The 111 Best Albums of 2013

Here it is, the 111 best albums of 2013...as voted on by YOU.  If you don't like the list...change your listening habits.  Have a great 2014.

1. Arctic Monkeys - AM
2. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
3. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
4. The Arcade Fire - Reflektor
5. Kanye West - Yeezus
6. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City
7. Haim - Days Are Gone
8. David Bowie - The Next Day
9. Jason Isbell - Southeastern
10. CHVRCHES - Bones of What You Believe
11. Foals - Holy Fire
12. My Bloody Valentine - m b v
13. Paul McCartney - New
14. Burial - River Dealer
15. Phoenix - Bankrupt!
16. Lorde - Pure Heroine
17. The Strokes - Comedown Machine
18. Queens of the Stone Age - Like Clockwork…
19. Okkervil River - The Silver Gymnasium
20. Said The Whale - Hawaii
21. Danny Brown - Old
22. Phosphorescent - Muchacho
23. Volcano Choir - Repave
24. Empire of the Sun - Ice on the Dune
25. The Field - Cupid’s Head
26. Foxygen - We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors
27. White Lies - Big TV
28. A$AP Rocky - Long Live A$AP
29. Sky Ferreira - Night Time My Time
30. Drake - Nothing Was The Same
31. Savages - Silence Yourself
32. Olafur Arnalds - For Now I Am Winter
33. James Blake - Overgrown
34. Deerhunter - Monomania
35. Paramore - Paramore
36. Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP 2
37. Frank Turner - Tape Deck Heart
38. Local Natives - Hummingbird
39. Nine Inch Nails - Hesitation Marks
40. Peace - In Love
41. Small Black - Limits of Desire
42. Superchunk - I Hate Music
43. Caitlin Rose - The Stand-In
44. Disclosure - Settle
45. The Civil Wars - The Civil Wars
46. Chance The Rapper - Acid Rap
47. Charli XCX - True Romance
48. Mikal Cronin - MCII
49. Fall Out Boy - Save Rock N Roll
50. Atoms for Peace - Amok
51. The Naked And Famous - In Rolling Waves
52. Earl Sweatshirt - Doris
53. Sleigh Bells - Bitter Rivals
54. Autre Ne Veut - Anxiety
55. Skylar Grey - Don’t Look Down
56. Ra Ra Riot - Beta Love
57. Nils Frahm - Spaces
58. Cayucas - Bigfoot
59. Eels - Wonderful Glorious
60. Everything Everything - Arc
61. Front Bottoms - Talon of the Hawk
62. Kisses - Kids in LA
63. King Krule - 6 Feet Beneath The Moon
64. John Moreland - In The Throes
65. The O’s - Thunderdog
66. Panthu Du Prince and Bell Laboratory - Elements of Light
67. Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats - S/T
68. Calexico - Spiritoso
69. Tedeschi Trucks Band - Made Up Mind
70. Lonely Forest - Adding Up The Wasted Hours
71. Streetlight Manifesto - The Hands That Thieve
72. Pearl Jam - Lightning Bolt
73. Neko Case - The Worse Things Get
74. Avicii - True
75. Beyonce - Beyonce
76. Bill Callahan - Dream River
77. M.I.A. - Matangi
78. Hookworms - Pearl Mystics
79. Franz Ferdinand - Right Thoughts Right Words Right Action
80. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Push The Sky Away
81. The Beatles - On The BBC Volume 2
82. The Knife - Shaking The Habitual
83. J. Cole - Born Sinner
84. Frightened Rabbit - Pedestrian Verse
85. Shearwater - Fellow Travelers
86. Gov’t Mule - Shout!
87. The Deer Tracks - The Archer Trilogy Pt 3
88. Deafheaven - Sunbather
89. Yo La Tengo - Fade
90. Tegan & Sara - Heartthrob
91. New Order - Lost Sirens
92. Eisley -  Currents
93. Panic! At The Disco - Too Weird To Live,Too Rare To Die!
94. Half Moon Run - Dark Eyes
95. Blood Orange - Cupid Deluxe
96. Jay-Z - Magna Carta Holy Grail
97. Juliana Barwick - Nepenthe
98. The Lone Below - The Lone Below
99. Lanterns on the Lake - Until The Colours Run
100. Renaissance - Grandine Il Vento
101. Patty Griffin - American Kid
102. Bells> - Fundamentals
103. Anna Calvi - One Breath 
104. Leagues - You Belong Here 
105. Night Beds - Country Sleep 
106. Hiss Golden Messenger - HAW 
107. Lights - Siberia 
108. Daughter - If You Leave 
109. Air Marshal Landing - You Used To Be Me 
110. Austin Lucas - Stay Reckless 
111. Tom Morgan - Orange Syringe 

The 55 Best Albums of 2013 (23-33)

Part 3 in our countdown of the best albums of 2013.  

