Welcome back!  It’s hard to believe that it’s already been a year since the highly acclaimed SMA’s (Sowing’s Music Awards) made its debut, and – to your certain delight – the feature has returned in 2015 to bring you the best of…well, whatever I say is best.  I’m sure you are the most excited you’ve been all year long.

A typical reaction to the announcement that the SMA’s have returned.

Last year we saw the likes of Gates, The Afghan Whigs, St. Vincent, and Low Roar hoist the seriously cool shit trophy [pictured below].  Many worthy artists are considered, but it takes something truly special to garner an SMA.  Acclaimed musicians like The War on Drugs,The Antlers, and Sharon Van Etten have all previously been nominated but walked away empty handed.  In short, this is a damn prestigious thing – and at the very least, it beats out the Country Music Awards.

There were many personalities that I considered bringing on board to host this year’s installment.  Conan O’Brien, Stephen Colbert, Donald Trump — however, Judio! had dibs [citation: 12/02/14], so I do request that you direct all of your questions and frustration over this list at him.  If you’d like to offer praise, my shoutbox is always open.   And of course, without further ado, here are the 2015 SMA’s.  I hope you find them as riveting as I do.  PS: I’ve dedicated a heartfelt 2015 mixtape to all of Sputnik, which I recommend you check out at the conclusion of the awards ceremony.

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CATEGORY 1: BEST NEW ARTIST

The Nominees:

EL VY

While technically neither Matt Berninger [The National] nor Brent Knopf [Menomena] are new, they get the inclusion here because they joined forces to form the unique project EL VY.  Each musician’s influence can be felt here, ultimately resulting in the oft-described “funner National.”  It’s a tall order to separate a Berninger-led outfit from The National’s massive following, but they are definitely tapping into a market for something baritone yet more lively.  If you’ve ever listened to The National and thought to yourself “I wish they’d just kick it up a slight notch”, then EL VY belongs at the top of your albums to hear list.  For many of us, it’s already entered our cross hairs and has made an unmistakable footprint in 2015.

Frog

Frog are one of those bands you tend to find by accident.  They recorded their debut, Kind of Blah, underneath a bowling alley and everything about them fits the assumptions you’d typically make based on that statement.  They sound unpolished, unkempt, and un-interfered with.  In a lot of ways they’re your typical garage band, only way better.  One minute they might be shouting about ‘”fucking, all the time” and another they are quietly recounting a solitary holiday spent in a bar.  There’s so much substance here worth delving into, not the least of which are bare-bones confessions like “I poured kerosene on my old dirty magazines, Mom and Dad don’t be mad at me.”  If you think back to some of your favorite indie bands that always sounded like they were a beer away from losing their shit, that’s these guys.  They’re definitely a band worth investing some time into, and it wouldn’t be surprising at all to see these guys gather some well-earned recognition in the near future.

Highly Suspect

Highly Suspect is one of those rock n’ roll purist groups that you would expect to hit the big time.  Strictly in terms of their target audience, I’d liken them to Royal Blood – who we all saw explode in 2014.  Oddly enough, this has been a comparatively quiet debut for them..either that or I’m just a part of all the wrong circles.  If they are going as unheard of as it seems though, then it’s a travesty.  These guys know what rock music should be in 2015, and they’ve gone and grabbed it by the you-know-whats.  Their debut, Mister Asylum, is filled to the brim with blazing electric guitars, gruff vocals, and expertly crafted hooks.  It’s all very 90’s post-grunge meets 70’s classic rock.  If you like no nonsense rock music, Highly Suspect is a band you might want to give a chance.

The Arcs

Like EL VY, it might feel a little bit like cheating to include The Arcs in this category.  A side project of The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, the band essentially channeled the same vibe into its debut Yours, Dreamily.  It feels like a Black Keys record, which other than the inherent lack of novelty, is always a good thing.  The one area that The Arcs seem to expand upon is the atmospheric side, something that’s clearly alluded to in the album title.  It relies on Auerbach’s bluesy roots, and then adds in a twist of 70’s psychedelia.  It’s never as energetic as some of his most recent offerings with The Black Keys, but as something of a bonus offering, The Arcs satisfy a craving we haven’t had fulfilled since Auerbach’s earliest days making music.

