You'll notice that this list only covers music. I saw approximately two new movies and watched approximately four currently-airing television series, so I'm far from an expert in either category. I did, however, listen to at least 75 albums, EPs, and compilations released this year, according to my distressingly inaccurate Last.fm profile. That number probably breaks 100 if I include all the Bandcamp and YouTube listens not tracked by that service.
Anyway, the second thing you'll notice is that this is not a traditional "Top 10" list. Making ranked lists is stressful and annoying, and the only clear ranking I have decided upon is that of the #1 album, which kicks off the list below. Instead, I picked 10 albums I felt compelled to write about, even if they weren't actually among my 10 favorite albums of the year (only about half actually are).
Also check back for the "Best EPs of 2014" list coming soon, because, as I'll explain, this year was really more about great EPs than it was about albums, for whatever reason.
Best Album of the Year (and Best Album by a Band I Had Previously Never Heard Of):
Home, Like Noplace is There by The Hotelier
This album came as a huge surprise to me and, apparently, everybody else that heard it. In the midst of an "emo revival" that sees most such bands treading the pleasant, but ultimately boring twinklecore sound characterized by bands like You Blew It! and Dikembe, The Hotelier stands out with a refreshingly honest look into the tortured soul of a man who has clearly been through a bit of shit since the band's last album was released.
Christian Holden's lyrics are phenomenal, literary, and uniquely able to avoid many of the clichés that plague most emo albums. However, it is his passionate, tormented delivery of those lyrics which sets this album well above any other released this year. Every word sounds as painful and desperate as the actual words deserve to be sung.
Beyond that, while the album is generally rather sonically dense, each song truly sounds distinct from each of the others on the album. Although the record consists of only nine songs, this is another extremely difficult feat in the emo genre. The band crafted each song with unique, inventive structures that keep the album sounding fresh and increasingly rewarding with each subsequent listen. Each song flows effortlessly between frequent changes in tempo and sonic density, resulting in one of the more creative releases of the year.
Yet, despite all this, the album is remarkably cohesive, with a consistent tone and theme running throughout each song. Even for those who normally stay as far away from emo as possible, I cannot recommend this album highly enough.
Best Album That Is Unfortunately Just Not All That Exciting:
Till Midnight by Chuck Ragan
This is a great album. Each of the ten songs is honestly fantastic in its own right, which is something I rarely say about albums. Many albums have no bad songs, but few have no songs that are less than excellent. The only issue with this album is that it just doesn't do much to excite the listener.
The songs are all very well-written, with a pleasant tone and creative use of a variety of instruments. The songs are also structured somewhat atypically, at least as much as can be done within the folk/rock genre, with powerful bridges and soaring choruses. But unfortunately, the album tends to blend together a little bit and drag somewhat near the end. Still among the best released this year, although I didn't find myself as compelled to listen repeatedly as I did with other albums.
Album That Shows the Most Potential In a New Band:
PUP by PUP
This album is the complete opposite of Till Midnight in terms of excitement. When I first heard this album, PUP's debut, I loved the second track, "Reservoir," but the rest all seemed to be a rather average approximation of post-hardcore in the vein of The Bronx or Polar Bear Club. However, repeated listens kept revealing new strengths in the album, as well as more tracks that got buried in my head. "Reservoir" still remains the best banger you'll hear all year, but "Dark Days" might actually be the best track.
The band still has a ways to go in terms of consistency, but the better tracks on this album indicate that the ceiling is very high for these guys. The album is still quite good as it is, and PUP plays with such energy and fire that it will be hard to ignore them for long.
Album That Did the Most to Change My Opinion of a Band:
LP3 by Restorations
After the band's first two albums, I had made up my mind about Restorations, and I just wasn't very interested. The songs all dragged, sounded the same, and had only one volume and intensity setting. Even after learning to appreciate LP3, their earlier work still does almost nothing for me. The musicians were clearly very talented and ambitious, but that doesn't always mean the songs are going to be all that enjoyable.
This wildly creatively-titled album shows the band expanding in a different direction for once. The songs are still very experimental, riff-heavy, guitar solo-heavy, and shouty, but the band managed to do so in a variety of ways on this album. About half the songs sound like they could have appeared on Restorations' prior album, LP2, but the other half are really special.
On these songs, placed intermittently throughout the album, the band leaves much more space in the sonic landscape than they typically have, and this results in some of the most beautiful songs of the year. This is most evident on the stunning single, "Separate Songs," where the extra room in the song allows for some glorious tones that would have been covered up under dense riffs on earlier albums. The mood created on the song is still intense, but in a different, more morose way, and it makes the song so much more dynamic. The punches of heavy guitar cut through the song with more impact and the balance between the verses and chorus is that much more interesting because of it.
