My Favorite Music of 2025: Two Albums Really Stood Out

Tortoise - Touch

I've posted a list of my favorite albums of the year each year for at least the last 15 cycles, and at this point I'm definitely past my peak. I'm not listening to tons of new artists the way Trey Anastasio does. I didn't do a bunch of end of the year cramming. I mostly checked out new releases by artists I was already familiar with as they came out, including Mulatu Astatke, Big Thief, Béla Fleck, Page McConnell, Bill Frisell, Enda Scahill, Mary Halvorson, Circles Around the Sun, Thomas Morgan, and Andy Thorn. More on those later.

I did have two big-time standouts this year though. Albums that I couldn't stop listening to. One in the spring and one in the fall. Those were Phonetics On and On by Horsegirl (spring 2025) and Touch by Tortoise (fall 2025). Neither of these artists were new to me. I've been a fan of Horsegirl since their 2022 debut Versions of Modern Performance and my obsession with Tortoise goes back well over two decades, ever since I first heard TNT. 

When the all-female rock trio Horsegirl first came on the scene they were still teenagers, and their slacker indie sound gained them comparisons to Pavement and Sonic Youth. On their 2nd album I still hear that, but I also hear the introduction of a mod, paisley-hued nature that made me think of The Shaggs. I know that's a lazy comparison but oh well. According to Spotify, Phonetics On and On was my most listened to album of the year. Despite being my most listened to, I think it was my 2nd favorite overall, with the number one slot going to Tortoise who won the race by a wide margin!

How do I describe Tortoise to those who don't know? First off, it's all instrumental, with elements of rock, jazz, classical, and film scores. Very heady. It's often drum forward although their guitarist Jeff Parker is one of the best jazz/experimental guitarists working today. Plus, I've always liked how Tortoise incorporates mallet instruments (vibraphone?) into their band. When I first listened to Touch, I would note the places or tracks where Tortoise sounded like Tortoise. It wasn't all the time. Now when I listen it is all the time. I might be biased because it's new, but if it's not the best Tortoise album of all time, it's at least on par with Standards and TNT.

Of the aforementioned names in the first paragraph, Life Lessons by Tim O'Brien, Bill Frisell and Dale Bruning is worth checking out, and is probably my 3rd favorite of the year. I think that one came out this year. The vinyl version is missing the Dylan cover Spanish is the Loving Tongue, which is a bummer. My 4th favorite might be BEATrio by Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda and Antonio Sánchez. I saw the first time that Béla and Edmar ever played together live at Big Ears in Knoxville in 2019. Now they've added a drummer and recorded an album together. Also worth noting is Banjo Dreams by Andy Thorn. Yes it's a banjo album, but it features some noticeably tasteful piano work by Erik Deutsch.

That's it for this year's list!

Best Books Read in 2023

I had a goal of reading 50 books this year, and I hit that goal by October. Now that it's December, I thought I'd mention some of my favorites from those 50+.

Four short story collections stood out for me this year. Those were:
In A Lonely Place by Karl Edward Wagner
Dark Tales by Shirley Jackson
Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea by Sarah Pinsker
Riding the Nightmare by Lisa Tuttle

In the general fiction/novel category, I had three favorites:
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer
Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession
The Woman in the Purple Skirt by Natsuko Imamura

In the mystery/thriller genre, I also had three favorites:
The Pigeon by David Gordon
How Can I Help You by Laura Sims
Resurrection Walk by Michael Connelly

Four non-fiction books were among my favorites:
Stranger in the Woods - Michael Finkel
The Art Thief by Michael Finkel
Original Wisdom: Stories of an Ancient Way of Knowing - Robert Wolff
Don’t Sleep, There Are Snakes: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle - Daniel L. Everett

Poetry/experimental
Kick the Latch by Kathryn Scanlan

My Favorite Albums of 2023

This is probably my last year assembling a list like this, because nobody needs a 50 year old listing off their favorite albums of the year. Who cares really? I didn't even care that much this year, however, I did keep a playlist going during 2023 and whenever something caught my ear I would add it to the playlist. Upon review of that playlist today, I really only see nine that I can say were legitimate favorites. Here they are in the order they were added to that list.

The Necks - Travel

U2 - Songs of Surrender

Circles Around the Sun - Language

Arbor Labor Union - Yonder

Leftover Salmon - Grass Roots

Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain, Edgar Meyer, and Rakesh Chaurasia - As We Speak

John "Jojo" Hermann - It's Complicated

Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids - Afro Futuristic Dreams

Oteil Burbridge - Lovely View of Heaven

I can't say that I have a clear overall favorite out of this group. Any one of the nine at a certain point could have been the front runner. 

The Best Albums of 2022

Here are some of my favorite studio albums from the year 2022, forced into contrived categories!

Best for former No Depression magazine readers: Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You by Big Thief

Best for dudes that grew up listening to Sonic Youth or Pavement: Versions of Modern Performance by Horsegirl

Best lo-fi/DIY that's not Horsegirl: Music Box by post office winter

Best for the chill-out tent: Come Around by Carla dal Forno

Best up-tempo, feel-good instrumental: Let the Festivities Begin! by Los Bitchos

Best mid-tempo, introspective instrumental: Still, Here by Marisa Anderson

Best studio album by a jamband in the year 2022: Dripfield by Goose

Best folk/blues/traditional: Get on Board by Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder

Best in what you might call "free jazz": Symphonic Tone Poem for Brother Yusef by Bennie Maupin and Adam Rudolph

Best in what you might call "soul jazz": Scary Goldings IV by Scary Goldings

Best in what you might call "world music": Ali by Vieux Farka Toure with Khruangbin

A favorite not mentioned so far: Good and Green Again by Jake Xerxes Fussell

Best from 2021 that I didn't hear until 2022: Psalms by Nathan Salsburg

Favorite re-issue/archival release of the year: Door Harp by Michael Houser

Bonus: Best new Nugs.net live band discovery (non-studio album): Eggy

BEST OVERALL - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You by Big Thief

that just about covers it.

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The Ten Best Albums of 2021

I did an okay job keeping up with new releases this year.  Okay enough that I didn't feel compelled to do any end of year cramming or searching. I simply looked back at the list I'd been maintaining all year long and picked my overall favorites, which gave me a list of 18 choices. From there I narrowed it down to these 10.

Highway Butterfly: The Songs of Neal Casal

I knew of Neal Casal primarily through his instrumental band Circles Around the Sun. However, when he passed away in 2019 at the age of 50 I had no idea that he was also an expert lyricist and songwriter. Thankfully, Neal's friends and admirers got together to record over 40 of his songs as a tribute. I wouldn't normally include a various artists compilation like this on an end of the year list, but it's too good to leave off.

