I never get to experience the broadest variety of music. There are only so many hours in the day. I don’t dabble as much as I’d like. 2013 in particular saw me stick pretty close to my favorite genres, micro-genres and retro-notions. And I have to say that for similar minded fans of music, 2013 was a very good year.
The comeback had been festering, just beneath the surface, for a number of years now, but 2013 may finally have brought about a pop music renaissance. I’m not talking about Top 40 – the days that permitted consistently “good” music on the Top 40 charts have long since disappeared. The term “pop music” doesn’t need to be derogatory – it should imply a level of accessibility, not the derivative and over-produced slush we’ve come to associate with the term. The new wave has been inspired by the deep wellspring of 1980’s pop sensibilities. Hall & Oates. Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks. Tears for Fears. The Pet Shop Boys. New Order. Bands that crafted killer jams. Lyrics. A catchy hook. A solid beat.
When I think back to my favorite bands and tracks of 2013 the list is dominated by bands who sought inspiration from the pop music of their youth. 2013 was the year that put craftsmanship back into pop music. In most circles the bands still fall under the indie umbrella, but that term lost most of its luster long ago. It’s been distilled to dozens upon dozens of micro-genres. Indie isn’t so much a style of music as it is an identity. You either listen to “indie” or “Top 40,” but ever so slowly the gap between the two seems to be lessening. So-called indie bands are winning Grammies, topping sales charts and pulling requests on FM radio.
The 30Hz Top 25 Albums of 2013
The Almost Rans:
Parquet Courts – Light Up Gold, Arcade Fire – Reflektor, Blood Orange – Cupid Deluxe, Danny Michel with The Garifuna Collective – Black Birds are Dancing Over Me, Depeche Mode – Delta Machine, Disclosure – Settle, Grey Reverend – A Hero’s Lie, Grouper – The Man Who Died in His Boat, Laura Marling – Once I Was An Eagle, Local Natives – Hummingbird, Mount Kimbie – Cold Spring Fault Less Youth, We/Or/Me – The Walking Hour
