Year-End Critics' Polls 2014

I'm pretty sure I've seen Exclaim.ca publish lists like that before, I don't think they've done it this year though. Pitchfork has had Top Left-Field Albums or something like that as well. And NPR did one in 2012 at least.

Chris and Raymond definitely deserve credit. I just thought it was noteworthy that RS was willing to publish a list like this in 2014 when it doesn't seem like something they would have done previously.

For sure, MUCH respect due to Marc/Grayson at p4K who've been fighting that good fight for some time now.

As much as I'd love to help push some narrative about avant-garde music is penetrating mainstream culture, the simple, unsexy truth is I did this exact list at SPIN for two years when I worked there — but now I work at RS!

OK, was just wondering. I haven't followed these threads most years; that's why I asked the first question about whether this has been going on for a while.

personal list: http://1000timesyes.tumblr.com/post/106739224079/cleaning-out-my-closet-the-top-100-records-of

http://turntablelab.com/collections/turntable-lab-top-40-of-2014

This informal list was compiled by Turntable Lab employees. The list consists of records that TTL picked up in 2014: new releases, reissues, old-new-to-us titles, novelty records, etc. Many will probably be unavailable, at moment (holidays were craze), but sign up for Stock Emails if you're interested. Lastly, don't take this chart too seriously. Casey Kasem RIP.

Afisha Volna's poll of Russian critics and musicians' top 20 albums of the year doesn't deviate wildly from the international consensus. Nice to see Owen Pallett in there though.

20. Ibibio Sound Machine - Ibibio Sound Machine
19. SD Laika - That's Harakiri
18: The Soundcarriers - Entropicalia
17. Gesloten Cirkel - Submit X
16. Ratking - So It Goes
15. Angel Olsen - Burn Your Fire With No Witness
14. Owen Pallett - In Conflict
13. The Bug - Angels & Demons
12. Sun Kil Moon - Benji
11. Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 2
10. D'Angelo - Black Messiah
9. Andy Stott - Faith in Strangers
8. Actress - Ghettoville
7. Todd Terje - It's Album Time
6. Dean Blunt - Black Metal
5. 4 Pozitsii Bruno - Ya Zakazan
4. Ariel Pink - pom pom
3. 3. Flying Lotus - You're Dead!
2. Ivan Dorn - Randorn
1. Caribou - Our Love

There is a separate list of the 20 best Russian albums which is a bit more interesting: http://volna.afisha.ru/sounds/20-luchshih-russkih-albomov-goda/

The Soundcarriers is pretty nice, psych with some Stereolab influence.

so...this Ian William Craig album is stunning. what thread do I bookmark so I catch its 2015 equivalent before mid-December? the Boomkat one?

aux.out.'s writers' poll is up. too much war on drugs for me, plus i don't like rtj2 as much as everyone else.

i contributed some answers. i hope i said some thoughtful things and introduced people to some good records.

http://consequenceofsound.net/aux-out/2014-aux-out-writers-poll-aka-philzz-jop-2/full-post/

weird -- once again, ilx is deleting words from my post. that was meant to say "writers' poll."

i can see that in your post, fwiw

it might be a chrome thing.

I think it is. (I'm using Chrome too.) The sentence said aux.out. poll when I clicked on the thread and more characters blinked into place as I watched. Now it says aux.out.'sters' poll -- weird.

And just now the first two letters disappeared from the word poll at the end.

A slightly delayed list submission that treads much of the same ground as others, but here...

Resident (Music shop - Brighton, UK):

1. the war on drugs - lost in the dream
2. sun kil moon - benji
3. angel olsen - burn your fire for no witness
4. swans - to be kind
5. beck - morning phase
6. benjamin booker - benjamin booker
7. shabazz palaces - lese majesty
8. la roux - trouble in paradise
9. perfume genius - too bright
10. todd terje - it's album time
11. the wytches - annabel dream reader
12. wild beasts - present tense
13. ty segall - manipulator
14. damien jurado - brothers and sisters of the eternal son
15. alt-j - this is all yours
16. first aid kit - stay gold
17. ema - the future's void
18. owen pallett - in conflict
19. mogwai - rave tapes
20. ibibio sound machine - ibibio sound machine

Full list here: http://www.resident-music.com/collection&path=15243

The latter half offers some more interesting material (Fumaca Preta, Wen, Atomos...) and their newsletter is well worth following for weekly new releases and reissues.

