MORE SENSELESS ACTS OF BLOGGERY

Another year, another Best Albums list. Wabba dabba!!!

And yes, I’m late with this. I spent the last two weeks of 2024 looking for a new place to move to, and then spent pretty much all of January packing, moving, unpacking and so on and so forth, and then I got sick.

Did that stop me from compiling a year-end list that only three people will read? It did not. That’s how much I love you.

As for the year in music summary, apart from there being more Amelia Earhart content than usual, it seems like I picked up on more (relatively) new bands than usual this year. Still, I’m not sure that matters so much anymore. At the end of the day you like what you like, and there will always be some new band or songwriter who will qualify. The whole “is new music still any good?” meme is about as relevant to me as the “is rock and roll dead?” meme. The music is always there and always will be, and it doesn’t always have to be the life-changing bands you heard in high school/college.

As David Bowie once said, “Let’s face the music and dance.”

And so:

dEFROG’S TOP 20 ALBUMS OF 2024

A Certain Ratio

It All Comes Down To This (Mute)

13^th album from English band that explored the funkier side of post-punk, and continue to do so today, if somewhat sporadically. That said, this is their third release in four years, so ACR seems to be having a renaissance moment. Last year’s 1982 was a mixed bag for me songwise, but this one seems to press the right groove buttons more often than not. I can sure dance to it, let’s put it that way.

Laurie Anderson

Amelia (Nonesuch)

This year saw not one, but two concept albums about the last flight of legendary aviator Amelia Earhart. Anderson’s approach is characteristically artistic, dreamy and kaleidoscopic, with sound effects, journal entries and inner dialogue interspersed with guest vocals from Anonhi into what is essentially one 34-minute piece comprising 22 segments. You won’t get a lot of insight into Earhart or her last flight, but then that’s like saying you won’t learn anything about Mona Lisa’s life from looking at a painting of her. Anyway, it’s captivating.

Los Bitchos

Talkie Talkie (City Slang)

Second LP from UK-based band that blends surf, psychedelia and Cumbia into one big dance party. This time around, they feed those influences into a 1980s disco, and the result is arguably even more groovy than their debut. As the title implies, there’s slightly more vocals here, but (as the title also implies) it’s more talking than singing, and there’s not all that much – it’s still mostly instrumentals, and Los Bitchos do it better than just about anyone else right now.

The Bug Club

On The Intricate Inner Workings of the System (Sub Pop)

Third LP from Welsh duo that get lumped into the current wave of “RIYL The Fall” post-punk revivalist bands (which I’m told is called Crank Wave now by order of NME), though musically it’s more like fairly straightforward indie rock with snarky observational lyrics – closer to bands like Ween (only less offensive) than, say, Yard Act. Whatever label you want to slap on it, it’s done well, and it’s a lot of fun.

John Carpenter

Lost Themes IV: Noir (Rodeo Suplex/Sacred Bones)

Fifth album from film legend John Carpenter along with son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies (son of Dave), and the fourth to serve up themes to John Carpenter films that haven’t been made yet and probably never will be. For me, it’s been diminishing returns since the first one, but this volume reverses that trend with more tracks that spark the imagination rather than tread water. Recommended mostly for people who like John Carpenter films, or at least the soundtracks (and I like both, so there you go.)

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Wild God (Play It Again Sam)

18^th LP from Nick Cave and his Bad Seeds, in which Cave continues to ruminate on death (which he’s had to deal with a lot lately, especially two of his sons), but with a striking and inspiring optimism that oscillates between earthly transcendence and bubble-bursting reality checks. It’s arguably the opposite of how Cave might have approached this material 30 years ago, which is what makes the album that more surprising and moving. Calling it Cave’s “Christian” phase is probably pushing the analogy too far, and yet Cave captures his recent spiritual transformation more convincingly that a lot of mainstream Christian artists. Who would have guessed?

Electric Eel Shock

Heavy Metal Black Belt (Double Peace Records)

It’s nice to know that EES are still around – they kind of dropped off my radar after 2007’s excellent Transworld Ultra Rock, and they’ve only recorded three albums since then, including this, their ninth. Essentially it’s more of the same, which in this case is a good thing – deliberate lunkhead hard rock with a very Japanese sense of humour that most metal bands probably don’t wish they had but could certainly use. Black belts earned!

