The B&C Best Albums of 2013 Thread

[LMP]

Delightful.

Yeezus cracking the Top 3 made my night.

 

[intedomine]

Eager to check out that MBV album after such a strong showing.

 

[cobl04]

I'd listen to it, but I haven't heard Loveless and Ashley and LM might have aneurysms.

 

[djerdap]

So listen to Loveless first. It's not really rocket science now, is it?

 

[LemonMelon]

Listen to Loveless first. Get your headphones out, dim the lights (don't bother finding the lyrics, they're barely audible) and lose yourself in the sonic equivalent of a hurricane. I wasn't sure if I liked it at first, but now I think it's a masterpiece. There are a number of albums that sound like it, but not close enough.

MBV is its own awesome beast, with great variety and cleaner production, though the first few tracks definitely sound like they're from the same sessions as Loveless.

 

[mikal]

Holy crap I can't believe The National won!

Sent from my Nexus 5 using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[iron yuppie]

Awesome, PFan. That Mount Temple quote had me laughing harder than anything on Interference this year.

 

[bono_212]

I'd listen to it, but I haven't heard Loveless and Ashley and LM might have aneurysms.

So listen to Loveless first. It's not really rocket science now, is it?

 

[corianderstem]

I was only barely browsing the thread, but I'm so glad I kept on doing so. The end made it totally worth it.

 

[LemonMelon]

One final list, Pazz and Jop is out:

http://www.villagevoice.com/pazznjop/albums/

 

[PhilsFan]

I'm assuming all of the names near the top that I don't recognize are country musicians.

 

[gump]

Were there really 1300 albums that merited a vote? I'm impressed.

 

[lazarus]

No doubt in my mind Yeezus would take this.

 

[phanan]

That is one big ass list.

Looks like Yeezus had a late surge on our list here, thanks to cobbler and LMP.

 

[iron yuppie]

One final list, Pazz and Jop is out:

New York - The Village Voice's 41st Pazz & Jop Music Critics' Poll: The Last Word on the Year in Music

The Kanye write-up on there is probably the most convincing argument for his artistic importance I have read.

 

[LemonMelon]

No doubt in my mind Yeezus would take this.

He's won with 4 out of his 6 solo releases. Already tied with Bob Dylan for most wins.

Yeah, he had it on lock.

 

[cobl04]

The Kanye write-up on there is probably the most convincing argument for his artistic importance I have read.

is this the one you're referring to? For the Fourth Time in Six Albums, Kanye West Takes the Top Pazz & Jop Prize

 

[iron yuppie]

is this the one you're referring to? For the Fourth Time in Six Albums, Kanye West Takes the Top Pazz & Jop Prize

That's the one.

 

[Axver]

I knew the countdown would happen while I was on holiday. Catching up:

Sweet. Russian Circles made it.

Yeah, stoked about that.

T-16. Tegan and Sara - Heartthrob (41 points, 4 votes)

Even more stoked about this; goddamn that album means heaps to me. I must've stopped paying attention because I thought only phanan and I had voted for it.

15. Chvrches - The Bones of What You Believe (42 points, 7 votes)

Poor Charli

Got to be honest - if there had been a category for "album that seemed cool initially and then very quickly faded from view", it would've been True Romance. I suppose it didn't help that I knew almost all of the album's highlights rather well in advance, so the tracks I didn't know generally didn't elicit much excitement for the album as a whole.

So listen to Nowhere first. It's not really rocket science now, is it?

Fixed that for you.

 

[djerdap]

I probably like Loveless better than Nowhere but I like Going Blank Again better than both.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Agreed. I never got into Nowhere 100% but Going Blank Again is a major shoegaze favourite of mine.

 

[djerdap]

When it comes to shoegaze, Mezcal Head and the Voyager 1 EP are my favorites. Simply because they amp up the factor.

 

[Axver]

Agreed. I never got into Nowhere 100% but Going Blank Again is a major shoegaze favourite of mine.

The problem for me with Going Blank Again is that "Leave Them All Behind" completely overshadows everything afterwards. Perhaps it shouldn't have been the first track - despite being a perfect opener - just because nothing left on the album quite lives up to it. That's why it took me a few listens to rate the album as a whole. If those other songs had built up to "Leave Them All Behind" rather than feeling like a bit of a comedown, things would've been different.

Nowhere is a bit better paced. "Seagull", sure, is a killer opener (and one of my top five Ride songs), but you've got even higher peaks to come like "Dreams Burn Down" and "Vapour Trail".

When it comes to shoegaze, Mezcal Head and the Voyager 1 EP are my favorites. Simply because they amp up the factor.

Both amazing albums. "Gravity Grave" on Voyager 1 is, I think, one of the three best shoegaze recordings ever, the other two being "One More" by Medicine and "Leave Them All Behind".

 

[djerdap]

There is a lot of great stuff on Going Blank Again after Leave Them All Behind, although that one is clearly the highpoint. For some reason, the transition to Twisterella works. Probably because Leave Them All Behind is such a massive, exhausting (in a good way) and visceral monster of a track that a breather in the form of a silly pop song that is Twisterella works. And I'm soft on Chrome Waves, even though it's a blatant "homage" to Unfinished Sympathy. Cool Your Boots is also a fantastic track that manages to keep the same chord progression for 6 minutes and still feel fresh. Plus it ends on a really strong note with Time Machine and OX4.

Makes me want to listen to it right now.

 

[Axver]

There is a lot of great stuff on Going Blank Again after Leave Them All Behind, although that one is clearly the highpoint. For some reason, the transition to Twisterella works. Probably because Leave Them All Behind is such a massive, exhausting (in a good way) and visceral monster of a track that a breather in the form of a silly pop song that is Twisterella works. And I'm soft on Chrome Waves, even though it's a blatant "homage" to Unfinished Sympathy. Cool Your Boots is also a fantastic track that manages to keep the same chord progression for 6 minutes and still feel fresh. Plus it ends on a really strong note with Time Machine and OX4.

Makes me want to listen to it right now.

Yeah, certainly don't mean to insinuate Going Blank Again is anything less than a quality album - it's just the pacing is deceptive. The first time I heard it and got to "Twisterella" after being blown away by "Leave Them All Behind", I was all "what the hell is this?" It's now become a serious favourite of mine. I think it was when I decided to play the album starting with "Twisterella" that I realised how good everything else was. Well, except for "Time Machine" and "OX4", which were obviously excellent from first listen. They come close to "Leave Them All Behind" levels of Completely Fucking Awesome.

 

[LemonMelon]

A Storm In Heaven is up there with the best shoegaze albums ever, I think. It's a shame that it gets overlooked because it isn't the sound Verve fans are most comfortable with.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Chrome Waves is one of my favourites. Never really warmed to Twisterella or Making Judy Smile although everything else is at the very least very good.

 

[No spoken words]

A Storm In Heaven is up there with the best shoegaze albums ever, I think. It's a shame that it gets overlooked because it isn't the sound Verve fans are most comfortable with.

I love that album, especially the first few songs.

 

[Axver]

"Star Sail" and "Slide Away" is one of the most perfect one-two punches to open any album.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Fuck, sorry I forgot about this. I don't think my list would have had any effect on the top 10, though - might have pushed Janelle Monae over Haim. Good work, Peef.

Chance should have been much higher.

My shoegaze opinion is that Whirlpool and The Death of Cool should be thrown into this mix.