Get your album favorites in now!!!  I'm counting on you for your best albums.  I need them to compile a top 111.  Just email them or put them in the comment section below.

Here are the 55 Best Albums of 2013 (23-33):

23.  Kanye West - Yeezus
24.  Moving Units - Neurotic Exotic
25.  CHVRCHES - The Bones Of What You Believe
26.  The Weeknd - Kissland
27.  Pickwick - Can't Talk Medicine
28.  Savages - Silence Yourself
29.  Tegan And Sara - Heartthrob
30.  Washed Out - Paracosm
31.  Drake - Nothing was the Same
32.  Rhye - Woman
33.  Volcano Choir - Repave

Buy these albums and more...now!!!

The 111 Best Music Lists of the 2000s

Is this the greatest book ever written?  Probably not but it's close.  I've been writing this blog for the past six years; I've written hundreds of lists.   Taking some of the best lists directly from the site and adding in some brand new lists, I am proud to present my first book.  Sticking with the theme of my blog I've delivered a book that takes a look back at one of the most chaotic decades in music.  It was the decade where music went from being physical to only existing in a digital space.  It was an era where pop dominated and rock was stuck taking the bus.  With this book, I hope to right the ship and look back at some amazing bands that were overlooked.

You can purchase the book now at Amazon and Kindle.  Right in time for all your holiday shopping needs.

The 111 Best Music Lists of the Decade

Enjoy!

The 11 Best Songs By The Editors

My favorite new site has to be The Talkhouse, which made headlines this past week when Lou Reed reviewed Kanye West's new album, Yeezus.  The site has rock stars (mostly) reviewing mostly recent albums.  It's a fascinating alternative look at an album that's not through a critics eyes.  When a critic reviews an album, their intention is to pick it apart and examine its merits purposely for a public audience.  They have an agenda to entertain their audience as much as the album does.  That doesn't mean they're not fair, it just means the reviews aren't always necessarily unbiased.  Nor do they accurately convey the listening experience. When a rock star reviews an album, it comes from a completely personal space.  Musicians are influenced and affected by music in a different way.  Creating music is a personal experience.  It's exposing your heart and soul to the world.  The ability to relate to this can only be gained by experience.  When rock stars bring this experience to their reviews, their perspective is completely unique and unequivocal. Their review is more of a emotional response to the music than a dissection.  After reading some of the reviews, I can honestly say I prefer the rock stars' pov over a critic's review.  The rock stars relay how they feel when listening to the music.  That's what I want to know.  Critics review what went wrong, and that's not really helpful.  Music isn't about examination, it is about an emotional response... how am I ever supposed to know what an album sounds like when the critics are more invested in coming up with clever word play to describe a cymbal crash than revealing whether the music moved them or not?

Here are the 11 Best Songs By The Editors:

1. An End Has A Start (An End Has A Start)
2. Papillon (In This Light And On This Evening)
3. Munich (The Back Room)
4. Bricks and Mortar (In This Light And On This Evening)
5. Fingers In the Factories (The Back Room)
6. Bones (An End Has A Start)
7. Alone (Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool)
8. Last Day (Record Store Day 2010)
9. Like Treasure (In This Light And On This Evening)
10. The Boxer (In This Light And On This Evening)
11. Orange Crush (Blood)

Buy The Editors new album, The Weight of Your Love...now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By Kanye West

Kanye drops his new album the same week he gives birth to a nameless baby.  Sadly, there's more press about the name of his baby than his new beautiful dark twisted release.

All that was trumped today when we lost a legend.  James Gandolfini passed away at the very young age of 51.  His irreplaceable presence will leave a big vacancy.  Tony Soprano is one of the best TV characters ever created. Reflecting on Tony's life, I can't help but see the similarities between him and Kanye.  Tony Soprano always questioned his place in his life facing the perils of his mortality.  Kanye questions mortality while facing the perils of his life.  Both speak out about injustice in very controversial ways.  Both believe in family (those related by blood...and those related by love).  And both dominate(d) in their medium.  The Sopranos set the standard for the new era of television.  Kanye has set the standard for hip-hop for the next decade.  Maybe Kanye should name his daughter Meadow, too.

