Best Albums of 2015: Rolling Stone

Next up, Rolling Stone.  Now, I know that some folks (see last year's Rock Critic Hive Mind article) who make fun of RS as being the fuddy duddy old grandad of musical appreciation (see last year, picking U2 and Springsteen's entirely forgettable albums as #1 and #2), but I still read the magazines for great articles and good musical discovery that hews mainstream.  Unfortunately, there is only one album in this top ten that I hadn't already listened to before now.  

I had a thought the other day, that Rolling Stone just doesn't bag on anyone enough in their reviews, which is really too bad.  My guess is that they still get shit for crapping all over Zeppelin back in the day, so now they are all cautious and scared to come correct on anyone else.  Now they hand out 3 star reviews like Halloween candy and lavish praise on anyone who may end up culturally significant.

1.  Kendrick Lamar, 'To Pimp a Butterfly'  Surprise surprise, I bet this will be a consistent theme. Great album, just not my top choice.  My theory on this album is that it is the "important" album of 2015, and so everyone will feel hard pressed to make it their top pick so that they can show how in tune they are with the importance of this album.  I think it is the year's best rap album, but it is only lyrically great - the underlying tunes rarely spark anything for me.

2.  Adele, '25'  Yep, nothing shocking here.  As I said on the NYT top ten list, this one has some great moments, but didn't snatch me up after a few listens so hard that I know it would immediately be a top ten album.  We'll see over time.  They did give this one 5 stars in the most recent magazine, which happens very rarely, so they are putting their money where their mouth is.  Interesting that Lamar only got 4.5 stars for his review, and yet took the year-end prize from Adele.

3.  Drake, 'If You're Reading This It's Too Late'  Eh.  Nothing on this album is so immediate and necessary that it will stay around once his new album is out.  His most popular tracks here at the end of the year weren't even on this album - "Hotline Bling," "Back to Back," and "Right Hand" were all singles, while "Jumpman" and "Big Rings" are from the Future collaboration.  This is the best thing Drake was on this whole year.  Here is the most-listened-to track from this album, called "Know Yourself."

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz... Oh, hey, was that song still on?  Right.  "Runnin' thru tha Six wit my woes!" Jeah!

4.  D'Angelo and the Vanguard, 'Black Messiah'  Yeah, this is a cool album.  Funky and fun, I liked it quite a bit when I listened to it last year.  Yeah, this one came out in 2014.  And yet RS thinks it is a top album of 2015.  Mmmkay.  As such, I didn't even consider it for this year's list.  It might have made it, as it is a sweet album.

5.  The Weeknd, 'Beauty Behind the Madness'  Nope.  I'll go right along with the fact that "Can't Feel My Face" and "The Hills" are heavyweight, excellent pop gems.  I think that, if Michael Jackson hadn't lost his way and melted his face down for drug money, he would have been making these exact songs right now.  Its actually genius, for this guy to pay homage to Michael with his sound but update the lyrics with dark, drug-fueled sexy-time fun.  But the rest of this album, after those two hits, doesn't do it for me.

6.  Courtney Barnett, 'Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit'  Agreed.  This album is awesome.  Lyrically tight and musically fun.  I can't quit singing "Depreston" in my head.

7.  Jason Isbell, 'Something More Than Free'  I liked this album a lot when I listened to it earlier this year.  Really strong batch of lyrics.

8.  Artists, 'Hamilton: Original Broadway Soundtrack'  I was going to call out RS for being obnoxious and adding this to their list.  Nothing like a Broadway soundtrack to act as your pretentious ticket to legitimacy in the eyes of the musical elite.  And then I actually just listened to this album and it is freaking awesome.  If you've read my constant griping about the state of rap music, you'd know that I lament the lack of coherent lyrics or the kind of grimy ghetto tales spun by Biggie or Cube back in the day.  Now, this is weird, to say that the story of the guy on the ten dollar bill qualifies, but it absolutely hits the right spot.  This album is great.  It is also 2 freaking hours and 22 minutes long, so you better go ahead and settle in if you plan to try it out.

"The Ten Duel Commandments."  Echos of Biggie's "Ten Crack Commandments," except seriously a rap about how to carry out a duel.  Total surprise to me, but this is good stuff.  "Cabinet Battle #1" is freaking awesome.  Old school rap battle action, but nerding out about fiscal policy of the 18th century.  I also was a big fat theater dork in high school and college, so I'm not going to quail at some chorus harmonies or affected accents and precise diction.  This is a good album.

9.  The Arcs, 'Yours, Dreamily'  Great album.  YOU DONE LOST YOUR CHINATOWN PASS, BRO!  I kind of forgot about it in my top ten.  Don't know that it would have beaten any of the albums I chose to be included, but it really has a funky and fun sound.  I don't know Dan Auerbach has become the smartest and best creator of rock and roll around, but I'm pretty well in for what he wants to play.

10.  Blur, 'The Magic Whip'   I liked this album well enough, although I really haven't given it much time since I first reviewed it.  Going back and re-listening right now, I still really like it.  Just the beginning frame of the opener, "Lonesome Street," evokes memories of past Brit pop loves, loose and jangly; yelpy and then tuneful.

Just got a little mesmerized by that video.  Good song and good album.