ultraviolence.xx Posted December 23, 2018 Author Posted December 23, 2018 2018 ALBUMS: #30-21 30 – compro skee mask a literal eleventh-hour addition to my list. considering my listening habits with it so far, if i'd had this for more of the year, it'd easily make top 10 or 15. an album like this is exactly what i felt like i'd been missing this year: something ambient, wandering, and slightly eerie (and slightly .t glitch-y). i love listening to music while i read and write; the album that did that job for much of last year and this year was marcus fischer's loss. i see this filling a similar position in the coming months. favorites: cerroverb, 50 euro to break boost, via sub mids, vli least favorites: none yet 29 – El mal querér rosalía though i've only looked up translations for a few of the songs here, rosalía's voice carries me somewhere few vocalists do. every word enchants me, even when i have no clue what the hell she's saying. few songs have popped into my head at random moments this year as "malamente" and "pienso en tu mirá" have. what i love about this album is the range it has across a relatively short runtime, and the way i always want to replay it when i come to the end. favorites: malamente, pienso en tu mirá, bagdad least favorites: none 28 – tell me how you really feel courtney barnett this didn't have quite the same spark as her first album for me, but i still really liked it. it feels a bit less trying-to-be-clever than her debut did, which i think allowed me to vibe with it. of course, there are still margaret atwood quotes and portmanteaued titles, but let a woman live.m4a. what an earworm nameless faceless is! there was one day i had it stuck in my head and was wandering around target trying not to hum it. favorites: nameless faceless, sunday roast, hopefulessness least favorites: need a little time 27 – wide winged bird big thief (i can't find a small pic of the album art jlaskdf) what a band, i'll say, getting a thirty-minute compilation of field recordings and rough song demos into my top 30. most of that is because this compilation includes one of my all-time favorite songs of adrianne's ("black flowers," which i hoped would be on adrianne's solo record, but since it wasn't i'm hoping it'll be on LP3), but the other songs round it out really well. favorites: black flowers, angels least favorites: iris 26 – knock knock dj koze what did dj koze do with this album? that. my absolute favorites here, oddly, are the ones without vocals, including "seeing aliens" (which was my introduction to koze) and "pick up." what's remarkable about this album is, for having so many songs and being as cohesive as it is, it never loses my interest, not for a moment. the songs never blend into each other. favorites: seeing aliens, pick up, illumination least favorites: none 25 – grid of points grouper this is about seven seconds long, and remarkably, it guts me every time. especially "driving," fraught with nostalgic sorrow, and "blouse," which makes me feel like staring out a window. i love the haziness and intelligibility of the vocals: it makes me invent my own stories to accompany the songs, instead of cheating and following the stories she lays out in her lyrics. favorites: driving, blouse, parking lot least favorites: none yet 24 – us empress of this is certainly not me, but i still think it did what it had to do. the exact moment this album clicked for me: i was on a beach, reading a book, and "just the same" came on shuffle. this is an album for the sun, perhaps hinted at by the bright yellow cover. i love the flourishes of spanish across the album, the balance of jaunty cuts and emotive ones, like the airy "timberlands" and the wistful "again." favorites: timberlands, again, when i'm with him, just the same least favorites: all for nothing 23 – so sad so sexy lykke li i was sitting there the other day, looking at her lyrics on this album, which are quite weak and repetitive, thinking to myself, "why do i like this so much?" and i figured it out: it's her voice. the truth is, she could sing about growing potatoes and i would be enraptured and crying. her voice has an emotiveness to it that pulls me in regardless of subject