By Sarah Weingarten
Benji is just a sad album. A mopey, depressed album about death and the fear of it. But Sun Kil Moon pinpoints unhappiness perfectly without being angsty. Listeners just have to be in a sad mood to listen to Benji and as a stressed college student avoiding responsibilities, that isn’t very hard. Sun Kil Moon eloquently depicts different varieties of sadness, giving Benji dimension, which is why this album deserves to be on loop.
2. Behemoth: The Satanist
By Justin Silk
Five years passed between Evangelion and The Satanist. The longest break between Behemoth albums to date occurred because frontman and main songwriter Nergal was diagnosed with leukemia. Nergal overcame it and, with newfound motivation, was anxious to return to the studio. The Satanist truly sounds like the most inspired Behemoth album to date and is a culmination of the many different styles that the band has experimented with throughout the years. The tight selection of songs and even pace of the album makes it a joy to listen to, and the quality of the music is extraordinarily high. It is debatable whether The Satanist is Behemoth's best record, but it's hard to deny that it definitely feels like the band's most complete work to date. On its tenth album, Behemoth enhances its legendary status as a band and delivers blisteringly brutal, pure evil blackened death metal.
3. Dag Savage: E&J
By Travis Boswell
Exile and Johaz have only been working together for a few years now, but they sound like they've been collaborating for a decade on E&J. Johaz is a relative newcomer, but glides over Exile's beats effortlessly. He drops plenty heartbreakers about his formative years, but keeps it light with plentiful punchlines when necessary. Exile continues to be on top of his game with his soul-sampling, piano-laced beats. He's been producing classics for over a decade now, and E&J is another compliment to his great track record.
For fans of Exile's past collaborations, E&J has guest appearances from most of them. It does become a problem when they start to get more spotlight than Johaz, but with music this good it's a minor complaint.
4. Kanye Remixed "Drunk In Love"
I haven't even heard the original version of this song, but this remix was the perfect Valentine's Day gift. Not only do I finally understand the "surfboart" jokes now, but I also got to hear Kanye West turn "Little Drummer Boy" into a sexual innuendo. It's one of Kanye's most sexually graphic verses in recent memory, and he put out "I'm In It" last summer.
5. Drake Said Things
First, Drake went off on Macklemore for his Grammy win. Calling him out not only for winning, but also for ignoring every nominee but Kendrick, Drizzy let The Mack know exactly what was on his mind. That was fairly honorable. When he lashed out against Rolling Stone for giving the cover they had promised him to the (late, incredible) Philip Seymour Hoffman, Drake drew some vitriol. Complaining about a lost cover isn't exactly good form, and even less so when it's to one of the most talented actors of our generation. Drake is on one, and regardless of how you feel about his comments, it's fun to sit back and revel in the aftershock.
