2014 Tunes for Our Times

Coming into November, we had about 300 songs on our “2014 Tunes (so far)” playlist posted on Spotify.  It was time to cull the year’s curated songs down to 100.  And then, the world just seemed to accelerate into January.  We pulled it together through the holidays and made it just in time to welcome the New Year with another look back at great music.  Falling back in order to celebrate, reflect and spring forward yet again. 

As we pulled together some of our favorite artists and songs from 2014, we had a few observations about this year’s list.  First, it’s a little more pop oriented than it has been in quite a while.  I think that reflects a world in transition and a little more chaos.  Pop is safe -- it’s warm and cuddly, just when you need it to be.  That is especially the case when you blend in a little soul, as Curtis Harding, Sam Smith and Hozier each showed with the richness of their singing.

Pop songs by Future Islands, Caribou, Generationals, Cazzette and Norway’s Todd Terje managed to channel a post-pop dance vibe (and a little ELO) that can’t help but have you toe taping.  King Tuff added a little Matthew Sweet to the pop retro vibe.  D’Angelo and the Vanguard bridged Sly Stone, Prince and Marvin Gaye into something entirely fresh, yet familiar.  Funk, R&B, Psych and Soul.  They snuck the release out in December, so procrastination paid off, allowing us to include Ain’t That Easy on this year’s list.

The flip side to the pop tilt this year is that for what we pulled into the playlist from rock, retro was also the underlying feel. It’s an interesting observation about the state of the world we live in and how people like to reflect on where we’ve been before deciding where we want to go next.  That says a lot about 2014 in general. 

Ought’s Habit channeled the Velvets to a degree that gave us a few goose bumps.  So did Ultimate Painting and Parquet Floors. Were they warm and cuddly tunes?  Not so much; just great music.  As was EMA’s So Blonde, Angel Olsen’s Hi-Five, Jessica Lea Mayfield’s No Fun and Royal Blood’s Figure It Out (where we’re convinced that the White Stripes can be heard growling in the background).  St. Vincent and Ava Luna found a thread and beat that would make Talking Heads and the Tom Tom Club proud.  Music can be derivative and additive to a bigger sound, all at the same time. 

There was some exceptional jazz released in 2014.  Standouts that made the final cut include Vijay Iyer, Jim Black Trio, and Fred Hersch.  Kris Bowers, Joshua Redman, Dylan Howe, Matthew Shipp, Bill Frisell and Tony Allen had incredible albums out that somehow slipped off our final 100-song cut.  For the jazz fans out there, if you missed any of these releases, they are each worth tracking down.

Americana (in a Newport Folk sort of way) was alive and well in 2014.  Nickel Creek was back, playing the mandolin, fiddle and guitar with a vengeance.  Conor Oberst, Justin Townes Earl, Shovels & Rope, Esme Patterson, Pete Molinari, Mac Demarco, Old Crow Medicine Show and Shakey Graves each made this year’s playlist.  So did Natalie Merchant – who sounds brilliant.  Hurray for The Riff Raff’s The Body Electric stood out for questioning a culture of violence.  It was NPR’s political folk song of the year.

Having sprinted into the New Year with our 100-songs and artists to listen to from 2014 (and there was so much additional great music to hear) we’re going to slow it down a bit as we enter 2015.  Like last year, we will do our best to keep a “2015 Tunes (so far)” playlist building throughout the year on Spotify for those of you that want to hear what we are cycling through in new music.

Was there an overarching theme song appropriate for 2014?  The optimistic song would be Ages and Ages: Divisionary (Do the Right Thing). Every Age by Jose Gonzalez stands out as another choice, as does Chris Staples’ Dark Side of the Moon (“…a song about people who obsess about hidden messages or meanings”).

But in thinking it through, we’re looking ahead and listening to Leonard Cohen’s Slow as the inspirational song to start off our 2015 collection: “I’m slowing down the tune, I’ve never liked it fast; With you it’s got to go, With me it’s got to last…”.  

Here is to another rousing year of incredible new music to discover.

Happy listening...