01 | Bonobo | The North Borders
02 | Shpongle | Museum of Consciousness
03 | Lusine | The Waiting Room
04 | BT | A Song Across Wires
05 | Disclosure | Settle
06 | Toro Y Moi | Anything in Return
07 | Pretty Lights | Color Map of the Sun
08 | John Hopkins | Immunity
09 | Ulrich Schnauss | A Long Way to Fall
10 | David Bowie | The Next Day
This has definitely been a year owned by the ladies. (EDIT: Some people requested we add suggested cuts from each album so I added a few from each. Also refined the order some under further consideration.)
And now for those guilty pleasure albums.
13. OneRepublic | Native
14. Avril Lavigne | Avril Lavigne
15. Icona Pop | This is... Icona Pop
16. Natalia Kills | Trouble
It's because if someone only listened to a couple albums the entire year, they don't really have much perspective on the year in music, and it will give an unfair boost to the more than likely headline artist that they listened to. The video game equivalent is if everyone who only buys CoD every year were allowed to vote, then CoD would win every poll through brute force even though it's not necessarily that good. Hundreds of great albums come out every year so it should be fine.
2013 has been fucking awesome for music. Bookmarking for later!
i don't understand how people could have less than 10 albums. i mean, so much music is released every month, there's literally too much music to listen to sometimes.
It's because if someone only listened to a couple albums the entire year, they don't really have much perspective on the year in music, and it will give an unfair boost to the more than likely headline artist that they listened to. The video game equivalent is if everyone who only buys CoD every year were allowed to vote, then CoD would win every poll through brute force even though it's not necessarily that good. Hundreds of great albums come out every year so it should be fine.
Given that there have been probably tens of thousands of albums released this year, ranging from huge commercial successes to ones with a minuscule number of downloads, it's a statistical impossibility that there are not even 10 excellent ones. Hell, in this thread already, you have a few hundred different suggestions, most of which are probably very good (I'd wager that any of the ones that already have 3 or more mentions are all definitely worth listening to).
The issue is finding them all, and that's incredibly tricky even for those who spend many hours a week seeking them out (I'm sure there are plenty on GAF who do this). I spend quite a bit of time looking for music, and have a list of ~40 albums from this year that I consider very good. About half of them are in this thread already, and I suspect almost all of them will be by the time this thread is done.
10 albums might be a bit high for the average music listener, but I agree with the sentiment. If you don't have a good enough grasp on the music of the year then you shouldn't be voting in the album of the year thread.
01 | Marnie Stern | The Chronicles of Marnia
02 | Dinosaur Bones | Shaky Dream
03 | Portugal. The Man | Evil Friends
04 | Arcade Fire | Reflektor
05 | Vampire Weekend | Modern Vampires of the City
06 | Local Natives | Hummingbird
07 | Protest the Hero | Volition
08 | The Joy Formidable | Wolf's Law
09 | CHVRCHES | The Bones of What You Believe
10 | The Julie Ruin | Run Fast
01 | Lady Gaga | ARTPOP
02 | Kanye West | Yeezus
03 | Janelle Monae | The Electric Lady
04 | Justin Timberlake | The 20/20 Experience, Part 1 of 2
05 | David Bowie | The Next Day
06 | Daft Punk | Random Access Memories
07 | Arcade Fire | Reflektor
08 | Jay-Z | Magna Carta Holy Grail
Pop wins 2013 for me. Been playing ARTPOP pretty much on loop for the past few weeks. Halp.
Given that there have been probably tens of thousands of albums released this year, ranging from huge commercial successes to ones with a minuscule number of downloads, it's a statistical impossibility that there are not even 10 excellent ones. Hell, in this thread already, you have a few hundred different suggestions, most of which are probably very good (I'd wager that any of the ones that already have 3 or more mentions are all definitely worth listening to).
The issue is finding them all, and that's incredibly tricky even for those who spend many hours a week seeking them out (I'm sure there are plenty on GAF who do this). I spend quite a bit of time looking for music, and have a list of ~40 albums from this year that I consider very good. About half of them are in this thread already, and I suspect almost all of them will be by the time this thread is done.
