Best New Artist
1. Justin Nozuka - You I Wind Land And Sea
2. Esperanza Spalding - Chamber Music Society
3. Maylee Todd - Choose Your Own Adventure
4. Andreya Triana - Lost Where I Belong
5. Full Crate & Mar - Conversations with Her EP
Honorable Mention: YahZarah - The Ballad of Purple St. James
Bruno Mars - Doo-Wops & Hooligans
Best EPs
1. Full Crate & Mar - Conversations With Her
2. James Blake - CMYK
3. Tokimonsta - Cosmic Intoxication
4. Mellow Orange - Last Resort
5. Flying Lotus - Pattern/Grid World
Best Instrumental Album
1. Tokimonsta - Midnight Menu
2. Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
3. Miguel Atwood Ferguson - Suite for Ma Dukes
4. Bonobo - Black Sands
5. Mount Kimbie - Crooks & Lovers
Honorable Mention - Skream - Outside Of The Box, Teebs - Ardour
Best Mixtape
1. La Roux x Major Lazer - LazerProof
2. DJ Muggs x Bambu - Los Angeles, Philippines
3. Wale - More About Nothing
4. J. Cole - Friday Night Lights
5. Wiz Khalifa - Kush x OJ
Best Hip Hop Albums
1. Versis - Illcandescent
2. Blu -theGODleeBarnes(lp)
3. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
4. Big Boi - Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
Best Instrumental Hip Hop Albums
1. Jansport J - MoveMeants
2. Freddie Joachim - Midway
3. Suff Daddy - The Gin Diaries
4. K-Murdock - Piano-rama
Best Albums of 2010
1. TOKiMONSTA - Midnight Menu
Midnight Menu absolutely blew me away. Jennifer is a polished producer, an innovative beat wizard and an astute groove master. Much like Flying Lotus, her music speaks volumes of her talent as a musician, not just as someone fooling around with electronic sounds. Never do her instrumentals hit you over the head nor do they dissolve into a world of non-sensical noise. There is a real balance to the way she layers her sound, coupled with playfulness that's hard to find in the new beat generation. One moment your seeped into a lush sonic jungle, the next you find yourself dancing relentlessly, without warning but it never feels sudden or rushed. Masterful in execution, Midnight Menu is my favorite album of 2010.
Selected Tracks: Madness, Look-a-Like, Death by Disco, Solitary Joy (Feat. Shaunise) & Lovely Soul
2. Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
A certified banger. A head nodder. A calm space lullaby. A space oddssey. The ultimate sess soundtrack. Cosmogramma is hip hop, space jazz, idm, minimal techno, funk, downtempo and Heaven thrown in a blender and set on 10. Steven's magic, again, is in his musicianship. His manipulation of sounds and genres, his disregard for boundaries and his penchant for the groove. He exalts it, praises it and next thing you know, that blunt you were smoking is gone, reality has melted away and you find yourself floating amongst the strings and kicks, the sitar, cymbals, the boom-bap breaking your neck (Mmmhmm, anyone?). This right here is my feel good record, my sleepy time album, my I wonder if jazz and idm had a baby would it sound this amazing record. My I fucking love this record, record.
Selected tracks: Mmmhmm, Pickled!,
3. Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid
An artist like Janelle Monae used to be a figment of my imagination: a classically trained vocalist capable of manipulating her voice to fit any genre, even the most unlikely, unheard of combination of genres, and sound outstanding. On top of that, this woman would be limitlessly talented. Well, either someone cooked up Ms. Monae in a lab or God answered my prayers (same thing really) and blessed us with The ArchAndroid. It's a sweeping achievement that I still really don't understand. It seems impossible to make pop go afro beat, psychedelic space funk, indie rock, brit rock, hymnal folk, jazz and broadway musical all at once, without overwhelming the listener, let alone driving you far, far away but The ArchAndroid remains big fun, even in it's soft and somber moments. It's even challenging, breaking the limits of pop music while simultaneously re imagining what pop can be. Janelle is a talented vocalist, writer, and visionary and it's all showcased on The ArchAndroid. Besides, she's bringing back the tailored suits and saddle shoes...a women after my own heart!
