Greetings again!
This was probably the most difficult section of all to rank
because this section contained the thick of the competition for me. If I moved
one album it changed the flow and feel of the entire list.
Even so, when it came to writing about these albums, I didn’t
want to stop.
There are so many incredible pieces in this penultimate
list.
I’m confident in these choices and cannot wait to get to the
final section!
That will arrive on Monday.
And then I will post the entire list in one post here and on
Facebook, for those who wish to see it all in one place.
Let’s go!!
[Note: As always Album Title in Bold Italics, Artist Name
in Bold.]
50. Phoenix, Everything in Slow Motion
Released: December 10,
2013
Everything in Slow Motion released a powerful debut album in
2013. The band brandishes a sidewinding sound similar to As Cities Burns meets
Blindside and Thrice. They rely on emotionally charged religiously
introspective lyrics that allow for great moments of chaos and beauty.
49. Fever Hunting, Modern Life is War
Released: September
03, 2013
Modern Life is War made a surprise return to the scene in
2013. Fever Hunting finds Modern Life
is War comfortably returning to form as hardcore legacies. There isn’t a moment
on this album that makes me question the intensity and passion of this band.
48. Pelagial, The Ocean
Released: April 30,
2013
There aren’t many songs/albums by The Ocean that aren’t
simply great. This is a metal band that truly understands all aspects of the
genre. I got into this band a lot in 2013 ; I appreciate their utter brutality,
their subtle eloquence, and their intricately planned stories.
47. From the Bird’s Cage, HRVRD
Released: February 19,
2013
From the Bird’s Cage
was my go-to album for painting/all-things creative during my winter of
creation in 2013. HRVRD (formerly Harvard) present a dynamically calm and experimental
sound, akin to a post rock Circa Survive. The band proves to be more patient
and succinct in this ten-song LP, making consistent and conscious choices.
Play:
46. Welcome: oblivion, How to Destroy Angels
Released: March 05,
2013
Reznor released a very lackluster Nine Inch Nails album this
year. However, his release as How to Destroy Angels made an incredible impact,
building off the landscape constructed from the an Omen EP_. Post industrial, experimental, and whimsically sang by
his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, Reznor and his troupe of support have created an
essential example of transcending genre.
45. Eros|Anteros, Oathbreaker
Released: July 16,
2013
This Belgian hardcore act is out for blood. Oathbreaker is
well on its way to becoming the next hardcore legends. The band will ride the
wave of a dominant female vocalist/screamer and completely deft instrumentalists
that create heavy tunes as competently as they do the ambient final track,
“Clair Obscur,” which was a favorite of mine from 2013.
44. The Weatherman, Gregory Alan Isakov
Released: July 09,
2013
The Weatherman is
Gregory Alan Isakov at his best. Isakov has a voice quite rare to the folk
scene. He croons each track with the greatest of ease and creates some of the
most competent and imaginative lyricism today.
43. …Like Clockwork, Queens of the Stone Age
Released: June 03,
2013
Six years is a long time to wait for an album (not to
mention the SEVEN years Tool fans have been waiting for a new album). So, when
Josh Homme decided to create a new QOTSA album, fans had to expect it would be
a hit. And it was. This album contains some of the most down-and-dirty rock and
roll you will hear this decade.
42. Knots, Crash of Rhinos
Released: July 22,
2013
As the post hardcore insurgence/emo revival took full storm
of 2013, Crash of Rhinos came about as a random find amid the Spotify
expansiveness. On only one listen I knew this album would be a competitor on my
list. Fans of Fugazi, Sparta, and La Dispute will admire this great promise for the post hardcore realm.
41. Arc, Everything Everything
Released: January 14,
2013
Whenever I came back to Arc
I couldn’t get the comparisons to Bloc Party out of my mind. Everything
Everything options the all things groovy, chill, funky and takes them to the
nth degree. There is much comfort in this debut release. As though the
band has already found what it was looking for creatively, this can be
dangerous. For now, I appreciate their audacious sound.
Released: February 26,
2013
K Sera did a Kickstarter account for this album. Not just to
make its album, but to have the modern legend, Casey Crescenzo (Dear Hunter),
produce the album with them. Collisions
& Near Misses features many expansive romps of orchestral moments
coupled with delightful horns and an eager storytelling vocalist.
39. Young Legs, Anthony Green
Released: November 12,
2013
I got chills when I listened to this album for the first
time. Anthony Green has made an incredibly mature album. Green’s love and
devotion to his for family is blatantly strewn through many tracks and even on
the album cover. Anthony Green is one of my favorite artists and Young Legs presents him as a viable
creative mind that has done a lot of growing up over the years.
