Best Records of 2019

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Clams
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Best Records of 2019

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by tinnitus photography »

Clams wrote:Here's a couple of good lists to get things started

https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/12/ ... -2019/amp/
no fucking way that there are 22 better records than the Purple Mountain record. Just, no.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Iowan »

There were a lot of records that I really enjoyed this year, but didn't become obsessed with many.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Iowan »

I think this is my Top 10 (not in order)

Sturgill Simpson "Sound & Fury"
Jenny Lewis "On the Line"
Hayes Carll "What It Is"
The Yawpers "Human Question"
Tyler Childers "Country Squire
Todd Snider "Cash Cabin Sessions Vol 3"
Hold Steady "Thrashing Thru the Passion"
Flatland Cavalry "Homeland Insecurity"
Chris Knight "Almost Daylight"
Mike & The Moonpies "Cheap Silver & Solid Country Gold"

I've listened to these the most, that I'm pretty sure of. Will probably flesh out deeper thoughts at some point.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Clams »

My favorite will probably come from these two

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by scotto »

A lot of stuff I still need to check out, but this has been and remains my favorite release of the year:

Image

Favorites 2-10 still subject to change.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Tequila Cowboy »

It’ll take me a minute to make a list but releases by the following will be on it

Strand of Oak
The Delines
Todd Snider
Will Johnson
Craig Finn
The Hold Steady
North Mississippi All Stars
Hiss Golden Messenger
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Mundane Mayhem »

tinnitus photography wrote:
Clams wrote:Here's a couple of good lists to get things started

https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/12/ ... -2019/amp/
no fucking way that there are 22 better records than the Purple Mountain record. Just, no.
I was going to wait to actually put my list together before concurring strongly with this, but that might take a while, so...you're absolutely right. That record is a strong contender for the top spot for me.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Iowan »

Iowan wrote:I think this is my Top 10 (not in order)

Sturgill Simpson "Sound & Fury"
Jenny Lewis "On the Line"
Hayes Carll "What It Is"
The Yawpers "Human Question"
Tyler Childers "Country Squire
Todd Snider "Cash Cabin Sessions Vol 3"
Hold Steady "Thrashing Thru the Passion"
Flatland Cavalry "Homeland Insecurity"
Chris Knight "Almost Daylight"
Mike & The Moonpies "Cheap Silver & Solid Country Gold"

I've listened to these the most, that I'm pretty sure of. Will probably flesh out deeper thoughts at some point.
10. Whiskey Myers S/T. A huge step forward for these guys. Previously I had thought of them as a fun, but fairly shallow Southern rock revivalist group. The songwriting hits greater depths here, especially the stellar "Rolling Stone". They still rock hard as hell. They are, indeed, whiskey-drenched.

9. Flatland Cavalry Homeland Insecurity. The heir apparent to the Turnpike Troubadours, Flatland Cavalry's second full album showed a huge leap forward. Cleto Cordero is rounding into a hell of a songwriter in his own right, and the band is tight as hell. They tread lighter ground than their obvious aforementioned influence, and occupy a more sensitive vein, which ultimately render it something slightly less to my ears. "My heart was beatin' like a bully on the smallest in our class" is one of my favorite lyrics of the year.

8. The Hold Steady Thrashing Thru the Passion. Terrible title, great album. Not much to say here, other than THS is back. Clearly influenced and inspired by Craig Finn's solo work, the band is having more fun than they have in years. Twin guitars, Franz Nicolai's stellar keys, Finn being Finn. The coda to Blackout Sam is something else.

7. Chris Knight Almost Daylight. Chris Knight is back after the better part of the decade, and it's worth the weight. Nothing really new here, just his update on the state of the world as he sees it in 2019. Send It on Down with Leann Womack and Go On are highlights here.

6. Jenny Lewis On The Line. Merging Rumours-era Mac and classic 80's Petty, Lewis makes the best record of her career. The subject matter dives straight into some of her more well known personal struggles as a former child star. Wasted Youth is probably my favorite here, but the entire album is a home run exercise in resurrecting the aforementioned sounds, and making it seem completely fresh.

5. Mike & The Moonpies Cheap Silver & Solid Country Gold. This is probably the coolest sounding record I heard all year. They take their cosmic honky tonk to Abbey Road, drench it in wild string arrangements, and the results are incredible. The only reason this doesn't rate higher is a handful of forgettable songs on a short (8 songs) record that features a cover (Gary P. Nunn's "London Homesick Blues"). But where this lands, holy shit it lands. Danger is my song of the year, and the coda here is absolutely sublime. These guys are onto something big.

4. Tyler Childers. Country Squire. A smaller affair than his 2017 debut, this one pushes the raw, lean bluegrass/country of his first record into funkier, more cosmic territory. Split between intense character studies (Creeker; Matthew) and ruminations on love (All Your'n; House Fire), his ascendance through the country/Americana/whatever world seems academic at this point.

