Fave 2017 Albums
25 of em |
| 25 |  | Fennec
One Night Could Change Your Life
its just really groovy |
| 24 |  | Iglooghost
Neo Wax Bloom
Strange beast. Penis music. Brain tickler. Channel surfing. Alien rap. Like a GUNDAM running on bubblegum. This and the 2018 EP’s go so well together.
Check: Teal Yomi/Olivine, Super Ink Burst |
| 23 |  | Kesha
Rainbow
Post-warrior Kesha has been a bit of a ride, but you can tell that Rainbow is the first step she takes in which she finds herself outside the bounds of an electro-pop prison cell. She duets with Dolly Parton, jams out with the Eagles of Death Metal, and has Ben Folds’ help in putting a very pretty title track together. Country-inspired, with some real rollicking tunes. Good stuff.
Check: Let ‘em Talk, Praying, Boots, Old Flames (Don’t Hold A Candle To You) |
| 22 |  | Neil Cicierega
Mouth Moods
The third of four current Mouth installments, Mouth Moods tries hard to live up to its predecessor and comes pretty darn close. Very few would make something as inspired AC/VC (Back in Black + One Thousand Miles) or The End (Linkin Park vs. The Doobie Brothers), and there are a few mashup collages here that will likely stand my personal test of time (The Starting Line and Annoyed Grunt). |
| 21 |  | Com Truise
Iteration
I think this is his funkiest straight-forward synthwave one. To clarify: this is my second favorite release of his behind Cyanide Sisters. Everything else Com Truise has done is lesser versions of that and this. Sue me
Check: Memory, Propagation, When Will You Find The Limit… |
| 20 |  | Joywave
Content
Band that didn’t/doesn’t get enough attention. Content is better than their debut. A lot of busy percussion sections, a lot of loud choruses and dance-y indie vibes hiding in those first nine tracks. The last two tunes are chilled out numbers that seal the deal - this content is well rounded and I do think there’s something for just about anyone here.
Check: Content, Doubt, Thanks. Thanks For Coming, Let’s Talk About Feelings |
| 19 |  | DJ Krush
Kiseki
its just really chill |
| 18 |  | Ho99o9
United States Of Horror
Best summarized by “Someone” from sputnikmusic - For those who wish Death Grips made party bangers or Clipping. made rock anthems. Check: Bleed War, Knuckle Up, Sub Zer0 |
| 17 |  | The Blasting Company
Over The Garden Wall
As I write this, October is less than a week away which means I will be viewing Over The Garden Wall like clockwork, two hours of animation that is heavily inspired by New England folklore, Edgar Allen Poe, american gothic and the like. Its soundtrack is inspired by music from the first half of the twentieth century and older, going as far back as shape note singing from the early 19th century. It is also very whimsical and silly and I just can’t listen to it without cracking a smile.
Check: Pottsfield C.M., Langtree’s Lament, Over The Garden Wall |
| 16 |  | Vince Staples
Big Fish Theory
Vinny has my respect for putting this one together. Every song sounds a little different and none of them sound like what you’d expect. There’s a song with SOPHIE and Kendrick Lamar. Like OK dude what the fuck
Check: Big Fish, Yeah Right, SAMO, Party People |
| 15 |  | AJJ
Decade Of Regression - Live At SideOneDummy
RARE! Live acoustic album where the audience knows all the words and I feel like i’m in the room with them. Lots of really good picks here but Brave as a Noun into The Survival Song is an incredible one-two. |
| 14 |  | Windows96
Plume Valley
Like listening to the wilderness area soundtrack of a 2D RPG for 40 minutes. A very easy listen. |
| 13 |  | Steven Wilson
To the Bone
The best version of a ‘pop’ Steven Wilson. HCE is prog first and foremost, and the future bites is too up its own booty hole to work right. To The Bone has a serious groove weaving through its DNA, and it makes for some of Wilson’s most jubilant moments.
Check: Permenating, Nowhere Now, Pariah |
| 12 |  | St. Vincent
Masseduction
Quirky alt-pop. The run from Pills to Savior is excellent. Frantic rhythms, fast tempos, and the occasional soul baring ballad make this worthy of laudation.
