2023 Music Reviews

The pandemic, having a kid, moving to another borough, work, life, other interests and distractions.

There, now you have the reasons why I didn't publish music reviews over the last two years. But I wish I had, as there was so much to cover, so I wanted to get back to it this year. I thought a time-saving way to do this would be to write my review of each album I listen to as it comes out in real time, rather than all at once at the end of the year. Yeah, that seems like a much better idea.

[Editor's note: We are more than halfway through 2024 and I am still finishing this up. Better idea? Maybe. I think life is just too complicated. Or I should sleep I even less.]

I'll come back at the end of the year to give my overall thoughts on the output we received, so watch this space! And now, without further ado, my thoughts on the albums I added to my library this year in chronological order.

Belle & Sebastian Late Developers The year began, musically, with a surprise release by a band that doesn't really do surprises. In 2022 Glasgow's Belle & Sebastian released their first proper album in 7 years following the overstuffed and poorly-fitting Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance, A Bit of Previous, which - if I were to have reviewed it last year - I would have said that it was somewhat of an undercooked but charming return to form. Certainly not their best album, but it does have some moments that recall some of their best output from the late 20th century. And this album basically picks up where that one left off; I don't think anyone would consider it "essential" work, but it provides some youthful nostalgia, particularly the decades-old leftover "When the Cynics Stare Back from the Wall" and Sarah Martin's upbeat, foot-kicking "Give a Little Time." I also love Stuart Murdoch's continuing obsession with sports in the refrain of "When We Were Very Young,” and the title track is clearly their best album ender since Write About Love’s “Sunday’s Pretty Icons.” Nothing super incredible, but you could do much worse to pass the time when spending 42 minutes watching your kid play with his toys. 😄

The Arcs Electrophonic Chronic This album is by no means a home run, but it succeeds in a few ways where the last few Black Keys albums of original material have not. First of all, there are one ("Heaven Is a Place") or two ("Love Doesn't Live Here Anymore") melodies and hooks that actually stick with you. Without looking it up, I can't recall one memorable moment from last year's Dropout Boogie. And though the Keys are always game for some offbeat humor, their insistence in keeping things 'rock 'n roll' hampers their output (most recently, anyway) where here, even if the result as a whole is mediocre, they are able to let loose and be a little more free-flowing. Dan Auerbach appears to be pretty bitter here ("If I cared I might cry" ... "I'm the only one for me"), and your mileage on this album might be as far as his lyricism takes you. But if you like the guy, you'll find something to like here, and if not, I'd keep browsing. Let's call it a fielder's choice. ⚾️

Andy Shauf Norm

Canadian singer-songwriter Andy Shauf has had a prolific decade. Norm is his third full-length since 2020, and it's another concept record. But when you listen to Andy Shauf records, you have options that can result in different outcomes: keep it on in the background and it's pleasant to cook dinner to ... focus on the music and it's really pretty ... or pay very close attention to the lyrics and it opens up a whole 'nother dimension. For an album like The Neon Skyline, option 3 opens up a melancholy and bittersweet but relatable world of friends, drinking and love. While the narrative conceit of Norm is interesting (something about God and Norm and murder and figuring out what love is), it feels like a bit of work to get to without the help of interviews he's given and doesn't feel as rewarding to me as Skyline. It's probably a better record than Wilds, which kind of sounded like a group of B-sides cobbled together after Skyline (though not without merit), but it doesn't strike me as being as personal or essential as Skyline is. Lead single and first track "Wasted on You" is gorgeous, though, and I love the hazy, forward-moving disco vibe of "Halloween Store." But to me it's a pretty record that feels a little thin and doesn't knock me over with its theme. 🎃

Tennis Pollen

Denver's preeminent sailing duo returns for another collection of ... well, Tennis songs. (Just a quick aside about their ill-fitting band name, though I don't think it would work for any band. Ahem.) For the last decade-plus, Tennis has just kind of been there, reliably churning out 60s-indebted bass 'n groove jams every couple of years. I've never been in love with them, but they've always been pleasant to have on, and Alaina Moore's voice has grown on me. In fact, I'm trying to wonder whose favorite band this might be ... there must be someone! Anyway, if there's a difference between this record and previous ones, I suppose it's that guitars are used a bit more here, and there are no real slow jams; the pace keeps moving. It's funny that "One Night With the Valet" and "Hotel Valet" - both written about the couple's first meeting - are the weakest tracks on here, but "Never Been Wrong" is easily the ace of the set (see what I did there?) and "Gibraltar" and the quasi-title track "Pollen Song" are probably close behind. Throw this on while you're having a drink or taking a walk, and it'll do. If you're looking for profundity or transformation, look elsewhere. 🎾

Yo La Tengo This Stupid World

On paper, YLT is my favorite band: indie rock ... from New Jersey ... Jewish members ... baseball reference ... but in reality they've never clicked with me and I haven't really sought them out. This time I did seek them out, and I'm ... not super into it. I was intrigued by lead single "Fallout," a nice midtempo churner that has a good hook. But in total, I'm mostly feeling an every-other-track kind of vibe on this. For their more meandering, arty songs, I think I'd just go with a Sonic Youth or something of that ilk; or, plainly, it's just not really my thing. I much prefer a Wilco or Built to Spill-esque interlude with some more melody and destination in mind. So, "Sinatra Drive Breakdown," "Tonight's Episode," "Until It Happens," "Brain Capers" ... meh. "Aselestine" (meaning unknown) is really gorgeous in its simplicity, though, and it's soothing in a really nice way. "Apology Letter" is ok as is the languid "Miles Away," but that's really all I got for this one. Sorry for the tepid review, but I gave it a shot and now you can find a more positive one elsewhere. 😉

Gorillaz Cracker Island

The cockney cartoon crew is back, baby! Gorillaz has to be one of the most interesting acts out there; yes, they're masterminded and helmed by acclaimed frontman Damon Albarn, but the 'members' are all drawings and animations with a continuously rotating cast of a vast, vast array of side characters and guests that can really morph into anything, audibly or visually. Would you say that this has become Albarn's signature project at this point, even more than Blur? That might be recency bias, but it might be true. I'm not a big enough Blur fan to actually declare which, if either, of Blur or Gorillaz is better (no less The Good, The Bad and The Queen), but Gorillaz has been all over the place across the past two decades.

I think this is a solid album - maybe my favorite as a whole out of all of these 2023 releases so far, and definitely better than some of Gorillaz' recent output. Well, definitely better than Humanz. And it's pretty simple as to why: it's not too long! It doesn't have interludes, intros and outros! There are songs on it! When the song "Cracker Island" was released last year before this album was announced (last August!!), I loved its infectious bop immediately. It sets a pulsating tone for the album, which is actually quite subdued as a whole in comparison. The collabs on the album all work, but whereas Stevie Nicks ("Oil") and Adeleye Omotayo ("Silent Running") fit in seamlessly, the team-ups with Tame Impala ("New Gold") and Bad Bunny ("Tormenta") almost sound like those projects' B-sides that haven't been fleshed out as well and interrupt the flow of the record.

