Anteater's 30 (ish) Favorite Albums Of 2014

Anteater · 12-14-2014, 07:51 PM

To differentiate this a bit from last year's approach, I'll be doing little snapshots of the first twenty and then more in-depth looks at the top ten.

30. Ought - More Than Any Other Day

Put On A Playlist With: Nomeansno, Magazine, Cardiacs

Canada's latest heatseekers in the post-punk world pulled out all the stops on this one: familiar elements abound, but there's enough cool ideas and attitude to bring the best out of this punchy, bass-heavy production. You won't find me rioting anytime soon, but this would be an ideal soundtrack to that.

29. Teramaze - Esoteric Symbolism

Put On A Playlist With: Karnivool, Coheed & Cambria, Anubis Gate

Ah progressive metal, one of those genres so dear to my heart. Few modern acts tick as many of the "right" boxes as these Australians though. Esoteric Symbolism is a melodic metal shot of adrenaline straight to the heart of a jaded genre, complete with a grasp on hooks and songwriting that would make the best pop acts envious.

28. Pat Metheny Unity Group - Kin (<-->)

Put On A Playlist With: ...other Pat Metheny albums of course!

Metheny has always possessed a supreme grasp on mood and space as both songwriter and living guitar messiah, but this time he spices up the proceedings a bit with horns, sax and more typical jazz instrumentation on the back end instead of the World-music flavored synths he'd typically bring in on his old Group's projects. This would be a top-notch fusion album any year of course, but for 2014 its a no-brainer for inclusion.

27. Fallujah - The Flesh Prevails

Put On A Playlist With: Allegaeon, old school shoegaze

Death metal with an unusually sonorous, spacious post-rock production framing its harsher edges and pulling the material inside to a higher place. Lots of great albums this year in extreme metal, but nothing that sounds quite like this.

26. Marcus D - Simply Complex

Put On A Playlist With: CunninLynguists, Nujabes

Typically above average as far as the guest spots and flow goes, but what separates Marcus D from all the other producers working out there today is his subtle but always classy intuition when it comes to samples. He's got a flair for the grand and orchestral, and it elevates the music here considerably.