- A Place To Bury Strangers - Pinned (Dead Oceans)
- Actress x London Contemporary Orchestra - Lageos (Ninja Tune)
- Bart & The Bedazzled - Blue Motel (Lovemonk)
- Beak> - >>> (Invada)
- Cut Worms - Hollow Ground (Jagjaguwar)
- Earth Girl Helen Brown - Four Satellites Vol. 1 (In The Red)
- Exit Group - Adverse Habitat (Castle Face)
- Exploded View - Obey (Sacred Bones)
- Gabe Gurnsey - Physical (Phantasy)
- Holy Wave - Adult Fear (The Reverberation Appreciation Society)
- IE - Pome (Moon Glyph)
- Instant Music - S/T (Dark Entries)
- Julien Boulier - A Film Not Yet Made (Time Released Sound)
- Kikagaku Moyo - Masana Temples (Guruguru Brain)
- Klaus Johann Grobe - Du Bist So Symmetrisch (Trouble In Mind)
- Leon Vynehall - Nothing Still (Ninja Tune)
- Les Halles - Zephyr (Not Not Fun)
- Lithics - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Lotic - Power (Tri Angle)
- Maarja Nuut & Ruum - Muunduja (Fat Cat)
- Martial Canterel - Lost At Sea (Dais)
- Motoko & Myers - Basis Keys (Open Hand Real Flames)
- Nonpareils - Scented Pictures (Mute)
- Paint - S/T (Mexican Summer)
- Papercuts - Parallel Universe Blues (Slumberland)
- Peel Dream Magazine - Modern Meta Physic (Slumberland)
- Skee Mask - Compro (Ilian Tape)
- Smerz - Have Fun (XL)
- Suuns - Felt (Secretly Canadian)
- Various Artists - The Bedroom Tapes (Minimal Wave)
- Yo La Tengo - There’s A Riot Going On (Matador)
BestOf
((echoplex))
Favorite Albums of 2018
Beast Monster Thing
Beast Monster Thing - Best Albums of 2018 (Ascending)
- Mountain Man - Magic Ship (Nonesuch)
- Madeline Kenney - Perfect Shapes (Carpark)
- Shame - Songs of Praise (Dead Oceans)
- Snail Mail - Lush (Matador)
- Molly Burch - First Flower (Captured Tracks)
- Human People - Butterflies Drink Turtle Tears (Exploding in Sound)
- Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer (Sub Pop)
- Brockhampton - Iridescence (RCA)
- Casual Hex - Zig Zag Lady Illusion (Water Wing)
- Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Sex & Food (Jagjaguwar)
- Soccer Mommy - Clean (Fat Possum)
- Mitski - Be the Cowboy (Dead Oceans)
- Naked Giants - Sluff (New West)
- Parquet Courts - Wide Awake (Rough Trade)
- Kero Kero Bonito - Time ‘n’ Place (Polyvinyl)
- Jeff Rosenstock - Post (Polyvinyl)
- Foxing - Nearer My God (Triple Crown)
- Sidney Gish - No Dogs Allowed (S/R)
- Car Seat Headrest - Twin Fantasy (Matador)
Berkestir
Berkestir 2018
New Stuff
- A Place To Bury Strangers-Pinned Brainwashing Edition (Dead Oceans)
- The Beths-Future Me Hates Me (Carpark)
- The Breeders-All Nerve (4AD)
- Bombino-Deran (Partisan)
- Chromium Hawk Machine Nik Turner Helios Creed Jay Tavsig-Annvnaki (Black Widow)
- Anna Calvi-Hunter (Domino)
- Chris Carter-CCCL Volume One (Mute)
- Cloud Nothing-Last Building Burning (Carpark)
- Death Valley Girls-Darkness Rains ( Suidcide Squeeze)
- Deaf Wish-Lithium Zion (Sub Pop)
- Earthless-Black Heaven (Nuclear Blast)
- Escape-Ism-The Lost Record (Merge)
- Exploded Head-Obey (Sacred Bones)
- Hawkwind-Road To Utopia (Cherry Red)
- Jerusalem In My Heart-Daqaliq Tudaiq (Constellation)
- Charles Lloyd & The Marvels + Lucinda Williams-Vanished Gardens (Blue Note)
- J.Mascis-Elastic Days (Sub Pop)
- Marissa Nadler-My Crimes (Sacred Bones)
- Nonpareils-Scented Picture (Mute)
- Oh Sees-Smote Reverser (Castle Face)
- Emma Ruth Rundle-On Dark Horses (Sargent House)
- Richard Thompson-13 Rivers (New West)
- Thought Gang-S/T (Sacred Bones)
- Lavra Veirs-The Lookout (Raven Marching Band)
- Warm Drag-S/T (In The Red)
- Tony Joe White-Bad Mouthin' (Yep Roc)
- Wooden Shjps-V (Thrill Jockey)
- Neil Young + Promise Of The Real-The Visitor (Reprise)
Old Stuff
- Curved Air-Airconditioning (Esoteric)
- Curved Air-Second Album (Esoteric)
- Curved Air-Phantasmagoria (Esteric)
- Holger Czukay-Cinema (Groenland)
- Hawkwind-Best Of Live (Secret)
- Hawkwind-Victim Of Sonic Attach! (Cleopatra)
- Various African Artists-African Scream Contest 2 Benin 1963-1980 (Analog Africa)
- Various Jazz Artist-The Savory Collection 1935-1940 (Mosaic)
- Various Exotic Artist-Technicolor Paradise Rhum Rhapsodies & Other Exotic Delights (The Numero Gruop)
- Wire-Pink Flag Special Edition (Pink Flag)
- Wire-Chairs Missing Special Edition (Pink Flag)
- Wire-154 Special Edition (Pink Flag)
- Neil Young-Songs For Judy (Reprise)
- Neil Young-Roxy Tonight's The Night Live (Reprise)
Brickbats
Favorite releases of 2018 and favorite live show
Favorite releases
- Jessica Moss - Entanglement (Constellation)
- Leila Abdul Rauf - Diminution (Malignant)
- Sarah Davachi - Gave In Rest (Ba Da Bing)
- Andrew Bernstein - An Exploded View of Time (Hausu Mountain)
- Jenny Olivia Johnson - Sylvia Songs (Innova)
- Mary Lattimore - Hundreds of Days (Ghostly International)
- Meg Baird & Mary Lattimore - Ghost Forest (Three Lobed)
- Dire Wolves - Paradisiacal Minds (Feeding Tube)
- Grouper - Grid of Points (Kranky)
- Hawthonn - Red Goddess (of this men shall know nothing) (Ba Da Bing)
Best live music experience
- Drew McDowall of Coil - Time Machines (reissued in 2017 on Dais) - at Gray Area Foundation for the Arts
Brother Grimm
Brother Grimm’s Favorite Records of 2018: ascending
- TV Girl - Death of a Party Girl (S/R)
- The Shacks – Haze (Big Crown)
- Virginia Wing – Ecstatic Arrow (Fire)
- Khruangbin – Con Todo el Mundo (Dead Oceans)
- Nicolas Godin - Au Service de la France (Because)
- The Goon Sax – We're Not Talking (Wichita)
- Bahamas – Earthtones (Brushfire)
- Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Hope Downs (Sub Pop)
- Rubblebucket – Sun Machine (Grand Jury)
- Waldeck – Atlantic Ballroom (Dope Noir)
- Shy Boys – Bell House (Polyvinyl)
- Cut Worms – Hollow Ground (Jagjaguwar)
- Advance Base – Animal Companionship (Run for Cover)
- Shannon Shaw – Shannon in Nashville (Nonesuch)
- Tony Molina – Kill the Lights (Slumberland)
Carnacki
Some Favourite Releases from 2018, in alphabetical order
- Poppy Ackroyd - Resolve (One Little Indian)
- The Body - I Have Fought Against It But I Can’t Any Lonfer (Thrill Jockey)
- Zoe Boekbinder - Shadows (s/r)
- Julien Boulier - A Film Not Yet Made (Time Released Sound)
