Early Album Favorites for 2013

Below are some good albums that have already come out in 2013.

1. Amok - Atoms For Peace (Rating: 8.0)
Besides being annoyed that now when I have the urge to listen to Thom Yorke music I have to now search for both "Thom..." and "Atoms..." this is a very solid album.
I will say right up front that this album is not as good as Thom Yorke's 'The Eraser' (2006).  That album was semi-revolutionary in my opinion.  It was such a good laptop album.  By that I mean that in listening to it you feel like you're at the airport or something, peering over Thom Yorke's shoulder as he cuts, loops, repeats, synthesizes, etc. on his Macbook.  It was as if Thom Yorke himself were sharing a link with you to his very personal new record.
Now back in 2013 in this new incarnation of a full ensemble of the 4 or 5 band members of Atoms For Peace, I find that the music is still nice but it's almost overproduced to perfection, and feels slightly less personal.  I have to say though that the track, 'Ingenue', is likely to be the best song I'll listen to during the whole year.  I'm tempted to buy tickets to the concert when they come this way in September mostly because I love seeing these kinds of songs played live and being thrown for a loop when I see them performing these songs with real instruments and not just laptops and vocals.

2. The Invisible Way - Low (Rating: 7.7)
I love everything about this band these days.  They have such a good formula going for them with a very simple concept to their music of a tortured male voice harmonizing with a deep, angelic female voice, simple percussion, subdued guitar that continually threatens to scream its head off, and throw some bass and occasional piano in there.  My gripe with this album is that it's a little too soft and too similar from song to song.  Also the fact that Mimi (the wife in this husband-wife duet) has too much of a leading role when she's best suited to backing vocals with occasional lead when you just need to be moved to tears.  I point to a song like "Majesty/Magic" on their 2011 album, 'C'mon' in which you get a powerful and emotional buildup with some incredibly raw guitar and percussion.  There aren't really any songs on this album that have that strong emotional impact on me.  Regardless of all these gripes I'm discussing, the fundamental formula is in place for this album and it's a nice addition to their collection.  My favorites from this album are the opening track, 'Plastic Cup', and 'Holy Ghost'.

Best Albums of 2012

In my increasingly ignorant assessment of the music scene in general, 2012 was pretty weak.  No new artist discoveries to speak of.  Below are some of my favorites throughout the year.  (I'm beginning to feel like a grumpy old man.  Maybe the reason people get grumpy in their old age is because they become less skilled at keeping up with the times and therefore miss out on a lot of the good stuff that is out there.)

1. Wixiw - Liars (Rating: 8.8)
By this point Liars have put out an undeniably good catalogue of albums.  They sound great whether they're doing spacey, experimental stuff, or poppier, more accessible stuff.  This album belongs in the latter category for the most part.  'His and Mine Sensations' is my favorite from this record.

2. Valtari - Sigur Ros (Rating: 6.9)
I didn't get into this album right from the start and I thought I would with time, and that has turned out to be only partially true.  I think I might really fall in love with it if I listened to it on a trip that involved waking up before dawn and wearing my galoshes out in the wet grass and walking up to the edge of a cliff as the fog begins to recede.  But I haven't had that kind of trip so I can't say for certain.  Instead, I find that the songs are generally enjoyable and pleasant, but they don't have as much character as songs from their earlier albums.

3. Tempest - Bob Dylan (Rating: 5.5)
The opening track, 'Duquesne Whistle' had me hooked from the first time I heard it.  It carries the listener away to olden times industrial America in a nice way.  The rest of the album has a few good songs here and there but it generally doesn't live up to the opening track.




4. & 5.  Americana - Neil Young (Rating: 5.0); Psychedelic Pill - Neil Young (Rating: 4.0)
Having recently listened to the Neil Young autobiography, 'Waging Heavy Peace' I was in a good place to be once again immersed in the genius of Neil Young, and thought I would have a greater appreciation for his music now that I had a better sense of his process, and where he was coming from--all the experiences he had had and was recently going through that inspired his music writing.  Sadly for me, Americana was only fun, not enduring, and Psychedelic Pill was maybe a little too half-baked for me.  The latter was I think meant to be a project wherein Neil Young would remount "the horse" (Crazy Horse, his band) and go for a ride and just see where it would take him and what energy would be found there.  To me, and probably to most listeners, it wasn't very cosmic.  But it may have been for Neil Young--I hope it was, anyways.  Anyways, the autobiography was great.  Keep on Rockin', Neil.