A frantic month of work left me with too little energy to get super adventurous with new stuff or embark on any epic research projects. Instead I ended up hitting mostly-underwhelming albums by known quantities (!!!, Cibo Matto, Basement Jaxx, Legowelt, Tobacco, Sjukstugan) and trawled the blogs for newer stuff to round out my 2014 lists. Still gems to be had! Especially from the seemingly-endless expanses of Ty Segall collaborators, a connection that seldom disappoints. For example:
Album of the Month
Mikal Cronin - MCII - I've cooled on this a bit, it's a little too pop to last as your favorite thing ever forever, but I listened to this a boatload this month. Catchy, intricate, undemanding, never boring, a small masterpiece of big-guitar power-pop.
Also Recommended!
Meatbodies - Meatbodies - On the other side of the Segall spectrum, these guys make heavy, hooky garage-psychadelic-metal that hits like a ton of bricks and still manages to be a ton of fun.
Kurt Vile - It's a Big World Out There (And I Am Scared) - Just when you thought Vile's drawnout, hypnotic, epic guitar sound and craggy groan couldn't get any better, he trims the fat, adds some synths, and ends up with something familiar, different, and quietly magical.
Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 2 - A hip hop album packed with intricate rhymes and impossible production moves, all while sounding completely effortless, the record in the block of vinyl just waiting to be found.
Courtney Barnett - The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas - Not so much a full recommendation as a special prize for being something I liked a bit when I expected to //hate// it, and for getting Avant Gardener solidly stuck in my head something fierce for a solid week.
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