- Carla Bozulich - Quieter (Constellation)
- Jane Antonia Cornish - Constellations (Innova)
- Current 93 - The Light Is Leaving Us All (The Spheres)
- Dire Wolves - Paradisiacal Mind (Feeding Tube)
- DJ Female Convict Scorpion - Ishmagrad (Calar Music)
- Hawthonn - Red Goddess (Of This Men Shall Know Nothing) (Ba Da Bing)
- Zoe Keating - Snowmelt (s/r)
- Low - Double Negative (Sub Pop)
- Drew McDowall - The Third Helix (Dais)
- Roy Montgomery - Suffuse (Grapefruit)
- Jessica Moss - Entanglement (Constellation)
- Marissa Nadler - For My Crimes (Sacred Bones)
- Nordic Affect - H e (a) r (Sono Luminus)
- People Like Us - The Mirror (Cutting Hedge)
- Sangre De Muerdago - Noite (Musica Maxica)
- Matthew Swiezynski - The One Who Modifies Time And Light (Invisible Birds)
- Emily Jane White / House of Wolves - split ep (Discolexique)
- Zu93 - Mirror Emperor (House Of Mythology)
Carolyn
Carolyn's Best Of 2018
My favorite albums of 2018
- Fatty Cakes And The Puff Pastries - S/T (Emotional Response)
- Rik and the Pigs - A Child's Gator (Total Punk)
- Ricky Hell & The Voidboys - S/T (Quality Time Records)
- Shark Toys - Labyrinths (In The Red)
- Mark Sultan - Let Me Out (Modern Sky USA)
- Liquids – Hot Liqs Revenge (Neck Chop Records)
- Little Ugly Girls - S/T (Chapter Music)
- France Has The Bomb - ...But We Must Cultivate Our Garden (Diminished Arc)
- Kitten Forever - Semi-Permanent (Rat Queen)
- BB Eye - Headcheese Heartthrob (Fish)
- Alice Bag - Blueprint (Don Giovanni)
- The Cavemen - Nuke Earth (Slovenly)
- Gino And The Goons - Rip It Up (Sunwray)
- Archie and the Bunkers - Songs From The Lodge (Dirty Water)
- David Nance – Doug Sahm and Band (Tall Texan)
My favorite EPs of 2018
- Teeange Cavegirl – "They’re Gonna Get You" (S/R)
- Alien Nosejob - Death Of The Vinyl Boom (S/R)
- Wonder Bread - Complete Solid Gold Hits (Digital Regress)
- The Proletariat - "Death Of Alton Sterling" (Bridge Nine)
- Amyl and The Sniffers - "Some Mutts (Can't Be Muzzled)" (Flightless)
- Ruler - "Tiger" (Secret Mission)
- Kid Chrome – “I’ve Had It” (Neck Chop)
- PMS - "Cocaine Cunt" (Danger Records)
- Heavy Metal - Too OZ 4 I.T. (Total Punk)
- Erik Nervous/ Neo Neos - split (Goodbye Boozy)
- Gallery Night - "Watching Black And White" (Dusty Medical)
- Dark Blue - “Fight To Love” (12XU)
- ISS - "I Wanna Be Dated" (Sorry State)
- Counter Intuits - “Vietnamese Lighter” (Total Punk)
- Puppy and The Hand Jobs - "I Eat Abortions" (Slovenly)
- Smokers - Falling Backwards (Mouth Magazine)
My favorite reissues of 2018
- Plastic EP and The Records - "Well You Want To Make A Record" and Best Of (Xerox Music)
- F.U.K. - "Road Kill" (Hozac Archival)
- Vendetta – “Modern Rockers” (Supreme Echo)
- Friction - "Death Cult 911" (Blank Recording Co)
- V/A - The Sore Losers - Original Soundtrack (Goner Records)
- Trash Monkeys – "Trash Monkey Universe" (Almost Ready)
- Vector Command - S/T (Hozac)
- Chandra - Transportation EPs (Telephone Explosion)
- Real Kids - The Kids 1974 Demos/ 1977-78 Demos/Live (Crypt)
- Bad Times - Streets Of Iron (Goner)
- Firestarter - First Album and Livin On The Heat (Secret Mission)
- Teenage Depression - Skank Or Die (ReRun)
- Great Plains - The Mark, Don & Mel EP + Four (ReRun)
- V/A – I’ve Got the Bible Belt Around My Throat: A One-Sided History of Punk Rock and Hardcore From Alabama 1981–2003 (Foreign Legion)
My favorite films of 2018
- Here To Be Heard: The Story of The Slits
- Dead On Arrival: The Punk Documentary That Almost Never Was
- Sorry To Bother You
- The Outhouse The Film 1985-1997
- Descent Into The Maelstrom
- The Public Image Is Rotten
- They’ll Love Me When I’m Dead
- Juliette, Naked
- Ex-Libris: The New York Public Library
- Icepick To The Moon
Curt Reply
Curt Reply’s Faves -> 18 Albums for 2018 Fuzzy, Fast or Jes’ Plain Fun!
- Bed Wettin' Bad Boys - Rot (What's Your Rupture)
- Beths - Future Me Hates Me (Carpark)
- Burnt Palms - 2/18/17 (We Were Never Being Boring)
- CHAI - Pink (Burger Records)
- Cut Chemist - Die Cut (A Stable Sound)
- Death By Unga Bunga - So Far So Good So Cool (Jansen)
- Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio - Close But No Cigar (Colemine)
- Durand Jones and The Indications - Durand Jones and The Indications (Dead Oceans)
- Flasher - Constant Image (Domino)
- Lithics - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Pantones - For the Ones Who Love You, The Living Room Demos (S/R)
- Primo! - Amici (Upset the Rhythm)
- Remember Sports - Slow Buzz (Father/Daughter)
- Tommy and the Commies - Here Comes Tommy and the Commies (Slovenly)
- Tony Molina - Kill the Lights (Slumberland)
- Typical Girls, Vol 3 - Compilation (Emotional Response)
- Turqouiz Noiz - Sweat Lodge (Related)
- Wimps - Garbage People (Kill Rock Stars)
DangerVenture
Best Of 2018 - DangerVenture
Top 10 Debut Albums
- Shame - Songs of Praise (Dead Oceans)
- Soccer Mommy - Clean (Fat Possum)
- Snail Mail - Lush (Matador)
- Lapel - Periphery (S/R)
- Tash Sultana - Flow State (Mom + Pop)
- Miya Folick - Premonitions (Interscope)
- serpentwithfeet - Soil (Secretly Canadian)
- Superorganism - Superorganism (Domino)
- Tom Misch - Geography (Beyond the Groove)
- Post Animal - When I Think of You in a Castle (Polyvinyl)
Top 10 Local Releases
- Shannon and the Clams - Onion (Nonesuch)
- Elder Brother - Stay Inside (Pure Noise)
- DonCat - Preservation of the Spirit (Marble Eye)
- Pllush - Stranger to the Pain (Father/Daughter)
- Tanukichan - Sundays (Company)
- Lapel - Periphery (S/R)
- Madeline Kenney - Perfect Shapes (Carpark)
- Rose Droll - Your Dog (Father/Daughter)
- Jay Stone - Calibration of an Altered Mind (West Grand)
- Fine Points - Take Shape (Dine Alone)
Top 10 Local Shows (Non-festival)
- Jeff Rosenstock - Great American Music Hall, 2/22
- Noah Gunderson - Sweetwater Music Hall, 2/24
- Fleet Foxes - The Greek Theatre, 4/20
- Courtney Barnett - August Hall, 5/6
- We Are Scientists - The Chapel, 7/10
- Geographer - The Fillmore, 7/28
- Foxing - Bottom of the Hill, 9/19
- Lapel - Cafe du Nord, 10/11
- Boy Genius - Fox Theater, 11/27
- Nine Inch Nails - Bill Graham Civic, 12/4
