I haven’t seen the movie. Hopefully someday. But, the soundtrack is out of this world. Kendrick Lamar’s verse in “King’s Dead,” is probably the rap highlight of my year.
Cary Brothers hasn’t changed much since I saw him singing, “Blue Eyes,” during his cameo on Scrubs. But, I’m down with his chill, sing-songwriter vibe. So, never change, Cary?
OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES glitches from song to song to create pop music that’s about as inaccessible as pop music could be while still classified as pop.
The Interrupters are fighting the good fight of keeping ska-punk halfway relevant. Fight the Good Fight is a bundle of energy with a particular focus on the downbeat.
I had the privilege of seeing Son Lux live this year. Their set was so tight, every cut, syncopated beat, and harmony properly in its place. Yelling the chorus of “Dream State” with the crowd was an out-of-body experience.
Cocoa Sugar is one of those albums that requires repeat, attention-to-detail listens to find the treasure in its verses. At my life stage, that kind of listening is hard to do, but Cocoa Sugar has all the elements of an all-timer. I have a feeling this album will keep climbing this list in the years to come.
Youngblood’s dispatches from his world travels hold layers of folk impressionism. The Yale-educated singer-songwriter hasn’t met an instrument he’s been unable to master and Cheyenne does nothing to dissuade the Bon Iver comparisons.
This Missouri band is proving that emo doesn’t have to be dead. Also, give Foxing bonus points for recording the “Nearer My God” single in five different languages.
Take a quick look at Dustin Kensrue’s reading materials during the creation of Palms and you’ll see a journey toward an inclusive, progressive theology. Much respect for Dustin’s continued pursuit of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. Also, kudos for the Stranger Things synth in “All of Us.”
Julien Baker, Lucy Dacus, and Phoebe Bridgers win super group of the year. With boygenius, the trio spins gold out of lo-fi yarn. My only complaint is that I missed the vinyl pre-order, and now it’s expensive.
Glen Hansard still has the songwriting chops that helped him win an Oscar. In this installation, Hansard adds horns to his backing band and Between Two Shores sounds strikingly similar to any of The Band’s best work.
In college during a class on American folk music, a fellow student asked the professor if The Decemberists counted as American folk music. After a moment, the professor, said of all the modern music, The Decemberists would count. I’ll Be Your Girl isn’t the high watermark of The Decemberists catalog, but hopefully it still counts as American folk music.
This fall, I was spinning Bambi for a friend and made an off-hand comment about how good the singing was, considering the genre. He noted that they have good choirs in the Midwest. Perhaps Hippo Campus benefited from its St. Paul, Minnesota roots?
The latest from Mumford & Sons might not please many. Fans of the banjo don’t get much banjo. Fans of the last record wont get the same energy from Delta. But, I actually quite like this record. It’s reserved where it needs to be. But it also packs a punch at certain waypoints along the record’s journey. For those patient enough to make it to the syncopated ending of “Delta,” the last song, they’ll receive the reward of an anthemic end.
When all you have is a guitar and a voice, there’s no place to hide your imperfections. On stage, your music must command the room. The singer-songwriter possesses a difficult task, and with Evening Machines, I await every word from Gregory Alan Isakov with rapt attention.
Janelle Monáe’s Dirty Computer might be the most ambitious album of the year. All respect paid to Prince for laying the groundwork for this album, but Monáe owns every note.
Sticking with his bad boy bona fides, Dying Star is soaked in all the vices. It’s also super catchy. The guitar riff in the bridge of “Mockingbird” might be one of my favorite musical moments of the year.
Earthtones exhibits the two signature elements of Afie Jurvanen’s sound. 1. The laid-back surfer vocal laziness of Jack Johnson. And, 2. The smooth guitar riffs reminiscent of John Mayer. “Way with Words” is my favorite tune from Earthtones.
Thank You for Today feels like a return to form for Death Cab for Cutie. The contrapuntal guitars dance with Ben Gibbard’s evocative lyrics in a similar fashion to times long passed.
There’s something about parenthood that re-scrambles your wires and gets you all emotional. Brandi Carlile’s By the Way, I Forgive You has some awesome tunes like “Hold Out Your Hand” and “The Joke,” but the observational lyricism on parenthood in “The Mother” resonates deeply.
Bon Iver’s drummer has always flown close to the nest, especially when it comes to a falsetto timbre. But, previous offerings have exhibited S. Carey’s more challenging, avant-garde side. With Hundred Acres, there’s a tighter focus on melody with beautiful results.
Countless times this year, as I’ve discussed my favorite albums, I’ve received an odd look when mentioning Kacey Musgraves. Usually, the look implies that I’ve gone a little crazy to give a country artist this much acclaim. She is a pop-country artist after all. While, yes, she is has her fair share of country songs, dismiss Golden Hour at your own peril. Musgraves dabbles in disco, synth-pop, and even a vocoder in “Oh, What A World.” There should be more country artists like Kacey Musgraves.
Over the course of this year, Caer kept growing on me. At first, it was a fun album to play at work at the recommendation of a friend. Soon, the album made its way to my weekend drives. Before I knew it, the vinyl appeared on myself and it kept spinning and spinning. It’s gotta be the soulful melodies mixed with a Francis and the Lights vibe.
