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2013 Grammy Predictions
I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the Grammys. On the one hand, I’m all for a night to celebrate music. On the other hand, I’m not really sure what we’re celebrating. Record sales? Mediocrity? Based on the albums that have won Best Album over the last 20 years, it can’t be quality. Two movie soundtracks have won (The Bodyguard, O’ Brother Where Art Thou?), Steely Dan beat out Beck’s Midnite Vultures and Radiohead’s Kid A. Maybe three times over the same 20 year period, they got it right. In 1998 and 1999 Bob Dylan’s Time Out Of Mind and Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill took top honors. In 2004 Outkast’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below won perhaps the most hotly contested race for Best Album in decades, beating out The White Stripes Elephant, Justin Timberlake’s Justified, Under Construction by Missy Elliot, and the baffling Fallen by Evanescence.
Perhaps the most maddening thing about the Grammy’s is the bizarre time frame they use. Records are considered from October 1st to September 30th. So, if you put out a single in August, but you’re album doesn’t come out until November, you can be nominated for the song but the album can’t be nominated until the following year. Maybe it makes sense with the way radio play occurs, but does anyone really listen to the radio anymore?
I don’t have terribly high hopes for the albums I’d like to see win this year. My personal choices for what SHOULD win will be in CAPS. What I think WILL win will be in bold.
Album of the Year
» The Black Keys - El Camino
» Fun. - Some Nights
» Mumford & Sons - Babel D’oh!
» FRANK OCEAN-CHANNEL ORANGE
» Jack White - Blunderbuss
Record of the Year
» The Black Keys – “Lonely Boy”
» Kelly Clarkson – “Stronger”
» Fun. feat. Janelle Monae – “We Are Young”
» Gotye feat. Kimbra – “Somebody That I Used to Know” D’oh!
» FRANK OCEAN-”THINKIN BOUT YOU”
» Taylor Swift – “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”
Best New Artist
» The Alabama Shakes
» Fun. D’oh!
» Hunter Hayes
» The Lumineers
» FRANK OCEAN
Best Pop Vocal Album
» Kelly Clarkson - Stronger D’oh!
» Florence and the Machine - Ceremonials
» FUN-SOME NIGHTS
» Maroon 5 - Overexposed
» Pink - The Truth About Love
Song of the Year
» Ed Sheeran – “The A Team”
» Miguel – “Adorn”
» Carly Rae Jepsen – “Call Me Maybe”
» KELLY CLARKSON-”STRONGER (WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU)”
» Fun. – “We Are Young” WooHoo!
Best Pop Solo Performance
» Adele – “Set Fire to the Rain (Live)” D’oh!
» KELLY CLARKSON-”STRONGER (WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU)”
» Carly Rae Jepsen – “Call Me Maybe”
» Katy Perry – “Wide Awake”
» Rihanna – “Where Have You Been”
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
» Florence and the Machine – “Shake It Out”
» FUN.-”WE ARE YOUNG”
» Gotye feat. Kimbra – “Somebody That I Used to Know” D’oh!
» LMFAO – “Sexy and I Know It”
» Maroon 5 – “Payphone”
Best Dance Recording
» Avicii – “Levels”
» CALVIN HARRIS FT. NE-YO-”LET’S GO”
» Skrillex feat. Sirah – “Bangarang” D’oh!
» Swedish House Mafia feat. John Martin – “Don’t You Worry Child”
» Al Walser – “I Can’t Live Without You”
Best Dance/Electronic Album
» Steve Aoki - Wonderland
» The Chemical Brothers Don’t Think
» DEADMAU5-ALBUM TITLE GOES HERE
» Kaskade Fire & Ice
» Skrillex Bangarang WOOHOO!
Best Rock Performance
» Alabama Shakes – “Hold On”
» The Black Keys – “Lonely Boy” D’oh!
» Coldplay – “Charlie Brown”
» Mumford & Sons – “I Will Wait”
» BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN-”WE TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN”
Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance
» Anthrax – “I’m Alive”
» Halestorm – “Love Bites (So Do I)” D’oh!