Selected Tracks: Wondaland, Oh, Maker, Tightrope (Ft. Big Boi),
4. Erykah Badu - New Amerykah, Part Two: Return of the Ankh
Erykah seems to make albums that speak to exactly where I am at and maybe going in my own life. While New Amerykah, Part One was much more political with a less organic sound, New Amerykah, Part Two found Erykah returning to her roots, if you will, focusing on the personal, the organic sound of live instrumentation, the tough and thoughtful, and happiness. Erykah sounds refresh, content. She is unabashedly honesty and vulnerable, and hopeful. It feels like a journal, like a nice walk through the mind of Ms. Badu. It's almost my second most scrobbled album of the year, how fitting! :)
Selected Tracks:
5. Justin Nozuka - You I Wind Land And Sea
Intimacy, that's what this album is. Like a long letter written to a lover, like late night confessions under the stars. Like a kiss that could shatter your world into a million little piece. It's a masterpiece of a sophomore album and not at all what I'd even imagined Justin would create. The sound is fuller, the band plays together like a dream and Justin's vocals are richer, tinged with a better understanding of the blues, of loss and longing. But it's his wistfulness, that longing, the introspective look over of being in love, of losing that love and making sense of the in between that shines so brightly on this album. At twenty-one, Justin's honesty really does come off as earnest, not cheesy or forced. You I Wind Land And Sea is just beautiful, well constructed with fantastic vocals, great musicianship and heartfelt lyrics. I truly, truly hope 2011 greets Justin with the recognition he deserves.
Selected Tracks:
6. Quadron - Quadron
Thank God for DJ Anthony Valadez and every music on the blogosphere with a good set of ears. Although Quadron's s/t album was released in Denmark in 2009, all of the hubub over the dynamic duo found Quadron being signed to LA's Plug Research label and the album was released in the states this past March. Quadron is the future of soul music. Coco's vocals are the stuff my dreams are made of: rich and silky, with a jazzy articulation. Robin's production is string and synth heavy, sophisticated and soulful, almost reminiscent of deep house at times and always funky. Together, Quadron has crafted the most cohesive and satisfying debut album I've had the pleasure of listening. I have yet to tire of Robin's production or of Coco's voice (my god, this girl is only twenty!) There's a lovely kitschiness to the lyrics, often about romance and general observations on people, that is refreshing and well needed.
Selected Tracks:
7. José James - BLACKMAGIC
A total departure from the straight jazz of The Dreamer, Blackmagic gets to the heart of jazz's roots: experimentation. And who better to help Jose experiment than Flying Lotus who produced three of the fourteen tracks that make up the album. Blackmagic is the smoothest, sexiest release of the year. The album is made for nothing but lovemaking and seduction. It's a dinner album, a bedroom album, a bubbles in the tub and candles on the floor type of an album. Where many of the year's releases about romance were either wistful or introspective, Blackmagic is entirely indulgent and celebratory, it's an album about love when it's good, when it's heavy, in the middle of the act or in preparation of. Two parts soul to three parts jazz, Jose's warm, sultry baritone evokes a young Gil Scott Heron while lyrically Jose writer the way the great jazz vocalists did: succinctly and honestly. This is a jazz album for people who absolutely adore the genre and for those who have no idea where to start as it's foundation rests solidly on that which came before while integrating electronic (a fantastic cover of Benga's dubstep anthem, Emotions) and nu jazz elements of today.
