A motley crew of albums make up this year's top 10! Including (alphabetically)
Adventures of Jet - Part 3: Coping With InsignificanceAlvvays - Blue RevBeauty Pill - Blue PeriodCrown Lands - FearlessColin Hay - Going SomewhereJantra - Synthesized SudanLunatic Soul - Through Shaded WoodsThe Lemon Twigs - Everything HarmonyXenia Rubinos - Una RosaSteven Wilson - The Harmony Codex
Below is a curated playlist culled from the Top 20 and Honorable Mentions.
In the spirit of "list season," this look back at a decade's worth of Album of the Year selections reaches back into the text origins of this channel in anticipation of the announcement of 2022's Album of the Year.
My initial decision to avoid feeding my daughters milk wasn’t entirely a choice. Although my involvement in the CrossFit lifestyle when she was born opened my eyes to the benefits of a non-dairy, non-grain diet, my first daughter seemed to have a genuine intolerance. Once I was able to find alternative sources for calcium and natural fats in her diet, I did not make serious efforts to acclimatize her system to drink cow’s milk. I met a lot of resistance along the way, but by all accounts she and her sister (whose colic caused us to take a similar path), have grown up quite healthy and strong.
Shortly after EJ was born, life changed dramatically in more ways than I can easily summarize. You can go back and read about it starting here for the full story. Not the least of these changes was the unexpected birth of our son just a year and a half later. Unlike his sisters, he did not show any significant intolerance for milk. My hardline stance on the paleo diet had softened since P was born six years before and inarguably, milk is a convenient source of nutrition. So he drank milk. Quite a bit of it, for a while.
Undoubtedly, he quickly grew big and strong, which could be attributed to his genes as much as his diet. I was a pretty big infant, as well. Also like me, and unlike his sisters, he seemed to suffer from eczema and allergies. I assumed that he was the unfortunate recipient of my more undesirable genes and began rolling future management options through my mind.
Recently, however, my wife began an anti-inflammatory diet that had a pretty significant crossover into paleo. As we discussed her plan, I realized that all of our son’s maladies could be attributed to inflammation from the cow’s milk in his diet. We tapered off the milk and within two weeks, no more runny nose or dry, irritated cheeks. Incredible.
So I wonder, with the normalization of cow’s milk in an infant’s diet, how many other people may see their children suffering from similar problems and start medications to manage them. Possibly more than is necessary. In any case, this unintentional experiment brought back home the importance of a clean diet, something that I will dedicate myself to with renewed diligence in the coming year.
Finally, all exposition aside, below is the top 10 albums list from 2018. Any one of these albums were considered at one point in time or another for the top slot, but I feel satisfied with the final ordering (at least for today). Relatively few proper 2018 releases this year, and many obscure entries. If you are looking for some new music in 2019, however, these albums would be a great place to start.
10. George Clanton - Slide: During the years I lived in Austin I discovered the joys of synthwave and shoegaze. Slide hit the nostalgia buttons on two fronts this year by comfortably residing in the crossroads between these styles.
9. Death Grips - Year of the Snitch: I have followed Death Grips ever since The Money Store took 2012 by storm, but very few of their albums have come back off the shelf since their initial run. Year of the Snitch has come in and out of rotation several times as 2018 drew to a close and never failed to hold my attention.
8. Wei Zhongle - The Operators: Suggesting Wei Zhongle was one of the times in which my Facebook algorithm really nailed it. Their super-quirky brand of art rock is engaging both in the short and the long term.
7. Kite Base - Latent Whispers: Great songwriting anchors this incredible and unique album from two female bass players with a knack for clever programming. Fans of late 80s electronica who prefer a wash of gothy fuzz would find a lot to enjoy on Latent Whispers.
6. Andrew W.K. - You’re Not Alone: Andrew W.K. bursts through the speakers yelling “OH, YEAH” like some sort of feral white-clad rock Jesus on this album. While the Kool-Aid he is peddling seems like its pure sugar, it’s far more substantial than it might seem.
5. Midlake - The Tales of Van Occupanther: I still like to refer to Midlake as the “Agrarian Radiohead.” Tim Smith’s liquid vocal approach often recalls that of Thom Yorke, but their tales of giants and villages paint pictures of days long past.