I like the mellow side of Gorillaz (see: "On Melancholy Hill," "Empire Ants," "To Binge," etc.), and "Oil," "The Tired Influencer," "Skinny Ape" (pre-freakout) and final track "Possession Island" do it for me, despite some, perhaps, too topical subjects in the year 2023. The Now Now was a minor success, Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez (anyone else had it with all the Z plural stuff? also, what happened to season two?) was an overstuffed bag with some great tracks, and I loved the title track from the Meanwhile EP, so I'd say Gorillaz still has it going on. I will definitely continue to follow them, even if their ever-expanding universe can sometimes feel hard to wrap your arms around. Some of the songs on here make me go a little bananas, but I'm gonna end on a critical note... With regards to the 'Gorillaz can be, look or sound like anything they want' point: this is the album title and cover they came up with? I am a big stickler for those things, but c'mon now. 🦍

Death Cab for Cutie Asphalt Meadows (Acoustic)

Time will tell if I ever go back to fully recap the albums of 2021-2022, but this release at least gives me a reason to touch on last year's DCFC proper follow-up to Thank You For Today, Asphalt Meadows. Before you get too excited, though, this is a review of the acoustic offering of the same album, so I shan't go too in depth on it. I wasn't crazy about it, but overall, yeah, it's a Good Death Cab for Cutie Album™️, and this companion record is like a comforting victory lap. I'm glad it's not the definitive version of the album because then you'd miss the post-rock cacophony of "Foxglove Through the Clearcut," but I'm also happy this exists because the string swells on "Foxglove Through the Clearcut (Acoustic)" are beautiful and warrant repeated listens. Otherwise, it's just a mellower and quieter kind of the regular thing that simply showcases the band using its other muscles. You can put it on your Sonos on Sunday mornings while you're doing the crossword and having a coffee, or possibly while you're going to sleep if you don't want to rock out to the real thing.

Ben Gibbard's singing is a double-edged sword here, because while he nails his vocal takes with aplomb and his lyrics become front and center ... you also hear his lyrics more closely and he sounds more and more like a fuddy-duddy old curmudgeon with each go. Finally, the one addendum to the album - "The Plan" - is a cover of Low's song of the same name from their 1996 LP, The Curtain Hits the Cast, recorded (presumably) in memoriam of Low's late Mimi Parker, who died late last year of ovarian cancer. The original one is haunting in its beauty (as is the majority of Low's catalog), and this cover is a very faithful and lovely homage to it. So, again, this record doesn't replace anything that came before it - either on the original Asphalt Meadows or "The Plan" - but it's not supposed to. It fits the bill well as an acoustic rerecording of a studio album and justifies its existence as yet another flex in Gibbard and DCFC's storied career. 🌿

Manchester Orchestra The Valley of Vision

2021's The Million Masks of God was on my very short list of best records of the year, and Atlanta's Manchester Orchestra is back with what they're calling an album but is more like an extended EP that thematically and lyrically plays as an epilogue to their prior record... and it's just as breathtakingly gorgeous and produced to a T as its predecessor. It's a brooding and low-key companion bursting with carefully crafted harmonies, piano lines, vocal samples and synths that bubble beneath the surface, kicked off by "Capital Karma." "The Way" - not a cover of Fastball's 1998 pop-rock hit/my favorite song of all-time - continues that theme before "Quietly" similarly (and tellingly) paces around before launching into more of an attack at the end. Finally, "Rear View" ends the album much as "The Internet" did Million Masks, with a riff on the same lyrics as lead singer Andy Hull grows more impassioned by the track. This time, though, the album explodes into an instrumental passage that allows his bandmates to clear their heads with him. I really like this, and if this is an indication of what comes next, I'm all about 6-song offerings within shorter periods of time. 👁

M83 Fantasy

An artist releases a song or album that perhaps unexpectedly brings them huge fame and attention, and then it comes time to follow that up ... a tale as old as time. After his world-conquering Hurry Up, We're Dreaming in 2011, M83 waited five years and returned with ... Junk. Now, to be clear, though Junk was quite tellingly a quasi-repudiation of Anthony Gonzalez's fame and a bit of his signature sound, to me it played as an overlong veer into slightly different territory that I actually really enjoyed. But after that, he waited even longer to come back with the new Fantasy and this album lies in the vein of sounding similar to what he's done before (pre-Junk) but is kind of just 🤷‍♂️ in comparison. It's all good stuff, but it feels lacking because it's aesthetically so similar.

There's nothing wrong with this, per se, but the soaring instrumentation and vocalization more so simply remind you of grander, harder-hitting M83 songs. I'd be curious to hear a shorter, punchier album from him in this style and see if that clicks more. But there are treasures here: the goofy bombast of lead single "Oceans Niagara," uplifting coda of "Laura," and slow-simmering explosions of "Us and The Rest" and "Earth to Sea." The bubbling "Kool Nuit" and acoustic build-up "Radar, Far, Gone" are really neither here nor there for me, and "Water Deep" and "Sonny Boy Part 2" merely exist. It's just not as memorable or meaningful as his past work, which - if we're being honest - would have been tough to pull off anyway.

It's undoubtedly difficult to come back as a revered artist after seven years (though I know he's delivered a soundtrack and an instrumental album in the interim), and while he hasn't blown me away like he has in the past, it's still an admirable collection of tunes that may just grow over time. Plus, we'll still always have Hurry Up, We're Dreaming and Saturdays=Youth. 👹

The New Pornographers Continue as a Guest

There's really no getting around it, even for someone who's historically rather agnostic towards this band: in their career, The New Pornographers have written handfuls of undeniable melodies that somehow make you feel happy but give you a lump in your throat at the same time ("My Rights Versus Yours," "Crash Years," "Brill Bruisers" just to name a few random singles of theirs over the years). Album-wise, I am no historian; I have 2005's Twin Cinema - largely regarded as either their classic or second-best, 2017's Whiteout Conditions, and their most recent one, 2019's In the Morse Code of Brake Lights. For me, Twin Cinema contains some of those aforementioned tracks ("Use It," "The Bleeding Heart Show," "Streets of Fire"), Whiteout Conditions was *fine* and Morse Code was maybe my favorite album of 2019 and one I replay often. (Are you kidding me with "The Surprise Knock"??)