Gustaf

Package Part 2 (Royal Mountain Records)

Second album from New York no-wave band and entirely new to me. It’s probably too simple to lump them into the same category as “sounds kinda like The Fall” bands (see:  Yard Act, Dry Cleaning and Wet Leg, none of which sound like The Fall, but you get what I mean), with Lydia Gammill speak-singing and whatnot. For me, it’s closer to 80s bands like Pylon, early Talking Heads or Gang of Four, or what bands like New Young Pony Club were trying to do 15 years ago. Anyway, it’s wonderfully sparse, funky art-punk with a dark, sardonic sense of humor. I dance to this on the train because I can’t help it.

Klangphonics

Perfect Opposure (Klangphonics)

First full-length from German trio mostly known for playing techno with mostly live instruments and found objects like leaf blowers, steam cleaners and blenders. And they do it so well you’d never know it from listening to this, which musically sounds like what you expect techno to sound like. In other words, if you didn’t know they were playing live, you might mistake this for just another techno album, albeit a pretty good one with decent tunes. Which is another way of saying it’s easier to appreciate what they do in a live performance than on record. Still, I do find myself getting lost in the music anyway, which is what good techno does.

Liela Moss

Transparent Eyeball (Mother Figure Records)

Liela Moss – front person for UK band The Duke Spirit – follows up last year’s wonderful Internal Working Model with her fourth solo LP that pursues a similar template of electronic pop that forms the foundation for Moss’ creative vocal arrangements. This one has more of a Gothic feel and it slightly underwhelms in comparison to Internal Working Model. On the other hand this came out late in the year and it only hit my radar a month ago, so I need to sit with it a little more. Anyway, I do like it, if only because Moss is one of those people whose voice really captivates me.

The Linda Lindas

No Obligation (Epitaph)

Second album from LA punk band that were ubiquitous three years ago after a video of them performing “Racist Sexist Boy” in a public library went viral, but lately it seems they’ve dropped off the mass pop culture radar. Or maybe I don’t keep up as much as I used to. Anyway, their latest LP shows they’re still a good punk band that’s also evolving into something relatively more mature in terms of music and perspective (they’re still teenagers, after all) as they deal with trying to forge their own identity in a world that expects them to conform to the usual expectations or live up to the hype. Which I think is why the best songs for me are the ones that deviate from the pop-punk formula.

Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets

Indoor Safari (Yep Roc)

The “Jesus of Cool” returns with his first album of new songs in 11 years, and his first full-length LP with lucha-mask surf band Los Straitjackets, who have served as his touring band for the last six or seven years. A few of these songs were released as singles or EPs as far back as 2018. Musically it’s exactly the way you’d expect a Nick Lowe/Los Straitjackets team-up to sound, and while it’s a relatively calm affair, it’s also the most amiable album I heard this year. Extra points for Lowe writing a song about going to parties and being mistaken for Robyn Hitchcock.

Messer Chups

Dark Side of Paradise (Hi-Tide Recordings)

Album #18 from St Petersburg-based band that started off trading in experimental surf rock combined with Russian folk music and old film soundtracks, but lately have become more of a straightforward horror-themed surf-rock band, at least on record. And yes, surf-rock bands (horror themed or otherwise) are a dime a dozen these days, but while Messer Chups pretty much sticks to the formula, they do so better than most, or at least with more of a sense of humour.

Public Service Broadcasting

The Last Flight (SO Recordings/Silva Screen Records)

PSB’s fifth LP is also the second of two Amelia Earhart concept albums on this list. Where Laurie Anderson is more meditative and artistic than informative, PSB take their usual cinematic indie-rock approach mixed with guest vocalists, historical soundbites and – as there’s not a lot of recordings of Earhart talking – voice actor Kate Graham reading Earhart’s journal entries and communications transcripts. The result is surprisingly emotional. The Race For Space remains PSB’s greatest achievement for me, but this is a close second.

Pylon Reenactment Society

Magnet Factory (Strolling Bones Records)

Not a Pylon reunion, but an incredible simulation! Pylon was one of the unsung post-punk legends of the Athens scene that produced REM and the B-52s. In 2017, Pylon singer Vanessa Briscoe Hay formed PRS to perform songs from her old band, and perhaps inevitably they started creating new songs as well. After an EP and several singles, PRS released this debut LP, featuring seven new songs and two unrecorded Pylon songs. It may not be a proper Pylon reunion, but it really captures the spunky energy and arty playfulness that made Pylon such a joy to listen to. Possibly my most favourite release this year.

