Year is almost over.... Favorite album of 2014?

[Telephant]

Lee Fields & The Expressions - Emma Jean

Fuck yes.

Just saw him for the 5th time play here in Austin at The Parish. THAT, my friend, is a performer. Stage presence and then some. Nobody compares to his voice in that genre right now (Charles Bradley is close though). The Expressions are one hell of a band as well.

Do you like Nick Waterhouse? More of an old school doo wop vibe but some killer shit none the less. Also Nick Curran and The Low Lifes. He's dead now but he played with the Fabulous Thunderbirds for a minute.

[K-Bizzle]

Sage Francis - Copper Gone

My favorites this year are all really predictable for the styles I typically listen to.

Comeback Kid - Die Knowing
The Menzingers - Rented World
The Lawerance Arms - Metropole
Rx Bandits - Gemini
Bayside - Cult

I've been pretty out of touch with new things outside of my "home" genre this year.
Thats typically not the case but this year I just haven't felt that urge to go seeking out new things as much.


And for the record there are no platinum albums this year because of how people consume music and genre diversity.
Look at the platinum albums from the past decade and tell me that the reason there wasn't one this is is because this years music sucks and the last decade was good.

[Loop Bizkit]

As far as 2014 releases go, I have listened to these two more than any others, so these, I guess. The Riff Raff record is just fantastic.

[Ruiner]

Lee Fields & The Expressions - Emma Jean

Fuck yes.

Just saw him for the 5th time play here in Austin at The Parish. THAT, my friend, is a performer. Stage presence and then some. Nobody compares to his voice in that genre right now (Charles Bradley is close though). The Expressions are one hell of a band as well.

Do you like Nick Waterhouse? More of an old school doo wop vibe but some killer shit none the less. Also Nick Curran and The Low Lifes. He's dead now but he played with the Fabulous Thunderbirds for a minute.

Haven't heard either of those artists but i'll check 'em out!

[Telephant]

Lee Fields & The Expressions - Emma Jean

Fuck yes.

Just saw him for the 5th time play here in Austin at The Parish. THAT, my friend, is a performer. Stage presence and then some. Nobody compares to his voice in that genre right now (Charles Bradley is close though). The Expressions are one hell of a band as well.

Do you like Nick Waterhouse? More of an old school doo wop vibe but some killer shit none the less. Also Nick Curran and The Low Lifes. He's dead now but he played with the Fabulous Thunderbirds for a minute.

Haven't heard either of those artists but i'll check 'em out!

The Nick Curran and The low Lifes is some of my favorite stuff ever. Its like a dirtier sleazier version of JD Macpherson, or a punked out version of Little Richard. Killer shit!

[GuitarBilly]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

[Yarbicus]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

[GuitarBilly]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

yeah but no one bought it

[ovid9]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

yeah but no one bought it

I'd say its sad, but I don't know, I'm trying to think of the last platinum album I cared about.

I mean, yeah, the industry is in rough shape, but I have to think if it would've rushed to embrace new tech as fast as possible instead of fighting the future things wouldn't be as band.

I do feel bad for the mid-major and small bands suffering. The fact there aren't artists with 4 lambroginis anymore doesn't really bother me one way or another.

I'm also old and actually buy a lot of music and don't really use any streaming services. I'm the odd ball anymore.

[Dickarms]

tastes are more diverse

AND

spotify

[Dickarms]

The Nick Curran and The low Lifes is some of my favorite stuff ever. Its like a dirtier sleazier version of JD Macpherson, or a punked out version of Little Richard. Killer shit!

i need to raid your spotify and culturefied

[leftyaxeman]

Never fear, Taylor Swift will hit platinum!

[Yarbicus]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

yeah but no one bought it

I'm talking about music that will NEVER sell 1,000,000 copies so the "Platinum" becomes meaningless. Frankly, I look forward to the day that record labels no longer have a financial incentive to shove Lorde down our throats.

[K-Bizzle]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

yeah but no one bought it

I'm talking about music that will NEVER sell 1,000,000 copies so the "Platinum" becomes meaningless. Frankly, I look forward to the day that record labels no longer have a financial incentive to shove whoever that bitch that sings fancy is down our throats.

Fixed.
Lorde is actually catchy at times.

Regardless tracking album sales in this age would be like tracking DVD sales if everything that came out was available on Netflix.

People are consuming their media differently, industries need to either get ahead of it and accept that or eventually become extinct.
HBO has seen what has happened to their media (pirated en masse) because they stuck to the old model and now they're finally catching up and making GO available cable subscription free.

The music industry needs to care less album sales and work on making more/better/profitable competition to things like Spotify.

[GuitarBilly]

Somewhat unrelated..but 2014 is the first year with no platinum records since the award was created in 1976. Sad state of affairs for the recording industry.

Disagree. I think that it means that listeners are expanding beyond the few artists labels would like us to concentrate on. Some killer music came out this year for those of us used to ignoring the mainstream.

yeah but no one bought it

I'm talking about music that will NEVER sell 1,000,000 copies so the "Platinum" becomes meaningless. Frankly, I look forward to the day that record labels no longer have a financial incentive to shove Lorde down our throats.

eh that's short sighted. Not too long ago there were plenty of awesome albums turning platinum every year... Rush, Maiden, Sabbath, AIC, Ozzy, KISS, Tool, ZZ Top, Deep Purple, Zeppelin, Floyd, Beatles, Stones are all multi-platinum sellers AND great bands.....

It's a shame that the new generations of equally great rock bands will never have that opportunity and will pretty much struggle forever because the industry is dead.

[DoubleBarrel]

Frankly, I look forward to the day that record labels no longer have a financial incentive to shove Lorde down our throats.

Been saying this since napster came out. The death of record companies can be the rebirth of music.

[ovid9]

eh that's short sighted. Not too long ago there were plenty of awesome albums turning platinum every year... Rush, Maiden, Sabbath, AIC, Ozzy, KISS, Tool, ZZ Top, Deep Purple, Zeppelin, Floyd, Beatles, Stones are all multi-platinum sellers AND great bands.....

It's a shame that the new generations of equally great rock bands will never have that opportunity and will pretty much struggle forever because the industry is dead.

All of those bands started out near the front of a relatively new style. Sure it was rock/hard rock in some fashion but a lot of them were riding the front wave or near it of whatever their genre was (or were just absolute musical geniuses, often both.)

And there was a LOT less selection. You pretty much heard what was on the radio, music was selected for you. Sure, there was the less famous stuff and music lovers could root around for smaller bands and they did, but in general those bands got huge by being excellent and also being the best of a relatively limited number of accessible bands.

Rock's and even metal have been around a long time at this point. Doing something new is tough, and with the internet, there are thousands of bands accessible at the click of a mouse. Its hard for even the really great bands to rise as far above the rest. Its unfortunate, but I am interested in seeing how online concerts and stuff do. There are some interesting ways artists are starting to get their music out to their dispersed fans.

The industry will adapt and sure, we might not have multiplatinum acts anymore, but hopefully people will support great music.

[Devin]

lulz, Riff-Raff is amazing


I'm really not sure what my favorite album of the year is, yet.

[K-Bizzle]

What I think about every time someone says the music now isn't good but it used to be good.

[downstemmed]

Record labels are the only thing preventing bands from being 100% plagerized. It's 2014, not 1978. Most people can't even form an original though. When they hear an original idea, they confused it with the marbles rattling in their own heads.