matter. it's bolstered by the captivating production (on trappy tracks like "deep end" and "sex money feelings die," and on more languorous tracks like "so sad so sexy" and "bad woman"). and when it's great, it's great: see abnormally-structured opener "hard rain," with production by rostam and gutting lyricism; or back-half gem "better alone," with a hook that's deceptively simple lyrically but transcendent melodically, and enchanting production from illangelo. favorites: better alone, hard rain, so sad so sexy least favorites: jaguars in the air, last piece 22 – invasion of privacy cardi b well, ladies and gentlemen, cardigan bardigan did what her primary female competitor couldn't do: make a solid rap album front-to-back. though there are some weaker cuts, on the whole, this is a boisterous, fun album. opening with the hard-hitting mission statement "get up 10" ("all i want to do is chill and make bangers," she says) and closing with bad-bitch anthem "i do" co-opped by SZA, cardi leads us on the journey of her whirlwind rise to fame. along the way, she warns a trifling man ("be careful"), embraces and flaunts her sexuality ("bickenhead"), and gets tender ("thru your phone"). and she ****ing spits. though some songs get a little too maudlin ("best life") and lazy ("she bad") for my liking, this is... extremely solid. favorites: be careful, bickenhead, i do least favorites: best life, she bad 21 – a brief inquiry into online relationships the 1975 well, well, well. i did not see this happening. prior to this album's singles, i loved "somebody else" and disliked basically all their other output. one day i was listening to "love it if we made it" and unexpectedly found myself on the edge of tears. i felt what he was singing, and i felt like he needed to sing it. the other singles fell into place: the shuffling, pop-hooked "tootimetootimetootime," the shrill "give yourself a try," the loungey "sincerity is scary." i love the anthemic "i always wanna die (sometimes)," with the most classic-sounding opening guitar chords, the slow-jammy "i couldn't be more in love," the spoken "the man who married a robot / love theme," when normally spoken-word sections give me a headache. favorites: love it if we made it, i always wanna die (sometimes), it's not living if it's not with you, i hate america & i hate americans least favorites: be my mistake, mine, lowkey surrounded by heads and bodies •
ATRL Moderator Unoriginal Posted December 23, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted December 23, 2018 i know + enjoy all of these except the big thief one to some degree serve taste Compro snatching like that :deserves: EMQ gets better with every listen tbh i'm enjoying it more and more TMHYRF was a disappointment for sure but the highs are excellent and the rest isn't bad i feel like knock knock could and should have been like four songs shorter but i enjoyed it for the most part grid of points is so short i've only heard it a few times but i still want to revisit it us is also disappointing but some of it is fun, timberlands and again are definitely the highs so sad so sexy has some great sings but it also has jita, bad woman and utopia hard rain is a snatch tho for sure 6 minutes ago, ultraviolence.xx said: cardigan bardigan did what her primary female competitor couldn't do: make a solid rap album front-to-back abiior had some excellent songs, seems like tootime and gyat are missing from the least favourites section though
ATRL Moderator Tsareena Posted December 23, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted December 23, 2018 rosalia did that no points on tell me how you really feel Us .. all for nothing in least favorites nopoints again so sad so sexy iop omg 1975 did that as well
collin Posted December 24, 2018 Posted December 24, 2018 Courtney, Rosalia and Skee Mask. All good records.
Temporal Posted December 24, 2018 Posted December 24, 2018 Rosalia I haven't been able to finish the 1975 album, every output after their debut has been so meh. LIFWMI is THAT song though I kinda hate Courtney n, that whole genre is my kryptonite Invasion of Privacy really is a sleigh I only know Sex, Money, Feelings, Die from Lykke Li and it bops.
