ashcrash9
Zack Lorenzen
Contributor

Reviews 36
Soundoffs 37
Album Ratings 2909
Objectivity 68%

Last Active 12-13-22 11:46 pm
Joined 01-15-10

Review Comments 3,347

 Lists
12.16.23 Ashcrash 2023 List ♦06.23.23 Ashcrash Did (Another) EP
03.12.23 Every Periphery Song Ranked12.17.22 Ashcrash's 2022 List ♦
09.16.22 Every mewithoutYou song, Ranked12.25.21 Ashcrash's 2021 List
06.19.20 I Made an EP (Again)10.15.19 Ash's 25 Fave Songs of the 2010s
06.28.19 Ashcrash's 2019.512.31.18 Ashcrash's 2018 List
12.28.18 Gift Playlist For My Dad: 2018 Edition01.16.18 Ashcrash's 2017 List/Anniversary/Announ
12.20.17 Gift Playlist For My Dad: 2017 Edition11.11.17 New Ashcrash Song
09.13.17 Every* Brand New Song, Ranked ♦06.21.17 Ashcrash's Half-Bash (2017) ♦
03.03.17 The Weakerthans, All Songs Ranked ♦01.03.17 Ashcrash's 2016 List
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Ashcrash's 2016 List

Since 2013 I’ve been posting more in-depth Top 50 Albums lists elsewhere and I want to share my 2016 one with you all. Explanations in the list below are excerpts from the full thing, which will be linked in the first comment. Gotta send some posi vibes around too; I've been here since 2010, but 2016 was easily the year I feel I really became a part of this community, and I treasure all you guys and your efforts to share and discuss music, even if some of you absolutely loathe one another. This site holds a special place in my heart, and while I think we can all collectively improve it (and by extension our own conduct), I also won’t take for granted the platform it already gives us. So here’s to you, Sputnik. Have a good 2017.
75The Heist Revenge
Gusts

---SELF PROJECT 1---
Starting off with some self-advertising, I released my fourth EP as The Heist Revenge in December. If you like wordy indie/acoustic emo stuff, it may well be up your alley. The little reception I’ve gotten on it so far has been overwhelmingly positive, and I welcome more constructive criticism and feedback.
74ODE Willie's Funky Bunch
How To Ruin America

---SELF PROJECT 2---
You don’t have to listen to this goofy side-project of mine though, because it’s not at all serious and probably deserves the 1.6 average it already has. But hey, ODE Willie’s Funky Bunch may be my means of becoming a Sput meme, so I’ll plug it anyway. ArtBox’s review for the previous album is honestly my favorite review on here this year, so shout-out to him too.
73White Noise of Anxiety
Awkward Silence

---FAVE OTHER SPUT USER PROJECT---
Granted I didn’t hear a whole lot of other Sput users’ stuff this year, but one that comes to mind is Conmaniac’s band White Noise of Anxiety, who establish some solid foundations on their debut EP here. Give it a spin if you like emo and indie rock.
72The Hotelier
Goodness

---FAVE PERSONAL REVIEW---
I submitted ten reviews throughout 2016, by far the most I’ve done here yet, and the praise has been heartwarming. Only 3 of them (the other 2 being Sunlit Youth by Local Natives and Disappointment Island by TTNG) were for 2016 records, and of these 3, this is the only one that didn’t get featured (I arrived too late to the party), but it stands as my favorite review of mine this year.
71Number Girl
Sappukei

---FAVE NON-2016 DISCOVERY IN 2016---
Proportionately, I listened to way more current-year albums than I did older releases this past year, but of the few classics I did check out, Sappukei by Number Girl was by far the one I spun most. Also reviewed this, so you can check that out for further details.
RUNNER-UPS:
OK Computer by Radiohead (honestly hadn’t heard this before last March lol)
Point by Cornelius
70Corey Feldman
Angelic 2 The Core

---WORST ALBUM---
I shouldn’t have to explain. Sure, I guess most of the moments on here are individually listenable, but it’s so goddamn long and cringy that sitting through all this felt like torture.
RUNNER-UPS:
13 Voices by Sum 41
The Colour in Anything by James Blake (sorry, I just reeeeally hated this)
6965daysofstatic
No Man's Sky: Music for an Infinite...