Shadow Show

Fantasy Now! (Stolen Body Records)

Second album from Detroit band that dives even deeper into fuzzy psychedelic grooves than their debut LP, and they’re a better band for it. It’s a familiar template, but Shadow Show knows how to use it, with hypnotic vocal harmonies and righteous power chords deployed in just the right places. Sometimes they veer into Dandy Warhols territory, but without the cynical hipsterisms, which is a good thing.

Swamp Dogg

Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th Street (Oh Boy Records)

For his 26^th album, Swamp Dogg goes full-on country – which is not as weird as it sounds when you remember that he was pals with John Prine, and Johnny Paycheck’s version of Swamp Dogg’s “She’s All I Got” was a #2 hit in 1971. Lyrically it’s about what you’d expect from Swamp Dogg, but musically it’s pretty good straightforward country, thanks to a sharp string band and added value from guest stars Margo Price, Jenny Lewis and Vernon Reid. It’s also better than most “proper” country albums released this year, if you ask me.

Teenage Riot

We Are Full (Harbour Records)

Third LP from Hong Kong band that describes itself as “copy rock” – an apparent reference to the fact that they started off as a Sonic Youth cover band (which is also where they got their name from). The SY influences remain dominant in their own music, with shoegaze another obvious reference point, but it’s the jazzy horn section that puts them a level above their derivative influences. Doesn’t always work, but it’s very interesting when it does.

The The

Ensoulment (earMUSIC)

Matt Johnson returns to duty with The The after a 24-year break, and he’s clearly got a lot to say. Ensoulment covers a lot of ground musically to deliver Johnson’s ruminations on the state of things in 2024 – from rising authoritarianism in the UK and US to the empty experience of dating apps. Johnson also gets personal with reflections on love, mortality and death. In most cases his gravelly baritone suits the material perfectly, even when it occasionally feels like he’s trying a bit too hard to be clever. But as late-career comeback albums go, this is reassuringly good.

X

Smoke & Fiction (Fat Possum Records)

Ninth and final album from punk legends X, in which they spend a lot of time ruminating over their own history and how far they’ve come since their hungry days. What’s remarkable is how well they’ve managed to retain that spark that makes their music compellingly energetic, even when it doesn’t quite work. In terms of song quality, I personally think that their comeback album Alphabetland would have been a stronger note to go out on, but this will also do nicely.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Ibibio Sound Machine

Pull The Rope (Merge Records)

Fifth album from London-based electronic Afro-funk band that started as a music project to combine 1980s afrobeat with '90s drum-and-bass, but have since evolved into a full band fronted by Eno Williams that blends post-punk, electro and classic West African funk and disco. I first heard them via their previous LP Electricity, which had a great leadoff track (“Protection From Evil”) that the rest of the album didn’t live up to. For this one, the quality still varies but with less filler.

New Model Army

Unbroken (earMUSIC)

Justin Sullivan’s New Model Army is perhaps the only British band that has been pigeonholed as punk, post-punk, Goth, metal and folk, mostly inaccurately. That tradition continues on album #15, which doesn’t quite live up to their best work in the late 80s, but it occasionally comes close, and there’s still some good stuff here.

Shannon and the Clams

The Moon Is In The Wrong Place (Easy Eye Sound/Concord)

Seventh album from Shannon and the Clams, and one created under difficult circumstances, with Shannon Shaw’s fiancé (and a close friend of the band) Joe Haener being killed in a car accident before the band started recording. So grief is a central theme here, although some of the songs were written before Haener’s death. SatC don’t shy away from it, but they don’t let it overwhelm the music either. It doesn’t quite match the magical, delightful creepiness of their previous album, but that would have been inappropriate for this one anyway.

TsuShiMaMiRe

Mizumono (バンドは水物) (Mojor Records)

I wouldn’t call myself an aficionado on Japanese indie rock, but TsuShiMaMiRe has somehow escaped my radar for 25 years, despite being one of the more successful Japanese all-girl trios that isn’t Shonen Knife. But better late than never, I suppose. This is their 20^th album, released to mark their 25^th anniversary, which also features a re-recorded version of fan favorite “Baka Moto Karee” (“Stupid Curry”). It’s a pretty solid set of fun art punk.

