Best Music of 2018

[iron yuppie]

cobbler's albums of 2018, now including old records too
1. DJ Koze - Knock Knock
Somehow even better and more consistent than 2013's excellent Amygdala. More accessible, too, but without sacrificing any of the uniqueness or personality that makes him so great.
Highlights: Seeing Aliens, Bonfire, Pick Up, Muddy Funster
2. Jen Cloher - Jen Cloher
Stunning record that runs the gamut from driving rock to upbeat pop to powerful balladry. A terrific insight into the life of a musician too often reduced to support roles or ignored. Authentic Australiana feel that acknowledges this country's fuck-ups.
Highlights: Regional Echo, Waiting in the Wings, Sensory Memory
3. Bjork - Homogenic
Why have I not listened to Bjork before? Utterly amazing record that still sounds very fresh. Really tight and meshes strings with electronica better than anyone I've heard do it.
Highlights: Hunter, Jóga, Unravel, Alarm Call
4. A.A.L. - 2012-2017
Track after track after track of sleek house, each track stylised perfectly, from bangers to moodier stuff. Impeccable sequencing. Hugely rewarding repeat listens.
Highlights: Some Kind of Game, Rave on U, Cityfade, Flash in the Pan
5. Camp Cope - How to Socialise and Make Friends
Extremely good debut from perhaps Australia's hardest-hitting, angriest indie rock group. (Ax may disagree.) Loses some steam in the middle but first third is fucking thrilling and closer is heartwrenching.
Highlights: The Opener, Anna, I've Got You
6. Anderson Paak - Malibu
Absolutely stacked with sick R&B tunes that have incredible replay value.
Highlights: Am I Wrong, Put Me Thru, Heart Don't Stand a Chance, Lite Weight
7. Crowded House - Crowded House
Outside of the well-known hits this album has a handful of hugely fun, wild, eclectic, rollicking pop-rock post-punk sorta tunes.
Highlights: Hole in the River, Love You Til the Day I Die, Don't Dream it's Over, Now We're Getting Somewhere
8. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquillity Base Hotel + Casino
Arctic Monkeys are 10 times as good and 20 times more interesting when they detour from their typical style.
Highlights: Star Treatment, Four Out of Five
9. Neneh Cherry - Broken Politics
Slow R&B, neo-soul music written by an artist with a unique style and produced expertly by Four Tet.
Highlights: Black Monday, Fallen Leaves
10. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Hope Downs
RBCF perfect their jangly, urgent brand of indie rock on their full-length debut.
An Air Conditioned Man, Talking Straight, Sister's Jeans, How Long?, The Hammer

Homogenic is significantly better than anything that came out this year.

 

[cobl04]

cool thanks dude

best shows...
1. Roger Waters
2. Nashy
3. Jen Cloher
4. Destroyer
5. Bloc Party

best songs...
1. dj koze - seeing aliens
2. cupcakKe - cartoons
3. arctic monkeys - four out of five
4. neneh cherry - black monday
5. a.a.l. - some kinda game
6. camp cope - i've got you
7. kurt vile - bassackwards
8. black thought - thank you
9. ariana grande - thank u, next
10. beach house - last ride

 

[kabigon]

Best shows:
1. Slow Dive - somewhat sparse crowd at the least-worst stage at Laneway, as intimate as you could get at a large outdoor festival
2. Roger Waters - Dogs and Pigs the clear highlights
3. Beck - Still memorable despite being sick in bed all day, made it to the show somehow and leaned against the back rail the whole time
4. The National - Solid, appreciative crowd
5. Foo Fighters - I wouldn't go out of my way to listen to them otherwise and might not have gone if Weezer wasn't supporting, but they put on a great show

 

[Axver]

First full-length isn't it?

And no, I had not. Hadn't heard any of their albums aside from the two post-Hester records until the reissues came out last year.

They had a self-titled debut album in 2016. Eight songs, sure, but that's only one less than How to Socialise, etc. (Also, Cable Ties definitely harder-hitting and angrier as far as current Aussie indie rock goes.)

I remember you being so pumped about Crowdies gigs in 2008, can't believe you'd only heard the hits.

 

[Axver]

Homogenic is significantly better than anything that came out this year.

lol no

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

I'm drunk

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Anybody that doesn't have Tranquility Base on their list can chew on my ass.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

^ I don't mean it really, just a turn of phrase I heard recently on THE GOOD PLACE (the best major network sitcom I've seen in years)

 

[LemonMelon]

Similar list to Cobbler's, here are the best old albums I was introduced to last year:

T.L. Barrett - Do Not Pass Me By (1976) and Like a Ship (Without a Sail) (1971)

http://youtu.be/lBYcOGkWEJY

http://youtu.be/lIKJ5mmVFH0

Jim Ford - Harlan County (1969)

http://youtu.be/ivPTrWrEOGU

Guillemots - Through the Windowpane (2006)

http://youtu.be/dX3AcSrt9Co

The Dillards - Wheatstraw Suite (1968)

http://youtu.be/WONAzDfOqPQ

Virginia Astley - From Gardens Where We Feel Secure (1983)

http://youtu.be/4mgpejnVMic

Kauffman & Caboor - Songs From Suicide Bridge (1984)

http://youtu.be/butbumaBuBM

His Name Is Alive - Mouth By Mouth (1993)

http://youtu.be/QppH_dhb7BQ

 