3. Sturgill Simpson Sound & Fury. Strip away all the bullshit, and hype, and what you have is a staggering, bad ass, rock and roll record. In an era where that is becoming an increasingly rare thing, it deserves to be celebrated. Fastest Horse in Town is the pinnacle of this guitar and synth driven shredfest. Make Art, Not Friends is the danceable centerpiece manifesto.

2. The Yawpers Human Question. One of the most exciting rock bands going continues to push the envelope. From snarling punk (Child of Mercy), blistering funk rock (Earn Your Heaven), soul (Carry Me), and Westerberg-ian anthems (Can't Wait), Nate Cook and Jesse Parmet continue to prove that rock and roll still rocks.

1. Todd Snider Cash Cabin Sessions Vol. 3. Other than Mike Cooley, there is no better songwriter going today. This is typically brilliant Snider fare, veering between his biting, sarcastic tear downs of modern day America (The Blues on Banjo; Talking Reality Television Blues) and gut wrenchingly personal introspection in the fallout of his divorce (Like A Force of Nature; Watering Flowers in the Rain). Watering Flowers in the Rain is the most moving song he's written this side of Play A Train Song. It's the most moving song I've heard from anyone in a long time.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by cortez the killer »

Iowan wrote:Jenny Lewis On The Line. Merging Rumours-era Mac and classic 80's Petty, Lewis makes the best record of her career. The subject matter dives straight into some of her more well known personal struggles as a former child star. Wasted Youth is probably my favorite here, but the entire album is a home run exercise in resurrecting the aforementioned sounds, and making it seem completely fresh.
For whatever reason, I haven't spent any time with this one. Gonna have to rectify that.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by pearlbeer »

Iowan wrote:
Iowan wrote:
1. Todd Snider Cash Cabin Sessions Vol. 3. Other than Mike Cooley, there is no better songwriter going today. This is typically brilliant Snider fare, veering between his biting, sarcastic tear downs of modern day America (The Blues on Banjo; Talking Reality Television Blues) and gut wrenchingly personal introspection in the fallout of his divorce (Like A Force of Nature; Watering Flowers in the Rain). Watering Flowers in the Rain is the most moving song he's written this side of Play A Train Song. It's the most moving song I've heard from anyone in a long time.

Agree 100%. Todd is badass.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by scotto »

Wait, totally forgot about this one. A new Trane album in 2019? Fuck yeah.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Iowan »

cortez the killer wrote:
Iowan wrote:Jenny Lewis On The Line. Merging Rumours-era Mac and classic 80's Petty, Lewis makes the best record of her career. The subject matter dives straight into some of her more well known personal struggles as a former child star. Wasted Youth is probably my favorite here, but the entire album is a home run exercise in resurrecting the aforementioned sounds, and making it seem completely fresh.
For whatever reason, I haven't spent any time with this one. Gonna have to rectify that.
Beware of ear worms.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Sterling Bigmouth »

My top 10 (in some order):
Tyler Childers - Country Squire
Blank Range - In Unison
Sturgill Simpson - Sound & Fury
(Sandy) Alex G - House of Sugar
The Highwomen - s/t
Kelsey Waldon - White Noise / White Lines
Charley Crockett - The Valley
Mike and the Moonpies - Cheap Silver and Solid Country Gold
The Yawpers - Hunan Question
Ian Noe - Between the Country
Turn it up to 10 and rip off the knob

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by cortez the killer »

My Top 10 of '19
1. Eraserland Strand of Oaks
2. Purple Mountains Purple Mountains
3. Spread the Feeling Pernice Brothers
4. Dogrel Fontaines D.C.
5. Sweating the Plague Guided By Voices
6. Peace in Restland Plains
7. Everybody Split Possible Humans
8. Wire Mountain Will Johnson
9. Whoosh The Stroppies
10. Guv I & II Young Guv
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Smitty »

pearlbeer wrote:
Iowan wrote:
Iowan wrote:
1. Todd Snider Cash Cabin Sessions Vol. 3. Other than Mike Cooley, there is no better songwriter going today. This is typically brilliant Snider fare, veering between his biting, sarcastic tear downs of modern day America (The Blues on Banjo; Talking Reality Television Blues) and gut wrenchingly personal introspection in the fallout of his divorce (Like A Force of Nature; Watering Flowers in the Rain). Watering Flowers in the Rain is the most moving song he's written this side of Play A Train Song. It's the most moving song I've heard from anyone in a long time.

Agree 100%. Todd is badass.
Yup, and I concur on "watering flowers". I can't decide whether it or Purple Mountains is my AOTY.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by WarHenRecords »

Need to check out Fontaines DC, I see that name pop up everywhere but have no idea what it is.
Always makes me think of Richmond Fontaine.
And then I get sad because they aren't a thing anymore.