Lazuli Posted December 24, 2018 Posted December 24, 2018 Courtney's album's a cute gurl Us, SSSS, IOP, ABIIOR
Body Electrician Posted December 24, 2018 Posted December 24, 2018 Big Thief, Grouper, Courtney 1975 are overrated trash
World Eater Posted December 25, 2018 Posted December 25, 2018 Big Thief released this year? I can smell Courtney Barnett, but at the same time I can also smell talent aka Compro, EL MAL QUERER, Knock2, Us (.t hide), ssss and ABIIOR
ultraviolence.xx Posted December 28, 2018 Author Posted December 28, 2018 2018 TOP 30 ALBUMS: #20-11 20.5 () – raw silk uncut wood laurel halo the opener is totally my favorite, most-played track, though the whole thing is solid. favorites: raw silk uncut wood least favorites: none 20 – safe in the hands of love yves tumor this album didn't stick with me too much on first listen, but on second, it smacked me out of nowhere. it's one of those albums i pull something new from every time i listen to it, which is my favorite kind. it doesn't reveal itself all at once: it unfurls, slowly.mp3. favorites: let the lioness flow in you freely, economy of freedom, recognizing the enemy least favorites: lifetime, hope in suffering 19 – singularity jon hopkins "emerald rush" introduced me to mr. hopkins. i love how that song builds, starting with the faintly ominous synth line and growing into a banger. my favorite moments aside from that are the more ambient tracks like "feel first life" (which made me ) and "recovery." favorites: emerald rush, feel first life, recovery least favorites: none, really 18 – sweetener ariana grande it's no surprise to anyone who knows me or has heard of me or has seen a post of mine in an ariana grande-related thread that i'm not pharrell's biggest fan. so when i heard he would be working on a large minority of sweetener, i was a bit pressedT. from his first moment of his we heard, i was let down: his glitchy, super mario-style production came through in full force, alongside a wordless, un-catchy hook repeated 18 times throughout the song. when the album came, i tried to approach his material with an open mind, and there were some good moments he brought to the table: the bright, dreamy "REM"; the yamaha keyboard-led "get well soon." but on the whole, i'm not a fan of his obnoxious hooks ("sweetener"), his saxophone samples ripped from $40 casio keyboards ("successful"), or his punctuated vocal background noises (both "sweetener" and "successful"). on the whole, i'm much more inclined toward tommy's and (some of) max's songs. i much prefer ariana in lowkey R&B mode ("better off") or gliding effortlessly through earworm hooks built to showcase her inimitable voice ("everytime"). favorites: better off, everytime, god is a woman, goodnight n go, rem least favorites: sweetener, the light is coming, successful 17 – honey robyn the title track demolishes the rest, but she's still a very cute girl on the whole. favorites: honey, baby forgive me, send to robyn immediately least favorites: elevator2k20 16 – oil of whatever sophie i was an OSH the first time i heard this – unoriginal can attest to that – but whew, did i not warm up to it. it slays now, with the exception of one song. favorites: pretending, is it cold in the water?, not okay least favorites: immaterial 15 – in a poem unlimited u.s. girls another album i didn't like at first but grew on me. meg's voice is an acquired taste, i've decided: on first listen, i loved the instrumentals, the narco swing they possess, but her voice grated on me like cheese. the good news is that changed and i love her now. favorites: velvet 4 sale, m.a.h., poem, pearly gates least favorites: none 14 – high as hope florence + the machine ugh i can't stand that cover. she looks bloodless. but TEOL is top 3 in her discog and that is that on that. favorites: the end of love, june, south london forever least favorites: 100 years 13 – on dark horses emma ruth rundle her horse girl album is here. i love the rockier edge this album has compared to marked for death (though i think i like that one slightly better), and the consistency from beginning to end. even though the songs are long, none is too long. favorites: dead set eyes, light song, darkhorse, you don't have to cry least favorites: none, but if i had to pick one, probably apathy 12 – for my crimes marissa nadler listening to marissa nadler makes me feel like i'm living in black and white, and i mean that in the best way. her gothic folk tunes always draw me in and keep me captivated. favorites: blue vapor, i can't listen to gene clark anymore, are you really going to move to the south?, lover release me, for my crimes least favorites: said goodbye to that car 11 – abysskiss adrianne lenker though i don't find solo adrianne quite as captivating as band-backed adrianne, i still love her storytelling and fingerpicking, both of which are on full display here. favorites: cradle, from, symbol, 10 miles least favorites: blue and red horses •
