Another round up with my fave songs of the year – the music that kept me somewhat sane during a very trying year – listed not by preference but how best to order them. Listen as a Spotify playlist here. 1. "Friday" – Real Estate
2. "You're Not Alone" – Semisonic
3. "Through the Trees" – Phantom Planet
4. "Become a Mountain" – Dan Deacon
5. "Is it True" – Tame Impala
6. "Cut it Loose" – Maxband
7. "Olympik" – EOB
8. "Love Is the King" – Jeff Tweedy
9. "The Great Divide" – The Shins
10. "Fear of Heights" – Wye Oak
11. "For Sure" – Future Islands
12. "Too Late" – Washed Out
13. "One More Second" – Matt Berninger
14. "You and I" – Caribou
15. "Videostores" – Quivers
16. "Wildfires" – SAULT
17. "Prisoners" – Doves
18. "Dear Stranger" – STRFKR
19. "Feel You" – My Morning Jacket
20. "Will You Return/When You Come Down" – The Flaming Lips
Compiling this year's Romantic Songs Playlist for Valentine's Day was an easy task, considering all the great new music lately from fave bands. Here are tunes that pull at the heartstrings by LCD Soundsystem, Arcade Fire, The National, Beck, Spoon, Washed Out, Mew and more. And check out the gender-balanced cover of Interpol's "PDA" by Daywave and Hazel English. Whether coupled up or single at the moment, it's all music to feed the soul.
Listen to my Romantic Songs Playlist for Valentine's Day 2018 on Spotify here. For further inspiration, visit my posts from past years: 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012.
Here I go again gushing about how this year was an awesome year of music... But really when your very fave bands come out with releases full of listening goodness, what other proper response is there? With plenty of new tunes from Arcade Fire, LCD Soundsystem, and Spoon, plus those long
awaited Beck and Gorillaz albums, 2017 had me in music fan heaven. Add in beloved indie veterans (The National, The Flaming Lips, Mew, Elbow, Grizzly Bear) along with newcomer Mondo Cozmo, and it was a blissful, busy time catching up with everything across the calendar.
1. LCD Soundsystem, American Dream
The LCD Soundsystem songs on American Dream continued the Brooklyn band's musical thread after a long seven years – this is the fourth album since 2002 – like they never lost a beat! They also toured extensively and appeared all over the place (seen here confidently presenting "Call the Police" on the U.K. television program Live on Later... with Jools Holland) as if to make up for lost time and appease all the fans who were more than willing to buy tickets.
2. Arcade Fire, Everything Now
Arcade Fire's fifth album since 2001 caught heat for some ABBA-type dancehall leanings (see the Montreal based band rocking the title track "Everything Now" on daytime television with Régine Chassagne playing my dream instrument) but there were also plenty of soulful tracks to dig deep into, especially "We Don't Deserve Love" which is already cued up in my next Valentine's Day playlist.
3. Spoon, Hot Thoughts
Austin band Spoon returned super strong with its ninth album since 1993, acknowledging many female fans mindset by the title Hot Thoughts. Frontman Britt Daniels exhibits why during this smoking hot performance of the song, "Do I Have to Talk You Into It," to open their sold out show at Brooklyn Steel December 8th.
4. Beck, Colors
Beck's 13th studio album Colors arrived in the fall with stylish songs across the spectrum to showcase yet again his musical prowess, but all contain the artist's mantra of group catharsis. He also toured widely and continued to be eager to please his fans with hits old and new. Here Beck brings the single "Dream" to life in a session for his L.A. hometown station KCRW.
5. The National, Sleep Well Beast
Cincinnati-raised quintet The National is now dispersed across the country, but gathered in a newly built recording space in an upstate New York barn to create the seventh album since 1999, Sleep Well Beast. The songs seemed even stronger live, with the power of this band's groupthink exhibited on stage. Check out "The Day I Die" at the Pitchfork Music Festival Paris 2017.
6. Gorillaz, Humanz
Six years passed between albums for the animated U.K. band Gorillaz, as Humanz landed with a host of featured artists in cameos almost distracting the mission. Damon Albarn is still the mastermind behind it all, seen here leading the way with the song "Andromeda" in a live session at New York City's WFUV.
7. Mondo Cozmo, Plastic Soul
L.A. artist Josh Ostrander, a.k.a. Mondo Cozmo, appeared on KCRW late in 2016 after the strength of a few well played singles. This new band quickly went from small venues (I was lucky to see him at the tiny Mercury Lounge in January) to playing festivals and headlining concert halls. Witness Ostrander's gritty determination here, singing the title track of his debut album "Plastic Soul."