» Iron Maiden – “Blood Brothers”
» LAMB OF GOD-”GHOST WALKING”
» Marilyn Manson – “No Reflection”
» Megadeth – “Whose Life (Is It Anyways?)”
Best Rock Song
» Jack White – “Freedom at 21″
» Mumford & Sons – “I Will Wait”
» The Black Keys – “Lonely Boy” D’oh!
» Muse – “Madness”
» BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN-”WE TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN”
Best Rock Album
» The Black Keys, El Camino D’oh!
» Muse, The 2nd Law
» Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto
» BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN-WRECKING BALL
» Jack White, Blunderbuss
Best Alternative Music Album
» FIONA APPLE-THE IDLER WHEEL
» Bjork, Biophilia
» Gotye, Making Mirrors D’oh!
» M83, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
» Tom Waits, Bad As Me
Best R&B Performance
» Estelle – “Thank You”
» Robert Glasper Experiment feat. Ledisi – “Gonna Be Alright (F.T.B.)
» Luke James – “I Want You”
» MIGUEL-”ADORN”
» Usher – “Climax” WooHoo!
Best Traditional R&B Performance
» Anita Baker – “Lately”
» Beyonce – “Love on Top” WooHoo!
» MELANIE FIONA-”WRONG SIDE OF A LOVE SONG”
» Gregory Porter – “Real Good Hands”
» SWV – “If Only You Knew”
Best Urban Contemporary Album
» Chris Brown, Fortune
» Miguel, Kaleidoscope Dream
» FRANK OCEAN-CHANNEL ORANGE WooHoo!
Best R&B Album
» Robert Glasper Experiment, Black Radio D’oh!
» Anthony Hamilton, Back To Love
» R. KELLY-WRITE ME BACK
» Tamia, Beautiful Surprise
» Tyrese, Open Invitation
Best Rap Performance
» Drake feat. Lil’ Wayne – “HYFR (Hell Ya F—ing Right)”
» JAY-Z & KANYE WEST-”NIGGAS IN PARIS” WooHoo!
» Nas – “Daughters”
» Kanye West feat. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz – “Mercy”
» Young Geezy feat. Jay-Z & Andre 3000 – “I Do”
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
» Flo Rida feat. Sia – “Wild Ones”
» JAY-Z & KANYE WEST FEAT. FRANK OCEAN-”NO CHURCH IN THE WILD” WooHoo!
» John Legend feat. Ludacris – “Tonight (Best You Ever Had)”
» Nas feat. Amy Whinehouse – “Cherry Wine”
» Rihanna feat. Jay-Z – “Talk That Talk”
Best Rap Song
» Nas – “Daughters”
» Wale feat. Miguel – “Lotus Flower Bomb”
» Kanye West Featuring Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz – “Mercy”
» Drake feat. Lil’ Wayne – “The Motto”
» JAY-Z & KANYE WEST-”NIGGAS IN PARIS” WooHoo!
» Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa Featuring Bruno Mars – “Young, Wild & Free”
Best Rap Album
» Drake, Take Care WooHoo!
» LUPE FIASCO-FOOD & LIQUOR PT II, THE GREAT AMERICAN RAP ALBUM PT 1
» The Roots, Undun
» Nas, Life Is Good
» Rick Ross, God Forgives, I Don’t
» 2 Chainz, Based on a T.R.U. Story
Best Country Song
» Carrie Underwood – “Blown Away” D’oh!
» Ronnie Dunn -”Cost of Livin’ “
» Eli Young Band – “Even If It Breaks Your Heart”
» Alan Jackson – “So You Don’t Have to Love Me Anymore”
» ERIC CHURCH-”SPRINGSTEEN”
Best Country Solo Performance
» Dierks Bentley – “Home”
» Eric Church – “Springsteen”
» Ronnie Dunn – “Cost of Livin’ “
» Hunter Hayes – “Wanted”
» BLAKE SHELTON-”OVER”
» Carrie Underwood – “Blown Away” WooHoo!