So, especially as someone who's really hooked on a pretty straight-forward power pop-rocker like Morse Code, Continue as a Guest is a little bit of a curveball and isn't quite as instantly rewarding. With more listens I'm definitely more into it, but it does lack the more immediately gratifying nature of its predecessor. Lead single and first track "Really Really Light" does leave off where Morse Code ended, though, and is a nice, chugging entree to the album. The curiously titled "Pontius Pilate's Home Movies" is the first clue that something is different, though, and between that and other tracks like "Continue as a Guest" and "Firework in the Falling Snow," you've got a little bit of free jazz and other exploratory sections with more horns and possibly different synth textures than you're used to hearing from these folks.

I don't think this album will be one I return to that often - certainly not nearly as often as Morse Code - but aside from the aforementioned leadoff track, there are other nice moments on here as well. "Bottle Episodes" sounds like a familiar mashup of past tracks of theirs, the "dotted all the I's" and "I don't wanna go by myself / Come with me" lines of "Last and Beautiful" can get lodged in your head, and album closer "Wish Automatic Suite" starts out sleepy and employs some of that brass I mentioned, but gets grooving as "there are way too many eyes on the prize" before slowing down again as the track kind of gets stern but then dissolves and fades out. All in all, I give it a 6 out of 10. 🏘️

boygenius the record

We're just gonna start with the obvious - coming from me - at this point. I don't like the forced de-capitalization. the record is a dumb name for this album, and I do not like the cover (despite it continuing the group's trend of playing off of past work from men in music). And while that plays in to my review of the album, my grade still mostly comes from the music itself. Now, boygenius - Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker - kept it tight on their first EP, keeping it to six really strong tracks and an overall favorite of mine from 2018 (though Dacus' own Historian was maybe my favorite album of that year). Baker and (especially) Bridgers have reached this kind of meta-fame at this point, not just in the 'indie' world, but beyond, and I find it funny because I do think Dacus' solo music is the best out of the three, though she appears to be the most reserved personality-wise if not musically.

So much has been written about these women and this group and this album already that I can only provide my opinion at this point; I think the record has moments, but it feels a little bit anonymous and in existence for an album cycle's sake rather than vital work, which their EP did feel like. I think if it were reined in a little bit and the corners were sharpened, it would have been more successful. I'm not trying to say this is bad, because it works in certain ways and is never grating, but I don't see it being replayed often and it honestly just feels more like an idea of an album from these three talented musicians rather than something crucial.

The introductory a cappella track has some nice lyrical wordplay, but I do wish they just recorded it up against a good mic instead of letting the room overtake the vocal harmonies. "$20" starts off as a late 90s chug-rocker, but comes off kind of lackluster, despite (or maybe in spite of) the shouting at the end. In general, the tracks that include first-person retellings of stories just feel forced to me, despite any pretty harmonies. (I'm looking at you, "Emily I'm Sorry," "Leonard Cohen" and "We're in Love".) "True Blue" and "Anti-Curse" do fare better in this regard, though, and it may be because the songwriting is more uptempo and pushes you along so you don't focus on the words as much.

"Cool About It" is the group trying their spare Elliott Smith-indebted songwriting, but while I like the singing, the acoustic plucking sounds too much like Bon Iver. I love Bon Iver, but it's just been done to death. Ditto to Bridgers' sleepy "Revolution 0"; the music sounds like a retread, and though it is a retread of a sound I like, its saving grace is Bridgers' hurtfully pretty singing. Bridgers, overall, just seems tired (she says as much on the record), with all of her contributions coming in even mellower than her offerings on Punisher.

Highlights-wise, "Satanist" is my favorite song on the album. It's loud, it's slacker-y, it's equal parts reckless and naive; I only wish they went back to the main motif at the end for another 30 seconds of hard riffing before the song cut out. "Not Strong Enough" - nod to Sheryl Crow and all - is another good one, sitting squarely in that late-century pop-rock territory.

Phew, that's a lot of words for an album that is solid at best. But they're the supergroup du jour, so I felt like I wanted to give some thoughts. I am definitely in the camp of having some fatigue of Phoebe Bridgers' ubiquitousness (see The National below), but I will definitely continue to keep an eye on them. 🤚

Feist Multitudes

Mmm, Feist. Her soothing voice and easy melodies stir like a fine red wine in a glass, better with each sip, despite the darkness that lies beneath. I know her coming-of-age days are the most talked about in her career, and though I was aware of some of that ("1234" being ubiquitous), I really came along with 2011's Metals, which I absolutely adore. 2017's Pleasure was like a cousin to Metals, spare and charming in its own way, but a little bit more obtuse and not recorded with as much emphasis on studio fidelity, and it overall left me a little cold. In revisiting it, there are still good songs, but they feel a little too difficult to get to, especially after the sublime Metals.

So now after another very long wait for a new record, Multitudes comes and it's really, very good. I instantly like it better than Pleasure - mostly because it's more ... pleasurable - and while I'm not sure if it will catch up to Metals, it's a gorgeous addition to a discography in a similar but refined vein of what's come before. The tracks all sound like they've always been in existence, but I'm happy to have them in their definitive versions here. 😅

The cacophonous, clattering beginning of "In Lightning" is yet another misnomer at the start of a record, which is once again tame, spare and contemplative as has been Leslie Feist's wont over the past decade. But "In Lightning" has it all; it's rambling in its percussion almost similar to how "The Bad in Each Other" starts off Metals, there is a bit of novelty here with some vocal manipulation (that also pops up to successful measures on "Hiding Out in the Open" and "Become the Earth"), and it's also intermittently peaceful, a respite from the storm. She's just so good at mood: the open tuning in the middle of "Forever Before," the questioning gracefulness of "Love Who We Are Meant To" and the sheer acoustic beauty of "Hiding Out in the Open," which sounds like a minor anthem.

It's all so pretty, one could argue that it verges on same-y territory, but I believe the melodies and arrangements, including some sonic quirks, make each song pretty distinguished. "Of Womankind" feels like it takes a bit of a cue from Florence + the Machine and "Borrow Trouble" is like a rousing number in comparison with some yelling, but otherwise it's just a plain old exquisitely sung and well-executed record about love and relationships. Speaking of relationships, especially as a new father, the "She's sleeping right over there" line directed at her infant daughter as the titular "Forever" in "Forever Before" definitely rings true for me. 🫶

The National First Two Pages of Frankenstein

Let me start by saying two things. Well, let me start by saying one thing: The National is - if not my favorite - then one of my top 5 favorite bands of all-time. Let's just get that out of the way.

Now, let me start by saying two things. One: The National (and plenty of other bands) get flak for coming out with new music and sounding too much like ... The National/themselves. That criticism is so dumb to me. I want them to sound like them. Sure, they have the option to evolve - sonically, lyrically - but I never think they have to if what they're already doing is working. So, that will not be an issue I have with this record. Honestly, if anything, the problem here might just be that they don't sound enough like themselves. Sure, Matt Berninger's baritone and lyrics are there and you hear the rest of the band often doing their thing as well, but the issue is they kind of sound like they're doing an approximation of themselves. More on that below.

