band not only break out, but also touch people in such a widespread fashion.

Key Tracks: Seasons (Waiting On You), Sun in the Morning, Doves, Back in the Tall Grass, A Dream of You and Me

9. FKA Twigs – LP1

Behold, the 2014 album that grew on me the most, FKA Twig's debut album, LP1. Initially recommended to me by my friend Momen back in September, LP1 just seemed way to bizarre at the time. Twig's higher register vocals over these spacy and cavernous beats was not clicking with me at all. But over time and after much patience I started to understand the beauty of FKA Twigs. On LP1, FKA Twigs delivers the most erotic and seductive album of 2014.

For starters, there's lead single Two Weeks, which features a high inducing beat where Twigs unabashedly swoons of her carnal desire for a certain someone. With lines like “You know I'd quench that thirst / I can treat you better than her” and this:

My thighs are apart for when you're ready to breathe in

Suck me up, I'm healing with all the shit you're dealing

Motherfucker, get your mouth open you know you're mine

How do you not blush after hearing that?! On Pendulum, Twig's vocal performance reminds me of Beth Gibbons on Portishead's debut album Dummy (given my love for Portishead, this is one of the biggest compliments that I can personally give). She absolutely soars on this song and you can feel the tinge of anguish in her voice. The producers that helped out Twigs on this album also deserve their share of the limelight, as they have crafted instrumentals that compliment Twigs style. Video Girl, especially with that slow down on the first hook and Give Up with its skittering high-hat and synth arpeggio are stand outs for me.

There's been a bunch of artists contributing to this newer approach to alternative R&B, but FKA Twigs stands high above the rest. It's baby making music for sure, albeit perhaps a bit left-field for some. But baby making music nonetheless.

Key Tracks: Lights On, Two Weeks, Pendulum, Video Girl, Give Up, Kicks

8. BADBADNOTGOOD – III

As of late, I have been listening to a lot of jazz. For me, it's the perfect music to work to, as well as enjoy in the morning with fresh coffee or in a night in with a glass of whisky. There's a slew of jazz artists to love from the past such as Miles Davis and Yusef Lateef, but when it comes to more modern day jazz musicians, it's so hard for me to think of ones that I enjoy, let alone know. I feel like this is common with a lot of people my age. There just hasn't really been a jazz artist/collective to really draw the attention of us young'ns. Well that has all changed. BADBADNOTGOOD have come to save the day.

Hailing from Toronto, BADBADNOTGOOD is a trio that has put forth jazz music that has been imprinted with their own personal taste. Their past albums featured covers of more contemporary artists such as James Blake and Kanye West, but this time around they give us an album full of 100% original material, and it is fantastic. All the way through the album, BBNG presents us with incredible song writing. Take my personal favorite, Confessions, a song that is based around this saxophone part performed by guest Leland Whitty. The saxophone starts off with this repetitive sequence, but then immediately blossoms into this absolutely soaring melody. I can't tell you how incredible it is to listen to this song while biking around the fields in Copenhagen at sunset. Marvelous. Then of course there is Can't Believe the Night, BBNG's own take on a banger, and holy cow, this song BANGS. Don't believe me? Listen to it on max volume with the bass turned all the way up. You're welcome.

The word on BADBADNOTGOOD's greatness has been getting out, and recent collaborations with hip-hop artists such as Ghostface Killah and Earl Sweatshirt give me great excitement as to how the trio will influence the sound of hip-hop and jazz for the years to come. In the mean time, I'm going to listen to Differently, Still while and sipping on this coffee browsing Reddit.

Key Tracks: Triangle, Can't Hold the Night, Confessions, Hedron, Differently Still, CS60

7. St. Vincent – St. Vincent

All hail St. Vincent aka Annie Clark, our indie guitar goddess that has gone absolutely mental on her fourth album. I mean, just look at that album artwork! It's both fabulous and bizarre. This album is by far Clark's most eccentric project to date. It has moments of insanity, yet proves to be one of the years' most catchiest and solid releases.

Annie Clark's music has always been eccentric and guitar driven. This album is no different, but I feel as though she takes her music to an even more bizarre level, and it's great. The opening track Rattlesnake kicks off the album with this chugging instrumental while Clark tells us of a time where she wandered through the desert in the nude, only to come across a rattlesnake. What an image, right? On the following track and lead single, Birth in Reverse, Clark casually sings:

Oh what an ordinary day

Take out the garbage, masturbate

A set of lyrics that are humorous and are accompanied by a driving guitar lead and drum beat. On Huey Newton, the song starts with this soaring vocal performance from Clark into this absolute crunching and static guitar part, which is probably the heaviest part of the album. And of course there is Digital Witness, arguably the best song on the album, and of the year. Based on the concept of the identities that we present online, Digital Witness features this farty horn part that makes it impossible to not bob your head to.

