Favorite 2017 albums
It was hard to make this list. There are so many good/great albums released this year, but few that blew my mind. So, the top 25 are the ones that I listened to most (I tried at least for the top 5 to be more accurate) , 25-50 are casual listens, whereas the final 30 were listened to only when they were released/think that they are nice or I haven't managed to get into yet. Even if some wore off fast, it doesn't mean they are bad LPs. I know I missed a lot of albums, so feel free to recommend anything that's worth the time. Thanks! |
| 80 |  | Triptides
Afterglow |
| 79 |  | Bastos
Second Favorite Person |
| 78 |  | Chuck Berry
Chuck |
| 77 |  | The Re-Stoned
Chronoclasm |
| 76 |  | The Flaming Lips
Oczy Mlody |
| 75 |  | Mangoo
The Heat |
| 74 |  | Buckethead
Out Orbit |
| 73 |  | Hey Colossus
The Guillotine |
| 72 |  | Five Horse Johnson
Jake Leg Boogie |
| 71 |  | Steve Roach
Nostalgia for the Future |
| 70 |  | Chihei Hatakeyama
Mirage |
| 69 |  | Buckethead
Space Viking |
| 68 |  | Buckethead
Rivers in the Seas |
| 67 |  | Buckethead
Waterfall Cove |
| 66 |  | John 5
Season of the Witch |
| 65 |  | Greg Graffin
Millport |
| 64 |  | King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard
Flying Microtonal Banana |
| 63 |  | King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard
Polygondwanaland |
| 62 |  | Alio Die
They Grow Layers of Life Within |
| 61 |  | Snoop Dogg
Neva Left |
| 60 |  | Mutoid Man
War Moans |
| 59 |  | Poseidon (UK)
Prologue |
| 58 |  | Gas
Narkopop |
| 57 |  | Primus
The Desaturating Seven |
| 56 |  | William Basinski
A Shadow in Time |
| 55 |  | Chihei Hatakeyama
Void X |
| 54 |  | Ben Frost
The Centre Cannot Hold |
| 53 |  | Mother Engine
Hangar |
| 52 |  | CHON
Homey |
| 51 |  | Hammock
Mysterium |
| 50 |  | The Black Angels
Death Song |
| 49 |  | Incubus
8 |
| 48 |  | Gorillaz
Humanz |
| 47 |  | Kasabian
For Crying Out Loud |
| 46 |  | Siena Root
A Dream of Lasting Peace |
| 45 |  | With the Dead
Love from With the Dead |
| 44 |  | Lo!
Vestigial |
| 43 |  | The Brian Jonestown Massacre
Don't Get Lost |
| 42 |  | Father John Misty
Pure Comedy |
| 41 |  | Wordclock
Heralds |
| 40 |  | Chrysta Bell
We Dissolve |
| 39 |  | Wyatt E.
Exile to Beyn Neharot |
| 38 |  | Boris
Dear |
| 37 |  | Steven Wilson
To the Bone |
| 36 |  | Colour Haze
In Her Garden |
| 35 |  | Dot Hacker
N°3 |
| 34 |  | Kauan
Kaiho |
| 33 |  | Pallbearer
Heartless |
| 32 |  | The Flying Eyes
Burning the Season |
| 31 |  | Samsara Blues Experiment
One with the Universe |
| 30 |  | Mark Lanegan
Gargoyle
Not as good as Blues Funeral or Phantom Radio and there are a couple of krautrock inspired tracks that don’t go that well with Lanegan’s voice. The darker material fits him like a glove though. Hopefully, he’ll make another brooding rocker after this lighter venture. |
| 29 |  | Foo Fighters
Concrete and Gold
Catchy rock record. Nothing groundbreaking, but it’s considerably better than Sonic Highways. |
| 28 |  | Marilyn Manson
Heaven Upside Down
Saw him live on the first gig of the tour, I was surprised Manson was on spot for most of the show. The first half sounds great (live too), even though there are some average moments on the latter half of HUD. |
| 27 |  | Chihei Hatakeyama
Void XI
Soothing ambient, lovely for a lazy day. |
| 26 |  | Bell Witch
Mirror Reaper
Epic tune. It’s amazing how easy I can listen to this as a whole. |
| 25 |  | Moby
More Fast Songs About the Apocalypse
Moby playing punk and spitting vitriol? Yes, please. |
| 24 |  | Telepathy
Tempest
A strong post metal record. They slay live. |
| 23 |  | Monolord
Rust
They chose a cleaner production that doesn’t always help the vocals. Still, the grooves are there to cover this minor issue. |
| 22 |  | Tuber
Out of the Blue
‘80s synths and psychedelic rock. They are probably the most interesting act in the Greek stoner/psychedelic scene at the moment. Really fun live as well. |
| 21 |  | Tim Bowness
Lost in the Ghost Light
A melancholic listen. This is again a moody record that needs time to unfold. |
| 20 |  | Thomas Dybdahl
The Great Plains
I love his voice and the intimate songs he creates. The atmosphere is half of the record’s appeal. |