4. Venetian Snares - Traditional Synthesizer Music: This impossibly complex experiment pushes the possibilities of classic synthesizers past any perceived limits. Aaron Funk is able to somehow integrate enough variants to give these compositions a live, improvised feel.
3. Low - Double Negative: Although this album came in very late in the Fall, I reflected very carefully upon whether or not to designate it Album of the Year. Its predecessor Ones and Sixes became a favorite in 2015, and Double Negative is an incredible quantum leap forward in terms of creativity and musicality.
2. Modular - Dan Phelps, Vickor Krauss, and Matt Chamberlain: The mythology surrounding Modular became my “Blair Witch” for 2018, a curious investigation that I documented earlier this year. Despite my embarrassing disappointment when I discovered the truth, the album is ultimately propelled by unbelievable and subtle musicianship that continues to reveal itself listen after listen.
Album of the Year 2018
1. Soup - Remedies: If Modular was my “Blair Witch” for 2018, then Remedies was “Lord of the Rings.” It crosses progressive songwriting and melodic post rock in relatively well-trod ways, but in all the ways that work. Walls of sound, compelling melodies, and gentle psychedelia overlapped to make this one a sustained favorite throughout the year.
For the first time ever, I missed my annual New Year's deadline for my "Best Of" list. One would think that sometime during the 14 days of my holiday break, I would have found some time to free up both my hands and capture a moment or two to sum up the year, but it just didn’t happen. We spent the entire time taking our newly expanded family on the road for the holidays, cleaning up, or packing for the next trip.
The final phase of this succession of holiday celebrations was spent during New Years with some family friends at The Great Wolf Lodge, a kid-centric hotel and indoor waterpark. The experience was met with great highs and a few lows. The facility and its programming are definitely geared towards school-age kids, and the members of our group in this age bracket had a really great time. I also have an advanced toddler and an infant in my family, however, and most of the activities were categorically over their head. Very often, we had so split into groups, with one or two people who had to stay in, or at least close to, the room to attend to "the littles" eccentric needs.
When it was my turn, I felt the room was stifling. Granted, its overall cost included unlimited access to great water slides, kids programming, and “magic quests," but when I had to spend long stretches of time there with a group of small humans who could not speak English or use the potty, the barren, windowless walls and poorly maintained furniture gave me the sense that I was "confined to quarters." As a result, my patience often ran a little short, and I found myself being snippy with the people in my orbit for no apparent reason.
This experience at the Great Wolf Lodge unfortunately serves as a microcosmic example of my mood as the year drew to a close. Having two very young children has been tough, especially with an older third one who is struggling with our newly distributed attention and a wife starting her PhD coursework. The level of stress sometimes seems unmanageable, and I feel like it has been at this level for a while. While I philosophically believe that I am here to live my life in service to others, if I am to be honest, I have found keeping that belief practically difficult to sustain in recent months. I find myself at the end of my patience more often that I would like to admit. I get grumpy, cranky, and introverted when I feel overwhelmed, and anyone who met me for the first time this Fall probably thinks that I am a really big jerk. If that is so, I apologize. I am examining ways in which I can steer my actions into closer alignment with my intentions in 2018.
2017, however, sounded like this:
10. The Amazing - Gentle Stream: I initially put The Amazing on my watchlist because I heard them described as a “prog-psych” project featuring Reine Fiske, the guitarist from Dungen. While I think that Dungen is probably the more adventurous of the two groups, The Amazing has the advantage of accessibility, which allowed Gentle Stream to find its way into play quite often this year.
9. Contact - Zero Moment: This incredible synth-prog album has the distinction of being the only MP3-only album on this year’s list. It's an arresting joyride of hyperactive drums and impeccable compositions throughout.
8. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones: I am never disappointed when I decide to pick up a Tom Waits recording. Swordfishtrombones has turned out to be one of my favorites.
7. Dawes - All Your Favorite Bands: Dawes is the current iteration of classic songwriting at its finest. While All You Favorite Bands doesn’t quite have the consistency that earned its predecessor Album of the Year in 2014, its still great enough to crack the top 10.