---FAVE SOUNDTRACK---
The only soundtrack I heard this year, tbh. But hey, it’s plenty enjoyable, and unlike No Man’s Sky itself, actually has replay value!
68Radiohead
A Moon Shaped Pool

---FAVE MUSIC VIDEO---
"Daydreaming" - The cinematography is beautiful, it’s packed with hidden symbolism, and “Daydreaming” is arguably the best song on A Moon Shaped Pool, in addition to one that sums up most of the record’s themes. How could it lose?
RUNNER-UPS:
“Lazarus” by David Bowie
“Skyscraper” by Touché Amoré
67Caspian
Castles High, Marble Bright

---FAVE EP---
Also didn’t hear too many EPs this year, but I love Caspian’s recent output, and while the 2 tracks here are more typical post-rock fare than the stuff on Dust & Disquiet, they're still gorgeous.
RUNNER-UPS:
Inside-Out Tokyo by Takahiro Kido
s/t by Insula
66Car Seat Headrest
Teens of Denial

---SONG OF THE YEAR---
"The Ballad of the Costa Concordia" - I go a little more in-depth with this in the Teens of Denial post on the article, but yeah, this is probably the song of our generation.
RUNNER-UPS:
“Integrity Blues” by Jimmy Eat World
“Light” by The Dear Hunter
65Local Natives
Sunlit Youth

--- 65-61 ARE UNRANKED SONGS I LOVED FROM ALBUMS OUTSIDE THE TOP 60 ---
[indie pop]
"Villainy" - Sunlit Youth was a bit of a let down, but there were a few tracks I still loved from it, especially this opener.
64The Jezabels
Synthia

[synthpop/art pop]
"Come Alive" - Admittedly should've gave this record more spins, but most of it just wasn't really my thing. This song though, man... Gives me chills.
63iamthemorning
Lighthouse

[progressive rock/classical]
"Too Many Years" - A beautiful prog rock piece with silky female vox and a driving drum groove that nothing else on this album came close to matching.
62Haken
Affinity

[progressive rock]
"Bound by Gravity" - Affinity scraps the refinement of The Mountain and Restoration, resulting in a messier and less consistent album, though its closer is a proud moment I came back to a lot.
61Kishi Bashi
Sonderlust

[indie pop]
"m'lover" - Lighght was in my top 5 for 2014, but Sonderlust's simpler approach didn't do as much for me. Its opener strongly resembles his Lighght material though, and was easily my favorite from this record.
60All Get Out
Nobody Likes A Quitter

--- 60-51 ARE UNRANKED HONORABLE MENTIONS ---
[pop punk/alt rock]
Sounds exactly like Manchester Orchestra. There, now you know if you’ll like this or not.
59Conor Oberst
Ruminations

[folk]
Honestly only listened to this twice but it’s really authentic and enjoyable. I've gotta check Bright Eyes soon.
58Deerhoof
The Magic

[indie rock/noise pop]
One of the stronger showings I’ve heard from Deerhoof in a while.
57Frameworks
Smother

[post-hardcore]
A fine, polished, and consistent screamo record that just barely didn’t make my cut.
56Kjjjjjjjjj
Kjjjjjjjjj

[math rock]
A trio of Argentine dudes who play some great fuckin’ math rock. Sadly, this release is pretty short.
55Niechec
Niechec

[jazz]
I enjoyed this each time I listened but never felt compelled to revisit it. Still, it’s probably one of the better jazz albums I've heard in recent years.
54Parquet Courts
Human Performance

[garage rock]
A buddy of mine is a huge Parquet Courts fan. I’m a little less enthusiastic about them, so I was pleasantly surprised when this album ended up being as fun as it was.
53The Pineapple Thief
Your Wilderness

[progressive rock]
It’s super-refined and a little forgettable, but still great by-the-books prog that I ended up jamming quite a bit this year.
52Three Trapped Tigers
Silent Earthling

[electronic/math rock]
It’s electronic math rock, pretty spacey and fun. A little long for me, personally, but still some great tunes here.
51Yndi Halda
Under Summer

[post-rock]
Good background music. “Together Those Leaves” is superb. Rest of the album is fairly passive, but in a good way.
50O'Brother
Endless Light

[post-hardcore/shoegaze]
Endless Light is yet another fantastic release from Atlantan quintet O’Brother, one that picks up the bass-heavy, dense riffs and simmering ambiance of their past work and molds it into a more melodic, accessible package. Even if some of the material on the back half is a tad comfortable for a group that could stand to take a few more sonic risks at this point in their career, the refinement and consistency on display throughout this record is nothing to shrug off.
49Childish Gambino
"Awaken, My Love!"

