Listed below are the best albums of the 2020s (so far) as calculated from their overall rankings in over 59,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 45 minutes ago).
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"(47 minutes of minimalist spiritual jazz-meets-classical-meets subtle electronic touches. I, at first, honestly thought this would probably be something that made me think I just didn't "get it" but by the end of the 1st listen and certainly by the end of the 2nd, I did feel a certain calm come o...""(47 minutes of minimalist spiritual jazz-meets-classical-meets subtle electronic touches. I, at first, honestly thought this would probably be something that made me think I just didn't "get it" but by the end of the 1st listen and certainly by the end of the 2nd, I did feel a certain calm come over me and a certain wonder at the beauty of the music and life in general. Its a delicate, stirring, touching album that I highly recommend.)
I am so set on listening to music in search of hooks, interesting riffs, drum fills, showy bite-sized solos, lyrical snippets, word plays, melodic bits, walls of sound, and many many other ear-catching and immediate and tangible things. I listen to most music and it provides what it is quick and there is something distinct and bright and loud and up front to latch on to. Very rarely does an album come along that stops me and slows me and makes me just BE. Occasionally an ambient or new age album will do it, or a more minimalist jazz album, but I listen to those albums so rarely sometimes I forget what it's like to be given a gentle "shhhh" by an album. Obviously, as I am commenting on Promises - this recent collab between electronic artist Floating Points (who I had zero previous experience with), jazz legend Pharaoh Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra - I must be indicating that this was one of those rare albums that made me stop overthinking and stop bloody fidgeting and just experience music. And, yes, you figured me out. That is exactly what I am getting at.
This album on first 2 tries was rejected by me. I was up and about and getting ready for work and I put this on, and it was like my whole body and mind just said "nope" and I couldn't do it and I stopped it and put on probably a loud Grindcore or Post Punk album instead. Then a week or so later I tried again and yet again I felt like I just couldn't give this piece the time and peace it deserved. Finally today, Monday the 12th of April, after a long and stressful weekend of work, I woke up and played this album and almost the same response happened. I heard those same 7 notes played over and over and 4 minutes in I was close to just writing it off as something I just personally "don't get" or "it's not made for me". Then something happened. I told myself to just shut up, be still for a bit and just experience the music. Don't check twitter, don't play some stupid game on your phone, don't do it. Don't look online at other reviews, don't read news stories, don't start reviewing the album track by track, etc. Instead, just be still and listen to the music, the minimal and repetitive electric piano, the soulful and sad and yet peaceful and perfect saxophone "speeches" from Sanders, listen to the subtle orchestral bits swelling and waxing and waning underneath the 2 main musical instruments, listen and observe those subtle changes and the way they slowly grow and then shrink and then grow again. As I did this, I admit I started feeling myself relax and enjoy not just the music more but also I started to appreciate my current situation, I started smelling the proverbial roses. And when the album ended I enjoyed the silence for a few moments and I thought about what I had heard. I started writing this and pushed play again on Promises.
My experience perhaps will be mirrored or at least similar for many other music fanatics that generally don't listen to this type of cerebral, slow and building music. There are no major pay offs in terms of large walls of sound and fury like you'll hear on many other jazz and classical and post rock pieces/albums. The start of the piece may seem familiar for many music fans, but outside of some increased intensity on Movement 6, this album isn't one to build and build until an inevitable loud and intense resolution. This work seems more to be a rumination all the way through. It takes these subtle, minimal elements and themes and rides with them and creates a quiet chamber where the listener can simply Be with the music and think of promises, life, future, past, people you know and people you may yet come to know. It's, for me anyway, a 47 minute piece of music I can put on to gather myself.
