NA Confidential: Roger’s Year in Music 2015 (Part 3): My Top Twenty Albums, 15

Friday, January 01, 2016

Roger’s Year in Music 2015 (Part 3): My Top Twenty Albums, 15 - 11.

Continuing the year-end album list, and hoping I'm finished by Sunday. First, there are potatoes to cook.

15. The Decemberists … What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World
Clever and tuneful as always, with a pervasive wittiness encapsulated by the album's opening cut, in which the singer tries to reason with his fans.

14. Blur … The Magic Whip
Back in the 1990s, when Oasis recharged my adoration for all things Brit pop/rock, I wasn't aware of a rivalry between the Gallaghers and Blur, which became a cultural marker of sorts in the UK. I merely liked both bands for different reasons, and still do.

13. Squeeze … Cradle to the Grave
When it comes to great post-Beatles pop songwriting teams, I genuinely believe Difford and Tilbrook deserve to be included in the discussion, alongside the likes of Elton John/Bernie Taupin.

With its best songs vividly referencing the 70s South London landscape of Difford and Tilbrook’s youth, FTCTTG is frequently nostalgic, yet it’s largely upbeat and mostly eminently radio-friendly.

12. Florence + The Machine … How Big How Blue How Beautiful
I have no profundity to offer, apart from enjoying the vibe ... and I'm a sucker for music about lost causes, and one's principled defiance in their wake.

11. Muse … Drones
As thematic musical concepts go, perhaps militarization borne of drones isn't a shtick designed to capture addled minds -- though why not? Drones kill enemies, but isn't this the stuff of dystopian science fiction come to fruition? Isn't this as deserving of scrutiny as the Vietnam War? There's a protest here somewhere, right? I have no answers, and neither do Muse. The fact is, I've come to love the band's bombast, even if its reach exceeds grasp.