this is usually where i pontificate about the general state of music, but i’m not really feeling it this year. just like there’s many critically acclaimed top albums that i also didn’t feel this year. and that’s ok. you do you, i do me. no need to try so hard to feel things that didn’t make you feel things. you feel me?

but if you want to read what the real critic babes and critic hunks thought were the best musics, do yrself a favor and check out all the 2025 critic best of lists. lots of cool sounds abound to discover in there.

but if for some reason you’re just here for my picks, then let’s get to it already. the scab’s almost fallen off and fifty freshies below are ready for the roastin’ or the toastin’. and while i didn’t labor over the order and the list like i may or may not have in the past, just take the list as recs of nice things i would tell you to listen to (if you asked). if you know me, you prob have a sense of the vibe i rate to. and if you don’t know; well, as they notoriously say, now you know. enjoy!

50. Vanilla – Time Goes By Pt. 1

49. Khotin – Peace Portal EP

48. Cate Le Bon – Michelangelo Dying

47. Barry Can’t Swim – Loner

46. Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer

45. Malibu – Vanities

44. Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist – Alfredo 2

43. Annie and the Caldwells – Can’t Lose My (Soul)

42. Mac Demarco – Guitar

41. Smerz – Big city life

40. Prins Thomas – Thomas Moen Hermansen

39. Anthony Naples – Scanners / In Studio Magic

38. African-American Sound Recordings – Be Somewhere Twice / Hits of Ash

37. Foxwarren – 2

36. billy woods – GOLLIWOG

35. Verses GT – Verses GT

34. Lawrence Hart – Come In Out Of The Rain

33. OSSX – WORLD KEEPS TURNING

32. Kara Lis-Coverdale – Changes In Air

31. HNNY – Close

30. Domenique Dumont – Deux Paradis

29. J. Albert – Return To Sender

28. Duval Timothy – wishful thinking

27. U.e. – Hometown Girl

26. Vegyn/Air – Blue Moon Safari

25. Misha Panfilov – To Blue From Grey in May / Skyways

24. Yagya – Vor

23. Purelink – Faith

22. Moomin – Into The Distance

21. Two Shell – IIcons

20. Horsegirl – Phoenetics On and On

19. Leif – Taraxacum

18. Herbert & Momoko – Clay

17. FKA Twigs – EUSEXUA

16. james K – friend

15. K-Lone – sorry i thought you were someone else

14. Maria Somerville – Luster

13. Okonski – Entrance Music

12. Sven Wunder – Daybreak

11. Djrum – Under Tangled Silence

10. Barker – Stochastic Drift

9. Oneohtrix Point Never – Tranquilizer

8. Ari Bald & CJ Scott – Humble Jumble / Dime Girl

7. Car Culture – Rest Here

6. Erika de Casier – Lifetime

05. Nourished By Time – The Passionate Ones

04. Darkside – Nothing

03. Voices From The Lake – II

02. Panda Bear – Sinister Grift

01. Blood Orange – Essex Honey

support artists. support live music. support art. be good to one another. peace y’all.

we keepin’ it simple this year, no more bullshit. just like tim heidy ho ho ho’d. the rants about the ire of skippable songs, track list flow, and sounds that evoke feelings can wait and regurgitate themselves next year in new jargon, just with no bones this time. god knows we’ll need more harmony next year. just as much as they love ugly. so ban the banter. let’s rec league it for the records.

as usual, take the order with a grain of saltines and know that except for the top album (which i strongly believe is a timeless stone cold classic), these albums all slip and slap and slop and bop. some may even whip your ass, if you’re into that kind of thing. they are of course more catered to my musical flavor town, so if this artisanal hot sauce is too fiery for your auditory palate, please cozy up to all these other great and varied 2024 critic best of lists. i’m sure there’s something in there with just the right amount of ear spice and johnny umami for you.

on the reals tho, i sincerely hope you find some sounds that are new to you, some different rhythms than what your algo shows you, some tracks to jam out while you gym in, or whatever else floats your rubber ducky. that’s the main goal of this the shins dig anyways, no slang intended. and now friends, to the list…