Here are my favs. Unranked, because I personally think ranking is silly.

Vetiver - Up On High
HGM - Terms of Surrender
Delines - Imperial
William Tyler - Goes West
Hallelujah The Hills - I'm You
Suss - High Line
Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society - Mandatory Reality
Amendola vs. Blades - Everybody Wins
Fruit Bats - Gold Past Life
RF Shannon - Rain on Dust

Prob a bunch more but those stick out at the moment.
Enjoyed that Will Johnson a lot, but thought it was a step back from Hatteras which was my #1 a couple years ago. A masterpiece.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Zip City »

WarHenRecords wrote:Need to check out Fontaines DC, I see that name pop up everywhere but have no idea what it is.
If you like lo-fi garage rock with a singer who can't sing, then Fontaines DC is for you
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever

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Re: Best Records of 2019

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Zip City wrote:
WarHenRecords wrote:Need to check out Fontaines DC, I see that name pop up everywhere but have no idea what it is.
If you like lo-fi garage rock with a singer who can't sing, then Fontaines DC is for you
"All my favorite singers couldn't sing" - DCB


Zip, try your hand at describing The Fall pls.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Zip City »

tinnitus photography wrote:
Zip City wrote:
WarHenRecords wrote:Need to check out Fontaines DC, I see that name pop up everywhere but have no idea what it is.
If you like lo-fi garage rock with a singer who can't sing, then Fontaines DC is for you
"All my favorite singers couldn't sing" - DCB


Zip, try your hand at describing The Fall pls.
I don't listen to them, so I can't do that.
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by cortez the killer »

Lo-fi and garage rock are not terms I would use to describe Fontaines D.C. If you are a fan of Post Punk (The Fall, Wire or early Cure), then you will most likely connect with them.
You are entitled to your opinion, but you are not entitled to your own facts.
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Zip City »

cortez the killer wrote:Lo-fi and garage rock are not terms I would use to describe Fontaines D.C. If you are a fan of Post Punk (The Fall, Wire or early Cure), then you will most likely connect with them.
You hear what you hear, and I hear what I hear. I listened to the record, really liked the music, and hated the singer. So it goes
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by cortez the killer »

scotto wrote:Wait, totally forgot about this one. A new Trane album in 2019? Fuck yeah.

Image
A Neo Soul classic?
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by scotto »

cortez the killer wrote:A Neo Soul classic?
Well, it's a new Trane album in the same way Hitchhiker was a "new" Neil Young album (some songs you've heard, some you haven't, some that were reworked, etc.), but it's unheard Coltrane over 50 years after his death, so yes.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

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Zip City wrote:
tinnitus photography wrote:
Zip City wrote:
If you like lo-fi garage rock with a singer who can't sing, then Fontaines DC is for you
"All my favorite singers couldn't sing" - DCB


Zip, try your hand at describing The Fall pls.
I don't listen to them, so I can't do that.
yet you listen to Fontaines. interesting.

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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Zip City »

Is it? Everyone here posted about the record, so I gave it a listen. I didn’t see anywhere on the album cover that listening to The Fall was a prerequisite
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever

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Re: Best Records of 2019

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sounds like more people should be talking about Fall records.


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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Shakespeare »

alright i think im comfortable enough with this batch of 25 to call it a year. wanted to revisit the william tyler album i liked a lot for a few weeks, but ive thought about this enough and its time to move on. a lot of these rankings dont really matter. top 10 is pretty firm but after that pretty loose, but i guess thats always the case even if we dont admit it

this was maybe my worst year in a while for "new" music, but also maybe the year ive felt strongest connections to new to me stuff. i do mean MY worst year though. no judgment intended on the years music overall, i just didnt put in the time to find as much of the great stuff im sure came out. i am still finding deeply satisfying new stuff across many genres but i dont think ive ever cared less about keeping up with the current year. still did find some 2019 gems though. i tried to keep this to albums i have genuinely strong feelings towards, rather than new releases i heard out of obligation and rarely came back to. prominent misses include wilco (impressive but fleeting, for now), malkmus (cut the first timer drum machine noodling and itd be a heck of an EP), craig finn/hold steady (might have burned out on finns songs in the last few years because neither of these did a thing for me beyond the previously released songs on thrashing), taylor swift (i actually loved the singles but the album was her first miss for me), carly rae (bad timing i guess. couldnt possibly match emotions' moment for me personally. clearly a fine album at the very least), sturgill (i like the swerve into dirty blues rock but it was so lifeless), maren morris (focuses almost solely on the worst parts of hero's sound), alex lahey (some phenomenal earworms on here, and a really promising diversification of her songwriting, but a dumbass personal issue kept me from giving the album the time and attention it deserved), charly bliss (total swing and a miss. disappointing to see the synth pop pivot so early in their career), sleater-kinney (nowhere near ready to write this band off but the sooner they move on from this clumsy year the better), kim gordon (im glad this exists but its an album i really have to psych myself up to play, at which point i do enjoy it a lot), nick cave (havent had time to really digest it but it seems impressive, though perhaps more of an academic sort than something ill ever ant to here). some of those might win me over later but for now:

25 | andre carvalho | the garden of earthly delights

wanted to give this guy a bit of a spotlight here because after hearing and liking this i ordered his prior two albums off bandcamp and got a very nice personal message thanking me for the support. i have not played them yet but this is a suite inspired by the bosch painting, and it features a suitable amount of stylistic range to justify it. i came into it wanting just a bit more of a latin feel, but that absence isnt a dealbreaker. im always a little unsure when i approach a jazz project helmed by a bassist or drummer. particularly when its a suite like this, i wonder how much of it will be solos. bass and drums are obviously valuable roles in any band, but on their own its usually a no thanks. ended up feeling like, had i not known the bassist lead the group and wrote the pieces, i wouldnt have guessed. he takes a few solos but writes generously for everyone else in his ensemble, and they each took the queues and ran with it. i was particularly enthralled by the guitarists work. i would say this could do with some editing but its a very strong release and someone ill certainly be looking forward to in future years.

24 | sarathy korwar | more arriving

ive heard a few albums that mine indian classical and western jazz and they havent really lived up to the potential on paper for me. this is probably the closest yet, maybe in large part due to the hip hop influence. in a way thats odd, as ive fallen way out of touch with hip hop since 2010 at the latest, but it infuses these performances with a rhythmic spirit thats hard to resist. its clearly very serious music but that doesnt preclude it from being this infectiously groovy.

23 | danger mouse & karen o | lux prima

on paper, a bit of an odd pairing, but it turned out really well and hopefully isn't just a one off. if it is, hopefully it at least gets karen o back into semi regular recording because she does some incredible things with her voice here that prior works only hinted at. at times here she makes a matured sort of callback to her various YYY stages, at times she moves entirely forward, and its just a wonderful performance all around that shows how much more she has to offer if she wants to. as an album it does feel a bit like a film score with no film, but each party has the perfect sort of cinematic personality and skill set to really sell that and create something thats vividly captivating as a pure listening experience.

22 | tomeka reid quartet | old new

mary halvorson is a wonderfully unique guitar player, more than deserving of all her ongoing plaudits, but sometimes i find her a bit much. some of her collaborations lean far towards the avant, and i dont think its necessarily the best showcase for her wiggling notes that seem able to evaporate at the drop of a hat. shes a sideperson here, with no composition credits, in a band featuring cello, guitar, bass, and drums. all stringed instruments, and that gives it a very unique sound. she (i feel weird spotlighting her when its someone elses band, but shes the reason i picked up the album!) plays some wonderful solos, but its when she spirals around and underneath other peoples spotlights that she really shines.this isnt to say she steals the show or anything; all involved give a sterling performance.

21 | the comet is coming | trust in the lifeforce of the deep mystery

this took some time for me, and i still have some reservations about it, but i was eventually won over. its a fairly immediate sound so im not sure why the delay, but i did get there eventually. at times it feels like this band merely jams and calls it an album, and their material could usually be cut and pasted or otherwise processed into something bigger, but theyre so good at the framework theyve established for themselves, its incredibly easy to get lost in the moments.

20 | american football | lp3

i was very aprpehensive about this one. i hate to call any music pointless but i still cant udnerstand lp2's purpose at all. it was almost a straight retread of their mythical debut, only with none of the emotional connection. i guess if someone heard lp2 but hadnt heard lp1 they could fall for it in similar ways but for anyone that knew the debut, i really dont know what reason there is to ever choose to play lp2, and im usually far more lenient about this kind of thing than most people! then add the fact that this album employed a few guest vocalists, hayley williams biggest in stature, and i got a little cynical about the whole thing. happy to report eating crow on this because the guests fit seamlessly, and the songs actually showed a development that was really wonderful to hear. it truly does play as an older, settled but still frayed counterpoint to lp1. for a band like this, a legacy act that hasnt necessarily been eager to add to theirs and made a misstep when they did, it was more than i could possibly have asked for.

19 | cate le bon | reward

her catalog sorta suffers from the fact that its all so good, and her sound was more or less there from the start. shes refined it and deviated plenty, but i dont think she really had to work through too many growing pains as a songwriter or recording artist. as a result, its hard for me to really pick any album of hers over the others. i suspect, though i havent tested this yet, its a discography that would really benefit from playing in sequence, with all her subtle reinventions taking center stage as you move from album to album. one day i'll do it and maybe have more to say about individual albums. for now this is "merely" another entry in a body of work that has been immensely satisfying to watch from before she even put out an album.

