The Fashionably Late Top 60 of 2014 #48: Dream Police

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: Dream Police

WHAT: Hypnotized

WHEN: November 2014

WHERE: Sacred Bones

WHY: There’s so much going on in Dream Police’s Hypnotized record, and I love every bit of it. It’s a madcap, careening ride through psychedelia and synthpop and country and straight up rock and roll, disparate elements taken apart and sewn back together in fanciful, spaced out patchwork and with an underlying, pulsating sexiness. And on tracks like the excellent, dizzy dance that is “Pouring Rain” (one of my favorite songs of 2014) there’s a good chance you’ll end up more than a little hypnotized.

My jams: “Hypnotized,” “Iris,” “Pouring Rain,” “All We Are,” “Let It Be,” “Sandy”





[posted 3.15.15]