50. Total Blue – Total Blue

49. Bullion – Affection

48. Shabaka – Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace

47. Rafael Toral – Spectral Evolution

46. Two Shell – Two Shell

45. Floating Points – Cascade

44. Shinichi Atobe – Discipline

43. Misha Panfilov – Frutaria Electr​ó​nica / To The Mesospherere and Beyond

42. Jane Weaver – Love in Constant Spectacle

41. Iron & Wine – Light Verse

40. Mount Kimbie – The Sunset Violent

39. Faye Webster – Underdressed at the Symphony

38. Cornelius – Ethereral Essence

37. Starcleaner Reunion – Café Life

36. The Smile – Cutouts / Wall of Eyes

35. James Devane – Searching

34. Actress – Дарен Дж Каннінгем

33. Patrick Holland – Infra

32. Dean Blunt – Hackney Commercial Waste

31. Soshi Takeda – Secret Communication

30. Nicolas Jaar – Piedras 1/ Piedras 2

29. SAULT – Acts of Faith

28. Jack J – Blue Desert

27. Kassie Krut – Kassie Krut EP

26. Bartosz Kruczyński – Dreams & Whispers

25. Loidis – One Day

24. Adrianne Lenker – Bright Future

23. Photay – Windswept

22. BADBADNOTGOOD – Mid Spiral

21. Nilüfer Yanya – My Method Actor

20. Loukeman – Sd-2

19. Donato Dozzy – Magda

18. Syclops – Black Eye

17. Astrid Sonne – Great Doubt

16. Helado Negro – PHASOR

15. Four Tet – Three

14. Ulla & Ultrafog – It Means A Lot

13. Cities Aviv – Cafe Tom Tom

12. DIIV – Frog In Boiling Water

11. MJ Lenderman – Manning Fireworks

10. Jessica Pratt – Here In The Pitch

09. Being Dead – EELS

08. Chanel Beads – Your Day Will Come

07. Jamie xx – In Waves

06. Chris Cohen – Paint A Room

05. Vegyn – The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions

04. Peel Dream Magazine – Rose Main Reading Room

03. Skee Mask – Resort / ISS010

02. Nala Sinephro – Endlessness

01. Cindy Lee – Diamond Jubilee

wow, you really made it to the end. past the unnecessary but kinda pretty collage thing. how neat. appreciate ya for taking the time to scroll this far and for having interest in peeping these albums. i often think to myself, why do i take the (far too long) time to put this post together each year? and the answer is easy. each year i have at least a few people tell me they discovered something that they enjoyed listening to here. i know that auditory feeling of joy very well, and it’s arguably the best there is, so that means a lot to me. and a lot is pretty darn good…be well, stay safe, go see lots of shows, support artists, and see ya next year.

There’s a certain time of year when an albums listened to and enjoyed list learns to walk and crawls into clumps of a top albums of the year list. It’s hard to pinpoint (or pinback) when this is, but it’s a time when some trends on the year in music start to materialize. Not necessarily where things are going (although this happens) but more so how crowded it is up there, and…how great the next six to twelve months of music festival talent is going to be. And as I write this, ironically the latter becomes increasingly clear how good of a barometer that can be and how equally out of wack the structures at play make for all of this. BBC Essentially speaking, there seem to be less high highs and less unfamiliar characters taking a seat at the final table. It takes guts (no, not the ones you may be thinking) and stalworth creativity from our musical stewards and (more importantly) those who don’t know better to create unique, timeless, inspired, unforgettable sounds.

But let’s also be fair and realize how much harder it is to be truly original and stand out as each year of data adds to an unimaginable sized pile that is somehow all easily accessible. It’s weird to think about, and my brain tongue feels tied the more I think of it. And in a similar way, this year felt tied too.

So as I try to create some kind of order within the subjective chaos, I feel as flippant as ever with a big league majority chew of these records. Anyone reading this already knows to take a grain of salt (or whatever) to burst a bubble with these lists, and mine is no different. The goal as always is one of sharing sonic memories of joy and hoping that you can find something in these to be transported somewhere else. For a moment, or maybe three.

