The Fashionably Late Top 60 of 2014 #45: Nude Beach

2014 was quite a year. Not the best of years, on a personal level, but a rather good year from a music standpoint. Having given a listen to record after record after record from the year that was, I’ve pulled together a list of favorites, finding it next to impossible to whittle the list down any further beyond 60 (I tried). In this group of 60 you’ll find records from old, faithful friends, upstart newcomers, and even a headscratcher or two. You’ll probably see some records that were a Big Deal not on this list. I either didn’t bite or didn’t buy the hype. I’m pleased as punch with this list, and I hope you’ll come across something that might have otherwise passed you by. And so, without further ado, my favorite records of 2014.

WHO: Nude Beach

WHAT: 77

WHEN: October 2014

WHERE: Don Giovanni Records

WHY: Twangy, fuzzy powerpop nuggets, and lots of ‘em. That’s what 77 is full of. So much wonderful strumming, so much wonderful lo-fi. At times, I hear old AM radio, at times Elvis Costello and/or Big Star and/or Tom Petty and/or early Teenage Fanclub (among others). It’s a long one, in terms of the number of songs, yet it goes by so quickly that you almost have to listen to it at least twice in a row. 77 is my first Nude Beach experience, and it won’t be the last.

My jams: “I’m Not Like You,” “Yesterday,” “Time,” “For A While,” “For You,” “On The One Too Many’s,” “It’s So Hard,” “Can’t Get Enough,” “It’s So Hard to Love You,” “Set Me Free,” “If We Only Had the Time”






[posted 3.18.15]