I'll chip in a vote for their last album "Apex Predator - Easy Meat" (wherein some Cattle Decap-esque "clean" vocals popped up once or twice), the death metal classic "Harmony Corruption", and the debut album (which is basically a split as the drummer is the only commonality from side A to B) "Scum" which I reckon should be one of those "albums everyone should hear at least once before they die" whether you like metal or not.
I was aware of his album cover art the first time I heard him but didn't know it was his standard stage get-up. What hooked me was the Roy Orbison meets Joy Division vibes of his excellent music.
I took it in chunks throughout the year, then listened through the audiobook in a few days. It's really worth it to get both experiences in - you need the pictures, graphs, maps, etc of the book (plus an entire chapter being a comic book) and you need the weirdness of all the different folks they got to read on the audiobook version.
Interestingly, I bought both Billie's album and Abbey Road for my 13 year old daughter for Christmas. She along with my 4 year old have gotten really into The Beatles, semi-independently of me (I mean, yeah, I encourage it, but certainly never pushed it; I push them to listen to death metal, natch). As it happens I didn't own a copy of "Abbey Road" so when she asked for it I was like "yeah, I mean sure, I'll get you a new copy of the new Giles Martin mix, why not?". A lot of worse shit a kid could ask for.
I don't think "All Hope Is Gone" or this year's "We Are Not Your Kind" should be discounted either. Slipknot is a legit band.
Deftones rule and mostly outgrew the nu-metal tag though it is perhaps still part of the overall brew that is their sound.
Korn rulez even if they simultaneously blow. "Issues" is indeed where it's at (or anything prior).
I like Code Orange and their nu-metalisms, as well as Vein and Jesus Piece, but I can understand not digging it.
This actually seems like a pretty fun if weird/scattershot lineup to me. They spelled Turkuaz wrong (I don't know much about this band but a venue whose mailing list I'm on booked them multiple times last year so I saw their name a bunch) and I can only hope Pigeons Playing Ping Pong is literally pigeons playing ping pong. Also, what up line 3 Kevin Gates and...checks notes...Nelly performing "Country Grammar"? Actually, what is even up with this rap undercard - Denzel Curry, JID, Young Thug? Also, I see you fine print Femi Kuti and Mdou Moctar. This lineup is actually super cool.
This was a great write-up. This album had bangerz and the Nashville scene was a bit abuzz about it being that she was a local. The reflections on the lyrics in hindsight are brutal but spot-on. That said, they don't subtract from the brash, teeny-bop-anarchistic fun of the album. I saw her play at a moderately sized club around this time with my then 15yo little brother and it was a blast (I do not remember a Mr. Penis).
Since I appreciate that you are careful to use the correct pronouns, it would seem as of a couple years ago that Mykki is using "he/him" again.
https://mixmag.net/read/mykki-blanco-the-idea-that-there-is-one-singular-transgender-narrative-is-not-true-for-everyone-news
I don't have Small Town Minds or the original cover of 17. I'm interested if you're legitimately looking to sell but I also have zero record buying budget the week before Christmas.
Gonna have to downvote you on account of MxPx being one of my all-time favorite bands. I've even got a tattoo of the Px Punk. There, now you all know. I don't have to hide anymore. (I didn't actually downvote you, that would be dumb.)
I think "UFOF" is still THE Big Thief song of the year ("Not" a close second), and I've just accepted that I'll never get/love VW as much as most, but I'm digging everything else going on here. I mean, I didn't expect to see, like, Carcass or Gorguts, so yeah...
"Glad He's Gone" managed to sneak in a little raunch ("a necklace", you say?). Probably my single favorite pop song this year, though the album never clicked. That CRJ was definitely a grower as I suspected it would, will probably even make my top albums list (haven't made it yet, whoops). Billie (the future) Eilish definitely will, possibly Taylor ("Lover" did win me back), and maybe even Mark Ronson (a highly underrated album; I'd have let it slip by me entirely but it was one of my wife's faves of the year and it eventually got its hooks in me).
beabadoobee* that is. Crazy Gen-Z band names. These kids are still alright.
But seriously, this song right here...
https://open.spotify.com/track/1vKPCcclqSIHpMIh4YieQG?si=zsUMn_i5QMef8Ub8QUmV0w
Regarding #34, I just randomly discovered beabadooboo over the weekend (Shazam'd one of her tunes at a coffeeshop). I'm picking up what she's laying down. Check her out if you haven't.
FLAG would be my choice if I were to shill out money to see either of these iterations, which I of course have no plans of ever doing. Semi-related, I've seen OFF! twice and they tear it up and throw it down.
I have a hard time with podcasts because I find them difficult to listen to while working, so they're a drive-time only thing for me, and listening to podcasts ABOUT music cuts into my MUSIC listening time.
That said, of the podcasts mentioned here, I do love NPR's All Songs Considered (as well as their Pop Culture Happy Hour) and Song Exploder (that "Unsainted" episode was unexpected and rad). I need to check out some of these others (Stay Free, Dolly Parton's America, and Aria Code all sound very intriguing; I've also been meaning to check out I Only Listen To The Mountain Goats).
If I may recommend a few more (genre specific) podcasts: NOISEXTRA (formerly known as Merzcast, for the harsh noise heads among us), The True Tunes Podcast (for a fairly specific stripe of old-school alternative Christian music fan), and Glissando ("where classical music is for everyone" - this is hosted by a good friend of mine who works for Naxos Music; it hasn't been updated in a while but the first season is great and the lone season 2 episode with none other than Ruth Bader Ginsburg discussing her love of opera can't be missed).
Love the ones I know and will deep dive into the others post-haste. Love the love you gave Tanya. I saw her at Exit/In, a (relatively) small standing room venue in Nashville, the night before the album was released and it was just epic (I try to use the word sparingly, it applies here). For the NPR/music critic nerds among us, I noticed Ann Powers was standing right behind me.
Already spinning it. Saw him at Bonnaroo in 2007 (the only year I went) while he was touring this. The hook from "Up All Night" has been stuck in my head for years and I no longer have the CD, so...this is great.
Tanya Tucker for Song Of The Year is a curveball but damn that album is hit and it’s a great song. That said, Pistol Annies deserve the country album award (just got to overcome the cognitive dissonance of it being from last year, but from Grammy’s “this year”, to be awarded next year).
The most exciting race has got to be that stacked New Artist lineup though!
Those interludes are sick. My immediate reaction is that they sound like Conlon Nancarrow, then on the other site today I see in their review that Bernard Gann's (that guy who's still in Liturgy that isn't HHH) dad is a Nancarrow scholar. TRIPPY. It makes me wish there was a whole black metal album of prepared piano, noise electronics, and blast beats. No guitars, no gods, no masters.
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