Lost Futures by Marisa Anderson and William Tyler

Both primitive and sophisticated is this meeting between two guitar greats: Marisa Anderson and William Tyler. I listened to it while driving along the Oregon Coast and it was the perfect soundtrack to that road trip and landscape.

Heaven and Holy by Painted Shrines

This is perhaps the most pop-oriented selection of the ten on this list. Jangle-pop that is. The guy from Reds Pinks and Purples teamed up with the guy from Woods to create this little gem of an album. Deceptively psychedelic.

New Love by Charnett Moffett

Charnett Moffett is not a name I had heard of before and bassist-led jazz releases are not usually something I am seeking out, yet I knew this was a best of year candidate from the moment I clicked play. Moffett has an understanding of Harmolodics, as taught by Ornette Coleman. Few people can even explain what Harmolodics is, much less utilize it in an effective way, but the way Moffett conducts the instruments and positions the role of the bass within this ensemble may provide some clues.

First Flight REDUX by Dave Harrington

I don't know what this is! I just like the sound of it. Especially the drumming. It quickly became my go-to exercise music for the year.

Searching for the Disappeared Hour by Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson

Despite being a long-time fan of guitarist Mary Halvorson, this is the first time I've gotten to hear her play with pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, or any piano player. The piano adds a richness which I find soothing. While still being very abstract and difficult to comprehend, it may be ever so slightly more conventional than what we are used to.

Sunshine Radio by Tommy Guerrero

Tommy Guerrero is someone I admire: a DIYer who can be counted on to put out catchy, melodic, instrumental albums time and time again. Don't mistake this pro skater for being an amateur musician. This is pretty much the sound. The epicenter. Exactly what I am looking for in music. 

Children In Space by Guess What

I detect some major Sun Ra vibes from this album. Big, spacey tones for a keys and drums duo.

Confabulations by Duck Baker

Years ago I saw Duck Baker play a solo show in Richmond, VA but I don't recall him being this out. We're talking Derek Bailey level out. Could this be easy listening in disguise? Something keeps me coming back to it.

Yol by Altin Gün

I was watching a Phish webcast this summer and during the setbreak you could just make out the house music that Phish's sound person was playing at the venue. It sounded really good to me at the time but I had no idea what it was. After a while I thought to try the Shazam app and it was able to tell me it was a song by Altin Gün. I checked again a few minutes later and it was another song from the same Altin Gün album called Yol. This would be good music to put on the jukebox in the Star Wars Cantina.

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A Decade's Worth of Top Album Picks: 2011 To Now

Here's a look back at a decade's worth of best album of the year picks...from 2011 until now.

2011 List

In 2011 I picked Dawes - Nothing Is Wrong as my album of the year. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Dawes and I may have cooled some in the years since, but it was an amicable parting of ways. I could play Nothing Is Wrong right now and sing along with every song, and maybe even get a little teary eyed as a result. However, my #2 pick from that year - The Harrow and the Harvest by Gillian Welch - has risen to even higher prominence in the ensuing years, proving to be one of the best albums of the last decade. Meanwhile, a forgotten gem from 2011 is the Jamacian mento album We Will Wait (like a folkier reggae) by Blue Glaze Mento Band. Well worth seeking out. 

2012 List

2012 is very heavy on folk, old-time and trad but its supreme leader is still the same as it was then: The Murphy Beds' self-titled debut album. A desert-island disc for me. The Murphy Beds are Eamon O'Leary and Jefferson Hamer. They're still somewhat active as a duo, but unfortunately there never was a 2nd Murphy Beds album. At least not yet. 2012's dark horse is Dan Gurney - Traditional Irish Music on the Button Accordion. That one's pretty pure. Plus Béla Fleck and the Marcus Roberts Trio. Nice!

2013 List

Even by 2013 The Sadies were already an established favorite of mine, but a young previously unheard of Scottish Alt. Country band called The Wynntown Marshalls gave them a run for their money. The Sadies won out in the end and that was a good decision as I have continued to listen to Internal Sounds quite frequently in the time since. A couple forgotten gems from that year are Mandolins at the Cakewalk by The Ragtime Skedaddlers and Redlight Rag by Rattletrap Ruckus.

2014 List

Here we see the beginnings of an experimental streak that continues to this day. Rhyton - Kykeon as number one. Nice pick if I do say so myself. Go back and listen to that and see if you don't agree. Greg Cohen - Golden State is one that I have grown to love even more, and Xylouris White - Goats continues to get better and better with every listen. Goats might be the new number one if I was to do it over again.

2015 List

2015 wasn't that long ago and I don't see anything wrong with any of these picks. Nowadays I would definitely elevate Mary Halvorson - Meltframe to the top of the list. Although I'm not sure it could unseat Tomeka Reid. Mary Halvorson is all over this list actually. Also give Susan Alcorn a listen if you can find her recordings. 2015 is looking pretty good.

Woolen Men - Post.
I totally missed this one in 2018!

2016 List

For some reason I could only come up with five favorite new albums in 2016? I guess I didn't yet know about Idris Ackamoor - We Be All Africans, Psychic Temple - Plays Music for Airports, or Atlantis Jazz Ensemble - Oceanic Suite. If one of those didn't occupy the number one slot, then a worthy resident would have been I Long to See You by Charles Lloyd and the Marvels.

2017 List

In 2017, Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile helped get me back on track. And they stayed one step ahead of The War on Drugs. There's some really good stuff further down this 2017 list: Ches Smith, Jenny Scheinman, and Wolf!  Actually Wolf! should have been on the 2016 list! Missing altogether is Jake Xerxes Fussell. I didn't know about him yet.

2018 List

Nothing wrong with this list. It's full of goodies. Even my 2018 albums that you might have missed list has got it going on. And to think that I hadn't heard of the band The Woolen Men until this year so there's no mention of them at all yet. I'm pretty sure The Woolen Men's brilliant 2018 album Post would have been near the top of the list had I known about it.

2019 List

By 2019 I was fully under the influence of Spotify for good or ill. The platform's algorithm had figured out my musical taste and spoon fed me one personalized hit after another. It looks like I chose not to rank my 2019 list but instead just narrowed it down to ten favorites. A year later I'm thinking Carla Dal Forno - Look Up Sharp is a strong contender for number one. Although there is some very strong competition from Goes West by William Tyler and The Borametz Tree by C. Joynes and the Furlong Bray. One year ago I didn't yet know about The Reds, Pinks and Purples yet so Anxiety Art is strikingly absent from last year's list. That was a pretty big omission. Apologies to Glenn Donaldson.

