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FEATURE: Our 10 Favorite Albums Of 2015

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After more than half a decade in music we at Haulix have finally decided to join in on the ‘Best Of’ conversations that happen each and every year around this time. We are in the unique position of having access to a lot of great music, far more than most could ever consume in a single calendar year, and we never take that opportunity for granted. We knew when we started this blog that we would likely begin to share our favorites at some point down the line, and after discovering a variety of albums we felt strongly about over the last several months we figured December 2015 was as good a time as any to join the conversation on who had the best records of the year.

Now, just like with any list, our picks for the best records of 2015 are fairly subjective. No two members on our team have the same taste in music, but we all do our best to keep an open mind whenever someone comes into work with an album they demand we hear. Not every recommended release is a hit, but the ones that are end up being played on repeat for weeks, if not months, while we work. Those same records often become something our staff enjoys outside of the office, as well as the motivation behind the concerts they choose to attend. If music is indeed our life, and we certainly claim that is true, then the records that follow could very well be considered the soundtrack to the last year of our company. These are the records that motivated us, celebrated with us, and helped us focus whenever we fell on hard time. These albums were, and continue to be, an extension of our team, and we hope one or more can make a positive impact on your life as well.

So please, take a little time away from work and whatever chores await you at home to browse our picks for the best albums of 2015. We have included buy links, stream links, and even embedded some of our favorite songs so you have a better idea why each release made this list. If you love something, or even if you hate everything, please leave a comment or tweet us your thoughts. We’d love to read about your favorite records as well, so don’t be afraid to share links to any lists or columns you may have posted. We’ll read as many as we can.

10. Pentimento – I, No Longer (Buy / Stream)

The kings of heartbreaking indie punk, Pentimento truly outdid themselves with their Sophomore release. Exploring the end of a relationship, as well as the journey to rediscovering yourself that often follows, this Bad Timing Records release was on repeat in our offices throughout September, October, and November.

9. Jeff Rosenstock – We Cool? (Buy / Stream)

The longer you work in music, the more you begin to appreciate storytellers who write songs about their adventures in the industry. We Cool? is a collection of stories and memories from the mind of Jeff Rosenstock littered with imagery and encounters that should ring familiar to any music professional. SideOneDummy, the label behind the release, has always been a source of unabashed punk music, but something about this particular album feels extra special. If you can make it through “You, In Weird Cities” without dancing in your seat or reminiscing about journeys from yesteryear you are a far stronger person than any one of us.

8. Parkway Drive – Ire (Buy / Stream)

One of only two heavy releases to make this list, Ire marked a bold step forward for Australian metalcore favorite Parkway Drive. The band’s last few releases have been riddled with growing pains, but none of that appears present on this release. Parkway have finally transitioned from their metal roots into a far more rock-driven sound that, coupled with the brute strength of vocalist Winston McCall, delivers a knockout blow to anyone listening. If this record doesn’t get your blood flowing in the morning, you might be dead.

7. Chris Stapleton – Traveler (Buy / Stream)

Stapleton pretty much stole the Country Music Awards back in November with this release, which helped to further establish the legendary songwriter’s presence as a solo artist, but we have been following his efforts for the better part of 2015. Traveller is a collection of songs like no other released this year, blending covers and originals to create a portrait of a life in music, as well as the sacrifices required to maintain it. We have no idea where Stapleton will take his career in the years to come, but right now the sky is the limit.

6. Future – DS2 (Buy / Stream)

We honestly thought we would have more hip-hop releases on this list than this LP, but when it came time to rank the records that left the biggest impression on our team Future was the only rapper to make the cut. DS2 arrived like a nuclear bomb at the height of summer, bursting with street anthems and potential radio hits to spare. There is not a single song on this record or its extended deluxe edition that we would recommend someone skip. Front to back, back to front, everything about this release is worthwhile. 

5. One Direction – Made In The AM (Buy / Stream)

By now you have no doubt heard the rumors that One Direction will likely be going on hiatus in early 2016. If this is true, then Made In The AM is likely the last new material we will hear from the group for quite some time, if not the last record they ever release. That scenario places a lot of pressure on AM to be something special, and thankfully for us Directioners the group has delivered what could very well be the catchiest and most diverse release in their history. If we never see another new album from 1D, at least Made In The AM will be around to provide us with great hooks, wonderful melodies, and a sense of endless youth that is far too rare in music today.

