Jam of the Day: Cathedrals - "Just a Game"

San Francisco duo Cathedrals release another breathtaking single. "Just a Game" focuses on Brodie Jenkins' exquisitely emotional vocals and Johnny Hwin's atmospheric production.

Jam of the Day: Cathedrals - "Try to Fight"

Fans of Chvrches will really dig this sparkling, synth driven number from San Francisco duo Cathedrals.

My Favorite 25 Albums of 2014: 15-11

15.

Cathedrals - Cathedrals EP

San Francisco duo Cathedrals, consisting of vocalist Brodie Jenkins and musician/producer Johnny Hwin, could be described as the R&B Phantogram, and the comparison is not that far off the mark. Both bands rely on programmed beats, eclectic guitar work, and samples, with Cathedrals falling more towards the R&B side of things with Jenkins' simultaneously earthy and ethereal vocals. The five tracks on this EP show a remarkable range that foretells big things for this band. They do quirky pop (opener "Harlem"), buzzy electronica ("In The Dark"), a wicked combination of both ("OOO AAA"), and delicate ballads ("Want My Love"). And they doubly shine on single "Unbound," a haunting meditation on two lovers who are the worst enablers, who "when you are on the down/I'll nurse you back to pieces." All of this framed with soaring vocals, keyboards, and delicate guitars.

14.

Lemonade - Minus Tide

NYC-via-SF tropical dance act Lemonade have always put forth effervescent singles that make one long for warmer climes but, up until now, their albums as a whole have never seemed to capitalize on those stunning tracks. With their sleek and infectious third record Minus Tide, this early promise has finally been fully realized. Expertly straddling the line between Balearic club play and more atmospheric tracks, Minus Tide is a glossy, shimmering collection that never outstays its welcome. From the pounding beats of tracks like "Stepping," "Clearest," and "Orchid Bloom," to the more introspective songs like "Come Down Softly," "Durutti Shores," and the exquisite title track, Minus Tide is nothing less than a captivating listen.

13.

Neneh Cherry - Blank Project

Only 18 years after the release of her last solo record, Neneh Cherry has come back stronger than ever on her fourth solo album, the blistering Blank Project. Recorded and mixed in a 5-day period, the record was produced by Four Tet (Kieran Hebden) and features work with prior collaborators RocketNumberNine. What is most noticeable right off the top is how Cherry is still doing what she wants to do, without copping to current trends. The record is a lean, minimalist offering, speaking to electronica, jazz, hip-hop, R&B, and pop without directly referencing any of them.Blank Project is uncompromising Neneh Cherry at her best. There is almost no filler here, each track building off of and complementing each other. I only hope that it is not another 18 years before we get more new music from this trail-blazing artist. Blank Project is seminal Neneh Cherry.

12.

Tove Lo - Queen of the Clouds

I have been touting 26-year-old Swedish singer/songwriter Tove Lo for well over a year now when I first stumbled across her single "Habits (Stay High)," and even though it has finally become a hit single here in the States it is still a song that makes me stop and listen each time, never losing its impact. I was concerned that when her debut came out it would be that one great song and the rest a bunch of unlistenable filler. Thankfully Ms. Lo has proved me exceedingly wrong. Queen of the Clouds, a concept record about the cycle of a love affair, is a surprisingly smart, witty, and extremely catchy set of tracks that prove Ms. Lo is anything but a one hit wonder. From cheeky tracks like "Like Em Young," sung-so-fast-you-might-miss-it power pop like "Timebomb," to moving tracks like "Got Love" and "Moments," Lo is in complete control, and when the killer chorus for "Habits" hits you again like a ton of bricks, you know this is merely the tip of the iceberg for her.

11.

Aphex Twin - Syro

For his first album under the Aphex Twin moniker in over 13 years, Richard D. James certainly knows how to make a statement. And strangely, that statement is not a change in sound or purpose, instead, Syro is merely James coming back with 12 exquisitely produced and mixed tracks that can only be from the one and only Aphex Twin. The songs draw from his varied career but are not mere rehashes; each track brings something fresh to the proceedings. The most startling thing about the record is how James makes everything seem so easy, and that it seems that everyone else is still trying to play catch up with the master.

Favorite Songs of 2014: Numbers 25-1

25.  Aphex Twin - "Minipops 67 (Source Field Mix)"

Not so much a return to form as a reminder that Aphex Twin was so far ahead of anyone else in the electronic music field that it took this long for people to catch up. And still, he pushes the envelope even farther.