That's not say that one can't also listen to this and hear some vibrant and tangible details. Because, there are dozens of moments when I was listening when I heard a particular saxophone melody that was gorgeous and clear, there are moments when the subtle electronic synth part sticks its head out and plays about with something, there are symphonic swells that can make you misty-eyed and inspired, and those are excellent moments. In the main, however, for me anyway, this is an album less involved in moment-to-moment highlights and more involved in creating its own space in this wild world we live in, a space where we can take stock, relax, ruminate and Be ourselves. It does this near-flawlessly and all musicians involved in Promises contribute what they have to creating this atmosphere with no one (not even the legend Pharaoh Sanders) ever seeming to be showy or stealing the show intentionally. Every note and little detail is there to create the atmosphere of the music.
I'd be lying if I said this was 100% my style, or if I said this album alone has sold me on the virtues of minimalism and this sort of slow building atmospheric music. I doubt I will listen to this for a week non-stop or come to the conclusion this is my favorite album of the year. I doubt I will go and do one of those funny music nerd things where I research everything I can on this style and listen to almost exclusively this sort of music for months. I still prefer, given 2 or 3 options before me, a wild and loud and hook-filled album over a slow work of minimalist Third Stream or whatever this is. I will say though, that my expectations were surpassed by this and I have been enriched by having listened to this album a couple times. And, yes, its one of the better albums I've heard this year. And I suspect I will be coming back to it for years to come,
If the genre description or the way this album is spoken of is possibly turning you off or making you think its an abstract and perhaps pretentious album and so you are thinking to avoid it, I recommend going ahead and clearing out 47 minutes of your life and listening. I was in the same boat as those of you who thought it wouldn't connect, and yet it did as you can see from this rambling and pointless little write up. If you finish the album and you don't feel at least a little more at peace and a little more enriched, well, 1.) I will be surprised and 2.) you can move on from the album and listen to your usual jams whatever those may be (There is nothing wrong with that either.)."[+]Reply
"a stupidly strong debut album that smashes genres and has the best swagger from track to track. amazing lyricism, and a really exciting full-length offering from a wicked new star."Reply
"A real interesting switch up in mood and sound from last year’s ‘Laurel Hell’ and dare I say it punches just as much as an overall piece of work…"Reply
"The overall theme of the “Laurel Hell” seems to be emotional vulnerability. Mitski sings about expectations, not feeling loved, and anxiety fairly earnestly. “Stay Soft” embraces the topic best with its scared but very affirming discussion of sex. A limitation is many of the songs feel underwritt...""The overall theme of the “Laurel Hell” seems to be emotional vulnerability. Mitski sings about expectations, not feeling loved, and anxiety fairly earnestly. “Stay Soft” embraces the topic best with its scared but very affirming discussion of sex. A limitation is many of the songs feel underwritten. It’s not what is written is not well put together but more verses would flesh out the topics better. Instrumentally, Peter Gabriel like synths coat the album. The synths are antiquated in the best way possible. Their slight awkwardness adds to the topical assailability. The unfortunate exception to this is “That's Our Lamp”. It sounds so goofy that it completely negates the conflict of the lyrics. “Laurel Hell” is not overwhelming in quality, but it has a charming heart to it. "[+]Reply
"This might be the most fun album of the year. Prog rock epics, ostensibly about plants, sung by a madman with little regard for tone or pitch. I can't speak for everyone's pandemic experience, but this ridiculousness is just what I needed entering winter of '21."Reply
"Another solid entry into Mach-Hommy's dense and illustrious discography. Westside Gunn puts his impeccable ear for curation on show here once again, even if this does feel a bit cursory and convoluted at times. Mach's oft deeply reflective word-play seems a bit more "on-the-nose" through the enti...""Another solid entry into Mach-Hommy's dense and illustrious discography. Westside Gunn puts his impeccable ear for curation on show here once again, even if this does feel a bit cursory and convoluted at times. Mach's oft deeply reflective word-play seems a bit more "on-the-nose" through the entirety of Pray for Haiti, but a minor complaint for an artist who deserves mainstream recognition. "[+]Reply
"Assured and welcome comeback album from this great band. Imaginative and diverse soundscapes as always. Like a dear friend that went overseas for 15 years and then arrives on your doorstep and you converse like they we're only gone a fortnight."Reply
Mercury | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (7 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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