18 | jimmy eat world | surviving

jimmy eat world is an institution at this point, reliable within their framework and rarely shooting for more. thats fine! their scene had its mainstream moment and probably wont scale those heights again for the foreseeable future, but that doesnt mean they have to stop doing what they do. on this album in particular i think they aged marvelously. pop punk is a genre that will let you age but i think you have to accept it as a performer, and its even better if your audience does the same. the tweaks you have to make are subtle but the difference between making them and pretending youre 18 forever come across massive on an album like this. of course pop is the first word there and none of this would matter if the songs arent high quality, and they certainly are here. theres no reason to think this band wont be able to resurface every few years with another ~40 minutes of music this sharp and personal, and its a real privilege to behold.

17 | joe armon-jones | turn to clear view

organs (keyboardds in general, i guess) are pretty tricky instruments, no matter the genre. they can do way too much and even when they keep it simple they can so easily dominate the mix. at the same time, theyre usually very pleasant sounding, particularly in a jazz framework, so even if it leads to music that for whatever reason doesnt stick around, its nearly impossible to object to in the moment. great organists seem to have a sense of this and add more than their own flashy solos. sometimes its in a backing unit but in this case it feels like joe really took great care laying down an overall lush backdrop. his keys are prominent throughout but not exclusively, and every song has an incredible hook, whether delivered vocally or through a dubby bassline.

16 | cup | spinning creature

lest i be accused of total wilco stanning, i'll acknowledge that nels clines body of work is patchy, if generally always at least interesting, the autumn defense sucks ass, on fillmore is museum gallery music, and i havent even heard whatever mikael jorgensen does. with that out of the way, cup. cup is nels and his wife yuka honda, and i think her roots in pop and electronica bring out something in him that his generally jazz/noise based collaborators never could. this isnt strictly an electronic album, though it does have firm beats holding it together, and its not a pop album, though it does have its share of sticky melodies. all told, its a uniquely interesting backdrop for nels to lay his guitar wank on top of. also, in general i find duo collaborations fascinating and perpetually underexplored as a format. any collaboration is (or should be) a conversation, but when its two performers the dialogue is especially clear, and this album is a prime example of how fun it can be when it works. i should also add that one of their pre-release shows for this (almost halfa year pre-release) was perfectly timed for my trip to philly, so i saw them play most of it before hearing it for real, which is a really fun way to process new music, and one i think id only previously had with them crooked vultures.

15 | white reaper | you deserve love
14 | ex hex | its real

feel like i might as well lump these as one entry since they share a spirit and ended up back to back without trying. not that theyre total clones or anything, but both bands have done yeomans work reviving a deeply uncool rock and roll niche this decade. theyre just plain some of the most fun songs i heard this year. in white reapers case, its their major label debut and there is certainly some semblance of polish here compared to their earlier albums. its been a gradual rise though, so i dont find it jarring. at the core though, just wonderful songs. on the ex hex side of things, that project has been such a surprise. helium absolutely had hooks but marys songs felt far more mysterious than her 90s counterparts, bringing in middle eastern tones at times. fast forward a few decades and whether due to her new bandmates or personal growth, shes shed a lot of those stranger layers in favor of simple and catchy riffs. since ex hex sorta splintered off from wild flag, i didnt expect the band to live past lp1, so its a real treat that they did. i highly recommend both of these catalogs to anyone else that correctly considers van halen among the finest pop bands there is.

13 | better oblivion community center | better oblivion community center

conor obersts emergence as an important artist for me has been one of the great surprises of my postgrad life. my first college roommate stanned the lad hard, so i got more than my fill of everything up to cassadega in those two years, and even caught him in concert twice (with monsters of folk, and opening for wilco with the mystic valley band). it didnt work! after i graduated and found some distance between those memories i started to come around, now his best work makes me weirdly nostalgic for a time when i hated him. i think hes always been undeniably talented but his recent material has shown a comfortable restraint that really sounds good on him. he has nothing to prove at this point, and likely wont win over many people that dont already support him. whats left is a mid (or even late? the dudes still very young but it feels like hes been around forever) career full of sharp material that polishes his rougher tendencies down without changing his fundamental essence. enter phoebe bridgers, whose debut i didnt particularly like, and it seems to have reminded him that he was once extremely playful musically. not lyrically of course, but theres a sense of confident exploration here that albums like ruminations, which i absolutely love, completely lacked. the songs sound more or less from the same well (i say without knowing the full songwriting breakdown) but he hasnt sounded like hes having this much fun recording them in years. who knows whether its due more to phoebes more youthful enthusiasm or the slightly wider net of backing players, but it revitalized someone that, imo, was already writing some of the best songs of his career. what a combo, and everything a big name collaboration should be.