And so as the reality sets in that there are just certain sounds where the gravity doesn’t feel as heavy, it’s natural to lean in (just a bit) to the things that are easy to enjoy. Sometimes an album statement can be so bold and different that it shows you something new about how music and the world can be. And those can be so intense and beautiful that they often aren’t going to show up on your most listened list, as they demand too much of your attention, and your spirit. But as I believe Malcom in the middle would say, there are always outliers. For the most part though, what you consume most frequently often seems like the easiest thing for you to digest.

So with bringing you this annual feast of a fifty (plant) wing dinner, I beg you to forgive me mixing in some records in certain high places that don’t seem to fit the bill of being as transformative as the ethos of past lists might suggest. They may not be, at least in a cultural sense or for you. But they colored my year, and were the ever present pepper to that ever ready grain of salt. So without further adieu, here are my top fifty favorite pep peps of the year. Enjoy. 

If ya made it this far, thanks for reading/scrolling! I appreciate y’all and enjoy the music chats, experiences, and thoughts that we have, will or should have together. Looking forward to the more to come. 

Now back to listening to NTS Radio…but please do tell me about all the cool new albums you listen to next year. It will make this a lot easier haha. peace

And so as another cycle of adding, moving and grooving albums across a spreadsheet comes to a close, I’m left (per usual) pondering some take aways from the year. Because ordering in was so 2021 anyways, right? Left? Dead center? Realistically it’s somewhere in between. And isn’t that always the case? Trying to pinpoint where the pins dropped in good ol’ Elliott’s haystack and realizing that that’s enough in itself. If the intent is honest and met with care, you’ll find something in the process even when it seems that nothing’s there. And as this process evolves, you’re bound to trip and fall on some familiar steps while finding some new ones that take you to unexpected depths. Places where step by steps can go from feeling new hanging with kids on the block to flying high with pandas and falcons and bears (oh my). Not that it’s profound or anything; but with every year that passes doing these lists, the internal conundrum of how an album is relative to another is an ever present concept that reins supreme. It’s a thought process I wear throughout the year, except here there’s no red block text to be found and no deers to bring it all home.

So as I reflect on the year that’s passed, a few themes come to mind. The first being that as this is a list where the album format is paramount, listening to an album start to finish in order, without the urge to skip a track is an underrated barometer of a record’s success. It may seem like an indirect thing to many, but great songs alone just don’t just cut it. Hell, they can’t even tear it. Sequencing, flow and the ever important ability to edit (i know, ironic how i find this important) is critical. And so when an album is chock full of great tracks but also has those few that always break your focus or call uncomfortably to your attention, there’s a problem at hand. Well, maybe not a problem per say; but, this unmistakably distracts from the album experience. I struggled to make sense of this as it was beginning to allow shorter albums and EPs to feel more cohesive than longer form artistic expressions that clearly were the result of much more blood, sweat, tears, fears and general creativity. But even then when it comes down to it,  those albums could be improved simply by resequencing or editing off the lesser (or less fitting) songs to a collection of b-sides or an EP and everyone would be better for it. Maybe it’s just my old man Rick Rubin coming out that makes it seem more important, but it’s undoubtedly a thing. And when a record gets that right it really shows sonically, the value of the hedge.

The next element in this mirror of a rambling shpeel is the concept of critical music objectivity. Surely there’s been some semblance of words on this in past year’s posts so forgive me if I’m retreading your tires here. And if you’re bothered by that, well then get a grip, which is again what we’re doing here. Pay attention. Anyways, the objective behind the ranking of the albums. In earlier years I was fixated on trying to best learn, understand and empathize with why certain music resonates with certain people and why a majority of music inclined folks deem certain albums to be better than others. Thinking back, that was more an exercise in exploring styles, perspective, context and cultural trends that helped to inform a baseline scale on which to rate and rationalize other records in the future. And that was helpful. Or maybe better put, useful. But as the years go by, I care less about the objective of the list being objective. And the reality is that I’m not writing here on behalf of anyone else, there’s no sly business endeavors at stake, I don’t promote these lists or thoughts in any real way, and there’s no reason or value in conforming to other sects of popular opinion when there’s already very good websites that do this sort of thing. So why not lean into being more uniquely subjectively me anyway? I mean, would you really enjoy this at all if my carefully thought out opinions just so happened to align with the critical consensus? And let’s be real here friends, would you really discover any new music below if it was all stuff you already recognized? The answers to that are likely clear. But just as Zima was also clear, which means…what? What the hell was Zima anyways? Oh god, I’m aging myself again. All it takes is one second to blink and you’ll forget your age again.