RIP James.

Here are the 11 Best Kanye West Songs:

1. Diamonds From Sierra Leone Remix (Late Registration)
2. Stronger (Graduation)
3. All Of The Lights (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy)
4. Runaway (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy)
5. Hey Mama (Late Registration)
6. Monster (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy)
7. Jesus Walks (The College Dropout) 
8. Power (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy)
9. Flashing Lights (Graduation)
10. Through The Wire (The College Dropout)
11. Homecoming (Graduation)

Buy Kanye West's new album, Yeezus...now!!

The 11 Most Anticipated Albums of Spring 2012

Tebow nation is on fire.  Nothing will further propel his legendary status than throwing 316 in his upset victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.  But was it really an upset?  Was it really that surprising that Denver won?  I don't think so...in fact, I called it.  (I swear...you can ask the one friend I told they were going to win).  There's three things you have to take into account.  First of all, Tebow is not leading a 8-8 team.  He's QBing for a 7-4 team.  There were five games of the season where he wasn't playing.  Even if he only won two of those games, they'd be a 9-7 team.  A 9-7 team upsetting a 12-4 team isn't that big of a stretch...especially since they're playing at home (which is the second factor).  Thirdly, Pittsburgh was injured up the ass.  Literally...I read one of the defensive end injured his ass.  With Mendenhall out...Big Ben at about 50% and half the o/d lines riding the bench...the Steelers were not at full strength.  Denver beating Pittsburgh is a mild upset at best...it doesn't even compare to 7-9 Seattle's upset last year of defending Superbowl Champions New Orleans.  In football...any given Sunday...and team can win.

In music...any given Tuesday, an established vet can release a dud.  A has-been can make a comeback.  Or a new band could become a new trend-setter.  Who will make waves this year...that is something we've never been able to predict.

Here are the 11 Most Anticipated Albums of Spring 2012:

1.  Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band - TBA (May)
2.  Kanye West - G.O.O.D. Album (May)
3.  Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania (June)
4.  Madonna - Gimme All Your Luvin (April)
5.  Metric - Realities (May)
6.  Garbage - TBA (June)
7.  Mazzy Star - TBA (April)
8.  The Hives - TBA (May)
9.  K'naan - TBA (May)
10.  Beck & Dwight Yoakam - TBA (June)
11.  The Mars Volta - In Absentia (April)

The 11 Best Guest Collaborations by Kanye West

Expectations are high when two of the arguably best rappers in the game team up for a collaboration album.  If this isn't at least the best hip-hop album of the year, it'll be a disappointment.  For years, Kanye has complained about being snubbed for the Grammy of the Year.  Right now, there is very little that stands in the way of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Album of the Year.  Lady Gaga??  Maybe...  Beyonce?  Doubtful.  Honestly...the album that has the best shot of unseating Kanye is Kanye.  Watch The Throne may not be what the world is expecting.  It's definitely different after a first couple of listens.  But when you have two powerhouses delivering the goods...it's sure to turn heads and some votes.  Maybe Kanye should have waited a month to release it.  But knowing Kanye...he doesn't avoid challenges...he take them all on.

Here are the 11 Best Kanye West Guest Collaborations:

1.  Run This Town - Jay-Z (The Blueprint 3)
2.  Erase Me - Kid Cudi (Man in the Moon)
3.  This Way - Dilated People (Neighborhood Watch)
4.  Forever - Eminem (More Than A Game Soundtrack)
5.  Blazin' - Nicki Minaj (Pink Friday)
6.  Number One - John Legend (Get Lifted)
7.  The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - Consequence (Don't Quit your Day Job)
8.  Selfish - Slum Village (Detroit Deli)
9.  American Boy - Estelle (Shine)
10.  Slow Jamz - Twista (Kamikaze)
11.  Ego - Beyonce (Above and Beyonce Dance Remixes)

Buy the new Jay-Z & Kanye West album, Watch The Throne...now!

The Best Albums of 2010 (#12-#22)

Our list continues...one day to go.

Get me your top albums of the year...pronto.  Remember...your top 20...your top 10...or your top 7...or 2...whatever you liked.  It's up to you.

And visit our $5 store to keep the blog alive.

