A little bit of sound advice: Martin Turenne

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      Martin Turenne

      Every great album, no matter how consistently excellent it is, peaks somewhere. Here are my favourite records of the year, and my thoughts on the high points of each.

      The National
      High Violet
      Sombre is a word frequently attached to the National, but it’s hard to feel anything but at least mildly rapturous when “Bloodbuzz Ohio” gets going, Matt Berninger’s conversational baritone subduing an otherwise blissful rumination on his home state. If this is sadness, sign me up.


      Listen to "Bloodbuzz Ohio" by the National.

      Stornoway
      Beachcomber’s Windowsill
      “Fuel Up” is one of those songs that can still a room. Brian Briggs’s Celtic-tinged tenor cuts clean through to your heartstrings, singing what might just be the year’s best tune to calm a crying child.


      Listen to "Fuel Up" by Stornoway.

      Vampire Weekend
      Contra
      The slickest, biggest song Vampire Weekend’s ever attempted, “Giving Up the Gun” typifies the band’s turn toward stadiums. There are still quirky bits to be found elsewhere on Contra, but “Giving Up the Gun” is a stampeding thing, swelling upward like an Arcade Fire track, only without the corny melodrama.


      Listen to "Giving Up the Gun" by Vampire Weekend.

      Kanye West
      My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
      “All of the Lights” is Kanye’s victory lap, an overstuffed testament to his own genius that, despite its sheer massiveness—the horn section, guest vocals from Rihanna, Alicia Keys, and Fergie, and piano accompaniment from Elton Freakin’ John—still offers a glimpse into his hyperreal personal life.


      Listen to "All of the Lights" by Kayne West.

      Rick Ross
      Teflon Don
      Hip-hop producer Lex Luger chose his name wisely. His beat for “B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast)” makes the song WWF superhero music, all chest-rattling sub-bass and hammer-of-the-gods synthesizers. It’s hard not to stomp along to it, especially with rap’s chief swaggerer Rick Ross bellowing at you, daring you to name someone better suited to something this regal.


      Listen to “B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast)” by Rick Ross.

      LCD Soundsystem
      This Is Happening
      “I Can Change” distills James Murphy’s brilliance. First, there’s his fetish for voluptuous analogue sounds, burbling synths, and sputtering drum machines recalling, in this case, early Depeche Mode. Then there’s Murphy the clever songwriter and tender vocalist. Near the three-minute mark, when he yowls “Love is a murderer!” it’s hard to know whether to laugh, cry, or keep on dancing. He probably sees no contradiction in doing all three.


      Listen to "I Can Change" by LCD Soundsystem.

      Lorn
      Nothing Else
      This Chicago-based producer updates LFO–style bleep techno for the dubstep generation. “Cherry Moon” feels like an excerpt from some longer track that extends infinitely into the past and future, expressive synth figures interlaced with classical string samples while a stutter-step rhythm pounds ceaselessly toward the horizon.


      Listen to "Cherry Moon" by Lorn.

      Emeralds
      Does It Look Like I’m Here?
      The autobahn stretches all the way to Cleveland, home to Emeralds, a trio resurrecting the best of 1970s German cosmic music. “Double Helix” is the sound young men make when they’re worshipping Tangerine Dream, ripping open a seam in the time-space continuum to a weed-scented West Berlin studio in 1975.


      Listen to "Double Helix" by Emeralds.

      Mark McGuire
      Living With Yourself
      A set of instrumental tracks built around recordings from his childhood, Living With Yourself finds the Emeralds guitarist rendering homage to his family and to Godspeed You! Black Emperor, whose spirit animates the nostalgic crest-and-crash sonics of “Brothers (For Matt)”.


      Listen to "Brothers (for Matt)" by Mark McGuire.

      Brian Eno
      Small Craft on a Milk Sea
      This late-career triumph begins and ends calmly, but at its heart are sinister, percussive workouts like “2 Forms of Anger”, an unsettling piece that swells toward a crescendo of slashing guitars and double-time drumming before disappearing into the mist from which it emerged.


      Listen to "2 Forms of Anger" by Brian Eno.

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