[tps_header]Top 10 Best Music Releases for May 2014[/tps_header] May 2014 has come and gone and we’re already very much into June but we can’t help but to look back once again at the best album releases for the previous month, May. This new feature started last month with only a Top 5 but I’ve expanded into a full Top 10 list for this month. But to be honest, I could barely make it a Top 10 list. Yes, the choices here are the best but we weren’t completely satisfied with some of them and you’ll find out why for each one.
Let’s get started taking a look at the May 2014 Top 10 best new music releases…

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[tps_title]10.[/tps_title] Caught A Ghost – Human Nature

Caught A Ghost’s debut album was really released two months, but since it wasn’t included in our top album releases list for the month of April we did just last month, I thought I would include it here. They were also featured as an Upcoming Artist here in The Young Folks so you should definitely listen.

Thievery Coorporation – Saudade

This album was also released in April 2014 but wasn’t included on the list for the month, so it makes sense to include these two amazing albums at least now and on the tenth spot. “Saudade” is a rhythmically rich and melancholic album from the always phenomenal and elegant Thievery Corporation. It features tracks in Spanish, Portuguese, French and variety of languages; it’s also very classy and sad. Moving away from few of the band’s previous more extroverted beats, this is an album to enjoy in solitary pondering.

[tps_title]9. Coldplay – Ghost Stories[/tps_title]

I appreciate Coldplay’s ambition. They always try to go above and beyond their title of the biggest band in the world to make something that sounds different each time. This year, Coldplay presents us with “Ghost Stories”, a loose concept album detailing the longing and heartbreak felt after losing someone you love (obviously inspired by Martin’s break up with wife, Gwyneth Paltrow). From the first track, I didn’t like where this album was going. Martin’s played out, all-too-familiar lyricism, combined with his bland vocal delivery and unnerving falsetto is the key suspect in what brings this album down. The production, overall, is actually quite good, in spite of everything. The band shines in delivering a good atmosphere, aside from some confusing musical choices; i.e. the guitar solo on what is easily the worst track on this album, “True Love”, and the decision to collaborate with everyone’s favorite DJ, Avicii, on the album’s third single “Sky Full of Stars” and create a song that will surely find a great amount of play at middle school dances in the coming year. The album does contain a few interesting and compelling tracks in the middle, however, including one of the best songs I have heard from the band in a very long time: their collaboration with electronica producer Jon Hopkins, “Midnight”; a beautiful track that grips you with its atmospheric production and Martin’s haunting vocals delivered through a vocoder to astounding effect. But, on the whole, this album feels like nothing that will really stand the time, an album that will be forgotten in this band’s discography. A ghost.
By James Gilbert

[tps_title]8. Lily Allen – Shezus[/tps_title]

Unsurprisingly coming out of retirement, Lily Allen returns to the scene to show us just what she thinks about the current state of political, social and pop culture issues in the witty, irreverent style we have come to know and love. She’s still a beacon of commentary if you couldn’t tell by her album title, ripping on Kanye West’s album “Yeezus”. She challenges the music industries gender constructs with songs like “Sheezus” and “Hard Out There”, but also has something to say about our digital age in “URL Badman”. No album would be complete without it’s uncomplicated, but lyrically pleasing “pop” songs, and Allen delivers with the likes of “Air Balloon”, “Our Time” and the catchy “Insincerely Yours”. Per usual, this album is not one set style, but that is what we have come to expect (and applaud) from Lily Allen. She can deliver a variety of messages through a variety of different styles. As long as she has something to say, her fans will be more than happy to listen to her, trusting in her proven stylistic eclecticity as a mode of transport. Just give her that crown and let her be Sheezus. You won’t be disappointed with the results.
By Jon Espino

[tps_title]7. Yuck – Southern Skies[/tps_title]

Yuck is a shoegaze/rock band from London, England. Their third release is the EP “Southern Skies”. The band has evolved from being a more experimental to being a traditional rock band which is okay, however they don’t differentiate themselves much anymore from other musical proponents out there. This nice four-track EP will mostly be enjoyed by people who were and still are fans mainly of more traditional alternative rock. With the recent indie and experimental musical movement of the past decade or so, we have to give credit to Yuck for presenting music that doesn’t try to be weird to sound cool and doesn’t sound over produced. Enjoy this one in a relaxed afternoon with friends.

[tps_title]6. Hercules And Love Affair – The Feast of the Broken Heart[/tps_title]

Hercules And Love Affair are back with another album that strikes the right notes but mildly satisfies. It is as bold as you expect from the band but it isn’t outstanding for their standards even if it is slightly over other albums from other artists out there, so that’s why it deserves a spot in this list. The disco and house elements are all in place, and they’re as powerful as always. Hercules And Love Affair’s third album, “The Feast Of The Broken Heart”, as usual opens with a new theme for the band itself. The first single off the album however, is the very plain and typical house track “Do You Feel The Same?”, nothing as memorable and as original as one of their first releases “Blind”. The second single of the album is more saddening but is definitely more original and interesting with some soulful piano. The rest of the album is mostly right in the middle of the unoriginal “Do You Feel The Same?” and this more engaging second single (“I Try To Talk To You”), so it’s all good.

