Revisiting 2014: What I Missed and a Spotify Playlist

In my quest to fully update my most favorite music through time via playlists and blog reviews, here is an update for the nondescript year of 2014.  I don’t remember anything about this year, other than ISIS, ebola, and the anxiety and preparations of a new baby on the way.  The music was, as per usual, a great balm – click here for my original Top 20 of the year post.  Of course I missed (and misjudged) a few things, added and corrected here.

For a fulsome 2014 best song playlist, check out Spotify here!  Read below for some quick reviews of can’t miss 2014 albums that I...um...missed!

Albums That Slipped Me By

There were a few albums that would have pushed their way into the Top 20, had I heard them.  Quite a few others have grabbed my ears since my Top albums of 2014 write up and all come highly recommended.

Adrianne Lenker - Hours Were The Birds / Adrienne Lenker and Buck Meek

As written elsewhere Lenkers solo album Abyskiss (2018) stole my heart and made me a believer in singer-songwriter folk again; and made me a gigantic fan of her band Big Thief.  So I went back and discovered this her first s/t solo record and a collaboration with Buck Meek.  Equally amazing, poignant, creative folk.

Haley Bonar – Last War

Taking a cue from early Bangles as well as dreampoppers like Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Frankie Cosmos, and Veronica Falls, Bonar treats us to a heaping treasure of airy, melodic, psych-tinged gems. 

Beck –Morning Phase

In 2014, I misjudged Beck’s Morning Phase, mentioning it merely as a very good album (8.1/10).  After repeated listens it would now be in my Top 10 of the year.  It is mellow, laid back, atmospheric folk that must have drifted by me unnoticed the first time around.  But give it your attention and it rewards – so beautifully produced, sweet, and soporific. 

Owl John– Owl John

We lost an amazing artist with the 2018 suicide of Scott Hutchison, front-man for Frightened Rabbit.  I’m a huge FR fan and was gutted by this news.  This was also the period in which I discovered that Hutchison had the Owl John solo project.  The similarities to FR are unmistakable, due in most part to Hutchison’s familiar heart punching vocal delivery, but there is slightly more experimentation happening here.  Alongside the guitars there are a numerous electronic flourishes, samples, and atmosphere.  We know that Hutchison, in his full band set up, can be emotionally powerful, but the angst and self-deprecation is on full display here.  As essential an album as any in the Frightened Rabbit catalog.

Eternal Summers – The Drop Beneath

Chimey guitar-driven dreampop with punkish flourishes, recalling The Primitives, Lush, and Cocteau Twins, and keeping pace with gold-standard contemporaries Alvvays, Wolf Alice, and Soft Science. 

Allo Darlin’ – We Come From The Same Place

Slumberland Records is almost a can’t miss label, this time giving us the perfect folk pop of Allo, Darlin’, a band as great as Camera Obscura, Belle and Sebastian and The Lucksmiths.  Jangle and twang in the summertime.

Weyes Blood – The Innocents

Weyes Blood took the number one spot of 2019 with Titanic Rising, channeling Fleetwood Mac and The Carpenters.  Amazing.  Back in 2014, The Innocents showed a much darker and experimental approach,  more along the lines of Enya, Kate Bush, and Dead Can Dance.  I originally didn’t like it too much, but it’s totally grown on me.

Kevin Drew– Darlings

I will always check out the extended family of Broken Social Scene (Stars, Metric, Amy Milan, Brendan Canning, etc.) because chances of a good record are high.  Kevin Drew’s second solo album is particularly stunning, and perhaps comes closest to the BSS sound.

Mogwai –Rave Tapes

Because of my genre preferences in the 1990s, Mogwai was an ever-present recommendation; but they never did resonate with me.  A little, sometimes.  Now much much later they have finally caught my attention with the more urgent, psych-informed Rave Tapes. Brilliant.

TV on the Radio – Seeds

I’m just realizing that it’s 2020 and we haven’t seen new TVOTR in 6 years, not since this, their last album, in 2014.  Seeds is more of the same, which is a good thing, as no one sounds like TVOTR.  Soulful, angsty vocals undergirded by propulsive beats, rich organ, mesmerizing loops, and fuzzy/reverbed guitar lines. 

Nurse and Soldier – You Are Standing Behind the Curtain

Bobby Matador of Oneida and his partner Erica Fletcher have been sporadically putting out music as Nurse and Soldier since the early 90’s.  This album (with a very limited physical release of 300 vinyl LPs) got very little notice as far as I can tell.  Too bad – it’s a great little slice of lo-fi analog keyboards and muted guitar, reminding me of early Stereolab, Broadcast, and Novak.  Love it!

Dean Wareham– Dean Wareham

I am not sure why/when Wareham decides to “go it alone” as opposed to creating a new Luna or Dean and Britta record.  He’s principle songwriter in all cases and it is the exact same recipe.  In any case, this is as good as any Luna record, so if you like arty, Velvet Underground inspired catchiness (this time with more keyboards), check this out.

Morgan Delt – Morgan Delt

This is twisted psychedelic garage pop, with clear debts to Syd Barrett, Electric Prunes, and Silver Apples. And The Beatles, I suppose. In terms of contemporary stuff, think Youth Lagoon, Thee Oh Sees, Temples, Wand, and Flaming Lips.

Eno /Hyde – Someday World

Brian Eno taps Underworld’s Karl Hyde to contribute vocals to this outstanding set of polyphonic, tribalistic, quasi-dance songs.  Mysterious and worldly, like Eno’s stuff with David Byrne or John Cale. 

New Mendicants– Into The Lime

A welcome supergroup, coalescing in my hometown of Toronto, Canada, The New Mendicants combine the considerable talents of Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), Joe Pernice (Pernice Brothers), and Mike Belitsky (The Sadies).  The results are what you’d expect – hella catchy, literate guitar pop that jangles your heart-strings.

Other Releases of Note

WHOOP-szo debuted with their mind-crushing debut ep Niizhwaaswo; Ought put out the "Once More With Feeling" 7" featuring "Pill", which also featured actual singing - fabulous; Swervedriver released the "Setting Sun" 7", signaling the 2015 return I Wasn't Born To Lose You - but the song was middling, giving me anxiety.  Great singles came out by Lazy Salon (LZY_SLN-001), High Wire (LNOE), School of Seven Bells (I Got Knocked Down, a Ramones cover), and Wildhoney (Seventeen Forever).  Dark Mean's EP Samuel the Phoenix was stellar countrified rock.

The biggest goldmine, for me at least, was the digital release of THREE albums (30+ tracks) of Adam Franklin covering his own back catalog of Swervedriver, Toshack Highway, Bolts of Melody, and Magnetic Morning (and a few covers), based on fan requests.  These reworkings were revelatory for a rabid fan such as me and worthy for even the most casual fan.  But most exciting was that I had the opportunity to commission Raise-era b-side "She's Beside Herself" (#5 on the Top 500) for this release.  Adam sent me the track, but then reworked it again for the finalized released.  Meaning I have a singular, one of kind version of one of my all-time favorite songs by my all time favorite guitarist/artist.  I did, in the end, share it with a few other "Swervies" out there.  How could I not?  But I almost didn't.

See you soon.  Wash your hands and stay in your hovels.