Best Americana Album
» The Avett Brothers, The Carpenter
» John Fullbright, From the Ground Up
» The Lumineers, The Lumineers
» Mumford & Sons, Babel
» BONNIE RAIT-SLIPSTREAM WooHoo!
Best Blues Album
» Shemekia Copeland, 33 1/3
» DR. JOHN-LOCKED DOWN WooHoo!
» Ruthie Foster, Let It Burn
» Heritage Blues Orchestra, And I Still Rise
» Joan Osborne, Bring It on Home
Frank Ocean at Metro 8/3/12
Last night Kari and I headed out to what I think is the hottest ticket of the year as far as mainstream music goes. Obviously seeing Jeff Mangum twice and Fiona Apple in a space as small as Lincoln Hall were huge highlights for me, but Frank Ocean is hotter right now than either of them ever were. So hot, in fact, that we had to wait in line for over half an hour after doors opened just to get into the space. We were already not in the front, so we decided to check out the upstairs only to find out that it was entirely reserved-for whom was never made known. So we made our way back down and ended up about 9 people deep, stage left about fifteen feet from center. Amazingly I had a clear line of sight for the majority of the show.
The listed start time was 11, but anyone with common sense knew that wasn’t going to happen. The show actually started a little after 11:30, and was amazing from beginning to end. Frank came out and took a seat on the stool in the center of the stage. The first song was one that I didn’t really recognize-at least I don’t think so. It could have been that the crowd was so loud I just couldn’t hear him. He seemed excited to be playing, although he said after that song that he was feeling under the weather so he’d be relying on the crowd to help him sing.
That dynamic started on the second song, “Thinkin Bout You.” Frank sang the verses and held his mic out to the crowd for the chorus. He probably could have just stood there and held the mic out the entire song, because it sounded like everyone was singing every word at peak volume (including me). This delighted me greatly as I go to far too many shows where the people that paid for tickets seem apathetic about what’s going on in front of them. After the song (and every song, in fact) Frank thanked the audience a million times. The guy impresses me at every turn. How he’s been able to stay so humble and gracious during his meteoric rise over the past year is amazing.
The set was a pretty good mix of channel Orange material and songs off of his mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra. He also threw in a couple hooks, like the one from “Made In Ameica.” A lot of people probably forget that he started out writing songs for other artists. One of my favorite songs of his is actually “I Miss You” which he wrote for Beyonce. His version, which you can see on YouTube, is spectacular (he did not play it on this night). When he was talking about his new album, he said “Has anyone here heard channel Orange yet?” And of course the crowd went wild because it’s one of the best albums of the year and you have no excuse for not hearing it. He responded by saying “Thank you so much. Did you buy it or illegally download it? If you got it illegally I don’t really give a shit. As long as it’s a part of your life, I think that’s awesome.” A great display of how he feels about his music. He doesn’t do it for the money, he does it because it’s what he loves.
Some of the highlights, for me at least, were “Crack Rock,” “Novacane,” and “Pyramids.” I was hoping that there would be an appearance by Earl Sweatshirt for “Super Rich Kids,” but he wasn’t around. I hadn’t heard the non-Eagles version of “American Wedding” yet, and I was impressed with how good it sounds reworked. I was also pleased to see that Frank Ocean’s live band is a really talented group. The guy playing guitar and bass, their names weren’t revealed, really added a cool dimension to the show. They even gave Frank a break and played “White,” and played it as well or better than John Mayer (who plays it on the record).
And of course “Bad Religion” brought the house down.
The show went a little longer than I thought it would, which I was fine with. Even though he claimed to be sick, I thought Ocean sounded phenomenal. He has a really wide range, and never misses a note. In my review of channel Orange I claimed that Frank will be this generation’s Stevie Wonder, and I feel even more confident in that after seeing him live. He really seems to thrive up there and feeds off the love the audience is sending him. Even though it was really crammed on the floor and people were constantly running into me, I actually thought it was one of the better crowds I’ve ever been in-everyone there to just have fun and enjoy the music.