1. Hugues Vincent & Yasumune Morishige - Fragment
2. Bogan Ghost - Zerfall
3. Marc Ducret - Tower-Bridge
4. Ken Vandermark - Nine Ways to Build a Bridge
5. Wadada Leo Smith - Great Lakes Suite
6. Steve Lehman Octet - Mise en Abime
7. Akira Sakata - Arashi
8. Jeremiah Cymerman - Pale Horse
9. Farmers by Nature - Love and Ghosts
10. Lotte Anker & Jakob Riis - Squid Police

This a top ten voted by readers of The Free Jazz Collective, only familar with the Steve Lehman one. It seems quite out there.

Headphone Commute's first two lists are up:

Music For The Film Behind Closed Eyelids
AWVFTS - ATOMOS
Andy Stott - Faith In Strangers
Ben Frost - A U R O R A
Black Swan - Tone Poetry
Erik Truffaz & Murcof - Being Human Being
Kangding Ray - Solens Arc
Lawrence English - Wilderness Of Mirrors
Matthew Collings - Silence Is A Rhythm Too
Mica Levi - Under The Skin
Roll The Dice - Until Silence

Music For Bending Light And Stopping Time
Alessandro Cortini - Sonno
Celer - Sky Limits
Fabio Perletta - Interstitial Spaces
Janek Schaefer - Lay-By Lullaby
Kyle Bobby Dunn - … & the Infinite Sadness
Machinefabriek - Stillness Soundtracks
Pjusk / Sleep Orchestra - Drowning In The Sky
Saåad - Deep/Float
Wil Bolton - Bokeh
Yann Novak - Snowfall

http://reviews.headphonecommute.com/best-of-2014/

Jesus Christ, 29 comments?

(Oh, ha, it's Rene Kita chatting with folks mostly.)

lawl @ Saåad - Deep/Float

i think if i ever start my own lonely-guy-just-thinking-baout-the-cosmos ambient project i will call it Awe Diddums

Various Dusted writers' lists: http://dustedmagazine.tumblr.com/tagged/endof2014

Consensus Watch update:

70 FKA Twigs - LP1
58 Caribou - Our Love
57 The War on Drugs - Lost in the Dream
56 St Vincent - St Vincent
55 Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels 2
50 Aphex Twin - Syro
48 Angel Olsen - Burn Your Fire For No Witness
45 Flying Lotus - You're Dead!
43 Swans - To Be Kind
43 Todd Terje - It's Album Time
42 Sharon Van Etten - Are We There
39 Future Islands - Singles
39 Freddie Gibbs and Madlib - Pinata
38 Sun Kil Moon - Benji
37 Beck - Morning Phase
36 Perfume Genius - Too Bright
35 Mac DeMarco - Salad Days
32 Lana Del Rey - Ultraviolence
31 Grouper - Ruins << NB this is the highest polled album to miss the charts in both the UK and US
29 Spoon - They Want My Soul
28 Taylor Swift - 1989
28 Shabazz Palaces - Lese Majesty
26 Jack White - Lazaretto
26 Real Estate - Atlas
24 Andy Stott - Faith in Strangers
23 Alvvays - Alvvays
22 Jenny Lewis - Voyager
22 East India Youth - Total Strife Forever
21 Wild Beasts - Present Tense
21 Scott Walker & Sun O))) - Soused
21 Cloud Nothings - Here And Nowhere Else
21 Ty Segall - Manipulator
20 YG - My Krazy Life
20 Jessie Ware - Tough Love
20 Sleaford Mods - Divide and Exit
20 Parquet Courts - Sunbathing Animal
20 Azealia Banks, Broke With Expensive Taste
20 The Bug - Angels & Devils
19 Against Me! - Transgender Dysphoria Blues
19 Damon Albarn - Everyday Robots
19 Royal Blood - Royal Blood
19 Sturgill Simpson - Metamodern Sounds In Country Music
18 Tinashe - Aquarius
18 Arca – Xen
17 Goat - Commune
17 Lykke Li, I Never Learn
17 Ex Hex - Rips
17 First Aid Kit - Stay Gold
17 Temples - Sun Structures
17 Dean Blunt – Black Metal
16 Ought - More Than Any Other Day
16 Alt-J - This Is All Yours
16 Mastodon: Once More Round The Sun
16 Pallbearer – Foundations of Burden
16 Ariel Pink - Pom Pom
15 Hookworms - The Hum
15 The Black Keys - Turn Blue
15 La Roux - Trouble in Paradise
15 Warpaint - Warpaint

