This is the duo of Amelia Meath from Mountain Man and Nick Sanborn from Megafaun out of Durham, North Carolina. This is their Sophomore album and they have had tons of critical acclaim heaped upon them culminating in a Grammy just a few short weeks ago. An electro pop album from two former folk musicians that lends a realness to the otherwise mechanical sound.
I love when a young artist like this throws something out into the world, not realizing their talent and it is just scooped up by the hungry masses. Such is the story for 22 year old San Francisco resident, Melina Duterte. This is her debut, recorded entirely in her bedroom, uploaded to Bandcamp and picked up by Polyvinyl. Straight-forward, genius guitar work, captivating lyrics and DIY style that makes me love music. This album was on constant repeat throughout the year.
Everything Now is Arcade Fire's fifth album to date. It's hard to believe these iconic rockers have put out so little music over the last 14 years. While this album did not fall well on the critics' ears, I found it quite enjoyable. Not at first, mind you, but over many listens, this album grew to become one of my favorites of the year, just missing out on the coveted Top Ten. Perhaps this album did exactly what Arcade Fire meant it to do. When your critics expect you to be over-imaginative, maybe this album delivers exactly what was intended.
Boy, was I worried when I saw this album hit. Cat Stevens, born Steven Demetre Georgiou, left his rock star life long ago after converting to Islam. He even legally changed his name to Yusuf Islam and vowed to stay away from music, but music finds a way and before long, put out three albums as Yusuf. However, those releases have been lackluster and this is the first time he has acknowledged his old life. The reason for the worry? Often times, retired musicians have a difficulty coming back decades later. Sometimes that original luster is lost and it is just a pale reminder of the good times we had with them. Not so with The Laughing Apple. His songs are as poignant and lyrical as they ever were. The balance between the acoustics and his voice is still on point.
Day Wave is Jackson Phillips out of San Francisco. This is his debut album, although, he made a big splash last year with his EP. Day Wave is wandering dream pop interlaced with subtle, somber lyrics. The driving bass lines and wispy vocals make this an album to keep on constant repeat.
Laura Marling has received more attention in this blog than any other. It's no secret she's a favorite of mine. She is one of the most prolific artists on this list and watching her music mature and grow has been a delight. Her lyrics are deep and intense and invoke Joni Mitchell's spirit more than any of her previous albums.
15. Japanese Breakfast - Soft Sounds From Another Planet
Japanese Breakfast is Michelle Zauner from Brooklyn. Her debut album, Psychopomp came out last year and made #16 on the Top 50. On Psychopomp, her sound was very experimental, jumping genres and dealing with her mother's recent death. In Soft Sounds we find a more ethereal sound unified behind a veil of shoegaze.
This is the fourth installment from Adam Granduciel and The War on Drugs. They made the Top 50 with their last album, here. This is his first album on a major label and that extra polish and power shine through. Money is a magical thing. A lot of the songwriting prowess from the previous album is found here with the extra energy that powers this music. If you've ever seen this band live, you understand how that power works.
This is the fourth album for Seattle based Mike Hadreas otherwise known as Perfume Genius. This is certainly his best album to date and it's an album about being in love and navigating that in 2017 as a gay artist. It's beautiful and edgy and sways and swoons throughout its continuous stanzas. While there is a strong experimental aspect to Hadreas' music, there is this underlying subtle, simple pop imagery that sustains it.
This is a project by the recently widowed, MorganEve Swain. She lost her husband Dave Lamb, to Leukemia in 2014, which was half of the band Brown Bird with her. This is a project of grief and losing your musical partner. The title of the album refers to the last song on the posthumous Brown Bird album, Axis Mundi, which was released in 2015 as their final work together. Avalon is a 46-second love song from Dave to her and in the lyrics lies the name of the band, which is included below. Truly heartbreaking and difficult watching him die in 2014 and the numerous fundraising campaigns that were started to help with the treatment. This album will rip your heart wide open. It's dark and tragic and perfect for these cold winter days.
This sixteenth album of Ryan Adams is a breakup album. He recently divorced his wife of six years, Mandy Moore. His previous album was a complete cover of Taylor Swifts' 1989. I find that this album carries some serious late eighties, early nineties guitar work, in true Adams fashion and is a perfect expression of his new pop excursion.
While these guys got the Number 3 spot back in 2014 here, the Baltimore based band is back with their fifth album. I tried in vain to see them at SXSW this year, but apparently, their meteoric rise since Singles and a rousing David Letterman performance have made such stops virtually impossible. Looks like they're hitting the festival circuit in Europe this summer as these guys move squarely into the arena rock category, and rightly so because they are fantastic. Pay particular attention to the duet with Debbie Harry on Shadows.
Kevin Morby has that 60's folk pop sound that I love, like Damien Jurado. The faraway vocal style with haunting lyrics is my jam. He was formerly in the bands Woods and The Babies and much to my chagrin, this artist has eluded my perspective gaze for some time now. He is now in my top ten must see live bands and since he is from Lubbock, Texas, I hope that situation can be resolved soon. This is his fourth album and I was lucky enough to receive it with my vinylmeplease subscription.
Found this album by accident searching the new releases one Friday afternoon and what a find it was. California duo Filip Nikolic and Jeffrey Paradise describe their sound as 'daytime disco' on this sophomore release. Lots of Hall and Oates influence on these tracks produced by DJ's who wanted to hang out by a pool and sip mezcal to some loungy beats.
Thanks for stopping by. I listen to entirely too much music and love sharing music almost as much as I love listening to it. The purpose of this blog is to do just that and bring you along the journey with me.
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