2020 List

Just posted today!  Will Sleeper and Snake hold on to the top position or will they be overtaken by Silverbacks? Or will I soon be turned on to something that I'm currently unaware of and kick myself for not including it? Time will tell. I also posted a much longer 2020 music list and chances are good that some off-handed reference from that grouping will grow in stature in the future. 

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The Ten Best Albums of 2020 - As Chosen By Me

Last week I posted a long, toilsome list of the year's best music albums. Link here.

For those that don't have time for that kind of slog, here's a quick rundown of the year's ten best. And yes I am picking a sleepy little Ozzie wombat pop record as my number one. 

Number 1: Sleeper and Snake - Fresco Shed

Conjures Visions Of: kangaroos, barbecues, Subaru Outbacks, down under blankets, and those frilled-neck lizards that run on their hind legs. Those thorny devils those.

Reminds Me Of: The Moldy Peaches, Young Marble Giants, Lotta Sea Lice, Daniel Johnston.

Why I Like It: drum machines, super catchy songs, saxophones, and a DIY approach. What's not to like?

Number 2: Silverbacks - Fad

Conjures Visions Of: Singing along with the radio.

Reminds Me Of: Camper Van Beethoven, Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club, The Hold Steady.

Why I Like It: These Irish lads (and lass) know how to rock.

Number 3: Ron Miles - Rainbow Sign

Conjures Visions Of: Being at one of those ideal jazz clubs like you see in movies, for both the early and late sets (you ain't going nowhere).

Reminds Me Of: Blue Note's golden era where every record was a winner.

Why I Like It: One word - Melody. Ron Miles can write some tunes, and with the best of the best accompanying him this band delivers track after track after track. A soon to be classic.

Number 4: Gillian Welch: Boots No. 2 - The Lost Songs, Vol 1, 2 and 3

Conjures Visions Of: Walking the streets of 'Frisco in a brand new pair of shoes.

Reminds Me Of: Gillian Welch songs willed into existence.

Why I Like It: Quantity and quality. These "throw-away" songs are unbelievably good.

Number 5: Surprise Chef - All News is Good News

Conjures Visions Of: Having a tailor make you a suit designed to look like it came from a thrift store, but with just enough bespoke touches that someone with an eye for it can tell that it's hand made.

Reminds Me Of: That legendary funk jazz album from the 1970's the crate diggers rave about.

Why I Like It: From the sound of it, you would never know that this is another contemporary Australian band. 

Number 6: Bill Frisell - Valentine

Conjures Visions Of: That strange dream you had last night.

Reminds Me Of: Three musicians listening and responding to each other.

Why I Like It: Not many artists produce a career-defining work 30+ years into their career, but Frisell did with Valentine.

Number 7: Elds Mark - Elds Mark

Conjures Visions Of: Strange rituals in the deep dark woods of the far far north.

Reminds Me Of: Everything that's good about Scandinavian music right now.

Why I Like It: You're constantly wondering, "is this the same album?".

Number 8: This Is The Kit - Off Off On

Conjures Visions Of: Popping a cassette tape into the boombox and playing it loud enough so that someone else can hear it besides me.

Reminds Me Of: Someone who writes and creates her own songs, with internal muse as the primary influence.

Why I Like It: What kind of banjo is that she's playing? Then those horns come in.

Number 9: Martin Rude & Jakob Skøtt Duo - The Discipline Of Assent

Conjures Visions Of: Constantly being on the verge of something.

Reminds Me Of: Too much. Desert Blues, Miles Davis, Pink Robots.

Why I Like It: It's what I was looking for.

Number 10: Los Days - Singing Sands

Conjures Visions Of: Tumbleweeds, distant horizons, trotting horses.

Reminds Me Of: Friends of Dean Martinez, Atmospheres and Soundtracks, Ennio Morricone.

Why I Like It: It's Tommy Guerrero.

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Five, Make That Six, Favorite Albums So Far in 2020 (Best Albums of 2020, So Far)

I've been wanting to post this for a few days now, and I already had five 2020 albums picked out as favorites. By the time I got around to writing this the list had grown to six! Here they are.

Phish - Sigma Oasis
What It Is: It's Phish, dude. The same Phish whose live show is where it's at, man. In case you forgot, these guys are pretty good in the studio as well.
Why I Like It: Lots of reasons. There are no clunker songs. Each track is strong. The production may the best I've ever heard on a Phish album. Engineer Vance Powell did a much better job of capturing the band's sound than any of the name brand producers they've worked with before managed to do, and better even than the band itself has done in the past. With Phish you are usually judging the studio versions of songs as being inferior to the live versions. On Sigma Oasis these studio takes come off more as definitive than inferior. Or at least as an alternative. Do I have criticisms? Sure. It's Phish so I analyze everything with a microscopic lens. But those objections are starting to wash away. Phish is a team and they know what they are doing. If they chose to make it this way it's better to trust their decisions than to try and poke holes in them.



Habibi - Anywhere But Here
What It Is: An all female post-punk style band from Brooklyn with more than a hint of an Arabic influence in their music.
Why I Like It: I had already been researching all-female bands from yesteryear - like The Raincoats, Kleenex and ESG - so I was happy to learn of an equally cool present day band. Habibi's songs are super catchy. Just the right mix of garage rock and pop musicality.



Hawktail - Formations
What It Is: An instrumental quartet that uses bluegrass instruments (fiddle, upright bass, flatpicked guitar, mandolin) in a musical style that used to be (?) called "new acoustic". Hawktail has the gravitas of a David Grisman Quintet or the Strength In Numbers Telluride Sessions but with more of a Scandinavian folk influence, à la Väsen.
Why I Like It: The world of new acoustic music is still ruled by the Mike Marshall, Béla Fleck, Darol Anger generation. Hawktail is perhaps the best of the next round of bands following in this progressive tradition. I don't know if they are taking it farther, but they are certainly fanning the flames.



Jon Stickley Trio - Scripting the Flip
What It Is: A wildly unique instrumental trio (guitar, violin, drums) that can hold its own at both jamband and roots music festivals.
Why I Like It: When I listen to Jon Stickley Trio I can't help but think of Shooglenifty, the legendary Scottish folk group that took trad music into new dimensions during the 1990's and 2000's. Jon Stickley Trio's music is very different than Shooglenifty, but it contains the same groovy energy, referencing bluegrass or Southern Appalachian fiddle tunes in the way that Shooglenifty expanded upon its Celtic roots. Jon Stickley (guitar) may have his name in the title, but everyone on board shines with Lyndsay Pruett (violin) and Hunter Deacon (drums) contributing in massive ways to make this the best album of the band's career. Track after track is one brilliant composition after another. I'm liking this one a lot!