24.  Warpaint - "Teese"

The one word that constantly came to mind when listening to Warpaint's sophomore record was liquid. Every song sounded like it moved underneath layers of calm waters. "Teese" is the aural equivalent of immersing oneself in a warm bath under the stars, with only the sounds of your heart and breath to keep you comfortable.



23.  Neneh Cherry - "Blank Project"

Roaring back after an absence of 18 years, Neneh Cherry came back as if no time had passed. "Blank Project" is one of the many standouts on the album of the same name, with the music growing from a steady buzz and pulse into something nearing anarchy, with Ms. Cherry standing in front of the chaos, always and sublimely in control.



22.  Dawn Golden - "All I Want (Nudist Remix)"

I usually don't pick remixes of songs on best of lists, preferring to choose the original version of a track to something that is essentially someone else's vision. With Dawn Golden, their single "All I Want" is a perfectly enjoyable Coldplay-esque track that I can see being used in 10,000 movie trailers and key movie moments. It just ever really jumps ahead into a "must hear" track for me. Nudist's remix, however, takes the song and gently tweaks it, making it more lonely and more longing, and has made it that "must hear" song for me. He really makes you hear the desperate longing that is missing from the original by merely warping the vocals, adding verse repetition, and the heart wrenching piano, creating a haunting classic.



21.  Capital Cities - "One Minute More"

This festival ready sing-a-long is one of those songs that makes you want to dance and not think about a damn thing.



20.  We Were Evergreen - "Daughters"

Melancholy electro-pop from the French trio We Were Evergreen. I love the wistful interplay between the dual vocalists.



19.  Hercules and Love Affair ft. John Grant - "Liberty"

I always like Hercules and Love Affair more when they are slamming you hard on the dance floor. With the urgent vocals of singer John Grant, "Liberty" leaves you gasping for breath.



18.  Róisín Murphy - "Ancora Tu"

From her EP of Ital-disco tracks Mi Senti, Róisín Murphy's track "Ancora Tu" is a gorgeous, minimalist song that focuses on her amazingly emotive voice. While I have no idea what she is singing about, you get every emotional cue from her impeccable delivery.



17.  Lykke Li - "Gunshot"

Lykke Li's "Gunshot" begins with Li's delicate voice and muted backing before erupting into a stunning anthem. I could have put almost any track from her impeccable album I Never Learn on this list, but I kept coming back to this one, its haunting melody a siren's call.



16.  Interpol - "All The Rage Back Home"

El Pintor had almost too many singles to consider in making my list, however, I have always had a soft spot for the opening track whose humble beginnings masks a prototypical Interpol barn burner.



15.  Klo. - "False Calls"

Where pop, R&B, electronica, and hip-hop all collide in this modern world, Aussie duo Klo. mesmerize with this dreamy track.



14.  Sia - "Eye of the Needle"

One of the simpler tracks on her record 1000 Forms of Fear, Sia's "Eye of the Needle" is breathtaking in how she maintains such control over her voice, but that she lets flaws come through at the end. The beauty to me is always in the flaws.



13.  Blonde Redhead - "Penultimo"

Quirky art-pop from Blonde Redhead. I love how the awkward male and female vocals twist and turn around each other in slow dance, their perceptions of place changed by time and distance. An evocative tale of how music was once so dangerous and threatening and now has become something pale and timid.



12.  Tinashe - "The Leap"

Although I easily could have picked a number of tracks from her stunning debut Aquarius, I chose her track from the Mockingjay soundtrack. I love her expressive voice matched against the moody, textural background of the music.



11.  Cathedrals - "Unbound"

Achingly beautiful track from San Francisco duo Cathedrals which mixes delicate guitar work, impassioned vocals, and a buzzy electronic undercurrent.



10.  Lorde - "Yellow Flicker Beat"

Lorde's talent keeps growing with this track that is all about mood, and the build and release.



9.  Oyinda - "Rush of You"

London-based, Nigerian-born singer Oyinda singer's "Rush of You" is a fairly minimal alt-R&B track that hits all the right marks for me. Her subtle voice is the key to this track, as it equates love to a drug addiction, with the withdrawals giving her false hope that her lover will come back. The end of the track is simply the voices in her head clipped and chopped into another instrument as the feelings wash over her.



8.  Manatee Commune ft. Marina Price - "White Smoke"

Gorgeous chillwave from Seattle bedroom producer Grant Eadie, a.k.a. Manatee Commune, featuring luminous vocals from Marina Price. The track is deceptively simple, yet the layers and layers of sound he builds are intoxicating and transcendent.



