So far, so good... In the first half of 2013 we've heard several albums that will certainly be among the top releases of the year come December and at least one, The Knife's "Shaking The Habitual", that stands out as a clear favorite for "Album of the Year".
The Swedish brother & sister electro duo have returned after seven years with a monster, double album that sounds like nothing else around, capable of reaching the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. The rush of excitement created by tracks like "Full of Fire" or "A Tooth For An Eye" is contradicted by the confusing drone of "Old Dreams Waiting to Be Realized" at the end of disc 1, only to be seduced again by the mystery of "Raging Lung" that starts disc 2. The roller-coaster ride continues all the way to the end of this stunning 96-minute trip that asks you to question everything you think you know and leaves no place for a middle ground; you'll either love it or hate it and the list that follows makes it clear where we stand.
The Swedish brother & sister electro duo have returned after seven years with a monster, double album that sounds like nothing else around, capable of reaching the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. The rush of excitement created by tracks like "Full of Fire" or "A Tooth For An Eye" is contradicted by the confusing drone of "Old Dreams Waiting to Be Realized" at the end of disc 1, only to be seduced again by the mystery of "Raging Lung" that starts disc 2. The roller-coaster ride continues all the way to the end of this stunning 96-minute trip that asks you to question everything you think you know and leaves no place for a middle ground; you'll either love it or hate it and the list that follows makes it clear where we stand.
Here are C.M.C.'s Top 40 Albums for the first half of the year based on what we've listened to the most up 'till now, in a list that avoids ranking (too early for this sort of decisions) but it's certainly not in alphabetical order:
Top 40 Albums (January - June 2013)
- Shaking The Habitual - THE KNIFE
- M B V - MY BLOODY VALENTINE
- More Light - PRIMAL SCREAM
- Silence Yourself - SAVAGES
- We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors Of Peace And Magic - FOXYGEN
- Waiting For Something To Happen - VERONICA FALLS
- Indigo Meadow - THE BLACK ANGELS
- Mosquito - YEAH YEAH YEAHS
- Trouble Will Find Me - THE NATIONAL
- Inform - Educate - Entertain - PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING
- Re-Mit - THE FALL
- Push The Sky Away - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
- Holy Fire - FOALS
- Images Du Futur - SUUNS
- Wakin’ On A Pretty Daze - KURT VILE
- Chelsea Light Moving - CHELSEA LIGHT MOVING
- English Little League - GUIDED BY VOICES
- The Terror - THE FLAMING LIPS
- Fade - YO LA TENGO
- Ghost On Ghost - IRON AND WINE
- Muchacho - PHOSPHORESCENT
- ...Like Clockwork - QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
- Modern Vampires Of The City - VAMPIRE WEEKEND
- Out Of View - THE HISTORY OF APPLE PIE
- New Moon - THE MEN
- Vanishing Point - MUDHONEY
- FIDLAR - FIDLAR
- You're Nothing - ICEAGE
- Coming Out Of The Fog - ARBOURETUM
- Almanac - WIDOWSPEAK
- Comedown Machine - THE STROKES
- Specter At The Feast - BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE
- Wash The Sins Not Only The Face - ESBEN AND THE WITCH
- Change Becomes Us - WIRE
- Rat Farm - MEAT PUPPETS
- One Track Mind - PSYCHIC ILLS
- You Owe Me Nothing But Love - COMANECHI
- The New Life - GIRLS NAMES
- The Invisible Way - LOW
- Hard Coming Down - GUN OUTFIT
And here's a favorite tracks playlist to go along with it... best enjoyed under the shade, somewhere by the sea:
