mordwyr: Don't feel bad amigo. For what its worth, I often haven't heard half of everyones' lists either.
misspoptart: Your mom knows her smooth music! And of course, thanks for sticking around. You'll get a kick out of the rest!
Ki: As am I. And honestly, it could have been #1 this year under normal circumstances. But things just don't always pan out as you plan, and there were plenty of competitors.
15. Nate Williams - Got To Let Go
Put On A Playlist With: early D'Angelo, Usher, Leon Ware
I touched upon this soulful Welshman in my yacht rock journal not too long ago, but the whole album actually ended up having a lot more staying power than I expected. While the songwriting of course is great, Williams' particular sonic palette is a quilted pattern of the chillest elements in modern R&B and early 80's L.A. synth pop that immediately elevates him above most of the better known players on the board right now.
14. Freddie Gibbs & The Worlds Freshest - The Tonite Show (EP)
Put On A Playlist With: Pinata by Madlib & Freddie Gibbs, the smoother side of gangsta rap
The best half hour of hip-hop you'll spend this year. The critics will tell you that Freddie's collaboration with Madlib is the only top shelf drink you'll need (and it IS good), but I liken this to being a great cheap frozen margarita mix as opposed to the straight up patrón tequila of Piñata: the former is a lot more fun at parties, and your posse will be surprised at how good it is once they've had a taste.
13. Rick Miller - Heart Of Darkness
Put On A Playlist With: The Moody Blues, David Gilmour, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, Nick Cave
Rick Miller is one of the more interesting independent one-man shows in the 70's inspired prog-rock world, a man full of dark morbid tales to tell and a particular aesthetic he wants to canvas them in. In the case of Heart Of Darkness, that aesthetic is somewhere between classic Moody Blues / King Crimson and the multiculturally minded realms of early Peter Gabriel or any number of early Darkwave bands who signed to 4AD throughout the 80's. 'Haunting' isn't a word I apply too much to music I listen to, but ol' Rick here certainly fits that description to a fair degree. Brilliant stuff when the mood is right!
12. Veni Domine - Light
Put On A Playlist With: Your favorite classic doom metal, Kamelot, Fields Of The Nephilim, Queensrÿche
I've always described these guys as Saint Vitus meets Queensrÿche circa Operation: Mindcrime, and that comparison still holds true to a degree with their latest Light. Absolutely top notch symphonic doom-laden heavy metal, and I find it fascinating that they've been putting out such great music since 1991 despite their obscurity.
11. Devin Townsend - Z2
Put On A Playlist With: Strapping Young Lad, other Townsend albums, The Omega Experiment, Ramage Inc.
We're back to Townsend again...but again, who else is capable of releasing three perfect albums in the space of one year? Z2 is two records in one, a melodic metal masterpiece called Sky Blue and his conceptually driven sequel to 2007's Ziltoid The Omniscient known as Dark Matters. The latter is a lot of fun, but Sky Blue may be modern music's equivalent to Def Leppard's Hysteria: you get so caught up in the hooks and production that you can forgive Townsend for not taking a huge creative leap from 2012's Epicloud. He's the best at what he does and he damn well knows it by now: we're all just along for the ride at this point.