[tps_title]5. Robyn & Royksopp – Do It Again[/tps_title]

As a fan of almost everything else that Robyn has done, her newest album done with Röyksopp, entitled Do it Again left much to be desired. When I think of Robyn’s music I think of upbeat, dance friendly tunes-I think about summer and I think about the only scene of HBO’s Girls that I ever liked. Her music no matter the content is joyful and full of life. Which makes Do it Again so woefully underwhelming. It’s not that it’s a poorly made album-it’s that it’s simply not as exciting to listen to. The songs are well crafted but I won’t be listening to the album through again save for a song or two. The highlights are “Do It Again” and “Every Little Thing”. The former manages to capture much of the fun that typical Robyn albums entail bring a heavy beat to the song without forgoing the vocals. It runs a little long but considering the brevity of the album it can be ignored. “Every Little Thing” slows it down but it doesn’t meander or become dull. Instead it’s a nice change of pace coming directly after the exuberant “Do It Again” and the transition is natural. For the first half we get to hear more of the vocals and the emotional input until around the midway point where the music and the synths begin to take control again, building to a timely crescendo. Simply put-this album wasn’t for me. This hardly means it’s it isn’t worth listening to. Music is one of the most subjective art forms out there and I’m sure I’ll be vehemently disagreed with. However, it my opinion the album is dull and could have used a wider variety of sound. If all else-go and listen to Robyn’s solo albums. They’re phenomenal.
By Ally Johnson

[tps_title]4. Little Dragon – Nabuma Rubberband[/tps_title]

Little Dragon are a Swedish band that has reportedly been around 1996, though they’ve been releasing full studio albums at a steady pace since their self-titled debut album in 2007. “Nabuma Rubberband” is their fourth full studio album. They have an established style of trip-hop and indie electronica that presents sounds that are always intriguing and sometimes elegant. “Nabuma Rubberband” feels like a step in the right direction after 2011’s “Ritual Union”. We should “never judge a book (or a music album) by its cover” but from its cover to its sound, “Ritual Union” felt a little vintage so “Nabuma Rubberband” is the next logical step in a post-vintage style era. The new album feels fresh, as experimental as ever. It loses a little of its elegance by presenting a much stronger trip-hop-based sound but that’s not a bad thing at all, quite the contrary. The mystical electro sounds are enchanting and Yukimi Nagano’s vocals are exquisite.

[tps_title]3. Fujiya & Miyagi – Artificial Sweeteners[/tps_title]

Fujiya & Miyagi do it again with their latest release, “Artificial Sweeteners”. Their new album is good keeping it simple on some tracks while also experimenting getting into more complex electronic sounds on others. The problem is that neither of these satisfy fully. When I first listened to Fujiya & Miyagi some years back, they definetly sounded original and even their most simple and repetitive tracks, like Uh-Uh was –and still is– satisfying. The problem now is that the simple tracks in their new album that try to recreate the formula don’t do it successfully, because they fail to be as catchy or because the approach is now a bit dated either way, they don’t fully satisfy. It’s not groovy or funky enough and more complex tracks tangle themselves into disappointment however remarkably, the album never skips a beat and sounds consistent from beginning to end. “Artificial Sweeteners” engages you just enough to keep you listening, specially after the progressively upbeat album opener and single, “Flaws”.

[tps_title]2. Cherub – Year of the Caprese[/tps_title]

“Year of the Caprese” is the first big release by the Tennessee band formed in 2010, Cherub. I couldn’t say “it sounds like nothing I’ve heard before” but in the case of Cherub that’s really not a bad a thing. Familiar scapes is what keeps the sounds of the album engaging. The band features an electro-pop style with their more relaxing tracks even containing a scent of R&B. “Year of the Caprese” is full of satisfying tracks that won’t blow away any high expectations but if you want to listen to something catchy and stylish, the album can definetely surpass your expectations. If we were to actually grade it song by song for what the album’s content really is, overall it would definitely have a high score. Of course, the band’s most popular track “Doses & Mimosas” is present yet again, after originally being released in early 2012 and finally picking up some mainstream attention in February 2014. It is right there, in the middle of the track list, as a hidden treassure for first time listeners. Finally, I can’t really call this a varied album but it will still satisfy a range of people, traditional pop fans, electronica fans and maybe also a few R&B listeners.

[tps_title]1. The Black Keys – Turn Blue[/tps_title]

The Black Keys released on May 12th their 8th studio album entitled “Turn Blue”. The record features 11 tracks that include hits such as “Fever” and “Turn Blue”. It was co-produced by Danger Mouse and recorded in Hollywood, California. This was, by far, one of the albums I was really looking forward in listening, but sadly, it was a huge disappointment. The album is full of a 70’s psychedelic/stoner-rock vibe, filled with mid tempo guitar riffs and a few catchy songs, but…that’s it. For me, the album stays on the same ground the entire time, making, at some level, each track identical to one another. Perhaps this was the plan all along from the band, but it just didn’t work for me. “Fever” was the first single released from the album and is, in my humble opinion, the best track. The video for the track, which you can watch below, is quite good too. Directed by Theo Wenner, it features guitarist Dan Auerbach playing a very sweaty televangelist preaching to an audience. You can see during the video a phone number that flashes on screen accompanied by a scrolling list of people who have donated. The mysterious number leads to a scratchy recording that includes a man’s voice saying, “I’m calling because I’m interested in your releasing my album!”. It turns out that was voice of the band’s drummer, Patrick Carney, apparently prank-calling their own label. Kinda funny, right?
By Cristina Moreano

That’s it! Those were the Top 10 best releases of May 2014. Which is your favorite?

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Hope you liked our choices and you discovered new music released last month!
Do you agree or disagree with these picks?
Was your favorite album released in May not included in the list?

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