Stein Urheim - Downhill Uplift
What It Is: Difficult to categorize music out of Norway that seems to float between spiritual jazz, psychedelic rock and world/folk.
Why I Like It: The first time I listened to it I picked up on what must be a Sun Ra or Alice Coltrane influence. The 2nd time around it sounded more like Pink Floyd or even Phish. The 3rd time it came across as if an American blues musician was traveling along the Silk Road. All on the same 37 minute album. So take a listen today, then again tomorrow, then the next day. It'll be different each time. Pay attention to the remarkably good drums/percussion.



Seahawks - Island Visions
What It Is: A modern day take off on Library music, inspired by the cult classic KPM albums of the 1970's, although this sounds more 90's than 70's.
Why I Like It: Exotic without being exotica. Sunny with a patch of clouds. Slightly buzzed. The soundtrack for relaxing with your cocktail of choice. This is a chilled out album and maybe a little too savory or intelligent to pass for legit Library music, but it's all the better for it. I'm not familiar with the band Seahawks, but this record sounds like something Sound Tribe Sector 9 or Boards of Canada might have come up with if given the same task of expanding upon the KPM catalogue.
Listen here: https://www.emipm.com/en/browse/labels/KPM/2127

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Anxiety Art - Best Overlooked Album from 2019

The best overlooked album from last year is far and away a little known pop rocker called Anxiety Art by San Francisco's The Reds, Pinks and Purples. 

A couple months ago I posted my favorite 2019 albums list. And what a fine list it is! Of course it's just my favorites out of the albums I was able to hear and familiarize myself with during 2019. With Spotify and other means (plus a hunger for searching) it's easier than ever before to continually find new and old music that you A) love and B) haven't ever heard before. Inevitably some good things get left off of any person's best of because you can't hear it all.

In the two months since 2019 ended I've been turned onto at least a dozen great albums from 2019 that I wasn't even aware of at the time of making my own favorites list. These include:

Tomeka Reid Quartet - Old New
Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek - Kar Yağar

Gong Gong Gong - Phantom Rhythm

Joose Keskitalo - En lähde surussa

Los Wembler's des Iquitos - Vision del Ayahuasca

Mike Compton and Norman Blake - Gallop to Georgia

Woolen Men - Human to Human
Billy Strings - Home

These are all albums I wish that I had known about in 2019 but I'm glad that I know about them now. However, for me, the best overlooked album from last year is far and away a little known pop rocker called Anxiety Art by San Francisco's The Reds, Pinks and Purples. 

I know little to nothing about this band or album. It was listed on Raven Sings The Blues' enlightening best of 2019 list: http://www.ravensingstheblues.com/rstb-best-of-2019/

On Bandcamp The Reds, Pinks and Purples are described as "DIY kitchen pop project of Glenn Donaldson with live support from friends, currently: ‎Katiana Mashikian, Thomas Rubenstein & Andrew Hine.‎"  About the songs, Donaldson writes:

I wrote these songs in the Inner Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco. They came to me on walks around Golden Gate Park and shopping at Asian grocery stores on Clement Street. They are fiction and non-fiction. I recorded them in my kitchen, but we live in the future now, so some of them are coming out on vinyl in Spain. To me, they are straight pop songs with not much of a filter. The cover art is by my partner's father; he has dementia but still makes amazing pictures sometimes. Stress or bad times can drive people to make music or art. It's a relief for me to make things, so I called this record Anxiety Art.

I'm not sure why this album has had such an impact on me.  New Wave, or middle of the road rock in general, is not necessarily my most preferred style. The songs are not super hooky and the musicianship - while sufficient and well formed - is not what I would call virtuosic. There are no long jams or much improvisation or experimentalism of any sort. The songs are pretty short - the two or three minute range - and have pretty basic structures. The same chord patterns, guitar riff motifs, and topics seem to show up on multiple tracks, whether intentional or by accident. It doesn't quite sound like 2019...or 1982. But oh is it addictive and gripping. The feeling the album conjures can't really be put into words - something like a mature, hopeful, melancholy. Hidden beauty. Finding pleasure in simple, mundane things. Too bad the vinyl is completely sold out. Good thing I'm also into compressed audio.

Best Books Read 2019 - Recent Fiction and Vintage Horror

I read over thirty books this year, mostly fiction. Here are ten favorites.

Five Recently Written Books

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
A brilliant novel about a single/unmarried 36 year old woman, Keiko Furukura, who has spent the last 18 years of her life diligently working the same menial job in a Japanese convenience store. She is comfortable with her life, but feels out of place in a society that pressures her to conform to its expectations. One of the most remarkable characters I've ever encountered. Inspirational. Translated from Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori.

Sealskin by Sue Bristow
Dabbling in magical realism, this novel is based on the Scottish legend of the selkie - seals who take human form after shedding their skin. After reading Michael Crummey's Galore and Eowyn Ivey's Snow Child in 2018 I was hungry for more of that ilk and Sealskin filled the void.

Aug 9 - Fog by Kathryn Scanlan
I'm so glad to have learned about this slim, spare book. It is the product of Kathryn Scanlan finding the dilapidated, waterstained diary of a random 86 year old mid-western woman at an estate sale. For 15 years Scanlan studied the diary - playing with sentences, cutting and pasting entries and rearranging it to flow as one narrative composition. The result is a beautiful form of homespun poetry. Very influential.

The Grip of It by Jac Jemc
Modern horror just doesn't seem to be as good as the vintage stuff from the 1970's and 80's. It's usually either too young adult, too "me too", too PC, or all of the above while being written in an annoying millennial voice. The Grip of It is the exception - a contemporary telling of the classic haunted house story. Done in a way that feels both in-line with tradition and non-derivative.

Dark Matter by Michelle Paver
I love fiction as told through journal entries. In this case the format delivers one of the most chilling books you'll ever read. In 1937, a down on his luck Englishman joins a year long scientific expedition to the Arctic. Over the next 200 pages things get increasingly eerie and unhinged.

Five Vintage Horror Novels (Valancourt Books)

I read several horror novels this year, vintage horror novels, but I'm going to limit my list of vintage horror to just ones published by Richmond, VA based Valancourt Books. Valancourt has a knack for rediscovering rare and overlooked out-of-print gems. I learned about them this year and they are the primary reason for rekindling my interest in horror fiction. Here are my five favorite Valancourt Books read this year. Some are from their Paperbacks from Hell series.

The Elementals by Michael McDowell
The haunted house genre goes for a Southern Gothic spin in this overlooked classic from 1981. On Alabama's Gulf Coast a well-to-do family encounters a terrifying presence in an uninhabited Victorian mansion.

The Spirit by Thomas Page
An over-the-top 1977 Bigfoot novel that is actually really good. I wasn't expecting this one to be much more than fun, but it was that and more.