[gump]

Best albums of 2018

15. Tierra Whack - Whack World [I’m not entirely sure this fits into a list such as this, but Whack World is for me the most interesting release of 2018. Is it an album? I don’t know. But these 15 one-minute vignettes of songs are super compelling as an experiment]

14. Blood Orange - Negro Swan [not as good as his previous two albums, but damn, I love the moods he creates]

13. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Sparkle Hard [Malkmus remains a national treasure]

12. Phosphorescent- C’est la vie

11. Christian Sands - Facing Dragons [Kamasi Washington got all the accolades and has a talent in getting non-jazz fans to listen to his (fantastic) music, but this album by Sands, an incredibly talented young pianist, is my favorite jazz album of the year. Sands can navigate across styles effortlessly, with some of the opening tracks grounded in classical 1960s bebop while others fully within a “Latin jazz” style, and some stuff that is quite modern, Mehldau-like).]

10. Hookworms - Microshift [Thanks for the recommendation, LM. ]

9. Hop Along - Bark Your Head Off, Dog [The new music landscape is amazing in its diversity, but sometimes I do miss some of the straightforward indie rock sounds of the early aughts, and Hop Along remains a wonderful representative of that category.]

8. Neko Case - Hell On

7. US Girls - In a Poem Unlimited

6. Noname - Room 25

5. Beach House - 7

4. Natalie Prass - The Future and the Past [This is admittedly a bit high on my list, but this is such a fun R&B album that shows enormous growth from her debut, it really strikes me every time I hear it]

3. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

2. Mitski - Be the Cowboy

1. Janelle Monáe - Dirty Computer


Best EP:

boygenius - s/t

Underrated album:

Jeff Tweedy - Warmer [Tweedy is so prolific that it’s easy to ignore his solo stuff, but the songwritting in Warmer is really strong, and the album feels like its own artistic statement rather than another side project]

Also want to leave a honorable mention for St. Vincent’s MassEducation, not a new album per se, but a revelatory take that shows how strong a songwriter she really is.


Best songs of 2018:

5. Julia Holter - Whether

4. Parquet Courts - Wide Awake

3. Mitski - Nobody

2. Cat Power - Woman [I was not as disappointed with the album as some here, but regardless of what you think of Wanderer, I think we can all agree that Woman is an outstanding song]

1. Childish Gambino - This is America [also the best video of the year, ahead of LCD Soundsystem’s oh baby]

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

The Tweedy album is just called Warm but yeah it's good and it'll be on my list if I ever make one.

Nice list. Everybody has had nice lists. We should all be proud that we can still appreciate new music after all these years.

 

[gump]

The Tweedy album is just called Warm but yeah it's good and it'll be on my list if I ever make one.

Oops. Missed that (and I've been calling it Warmer since its release, basically).

 

[lazarus]

The Tweedy album is just called Warm but yeah it's good and it'll be on my list if I ever make one.

Maybe he got a deluxe edition and it’s called Warmer, did you consider that, jerkface?

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

** Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men voice **

I suppose it's possible.

 

[iron yuppie]

An album I just recently heard that would have made my top 10 is Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want. Surprisingly smooth blend of melodicism and hardcore.

 

[lazarus]

1. Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer

3. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

3. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

1. Janelle Monáe - Dirty Computer

Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want

Surely I'm not the only one who noticed the irony of mentioning "daughters" right after a GAF post.

 

[Axver]

GAF Won't Get What He Wants.

 

[cobl04]

aren't Hookworms cancelled

 

[namkcuR]

Man, that Janelle album is alright, but nowhere near as good as Electric Lady IMO.

 

[gump]

aren't Hookworms cancelled

I believe so, unfortunately.

 

[LemonMelon]

Hookworms aren't canceled so much as they no longer exist.

 

[martha]

Hookworms aren't canceled so much as they no longer exist.

Which is too bad because their first couple albums were aces.

 

[lazarus]

aren't Hookworms cancelled

Sounds like something you'd catch from Lance's Mom.

 

[intedomine]

Beach House’s album gets better with every listen. Probably not as captivating as Bloom but special in it’s own way.

Loved Chvrches’ Graffiti. I saw them at Falls’ a few weeks ago, and blew me away. Been spinning that a bit recently as well.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

One of the best releases of the year is Prince's PIANO AND A MICROPHONE. I had never heard the song "17 Days" before and it's instantly stuck in my head. Beautiful.

 

[phanan]

The original version has always been one of my favorite b-sides.

 

[gump]

I would like to add D’Angelo’s Unshaken to my list of best songs of 2018.

 

[cobl04]

Is that from Red Dead?

 

[gump]

It is. It's amazing when it plays in the game too.

 

[mikal]

An album I just recently heard that would have made my top 10 is Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want. Surprisingly smooth blend of melodicism and hardcore.

Good suggestion!