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Year End Lists

50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EPs/Live Albums/Compilations

50. Horrendous – Idol

Horrendous - Idol
[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Horrendous’ ascension from rabid Swede-worshiping youngsters to trailblazing veterans has been one of the most compelling arcs to witness in all of death metal history. The way these four Philly natives have progressed over the last six years has been nothing short of awe-inspiring, and their latest offering, Idol, stands a monolith of modern death metal, an album by which all others should be measured. It will make you believe in the magic of metal again; bursting with youthful exuberance and a brash sense of adventure, yet maintaining a vice grip on classic death metal songwriting. Idol has the feeling of exploring the unknown while simultaneously holding true to the tenets of the genre. What really sells the album though is the apparent ease Horrendous manage to weave together these disparities. Whether in the epic “Golgothan Tongues”, which sees a transcendent combination of melody and groove, or “Devotion (Blood For Ink)”, which marries the group’s most progressive and guttural intentions, there isn’t a moment on Idol where Horrendous feel like they aren’t in total control of their forward-thinking death metal assault. Pushing the boundaries has become so inherent to what they do that each song finds new ways to express their ambitious craft. It’s this aptitude that has elevated them to the status of extreme metal gods, and why in 2018 the whole of the underground has bent a knee…

25-11  |  10-1

10) Sepulcher – Panoptic Horror

Genre: Death Metal  |  Bandcamp

Despite how fantastic of a sales pitch it is, I can’t help but feel like I’m doing Panoptic Horror a disservice by describing it as “Hell Awaits era Slayer meets crust punk.” That feeling mostly comes down to the fact that, although they’re not trying to hide their influences, they’re definitely their own thing. The killer LP is a primo slab of ripping thrash with a death metal tinge, all the while borrowing the production, punk ethos and overdrive technique from a band like Sacrilege or Anti-Cimex. No matter who or what you hear in it, it’s the kind of sinister shit that conjures images of grotesque demons, airborne bricks, broken bones and/or searing flesh in the mind of the listener.

In other words, if Hell had a mosh pit, this would be the soundtrack.  –Bloon

9) Spaceslug – Eye The Tide

Genre: Doom Metal  |  Bandcamp

As the decade draws to a close, 2018 has proven to be one of the more interesting years from it. Looking at the metal genre as a collective, this year has seen an internal struggle with artistic innovation and corporate, algorithmic songwriting; futilely homogeneous and insipid mainstream metal releases versus the heavy lifting and sometimes groundbreaking works from the underground scenes – of which there has been a good handful…

25-11  |  10-1

25) Yung Lean – Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy

Genre: Hip-Hop  |  Official Site

I feel somewhat reticent talking about Yung Lean, let alone his latest, Poison Ivy. Whatever I write drips with ignorance, despite my love for the 22-minute project; and in some sense, that’s unavoidable. An air of mystique has always seemed to surround the Swedish rapper – as though those uninitiated were being poked at, and even the most meaningful of lyrics were being delivered with a grin and a wink. That might be the point, though: Jonatan Leandoer’s mainstream success seems neither obvious nor miraculous. Likewise, the “point” is one unattainable. Or rather, an “understanding” is useless – condescending and maybe even a little counter-intuitive. Yung Lean makes music – and that music is good – and Poison Ivy is good – and whatever meaning there is to be gleaned is meaning to be gleaned from the music itself. From the dark and distorted overtones of the mixtape’s more obvious, hook-driven choruses, and the incoherence of its central figure. I think cultural aesthetic is helpful in hooking one into a scene and its artists; but often – as is the case with Poison Ivy – the music itself speaks volumes. And Poison Ivy speaks in tongues.  –BlushfulHippocrene

24) McCafferty – Yarn

Yarn

Genre: Pop-Punk  |  Bandcamp

It’s easier than it should be to dismiss Ohio’s…

Welcome back to the greatest show on the internet!

The SMA’s have returned!

star captain GIF

Duh – Sowing’s Music Awards?  It’s cute that you pretended to forget – it’s only the biggest name in sputnik user profile, end-of-year, blog-based award shows.  It’s kind of a big deal.

So anyway, after a one year absence, the SMA’s are back in full force to rock your world.  Forget the Grammy’s – they’re a joke.  Teen Choice Awards?  God help us.  This is where you want to look for the best music of 2018: A place where only exceptional music earns the spotlight, and only the very best wins (Well, unless it’s one of the worst of the year categories – a brand new feature!  But I won’t give anything else away.)