Black Ambrosia by Elizabeth Engstrom
From almost the first page I had the feeling that I was reading a book that would be an all-time favorite. A slight lull about two-thirds of the way was the only thing that killed that buzz. I tend to like dark, horror books with teenage female protagonists and Black Ambrosia pretty much sets the standard. I'm looking forward to reading this one again to see if it's as good as I remember, or better.

The Bog by Michael Talbot
I actually found a used 1980's mass-market paperback copy of The Bog before I realized that it was one that Valancourt had reprinted. This horror novel seems pretty conventional at first and then starts taking some surprising turns. I wish they all could be this good.

Nightblood by T. Chris Martindale
This 1989 one-off men's action-adventure horror paperback is so meta that it feels like a 2019 book set in 1989 rather than a 1989 novel set in its present day. Imagine a Vietman-vet hero straight out of a Chuck Norris or Sylvester Stallone movie. Now imagine him as an uzi-toting vampire hunter. You nailed it. The first book in a series that never happened, the Nightblood story-line could easily be picked up by a writer like Grady Hendrix. The sequels would almost write themselves.

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Favorite Albums of 2019 (Best of the Year)

My Ten Favorite Albums of 2019

The Mauskovic Dance Band - The Mauskovic Dance Band

Space disco music by way of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Is this what an Afro-Caribbean influenced new wave jamband from Europe sounds like?

Carla Dal Forno - Look Up Sharp

Poppy, minimalist and deceptively hooky songs from a London-based Australian music creator.

Akron - The Akron Quartet Plays Ritual Sferei

Cool rhythms, killer bass-lines, and catchy melodies color this exotica from Barcelona, Spain. 

Dennis Young - Primitive Substance

The spirit of Liquid, Liquid lives on in this trippy, percussive, and dance-friendly collection of tracks.

Jenny Scheinman and Allison Miller - Jenny Scheinman and Allison Miller's Parlour Game

The most listenable and melodic jazz of the year came from this new collaboration between drummer Allison Miller and violinist Jenny Scheinman. Pianist Carmen Staaf and bassist Tony Scherr make it a quartet.

Jake Xerxes Fussell - Out of Sight

Another great set of songs from North Carolina guitarist Jake Xerxes Fussell. The production is turned up a little bit this time, giving the music a modest sheen.

Better Oblivion Community Center - Better Oblivion Community Center

The closest thing to indie-rock you'll find on this list. I listened to this over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over again when it came out back in January.

The Natural Yogurt Band - Braille, Slate and Stylus

These funky, hazy, vintage grooves from England should appeal to acid-jazz and trip-hop fans, and those who pay attention to the background music in make-believe wildlife films.

C Joynes and The Furlong Bray - The Borametz Tree

A globe spanning array of quasi field recordings, inspired by Eritrean wedding music, the Gamelan of java, Indian ragas, old-weird Appalachia, Celtic traditions, Asian scales, Tuareg desert blues, and who knows what else. 

William Tyler - Goes West

Straight and to the point acoustic, Americana guitar instrumentals backed by a sympathetic ensemble consisting of guitarist Meg Duffy, bassist Brad Cook, keyboardist James Wallace and drummer Griffin Goldsmith.

Some 2018 Albums You Might Have Missed

Before my Best of 2019 comes out, here are some 2018 albums that, had I known about them at the time, could have possibly made it onto the previous year's best of list.

Alan Hawkshaw and Brian Bennett - Full Circle (2018)
Back in the 1970's, keyboardist Alan Hawkshaw and drummer Brian Bennett were part of a team of UK musicians working for the KPM label who created hours upon hours of what is called "library music". Essentially their 9 to 5 job was to compose and record a library of stock music that clients could use in commercials, TV shows, movie soundtracks, radio filler, theme music - you name it. Often the music was made prior to it being commissioned for a particular project. Someone who needed music for the intro of their tennis match or for a chase scene in a low budget action film would choose among the KPM music available. It didn't really matter if someone else had already used it elsewhere.

In particular, the music that Hawkshaw and Bennett came up with was so funky and chic that - although not intended to be consumed this way - gained its own following among hip-hop producers and rare music enthusiasts. Their "not for sale to the general public" LPs became collectors items. Long story short, Hawkshaw and Bennett - now senior citizens - got back together in 2018 to record a whole new album of music in their classic KPM style. Full Circle is definitely an homage to library music's heyday, but with twelve new original tracks it might be better than anything they ever did before. I love this record! Don't get fooled into thinking that it's just smooth jazz. It really grows on you.

IE - Pome (2018)
Pronounced "Eee", IE is a little known young band from Minneapolis. Of all the performers at the 2019 Big Ears festival, IE probably got the least promotion - as in zero - but I had a hunch they would be good so I made a point of catching their one set which took place late at night at the tiny bar/performance space called The Pilot Light. That ended up being a peak musical experience and a highlight of the festival. I bought the vinyl of Pome immediately after the gig and then played it again that night - now probably like one or two in the morning - at a pretty decent volume on the cheapo record player at the AirBnB, where it sounded p h e n o m e n a l.

I'm not sure what kind of music IE is. Maybe the music of ancient pagan rites from a futuristic dimension, as played by the ghosts and faeries in a Marosa di Giorgio poem? It's kind of like the long, patient, almost ambient jams that Phish would get into around 1999/2000 such as the the 6/14/00 Twist from Fukuoka, Japan. There's probably some Sun Ra, Wendy Carlos or Delia Derbyshire in there too. Who knows? The ritual drumming, the synths, the keyboards, the far out vocals - it all works.



79.5 - Predictions (2018)
I have to thank Spotify for this. It put a track from Predictions on my Discover Weekly playlist and instead of instantly fast forwarding to the next track like I often do when skimming through these types of Spotify curated playlists, I stuck with it. If Spotify could talk it would have been saying, "you seem to like ESG and BadBadNotGood so you'll probably also like 79.5".

Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio - Close But No Cigar
This band tours constantly, playing blue breakbeat, organ-trio, funk-laden soul jazz. Delvon Lamarr's name might be titular, but his secret weapon and co-star is guitarist Jimmy James who is probably one of the most exciting performers you will ever see. The good vibes are contagious when this band takes the stage. Close But No Cigar does a good job of capturing a live sound in the studio. No trickery, no "production", no-frills. Just grooves. It could have been recorded yesterday or forty or fifty years ago.

Luke Bergman - Worx (2018)
This is the kind of music I love to happen upon. These ten tracks are an example of the kind of cool music that a talented multi-instrumentalist can put together with today's home recording capabilities. Bergman plays all the instruments heard on Worx. The first track Morning Person is almost an instrumental version of John Prine's Christmas in Prison, until you realize that Christmas in Prison's melody probably comes from some deeper collective subconscious. Track by track this music just kind of morph's into whatever Bergman felt like writing or recording that day.

