Best of the Month is decided by a number of different variables; voter counts from preceding posts, reader reaction ratings, gut feelings, and lots and lots of heated discussions.
Album of the Month
There’s just something different about Bon Iver. He’s one of those rare artists who continually manages to transcend trends and the surrounding landscape of the music world. Returning five years after the Grammy winning Bon Iver, Bon Iver, he took 22, A Million in a drastically different sounding direction from any of his previous works; experimenting with electronics, vocal manipulation, and soulful sampling. But this huge gamble paid off in a big way, as it led to one of the most interesting and beautiful listens of not only the month, but the entire year.
It was a no-brainer for Album of the Month, despite heavy competition from other artists like Phantogram, Solange, and Anderson .Paak.
Runner-Ups
Trailer of the Month
Well surprise surprise (not really)! This was the clear winner of the month, even though there were some strong showings from movies like Rogue One, A Cure for Wellness, Get Out, and more. Comic books are here and they’re here to stay, so there’s no real surprise that this a massive trailer. Wolverine is one of the worlds most iconic super heroes anti-heroes, and the X-Men franchise is the only one outside of Disney and Marvel to seem to have a firm grasp on their movies. So the prospect of seeing an adaptation of Old Man Logan, complete with X-23, a dementia riddled Proffesor X, and R-rated brutality was too much even for the likes of Darth Vader.
Runner-Ups
Video of the Month
Despite not getting the nod from us for best album of the month, Solange still put out one of the best albums to come out this year with A Seat at the Table. It was a fully realized project that oozed of style and the video for “Don’t Touch My Hair” (one of the best songs off the album) carries that feeling over to the visuals. You can tell a ton of attention went into every little detail of the video; from the choreography and wardrobe all the way to the color schemes and location. It’s a beautifully shot and organized video full of hidden meanings and celebration of black culture. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that she was the inspiration behind her sister’s latest direction with Lemonade.
There were a number of other great videos released throughout October, but the style, visuals, and exceptional music made this one stand above the rest.
Runner-Ups