best of 2014.

I have been trying to come up with something to say about this year and I keep finding myself failing. The events of the recent months and weeks have made it tempting to look back at 2014 and see nothing but darkness. That would be one way to choose to think about the past 12 months. I could choose to let the injustice, the anger and the sadness overshadow the great relief that was the completion of my master's degree or the small joys of family vacations or the answer to prayer that was full-time employment. 

Then I start thinking about choice. It's something I talk about with the people I work with on a daily basis. The power of choice. The paradox of choice. The freedom of choice. Choice seems to be the one thing that is granted to all of us, even in moments when it seems there are no options. We've spent a lot of time judging other people's choices. How would you choose to react if you felt your life was in danger? What would you choose if someone was threatening your family? How do you determine what sort of milk to purchase? What is the best thing to say in this situation? How am I supposed to feel about that?

Having the time to think about what music I listen to and why is a luxury. That is not lost on me. Having the time to type about it, to make lists, to consider what qualifies an album for such lists feels more wasteful now than ever before. I have three kids at home. I work six days a week. There is always something to do. Do I feel guilty about choosing to write about music this week? Yes. I feel guilty about everything. That's a choice.

Here are 50 other choices I've made:

50. Anjou - Anjou
49. The Preatures - Blue Planet Eyes
48. How to Dress Well - "What is This Heart?" 
47. Caribou - Our Love
46. Perfume Genius - Too Bright

45. Interpol - El Pintor
44. Ricky Eat Acid - Three Love Songs
43. MØ - No Mythologies to Follow
42. Aphex Twin - Syro
41. Flying Lotus - You're Dead! 

40. Shabazz Palaces - Lese Majesty
39. La Sera - Hour of the Dawn
38. Wara from the NBHD - Kidnapped 
37. Warpaint - Warpaint
36. Millie and Andrea - Drop the Vowels

35. Future Islands - Singles
34. The Roots - ...and Then You Shoot Your Cousin
33. Frankie Cosmos - Zentropy
32. Nothing - Guilty of Everything
31. Freddie Gibbs and Mablib - Pinata

30. Have a Nice Life - The Unnatural World
29. Ought - More Than Any Other Day
28. Merchandise - After the End
27. Steve Gunn - Way Out Weather
26. Sylvan Esso - Sylvan Esso

25. Lydia Ainsworth - Right From Real
24. Parquet Courts - Sunbathing Animal
23. The Antlers - Familiars
22. Cloud Nothings - Here and Nowhere Else
21. Spoon - They Want My Soul

20. Step Brothers - Lord Steppington 
19. Actress  - Ghettoville
18. Real Estate - Atlas
17. Hundred Waters - The Moon Rang Like a Bell
16. Beck - Morning Phase

15. Marissa Nadler - July
14. Common - Nobody's Smiling
13. The Men - Tomorrow's Hits
12. St. Vincent - St. Vincent
11. Ty Segall - Manipulator

10. Mac Demarco - Salad Days
  9. Wye Oak - Shriek
  8. D'Angelo and the Vanguard - Black Messiah
  7. Sharon Van Etten - Are We There
  6. Damien Jurado - Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Son

  5. Pure X - Angel
  4. Sun Kil Moon - Benji
  3. The War on Drugs - Lost in the Dream
  2. Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 2
  1. Angel Olsen - Burn Your Fire for No Witness

DANGER! your band's been hijacked.

I need to rant a little bit about the Black Keys. Not so much about the Black Keys but about Danger Mouse. Ok, maybe both. I was first turned on to the Black Keys after they were three albums deep into their career. To this day Rubber Factory remains my favorite album in their catalogue. I was delighted to find The Big Come Up and thickfreakness and mostly enjoyed Magic Potion but when they were said to be working with Danger Mouse, the highly touted but mostly boring mind behind the epic Jay-Z/Beatles mash-up The Grey Album, I was skeptical. When I listened to their work together on Attack & Release I tried hard to be a believer. Songs like "Oceans and Streams" and "I Got Mine" gave me hope that the band had not abandoned the basement blues sound of their previous albums but over-produced snoozers like "Psychotic Girl" and the lead single "Strange Times" made it obvious that Danger Mouse was having too large an influence over their sound. That being said, it was different than what they had done before and that, coupled with the hiring of a highly popular outside producer in Danger Mouse, seemed to be enough to garner a larger audience. Fine.

I will admit that since Attack & Release I have become one of this people who says things like, "I knew this band before anyone else was listening to them" (an obvious lie to myself since I've already told you my first exposure to them came on their third album). What attracted to the band in the first place was their gritty, rawness. It was not surprising to learn that Attack & Release was the first album the band recorded in a professional studio. I liked that their prior records sounded dirty, or "unprofessional." Then along came Danger Mouse and ruined everything. Now, after releasing their fourth album with Danger Mouse at the helm, I've almost lost all interest in the band. I pick and choose songs from Brothers and  El Camino, which is probably their biggest commercial hit. I've been doing the same with their latest, Turn Blue. And when I heard "Year in Review" I nearly popped a blood vessel in my brain. Where is the damn guitar? This is a band that cites Howlin' Wolf and Robert Johnson as inspirations. And I had to actually try to hear the guitar. It's a catchy enough song but this band used to tear it up! In fact, four tracks earlier on the album opener "Weight of Love" I was practically giddy with guitar ruffage. I could only come to the conclusion that he'd finally done it, that Danger Mouse had completed his evil plan to take control of my beloved grease grinding, steel plowing, dust wielding, guitar bleeding band and turned them into lifeless, soul-less monotone drones like he has with so many other acts.

So folks, if you're U2 fans I suggest that you band together and intervene now because Danger Mouse has his sights set on your favorite band and he won't rest until he's sucked the fun out of them. 

Here's how the Black Keys used to sound:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/zfoNfTXgGzk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>