D’Angelo and the Vanguard, Black Messiah released mid-Dec is a contender. I love Voodoo by D’Angelo. Its a soul classic and deserves to be compared to the greats Marvin Gaye, Sly Stone et al. I think this may be better. Its an eclectic mix as its lists of collaborators would suggest but D pulls it together into a coherent work. I’ve waited 14 years for this and so far I am not disappointed. A highlight in a horrific Xmas, more on that later!
Month: December 2014
Top Albums of 2014
Singles done… now lets get to the albums:
Here are my picks:
Nick Mulvey – First Mind
For me this is my stand out album of the year for the pone fact it is what has been most listened to throughout 2014 and I still keep coming back to it.
Dilated Peoples – Directors of Photography
Hands down their best effort to date and the best thing that the world of Hip Hop has produced in 2014.
Future Islands – Singles
Hit my radar this year as an album of the month and took a while to grow on me. Infact it still is but I seem to find it getting better and better.
Caribou – Our Love
This lived up to all my hopes. Best album of the year… tough to say. Is in my top three though.
Chet Faker – Built On Glass
This was an un-epected surprise for me. Many sunny days were spent listening to this album over the summer.
Statik Selektah – #whatgoesaround
20 tracks jammed pack with some outstanding beats and MC’s. Even if Hip Hop isn’t your thing this is worth a listen.
Bombay Bicycle Club – So Long, See You Tomorrow
Released early in the year this album had a big part of my listening time for the first half of the year.
Banks – Goddess
Did banks live up to all the hype around her? I’m not sure. Having her album delayed for almost a year didn’t help her cause. With that it may have been worth the wait though it seemed to sneak below the radar of many.
SBTRKT – Wonder Where We Land
I like it when and artist moves to the next level on their second album and this was the case with SBTRKT for sure. For me it lived up to expectations.
Erol Alkan – Fabriclive 77
I know this a a compilation but it had to get a mention. What a fantastic mix, worht checking out.
Top 10 Songs of 2014
I’ve just compiled my top songs of the year. You can read all about it here:
https://storify.com/DavidHAllison/david-s-soaraway-top-ten-songs-of-2014
Come on then, let’s roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty. What are yours? What did you make of mine? Let’s do this things, brothers…