Meg Myers

Well look at that. No, not that…down here, perv.  2015 has produced yet another phenomenal pop voice, and this time her name is Meg Myers.  I know, I know, she has released EP’s dating back to 2012, but this year marks her first full-length record — so relax, okay?  I’m actually a bit hesitant to label her as pop, because her style in more attuned to a Florence Welsh-like darkness than it is to typical breakup ballads.  Myers’ voice has an authoritative boom, the kind of presence that demands attention no matter the musical backdrop.  Her debut Sorry is anything but apologetic, as she sings “I wanna skin you with my tongue” and makes other borderline disturbing – yet somehow still seductive – remarks.  More than anything though, Myers’ debut could be characterized as bold.  She sounds like a woman who is tired of being trampled on and who has decided to take charge of everything, from her life to her music.  Stand in her way at your own risk.

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And the winner is…

Frog

Click the album art to listen to/download their debut, Kind of Blah.

They may not be the boldest, loudest, or most accessible artist nominated, but no one shows as much promise as this underground duo from Queens, NY.

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CATEGORY 2: COMEBACK ARTIST OF THE YEAR

The Nominees:

Sleater-Kinney

Is it really worth nominating anyone else?  It has to be Sleater-Kinney, the band that returned from nearly a decade of inactivity to rock all other 2015 comeback candidates into submission.  No Cities to Love isn’t just a reunion album for the sake of having a reunion.  It’s a full blown alt-rock explosion, one that immediately places Sleater-Kinney back into the discussion as one of the most prominent bands in the genre.  Home run hits like “Surface Envy” and “Bury Our Friends” prove that this group of edgy chicks haven’t lost a step; in fact, they might be even better than they were when they left off in the mid-2000’s.  If we’re fortunate, we won’t have to wait another ten years to get another gem out of this talented trio.

Alien Ant Farm

Okay, so maybe this is a bit of a homer pick.  Oh wait, this is my fucking awards show.  I almost forgot.  Alien Ant Farm is a hit-or-miss group, and despite some early success that launched them into the national spotlight, they faded faster than a Detroit Lions football team in the second half (sorry, Jom).  Eventually they disbanded, or went on a hiatus, or something – the point is they stopped making music for 9 years.  2015 brought us Always and Forever, an unsurprisingly eclectic affair that has the ability to rock your socks off or, alternatively, make you want to just go do something else.  Certain tracks here qualify as must-hear though, like the inspiring ode to classic rock “Homage”, the nu-metal flashback “Yellow Pages”, or the rhythmic, Rob Thomas-esque “Our Time.”  Alien Ant Farm may not be as well-respected as other artists mentioned on this page, but damn it I’m just happy they’re back.  And you should be too.

Muse

Yes, I hear you groaning.  Didn’t Muse just release The 2nd Law a few years back?  Err, well yes.  Doesn’t Muse suck?  Sort of.  What the fuck?   I hear ya.  But I’ll be damned if Drones wasn’t exactly what Muse needed after nearly 10 years of making flat out awful music.  2006’s Black Holes and Revelations was the last time they made real, actual rock music – since then, it’s been power pop and Twilight marathons.  While Drones doesn’t totally rectify everything that’s wrong with this band, it definitely set them back on course.  There’s laughable moments here and jokes about “your ass is mine” that will never go away, but neither will the blistering riffs on “Reapers”, or the glorious falsetto-wrapped chorus of “Defector.”  There’s too many signs of life here to give up on Muse, which is exactly what most of us have already done.  They’ve inched their way back into rock relevance, and if they continue the improvement put on clear display in 2015, they just might inch their way back into our hearts.

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And the winner is…

Sleater-Kinney

Click the album art to listen to/download their album, No Cities To Love.

This should come as no surprise.  In a year that wasn’t overflowing with major comeback artists, Sleater-Kinney took the ball, ran with it, and never looked back.

