In fact I would have totally written 2016 off as a damn awful year if it hadn't been for THE MUSIC. 2016 has produced some absolutely amazing new music, which after last year's decent music drought was sorely needed. It's been a year where two of my favourite artists finally came back with new offerings and a band I've been following for a couple of years now came out with a wicked 2nd album that will hopefully start to gain them the coverage and acclaim that they deserve.
These are the albums that have rocked my year.
1. Beyonce - Lemonade
RnB isn't normally my cup of tea but hearing Lemonade and watching the DVD that came with it had me so excited. The album's narrative was reminiscent of the Prog Rock albums of yesteryear when the listener was taken on a journey (or indeed a more recent example being Green Day's American Idiot), in this case a woman's betrayal by the man she loves rather than to venus or somesuch. There are so many layers to the album that I'm still uncovering with every listen. All hail Queen B!
Songs to check out - Formation and Don't Hurt Yourself
2. Suicide Squad OST
Say what you like about the film but the soundtrack is pretty damn good, even if like me you cannot stand 21 Pilots' Heathens (I have an entirely seperate rant about why they shouldn't even come under the banner of rock music)! If you listen to nothing else on it then at least check out ConfidentialMX ft Becky Hanson's version of I Started A Joke - a real haunting, goosebumps moment.
See also - Grace You Don't Own Me
3. Deap Vally - Femejism
I first discovered Deap Vally back in 2014, they're loud and proud of it. They write songs about being a woman at this strange point in the 21st Century. This album builds on Sistrionix's sound and adds a sprinkling of maturity without dulling their passion in any way. I was incredibly lucky to see them at the Concorde 2 in Brighton back in Sept, if this album goes down as well as it should then they may not be playing venues that small for much longer!
Awesome songs to check out - Gonnawanna, Royal Jelly and my favourite track of the album Turn It Off
4. Lady GaGa - Joanne
Mother Monster is finally back!! After teasing the album for over a year she finally delivered it in late October. And people were in for a surprise; it was stripped back with an almost country-esque feel. Critics who claimed that GaGa's success was purely down to gimmickery were left floundering as Joanne demonstrated what we knew all along - GaGa has a phenomenal voice. The album is inspired by GaGa's aunt Joanne who died at 19 from Lupus and the title track Joanne breaks my heart every time I listen to it, it hits pretty damn close to home. It's not all serious though Hey Girl a duet with Florence Welch (Of Florence & The Machine) is the musical equivalent of declaring your love for your best friends at 2am after a night out! Million Reasons shows off her stunning voice and is pure perfection. My favourite song on the album has to be John Wayne an ode to bad boys.
Now for the big one ........ Jen's favourite album of the year is .......................
Green Day - Revolution Radio
It's not often that Lady GaGa gets pipped to the post but in this case Green Day edge her slightly. I can safely say this is the album that has gotten me the most excited since This Is War back in 2009. It's Green Day back to their fast and furious best, I fell in love with lead single Bang Bang on the first listen and have been playing it non-stop ever since. Green Day always seem to pop up when the world needs them most, 2004's American Idiot came from the chaos of the Bush-era and Revolution Radio has arrived in the chaos of war, political unrest and Donald Trump. They've gone back to what they do best, a mix of biting songs that assault your eardrums like Revolution Radio, to softer more introspective numbers like Ordinary World. There's still the Green Day sense of fun in Too Dumb To Die and Bouncing Off The Walls. Somewhere Now is the perfect album opener with it's build and explosion of energy. New single Still Breathing is an anthem for those hanging on by their finger nails (saying nothing) and yes the video made me cry the first time I saw it.
I cannot wait to see them in *checks calendar* 50 days!!!
Special mention also goes to these songs for being generally great this year -
Adele - When We Were Young
Pink - Just Like Fire (extra points awarded for the Alice themed video!)
SIA - Cheap Thrills
Boyce Avenue - Closer - Not bad considering that I cannot stand the Chainsmokers original!
Looking foward to next year I have concerts by Green Day, The Pretty Reckless & Kaiser Chiefs coming up with the promise of a UK tour by Lady GaGa and most importantly the long awaited 5th 30 Seconds To Mars album!!
See you at the barrier!
Love Jen
XxxX
This post is dedicated to Kay Keefe (1966 - 2016) who had awful taste in music but I love her anyway xxxxxxxxxxxx
