Album of the Year

This year has been quite excellent in terms of music with top guns like Daft Punk, Queens of the Stone Age and Arctic Monkeys out with their albums and meeting the expectations of their fans, something we aren't much accustomed to in recent years. It was a statement-making year for the musicians, saying they have matured and aren't afraid to move out of their comfort zones. In SHOUT's last issue of 2013, I take you on a joyride through the five best albums of the year.

...Like Clockwork by QotSA
Josh Homme set his pride and ego aside to record with his old band mate Nick Oliveri -- this was met with a lot of positive response from the fans. This album is the sort of masterpiece that I can imagine myself listening to when I am 40, single and wondering where I went wrong while contemplating a book on friendzone. Trent Reznor, Dave Grohl, Elton John and Alex Turner collaborated on this album. This should be enough crush incentive for men and women alike. Listen to it at least five times before you decide whether the album is good enough for you or not, because it took me a while to appreciate it as well.

AM by Arctic Monkeys
Before AM, Arctic Monkeys was a hipster band made for peppy young people wearing tight jeans and mismatched colours with hipster glasses; since AM, their songs became anthems for every heartbroken teenager with an internet connection. You know it becomes a challenge to like an album when you see a halfwit update a Facebook status with Arctic Monkeys lyrics. And the quality of AM made sure that they passed that challenge with flying colours. If you're living under the rock called Pop Music and you dare not venture out, it's about time you grabbed a copy of this record and gave it listen.

Traces of You by Anoushka Shankar
Not only did Ravi Shankar leave us the gift of music but he left us two daughters who are amazing musicians in their own right. Not comparing with the maestro but we all know how the offspring of famous musicians turn out to be. The biggest bombshell in the album was the half-sisters Norah Jones and Anoushka Shankar collaborating together to write songs for their father. With the title song and The Sun Won't Set being the highlight of the sisters' collaboration, the album is a real treat. Chasing Shadows and Indian Summer really lift the mood for me. If you're not into classical or world music, at least watch a live performance in Dortmund, you won't be disappointed in any way. Trust me.

Yeezus by Kanye West
My knowledge of hip-hop or rap music is still stuck in the '80s and I don't plan on doing anything about it either. Albums with Tupac Shakur talking about his existential crisis, his mother, and ten different ways to kill Biggie Smalls quite fulfilled my quota of rap music. After much peer pressure and positive reviews from Noel Gallagher and President Barack Obama, I decided to give Yeezus several listens. During the first two listens, I began to think deeply about this man, Kanye, who called himself a “Rap God”. Was he a rap god or was he just another rapper? His delivery is unique and so are the compositions. If Yeezus is truly an embodiment of his ego, he has a beautiful ego indeed. I felt like Kim Kardashian after the third listen due to Kanye's beautiful ego touching me, and by the time I heard it for the fifth time, I had to agree with Mr. Obama. This album does indeed stand out. New Slave is a good track if you are feeling particularly egotistic.

Random Access Memories
I groan internally every time I see a Daft Punk song out of this album. It's like the saddened groan from a man who was fed his favourite food every day of the week for a year. Unlike my food metaphor, the album can't kill you which makes it the perfect torture tool for Russians. But no matter how many times this album has been shoved up my unwilling nose, it's a masterpiece from the electronic duo. I won't ask you to give it a listen because you have already listened to it.
Honourable Mentions: Holy Fire by Foals; 10,000 Eyes by Taher Shah (I got a special pre-release review edition. Or did I?); Hesitation Marks by Nine Inch Nails; Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Actions by Franz Ferdinand.
Disclaimer: This article is by no means an accumulation of opinions from readers across the globe. The albums were chosen by the writer and albums such as MMLP2 by Eminem and Beyoncé by Beyoncé (wow, creative) were left out because in the writer's opinion, they just weren't good enough. Sorry (not really).