One of the year's most unique albums is Megabear by UK indie band ME REX, a song cycle made up of 52 tracks that range from 30-60 seconds that's intended to be shuffled and sound like a cohesive album no matter what order you hear it in. An excerpt of our review:
[It] might sound gimmicky on paper, but it's not in the slightest. The album really does work that way, and that it sounds so natural is nothing short of an artistic triumph. The idea isn't totally absurd; when Brian Wilson was working on his storied masterpiece Smile, he mentioned that he had multiple pieces of music on the cutting board, and he tried out various ways of piecing it all together. ME REX did something similar, but instead of forcing themselves to choose between all the different possibilities, they presented the album in a way where you'll eventually hear every one. It makes for a listening experience that's a little bit different each time, but always familiar. It's also not unlike hearing the ways different songs bleed together at live shows compared to on studio albums. What's most interesting, though, is how accessible the album sounds despite seeming so daunting to listen to. The premise may seem like a brainy musician exercise, but the music is lush and emotive indie pop and Myles McCabe's voice and lyrics really tug at the heartstrings.