4. Kacey Musgraves – Pageant Material (Buy / Stream)

Have you ever discovered an artists after they already had a few albums or big singles and wanted to kick yourself for not hopping on their bandwagon sooner? This scenario perfectly summarizes how we felt after hearing Pageant Material for the first time earlier this year. Musgraves is a country artist first and foremost, but this record flirts with the world of pop so often it’s a damn shame that Top 40 hasn’t picked up the singles. In a time where it seems every artist, regardless of genre, is trying to cash in on the same handful of trends again and again, Musgraves is carving a path entirely her own that is only growing more and more exciting with time.

3. Stray From The Path – Subliminal Criminals (Buy / Stream)

Some albums are great because they comfort you when your sad or otherwise feeling down. Other records are great because they bring a sense of joy or boundless love into your life. Still other records, such as Subliminal Criminals, hit home because they touch on topics that are important to you while relaying the aggression and frustration you feel towards them. Stray From The Path have never been a band to bite their tongue when it came to discussing any topic, but on this release they truly deliver a no holds barred take on life in the alternative music scene, as well as the world at large. 

2. Drew Holcomb And The Neighbors – Medicine (Buy / Stream)

It should be considered a crime that Drew Holcomb And The Neighbors continue to fly under the national radar year after year. Some call their music adult contemporary, but we respectfully choose to disagree. The sound Drew Holcomb and his bandmates produce is a perfect combination of American folk and classic country, with just a dash of rock. Medicine, the album they released in January of this year, feel like something Tom Petty might have released thirty years prior, and we mean that in the best possible way. The entire records plays like scenes from a life lived to the fullest extent, with dream chasing and romance around every corner. If you need a road trip record for your holiday travels, this should be it.

1. Leon Bridges – Coming Home (Buy / Stream)

We are not awarding anyone an ‘Artist Of The Year’ title, but if we were Leon Bridges would also be found at the top of that list. Having risen through the underground ranks to become an international sensation in under a year’s time, Bridges spent the majority of 2015 criss-crossing the globe on an endless promotional tour for Coming Home that found him wining over crowds of every size. When you hear the record, it’s not hard to understand why this has all happened so quickly for the twenty-something. Bridges channels the sound and look of Sam Cooke through a classic Motown sound that makes for catchy, often quite simplistic music that is perfect for dancing, mixtapes, radio play, and everything else in between. Coming Home is a timeless record in an age where most art is considered almost immediately disposable, and it’s only the first step of what we hope will be a very long and creative career for Leon Bridges. If you only listen to one album on this list, please make it Coming Home. 

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Monday Motivation: Pentimento

If you’re anything like me, you probably started the day by recognizing that the start of a new work week had indeed arrived and then immediately began shaking your fists at the sky in anger. Monday is rarely anyone’s favorite day, and from what I have seen firsthand it feels safe to say it’s the one day of the week some people outright hate. I guess to them the arrival of the work week symbolizes the end of their quote/unquote freedom, and as a result they head into the office/factory/restaurant/store with a negative outlook already on their mind. This leads to bad attitudes, which only makes the experience of being at work worse, and for some reason it also seems to make time slow to a crawl. We’re not about that life, and we hope this post can do the same you that the song contained within it did for us.

There is something ever so slightly terrifying about an album that touches on something deeply personal to you as an individual. On the one hand, it’s comforting to know someone else can relate to what feels like an impossibly unique scenario, but on the other hand it means you may have to comfort feelings or fears you would otherwise prefer to avoid. This is why many view music as some kind of cure all for anything weighing on you emotionally, and it most certainly is, but just because something can help you doesn’t mean you are always ready to deal with whatever has been pulling you down. Only the absolutely best music can cut through the noise telling you to keep running from yourself, forcing you to turn towards the harsh light of reality, and that is exactly what occurs when the sound of Buffalo natives Pentimento pours through your stereo.