ultraviolence.xx Posted December 28, 2018 Author Posted December 28, 2018 On 12/23/2018 at 1:24 PM, Unoriginal said: i know + enjoy all of these except the big thief one to some degree serve taste Compro snatching like that :deserves: EMQ gets better with every listen tbh i'm enjoying it more and more TMHYRF was a disappointment for sure but the highs are excellent and the rest isn't bad i feel like knock knock could and should have been like four songs shorter but i enjoyed it for the most part grid of points is so short i've only heard it a few times but i still want to revisit it us is also disappointing but some of it is fun, timberlands and again are definitely the highs so sad so sexy has some great sings but it also has jita, bad woman and utopia hard rain is a snatch tho for sure abiior had some excellent songs, seems like tootime and gyat are missing from the least favourites section though so many teas. utopia is cute for what it is tho and tootime is qute On 12/23/2018 at 1:59 PM, Tsareena said: rosalia did that no points on tell me how you really feel Us .. all for nothing in least favorites nopoints again so sad so sexy iop omg 1975 did that as well whew stan! (except for tmhyrf and all for nothing) On 12/23/2018 at 5:30 PM, Pink Matter said: Rosalia, DJ Koze, Grouper, and Cardi whew On 12/23/2018 at 6:14 PM, artangel said: Rosalia tea she snatched me On 12/23/2018 at 6:29 PM, collin said: Courtney, Rosalia and Skee Mask. All good records. yaaaay On 12/23/2018 at 11:02 PM, Temporal said: Rosalia I haven't been able to finish the 1975 album, every output after their debut has been so meh. LIFWMI is THAT song though I kinda hate Courtney n, that whole genre is my kryptonite Invasion of Privacy really is a sleigh I only know Sex, Money, Feelings, Die from Lykke Li and it bops. LIIWMI a song tbh asljdfh i know what you mean about courtney On 12/24/2018 at 2:31 AM, Lazuli said: Courtney's album's a cute gurl Us, SSSS, IOP, ABIIOR whew courtney serving controversial pick On 12/24/2018 at 11:49 AM, Body Electrician said: Big Thief, Grouper, Courtney 1975 are overrated trash but how do you really feel about the 1975? i feel like you're holding something back On 12/25/2018 at 3:48 PM, World Eater said: Big Thief released this year? I can smell Courtney Barnett, but at the same time I can also smell talent aka Compro, EL MAL QUERER, Knock2, Us (.t hide), ssss and ABIIOR lowkey yes!
ATRL Moderator Unoriginal Posted December 28, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted December 28, 2018 RSUW getting relegated like that ugh. It's not what Laurel deserves Thought SITHOL would be higher tbh. Glad Lioness is in your top picks only listened to Singularity once but I really enjoyed it. Definitely want to revisit pharrell is sweetener's strongest major link but go off your Honey picks are spot on but Missing U and Human Bean should be the least favourites. Beach2k20 is too ahead of its time for some it seems i can attest to your Sophie hate unfortunately. Glad you've seen the light. Love the cover you chose IAPU can't believe Kylie Minogue tried to steal Meg's career with her voice tho June IS top three in Flo's discography you snapped! idk #13 idk #12 not much to say about abysskiss. Agree with your picks but being relatively unfamiliar with Capacity I can't really compare
Pink Matter Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 - Great picks! Sophie, U.S. Girls and Robyn are my faves here but I also Yves and Ari also slayed too! Jon Hopkins was cute. Some of those least favorite picks are choices though
Temporal Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 The artworks Sophie. Robyn, Florence, US Girls Sweetener is nawt good though it has some bops!
collin Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 Laurel Halo is that bitch. Yves, Sophie, Ariana, Jon Hopkins, Robyn, U.S. Girls. I should check out some of those other higher female records.
TayRianaPH Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 Hi sweetie! Great list so far! ? My Top 3 on this set: 3. Sweetener 2. High As Hope 1. Honey!! See you on my Best Of too.