Thing two: There's how the record sounds, and there's how I wanted the record to sound. For years - certainly before I Am Easy to Find if not also before Sleep Well Beast - I wanted another Alligator. Get back to the down and dirty and drinking whiskey with the volume up at 2 in the morning rather than slumped in a chair drinking wine at dusk vibe. It became clear early during this album rollout that those hopes were dashed, so I have to temper my expectations. I mean, I get it. They're approaching their 50s and I can't necessarily blame them for not going back in that direction. So, disappointment aside, I have to separate that from how the record turned out.

And now we are left with the album that's come out, and while I am at peace with it not being more of a rocker, its near-insistent midtempo-ness renders it largely inert and un-dynamic. I don't feel this way about practically any of their other music (save the interludes on I Am Easy to Find or their self-titled debut), but I could very well never hear "Once Upon a Poolside," "This Isn't Helping," or "The Alcott" again and be totally fine. They're not bad, but they just feel like nothing's there. I totally empathize with Berninger's bout of writer's block and depression, and there are still plenty of worthy lines on the album, but these tracks just feel so drab, despite their featured guests.

So, to the featured guests. Sufjan Stevens gets a credit on "Poolside" despite only lending "ooh-ing" and "ahh-ing" to the proceedings. Phoebe Bridgers only lends backing vocals to the languid "This Isn't Helping" and "Your Mind Is Not Your Friend." Her voice is distinctive, hurt and pretty, but its implementation just feels forced, like The National felt like they had to glom onto a rising star for their music. And speaking of stars, there's no bigger one than The National super-fan Taylor Swift. Honestly the most impressive thing about "The Alcott" is that it isn't bad, and that almost makes it worse, because I wouldn't say that it's good. It's just boring, and it sounds like a Taylor Swift song with her kind of lyrics (which she wrote, a la "I love this curse on our house" ... "Tell me, which side are you on, dear?") and instrumentation, which - to be fair - has now kind of melded with the musical inclinations of Aaron Dessner. The finger-picking of "Ice Machines" sounds like it was plucked right from the demos of what became folklore. I'm sure at this point he just sends everything he has to his full roster of artists and they choose what speaks to them, but still.

Finally, negatively, the production is just so reserved, with blips and bloops amid a timid simmer while several of these tracks are already exploding in the live setting with vigor and muscle. Why not record them like that for the album, too? "Grease in Your Hair" is a viable rocker in person, but the song on record sounds poorly mixed and feels like a The National cover band doing a The National song. The melody of the refrain of "This Isn't Helping" sounds just like the "It wouldn't be fair ... ai-air" from "Eucalyptus," and when "Alien" begins I legit rolled my eyes that another song began with piano twinkling (though it did reveal itself to be close to a winner on subsequent listens). And "Send For Me," while employing a nice sentiment of accountability for self and others, is mostly as uninspiring and boring as the album opener.

But there is plenty to compliment here, too. "Eucalyptus" is very clearly the winner of the lot and, hey, it's the grittiest, most vicious track on the album. It's gutting in its direct and hilarious plaintiveness about what you split up and why in a breakup. You could laugh at the directness and absurdness of some of the lyrics, but his passion and swell of the music sell it. Once the horns come in near the end? Forget about it. Other singles "New Order T-Shirt" and "Tropic Morning News" are the other highlights on here, despite the latter's tame production sheen (see criticism above). The lyrics and pacing of Matt's singing threaten to careen off the rails, but the roller coaster rolls safely into the station, and honestly makes things a little more emotional because of that. The main guitar motif of "Tropic Morning News" is hypnotic; I could see it replaying over and over for patients in therapy. Finally, other single "Your Mind Is Not Your Friend" - which upon release seemed incubated in a The National generator - reveals itself to be one of the best on the album, with one of the most classic piano lines in The National's entire oeuvre.

I said this on Twitter, but while the album title (in reference to what sparked his breakthrough from his writer's block) is kind of silly but endearing, the odd, strangely spare combination of the art itself leaves something to be desired. That combined with my unfortunately tepid response to the music leaves me a bit disappointed after a fairly long wait. Whereas in 2019 I put all 3 The National albums released in the 2010s on my best-of-decade list, this one won't be making this one's. And yet. I still love them, there are songs I will return to, and - hey, would you look at that - they're already playing a handful of brand new songs on tour right now. 👨‍👦

Fruit Bats A River Running to Your Heart

Just a reliable, really pleasurable folky effort by Eric D. Johnson. This one really snuck up on me; I don't even remember how I got wind that it was coming out. You'd kind of think at this point between how long this act has been around and how successful Bonny Light Horseman has been so far that it would receive more publication, but I've seen literally nothing about it on the usual channels. (If I had written this column last year, by the way, Bonny Light Horseman's 2nd album Rolling Golden Holy would have been in contention for my album of the year.) Anyway, I think it's a better effort than their last regular LP, 2021's The Pet Parade, which was largely top-heavy. You could do without the instrumental set dressing here ("Dim North Star," "Meridian"), but otherwise it's just lovely. "Rushin' River Valley" is rollicking, sentimental and impassioned. "Tacoma" is a road trip song with a great hook. "We Used to Live Here" is a timeless little tune, and it showcases Johnson's voice as a strength, which I could understand being a turn-off to some. Finally, "Sick of This Feeling" was just made for replaying, and the last song is sweetly memorable as well. There's nothing super different or revolutionary here, but Johnson stands out on his own. Put this on and chill. 💧

Beach House Become - EP

Beach House's Once Twice Melody was one of my favorite albums of 2022, and a calming presence for me as I spent the first few months as a father just sitting around with my baby, figuring out what was going on. Now we have a companion EP, which certainly easily could have just been the fifth set of songs included in that collection. I like these songs a lot, and they're misleading in the way that they build up a sustained momentum but never really crash through the wall, sometimes preferring just to fade out. "Devil's Pool" is ethereal and very high school prom-y, making you feel like you're the star of a teen movie, out there on the gym floor. "Holiday House" is just chill AF, I don't know what else to really say about it; it's one of those ones that could keep going and going. "Black Magic"'s initial arpeggiated guitars sound just like Beach House from their mid-discography playlist, like a cut off of Teen Dream. The group's winning streak just continues with this stopgap offering. Once ... twice ... thrice, melody. 🗝

Pinegrove Montclair (Live at the Wellmont Theater)

In eight short years, I have no fewer than FIVE live Pinegrove albums in my library. What separates this one from the rest, though, is it comes at a time where the band has ... basically broken up. They may release one more studio record or some songs or something, but it seems that they're effectively now done for after the drummer has departed. There were certainly some bumps along the way and sometimes their lyrics, social media/newsletter postings and fanbase felt cloyingly sweet or just plain annoying, but if I'm being honest, they've been one of my favorite bands since I got wind of them and I am upset I will not be getting (much) more from them.

