No particular reason why it took so long, at 547 albums it's only my second most scrutinized year. I think I just took more time actually enjoying the music and less scoring and ranking it, which is naturally preferable. But I never stopped, and at last I'm happy to offer you my favorite music for 8th consecutive year.
As usual, let's start with my top10 singles playlist of songs from albums that didn't make it to top50 (backup list at the bottom in case any of the uploads get taken down). I consider the release date of the album it comes from, not the single itself, because that's usually where I hear them first so it's my only chance to give them recognition.
And now the fake part of the top50 - my honorable mentions!
50. GameGrooves, Ska Punk International - Limit Breaker: A Ska Tribute to Final Fantasy VII
49. Morwan - Світає, палає
48. Forest Spirit, Sun on Your Back - s/t
47. Isolde Lasoen - Oh Dear
46. New Age Doom, Tuvaband - There Is No End
45. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Live At Red Rocks '22
44. The SKAMOTTS - Nekodamashi
43. Joe Hisaishi - A Symphonic Celebration - Music from the Studio Ghibli Films of Hayao Miyazaki
42. Firinn - The Long Lunch
41. Craven Faults - Standers
40. Madness - Theatre of the Absurd presents C'est La Vie
39. A Contratiempo Ska-Jazz - s/t
38. Tinariwen - Amatssou
37. Jeremy Dutcher - Motewolonuwok
36. Melody Fields - 1991
35. Parannoul - After the Magic
34. Ro - Baiagoan
33. Act Tragic - Ramifications
32. Tuba Skinny - Magnolia Stroll
31. Goat - Medicine
And now the real part of top50 where I try to say something interesting about the album or my experience with it - wish me good luck!!!
(Each album cover links to a representative song from it).
My introduction to an apparently very prolific punk artist notorious for style-hopping - and this time he lands on 60s garage rock sound (or "egg punk" according to Rate Your Music). It utilizes all the characteristic effects, reverb, EQ and composing style of the era, with just a few hints of something more modern, mostly the overall cleanness of the recording giving it away. This faithfulness might be a bit of a double edged sword, but at the end of the day I think Jake Robertson embraces the style earnestly and ultimately serving the goal of making good music, which is all I ask for.
Apparently this is also a project of solo Australian artist (Buz Clatworthy), albeit this time a debut album - and it's also labeled as egg punk? However this time we get something more modern, maybe a little lo-fi but definitely 21st century in style of compositions and nasally singing (which apparently is an egg punk characteristic). Weirdly enough even though the record is only measly 30 minutes, I think it would've benefitted from an even shorter runtime, as I really enjoy the first half but it somewhat loses me in the second one. Regardless, if garage-y guitars and punk beats are your thing then I think this is worth checking out.
Another garage punk in a row (I swear that's not all this list is). This time a former high school band that formed all the way back in 2003, ceased activity after 5 years, and came back in 2021 at request of Jack White. Moreover, it appears that if it weren't for their breakup, they would've written music for Sex Bob-Ombs in the Scott Pilgrim movie - which is interesting, because I actually thought they remind me of Metric a little (whom I got to know thanks to Scott Pilgrim Movie), alongside Garbage and U.S. Girls. It has that snazzy tone and slight overproduction characteristic of 00s indie rock and pop punk combined with angsty, literal lyrics, catchy song structures, and choruses that I bet would be really fun to scream out at a live show.
Debut album of UK-based band that plays this very breezy and kinda youth-affirming alternative rock which to me harkens back to mid-late 00s. You have these very distinct synths, rhythmic singing that adds a lot to the composition without necessarily taking all the attention, overall bittersweet melancholy, all building on solid base of catchy guitar riffs that combine into walls of sound when necessary. More abstractly, the album also has this permeating of sense of distance that no one can close. I particularly like the closer "Somebody Else" - it captures current moment in time, but also connects it to more broad sentiments, and I feel like it's a promise of great things to come with this band.