Luke Bergman is not just some completely unknown DIY Bandcamp type person. He's actually a member of Bill Frisell's new HARMONY ensemble. So the guy has some cred. Bergman describes Worx as "Donkey Kong Country as a Hallmark movie."



Dungen and Woods - Myths 003 (2018)
I used to have Swedish band Dungen's 2004 album Ta Det Lugnt on CD. The Dungen on 2018's Myths 003 does not sound like that though. This Dungen is more mellowed out, pastoral, and hippie-ish than the harder rocking band of 15 years ago. Since this is a collaborative project it could be the influence of Woods. I don't really know anything about Woods but they are described as an American folk rock band from Brooklyn. Between Dungen, the movie Midsommar, and the northern-voodoo inspired band Goat, something trippy is going on in Sweden. The seven song, thirty minute Myths 003 is a pretty vibey and laid-back listen, flower children.




BONUS

Sandcatchers - What We Found Along the Way (2017)
Oud and lap steel. Come on. That's all I had to know before wanting to listen. There's an ECM meets meets Windham Hill type of thing going on here. The African/Middle Eastern (almost banjo-like) flavor of Yoshie Fruchter's oud mashed up with the experimental Americana tones of Myk Freedman's (almost dobro-like) lap steel guitar. I want to see this band out live some day.

***

Favorite Albums of the Decade, 2010's: 2010 to 2019

This is not an attempt to name the biggest or most important albums of the last decade. I'm too old to care about that. These are just the ten albums that I rank the highest from the years 2010 to 2019.

Listening methods and habits changed pretty significantly during this decade. Spotify became the new norm - an endless supply of albums, artists and tracks to check out. At some point I learned how to let my ear take the lead.

Here are those ten favorites in chronological order.

Gillian Welch - The Harrow and the Harvest (2011)
Fans waited eight years for The Harrow & the Harvest, and were then delivered the best album of Gillian Welch's career. Refined yet boundless.

Tommy Guerrero - Lifeboats and Follies (2011)
Highly influential DIY instrumental grooves from a guy originally know more for his skateboarding than his music. Not overly complex, but extremely enjoyable. (This style of music was a big part of my listening the last decade. Khruangbin's The Universe Smiles Upon You could also have represented).

The Murphy Beds - The Murphy Beds (2012)

A duo: guitar, mandolin(s) and/or bouzouki; two voices in harmony. Simple, catchy, and beautifully played.

The Sadies - Internal Sounds (2013)
An artistic equal to the previous decade's Favourite Colours, The Sadies struck gold again with Internal Sounds. Punk campfire tribal rock.

Xylouris White - Goats (2014)
Debut album by this unusual collaboration between Cretan lute player Giorgis Xylouris and rock/jazz drummer Jim White (Dirty Three). An in-the-moment musical conversation as two masters listen and respond in real-time while the tape is rolling. Something entirely new.

Atlantis Jazz Ensemble - Oceanic Suite (2016)
Spiritual, modal, North American jazz with an ear toward Europe and Africa. Meditative and introspective music meant to elevate the soul. Yes there is a love supreme.

Jake Xerxes Fussell - What in the Natural World (2017)
There's beauty, strangeness and savagery in these songs, telling of devils, dangers, ghosts and mythical monsters. Fussell chooses to interpret his "old-timey" repertoire on electric guitar instead of acoustic, and it works.

Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids - An Angel Fell (2018)

This is my jam. The rhythms and melodies traversed over the course of this album's hour are patient, cosmic and spread far out. A further highlight are the tones band member Sandra Poindexter is able to summon from her violin.

Mary Halvorson and Bill Frisell - The Maid with the Flaxen Hair (2018)

Two guitar legends, the sixtysomething Bill Frisell and the thirtysomething Mary Halvorson meet (for the first time on record) on the high, common ground that is Johnny Smith. What could have easily turned into a competitive battle of notes is actually the exact opposite. The two guitars blend in a delightfully cooperative way that is way more calming and far less noisey or flashy than one might have expected. The more closely you listen the more you are rewarded.

William Tyler - Goes West (2019)
If there's no tension, can there be release? William Tyler's beguiling instrumental melodies bask in the now while also peering ahead at something just out of reach, just off the screen, marching, but sometimes jigging, on the edge of Americana.

***

My Favorite Books of the Year (2018)

I started off the year reading pretty heavily, had a mid-year lull, then got back on track in September and pretty successfully read about a book a week from then 'til now.  Enough to compile a list of this sort. These aren't necessarily books that came out in 2018, although most are fairly recent.

Many of my fiction selections for this year were what you might call magical realism.  Not quite traditional fantasy or sci-fi, but something a little weird was going on.  My favorite novel like this was GALORE by Canadian author Michael Crummey.  The book tells the story of the unusual residents of a small Newfoundland settlement over a period of many decades, starting in the 1800's. I've never read anything quite like it.  GALORE is now one of my favorite books of all-time.

Other novels I enjoyed include THE SNOW CHILD by Eowyn Ivey, THE SEAS by Samantha Hunt, and a quirky little book called THREE TO SEE THE KING by Magnus Mills.

2018 is also the year I was introduced to sci-fi/weird fiction writer Jeff Van DerMeer.  ANNIHILATION - the first book in his Southern Reach trilogy - is another that is now an all-time favorite of mine.  I loved the spell this book put me under...sci-fi with elements of Lovecraft or THE ROAD.  I feel like ANNIHILATION stands on its own as a complete work.  I also read the next two books in the series, AUTHORITY and ACCEPTANCE, but those didn't sparkle for me as well as the first book.

For short stories, I loved, loved, loved Neil Gaiman's retelling of the Norse myths, aptly titled NORSE MYTHOLOGY.  Believe it or not this was the first Neil Gaiman book I had ever read and it led me to others such as THE GRAVEYARD BOOK, CORALINE, and THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE.  This also inspired me to read other tellings of the Norse myths.  For example, NORSE MYTHS: TALES OF ODIN, THOR AND LOKI by Kevin Crossley-Holland.  I even, gasp, enjoyed watching a Thor movie!

 Another book of short stories that I loved this year is TALES OF FALLING AND FLYING by Ben Loory, which is a follow-up to his equally entertaining STORIES FOR NIGHTTIME AND SOME FOR THE DAY.  Loory's stories (hey that rhymes!) are so unique and imaginative that it makes me wish I had written them myself.  They are almost like Russell Edson poems expanded to a few more pages.

Speaking of Russell Edson, this year I became aware of another poet I would consider to be in the same league as him.  I'm talking about James Tate.  Tate passed away in 2015 but he left behind a lot of work.  I purchased his DOME OF THE HIDDEN PAVILION and have been perusing it when the mood strikes.