8. Grizzly Bear, Painted Ruins
The quartet Grizzly Bear has expanded from its Brooklyn base, but the band's tightly layered sound remains in sharp focus for the fifth album since 2002, Painted Ruins. The group dynamic is on full display here during "Mourning Sound" at the Electric Lady Studios in NYC for WFUV.
9. Elbow, Little Fictions
English alt rock band Elbow released its seventh album since1997, Little Fictions, full of trademark emotional depth and lush textures. Guy Garvey's rich vocals provide the passionate porthole, as witnessed on the U.K. Graham Norton Show with "Magnificent She Says."
10. Mew, Visuals
Another transfixing voice that transcends our mortal coil is that of Mew's Jonas Bjerre. Angelic yet immediate, he leads the quartet into a singular space of musical brilliance for the seventh album since 1995 Visuals, as evident in "Carry Me to Safety" performance at Seattle's KEXP.
Honorable Mention: The Flaming Lips, Oczy Mlody
One more shout out to The Flaming Lips, for releasing a whopping sixteenth album since 1983 in dreary January with the title Oczy Mlody (that roughly translates to a Polish expression meaning eyes of the young) with wacked out pysch rock that still keeps us on our toes. My favorite tracks are "The Castle" and "We A Family," but this video of "There Should Be Unicorns" shows frontman Wayne Coyne's willingness to continue playing the rock star.
Out with the old and in with the new please! I'm getting another playlist ready for publication while drooling over this list of anticipated releases by some of my very favorite bands. Strange how only two announce a solid drop date: The Flaming Lips', Oczy Mlody, set to arrivenext week on January 13 (just in time for my birthday weekend) and Elbow's Little Fictions is due February 3. Add in TBD albums from Spoon, Arcade Fire, Beck, Gorillaz, The National plus LCD Soundsystem, and that's more than half of "My Essential Music – Fave Band Playlists" post, an awesome lineup to be sure.
So here's to the clean slate of a new year with all the promise it holds and the days ahead complimented by a great soundtrack of new tunes – music from bands I love along with songs by ones I've yet to discover. Follow me as newmusicmatters on Spotify as I add these albums to a dedicated playlist and more.
UPCOMING NEW RELEASES IN 2017:
January 13 – The Flaming Lips, Oczy Mlody (Warner Brothers)
February 3 – Elbow, Little Fiction (Universal Music)
Spoon, TBD
Arcade Fire, TBD
Beck, TBD
Gorillaz, TBD
LCD Soundsystem, TBD
The National, TBD
Grizzly Bear, TBD
Father John Misty, TBD
The Shins, TBD
Real Estate, TBD
The War on Drugs, TBD
Vampire Weekend, TBD
Wolf Parade, TBD
The xx, TBD
Phosphorescent, TBD
My Morning Jacket, TBD
Spiritualized, TBD
Broken Social Scene, TBD
Strand of Oaks, TBD
Here’s my latest listening session with a nice mix of new
and established bands to update any music collection. Listen to newcomers Lo
Moon, DeClan McKenna and Geowulf while checking out the latest from indie
mainstays of Montreal, STRFKR, and Death Cab for Cutie. Plus returning veterans
Grandaddy, The Avalanches and The Flaming Lips have all been busy in the
studio, releasing songs to eager fans. All that and more on Spotify or as a
YouTube playlist.
1. “Ladies Don’t Play
Guitar” – Tennis
Denver couple Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore are working on
their fourth album as the indie pop duo Tennis since 2010, releasing this saucy
teaser single of self-empowerment. With her tongue planted firmly in her cheek,
Moore’s sultry singing rips lyrically into preconceived notions of women
musicians.
2. “Colours” – The
Avalanches
Aussie electronic band The Avalanches just released its
first album in sixteen years, Wildflower,
with only two original members (Robbie Chater and Tony DiBlasi) since the
group was formed in 1997.“Colours”
features honeyed vocals by Mercury Rev’s Jonathan Donahue who also receives a
songwriting credit for the mesmerizing tune.
3. “let’s relate” –
of Montreal
Athens experimental pop group of Montreal, formed by Kevin
Barnes in 1996, recently released its fourteenth studio album, Innocence Reaches. The tune “let’s
relate” boasts EDM-inspired sounds embedded in the band’s psych rock leanings.
