I have been a very negligent blogger recently. Sorry. I will try to update more frequently. For today, though, here is my top 10 list for 2015! First, EPs:
Arrow EP (LEVV)
This basically two-song EP came up on noisetrade a few months ago, and I really liked it. It's eletropop, but the girl lead singer has an amazingly good voice which works really well with this style of music. The background music is sort of ethereal. Give it a listen; I hope they come out with more new music soon!
All Creatures - Volume 2 (Jacob Montague)
Jacob Montague of Reality San Francisco released this EP this year. Most of the songs are very stripped-down and quiet, but the lyrics are powerful. He has a very melodic voice, as does the girl who accompanies him! Pianos and horns, and vocal harmonies, are used to powerful effect.
Echoes of Wonder EP (Salt of the Sound)
This is a Swedish couple who write very ethereal and chill electronic music. They have really good voices! Overall the EP is a great winter collection of songs: it sounds very cold and snowy but beautiful. Highly recommended if you like electropop.
Lord & Lady EP (Lord & Lady)
This couple sounds very much like The Civil Wars, although they are a bit less wandering and strange in their melodies. The songs build in a cool way, and get layered with lots of different instruments. Both the guy and the girl have amazing voices. It's worth a listen if you like the idea of a less indie and more straightforward version of The Civil Wars.
The Ancestor EP (Darlingside)
This group reminds me a lot of the Fleet Foxes, or Stornoway. They have a nice, understated brand of indie rock, almost 60s retro sounding, which really appeals to me. All of the songs on this EP are very good. The last one is a great cover of Smashing Pumpkins' "1979"; there might be more covers on here for which I haven't heard the original songs.
We Are Arrows (Paper Lights)
I've known about this band for a long time, but for some reason I've never really listened to their stuff. If I heard any of their songs I wasn't particularly sold. This EP, though, is amazing! Every song is genius, and the transitions are masterful. I'm not very familiar with their earlier work, but my impression is that this EP is a significant direction change for them, and a lot more eletropop-esque. It's hard to not listen to it really loudly, and the songs get caught in your head.
And full length albums:
10. Sun Leads Me On (Half Moon Run)
This Canadian indie rock group finally came out with a new album this year. I actually didn't get around to listening to the whole thing until today. My first impressions of the first few songs when I initially attempted to listen to it a few months ago were not that great, but on listening to it today it's quite good. Overall it's more rocky than the last album I would say, and is perhaps a bit more meandering and varied in the style of the songs. But there are some really good songs.
9. Keep It Safe (Wild Ones)
This new album by Wild Ones is incredibly 80s, with lots of synthesizer and eletro-pop sounding riffs. The girl's voice nicely complements the electronic instrumentation. Many of the songs are pretty fast-paced, which suits the genre well. It's a good album overall, and worth a listen if you like 80s electropop.
8. TOW'RS (Tow'rs)
This group is a collective of musicians from Flagstaff; their style of music is perhaps most comparable to Josh Garrels or the Oh Hellos. Most of the songs are very folky, with a variety of instrumentation. Their songs are all about story-telling, and they do it very well. This first album is a collection of seven songs; I enjoyed every one independently, but taken together they make up an excellent album. The group seems to be prolific; they released another album just a few weeks ago!
7. Blurryface (Twenty-One Pilots)
Twenty-One Pilots returned with their fourth album this year, "Blurryface". It's extremely good. I would call it a continuation of their previous style: a very creative mix of genres with a lot of alternative rock influence but also very intelligent rapping. Normally I don't go in for white rap, but theirs is so clever, and the lyrics are very thoughtful critiques of our the hypocrisy in our culture. The songs are incredibly catchy too.
6. A Head Full of Dreams (Coldplay)
Coldplay just released this album last week, suggesting it might be their last! I heard very little fanfare about it, making me think people don't know about it. Overall it's really good, with a mixture of styles similar to many of the previous albums. Some of the quieter songs remind me of "Ghost Stories", but other songs with hip-hop collaborations remind me more of "Mylo Xyloto". There are some classic songs mixed in there, particularly Army of One (which sounds like it has Mat Kearney in it, but I have no evidence of that).
5. Every Open Eye (CHVRCHES)
The Scottish eletropop trio came out with their second full-length album back in September. I didn't get around to listening to it until today, but it is spectacular. It's definitely in the vein of their previous work, with a strong electropop influence and a lot of synthesizer noises. The songs are super catchy though. I highly recommend it.
4. Return to the Moon (EL VY)
This is a very new band that I only heard about a few months ago, composed of one of the guys from Menomena and Matt Berninger (lead singer for the National). It's an amazing collaboration, and this album is genius. It reminds me very much of the National, but with perhaps a less orchestral feel, and you can sense the strange Menomena influence. Some of the songs are extremely catchy. Not many of the lyrics make any sense. Overall it's really good though.
3. Dear Wormwood (The Oh Hellos)
This is the follow-up album to 2012's "Through the Deep, Dark Valley", and it's based loosely off C.S. Lewis' "Screwtape Letters". While it is similar in a lot of ways to the first album (including musical style), the new album is overall darker, with a lot of apocalyptic references. In some ways the guitar riffs remind me of Sufjan Stevens (see below), but their sound is a lot bigger and generally more upbeat. It sounds like they generally had a full band with them for the recording.
2. Home (Josh Garrels)
This new release from Portland-based Josh Garrels is a pretty significant shift from his previous music. It took a few listens for it to grow on me, since it is decidedly more bluesy than his previous work. It is very gospel-centred, though, with lots of songs dealing with community, relationships, and the journey. Once again he is pretty masterful with his combinations of instruments and fusion of genres. I highly recommend this album.
1. Carrie & Lowell (Sufjan Stevens)
This album. I think it is the most intense and powerful albums I have ever heard. His first release since 2010's "The Age of Adz", and his first writing dealing with the recent death of his mother, it is on the whole relatively acoustic and understated, focussing on intricate but compelling guitar work. It's also extremely dark. Some might consider it a return to his roots. Either way, if you don't have the album, you need it as soon as possible.
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