damn fka really ran away with it

Because that album rules

Uniqueness Watch: number of albums that don't appear in any other polls.
(Polls with fewer than 30 entries are not listed.)

Soultracks 24/29 82.76%
Textura 30/40 75%
Hard & Heavy Old 35/50 70%
XLR8R 16/30 53%
NPR Jazz 24/50 48%
The Quietus 22/50 44%
The Wire 21/50 42%
Classic Rock 19/50 38%
Monorail Music 19/50 38%
Kerrang 18/50 36%
Rolling Stone Country 14/40 36%
AdHoc 11/32 34%
Boomkat 17/50 34%
FACT 16/50 32%
Mixmag 16/50 32%
Phonica 15/50 30%
Gorilla vs Bear 10/35 29%
Guitar World 14/50 28%
Norman Records 14/50 28%
Tiny Mix Tapes 14/50 28%
Slate 13/50 26%
Washington Post 13/50 26%
Rolling Stone Rap 10/40 25%
Fasterlouder 12/50 24%
NPR 11/50 22%
Piccadilly Records 11/50 22%
Sputnikmusic 11/50 22%
Steel For Brains 11/50 22%
Cokemachineglow 8/40 20%
ILM Metal Poll 10/50 20%
Louder Than War 10/50 20%
Vibe 9/46 20%
Waterloo Records 10/50 20%
American Songwriter 9/50 18%
Complex 8/50 16%
Drowned in Sound 8/50 16%
The Skinny 8/50 16%
CMJ 4/30 13%
Loud and Quiet 5/40 13%
Consequence of Sound 5/50 10%
Under the Radar 5/50 10%
Decibel 4/40 10%
Digital Spy 3/30 10%
Terrorizer 5/50 10%
The Line Of Best Fit 5/50 10%
Popmatters 5/50 10%
Rough Trade 4/50 8%
Uncut 4/50 8%
Variance 4/50 8%
The 405 2/30 7%
Flavorwire 2/30 7%
Daily Telegraph 3/49 6%
Drift 3/50 6%
Gigwise 3/50 6%
Mojo 3/50 6%
Rolling Stone 3/50 6%
Stereogum 3/50 6%
Clash 2/40 5%
The Guardian 2/40 5%
Crack Magazine 2/50 4%
Paste 2/50 4%
Q 2/50 4%
Resident 2/50 4%
Rhapsody 2/50 4%
Spin 2/50 4%
Treble 2/50 4%
Amazon 1/50 2%
Pitchfork 1/50 2%
Any Decent Music 0/50 0%
musicOMH 0/50 0%
NME 0/50 0%
No Ripcord 0/50 0%
Pretty Much Amazing 0/50 0%
Time Out London 0/30 0%

Instead of just counting unique entries, you could calculate the average number of mentions for each list's choices.

Various Dusted writers' lists: http://dustedmagazine.tumblr.com/tagged/endof2014

― ticket to rmde (seandalai)

ooooh so that's where Dusted lives now

xp that's a very interesting metric!

Hivemind Watch: number of albums in the Top 20 most polled (see above, Twigs to Spoon) that appear in a publication's Top 10.