Here are the Best Albums of 2010 (#12-#22):

12. Kid Cudi – Man on the Moon II (Maybe)
13. She & Him – Volume II (I Knew It Would Happen This Way)
14. The National – High Violet (Bloodbuzz Ohio Live)
15. Crocodiles – Sleep Forever
16. Against Me! – White Crosses (Bob Dylan's Dream)
17. Kanye West – My Dark Twisted Fantasy
18. LCD Soundsystem – This Is Happening
19. The Hold Steady – Heaven is Whenever
20. Janelle Monae – ArchAndroid
21. Bruce Springsteen – The Promise
22. Junip – Fields

Buy these albums and more now!

The 11 Best Songs By Kanye West

Is Kanye West an asshole...or just a rock star?  Or, is it a requirement that a rock be an asshole?  How many lead singers are introverted, shy guys?   It takes a certain personality to want to be on stage in front of the thousands of people wanting them to cheer for them.  If you really thing about it, all singers are narcissist to some degree.  Yet, we find it so surprising when a lead singer acts like a narcissist.  Big personalities make big music.  Small personalities don't make it at all.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Kanye West:

1. Diamonds From Sierra Leone Remix w/ Jay-Z (Late Registration)

2. Stronger (Graduation)
3. Jesus Walks (College Drop-Out)
4. Touch The Sky (Late Registration)
5. Golddigger (Late Registration)
6. Never Let Me Down (College Drop-Out)
7. Roses (Late Registration)
8. Heartless (808s & Heartbreak)
9. Homecoming (Graduation)
10. Amazing (808s & Heartbreak)
11. Through The Wire (College Drop-Out)

Buy Kanye West's new album, Dark Twisted Fantasy...now! (only $3.99...for a super limited time)

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (1-11):

In creating the top 11, it really comes down to finding albums that weren't only great but also helped define the musical landscape of the decade. These ablums don't need a lot of explanation of why they were chosen. If you haven't heard these discs...then you likely were in a coma for the Bush years. It's only fitting in my opinion, that the most potent artist of this decade (Jay-z) opens the decade with the Blueprint...and closes it with the Blueprint 3.0. I've been racking my brain...trying to come up with something clever to say that sums up the decade musically...but when sitting down to finally write it...I think letting the music play...just speaks for itself.

NOW...it's your turn....

What are your top 11 albums of the 2000s???

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (1-11):

1. Jay-Z - The Blueprint (2001)
2. Wilco - Yankee Foxtrot Hotel (2002) - War on War
3. The White Stripes - Elephant (2003) - Seven Nation Army
4. Coldplay - Parachutes (2000) - Yellow
5. Outkast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003)
6. Beck - Sea Change (2002) - Lost Cause
7. Green Day - American Idiot (2004) - American Idiot
8. Radiohead - In Rainbows (2007) - Reckoner
9. Kanye West - College Drop-Out (2004)
10. The Arcade Fire - Funeral (2004) - Laika
11. Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)

    
    

    Buy these albums now!

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (23-33)

The 111 Best Albums of the 00s (23-33):

23. The Shins - Oh, Inverted World (2001)
- Did you see Garden State? Enough said.

24. Outkast - Stankonia (2000)
- The only bad thing about this album is that it wasn't a double album.

25. The Killers - Hot Fuss (2004)
- Hands down the hardest rocking Mormons to ever come out of Las Vegas.

26. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver (2007)
- Album number 2 is louder, faster, stronger, bigger, braver, and better.
(New York I Love You)

27. The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002)
- A concept album that isn't a concept album. Would expect something from the Flaming Lips to make sense?
(Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots)

28. The Postal Service - Give Up (2003)
- Don't side projects usually suck?
(This Place Is a Prison)

29. Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III (2008)
- Just because you're short and ugly doesn't mean you can't make good music.

30. Kanye West - Late Registration (2005)
- Just because you're loud and obnoxious doesn't mean you can't make good music.

31. Spoon - Gimme Fiction (2005)
- Do these guy know how to make bad music? (Sister Jack)

32. Johnny Cash - American IV: Man Comes Around (2002)
- F.U. Trent Reznor.

33. Norah Jones - Come Away With Me (2002)
- Who ever thought sappy piano ballads could be so good?

Buy these albums now.

The 111 Best Albums of the 2000s (78-88):

May get the next 11 out tomorrow...if not...off on a mini-vaca...will continue on Monday.

The 111 Best Albums of the 2000s (78-88):

78. Jose Gonzalez - Veneer (2005)
- JG's first solo album since his Zero 7 years is a haunting yet beautiful folk record.

