Tag Archives: ellie goulding

BEST OF 2022- PART 5: TOP 25 DELUXE EDITION AND BEST-OF COMPILATION ALBUMS OF 2022

Hey everyone… guess what! It’s the middle of July in 2023 already! But I’ve just found out that within our last ‘best of 2022’ post about our top 30 albums of 2022 (5-star reviews!) [the list of other top albums of 2022 is coming very. very soon!]; we have not included some albums! Perhaps you’ve noticed, perhaps you haven’t! Anyway, the reality is that last year, we created a brand new category- and that’s for deluxe edition and best-of compilation albums. Pitting them in our list again all original albums… isn’t fair at all- because it’s like comparing different kinds of albums! And so, as we rectified this issue last year, and explored our favourite 15 deluxe albums of 2021; this year we’ve increased the list to 25! So… without further ado, let me present to you all our favourite 25 deluxe edition albums as a site for the entire of 2022! Impacting and inspiring songs are special, but a re-release with added tracks confirming the timelessness of the original album in question? They’re even more special!  So sit back, be inspired, and let these deluxe edition projects minister to you during this time of uncertainty!

Continue reading BEST OF 2022- PART 5: TOP 25 DELUXE EDITION AND BEST-OF COMPILATION ALBUMS OF 2022

BEST OF 2022- PART 3: TOP 25 ANTICIPATED ALBUMS OF 2023

I don’t know how many times I’ve said this- I think I’ve confidently asserted this statement many times throughout the years. But I think I will say it again. The year of 2022, like the previous years of 2020 and 2021, has delivered time and time again, in terms of presenting to us some pretty inspiring and thought-provoking albums and songs. Though hectic, chaotic, seemingly out of control and messy; 2022, like 2021 and more than 2020, was the year in which I have grown the most in my musical tastes, and it’s the year that I have found more albums and songs that has resonated with me. But maybe that’s because I was more aware of releases this year than any other year. Partly because of me branching out into different types of music because of my own accord (just because I’m curious by nature!), and also partly because of me and Jon writing our still-ongoing blog series about influential artists of all time- and us being exposed to more different types of music that way.

Personally though, I’ve found 2022 to be the year where we were treated to the most hard hitting and poignant songs, as well as the most inspirational albums in recent memory. We were treated to songs like “Worthy Of My Song” (Phil Wickham), “Then Christ Came” (MercyMe), “Me On Your Mind” (Matthew West and Anne Wilson), “Still” (Steven Curtis Chapman), “In Jesus’ Name” (Katy Nichole), “Anti-Hero” (Taylor Swift), “Wait In The Truck” (HARDY and Lainey Wilson), “Broekn Dreams” (Lucy Thomas), “Right On Time” (Lindsay Ell), “Turning My Heart” (The Young Escape), “The Little Things” (Kelsea Ballerini), “Things That I’m Afraid Of” (Josh Wilson and Tasha Layton), “Yeshua (Friend Of Sinners)” (Mike Donehey), “Sunday Sermons” (Anne Wilson), “Child At Heart” (Hanson), “Loud” (Sofia Carson), “Maybe You’re The Problem” (Ava Max), “West Coast” (One Republic), “Broken Hearts (Do Broken Things)” (Runaway June), “Fast Times” (Sabrina Carpenter), “Celestial” (Ed Sheeran), “Hold My Hand” (Lady Gaga), and “The In-Between” (Matt Maher), to name a few (or to name a lot!). While we were also blessed to hear inspirational and encouraging albums such as Healer [Casting Crowns], Life After Death [TobyMac], Still [Steven Curtis Chapman], Holy Fvck [Demi Lovato], The Joy Of Music [Ben Rector], Destiny [Lucy Thomas], Palomino [Miranda Lambert], Bell Bottom Country [Lainey Wilson], Subject To Change [Kelsea Ballerini], The Loneliest Time [Carly Rae Jepsen], Raised [Hailey Whitters], Red Green Blue [Hanson], What Are We Waiting For [For KING & COUNTRY], Good Person [Ingrid Andress], Bridges [Calum Scott], Mercury: Acts 1 & 2 [Imagine Dragons], and Midnights [Taylor Swift], to name a few (also to name a lot!).

Continue reading BEST OF 2022- PART 3: TOP 25 ANTICIPATED ALBUMS OF 2023

Momentous Mondays: Most Influential Artists Of All Time – Honourable Mentions Pt. 2

Last week, I made the plunge and started writing about the artists who didn’t make the cut in our list of 100 names or artists who both Jon and I deem to be influential across all time. Sure, I could’ve not written about any honourable mentions, and kept it at ‘this is my 100, deal with it’. But with more than 100 other names missing out, I felt as if I would be doing a disservice to talented singers and performers and entertainers by not talking about them at all. I spoke about Kanye West and how he was a rapper that I could have talked about but didn’t because of personal convictions. I wrote about how Jesus Is King, Donda and Donda 2 took the world by storm, and I also briefly discussed how Kendrick Lamar has followed in Kanye’s footsteps. I wrote about Kirk Franklin- the ‘father’ of gospel music, as well as AC/DC: the Aussie rock band who really probably should have been included here (I mean- “Highway To Hell”, “Back In Black”, “You Shook Me All Night Long”… need I say more?) I lamented the fact that Larry Norman and Petra weren’t included, and I also spoke about their impact on Christian rock. And I glossed over a few artists that just didn’t fit for one reason or another- Huey Lewis & The News, Jeff Buckley, INXS, Duran Duran, Journey, Green Day and Panic! At The Disco. There were tons and tons of artists I wrote about last week, trying to make sense of why they are influential but why I didn’t write about them (or why Jon didn’t write about them); and I managed to do that, although to a lesser degree than probably was needed or required, for the genres of rap, rock, gospel, and R&B. As well as Steps- who are pop but are a disco/dance kind of pop like ABBA or Kylie Minogue. And so, this week… we’re not done. Not by a long shot. The pop artists, the boybands, the country artists and so much more; are all waiting for us in the next paragraph and beyond. So, as we now take the next part of the journey and discover which bands could have been present on this list on another day and in another time; let’s remember that music is subjective, and that if you disagree with my somewhat arbitrary and otherwise subjective choices- then that’s more than fine!

Continue reading Momentous Mondays: Most Influential Artists Of All Time – Honourable Mentions Pt. 2

BEST OF 2020- PART 7: TOP 20 ALBUMS OF 2020 [JULY-DEC]

Hey everyone… guess what! It’s March 2021, and slowly coming up to April. And I’ve just found out that we haven’t uploaded our top 20 albums of the second half of 2020 yet! Shame on us! Anyway… it’s time to rectify this issue right away! So without further ado, let me present to you all our favourite 20 albums as a site for the period of July-December 2020! Impacting and inspiring songs are special, but whole album near-masterpieces? They’re even more special!  So sit back, be inspired, and let these full length projects minister to you during this time of uncertainty!

Continue reading BEST OF 2020- PART 7: TOP 20 ALBUMS OF 2020 [JULY-DEC]