12 | thurston moore | spirit counsel

i loved his last album a whole lot. it was the first of his electric solo albums that didnt just make me sad SY is over, and it was an exciting development for his current touring band. of course thurston and steve shelley have chemistry, but that album was a huge leap for the rest of the band, and really had me optimistic that even if SY never comes back, thurston would find a way to carry on what hed started there without merely imitating himself. all that said, i had very low expectations for this 3 disc set. big fan of the dudes adventurousness, but part of that is he doesnt always stick the landing and while his pop albums have generally stayed at a good enough quality level, his experimental output is hit or miss. this set, despite the sprawl and the fact that its three very separate works, feels about as focused as anything hes put his name on. the band seems even more comfortable both among itself and with the extra players on two of the pieces. all three play with similar repetitive ideas but do it in their own way, and none of them feel as lazy or pretentious as id expected. i hope his next release is a return to relatively conventional song structures but this set proved that he can scale similar heights outside the pop world if all the stars align.

11 | abdullah ibrahim | the balance

one of the great benefits of jazz fandom is theres rarely any valid reason to abandon an artist due to age or number of albums. elite players will pretty much never lose the ability to make recordings that are at the very least comfortable and easy to listen to, and as ive said many times, thats often enough for my ears. beyond the simple pleasures, the possibility of a late career gem seems so much higher than in pop and rock. i cant say anything about his bandmates here but ibrahim himself is in his mid 80s, and heavily looking backwards through his own catalog, but he sounds as full of life as his earliest recordings.

10 | jeff tweedy | warmer

its tempting to consider this and warm as one album but i think there are enough subtle differences to embrace them as different, complementary sides of the same project. whatever the split is, this period of jeffs songwriting is completely unique in his body of work. simply put, hes never been this open and direct. hes been blunt plenty of times, but generally with a thick veil of abstract imagery and metaphor. thats largely gone on these sessions, giving us arguably the clearest look yet at jeff tweedy: human. i dont think this batch of songs is quite as strong as warm, but warm may settle as a top 5 album hes done under any name for me, so thats no slight. i enjoy both as their own experiences, but even more so when i consider them as part of the larger last few years for him, including wilco, solo, tweedy, and production projects. hes another guy that long ago ran out of things to prove, and while i totally understand why some people might draw a line around the same time and stop caring about his new work, i consider it a great blessing to have him so prolific and constantly making subtle explorations like this.

9 | the minus 5 | stroke manor

placement here is heavily skewed by the absolutely incredible live show i caught on this tour. i did go largely to see half of rem in a ~200 capacity club, but scott mccaughey is an honest to god treasure and the real thrill of the night was seeing him back on a stage in such fine form less than a year after a stroke. it went so much further than just music, and it was pure life affirming stuff. as for the album itself, its always seemed like the fella can write pop songs in his sleep but in this case he almost literally did. the earliest skeleton versions of these songs came to him while in the hospital fresh off the stroke, and they sound 100% like scott mccaughey songs but with an additional haze. the woozy melodies and made up words could easily be a grating and disorienting touch but i think it really sets this album apart in a discography with so many albums of generally consistent quality its hard to stand out. this album could have only been made under the very specific circumstances scott found himself in, and its a playful and genuinely touching study in making the best of what life throws your way.

8 | gruff rhys | pang

its gruff, so here we are. this is admittedly a very slight release, in length and concept, but its real breezy and even though it seems he had little to do with the final arrangements, he doesnt come off like a guest vocalist either. these are very clearly his songs, and its just fun! i think his solo catalog has been consistently good quality, but not often fun on this kind of level. i dont know if the language barrier plays into this but these songs are maybe his easiest yet to get lost in the grooves with. it was a nice change of pace for him as a solo act. yr atal has lo-fi bangers, and candylion and hotel shampoo certainly have pop songs, but for the most part hes favored mature, midtempo material as a solo act. this flips that substantially. i dont expect the collaboration with muzi to become a full ongoing thing, but the way he took gruffs vocals and melodies and built upon them, sometimes reaching entrancing jams worthy of weirdo funk mils davis comparisons, was icnredible, and if they ever decide to revisit this i sure wouldnt object.

7 | the flaming lips | kings mouth

sorta backhanded pick here, because the greatest joy of this release for me is it got me going back through their past catalog in more depth than i have in years. they were a deeply vital band for me as a teen, and even though i rarely completely abandon an act i ever loved, its very comforting to find that the songs can still hold the same thrills i fell for in the first place. as for this album in particular, i loved it because they remembered that fun, or at least melancholy wrapped in a fun presentation, used to be their main trade. this hasnt been the case on record since mystics i guess? not many people like that album so maybe even yoshimi is a better reference point and that was quite a long time ago. at any rate, that sense of whimsy was a big part of this bands success in any of its incarnations, and they convincingly recaptured it here. i like mystics more than most, but the albums since have been full of experiments that dont necessarily fail, but dont really come together in a meaningful way. at this point waynes voice is so shot that pop songs might be the riskiest move of all, but they went for it anyway and nailed it. sometimes it does feel like theyre trying to recreate yoshimi, with the acoustic strums, bubbly bass, glitchy burps, etc so i can get it if someone finds this album nice but superfluous. i dont think they do so in a pure fan service kind of way though. perhaps this is just in comparison to the often suffocating fusion work theyd been doing the past few albums, but even the tryhard moments on here are warm and inviting. it helped to offset the fact that they still feel a bit too committed to conceptual gimmickry (although to be fair, mick jones grandfatherly narrations may be the big thing separating this album from yoshimi), but hopefully the newly rediscovered musical lightness carries over to the next album and they realize (GET IT???) its perfectly ok to just write a bunch of pop songs without needing to tie them together whatsoever. anyway its a very fun experience when something can make you think warmly about the future and the past in equal measure, and im so glad to have a reason to genuinely look forward to the next flaming lips album again.

