Honorable Mentions
It's the 28th of December and it's about time that this list gets put up on my blog. I've felt more and more disinterested by music as of lately and I've been less inclined to seek out new and exciting music. My journey through the many albums of 2015 came to a halt around Summer when I had heard over 200 albums from this year alone which is also why my list almost exclusively features albums and songs from that time of the year.
There are of course a lot of things that I had wished I heard, and an equal amount which probably would have fit onto this list but I've completely zoned out when it comes to new music and for that my list will never feel as complete as I'd consider my previous lists to have been (even if I'd change a fair bit about them if I could). Sadly, making this list felt more in tune with paying respect to traditions and to not break a streak that's been going on for years by now than it actually felt like doing something fun and exciting for ones. I hope that next year, things will be better.
In this section I'm eager to mention a few records that I enjoyed a lot and believe deserve to be mentioned in a different light than the usual list that I end up writing every year. The records on here are ones that could have easily made the top 5 records if not for minor things. Many of these records deserve to be heard, more than several of the ones on the real "Best of the year"-list but they were ones that I personally didn't find a crazy amount of enjoyment from.
In this section I'm eager to mention a few records that I enjoyed a lot and believe deserve to be mentioned in a different light than the usual list that I end up writing every year. The records on here are ones that could have easily made the top 5 records if not for minor things. Many of these records deserve to be heard, more than several of the ones on the real "Best of the year"-list but they were ones that I personally didn't find a crazy amount of enjoyment from.
Father John Misty - I Love You Honeybear
I was initially not a fan of this record and I still believe that it is a quite weak one at many points but I've been coming back to it due to Joshua Tillman's lyricism. It's a record full of love songs, cheesy ones at that backed by baroque pop instrumentals that makes one roll their eyes at how plain and artificial they feel, as if they've followed a mold to create an indie love song. What saves the record, and what makes it fit on this list is Tillman's satirical, modernized love songs. He sings about love and hate as if they were mutual agreements when one agrees to partnership, about the modern values of love, all through a lens crafted by the modern Romeo. It's a record about Netflix and chill, about having a crush on someone from Tinder, about flirting through Snapchat and asking your friends advice on whether or not you should like the cute guy in Algebra's latest profile picture. Tillman does the cheeky satire and irony with finesse on an infitely quotable record which unfortunately could have been better, but is worth a decent amount of praise on here.
Lil Ugly Mane - Oblivion Access
Oblivion Access is the most recent, and most likely also final, release from rapper Lil Ugly Mane who only a few years back had his debut with Mista Thug Isolation, which breathed new life in the Memphis Rap-scene aswell as putting groups like Three 6 Mafia (and associated acts) on the map again. I haven't been able to take in all of Oblivion Access yet, it isn't a huge record but it differentiates massively from Millers' previous output and on its own two feet it stands as one of the most interesting and unique underground rap releases in atleast a few years.
As I see it, we weren't quite ready for a record like Oblivion Access and I don't think most people are appreciating it as much as it deserves at the moment but I don't doubt that it will one day reach a greater popularity, both amongst previous fans but also amongst newcomers to Millers' music. I wasn't ready to put it on my final list even if I believe it could have warranted a spot on there, had it seen release in the first quarter of the year, but it deserves mention just as much as it deserves to be heard by a bigger crowd. I don't doubt that its status will grow with time, as will its impact on Millers' legacy as a rapper.
Damien Dubrovnik - Vegas Fountain
I won't go in depth on Dubrovnik's Vegas Fountain since I know so little about noise. I found it to be extremely enjoyable in my amateur ears aswell as working both as a gateway and a certain sort of guidance for someone like me when it comes to noise and I wouldn't wait a second with recommending this to anyone unacquainted with noise or anyone who believes that the only kind of noise that is out there is the harshest versions of Merzbow and the likes.
Sun Kil Moon - Universal Themes
I had quite high hopes for Universal Themes and Mark Kozelek's record never really matched them. It doesn't reach the heights of Kozelek's strongest suites but it stands out in his discography as a quite odd one. It feels weird to call it folk because it strays very far from what we traditionally classify American folk music is and it tries to tackle various different styles on songs like Cry Me A River Williamsburg Sleeve Tattoo Blue and With A Sort Of Grace I Walked To The Bathroom To Cry.
