Best Releases Of 2013: #20-11

#20: Charles Bradley - "Victim Of Love"

I don't think this is quite as solid as his previous album, but this is still super great, and proof that his last album wasn't some fluke. He's got plenty of good songs to sing and Menehan Street Band sounds great backing him up.

#19: Oh No - "Oh No vs. Now Again 2"

Oh No is probably the perfect producer to work on this type of project, where he gets to pillage a label's catalogue for samples, and it's a label that is deep with good material for it.

#18: Big Business - "Battlefields Forever"

I had been waiting for this for a while, and it did not disappoint. They've got possibly the best drummer i've ever heard and they always manage to pack their albums full of catchy songs that blow your socks off.

#17: Grip Grand - "GG DOOM!...But How?"

I've never heard of Grip Grand outside of this EP, but he'll definitely be someone to watch for in the future. This is a superb set of MF Doom remixes he put together.

#16: Free The Robots - "The Balance"

He puts out a lot of EP's, but this one is actually a full length. Tons of great sounding songs here. I really enjoy the sound of the drums throughout this album. They have the feel of live drums while still being obviously programmed. 

#15: How To Destroy Angels - "Welcome Oblivion"

So, I actually ended up enjoying this collaboration between Trent Reznor and his wife more than I enjoyed the new Nine Inch Nails album. I really like her voice and I obviously like his production, and this album just flows well. I think he works well within this Portishead-like dynamic.

#14: Pelican - "Forever Becoming"

This album really rocks and they continue their streak of never putting out any remotely weak albums. This one might even end up being my favorite when it's all said and done, but I still need to give it more time before I fully decide. Either way, this album is superb.

#13: Myron & E - "Broadway"

Peanut Butter Wolf and the people at Stones Throw really seem to know how to scout out new talent. These guys are some cool sounding singers that are doing all different styles of soul oriented music throughout history. There's even a disco song on here, but mostly the album falls into a pre-1980's sounding upbeat R&B category. Above all else, this album is really fun to listen to and always puts me in a good mood.

#12: Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals/Warbeast - "War Of The Gargantuas"

This is a brutally awesome split EP where we get 2 songs each from Phil Anselmo and Warbeast. All 4 songs are stellar. Easily some of the best metal i've heard in a while.

#11: "Exploded Drawing SXSW 2013 Compilation"

This mostly beat scene oriented compilation really took me by surprise, mostly due to the fact that i've hardly ever heard of any of the artists on it before, but it still really bangs all the way through. Definitely not one of those compilations where there's only a couple good songs.