40. Director - Yonatan Gat Label: Joyful Noise Very fun and breezy instrumental improvised rock with great solos and grooves.
39. White Reaper Does it Again - White Reaper Album: Polyvinyl Garage punk trio with bubblegum hooks and psychedelic touches from Louisville, Kentucky.
38. Peace is the Mission - Major Lazer Label: Mad Decent Straight up electronic dancehall pop music
37. Cocksure - Laura Stevenson Label: Don Giovanni Female singer-songwriter with some major backbone
36. Every Open Eye - CHVRCHES Label: Goodbye Records Glasgow-based trio that plays synth pop inspired by Prince and Kate Bush.
35. Sremmlife - Rae Sremmurd Label: Interscope Exuberant party-oriented rap duo
34. Slurrup - Liam Hayes Label: Fat Possum Stripped down psych-rock songs with a pop edge and immediate appeal
33. Y Dydd Olaf - Gwenno Label: Heavenly Good ol' fashioned Welsh electro singer/songwriter pop music
32. Who's Gonna Get F***** First - Father Label: Awful Atlanta based rap, which is very NSFW
31. Predatory Headlights - Tenement Label: Don Giovanni Hooky but smart and powerfully imaginative punk music
30. Painted Shut - Hop Along Label: Saddle Creek Explosive, articulate, punk-suffused indie rock led by captivating female vocals
29. The Bearer of Bad News - Andy Shauf Label: Party Damage Canadian singer/songwriter whose dark, rustic tales reflect his prairie home
28. High - Royal Headache Label: What's Your Rupture? Sydney, Australia garage punkers infuse their raw sound with a heavy dose of AM radio soul and incredibly catchy songwriting
27. Sky City - Amason Label: Fairfax Recordings Swedish indie pop supergroup with members of Miike Snow, Dungen, and Little Majorette
26. All Yours - Widowspeak Label: Captured Tracks Dark, hazy music equally indebted to Mazzy Star and jangly Sarah Records-style indie pop
25. Melbourne, Florida - Dick Diver Label: Trouble in Mind Brainy indie pop that's heavily influenced by the literate, precise emotionalism of the Go-Betweens, as well as the scrappy indie rock of early Yo La Tengo
24. Kicking Every Day - All Dogs Label: Salinas Records Melodic, scruffy, and insightful indie rock band from Ohio
23. Non-Person - Vacation Label: Don Giovanni Very loud very messy punk music
22. Green Lanes - Ultimate Painting Label: Trouble in Mind Nice and simple '60s and '70s-inspired guitar pop
21. Vestiges and Claws - Jose Gonzalez Label: Mute Alternative singer/songwriter whose bewitching sound focuses on autumnal, acoustic indie pop
To me, 2013 was a really great year for music. When making this list, every album from pretty much 33 up to 2 I wish was higher on the list, and any album in the top 10 could've been number 1, they were all that good to my ears. I won't belabor this with a lot of writing, hopefully you'll find something you enjoy out of this. Also, check out my favorite song from each album below. Thanks for reading!
40. Andrew Cedermark - Home Life
39. Jagwar Ma - Howlin'
38. Cate Le Bon - Mug Museum
37. A$AP Rocky - Long.Live.ASAP
36. Chvrches - The Bones of What You Believe
35. Deerhunter - Monomania
34. Telekinesis - Domarion
33. Fuck Buttons - Slow Focus
32. Sky Ferreira - Night Time My Time
31. Neko Case - The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You
30. Arcade Fire - Reflektor
29. Mikal Cronin - MCII
28. Matmos - The Marriage of True Minds
27. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
26. Janelle Monae - The Electric Lady
25. Thundercat - Apocalypse
24. The Ex and Brass Unbound - Enormous Door
23. Toro Y Moi - Anything in Return
22. Death Grips - Government Plates
21. Lemuria - The Distance is So Big
20. Austra - Olympia
19. Potty Mouth - Hell Bent
18. Phosphorescent - Muchacho
17. Darkside - Psychic
16. Lorde - Pure Heroine
15. Frightened Rabbit - Pedestrian Verse
14. DJ Koze - Amygdala
13. Mark Kozelek and Jimmy LaValle - Perils From the Sea
12. Danny Brown - Old
11. Blood Orange - Cupid Deluxe
10. Foxygen - We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic
9. Kurt Vile - Wakin' on a Pretty Daze
8. Charli XCX - True Romance
7. HAIM - Days are Gone
6. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Push the Sky Away
Let me tell you something dear viewer (and, I know you're not viewers *Mike and Tom Eat Snacks reference* listen now) ... anyway, let me tell you, this mix was so difficult ... Tom Waits is my favorite songwriter and possibly my favorite musical artist of all time (keeps going back and forth between him and Yo La Tengo) ... I have almost all of his albums, and know a majority of them very well ... this is not to brag, just to let you know how difficult it was to make a single disc "Best Of" mix of this incredible man ... But, I finally did it, and, I must say I'm very proud of it ... here you will find 78 glorious minutes, 21 mind blowing tracks, representing 9 different great albums from Tom Waits .... I encourage you to explore any albums that peak your interest after listening to this mix (which I hope at least one person does) .... anyway, without further ado, here is the tracklist, and the link can be found at the bottom of this post:
(side note - I guess by "Best of" I really mean "My Favorite," so if you're upset that a certain song didn't make it or whatever, just know, it was very difficult, and I did the best I can do)
Tracklist:
1. “Long Way Home” from Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards 2. “Hold On” from Mule Variations 3. “Such a Scream” from Bone Machine 4. “Clap Hands” from Rain Dogs 5. “In the Neighborhood” from Swordfishtrombones 6. “Table Top Joe” from Alice 7. “You Can Never Hold Back Spring” from Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards 8. “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up” from Bone Machine 9. “Gun Street Girl” from Rain Dogs 10. “Big in Japan” from Mule Variations 11. “Gin Soaked Boy” from Swordfishtrombones 12. “Goin Out West” from Bone Machine 13. “Singapore” from Rain Dogs 14. “All the World is Green” from Blood Money 15. “Old Shoes (& Picture Postcards) from Closing Time 16. “Shore Leave” from Swordfishtrombones 17. “Jockey Full of Bourbon” from Rain Dogs 18. “Alice” from Alice 19. “Black Wings” from Bone Machine 20. “Downtown Train” from Rain Dogs 21. “Tom Traubert's Blues (Four Sheets to the Wind in Copenhagen) from Small Change
Here's a mix full of some of my favorite songs of all time ... great for a nice chilled out summer evening, or while studying, or anything really .... enjoy!
1. The National – Slow Show 2. Sun Kil Moon – Glen Tipton 3. Neko Case – This Tornado Loves You 4. The Decemberists – Engine Driver 5. Nick Drake – Free Ride 6. Simon and Garfunkle – Scarborough Fair 7. Sufjan Stevens – Casmir Pulaski Day 8. Wilco – Jesus Etc. 9. M. Ward – Chinese Translation 10. Pedro the Lion – Of Minor Prophets and their Prostitute Wives 11. Bonnie Prince Billie – I’ll Be Glad 12. Iron and Wine – Jezebel 13. Neil Young – Heart of Gold 14. Joni Mitchell – Carey 15. Cat Stevens – Maybe You’re Right 16. Bowerbirds – Northern Lights 17. Bon Iver – For Emma 18. Andrew Bird – Plasticities 19. Yo La Tengo – You Can Have It All 20. The Walkmen – Canadian Girl 21. Grizzly Bear – While You Wait for the Others