It isn't an introspective record but it feels far more personal and intimate that even Benji achieved in sounding. Kozelek talks about his own thoughts in an almost masturbatory way, leaving lots of listeners complaining about how "it's just an old man and his rambling thoughts" which really isn't an incorrect description even if it kind of misses the point.
Universal Themes is not something I care to listen to often: it takes patience and the will to dive down into Kozlek's lyricism and the world he paints around you which is something I don't feel like doing too often. At its core however, it is a truly unique folk record that does many things differently from what most people are used to, which is why it ended up on this list.
Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe & Ariel Kalma - We Know Each Other Somehow
Describing this is somewhat hard and I guess that's why it ended up here. We Know Each Other Somehow is a slowmoving ambient record. It's minimal but descriptive, painting a world and creating an immersive atmosphere that is hard not to get lost in. It strays from melodramatic ambient of artists like Stars Of The Lid and instead focuses on worldbuilding over emotion. I don't consider myself an experent on ambient and drone but We Know Each Other Somehow is some of the most unique I've heard in the genre and its a record that is mysteriously attractive. It is however far too slowmoving and long for me to revisit it more often than I have, but it's one that haven't left my mind since I initially heard it and one that I felt deserved atleast some recognition this year.
Honorable Mentions 2015
Anton Öberg Sysojev
Lil Ugly Mane - Oblivion Access
Oblivion Access is the most recent, and most likely also final, release from rapper Lil Ugly Mane who only a few years back had his debut with Mista Thug Isolation, which breathed new life in the Memphis Rap-scene aswell as putting groups like Three 6 Mafia (and associated acts) on the map again. I haven't been able to take in all of Oblivion Access yet, it isn't a huge record but it differentiates massively from Millers' previous output and on its own two feet it stands as one of the most interesting and unique underground rap releases in atleast a few years.
As I see it, we weren't quite ready for a record like Oblivion Access and I don't think most people are appreciating it as much as it deserves at the moment but I don't doubt that it will one day reach a greater popularity, both amongst previous fans but also amongst newcomers to Millers' music. I wasn't ready to put it on my final list even if I believe it could have warranted a spot on there, had it seen release in the first quarter of the year, but it deserves mention just as much as it deserves to be heard by a bigger crowd. I don't doubt that its status will grow with time, as will its impact on Millers' legacy as a rapper.
Damien Dubrovnik - Vegas Fountain
I won't go in depth on Dubrovnik's Vegas Fountain since I know so little about noise. I found it to be extremely enjoyable in my amateur ears aswell as working both as a gateway and a certain sort of guidance for someone like me when it comes to noise and I wouldn't wait a second with recommending this to anyone unacquainted with noise or anyone who believes that the only kind of noise that is out there is the harshest versions of Merzbow and the likes.
Sun Kil Moon - Universal Themes
I had quite high hopes for Universal Themes and Mark Kozelek's record never really matched them. It doesn't reach the heights of Kozelek's strongest suites but it stands out in his discography as a quite odd one. It feels weird to call it folk because it strays very far from what we traditionally classify American folk music is and it tries to tackle various different styles on songs like Cry Me A River Williamsburg Sleeve Tattoo Blue and With A Sort Of Grace I Walked To The Bathroom To Cry.
It isn't an introspective record but it feels far more personal and intimate that even Benji achieved in sounding. Kozelek talks about his own thoughts in an almost masturbatory way, leaving lots of listeners complaining about how "it's just an old man and his rambling thoughts" which really isn't an incorrect description even if it kind of misses the point.
Universal Themes is not something I care to listen to often: it takes patience and the will to dive down into Kozlek's lyricism and the world he paints around you which is something I don't feel like doing too often. At its core however, it is a truly unique folk record that does many things differently from what most people are used to, which is why it ended up on this list.
Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe & Ariel Kalma - We Know Each Other Somehow
Describing this is somewhat hard and I guess that's why it ended up here. We Know Each Other Somehow is a slowmoving ambient record. It's minimal but descriptive, painting a world and creating an immersive atmosphere that is hard not to get lost in. It strays from melodramatic ambient of artists like Stars Of The Lid and instead focuses on worldbuilding over emotion. I don't consider myself an experent on ambient and drone but We Know Each Other Somehow is some of the most unique I've heard in the genre and its a record that is mysteriously attractive. It is however far too slowmoving and long for me to revisit it more often than I have, but it's one that haven't left my mind since I initially heard it and one that I felt deserved atleast some recognition this year.
Honorable Mentions 2015
Anton Öberg Sysojev
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