[funk/soul]
Awaken, My Love! largely scraps Donald Glover’s previous “nerd rap” and hip-hop tendencies, and in its place is a confident new soul, and a slightly insane but delectably fun romp of funk and R&B with strong shades of MJ, Prince, and Parliament-Funkadelic seeping through every nook and cranny. Whether it’s the slow, crooning performances or the more upbeat gems that most suit your fancy, there’s surely something on this album for you to enjoy.
48Frightened Rabbit
Painting of a Panic Attack

[alternative rock]
There’s a clear overcast which prevents Painting of a Panic attack from striking the eye as a bright and sunny day. The combination of Scott Hutchison’s passionate but weary Scottish voice and the trademark hazy production by The National songwriter-turned-producer Aaron Dessner makes for a remarkably catchy but misleading listen. The great hooks and gray messages mesh into a strange middle ground that sends mixed signals for a majority of the record, resulting in an alternative rock album as straightforward as it is malleable, as lush as it is rigid, and as broken apart as it is in the process of coming together.
47Norma Jean
Polar Similar

[metalcore]
On Polar Similar, Norma Jean flaunt perhaps their best work yet, as well as a saving grace for metalcore at large. The riffs are crushing but diverse, some erratically racing along, many settling into more mid-tempo but no less gripping grooves that crash and rattle with the utmost intensity. The musicianship is tight and powerful, as are the record’s bells and whistles, and from early banger to truly epic closer, Polar Similar is intelligently constructed and phenomenally performed.
46Gates
Parallel Lives

[indie rock]
Parallel Lives is a rather calm and subtle listen, one that shows Gates establishing a better understanding of nuance as well as just genuinely making their songwriting more interesting. Instead of attempting to reach a high with every moment, the tracks which lend themselves most to it steal the show, indicating that the band can indeed do what they’ve set out to since day one - all it took was a little restraint in the space between. This album more than just about any other this year was a huge grower for me personally, and one that set my eyes on a band I had previously not cared too much for.
45Astronauts
End Codes

[indie pop]
A few years removed from a personal 2014 highlight Hollow Ponds, Dan Carney’s follow-up places an increased emphasis on the little intricacies, and End Codes, while not as diverse in sound as its predecessor, still shows that his first effort as Astronauts was no fluke.
44Weezer
The White Album

[power pop]
The White Album doesn’t so much reinvent the wheel as it does provide Weezer with a long-absent source of power. It’s as much a flashback to the band’s better times as it is an embrace of the here and now, an acknowledgement that the quartet may have aged on the outside but can still be surprisingly fun.
43TTNG
Disappointment Island

[math rock]
Thankfully, Disappointment Island doesn’t reflect its namesake. The band’s sound is unmistakable, and though this may be TTNG’s least immediate record to date (there’s notably a step up in the time signature zaniness and a step back in melody), it’s in turn much more rewarding when given time.
42The Hotelier
Goodness

[indie rock/emo]
You might assume the cover’s smiling nudists and a title like Goodness would usher in a complete change of pace for The Hotelier, and there are definitely hints of one, but the “goodness” here is fleeting and reserved. The album is verbose, but never overstepping into preachy ground, presenting listeners with all the tools they need to move on from the band’s darker past alongside them.
41Periphery
Periphery III: Select Difficulty

[progressive metal: this time you hate ash]
People already familiar with Periphery won’t have their minds changed with this new installment, nor does the band care about dumbing down their creative vision. Each Periphery release has simply been the labor of love by a bunch of dudes writing music as they please, and for me if no one else, the result is still contagiously fun. With Periphery III, they’re shining and it shows.
40From Indian Lakes
Everything Feels Better Now

[dream pop]
From Indian Lakes founder Joey Vannucchi treks further into dream pop territory for his fourth release, and in my opinion, it’s a move for the better. Go figure that like its mechanically hopeful title, Everything Feels Better Now manages to come off as Vannucchi’s most confident project to date while also feeling like his most detached. The instrumentation is lush and tender, and the mixing is superb. It may be a bit frontloaded, but that doesn’t change that this is a fantastic collection of pop that’s well worth the listen.
39Danny Brown
Atrocity Exhibition

