So the time has come again, where the year is almost at a close and you have to decide which releases impressed you the most when it comes to music. The fact is there have been a few quality releases this year and not from people who have been in the limelight a lot either.
Here are some (not all, as I could be here listing numerous projects) of my favourite albums from this year, in no particular order:
Beverley Knight - 100%
Beverley is one of those elite few artists within the industry that just consistently delivers with whatever she does and her latest release was definitely no different, infact there are a number of amazing songs on this album, the best for me being ‘Breakout’; ‘Square Peg’ and ‘Force Of Nature’ (which is a bonus track via download from the album over here). All in all, it was a very good album and definitely showcased Beverley for the talent she is within music. It’s just a shame she’s so underrated and has been overlooked many times within the industry, hopefully that will change. She certainly has the talent, such a pity that she’s also very underrated within the industry despite being so amazingly talented.
Chrisette Michele – Epiphany
Chrisette had an amazing debut a few years back, which slipped virtually under the radar, so when I heard a new album was due to be released, I was definitely looking forward to hearing this and I honestly don’t think I was disappointed with this release either. Now it wasn’t anything like her debut album and although I do really love this album, I think it still comes a close second to her debut, which really was that good. The best song on this album for me, well... I don’t think I could choose, all bring something different and completely unique to this project. Well worth the money spent on it.
Melinda Doolittle – Coming Back To You
I’ve been a fan of Melinda since she was on American Idol a few years back and was definitely waiting patiently for her to release something of her own; we were not disappointed when Melinda released her debut project, ‘Coming Back To You’. I honestly don’t feel there was one bad song on the album, all songs complimented the previous well and that is one of the reasons why I feel this has to be one of the best releases of this year. Plus the fact that Melinda Doolittle could sing absolutely anything and it would still sound so magical.
Joy Jones – Godchild
Easily one of the best albums released this year, for me this artist came from nowhere, I hadn’t heard much on Joy until this album virtually fell into my lap online and as soon as I played it, I instantly adored it. I must admit, the fancy artwork for this project caught my eye and right then I knew that this album would be something interesting, something worth checking out. I wasn’t wrong, from beginning to finish this album oozes so much Soul it’s pretty hard to stop playing it. Definitely one of my best purchases this year.
Jaspects – The Polkadotted Stripe
This is a late addition to this list for me; I knew little bits about this group already and had heard bits of their previous work. But it was upon hearing ‘2012’ from this very album which features the equally talented Janelle Monáe that I decided to further check out their work. I was not disappointed and therefore this album makes it onto my list. This is an amazing project worth purchasing, if you haven’t already. You have certainly been missing out.
Backstreet Boys – This Is Us
I’ve been a huge fan of these guys since forever, so upon their release of their latest album. I bought it straight away, no hesitation, nothing. They are the only pop group I make time for and always will be.
This album wasn’t going to match the incredible, ‘Millennium’, which was released a decade ago (unbelievably). The follow up to 2007’s ‘Unbreakable’, this album has definitely shown that the guys aren’t one trick ponies when it comes to delivering a great album and the highlight for me was definitely the song, ‘Undone’. One thing I do have to say though, since the release of this album a few songs have surfaced online that most definitely could have made this project, so it just goes to show how much material they truly had. An album well worth checking out.
Maxwell – BLACKsummers’night
This year saw the return of Maxwell, now last year I was pining for a full version of ‘Pretty Wings’ from this album, which we had only been teased with. Towards the middle of this year, I was definitely awaiting the release of this album based upon the fact of loving the first single and boy, we were not disappointed.
Now this is apparently the first instalment of a trilogy of albums, so we should have more amazing projects like this very soon, hopefully not years down the line like we had to wait for this. Maxwell certainly knows how to keeps his fans on their toes and with that said, it was definitely well worth the wait.
Mamas Gun – Routes To Riches
Mamas Gun are a group I have been following musically for some time now and I’ve virtually been waiting patiently, well kinda, for their debut studio album to actually see the light of day. Towards the tail end of this year, it actually did and boy, it was well worth the wait. Even though I had heard most of the songs already on the groups Myspace page, I enjoyed the album from beginning to finish. I honestly do not think I could choose a favourite from this release, all of the songs from this album bring something different to the project as a whole. I was certainly eagerly anticipating this release, well worth the wait. No doubt there will be bigger and better things to come from this group; they certainly have the goods to be around a very long time within music.
Ledisi – Turn Me Loose
This album is just pure gold from beginning to finish, I honestly don’t think there is one bad song on this project. It really is that good. But do we expect anything less from the talented, Ledisi? The answer is, no we do not.
Ledisi is always an artist within music who consistently delivers the goods and shows exactly why it is that she means business, no one can touch her albums, she always raises her game upon each release and this album was certainly going to be no different. I don’t think I could pick a favourite on the album, but if I had to, then I would probably pick the song, ‘Alone’. It was the very first snippet I heard and definitely made me want to hear more. All in all, a truly fantastic album that is worth every penny.
Syleena Johnson – Chapter 4: Labor Pains
Syleena Johnson remains one of the best talents within music, without a shadow of a doubt. Yet, she still remains so underrated, so it baffled me why this album didn’t receive the airplay it truly deserved. You always know that Syleena is going to release something pretty special and this project really wasn’t going to change the fact that this artist knows how to deliver the goods within music.
For me, this album has to be one of the best releases of this year without a shadow of a doubt; you always know you’ve stumbled upon a good album when you don’t have the need to skip past songs. This album continued to showcase exactly why this artist deserves more love within music, despite being incredibly underrated Syleena consistently churns out amazing album after amazing album and upon hearing she is working on her next release, that too should be no different. A fantastic album from beginning to finish.
Melanie Fiona – The Bridge
Melanie Fiona seem to come from nowhere this year, especially upon hearing her debut single ‘Give It To Me Right’, a song that kind of sprung up on you and pinpointed that this was certainly an artist to keep your attention focused on. Upon hearing more from this artist, you certainly got the feeling she meant business and she had the talent to go with it, the majority of her material matched up to the quality of the first single, which is very important if you are investing your hard earned cash on a project.
Needless to say, ‘The Bridge’ definitely matched up to the hype and has delivered some pretty solid material since hitting record shops over here earlier in the year. Melanie also kept things fresh with the release of her very own mixtape with Questlove from The Roots, which gave you a different and much more unique insight into the album. This album is definitely worth the purchase, a great album.
Van Hunt – Use In Case Of Emergency (Rare Items From The Vault)
Van Hunt is just incredible, there I said it, I love this man and everything he does within music. I was very annoyed that his last studio album never saw the light of day, despite the fact that most people have heard it and it really is that good. So when he told his fans that he was all set to release an unreleased collection, I jumped for joy. It still baffles me that this guy remains so underrated within music, despite boasting bags of talent.
I honestly don’t think a lot needs to be said about this release, other than the fact you have certainly been missing out, if you don’t own this already. Well worth checking out.
Nate James – Revival
Nate James cannot do anything wrong for me, he is an amazing talent over here in the UK I’ve been a fan of since, well forever it seems. Even though this project is a cover album I was definitely impressed with it, it could be down to the fact that I adore this man and he can sing his way out of a wet chip bag, if he wanted to of course. But it has definitely been a bit of a wait since his last studio album a couple of years ago and I was eager to hear more from him, his take of ‘Because I Love You’ is great. Mind you, I like the entire album even if this was just to tide us fans over until his next studio album is released.
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