So more than any other year I feel like this year’s list reflects not only the ongoing evolution of my personal musical tastes, critiques and thoughts, but it reflects many of my favorite personal moments of the year (which surprise surprise, are music oriented). So when an album really came to life in new ways after seeing an incredible live show I didn’t try to filter that out as a by chance coloring experience. I embraced it. Because that’s life. The board game. I think. I am. I do…oh how quickly I get off track. Yes right, back to albums. So yes, some of the best concert experiences and the people I shared those with made some albums truly special this year. Some others, let’s say didn’t help. But not only that, the memory of when the records were experienced, how they were discovered, when and with whom, they’re all a part of it. Not all of it of course. Most of the time listening to albums is still an internal experience while working, doing, or going somewhere. But those moments all make a difference. And being present in them as they come and in their memories is a joy as well. And like the good smiling Marie Thomdo might say, it’s usually best when it’s in its right place.

So go shorty it’s your birthday, because here’s 2022’s top fifity albums, and we don’t give a fuck it’s not your birthday.

And that’s it! But since you’ve come this far I wanted to add a bonus feature this year and share my favorite shows from the mighty NTS Radio! There’s only so many albums I can listen to in a day (and in general) and discovering NTS some years back has been a godsend for me as well as a huge source of musical learning, pilfering, and overall enjoyment. As a now paid supporter, I feel obliged to share the love and clue you in to just a small sample of the great great content they are creating on the daily and forever archiving (with track lists to snag those sneaky ‘what is this?’ tracks). For some context, most of my daily listening of NTS is of recent shows (on mixcloud) while working. So the vibe I gravitate towards leans towards the mellow, chill and funky side of things. Thems just my (sound) wavy work preferences, but there’s so much other good stuff they have to explore on their website if you’re looking for something else.

So here’s a list of my Top 10 favorite NTS Shows that I listened to lots in 2022. Enjoy!

1. THE NTS BREAKFAST SHOW W/ FLO
2. FLOATING POINTS
3. THE EARLY BIRD SHOW W/ SPIRIT BLUE
4. THE EARLY BIRD SHOW W/ MARIA SOMERVILLE
5. HIGH JAZZ* W/ ILL DUBIO
6. SOUP TO NUTS W/ ANU
7. SOUP TO NUTS W/ JOHN GÓMEZ
8. HOMESHAKE
9. JOHN CARROLL KIRBY
10. ATHENS OF THE NORTH

…see ya next year. peace

Wow, it’s this time of year again? How many months has it been? How many more will there be? What is a question. Why yes, that is correct (I suppose). But I guess I’m getting off track. Already?! Which tracks? Oh right, not tracks. Albums! Records, releases, call them what you may. May the whatever be without you. Wait, what are we doing here again? What are these words here for? Traditions, rituals, norms, mcdonalds, you know…

So what’s the theme for this year? Other than the my sha’rona of course. Well, it was delving deeper into the ethereal world of sound mainly. Primarily. Egalitarianly, but like with sounds yo. So spoiler alert: get ready for ambient music, jazz, and apparently ambient jazz (which I just call jazz, but apparently it’s all like mellowed out and in touch with itself on the astral plane or whatever). Don’t you worry though, there’s other stuff too. Like band stuff, and electronic stuff, and hip hop stuff. You know, genres. But maybe not as much as in years past.

So this is the part where I usually wax my board with the acronym “POETIC” (don’t ask me what it stands for) and talk about how I don’t “get” what the popular critics deem to be da best albums. But guess what, I’m not even sure what the unanimous picks were for this year. Somehow, for some reason I didn’t read most of the critic top albums lists this year as I usually do. You might think this is another becoming older stubborn tendency but honestly, I just didn’t make time for it. So I guess I didn’t really care. What even was Pitchfork’s top album? Pssh, don’t tell me. I don’t want to know yet (but writing this now, I am curious all of a sudden). Just please based god tell me that Kanye’s record was not on there, please. I literally couldn’t get past three songs and will only give two a chance (the rapper) the next time around. And so yay there it goes, the annual mentioning of a mainstream album I didn’t enjoy. Like really didn’t enjoy. But enough with the theory of negativity. Everyone already knows that’s how Einstein invented bagels.