6. Accordio del Contrari - Violatto Intatto: Some albums sound like complete gibberish upon first listen only to reveal layers and layers nuance upon repetition. Violatto Intatto, a twisting, disorienting knot of brilliantly executed instrumental progressive rock, is exactly one of these albums.
5. Lunatic Soul - Fractured: The sound design on this albums is consistently jaw-dropping, which provides a deep environment for Lunatic Soul's compelling songwriting. It’s one of the few albums that I could favorably compare with Peter Gabriel’s solo work, although made distinct by a dark and angular instrumental approach reminiscent of Tool.
4. United Vibrations - The Myth of the Golden Ratio: The Myth of the Golden Ratio was a lucky discovery that has sustained an incredible amount of listening this year. Its “Sting-meets-Fela” vibe is both distinctive, familiar, and it checks an impressive number of personally interesting musical boxes.
3. Crying - Beyond the Fleeting Gales: It’s difficult not to at least appreciate the enthusiasm that Crying injects into their music. Beyond the Fleeting Gales is thoughtfully crafted and meticulously composed, but never at the expense of being a fun listen.
2. Astronoid - Air: Astronoid’s “dream-thrash” concept melds the rumbling blast-beats of Deafheaven with Mew’s cosmic vocals. The overall effect is like strapping on a jet-pack and blasting through the universe at light-speed.
2017 Album of the Year
1. Seabuckthorn - Turns: Looking back at the progressive rock and songwriting that traditionally dominate my Album of the Year selections, the oscillating ambiance of Turnsmakes it an unlikely choice at first glance. It has, however, almost served as my companion this year, providing many moments of contemplative stillness in an otherwise manic existence without ever losing a bit of its intrigue or mystique.
2004 was a year of beginnings that were fueled by equal parts confidence and, if I am honest with myself, delusion. At the end of the previous year, I acquired a Chapman Stick, and the practice that I had been using as therapy started to manifest in some real musical output. Determined to master this non-traditional instrument and use it to somehow subvert academia, I began coursework for a Master’s degree in Ethnomusicology. My studies included jazz improv courses and a seminar in global pop music, both of which began to further diversify my listening.
At the same time, I continued to teach out at Krum. The breadth of these new experiences make connecting the dots between my memory episodes and the reality of the calendar particularly confusing. My propensity to listen to older albums or to let albums simmer for a while complicates matters further. I’ve had to refer to school records, Amazon shipping statements, and even dates on old pictures to flesh out specifics. Still, after toying around with my memory and all available information, the 2004 list is, like its predecessors, a good representation of what I was into at the time.
This project is making me realize the extent to which memory episodes resist lining themselves up in neat chronological order. They seem to arise in vivid flashes as I revisit this music, bringing to mind seemingly random events that must then be categorized. This all might seem to be more trouble than its worth, but organizing my life story by the music that I surround myself with has, in recent years, emerged as a satisfying narrative in this blog.
10 The Drowners - Think of Me: I continued a steady diet of inexpensive power pop albums throughout 2004, many of which were unremarkable. The Drowners’ Swedish identity provided a unique perspective on the style that was slick and compelling.
9 Muse - Absolution: It has been a rare occasion for me to favorably compare any band to Rush. In 2004, however, I discovered Absolution, which earned Muse that distinction for a time by virtue of its accessible songs, impressive chops, and intense energy.
8 Blackfield - Blackfield: I supported Porcupine Tree’s move towards heavier and more identifiably progressive territory, but part of me missed Steven Wilson's relatively straightforward songwriting on Stupid Dream. Blackfield became the place where I could get my fix.
7 The Decemberists - Her Majesty the Decemberists: I saw The Decemberists in Denton on a lark, without ever hearing a note of their music, one night in 2004. Their show was impressive, and within 24 hours, Her Majesty the Decemberists had the dubious honor of being one of the few albums that I uploaded through ITunes in its earlier iteration.
6 Green Day - American Idiot: I saw American Idiot as the 21sy century Tommy - a punk rock opera of resistance for the Bush administration. Alas, within a few years Green Day would jump the shark with this great album and run it as a broadway musical, but at the time it was quite the statement.
