Listed below are the best albums of the 2010s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 58,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 2 hours ago).
"I was never that crazy about Spoon until I heard this album. The great synths and punchy rock songs make this album much different from their previous material. Also, I love the production especially with the drums which sound very crisp. Great energy, very catchy, this is their best album yet in...""I was never that crazy about Spoon until I heard this album. The great synths and punchy rock songs make this album much different from their previous material. Also, I love the production especially with the drums which sound very crisp. Great energy, very catchy, this is their best album yet in my opinion!
Highlights: Inside Out, Do You, New York Kiss, They Want My Soul, Rainy Taxi"[+]Reply
"Father John Misty’s “Pure Comedy” serves as a reminder of the artist’s unique voice in the field of modern folk rock. He delivers a blend of humor and retrospective sadness into a package that demonstrates how he—and at least, I—view the world in its present state. Clever songwriting with an impa...""Father John Misty’s “Pure Comedy” serves as a reminder of the artist’s unique voice in the field of modern folk rock. He delivers a blend of humor and retrospective sadness into a package that demonstrates how he—and at least, I—view the world in its present state. Clever songwriting with an impassioned message, melded with prime production and instrumentation, creates a project which has grown on me with each subsequent listen.
Josh Tilman, Misty’s “man behind the mask”, has no qualms with questioning and criticizing the problems of society, through his fictionalized perspective of a man wandering through a barren city proceeding the collapse of humanity, to his blunt summarization of the whole of humanity in the titular track. One of my favorite tracks from the album, “When the God of Love Returns There’ll Be Hell to Pay”, Tilman assumes the role of a defender of mankind’s mistakes and flaws to a metaphorical “God of Love”.
The instrumentation of the album is strong throughout, with the exception of a few tracks. In what will likely be the most divisive track on the record, “Leaving LA” is a sprawling, thirteen minute self-reflection by Tilman, reviewing his grievances with the music industry, his pseudonym and himself. While the track has plenty to chew on, narratively speaking, it lacks a sense of progression or complexity in its sound, which Tilman addresses in the lyrics of the actual song, aware that the extensity of the tracks runtime, paired with a lack of resolve, may lose him a number of fans. The only other track I find personal flaws with would be “Smoochie”, which has a tasteful Southern twang and an enjoyable performance by Tilman, but lacks the same snappy lyricism that permeates the rest of “Pure Comedy”.
The track “Total Entertainment Forever” is a stark observation of the presence of media in our lives with a backing band reminiscent of Billy Joel. “Ballad of the Dying Man” is the perfect summarization of those who dedicate their lives to plaguing internet message boards with negativity or unnecessary “white knighting”. “Two Wildly Different Perspectives” and “Birdie” utilize a more technological soundscape, differentiating the tracks from the rest of the album’s folk rock vibes. The former addresses opposing views (political, social or otherwise) which may be perceived as highly contrasted, but hold similar values at their core. The latter holds a strong political message while providing an excellent crescendo, musically, which is a welcome commonality of the album. “The Memo”—a track which required a number of listens for myself to appreciate—contemplates perception and advertisers, and an audience which may believe to understand an artist or their work, but in truth, knows nothing. “So I’m Growing Old on Magic Mountain” and “In Twenty Years or So” finally address death and the future, where Tilman expresses the importance of acceptance in the way things are, and stresses that we enjoy life as it happens, no matter the outcome. Both of these final tracks contain gorgeous orchestral movements atop the soothing croons of the masked Misty.
Tilman’s personality is very much a part of his music. Should you disagree with his views, or what may occasionally come across as patronizing, there is plenty to enjoy sonically. Personally, I adored the album, and will likely rank it as one of, if not my favorite, albums of the year. 9/10
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"In my opinion the most prolific musician currently making music. This album is perfect through and through and if you haven't listened to it yet, do yourself a favor and take a listen. Currently somewhat overlooked and underrated, but if you've listened to it as much as I have, you can see there'...""In my opinion the most prolific musician currently making music. This album is perfect through and through and if you haven't listened to it yet, do yourself a favor and take a listen. Currently somewhat overlooked and underrated, but if you've listened to it as much as I have, you can see there's something so incredibly unique that exists within the eclectic mix of genres (some glam-rock, post-punk, pop) he's cultivated. I can't exactly put my finger on it, so I like to call it "maplerock." There are some other Canadian bands associated with him that I also define as maplerock such as Homeshake, Freelove Fenner, Each Other, Alex Calder, that are also worth checking out. "[+]Reply
"Although I prefer Veckatimest just a marginal fraction more, this - in terms of quality - is every bits equal. It's essentially the same formula except this time around they have an eye for more expressive lyrics and ambient details (an aspect not picked up on first listen). Just when I thought t...""Although I prefer Veckatimest just a marginal fraction more, this - in terms of quality - is every bits equal. It's essentially the same formula except this time around they have an eye for more expressive lyrics and ambient details (an aspect not picked up on first listen). Just when I thought they couldn't get more tumultuous, they release this. "[+]Reply
"I was brought to the attention of Angel Olsen when her last album was released. I didn't dabble on it too long, so I was intrigued when her name came up again when this record received a lot of praise. It's definitely worth a listen. Olsen's singing is good, but her songs keep you interested with...""I was brought to the attention of Angel Olsen when her last album was released. I didn't dabble on it too long, so I was intrigued when her name came up again when this record received a lot of praise.