Where was I again? Oh yeah, albums. So while I did listen to a fair number of them, there are like always a million and one I didn’t listen to. And based on my aforementioned not paying attention to the lists this year as I usually do (with one exception) and the fact I haven’t really kept up with any music blogs for years now, I do think it is fair to say my methods of music discovery may have left me out of touch. A bit. Let’s not get crazy here though. You didn’t come here for the top pop albums. Or for me to barf out the top Spotify new releases of the year (which i’m quite certain is spit out by some virus riddled computer in the dark dungeons of hell). And so you must somewhat know me to be reading this which means you know I have a slight case of popaphobia, except instead of the scaries it’s more of a strong aversion. Like magnets. Except that metal is also kinda not my thing. Sorry metal heads. Maybe your music would be sweeter if you shook that laffy taffy and battled it out with the airheads…ugh, even I cringed at that one. If only these erasers would work on screens.

So, what’s the big epiphany for this year. Hmm…well ambient music is still as soothing as ever in a year where anything that soothes is like gold (jerry, like gold)! Jazz also started to finally click with me. But why? No, not the alopecia dude …just talking to myself out loud again. It really comes back to finding the right niches and most importantly, the feels. Musical intellectual stimulation (for me) is the result of years of listening with the intent of discovering new sounds, finding patterns, excitement, newness, oldness which somehow is newness, but mainly a rush of emotions and feelings that sounds…refreshing. Just think to yourself, how would you describe the feeling you get when you hear a soon to be favorite song or album for the first time? Excitement, joy, buzzing, dancing, fulfillment, intensity, euphoria…maybe one of those? Well whatever it is for you, bottle it. Remember it. And try to find it again. Whether that be in sound for you or in another sense. Enjoy the feeling. Enjoy the process. Do it again. Keep feeling the feels. That’s how I tend to think of it. And that’s why I keep going back two it.

So yeah. Here’s fifty some albums I liked most this year. And yes, if you release multiple (similar) things in a year they get grouped together. It’s like musical extra credit. Someone’s always got to be the teacher’s pet sounds.

……….now back to the old stuff and some 20 twenty two tunes. happy new year y’all!

Well well well plant wellington. Here we are again. Back at it. There’s no way around it though, 2020 was truly, an unforgettable year to forget. Thank the good lord of the rings that it’s over with. You’d hope that with people trapped inside with nothing else to do, those who could would lean into musical creativity but eh. Good ol stress and anxiety and death and depression don’t always make for the most opportune times to jam brah. Though I have no doubt the undesired feelings and experiences from this year will be inspiration for compelling and moving art for years to come. Just not so much this year. There were some moments though. Some glimmers. Some sprinkles. I mean hell, go to town with the toppings. We made it to 2021. Now have your ice cream cake and eat it too.

This year, we are skipping the critic compilation lists. You know where to find them. And if you don’t oh well, golly gosh darn (hint hint, they’re in all the old year posts). Because really, who cares to see that the Nation of (I mean ol) T Swift, Old Billy Bob Dy-lan, and Fiona Eats an Apple (ok that album was fine and well, just not my cup of mate) were the consensus critic top picks? Mind you a myriad of these critics are by and large as good with the musics as Mister Movies is good with the movies. Which is to say…something? Who knows. Hell, I wasn’t even planning on doing a #1 top album spot this year to reflect how 2020 felt inside and out (ok, mainly just inside) like a long drawn out let down. But then late in the year I got slapped in the face with a record that surprised me with a kind of joy I can only describe as similar to the feeling of being in the middle of an unforgettable headline show at a Coachella of yesteryear’s past after an epic day with all your friends. And maybe I miss concerts too. Maybe.

