Here’s the first half of our list!
#20: Blue Scholars – Cinemetropolis (Self-Released)
Not many people have heard of the Blue Scholars, or their 2011 release Cinemetropolis, and I’m not sure why not. My theory is that they’re so ingrained in Seattle that most people can’t relate to their music. The other reason could be that they are just content being the best hip hop group in the Northwest, and don’t care about getting big. Blue Scholars have performed with Kanye West, De La Soul, Nas and Common, yet still don’t seem to get the credit they deserve.
A few of their songs, including “Oskar Barnack ∞ Oscar Grant,” talk about the Seattle Police abuses, which has become extremely relevant with the recent citation of the SPD by the Justice Department for using excessive force. Other songs like “Chief Sealth” and “Hussein” are talking about like issues like immigration, diversity, and social change. On a lighter note, “Marion Sunshine,” is an ode to Seattle sunshine, which we don’t get much of as everyone knows. “Yuri Kochiyama” is another standout track about the Japanese-American human rights activist.
Cinemetropolis is so important because it is both a social commentary and a manifesto for change. They accomplish all this in a smooth, poetic and rhythmic way. Most of the songs on the album are named after people that the MC Geo and DJ Sabzi admire. The Blue Scholars and Cinemetropolis are a must listen for people who like thought-provoking hip hop, whether you know Seattle or not.
-Glenn
#19: Sea Pinks – Dead Seas (Cass Flick)
A extremely solid garage rock album by a sly Irish man, Neil Brogan, it’s able to carry you to the beach and back in 11 songs, Sea Pinks’ Dead Seas is what The Drums were. Front to back, the sophomore album is a big step forward in cohesive style for the Girls Names’ side-project. It’s not very complicated, but has just the right amount of 60′s shimmy shake depth to keep you bobbing for the whole 25 minutes. Dead Seas is THE vintage quick burner for your shorter temperaments.
-Matt
#18: Wilco – The Whole Love (dBpm)
Any year Wilco releases a record is a good year, MAY THERE BE MANY MORE TO COME (applause, cheering, rallying, etc.) The Whole Love is the second step of Wilco’s certified grand dance, doing the quick shuffle step of confidence and merry-making. They are (officially) who they will be as a band: their transformation/growing/learning is done. They are complete. So much so, that they started a label, ran their festival again, AND put out a record. The Whole Love is full of the comfortable/long-settled in their recliner types of songs: they ain’t movin’ for ya. You’ve gotta meet’em where they’re at. And unless you’re a rabid Wilco fan, this could be a turn off. There isn’t much flash and twirl going on their latest release. But the patient and the willing (you?) are guaranteed a show starring Jeff Tweedy’s everyman vocals, Nel’s Cline’s excellent axing, and Glenn Kotche’s uncanny rhythms. Go for “Whole Love”, grow in the rest. You will.
-Matt
#17: Lisa Hannigan – Passenger (ATO)
The first thing that hits you about Lisa Hannigan’s Passenger are the broad arrangements; strings upon strings upon percussive piano. And then you’re suddenly reminded how excellently smokey Hannigan’s voice is, authoritative with inexplicable age and light with innumerable happy thoughts. Together, these things throw up a giant banner that says “This record you’re about to listen to; it’s going to be SPECIAL.” It’s the biggest sound we’ve ever heard from Lisa Hannigan (apart from her time with Damien Rice) and I can’t help but feel that spotlight is well-deserved. She’s entirely too charming, on stage AND on album. The moment on “Home” where her timbre and the key of the song separate/ The moment on “Knots” when her voice does a stair-step drop/ The moment on “O Sleep” when Ray Lamontagne’s voice joins with Hannigan’s: those are the things that keep me coming back to Passenger.
-Matt
#16 Ben Howard – Every Kingdom (Island UK)
Aye, he’s a guy with a guitar, and ayyyye, he happens to sing and songwrite. So what then, makes Ben Howard and his debut album Every Kingdom stick out from the rest? Besides his giant waterslides, it’s his thorough refusal to ever go into battle alone. Howard always brings a string quartet, a female back-up vocal, or a unexpected turn of song to accompany him on every track. He embellishes, he gathers, and through his music it’s clear he isn’t afraid to celebrate the fact that he is alive. and he disregards the naysayers. There’s a passion evident on Every Kingdom that defies the limitations of what can be called “just another…” or “one of many”. Howard is fantastic because he’s so unabashedly normal, and proud to part of the world we live in. Songs like “Old Pine”, “Only Love” and “Keep Your Head Up” are cheering anthems for YOU, for your bad days. And the others: songs like “The Fear” and “The Wolves” are big ol’ sign posts Howard has stuck in the ground to warn you from going the wrong way. There can be romance in the routine and the silent. Ben Howard’s Every Kingdom is a tome for the typical ages.
