Albums 2015

Sometimes, you just have to listen to what you listen to, in order to write a music countdown. There have been times in the past I tried to be a music editor and not a music lover. This particular time, I'm counting down my 20 favorite albums of the year 2015, along with some beloved lyrics. Enjoy, bitchez.




20. Miley Cyrus – Мiley Cyrus And Her Dead Petz
"I feel protected by things I don't understand. And that's more than you could say."

19. Jamie XX - In Colour
"I go to loud places to search for someone to be quiet with."

18. Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly
"My knees gettin' weak and my gun might blow. But we gon' be alright."

17. The Weeknd - Beauty Behind The Madness
"I'm just tryna live life for the moment. And all these motherfuckers want a real love."

16. Lianne La Havas - Blood
"The closer we get, the less we need to show."

15. Janet Jackson - Unbreakable
"I had this great epiphany and rhythm nation was the dream. I guess next time I'll know better."

14. Foals - What Went Down
"I buried my heart in a hole in the ground with the lights and the roses and the cowards downtown."

13. Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell
"I’m light as a feather, I’m bright as the Oregon breeze. My black shroud frightened by my feelings. I only wanna be a relief."

12. Erykah Badu - But You Cain't Use My Phone
"Every time you get a message, act like you don't see it. I could make you put your phone down. Tell me, do you copy?"

11. Courtney Barnett – Sometimes I Sit and Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit
"Give me all your money and I 'll make some origami, honey."

10. Róisín Murphy - Hairless Toys
"Never underestimate creative people and the depths that they will go."

9. Grimes - Art Angels
"If you can’t scream it out, then swallow it down."

8. Miguel - Wildheart
"I 'm your pimp, I'm your pope, I'm your pastor, babe. Confess your sins to me, while you masturbate."

7. Leon Bridges - Coming Home
"I like the way you sail your ship down. Let me be your cargo."

6. Marina and the Diamonds - FROOT
"I 've been saving all my summers for you."

5. Alabama Shakes - Sound & Color
"I don't know whose problem it is. I don't know whose fuck to give. I'm losing it."

4. Benjamin Clementine - At Least For Now
"We all make a living by what we get, but we make life by what we give."

3. Lana Del Rey - Honeymoon
"You're so Art Deco out on the floor, shining like gun metal, cold and unsure."

2. Dawn Richard - Blackheart
"We were titans eternally engraved. We were lovers born against the grade."

1. Bjork - Vulnicura
"I am a glowing shiny rocket, returning home. As I enter the atmosphere, I burn off layer by layer. Jettison."

Erykah Badu - But You Cain't Use My Phone [Mixtape]

The Queen is back. I'm not writing this stuff as her true fan, but as a music fan. She has always been a pioneer, an art lover, a wise creator. She started her career back in 1997 with the best neo-soul album of all time, "Baduizm", while she has only recorded another 4 studio albums since then. But the thing is, you cannot be impatient if you want to enjoy a Badu project. Cause a Badu project is a grower. Like the perfect penis.

"But You Cain't Use My Phone" describes her urgent need to enjoy life in the absolute digital era. She samples favorite songs by Usher, Egyptian Lover, Isley Brothers, New Edition and Drake, she produces fresh and futuristic rhythm sections with Zach Witness in just 12 days and she delivers a modern hip-pop classic. But with a fun twist - shaken, not stirred.

Personally, I agree. She can make me put my phone down so that we can cruise through the city all day and all night, but her vocals are so sick 'n' tired, that she actually believes it's not possible for a human being to be totally disconnected and happy at the same time. Even when she playfully sings "U don't have to call" accompanied by old-school production, she knows that she does not mean this. Well, what kind of person calls her boyfriend "squirrel" and yet she wants to be alone tonight?

Anyone can expect that an Erykah Badu mixtape should be something about wise words, heavy basslines, jazzy vocals and provocative videos like "Window Seat", "On & On" or even "Honey". Let's just say that you cannot put a label on a true artist, cause her body will reject it like a fake transplant. You can easily spot the fun factor here, but you can also spot her struggle to survive as a 44-year-old musician in a touch screen world.

Erykah Badu runs this Mixtape with swagger and wittiness, along with her friends Andre 3000 and Drake. She has been the jazz-soul new artist during the late 90's, the New AmErykah creator in the 00's, the sweet-Love-Of-My-Life sugababe now and then, while she currently redefines herself as a devoted hip-hop performer. It's really weird that Adele and Erykah Badu share the same passion these days about their smartphones, but it's actually cute that pop culture has a common sense of humour, even though it's musically expressed through different paths.

AnArtCalled... 9/10