I could talk all day about the pinched-harmonic squeals in the background of the second pre-chorus of that song, or the way the distorted guitar drops off abruptly before the second verse, leaving just a lone keyboard playing for a brief moment. It is these little moments and flourishes that make this album stand out, but it is also the moaning bridges in the back half of "All My Home" and "The Future" that make for one of the more brilliantly melancholy albums of the year. (The band is still kind of a bummer live though.)
Most Fun Album of the Year:
M.I. by Masked Intruder
This album was the least surprising entry on this list. Fun is what Masked Intruder stands for. From their goofy gimmick to the nature of their songs, the band lives and breathes an upbeat attitude. The songs are all top-notch as well, and I have to give them props for not relying entirely on their "criminals in love" gimmick. While about half the songs are typical Masked Intruder offerings, the subject matter on the other half takes notable steps away from any reference to cops, crime, or jail time.
Not every song is amazing, but each one is catchy as hell and energetic, resulting in one undeniably awesome album. Their harmonies and hooks are even better than the last time around. Even if you hate the gimmick and hate how sugary their brand of pop/punk is, it would be hard to have a bad time listening to this album. While the album is really fun and infectious, in an attempt to maintain some critical integrity, I will expand my analysis a little in order to justify the album's place on this list.
It would have been very easy for Masked Intruder to spit out a repeat of their debut album, but they chose to push themselves a little, and the album is all the better for it. They throw in keyboards and acoustic guitars where necessary, change up the tempo and time signatures on a few songs, and even included a freaking a cappella doo-wop song. You have to commend them for expanding their sound at least a little bit, and they really hit it out of the park.
Biggest Disappointment of the Year:
Throw Me In the River by The Smith Street Band
The Smith Street Band has been one of my favorite bands for the last few years. Their debut album, No One Gets Lost Anymore, is still pretty untouchable in my book, and their most recent EP, 2013's Don't Fuck With Our Dreams, is their best set of songs to date. Furthermore, freaking Jeff Rosenstock produced the thing, and he is not only a great songwriter, but a very creative and talented producer. As a result, my expectations for this album were pretty astronomical, however unfair that may have been.
Unfortunately, this album just doesn't live up to the standard the band has set for itself thus far. I haven't quite put my finger on the reason why, but I think it is a combination of a number of factors. Most importantly, despite song titles like "I Love Life" and "I Don't Wanna Die Anymore," the album generally lacks the uplifting nature of their earlier work. Gone are the inspiring bridges, the incredible energy, and hopeful lyrics that made me fall in love with the band originally.
Furthermore, the album comes across as rather one-dimensional and static. The whole thing is pretty loud, and this takes away from the importance of lyrics that featured so prominently in the band's other work. Wil Wagner also seems a little obsessed with throwing in little lyrical allusions to his and other band's songs. This is a bit distracting for the listener who catches them, as it seems like he included each one simply for the sake of the reference rather than because the song actually called for it.
Ultimately, I think this album is just the sound of a band in transition. The band has been getting heavier and more electric with each release, and have pretty much abandoned their folk/punk-ish sound entirely as of now. Plus, even artists as incredible as Frank Turner have their missteps as they continue to push themselves and try new things. This is still a decent album, and this is a very talented band that I'm sure will right the ship by the next time we hear from them. And besides, everybody else I've read on the Internet seems to love the album, so what the hell do I know?
Best Use of Creative Pronunciation:
Dark Arc by Saintseneca
There is a lot more about to love about this album besides the singer's frequent use of atypical pronunciation. This is an excellent, dynamic indie/folk album that uses unique instrumentation and song structures to great effect. The songs are catchy, heartfelt, and creative, and the album flows between tracks in a deliberate, natural manner. I probably could have come up with a better one-line descriptor for it, but I don't think I've ever heard an album where I so often thought the singer was singing a different word until he was halfway done singing it.
I don't simply mean that I'm mishearing the lyrics, either. Zac Little sings with a unique inflection and accent that is quite endearing and captivating, but it also produces a penchant for unconventional pronunciations. This is especially evident on drawn-out words, such as when he sings "indoors" in the first line of "Daendors," one of the album's standouts. Even after dozens of listens, I still think he's saying "in dark" until, all of a sudden, he isn't. Sometimes, the actual word only becomes apparent in the context of the full line, such as the word "solace," in "Falling Off," which he pronounces like "soulless."
Luckily, this happens no more often than once or twice per track, and this habit does not distract from the album's strengths. In fact, it actually comes across rather naturally in the scope of the album as a whole and only adds to the list of things that makes this a great album.