A second solo album from the frontman of Parquet Courts and to me it definitely feels like an extension of band's output. Mostly upbeat, albeit a little more subdued and melancholic instrumentation, paired with lyrics that are thoughtful, concerned, sometimes bitter, anxious or even angry. Maybe a little more poetic, perhaps more personal, or at least written with a more specific lyrical subject in mind? Certainly closer to the singer-songwriter tradition than Courts' punk leanings - but it maintains their deceptive catchiness that slowly grows on the listener over many subsequent listens. And there's even some good old fun with songs like "Elvis In The Army", and unification of rhythmic progression across instruments and singing in "Riding Cobbles". I probably won't return to this as often as "Wide Awake" or "Sunbathing Animal" but it certainly fleshes out Andrew's overall body of work.
Apparently a somewhat cult outfit, which formed all the way back in 1994 to pay tribute to 60s surf rock, ceased activity in 2000, and now they're back with a new album. It's a really interesting take on the sound - it's not a genre I'm particularly versed in, but in a way it kinda reminds me of how CZARFACE modernized a particular style of music that harkened back to cartoon and movie soundtracks. Here similarly I can picture scenes from Scooby Doo and Johnny Bravo that some of these songs would play to, and there's explicit references to Ennio Morricone in others. But even though I would say they're very accurate and faithful, there is something unmistakably unique about the whole thing. The tone is both sharper and warmer, and drumming maybe just a bit closer to contemporary rock, especially on tracks like "Infiltration" and "The Man From Planet X" - although that last one is an overall outlier, as I think it pushes how far they can get away from this style before it no longer fits. Still, the main takeaway is that this is a collection of extremely fun tracks of consistent type and great execution.
I think this is the most subtle experience on the list - a calm, even serene post rock, with beautifully melodic singing and just the right amount of layers of harmonization in the background. And it's interesting how on tracks like 余烬 it goes for an almost folk rock structure but retaining the overall sound. It really utilizes its genre's opportunity to bury interesting sounds in the mix that you can dig up and unravel with consecutive listens. As a result it ended up being one of those albums that I never really get excited about, but I also never really got bored of it and felt like I got something new out of it with each listen.
"Lael Neale still has a flip phone and there were no screens involved in the creation of her new record Star Eaters Delight." And "luddite" reads her Twitter bio. Accordingly, this album also has a bit of a nostalgic vibe, fitting well within the classic and blues rock traditions. But it doesn't go just for the hits of the era, but also the deep cuts, those weird experimental songs that never made it to live show setlists. But together it's a very captivating package, with at least half the album being very memorable, and the rest really equally as important.
It's one thing to listen to artists whose music I've known for decades - another when I've primarily experienced that band through video game soundtracks and movie trailers. It feels like I hold them at a level that they could never rise up to in some weird way. One thing that adds to that cluster of emotions in case of this particular album is that it simultaneously feels incredibly familiar and yet kinda fresh and exciting. The opener "Bogus Operandi" is definitely a classic Hives song, but feels like it gets just a little louder and more wild than usual. "Trapdoor Solutions" goes for very punk simplicity. "What Did I Ever Do To You?" is almost like a Kasabian song. "Two Kinds Of Trouble" I guess britpop? Maybe that genre hoping has always been in Hives music, but I don't really remember it. In any case I appreciate it and the album is a really fun ride with just enough variety.
Another album that's kinda hard to believe has been recorded today and not 30-40 years ago. I'm a bit less versed in soul traditions, but my impression is that it would fit seamlessly between the classics. It's oh so smooth, the orchestration lavish, Marvin Gaye comparisons inevitable. But even if formula seems simple, it's clear that few people could pull it off, and probably none to the level that Jalen has. I probably want to hear more experimentation or mashing another genre in his future records, but for now I'm quite gracious for getting to hear this.