To this live record, it somehow feels essential despite all of the other live records that precede it. There's more material to draw from (their studio output has been prolific as well), and they always seem to somehow find one different way to make their songs sound just a little enhanced on stage. All that, and they just clearly believe in and feel their music so much that it comes across so impassioned and in the pocket. You can hear the band crackle as they open the set with "Moment," the going-up-the-lift-hill-and-careening-off-the-rails-on-the-way-down-just-to-slowly-climb-back-up feeling of "Rings," twilit beauty of "Skylight," childish petulance of "Size of the Moon," connected catharsis on album-ender "Aphasia" and even an alternate ending for "Angelina," which the band has played and recorded an infinite amount of times. Guitar solo! I'm sad to see this band go, and maybe one day they'll resurface again, but we have a trove of material to dive back into whenever we need it. 🏡

Kevin Morby More Photographs (A Continuum)

I have just never been able to make the full leap with Kevin Morby. I adore a handful of his songs ("I Have Been to the Mountain," "Baltimore" - both versions, etc.) and there's always something worthwhile on each of his releases, but I don't think any of them as a whole feel essential to me and a lot of it is very same-y and rudimentary in music, lyrics and vocal delivery. None of that is inherently bad, to be clear, but this is a reprise of his most recent album, and the alternate versions and B-sides don't really do much to make either that first album (last year's This Is a Photograph) or this one any more crucial. Again, I like the sound of it, but it's mostly just neither here nor there for me.

A song like "Bittersweet, Tennessee" is a simple and repetitive ditty, but very pretty to listen to; it's slower and less ornate than the original version on last year's album, but might be more rewarding. "A Song for Katie" (the companion to last year's "Stop Before I Cry") in this stark manner is even sweeter, for his wife (Crutchfield, of Waxahatchee). But then you have "Going to Prom," "Lion Tamer" and "Mickey Mantle's Autograph," which are evocative of a lot of Morby's catalog - a motif repeated over and over with lyrics that appear on several different songs that sound fine, but just go nowhere. (The music on "Prom" does sound like it was inspired by Twin Peaks or something Lynchian.) "Tamer" and "Kingdom of Broken Hearts" also employ the same kind of lyrics and guitar lick that Morby uses in so many songs, like he's skipping down from the top of a staircase to the water. The celebrity shoutouts on "Mantle" (as they were on "Goodbye to Good Times" before it) are just awkward, despite his intent.

Morby has been very prolific, with four legit albums and several companion albums released since just 2017. I will keep tabs on him, to be sure, but I'm still waiting for a full body of work of his to really win me over, and if I'm being honest, he's gotten further away each time since his 2014 sophomore effort, Still Life. 📸

Foo Fighters But Here We Are

You simply have to hand it to Dave Grohl. He came back from yet another devastating loss of a best friend and bandmate, and rallied the troops only two years after their last record to deliver what seems to be their most vital and emotional set of songs in well over a decade, if not longer. I am no Foo Fighters historian (I don't know their full albums at all, basically), but - especially given the circumstances and the near-universal praise for the outcome - this has to be the platonic ideal for a fan of this band at this juncture of their career.

Lead single and first track "Rescued" starts off well enough with a ripper that gets fast and furious more quickly than recent pre-album releases - extra oomph from the lyrics included - but then "Under You" comes and slays you in a multi-faceted way. Lyrically, it makes you want to cry, and musically, it sounds like Grohl went back in time to his 1995 debut and concocted this and brought it back to present day, which also threatens the waterworks just by making you think about how far away we are from that time period now... it's got just the most delicious pop hook and a perfect combination with his saying goodbye to his fallen brother. I get a similar feeling from "The Glass": "I had a vision of you and just like that / I was left to live without it" shatters me (no pun intended) each time. The sheer resilience of "But Here We Are" is impressive, and I think the "But" is very important. "I gave you my heart / But here we are" ... We were best friends for life, and you passed, but this is what's happened, and here's how we're going to move through it. This may have happened, but... and yet...

"Beyond Me" is the third triumph/tearjerker for me in addition to "Under You" and "The Glass." Lyrically, Grohl isn't breaking any new ground, but you can't help but think of what happened and feel the emotion in his throat and fingers, and it just wrecks you. The longing for some control in this life is splintered by the realization that everything is just "beyond me" - physically and symbolically. "The Teacher" - a long song that's another tribute to someone else who's recently died (Grohl's mother, who was a teacher) - doesn't totally work for me, but the ending is effective as it rips apart at the seams while he says goodbye, with nothing more that can be done. And then "Rest" fairly successfully if almost too maudlinly provides the final benediction/sendoff for his dead bandmate.

Weirdly enough, Concrete and Gold was the first full album of theirs I listened to, and I (maybe in the minority) thought it was great! Medicine at Midnight was instantly swept under the rug, and in hindsight, an unfortunate last go-round for the band with Justin Hawkins. And here we are. Look, not everything totally bowled me over and it's not the best rock record of all-time, but given the history of the artists involved and the circumstances that led to this, it's absolutely a triumph, and mostly I'm just happy that Grohl could have some catharsis in making this record. 🧘🏻‍♂️

Ben Folds What Matters Most

One of my most disappointing records of the year. I am a huge Ben Folds fan, and we haven't gotten new music from him - or at least a full album - in many years (2015). Heck, I hadn't even met my wife yet then and we have an almost-two-year-old now. So while I was very excited for this to finally come out, I'm just left with almost nothing. The musical choices he makes leaves me cold, and there's just nothing to really hang your hat on, melodically. Lyrically, his shtick doesn't stick for me at all this time. "Clouds with Ellipses" is a highlight, I guess, but it just feels like a lesser version of a classic Folds piano line, and almost every other song highlights something other than piano, doesn't pull off the different musical flourishes it tries, or has unsuccessful meandering lyrics about a parable or character (something he's certainly pulled off in the past time and time again to great effect). That, and there's just no momentum to this thing. A few other worthy moments would be the "ooo" after the chorus of the title track, which is maybe the best song on the album, and it's nice when he goes up on "fragile" in "Fragile." I'm not planning to return to this one until I want to try to convince myself that it's better than I think it is. ☁️

Beach Fossils Bunny

Two BFs in a row, how about that?! Anyway... The sound of this band has always intrigued me ... bedroom guitar pop, yum. But I've never loved what I've heard enough to make me want to dive in more. Maybe I wanted more memorable hooks. Maybe I wanted more consistency song to song. Maybe I wanted it to be more hi-fi. Well, they are there now, and I really enjoy this album. This sounds like a mix of Real Estate and DIIV. Real Estate (well, old Real Estate, anyway) happens to be one of my favorite bands, and while I feel like the tracks on here feel just a bit anonymous or passionless in comparison to the more pointed melodies and lyrics on Days or Atlas, I still enjoy the laid-back vibe of this and it fits perfectly as a backyard or beach (obviously) album.