[experimental hip-hop]
Danny Brown is already widely regarded as one of the most unique voices in hip-hop, and Atrocity Exhibition makes it pretty clear why; he knows his work, inspired here by rampant drug use to cope with depression and anxiety, is on a stage. The album is a peek inside a fractured brain, one that knows it’s on a path to self-destruction, but can’t bring itself to change. There are a few swings-and-misses for me personally, but even I can’t dance in this water and not get wet.
38Into It. Over It.
Standards

[emo revival]
Standards doesn’t change the game, but it’s a reminder of what a particularly consistent collection of tunes can do for a genre that’s largely just a circle of the same ideas. Emo music is, as Evan Weiss puts it in the closer, “how it can feel to be a failure together,” and no redefinition is needed when the idea that’s already this damn precious is performed so well.
37Wang Wen
Sweet Home, Go

[post-rock/drone]
Wang Wen have long established themselves as one of the forerunners in East Asian experimental music, incorporating post-rock, drone, and classical motifs into gorgeous collages of sound for nearly 2 decades. From start to finish, Sweet Home, Go! is wide-eyed and vast, covering beautiful expanses of sonic terrain and a variety of distinct moods that still resolve in a cohesive fashion.
36Jimmy Eat World
Integrity Blues

[alternative rock]
Jimmy Eat World’s previous record Damage marked perhaps their first considerable misstep in almost two decades, and it left primary songwriter Jim Adkins with some soul-searching to do. The answers he found for Integrity Blues resulted in some of his most personal and honest lyricism to date, and even better, a return to form for the band’s overall sound. Since they didn’t actually go anywhere, you can’t really call this a “comeback” album, but it is a lively and inspiring testament to where reignited passion can take you.
35Glass Animals
How To Be A Human Being

[indie pop]
People have invented songs from fictional personas before, that’s nothing new, but the full enthusiasm Glass Animals display exploring each of their self-written characters’ psyches and personalities is nothing short of enthralling on this record. Whimsical and fun, the band’s smirking grins make How To Be a Human Being stick out as the lovable menagerie of stylish and dorky pop gold that it is.
34Be'lakor
Vessels

[melodic death metal]
Subgenres of more extreme forms of metal aren’t exactly my forte. I usually hear two or three albums of that nature a year, only one of which even has a shot at really catching my attention. This year, for whatever reason, the successful one happened to be Vessels, by renowned melodeath outfit Be’lakor, a sprawling monolith of wonderful riffage and just plain epic songwriting.
33Kashiwa Daisuke
Program Music II

[classical/ambient/jazz]
Just like Program Music I, this record’s careful structure and imaginative nature are essential in making it a powerful experience; Program Music II is sparse, but alive. It’s an interpretive journey in musical form, and while the form happens to be a little safer than that of the album’s spiritual predecessor, for me, II very much lives up to the hype.
32Leonard Cohen
You Want It Darker

[singer-songwriter]
In a year of especially noteworthy celebrity deaths, Cohen’s may have sucked, but at age 82, it wasn’t exactly unpredictable; You Want It Darker sounds like the singer-songwriter legend knew he might not have much longer and wanted to do what he could to address lingering questions in his life. It’s composed and instrumentally quiet, intimate and fragile, and while sadly it wasn’t the only effective self-written eulogy by a high-profile musician this year, it was a fantastic way to bow out.
31Ashbringer
Yūgen

[folk/black metal]
“Cozy” may at first seem like an odd descriptor for an entry of this genre, but even just one listen should make my word choice understandable; there’s a very close, homely vibe beneath the searing vocals and occasional walls of sound throughout Yūgen, and its subtle profundity comes through in the band’s powerful songwriting and impassioned performing.
30Enemies
Valuables

[math pop]
Valuables is more of a coda or epilogue than it is a new statement, but I couldn’t think of a better way for Enemies to go out; they’ve already said all they’ve needed to say as one of the most unique and delightful indie bands of the decade, and here, one final chance to play and let go means one last savory taste for the rest of us.
29Russian Circles
Guidance

[post-metal]
Every so often, there comes an instrumental rock album that - with no narrative, no pretense - simply presents an adventure for listeners to wade through. With each track flowing seamlessly into the next, creating a totally organic, well-paced experience with heaps of crushing post-metal riffage and cleverly-placed reprieves, Russian Circles’ Guidance may be the trio’s strongest and most emotive effort yet.
28Hammock
Everything and Nothing

