Best of 2013 (Music #12) 29 January 2014

It's a month into 2014, I'm just now posting my top albums of the previous year, and still I feel harried.  Classic Cody.  Tweaking the pieces, hoping to get it together sooner than later.

The top album of the year for me is simple.  My favorite bands currently performing are A Wilhelm Scream, Propagandhi, Defeater, Strike Anywhere, Tool (so rarely, and so underwhelming of late, that they seem to flicker at the edge), Rise Against, The Roots, Wolves in the Throne Room, Agalloch, and Panopticon.  I can't think of any others that are in such an upper echelon for me.  It goes without saying that a release by any of these albums, short of a drastic style/aesthetic/political bent change will merit a top release of the year for me.

Hence A Wilhelm Scream's "Partycrasher" and Defeater's "Letters Home" being in the top 10.  The rest of the list follows.

1. A Wilhelm Scream - "Partycrasher"
2. Dennis Johnson - "November"
3. Deafheaven - "Sunbather"
4. Defeater - "Letters Home"
5. Stara Rzeka - "Cień chmury nad ukrytym polem"
6. Run The Jewels - "Run The Jewels"
7. Sigur Ros - "Kveikur"
8. Boards of Canada - "Tomorrow's Harvest"
9. Haken - "The Mountain"
10. The Ocean - "Pelagial"

 Many things to be said about the year.  The new Gorguts was incredible but just not my bag.  New Soilwork was a return to their sound of the past, but they still don't sound as good as Omnium Gatherum.  No black metal, outside of "Sunbather" and moments on the split that featured Panopticon impressed me at all.  I couldn't get into Gris, Summoning, Arsaidh, and many other back metal albums from this year.  I found myself returning time and time again to "Celestial Lineage," Alda's absolute masterpiece "Tahoma," and "Sunbather" anytime I needed a modern black metal fix (which is happening more and more frequently).  The glacial song structures and impact resonate the more I consider playing music again.  I haven't given fair consideration to many albums from this year.  Kanye, Carcass, The Knife, Dillinger Escape Plan, but the initial listening to of parts of these albums stoked no real fire in me to further explore.  Naturally, most of this will probably change.

I enjoyed the hell out of some Baths, Fire! Orchestra, Chelsea Wolfe, Janelle Monae, Justin Timberlake and many more this year, and I hope to listen to more and more each year.  Thanks.