It's so odd, St. Vincent is EASILY one of my most listened to albums of the year, yet for some reason, I find writing about it so difficult. Maybe I'm just getting tired of typing. Regardless, St. Vincent is a brilliant addition to Annie Clark's already brilliant discography. I couldn't get enough of it, especially the new look she developed. I'm still bummed out she didn't hear my proposal when I saw her in Paris. Sigh.

Key Tracks: Rattlesnake, Birth in Reverse, Prince Johnny, Huey Newton, Digital Witness, Severed Crossed Fingers.

6. Run the Jewels – Run the Jewels 2

“I'M FINNA BANG THIS BITCH THE FUCK OUT!” bellows Killer Mike at the start of this album. And that's exactly what he and his partner-in-crime El-P did on their sophomore album. Run the Jewels 2 is the album of 2014 that made me want to punch brick walls and drop kick trees, something I haven't really felt since discovering Death Grip's first three albums (Exmillitary, The Money Store, and No Love Deep Web).

Killer Mike and El-P come together to deliver an album that hits like a runaway truck loaded with 10 tons of explosives. The first single to drop for this album, Blockbuster Night Pt. 1 is equipped with a grimy, unapologetic beat laced with fan-fucking-tastic verses from the duo. I mean, just look at how Killer Mike closes out this song:

The gates of hell I'm pugnaciously pacin' waitin',

I give a fuck if I'm late, tell Satan be patient

But I ain't here for durations, I'm just taking vacations

and tell him fuck him, I never loved him and salutations

DAMN. My friends, I nearly shed tears upon hearing that for the first time. And it doesn't stop there. Following this track is probably the greatest song title of the year: Close Your Eyes (And Count to Fuck), featuring Zach De La Rocha of Rage Against the Machine, which features another riot inducing beat with a reoccurring guitar riff that sounds like it came off a Rage Against the Machine track. Run the Jewels 2 is such a consistent album, and it doesn't just stick to bad-ass anthems. There are tracks on here that touch on social and political issues, such as Lie, Cheat, Steal and Early. Then there's Love Again, a raunchy song that made laugh at how ridiculous it was, especially Gangsta Boo's verse. I honestly haven't heard anything quite like that since Danny Brown's I Will. NASTY!!!

While Jay Z and Kanye have been busy tending to their wives and newborns, Killer Mike and El-P busted into the throne room guns blazing and blunts burning in a hostile takeover. Friends, let us raise our hands in a fist and gun position to salute Run the Jewels.

Key Tracks: Oh My Darling Don't Cry, Blockbuster Night Pt. 1, Close Your Eyes (and Count to Fuck), Early, Crown.

5. Todd Terje – It’s Album Time

I like to refer to Todd Terje as the Norwegian Disco God, and when you listen to his debut album, you’ll understand why. In a time where dance music is dominated by bro-y, drop-heavy, womp-womp music, in comes Todd Terje dropping a disco album in the year of 2014, an album that made me dance like no other this year.

I feel as though the artwork for It’s Album Time really sets the tone for the album. It is colorful, quirky, cool, and nostalgic, which perfectly describes the way the album sounds as well! Terje has some MASSIVE dance numbers on this album such as Strandbar and the club-crushing Inspector Norse. Seriously, if you listen to the songs on this album and your body does not feel inclined to groove to it, you must be a robot or something. When the piano part comes in on Strandbar: GAME OVER. And Inspector Norse is just such a joyous dance number, it closes out the album on a euphoric level.

What I feel is the album’s biggest strength is the quirky-ier songs, namely Svensk Sas. Goodness, Svensk Sas is only 2 minutes and 44 seconds, but it packs a PUNCH. The melody is so infectious and the latin flare is off-the-rails. Trying walking down the street listening to this song, and it’s so hard NOT to have some swagger in your step. Johnny and Mary featuring Bryan Ferry is at the center of the album and provides a gentle, ethereal disco madness created by Terje. Initially this song came off as a long-winded dud, but over time it has grown on me.

It’s Album Times abilities to get a party started are second to none, and Terje’s twist on disco music is glorious. It’s so hard to think of a dance album that I have loved this much since Justice’s debut album Cross. And for me, that is a huge deal. Now excuse while I go dance to Inspector Norse in my room alone.