-Matt
#15 The War On Drugs – Slave Ambient (Secretly Canadian)
So much of Slave Ambient is about building a vibe. And the tools that Adam Granduciel and co. use to do so are as common as they are wonderful. Slow-rolling electric guitar riffs with softened, wavy edges; rough and tumble percussion that keeps the rhythm in your toes but never overwhelms your ears. And Granduciel’s powerful yet almost always understated vocals give it all a vintage feel that is undeniably similar to icons like Springsteen and Dylan. Slave Ambient really only has three high-gear moments — the irresistible, organ-driven gem “Baby Missiles,” the glowing electricity of “Come To The City” and the pulsing percussion and echoing howl of “Your Love Is Calling My Name”– but the subtler moments are just as powerful. The ambling piano melody and Granduciel’s quivering vocals in “I Was There” ache with longing. The mingling of guitar and twinkling keys on album-ender “Black Water Falls” is just gorgeous. This Philadelphia trio has constructed a slice of delicious psych-rock Americana.
-Sean
#14 Grand Hallway – Winter Creatures (Porchlight)
Grand Hallway’s Winter Creatures is a testament to Seattle music. Imagine if Nick Drake had a band playing behind him, and singers the likes of Shenandoah Davis and Jen Wood. Welcome to Grand Hallway. I call it Chamber Folk. You can quote me on that. Grand Hallway has the ability to sing a lullaby, or fill a room with intricate arrangements and smooth, delicate vocals.
Winter Creatures starts off strong with the title track “Winter Creatures,” a Nick Drake like ballad to the winter. “Wildfires” and “Oh Yes” add a little more pop to the album. Then “Fourths,” “Fathers Cloths,” and “Roscoe,” ends the album on chamber folk note. The highlight of the album, in my opinion is “Little Sister” with challenging guitar work, lovely strings, and smooth harmonizing vocals. Good luck getting the chorus out of your head.
I haven’t seen this on many other best albums lists, but it has been a gem for me this year. So go get your chamber folk on and buy Winter Creatures. I would also recommend seeing them live.
-Glenn
#13 Shabazz Palaces – Black Up (Sub Pop)
Perhaps it was the excessive heat. Maybe it was the smoke that seemed to waft in and take residence in the air. But as I watched Ishmael Butler and Tendai Maraire — aka Shabazz Palaces, the Seattle-based hip-hop collaborative — perform on Day Three at the Pitchfork, I was hypnotized. Entranced. Enamored. And when I blasted Black Up in my car in the weeks that followed, I found that it wasn’t just an in-the-moment feeling. What this pair have done with their glitchy-beated, slow-grooved Sub Pop debut is pretty remarkable. Black Up is undeniably hip-hop, but the elements at work defy genre classification at times. The weighty beat and underwater verses of “Yeah You,” or the smoky, snare-filled pulse and atmospherics of “A treatease dedicated to the Avian Airess…” are good examples of the creative stretching this pair are capable of — always contained, but never failing to be compelling. And the most alluring track, the intoxicating “Swerve…” is something really special. This record breathes. It has a heartbeat. It’s a vibrant, entertaining collection of songs.
-Sean
#12 Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin’ (Columbia)
Raphael Saadiq is the epitome of modern Motown/Soul, and Stone Rollin’ is no exception to that title. Just listen to the first track “Heart Attack.” Now tell me you didn’t tap your foot and wish you had his voice. Maybe you didn’t, but that sure happened to me. This album is reminiscent of greats like Stevie Wonder, Chuck Berry and a little Sam Cooke. I definitely won’t go as far to say that Saadiq can live up to Wonder, Berry, or Cooke, yet, but he certainly has elements of all three, and can appeal to both young folks and old folks. NPR sums up Stone Rollin’ with an accurate description of “comfort music, re-imagined.”
In Seattle there is this phenomenon of Soul Nights, which are growing like crazy. Not sure if that’s everywhere. If I were DJing a Soul Night, I would certainly throw in 4 or 5 songs from Stone Rollin’. “Radio” and “Stone Rollin” are superb upbeat soul dance tracks with infectious lyrics. He also moves to the bluesy soul sounds of “Daydreams.” Then he has the irresistible, Sam Cooke smooth sounding, “Good Man.” Really, there isn’t a track on the album that isn’t solid. Overall, Stone Rollin’ is an excellent album that everyone can and should enjoy.
-Glenn
#11 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. – It’s A Corporate World (Quite Scientific)
You’re thinking about how long it takes / to cross the ocean. / While you wait, I’m running around it, anyway. / I’m not thinking about it. These are some of the words from the funky and electronic opener to Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.’s debut full-length. And those lyrics can be twisted into a sort of mantra for the Detroit-based duo. Their brand of electronic psych-pop is built on solid harmony and catchy, danceable beats, and it’s all about just having fun and cutting loose. It’s A Corporate World is a at times a tongue-in-cheek critique of our cut-throat, capitalist society. But it’s more about embracing the chaos and cruelty, and finding someone you trust to laugh at it all. Making lemons out of lemonade, to put it in a clichéd way. The lemonade here sometimes tastes like Paul Simon or The Beach Boys — or even Dire Straits — but with a modern zest that’s really refreshing. I expected to have fun while listening to It’s A Corporate World, based on what I knew of the band. I did. Joshua Epstein and Daniel Zott don’t take themselves too seriously — the moniker they’ve chosen should be a clear indication — but they have made a record that’s earnest and, at times, very pretty. Seriously.
-Sean
Come on back for the final countdown!