Deep Mission
Deep Mission's Best Of 2018
Best New Blues
- Aki Kumar - Hindi Man Blues (Little Village Foundation)
- Elvin Bishop's Big Fun Trio - Something Smells Funky 'Round Here (Alligator)
Best New World
- Bombino - Deran (Partisan)
Best New Pop
- SLV - Piece of Mind (s/r)
- Couer de Pirate - En Cas de la Tempete Ce Jardin Sera Ferme (Dare to Care)
- Illumaniti Hotties - Kiss Yr Frenemies (Tiny Engines)
Best New Jazz
- Eliana Cuevas - Golpes y Flores (Alma)
- Melbreeze - Animazonia (Blue Canoe)
Best New Folk/Americana
- Marty O'Reilly & The Old Soul Orchestra - Stereoscope (s/r)
- Les Poules A Colin - Morose (FamGroup)
- FiONN - FiONN (604 Records)
Best New Rock
- Gaye Su Akyol - Hologram Imparatorlugu (Glitterbeat)
- French Boutik/Popincourt - Popincourt et French Boutik Chantent The Jam (Copase Disques)
- Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis - Wild! Wild! Wild! (Bloodshot)
- Last Chance Riders - Jet Lag Super Drag (s/r)
DJ Aahh
DJ Aahh’s Top 2018 Shortwave Albums by Artist Z to A
- Rhye - Blood Remixed (Loma Vista)
- Marcus Marr - Familiar Five EP (DFA)
- Funkadelic - Funkadelic Reworked by Detroiters (Westbound)
- Fit of Body - Black Box No Cops (2MR)
- Elovaters - Defy Gravity (Rootfire Cooperative)
- DJ Taye - Still Trippin’ (Hyperdub)
- Dabrye - Three / Three (Ghostly International)
- CMD - Haptic Controls (Jacktone)
- boerd - Static (Anjunadeep)
- Blockhead - Funeral Balloons (Backwoodz Studioz)
DJ Twinkle
25 favorites from 2018 (alphabetical)
- The Beths - Future Me Hates Me (Car Park)
- Zoe Boekbinder - Shadow (S/R)
- Camp Cope - How to Socialise and Make Friends (Run for Cover)
- Henry Canyons - Cool Side of the Pillow (Backwoodz Studioz)
- Des Demonas - Des Demonas (In the Red)
- Easystreet - International Supernatural (The Tip)
- Andrea Gibson - Hey Galaxy (Tender Loving Empire)
- Goat Girl - Goat Girl (Rough Trade)
- Gurrumul - Djarimirri [Child of the Rainbow] (Skinnyfish)
- Hop Along - Back Your Head Off, Dog (Saddle Creek)
- Hot Trash - Hope in Grace (Escape Productions)
- Imarham - Tumast (City Slang)
- Kitten Forever - Semi-Permanent (Rat Queen)
- Laura Love - She Loved Red (S/R)
- Mirah - Understanding (Absolute Magnitude)
- The Pandoras - Hey! It's the Pandoras (Burger)
- Primo! - Amici (Upset the Rhythm)
- Scary Women - Scary Women (Goldenrod)
- Shilpa Rose - Door Girl (Northern Spy)
- Maggie Roche - Where Do I Come From (StorySound Records)
- SLV - Piece of Mind (S/R)
- The Spook School - Could It Be Different (Slumberland)
- tune-yards - I can feel you creep into my private life (4AD)
- Valley Queen - Supergiant (Rock Call)
- Young Fathers - Cocoa Sugar (Ninja Tune)
E. Lit
E. Lit's Favorite Albums of 2018:
- Four Fists - 6666 (Doomtree)
- Dorian Concept - The Nature of Imitation (Brainfeeder)
- Cut Chemist - Die Cut (A Stable Sound)
- Kristoff Krane - Kairos Pt. 2 (F I X)
- Curly Castro - TOSH (Backwoodz Studioz)
- Gone Beyond & Mumbles - Notes From the Underground (Content (L)abel)
- Henry Canyons - Cool Side of the Pillow (Backwoodz Studioz)
- Astralblak - Seeds (Sound Verite)
- Busdriver - Electricity Is On Our Side (Temporary Whatever)
- Onry Ozzborn - Nervous Hvnd (TED)
Also dug:
- Showbiz - A-Room Therapy (D.I.T.C Studios)
- Dillon & Batsauce - On Their Way (Full Plate)
- Penthouse Penthouse - Cruise Control (Alpha Pup)
- Longshot & Lazerbeak - Parades (Doomtree)
- Kev Brown - Homework (Redefinition)
- Epic Beard Men - Season 1 (Strange Famous)
- PremRock & Fresh Kils - Poet's Payday (s/r)
- Von Pea & the Other Guys - I'm Good Luv, Enjoy (HiPNOTT)
- Masta Ace & Marco Polo - A Breukelen Story (Fat Beats)
- Czarface & MF DOOM - Czarface Meets Metal Face (Silver Age)
Emo King
.
pinnacles of human achievement:
- Lala Lala - "Copycat" - The Lamb (Hardly Art)
- Ovlov - "The Best of You" - Tru (Exploding in Sound)
- Stove - "Animortal" - 's Favorite Friend (Exploding in Sound)
like fistfuls of medicine shoved down your throat:
- awakebutstillinbed - "Life" - What People Call Low Self-Esteem Is Really Just Seeing Yourself The Way That Other People See You (Tiny Engines)
- Wimps - "Giant Brain" - Garbage People (Kill Rock Stars)
- Idles - "Colossus" - Joy as an Act of Resistance (Partisan)
- Frankie Cosmos - "Apathy" - Vessel (Sub Pop)
- Anmlplnet - "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" - Fall Asleep (Ba Da Bing)
- Bernice - "Passenger Plane" - Puff: In the Air Without a Shape (Arts & Crafts)
- Moaning - "Close" - Moaning (Sub Pop)
- Deeper - "Pavement" - Deeper (Fire Talk)
- Ross From Friends - "Thank God I'm A Lizard" (Brainfeeder)
- Fit of Body - "Eighty One" - Black Box No Cops (2MR)
- Peggy Gou - "It Makes You Forget" - Once (Ninja Tune)
- Underworld & Iggy Pop - "Bells & Circles" - Teatime Dub Encounters (Caroline)
Fernando
Fernando’s Favorite Songs of 2018
- La Luz - “Loose Teeth” Floating Features (Hardly Art)
- Tanukichan - “Lazy Love” Sundays (Company)
- The Pantones - “Shades of Blue” Shades of Blue (S/R)
- The Jeanines - “Hits The Bone” Hits The Bone (S/R)
- Say Sue Me - “But I Like You” Where We Were Together (Damnably)
- Automatic - “Strange Conversations” Automatic (S/R)
- Virginia Wing - “The Second Shift” Ecstatic Arrow (Fire)
- Lithics - “Edible Door” Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Shannon Shaw - “Cryin’ My Eyes Out” Shannon In Nashville (Easy Eye)
- Habibi - “Gypsy Love” Cardamom Garden (Modern Sky)
- Cariño - “Canción De Pop De Amor” Movidas (Elefant)
- Niños del Cerro - “El Sueño Pesa” Lance (Quemasucabeza)
- The Goon Sax - “Sleep EZ” We’re Not Talking (Wichita)
- Lower Self - “In The Glow” In The Glow (S/R)
- Shannon and the Clams - “I Leave Again” (Easy Eye)
- Shy Boys - “Something Sweet” Bell House (Polyvinyl)
- Small Crush - “Signal Dreams” Blush (S/R)
- Lala Lala - “I Get Cut” The Lamb (Hardly Art)
- Suzie True - “Don’t Grow Up” Nothing To You (Buzz)
- Las Odio - “Lo Quiero Todo” Lo Quiero Todo (S/R)
- Anna Hillburg - “Cherries and Wine” Really Real (California Clap)
- Fenne Lily - “Car Park” On Hold (S/R)
- Shopping - “Suddenly Gone” The Official Body (FatCat)
