The 11 Best Albums of 2015 (so far)

It's too early in the year to really get a chance to digest which are the best albums, so right now it's more about which albums I find myself listening to on repeat. Here are the 11 Best albums of 2015 (so far):

1. Jamie XX - In Colour
2. Sleater-Kinney - No Cities To Love
3. Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly
4. Hot Chip - Why Make Sense?
5. Natalie Prass - Natalie Prass
6. Title Fight - Hyperview
7. American Wrestlers - American Wrestlers
8. Faith No More - Sol Invictus
9. Susanne Sundfor - Ten Love Songs
10. Joey Bada$$ - B4.DA.$$
11. Modest Mouse - Stranger To Ourselves

     

The Unknown: Sleater-Kinney - BBC Sessions

With an insane week of new releases...I have no idea where to start or even where to go from here.  New albums drop on Tuesday from Das Racist, Ladytron, Mates of State, Blitzen Trapper, Kevin Devine, Girls, Kooks, Lady Antebellum, St. Vincent, Saves The Day...not to mention some classic artists making big returns like Primus, Alice Cooper, Bush, Anthrax, Blondie, and the Human League. The biggest drop might be two enormous live Hendrix box sets.

My favorite and easily my most anticipated is the newest supergroup featuring members of Sleater-Kinnery and Helium, Wild Flag.  It's about time we have some women making real rock again...and I know the girls of SK will not disappoint.  Here's a reminder of how bad ass SK used to be.

Here are the Sleater-Kinney BBC Sessions (Compilation):

1.  One More Hour
2.  I Want To Be Yr Joey Ramone
3.  Turn It On
4.  Banned From The End Of the World
5.  Words and Guitar
6.  End of You
7.  Not What You Want
8.  Get Up
9.  Words and Guitar
10.  Good Things
11.  Battle of a Ladyman
12. The Professional
13. You're No Rock N Roll Fun
14.  Fortunate Son

Buy Wild Flag's new album, Wild Flag....now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By Sleater-Kinney

In last week's LA Times, there was an article on the owner of the Amoeba Record chain.  In an eye-opening write-up (eye opening to everyone who thinks they know the music industry but doesn't), it revealed that in this digital age of music...Amoeba records has seen no sales decrease.  Let me repeat that...Amoeba Records in the worst era ever for the music industry has seen zero sales decrease.  Why?  Why has Amoeba succeed while others have failed?  What is it that Amoeba has done right where the others have done wrong?

It's simple.  Know your audience.  Amoeba knows its customers and knows what they want.  They stock their shelves with music (from all genres) that will attract all audiophiles from all listening habits.  The big box stores and Tower Record-like places only pushed music on major labels.  They limited their supply and short-changed their audience.  They tried to make the audience like what they were feeding them instead feeding the audience what they liked. 

Even today, I'll go into Best Buy or Target on new music Tuesdays and not find 50% of the new releases I'm looking for.  They have 250 copies of Taio Cruz but one copy of Jenny Lewis (I bought it).  Two weeks later, they have 244 copies of Taio Cruz still sitting there and no copies of the new Bad Religion.  No copies of the Corin Tucker Band.  No copies of Fran Healy.  No copies of Tim Kasher.  Do they not realize that just because they don't have what I want, I'm not going to buy what they have?  Obviously not.

Thank you to Taio Cruz for being today's example.

Here are the 11 Best Sleater-Kinnery Songs:

1.  Turn It On (Dig Me Out)
2.  I Wanna Be Yr Joey Ramone (Call The Doctor)
3.  The Professional (All Hands On The Band One)
4.  Jumpers (The Woods)
5.  Dance Song '97 (Dig Me Out)
6.  Start Together (The Hot Rock)
7.  Good Things (Call The Doctor)
8.  The Day I Went Away (Sleater-Kinney)
9.  Stay Where You Are (Call The Doctor)
10.  It's Enough (Dig Me Out)
11.  Entertain (The Woods)

Buy the new album by the Corin Tucker Band, 1,000 Years now!!!