7.  Kindness - "This Is Not About Us"

There is a ramshackle charm to this track that is infectious. I love how each element is so distinctive, as if created in a vacuum separate from the others, then by some found method are aligned to each other in harmony.



6.  FKA twigs - "Pendulum"

"Pendulum" is the haunting centerpiece to FKA twigs' astonishingly assured debut record LP1. How she can use her soft voice to create a hold over you without the music overtaking her is astounding. And who hasn't been in the situation where you love your partner more than they love you, and you feel helpless watching them slip away. She nails it with the lyrics "So lonely trying to be yours/When you're looking for so much more."



5.  Arca - "Held Apart"

Venezuelan producer Alejandro Ghersi, better known as Arca, is best known for his technical virtuosity, and his ability to twist machine sounds into completely new directions. His work with Kanye West, FKA twigs, and on his early EPs is staggeringly complex and ahead of its time. When selecting a track from his masterful debut Xen, I could have chosen a number of tracks that highlighted this side of this work. But Arca is more than everything but the kitchen sink showing off, there is talent, drive, and purpose with what he does. And never more does he shine brighter than on the heartbreaking treated piano track "Held Apart." This my friends, is looking into the eyes of god.



4.  Wild Beasts - "A Dog's Life"

As they move towards being almost the electronic version of later period Talk Talk, Wild Beasts allow their innate understanding of mood, texture, and emotion to dictate where their songs head. This gut-wrenching tale of a dog's death is the perfect example from their brilliant record Present Tense, reaching an apex of almost unbearable sadness that floods one with memory and regret.



3.  Spoon - "Do You"

I have never included an album or song from Spoon in any of my lists before. I am sure I never truly gave them the attention they deserve, and for that I apologize. Their hooky as hell single "Do You" just kept gnawing at me like a hunger all summer, never shaking it from my head. It is just one of those perfect pop songs.



2.  Damon Albarn - "Everyday Robots"

"Everyday Robots" is the lonely and haunting title track from Damon Albarn's first solo record. Albarn's voice is front and center over the lurching rhythm, African samples, strings, and plaintive piano, lamenting a world where personal interaction has been reduced to the sidelines.



1.  Totemo - "Host"

I can't really provide a concrete reason for why this song has intrigued me so. It has basically been on repeat ad nauseum for months. The song is so textural, you can get lost for days in its many layers, finding new sounds and feelings with each listen. Thematically, "Host" is definitely up for multiple interpretations, for me though, it feels like a spirit taking possession of a person, feeling them fighting against them. The music plays along like a horror film, with eerie creeks and noises echoing all around, adding to a sense of haunted loss.

Jam of the Day: Cathedrals - "OOO AAA"

Another solid, atmospheric track from San Francisco duo Cathedrals.

Jam of the Day: Cathedrals - "Want My Love"

Each track from this San Francisco duo has been different, and equally enthralling. "Want My Love" is a slow-burning torch ballad with hints of electronica, future R&B, and even some dusky UK bass hints.

Non-Sequiturs

UNF

Daddy!

Grrrr.

So handsome.

Sexy.

Nice chest.

Nice belly.

Drool.

So cute.

Silver fox.

Wow.

Woof.

I think this is the hottest pic of him.  Love the peek of belly.

That is a hot man.

Sleepy bear.

Yes please.

I'll take two.

Beautiful body.

Words fail me.

Tongue out.

Gorgeous.

Damn.

Hey Daddy!

Beef.

Country boy.

Yum.

Furry belly.

Too much cuteness here.

That chest.

Tight body.

SBJ.

Intense.

Bald hottie.

Amazing.

 Nuzzle.

All these Republican state senators and representatives that are sponsoring these ridiculous and unconstitutional "preservation of religious freedom" bills are all fucking lemmings.

It is beyond creepy when someone I don't even know on FB starts sharing my pics on their wall.

The game Threes is so much fun, and yet so horribly frustrating.

It's confounding that in 2014 we are still having to fight for basic rights.

LOL.

I love it when people discount my advice after living here in Atlanta for 20 years. I might not know many things, but I do know Atlanta.

Work limbo sucks.

Sometimes simplicity is the best. The new Real Estate record Atlas is plain gorgeous jangle-pop.

Feast or famine at work; no projects for three weeks, then get hit with two.

After being told I have no boss, and having no one to report to and get work from, my job has become somewhat like sales where I am having to go almost door to door to each attorneys' office to find work.

Could you even imagine?

Do people still watch Glee?

I don't care what your reasoning is, or whether your state has no laws about it, but if you ride a bike or a motorcycle without a helmet, it's kind of stupid.