Ah yes, the Youtuber music. Or rather fusion jazz / brass rock big band with one Adam Neely on the bass who surprisingly didn't really seem to use his platform to promote it. More importantly, this is a very specific sound that I always look for - it's what I thought all fusion jazz is like when I first learned of the term, with excitement and sentimentality of rock but experimentation and virtuosity of jazz. In this version it's almost symphonic, and it tells an engaging musical story. The resolutions of "Held Together" and "Losing Eurydice" are oh-so-satisfying, they really encapsulate that concept of "coming home" for me. In that sense albums feels rather simple, but effective.
I like to consult other reviews and opinions when I write these blurbs. But there wasn't much to find on this Mexican ska-jazz-reggae-dub outfit, especially in English. The only thing I found was a facebook posts that when machine-translated seemed to say that they ceased activity a few months ago, so that's a bummer. I think this is an extremely interesting take on all these genres they combined. Especially when you take a track like "Horus" which has an almost musical number structure, but tells its engaging story without lyrics and there's so much fun and excitement in the performances. Each instrument gets a perfect amount of attention, repeated phrases and call-and-responses are used fantastically, it's definitely a standout track structure-wise, but sound-wise the whole album's extremely solid and I really wish I could hear more evolved takes on this kind of music.
Both house and collage music are so far outside of my realm that the closest comparison to this I can think of is The Go Team of all things. So the only thing I can offer are my raw impression - which is that this album is one of the best mood lifters I've ever listened too. It just puts me in a party mood no matter what I'm doing or thinking about, and it's perfectly paced to never overwhelm but also never lose me. It also flows immaculately, when I'm paying attention I can tell when one track ends and another begins, but when it's in the background it's hard to tell if 1, 5 or 10 songs passed. I can't really deconstruct this type of music and figure out what goes into making it, but I'm really impressed with the result.
The star sibling duo that dominate Polish folk-pop scene returns with what I think is their best album to date. I feel like they merge polish alternative traditions in their use of atypical drum beats and sung-poetry style of singing with some more global trends, like the long "ooohs" in the second half of "Lego" or the synchronized rhythm of "Byłominęło" chorus going into this catchy piano riff. I think their style of music making is very savvy, and I just respect a lot of things they do, and I'm really happy it's bringing them success.
Despite firmly staying within the post rock genre, I would say that Sigur Rós' discography is very varied and I'd be surprised to meet someone who appreciates all of their albums equally. I certainly don't, which is why I'm really glad that their first studio album in 10 years falls somewhere within my wheelhouse. I called 共同的土地 serene earlier, but this is on another level, a very slow and orchestral record that really stretches the "rock" part of the genre and functions more like a soundtrack that just happens to be enjoyable to listen to standalone. It's not a difficult listen, but maybe a little tougher to get excited about, lacking any really poppier tracks compared to "Takk..." or "()". Still, you get a these very satisfying emotions, "Skel" to me feels like overcoming tough times, "Klettur" like a triumph at a high cost, "Gold" like resting after an important day. It's quite an invigorating album, one with more deep than shallow sense of joy.
This is a really interesting genre mix, because it almost sounds like if you took a psychedelic rock track, and then slapped some jazz brass on it. And it turns out to be a perfect fit, with the former setting the stage and the latter telling the story. Laying the groove and slaying all over it. I don't know if this is how I imagined "the soundtrack to the dancefloor at the end of the world" as the band self-describes, but I definitely dig it.
Ska sisters can't stop winning! A very lavish, celebratory, big band sound, with firm island roots, but doing everything over the top of it that it can think of. Bringing broadway renditions of cabaret music to mind, rearrangements of symphonic classics, adding modern jpop singing and creating a setlist to the most exciting party I can imagine ever going to. Incredibly solid, incredibly eclectic, it just might be my favorite record yet from this already legendary band.