World Eater Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 20.5 jfdjnjdf Not even bothering with reading that Sweetener write up, because I already know what it's gonna be about, judging by that length That, SITHOL, Singularity, Henny, OIL and Poem
ATRL Moderator Tsareena Posted December 28, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted December 28, 2018 not 20.5 Florence did that, u.s. girls whew she snapped, not that oil cover, whew honey uhmn that sweetener cover... didn’t like singulairty much but still a cute album, yves
theblackestday Posted December 28, 2018 Posted December 28, 2018 20.5 Raw Silk Uncut Cסck, SITHOL, Singularity, IAPU, OOEPUI (the cover... Sophie sweetie) classics after classics Screamed at the Sweetener cover, anyway you know I disagree with most of the things said but I guess I get where you're coming from (lack of taste, etc.) and she still won so Kinda shocked you dislike Immaterial? But taste My mind @ the Emma payola we stan a legend
ultraviolence.xx Posted December 28, 2018 Author Posted December 28, 2018 15 hours ago, Unoriginal said: RSUW getting relegated like that ugh. It's not what Laurel deserves Thought SITHOL would be higher tbh. Glad Lioness is in your top picks only listened to Singularity once but I really enjoyed it. Definitely want to revisit pharrell is sweetener's strongest major link but go off your Honey picks are spot on but Missing U and Human Bean should be the least favourites. Beach2k20 is too ahead of its time for some it seems i can attest to your Sophie hate unfortunately. Glad you've seen the light. Love the cover you chose IAPU can't believe Kylie Minogue tried to steal Meg's career with her voice tho June IS top three in Flo's discography you snapped! idk #13 idk #12 not much to say about abysskiss. Agree with your picks but being relatively unfamiliar with Capacity I can't really compare FIX IT! masterpiece too! (tho capacity is the best ) these in-depth critiques, whew, i'm living yeah SITHOL feels too low now that it's typed out. what are the odds it leaps up to top 10 in 2019's 2018-in-review? beach2k20 can ROT! pharrell is the strongest link of nothing except forever making productions rooted in 2003 yes... listen to singularity more than singularly RSUW was #20 and SITHOL #19 before i realized i had too many albums... 15 hours ago, Pink Matter said: - Great picks! Sophie, U.S. Girls and Robyn are my faves here but I also Yves and Ari also slayed too! Jon Hopkins was cute. Some of those least favorite picks are choices though what, you don't like the artwork or sumn? thanks king! which least fave picks are choices? 15 hours ago, Temporal said: The artworks Sophie. Robyn, Florence, US Girls Sweetener is nawt good though it has some bops! don't disrespect SOPHIE's and ariana's artistic integrity those artworks are their creations! "sweetener is nawt good" i feel it 12 hours ago, collin said: Laurel Halo is that bitch. Yves, Sophie, Ariana, Jon Hopkins, Robyn, U.S. Girls. I should check out some of those other higher female records. YES she is!! and yes you should 6 hours ago, TayRianaPH said: Hi sweetie! Great list so far! ? My Top 3 on this set: 3. Sweetener 2. High As Hope 1. Honey!! See you on my Best Of too. thank you!!! i'll be sure to pop over and check yours out! 4 hours ago, World Eater said: 20.5 jfdjnjdf Not even bothering with reading that Sweetener write up, because I already know what it's gonna be about, judging by that length That, SITHOL, Singularity, Henny, OIL and Poem if only i could count to 30 unfortunately i'm a stupid bitch asdkjfh screaming, the way ariana got a fat paragraph and everyone else got a sentence. her impacT 4 hours ago, Tsareena said: not 20.5 Florence did that, u.s. girls whew she snapped, not that oil cover, whew honey uhmn that sweetener cover... didn’t like singulairty much but still a cute album, yves im bad at math ok singularity is bops you should try iT again! 3 hours ago, theblackestday said: 20.5 Raw Silk Uncut Cסck, SITHOL, Singularity, IAPU, OOEPUI (the cover... Sophie sweetie) classics after classics Screamed at the Sweetener cover, anyway you know I disagree with most of the things said but I guess I get where you're coming from (lack of taste, etc.) and she still won so Kinda shocked you dislike Immaterial? But taste My mind @ the Emma payola we stan a legend YOUR MIND! ugh i forgot to shout you out i was going to do that in my writeup. a stupid bitch will do as a stupid bitch will do, i guess! immaterial can cheauxke (lack of taste, etc.) i screamed. you never lie and you didn't lie about this
ATRL Moderator madonnas Posted December 28, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted December 28, 2018 your top/bottom picks on Cardi's album are correct. I like She Bad but it is lazy compared to the rest. For me SITHOL is different every listen. 2nd listen was eh but then 1st was amazingg and other are p good too.