Treble 10 (and 15 out of the top 16)
musicOMH 9
Pitchfork 9 (and 15 out of the top 17)
Popmatters 9
Pretty Much Amazing 9 (and 15 out of the top 16)
Time Out New York 9
Any Decent Music 8
Consequence of Sound 8
Entertainment Weekly 8
The Guardian 8
No Ripcord 8
Q 8
AV Club 7
Resident 7
Under The Radar 7
Variance 7
Clash 6
Drift 6
Fasterlouder 6
Now (Toronto) 6
Rhapsody 6
Slant 6
Stereogum 6
Uncut 6

Instead of just counting unique entries, you could calculate the average number of mentions for each list's choices.

This might be too labour-intensive, given the way I've tabulated my data. But maybe.

Top 100 Albums of 2014 by Fragile Or Possibly Extinct (launched by former editors of The Silent Ballet)

100) Ilya Beshevli | Night Forest
99) Beak | Let Time Begin
98) Reliq | Metatropics
97) Linear Bells | The Stars Will Shine
96) Chasing Dreams | Even If…
95) Torn Hawk| Let’s Cry and Do Pushups at the Same Time
94) Eno & Hyde | Half Life
93) Good Weather for an Airstrike | A Home for You
92) Fait | Atmosphere
91) Set and Setting | A Vivid Memory
90) Objekt | Flatland
89) N.Tesla | Lux Manifesto
88) Kiasmos | Kiasmos
87) Tapes | Finding
86) Waking Aida | Eschaton
85) This Patch of Sky | This Patch of Sky
84) FourPlay String Quartet | This Machine
83) The Echelon Effect | Pacific
82) A Model Kit | Invention of Love
81) NÄO | III
80) Lykanthea | Migration
79) SVK | Avernus
78) Kangding Ray | Solens Arc
77) Koen Holtkamp | Motion
76) Irreversible | Surface
75) Akira Kosemura | Embers
74) Steve Gibbs | Adrift
73) Cloudkicker | Live with Intronaut
72) Tides of Man | Young and Courageous
71) Erik Truffaz & Murcof | Being Human Being
70) Johann Johannsson | The Theory of Everything OST
69) Ryan Teague | Block Boundaries
68) Chrome Sparks | Goddess
67) Shield Patterns | Contour Lines
66) Hauschka | Abandoned City
65) Ecco | Freedom Summer
64) Illum Sphere | Ghosts of Then and Now
63) Arca | Xen
62) Black Swan | Tone Poetry
61) Sinoia Caves | Beyond the Black Rainbow OST
60) Tired Tape Machine | Not Here
59) Old Man Gloom | The Ape of God I & II
58) Saåad | Deep/Float
57) Darren Korb | Transistor OST
56) To Destroy a City | Sunless
55) Noveller & thisquietarmy | Reveries
54) Yuki Murata | Gift
53) Pray for Sound | Dreamer
52) Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra | Fuck Off Get Free We Pour Light on Everything
51) Lucy Claire | Collaborations No. 1
50) Slow Magic | How to Run Away
49) Degree of Arc | Halls in Hospitals
48) Giles Lamb | Before the Birds
47) Phantogram | Voices
46) Fennesz | Bécs
45) There is No Teenage Love | LAHEX
44) Hot Victory | Hot Victory
43) Misha Mishenko | Somnipedie
42) Aphex Twin | Syro
41) Bing & Ruth | Tomorrow was the Golden Age
40) Flying Lotus | You’re Dead!
39) Emma Ruth Rundle | Some Heavy Ocean
38) Whale Fall | The Madrean
37) Sleepmakeswaves | Love of Cartography
36) Brooklyn Rider | The Brooklyn Rider Almanac
35) Kayo Dot | Coffins on Io
34) Mica Levi | Under the Skin OST
33) Mermonte | Audiorama
32) Iam William Craig | A Turn of Breath
31) Christopher Willits | Opening
30) Hans Zimmer | Interstellar OST
29) Lowercase Noises | This is for Our Sins
28) Rumour Cubes | Appearances of Collections
27) Carlos Cipa | All Your Life You Walk
26) Roll the Dice | Until Silence
25) Mark McGuire | Noctilucence
24) Lantlôs | Melting Sun
23) Arcade Fire & Owen Pallett | Her OST
22) Bruno Bavota | The Secrets of the Sea
21) Loren Dent | Anthropology Vols. 2 & 3
20) William Ryan Fritch | Leave Me Like You Found Me
19) Beware of Safety | Lotusville
18) Jakob | Sines
17) Poppy Ackroyd | Feathers
16) Bohren & der Club of Gore | Piano Nights
15) Tomorrow We Sail | For Those Who Caught the Sun in Flight
14) Christina Vantzou | No.2
13) Christopher Tignor | Thunder Lay Down in the Heart
12) A Winged Victory for the Sullen | Atomos
11) Lawrence English | Wilderness of Mirrors
10) Adebisi Shank | This is the Third Album of a Band Called Adebisi Shank
9) Franz Kirmann | Meridians
8) Odesza | In Return
7) BADBADNOTGOOD | III
6) Vicky Chow | Tristan Perch: Surface Image
5) Kyle Bobby Dunn | And the Infinite Sadness
4) Alexander Turnquist | Flying Fantasy
3) Tycho | Awake
2) Blueneck | King Nine
1) Black Vines | Black Vines