There’s a plethora of fun categories this year, but no award is more coveted than the seriously cool shit AOTY trophy [pictured below].  Low Roar, Sufjan Stevens, and Yellowcard (lol) have all come away with it before, and last year it would have been Manchester Orchestra.  In the meanwhile, we’ve seen distinguished nominees such as Radiohead, The Antlers, and Fleet Foxes walk away empty-handed.   It just goes to show that I don’t give a shit, and this is my show.

I’m still accepting offers to host the show.  Judio (remember him? wasn’t he a contributor or something?) still has permanent dibs, but seeing as…

50-31 | 30-11 | EPs 10-1

10. Kendrick Lamar – DAMN.
C9H8-PWUIAAzbQ2-jpg-large-e

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Let’s just forget for a moment that the Collector’s Edition of DAMN. ever happened. OK, is it out of your minds? Good. Now let’s also for a moment ignore the nearly invisible thread of a thematic composition, as it’s really the drops of blood that fall from Kendrick’s mouth throughout the record that help illuminate this thin string. It’s true, Kendrick embraces his own death and almost enjoys the metallic taste that society has caused to pool in his mouth. And damn if he doesn’t lash out right away with “DNA.”, easily the banger of the year solidified by the fervent extra verse that ends the track with silent mouths agape. Despite “HUMBLE.” also taking from the leftover rush of endorphins, Kendrick decides to expand off of his jazz rap endeavor, this time with a rosy filter of R&B rap and laid-back vibes. “ELEMENT.” is the front-runner when it comes to such a trial, with Rihanna-featured “LOYALTY.” coming close behind. While not every love-drenched track succeeds quite as much as the two, it’s hard to argue against this next logical step in Kendrick’s style and sound.

I’ll be completely honest, though, I’m not the biggest fan of this album as a whole. Don’t get me wrong, the product in its entirety is put together quite nicely, nonetheless tacked on with some buttons of…

50-31 | 30-11 | EPs 10-1

15. The Wonder Years – Burst and Decay

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

While not necessarily offering much in new material, The Wonder Years manage to affirm their intentions with this emotionally wrought collection of beautifully arranged acoustic renditions of previous material. Dan Campbell’s vocals ring as self-assured and vibrant as ever, and the band’s instrumentation adds many more colors to the pallet already established by the track listing. The production is intimate and the emotional tension is high on Burst and Decay, and The Wonder Years managed to create a nice batch of acoustic arrangements that arguably outshine their original renditions. –ianblxdsoe

14. Charli XCX – Number 1 Angel

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Baseball is my favorite sport, so when it comes to the end of the year and evaluating its yield, I like the idea of tidying up my thoughts in terms of individual contributions. For a team sport, baseball’s modern era permits (nay, encourages) an insane degree of focus on individual performance and contributions (and there is a litany of statistics to this effect). It’s a weird analogue to draw, for sure, but it is super clear to me that Charli XCX is the 2017 MVP. Like DAMN, talk about output… there were the twin mixtapes (this one, as well as Pop2, both of…

50-31 | 30-11 | EPs10-1

50. Ryuichi Sakamoto – Async
Ryuichi Sakamoto - Async

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

It feels weird to be kicking off our best of the year list with async. After all, the opener “Andata” is the sort of song associated with endings; it’s a funeral dirge, a reflection of where Sakamoto’s mind was no doubt wandering during his three year battle with cancer. Perhaps this fear of death also led to the common day sounds present throughout async. The first words spoken on the album (“Because we don’t know when we will die, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens only a certain number of times”) is the sentiment that I think sums up the importance of these sounds we take for granted, yet may never hear again. “Walker”, for example, features the sound of grass crunched underfoot and the background noise of a town or city in the distance, provoking the sort of quiet contemplation that no doubt Sakamoto experienced while crafting async. But if most of async is the quiet reflection that comes with the reminder of one’s mortality, then the title track is the sweating painful fear that comes with all the pangs and doubts as to whether remission will come. And for that complex duality, I think async deserves a spot here. –Mort.

49. Alvvays – Antisocialites
Alvvays - Antisocialites copy

[Official Site] // [Spotify] //…

Many of you guys know the deal here. I’ve done the best album ranks for each year of sputnik’s existence starting here. Briefly, when users were complaining about the lack of charts, I made a post with the current year end rankings. For those who are too lazy to click links, these are the top 200 albums of 2017 as measured by calculating the weighted average of users’ ratings, with higher weight given proportional to a handful of user’s stats (number of comments, lists, reviews, and ratings). Afterword, a confidence interval is calculated based on the average and the number of ratings each album has (an album that is a 3.95 with 100 ratings is ranked higher than an album with 3.95 and 50 ratings, for instance). Finally, only albums with 50 or more ratings are included, and note that all types of albums are included in this: LPs, EPs, live albums, compilations, and I guess any singles that have snuck past our moderators.