79. Beck - Modern Guilt (2008)
- Beck drafts super-producer Dangermouse (whose impact is felt through this list)...to create an album suited for radio play in the 70s on AM...but somehow feels fresh and new for this decade.

80. The New Pornographers - Mass Romantic (2000)
- The indie supergroup featuring Neko Case, A.C. Newman, Ban Bejar (Destroyer) may be the best release any of them have done. Just a solid example of what happens when great minds think alike.

81. Pete Yorn - Musicforthemorningafter (2001)
- Pete Yorn's debut literally came out of nowhere. There was a very little buzz about this guy prior to the release...and being on Sony...there was very little thought that this might be anything more than a major label's attempt at woeing the indie crowd. But over the past decade...Pete has remained diligent about his craft, keeping it his own. And over that period...his debut has only ripened with age. (Lose You)

82. Jurassic 5 - Quality Control (2000)
- Possibly the release that legitimized the underground hip-hop movement. Though none of their other releases...solo or as a group...came close the originality or personality of this debut, the album continues to be a heralded landmark on the hip-hop landscape. (Lausd)

83. Kings of Leon - Only By Night (2008)
- Six months ago...I may not have included this...but the album has fought and clawed its way in critical and commercial success. Something that is no small feat in today's music industry. But that aside, it's just a good rock record. Not as strong as maybe their last release...but their music has matured as they have.

84. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (2007)
- Though it lacks in life and "fire" that the debut had...it's still a collection of intensely constructed songs...dark but vibrant...morid but alive. Even when they're a half-step off their game...they're still a full step in front of everyone else. (Antichrist Television Blues)

85. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges (2008)
- The one thing severely lacking from the 2000s are the pure old fashioned rock records. A few bands tried to carry the rock n roll torch...but very few came close. But on MMJ's release from last year...it was like the band was harnessing the past and everything that made them what they are. It may be too early to tell how great this record is...and who knows...a couple years down the road...I could see this album hanging out near the top. (The Librarian)

86. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion (2009)
- This year's front-runner is a ecclectic mix of the future of music. Many people are struggling to grasp this album, which only means it's one that takes time. And any album with that kind of attention needed is one that is usually worth the time invested.

87. Kanye West - Graduation (2007)
- Maybe the weakest of KW's non-autotune releases...is still a masterful hip-hop album and a scolding lesson of what can be accomplished with smart production. And any album that samples Daft Punk should always get an honorary listing.

88. Elliott Smith - Figure 8 (2000)
- ES' last official release before his death shows the singer growing and expanding. He may have conquered on tunes that were simple bare bones kid & and a guitar folk...but Elliott wasn't satisfied being just that. He was ready to challenge what he was capable of doing and where he could go...too bad we'll never know what he could do. (Somebody That I Used To Know)

Buy the best of the 2000s now!

The 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 4)

With Obama set to take office in a little over a month...it's like we can't get out of 2008 fast enough. But before we sprint to the finish...let's not forget what good stuff did come out along the way.

And DON'T FORGET...to send me your lists!!! Just through them in the comment section and I'll make a full tally of 111 albums.

Here are the 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 4):

12. The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely
13. The Mars Volta - Bedlam in Goliath (Memories - bonus track)
14. Conor Oberst - Conor Oberst
15. Kanye West - 808s & Heartbreak
16. The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age of the Understatement (My Mistakes - Jools Holland)
17. Metallica - Death Magnetic (Get album for $5.00)
18. Fucked Up - The Chemistry of Common Life (No Epiphany - Daytrotter)
19. Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
20. Tokyo Police Club - Elephant Shell
21. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
22. Q-Tip - The Renassaince (get album for $5.00)

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The 11 Best Kanye West Songs

Happy Thanksgiving! Don't spend the day in front of the computer.

Here are the 11 Best Kanye West Songs:




1. Diamonds From Sierra Leone Remix w/ Jay-Z (Late Registration)
2. Stronger (Graduation)
3. Jesus Walks (College Drop-Out)
4. Touch The Sky (Late Registration)
5. Golddigger (Late Registration)
6. Never Let Me Down (College Drop-Out)
7. Roses (Late Registration)
8. Flashing Lights (Graduation)
9. Homecoming (Graduation)
10. We Don't Care (College Drop-Out)
11. Through The Wire (College Drop-Out)



Buy Kanye's new album: 808's and Heartbreak (Get a bonus track here!)