Most Overrated Album:
Transgender Dysphoria Blues by Against Me!
Okay, I understand why people are talking about this album so much. Its subject matter deserves to be written about, and I'm glad that discussion of transgender issues is occurring openly and more frequently. I'm also glad that transgender people have a semi-prominent figure who can bring awareness of these issues to others and can act as a role model to some.
However, from the standpoint of the album's musical relevance and excellence, this album is extremely overrated. It seems as though one punk-related album is chosen each year by music reviewers to unanimously place on their "Best of" lists. This year, it was this album, as it was with Against Me!'s New Wave in 2007, even though that was probably the band's worst album yet at the time. Yes, Transgender Dysphoria Blues is emotional, honest, and ground-breaking in terms of lyrical content, but the songs are really just okay.
The album is poorly-produced, which takes away from the energy of many of the tracks. The songs, while largely catchy and uptempo, are honestly kind of boring and unimaginative. Some, such as "Osama bin Laden as the Crucified Christ" and "Drinking With the Jocks," are abrasive and obnoxious, but not in a good way. And, while the explicit nature of the lyrics adds some fuel to the fire, Laura Jane Grace has written about the same topics in the past in a more subtle manner to much greater effect, such as on "The Disco Before the Breakdown" and "Searching for a Former Clarity." Even "The Ocean," while not a great song, was much more musically interesting than anything on this album.
The album has been referred to as a "return to form" for Against Me!, but I honestly feel that it is merely a continuation of the bland musical direction they've been heading in starting with New Wave. It seems that this is another example of AM!'s problem of the band being bigger than the songs. It's a solid effort and it has a handful of great songs, but by no means should the album be winning any awards or making any top ten appearances.
Best Album That Would Have Been Even Better to Me Eight Years Ago:
You're Gonna Miss It All by Modern Baseball
This is a very good album. It's also a very juvenile album. So, while I enjoy it quite a bit currently, I have a feeling it would have been pretty life-changing if it came out when I was 16. The album is squarely in the pop/emo realm, and contains one of the genre's and year's best tracks in "Your Graduation." Unfortunately, much of the album's subject matter comes across as rather immature and immaterial, most of the songs being about petty frustrations with girls. And, while the references to iPhones and Instagram are cute and mildly funny, they serve to distract from the emotional core of the album, despite the fact that many listeners will probably check their Instagram profile on their iPhone during the album's half-hour runtime.
Nevertheless, these are topics which do not hold much artistic merit or weight, considering they are extremely trivial aspects of people's lives. To place these subjects in a song in a serious setting indicates that the author places disproportionate importance on these things, which, to me, is a sign of a very immature person.
Modern Baseball is a good enough band that they do not need to rely on such quirks and gimmicks to stand out, which makes the social media references that much more annoying. They have great potential that is demonstrated by this album's better tracks, but they fall short of that mark a little too often. All told, this is a good album that I listened to a lot, but it seems like it just needs to grow up a little.
Best Album That Literally Nobody Heard:
The Cathedral by Meridian
Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but I'm pretty sure this one is well off almost everybody's radar. And that's a bummer, because the title track and "If You Let Me" are two of the best tracks I heard all year. The rest of the album didn't really approach the bar set by those two songs, but this album definitely still deserved more attention.
This album saw Max Stern (of Signals Midwest fame) give his acoustic side project the full-band treatment, jumping between a few genres in the process. While I expected the songs to fall on the folky side, as the first two tracks do, about half the songs explore a grungy pop/rock sound, not unlike that of early Weezer. It works about as often as it doesn't, but it's an interesting step in Stern's development outside of Signals.
Other albums I loved, roughly in order:
Best Album That Was Shorter Than Several EPs This Year:
Never Hungover Again by Joyce Manor
Best Album by a Band That Needs to Stop Letting One of Its Songwriters Write Songs:
Rented World by The Menzingers
Best Punk Album by an Indie Band:
Here and Nowhere Else by Cloud Nothings
Best Punk Album by a Band With a Chick Singer:
Teenage Retirement by Chumped
Best Album by a Singer Not Named Aaron West:
We Don't Have Each Other by Aaron West & The Roaring Twenties
Best Album by a Band Content to Never Evolve:
Report by The Copyrights
Best Album by a Bunch of Old Dudes:
Metropole by The Lawrence Arms
Best Quiet Album by the Singer of a Loud Band:
One Week Record by Chris Cresswell
Best Album I Discovered off Others' Year-End Lists:
Comfort In the Discord by The Holy Mess
Best Album That I Expected to be Terrible:
Upside Down Mountain by Conor Oberst
