And I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the rest of the year doesn't look to be all that much better. I've excepted that half of the albums on our Most Anticipated Albums of 2014 list won't even be dropping this year, but I'll try to be optimistic, even if it does feel a slight bit forced.
These here, though, are the ones that have separated themselves from the pack, and even though none of them are as good as Run the Jewels, you should still check them out.
YG
My Krazy Life
It took me a while to completely come around, but YG and DJ Mustard's collaboration grew on me significantly. Whether its a testament to the albums density (I highly doubt that's the case) or DJ Mustard's beats constantly being nailed into my ears as the summer progresses, it sounds good, and that's all I ask. Moreover, you have to at least appreciate YG's ambition. It would have been easy for him to throw together some radio hits, a few huge guest features, and still make a pretty decent project. DJ Mustard's beats are so undeniably catchy that the album would have at least been a good record to blast in the car. But that didn't happen. They made a concept album in vein of Kendrick Lamar's major label debut and threw their own twist on it. It worked out pretty damn well.
RATKING
So It Goes
RATKING took the whole "bringing back New York" concept and made an actual interesting record, which is more than I can say about most of the Beast Coast movement (although I still like a portion of it) and Troy Ave. That probably wasn't the group's intention, though. They don't sound like they're try to bring anything back or prevent the rise of new styles. They simply made a New York rooted album with influences from nearly every sub-genre in rap. Hak's cadence balances Wiki's abrasiveness, and they collide beautifully with their genius production. So It Goes breathes life into a scene that I lost interest in a while ago. The rap industry needs to stop complaining about the groups that are caught up in the past, and maybe, just maybe, give a little shine to the ones that are looking forward.
Open Mike Eagle
Dark Comedy
I'll review this soon, so I won't get too into it, but ever since I downloaded this album on June 10, I have not been able to stop fucking playing it. I just feel like its begging me to come back and uncover more layers to what is already an incredible album. As you all know, I've been high on the Hellfyre Club for a while now, and I've always wanted one of their members to drop an album that would appear on one of these lists. Mission accomplished for now, but I highly doubt they're done.
2
clipping.
CLPPNG
Maybe the most accessible noise-hop album ever released, CLPPNG is an album that I would not hesitate to recommend to most music fans. When you think about it, though, this shouldn't work. Industrial, glitchy beats usually require an overly intense MC for it to sound appropriate, but Daveed Diggs delivers one of the finest technical performances of the year. And yet, it sounds fantastic. Why that is, I'm not sure, and they make so many stupid risks that are absurd in theory (there's an entire song built around the sound of an alarm going off and its one of my favorite songs of the year), but it just works. And "Work Work" is one of the biggest bangers of 2014. How many noise-hop albums contain a song with that title?
1
Freddie Gibbs &
Madlib
Piñata
Yeah, yeah, not the most original choice I've ever made, but Piñata is the best album of the year, plain and simple. I mean, when you have so many people saying the same damn thing, they usually have a point. Anyways, I wasn't expecting to like this as much as I did. I always saw Freddie Gibbs as a skilled, some times too consciously-technical for his own good, rapper that made the poor choice of rapping over trap beats. And Madlib is Madlib, one of my all time favorite producers, but it's no secret that his beats are notoriously hard to rhyme over. Obviously, it turned out nicely enough and is the only album of the year that I could possibly imagine being looked back upon as a classic.
- @lukehardin9
5
Young Fathers
Dead
I threw in a bit of a curveball at my number five, but not simply for the sake of variety. This album actually went way under the radar upon its release and is, in reality, a very well put together mesh of different sounds and genres that work on a grander musical level. Most people were disappointed in this after hearing last year's Tape Two, but while this was different, I don't think it was any worse. Dead had a lot of fun, catchy tunes, some tracks that made you think, and even some bangers. The song "LOW" continues to be one of my favorite tracks this year, and while this album may not be the fifth best project this year, it has received a tremendous amount of play from myself. All in all this is a good release with one or two songs that were just decent, but enough variety and experimentation to make up for it.
4
Open Mike Eagle
Dark Comedy
Replay value. In the short few weeks that this album has been out, I must have played it more than ten times. Mike Eagle's sometime off pitch singing offers a comforting and genuine sound to his music, and all of the songs really give you an in depth look at the person that Mike Eagle is today. This is easily my favorite Hellfyre club release to date, and that is a hip hop collective that I am very high on. There are no terrible songs on the album, and the consistency makes it hard to pick a stand out. A song like "Idaho" that only contains singing from Mike may be off putting, but like I said, I love this guy's voice. His lyrics are funny at times, and always entertaining, and Mike Eagle is able to engage with me throughout this entire album to the point that I want to listen to it over and over again. The rapping is spot on, the singing works, the production is fitting, and Dark Comedy just works.
3
Atmosphere
Southsiders
I wrote a review of this album if you want something more in depth, but here are my general thoughts. Writing songs about contentment is never easy, but as Ant continues to evolve his style, I still think Slug manages to be immensely entertaining as an emcee. This album is easy to critique because Slug isn't doing the same thing he was a decade ago, but I for one appreciate the evolution of this group, and the fact that they are able to maintain a style. Atmosphere has always been an acquired taste, and it is one that I have. There music is relatable and seems sincere in every way. I understand if this album is not your cup of tea, but it was everything that I hoped for at this point in their career.
2
clipping.
CLPPNG
Aside from my frustration stemming from my inability to pronounce the album title, the last track, and the fact that Gangsta Boo managed to ruin an entire fucking song, there are no complaints from me about this album. Once again, I wrote a fairly in depth review of why I loved this album so much, but to reiterate, everything on this album managed to click. When it comes to such experimental music, you often find yourself in hit or miss territory, and clipping. simply managed to hit a ton of homeruns. Every instrumental is done well, and Diggs on the microphone is better than ever. What is most encouraging about this album is the way clipping. was able to almost completely evolve their style into something different. If they can continue to do that while still making good music, this will be one of my favorite groups for a long time. Great album.
1
Freddie Gibbs &
Madlib
Piñata
This album (which I can't help but call Cocaine Piñata) is far away the best album of the year, and better than anything that was released last year. Gibbs has always been a compelling rapper, but his not too impressive style over constant trap beats wasn't doing anything for me. Turns out all this dude needed was a little bit of Madlib. The mellow, soulful, West coast style of Madlib really exaggerates what makes Gibbs a good rapper, and these two were able to put together an album that was not only solid in all aspects, but really fucking good. I know Gangster Gibbs isn't the best rhymer (he's no slouch, though), but he steps his game up, and it doesn't hurt at all that he has on of the greatest producers ever in his corner. My hat goes off to MadGibbs, as some have called the duo, for making an album that not only is good compared to the sub-par music of 2014, but an album that I can see standing the test of time and being a great album for years to come.
- @techjevans