6 | jenny lewis | on the line

this was a real tall order because i think the voyager is her single greatest album, solo or rilo. wouldnt put this on the same level but i think it carries on well musically, and adds a different sort of emotional weight. she didnt straight up try to replicate the voyager, which was wise because she was dealing with far different matters this time around, but its clear that there was some level of satisfaction with the voyagers sound to use it as a jumping off point here. sorta like with tweedys warm/warmer sessions, this feels like an already emotional vulnerable songwriter laying it bare in the rawest form yet. i dont know if this album quite has anything id be comfortable putting into the highest echelon of her songwriting (the spectacular views tier, lets call it) but as a collection it delivers plenty of moments. in a lot of ways she doesnt record nearly enough for her talent level, but it just makes her every dispatch feel more important, arguably more and more as she matures.

5 | the regrettes | how do you love?

i had their debut insanely high on that years list, then they followed it with an EP that was a minor placeholder release in the grand scheme of things but still added two more knockout tracks to their catalog. now theres finally a proper follow up that may be an improvement on everything to date. i just love this band so much. ive never seen them but i have been watching their local tour dates and it seems theyre inching up on the food chain but i cant quite understand why so slow. its a real shame because they do so much more with the garage/pop punk template than so many of the acts that have. i think its because they approach that sound with a much more open mind than a lot of acts. in fact one of the big thigns that sold me on the debut was the obvious girl group influence, and generally vast knowledge of pop music in general. they know exactly which eras and reference points to play with, and its the perfect musical setting for their lyrical themes. as you might guess this one concerns love, and she really captures the feelings of first love so well, with a surprisingly sharp sense of self awareness. its a band of teenagers singing about teenage love, warts and all, and they so perfectly nail it with this vibe of "yeah im young and this may sound stupid if youre not but its how it is and also fuck you" that i find incredible captivating. the only catch ive found in following this band since they started is its just a bit hard to listen to them without shaking the feeling that it has solo project reinvention written all over it. whether that means maintaining the sound or not, its very clear theres a star in the making. they are a truly great band (there are so many incredible guitar parts on here) but lydia has undeniable charisma that may be hard to contain in a band environment, and who ever knows how long before that boils over. in the meantime i am enjoying the heck out of their progression.

4 | darkthrone | old star

in the last few months, since my office moved and i have a commute again, darkthrone has become maybe my most played band. the scene they (sorta) came from doesnt need rehashed anymore but its a real gift that they emerged from it more or less unscathed, even becoming a reliable source of an album every year or so. more often than not their albums play like pure idol worship, a sort of playlist of what theyre currently listening to except its all original material. sometimes they can lyrically descend into self parody, but they sell it with such a sense of joyous abandon that its impossible to object, or even consider that these recordings are anything approaching a joke to these lads. they can riff, this was never in question, but riffs alone dont make a great heavy metal song. they come at those skeletal materials with such an overwhelmingly comprehensive knowledge of the masters of any niche of the genre, and it really feels like they can knock this stuff out in their sleep. between the sheer energy, the liner notes, and the visual presentation, id be hard pressed to come up with a working band in any genre that seems to take more joy in the making of new songs than this one.

3 | bill frisell | harmony

every year it seems like theres one album i revisit come list time and for whatever reason it completely bowls me over and rockets up this list becuse i keep playing it during list month. this is the one. played it a few times upon release and found it merely incredibly gorgeous (as if thats a small accomplishment). coming back to it now and it is a deceptive little album, the kind that really benefits from an absence. its ostensibly a quartet, with two guitarists, a cellist, and petra haden's voice, but it doesnt treat all those elements as requirements for every track, sometimes stripping it down to one guitar and petra, sometimes adding two more voices to hers and removing all else. im finding myself viewing vocals as a distraction more often than not these days, but this album has captivated me like few others, from any year. the overall sound is extremely light, but everyone involved feels deeply invested, and theres as much exploration here as in the loudest free jazz session. as material goes, its largely frisell originals (with some lyrical aid), sprinkled with public domain works and jazz standards, and it all fits together with a seamless hymnal quality. even lush life, which by now has been covered and sung by just about everyone in jazz and then some, sounds of a piece here, like this is where it belonged since birth. bill frisell long ago reached the level where he could coast on his laurels for as long as he felt like recording, but its a real privilege to get a few albums a year from him with rarely a feeling of total repetition of past work. this one certainly echoes a lot of his 90s shift towards a light country twang, but the extra colors provided by petras voice here really set it apart, and hearing him play around and discover new nooks in these kinds of melodies is a neverending treat. bonus shout out to epistrophy, his 2019 album with bassist thomas morgan, which ive only recently heard but dwells in a similar mood.