BEST EPS

Baby Rose and BADBADNOTGOOD

Slow Burn (Secretly Canadian)

I confess I’m not familiar with Atlanta-based singer-songwriter Baby Rose, but I am familiar with Canadian jazzy-hip-hop instrumentalists BADBADNOTGOOD, which is how this came across my radar. Like it says on the tin, this is a slow-burn groove best listened to whilst sipping whiskey at 2:30am after a long night. BADBADNOTGOOD are at their best when they do collaborations like this – Baby Rose might be too, I dunno.

Fulu Mikiti

Mokano (Moshi Moshi)

Congolese band that takes the junkyard band concept to the next level – literally every instrument they play is made from stuff recycled from the dump, from petrol cans and flip-flops to car parts and plastic tubing. Hence their name, which in Lingala means “music from the garbage”. They also describe themselves as an Eco-Friendly Afrofuturist Punk collective. In any case, it’s a joyous, raucous noise. Great stage costumes, too.

The Klittens

Butter (self-released)

Second EP from Amsterdam-based quintet that started as a creative and political outlet for the band members and eventually became a full-time music thing. Musically they’re sort of a tighter, more polished version of The Raincoats, albeit with a penchant for unexpected noisy guitar feedback every so often. Catchy tunes, great name.

BEST SINGLES

Altın Gün

Vallahi Yok / Kırık Cam (Glitterbeat)

Dutch-Turkish band Altın Gün continues its quest to concoct psychedelic new wave covers of old Turkish folk songs and create new songs based on same. They released several singles this year, but I picked this one by flipping a coin, basically, though the A-side is the better of the two. But it is groovy.

Nanowar of Steel

Afraid to Shoot into the Eyes of a Stranger in a Strange Land (Napalm Records)

Hard to believe Italian parody metal band Nanowar of Steel have been around 20 years now. They released a Best Of retrospective this year that also contained this new track, which more or less accurately distills the entire Iron Maiden catalog into one almost seven-minute tribute song.

Leenalchi

Lesser Gods and Chimeras (HIKE)

Leenalchi is possibly South Korea’s most unusual indie-pop band – three traditional folk singers, two bassists and a drummer that perform pasori (traditional storytelling in song) set to modern dance-rock music, and the results are generally wonderful. They released a few singles in 2024, mostly K-drama themes, but this is from their upcoming second album, and it’s an absolute banger.

my little airport

威士忌 (Whiskey) (Self released)

Hong Kong’s favorite underground twee-pop band with a political edge (shhh!) released two singles this year, and both are good, but this is my favorite of the two – at face value, a rumination on how we turn to alcohol to deal with grief, loss and change, but also perhaps a low-key lament for all the people who have left HK and feel guilty about it. Possibly. My Cantonese is extremely basic. Anyway, I like it.

Nusantara Beat

Mang Becak (Les Disques Bongo Joe)

Indonesian band based in Amsterdam that gives psychedelic makeovers to classic Indonesian folk and pop songs from the 70s and 80s. If you dig bands like Cambodian Space Project or Altın Gün, this could be for you. It certainly is for me.

THE PLAYLIST 

Wanna sample the above? Well you can.

Same time next year,

This is dF

Another year, another Best Albums list. Flippy doo!!!

Commentary track regarding this year’s haul:

1. As usual, my tastes tend to lean in favor of bands and artists that have been around at least 20 years, or sound like bands from 40-50 years ago. Probably because I am old and decrepit and set in my ways.

2. I picked 15 as a round number, though I would say 12 of these really knocked me out, while the rest were good but standard.

3. It may be extra work, but I’m probably going to make the Singles and EPs categories a regular thing, since a lot of bands these days are releasing them in lieu of albums, or as stopgaps. For now, I’m just including singles that don’t have an LP to go with them.

4. I’ve finally decided to abandon the official ranking system – partly because it’s too much work (I mean, this thing is over 4,000 word long as it is), and partly because honestly, I’ve gotten to a stage where I’ve got 15 albums I enjoyed listening to, and does it really matter which ones are better than others? And anyway I may change my mind in a few years. If that don’t suit you, that’s a drag. Feel free to DM me for a refund.

dEFROG’S TOP 15 ALBUMS OF 2023

Algiers

Shook (Matador)

4^th album from Atlanta band that’s a departure from the previous batch in that it features a lot more collaboration with other artists, the biggest names of which include Zack de la Rocha, billy woods and Samuel T. Herring. Otherwise it’s the same glorious genre-blending state-of-the-planet address that sounds like no other band I can name, only from a community rather than leader Franklin James Fisher. A little long, but it’s probably their best album since their debut.