It's definitely worth a listen. Olsen's singing is good, but her songs keep you interested with good variety and passion she presents here. This album will make Angel Olsen a sweetheart of the indie genre.
Track Pick: Shut Up Kiss Me"[+]Reply
"Interesting that this guy sounds obviously very influenced by Dylan and yr a big Dylan fan.... The title track reminds of something on Blood on the Tracks... "Buckets of Rain" a bit, maybe... The picking, some phrasing, and overall vibe on third track "Troubles..." is total Dylan... reminds of "B...""Interesting that this guy sounds obviously very influenced by Dylan and yr a big Dylan fan.... The title track reminds of something on Blood on the Tracks... "Buckets of Rain" a bit, maybe... The picking, some phrasing, and overall vibe on third track "Troubles..." is total Dylan... reminds of "Boots of Spanish Leather" among many others... I'm a new comer to this guy... Obviously very talented but not really overly impressed...especially vocals seem too forced with contrived emotion and constant clever little entertaining flourishes I find distracting and tedious... comes across as sounding a little too desperate to be hip and it clashes with attempt to sound oh so laid back and relaxed, Dylanesque... Obviously he's young and a bit green... Might learn to chill out and just play and let it flow as he gets older and develops his chops... Anyway, sometimes it takes a few listens to hook me... I'll give it more time... "[+]Reply
"Can't really bring much new to say, yes she benefited greatly from being born into a hollywood family and her preternal social-media savviness and heaps of self-confidence definitely helped hype her music to the extreme. And yes she is a precociously deft songwriter with striking, crinkly-voiced ...""Can't really bring much new to say, yes she benefited greatly from being born into a hollywood family and her preternal social-media savviness and heaps of self-confidence definitely helped hype her music to the extreme. And yes she is a precociously deft songwriter with striking, crinkly-voiced R&B-style vocals who has a knack for making a catchy, moody modern pop song as her singles attest (particurally the digital-finger-snap paranoia of "Bury a Friend") who can occasionally open up to something more geniunely vulnerable and confrontational ("I Love You"). WWAFAWDWG also constantly reminds of you every other 21st century slightly left-of-center pop star, with elements of The Weeknd, Melanie Martinez, Sky Ferreira, Imogen Heap, (dear god) Halsey and espcially Lorde strewn throughout and which can occasionally lead into straight-faced impressionism. And "My Strange Addiction" is one of the more risible tracks I've heard recently (ESPECIALLY because of the samples), but that should've been obvious from the title alone. Again, like a lot of pop albums it would still keep the momentum and be far more effective if it cut the song length in half.
So yes I think this album is getting greatly overpraised for critics who want to latch themselves on to the next big thing and avoid Getting It Wrong-tm. I also do think she has a lot of potential if she can use her influences more as seasoning than ingredients, and if she stops thinking she's the edgiest teen in the world and just allows her so-far overprocessed and somewhat stifled compositions to reveal their rawer side and eventually grow into their fullest capabilities. "[+]Reply
"I can say that this album pleasantly surprised me. The sense of maturity and shift in direction on this album were unexpected but definitely welcomed changes from his previous material. Tapping heavily into funk and soul influences, Donald Glover breathes new life into these genres on "Awaken, My...""I can say that this album pleasantly surprised me. The sense of maturity and shift in direction on this album were unexpected but definitely welcomed changes from his previous material. Tapping heavily into funk and soul influences, Donald Glover breathes new life into these genres on "Awaken, My Love!" without sounding like he's simply copying other artists."[+]Reply