If you haven’t picked up either Nostalgia, Ultra or channel Orange yet, you should probably get on that. Stop denying yourself good music. Last night’s show and today’s appearance at Lollapalooza cap off Ocean’s US tour before he heads to Europe for some festivals and then spends some time opening for Coldplay. With the success he’s having, I’d venture a guess and say he’ll be back on the road soon. Don’t miss the opportunity to see one of the truly talented artists around today.
Frank Ocean-channel Orange
Over the past couple weeks Frank Ocean has been grabbing a lot of headlines. Sadly, most of them display a headline about his coming out as bi in a letter that was so eloquently written it should be on display in museums. While his sexuality makes for tantalizing tabloid tales, it has very little to do with the quality of his music. I was much more interested in an article I read about the listening party Island Def Jam had for the record about a week ago. Ocean didn’t really want it to happen, he just wanted to release channel Orange into the world with as little hype as possible. After being pressed, he relented and had a small number of critics come to an office. He sat down his laptop on the table, and went to stand in the corner with his head down for the duration. Didn’t give any track names, didn’t answer any questions. Just let the music speak for itself. He’s a bit of a shy dude, but he’s confident about his songs and I dig that about him.
Anyone who reads this site with regularity probably knows that Ocean’s mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra just missed my top ten last year, clocking in at number 12. What he displayed there was his ability to put together a record that flows easily and uses samples to great effect. What he didn’t really show was his ability as a performer, as a lot of the songs are as much talking as singing-the big exception being “American Wedding.” Nobody was more surprised than I was that I enjoyed the mixtape like I did, but ever since I heard it I’ve been looking forward to his official debut release where we could get a real idea of who he is.
To that end Ocean delivers the goods. There hasn’t been a R&B artist so ambitious and fearless since R. Kelly hit the scene twenty years ago. He takes risks and puts together combinations that no other singer in this genre could. He really does make R&B for indie rock kids, and as music continues to cross-pollenate between styles, he’s taking the next step necessary to blur the lines even further. It’s a bit like when Beck got super popular when “Loser” came out. There was no name for what he was doing because he was it. Ocean is the only one currently making music like this.
Top 20 Albums of 2011: Part One 20-11
Originally I was just going to do a top ten and be done with it. I got my ten selected, took a look, and thought about how much music got left off. It isn’t 20-11′s fault that so much great music came out this year, so why punish them? Last year I separated things into lists for local bands and national acts. This year I’ve made it all-inclusive. You’ll notice some great Chicago acts as well as a few more mainstream albums.
You’ll also notice that almost all of the albums in part one had songs featured in my Top 30 Tracks Of 2011. These aren’t in the top ten, so they remained eligible.
20. Wolfgang Jay-And We Move
One of my favorite discoveries of this year was Wolfgang Jay, a local Chicago band that mixes fun dance music with Depeche Mode-type moodiness. On top of putting out a really solid debut album, their live show is a lot of fun. The one I saw featured awesome performances of songs like “One Piece At A Time,” as well as covers of Duran Duran and Chk Chk Chk.
19. Abigail Washburn-City Of Refuge
This was one of the very first albums I reviewed for this site, and as such it will always hold a special place for me. The fact that it’s some of the best music I heard all year is just a bonus. Of all the albums that I’ve spun over the last twelve months, this one is easily in the most listened category. It’s never over-complicated, so you can just sit back and enjoy everything it has to offer. Great rootsy americana music.
18. The Vaccines-What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
When this album came out, I tried to make the argument that it should win the Barclaycard Mercury Prize. Apparently the voters don’t read the site, because the award went to PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake. While I couldn’t make it through Harvey’s album once, I’ve listened to this Vaccines record easily a hundred times. They’re picking up where bands like Franz Ferdinand and The Cribs left off.
17. The Mountain Goats-All Eternals Deck
John Darnielle has written some of the greatest albums of the last twenty years. As such, he is a little cursed by having every new album compared to his previous work. Is All Eternals Deck as good as The Sunset Tree or Tallahassee? No. Is it better than 99% of the music that gets put out these days? Absolutely.
