11-20
76-Mat Kearney-City of Black & White
I got to see him a few years back at Hope College back when he mixed some mild rapping into his songs. He’s grown out of that and I love the direction he’s going. I love his voice. There are so many fantastic songs, but “All I Have”, “Fire & Rain”, “Closer To Love”, and “Never Be Ready” are the cream of the crop. The only quibble I have is that his lyrics can get cliché.
75-Ben Lee-The Rebirth of Venus
“Awake Is The New Sleep” is one my most favorite albums of all time, so Ben Lee has his work cut out on this one. He’s still got that infectious, happy, joyous sound that I love. “Surrender”, “Yoko Ono”, “Bad Poetry”, and “Families Cheating At Board Games” are the best tracks. My recollection before I gave this a recent listen was that it didn’t measure up to past efforts. My recollection was wrong. While not as good as the magical “Awake Is The New Sleep”, “The Rebirth Of Venus” is still great. Lyrics like “Loving you makes me want to write bad poetry”, and “I love pop music, this is how we do it, It's politics you can romance to” are what makes Ben great.
75-The Swell Season-Strict Joy
My expectations were huge for this disc, so it’s hard to judge how good it actually is. It disappointed relative to my expectations, but it’s still a great album. It’s not as good as their self titled album or the Once soundtrack. Still, songs such as “In These Arms” and “Somebody Good” make you want to care about someone with all that you are.
Unbelievable. I rank every single song in my iTunes library. A mere 2.6% currently sit at 5 star status (the bulk are 3’s). All eleven tracks from this album started out as 5’s. Even though only five still remain, it shows how highly I think of this disc. “Don’t Wanna Cry”, “Paradise Cove”, “Last Summer”, “Four Years”, and “Long Time Nothing New” stand above the rest. I don’t like the way it’s trending though; I like it less and less as time goes on.
75-The Decemberists-The Hazards Of Love
This was one of the releases I was most excited for. “A Bower Scene”, “The Hazard Of Love 2”, and “The Rake’s Song” are all great. It’s an incredibly ambitious album, full of electric guitar, driving bridges, country twang, dissonance, instrumental tracks, and ballad lyrics.
This was an amazing album. It’s just a great combination of beats, lyrics, and vocals. Alicia Keys could not have been more perfect on “Empire State Of Mind.” “Young Forever”, “What We Talkin’ About”, and “Haters” are also great tracks. I think the whole music scene is glad to have Jay-Z back.
72-Fruit Bats-The Ruminant Band
This is another diamond in the rough. It’s happy and unique. “Tegucigalpa” and “Being On Your Own” are my favorites.
They’re talented, diverse sounding, and can even write. They win with this disc and are the type of artist that grows on me fast. Highly recommended.
I’m glad I came back to Andrew Bird. Behind all the quirkiness you’re hit with initially, you’ll find a truly talented artist. His cerebral lyrics alone will keep you entertained for a while. “Natural Disaster” is a favorite track of mine.
I absolutely love Cat Stevens’ voice. I didn’t like this one as much as some of his earlier discs, but his music is still enchanting. “Roadsinger” and “All Kinds of Roses” are well worth a listen.
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