At the end of the day, the top albums came down to the ones I found myself listening to the most. There were albums I respected but I never had the urge to play, so they ended up lower on the list. These were the albums that kept finding themselves in my heavy rotation. These albums deserve top billing.
Probably the biggest surprise here is the U2 album. I have no idea why so many people criticized its delivery method. People have been complaining that the old system doesn't work anymore; labels and bands need to try new things. U2 did. They gave the fans exactly what they asked for and the people still complained. People didn't complain this much about Zooropa (which deserved it). My favorite criticism of the band is now they're corporate. I hate to break it to you all, any band on a record label is corporate. U2 took a risk and I commend them for it. I'd rather a band take a risk and fail then play it safe and be ordinary. If people stopped complaining and listened, they might actually be surprised.
Here are the 55 Best Albums of 2014 (1-11):
1. Broken Bells - After the Disco
2. Antemasque - Antemasque
3. Eagulls - Eagulls
4. TV On The Radio - Seeds
5. White Sea - White Sea
6. Against Me! - Transgender Dysphoria Blues
7. Cheatahs - Cheatahs
8. Jack White - Lazaretto
9. James Vincent McMorrow - Post-Tropical
10. Run The Jewels - RTJ2
11. U2 - Songs of Innocence
Buy all of these albums and more...now!!
Lots of guilty pleasures on the list today. And I may be the only one on the planet who liked the Foster the People album.
There have been questions about this year's countdown...to answer the big one: I did not do a poll this year. Though I promised, I ran out of my time in my life, day job, and parenting duties. So, this year, you're just going to have to live with my list and my list only. Enjoy the kitty.
2014 was filled with 90s superstars, indie rap reinvention, 80s throwbacks, and some of the best EPs to come out in recent memory.
Back from vacation and back on the horse. I will be attending Sundance next week and will keep on top of all the music shenanigans happening. Until then, let's finish off 2014 the right way.