UserUsageRank 1, MeanRank: 4, Gang of Youths_Go Farther in Lightness
Number of Ratings: 285, UserUsageMean: 3.99 (CI: 3.78 – 4.17), Mean: 4.01, Diff: -0.02
Users with Biggest Weight: SowingSeason (2.4%), Willie (2.1%), klap (2.0%), BigHans (1.9%), Green+Baron (1.8%)

UserUsageRank 2, MeanRank: 1, Brand New_Science Fiction
Number of Ratings: 1262, UserUsageMean: 3.86 (CI: 3.77 – 3.96), Mean: 4.06, Diff: -0.20
Users with Biggest Weight: Trebor. (0.8%), SowingSeason (0.8%), Willie (0.7%), klap (0.7%), Hawks (0.6%)

UserUsageRank 3, MeanRank: 3, Chelsea

50-31 | 30-1110-1 | EPs

10. Car Seat Headrest – Teens of Denial
10. Car Seat Headrest - Teens of Denial

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

“I’ve got no right to be depressed,” whines Will Toledo on Teens of Denial‘s cerebral and prescient opener, “Fill in the Blank”. In it, he complains about nothing in particular, lamenting nothing whilst refusing to form an intelligent or informed opinion on anything. In many ways, he’s symptomatic of white, liberal, twenty-something naval-gazing, always finding problems but never caring to see if there’s solutions. But, in denying the illegitimacy of his malaise, and proclaiming with a sort of disenfranchised aplomb that he indeed ‘has a right to be depressed,’ Toledo flips the narrative; he welcomes introversion and entertains its possibilities. It becomes the central thesis of Teens of Denial, kicking against the little things with a sincerely sarcastic bent. Toledo writes bedroom pop songs around knotty compositions, exercising guitar theatrics whilst never emerging from his humbled performance style. In effect, he’s living a maladaptive daydream, wherein his lonely nights become cathartic rock concerts, celebrating his emotional fragility whilst having at least one foot on the distortion pedal. If you’ve ever spent a Saturday night at home, then you’ll recognize the sound. –Elliott

9. Jeff Rosenstock – Worry.
44. Jeff Rosenstock - Worry

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Worry. is essentially one of the most fun and upbeat albums of…

50-31 | 30-1110-1 | EPs

10. Brand New – 3 Demos, Reworked
10. Brand New - 3 Demos, Reworked

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

There are some questions as to why 3 Demos, Reworked even exists. Was it a hastily-recorded fixer to smooth over the grumblings when LP5 was delayed once again? Or was it planned out in advance, part of a bigger scheme leading up to whatever Brand New have in store for 2017? The cynic in me thinks the former, but the music on display seems to bear up the latter. 3 Demos is the tightest, least-forced music we’ve heard from Brand New since Daisy, and the fact that the songs are more than ten years old doesn’t seem to hurt that in the least. “Brother’s Song” and “1996” are clean, crisp and beautiful, with the former’s raw acoustic appeal translating weirdly well to a full-band electric version. “1996” has definitely changed the least, with Lacey’s best Morrissey impression still in the forefront amongst some of the finest and most cynical lyrics he’s ever penned. Only “Missing You” is a dud, with the original’s dirty electronic drive totally lost amongst the too-polished, too-slow reinterpretation. But “Missing You” doesn’t stop this being one of the stronger EPs of the year, and hopefully a sign that Brand New are getting back in the headspace that gave us The Devil and God… all those years ago. –Rowan

9. JANK – Versace

50-31 | 30-1110-1 | EPs

30. Jimmy Eat World – Integrity Blues14. Jimmy Eat World - Integrity Blues

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Jimmy Eat World perhaps saw the biggest return to form of any artist this year. After three albums passed and faced mixed reception from fans and critics alike, Jim Adkins took a step back and dove into more personal lyricism, with the band following suit. There is a lot more emotion in everything this time around without feeling like they are trying too hard, and Jim replaces the “you”s that he has been singing about since Bleed American and replaces them with “I”s. While the album dives into some territory the band have previously delved into – such as the incredible post-rock bridge of “Sure and Certain” and the swaying acoustic ballad of “The End is Beautiful” – there is something new to be found, such as the progressive rock conclusion of “Pass the Baby”. If there are any doubts about the band’s ability to write strong material, the final two tracks could go down as some of their best. Integrity Blues sees the return of Jimmy Eat World to their absolute potential, showing that maybe the best has yet to come. –Hogan

29. Blood Incantation – Starspawn34. Blood Incantation - Starspawn

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Label Site]