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CATEGORY 3: SONG OF THE YEAR

The Nominees:

“No Shade In The Shadow of the Cross” by Sufjan Stevens

You knew there was going to be a Sufjan Stevens song somewhere.  The question was just “which one?”  There’s a number of worthy choices stemming from the acclaimed Carrie and Lowell, such as “Fourth of July” and “Death With Dignity” – but no track is a better stand-alone representation of Sufjan in 2015 than “No Shade In The Shadow of the Cross.” The track is extremely intimate, so much so that you can hear his air conditioner quietly humming in the background.  “No Shade” is the polar opposite of the Age of Adz Sufjan – this is him baring his soul.  It’s like you’re his lifelong best friend, and he’s spilling his guts to you on his living room couch. The song tackles drug addiction, with lines like “I’m chasing the dragon too far” and “I take one more hit when you depart.”  The song is at its heaviest when Sufjan belts out, somehow sweetly, “there’s blood on that blade, fuck me I’m falling apart.”  There may be no song this year that cuts deeper than “No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross”, and it’s a must-listen.

“Piss Crowns are Trebled” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

After the lackluster Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!, the relative lack of enthusiasm over 2015’s Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress is almost understandable.  However, if you’re going to pass over what the modern day GY!BE has to offer, I implore you to reconsider for at least this one song.  “Piss Crowns are Trebled” is quite simply the most epic track they’ve made since their F#A#∞ days, which is saying a lot considering that this group is predicated on making everything epic all the time.   It’s engaging from start to finish, and it is constantly on the rise.  Each time you think the song has reached its climax, you’re wrong.  The final three to four minutes are downright insane, and feel like the culmination of everything that this band has ever stood for all packed into a glorious explosion of heavy percussion, wailing strings, and fiery electric guitars.  Tracks like this are why we bother listening to post-rock.  Just listen…you’ll be rendered speechless.

“Rainbow Signs” by mewithoutYou

Is the world coming to an end?  Aaron Weiss certainly seems to think so.  In case you’re totally unfamiliar with the book of Revelations, I’ll give you a crash course:  God opens up several seals, and demons of various degrees wreak havoc on the Earth for the duration of the apocalypse.  It doesn’t take a religious scholar, then, to understand the imagery conjured by such lines as with imperial crowns we were sent, riding out conquest-bent – or perhaps the sky I’d been told would roll up like a scroll…and the sun would turn black as the dead raven’s back, but there’d be nowhere to hide from the Judge’s face. Alongside allusions to God slyly crossing his fingers behind his back, singing to Noah, “no more water…is the H-bomb next time”, there’s a lot to digest here.  The true genius of this song isn’t so much Aaron’s penning of the lyrics as it is his chilling, unsettling delivery.  With every blazing riff, you can feel the heat of hell’s flames scorching the grass.  Each time he shouts “daylight is breaking!”, a chill will shoot up your spine.  And, finally, for all the apocalyptic imagery strewn about, he ends things on a tender note that cites an unexplained inside joke between him and his deceased father.  Good luck maintaining your emotional composure while listening to this…I know I can’t.  One way or another, you’re likely to realize something profound.

“Waves” by The Dear Hunter

Can a relatively conventional 4 minute alt-rock track really contend for song of the year?  Considering there is always something out there that’s more innovative, brilliant, and weird, I have to admit it is unusual.  However when you are as talented as The Dear Hunter is, any feat is made to look easy.  Effortless is as good of an adjective as any to describe their 2015 smash hit “Waves” – a track that combines all of your standard breakup cliches with a gorgeously bleak burial-at-sea metaphor.  As lead vocalist Casey Crescenzo passionately pleads “I can see the lighthouse”, it feels like bargaining, as images of waves knocking his ship sideways come more and more into focus.  It’s not your typical breakup song because The Dear Hunter is an atypically skilled bunch.  So when the experience wraps up with the utterance “I thought that I knew love, but it was just a wave crashing over us”, it feels all too easy to relate to.