All of the tracks do really mesh together for the most part, so I don't have a ton to specifically point out, but opening track "Sleeping on My Own" is a great tone-setter. "Run to the Moon" has a chill chorus, the pre-chorus and chorus of "Dare Me" are well-put together, I enjoy the devil-may-care attitude of "Numb," and then there's the elegant comedown on final track "Waterfall." To tell you what this album's really like, it's been weeks since I started and have now finished writing this little blurb, and I can't remember anything specific from any song. But putting it on sounds nice, and sometimes that's all you need. 🐰

~~~~

Alright, so at this point in the year, I just completely ran out of steam, time, and will to write about this. In the light of personal tribulations and otherwise (fuck Hamas, cough cough), I just found it trivial and couldn't muster up the passion or minutes to keep going. But I am a completist, and I wanted to finish it, even though it's now 2024, so I started making these shorter and shorter, though I regret I'm not doing the rest more thoroughly. Part of it, too, is this is honestly just a ridiculous amount of music to review, especially on one blog page, and while I'm glad I kept tabs of what I wanted to listen to, this may be too ambitious to cover in this way going forward (and absurd to think that anyone else other than me would get through it).

Anyway, here's the rest. Sorry for you and me it's not better. There's always ... next ... next year?

~~~~

Youth Lagoon Heaven is a Junkyard

Trevor Powers' first record as Youth Lagoon after a trio of albums that ran dry in 2015 is a true natural progression of his skill and talent. The instrumentation sounds more live, his vocals largely clearer, and the songs are more focused and small than they ever have been. That being said, despite being an honest and introspective listen, it feels tepid to me and I'm not clamoring to go back to it. The slight shift in style combined with both of our aging just displaces me here. Nevertheless, The Year of Hibernation remains one of my top albums of all-time, with certain selections on Wondrous Bughouse not far behind, so I am good with this.

Sigur Rós ÁTTA

Boy! Suddenly, after a decade without a proper studio album (despite tons of released detours, reissues and solo work), Sigur Rós laid a new one in our laps in the middle of June with basically no advanced warning. I have not spent as much time as I'd have liked to with this so far, but it's unsurprisingly supremely gorgeous. It's almost too unrelentingly gorgeous, because it can be hard to find a foothold in order to prop you up and into it. On the other hand, I'm really impressed with the emotional punch it packs given its relative restraint, especially compared to past efforts that are more bombastic (Kveikur), pop-oriented (Með suð i eyrum við spilum endalaust) or even contain a song with an earth-shattering buildup on a very understated album (Valtari's "Varúð"). Particularly with an almost total lack of percussion, it really sounds more like a concerto than any of their albums so far. It's a mournful soundtrack that sounds sadly perfect for today's day and age.

Bright Eyes - A Companion EPs

Just a quick word about this series of nine EPs, which began releasing last year but went into this year: it was, uh, cool, I guess. I do think it's interesting when artists try to reimagine the songs they've already put out, but nine EPs is a lot and I don't have many specific to touch on given my notice above. I think some of the reworks worked, and most of it was pretty boring. A bunch of the covers and previously unreleased tracks may have been my favorite. There's just no altering the feeling of the original songs and your original feelings when they first came out.

Queens of the Stone Age In Times New Roman...

Finally they came back, six years later. (Notice a theme here?) This follow-up to the somewhat lukewarmly-received Villains is more ferocious and nastier than its predecessor. Despite some winking song titles, it has an unsurprising mean streak in the wake of lead Queen Josh Homme's bitter divorce that's played out publicly. The melodies and hooks feel buried beneath the surface in a conscious stylistic choice that I don't love, though it is rewarding upon repeated listens.

It's not my favorite Queens record and I don't think any song even compares to "Villains of Circumstance" from the last one, but tracks like "Emotion Sickness," "Straight Jacket Fitting" and "Paper Machete" leave enough to come back for when you're in the wrong kind of mood.

Hand Habits Sugar the Bruise - EP

I feel like this EP had a little more filler than her other most recent projects, but I happen to continue to generally really like the music that Meg Duffy puts out.

Killer Mike MICHAEL

This album is alright. It's too long and loses its punch because of that, but I'm into most of the music and you can't deny Mike's lyrical attack. I also can't stand the all-caps on the album and all song titles. Sorry I don't have more on this one; this may be the only rap album I listened to all year.

Local Natives Time Will Wait For No One

I have to be honest, I kind of thought that I was done with this band. They're interesting because on one hand they kind of sound like H&M-core but on the other hand they still just float in their own lazy river; the convergence of the two, though, is not a bad place to meet. I was pleasantly surprised to be into this whole thing, which hasn't so much been the case recently. Their harmonies continue to flourish, and the songs are just inviting. There's almost something whimsical/Shins/Grizzly Bear-esque to "NYE." Overall it could use a bit more heft and uptempo-ness (as was the goal with that song), but they were successful in delivering a strong album this deep into their career. I'd go back to just about all of these songs, which I don't think I'd say for Violet Street, and I think it's better mixed, too. This band might have the worst aesthetic and merch this side of Whitney and Hovvdy, but I am still a fan!

Blur The Ballad of Darren

I had never really heard a full Blur album before. I frankly am pretty unfamiliar with the vast majority of their entire catalogue ("Song 2" aside), but given my familiarity with Gorillaz, now working for a music publication, and my inherent curiosity, especially since this was coming after yet another hiatus, I wanted to see what this was like. Now, given my circumstance, I can't compare it to past efforts. To me, it seems like their more sincere, straightforward pop-rock tunes are their more successful ones; I way prefer "Barbaric" and "The Narcissist" to the forced-zany sounding "St. Charles Square." Is it a great Blur album? Probably not, since it's not a great album, period. But for those two songs and a few other moments alone, I'm glad it was made.

Andrew Bird Outside Problems

I really just included this, which I've listened to maybe three times, here so I could briefly touch on last year's Inside Problems. Outside Problems is basically a wordless instrumental album that's a companion to Inside, so really it's just 42 minutes worth of Andrew Bird music without any lyrics. As such, it's pretty to listen to, but it sounds so similar to much of his past work that nothing really stands out to make it essential. And, to what I really wanted to say, I've been really underwhelmed with his last two standard studio LPs, the aforementioned Inside Problems and 2019's My Finest Work Yet. Sure, there are good songs to be had, but these records have just felt so muddled and same-y recently that I feel like there's been less and less juice to squeeze out of him for years now. (This is to say nothing of his talent, of course.) Hopefully he takes a little break (because he is constantly releasing music otherwise) and returns with something that feels a little more necessary next time.

Daniel Rossen Live in Pioneertown & Santa Fe

Dude is seriously talented, not sure what else to say. This kind-of long live record may not be one you just throw on often, but when you need a little fix of his playing and singing, this will remind you of his true skill.