In the world of non-fiction, when I found out there was a book covering the inner squabbles and struggles of the four surviving members of the the Grateful Dead Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann in the post Jerry Garcia years, I just had to read it.  The book is called FARE THEE WELL by journalist Joel Selvin.  It was an eye opening read.

Last night I finished the Jeff Tweedy memoir LET'S GO (SO WE CAN GET BACK) and it is probably in my top three or four books this year.  Even though I had an Uncle Tupelo and Wilco mini-obsession period about 15 years ago, I wouldn't say that I am a regular listener to Tweedy's music.  I've never seen him perform live, for example.  Still, I had an interest in this book and turning its pages over the last few days has been a calming and oddly pleasant experience.  I laughed, I cried. I can't recall ever enjoying an autobiography to this degree.  You're a good writer Jeff.  We knew that already from your songs, but now we have further proof.

The book that had me laughing out loud the most this year wasn't CALYPSO by David Sedaris, although I liked that one a lot.  No the book that had me chuckling uncontrollably was VACATIONLAND by John Hodgman.  Don't let Hodgman's previous books of hobo facts be a deterrent.  VACATIONLAND is a turn towards dry, whimsical, nerdy, essays.  Like dad-rock in written form.  I'm hoping there's more where that came from.

Lastly I need to mention a cookbook.  It's a book, so technically it can be on this list.  The cookbook is called VEGAN KETO by Liz MacDowell.  It was the title that got me.  This is exactly the book I've been needing.  I've flirted with and had great success with the Keto diet since 2016 but you eat way more meat and cheese on that diet than I am comfortable with.  On the flipside, I also like to romanticize a vegan way of eating but that has always been too high in carbs for my body, among other excuses.

Along comes Liz MacDowell's VEGAN KETO - a compilation of recipes that take take into account two restrictive diets and through what must have been a lot of trial and error finds the Venn diagram where they can deliciously meet.  What I love about this book is she doesn't in any way sacrifice her Vegan Keto principles in an effort to gain flavor - she holds fast to the format and then finds ways to create incredible meals within those restrictions.

I haven't gone completely vegan or completely keto or completely anything in my overall existence, but I have cooked almost exclusively out of this book at least for dinner almost every day since after Thanksgiving and everything I have made has been not just tasty but also healthy and positive.  These are meals you have no complaints about afterwards.

OK I think that covers it!

Best Albums of 2018

My top five albums of 2018 are, in this order:
1) Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids - An Angel Fell
2) Phish - Kasvot Växt í Rokk
3) Eamon O'Leary - All Souls
4) Mary Halvorson and Bill Frisell - The Maid with the Flaxen Hair
5) Andrew Marlin - Buried in a Cape

The next five, in less particular of an order, are:
Alina Engibaryan - We Are
Khruangbin - Con Todo El Mundo
John Prine - The Tree of Forgiveness
Jimi Tenor - Order of Nothingness
Circles Around the Sun - Let It Wander

Below I have categorized these in more detail.

Best Singer-Songwriter Album - All Souls by Eamon O'Leary
Eamon O'Leary beat out one of the all-time greats (John Prine) to take the top slot in this category.  John Prine's The Tree of Forgiveness falls in the top ten overall, but All Souls probably ranks in the top three for me this year.

On All Souls Eamon has fine-tuned his brand of self-penned melancholy ballads and distilled it into a near perfect ten song package. There's a charming, seductive edge to these songs and still another quality that for some reason brings to mind the sounds of Wake of the Flood and From the Mars Hotel era Grateful Dead studio albums.

Best Acoustic Instrumental Album - Buried in a Cape by Andrew Marlin

I'm a sucker for CDs of all original fiddle tunes and Buried in a Cape is perhaps the best album I've ever heard in this category.  The primary influence seems to be vintage late 70's/early 80's Newgrass ala Tony Rice and Sam Bush.  But there's also stately compositions like the type found on Norman Blake's Natasha's Waltz, jazzy numbers that wouldn't sound out of place under the fingers of Jethro Burns or Tiny Moore, and crooked old-time fiddle tunes that seem as if they were plucked straight from the hills.  

Andrew Marlin is best known as a songwriter in the increasingly popular duo Mandolin Orange.  With the all-instrumental Buried in a Cape it's clear that he can add "formidable tune composer and instrumentalist" to his reputation.  It doesn't quite seem fair that a lyricist of Andrew's caliber should also be capable of writing such memorable fiddle tunes but here is the proof.

Best Electric Instrumental Album - Con Todo El Mundo by Khruangbin

This is the most competitive category for my musical taste.  I had several contenders in this style, including Five Star Motel by Gitkin, Spacesuit by Robert Walter's 20th Congress, Road to Knowhere by Tommy Guerrero, The Serpent's Mouth by Bacao Rhythm and Steel Band, and Let It Wander by Circles Around the Sun.

Khruangbin wins, however.  Con Todo El Mundo expands upon the retro thai funk they established on their full-length 2015 debut The Universe Smiles Upon You while still keeping that signature blend of guitar melody, counterpoint bass-lines, and "snap" drumming.  Whether you approach this music as chilled-out psychedelia or uptempo exotica, there's a dependable magnetism to Khruangbin's unique take on the art of music making.

Best Album Featuring Mary Halvorson or Bill Frisell - The Maid with the Flaxen Hair

It's true that I eat up almost everything Bill Frisell or Mary Halvorson puts out.  In 2018 the choices were many.  In Mary's case, among the releases she participated in, I returned frequently to Theirs by Thumbscrew.  In Bill's case it's hard to overlook his long-awaited solo studio album Music Is.  Nonetheless, crushing everything in its wake is the monumentally demure and completely unexpected collaboration between Mary Halvorson and Bill Frisell called The Maid with the Flaxen Hair.

On this duo record, Halvorson and Frisell meet on middle ground by interpreting music associated with 1950's era guitarist Johnny Smith. What could have turned into a competitive battle of notes is actually the exact opposite. The two guitars blend in a delightfully cooperative way that is way more meditative and far less noisey, flashy or "out" than one might have expected. Hearing these innovative guitarists' immediately recognizable and iconic individual characteristics being played in tandem, as on the track Black is the Color of My True Love's Hair, is quite satisfying.