| 19 |  | Ufomammut
8
Crushingly heavy, can’t wait to see them live this spring and melt my face off. |
| 18 |  | Laibach
Also Sprach Zarathustra
An occasionally abstract industrial record that requires a certain mood to get into it. Saw them performing it live in its entirety, it was amazing to watch them reproduce the variety of sounds live. |
| 17 |  | Mastodon
Emperor of Sand
I really get into it when I listen, but somehow it doesn’t make me come back to it as often as it should. It’s a weird feeling, but I forget about it a month or so, then I’m having a blast singing along and this cycle repeats ever since it was released. |
| 16 |  | Sasquatch
Maneuvers
Sasquatch can do no wrong and damn, Maneuvers delivers. |
| 15 |  | Egypt
Cracks and Lines
That really cool, fun, under 40 minutes record you find every once in a while and listen to it 100 times. These guys are underrated. |
| 14 |  | Carbon Based Lifeforms
Derelicts
Entrancing record. It leans a bit too much on the ambient side, but I really like it. |
| 13 |  | Mogwai
Every Country's Sun
A step back into the right direction. There are many tracks to enjoy here and some awesome ones (the last 4 songs are some of their best moments in a long long time). It doesn’t surpass Hardcore Will Never Die (which is my favorite Mogwai album) and I hope they release a heavier record sometimes soon. |
| 12 |  | Motorpsycho
The Tower
Great, amazingly consistent band. They’ve been on a prolific creative peak for a decade now and who can complain about it? Everything these seasoned musicians release is cool, epic and fun. |
| 11 |  | Queens of the Stone Age
Villains
Another grower. It’s a fun album, even if there are fewer essential tracks on it. Homme went full swag and even if I liked him more when he was less cocky (or kept it for himself), it works for this batch of songs. |
| 10 |  | Jamiroquai
Automaton
After 7 long years of waiting, Jay Kay finally returned with a new Jamiroquai affair. Yes, he became that sleazy, rich, middle aged man, yet the grooves are sometimes too good not to get into them. |
| 9 |  | Elder (USA-MA)
Reflections of a Floating World
Can’t decide if I like Lore or this one more, both are immersive journeys. The better production quality of Reflections of a Floating World helps clearing the layers for an even more enhanced listen. It will be very hard for them to top these two records. |
| 8 |  | Amplifier
Trippin' with Dr. Faustus
An eclectic, fun listen, albeit not the best in their discography. Still, they are one damn consistent group and I can’t wait to hear what’s next. |
| 7 |  | Depeche Mode
Spirit
Saw the album didn’t get a lot of love overall, yet I think the band talking about politics brought something fresh to the table. Plus, the airy compositions allows them to easily sink in. I must admit seeing them live also kept this on heavy rotation for a good while. |
| 6 |  | Paradise Lost
Medusa
Never thought I’d have a Paradise Lost album in my top ten. I always enjoyed random tracks, but this album really got me into them. The bonus tracks should’ve been included on the main track list. |
| 5 |  | Kendrick Lamar
DAMN.
One of the best rappers out there at the moment IMO. Maybe not as complex and layered as To Pimp a Butterfly, however, DAMN. is cool as fuck! |
| 4 |  | Cairo Knife Fight
Seven
Infectious hooks, punchy tracks, meaningful lyrics, plus some QOTSA and NIN influences make this short album both a guilty pleasure and a serious listen. |
| 3 |  | Papir
V
This LP blew my mind. It’s the perfect soundtrack to a warm, sunny summer. |
| 2 |  | The National
Sleep Well Beast
Took a while to truly grow on me (I think I still prefer Trouble Will Find Me over this one), but most of the tracks are really touching and/or fun. |
| 1 |  | Ulver
The Assassination of Julius Caesar
I love it. Finally, Ulver went pop and Garm sings on each track. He has such a beautiful voice. The whole record is so catchy and there’s a lot to discover on it. I hate myself for missing a show on the European tour this Fall, they'll probably never do a second leg and play the whole record and Sic Transit Gloria Mundi. |
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