The Front Bottoms You Are Who You Hang Out With

Another album by the New Jersey folk-punk crew that I really like. As far as I can tell Talon of the Hawk is 'the one' for most of their fans, but I honestly like this and their one before this, In Sickness & In Flames, way more overall. It's mostly more of the same in that last album's vein -- with acoustic guitar, vocal manipulation and keys -- but no complaints here. Great hooks, sarcastic and serious lyrics mixed with great production and an attitude that's impossible to ignore. Every song hits for me, and I will return to this.

Gregory Alan Isakov Appaloosa Bones

Switching gears from the playful defeatism of The Front Bottoms we have a tranquil, stern affair from the Colorado-based indie folk artist Gregory Alan Isakov. Like basically all of his previous records, this one is a slow-burning winner. His instrumentation is beautiful, with first track "The Fall" an unquestionable triumph that's followed by several other really nice tracks. I imagine this as the kind of music I'd have to put on if I were coming in on a truck to the range out in the wild west. Lovesick, dwelling on the past, and yearning for a little hope, 'comfort' is really the word that comes to mind for this record (and all of his music). I don't see much groundbreaking work being done here, and the songs can blur together, but it's just pleasant to listen to, and sometimes that's all you need.

Jeff Rosenstock Hellmode

This one just doesn't have the juice of his last few. It sounds a bit forced in a slightly embarrassing way ("Head," "Healmode"), and it's not that bad, but you basically have the same, better version of this in No Dream and many parts of Worry. I like opening track "Will U Still U," specifically the guitar breakdown part-way through the song. I like the cool vibe of "Life Admin" too, and other tracks have fine moments, but the fist-pumping, shouting-at-the-top-of-your-lungs sing-alongs are just minor-league versions of what's come before them. Not a failure, but not a gold medal winner, as has been the standard he's set.

Slowdive everything is alive

I was barely alive, so I was not quite conscious of the larger world when Slowdive made their initial mark on our planet. All these years later they're back with their 2nd post-reunion record, and it's another success. It's a bit darker/moodier, more contemplative, and simmering on the surface in comparison to 2017's Slowdive, but it's as effective in places and just a really solid, immersive listen. There's not quite a standout like "Sugar for the Pill" or "Slowmo" but it might be even better as a whole. Walls of sound, baths of swirling noise, and all the other good shoegaze tropes abound, and these forebears of the genre make it seem just as natural today as they did 30 years ago.

Mitski The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We

Mitski is so slippery that when something sticks, it's like you've found gold. Sometimes it feels like she conjures melodies out of thin air that wouldn't exist if she didn't shape them to her wills. She really worked her way to national (international?) recognition on Puberty 2 and Be the Cowboy before last year's Laurel Hell kind of put her in the backseat critically, though I think the album still fared pretty well commercially. I will say that the thrill of those two aforementioned records is a little hard to come by again on this one, and the lightning in a bottle that she's achieved is dulled a bit, but this is still another lovely, lush record. Her voice is as confident as ever, her lyricism very much owned, and it feels like a new prestige era for her and her music. TikTok hit "My Love Mine All Mine" does sound like it's a standard that's always been there, and there's much to like from the album as a whole. Its title and vibe keep it from becoming an all-timer for her, but Mitski continues to build on her already impressive catalogue.

Explosions in the Sky End

"Ten Billion Seconds" launches you into the album, and just like that, seven long years since their last true studio album are over. "Moving On" might be the most moving track here, and intentionally or not, I can't help but think of all the horror and death I/we witnessed and experienced this year, and how we move on in this world as those who have not made it move on to whatever awaits us all after this life. I feel similarly about "Loved Ones"; it could be for those living or those no longer with us. The feedback of the guitars as the drums bang make me simultaneously want to hold on to who I have physically and the memories and feelings of those no longer with me.

"All Mountains" provides a bit of hope as you reach the summit, "The Fight" does sound like a fight, and finally "It's Never Going to Stop" feels like a perfect approximation of life. The good, the bad, and everything in between is never going to relent and we have to figure out how to live with all of it. Weirdly the track kind of feels more subdued than you might think it would; it's more monotone zombie muttering to himself because he's in the acceptance phase of realizing there's nothing he can do vs. someone newly aware of his lot in life, going insane. In total there's more piano and some synth work as opposed to the strictly twinkling guitars and pounding drums of some of their earlier records, but there's not as much of that electronic sheen and unneeded playfulness that The Wilderness had, and this record is the better for it.

The National Laugh Track

Now that's more like it. I just don't have the time now to spend nearly as much on this one as I did on this year's earlier First Two Pages of Frankenstein, but I love and have returned to this one much more. Here's the thing: the songs on this are really, really good. I genuinely like all of them, while tracks like "Turn Off the House," "Space Invader," "Deep End (Paul's in Pieces)," "Tour Manager" and several others are truly fantastic, and some of my favorite work of theirs overall. But as an album it feels a little inorganic or just manufactured to, basically, just be a set of The National songs. That might sound a little contradictory, but what I mean is that while I love the songs on their own and as part of a collection, it plays more like a greatest hits album than a classic album that felt vital to its creators and that you need listen to from front to back.

I am still holding out hope that their followup - and I do hope they take some time off after two albums in one year - gets back to their Alligator sound, but with a couple of solid tracks on Frankenstein and now this All-Star record as a whole, we have to be grateful with what indie rock's preeminent institution gave us in 2023.

Al Menne Freak Accident

Was I the only one wondering when the next Great Grandpa album was gonna come out? Well, nothing from that old geezer, but we do have its lead singer Al Menne stepping out on an album of their own. This is truly a gem. The title track is a classic, and they spin gold earworms out of other melodies like on "Kill Me," "Saddle" and "Careful Heart." The songs bleed together a little bit, but Al has managed to create low-key anthems for the hopeless romantics. The subject matter is personally incisive, but it's tuneful to no end.

Another Michael Wishes to Fulfill

I enjoyed this for a week or so after it came out in September, but haven't returned to it much since. I do think it's definitely a stronger record than their debut New Music and Big Pop back in 2021, and it's similar to the record above this in that it's tuneful and spins up several notable melodies, but this is more sincere rather than cutting. I don't love his voice like I love Al's, but they've created a record pleasant enough that it warrants repeated listens.

