After a record 2014 playlist of 54 songs, this year was... kind of mediocre. In fact, there were only 29 songs, and some of those weren't exactly a timely reflection of music we like. So here it is...
Let me start by saying that we were late to the Pitch Perfect thing, but it was one of the most quotable movies since Mean Girls. As for "Soarin'" at the end (from the ride at Epcot), Simon finally started to like it just this month, and they're closing it soon for the re-do. No telling if they'll use the same music, or even a different arrangement.
Not on the list is anything from Garbage, but they did a reissue of their debut album, including all of the B-sides, and it was fantastic. I didn't have all of the B-sides, so it was fun to get those all wrapped up in one place. Hard to believe it's 20-years-old, but it's also remarkable how awesome and current it still sounds.
The biggest change this year is that it wasn't very single heavy, as it was last year. It was a good year for a few albums, for sure. Elle King was a fantastic break out, and I can't believe that she wasn't more recognized by the press and the shitty Grammy's. She's got a fair amount of cross-over appeal. It's also pretty weird that she's apparently Rob Schneider's daughter ("You can do eeet!").
Chvrches was the biggest stand out this year, as their second album got everything right. I loved their first one, but this one was awesome start to finish (except for one song that the dude sang). I've seen some live performances with them, and their singer is not super polished, but they're making really great electronic music.
Metric finally put out another album, but I was admittedly not as stoked as I hoped to be. "The Shade" is a good song, but overall the album doesn't pay enough attention to melody the way they typically do. It's a little experimental for them, which I suppose is good for them, but the noise and guitars that used to layer on top of great songs is largely absent.
Tracy Bonham put out what I would consider her second-best album after Blink The Brightest, and while I can acknowledge it as being really great, it also doesn't suit my tastes exactly. It feels a little more country than I would like, but I'm hoping it's a success for her. She's so completely awesome, and "Shine" is still likely my favorite song ever.
Wolf Alice kind of snuck in under my radar. They were playing "Bros" on AltNation, and there's a lot of great murky and noisy stuff on the album. I dig it. I'm definitely a fan.
There were other notable efforts, from Muse, Matt & Kim and Death Cab, but none of them really pulled me in for the long haul.
Hopefully next year will be a little more interesting.
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