Bunny X

Love Minus 80 (Aztec Records)

I’m not sure that there was demand for an Italo disco revival, but Bunny X gave us one anyway, and it sounds great. This is the second LP from duo Abigail Gordon and Mary Hanley, and it’s top-loaded with synths that conjure images of icy neon sci-fi landscapes and songs that are either SF themes disguised as love songs or vice versa (with titles referencing William Gibson, Will McIntosh and Joe Halderman).

Death Valley Girls

Islands In The Sky (Suicide Squeeze Records)

Fourth LP from an LA band whose first three albums I have somehow never heard, so this is my first time listening to them, which means I can’t tell you how it compares to their previous stuff. What I can say is that it’s a fairly exhilarating mix of 60s psychedelia and garage rock with messages of love, self-care and healing. We need a little more of that. Anyway, it may be derivative but in a good way. And I’ll also add that single “Magic Powers” practically does Ladytron better than Ladytron.

Fatoumata Diawara

London Ko (3éme Bureau/Wagram Music)

Third studio album from Malian singer-songwriter guitarist Fatoumata Diawara, who continues her direction of blending traditional Wassoulou music with western groove. This one features guest slots from Damon Albarn, Angie Stone, M.anifest and Roberto Fonseca, among others. A lot of people made a big deal of Jesse Ware making the year’s best dance record, but I’d much rather dance to this.

Juliana Hatfield

Juliana Hatfield Sings ELO (American Laundromat)

The third in Hatfield’s series of tribute LPs in which she tackles the repertoire of bands she grew up with. After Olivia Newton-John and The Police, it’s ELO’s turn, which perhaps was inevitable since her ONJ album included a cover of “Xanadu”. And once again it mainly works, not least because of the quality of the songs in question. Also, Hatfield’s knack for stripping down a song to its essence comes in handy here, as trying to replicate Jeff Lynne’s densely layered arrangements would be a tall order for anyone who isn’t Jeff Lynne. Also, credit for picking some deep cuts as well as the hits.

The Hives

The Death Of Randy Fitzsimmons (Disque Hives)

The Hives return after 11 years off with album no. 6, which they allegedly recorded after their fictional songwriter/svengali Randy Fitzsimmons died and they discovered a bunch of new songs in his coffin. Which is a very Hives thing for them to say. And on the one hand, it’s more of the same, but on the other hand, I’d kind of be disappointed if it wasn’t. 

Missing Persons

Hollywood Lie (Cleopatra Records)

Technically this is Missing Persons’ 6^th album, but it’s the first since 1986’s Color In Your Life to feature a full band (as opposed to Dale Bozzio + 1), and the first since then to feature all new original songs. And it absolutely slaps. Missing Persons always struggled to live up to their excellent debut album, and while their two follow-ups aren’t as bad as people remember, they couldn’t match or duplicate the hype surrounding the first one. The same goes for this one, but it comes a lot closer than the previous two.

Liela Moss

Internal Working Model (Bella Union)

I know Leila Moss from her main band The Duke Spirit, but I didn’t know she’d done some solo albums as well. This is her third one, and it sounds nothing like The Duke Spirit while simultaneously showcasing why Moss’ voice was always the key to their sound. This has a similar dynamic in that the music is good but standard electronic pop, but it’s Moss’ creative vocal arrangements that elevates it to another level.

Nanowar of Steel

Dislike To False Metal (Napalm Records)

8^th album from the best parody metal band on the planet. If you prefer metal songs about zombie discos, dandruff, vegan pirates, immodium, metal boomer trolls, the 1994 World Cup, and hunting a Chupacabra that’s also a metaphor for COVID-19 (performed as epic flamenco metal), this is what you need.

Iggy Pop

Every Loser (Gold Tooth/Atlantic)

19^th album for Iggy Pop, who continues to display no intention whatsoever of growing old gracefully, bless him. This is the loudest thing he’s done in a while, and even in ballad mode, his gravelly baritone speaks volumes (it also makes for one of the funniest fake adverts ever recorded). Some songs do feel as though Iggy is trying to live up to his own proto-punk reputation. On the other hand, only Iggy could get away with it.

Rodrigo y Gabriela

In Between Thoughts … A New World (ATO Records)

Sixth album from duo that pioneered metal-inspired flamenco, and this time they’ve come up with an album inspired by non-dualism. As you do. Their guitar chops are as excellent as ever, but accompaniment by the Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra adds some extra emotional heft to the music.

