In which I throw words at my dozen favorite albums from the past year. 12) The Hives, The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons – On their first studio album since 2012, Swedish post-punk revival darlings The Hives sound, well, a lot like they did in 2012. There’s something very rewarding about hearing a great band come […]

Here are 10 albums that I rather enjoyed from 2021, ranked in reverse order for faux-dramatic effect. 10) BADBADNOTGOOD, Talk Memory – This Canadian outfit exists somewhere in the nether-region of jazz, soul, and neo-psychedelia, crafting songs that are brimming with spontaneous and unpredictable energy. Each track offers a rick palette of sounds, and their […]

2020: a terrible year for life, but a sneakily great year for music. 15) Music by Gestalt, Debussy’s Fawn – With a raucous propulsion of energy that recalls The Bad Plus, Music by Gestalt is a jazz trio that refuses to conform to genre expectations. In addition to formal adventurousness and aggressive timbres and grooves, […]

Best Albums of 2019   I already ran down my favorites of the decade, but I didn’t want 2019 to feel left out.   10) CJ Run, Here for Now – Chicago-based rapper CJ Run has a unique voice – literally, as they were born of Afro-Caribbean parentage in Germany but raised in the UK. […]

Best Albums of the 2010’s   I heard somewhere (actually, I’m pretty sure it was Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me!) that a person’s tastes in music stop evolving once they turn 30. I surpassed that milestone in the middle of this decade – at last tally, I am 34 – but I feel comfortable saying […]

Best Albums of 2018   Is it that time of year already?   12) Big Heart Machine, Big Heart Machine – Produced by Darcy James Argue, the self-titled debut from Brian Krock’s postmodern jazz big band Big Heart Machine certainly bears strong resemblance to Argue’s angular, rhythmic, and symphonic approach to big band writing. Anchored […]

Best Albums of 2017   If you like genre-bending folk music or introspective dance/R&B, have I got a list for you:   12) St. Vincent, Masseduction – Annie Clark continues to solidify her reputation as one the premiere personas in music, but what makes the songs on Masseduction memorable are the ways in which they […]

Best Albums of 2016   The uniting factor among the albums that made my Best of 2016 list is that every one of them actively seeks to blur boundaries of genre. Devoted readers of my Best of lists will not be surprised by this, as musical curiosity and willingness to infuse different styles are some […]