Most Unexpected Album - We Are by Alina Engibaryan

A random choice caused me to duck into 55 Bar late in the afternoon of Saturday, March 24, 2018.  The place was empty and it looked like a nice, quiet spot to have a Guinness before going to the Village Vanguard later that evening.  Little did I know that an hour later I'd be taking in one of the most memorable live sets of my life.  The bartender mentioned that the band starting in a few minutes was going to be good.  Soon the room was packed and the music had started.  Not being familiar with Snarky Puppy I had no idea that this ensemble included Michael League on bass and Chris Bullock on sax.  I just knew it sounded good, incredibly good, and that I really liked the songs by the keyboardist and vocalist, who turned out to be Alina Engibaryan.  She was featuring material from her brand new CD titled We Are.

We stayed for the entire first and set and would have stayed for more had it not been for other commitments. It was not until the next day that I started to look up who and what that was we had seen play.  Moments later I was listening to We Are on Spotify knowing that it would likely end up on my best of 2018 list.  And here it is!  Alina's music is a little more poppy than I'm used to, but having seen the organic live at 55 Bar version I know it's the real deal. And with that backing band (Michael League, bass; Chris Bullock, saxophone; Ross Pederson, drums), her jazz-informed songs are nothing less than ear candy.

Best Surprise Album by My Favorite Band - Kasvot Växt í Rokk by Phish

This is what space smells like.  Phish started the now common live band musical tradition of secretly covering an album on Halloween with The Beatles' White Album in 1994.  Subsequent years have included Remain In Light by The Talking Heads, Loaded by The Velvet Underground, and the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street.  Faceplant into rock.  Phish occasionally turns this tradition on its head by using the Halloween "cover" set as an opportunity to debut an album of all new original material.  Perception is spoon fed.  That's what happened for their middle set on 10/31/18 when they performed a 1981 record called í Rokk by the so-obscure-they-are-fictional Scandinavian band Kasvot Växt, even going so far as to plant back-dated album reviews, interviews and crate-digger articles on the internet as proof of its provenance.  I'm the glue in your magnet.

All of this proved to be a hoax of course....Kasvot Växt í Rokk was simply an excuse to inhabit the persona of a fake band of Phish's own creation as a means of debuting ten new original songs in a style that does and doesn't quite sound like the Phish we know and love, with lyrics that are however so Phishy that they could in fact be lost in translations from a mixture of Icelandic, Norwegian, and Vonlenska.  Say it to me S.A.N.T.O.S.  Even if these songs weren't so damn good and catchy Phish would still deserve an A for the artistic design work that went into this (stage setup, wardrobe, choreography, performance...).  We are come to outlive our brains.  But the songs are good - better with each listen.  I hope someone notices.

(I might as well create another category called "Best Improvised Music Played Live on Stage That Leaves Behind the Song Structure".  If so, this category would be created so that it could also recognize Phish based on moments during almost any show they played during their Summer or Fall 2018 tours.  There's a type of improvisation that Phish does which its fans have named Type II Jamming in which they leave the song structure behind and compose new, (usually) awesome sounding music on the spot while on stage in front of live audiences in excess of 10,000 peeps.  Phish is the best ever at this type of in the moment full-band live composition and that skill was on full display this year in a clean, melodic way that is unique to the last year or year and a half).

Best Party Album - Order of Nothingness by Jimi Tenor

Spotify has been helping me hone in on the sound I'm looking for and now it probably knows what I'm going to like better than I do. Jimi Tenor is one of those that popped up on my new release radar. I started with the songs My Mind Will Travel and Quantum Connection. Those made it to a summer playlist I put together and primed my taste for this album of full-on trippy and soulful Euro funk jazz.

My idea of a party album is for the party in your mind.  And I hope it never stops.  Order of Nothingness meets those needs.

Best Overall Album - An Angel Fell by Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids

If I were to make up a special category for this it might be "Best World Music Meets Spiritual Jazz CD" or "Best Album in the Sun Ra or Mulatu Astatke Lineage".  But those qualifiers are unnecessary since An Angel Fell can simply be labeled Best of the Year.  

Coming from a cosmic, here-and-now globalist perspective, the rhythms and melodies that are traversed over the course of this album's hour are so dead-on that it had no peer in 2018. The music is patient and freely spread out; the groove never dissipates, and the chant-like vocals are quite profound, not throwaway.  For me a highlight is the tones band member Sandra Poindexter is able to summon from her violin.  She takes an instrument - the fiddle - that doesn't always shine in a jazz setting and makes it growl.  With her at the controls the violin acts as a co-lead match to Ackamoor's sax.  For a band whose first album came out in 1972, An Angel Fell felt as fresh as anything I heard this year. 

Best EP (tie) - Cardamom Garden by Habibi and Down in the Basement by Mauskovic Dance Band

I think I found out about Mauskovic Dance Band by searching for bands that might be influenced by Liquid Liquid or Arthur Russell - both of which are apparent in their songs.  In the case of Habibi, the liking of them stems primarily from the allure of it being a kick-ass all female rock band.  I'm still waiting for that all female jamband that takes the music out there on twenty-minute rides like JRAD, by the way.  Back to the point, make a playlist of these two EPs back to back and you've got a killer 25 minutes ahead of you.  

Best Archival Compilation - Sun Ra Exotica

The folks at Modern Harmonic who put this three LP collection together really hit the nail on the head by calling attention to Sun Ra's connection to Exotica. The Saturnian prophet is not usually recognized as a member of or contributor to this style of music, but you can certainly notice an exotic thread there now.

Even those who don't know they know it, know the genre of Exotica when they hear it. Also called Lounge, Bachelor Pad Music, Tiki Music or Cocktail Music, Exotica was popular in the 1950's and 1960's as people opened themselves up to a post WWII sense of wordly culture and prosperity filtered through a clichéd idea of what Polynesian or Island music might sound like overlapped with the growing hi-fi stereo technology of the space age. All filtered through a white, middle-class, Disney-like, pre-Beatles perspective.

Who knows where Sun Ra was coming from when he made tracks like the ones found here, but he elevates the coolness of Exotica just by association.  It doesn't matter where you start or stop with this Sun Ra compilation - it's all good.  

Best Archival Live Release - The Grateful Dead Pacific Northwest '73 and '74

As someone who listened to a massive amount of Grateful Dead during my twenties, I do have to say that the GD's position as the nucleus of all my music listening and liking has shifted somewhat over the last 15 years.  This might explain why my jaw dropped and then remained there as I first listened to this music recorded between 1973 and 1974 in Oregon and Washington.  Those two years have always been favorites among Deadheads.  I've always thought of myself as more of a Brent Mydland era kind of guy (1979 to 1990) but this release puts that opinion to shame.

Maybe I had just forgotten how incredibly good - on every level - this post-Pigpen yet pre-hiatus time-period is, but these recordings make that explicitly clear.  With standout version after standout version, songs such as Bird Song, Eyes of the World, Brown Eyed Women, Row Jimmy, Playing in the Band and Dark Star demonstrate that there was some important historical music being made back then.