fun/interesting/wrong list

Brainashed Readers Poll Results
http://brainwashed.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10301:2014-reader-poll-the-results&catid=80:annual-readers-polls&Itemid=97

DJmag Canada:
djmag canada
20. Head High – Megatrap
19. Flight Facilities – Down To Earth
18. Knife Party – Abandon Ship
17. Todd Terje – It’s Album Time
16. Bassnectar – Noise Vs Beauty
15. Skrillex – Recess
14. Chromeo – White Women
13. Leon Vynehall – Music For The Uninvited
12. Plastikman – EX
11. Lone – Reality Testing
10. Caribou – Our Love
9. Hercules & Love Affair – The Feast Of The Broken Heart
8. Above & Beyond – Acoustic
7. Theo Parrish – American Intelligence
6. 6th Borough Project – Borough 2 Borough
5. Duck Sauce – Quack
4. Moodymann – Moodymann
3. Porter Robinson – Worlds
2. Aphex Twin – Syro
1. deadmau5 – while(1<2)

Punknews:
punknews
20 Morning Glory: War Psalms
19 Neighborhood Brats: Recovery
18 PUP: PUP
17 Lagwagon: Hang
16 The Hotelier: Home, Like Noplace Is There
14= Pianos Become The Teeth: Keep You
14= Cayetana: Nervous Like Me
13 Joyce Manor: Never Hungover Again
11= The Copyrights: Report
11= White Lung: Deep Fantasy
10 Prawn: Kingfisher
9 The Dwarves: The Dwarves Invented Rock 'n' Roll
8 Chumped: Teenage Retirement
7 Masked Intruder: M.I.
6 World/Inferno Friendship Society: This Packed Funeral
5 The Lawrence Arms: Metropole
4 Restorations: LP3
3 OFF!: Wasted Years
2 The Menzingers: Rented World
1 Against Me!: Transgender Dysphoria Blues

Transgender Dysphoria Blues should be topping way more lists.

agreed

that shit reminds me of the holy bible by manic street preachers where i was all psyched like man this is gonna be an epic rock album based on all the stuff i read and i hear it and it's like ehh i guess i dunno seems like a solid alt rock record

i'm not that into it, but i attribute that to my tastes and my probably being in the wrong demographic.

That's what I thought about TDB too. (Though not The Holy Bible)

Hivemind Watch, Part 2.

As requested, this shows the average number of mentions for each list's choices. Thus if a poll had nothing but unique choices, it would score 1.
Yardstick note: if a publication's Top 50 contained the exact Consensus Watch Top 50, it would score 30.22. For a Top 40, it would score 33.38. For a Top 30, 37.8.
I've only listed polls with at least a Top 30, but all polls have been used for the calculations (cutting off at 50 for longer polls).