A rare case of Irish folk stealing hearts of indiehead crowd. I suppose it stands out by being fairly dark, and having an intense, almost aggressive style of playing. Violins on "Go Dig My Grave" have an almost horror vibe, while "The New York Trader" has this amazing feeling of tension that is exciting rather than exhausting. I feel like artists might've taken inspirations from rock-adjacent genres like post-punk, noise rock and neo-psychedelia. "Lord Abore and Mary Flynn" may sound like a traditional folk song, but its warm embrace feels much more characteristic of a contemporary indie ballad. It's definitely one of the more interesting mergers of tradition and modernity I've heard, but I'm even more excited for the possibility that this opens the floodgates for more interesting takes on Celtic music to come.
A rare delve into classical for me, with a modern reinterpretation of a 1976 minimalist piece for four pianos. It wields repetitiveness as its weapon and builds emotion with very gradual evolution of sound. The choice of electric pianos and organs is fairly vintage by todays standards as Erik has shown restraint in not overproducing the record, instead making every choice feel very meaningful and profound. The choice of phrases and presence of ambient noises makes it into more of a warm and emotional record than a meditative one, and deceptively engaging for how easily the lines between tracks blur.
A chamber pop record from a women duet that is most characteristic for its use of harmonies. Their voices come together and weave away in a fascinating tapestry of sound. The melodies formed by minimal instrumentation and overdubbed singing are beautiful and captivating. Starting with very little sound means that even adding one phrase will feel significant and up the intensity. It's one of these very warmly dark albums that feels like late-night conversations with someone who fascinates you.
Let's just get this out of the way - if someone told me this was a Days N' Daze record, I'd believe it a 100%. Albeit more minimal, it has the same mix of acoustic guitar, unorthodox percussion, hoarse singing and surprisingly fitting addition of trumpet, together coming into this DIY folk punk style. Also sharing vaguely misanthropic theming in lyrics, exploring fears, anxieties and self-hatred. Most tracks are melancholic, with very rare bursts of comparatively positive energy in choruses of "island" and "a greedy masochist who bleeds money", but I think they are just enough to not make this feel too dreary and like wallowing in misery, but rather a healthy dose of venting. Helps that it's quite catchy.
We move from squats and small bars to Massey Hall and big festival stages, with appropriately big and more poppy sound of an indie-folk-rock trio. It's about what you'd expect - very sentimental sound with a relatively slow tempo, huge changes in volume and intensity used as primary ways to build emotions, rock beats that drive the momentum, and very sweet tenor singing with occasional soft backing vocals and fantastic production that enhances everything just the right way. It's a very light and pleasant listen that displays great craftsmanship.
This album feels very special in the BJM discography for me. But I'm not quite sure what makes it stand out, as it's firmly in their usual wheelhouse of psychedelic rock with strong shoegaze influence. I will say it's a fairly uniform record, with no wild shifts in style across the tracklist, which suits my preference with this kind of trance-inducing music. Which isn't to say that there's no variety on the record, as emotionally and structurally something like almost motorik organ-led "Nothing Can Stop The Sound" is very different from guitar meandering of "Fudge" or the wall of sound in "The Mother Of All Fuckers". But it flows incredibly well together and results in one of my favorite records in this space.
We're well into records where any of them could be my AOTY and I have nothing but praise. This 10-person experimental psychedelic-jazz-funk EP is one of the most unique and interesting things I heard this year. It has the kind of playing and production that is reminiscent of nu jazz but without noticeable use of electronics (if at all). Song structures are sometimes trip hoppy, "Live Room" is almost like a Nine Inch Nails piano song, "Inheritance" has a very indie rock vibe with its use of guitar and singing, but overall the album is quintessentially swingy. It feels very artistic but also very approachable and I'm really looking forward to their debut LP.