- Goat Girl - “Cracker Drool” Goat Girl (Rough Trade)
- Our Girl - “Boring” Stranger Today (Cannibal Hymns)
Film Close-Ups
FILM CLOSE-UPS’ FAVORITE FILMS OF 2018 (alphabetical)
Esme's picks:
- At Eternity's Gate
- Annihilation
- Avengers: Infinity War
- BlacKKKlansman
- Black Panther
- Blindspotting
- Burning
- Destroyer
- Eighth Grade
- The Favourite
- Hereditary
- If Beale Street Could Talk
- Madeline's Madeline
- Mandy
- Mission: Impossible - Fallout
- Paddington 2
- The Rider
- Roma
- Shirkers
- Shoplifters
- Sorry to Bother You
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
- A Star is Born
- Support the Girls
- Suspiria
- Three Identical Strangers
- To All the Boys I've Loved Before
- Widows
- Won't You Be My Neighbor
- You Were Never Really Here
Geralyn’s picks:
- American Animals, USA, Bart Layton
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, USA, Joel Coen
- Bohemian Rhapsody, USA, Bryan Singer
- A Fantastic Woman (Una Mujer Fantastica), USA, Sebastian Lelio
- Green Book, USA, Peter Farrelly
- Hostiles, USA, Scott Cooper
- The Insult, Lebanon, Ziad Doveiri
- Rodents of Unusual Size, (Documentary), USA, Quinn Costello, Chris Metzler, Jeff Springer
- Shoplifters, Japan, Hirokazu Kore-eda
- You Were Never Really Here, USA, Lynne Ramsay
Greg’s picks:
- American Animals
- Annihilation
- Beast
- Blindspotting
- Death Of Stalin
- The Favourite
- First Reformed
- Ghost Stories
- Hereditary
- Sorry To Bother You
- Three Identical Strangers
Sonia’s picks:
- Ben is Back
- Blindspotting
- Eighth Grade
- A Fantastic Woman
- The Favourite
- If Beale Street Could Talk
- Isle of Dogs
- McQueen
- Roma
- Shoplifters
- Sorry to Bother You
- Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Hella Bent
Hella Bent’s List of Songs That Made 2018 Slightly More Bearable
- A Place To Bury Strangers - “Never Coming Back” - Pinned (Dead Oceans)
- Blood Orange - “Charcoal Baby” - Negro Swan (Domino)
- Boy Harsher - “Motion” - Country Girl (Nude Club)
- Cardi B, Bad Bunny, J Balvin - “I Like It” - Invasion of Privacy (Atlantic)
- Choir Boy - “Dark Room” - Passive With Desire (Dais)
- Empress Of - “When I’m With Him” - Us (Terrible)
- Exploded View - “Gone Tomorrow” - Obey (Sacred Bones)
- Frankie Cosmos - “Apathy” - Vessel (Sub Pop)
- The Goon Sax - “Make Time 4 Love” - We’re Not Talking (Wichita)
- Kontravoid - “The Last Thing” - Undone (Fleisch)
- La Luz - “The Creature” - Floating Features (Hardly Art)
- Lala Lala - “Dove” - The Lamb (Hardly Art)
- Marie Davidson - “Work It” - Working Class Woman (Ninja Tune)
- Mary Lattimore - “On the Day You Saw the Dead Whale” - Hundreds of Days (Ghostly)
- Mitski - “Two Slow Dancers” - Be the Cowboy (Dead Oceans)
- Moaning - “Don’t Go” - (S/T) (Sub Pop)
- Patrick Cowley - “One Hot Afternoon” - Afternooners (Dark Entries)
- Robyn - “Missing U” - Honey (Konichiwa)
- SRSQ - “Procession” - Unreality (Dais)
- U.S. Girls - “M.A.H.” - In A Poem Unlimited (4AD)
Leftfield Lance
...
Leftfield Lance's 2018 Favorites:
12"
- Blues Lawyer - Guess Work (Emotional Response)
- Lithics - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Primo! - Amici (Upset the Rhythm)
- The Shifters - Have a Cunning Plan (Trouble in Mind)
- Sons of Kemet - Your Queen is a Lizard (Impulse!)
- Table Sugar - Collected Acknowledgement (Stucco)
- Yuzo Iwata - Daylight Moon (Siltbreeze)
7"
- Cool Greenhouse - London (Market Square)
- Child's Pose - S/T (Nervous Energy)
- Lithics - Photograph, You Of (Thrilling Living)
- Pineapple RnR - S/T (Lumpy)
- Private Sector - Survival is Killing Me (Byllepest)
- The Shifters - Just Sat Down (Digital Regress)
- Skiftande Enheter - Mördande Rutin (Market Square)
- Suburban Homes - EP3 (Neck Chop)
- Tough Customer - Darlene (Sweet Rot)
Tapes, Demos, etc.
- BOFA - What Is... (Discontinuous Innovation)
- Dry Cleaning - Sweet Princess (S/R)
- Naked Roommate - S/T (S/R)
- Nylex - S/T (Tenth Court)
- The Plastic Shoelaces - S/T (S/R)
Madame X
Madame X’s 10 Favorite Albums of 2018:
- Couer De Pirate - En Cas de Tempete, Ce Jardin Sera Ferme (Dare to Care)
- Neko Case - Hell-On (Anti-)
- Jenn Champion - Single Rider (Hardly Art)
- Melissa Laveaux - Radyo Siwel (No Format)
- Arian Saleh - Swan Bird (Googoosh Remixed) (S/R)
- Rosalia - El Mal Querer (Sony)
- Essex Green - Hardly Electronic (Merge)
- Neneh Cherry - Broken Politics (Smalltown Supersound)
- Alba Griot Ensemble - The Darkness Between the Leaves (Riverboat)
- Anna Calvi - Hunter (Domino)
Majority Whip
Majority Whip’s Favorite Albums from 2018, in alphabetical order:
- Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet - Landfall (Nonesuch)
- Michael Beharie & Teddy Rankin-Parker - A Heart From Your Shadow (Mondoj)
- Bets - Future Color (S/R)
- Black Milk - Fever (Mass Appeal)
- V/A - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Season 3 Soundtrack (WaterTower)
- Don the Tiger - Matanzas (Crammed Discs)
- Liran Donin's 1000 Boats - 8 Songs (Cavalo)
- Dos Santos – Logos (International Anthem)
- Escape-ism - The Lost Record (Merge)
- Exploded View - Obey (Sacred Bones)
- Gajah & Mute Speaker - Vent (The Order Label)
- Yonatan Gat - Universalists (Joyful Noise)
- Grupo Mono Blanco - ¡Fandango! (Smithsonian Folkways)
- Hookworms – Microshift (Domino)
- Insólito Universo – La Candela del Río (Olinda)
- Jupiter & Okwess – Kin Sonic (Zamora)
- Les Poules À Colin – Morose (FamGroup)
- Loma - Loma (Sub Pop)
- Lonesome Leash – Delicate Art (Cruisin’)
- Lumerians - Call of the Void (Fuzz Club)
- Miolina – Miolina (Composers Concordance)
- Motoko and Myers - Basis Key (Open Hand Real Flames)
- Motrik – Safety Copy (Jealous Butcher)
- New Music Detroit - Smoke: Music of Marc Mellits (Innova)
- Noname - Room 25 (S/R)
- Oracle Hysterical – Hecuba (National Sawdust Tracks)
- Onry Ozzborn - Nervous Hvnd (Ted)
- Nirmala Rajasekar – Maithree (Innova)
- Rio Mira - Marimba Del Pacifico (Aya)
- Roller Trio- New Devices (Edition)
- Ruby Karinto - Ruby Karinto (Hozac)
- Alejandro Rutty – Exhaling Space (Navona)
- Saba - Care for Me (Saba Pivot, LLC)
- Sextile - 3 (Felte)
- Sons Of Kemet – Your Queen Is A Reptile (Impulse!)
