With her debut, MØ delivered one of the greatest and freshest pop records of 2014. Her dark mix of electro-pop, dancehall elements and Lana Del Rey-ish vocals was not only enjoyable but also diverse and unheard. Songs like the catchy title track, the bittersweet "Glass" and the outstanding bonus track "The Sea" kept me coming back to No Mythologies to Follow. While the album didn't seem that interesting on first listen, it steadily grew on me over time, making it one of my favourite records of the preceding year.
Standouts: "The Sea", "Maiden", "Glass", "No Mythologies to Follow"
MØ album is so good, I hate how underrated she is and that ppl just brush her off bc of Beg For It. I do find the album a bit too long, but that's just because of the alternate versions. Generally it's a great debut that flows together very well.
On January 21, "fountain" was uploaded to iamamiwhoami's YouTube channel without any warning. Back then nobody knew for sure whether this was the start of a new series or just some random release. Some even speculated that "fountain" could possibly be the group's last release, a parting gift of sorts. Thankfully, that was not the case: A little over a month later, BLUE's second chapter "hunting for pearls" was eventually uploaded. As "fountain" had been a rather underwhelming release for me personally, "hunting for pearls" and its massive Kate Bush-esque chorus slayed my existence totally. In other words: My wig was snatched, my follicles were scalped. With "vista", the Swedish group around Jonna Lee released what I found to be their worst song ever at the time. The single would grow on me rather quickly, though, and when the video was released some time later, I had completely fallen in love with the track.
By then, it was becoming clearer and clearer that we were in the middle of a new iamamiwhoami series, though, as always, we had no clue as to when the next chapter would drop, let it alone what it would sound or look like.
The group's third full-length effort was eventually announced in July when iamamiwhoami uploaded the BLUE album trailer along with a rather enigmatic letter about the upcoming album and its inspirations and influences. Its release date was revealed to be the 10th of November. The remaining chapters were consequently uploaded in the following months.
Thanks to iam's unusual way of putting out music, BLUE truly felt like an experience and not just an album. I connect each of the releases with a particular time of the year and thus a particular mood and situation of mine. I don't feel nearly as connected to any other 2014 record. In fact, I think this is what makes the album so outstanding and wonderful to me. It goes without saying that, musically, the record was also top-notch.
For me, 2014 was BLUE.
Beautiful post for your #1 I haven't heard any of it, but it's clearly had a big impact on you. Love music that can have a big impact on people.
No Mythologies to Follow was my big bop album at the start of the year. The Scandinavians just really know how to make good pop. Adore "Pilgrim" and "Slow Love" the most from that album.
Beautiful post for your #1 I haven't heard any of it, but it's clearly had a big impact on you. Love music that can have a big impact on people.
No Mythologies to Follow was my big bop album at the start of the year. The Scandinavians just really know how to make good pop. Adore "Pilgrim" and "Slow Love" the most from that album.
I feel 2014 was a really good year for Scandinavian music. You had MØ, the Röyksopp & Robyn mini album, Röyksopp's solo album and then a whole lot of talented newcomers. iamamiwhoami are from Sweden, too, actually.
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Originally posted by borntodie
keep slaying me with your taste
MØ album is so good, I hate how underrated she is and that ppl just brush her off bc of Beg For It. I do find the album a bit too long, but that's just because of the alternate versions. Generally it's a great debut that flows together very well.
And FKA of course I guess Blue is #1!
Aaand you were right!
I agree about MØ. People should really give her another chance. As for the "night versions", I still don't know if those are acoustic versions or just demos. Some of them are pretty great, though!
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Originally posted by MP2K
MØ getting shown some love
LP1 is amazing.
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Originally posted by lovesong
LP1 is fantastic, easily my favourite of the past year.
And I'm so glad that Blue clicked with me before it was too late! Nice choice for #1, its a great album!
Stan! If it hadn't been for my iam stanning, twigs would have been #1 without a doubt.
Now that this has come to an end, I once again want to thank everybody who commented and participated. Counting down my favourite releases wouldn't have been nearly as much fun without y'all!
Great to see FKA so high
Honestly, Fountain and Hunting for Pearls were my fave from Blue!
My absolute favourite is definitely "hunting for pearls". I basically love every single song on there though. The only weak link is "ripple", and even that is an 8/10.
Am I surprised about the #1? No, but I really liked Blue and FKA Twigs was was an amazing surprise for me 2014. I hadn't heard of her ever before and immediately connected to her music.
Over already, though. Thank God I got this bookmarked for when I need new music