Top 10 Albums of 2013

I feel obliged to come up with a list of my top 10 albums of 2013. Hopefully it's not completely identical to whatever Pitchfork/Metacritic/Okayplayer year end list that's out there. This isn't a definitive list of the albums of 2013; this is a list of my favourite albums of 2013. It wasn't as easy to put together as I thought because this year was pretty good for music so it was tough to narrow it down. I could think of at least 5 more albums that could've gone here but oh well... Oh yeah, this may be a countdown from 10 to 1 but it doesn't strictly represent the exact order of things.

10. Rapsody - She Got Game

I only discovered Rapsody this year (shout out to Carlos) and she was probably the greatest discovery I made this year because it appears that female rappers are a dying breed. Please, don't come at me with Nicki Minaj, I can't take it right now. Legendary producer (can I say that?) 9th Wonder did beautiful things on tracks such as 'Coconut Oil' (with a feature from Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan) and 'Complacent' where the choice of feature was once again important because, arguably, Problem made the track. The one that clinched it for me though was 'Feel Like (Love Love)' featuring one of my all time favourites, Common. With all the cliché references to corny black romance films, it shows that you don't have to whore yourself out to be a female rapper, just act like a real woman.

Stand-out track: Feel Like (Love Love)


9. Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP 2

 

No one will ever understand how happy I am that Eminem is appearing on this list because for me he hasn't had a worthy album since The Eminem Show back in 2002 (not to say that Encore wasn't a decent album, it just wasn't what I had grown to expect from Eminem). This album, however, was a return to form and it was the Eminem that I had grown to love in the Marshall Mathers LP. I was a bit skeptical about Eminem releasing a sequel to his masterpiece album but it didn't disappoint. Yeah, I thought 'Bezerk' was a little bit too Beastie Boys-esque for a 41 year old man in 2013 but that was down to Rick Rubin's production. The other singles, however, (particularly 'Rap God') reminded me that Eminem IS a living rap legend. His collaboration with Kendrick Lamar on 'Love Game' was one of the collaborations of the year but for me the final track Evil Twin confirmed that this album is one of the best rap releases this year. Eminem's alter ego, Slim Shady, returns and Eminem's wordplay relates back to his previous albums so flawlessly that it almost seems like Relapse and Recovery never happened.

Stand-out track: Evil Twin



8. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

I, like the rest of the world, was really excited when I heard about Daft Punk's first album in 8 years being released because I was living in the hope that it would be far better than their previous album, 'Human After All'. Hearing the lead single 'Get Lucky' I had the most ridiculous fangirl moment. OMG NILE RODGERS, THE KING OF DISCO, PHARRELL, ONE OF THE GREATEST PRODUCERS, AND DAFT PUNK ON ONE TRACK! OMGOMGOMG! Yeah that had worn off by July, not because I liked the song any less, but because it was soooo overplayed. The whole album had accents of Nile Rodgers, his influence was definitely there. I feel like it was a homage to Daft Punk's influences (as seen on the 9 minute "documentary" 'Giorgio By Moroder' and 'Contact' which sounds like Daft Punk meets Fatboy Slim). For me the best track has to be 'Within' which, from the piano intro, you would never guess would evolve into a sorrowful song about self discovery. 

Stand-out track: Within



7. Haim - Days Are Gone

Haim are exactly the kind of band the world needs: a group of sisters who sound like a spin-off of 70s rock band Fleetwood Mac. "Why is this necessary to restore life's natural balance?" you ask. Fleetwood Mac are a group of naturally talented musicians whose life experiences enhanced their lyricism. Haim may not have all that experience yet but the message from tracks like 'The Wire', their signature song, have to be relatable to people all over the world: "Don't wear your heart on your sleeve, that way a break up is easier". 

Stand-out track: Forever



6. Gregory Porter - Liquid Spirit

Liquid Spirit is everything you should expect from a jazz album: powerful vocals, excellent instrumentation and great musicianship. The title track is Gregory Porter's attempt to make finger snapping jazz mainstream again and honestly, I don't think the song would be that out of place on the right radio show. 'Lonesome Lover' has all the features of jazz that I would think of at first thought: the 3/4 time signature, the Big Band instruments including a double bass and what I think is a tenor sax solo. 'Musical Genocide' has exactly the kind of message that I believe more musicians should be preaching; their genre must not die in order to fit in with musical trends. 'No Love Dying' conjures up all of the gospel influences that Porter may have in order to write what is probably the most sensitive love song I've ever heard.

Stand-out track: No Love Dying

Top 5 will be posted tomorrow. Happy new year! 
@_bleggy_ 
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