As per usual I’ve been thinking about what it means to me to be a “top” album and why one is more “top” than the other and what not. And this year especially, it’s become more clear to me. My top albums should be (and hopefully are) a reflection of my favorite musical moments in the year. On one hand, when you think of a recorded album it is a timeless piece of art that can age along with mother time. On the other hand though, every album was created in a specific time in a specific place with specific people which when combined with the specific settings you listened to it with (first and then continued in the future) makes for a unique musical moment. Some could argue a more true objective perspective on music should be independent of that, but every year that goes by and I do this I feel that less and less. These lists and favorite albums of the year should be wonders of creativity, artistry, storytelling and skill. BUTT, they should make you feel excited inside by sound in ways that few others did, or ever did. And how is that not subjective? …me thinks it kinda is. And it should be. I want to see a list of music that made 2020 less shitty for the human(s) that wrote it and listen to what provided them moments of solace, forgetfulness and joy. With that I want to polish my ears, feel the feels and touch corduroy…damn, I really haven’t touched corduroy in a while. I guess there’s always time in 2021.

So in your best internal mario kart impression, here wee goooooooo…

…………………..see ya in 2021

Well well well, why hello there ye dusty old blog. D’ya fancy a bit of that ‘ol timey muzak fun? How bout a terrible silly on the nose mix series? Oh…a fragrant mix? a sonic potpourri? a series? Yo it better be a trilogy, themz are tiight….Nah brah, 3’s are soft. what do you know about NINETEEN? (COViD) 9TEEN. A mix project to distract and share a variety of niice songs with others in a discrete amount of time. Pick a pre-defined theme on the spot. Define out loud. Play 19 SONGS. Record and go. Stop overthinking. Just create whatever gets created. 19 MIX GOAL.

….wait, you still put out mixes? is it a livestream tho? how do i zoom troll this action? …uhhhhhh

so here’s the delio. i’ve recorded a few of these so far. enough now to finally warrant me admitting to doing this music mix shelter sanity project. wanting to at least give sufjan a run for his money with his 50 states project. especially because i only gots 19.

this is the most recent one i recorded last night. before i started this one i was thinking of a theme and said “ambient high”. the ambient element dissipated quickly as this journey thru some of my all time fav rare funky groovy world wide jammers came next. things don’t always end up as you initially intend them to be.

as we have to stay inside, i wanted to play some music to go outside. to different places.. in different times. before now. before the quarantime. better times. 

more to come.

Twenty nineteen was a solid year for music, but an odd one at that. While there were plenty of interesting and worthy releases to select for a “best of” list, critics seemed to flock heavily around a few mainstream records and run with it (more so than any other year I’ve witnessed). I (swear I really really) tried to buy the ticket and take the ride on the hype train, but ultimately was left mumbling “(lana del) no way!” to myself most of the time. So instead, this year you’ll just have to indulge yourself with the albums that I felt made this year sound special.

As mentioned above, there was a great deal of consensus among critic’s for the top albums of the year. And I mean, A LOT. It was pretty wild. Don’t believe me? Then check out the aggregate lists put together by Metacritic and Album of the Year with the links below.

The albums that everyone were going (lady) ga ga over are probably worth your time. And hell, you’ll probably like them! Every one else seemed to. And while I tried and tried to understand why so many people found these albums special, they just didn’t do it for me. And more specifically, I just don’t enjoy listening to them. And that’s ok! Everyone is different. Fortunately for you, I’ve been paper mache-ing these year end top album lists now for many many years so I’m pretty immune to the influence of the music media machine. So, my hope is that means you’ll find a few more new sounds to discover and enjoy below than years past. Or, maybe you’ll just come to the consensus that I’ve finally broken my ears after far too many years of concerts and festivals…Honestly, it’s probably a little of both.

Metacritic’s 2019 Music Critic Top 10 Lists

AOTY 2019 Music Year End List Aggregate

So this year I decided to Kondo my top albums list and get rid of the clutter so to speak. Or to use the proper nomenclature, I cut down my list to only include the records that truly sparked audio joy in my year lol. So even though I listened to more albums than ever this year you’re only getting a list of 50 records below. Deal with it.