That's not the way statistics work, but whatever. I listen to a lot of music too, but I don't want to recommend things that I don't think are timeless, and I don't think there were 10 timeless things that came out. I just think the number is too arbitrary, and "not counting" someones recommendations because they don't hit that arbitrary number is a silly rule.
10 albums might be a bit high for the average music listener, but I agree with the sentiment. If you don't have a good enough grasp on the music of the year then you shouldn't be voting in the album of the year thread.
I pose a new rule: only people who can describe music form a theoretical view can have their votes counted. If you can't count 5/4 and hear a Lydian mode then you probably don't understand music enough to have a valid opinion on it.
01 | Vampire Weekend | Modern Vampires of the City
02 | Arcade Fire | Reflektor
03 | Psychic| Darkside
04 | The National | Trouble Will Find Me
05 | Kurt Vile | Waking on a Pretty Daze
06 | Volcano Choir | Repave
07 | Kanye West | Yeezus
08 | Run the Jewels | Run the Jewels
09 | Savages | Silence Yourself
10 | Groenland | The Chase
11 | CHVRCHES | The Bones of What You Believe
12 | My Bloody Valentine | mbv
13 | Deerhunter | Monomania
14 | Sigur Ros | Kveikur
15 | Speedy Ortiz | Major Arcana
16 |Daft Punk | Random Access Memories
17 | The Weekend | Kiss Land
18 | Foxygen | We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic
19 | Burial | Rival Dealer
20 | Chance The Rapper | Acid Rap
21 | David Bowie | The Next Day
22 | Iceage | You're Nothing
23 | Youth Lagoon | Wondrous Bughouse
24 | Portugal. The Man | Evil Friends
25 | Anamanaguchi | Endless Fantasy
edit: 1 first pass edit, limited to 25
edit 2: how the fuck did I forget Iceage,
That's not the way statistics work, but whatever. I listen to a lot of music too, but I don't want to recommend things that I don't think are timeless, and I don't think there were 10 timeless things that came out. I just think the number is too arbitrary, and "not counting" someones recommendations because they don't hit that arbitrary number is a silly rule.
So much illogic in two sentences. You win the "pretentious" award for page two. Your scarf will arrive in July.
Not sure why you're attacking them. Most people who don't listen to a lot of music, don't end up voting. I've seen plenty of people in other threads saying they've only listened to a couple of things during the year, and they usually just post the 2 or 3 they've listened to and that's it. It's like ranking the top 10 films of the year, but if you've only seen 10 films, what's the point? Also who the fuck cares if it's not the "OMFG PANTHEON OF GREATEST MUSIC EVER COMPOSED"? We're asking for your 10 favorite / best albums of this year. You compare to this year. You seem to be the pretentious one here.
I pose a new rule: only people who can describe music form a theoretical view can have their votes counted. If you can't count 5/4 and hear a Lydian mode then you probably don't understand music enough to have a valid opinion on it.
Okay, genji, I probably should have said 'statistical improbability' as opposed to 'impossibility', but I'm sure you get my gist!
At the same time as you making this post mocking elitism, you also said just a few posts earlier that you don't want to recommend anything that's not "timeless". Why is timeless necessarily better? How do you even define it? There is some outstanding music this year that is, in all likelihood, not going to be considered timeless in the future, but that doesn't make it any worse.
In fact, the post immediately following yours, by equippedwithtowel, contains 30 well-regarded albums from this year. Try them.
I listen to a lot of music too, but I don't want to recommend things that I don't think are timeless, and I don't think there were 10 timeless things that came out. I just think the number is too arbitrary, and "not counting" someones recommendations because they don't hit that arbitrary number is a silly rule.
You can not define what's "timeless" in one year, that just goes against the whole term. What's timeless takes at least a decade or a generation to be deemed so. Lists are always arbitrary, but top 10s have stuck for generations as a standard. No one's going to berate you for picking a just-good-not-great bunch of music for your 8th/9th/10th choices. You've got a whole month to find some more choices by yourself or from recommendations for specific genres you like, to make it up to 10.
