Tame Impala - Lonerism ★★★★½
Bursting into the scene with Innerspeaker, this Australian band proved that there could be something different. Two years later, they released Lonerism, making that something different even more different. With this psychedelic-electronic post-punk new wave random and-a-whole-bunch-of-other-stuff album, Tame Impala have shown their true colors here. With the acid-rock tracks like Feels Like We Only Go Backwards, and Nothing That Has Happened So Far Has Been Anything We Could Control, these songs really just make you want to sit on your couch and read a book or something. And there there are songs like Mind Mischief and Elephant which are the driving forces behind this album’s popularity and memorable-ness. This album is a perfect blend of electronic music and psychedelic rock music, with a little bit of funk. This is a perfect album for the casual listener. Speaking of funky albums for the casual listener, this brings me to...
THE BEN’S CHOICE BEST ALBUM OF THE PAST TEN YEARS GOES TO:
Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
★★★★★
This album was the definitive album of 2013. Remember the summer of 2013, and how it was absolutely LITTERED with “up all night to get lucky”, robot helmets, and vocoder? Yep, those were the times. This cross between electronic and funk, along with mainstream success. An extension of their 2001 album Discovery, this album has the two “robots”, Thomas Bangalter and Guy Manuel De Homem-Christo from France, collaborating with their inspirations, and people who were inspired by them. With people like Paul Williams, Nile Rodgers, Pharrell Williams, Julian Casablancas, Panda Bear, Todd Edwards, and help from Hanz Zimmer and Kanye West, they created the ultimate album. With multiple magnum opuses like Giorgio By Moroder, Touch, and Contact, you might find yourself laughing, dancing, crying, and feeling great after listening to this album. Everything about this album is perfection, and it shows. I look forward to the Daft’s next work whether it be a live show or a new album, I look forward to it. This is Ben, signing out.