And as usual I’m sure I’ll soon look back on this with regret for leaving out all the gems on my “best albums” spreadsheet from #51 onwards that are more in the grow-er, not show-er mentality (and are going to hit home in the coming months). But y’know, the same could be said every year and that’s just how the rules go for that ever evolving board game we live in called life….err, maybe that one was different. Honestly I don’t even remember how that game goes. So here we are, back off the rails of the hype train and ready to blast into hyperspeed like the train in back to the future, except in this case the future is the recent year that passed, 2019. So climb into the delorean and let’s find you some new music to rock (paper, scissors?) your socks off. Here’s what soaked my sandals in this last lap around the sun…

So that’s it! And in case you have a strange hatred for images and are just all about living the text life, well then here ya go…

Twenty Eighteen. There was music. Probably too much of it. I liked some though. And a few a lot.

Usually I rant away at some oscillating music thoughts here in my (usual) one post of the year for ye old wordpress music blog but I’m not really feeling it this year. My voice is not that important. Nor is the voice from all the top critics, artists, DJs and producers out there. They can be a guide for sure, but ultimately you need to get there. And you need to decide how you feel when you get there. The more I’ve thought about this the more I lean with these lists (and this year in particular) to what I enjoy listening to and what put simply, just feels good.

So yes you can easily dissect and criticize my arbitrary list if you like and tell me how the production value on this one album is so on point and it should’ve made the list(!) or how the lyrics and songwriting are unequal to what anyone else is doing right now(!?) or that this album is so undeniably catchy and millions of listening on spotify can’t be wrong, right? And you know what, you’re probably right on all those accounts (or at least you can be if you believe it, and that should be good enough). But with each year that goes by and I do this, I realize that I care about that less and less. What I do care about is what I gravitate to and what I like to listen to. And that’s what it should really be all about. Music is inherently subjective. Sure, all the music nerds can groupthink and point out why one group of sounds is better than the other for technical, historical and cultural reasons but that doesn’t mean you are going to or more importantly have to like it. It’s a completely personal choice. You don’t even have to listen to music if you’re not into it. And while that seems sad to me, it’s really only me coloring the thought with my tendencies and interests. It’s totally fine, just do what brings you joy and makes you happy. But if you’ve come this far you probably do care a bit about music and have some curiosity about what I was into in the last year. So let’s get to it…

But before I list off my album choices for 2018, feel free to peruse what every other major critic, news, and music group thought about 2018 as a whole. The two sites who I think do it best are Album of the Year and Metacritic who both do a yearly summary in slightly different ways which I always find particularly interesting. Not only do they do their aggregate ranks differently but seeing a snippet of all the individual lists just shows how much crazy variance there is, even among all the people who are paid to be writers and critics. And again, that’s a good thing. Choose your own path. Just let these recommendations be your compass to get there.

Metacritic’s 2018 Music Critic Top 10 Lists

AOTY 2018 Music Year End List Aggregate

Ok, so now that’s out of the way here’s the real deal. Don’t fret about the order. It has changed daily for the past few months. Just check out some albums and find something you like. Then I’ll feel like this whole thing was worth it and hopefully before you know it you’ll be stoked on some new tunes.

And so there it is. If you’re sitting there wondering, who the hell is Foxwarren well then you’re in luck. This year I tried making a quick playlist this year of some songs I liked from the 100 albums I mention here that I also like for those that get down with the Spotify. Peep that below if you learn better wit yo ears, ya heard?!

And for my favorite thing I heard in 2018 that’s not on Spotify. Check out 2 hrs of blissed out unreleased original downtempo and ambient tunes from DJ Healer.

Lastly, here’s da list again yo. but just straight text homie…

For me 2017 was the year of streaming and Spotify due to the tragic death of What.cd (RIP) the year prior which led me to discovering and listening to music a little differently than the past few years. While I had more entries on my albums of the year spreadsheet tracker than ever (a good thing by all accounts) I struggled to find and connect with as many groundbreaking albums as I would have liked and in turn had less clarity than usual about what really were the truly standout records of the year. Or maybe it’s more that most all the supposed great albums weren’t all that good or interesting after all? Maybe it’s a little bit of both. Maybe it’s me. Maybe it’s just that 2017 was a year of adjusting to things that often don’t make sense and expecting it to feel normal.