In the past, 10 has been used for precisely some of the reasons mentioned in the OP and many other posts here. Anyway, it's Servbot's thread, so I don't think we should propose a change to the rules.
I pose a new rule: only people who can describe music form a theoretical view can have their votes counted. If you can't count 5/4 and hear a Lydian mode then you probably don't understand music enough to have a valid opinion on it.
I pose a new rule: only people who can describe music form a theoretical view can have their votes counted. If you can't count 5/4 and hear a Lydian mode then you probably don't understand music enough to have a valid opinion on it.
1. Anamanaguchi - Endless Fantasy
2. Disclosure - Settle
3. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
4. Perfume - Level3
5. Arcade Fire - Reflektor
6. Janelle Monae - The Electric Lady
7. Kanye West - Yeezus
8. Foals - Holy Fire
9. Franz Ferdinand - Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action
10. The Strokes - Comedown Machine
The more that I think about it, the more that it occurs to me that RAM is basically the Bioshock Infinite of albums. Think about it.
Also, you may enjoy my cross-promotion in the songs I've linked for each album - London Grammar in the Disclosure one, a Kavinsky cover in the London Grammar one, etc.
1. | Anamanaguchi | Endless Fantasy
2. | Toro Y Moi | Anything in Return
3. | Kanye West | Yeezus
4. | Four Tet | Beautiful Rewind
5. | Darkside | Psychic
6. | Steven Wilson | The Raven That Refused to Sing
7. | Vampire Weekend | Modern Vampires of the City
8. | My Bloody Valentine | MBV
9. | Octo Octa | Between to Selves
10. | Oneohtrix Point Never | R Plus Seven
11. | Queens of the Stone Age | ...Like Clockwork
* I reserve the right to edit this quickly made list later
That's not the way statistics work, but whatever. I listen to a lot of music too, but I don't want to recommend things that I don't think are timeless, and I don't think there were 10 timeless things that came out. I just think the number is too arbitrary, and "not counting" someones recommendations because they don't hit that arbitrary number is a silly rule.
Not everything on your list needs to be a perfect, timeless record. There is only going to be one of those on mine. But I still enjoyed lots of other albums that I would happily recommend.
You can not define what's "timeless" in one year, that just goes against the whole term. What's timeless takes at least a decade or a generation to be deemed so. Lists are always arbitrary, but top 10s have stuck for generations as a standard. No one's going to berate you for picking a just-good-not-great bunch of music for your 8th/9th/10th choices. You've got a whole month to find some more choices by yourself or from recommendations for specific genres you like, to make it up to 10.
I agree. You can't judge timelessness until a few years out. There have been albums people thought were good but not great, and then watched that album influence and impact music for the next two or three decades. It's just not something that can be judged at this point.
01 | Daft Punk | Random Access Memories
02 | The National | Trouble Will Find Me
03 | Darkthrone | The Underground Resistance
04 | Steven Wilson | The Raven That Refused to Sing
05 | Justin Timberlake | The 20/20 Experience (Part 1 of 2)
06 | Moderat I II (As in titled 2)
07 | My Bloody Valentine | m b v
08 | Obliteration | Black Death Horizon
09 | Run The Jewels | Run The Jewels
10 | Buckethead | Pikes #13
Not sure why you're attacking them. Most people who don't listen to a lot of music, don't end up voting. I've seen plenty of people in other threads saying they've only listened to a couple of things during the year, and they usually just post the 2 or 3 they've listened to and that's it. It's like ranking the top 10 films of the year, but if you've only seen 10 films, what's the point? Also who the fuck cares if it's not the "OMFG PANTHEON OF GREATEST MUSIC EVER COMPOSED"? We're asking for your 10 favorite / best albums of this year. You compare to this year. You seem to be the pretentious one here.
Because they're saying shit, the gist of which is,"If you don't have 10 albums then you don't know (not "likely don't know", but the 100% type of don't know) enough about music to have a valid opinion in a meaningless music voting thread".