- Paolo Spaccamonti and Jochen Arbeit – CLN (Boring Machines)
- Staves and YMusic – The Way is Read (Nonesuch)
- Tangent – Approaching Complexity (n5MD)
- Tune-Yards - I Can Feel You Creep into My Private Life (4AD)
- Third Coast Percussion – Paddle to the Sea (Cedille)
Meaty Paws
Songs That Made Radio Great Again in 2018
- Beach Day - "Runaway With You" - Run Away With You - (Chocolate Covered)
- Jesse Daniel - "Soft Spot For The Hard Stuff" - Jesse Daniel - (Die True)
- Josh T Pearson - "A Love Song (Set Me Straight)" - The Straight Hits! - (Mute)
- Whateverglades - "I Do I Did I Don't" - Knock Knock - (No Egrets Records)
- Kacey Musgraves - "Kansas City Star" - King of the Road: A Tribute to Roger Miller - (BMG)
- The Muddy Roses - "Long Black Veil" - KALX Live! - (KALX)
- Illuminati Hotties - "Paying Off The Happiness" - Kiss Yr Frenemies - (Tiny Engines)
- Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas - "Sorry I Stole Your Man" - Secret Evil - (Instant)
- Bon Bon Vivant - "Gone Gone Gone" - Live At The New Orleans Jazz Museum - (Gallatin Street)
- Belly - "Human Child" - Dove - (Belly Inc)
- Lindi Ortega - "You Ain’t Fooling Me" - Liberty - (Shadowbox)
- Mike Beck and The Bohemian Saints - "I Wanna Find Out" - Alta California - (Reata)
- Secret Emchy Society - "Bears" - Mark's Yard (The Campfire Covers) - (S/R)
- Underworld and Iggy Pop - "Bells and Circles" - Teatime Dub Encounters - (Caroline)
- I See Hawks In L.A. - "Poour Me" - Live and Never Learn - (S/R)
- Amy Rigby - "One Off" - The Old Guys - (S/R)
- Eleanor Friedberger - "Make Me A Song" - Rebound - (Frenchkiss)
- Bettye Lavette - "Things Have Changed" - Things Have Changed - (Verve)
- Lump - "Curse of the Contemporary" - Lump - (Dead Oceans)
- Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore - "Downey to Lubbock" - Downey to Lubbock - (Yep Rock)
- Robbie Fulks and Linda Gail Lewis - "I Just Lived a Country Song" - Wild! Wild! Wild! - (Bloodshot)
- Fast Heart Mart - "So Many Problems" - KALX Live! - (KALX)
- Hollie Cook - "Stay Alive" - Vessel of Love - (Merge)
- Neil Young and the Promise of the Real - "Carnival" - The Visitor - (Reprise)
- Reverend Beat-Man - "I'll Do It For You" - Blues Trash - (Voodoo Rhythm)
- Gayle Lynn and the Hired Hands - "Twirl" - KALX Live! - (KALX)
- Moonshine Maybeline - "Champaign and Cocaine" - End Of The Road - (Spitfire)
- Hillstomp - "I'll Be Around" - Monster Receiver - (Fluff & Gravy)
- Trouble In The Wind - "Orion" - Hammer On - (S/R)
- We Banjo 3 - "Good Time Old Time" - String Theory - (Sonas)
- Bay Station - "Baja Blues" - Other Desert Cities - (S/R)
- Laura Benitez and Heartache - "The Fool I Am Right Now " - With All Its Thorns - (Copperhead)
- Crying Time - "You're Still Gone" - Last Saturday Night - (S/R)
- Crooked Jades - "Ryland and Spencer" - Empathy Moves the Water - (Jade Note)
- Guts Club - "Bad Aim" - Trench Foot - (S/R)
- Lucero - "For The Lonely Ones" - Among The Ghosts - (Liberty and Lament Records)
- John Prine - "Knockin' On Your Screen Door" - The Tree of Forgiveness - (Oh Boy)
- Zoe Speaks - "There's A Hole Where Your Soul's Supposed To Be" - Wings - (Redbird)
- Tina and Her Pony - "Good Man" - Champion - (S/R)
- Victoria Vox - "Out On The Rails" - Colorful Heart - (Obus)
- Calexico - "Music Box" - The Thread That Keeps Us - (Anti-)
- H.C. McEntire - "Baby's Got The Blues" - Lionheart - (Merge)
- Charlie Parr - "HoBo" - Dog - (Red House)
- Caroline Rose - "More Of The Same" - Loner - (New West)
- Jenn Champion - "O.M.G. (I'm All Over It)" - Single Rider - (Hardly Art)
- Grimskunk - "Sick Bastards" - Unreason In The Age of Madness - (Indica)
- Killer Kaya - "Gypsy" - KALX Live! - (KALX)
- Elvin Bishop's Big Fun Trio - "Something Smells Funky Round Here" - Big Fun Trio - (Alligator)
- Todd Novak And The Benny Hillbillez - "Sons Of Beaches" - Goats Head Surf - (S/R)
- Country Joe McDonald - "Era Of Guns" - 50 - (Rag Baby)
- Alanis Obomsawin - "Bush Lady" - Bush Lady - (Constellation)
Compilations that made the GREAT state of Berkeley proud!
- Dr. Demento Covered In Punk - (Demented Punk)
- Gunsmoke Volume 1 & 2 - (Stag-O-Lee)
- King of the Road: A Tribute to Roger Miller - (BMG)
- Something Weird: Greatest Hits! - (Modern Harmonic)
Special Thanks to all the artists who appeared LIVE on the air with me, here on the Left Coast
- Brian Belknap and Erma
- Patsy Cline Tribute Show (with Margaret Belton)
- Collisionville
- Crying Time
- Fast Heart Mart
- Nate Jones and the Sloe Sippers
- Lavender Country
- Gayle Lynn and the Hired Hands (and Maurice Tani)
- Loretta Lynn Tribute Show (with Margaret Belton, Laura Benitez, Lisa Marie Johnson and Michelle Kappel)
- Moonshine Jelly
- The Muddy Roses
- Penny Opry
- Secret Emchy Society
- Trouble In The Wind
- Whateverglades
- Wormfarmer
Megasoup
Megasoup's Favorite Albums of 2018
- Adzuki - Undeveloped Land (Shimmering Moods)
- ARP – Zebra (Mexican Summer)
- Art of Flying - Escort Mission (Discobolus)
- Ashan - Far Drift Afield (Inner Islands)
- Aukai - Branches of Sun (Aukai Music)
- Meg Baird and Mary Lattimore - Ghost Forests (Three Lobed)
- Jakob Battick - To Be Born Again & Again (Self-Released)
- Bitchin Bajas / DSR Lines - The Encyclopedia of Civilizations Vol. 2: Atlantis (Abstrakce)
- Chris Carter - CCCL Volume One (Mute)
- N. Chambers - Idea Region (Muzan Editions)
- Chancha Via Circuito - Bienaventuranza (Wonderwheel)
- Jane Antonia Cornish - Constellations (Innova)
- Sarah Davachi - Gave In Rest (Ba Da Bing)
- John Davis - Visiting The Sky (Bimodal Press)
- De Leon - De Leon (Mana)
- Jatinder Singh Durhailay & David Edren - Tea Notes (Bonjour Supermarket)
- Embassador Dulgoon – Hydrorion Remnants (Nonlocal Research)
- M Geddes Gengras - Light Pipe (Room40)
- Les Halles - Zephyr (Not Not Fun)
- Jon Hassell - Listening to Pictures (Ndeya)
- Shuta Hasunuma & U-zhaan - 2 Tone (Commmons)
- Steve Hauschildt - Dissolvi (Ghostly International)
- Kaoru Inoue - Em Paz (Groovement Organic)
- Kali Uchis - Isolation (Virgin)
- Khalab - Black Noise 2084 (On The Corner)
- Kenji Kihara - Scenes of Scapes (Inner Islands)
- Kilchhofer - The Book Room (Marionette)
- Mary Lattimore - Hundreds of Days (Ghostly International)
- Laüst - Edelis (Dream Catalogue)
- Steven Legget - Bathhouse (Firecracker)
- Lunaria - Water Mind (Pantheon)
- Magnétophonique - Une Cartographie Idéale (Not Not Fun)
- Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer (Wondaland Arts Society)
- Mountain Man - Magic Ship (Nonesuch)
- Jonny Nash & Lindsay Todd - Fauna Mapping (Island of the Gods)
- Omni Gardens - West Coast Escapism (Holodeck)
- poemme - Moments in Golden Light (Constellation Tatsu)
- Poppy Ackroyd - Resolve (One Little Indian)
- Pram - Across The Meridian (Domino)
- Pulse Emitter - Xenharmonic Passages (Self Released)
- Saariselka - Ceres (Longform Editions)
- Gunter Schlienz - Liederbuch (Muzan Editions)
- Emily A. Sprague - Mount Vision (Self Released)
- H. Takahashi - Elegy (Muzan Editions)
- Terekke - Improvisational Loops (Music From Memory)
- Tristan Magnetique - Tristan Magnetique (Otomatik Muziek)
- Tuluum Shimmering - Dancing in the Seven Skies (Self Released)
- Valotihkuu - Paths (Self Released)
- Wanderwelle – Gathering Of The Ancient Spirits (Silent Season)
- Zazz - Soft Harbinger (Inner Islands)
Megasoup's 18 Favorite Reissues & Archival Releases from 2018:
- The Beta Band - The Three EPs - 20th Anniversary Remaster (Because Music)
- Cuasares - Afro-Progresivo (Pharaway Sounds)
- Docteur Nico - Dieux De La Guitare (Planet Ilunga)
- Brian Eno - Music For Installations (Opal)
- Entourage Music & Theatre Ensemble - Ceremony Of Dreams: Studio Sessions and Outtakes, 1972-1977 (Tompkins Square)
- The Fall - The Rough Trade Singles (Superior Viaduct)
- The Future Sound Of London – Lifeforms (Universal)
- Chuck Johnson - Blood Moon Boulder (Scissor Tail Editions)
- Mkwaju Ensemble - Ki-Motion & Mkwaju (WRWTFWW)
- Münchner Studioorchester - Twilights of Bali (Free Soul)
- Spectrum - Highs, Lows, and Heavenly Blows (Medical Records)
- David Sylvian & Holger Czukay - Plight & Premonition / Flux & Mutability (Grönland)
- Various Artists – The Complete Cuban Jam Sessions (Concord Craft Recordings)
- Various Artists - Looking Back (Cairo Records)
- Various Artists - Secao Ritmica - Instrumental Funk From ’70’s Brazil (Atemoya)
- Various Artists - Saigon Supersound Volume 2 (Saigon Supersound)
- Various Artists - Unusual Sounds (Anthology Recordings)
- Various Artists - Zamaan Ya Sukkar (Radio Martiko)
Microtone
Microtone's 22 Favorite Songs from 22 Select Albums of 2018
- BEAK> - " Allé Sauvage" - >>> (Temporary Residence)
- Michael Beharie and Teddy Rankin-Parker - "So Much Trash" - A Heart From Your Shadow (Mondoj)
- Chancha Via Circuito - " Ilaló ft. Mateo Kingman" - Bienaeventuranza (Wonderwheel)
- Jane Antonia Cornish - "Constellations I" - Constellations (Innova)
- Sarah Davachi - "Evensong" - Gave in Rest (Ba Da Bing!)
