Thanksgiving is around the corner, the familiar ambiance of the holiday season is returning and we’re almost 10 months deep through the year.
With that being said, it’s safe to say 2014 is officially on its way out the door. Musically, the year has shown us a huge amount of new music from, but certainly not limited to: Death From Above 1979, Interpol, Pallbearer, Texas In July, Emarosa and many more. Even though the year is going to be over in the near future, it appears there is still a small slew of albums that are slated to drop before Jan. 1 hits.
A couple of big-name artists ready to release albums before the end of the year are chart-toppers Kendrick Lamar and Taylor Swift.
Lamar is set to release his follow up to his breakout album, 2012’s “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” which is already drawing oodles of speculation and hype. Whether or not this hype will translate into a bigger-and-better album than its predecessor is yet to be seen, but some fans have expressed concern over the direction into more of a radio-friendly style taken in Kendrick’s newest single “I Love Myself.”
Taylor Swift is set to release a new album next week titled “1989,” which is currently being headed by the single “Shake It Off.” The track has received mostly positive, but sometimes mixed reviews and there’s currently no telling what the upcoming release will sound like.
Outside of the Billboard top charts, one particularly exciting release is coming from hip-hop duo Run the Jewels. The duo is composed of rappers El-P and Killer Mike, and they headlined Boise’s own Treefort Music Festival this year. Slated for an Oct. 28 release, the group will release “Run the Jewels 2.” The debut album from the group was certainly one of the best albums released last year and El-P and Killer Mike have a wonderfully unique back-and-forth rap style that should manifest itself upon this album like it did the first. If there’s one album you want to be on the lookout for, it’s this one.
Turning attention to a couple of smaller acts, Pianos Become the Teeth and Roswell Kid are both set to release new albums as well.
Pianos Become the Teeth used to have a gritty, raw sound that’s apparently taken a 180-degree turn into the realm of chilling, melody-based rock. The band has also hopped from the niche-emo label Topshelf Records to the popular punk label Epitaph Records.
Roswell Kid is still on the rise, but this album could certainly be a large turning point in their career. They’re about to set off on a fall tour with The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die and The Hotelier.
Even though we’ve seen almost everything that 2014 has had to offer in terms of music, it will be interesting to see which albums will squeeze into peoples’ end-of-the-year lists. It’s almost time to put this year to bed, but it will surely be exciting to see what 2015 has in store in the world of music.
Masen Matthews can be reached at [email protected]