It’s the end of the year! And though 2016 was a brutal year for many reasons, there was a bunch of really good music that came out. And, as I do almost every year, here is a list of 20 albums that stayed with me throughout the year. The usual caveats apply: I’m not a professional music critic, I’m just a music geek; and because I don’t work for a music publication, I’m not inundated with records to review. So these 20 are my own, the ones that accompanied me on my travels, the ones I listened to while writing, while reading, or while wandering around.
20. Andrew Bird. Are You Serious.
Key rola, “Roma Fade.”
19. Metronomy. Summer 08.
Key rola, “Night Owl.”
18. The Julie Ruin. Hit Reset.
Key rola, “I Decide”
17. Crystal Castles. Amnesty.
Key rola, “Concrete.”
16. El Perro del Mar. KoKoro.
Key rola, “Kouign-Amman”
15. Beyoncé. Lemonade.
Key rola, “Don’t Hurt Yourself”
14. Leonard Cohen. You Want it Darker.
Key rola, “On the Level.”
13. David Bowie. Blackstar.
Key rola, “Girl Loves Me.”
12. Wilco. Schmilco.
Key rola, “If I Ever Was a Child.”
11. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. Skeleton Tree.
Key rola, “Skeleton Key.”
10. Savages. Adore.
Key rola, “Adore.”
9. Fews. Means.
Key rola, “III”
8. Pixies. Head Carrier.
Key rola, “All I Think About Now.”
7. Johan Johannsson. Arrival (soundtrack).
Key rola, “Hammers and Nails”
6. M.I.A. AIM.
Key rolas, “Visa,” “Borders”
5. Angel Olsen. My Woman.
Key rolas, “Intern,” “Never Be Mine,” “Shut Up, Kiss Me”
4. Preoccupations. Preoccupations.
Key rolas, “Anxiety,” “Memory, “Degraded,” “Fever”
3. Lydia Loveless. Real.
Key rolas, “Clumps,” “Longer,” “Out on Love,” “Bilbao”
2. Radiohead. A Moon Shaped Pool.
Key rolas, “Ful Stop,” “Burn the Witch, “True Love Waits,” “Daydreaming.”
1. Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam. I Had a Dream That You Were Mine.
Key rolas: all of them.