Second factor, I stream a heavy amount of music. I don't stream to be cheap; I stream to discover. If I dig something, I'll go out and buy it. Plain and simple. Streaming has only fueled my desire to discover new music even more than usual.
We had some pretty awesome music come out this year. I am thinking next year will top it though, maybe ? Anyways, without further ado.....here's my favorite albums of 2014
10. "Fuckface Unstoppable" By Fuckface Unstoppable: I came across this band while I was on my CKY kick this year. I didn't expect much, to be honest I expected this band to be another Gnarkill. To my surprise, this isn't bad. The music is really just dirty rock n roll. And with a name like Fuckface Unstoppable, you can't go wrong.
9. "Pale Communion" by Opeth: To be honest, I really hadn't listened to Opeth in some time. I dug the musical direction they went on "Heritage" but I didn't enjoy it. This album however is a full blown 70's prog record. I am deeply impressed with this album. A complete game changer for sure.
8. "Art Official Age" By Prince: Finally, a new Prince record ! A new, very old school sounding Prince record I might add. If Prince went on a extended hiatus following the release of the "Batman" soundtrack and didn't make another until now: "Art Official Age" would be the album he would've made.
7. Led Zeppelin Reissues: I remember obtaining a 30 disc bootleg of rarities once and thinking to myself "You know, this would be great bonus disc material for a future reissue release.". It took a while, but it finally happened.
Aside from the bonus material, I am stoked they're reissuing their entire catalog the right way and at a respectable price. I avoided buying the box-set and their entire catalog for this reason because I knew in the back of my mind this was coming. Really looking forward to the "Physical Graffiti" and "In Through The Out Door" reissues (My favorite Zep albums).
6. "Tyranny Of Will" by Iron Reagan: While I love Municipal Waste for the old school Thrash metal, I love Iron Reagan for the crossover/hardcore material. I was so stoked to see the Relapse logo on this record. Congratulations on the Relapse deal ! What started as a side project is now a big thing.
5. "PLECTRUMELECTRUM" By Prince & 3RDEYEGIRL: You know how Prince's back up band is top notch ? Prince gives them an album of their own. Out of the 2 Prince's releases this year, I enjoyed this one more than "Art Official Age". This is essentially a jam album and I love it. I really dig 3RDEYEGIRL. These ladies are my heroes. They are killer musicians and they can stand on stage with a legend, do there thing and think nothing of it. If I were on stage with Prince, I would shit my pants and lose my composure. I hope a live album is in the works.
4. "Manslaughter" By Body Count: I love the first Body Count album. This one, I have to say kind of holds a candle to it. This is what constructive aggression sounds like.
3. "Down IV-Part II" By Down: I've really gotten into sludge/doom/stoner metal this year. For me, the center point of it all has to be Down. I am a sucker for a fat, juicy riff and on a Down record there's no storage of them. They're sludgy but at the same they have this groove element to him. I love this band.
2. "Bloodstone & Diamonds" By Machine Head: I really dug "Killer & Kings", so therefore I figure I will enjoy the rest of the album. I bought this album almost a month ago and I've probably listened to this album from start to finish numerous times ! The production on this album is top notch. The strings on this are beautiful. Hard-hitting and just outright epic. Then again, did you expect anything less from a band that calls themselves Machine Head ?
1. "Once More 'Round The Sun" by Mastodon: The soundtrack to my year. I love this album, enough said.
SINGLE OF THE YEAR:
"Motherfucker" (Single) By Faith No More: These guys were the soundtrack to my freshman year of high school. 9th grade sucked but somehow Faith No More made it better. I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams these guys getting back together.
The only expectation I had for this was that it was going to be awesome. And you know what ? I was completely right. Time hasn't diminished the almighty Faith No More ! It just made them better.
I kind of get a sense the album is going to be a throwback to "The Real Thing" & "Angel Dust". But then again, this is Faith No More. You expect one thing and you'll get something entirely different. That's the beauty of this band and that's why I love them.
I will be buying this single when it gets released digitally. I am going apeshit over this song. It's like "High Road" all over again.
Word of advice: I really think Metallica should hold off releasing anything new next year. 2015, I think FNM will reign supreme.
Not Completely Terrible But Rather Hit Or Miss:
1. "Redeemer Of Souls" By Judas Priest: It wasn't "Nostradamus" bad nor was it "Angel Of Retribution" good. Then again, this is the almighty Judas Priest ! The same band that gave us such classics as "Painkiller", "British Steel", "Screaming For Vengeance", "Defenders Of The Faith"....the list goes on. Point is, they don't need to release another "masterpiece" because they already have so many. I am okay with that.
2. "Space Invader" By Ace Frehley: He's doing the whole "we're going to sound and play like it's 1976" thing. That's something KISS is doing. You're not in KISS anymore and you're better than KISS, sound like it ! On a minor note, love to see another Frehley's Comet album.
3. "Constricting Rage Of The Merciless" By Goatwhore: I don't think I listened to this one enough.
4. "Primus And The Chocolate Factory" By Primus: So great to see the trademark line-up of Primus back together. However, I don't get the point of this. While I will say this is an interesting take on Willy Wonka, I hope an album of original is in the works. I want to hear what the trademark line-up of Primus can do now musicially.
5. ".5: The Gray Chapter" By Slipknot: The aggression that was lost on "All Hope Is Gone" is found on this record. I don't know, I really didn't enjoy this album beyond the singles that were released. I will say this, I have the up most respect for any band that can carry on after a member passes.
Most Anticipated For 2015:
-Faith No More
-Rob Zombie
-Anthrax
-TAKACS DEMO
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