JMG Top Ten For 2014

For the second year in a row, my favorite track of the year is by out and openly HIV+ singer/songwriter John Grant, whose collaboration with Hercules & Love Affair spawned a gorgeous modern dance video interpretation of Grant's tale of coming out positive to a lover. Culled from my Spotify playlists, here's my top ten for 2014.

1. John Grant - I Try To Talk To You
2. The 2 Bears - Not This Time
3. Duke Dumont - I Got U
4. Perfume Genius - Queen
5. Royksopp & Robyn - Monument
6. SBTRKT - New Dorp, New York
7. Clean Bandit - Rather Be
8. Dave Aude w/Andy Bell - Aftermath
9. Le1f - Boom
10. Bright Light Bright Light - I Believe

My 2013 list is here, my 2012 list is here. Let us know what your favorites for 2014 have been.

MORE FAVORITES:
Sufjan Stevens - A Little Lost
Erasure - Elevation
Aphex Twin - Minipops 67

Röyksopp & Robyn - Monument

Stereogum recaps:

Robyn and Röyksopp got together earlier this year to release their collaborative mini-album Do It Again, and they’ve already made videos for “Sayit” and the title track. Their newest video, for the epic seven-minute opening track “Monument,” is a sci-fi headfuck with themes about both outer space and inner space. In the clip, we see Robyn, both Röyksopp members, and a couple of interpretive dancers looking dazed and waking up on a glowing disc that’s suspended in a void. From there, things progress deeper into the unknown, as you might expect they would. Max Vitali directed the video, and the Creators Project produced it.

This is my favorite track on the album.

Röyksopp & Robyn – Do It Again

Director Martin De Thurah explains the clip's concept:

“The video was filmed over three days in four Mexican states – Mexico City, Vera Cruz, Puebla and Hidalgo. The stories we worked on and the world we created was much more interesting and captivating than just to focus on (the artists’) performance. I worked with the idea of ‘what is our heart’s desire?’ – and I realised that no one in the world truly gets to live out their passions. We are all under some construct, whether you’re an atheist living in Denmark or a gay person in Russia.”

Robyn & Royksopp - Say It

Technically this is an ad for something. Very Kraftwerk.