By my count the most basic record of Dre Babinski, with simpler instrumentation, simpler production, pulling back on electronics and using mostly typical singer-songwriter song structures. With lyrics focusing on emotions and occasional abstract imagery to convey more complex feelings. I like the use of repeated phrases like "seven out of ten" in "Bomb Shelter Comatose" or "This is how..." in "High Alert" and how the intensity changes between each instance. The melodies lend themselves to a contemplative vibe. There's a certain level of cynicism and irony present, and the record seems like artist's attempt to escape it, and wrestling between hope and acceptance. It's a very interesting mix that connected with me really strongly.
Irish folk singer, but moreso in the modern folk style, almost sung poetry, rather than classic Celtic music. And she has an incredibly strong and commanding voice, that sounds almost too powerful for the real world and more fit for a fictional character, but at the same time it's not theatrical or caricatural - it strikes this incredible balance at being larger than life but not unnatural. And these slow and minimal compositions are a perfect canvas to deliver her immaculate voicings with a giant range of expression. The record has this slight off-kilter vibe as I wouldn't call it experimental or difficult to get into, but it sneaks in a weird sound here and there that is just the perfect amount of spice to make it memorable and special.
I've had a few of these funk-jazz-rock mixes on the list but this one tops it. Maybe it's just the well-timed use of organs as the show stealer, along with strong presence of the trumpet. It's certainly how hypnotic and engaging these tracks are, with motifs that I get excited for whenever each track starts playing. Maybe it's how thick and groovy it is despite being seemingly fully organic. The sound mixes oldschool and modern elements in fantastically balanced way. Despite having many stylistically conventional elements, the whole combination stands out and makes a huge impact.
At the time of writing I am literally the only person who listened to this band on Spotify over last month so I officially win the hipster bowl. A traditional Celtic duo, and it's really fun to hear just how full the sound is with just the two of them thanks to use of accordion and various plucked strings. I like how this EP flows, starting with a very welcoming jig, going through two guitar-centric songs, and then ending with three epic accordion pieces, two of which are actually French rather than Celtic shanties, which is a well I don't often see drawn from in the corner of folk music I follow. And their takes on these songs are immaculate, with singing perfectly serving the composition and instrument playing giving me everything I could ever want. Man accordions are cool.
I'm surprised to find out that I'm in a minority that preferred this album out of the two that The National released this year going by average scores on sites like RYM and AOTY, for both critics and users. Admittedly I don't really care that the guest performances aren't particularly noticeable and I don't mind repetition of lyrics or generally uniform atmosphere - in fact I quite welcome these aspects. To me the album is simply beautiful, the sounds are pretty, the singing is sweet, the mixing expert, and the flow of tempo across the whole record shows band's savviness. Maybe it was just what I needed last year.
Band I first encountered with the single "Latchico" which felt like this really weird take on post-punk revival with some very pronounced folk elements. After that I was sure I want to hear their next album - but it was much different than expected. Much slower, more meticulous, and less overt in its folk influences. But they are there - whether a short fiddle section, that style of almost chanted voice harmonization, or just the overall vibe and sentimentality. And after reading some interviews and watching some production videos, turns out that this was intentional - they took inspirations from both metal and traditional Irish folk music to mold this particular take on alternative rock. One that might not seem super unique from the outset, but the deeper I dug the more special it felt. And whether it was the marching "Hole in the Ground", emotional "Shoes" or conclusive "Pocket Full of Roses", The Scratch have impressed and made me fall in love. It's an album that grew on me from a potential HM to the eventual no. 1 over course of months, and I think I will keep returning to it for a long time.
***
Backup of top10 song list in case they disappear from YT. In no particular order:
Ben Howard - Days of Lantana
The Capturers - Don't Make It Right
Mayson's Party - Let Me Go
The Pirates - Gas Lit
Rude Echoes - Blackjack
Frankie and the Witch Fingers - Empire
Paperback Flower Expo - With Love from The Deep Blue
Big Blood - 1000 Times
Blake Mills - Skeleton Is Walking
Tei - Hitominaka
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