No Ripcord 26.18
Pretty Much Amazing 25.66
Pitchfork 25.6
Treble 25.5
The Guardian 25
Time Out London 23.4
Any Decent Music 23.04
NME 23.02
Under The Radar 22.88
Stereogum 22.74
Popmatters 22.6
CMJ 22.43
The 405 22.4
Clash 22.03
Consequence of Sound 22.02
Spin 21.96
musicOMH 21.8
The Line of Best Fit 21.46
Drift 20.62
Mojo 20.58
Paste 20.54
Gigwise 20.2
Rough Trade 20.16
Crack Magazine 20.04
Loud and Quiet 19.78
Q 19.78
Rolling Stone 19.74
Fasterlouder 19.48
Slate 19.08
Rhapsody 18.96
Uncut 18.42
Flavorwire 18.33
The Skinny 18.3
Variance 17.66
Amazon 17.12
Drowned in Sound 17
Sputnikmusic 16.8
Resident 16.66
Digital Spy 16.27
Waterloo Records 16.16
Cokemachineglow 16.03
Daily Telegraph 15.51
Piccadilly Records 15.32
NPR 14.8
Louder Than War 14.42
American Songwriter 14.28
Complex 14.24
Gorilla vs Bear 13.89
Phonica 11.18
Tiny Mix Tapes 11.1
Norman Records 10.2
Mixmag 10.16
The Wire 10.1
Monorail music 9.76
AdHoc 9.75
Vibe 9.43
FACT 9.4
The Quietus 9.2
Guitar World 8.42
Washington Post 8.42
XLR8R 8.03
Boomkat 7.34
Rolling Stone Rap 6.65
ILM Metal Poll 6.48
Steel For Brains 6.2
Terrorizer 6.14
Decibel 5.68
Classic Rock 5.4
Juno Plus 4.7
Fragile or Possibly Extinct 4.02
Kerrang 4
Rolling Stone Country 4
Textura 2.33
Hard & Heavy Old 1.92
NPR Jazz 1.92
Soultracks 1.66

That's great. Very interesting quantification of the centering of Pitchfork.

Has-Beens and Underperformers Watch: commercially notable acts, or acts with previous commercial or critical form, who polled low in 2014.

Listed in 3 polls: Iggy Azalea, Tove Lo, George Ezra, Kasabian, Chris Brown, The Roots, Hercules & Love Affair, Ghostface Killah, Thurston Moore, J Mascis, Death From Above 1979, Willie Nelson, Pixies, Ray LaMontagne, Mark Lanegan Band, Tensnake, Cooly G, Skrillex, Plastikman

Listed in 2 polls: Lily Allen, Coldplay, Blake Shelton, Jason Derulo, 5 Seconds Of Summer, Smashing Pumpkins, T.I., Rick Ross, deadmau5, Ben Howard, Gaslight Anthem, Mirel Wagner, Karen O, Conor Oberst, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Wiley, Roman Flügel, Deerhoof, Melvins, Tanya Tagaq

Listed in 1 poll: Calvin Harris, Neil Young, R. Kelly, Jessie J, Maroon 5, Robin Thicke, The Hold Steady, J.Cole, Aloe Blacc, Basement Jaxx, Kylie Minogue, Johnny Marr, Ben Watt, Prins Thomas, Tricky, Marianne Faithfull, Rumer, Bryan Ferry, Xiu Xiu, Jackson Browne, Lenny Kravitz, Deptford Goth, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Vamps, Foxes, Ella Henderson, Vashti Bunyan, Laetitia Sadler, Kiesza, Garth Brooks, Eels, Pulled Apart By Horses, And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, Kid Cudi, Keyshia Cole, Cher Lloyd, You Me At Six, John Mellencamp, Chrissie Hynde, Edwyn Collins, Sebastien Tellier, Michelle Williams, The 2 Bears, Rustie

Listed in 0 polls: Flaming Lips, Wiz Khalifa, Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line, Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga, Barbra Streisand, Paloma Faith, Olly Murs, Take That, The Script

Trying to comprehend just how terrible a Flaming Lips album would need to be not to make a single list.

heh, i voted for tove lo, hercules & love affair, and kiesza on my p&j singles list. to be fair, some of these people just are not regarded as album artists, so they didn't show up on albums lists.

Commercially notable acts, or acts with previous commercial or critical form, who underperformed so much they didn't even make the Has-Beens and Underperformers Watch list: Ben Harper (and his mom)

I saw Florida Georgia Line's song "Dirt" show up on some lists, just not their album