- Dead Can Dance - "Psychopomp" - Dionysus (PIAS)
- Peggy Gou - "Han Jan" - Once (Ninja Tune)
- Matt Hightower - "When All Else Fails (Take Your Time)" - Society of Composers, vol. 32 (Navona)
- Julia Holter - "I Shall Love 2" - Aviary (Domino)
- Jon Hopkins - "Feel First Life" - Singularity (Domino)
- Mary Lattimore - "It Feels Like Floating" - Hundreds of Days (Ghostly International)
- Steven Legget - "Low" - Bathhouse (Firecracker)Loma - "Dark Oscillations" - Loma (Sub Pop)
- Low - "Fly" - Double Negative (Sub Pop)
- Luluc - "Needn't Be" - Sculptor (Sub Pop)
- Jessica Moss - "Fractals (Truth 4)" - Entanglement (Constellation)
- Motoko & Myers - "Super Potato" - Basis Key (Open Hand Real Flames)
- My Brightest Diamond - "It's Me on the Dance Floor" - A Million and One (Rhyme & Reason)
- Park Jiha - "Accumulation of Time" - Communion (Glitterbeat)
- Sis - "My Machine" - Euphorbia (Native Cat)
- Sound Voyage - "Schattenspiel" - En Route to Thailand (Free Soul)
- Wye Oak - "You of All People" - The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs (Merge)
Mixtress 9
Mixtress 9’s Short but Kawaii Best of Lists for 2018:
Albums:
- Perfume - Future Pop (Universal J)
- Nine Inch Nails - Bad Witch (The Null Corporation)
- Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Japamyu (Unborde/Warner Music Japan)
- Adult - This Behavior (Dais)
- Paul McCartney - Egypt Station (Capitol Records)
- Melody’s Echo Chamber - Bon Voyage (Domino/Fat Possum)
- Them Are Us Too - Amends (Dais)
- Chai - Pink (Burger Records)
- Cherushii/Nackt/Roche/David Last - Run the Length of Your Wildness 12" (Hobo Camp)
Epic Live Shows:
- David Byrne - Bill Graham Civic Auditorium - August 22.2018
- Nine Inch Nails - Bill Graham Civic Auditorium - December 3&4, 2018
Fave Anime:
- Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunny Girl Senpai
- Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzushii
- Zombie Land Saga
Nickel Hardaway
Nickel’s Double-Double: 10 Noteworthy Releases and Shows of 2018
10 Noteworthy Releases
- Anderson .Paak - Oxnard (Aftermath)
- Robert Glasper x KAYTRANADA - ArtScience Remixes (Blue Note)
- The Internet - Hive Mind (Columbia)
- Khruangbin - Con Todo El Mundo (Dead Oceans)
- Kiefer - Happysad (Stones Throw)
- Yazmin Lacey - When the Sun Dips 90 Degrees (S/R)
- Tom Misch - Geography (Beyond the Groove)
- Nas - Nasir (Mass Appeal)
- Noname - Room 25 (S/R)
- Kamasi Washington - Heaven and Earth (Shoto Mas)
10 Noteworthy Shows
- BADBADNOTGOOD - Prospect Park Bandshell, 8/2
- Digable Planets - Yoshi’s, 11/18
- Greta Van Fleet - The Masonic, 9/19
- Khruangbin - Fox Theater, 11/9
- Pete Rock - Rumsey Playfield/Central Park, 7/28
- R+R=NOW - Prospect Park Bandshell, 6/22
- Saba - Slim’s, 5/3
- Tyler, the Creator - The Armory, 1/31
- The War on Drugs - Fox Theater, 9/11
- Kamasi Washington - The Warfield, 10/19
Poindexter
12 Favorite Albums from 2018
- Goon Sax - We’re Not Talking (Wichita)
- Blues Lawyer - Guess Work (Emotional Response)
- Frankie Cosmos - Vessel (Sub Pop)
- Ruby Karinto - Ruby Karinto (Hozac)
- Primo! - Amici (Upset The Rhythm)
- Shannon & The Clams - Onion (Easy Eye)
- Wimps - Garbage People (Kill Rock Stars)
- La Luz - Floating Features (Hardly Art)
- Yo La Tengo - There’s a Riot Going on (Matador)
- Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel (Mom + Pop)
- Table Sugar - Introductory Material (Water Wing)
- Lithics - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
25 Favorite Songs from 2018
- Goon Sax - “Make Time 4 Love” - We’re Not Talking (Wichita)
- Blues Lawyer - “27th Street” - Guess Work (Emotional Response)
- Primo! - “Ticking Off a List” - Amici (Upset The Rhythm)
- Frankie Cosmos - “Cafeteria” - Vessel (Sub Pop)
- Horrible/Adorable - “Surf, Rock, Beach, Party, UFO” - Surf Rock, Beach Party, UFO / Gutter Pussy (Yr First Crush)
- Ruby Karinto - “Jugemu” - S/T (Hozac)
- Spook School - “While You Were Sleeping” - Could It Be Different? (Slumberland)
- Shannon & The Clams - “The Boy” - Onion (Easy Eye Sound)
- Yo La Tengo - “For You Too” - There’s a Riot Going on (Matador)
- La Luz - “Cicada” - Floating Features (Hardly Art)
- Swearin’ - “Margaret” - Fall Into the Sun (Merge)
- Wimps - “Garbage People” - Garbage People (Kill Rock Stars)
- Essex Green - “Sloane Ranger” - Hardly Electronic (Merge)
- Lithics - “Excuse Generator” - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Table Sugar - “Carried Away” - Introductory Material (Water Wing)
- Cut Worms - “Coward’s Confidence” - Hollow Ground (Jagjaguwar)
- Eureka California - “Mkultra” - Roadrunners (HHBTM)
- Tony Molina - “Give He Take You” - Kill The Lights (Slumberland)
- Tracyanne & Danny - “It Can’t Be Love Unless It Hurts” - S/T (Merge)
- Smokescreens - “Someone New” - Used To Yesterday (Slumberland)
- Karen Meat - “You’re an Ugly Person” - You’re an Ugly Person (Emotional Response)
- Courtney Barnett - “Charity” - Tell Me How You Really Feel (Mom + Pop)
- Papercuts - “How To Quit Smoking” - Parallel Universe Blues (Slumberland)
- RAYS - “Yesterday’s Faces” - You Can Get There From Here (Trouble in Mind)
- Parquet Courts - “Tenderness” - Wide Awake! (Rouge Trade)
Pop Goes The Weasel
Pop Goes the Weasel - Favorite Songs
- Billy & Dolly - “Bobby” - Five Suns (Shit Krystal)
- Dirty Projectors - “Break-Thru” - Lamp Lit Prose (Domino)
- Eternal Summers - “Oblivious” - Every Day It Feels Like I’m Dying… (Nevada Music)
- Kyle Gann - “Reverse Gravity” - Hyperchromatica (Other Minds)
