Another year, another batch of albums and singles, another 5 pounds on the old waistline. As we do every year around this time, writers like myself like to put an exclamation point on the last 365 days with painstakingly authored documents that seek to validate our roles as impartial curators of music…when in actuality we’re just amassing a list of songs that resonated with our own self-interests. (Hooray for music we like!) That being said, I’ll put the 11 selections below—and the 12 singles at the end—up against anyone else’s material. These are strong bodies of work, and even though the album as we know it is turning into a bit of a lost art form, you won’t need to cherry-pick through iTunes to get the good bits.
WARNING: There is no mention of M83, Odd Future or “Pumped Up Kicks” anywhere on this list, and there is only one item remotely resembling dubstep. If you’re not put off by this, please read on.