4. “Saltwater” –
Geowulf
New beach pop duo Geowulf is the combination of Star
Kendrick and Toma, who moved from their native Australia to London with
sun drenched music in tow.The dreamy
single “Saltwater” is already making waves on the music scene, with plans for a
full release soon.
5. “New Song” –
Warpaint
L.A. indie gal group Warpaint released a third studio album
since 2004, Heads Up. The single “New
Song” led the way with the band’s signature combo of dream pop and psych rock.
6. “Tape Machine” –
STRFKR
Portland’s indie rockers STRFKR released “Tape Machine” as
the single for its fifth album, Being No
One, Going Nowhere. Originally a solo project by Joshua Hodges in 2007, the
band’s danceable electronica credo remains strong in this quirky new tune.
7. “Are You Lost in
the World Like Me?” – Moby, The Void Pacific Choir
Moby indulges his rave dance party side with “Are You Lost in
the World Like Me?”It is off the
electronic titan's thirteenth studio album (but his first with new musical
project The Void Pacific Choir) called These
Systems are Failing.
8. “Million Dollar
Loan” – Death Cab for Cutie
“Million Dollar Loan” is the first song in the “30 Days 30
Songs” venture by writer Dave Eggers with new music written and recorded by
artists for a Trump-Free America.Death
Cab for Cutie’s trademark sound sweetly intones the campaign moment when Trump
referred to receiving such a loan from his father.
9. “Isobard” – Declan
McKenna
Young English singer/songwriter Declan McKenna became a buzz-worthy
artist at this year’s SXSW on the strength of his debut EP Liar,and just released
this soaring single “Isobard.” McKenna is a talented musician with charismatic
voice who usually performs all his own instruments.
10. “Way We Won’t” –
Grandaddy
Californian indie rock masters Grandaddy are back after a
hiatus with new material after four studio albums from 1992 to 2006. “Way We
Won’t” is the endearing single to announce the end of the band’s decade-long
absence.
11. “Modern Act” – Cloud
Nothings
Cleveland singer/songwriter Dylan Baldi founded the band Cloud
Nothings in 2009 and will soon release a fifth album, Life Without Sound. The
confident single “Modern Act” offers a glimpse of the new collection.
12. “Certainty” – Temples
English psych rock quartet Temples recently dropped this
catchy single “Certainty,” which will be part of the follow-up album to the
band’s debut in 2014.
13. “Some Sunsick
Day” – Morgan Delt
L.A. musician Morgan Delt creates gauzy tunes with a home-fi
approach in his second album, Phase Zero,
as evident in the closer “Some Sunsick Day.”
13. “The Castle” –
The Flaming Lips
Oklahoma City’s veteran psych rockers The Flaming Lips announced
that its sixteenth studio album since 1983 will drop in January 2017; it is
titled Oczy Mlody (a rough
translation of a Polish expression meaning eyes of the young). Until then, this single “The Castle” provides
fans something new with frontman Wayne Coyne’s floating plaintive vocals.
14. “Loveless” – Lo
Moon
“Loveless” is the single debut by new L.A. band Lo Moon, a
seven-minute meditation with synths and wafting vocals.
15. “Ambo” – The
Album Leaf
What once was the solo music project of San Diego’s Jimmy
LaValle since 1998, The Album Leaf is now a live quartet performing music from
a sixth full-length album, Between Waves.
The chill intentions remain mostly intact, as in the lilting tune “Ambo.”
Last month I revisited some fave holiday tunes when I was asked to create a playlist for Coolest, that Kickstarter-funded dream cooler with a bluetooth speaker and mixer built right in for an instant party vibe on the go (order one on Amazon here or be extremely nice and ask Santa!) So I dug into my past holiday playlists from 2011 and 2013, before checking out anything new that might befit this hip brand out of Portland, Oregon.
Last summer I had a blast curating eight themed playlists for the Coolest cocktail guide -- a grand total of 15+ hours of music with 192 bands. I didn't even repeat a group once, except the time "China Cat Sunflower" bleeds into "I Know You Rider" from Europe '72 after my Deadhead husband insisted for the jam band playlist CrispyCrunchy. Other themes revolve around travel (Marixo), beachy types (Waverave), driving tunes (Whitelines), Caribbean sounds (HavanaHeaven), sexy songs (SexlessontheBeach), plus easy summer days (Easybreezy), and awesome kick ass tunes (KGBeast). Sign up with your email on Coolest.com to receive a copy of the drink recipe booklet and head on over to the Coolest Mixmaster account on Spotify to check out the playlists. For now it's time to get in the holiday spirit so listen up!