- Jim James - “I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times” - Tribute to 2 (ATO)
- Matoko and Myers - “Seed Cycling” - Basis Key (Open Hand)
- Momma - “Interloper” - Interloper (Danger)
- Olden Yolk - “Cut to the Quick” - S/T (Trouble in Mind)
- Razz - “Outside In” - Time Frames (Emotional Response)
- Strypes - “Behind Closed Doors” - Spitting Image (Virgin Girl)
- Tune-Yards - “Home” - I Can Feel You Creeping Into My Private Life (4AD)
- Wimps - “Cave Life” - Garbage People (Kill Rock Stars)
Pupshaw
Pupshaw’s Favorite New Releases of 2018 (In The Order That They Came To Mind):
Favorite New Releases:
- Angelique Kidjo - Remain In Light (Kravenworks)
- Sleep - The Sciences (Third Man)
- Playboi Carti - Die Lit (AWGE/Interscope)
- Open Mike Eagle - What Happens When I Try To Relax EP (P + C Auto Reverse)
- SOPHIE - Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides (MSMSMSM/Future Classic)
- JPEGMAFIA - Veteran (Deathbomb Arc)
- Lithics - Mating Surfaces (Kill Rock Stars)
- Dead Can Dance - Dionysus (PIAS)
- Yves Tumor - Safe In The Hands of Love (Warp)
- Merzbow & Genesis P-Orridge - A Perfect Pain (Cold Spring)
- Mitski - Be The Cowboy (Dead Oceans)
- MF Doom/Czarface - Czarface Meets Metal Face (Silver Age)
- A Place To Bury Strangers - Pinned (Dead Oceans)
- Kali Uchis - Isolation (Virgin)
- Melody’s Echo Chamber - Bon Voyage (Fat Possum)
- Aphex Twin - Collapse EP (Warp)
- The Acharis - Lost In The Void (EXBTN)
- Beak> - >>> (Invada)
- Casual Hex - Zig Zag Lady Illusion (Water Wing)
- Tim Hecker - Konoyo (Kranky)
- Julia Holter - Aviary (Domino)
- Moira Scar - Wound World Part 1 (Near Dark)
- Roy Montgomery - Suffuse (Grapefruit)
- Vive La Void - Vive La Void (Sacred Bones)
Favorite Reissues/Compilations:
- Stereolab - Switched On Vol. 1-3 (Duophonic)
- Throbbing Gristle - Mission of Dead Souls (Mute)
- V/A - Deutsche Elektronische Musik Vol. 1 (Soul Jazz)
- Wire - Pink Flag (Pink Flag)
- Robert Rental & Glen Wallis - Untitled LP (Dark Entries)
- Rubella Ballet - Ballet Bag (Dark Entries)
- Brian Eno - Music For Installations (Opal)
- The Fall - The Rough Trade Singles (Superior Viaduct)
- V/A - Typical Girls Vol. 3 + 4 (Emotional Response)
qb(X)
qb(X) best of 2018 (unordered)
Smash Albums
- Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids - An Angel Fell (Strut)
- A Hawk and A Hacksaw - Forest Bathing (Living Music Duplication)
- The Body - I Have Fought Against It, But I Can't Any Longer (Thrill Jockey)
- Ben Lamar Gay - Downtown Castles Can Never Block The Sun (International Anthem)
- Hawthonn - Red Goddess (Of This Men Shall Know Nothing) (Ba Da Bing!)
- IDLES - Joy As An Act Of Resistance (Partisan)
- Calvin Johnson - A Wonderful Beast (K)
- Mary Lattimore - Hundreds of Days (Ghostly International)
- MMMD - Hagazussa (Antifrost)
- Naked Eye Ensemble - Storylines Crossing (Starkland)
- Oracle Hysterical - Hecuba (National Sawdust Tracks)
- Wrekmeister Harmonies - The Alone Rush (Thrill Jockey)
Hit Singles
- ANMLPLNET - "I Was Fucked by a Cloud" - Fall Asleep (Ba Da Bing!)
- Blackwater Holylight - "Sunrise" - Blackwater Holylight (Riding Easy)
- The Ex - "Soon All Cities" - 27 Passports (Ex)
- Hot Pepper - "Cancion Ritual" - Spanglish Movement (Guerssen)
- Joan of Arc - "Vertigo" - 1984 (Joyful Noise)
- LUMP - "Curse of the Contemporary" - S/T (Dead Oceans)
- William Parker - "Falling Shadows" - Voices Fall from the Sky (Centering)
- Rebekha del Rio - "No Stars" - Twin Peaks (Music from the Limited Event Series) (Rhino)
- Saintseneca - "Pillar of Na" - Pillar of Na (Anti-)
- Serpentwithfeet - "Cherubim" - Soil (Secretly Canadian)
- Solo Organ - "Words" Frequency Illusion (Golden Slipper)
- Tune-Yards - "Coast to Coast" - I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life (4AD)
Rubberband Girl
Rubberband Girl’s 2018 Soundtrack
- Lakecia Benjamin - Rise Up (Ropeadope)
- Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Wrong Creatures (Vagrant)
- Doja Cat - Amala (MAU)
- Kali Uchis - Isolation (Virgin EMI)
- Lykke Li - So Sad So Sexy (RCA)
- Maribou State - Kingdoms in Colour (Counter)
- Amber Mark - Conexao EP (Virgin EMI)
- Onra - Nobody Has to Know (All City)
- Portico Quartet - Art in the Age of Automation (Gondwana)
- Rejoicer - Energy Dreams (Stones Throw)
- Rhye - Blood (Loma Vista)
- St. Beauty - Running to the Sun (Wondaland Arts Society)
- Santigold - I Don’t Want: The Gold Fire Sessions (Downtown)
- Jorja Smith - Lost & Found (FAMM)
- Various Artists - We Out Here (Brownswood)
Shrey
Shrey's Best Music of 2018
Best Albums 2018
- Haley Heynderickx - "I Need To Start a Garden" (Mama Bird Recording Co.)
- Beach Slang [Quiet Slang] - "Everything Matters But No One Is Listening" (Polyvinyl)
- Instant Music - "Instant Music (Reissue)" (Dark Entries)
- Mitski - "Be The Cowboy" (Dead Oceans)
- The Dodos - "Certainty Waves" (Polyvinyl)
- Free Cake For Every Creature - "The Bluest Star" (Double Double Whammy)
- Blondie - "Heart Of Glass EP (Reissue)" (Numero Group)
- Tanukichan - Sundays (Company)
Fave Songs 2018 not counting stuff that was in the above albums
- Travis Scott ft. Drake - "Sicko Mode" - Astroworld (Epic / Cactus Jack)
- Migos - "Walk It Talk It" - Culture II (Quality Control / Motown / Capitol)
- Parquet Courts - "Total Football" - Wide Awake (Rough Trade)
- Death and the Maiden - "Wisteria" - Wisteria (Fishrider)
- Marisa Nadler - "Blue Vapor" - For My Crimes (Sacred Bones)
- Iron & Wine - "What Hurts Worse" - Weed Garden (Sub Pop)
- The Finks - "Charlie’s Manifesto" - Rolly Nice (Milk!)