“Dark Bird Is Home” by The Tallest Man On Earth

A lot has been said about Kristian Matsson’s evolution on Dark Bird Is Home, and a surprising portion of those rumblings have been unflattering.  It makes sense that his grassroots fans wouldn’t want to see him abandon his threadbare folk approach, but an artist can only recreate the same magic for so long before it wears its welcome out.  That’s why Dark Bird is a very smart record, and why Matsson is still the best man within his respective genre.  While tracks such as “Sagres” are a much better representation of what his music has become and where it’s headed in the future, it’s the title track that steals the spotlight here.  It feels like a journey through Matsson’s career, beginning with subtle acoustic guitar strokes and building towards a crescendo of pianos, drums, and synths.  One can almost sense him passing through to another realm; transitioning from the limitations of a bare-bones artist into a vibrant world of color.  Kristian’s final utterance of “…but now I need to go, oh fuck” suggest that he’s quite ready to leave the past behind him and depart for these undeniably more beautiful pastures.  “Dark Bird is Home” is both a heartfelt goodbye and a promising glance towards tomorrow.

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And the winner is…

Rainbow Signs

Click the artwork to download the track.

In a year filled with some brilliant tracks, there were none quite as affecting as mewithoutYou’s inspired vision of the last days.

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CATEGORY 4: ALBUM OF THE YEAR

The Nominees:

The Most Lamentable Tragedy by Titus Andronicus

Something as ridiculous as a 29 song punk-rock opera is always going to be either a shocking success or a resounding failure.  I say shocking intentionally because it’s rare for an album of such absurd posturing to be taken seriously.  While opinions on this album seemed to be pretty evenly divided from a critical standpoint, there’s practically no one out there denying that this is wildly entertaining.  As Patrick Stickles jumps from gruff, bruising punk to enthusiastic pop singalongs – and everything in between – the length feels less like a hindrance and more like a necessity required to contain all of the insane ideas whirling around inside Stickles’ head.  I hate to go straight to the cliched “there’s something for everyone” statement, but it’s not false.  There’s short, crazy punches like “Dimed Out” and “I’m Going Insane”, long-winded anthems like “(S)HE SAID / (S)HE SAID” and “More Perfect Union”, and raw, candid moments such as “Stable Boy.”  You can pick and choose what you want to put on your plate here, but if you ask me, the entire smorgasbord is delectable.

I Love You, Honeybear by Father John Misty

Every year, an album comes along that seems to stamp its name permanently across the calendar for twelve months straight.  In 2015, that album was Father John Misty’s I Love You, Honeybear.  There’s something undeniably unique about this record.  It’s self-absorbed, cynical, insulting, and sometimes downright uncomfortable.  And the fact that Father John Misty just makes you love him even more for it is exactly what allows I Love You Honeybear to be such an enigma.  Singer Joshua Tillman’s soulful accounts of the fucked up side of love are everything that is simultaneously attractive and off-putting about this record, as he puts forth narrations like “I obliged later on when you begged me to choke you” or “when you’re smiling and astride me / I can hardly believe I’ve found you and I’m terrified by that.”  These aren’t your typical lyrics, but that’s why I Love You Honeybear circles high above your other sugar-coated, PG-rated “romantic” albums that can typically be found alongside flowers and candy hearts.   This is the opposite of such artificial emblems.  It’s the fetishes we hide in our bedroom, the fucked up thoughts we keep to ourselves, and the narcissistic attitude that we suppress daily in order to keep our relationships functioning.  It just may be the realest “love album” you’ll hear this decade.

Act IV: Rebirth In Reprise by The Dear Hunter

The chances of Act IV living up to the unreal levels of hype emanating from previous installments in The Dear Hunter’s discography were slim to none.  Anytime a band accrues a zealous following it’s the same old story, and in this case you also have the thematic nature and story line of each preceding act mounting additional pressure.  Needless to say, I approached the Act IV with cautious optimism, hoping for an album that at least wouldn’t embarrass the reputation of Acts I-III.  By the end of the third track, however, I knew my guarded approach was all for naught.  ‘Waves’ blew me away on the very first listen, and that sensational moment was followed up by a seemingly endless string of incredible hooks, interesting lyrics, and epic choruses.  “A Night On The Town”, “Is There Anybody Here?”, “The Bitter Suite IV and V”, “The King of Swords”…take your pick.  Act IV flows from track to track with melodic grace, never forsaking the listener’s undivided attention for personal indulgences.  This is the record that fans deserved and the fitting conclusion that the Act series needed.  Make no mistake: this is the best album of The Dear Hunter’s career, and I wouldn’t be the slightest bit surprised if it went down as the band’s crowning achievement and calling card.  It’s that good, and it’s definitely a must-hear album for any fan of alternative rock.