[post-rock/ambient]
Operating on washy arpeggiated guitar patterns and vocals drowned out by reverb and the occasional drum machine, Hammock doesn’t really tread any new territory with Everything and Nothing, but they do bring forth over 90 minutes of mesmerizing soundscapes.
27Racing Glaciers
Caught in the Strange

[indie rock/post-rock]
Caught in the Strange is a delectable record of soulful, atmospheric indie rock, bolstered in equal measure by crooning vocals and an adapt array of instrumental inspiration. It’s definitely a little strange, but there’s comfort and familiarity within it too, and it’s a promising debut from a band whose music I’d love to continue being caught in as the years pass.
26Mono
Requiem For Hell

[post-rock]
By adding Steve Albini back on board, MONO sound as stunning, heartfelt, and grandiose here as they did in the mid to late 2000s. For better or worse, Requiem For Hell was largely dismissed as MONO still not trying anything new, but it’s the band sticking to their roots with a production blast from the past that makes it so damn powerful, and their most epic, expansive, work in years.
25Regina Spektor
Remember Us To Life

[singer-songwriter/chamber pop]
Regina Spektor is no longer the new face on the block that she was in the mid-2000s, but Remember Us to Life is a strong reminder that she’s still around, and arguably at the top of her game. Delicate one moment and bold the next, gripping and unpredictable, this new album is without a doubt one of the year’s finest-crafted releases under the pop umbrella.
24Dextro
In the Crossing

[ambient/electronic]
Each of In The Crossing’s rather short eight tracks lasts just long enough to hypnotize the listener before the next piece comes into view, and from bold start to ominous finish, Ewan Mackenzie’s soundscapes had me enthralled and constantly eager to revisit this spacious, droney, adventure.
23Ovum
Nostalgia

[instrumental metal]
Nostalgia is crunchy and quick, just 3 tracks totaling barely more than a half-hour combined, but it sure packs a punch. Striking a perfect balance between easily-lovable grooves and hard-hitting riffage, it’s the type of album that feels alive and organic, like an brave jam session that goes as far as it can before tactfully simmering down.
22Thank You Scientist
Stranger Heads Prevail

[progressive rock]
Progressive music is not dead. I know progressive music is not dead, because Stranger Heads Prevail exists. It is a convoluted, messy, polarizing album of jazz, funk, and rock influences that frankly has no business being over an hour in length, yet stays fascinating in its entirety. Life has become exciting. Surely, Thank You Scientist are the architects of their own future, and with any luck, they’ll be the architects of future prog rock for years to come too.
21TotorRo
Come to Mexico

[math rock]
The worst thing about Come to Mexico is that it came out once the year’s supply of warm, sunny days had long since passed. Stuffed with spastic rhythms, jittery guitars, and pure unbridled joy, the (mostly) instrumental French quartet’s second album is the distilled sound of summer, prime for playing on beach vacations and days when heat waves cede to a cool breeze.
20Polyenso
Pure In The Plastic

[R&B/pop]
Pure in the Plastic is full of reserved but catchy hooks and soulful vocal melodies. Brisk with afrobeat rhythms, pearly keys, and tasty experimentation, it’s impossible to nail Polyenso down to any one specific sound, and with something new to discover on every listen, their new album is also ultimately one of the most addicting pop albums I had the pleasure of discovering this year.
19Old Gray
Slow Burn

[screamo]
Slow Burn at first seems like a blatant misnomer. Barely even 20 minutes long, the record flies by in uncontrollable whirlwinds of smoke and flames. It’s a chaotically loud, uncompromisingly heartfelt ode to friends lost to substance abuse and depression and those who may be next. It offers no answer and solves no problem; it’s simply the sound of the storm itself.
18Cymbals Eat Guitars
Pretty Years

[indie rock/shoegaze]
Cymbals Eat Guitars are substantially catchier on Pretty Years than anything they’ve done before, but their sound is still defined by piercing wails of distortion, production stuck somewhere between slick and lo-fi, and Joe D’Agostino’s raspy, stuffy-nosed vocals. The emphasis on more concise, clearer songwriting makes this record one of the better places in their discography for a newcomer to start, and the band seems to be looking up - even if only slightly - for the first time too.
17Okkervil River
Away