I simply feel the rule is arbitrary and that you should be able to vote for as few as you like. The upper limit rule makes sense - as to limit the number or responses. But the lower limit rule is silly.
Have 9 albums, but not a 10th? Nope, your votes don't count.
Furthermore, that's simply how I want to define it for myself. You are free to define what constitutes a "best" album however you want. I wouldn't discount your vote simply because you define something so subjective differently than I do.
So you can say I'm being pretentious, but if I had my way, everyone's vote would count, with no other conditions, so I don't see how that can be true unless you really twist the word around.
Taking the argument that "if you don't have 10 albums then you don't necessarily don't listen to enough music and your votes shouldn't count" to it's logical extreme. How can someone's opinion on music be trusted if they don't understand music on a fundamental level?
To take it even further you should have to be a musician in order for your votes to count too. If you aren't a musician then you can't empathize with the music making process.
So the only votes that count are: 10+ albums, described in terms of music theory, and by musicians.
I'm trying to out-snob people I think are being very snobby. Everyone's vote should count - who cares if their favorite album was Bangerz and it was the only thing they listened to all year.
Thanks for the heads up on the Agnes Obel release. Been a fan of her's for years (her music has a beautiful and haunting minimalism), but I didn't catch this release. I've got so many musicians I follow that sometimes albums come and go and I never know.
Edit: I shouldn't say 'simplicity'. Minimalism is a better word.
The soundtrack for the first Hunger Games movie was incredible as well, but this one is beyond impressive. I really recommend people take a look at it (or both) if you've got some spare time.
Absolutely incredible year in music. Such difficult choices but in the end these were my top 10:
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - The Speed of Things
2. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
3. Arcade Fire - Reflektor
4. Kings of Leon - Mechanical Bull
5. CHVRCHES - The Bones of What You Believe
6. Small Black - Limits of Desire
7. Cage the Elephant - Melophobia
8. Empire of the Sun - Ice on the Dune
9. Cut Copy - Free Your Mind
10. Volcano Choir - Repave
01 | Jon Hopkins | Immunity
02 | Run The Jewels | Run The Jewels
03 | Danny Brown | Old
04 | Toro Y Moi | Anything In Return
05 | Daft Punk | Random Access Memories
06 | Janelle Monae | Electric Lady
07 | The Weeknd | Kiss Land
08 | Action Bronson | Blue Chips 2
09 | CHVRCHES | The Bones of What You Believe
10 | Black Milk | No Poison No Paradise
I pose a new rule: only people who can describe music form a theoretical view can have their votes counted. If you can't count 5/4 and hear a Lydian mode then you probably don't understand music enough to have a valid opinion on it.
Pretty much anything I spent money on this year. Great year for music.
1. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City
2. Arcade Fire - Reflektor
3. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
4. Nine Inch Nails - Hesitation Marks
5. Pearl Jam - Lightning Bolt
6. CHVRCHES - The Bones of What You Believe
7. Queens of the Stone Age - Like Clockwork
8. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
9. Sigur Rós - Kveikur
10. Kanye West - Yeezus
I could have put it a lot lower, but I have a really warped perception of it given I still haven't listen to the entire thing without skipping a few songs. It's a flawed album, but it has some truly great songs.
I have an early top ten worked out. It's almost all rap records, but I guess that's just what I'm into these days, heh. No. 1 is a tough call...last year Kaleidoscope Dream was the clear winner for me, this year there's a lot of good shit but not one, single stand-out record.
Sorry for the spam, but this is my WIP list of artists with 2013 releases I need to listen to, or re-listen to over the next month (none are in my current top ten):
King Krule
Wild Nothing
Kurt Vile
Deniro Farrar
Ryan Hemsworth
James Blake
Thee Oh Sees
Snakadaktal
Yung Lean
Disclosure
Autre Ne Veut
JMSN
Still Corners
Okkerville River
DeLorean
Blood Orange
Sampha
Arcade Fire
The National
Hammock
Foxygen
Ka
Wavves
I'm sure there's plenty of other good rap, soul and electronic shit I'm missing out on too.