16. Childish Gambino-Camp
In a year where most of the heavywights of hip-hop either misfired or didn’t release anything, it was up to indie kids like Donald Glover to keep things going. This album dropped the same day as Drake’s newest LP, and while Take Care showed what can go wrong with a record filled with sincere emotion and self-analyzing, Gambino showed what can go right.
15. Dastardly-May You Never
One of my absolute favorite Chicago bands over the past year. They play country music on this album, but it isn’t the country music you hear by Toby Keith or Shania Twain. It’s more like the music you hear by Hank WIlliams or Jimmie Rodgers. It’s got modern touches, of course-like a lot of cursing, but mainly it’s just old-fashioned and amazing.
14. Ezra Furman and the Harpoons-Mysterious Power
Another Chicago act that has sadly taken to San Francisco for a while. This album came out in April and includes some of the finest songwriting I heard this year. The song “Mysterious Power” made the top ten on my Top Tracks this year, and I probably could have included a couple other gems off this one, like “Blood Sucking Whore” or “Don’t Turn Your Back On Love.”
13. Tom Waits-Bad As Me
There isn’t anything I can say about Tom Waits that hasn’t already been said. His newest release proves that after 4 decades of great work, he can still get it done with the best of them. If you haven’t opened yourself up to the power of Waits, the time is now.
12. Frank Ocean-Nostalgia, Ultra
If you had told me six months ago that someone from the Odd Future group would make my top twenty albums, I would have assumed that it must be Tyler the Creator’s Goblin. After strong work on Watch The Throne, I heard Ocean’s free-flowing solo debut. It’s a great batch of songs that proves how well sampling can work when done correctly.
11. The Felice Brothers-Celebration, Florida
With their latest record, The Felice Brothers have really embraced their unique sound and created something unlike any other album released this year. It’s equal parts haunting, rocking, and bizarre at times, while also being deeply personal and sometimes spiritual. James and Ian both do a great job vocally, and Christmas Clapton gets into it a bit more on this one. Great band who hopefully get some much-deserved recognition for this.
Frank Ocean-Nostalgia,Ultra
I’m gonna keep it short today, because I apparently have tendinitis in my wrist, and while writing in this way doesn’t hurt much, I’d like to keep the usage to a minimum if I can. Also, this record dropped a LONG time ago. All the way back in March. If you haven’t heard it yet, be prepared for some fun. If you have listened to it, it’s probably been on pretty steady rotation in your ears.
I was surprised how much I enjoyed this mixtape. I knew very little about Frank Ocean when I picked it up. He wrote one of the songs on the latest Beyonce record, which was terrible, and he also featured heavily on the Watch The Throne release. Most notably, he’s a member of the Odd Future collective that used to be the most hyped group in the world until they started playing shows and people realized that they’re just a bunch of kids doing what kids do. Ocean is different, though. His music is intelligent and sincere, never going for cheap thrills or shock value.
The first time I hit play I hadn’t looked at song titles or anything, and the opening track is a cover of Coldplay’s “Strawberry Swing.” I couldn’t believe it. And it was really well done, too. It’s a surprisingly good setup to what is a really, really good R&B record. There’s samples all over the place on Nostalgia, Ultra, and they’re all handled with grace. When I heard the opening chords of “Hotel California” at the end of the record it definitely caught me off guard, but then he samples the WHOLE song. I never would have thought it possible, but it’s actually one of the top two or three tracks on the disc.
Ocean flips through the pop culture iconography that everyone references nowadays, but he also throws in a LOT of Kubrick references, especially Eyes Wide Shut. On the track “Lovecrimes” he even uses a sample of Nicole Kidman’s dialogue to great effect. His voice is smooth like Usher, but his songs have a much greater depth. Unlike the lyrics from Tyler, The Creator or Hodgy Beats, Ocean’s words often question the double standards in America and are almost the opposite of misogyny. He does slip a couple times, like the final track where he’s mostly singing about doing it in a garden. The song is actually kind of catchy, but not that great.
If you’re a R&B fan, you will undoubtedly enjoy this record. If, like me, the only modern R&B you enjoy is R. Kelly’s “Ignition (Remix),” you may be surprised how easily you connect with Nostalgia, Ultra.