Shonen Knife

Our Best Place (Tomato Head)

This is Shonen Knife’s 22^nd studio album in their 42-year (and counting) history. And sure, it’s more of the same – pop-punk songs about food (vegetable curry, taquitos, Baumkuchen), animals and positive thinking. But then maybe we need more of that in this increasingly demented world, so why not? This one also includes a new English-language version of one of their older songs, “Girl’s Rock”.

Sparks

The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte (Island)

The Sparks Brothers carry on with album no. 25, and it’s an improvement over 2020’s A Steady Drip Drip Drip, which I felt was good but ran too long and had more filler than the average Sparks LP. Most people didn’t agree with me, but hey ho. This one works better for me in terms of songwriting quality and humor.

The Van Pelt

Artisans and Merchants (La Castanya)

The Van Pelt are an NYC post-rock band that was active from 1993 to 1997, then disbanded. After reuniting for a few shows in 2009, this year they released their first album of all new songs in 26 years. I missed them completely the first time round, so I have no real point of reference for it beyond the album itself. But I really enjoyed this, at least partly for the dreamy guitar tones.

Voice of Baceprot

Retas (12WIRED)

Debut album from Indonesian all-girl metal band that essentially collects every single they’ve put out since 2018, plus a few new tracks and a live version of “God Allow Me (Please) To Play Music” with a female vocal choir. It all adds up to a gloriously ferocious and noisy whole that rocks harder than most metal bands out there.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Emma Anderson

Pearlies (Sonic Cathedral)

Debut solo album from Emma Anderson, formerly of shoegaze legends Lush. Some of these songs were written during Lush’s 2016 reunion tour, and when the band broke up again rather than continue, Anderson decided to go solo with them. It’s not Lush Mk II, with Anderson going for a more electronic rather than guitar-based style, yet it sounds like Lush without sounding like Lush, if you see what I’m saying. So if nothing else it illustrates how essential Anderson was to Lush’s sound. And if this is as close as we’re going to get to a new Lush album, I’ll take it.

Kristin Hersh

Clear Pond Road (Fire Records)

11^th solo album from Kristin Hersh, in which she kind of circles back to her first solo album, 1994’s Hips and Makers, which was an all-acoustic affair. So is this, apart from a couple of tracks, and while this doesn’t quite live up to that, Hersh has long since stopped wanting to prove herself to anyone. What really makes it work for me (like a lot of her records) are the vocal and instrumental textures she adds to the songs. Sometimes it really is how you play ‘em that makes the difference.

Ladytron

Time's Arrow (Cooking Vinyl)

Seventh LP from Liverpool synth band that still trades in glossy synth landscapes with icy vocals from Helen Marnie and Mira Aroyo. This time their sound is not as heavy and dense as their previous LP, but otherwise it’s more of the same – almost literally, as many songs sound so hypnotically similar that you have to pay attention to tell when one ends and another begins. But when you listen to then separated from each other, there’s a lot to like here, if you give it a chance.

Pretenders

Relentless (Parlophone)

12^th album from Chrissie Hynde and crew – which does not include drummer Martin Chambers, who returned for previous LP Hate For Sale. It makes a difference, despite Hynde still collaborating with guitarist James Walbourne – this one feels like more filler than killer to me. Yet the killer stuff is quite good, and it’s grown on me since first listen. And frankly Hynde’s voice remains as wonderful to listen to as it did on the first Pretenders LP 40+ years ago, so it seems churlish to complain.

MOST DISORIENTING ALBUM

Zulu

A New Tomorrow (Flatspot Records)

Debut LP from LA band that juxtaposes powerviolence with classic soul, reggae, hip-hop and spoken-word poetry. The result is an multi-faceted album with jarring, provocative tonal shifts that aims to expand the discourse on the black experience in America. It’s not for everyone, and for me personally the powerviolence sections will limit how often I listen to this, but it’s an incredible thought-provoking experience.

MOST PECULIAR ALBUM

Pere Ubu

Trouble On Big Beat Street (Cherry Red)

19^th album from Pere Ubu, whose previous LP The Long Goodbye turns out not to be their final album after all. This one is supposedly inspired by Van Dyke Parks and every song is the first take. Dave Thomas’ atonal warble and the band’s discordant improv is an acquired taste, but it’s worth checking out for “Worried Man Blues”, which opens with Thomas ordering food from a Popeye’s in Clarksdale, MI, where Howling Wolf, Muddy Waters, Robert Zimmerman and Alan Lomax are employees. They also cover The Osmonds’ “Craxy Horses” as only Pere Ubu can.