Key Tracks: Leisure Suit Preben, Svensk Sas, Strandbar, Delorean Dynamite, Johnny & Mary, Oh Joy, Inspector Norse.

4. Flying Lotus – You’re Dead!

You’re Dead! was the album that I was looking most forward to this year. When the project was announced earlier this year, I was beyond excited. Flying Lotus released a teaser video that featured bits and pieces from the album, and the art work was awesome! On top of that, the whole theme of the album was supposed to be about death. A jazz-fusion electronic album based around death from the king of the LA beat scene… it sounded too good to be true. Oh yeah, and artists such as Snoop Dogg, Thundercat, and Herbie Hancock would be featured on the album?! Damn. I kept on thinking that there was no way this album could be bad. And yeah, I was right. You’re Dead! is Flying Lotus at his best.

You’re Dead! is comprised of 19 tracks, but is only 38 minutes in length. As a result, the majority of the songs on here are extremely short, with many being less than 2 minutes long. You’re Dead is better looked at as a whole experience. The way the tracks lead into each other and the pacing of the album creates a seamless 38 minute odyssey through FlyLo’s meticulously crafted album. My personal favorite sequence of songs in the album is from the first song, Theme to Never Catch Me, which features Kendrick Lamar. The first 4 tracks feature such great moments, like the pattering drums on Tesla and the furious guitar riff on Cold Dead. It all leads to a song featuring Kendrick Lamar delivering one of the greatest verses he has ever written. The highlight of it is towards the end, where he is building up this momentum and then spits:

This that life beyond your own life, this ain’t physical for mankind

This that out-of-body experience, no coincidence you been died

Bitch, you’re dead!

*THUNDERCAT BASS SOLO*

Flying Lotus admitted that this album would not be possible without Thundercat, and he is absolutely right. Thundercat’s contributions really elevate You’re Dead! to the next level. The songs on this album just feature such complex and harrowing moments. Just listen to Turkey Dog Coma or Moment of Hesitation featuring Herbie Hancock (who kills it by the way). Flying Lotus said he wanted to make an album that only he could make and that would fuck up Miles Davis, and when you listen to it, you really gotta hand it to FlyLo. This album is exceptional on every level, and I reckon Miles Davis and many jazz greats would be proud of this album.

Key Tracks: The whole thang. But I guess specifically: Tesla, Cold Dead, Never Catch Me, Turkey Dog Coma, Turtles, Ready err Not, Moment of Hesitation, The Protest.

3. Mac DeMarco – Salad Days

Ah, Mac DeMarco. Many days this year were spent chilling out and letting Mac’s beautifully construed, breezy, guitar led songs play in the background. I mean seriously, I cannot count the amount of times where I have chilled by my pool with my Ray-Bans on, sippin’ on an IPA while listening to this album (as well as 2).

One of my favorite aspects about Mac’s music is the SWEET, SWEET tones of his guitars. On his previous album 2, songs such as Freakin’ Out the Neighborhood and Robson Girl featured such glimmering and shimmering guitar leads. The trend continues here on Salad Days. Tracks like Blue Boy and Goodbye Weekend are as equally laid-back as Ode to Viceroy, and yet still show signs of progression in DeMarco’s song writing.

Another fascinating thing to me about Mac DeMarco is how he writes such serious and personal songs… yet at the end of the day, he is still that loveable goofball, making dumb childish jokes followed up by his signature grin. From his lyrics, you definitely can tell that he has matured since his last release. Let’s take a look at the chorus from one of best tracks off the album, Passing out Pieces:

What mom don’t know has taken its toll on me

It’s all I’ve seen that can’t be wiped clean

It’s hard to believe what it’s made of me

Mac is known for not really giving a shit about getting drunk and partying, especially at his own shows. But now he is acknowledging it, and reflects about how it has changed him throughout the past couple of years. Speaking of reflecting, another stellar track off this album is Chamber of Reflection. Both this track and Passing Out Pieces features synth parts, but Chamber just has this palpable feeling of somberness and isolation. I absolutely love it. As an introvert, the sentiment of spending time alone to reflect truly resonates with me. Though songs may seem that they are directed towards someone else or the audience, I also believe that DeMarco has written these songs as self-help songs for himself. The best example of this is on Let Her Go, where Mac croons:

Tell her that you love her, if you really love her

If your heart just ain’t sure, let her go.