5 The Trey Gunn Band - The Joy of Molybdenum: As I was getting more and more into transcription, I started making more of an effort to find other Stick and touchstyle guitar players that I felt a connection with. Gunn’s style was, and still is, a baffling exploitation of the instrument’s affordances, but his melodicism and conceptual adventurousness makes him one of my favorite players and The Joy of Molybdenum remains my favorite of his solo works.
4. Miles Davis -Kind of Blue: I owned Kind of Blue for decades, but in retrospect, I had never really engaged it beyond mere background music. Transcribing solos from it for an improv class changed all that, however, and provided me with a deep appreciation for the clarity of Davis’ ideas.
3 Brian Wilson - SMiLE: Brian Wilson finally released the long awaited follow-up to Pet Sounds in 2004 with compelling results. The tour that followed provided one of the best live shows I had ever seen.
2. Fela Kuti -Zombie: A seminar in Global Popular Music fleshed out my understanding of Fela and his unique political position. I ended up getting several Fela albums this year, but Zombie remains the best of the bunch.
Album of the Year: 2004
1. Opeth - Damnation: Opeth’s one-off experiment in melodic melancholy would, in hindsight, serve to pivot them from their black metal roots into their current progressive rock incarnation. In itself, however, it remains a unique masterpiece in their catalog.
The trials of 2002 left me somewhat adrift, but by 2003, I started making some long-term goals for myself. The biggest one of these was the acquisition of a Chapman Stick, which I began relentlessly shedding on as a form of therapy. I felt like I had an intensely clear vision for the instrument, and I was determined to become its master.
I moved into a one bedroom apartment off the Denton square with a new, more secure sense of self. I experimented with bachelorhood and dated around a little while. When I stopped trying so hard, I found myself in a positive relationship that continues to evolve to this day (love ya, dear!).
In retrospect, however, my attitude had a selfish undercurrent that would later manifest into some negative behaviors. Regardless, it is fair to say that I was in a much better place than I had been in a long time. As a result, the 2003 best-of list is generally more upbeat in tone than the one from 2002.
10. Magma - Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh: But first, nothing acknowledges that sinister, self-indulgent side more than Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh, which sounds like what would happen if Frank Zappa was commissioned to write a Klingon Opera. Clearly not the most lighthearted entry for 2003, but its virtuosity and electrifying performances kept it in rotation for a good part of the year.
9. The Darkness - Permission to Land: I realize The Darkness was a one-trick pony, but the trick was really, really good. Permission to Land was both a reverent commentary on what was great about 80’s hair metal and an irresistible collection of fun, crunchy songs.
8. O.S.I. - The Office of Strategic Influence: One of Mike Portnoy's many side projects, this one with ex-Dream Theater keyboardist Kevin Moore and Fates Warning guitarist Jim Matheos. O.S.I. captured a broader spectrum of moods and textures than the prog-metal pedigree of its lineup might suggest.
7. Owsley - Owsley: William Owsley only recorded a couple of albums before his apparent suicide in 2010. A look as his resume shows him to be an incredibly talented songwriter and session musician, but a listen to his album reveals him to also be tragically overlooked as an artist in his own right.
6. Radiohead - Hail to the Thief: Radiohead had been toying with a more electronic sound for awhile by the time Hail to the Thief came out, so I found its more prominent use of guitar alluring. It certainly did not recapture the magic of OK Computer or The Bends, but it felt more like Radiohead “the band” than Radiohead “the project.”
5. Tsar - Tsar: I ran across several inspiring power pop albums in 2003, and Tsar was among the best. It, along with Sugarbomb’s Bully, rekindled my belief that the style was still alive, well, and surprisingly affordable through the Amazon Marketplace.
4. The Mars Volta - De-Loused in the Comatorium: This little piece of nu-prog chaos came out of nowhere and, in any other year, probably would have taken album of the year. In any case, the success of this album would propel my interest in The Mars Volta throughout the rest of their career.