Pale Horses by mewithoutYou

Wait, you mean I have to write about these guys again?  Well, I guess it’s the price I pay for listening to a band so talented that they span the list of best songs and best albums.  Pale Horses, much like its closing track “Rainbow Signs”, is sort of an album to end all albums.  There’s this distinct feeling of resolution – call it apocalypse-themed, call it a metaphor for the band, but when frontman Aaron Weiss sings “pale horse songs of a slow decline”, one can’t help but share the helpless feeling that something is coming to a close.  There’s enough Biblical metaphors to support the former theory and enough personal anecdotes to suggest the latter, but either way Pale Horses feels like the sweeping and powerful final chapter in a long novel.  At various junctures, Weiss warns of an H-bomb to wipe out civilization (“hail the blest atomic morn / unto the earth a bomb is born”), the increasingly Godless nature of society (“this is not the first time God has died” / “message-less birds take flight without cause, to the silence they’ve heard in the absence of laws”).  In other more candid moments, he sings in a heartbreakingly open fashion about his dad – “Can you take the form of my dead father? Because I think he would’ve liked to meet my wife / and I know for a fact he would have liked my wife”, before concluding the record with a hushed verse about a secret joke that they once shared: “started on the Abrahamic joke we knew, about apostrophes and pronouns and you remember who, but let’s keep that silly punchline between me and you, Little Haroon and the man in the moon.”  At times, it’s almost as if Pale Horses means as much to Weiss as its message does to people in this hypothetical, (maybe) imagined apocalypse.

Carrie & Lowell by Sufjan Stevens

Is there anything I can say here that you haven’t already heard about this album?  As various descriptors such as “devastating”, “stripped”, and “depressing” come to mind, I find it highly unlikely.  There’s very little knowledge regarding Carrie & Lowell that I can actually impart to you that hasn’t already been written and discussed numerous times, so instead of providing a lengthy account of lyrical excerpts and vivid imagery in order to sway you to listen to this, I’ll keep it simple.  If you’ve ever lost someone who was a part of you – someone whose memories and emotions coursed through your veins every single day – then Carrie & Lowell embodies the very spirit of mourning.  It describes the pain you struggle to articulate, and it shares in the inconsolable depression that you feel every single time you see a place or object that brings memories of that person rushing back.  No, Carrie & Lowell wasn’t written for you.  It would be crass to make such an assertion.  However, when an artist experiences real emotional trauma and splatters all of that morbidity upon a musical canvas, it almost becomes haunted.  It’s a place we can go when the pain of loss is inconceivable, and we need a voice to speak for us.  It’s a place for ghosts – not just the ones we’ve lost, but the ones we become when we lose them.

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And the winner is…

Carrie & Lowell

Click the album art to listen to/download the record.

Carrie & Lowell isn’t just Sufjan’s best album to date, but it’s also one of the strongest records of this now half-over decade.

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CATEGORY 5: My 2015 Mixtape

If you made it this far without wandering off and doing something that’s actually productive, then I thank you: you’re exactly the kind of audience that keeps this gig afloat.  I appreciate you joining me for yet another rehash of the best indie/folk/pop stuff that I could find on iTunes and in Target this year.  You’re the best, and I can’t wait to spend another year on this site unveiling such little-known artists as The Decemberists and Alt-J.  If you have it in you, please listen to the 2015 mixtape that I compiled below – – it took me over 7 minutes and that’s time I could have spent playing Star Wars: Battlefront.   Until next time!