Is it just me, or is there a mass epidemic of people getting into relationships overnight?

Dat's right.

Sometimes I do think I have lived in Atlanta far too long.

Favorite band name at the moment: Perfect Pussy.

Is there such a thing as a combination introvert-extrovert? An intextrovert?

In this day and age, it should not take anyone over two days to respond to something, especially if it is important.

Granted it was the 80s, but damn, I wanted David Sylvian's hair.

Passive-aggressive is the new black.

I am helpless to resist a man in a Bike jock strap.

Rush Limbaugh needs to rot in hell.

Make it happen.

What I love about SoundCloud is how sometimes it randomly throws some great music at you that you normally wouldn't be exposed to.

When a music magazine/site talks about dance music and songs that are "floor-focused," I am generally taken aback as to what they consider music you can dance to. Generally, the songs they mention are so slight as to be almost gossamer. I certainly wouldn't/couldn't dance to it. I guess by "floor-focused" they mean staring at the floor.

Do you have to like every single song on an album to consider it a classic/masterpiece? I don't think so. Two of my all-time favorite records each have a track that is so completely out of place I nearly skip over it altogether every time I listen to the album. The culprits? "Ignoreland" on R.E.M.'s Automatic for the People and "Electioneering" on Radiohead's OK Computer.

Is there any point to Guided By Voices?

Your cute for the day.

Lyrics Rattling Around My Brain

"Prince Johnny,
You're kind but you're not simple
By now I think I know the difference
You wanna be the son of someone

Remember the time we went and snorted
A piece of the Berlin wall that you'd extorted
And we had such a laugh of it?
Prostrate on my carpet

You traced the Andes with your index
And brag of when and where and who you gonna bed next
All with sons of someones
All with sons of someones

Saw you pray to all
To make you a real boy

Saw you pray to all
To make you a real boy

Prince Johnny,
You're kind but do be careful
By now I know just when to stand clear
When all your friends and acolytes are
Holding court in bathroom stalls

Where you pray to all
To make you a real

Saw you pray to all
To make you a real boy

But honey, don't mistake my affection
For another spit-and-penny style redemption
Cause we're all sons of someones
We're all sons of someones
I wanna mean more than they mean to you
I wanna mean more than I meant to him

So I pray to all
To make me a real girl

So I pray to all
To make me a real girl."

St. Vincent
"Prince Johnny"

"Shotgun poetry
Crack the whip again
Make me see
Sharpen your knives for me
Infiltrate the mind, the body
Body

Contract killer prose
Calmly walks away
As blood flows
Open, the wound grows
Melts away
The water froze
The water froze

'Cause my love, my love, my love don't love me
My love, my love, my love don't love me
My love, my love, my love don't love me
'Cause my love, my love, my love don't love me

Contract killer prose
Calmly walks away
As blood flows
Open, the wound grows
Melts away
Water fro...

'Cause my love, my love, my love don't love me
My love, my love, my love don't love me."

SOHN
"Bloodflows"

"Oh, Carissa when I first saw you
You were a lovely child
And the last time I saw you
You were 15 and pregnant and running wild

I remember wondering could there be a light at the end of your tunnel
But I left Ohio then and had pretty much forgotten all about you
I guess you were there some years ago at a family funeral
But you were one of so many relatives I didn't know which one was you

Yesterday morning I woke up to so many 330 area code calls
I called my mom back and she was in tears and asked had I spoke to my father
Carissa burned to death last night in a freak accident fire
In her yard in Brewster her daughter came home from a party and found her

Same way as my uncle who was her grandfather
An aerosol can blew up in the trash, goddamn what were the odds?
She was just getting ready to go to her midnight shift as an RN in Wadsworth
Then she vanished up in flames like that but there had to be more to her life's worth
Everyone's grieving out of their minds making arrangements and taking drugs
But I'm flying out there tomorrow because I need to give and get some hugs
Cause I got questions that I'd like to get answered
I may never get them, but Carissa I gotta know how did it happen?

Carissa was 35
You don't just raise two kids, and take out your trash and die
She was my second cousin, I didn't know her well at all
But that doesn't mean that I wasn't
Meant to find some poetry to make some sense of this, to find a deeper meaning
In this senseless tragedy, oh Carissa I'll sing your name across every sea."

Sun Kil Moon
"Carissa"

Appealing Things

The new stuff
DJ Paulo at Jungle
Cathedrals
Flavia coffee machines in the break room
Ferry booked for Bear Week

Annoying Things

People who exit elevators slowly
7am return flights
Inequity in the office place
People who don't do what they say they are going to do