LONGEST ALBUM

Dolly Parton

Rockstar (Butterfly Records)

Dolly finally does her rock album, and of course she doesn’t just do a simple bunch of rock standards, but offers up two original songs plus 28 covers with big-name guest stars, most of which are the artists who sang the original songs. And on the one hand, it proves Dolly can pretty much sing any genre and collaborate with anyone. On the other hand, at 2 hours and 20 minutes, it’s probably a little too much Dolly. Personally I’d rather she did a rock album of all-new songs.

BEST ALBUM BY SOMEONE I KNOW

Richard Michael John Hall

A Belly Full of Light (GCA Records)

Hall actually released two albums this year, though the second one came out just before I started making this list, so I haven’t had time to sit down with it. Hall’s previous album saw him shift from psychedelic-influenced guitars  to the more relatively straightforward alt-rock sound he started with. This one starts off in the same vein, then about halfway through brings his psychedelic tendencies back to the fore, which is where things really get interesting. Something for everyone, then.

BEST REISSUE

The Replacements

Tim (Let It Bleed Edition) (Rhino/Sire)
I remember there being so much hype around Tim, and the disappointment of ‘Mats fans who heard Tommy Erdelyi’s mix and thought “What is this crap?” Having never heard the ‘Mats before, I thought it sounded fine at the time and still do. But while Tim may not have been broke, Ed Stasium certainly fixed it. The remix does give the record a lot more punch, and in some places it sounds like a totally different album (for example, I can actually hear what Chris Mars is doing on “Dose Of Thunder”).

BEST EPs

Los Bitchos

Pah! (City Slang)
In which my new favorite band of 2022 covers “Tequila” and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s “Trapdoor” in their psychedelic cumbia style.

The Budos Band

Frontier's Edge (Diamond West Records)
Third EP for one of my favorite Daptone bands, who are now on Diamond West (co-founded by leader Jared Tankel). More creepy cinematic Afro-soul instrumentals? Yes please.

Micky Dolenz

Dolenz Sings REM (7a Records)
Just like it says, and the only thing more surprising than the arrival of this EP is the fact that it’s actually quite good, even if the choice of songs is a little obvious.

Nina Hagen

Nina Hagen Sings Larry Norman (Groenland Records)
Nina Hagen’s latest LP Unity was a mixed bag for me, but I liked this EP, in which she covers two tracks by Jesus-rock legend Larry Norman: “Rock The Flock” and “UFO” – which is a very Nina Hagen thing to do, really.

BEST SINGLES

Klangphonics

“Shapes In The Spray” (ALAULA Music)

Germany’s Klangphonics are something of a novelty in that they’re a techno band that play actual instruments live, rather than relying mostly on loops. It’s good techno-trance either way. They released several songs in 2023 – this was the best of the lot for me.

L7

“Cooler Than Mars” (L7 Music)

It’s nice to have L7 back, especially when they’re mocking certain billionaires who want to move to Mars. I hope there’s an album to follow.

my little airport

“駱駝 (Camel)” (n/a)

Hong Kong’s favorite underground twee-pop band return with this single about sadness, centred on the allegedly true story of a rich man who rode a camel up to the top of The Peak. You don’t get that from Ed Sheehan, do you?

Loudon Wainwright III

“Just Like Buster Keaton” (StorySound Records)

In which Wainwright records an old song by George Gerdes and Marc Johnson (two of his contemporaries in the early folk scene) that has never been recorded or released until now. Worth it just for the imagery of Jesus and Buster Keaton in a friendly pie fight.

BEST TRACKS FROM NOT SO GREAT ALBUMS

The Cleaners From Venus

“The Beautiful Stoned” (Mr Mule)

This was the lead-off single for The Cleaners From Venus’s comeback album K7, and it’s so psychedelically wonderful that the rest of the album failed to live up to it for me. It’s happened to you too, probably.

Girlschool

“Barmy Army” (Silver Lining Music)

I love Girlschool, but their new LP WTForty-Five? didn’t quite work for me, mainly because I just don’t think the world needs anymore metal songs about partying or asking us if we’re ready to rock and roll, no matter how on-brand it may be. But some tracks are really great, and I just adore this thank-you letter to their fans. You’re welcome, Girlschool!

THE PLAYLIST