Wilco Cousin

Every late-period Wilco album, no matter how mediocre, still has at least one (uncut) gem within, be it "You Satellite" from Star Wars, "We Aren't the World (Safety Girl)" from Schmilco, "Love Is Everywhere (Beware)" from Ode to Joy or ... well, all of Cruel Country; that album rules. Cousin -- while I believe is a stronger record than Schmilco certainly, probably Star Wars, and possibly Ode to Joy -- has that one right off the bat with the soul-plumbing "Infinite Surprise." It does have an A Ghost Is Born feel to it both in its uneasy arrangement and darker subject matter, and the songs sound meatier than those pre-Cruel Country albums I mentioned. "Sunlight Ends," "A Bowl and a Pudding" and "Pittsburgh" almost threaten to derail the album due to their plodding nature, but I really do enjoy it as a whole and "Meant to Be" is a sweet ender. Not quite in Weezer territory in terms of output, but the World of Wilco has gotten pretty daunting these days; even so, this is a welcome addition to the catalogue.

Slow Pulp Yard

If you get past the random nouns that populate this band's name, this album title and its songs' names, this is a pretty decent record. They have the same sound that a lot of today's solid indie rock does -- drawing on 90s alt-rock, soft electronic textures, a woman's touch at the helm, and a touch of country -- and they pull it off well. "Doubt" and "Slugs" are certified bangers, and the only real knock on the album is it is a little same-y, so some of the songs that don't quite make the same impact ("Carina Phone 1000," "Fishes") leave you wanting a little more. But all told, I like this sound.

Sufjan Stevens Javelin

It's heavy. Not that that's a surprise. This album, on the heels of his partner's untimely demise and his own diagnosis of Guillain-Barré Syndrome, was going to be heavy. It's a return to his Carrie & Lowell-style of songwriting, but with a splash of The Age of Adz and plenty dashes of Illinois female group backing vocals and intermittent symphonies thrown in. And while it's not quite as memorable as any of those records, it is a success of quiet despair and gorgeous pleading. It is immaculate in its presentation and themes, from the twinkling pianos and swirling woodwinds, to his hushed, melancholy delivery. Some of my favorite moments are the interlude of "A Running Start," the chorus of "Will Anybody Ever Love Me?," the climax of "Shit Talk" and the entirety of "So You Are Tired." It might be my place in life or just slightly more of the same that's somewhat of a retread of what's come before, but I'm not returning to this one much so far. Nevertheless, I wish him nothing but the best in his recovery, I'm glad he was able to make it, and I hope he's able to get back to making music soon.

Mutual Benefit Growing at the Edges

Ultimately another gorgeous record overly focused on nature that (are you noticing a theme here?) doesn't quite have the hooks or melodies that suck you in like their previous albums did. It's like one long, baroque piece of music with three interludes that almost feels like an ensemble put together for a musical. It's clearly his most refined work and possibly his least pop effort yet, and though certainly pleasant, there's nothing specific I could recall to suggest you try first; if you want, just put on the entire thing. Think chimes clanging as you open the screen door to your back porch as you head out to tend to your garden in the early days of summer.

boygenius the rest - EP

For as hard as I may have gone on the record this year when it was fine enough, I really do feel like these definitely deserve the distinction of leftovers. Unless you're a diehard, you can skip it.

Land of Talk Performances

Talk about skipping. After stumbling upon this Canadian indie rock group some years ago when they came back with Life After Youth, which I really like, I've felt really diminishing returns since. Wheres that record was solid from start to finish, I felt like 2020's Indistinct Conversations only had a few memorable tracks, while this one is basically lacking any. Their 2021 EP Calming Night Partner had me excited again with the fantastic "Something Will Be Said," but I truly don't recall one highlight from this scattershot album, which I only got through a few times. Sorry!

Squirrel Flower Tomorrow's Fire

I like this album a lot, though it's more difficult to listen to now as Ms. Flower has joined the ignoramus chorus accusing Israel of 'genocide' while completely overlooking the terrorist attack and overall ideology that got everyone into that mess. But, I digress, and focusing on the music, it's a self-assured statement, with her voice sometimes piercing through an understated soundscape like a ray of sun through clouds ("I Don't Use a Trash Can," "What Kind of Dream Is This?") or more urgent in lockstep with scuzzy, fuzzy 90s rock compositions ("Full Time Job," "Stick"). So I'm not sure that I'll be able to return to it, but I think she pulled something off with this release and will probably continue to rise in stature with her next one.

The Antlers Need Nothing - EP

This EP is really just a series of singles that started being released independently earlier in the year that kept being repackaged (on Apple Music, anyway) until it settled into this five-song suite. It's essentially a continuation of their winning 2021 album Green to Gold, and their streak of success continues with the title track, the first song on this version. It, "Tide" and "Rains" employ a little bit of some unusual-for-them electronic enhancements on vocals and instrumentation. "I Was Not There" is simply clean and gorgeous, while "Ahimsa" -- a redone track from Peter Silberman's 2017 solo album with full band -- is just majestic. The loping bass, the twinkling keys and the overall relaxed pace -- all set by Peter Silberman's patient, knowing voice -- make for nothing short of just an incredibly pleasant listen.

The Gaslight Anthem History Books

It's solid. They've definitely lost a bit of their bite in the years they've been away, and it's overall a bit slower, more mellowed and polished than past efforts, but it's still a worthwhile endeavor. Honestly, no one track really sticks out among the rest; I'd say each of the 10 songs are good listens, and there is variation. It's fall in New Jersey.

Empty Country Empty Country II

I may have listened to this twice, and sadly it was just instantly forgettable across the board. I haven't felt that way about any of Joseph D'Agostino's albums between all of Cymbals Eat Guitars or the first Empty Country album, but I do for this one. Sorry, guy. Not sure what happened.

Beirut Hadsel

It had been a sneaky long time since Beirut released a new full-length album, four long years since 2019's very good Gallipoli, which was itself an expansion of their previous sound and certainly had more meat than 2015's paltry (but still pretty) No No No. With one B-side/rarities compilation in between, Hadsel came out at the end of the year and practically withered away. I imagine he still has a devoted fanbase (myself included), but even after a few years away, his return seemed to fail to make any impression on the scene that birthed him back in the mid-aughts.

To this record, though, it's still as gorgeous as any piece of music Zach Condon has released so far. It's not the most special record in his catalogue and sticks to his usual formula of horns and Farfisa organs. Still, it's his voice that keeps us coming back, always a balm after all these years.

Kurt Vile Back to Moon Beach

Alright, finally, the last full release I stuck with for the year. (Blonde Redhead's Sit Down for Dinner came close, but I only vibed with about half the tracks on that album. Though those tracks are probably stronger than this whole one. What is even my deal here?) Anyway, this 'stopgap'/not-official-album is 52 minutes long, and it's a perfect grab bag of everything Vile's been up to this past decade. There's the 8+ minute repeating guitar tome ("Tom Petty's Gone"), wandering psychedelia ("Back to Moon Beach"), a silly song about Santa, and a few more meandering passages, wrapped up with a Wilco cover and different mix of "Cool Water" from 2022's (watch my moves). It's fine and I don't think I've thought about it since it came out in November, but if you're a Vile Vulture™ (I just coined that) you will undoubtedly want this in your catalog.