Sparkle Motion
Notable albums that made me smile in alphabetical order, plus a few songs I couldn’t get out of my head:
- Alexandre Desplat-The Sisters Brothers(OST)(Lakeshore)
- All Them Witches-ATW(New West)
- Amen Dunes–Freedom(Sacred Bones)
- Angelique Kidjo–Remain in Light(Kravenworks)
- Anton Batagov–An Evening Hymn(Melodiya)
- ARP–Zebra(Mexican Summer)
- Beak>->>>(Temporary Residence)
- Belly-Dove(S/R)
- Benjamin Cartel–Flickering Light(Mother West)
- Bettye Lavette–Things Have Changed(Verve)
- Bugge Wesseltoft & Prins Thomas–S/T(Smalltown Supersound)
- Charles Lloyd & The Marvels feat. Lucinda Williams–Vanished Gardens(Blue Note)
- Chris Carter–Chemistry Lessons, Vol. 1(Mute)
- Chris Liebing & Ralf Hildenbeutel–Burn Slow(Mute)
- Daniel Binelli & Pedro H. da Silva-Tango Fado Duo(Sorel Classics)
- Eiko Ishibashi–The Dream My Bones Dream(Drag City)
- Gabriele Kahane–Book of Travelers(Nonesuch)
- Goat Girl–S-T(Rough Trade)
- Gurrumul–Djarimirri[Child of the Rainbow](Skinnyfish)
- Hailu Mergia-Lala Belu(Awesome Tapes from Africa)
- Hookworms–Microshift(Domino)
- Iggy Pop & Underworld–Teatime Dub Encounters EP(Caroline Intl.)
- Jennifer Castle–Angels of Death(Paradise of Bachelors)
- Lonnie Holley–MITH(Jagjaguwar)
- Low–Double Negative(Sub Pop)
- Makaya McCraven–Universal Beings(International Anthem)
- Marc Ribot & Fay Victor-Songs of Resistance 1942(Anti-)
- Marty O’Reilly & the Old Soul Orchestra–Stereoscope(S/R)
- Mary Lattimore–Hundreds of Days(Ghostly Intl.) + Ghost Forests(Three Lobed Recordings)
- Mc'n'Mac-Beautie on the Waters(Long Song)
- Melody’s Echo Chamber–Bon Voyage(Fat Possum)
- Myra Melford's Snowy Egret-The Other Side Of Air(Firehouse 12)
- Nathan Bowles–Plainly Mistaken(Paradise of Bachelors)
- Neko Case–Hell-On(Anti-)
- New Music Detroit–Smoke: Music of Marc Mellits(Innova)
- Odetta Hartman-Old Rockhounds Never Die(Northern Spy)
- Oliver Coates-Shelley's on Zenn-LA(Rvng Intl.)
- Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis- Wild!Wild!Wild!(Bloodshot)
- Robert Haigh-Creatures of the Deep(Unseen Worlds)
- Rosali-Trouble Anyway(Scissor Tail)
- Roseanne Cash–She Remembers Everything(Blue Note)
- Sam Gendel–Pass If Music(Leaving Records)
- Simian Mobile Disco–Murmurations(Wichita)
- Stu Mindeman-Woven Threads(Sunnyside)
- The Essex Green–Hardly Electronic(Merge)
- Thea Hopkins-Love Come Down EP(S/R)
- Tissues-Veil(S/R)
- Ty Segall-Freedom’s Goblin(Drag City)
- U.S. Girls–In a Poem Unlimited(4AD)
- Warm Drag-S/T(In the Red)
- Yo La Tengo-There's A Riot Going On(Matador)
Songs:
- Orchestra of Spheres- "Koudede" - Mirror(Fire Records)
- Richard Thompson- "The Storm Won't Come" -13 Rivers(New West)
- Johnny Marr- "Actor Attractor" - Call The Comet(New Voodoo)
Suhnharini Vasahn Suundelehguntah
Ten Alleviating Albums Released/Re-collected in 2018
- Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids - An Angel Fell (Strut)
- Patrick Cowley - Afternooners (Dark Entries)
- Earth Girl Helen Brown - Four Satellites Vol. 1 (In The Red)
- Entourage Music & Theatre Ensemble - Ceremony Of Dreams: Studio Sessions and Outtakes, 1972-1977 (Tompkins Square)
- Sam Evian - You, Forever (Saddle Creek)
- Fuck - The Band (Vampire Blues)
- Kikagaku Moyo - Masana Temples (Guruguru Brain)
- Laraaji - Vision Songs, Vol. 1 (Numero Group)
- Stephen Steinbrink - Utopia Teased (Western Vinyl)
- Pauline Anna Strom - Trans-Millenia Music (RVNG)
The Muse
Some of The Muse's favorite releases from 2018
- Myra Melford & Ben Goldberg - Dialogue (Bag Productions)
- McCormick Percussion Group - Kid Stuff (Ravello)
- Wailin' Jennys - Fifteen (True North)
- Bettye Lavette - Things Have Changed (Verve)
- Egrets on Ergot - Surfeit of Gemutlich (Cleopatra)
- Rent Romus & the Lords of Outland - In the darkness we speak a song brightness and life (Edgetone)
- Baby Got Bacteria - Boo (S/R)
- Kairos Sextet - Transition (Dafnisian Music)
- Bon Bon Vivant - Live at the New Orleans Jazz Museum (Gallatin Street)
- California Honeydrops - Call it Home Vol. 1 & 2 (TubTone)
- Pandoras - Hey! It's the Pandoras (Burger)
- Low Cut Connie - Dirty Pictures Part II (Contender)
- Al Dimeola - OPUS (Earmusic)
- Ali Farka Toure - The Source (World Circuit)
- Bombino - Deran (Partisan)
- Joe Louis Walker - Journeys to the Heart of the Blues (Alligator)
- Polarity/1 - Take a Pill (S/R)
- Barrence Whitfield and the Savages - Soul Flowers of Titan (Bloodshot)
- Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis - Wild! Wild! Wild! (Bloodshot)
- Mavis Staples - If All I Was Was Black (Anti-)
- Cuasares - Afro-Progresivo (Pharaway Sounds)
- Aki Kumar - Hindi Man Blues (Little Village Foundation)
- Mackrosoft - Snakerhythms (S/R)
- Chris Butler - Better Than I Ever Was (Future fossil)
Velvet Einstein
Velvet Einstein - Best Albums/EPs of 2018
- Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet - Landfall (Nonesuch)
- Big Freedia - 3rd Ward Bounce (Asylum)
- 카코포니(cacophony) - 和(Harmony) (Fluxus)
- Camille - OUÏ (Balulalo)
- Coeur De Pirate - en cas de tempête, ce jardin sera fermé. (Dare to Care)
- Philip Glass - Distant Figure (performed by Anton Batagov) (Orange Mountain)
- Damien Jurado - The Horizon Just Laughed (Secretly Canadian)
- New Music Detroit - Smoke (Innova)
- Les Poules A Colin - Morose (Famgroup)
- Saintseneca - Pillar of Na (Anti)
- Shannon and the Clams - Onion (Easy Eye Sound)
- Shannon Shaw - Shannon in Nashville (Easy Eye Sound)
yan yan
Albums I Bopped to the Most 2018 Edition
- Mitski - Be the Cowboy (Dead Oceans)
- Snail Mail - Lush (Matador)
- Soccer Mommy - Clean (Fat Possum)
- Pinegrove - Skylight (S/R)
- Frankie Cosmos - Vessel (Sub Pop)
- Car Seat Headrest - Twin Fantasy (Face to Face) (Matador)
- Parquet Courts - Wide Awake (Rough Trade)
- IDLES - Joy as An Act of Resistance (Partisan)
- Ought - Room Inside a World (Merge)
- Jeff Rosenstock - POST- (Polyvinyl)
- Lala Lala - The Lamb (Hardly Art)
- Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Sparkle Hard (Matador)
- Forth Wanderers - S/T (Sub Pop)
- Kikagaku Moyo - Masana Temples (Guruguru Brain)
- Dorian Concept - The Nature of Imitation (Brainfeeder)
- Peggy Gou - Once (Ninja Tune)
- BODEGA - Endless Scroll (What’s Your Rupture)
- illuminati hotties - Kiss Yr Frenemies (Tiny Engines)
- The Spirit of the Beehive - Hypnic Jerks (Tiny Engines)
- Remember Sports - Slow Buzz (Father/Daughter)
- CHAI - Pink (Burger)
- Palm - Rock Island (Carpark)
- Various Artists - Community Records Compilation Vol. 6 (Community Records)
Local Releases that I Really Loved
- Stephen Steinbrink - Utopia Teased (Western Vinyl)
- Pllush - Stranger to the Pain (Father/Daughter)
- Tanukichan - Sundays (Company)
- Blues Lawyer - Guess Work (Emotional Response)
- Dick Stusso - In Heaven (Hardly Art)
- Madeline Kenney - Perfect Shapes (Carpark)
- Perhapsy - Kingdom Starlight Bliss (Porch Party)