ultraviolence.xx Posted December 28, 2018 Author Posted December 28, 2018 2018 TOP 30 ALBUMS: #10-1 THE TIME IS NOW, BITCHES! the reveal of my top 10 albums of 2018, which i'm sure you all were holding your breath for. anyway... 10 – caution mariah carey if you told me a year ago that mariah carey would be in my top 10 albums of the year, i would've laughed at you. hard. in the face. it's either a testament to her talent at writing and curating material, or 2018's lack of oomph overall (or both, probably). but this album did something remarkable: in the front, it's a well-fitting collection of singles (aside from the wimpy orgasm of the album, "with you"), ranging from chill and sassy ("GTFO") to chill and sensual ("caution") to chill and nostalgic ("the distance"); in the back, it's a smooth, lax collection of R&B cuts. what i love about these two halves is that they meld so well together. this album definitely impressed me and got a lot of spins. favorites: caution, the distance, GTFO, eighth grade least favorites: one mo' gen (though it's grown on me) 9 – chris christine and the queens the french chanteuse finally returned, with an album devoted to the sensuality of her more masculine alter ego. though i still think i prefer chaleur humaine, this album is full of wonderful moments. "comme si," opening the album with a sound reminiscent of a freshly-popped VHS, has a groove so sick, it signals right away that chris is pulling us in a slightly different direction. "damn (what must a woman do)," "feel so good," and "girlfriend" sparkle with that same throbbing lust. there are other songs here, however, that get more tender, which is my favorite of chris's moods: "the walker," "what's-her-face," and "make some sense" exist in this zone. the only song i'm still not sold on is "the stranger," because i'm not a fan of that harpsichord. favorites: what's-her-face, doesn't matter, the walker, make some sense, comme si least favorites: the stranger 8 – everything is love the carters i love the statement this album makes, and the statement the cover makes. i love the easygoing groove of "summer," the hard-hitting production of "apeshit" (and beyoncé's bars!!!), the menacing synth chords and bass rumbles of "friends," the sunny production of "heard about us," the ownership and modulation of "black effect"....there isn't anything i don't love. everything is love. favorites: summer, heard about us, black effect least favorites: none 7 – ex:re ex:re nobody tells stories like elena tonra. as a member of daughter, she's previously captivated in woodsy acoustic tunes ("candles") and heavier shoegaze-leaning tracks (not to disappear). now, she's taken on the persona of a late-night lounge singer who's had a bit too much to drink, who bares just a bit too much of herself. most of the songs remain in this zone, accompanied by casual guitar lines and lazy drums, with a few exceptions. along the way, pleasantly surprising, is an ominous interlude at the club ("romance"), with a throbbing kick, ominous synths, and weeping layers of cello. toward the end, "5am," which details an early-morning (or, more likely, very-late-night) assault outside her building, supplements its slow piano with a glitching electronic beat, one of the more unusual pairings on the album. this album, overall, was a bit of a letdown at first, as i expected something more along the line of daughter's material. nirvana came when i understood the album for what it was: downtrodden, haunted, spiked with moments of energy ("crushing," "i can't keep you," the gritty chorus of "too sad") but dark, tired, and beautiful on the whole. favorites: romance, where the time went, crushing least favorites: ...not really any, but if i had to pick, liar 6 – noonday dream ben howard ben howard had a difficult task ahead of him, following an album like i forget where we were. he nearly met the challenge. the opener, "nica libres at dusk," is nearly seven minutes of mode-mixing paradise. as always, his lyricism is escapism, incorporating nods to classic works of literature. the album overall is hazy and somnolent, though there are bursts of energy in centerpiece "the defeat" and the penultimate "there's your man." "agatha's song," a five-minute ambient piece with incomprehensible vocals, carries a stunning emotional weight. this album was in my top three for most of the year, but toward the end it dipped down a few spots as i realized it didn't have quite as much staying power as i'd hoped. still a marvelous record, from beginning to the slightly soured "murmurations." favorites: nica libres at dusk, agatha's song, murmurations least favorites: someone in the doorway 5 – be the cowboy mitski "be the cowboy you wish to see in the world": the phrase that inspired the album title, a silly twist on gandhi's aphorism. also an indication to me, in hindsight, that this album doesn't carry the same reverence of her past material. "geyser" was (somehow) my introduction to mitski, a two-and-a-half-minute slice of an album that covers a lot of emotional ground. i wasn't particularly blown away by it at first, nor by "nobody." it wasn't until she released the closer, "two slow dancers," that i found love. a beautiful song has the power to recontextualize the songs around it: suddenly, "geyser" made sense in its brilliance; suddenly