A Slick Gimmick: Best of 2013

This year in music blew my mind, largely because each of my four favorite artists had new CDs, two of which were farewells. The Dangerous Summer and Moving Mountains, my two favorite bands, both said goodbye to the world after this year, which makes this a especially sentimental "Best Of" round for me. All four of those artists (including Lydia and I Can Make A Mess) held true to my fandom by making it onto this list of the best albums of the year.

Albums are my favorite. First off, I love collecting the physical copies, scouring through whatever art and lyrics are in there, and then proudly displaying them on my shelf. More so, I love the concept of a well built album. It's like the full story to each song's single chapter. Some chapters are better than others, sure, but a creative, sincere, high-quality album is, for me, the best thing music has to offer. Please, always look into the album when you find an artist or song you enjoy. No wise gold digger mines the surface alone.

Picking a quantity here usually comes relative to how many I've heard throughout the year. I'll give you the top twelve.

And what's landed in top spots before?
2009 Runner-Up: Yeah Ghost - Zero 7 (RIP)
2009 Winner: Spain - Between the Trees (RIP)

2010 Runner-Up: The Way I Fell In - The Morning Of (RIP)
2010 Winner: The World We Know - I Can Make a Mess Like Nobody's Business

2011 Runner-Up: War Paint - The Dangerous Summer (RIP)
2011 Winner: Waves - Moving Mountains (RIP)

2012 Runner-Up: Soft Fall - Sun Airway
2012 Winner: Departure Songs - Hammock

(Comments to come)
(Number in parentheses shows how many songs from the album made it into my best of 2013)

12. Weekend - The Sounds (1)