I, No Longer is the album Pentimento fans have been waiting for the band to create since their debut EP, Wrecked, made waves in the alternative underground nearly half a decade back. It’s an album the shares the perspective of young men who have long crossed the cultural threshold of adulthood while clinging fiercely to the dreams they’ve had since they were teens. If everything before this recording was about the struggle to be something you can call an actual person then this record deals with the need to discover the best version of yourself and work to become that thing, whatever it may be. You may think you know where your life is supposed to lead, but part of growing older is accepting the fact there are actually million different possibilities for your life, and you only have so much control over which one comes to fruition. You can give your all in pursuit of what you believe to be your true calling, offering the world the best creation you can possibly forge, but that in no way guarantees success or longterm financial sustainability. The reasons for this are as numerous as the stars in the sky, ranging from public opinion to luck of the draw, but when I, No Longer plays Pentimento makes it known that it’s okay to feel helpless at times. Everyone does, and that’s perfectly okay.

When I initially discovered Pentimento I thought songwriter Mike Hansen, who recently guested on Inside Music, was someone who had been shadowing my life. His ability to create metaphors on love, life, and the struggle to make your dreams something more than fiction cut through the bullshit in my life and struck a chord somewhere deep in my soul. The first time I met him I told him as much, citing how the group’s Wrecked EP made me feel like someone understood what it was like to have an engagement dissolve, and Mike shot me a look of surprise that lingers with me today. He may only be a few months younger than me, but at that point in our lives he hadn’t been involved in a relationship that had become quite as serious as mine. The things he was dealing with when writing the songs on Wrecked happened years prior to the record’s release, and though they did deal with broken relationships his love life had little semblance to my own. Still, for whatever reason, the material on Wrecked touched on something I had been doing my best to avoid. I thought I could call the dissolution of my engagement a failed attempt at happiness and move on, but when I heard Wrecked I knew there was more I needed to process. I didn’t deal with everything right away, but that record did push me in the direction I needed to go to find a satisfactory resolution.

I, No Longer is a lot like Wrecked in that the reasons it connects with me has almost nothing to do with the experiences that inspired Mike to lay pen to paper. We’re both trying to come to terms with the fact our dreams of a career in music may never reach the heights we once thought possible, but despite all the signs telling us things may eventually plateau we continue to give our all day in and day out. We have to, if only because there is nothing else we believe ourselves capable of doing as well as we play our roles in the modern music business. We might not be where we wanted to be at this point, but we’re both closer than we ever have been before, and on I, No Longer you hear Pentimento taking account of everything that has transpired to help them reach this point. This in turn causes you to reflect, and when you’re closer to thirty than twenty it’s quite shocking to realize just how many sacrifices have been made in the pursuit of something you may never achieve.

The reason I chose I, No Longer for this week’s Monday Motivation is because I think everyone in the industry needs to make time for reflection in their daily lives. Anyone who has ever attempted to be anything in the entertainment business has only been able to do so by making sacrifices in other areas of their lives. At the time, these sacrifices can be written off as something necessary in order to get ahead, but as you grow older you realize there is a lot more to life than simply getting ahead. There is a whole world outside music, and if you don’t take time to experience it you can lose yourself, as well as your connection to the people who care about you the most, before you even know you’ve made a mistake. Life moves fast and it never slows, not for anyone, so we all have to take it upon ourselves to refocus our energy on a daily basis. Be honest with yourself about your position in life, and ask yourself what needs to be done to become a better version of who you are today. I, No Longer can and will motivate you to have this discussion, but making real change is still on you. I believe in you though, and so does Pentimento.

James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.

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Inside Music Podcast #44 – Mike Hansen (Pentimento)

On this episode of INSIDE MUSIC, host James Shotwell calls Pentimento drummer and songwriter Mike Hansen to discuss his band’s upcoming album. Along the way, James and Mike get sidetracked with discussion of growing up, the cost of maintaining a dream, and how to cope with the uncertainty of your own future. It’s an open and honest conversation about life in the music business today, and we are thrilled to be able to share it with you here. Pentimento’s new album, ’I, No Longer,’ arrives October 23 via Bad Timing Records.

The music you hear in this episode is “Small Talk For Strangers” by Pentimento. The song can be found on the band’s new album, I, No Longer, which can be ordered here.

You may already know this, but ‘Inside Music’ is now available on iTunes! Click here to subscribe.

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