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38. Hummingbird, Local Natives
Released: January 29,
2013
Talk about a fun and chill album! Indie rockers, Local
Natives, made waves with their debut LP, Gorilla
Manor, and certainly followed it up with a worthy sophomore effort. Hummingbird is a charming collection of
accessible and dreamlike tracks.
Play:
37. A Quiet Darkness, Houses
Released: April 16,
2013
Dream-pop folk is a new genre to me, and I think it fits
Houses more than any other act I have heard. This airily atmospheric and often
industrial duo has championed its own style of post rock. Dexter Tortoriello
and Megan Messina serve as dual vocalists that pack an inspiring punch with
their complimentary vocal melodies.
Play: Houses – Peasants
Released: March 19,
2013
Anyone in need of some deedly-doos? Or beedly-deedly doos?
These oft-melodic and upbeat instrumental post rockers are more than willing to
show off their guitar tapping nimbleness and jam band potential. All Hail was one of the most fun records
from 2013 and allowed for much growth in this band that made my list two years
ago for their Gangs LP.
35. 13.0.0.0.0, This Town Needs Guns
Released: January 22,
2013
Absolutely tantalizing atmospheric math-rock—Mute Math meets
As Tall as Lions meets Hammock TTNG lost half of its members, wasn’t sure if
it’d continue, and then released a brilliant sophomore album.
34. I Want to See Pulaski at Night, Andrew
Bird
Released: November 12,
2013
Andrew Bird consistently composes impressive minimalist
folksy, gypsy-like, classical tunes. He enlists violins, upright bass,
mandolins, banjos—essentially anything with strings is well within Bird’s game
plan of anything-goes nature for any album.
Released: September
03, 2013
Miles and Miles is
easily the most charming album of 2013. This married couple took to song and
crafted 11 loving, heart-warming, and, at times, somber pieces of music. If you
need a pick me up in any way, turn on this album and watch the smiles grow.
32. Letters Home, Defeater
Released: July 16,
2013
Defeater has been building for his album for years. Each of
their releases relates to the story told in Letters
Home, which is yet another incredible release from one of the best hardcore
bands today. Defeater has shown great poise and patience throughout the years
to build their story of a soldier away/lost at war and the anxieties of a
family dealing with the reality of military service.
Play:
31. Tenboom, Penny and Sparrow
Released: January 08,
2013
Some damn good acoustic storytelling right here. This was
another album I didn’t expect to get me all hot and bothered this year, but it
did. This duo of roommates assembled ten incredibly sultry folk tunes
comparable to Bon Iver’s debut meets Mumford and Sons. Try listening to “Duet”
and then not forward it to your significant other. Just try. It’s impossible.
It’s a beautiful song.
Play: Penny and Sparrow - Duet
30. Doris, Earl Sweatshirt
Released: August 20,
2013
His name is Earl Sweatshirt. Don’t forget the name. This OFWGKTA
member dropped his newest array of beats and stories and impressively managed
to maintain a level head throughout the process. While his buddy, Tyler the
Creator, released a new album this year that I wasn’t too fond of, all of Tyler’s
features on this album are pretty great. Again, didn’t expect to dig this album
as much as I did. But it’s full of great stories.
Play:
29. Whenever, if Ever,
The World is a Beautiful
Place and
I am No Longer Afraid to Die
Released: June 18,
2013
Unsurprisingly and in celebration/reverence of the long
moniker, this group has nailed down the emotional post rock game. Many of these
songs are now a part of me and serve as testaments to a changing culture of
what it means to be a man with feelings to share. The World is… creates dazzling
landscapes to delight fans of Caspian, La Dispute, and Pianos Become the
Teeth..
28. Grownass Man, The Shouting Matches
Released: April 16,
2013
Justin Vernon had a busy, busy year of musical creation and
none of it involved Bon Iver. Working with longtime friends from Megafaun and
Peter Wolf Crier, Vernon and company released some impressively laid back rock
and rock—reliant on the rarely utilized twang side of Vernon’s pipes.
[Note: Probably my favorite album title of 2013.]
27. L’ami du Peuple, Owen
Released: July 02,
2013
Matt Kinsella has one of the most calming and comforting
voices. Folk fans will love the subtle twang to this collection of ten
beautifully arranged acoustic tracks, while emo fans will love the honesty and
transparency in bearing his soul through a myriad of contemplative, thoughtful
lyrics.
26. Love, Cloud Cult
Released: March 05,
2013
Pretty confident Cloud Cult can do no wrong. The music is
creepy at times, but I think that’s what makes CC’s brand of experimental folk
so alluring. Each album is always methodically and thematically written, produced,
and orchestrated in ways unimaginably consistent over the years. I came to this
album late in the year and it certainly stood to the test.
Play:
There you have it! Part Four is in the books!
Look out for the FINALE this weekend!
Be sure to check out the rest of the countdown:
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