Your Favorite Albums of 2017

[mopper_smurf]

http://werksman.blogspot.nl/2017/12/hctfs-best-of-2017-15-11.html

15-11

http://werksman.blogspot.nl/2017/12/hctfs-best-of-2017-10-6.html

10-6

http://werksman.blogspot.nl/2017/12/hctfs-best-of-2017-5-1.html

5-1

[aphineday]

I'm nervous to post mine, but fuck it
Just finishing up this mornong.

[aphineday]

Top Ten Albums of 2017

10.) Alvvays - Antisocialites
Coming back from a killer debut record is tough to do. This record probably receives more credit than it gets on my list this year, but that is a completely personal thing for me. I have loved this band since I first heard them, but things and dynamics in my own life prevented me from really being able to listen to this record a lot, and that is just uncool, because it's really full of thoughtful lyrics, and fuzzed out, smacked out guitars that make everyone just crave more and more. I hope I can get past the personal emotions tied to this band for me, and give them an even better shot with this record in 2018, but it definitely cracks my top 10 even with all my baggage.

9.) Vince Staples - Big Fish Theory
Okay, so I listened to a few cuts on this album that were getting some talk around a few sites that I frequent, and I just did not understand what people were really hearing in this. Then one day I'm driving, and my phone connects to the Bluetooth, and I hear "7:45", and it started to click with me. Before I knew it, I was bumping this on the reg at the gym, on my flights, and it was working it's way into a decently heavy rotation. Vince does it in a way that very few can, spitting truly well crafted lyrics, while keeping it pop enough to bring back the Top 40 crowd.

8.) Lorde - Melodrama
The 21 year old New Zealander returns with a record landing on many Top 10 lists I'm sure. A lot of the records I love focus on lyrics. Lorde has some great lyrics happening on Melodrama, but even if she didn't, I think I would still be spinning this just due to the unapologetic pop. It's so deep, and so good. You can dance, or you can just sit and groove, the choice is yours, and neither is right or wrong, but Ella O'Connor is definitely right.

7.) Smith Street Band - More Scared Of You Than You Are Of Me
Punk rock isn't quite dead, and the Smith Street Band is here to prove that. This record is insanely dark - at times irritatingly so, but I still find myself ready to dance and sing all these dark, but very singable lyrics back to the songs. You can hear real pain in some of these songs, but you can also find some very hopeful moments that really provide the soul of this record. This album was an all out auditory assault from the beginning, and I never looked back - I just kept spinning it.

6.) Big Thief - Conspiracy
Where to start on this record. So many emotions from front to back, it's a rollercoaster ride with big, beautiful, well played instrumentals, as well as moments of solace where you feel like you are sitting in a room with a piano, and listening to some intimate stories. On my first few listens, there were tracks that hit me pretty quickly, but there were definitely some slow burner tracks here, but eventually it all came together for me, and it just kept moving up, and up on my list until it finally landed here.

5.) Cigarettes After Sex - Cigarettes After Sex
I really dig some of that slow, beach glazed pop... probably too much, but in the case of this San Antonio trio, I make no apologies. This record is so intensely good that it completely drowns out all of your sorrow, and makes you feel okay about everything happening Even when the lyrics are telling a different story, the instrumentals are a warm hug telling you everything is going to be alright... at least at some point. As we get deeper into my list, the records get stronger, and it becomes more difficult for me to find weak tracks on those records. This record is no exception, and every time I spin it, I fall in love with a different piece of it. If you haven't heard this, get on it - you will thank me. Or you'll punch me. Either way, it's cool.



4.) Kendrick Lamar - Damn.
Damn. It's pretty accurate when it comes to this album. In terms of straight talent, this dude is something we haven't seen in a very long time. Until this point, every album of his seemed to move me more than the previous album. This record was a little different for me. I wouldn't say it was less moving, it just didn't hit me the way To Pimp A Butterfly did. It's still supremely powerful art from an exceptional young voice from Compton. He might not get as much credit as Chance The Rapper for philanthropic things that he does on the side, but he does them. His songs are about real life, real circumstances, and change. He doesn't sit idly by and wait for someone else to do the hard lifting, he talks about it, and gets things moving.

3.) Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound
Country music isn't really country music anymore, and Jason Isbell has his share of folks charging him with bringing it back to it's roots. I'm not sure that he wants that job, and I'm not sure that he tried to make a country record. He did however get his band back behind him, and turn in a southern rocker with some real hints at a country twang. If this is the new direction of country music, then count me in. Jason tackles some hard issues on this record, and he isn't scared of calling even him self out, as he digs in. Some tenderness in spots, and some songs meant to be turned up to 11, and blow the windows out. This record is wonderful, but I didn't expect much less.

2.) Ryan Adams - Prisoner
Well, if you know me, you know of my affinity for DRA, and his particular brand of insanity that he calls music. This record is a deeply personal affair for Ryan, and I really don't think it's everyone's cup of tea. That said, for those of us that are serious fans of his work, I think we always view things with rose colored glasses a bit, but I really did try to remove those the best I could, and really critically listen. In doing that, a few of the tracks seemed a little weak to me at first, especially given what he has done previously. Then came the re-listens, and really trying to give this record time to grow... and did it ever. I think every song on this record is so connected to what was happening in his life at the time that you have to get yourself into that space somehow to really have the experience that I have had with this record. I enjoy that he is channeling Bruce on some tunes, and doing it well. Great artists break molds, and this record breaks the molds of what he has done earlier in his solo career, and what he has been doing more recently. I connect so personally to every single one of these songs, and I just can't believe this didn't make my number one. Honestly... I think my one and two spots are fairly interchangeable based on mood.