I'm busy planning a memorial service this week for my mother. There's relief along with the sadness after watching her slow decline from ALS these past two years, but it's amazing how the details swirl amid the heartache. This is my favorite photo of the two of us from a vacation in Florida long ago. My Mom taught me that culture makes everything worth living and maybe it's genetics, but I have the same love of music. Her favorite genres were Broadway shows, movie scores and all things classical, which was known as "Nana music" to my kids. Yet music also moves me deeply, cutting straight to the core with a vibrancy that fills my being. And as my brother says she liked her music "the louder, the better." Ditto.
On the way to see her last week, the day before she left us/her passing (insert one of the countless terms I've heard recently here), I listened to my own Funeral Songs playlist. I usually punch the lower radio dial for a college radio or NPR station along the way, but I needed a something I count on to last me for hours. It's a fluid list like the recent post listing my Top 25 Concerts, certainly not set in stone until the time comes. Like that or a desert island list (songs you'd take along if marooned), it makes for a lively conversation -- even if just in your own head. Of course, mine is in playlist form and I was even critiquing my order as tears streamed down my face, having to face mortality head on. Eddie Argus of Art Brut told me in a PopMatters interview that he named a song "Ice Hockey" instead of "Funeral Song," even though that was the intended purpose. Thought that was a cheeky way to approach things, to use his English term. So if you'd like to listen to my current collection of blog faves and other tunes that have inspired me along life's path, check it out at link here on Spotify. As I load my laptop with my mother's CD collection to get ready for the event this weekend, I am thankful for this continuing outlet for rejuvenation, however it came my way.
The list of bands in the last post may have been mostly made up of current faves, but I did pad it with some extras outside my personal playlist. For those looking to dig into the past, I offer three decades of bands with full catalogues worth a listen below. I actually created this list for a friend's son, who wasn't exactly exposed to any of this rich history in what was new music in the 80s, 90s and 2000s. After mentioning The Beatles and David Bowie as a foundation, I offered the following bands to provide some basic knowledge of exalted past bands (at least to my ears!) Hopefully, it provided some inspiration as well. I've included some videos for the bands I'd most like to resurrect from each decade, thankful for the musicians still active on the scene. It seems fitting to start with the iconic 80s band Talking Heads, probably my most beloved band ever. Their show in Forest Hills during the 1983 tour, captured so brilliantly by Jonathan Demme in Stop Making Sense, will most likely remain as my top concert experience for all time. I was also able to walk over to the Ritz (now Webster Hall) to see the band introduce the film at the premiere and dance along to the music for a second time. Through the years I've run into David Byrne and seen almost every solo tour, as he continued on a personal music journey after eight albums with the group. "Life During Wartime" perfectly captures the mood of the day with references to Mudd Club and CBGB, along with the layered dance rhythms and a frazzled state of emotional confusion as conveyed by Byrne's song-speak. As he asks at the end of the video, "Does anyone have any questions?" Yes lots -- and thanks for bringing them up.
80s
Talking Heads
Pretenders
Roxy Music/Brian Ferry
Blondie
The Clash
The Replacements
The Police The Smiths The Jam Gang of Four Psychedelic Furs The Cure
New Order
If there was a band I could bring back from the 90s, it would be Phantom Planet. The group are best known for the theme song for television's O.C., "California," but they have a four albums worth of solid pop rock anthems and cooing sing along tunes. Indie movie regular Jason Schwartzman was a member for the first decade, with songwriting credits for this hit and a similarly memorable "Lonely Day" in the video here. Alex Greenwald's vocals effortlessly bridge that gap between loud and soft, pulling the listener along that mystical musical space between power chords and passionate percussion. 90s
Phantom Planet Weezer Smashing Pumpkins
Everclear Nirvana
Radiohead
CAKE
Blur Beck Breeders Luscious Jackson
Soup Dragons
Stereo MCs
Jesus Jones
Since the sting of losing one of my all time faves LCD Soundsystem is still fresh in the early stages of grief, I'll dig a little deeper here. The Doves are officially "on hiatus" but I'd love to change that status. This English indie rock band has that ever purposeful ingredient of brothers, Jez and Andy Williams, along with frontman Jimi Goodwin and a willingness to add lush string arrangements to make the heart soar. I listened to all four albums countless times -- thankfully in a digital format that didn't wear out. The promotional video here for 2010 best of compilation shows the band creating a fave song "Some Cities," that never ceases to send me into a visceral musical spiral. 2000s+ The Doves