Out of all of the albums on this list, Salad Days is by far the most laid-back and easy going, but beneath the surface, Mac DeMarco has crafted such a beautiful and personal record that I am positive has resonated with his many fans, and will resonate with his future fans. As he gets older, I can only expect his music to become even better.

Key Tracks: Salad Days, Brother, Let Her Go, Let My Baby Stay, Passing out Pieces, Chamber of Reflection.

2. Freddie Gibbs & Madlib – Pinata

Prior to listening to this album, I never really was a fan of Freddie Gibbs. I had heard a few tracks of his, but he just seemed like some deep voiced, gangsta rapper, and did not particularly stand out to me. But when I learned that he was doing a collaboration album with MADLIB (big fan of his legendary collab with MF Doom: Madvillainy), I bought a first class ticket on the hype train, and wow, this album EXCEEDED my hype.

Freddie Gibbs may get first billing on the album, but in my opinion, Madlib’s production is the clear star on this project. Madvillainy features many of my favorite beats of all time, and on Pinata, Madlib continues to show why he deserves to be mentioned among the greatest producers of all time. All 17 tracks on this album feature Grade A beats, and each song is its own world. The variety is amazing. Take Lakers and Knicks, two back-to-back tracks named after NBA teams. Lakers sounds like the perfect song for cruising in an El Camino down the 5 on to way to get delicious tacos in a sketchy part of LA with your best friends, while Knicks sounds like an appropriate soundtrack for a stroll through a sunny Central Park. The only way I can describe Robes is with the word gorgeous. High, sounds so quirky and features a brilliant and catchy sample for the hook (“I get high, I get hiiiigh!”). And Shitsville sounds like everyone just won the lottery (I think someone on Reddit said that).

Earlier I said that I never was much of a fan of Freddie Gibbs prior to hearing this album and that Madlib’s production was the clear star, but that absolutely does not mean that Freddie Gibbs did not come through on this album. Gangsta Gibbs straight KILLED this album, track-for –motherfucking-track, with his aggressive flows. What’s even more impressive is that a lot of the instrumentals on here seem so hard to rap over, yet Gibbs makes it seem so easy, like he did it while cooking yola and filing his taxes, all at the same time. On Deeper, Madlib presents Gibbs with a complex beat featuring this string part that sounds like a crying violin, and Gibbs rides it effortlessly and tells a deep story about how his girl left him for another guy who’s “tryna be a motherfuckin’ astronaut.” He ends every verse with the line “that cut a nigga deep,” and man, I feel the feels every time. Thuggin’ is an anthem on how thug Freddie Gibbs is. Will you be sagging your pants until you are 40 years old? No? Then you’re nowhere near Gibb’s level.

If the 1-2 punch of Madlib’s production and Gibb’s fire wasn’t enough, the guest features on this album are the final knock-out punch. Danny Brown, Domo Genesis, Earl Sweatshirt, Raekwon, Ab-Soul, and many more come through on this album, delivering golden verses. On Shame, BJ the Chicago Kid comes through to sing the hook and damn does it sound good.

Name one criticism for Pinata you ask? We don’t know if there will be a Pinata 2 in the future.

Key Tracks: Scarface, Deeper, High, Bomb, Shitsville, Thuggin’, Robes, Lakers, Shame, Broken, Pinata. Basically the whole damn album.

1. Swans – To Be Kind

Towering at an album length of TWO hours over the span of ten tracks, To Be Kind comes off as a daunting album. It’s an absolute gargantuan monolith of sound, whose tracks raise tensions to astronomical levels. With such lengthy tracks (especially Bring the Sun/Toussaint L’Ouverture which clocks in at 34 minutes long) Michael Gira and company has yet again crafted another musical journey for an album that truly tests the patience of the listeners, but those who slowly soak it all in are rewarded BIG TIME (I also felt this way about my favorite album of 2013, Darkside’s Psychic). Honestly, the best way to experience this album is front to back, beginning to end, no skips, pauses, etc. The album is just filled with so many hard hitting, yet grooving riffs, odd sounds, chants that linger in the background, and insane lyrics wailed by Gira (ex. “I’M JUST A LITTLE BOYYYYYYY”, “TOUSAINNNNNNNTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!”, “YOUR NAME IS FUCK!!!!”, and “I’LL STEAL ALL THE OXYGEN!!”)