1.) The War On Drugs - A Deeper Understanding
When I first released the audio barrage that was Slave Ambient into my Grados, I was not prepared for where this band was headed. Adam Granduciel wrote some catchy tunes on that record, and then started getting even deeper into the the ethereal soundscape on his follow up Lost In The Dream. I was super excited for this record to drop, and it did not disappoint. Those great hooks and lyrics of Slave Ambient combined with the deeper exploration of Lost In The Dream meet here, and introduce two things that completely made this record next level for me - even more layers, and the great swelling dynamics that he plays with throughout the record. The song writing is fantastic, but it always was. What we find here is a band hitting their stride completely, and full force. I'm still spinning this thing almost daily, but I know the future is bright, and (at least in part) in the hands of Adam Granduciel & Co.

[mbw]

Finally someone picks DAMN.  This guy drops another masterpiece and doesn't even get a mention.

[ytowndan]

Finally someone picks DAMN.  This guy drops another masterpiece and doesn't even get a mention.

Once again, I didn't listen to many new albums this year, so I can't really participate in the making of a list.  But DAMN is one of the few I managed to get, and it's been in steady rotation since then.  So friggin' good.  Not a single weak track on the whole thing. 

[Hicks]

Right on John, nice write ups! 

Interesting that WOD is the only consensus among the three lists posted.  Although Alvvays went 2 for 3. 

Also, Kendrick = most overrated rapper since Kanye or Jay-Z? Discuss. 

[August]

DAMN's singles are amazing.
The complete album is a wreck.
Especially coming after "Butterfly", which IS a rapsterpiece (just made that up!), it falls way short.

[tet]

I didn't really listen to enough this year to make a list, but I'm glad to see Lorde mentioned here, because Melodrama was fantastic and one of my all-time favorite albums.  She's really a unique talent, and I'm sorta happy that she has pop appeal because that will keep her getting paid, but it's all of the non-radio songs of hers that hit me the most.  I also want to hear Phish cover Liability. 

[Hicks]

Yeah To Pimp a Butterfly is great, DAMN is a huge letdown.  Sites like Pitchfork put him in the number one slot because they think they have to, which is why he's overrated. 

[emay]

Felt like DAMN goes back to the roots/style of Maad City, I really enjoyed it. To Pimp a Butterfly felt more like an experimental album for his discography I never thought he would continue that sound for his career. It also took them a pretty damn long time to make that album probably because of all the guests in that album. DAMN felt more organic with Mike will made it making beats and Kendrick choosing the ones he wants with his lyrics. I wouldn't say its #1 of the year but it would probably go on my top ten list.

[emay]

I enjoyed Ryan Adams - Prisoner this year too. Actually just listened to that again this weekend.

[sls.stormyrider]

thanks - will check some of these out

I don't get as many releases as I used to. Some favorites

Gregg Allman : Southern Blood- A fitting and touching farewell. I dare you to listen to Song for Adam and stay dry eyed

TTB : Live at the Fox, Oakland- With all the live music on the internet, do you need to buy a live release? I did. Great album, loved the vid as well. They have moved past this already

Jackie Greene: Modern Lives vol 1. More of an EP i guess. I've enjoyed everything he's done since I 1st heard him with Phil > 10 years ago, this is no exception. fwiw he plays all the intruments on this

Jazz /other

Rudresh Mahanthapa's Indo-Pak coalition: Agrima - Coltrane meets East Indian music (beyond what Trane himself did). If you like Mahavishnu Orchestra, I think you'll like this

Vijay Iyer : Far From Over - Iyer has a septet now instead of his trio. Another great "cross cultural" jazz album

Charles Lloyd Quartet : Passin Thru - Live album, great strait ahead jazz quartet

Anat Cohen Tentet : Happy Song. Great clarinet / sax player now heading up a big band. Like all of her albums, this is a lot of fun with great musicianship. She also released 2 albums with Brazilian musicians, Outra Coisa with Marcello Goncalves (7 string guitar) and Rosa de Ventos with Trio Brasiliero, both worth a listen

Who's Hat is This: Tim Lefebvre (b), Kebbi Williams (ts), JJ Johnson (d), Tyler Greenwell (d) of TTB. I got this one as a gift because of the other band they play in. Improvisational, free jazz that started as a one off show on an off night, now will do some limited touring. Interesting stuff, definitely not the jazz that your dad 9or his dad) grew up on

[August]

Yeah To Pimp a Butterfly is great, DAMN is a huge letdown.  Sites like Pitchfork put him in the number one slot because they think they have to, which is why he's overrated.

Yep.

[ytowndan]

For the last few years my musical diet has been largely made up of the previous year's 'paug lists.  For example, my top two albums by play time for this year would probably be M83 and Danny Brown.

2018 will probably be the same, so I look forward to recycling your picks once again.   I'm always a year behind the curve, but you dudes help me weed through the garbage.

[Hicks]

That's right Junk did make Aug's list for 2016. 

He should probably apologize for that one.