[indie folk]
Throughout Away’s nearly hour-long runtime, Will Sheff finds himself floating in the half-between, our guide as we wade through his troubles (bandmate tension, his grandfather’s death, etc.) alongside him. His songs are long and take their time to get rolling, but the sonic landscapes they paint are impossible to shy away from, truly majestic in the way they set stage after stage for their creator to clear his path forward through the fog.
16Joliette
Atáxico

[hardcore]
I’ve never been the biggest fan of hardcore, but Joliette run the gamut and then some with Atáxico, which sees them shed their post-hardcore roots and embrace utter chaos and fury. From tempestuous to ominous, they still manage to cover surprisingly vast ground, so if the genre is one of your calling cards, don’t let the language barrier turn you away from this one.
15kj
wake

[ambient]
It seems that once per semester, I discover a new “help me fall asleep when campus is too loud and I’m not tired enough to do so on my own” album. This fall, that album was KJ Rothweiler’s debut Wake, which for nearly every second features dreamy synth textures slowly waving in and out of reach, a calming experience unlike anything else on this list, and successfully enjoyable as a passive background listen and an active, meditative one as well.
14Kendrick Lamar
untitled unmastered.

[hip-hop]
A compilation of B-Sides and aptly-named untitled, unmastered material from the To Pimp a Butterfly sessions, Kendrick Lamar demonstrates once again why he deserves the title of one of modern hip-hop’s greatest figureheads. The hooks are catchier than ever, the jazzy instrumentation has evolved into something even more soulful, and while its heights aren’t as high, Untitled Unmastered is even more consistently impressive than Butterfly on a song-by-song basis. When an artist’s throwaway material is this superb, you know you’re in for a treat.
13John K. Samson
Winter Wheat

[folk]
It takes a special skill to make vague references and pondered daily events feel existential and grand without looking like a pretentious goofball, but for former Weakerthans frontman John K. Samson, it seems to be second nature. For proof, look no further than Winter Wheat, a simultaneously heartwarming and analytically rich record full of sketches inspired by mental illness and various locations around the Prairie Provinces.
12clipping.
Splendor and Misery

[experimental hip-hop/gospel]
Splendor & Misery is a vivid, unsettling space opera about a former slave killing time and growing paranoid in a starship that was once carrying him as cargo before some catastrophe wiped out everyone else on board. The lyricism and delivery are incredible throughout, and the enveloping instrumentation - noise collages that make you feel like you’re right there in the ship - is just as much the star of this show as Daveed Diggs’ bars.
11Radiohead
A Moon Shaped Pool

[art pop]
For a group whose M.O. is pushing boundaries, it seems odd that A Moon Shaped Pool is the first time in what feels like an eternity that Radiohead have glanced inward and gotten explicitly personal, but it proves that sometimes the most interesting low-flying panic attacks aren’t the ones involving mass hysteria, but the ones that strike from inside. As consistently vulnerable and open as they’ve been since The Bends, Yorke’s sadness and longing are brought to life through some of Jonny Greenwood’s most vibrant arrangements to date.
10Thrice
To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere

[“radio rock”]
To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere is Thrice’s first record since reforming, and while the band seems enthralled to be back together and jamming again, it’s also not a positive affair, instead critically visiting concepts of foreign policy and societal trust. The melodies are catchier, the riffage is simpler, and the song structures are poised to appeal to the radio rock crowd, but that doesn’t come with any sacrifice of the band’s integrity or passion.
9A Tribe Called Quest
We got it from Here… Thank You 4 Your service

[hip-hop/jazz rap]
While my experience with hip-hop has been and still is limited at best, even I knew A Tribe Called Quest innovated jazz rap back in the 90’s, so with that subgenre experiencing a recent resurgence from newer high-profile artists, the timing was perfect for them to get back together for one last album. It’s rare for any artist to provide some of their best material with the pressure of a comeback album also being their swan song, but that’s exactly what Quest do here between their tight performances and crisp, imaginative sampling. Thank You 4 Your Service indeed.
8Alcest
Kodama

