The 2014 LONGlist, recapped

So, my Top 20 albums list is set in stone. After sweating it out (I'm particularly drenched this year) I've taken my longlist and whittled it down to the 20 records that will be recapped on my 10th (!!) annual countdown show on UMFM starting at 4pm on December 31st. But there was so much great stuff that I couldn't include so the following are - in alphabetical order - the rest of the records I was considering for the honours from among all the music I listened to in 2014 (not counting EPs, live albums and compilations which may be great but are never in the running). And brace yourself. It's a long list.

Afghan Whigs - Do To The Beast [Sub Pop]


Afro Latin Vintage Orchestra - Pulsion [Ubiquity]


Fatima Al Qadiri - Asiatisch [Hyperdub]


Ambrose Akinmusire - The Imagined Savior Is Far Easier To Paint [Blue Note]


Amen Dunes - Love [Sacred Bones]


The Antlers - Familiars [Carpark]


Anthroprophh - Outside The Circle [Rocket Recordings]


Bahamas - Bahamas Is Afie [Brushfire Records]


Allison Au Quartet - The Sky Was Pale Blue, They Grey [Independent]


Barrio Lindo - Menoko [Project Mooncircle]


Bastard Mountain - Farewell, Bastard Mountain [Song By Toad Records]


Be Forest - Earthbeat [We Were Never Being Boring]


Birdapres & Grey Jay - If And Only If [Marathon of Dope]





Otis Brown III - The Thought Of You [Blue Note]


Brownout - Brown Sabbath [Ubiquity]


Careful - The World Doesn't End [Circle Into Square Records]



Caribou - Our Love [Merge]


Chicago Underground Duo - Locus [Northern Spy]


Cloud Becomes Your Hand - Rocks or Cakes [Northern Spy]


Cloud Nothings - Here And Nowhere Else [Carpark]


Cold Specks - Neuroplasticity [Arts & Crafts]


Cosy Father - Loser Birds [Hot Hand Cold Hand]


Dawn Golden - Still Life [Mad Decent / Downtown]


Mark de Clive-Lowe - Church [Ropeadope]


Mac DeMarco - Salad Days [Captured Tracks]


Jerrold Dubyk Quintet - in.vi'tei.shens [Death Setting Records]
Sadly, no track to embed. Preview the album on CDBaby.

Electric Bird Noise - Kind of Black [Silber]
Check it out here.

Elephant - Sky Swimming [Memphis Industries]
Check it out here.

Christine Fellows - Burning Daylight [You've Changed Records]


Fennesz - Becs [Editions Mego]



Lee Fields - Emma Jean [Truth & Soul]


First Aid Kit - Stay Gold [Sony]


Flying Lotus - You're Dead! [Warp]


Feel No Other - Feel No Other [Silber]
Listen to "Pan's Shadow" here.

Fox & The Bird - Darkest Hours [Independent]


Garotas Suecas - Feras Miticas [Vampisoul]


Gem Club - In Roses [Hardly Art]


Mary Halvorson - Reverse Blue [Relative Pitch Records]


Curtis Harding - Soul Power [Burger]


Joe Henry - Invisible Hour [Work Song]


The Icypoles - My World Was Made For You [Highline Records]


Ikebe Shakedown - Stone By Stone [Ubiquity]


INDIAN - From All Purity [Relapse]


Vijay Iyer - Mutations [ECM Records]
 Can't find a selection from the album, but here's a cool improvisation.



Jack Name - Light Show [God?]
Another one I can't find a stream of, but here's the first single from the forthcoming record. 

Takuya Kuroda - Rising Son [Blue Note]


Zara McFarlane - If You Knew Her [Brownswood]


Georgia Anne Muldrow - oLIGARCHY sUCKS! [SomeOthaShip]


Angel Olsen - Burn Your Fire For No Witness [Jagjaguwar]


Jeff Neve - One [Universal Music Belgium]
Another elusive one. Read about the record here.

Henri-Pierre Noel - One More Step [Legere]


Perfume Genius - Too Bright [Matador] 


Plaid - Reachy Prints [Warp]


Quantic - Magnetica [Tru Thoughts]


Secret Cities - Walk Me Home [Western Vinyl]


Elizabeth Shepherd - The Signal [Linus]


Shimmering Stars - Bedrooms of the Nation [Shitty Bike Records / Almost Musique]


Silk Rhodes - Silk Rhodes [Stones Throw]


Silkken Laumann - Not Forever Enough [Independent]


Slakah the Beatchild - Soul Movement Vol. 2 [BBE]


Snowbird - Moon [Bella Union]


The Stuyvesants - Fine [Algorhythmusic]


Sultan Bathery - Sultan Bathery [Slovenly Recordings]


Surprise Party - Heart Of Love [Shake!]


Temples - Sun Structures [Fat Possum]



Ana Tijoux - Vengo [Nacional]


Thievery Corporation - Saudade [ESL]



This Will Destroy You - Another Language [Suicide Squeeze]



TV Girl - French Exit [Independent]


TV On The Radio - Seeds [Harvest Records]


Ume - Monuments [Dangerbird]


Anthony Valadez - In Search Of... [Plug Research]


Bry Webb - Free Will [Idee Fixe]


White Lung - Deep Fantasy [Domino]


White Reaper - White Reaper [Polyvinyl]


The Wisdoom - Hypothalamus [Heavy Psych Sounds Records]


Withered Hand - New Gods [Slumberland]


Wolves In The Throne Room - Celestite [Artemisia]




The Wooden Sky - Let's Be Ready [Chelsea Records]


The Yearning - Dreamboats & Lemonade [Elefant]

Lost Midas - "Head Games (ft. Audris)" Live

Here's a little sneak preview of my Top 20 songs for my New Years' Eve countdown. Was putting my list together and discovered that there's a live performance of this entry from Lost Midas' Off The Course LP. Great stuff. Needless to say, it made the cut.

Leaf Rapids - "Healing Feeling"

One of the nice things about working at UMFM is I occasionally get to do some recording in our live session room. During our pledge drive, Pledge-O-Rama, things really ramp up with  lots of different bands and performers coming in to play live on air. During Tell The Band To Go Home this year, Jeff Robson got some local luminaries to stop by and perform as the new group Leaf Rapids? Never heard of them? Well you've likely heard of Joanna Miller, Scott Nolan, and Keri & Devin Latimer. Take a gander at the video below and see what the fantastic four came up with! (and kudos to my buddy Mike Latschislaw for the great video he shot).

Connie Price & The Keystones - "Waterloo Sunset" ft. Gretchen Parlato

I must have been asleep at the wheel. I love Connie Price & The Keystones stuff on Ubiquity and have dug Gretchen Parlato's work (particularly The Lost and Found) but missed the fact that the group had collaborated with the vocalist on a Kinks cover they posted TWENTY days ago. Apologies for not making you aware of this sooner. It's lovely.

Ross McHenry - Prayers EP

Say your prayers! And thank your stars. But act fast because this PWYC EP from Ross McHenry (whose Distant Oceans LP is boss) is only available until Christmas Day.