The B&C Best Albums of 2013 Thread

[mikal]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I listened to Oneohtrix this morning on the way to work. Don't know how I missed that earlier but it was quite enjoyable. My 4 year old daughter didn't know what to make of it though, lol.

 

[mikal]

PS. Am I the only one that was underwhelmed by the Vampire Weekend album? Don't get me wrong. I thought it was really good, but I didn't necessarily think it was the best album of the year.

 

[PhilsFan]

PS. Am I the only one that was underwhelmed by the Vampire Weekend album? Don't get me wrong. I thought it was really good, but I didn't necessarily think it was the best album of the year.

I straight up didn't like the first two, but I at least enjoyed this one. It'll probably crack my top fifteen unless the next fifteen or twenty albums I listen to knock it out.

 

[iron yuppie]

PS. Am I the only one that was underwhelmed by the Vampire Weekend album? Don't get me wrong. I thought it was really good, but I didn't necessarily think it was the best album of the year.

Not the only one. I too liked it, but it doesn't have the gravitas of a year's best album, at least in my mind. Which is also why I feel a lot of blurbs about it now are struggling so thoroughly to affix importance to it.

Also, I had to laugh at the Pharmakon album being so high on TMT's list. It was the only album from this year I couldn't get through. Not that it lacked value, just that it was so incredibly abrasive.

 

[IWasBored]

I have no idea what that means.

Neither do I. I can't tell if it's the actual statement or the awful grammar, but I have no fucking clue what that means.

It's awfully hard to disagree with someone when you can't understand what they're saying. Maybe that's what they're going for.

 

[LemonMelon]

Also, I had to laugh at the Pharmakon album being so high on TMT's list. It was the only album from this year I couldn't get through. Not that it lacked value, just that it was so incredibly abrasive.

One could say you...Abandoned the album.

Spoiler

YEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

 

[gump]

I really like the Vampire Weekend album, and have no qualms with Pitchfork choosing it as best of the year. I like it much better than their debut, and particularly Contra, which I find uninteresting at best. Hannah Hunt, Step and Ya Hey are all amongst the best songs of the year for me.

 

[LemonMelon]

They discovered subtlety on this album, which resulted in the awesome Hannah Hunt. But they also discovered completely unnecessary, highly irritating pitch-shifted vocals. So it's a wash for me. I'd say it's an unremarkable #1, but you guys know I'm biased.

 

[mikal]

It's too bad Chillwave is irrelevant now because Washed Out's album is being left off of so many lists, but was such a great album.

 

[gump]

Yeah, I can't understand Paracosm being left out of a top-50 list. Not in my top 20, but it would have found a place in a longer list for me.

Catching up with some 2013 albums I had missed. I'm loving Waxahatchee and Chvrches. The Goldfrapp and Chelsea Wolfe are pretty good too.

 

[iron yuppie]

I remember Impy saying all the hype around Chvrches was unjustified, and I'd have to agree with him there. One of the most disappointing albums of the year for me, if only because it didn't deliver on the strength of those early singles.

 

[LemonMelon]

I'm really, really happy that Waxahatchee's album is getting the love it deserves. It was released early in the year and I figured it would be largely overlooked.

 

[Danny Boy]

I'm really, really happy that Waxahatchee's album is getting the love it deserves. It was released early in the year and I figured it would be largely overlooked.

I think I have it on my short list.

 

[LJT]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I listened to Oneohtrix this morning on the way to work. Don't know how I missed that earlier but it was quite enjoyable. My 4 year old daughter didn't know what to make of it though, lol.

I'm never quite sure what to make of Oneohtrix, all I do know is I generally like listening to it. That and I rarely ever spell the name properly.

 

[nielsgov]

I recently discovered it's pronounced as one-oh-trix. I always thought it was oh-neo-trix or something like that.

 

[gump]

I remember Impy saying all the hype around Chvrches was unjustified, and I'd have to agree with him there. One of the most disappointing albums of the year for me, if only because it didn't deliver on the strength of those early singles.

That's interesting - I never heard those singles, so maybe that's why I'm enjoying the album as a whole.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Can we have a vote for most disappointing album of the year?
























































KNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFE



Here's my honorable mentions. Some of these probably could have made my Top 20 with more listens or maybe already should have.

Classixx - Hanging Gardens
Courtney Barnett - The Double EP: A Sea Of Split Peas
Disclosure - Settle
Foals - Holy Fire
John Talabot - DJ Kicks
Logos - Cold Mission
Neko Case - The Worse Things Get...
Neon Neon - Praxis Makes Perfect
Robyn Hitchcock - Love From London
Thee Oh Sees - Floating Coffin
Thee Oh Sees - Moon Sick EP
Various Artists - Saint Heron
Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires Of The City

 

[gump]

Phoenix is probably my biggest disappointment. Strokes and Franz Ferdinand were expected disappointments, if that makes sense.

 

[BigMacPhisto]

Phoenix is probably my biggest disappointment. Strokes and Franz Ferdinand were expected disappointments, if that makes sense.

Of course it makes sense. The Strokes have been meeting our extremely low expectations for years now.

 

[nielsgov]

Can we have a vote for most disappointing album of the year?

KNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFE

Wrong

Strokes

And wrong.

 

[LMP]

Phoenix is probably my biggest disappointment. Strokes and Franz Ferdinand were expected disappointments, if that makes sense.

Any follow up to Wolfgang would pale on comparison. I dig "Entertainment" and the title track a good amount though; the latter sounds like a John Carpenter synth score.

 

[PhilsFan]

This was the first Knife album I've ever listened to and I hated it.

 

[Imperor]

Disappointments? Let's talk YYY and Arcade Fire jeez louise.

 

[PhilsFan]

Agreed on Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

I actually didn't have a ton of expectations for Arcade Fire because I heard so much shit talked about it before I actually got it, so I enjoyed it well enough. It's too long, but I thought the same thing about the Suburbs.

 

[lazarus]

Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Phoenix both very uneven. Wouldn't call either of them an outright stinker but still big disappointments.

 

[gump]

Arcade Fire is an interesting call. I tend to agree with Imperor on this, but mostly due to my high expectations. I don't think it's bad, just underwhelming.

Afterlife, though

 

[LemonMelon]

I didn't have high expectations for Shaking the Habitual, so the fact that half of it was unlistenable wasn't disappointing, just a waste. There are some fantastic singles on there.

Reflektor and YYYs would definitely be up there. I really liked Bankrupt and am OK with being the only one that did.

 

[PhilsFan]

Every Arcade Fire album since Funeral has had filler. I don't think Reflektor has a particularly larger amount than either of the two previous albums.

 

[bono_212]

Probably gonna have to go with Yeah Yeah Yeahs as well.

 

[No spoken words]

Reflektor is easily the biggest disappointment of 2013 for me.