College is supposed to be four years of development and
change. When I think back to some of the music I listened to in high school it
astonishes me just how much my tastes have changed over the past four years. I
tried to expand my palate and learn to appreciate other genres as well as dive
deeper into what I already enjoyed. I listened to hundreds of albums and here I
have picked the six most significant albums that came out in the last four
years, 2012-2015. This restriction forced me to keep some albums I had in
constant rotation off my list such as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,
Flockaveli, Deathconciousness, Spiderland, In the Court of the Crimson King,
most of the Boris discography, etc; however, I still believe this list is
filled with great albums that you should check out. These albums either changed
the way I think about music or have a personal connection that I will try to
elaborate more on below.
July 10th,
2012
The R&B revival was something I was at first
apprehensive about. Around this time Odd Future was at the peak of their power
when one of its members named Frank Ocean dropped Channel Orange. The day
before the album’s release Ocean gave a heart wrenching performance of “Bad Religion”on The Jimmy Fallon show that served as his coming out party. Whether this was
a marketing ploy or not I was immediately more interested in the album although
the song performance was phenomenal as well. Before this album, Frank Ocean
only had one mixtape out where was singing over many different musicians’ music
along with a few originals, but Channel Orange was a complete departure from
that formula. The album was a completely original work filled with honest songwriting
about growing and relationships alongside colorful and lively production. This
album legitimized the new school or R&B for me while proving that Frank
Ocean can stand on his own outside the Odd Future collective. Although there
have been other excellent R&B albums that have come out recently none stand
as significant as Channel Orange.
October 22, 2012
Concept albums typically are not albums played at social
get-togethers. No one likes the guy that puts on the 20 minute prog-rock track
that was recorded in 7/8 at what should be a fun gathering of friends. This is
especially true if the album’s themes revolve around addiction,
self-destruction, and violence. Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid, m.A.A.D City is
possibly the greatest concept album I have ever heard yet it had numerous
tracks that found its way to the airwaves of the seediest bars everywhere. The
irony of blacked out twenty somethings screaming the lyrics of Swimming Pools
was always entertaining in a dark sort of way but if anything highlights this
deep album’s crossover appeal. The “credits rolling” feel that the album’s
closer “Compton” along with the vivid descriptions of street life Kendrick
shares give the listener a full cinematic experience. This album may not have
had a drastic effect on my taste in music, but as soon as the record dropped it
felt significant. Good Kid, m.A.A.D City was an album with immediate staying
power. Rarely do hip-hop albums have singles that are still played in clubs
years after they drop but Kendrick Lamar’s sophomore effort was an album that
appropriately succeeded in this regard whether he wished for the music to
function in that way or not.
December 18th,
2012
College is not only a time for intense study and reflection
but also a time to let loose a bit. The soundtrack to many of the parties I
went to was hip-hop so I had a tough time choosing which specific album I
wanted to highlight. A lot of great party rap albums came out such as Habits
and Contradictions, Long Live A$AP, and Sremmlife but I settled on Finally Rich
by Chief Keef. Being so close to Chicago, it was impossible to go to a party
without hearing “I Don’t Like” blaring through the speakers for months before
and after this album dropped, and I loved every second of it. The album put
Chicago drill rap on the map and paved the way for numerous trap rap singles
that played after Finally Rich came and went. Finally Rich made the cut above
the others not only because of its significance within the trap rap/ drill
scene but because it taught me not to take music so seriously. I mean this is an album called "Finally Rich" that was created by a 17 year old. Music can be
silly and making music that is meant to be partied to does not mean it carries
any less weight or significance than an album trying to tackle larger issues.
Finally Rich is not the best rap album of all time, but it does not even set out to be that. It's simply a fun listen. Infections hooks, brilliant production, and a unique persona is enough to
create a great album. And don’t ever suggest that the Kanye West remix of “I Don’t
Like” is better.
June 11, 2013.
Growing up I listened to a lot of 80s thrash metal and was a
pretty big fan, but as time passed I started to lose interest. The genre began
to feel stale and cliche to me. I don’t think I ever saw myself listening to metal as
closely as I did when I was younger again until 2013 when Deafheaven dropped
Sunbather. I was one of the many who had never heard of blackgaze until
Deafheaven achieved mainsteam success with this record. The presentation of the
album was so different that I felt like I had to give it a try. The album
completely changed how I view metal and showed me what new things musicians
were trying with the genre. The album was powerful, dramatic, tense, and beautiful
all at once. Where I thought metal was cold and dark Sunbather used texture and
color in brilliant ways even down to the album art. I had never thought someone
would use techniques Kevin Shields pioneered on Loveless and apply them to a
metal and post-rock sound. This album was the beginning of the rabbit hole for
me. Sunbather got me interested in black metal which lead to my love for drone
and doom metal as well. I am now more interested in metal than I ever was in my
life and I attribute that to Kerry Mccoy’s unique style of playing and a killerstage presence from lead singer George Clarke that I have been lucky enough to witness three times. Deafheaven completely revitalized my love and
appreciation for metal and for that I will always be appreciative.
January 21, 2014
Transgender Dysphoria Blues is a strangely significant album
to me. It is an album I liked but did not love initially, but its themes and
songwriting from Laura Jane Grace were so honest and memorable that the album
has kept me going back to it. I will even admit that I was not very
knowledgeable about the transgender community and what they deal with, but this
album got me interested as well as more respectful and supportive of their
cause. I think the album came at a brilliant time because I believe that as a
society who is becoming more and more accepting of the gay community the
transgender community has not received that same welcome. Laura Jane Grace’s
howls seem to have a refreshed fire and fierceness for me after two albums I
thought were pretty forgettable. She sounds like a truly rejuvenated musician.
What I love about the tracks on this record was I felt like the songwriting was
able to place the listener right into Laura’s mind. She does an excellent job
expressing her feelings and setting a scene for the listener. It just so
happened that the next album I listened to for the first time was Jordaan Mason
and the Horse Museum’s Divorce Lawyers I Shaved My Head. Without knowing that
this album had similar themes, I couldn’t have been more surprised or lucky.
Both albums worked together to teach me how the transgender community should be
acknowledged and supported much more than what they currently receive. I thank
both Laura Jane Grace and Jordaan Mason for this more well-rounded world view.
Other albums I wanted to include but didn't other than those mentioned above:
Cloud Nothings- Attack on Memory
Disclosure- Settle
A$AP Rocky- Long Live A$AP
The Hotelier- Home, Like No Place Is There
Kanye West- Yeezus
Sufjan Stevens- Carrie and Lowell
Ambersmoke- Une Femme Est Une Femme
Sun Kil Moon- Benji
Sun Kil Moon- Benji
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