To Be Kind has brought two of my greatest album listening experiences in my 22 year old life. The first time (and quite actually the first time I heard the album) was while trying to write a paper. Instead, I got absorbed by it and sat quietly at my desk while hypnotized by the experience. Two hours later I realized that I still had a paper to write, but did not regret my use of two hours. The second was when I was on a trip to Ireland. During a 3 hour late night bus ride from Dublin to Galway, I listened to the album while trying to sleep. To Be Kind was the soundtrack for my dreams. I remember slightly waking up towards the end of the track Some Things We Do and hearing these chants of “We fuck, we love, we love, we love…” which then transitioned into the absolutely punishing opening riffs of She Loves Us.

Ho. Ly. Fuck.

That immediately woke me up from my sleep. I looked out the window and all I could see was sheer darkness, no streetlights at all. I checked the time and saw that it had just turned midnight. I was tired, hungry and dehydrated, confined in a bus travelling across a country that was completely foreign to me while the repetitive and grizzly nature of Swans was pouring into my ears. It was fucking perfect. Once we finally arrived at Galway (at 2 AM…), I turned to my friend Mary and told her that I just had one of the greatest album experiences of my life and begun to explain what just happened in a scattered manner. And at that moment, I knew that I had discovered my album of the year.

Key Tracks: ALL OF IT, but if you want specifics… Screen Shot, A Little God in my Hands, Some Things We Do, She Loves Us, Oxygen, To Be Kind.

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redgieapsay-blog · 10 years

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An in depth look into $TAY $TRONG

For my Business 102 class (Ethics and Law in Business and Society) taught by Dr. Sean Jasso PhD, there is an assignment due at the end of the quarter where you have to create a handbook that contains 50+ facts that you have learned throughout the course of the year. You can be as dull as you, meaning that you can simply type up a list of 50 facts, or you can be creative and present the handbook in any medium you can think of. The sky is the limit. The thing is, the assignment DOESN'T count towards the point value of your grade, but you still need to turn one in in order to get your grade. So yeah, you can simply type up a one page sheet and hand it in, and walk out willy-nilly. OR you can go above and beyond and create something ridiculous and special and have the opportunity to present it to the professor and the entire class. The fact that I am making a blog post about this should indicate what path I took.

The day before the handbook as due, I was trying to think of what to do, and suddenly in my half-asleep state, I got this bizarre, yet grand idea: I should imagine Dr. Jasso as a rapper and make a mock physical rap CD for him. For the handbook itself, I would include it as insert booklet. The moment the idea came into my mind, I was seriously jittering with excitement and laughing my ass off. The idea was so crazy that I HAD to make it real. Pretty soon, I was thinking of fake track names for the album, and who would be guest features. If you know me, I love music, and just being able to cross-reference hip-hop stuff with subject matter from class was beyond amazing for me. With finals and papers looming ahead, I ended up spending pretty much the whole day on this project that didn't count towards my grade. But man, was it fun and insanely gratifying.

The Album Art

Ah, album art. Such an essential portion to the release of an album. Above, you can see the finished project, a masterpiece, I know. With a simple Google search of “Sean Jasso”, I found a high resolution picture of him that was really easy to work with. I cropped out his face and filtered the shit out of it. “JASSO” sounded like a great rap name on its own, and to stylize it further, I thought it would be funny to make the S's dollar signs. “JA$$O” Oh yeah buddy. When Dr. Jasso sends out an e-mail, he normally ends the e-mail with the phrase “STAY STRONG.” So that's how all of that came about! The font used was called... actually I forgot. I think it was something along the lines of “Prince Valiant.”

Track Listing

The creation of a fake track listing was EASILY the most amusing portion of this project. It was a blast mixing hip-hop references with subject matter from class, and envisioning in my head what they would sound like. Here is an inside look into the basis of each track:

1. “I Can Bring Excellence 2 Tha Rap Game” - One time during lecture Jasso said the best answer to the question “Why should I hire you?” would be “Because I can bring excellence to the firm.” So for this opening track for the album, I was imagining some thug sounding interviewer asking like...

“Aight Jasso... what can u bring to the rap game brotha?”

and then Jasso would reply

“I can bring EXCELLENCE to the rap game!”

And this would transition into the next track.

2. “R'side State of Mind” ft. Nas – This was a reference to Nas' 2nd track off his classic album Illmatic, “New York State of Mind.” I attend the University of California, Riverside, and we call Riverside “R'side” for short. For this track, I imagined it would be a track about life in R'side. Yeah.

3. “Jasso in Paris” ft. Jay Z and KanYe West – The BEST part about making a fake album is that in terms of features, you can have ANYBODY. So I went pretty crazy with the features on this album, as you can tell. I also thought it was just fun in general to insert Jasso's name everywhere. This track is a marriage between both of these common trends. This was one of the first tracks I thought of, and it gave me a hearty guffaw.

