Top 20 Albums of 2014: 6-5

6. Ola - Carelessly Yours



This album has been around for awhile, released at the very beginning of the year. I had been waiting for it so long, and it doesn't disappoint. The singles do outshine almost everything else on the album, but there are many of them and they are sprinkled wisely throughout the running order. The only reason the album isn't ranked higher is that I just haven't returned to it as often this year as I'd expected to. I don't know why that is... perhaps because the newer songs aren't as strong and I'd already played the older ones so much last year?

5. 2NE1 - Crush



Korea's coolest girl group finally made their comeback this year. After many single releases, which I've chosen to pepper throughout the running order of this new album, they finally released something more substantial. Even without those bonus tracks, the album stands as one of their most consistent. A bit ballad-heavy, maybe, but I certainly can't fault any of the tracks themselves. I also give them props for trying some different things with production and structure. It gives the album a varied feel.