Selected Track: Made For Love,
8. Bilal - Airtight's Revenge
Airtight's Revenge. Thinking about this album makes me sigh. It is perhaps as human as music can get, that is to say: universal. This isn't a soul album, it isn't an r&b album, it's an album that has something for everyone. Airtight is at moments soulful, experimental, jazzy and even tinged with the peculiarities of indie rock yet disciplined by a Soulquarian vibe. It is a questioning album, one that asks questions and makes you contemplate your own questions. It is melancholy and inspiring, meditative and that's where it's strength lies because Bilal is a vocalist capable of turning questions into poignant songs, songs you don't mind thinking about for a while, music you don't mind falling into for a few days. It's a challenging album if you're looking for something instant and pallid, but if you are looking for something refreshing, something urgent and pressing, Airtight's Revenge is the album you are looking for.
Selected Tracks:
9. Corinne Bailey Rae - The Sea
The Sea gripped me on first listen. A ball of hurt formed in my throat as I listened to Corinne sing so gently the first few lines of ' I'd Do It All Again'. The Sea is, well, reminiscent of the actual sea. It pulls you in and tosses you about, stormy, and suddenly, it's calm and soothing; the sound of it a bit frightening but exhilarating, even inviting and sensual.Corinne tackles loss and makes sense of it elegantly, looking it right in the eye but with a grace that invokes hope, above all else.Corinne is also at her strongest lyrically, crafting songs about love, lamenting and solitude with a deft understanding and confidence that is brilliant and shining. The sound is a real departure from herself titled album. There are guitars and drums, dissonant piano keys, sweet electronic chirping and something that has to be an glockenspiel, all rendered with superb musicianship. The Sea is decidedly soulful even while embracing the best elements of indie rock. It's a pearl of an album, an achievement wrought in pain as much as triumph that stays with you well after the first listen and reminds you, where there is pain, there is also beauty.
Selected Tracks: Feel Like the First Time, I'd Do It All Again,
10. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
And here is where it gets truly interesting...POWER got me excited. I chose to ignore the Good Friday releases because I was super anxious to hear the songs in context to MBDTF and when I did listen, I was disappointed and I'll explain why. First of all, let me say that this is not a bad album by any means, it is in fact a great album. What gets me about MBDTF is that it was released at a time where the music industry (mainstream, music that is) is basically on life support so it bothers me to award it perfect reviews. I'll be the first to say it, the album is not perfect, by any means.
However you spin it, the truth is this: Kanye is just creative enough, just on the fringe enough and passionate enough about music to create something that no one else would have the capability of creating in the current climate of mainstream music offering. Kanye is hungry to be great so he puts the work in to be just that, while everyone else is busy one upping each other (how exactly do you one up mediocrity? With more mediocrity of course...yes, I'm pointing at you Nicki Minaj) Kanye is busy making actual music. That said, while the sound of the album is grandiose, ambitious, inventive, and probably some of Kanye's best production (prog rock and IDM samples, nuff said) something was lacking for me lyrically as a whole.
There are some shining moments, namely Runaway, Devil in a New Dress, POWER and Blame Game, where Kanye's public and personal struggles, along with his internal struggles, are so well articulated fusing humor, introspection and self examination in a way very few mainstream hip hop/rap artist would even care to consider but then there are moments that fall flat and feel, lyrically, like filler. Like because I'm Kanye, I can say whatever the fuck I want to say and it'll be great. And for the most part, that's true, but I want more than that, I need more than that. I can count on both hands overlooked, indie/underground hip hop artists with albums that would have made a lot of people think twice about calling MBDTF a masterpiece but, no one is concerned with those emcees, but they're on the up and up and once Kanye has some real competition than we'll see if MBDTF is indeed a masterpiece.
Until then, we'll just have to see.
Selected Tracks:
Honorable Mentions: Gil Scott Heron - I'M New Here, Sia - We Are Born, The Foreign Exchange - Authenticity, Robyn - Body Talk, Pt. 1, Electric Wire Hustle - Electric Wire Hustle, Gonjasufi - A Sufi and a Killer
for more music, check me out at http://loudersounds.tumblr.com
Until next year
-doshite