4. “Leviathan” ft. Rick Ross, Action Bronson, and T-Hobbe$ - Leviathan was a work written by philosopher Thomas Hobbes that dealt with social contract theory, which we covered in class. It is also the name of a monstrous biblical sea monster. So for this track, I thought it would be great to rap about Hobbes' philosophies and feature two leviathan sized rappers. And of course, the author of Leviathan himself had to come in for a verse under his rap alias “T-Hobbe$”.

5. “Nuthin' but a J Thang” ft. Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg – A reference to the classic west coast track off The Chronic “Nuthin' but a G Thang.” Jasso's name of course starts with a J... so just replace the G, and BOOM, that's how this track came about. A “J” is also short for a joint, and both Dre & Snoop are notorious for inhaling copious amounts of a certain kind of smoke. I'm not implying that Dr. Jasso too partakes in said activities. But giving that this is a fictional album, I'll leave it up to personal interpretation, hah!

6. “Hold On, We're Going to CPK” ft. Drake – HAHA, this one is really geared towards students in the class, but let me explain. So in all of Jasso's classes, he provides ONE extra credit opportunity to everyone. You must go to California Pizza Kitchen (CPK), and spend $30 to get 2% towards your grade. In a sense, it's like buying 2% of your grade, and everyone does it because it doesn't require that much work AND you get to eat tasty food. So I referenced the 2013 sizzlin' and slammin' hit Drake summer single “Hold On, We're Going Home.” To make it even better, another insert I included in the album was the coupon you need to present to CPK to get your extra credit. I thought it was pretty damn clever, thank you very much!

7. “Dr. Sean Jasso PhD© Ain't Nothin' ta F*** Wit'” - A reference to the amazing track off of the Wu-Tang Clan's debut album. The reason why there is a copyright symbol after PhD is because Dr. Jasso actually has his name copyrighted. It's all about the details man.

8. “Ms. Jasso” ft. OutKast – A reference to the popular song by the newly reunited duo of Andre 3000 and Big Boi aka OutKast. Like I said, I pretty much just inserted Jasso into anything that I could think of and hoped it sticked. HAHA.

9. “SOX” ft. Waka Flocka Flame, Cheif Keef, Gucci Mane, Lil B, $arbanes, and Ol' Dirty Oxley – OKAY this track, might honestly be my favorite, because in my head, it seems like it would be the fucking funniest thing ever. SOX is short for Sarbanes-Oxley, a law that was put into place to cut down on corporate scandals and stuff. Waka Flocka Flame, Chief Keef, Gucci Mane, and Lil B can be very polarizing rappers. Either people say that they make some of the most obnoxious songs or they love them. For this track, I'm just imagining a track that's produced by both Lex Luger and Young Chop. It would probably be the most obnoxious and in your face trap beat on Earth. Sprinkle in those rappers from above, and the subject matter of Sarbanes-Oxley... and you have what could quite possibly be the greatest imaginary rap song of all time. Oh, and Oxley's rap name is based off of the late Ol' Dirty Bastard (straight from tha Brooklyn Zoo)! Hehehehehe

10. “I've Seen Profits” by Death Grips – I feel like a very small amount of people would catch this reference. This track is a holler to a Death Grips favorite “I've Seen Footage” off of their body obliterating album THE MONEY STORE. If you've never heard of Death Grips... I would implore you to look them up. I'm not saying you'd enjoy them (probably not), but you should still look them up. Because you know, knowledge is power.

11. “Justice” ft. J-Rawlz, JSM, 2 Kantz, and Artistotle – In the course, we read a book titled Justice that dealt with justice and ethics, and all that jazz. It covered many philosophers and thinkers, and so here they are together, rappin' about justice. Ah, so grand. J-Rawlz is John Rawls, JSM is John Stuart Mills, 2 Kantz would be Immanuel Kant, and Aristotle is.... well Aristotle.

12. $tay $trong – On the closing track of the album, JA$$O needs no assistance to lay down some fiery verses about overcoming adversity, hangin' in there, working hard, and all that kind of stuff. Stay strong guys, stay strong.

The presentation of this all was awesome. Everyone laughed and cheered, and someone might have cried. And to top it off, Dr. Jasso took a pic of the album with me. Awesome bruh.

Well, there you have it. Honestly, I have spent SO much time working on this project and typing up this blog post. I have finals to study for man. And a 12-15 page Jasso paper to write. I need to get on that. Peace.

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