Given the prevalence of the OSDM revival recently, it’s refreshing to see a…

50-31 | 30-1110-1 | EPs

50. SUMAC – What One Becomes43. Sumac - What One Becomes

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

With names such as Aaron Turner, Brian Cook, and Nick Yacyshyn at the helm, there’s no doubt SUMAC were born to create thunderous music. Few bands can make such a massive sound with only three members. What One Becomes sees their brand of sludge become less riff-oriented and move more towards a plodding, pummeling approach. SUMAC aren’t content to stay at one tempo though; the band are just as comfortable pounding out menacing chords in separate octaves as they are launching into breakneck passages or suddenly giving way to spacey, fuzzy moments. This behemoth of a record is out to crush you, and Kurt Ballou’s production ensures it’s as organic-sounding as they come. –RogueNine

48 (tie). Devin Townsend Project – Transcendence
04 Devin Townsend Project

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Some might argue that Devin Townsend is practically a god in the music industry. Ever since his debut album, Townsend has been creating some of the most surreal and entertaining music over these last twenty years, ranging from the modern pop-metal routines of the Devin Townsend Project albums to his more aggressive days in Strapping Young Lad. Transcendence is, in a way, the culmination of some of his best ideas thrown together into one hour-long record. While it certainly isn’t as reliable on…

50-31 | 30-1110-1

10. Intronaut – The Direction Of Last Things

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

Love it or hate it, progressive metal is a tough genre to tackle because it takes true skill to balance technicality and emotion. At the same time, it’s another skill to make it sound completely engaging even when it’s nothing new. Even the genre’s most essential artists have trouble going about their music regarding this aspect. Intronaut accomplished this with flying colors due to their incredible musicianship and engaging vocals, both clean and harsh. In addition to this, this album’s melodies prove to be absolutely breathtaking. The band manage to tread familiar ground while consistently making things sound quite fresh in the process, which is quite admirable. It’s for these reasons that The Direction of Last Things exists as one of the best releases of the year. –Nick Mongiardo

9. Titus Andronicus – The Most Lamentable Tragedy
9 Titus

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

It isn’t – and probably never will be – anyone’s favourite Titus album, but with the benefit of hindsight, 2012’s Local Business was a record that had to be made. Hell, the mere thought of topping The Monitor must have been daunting in itself, so it’s to their immense credit that Patrick Stickles and co. circumvented the…

Oh, you thought this was going to be the Top Ten LPs of 2015 feature?

lol

It’s okay. You can come back tomorrow (maybe) for the 10-1 LPs. –Jom


10 (tie). Foreign Fields – What I Kept in Hiding
ep11_ff_wikih

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

10 (tie). Plini – The End of Everything
ep12_p_teoe

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

I understand that this person means well in his/her own mind and is only going off personal experience or religious persuasion, but I personally dislike eulogies where the speaker asserts that “[So-and-so] is in a better place.” What makes the eulogizer think that the deceased wouldn’t rather be here with us if he could? Daniel Davis (known to most here as paradox1216) passed away this year after a long battle with cancer. Although we all paid our respects when we learned of the tragic news in October, my hope is that we can integrate his positive energy, enthusiasm, and musical curiosity into our own site presences. As problematic as this site can be on the back-end with technological headaches and other details that are completely outside of our control, Sputnikmusic is nevertheless a sanctuary, an interconnected respite for the weary, a place in which we can escape from “the real world” for a few minutes per day to engage colleagues and friends about our shared love of music in meaningful ways. You can…

50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1

30. Hiatus Kaiyote – Choose Your Weapon
30 Hiatus Kaiyote - Choose Your Weapon

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]

It took me a long time to come around to Choose Your Weapon. Even as an avid fan of their debut, the follow-up is incomparably perplexing. Every time you start to wrap your head around the groove, tracks will spiral off in opposing directions — if you’ve ever heard a song that melds Afrobeat and chiptune as coherently as “Atari”, let me know. This steepens the entry curve somewhat, and means it may come across as flighty and directionless if not given the time of day (*cough* Fantano *cough*). However, those who delve deep and give it that time will find one of the most bizarrely enriching listening experiences of 2015.

Soul revivalists all too often pigeonhole themselves into a specific niche, but Hiatus Kaiyote make use of many strains of jazz, soul and funk from the last 50 years. You would think this smorgasbord of influences would cause the album to come across scatterbrained, but the band always somehow manage to rein it back in thanks to the enigmatic vocals of Nai Palm. Through every absurd twist in Weapon‘s wild ride, Palm is always there, adjusting to match the backdrop while providing some much needed grounding for listeners losing their way amongst the labyrinthine compositions. Have no doubt: it can be an exhausting and complex journey,…

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