Check: Los Ageless, Happy Birthday Johnny, Pills |
| 11 |  | Tobacco
Ripe & Majestic
Soundtrack to doing psychedelics with the teenage mutant ninja turtles in their nasty little sewer lair |
| 10 |  | Slowdive
Slowdive
Whew, any time the band gets back together after TWENTY YEARS there’s a hesitance. Cause for concern. What if they don’t have ‘it’ anymore? What if they try and fail to do something completely different? Shit, what if they succesfully do something different that *I* don’t like?
Slowdive’s 2017 Self-titled deflects all of those concerns by simply picking up where they left off. The Great Mid 2010’s Shoegaze Band Reunion is kindest to this band most. Fans of the band get everything they love with updated production and hopefully some new favorites.
Check: Sugar For The Pill, Don’t Know Why, Falling Ashes |
| 9 |  | Tigers Jaw
Spin
I’ve seen some people describe this one as boring or safe, but I think there’s merit to making something that checks all the cliche boxes. Spin is that, and there’s a safety in that template. Really sweet emo stuff, great male/female vocals. Check: June, Guardian, Bullet |
| 8 |  | Rina Sawayama
Rina
Rina and Clarence Clarity work like peanut butter and jelly here. A y2k aesthetic, a sound verging on maximalist percussion heavy pop, and themes of internet celebrity span this EP. It’s a package tied together nicely, and if you like your pop music bombastic and electronic, give it a listen. |
| 7 |  | Brockhampton
SATURATION II
IDK how strong opinions are on the other saturations but i’ve only listened to 2 oops. Some great beats on tracks like QUEER, SWAMP, TOKYO, SWEET, etc,. The lyrics are where BH has always shone for me though. Merlyn Wood has some funny lines here, Dom and Ameer find some great flows, and Kevin Abstract has the whole first minute of JUNKY and if that ain’t enough I don’t know what is. Easy listen.
Check: QUEER, SWAMP, JUNKY, GUMMY |
| 6 |  | Charli XCX
Number 1 Angel
Sweet and chewy bubblegum electropop. With big help from the PC Music crew, Number 1 Angel follows the hints of her new sound on Vroom Vroom and goes all out on a bright and energetic sound. For me everything here is good, but N1A has a funny pattern going on where I ADORE every even numbered song, and the odds range from fine to good. Check out: Roll With Me, Babygirl, Lipgloss |
| 5 |  | Kendrick Lamar
DAMN.
I think the take I have that is most likely to get me choked out is that DAMN. is as good as TPAB, and on a given day I’d actually rather listen to it. DAMN is Kendrick taking on popular hip-hop tropes and getting it right down to a science. Every verse has a memorable bar, every track presents its ideas quickly and cleanly, and everything sounds pristine. I genuinely don’t know what people take issue with on this record. I think people maybe perceive the first two thirds of this as less real or from the heart, but even if that was true tracks like XXX. FEAR. and DUCKWORTH. just make that thought completely moot to me. Great album (per usual) from K-Dot |
| 4 |  | Lingua Ignota
All Bitches Die
This absolutely destroyed me the first time I heard it. Loud, screeching industrial. Occasionally operatic. CONSTANTLY harrowing. All Bitches Die touches on very real situations and feelings of desperation, pain, abuse. Hard to listen to at times, but its emotions are raw and if you let it grab you, it will not let go. |
| 3 |  | Alvvays
Antisocialites
Reverb heavy somber tunes that sound like the salty ocean breeze on a cool autumn day. That could sum up every Alvvays album, but they seem to have a knack for perfecting that mood better with each album. Here ‘Dreams Tonite’, ‘In Undertow’ and ‘Not My Baby’ take the cake here, each one loaded with deep hooks and a strong vocal performance. Keep at it, Molly Mayhem. |
| 2 |  | Tyler, The Creator
Flower Boy
Suddenly the hot new bisexual icon on the scene, Tyler spends Flower Boy ruminating on relationships, navigating friends and lovers, fame and loneliness, companionship and being queer. It’s a balancing act he completes with grace. Flower Boy is Tyler’s most lowkey outing, but its still filled with compelling bars and poetry that highlight how odd (ha) it is to be a popular rapper thats queer, and finding their comfort level in speaking on it. |
| 1 |  | Nmesh
Pharma
An inebriated sound collage for tripping through time, space and visual medium. Pharma is NMesh at his very best, sampling obscurities and sound effects you’ve probably heard sparingly throughout your life. 9 Minute epic Mall Full Of Drugs steals the show, a perpetually melting oil painting picturing estranged youth, food court drug deals, and loading zones outside the mall. |
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