i understood the pain "nobody" masked behind its seventies-glam sparkle. the rest of the album pleased me too (with one exception): the opening couplet of "why didn't you stop me?" that leads to a fun breakdown; the twisty metaphor at the center of "a pearl"; the couplet at the center of "lonesome love"; the irresistible bounce of "washing machine heart." my favorite song here, and one of my favorite mitski songs probably forever, is "two slow dancers." the metaphor, the slow e-piano chords, the swells of synths, the chorus melody, the climax... i'm nearly crying just thinking about it. favorites: two slow dancers (and now i'm for real crying), pink in the night, washing machine heart, why didn't you stop me? least favorites: a streetcar named desire 4 – dead magic anna von hausswolff this is it: a five-song, 47-minute masterpiece. i'm going to fail, trying to put any words down about it, so let me just say these 3 things: every time i put on "the truth, the glow, the fall," i'm overcome with emotion. it's 12 minutes, but i wouldn't complain if it were 22. i want the opening minutes of "källans återuppståndelse" to play when i die. favorites: yes 3 – double negative low the first time i put this on, i think i about had a stroke. the sharp buzzing that opens "quorum" was something i'd been looking for for a long time: something different, something captivating, something i hadn't quite heard before. it still happens: every time i put that track on, i get swallowed up into the album. the moments of overwhelming noise are balanced beautifully, between quieter, more pensive tracks. the emotional highlight, of course, is "always trying to work it out," turning something as mundane as a grocery-store encounter into a full-blown sensory trainwreck. "everybody says the war is over / it isn't something you forget so easily." my god. favorites: always trying to work it out, quorum, disarray, tempest, always up least favorites: none 2 – golden hour kacey musgraves this has got to be the album i spent the most time with this year: in my house, in my car, in my mom's car, in the 9847234 late-night TV performances she did. i know every word, every melody, every ad-lib, every instrumental flourish. and kacey makes it so easy to hang with her forever: her melodies are so gorgeous, her lyrics simple and sweet, her voice gorgeously spacious. my favorite part of this album, and what sets it apart from her other albums: the atmosphere. if you listen closely, behind her voice, there's a grand canyon of reverb at all times. it gives the whole album this sprawling sense that i've never felt before. the production flourishes are subtle—the psychedelic delay on "butterfly"; the spacious vibraphones on "wonder woman"; the tear-jerking key change to climax in "space cowboy"—but they add up to such marvelous effect. props to kacey for making country-disco banger "high horse" and vocodered slow-jam "oh, what a world" fit together so organically. i haven't even mentioned the barely-a-minute-long "mother," which guts me nearly every time i listen to it in such a short amount of time, and the crushingly beautiful "rainbow" that closes the album. or perhaps my favorite of them all, "love is a wild thing," which feels like the most classic-country song of all in lyricism and melody, and has the most stunning bridge in the history of music, country or otherwise. god, this is stunning. favorites: love is a wild thing, space cowboy, rainbow, mother, high horse, slow burn, golden hour least favorites: happy & sad, velvet elvis 1 – 7 beach house i'm tired and don't feel like writing much about this. it's not my favorite beach house album, not by any means, but they've done something successful here: reinvigorated their sound. i'd say this is their most sonically and stylistically diverse album since... ever. there's all sorts of weird **** here: shoegaze, acoustic guitar, 2016-pop-radio marimba, minecraft-style piano, warbling synths. they're still as cinematic as ever, though. "girl of the year" is that song that comes on at the end of the film, when the adventurous lead character has said their goodbyes, hops into their car, and drives away; we see their vehicle disappear down the street, veer around a corner, and they're gone. (i wish it were the closer.) "pay no mind" is the slow song that comes on at the roller-skating rink, when the lights go dark and the characters link eyes for the first time; "woo" soundtracks the summery drive through the winding neighborhood streets; the midpoint of "dive" is when the two clasp hands and leap into the water together. there are some songs that don't enchant me quite as much—"drunk in LA" feels like the most typical-BH track here, a slightly-too-maudlin-for-teen-dream leftover; the initial magic of "l'inconnue" wore off quickly for me, so now it feels like it runs too long; and that reddit guy nailed his description of "black car" as a 7/10 BH song with a splashy instrumental—but they aren't skips by any means. this album isn't perfect, but it's damn magical. favorites: lemon glow, girl of the year, pay no mind, alien ( ), lose your smile, dark spring, dive, woo least favorites: l'inconnue, drunk in LA thank you all for coming. i'll do something with my top songs, i haven't figured out what yet.
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