[black metal/shoegaze]
As one of the pioneers of “blackgaze,” Alcest have built a whole career on exploring and popularizing their sound. But they can stop now. Kodama is, if not the genre’s pinnacle, then certainly my favorite album from the movement yet; the production and mixing are flawless, there’s a perfect balance between grainy and lush tones, and the range in dynamics is absolutely breathtaking. Whenever I want to go on a captivating adventure through the murky night, I can see myself returning to Kodama.
7Drive-by Truckers
American Band

[alt country/Southern rock]
At the crossroads of blue state values and red state personalities, Drive-by Truckers recognize their unique opportunity to deliver a message that can be heard from both sides of the aisle in a divisive political climate, and instead of rallying behind simple answers, the most they seem to be able to genuinely offer is that things won’t change overnight, and maybe haven’t changed as much in our lifetimes as we’d like to believe. American Band more than any political album this decade represents how it truly feels to be a rational American citizen in the 2010s; sad, frustrated, and nervous.
6PUP
The Dream Is Over

[pop punk]
Considering Stephen Babcock shredded his vocal chords from extensive touring for PUP’s 2013 debut album, the fact that The Dream Is Over exists in the first place is the ultimate act of defiance. And thankfully, it leans on “pop” in sound and “punk” in spirit, filled with massive, hooky gang choruses and gritty, searing lyricism that, when combined, make for a record that sounds too jubilant to be as depressing as it is. The Dream Is Over simultaneously opposes and reinforces itself, a thrilling whirlwind of the doubts, old wounds, and familiar patterns that break all of us down. Also it’s also keeping the dying genre of pop punk on life support, so props for that too.
5Car Seat Headrest
Teens of Denial

[indie rock]
It’s an unforgiving world, but this isn’t an unforgiving album; Teens of Denial walks the thin line between realizing how insignificant every choice we make is and also empathetically acknowledging how shitty those choices can still make us feel. It interrogates itself and forces us to do the same, and in doing so, it’s the ultimate album for today’s wandering youth, reminding us it’s fine to not transcend and feel like a walking piece of shit, as long as we examine why, keeping in mind that it doesn’t have to be like this.
4The Dear Hunter
Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional

[progressive rock]
Incorporating several reprises of past material, but with a darker and less immediate overall tone, Act V is maybe the biggest grower The Dear Hunter has released yet. But make no mistake, Crescenzo and co.’s composition work is still among the best in the greater rock spectrum today, and their newest Act (for the second year in a row, no less) represents a career’s worth of experimentation, with the band’s most refined songwriting occurring in conjunction with the story’s most important narrative moments. It’s not something I’d suggest starting with if you have no knowledge of the band’s prior output, but for a devoted follower like myself, I couldn’t ask for anything more.
3The Drones
Feelin Kinda Free

[noise rock/post-punk]
There’s hardly a second on The Drones’ seventh album that isn’t ridden with ominous atmosphere, unsettling noise, or Gareth Liddiard’s sneering voice. They’re pissed off and full of themselves, disgusted with modern Australia, and not hesitant to say so. The brutally critical lyricism is certainly the album’s highlight, but the instrumentation is just as essential; screeches of distortion, dirty cymbal hits, and layers of feedback line each song in some form or another, and while Feelin Kinda Free is so preoccupied with experimenting with temper that it’ll immediately repel a huge chunk of its potential audience, it’s also one of the most bitter and creative political albums this decade.
2Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
Skeleton Tree

[ambient/singer-songwriter]
No parent should have to bury their child, but Nick Cave had no choice in 2015, when one of his twin 15-year-old sons, Arthur, accidentally fell to his death from a cliff. In response comes Skeleton Tree, an incredibly challenging listen, but there was simply no way it could be a polished and easy one. The album is a coping mechanism for Cave himself, and to nitpick its details it to miss the point; he and the Bad Seeds gifted us with an undeniably authentic display of inconsolable grief. It’s not something I can listen to often, nor do I want to, but there is truly no justice in this world if Skeleton Tree doesn’t go down as a modern classic.
1David Bowie
Blackstar

[art pop]
It seems oddly fitting in retrospect that as we spent a majority of 2016 mourning various celebrity’s deaths, Bowie, who got the chance to dictate our final impressions of him, actively tried to humanize himself on Blackstar. For all the uncertainty looming over his future, there were also plenty of moments that seemed to attempt to gain closure on his past, making his swan song a record truly encapsulating of the superstar’s whole life’s work. Even if he couldn’t give everything away, he left us all with one last classic, and my album of the year.
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