man does Tuscan Leather suck.. it's like a 6 min song and Drake says absolutely nothing on it. who cares how much time you spend on an intro? instant skip. the next song is classic material though.

I think you'd like Botany. It's got a definite hip hop influence. Madlib and J-Dilla are two artists that really influenced its production. It's not a hip hop record, and is mostly instrumental, but it's sick as fuck... super laid back, chill, and epic all at the same time.

I don't know how you feel about punk, but since you listed Iceage on your non-hip hop list there's a chance you'll appreciate the sorely underrated Black Bug album I mentioned. I've been digging the shit out of it all year. It's the kind of album that keeps the world from spinning out of orbit. Hozac records nails it again.

And as for Fuck Buttons.... I don't know. It's a beast of an album. It's dark as fuck, and electronic, and kind of hellish, but also has some very lush moments. It's noise rock that sounds to me like Daft Punk and the Melvins getting into a colossal car accident, blood and metal everywhere. Also instrumental. It's worth listening to for anyone.

And the Lips... well, if you haven't already listened to the Terror and made a decision about it, this post probably isn't going to move you to do so. Top shelf fucking album though.

But you seriously need to listen to Doley. Why haven't you done so? Especially being such a fan of A$AP? Doley's mixtape shares production credits with Long.Live. And the kid ain't fucking around either.

One thing that pissed me off about a lot of the year's hip hop albums was that they tended to devolve into sentimental/overly serious R&B tinged bullshit halfway through, only to bounce back in the end. MNIMN and Nothing Was The Sane are two examples of this.

Doley doesn't let up, and raps like a fucking fiend throughout Just In Case, which is really one of the most consistently badass rap records of the year. I can't believe how badly it was overlooked.

Terror was my least favorite Lips album in a long long time. Just not feeling it.

Man, "You Song" should have been on ACID RAP.

And yet it's one of the better tracks on an album you placed above GFK, Earl, Pusha-T, Black Milk, Tree, Killah Priest, Deltron, Slum Village, and tons of others.

I love you louder, but you can be one fickle fair weather fan, bra ;)

actually, i think it's one of the weakest. i don't hate it, it's just meh lyrically. the track with Jhene Aiko on the hook is absolutely the worst. what a snoozefest.

Furthest Thing, Worst Behavior, Too Much and Pound Cake are all song of the year material, in my opinion.. i also love Own It and Connect.

"eyes closed, just swangin'..".

Well on a non hip hop note, you should check out some of the year's post punky rock type shit. I'm curious what you think will own the year from the greater indie genre.

And, Jesus, did i hear you correctly, NR? The Terror was a disappointment? What the hell?! Why am I like the only person who thinks that album is extraordinarily awesome? It's like the "well, we lost the fight" sequel to Soft Bulletin.

Happiness reflected upon through a lense stained by years of corporate evil, and a communal sense of self that has become tied completely to machines and app software.

i'll check out everything you've recommended to me soon.

E-40 just dropped 3 albums today.

sorry yo, I've tried w/ the Terror multiple times. Just won't click. Get really really bored. :\

Rolling Stones' "10 BEST MIXTAPES OF 2013"
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/li...d-rap-19691231

top 3 is solid.

i'm glad that Teefli and Young Thug got some recognition, too.

they forgot about PartyNextDoor though.

also Indigoism, BetterOffDead, Joey Badass' tape, TREE, etc..

I liked about half of Indigoism. Didn't hold my attention all that long.

Summer Knights is great though.

I also really like that NYC Renaissance mixtape that Peter Rosenberg compiled this year.

Public Enemy meant shit politically. Rob, I think it's great that people make records without political agendas. It makes it all more artsy and pretentious and fun.

Hip Hop was inherently political from the get-go, because it was a music that sprung from a marginalized and completely ignored subset of America (poor black and hispanic inner city youth). I think it is more about personal politics than the governmental politics. mainstream (shit-stem) Hip Hop stopped being personally political a while ago, when it became more about preaching a fabricated persona (NWA).
Ice T was an ex pimp, drug pusher, gangbanger, etc., and he rapped about what he had learned, seen, etc., personal politics. NWA was a bunch of poser fucks pretending to be hard ganstas.

Hip Hop "stars" have too much money to lose,a nd the powers that be have too much invested in them, to ever let them be political in any respect. JayZ and Kanye may be impresarios and tycoons, but the REAL money and power behind those guys sits in lush madison avenue corner offices, earning million dollar bonuses off off white kids buying Jay Z albums.

Public Enemy meant a LOT politically, especially when it comes to disseminating the radical leaders of black culture, and including marginalized people who are not discussed by the white media's treatment of the civil rights movement, in the 80's.
It may not have been the same in the UK. different country, different politics.
I consider U2 a "political" band in that vein. I consider The Clash a political band as well. The Wailers, Dylan, anyone who sings about what is really happening around them is political. Katy perry sings about being mildly retarted. That is NOT political.