My prevailing take away from 2017 was that a lot of supremely talented, highly marketable, and well established bands and artists that we’ve come to expect great things out of put out music that put nicely was not very overly inventive, creative and addictingly different and put more bluntly was largely over rated and over hyped based on pre-existing high expectations.

Imagine if you could somehow create a magical music time vacuum where you could somehow give all the music from the familiar indie and mainstream heavy hitters an attempt at objective criticism by considering their latest work as if it was them releasing their debut album. Would you still feel the same way about their latest release? Would you have even managed to discover them if you hadn’t already connected with some of their past work or be able to easily see that all of your internet friends “like” this hot new artist/band? Really though, take any of your current favorite music artists and think for a second…..is your favorite record of theirs one of their early establishing albums or one later on in their career after they’d hit bonafide headliner status?

Really though, is there anyone out there that liked Radiohead’s “A Moon Shaped Pool” anywhere near as much as “Kid A”, “Amnesiac”, or “Ok Computer”? Would you ever have listened to Justice’s last two albums if there never was a Cross(†)? Would Arcade Fire even still be a band (much less, selling out arenas) if they started with “Everything Now” instead of “Funeral”? Would Eminem be the revered rapper he is if he initially released the trash fest of “Revival” instead of “The Slim Shady LP”?

For most all sane music minds, the answer to all of those rhetorical questions is an easy no and with the exception of very bad “Revival” (sorry diehard Eminem fans) the latest Radiohead, Justice and Arcade Fire albums aren’t terrible by any means and even have some good or great moments. But you’re kidding yourself if you think you would have listened to or cared about their later works if you weren’t already coming at each with a pre existing affection for the artist and a desire and hunger to re-experience the joys and nostalgia of your early favorite music memories with them in the form of new material. With that in mind I dare say that many of the so called “best albums” of 2017 weren’t much more than popular acts releasing new music. And that’s not necessarily an all bad thing. But it also isn’t an all good thing either.

Packaged in familiar sounds, predictable layouts and currently trending genres, many of 2017’s consensus top albums left me less musically inspired and creatively fulfilled than I’ve felt in other years . Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of quality (and some epicly great) music releases still; but reflective of today’s like-bait instant attention social atmosphere, I’ll go out on a lim(b) and bet that few 2017 albums will long be considered as pinnacle classics and will be remembered as pushing music’s sonic boundaries forward to new places or re-carving old classics in new, refreshing, and unexpected ways.

That being said, if you’ve come this far I sure hope that you keep scrolling on below to my hodge podge of a list and find a thing or two that you didn’t know about and find some audio excitement out of. You might not know where the gems lie but all rocks can be pretty cool in the right light so just dig in and go as deep as you want and can into the musical soil. Hopefully before not too long you’ll be rocking out and wondering why so many people thought that Lorde’s album was so great when there was all this other really cool shit too. For better or worse (it’s a choose your own adventure you get to decide type of thing) I promise that my list is further detached from most of the other critic lists this year than most. So either i’m losing my on to something or i’m really losing my mind.

But since critics are the critics for a reason, you can peruse all the official music opinions on what the best records were in 2017. Metacritic as usual does a solid post showing the top 10 of every notable list out there while (new to me this year) Albumoftheyear.org (aka AOTY) also puts out a nicely comprehensive music year list aggregate which unlike Metacritic actually takes into account votes for albums ranked outside of the top 10 in said critics lists.

Metacritic’s 2017 Music Critic Top 10 Lists

AOTY 2017 Music Year End List Aggregate

Again, there are (as always) tons of new albums to check out if you know where to look and are willing and interested in giving them a chance. While I’d like to say that i have some pretty interesting ones below, you may discover that our tastes are completely different and that you agree with the majority of everyone else and really like all the albums I didn’t list that were so prominently featured in the aggregate lists above. Regardless, do yourself a favor and listen to a thing or two you’ve never heard of and see where it takes you. Maybe, just maybe you’ll surprise yourself. Even if you don’t like surprises. Because really, if you think about surprises long enough, aren’t they really just formal prizes after all?

Or if pictures are not really your thing and you’re really more of a text person…