3. Kevin Gilbert - Thud: If there was any question as to the incredible depth of Kevin Gilbert’s unique genius after his posthumous rock opera The Shaming of the True, Thud lays it to rest. While his unique progressive pop style obviously resonated with me, I found Gilbert’s lyrics refreshingly genuine and, at times, devastatingly honest.
2. Sugarbomb - Bully: I often perceived Tsar as the B-side to this amazing and overlooked gem. Bully, with its ebullient energy, bittersweet lyrics, and excellent production, was in constant play throughout this year and well into the next.
Album of the Year: 2003
1. King Crimson - The Power to Believe: King Crimson’s final studio album is, I feel, still one of their best. Where The ConstruKCtion of Light was a bit obvious in the way it aligned itself with the band’s back catalog, I would argue that The Power to Believe captured the essence of the band’s past successes and forged an entirely new interpolation of the group.
Music often connects to experience in strange, sometimes unpredictable ways, and its capacity to become vividly associated with times and places is, I feel, a given. In this blog, I have recently referred to these flashes of recollection that arise when listening to music from one’s past as “memory episodes,” but I don’t know that I have ever clearly defined what that means or why I think that it happens. As an organizing principle of this series in particular, it seems like that is an oversight worth addressing.
One could argue that recorded music is a phenomenological abomination. A recording tears music from the musical act and flattens it, which results in only half of a full experience for the listener. I theorize that when we listen to recorded music, the untethered aspects of the musical experience latch on to the things we are feeling, thinking, and doing as we listen. Later, if this tethering is strong enough, listening to music can trigger recollections through this association. As I reconstructed 2002 for this best-of list, my memory episodes were somewhat painful to travel through.
This was the year that I experienced the end of a marriage and desperately sought out a new path for myself. As a result, my recollections are a jumbled mess of crushing sorrow, indulgent escapism, and, later in the year, self-discovery tinted with desperation.
10. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Lift yr. Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven: My introduction to the problematic sub-genre “post-rock” also served as the soundtrack to my inner struggle with a friend’s suicide. Its melancholic mood swings still bring back sadness and rage.
9. Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head: Before they became pigeonholed as the darlings of the new adult contemporary, Coldplay resonated with me as a reinterpretation of what was once good about U2. A Rush of Blood to the Head is brimming over with well-crafted melodies and arrangements.
8. Oysterhead - The Grand Pecking Order: Although the material on the album felt a little slipshot at times, listening to Stewart Copeland lock into a groove with Les Claypool made the whole thing worthwhile. Thanks to the influence to Trey Anastasio, The Grand Pecking Order also marks the beginnings of Claypool’s interest in the jam band format, and laid the seeds for his current work with Sean Lennon.
6. Glass Hammer - Chronometree: A self-aware and somewhat satirical concept album about the pitfalls of reading too much into concept albums. Glass Hammer has made many recordings since this cautionary tale, but it remains my favorite.
5. Happy the Man - Crafty Hands: For a time this year, I was so emotionally devastated that I could barely listen to music with lyrics without twisting their meaning to suit my addiction to self-pity. This mostly instrumental release was in rotation a lot during that time, and actually served to later inspire me to play the Stick, even though there is no Stick on the album.
4. Rush - Vapor Trails: After a significant hiatus, Rush returned to the studio and produced Vapor Trails, which was a great improvement upon its predecessor Test for Echo. Although the album was slightly uneven as a whole, the band’s playing and concept was stronger than ever.
3. Spock’s Beard - Snow: Neal Morse’s final album with Spock’s Beard ended up being a career-defining rock opera with no small amount of religious overtones. Like any rock opera, Snow has its share of filler, but by and large the material is so amazing and is executed with such exhilarating chemistry that this shortcoming can be easily overlooked.
2. Peter Gabriel - Up: In retrospect, there is the nagging sense that parts of this album seemed geared toward radio airplay. These moments are fleeting, however, revealing Gabriel to be at a creative zenith in terms of orchestration and arrangement.
Album of the Year 2002
1. Porcupine Tree - In Absentia: After the relatively polished songwriting approach that Porcupine Tree had been operating with since Stupid Dream, In Absentia represented the first step in a heavier direction. While the guitar riffs were thicker than before, there was no loss of the nuanced melody and texture that had come to be the band’s trademark.
