Jack.'s Best of 2013! | Weeknd, Ellie, Marina #30-#26
Best of 2013
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Hey guys!
I'm kind of glad to be less organised this year because it means I can limit my introduction to just a paragraph.
Sooo, this year has been ****ing insane. Like, 2012's Best of was labelled as my "best year in music" but I don't even know if I can justify that anymore. You can probably all see how adventurous I've been this year and how I've expanded my musical knowledge given how my lists have blown up. I've discovered a ton of music from the past couple of years, as well as discovered a bunch of artists that are from the past few years and released this year, which was such a treat. Then there's the whole layer of artists who released this year (debut, sophomore, etc.) who I also really enjoyed for the first time.
It's been an amazing year and I can't wait to relive all the music when I rate it all for this.
The lists I'll be producing this year are as follows:
1. Top 50 Songs
As last year, all songs are eligible as long as they received an initial release in 2013, either as a single release or album release. Singles released this year from 2012 albums are not eligible.
There is, however, a one-song limit for each artist. This is to keep it interesting so my top 3 albums of the year don't dominate the top half of this list.
2. Top 20/25 Artists
*No. to be confirmed.
This year I'm combining the 'Top Discoveries' list I did last year (which was my discoveries of artists' material that was released before the year as well as sometimes their releases from that year) with every artist who released this year who I already knew.
Ergo, all artists are eligible, and this list combines the artists whose 2013 album I adored the most and who had the best discography that I discovered.
3. Top 15 Albums
This is my most straightforward list. Minimal thought required.
I'll probably update this page a few times, maybe with shortened lists and such.
Jason Derulo
Naughty Boy
Jessie J
Katy Perry
LC9
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Azealia Banks
Stooshe
Misha B
Brown Eyed Girls
30 Seconds to Mars
Talk Dirty (feat. 2 Chainz)
Lifted (feat. Emeli Sandé)
Wild (feat. Big Sean & Dizzee Rascal)
Unconditionally
MaMa Beat (feat. Gain)
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Yung Rapunxel
Put the Kettle On
Here's to Everything (Ooh La La)
Kill Bill
The Race
Welcome to my top 50 songs of 2013!
I've loved every single song on this list at one point or another this year, and ranking them is killing me, but it has to be done.
This set sees mostly those songs that would otherwise be awarded 'Honourable Mention' positions had I done my lists different. One thing to point out is that for the first four entries, I haven't heard their respective albums. Hence why the submissions from each artist are a bit sketchy, especially since I intend to listen to Alive and Prism properly at some point. For that, excuse my poor choices - I'm just doing my best with what I have to work with here.
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50.
Jason Derulo
Talk Dirty (feat. 2 Chainz)
Talk Dirty verges on an honourable mention for me. It's not a bad song,
and Jason can be commended for his fusion of genres (albeit not the
most impressive fusion of genres we've seen this year). The main reason
I've included this song is because it's a brilliant club song, and it's such a good tune to hear when you've had a few.
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49.
Naughty Boy
Lifted (feat. Emeli Sandé)
Lifted is a nice song, and while it pales in comparison to Daddy, it's a
decently written song and, as usual, Emeli's vocals are superb. It's not a particularly memorable song, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts.
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48.
Jessie J
Wild (feat. Big Sean & Dizzee Rascal)
I really wasn't keen on Wild at first, since I was hoping for raw, truthful
Jessie to come slay me, so this was really underwhelming. Over time I
heard it more and more and it grew on me eventually, and I began to really enjoy it. It's not one of her best, but it's a well produced song that
made a good single choice from the album.
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47.
Katy Perry
Unconditionally
The story of me and Unconditionally follows a similar one to that of me
and Wild, although I almost hated the former the first time I heard it in
all honestly. I was, and still am so disappointed in Katy for the song's
chorus, since she's shown tens of times that she's capable of much better.
But hey, I couldn't escape the beautiful simplicity of it and I've come to love it now. I need to belt this a.s.a.p.
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46.
LC9
MaMa Beat (feat. Gain)
And so begins the tale of me and James' epic adventure in which he
guided me in the ways of the K-Pop.
MaMa Beat is a great song with some really interesting production. It's
not particularly daring or individual (the video supports that part of it)
but it's yet another great K-Pop song that's been churned out. To say it deserved to reach higher than #86 on Gaon would be a huge understatement.