2 | purple mountains | purple mountains

it will obviously always be impossible to objectively rate this, but i think it was heading for a spot around here regardless of DCB's ultimate outcome. its really the perfect new entry in his catalogs slow evolution. not a retread of late period jews polish, not a full step back towards the lo-fi days either. it makes a strong case that his time away was just waiting till he felt he had something worthy of standing beside, and expanding upon, his existing catalog. it adds some synthy coloring here and there, but not in any gimmicky pop turn kind of way. after all, the songs themselves are as david berman as ever, so theres only so much polish one can do to them. ill admit on first listens i thought it was good, very good even, but that a rapturous reception was in the cards from the moment anyone learned it existed, no matter how good or bad it actually was. eventually the quieter intricacies in his songwriting surfaced and solidified this thing as a really significant album, with some real contenders for his finest songwriting yet. since berman died ive thought a lot about whether my feelings on his songs have changed, and while im not sure ive put those thoughts together enough yet to deliver them, i really dont think so. this remains what it was, and what it was is a peerless master of both sadness and humor rediscovering his craft as if never stopped.

1 | vampire weekend | father of the bride

this surprises no one more than me, but hasnt been in any real doubt since it came out. as much as my year in general was dominated by jazz this was the one album above all others (save for kind of blue, which sure isnt a 2019 album) that became most wrapped up in my 2019. pretty much any time I got in the car, the odds were good this album was with me. ive played it at least once a week since release, often much more, and every song still feels like an untapped world. it manages to feel completely fussed over in nearly every one of its seconds while maintaining a general breeziness that never feels like a chore. its certainly a sprawling album that pulls from so many sources, but ive honestly never had an issue with its length or track to track flow. it manages to fit a bunch of very clear and very timely references into the songs while still feeling like its own world removed from everything else. im not quite sure why this landed with such a thud on this board while i, someone that never had a strong VW take one way or the other, was absolutely floored by it. i didnt even stop here, this album made the past three really click for me. i always found VW a band whose pop sense was never in question, but they werent something i cared about over the course of an album. somehow this thing comes along, adds a bunch of influences i never would have thought to want from this band, and i found myself totally consumed. it was the soundtrack to my year, they backed it up with a phenomenal live show, and whether due to the band changing or me, or a combination of the two, it cast something i already knew in an entirely new light. it was simply the most exhilarating kind of discovery i can imagine. as album of the year is concerned, its a no brainer.

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scotto
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Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by scotto »

Shakespeare wrote:alright i think im comfortable enough with this batch of 25 to call it a year...

11 | abdullah ibrahim | the balance

one of the great benefits of jazz fandom is theres rarely any valid reason to abandon an artist due to age or number of albums. elite players will pretty much never lose the ability to make recordings that are at the very least comfortable and easy to listen to, and as ive said many times, thats often enough for my ears. beyond the simple pleasures, the possibility of a late career gem seems so much higher than in pop and rock. i cant say anything about his bandmates here but ibrahim himself is in his mid 80s, and heavily looking backwards through his own catalog, but he sounds as full of life as his earliest recordings.
Appreciate the thoughtful write-ups. And thanks for the Abdulla Ibrahim tip--love his playing and didn't know this was out there.

Mundane Mayhem
Posts: 920
Joined: Sun Jan 08, 2017 2:04 am
Location: Denver

Re: Best Records of 2019

Post by Mundane Mayhem »

I had done a whole writeup but wasn't logged in and lost it in the process. So here's the extremely abridged version. :evil:

Purple Mountains, Purple Mountains
JS Ondara, Tales of America
Big Thief, Two Hands
Billy Strings, Home
Our Native Daughters, Songs of Our Native Daughters
Sturgill Simpson, SOUND & FURY
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, Bandana
Lana Del Rey, Norman Fucking Rockwell
Brittany Howard, Jaime

HM: Andrew Bird, Big Thief (UFOF) Hayes Carll, Tyler Childers, Billie Eilish, Craig Finn, HGM, Hallelujah the Hills, Jenny Lewis, Tanya Tucker, Vampire Weekend

Probably forgetting some good ones.
All it takes is one wicked heart, a pile of money, and a chain of folks just doing their jobs

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