Andrew Weatherall – Convenanza : (mostly) interesting, diverse ‘pop’
Bloc Party – Hymns : a kinder, gentler BP; #andboringer
Coloured Clocks – Particle : psych-pop; everything sounds the same
David Bowie – Blackstar : really great! depth, emotion, melody, chaos,…
Eleanor Friedberger – New View : moving from quirky rhythms to more trad songs, not always for the best; #solid
Fat White Family – Songs For Our Mothers : ‘nihilist-indie’, crazily over-the-top alt-punk; #someverygoodsomejustdisturbing
Feral Conservatives – Here’s to Almost : modern guitar+mandolin folk+rock; #shouty #tiredears
Field Music – Commontime : occasionally mildly interesting
God God Dammit Dammit – Soul : funk/soul/prog/metal mix; #sometimesworks
Half Japanese – Perfect : invitingly strange art-rock, lots of fun
Hinds – Leave Me Alone : super-contagious jangle-fuzz-garage-pop
I Don’t Cares, the – Wild Stab : super-duper-fun! jaunty indie rockers; #Westerburg!
Jezabels, the – Synthia : middling s/s-indie-rock/pop
Madcaps, the – Hot Sauce : fizzy little album of French garage/pop-rock
Missing Season, the – Getting Back : some fun tunes, but more ‘future promise’ than ‘listen again’
Nap Eyes – Thought Rock Fish Scale : quiet, brittle, indie slow-jamz; #nearlyspokenword
Night Beats – Who Sold My Generation : well executed, compelling-as-heck, lo-fi psych-r&b; #motorik
Rachel Platten – Wildfire : big, glossy, (hollow), pop
Savages – Adore Life : dark, urgent, and emotional modern-rock
School Of Seven Bells – SVIIB : Modern arena-pop #troubledcircumstances
Sea Pinks – Soft Days : excellently done pop/rock!
Sia – This Is Acting : over-the-top modern radio po(o)p
Spacin’ – Total Freedom : lo-fi version of choogling classic rock, Philly-style
Still Flyin’ – Perfect Future : fun, nonsense-filled party rock
Tortoise – The Catastrophist : clasic-rock post-rock; #vocals #decent
Tricky – Skilled Mechanics : very fun, sparse, and diverse; #fresh
Ty Segall – Emotional Mugger : another awesome Ty outing; #tightlycontrolledchaos
Worn-Tin – Thanatophobia : super-interesting old-Beck-ish folk/rock/pop/indie/lo-fi hodgepodge
µ-Ziq – Aberystwyth Marine : jittery 90’s electro
Adult Books – Running from the Blows : engaging post-punk-bubblegum with delightful melodies; #veryneworder
Animal Teeth – Happy to See You : straightforward indie-pop/rock; #somenicepavementaping
Belua – As Good A Time As Any : up-and-coming indie-rock from Greece; #girlsrock #agrower #promising
Bent Shapes – Wolves of Want : solidly peppy college rock; #boston
Betty Black – Valley Low : fun (and promising) indie/electro-pop
Bombay – Show Your Teeth : sometimes-brillian melodic psych-rock; #somerealhitshere
Cave Singers, the – Banshee : pretty tepid indie-folk; #wheredthebootstompingo
Cloud Cult – The Seeker : very good orchestral indie
Cloudland Canyon – An Arabesque : modern and odd, motorik-disco?
Crookes, the – Lucky Ones : crisp modern/dance pop/rock; #notquitemything
Cult, the – Hidden City : decent rockers
Damien Jurado – Visions of Us On the Land : feels deep and complex, yet sounds loose and free; #verynice!
Deep Sea Diver – Secrets : very solid s/s-indie-pop; #weirdinagoodway
Doug Tuttle – It Calls On Me : nice psych-folk/pop, #melodiesgalore
Dr. Dog – The Psychedelic Swamp : fairly dull toe-dipping into new sounds; #halfbaked
Dressy Bessy – Kingsized : great power-pop wrapped in bubblegum and smacked with a punk rock stick; #dontcallitacomeback
Electric Eye – Different Sun : excellent psych-rock!!!; #norway
Emily Wells – Promise : #mature
Flowers – Everybody’s Dying to Meet You : sugary c86/80s indie pop; #cranberries #tiredears
Frights, the – You Are Going to Hate This : fun surf-punk-rockabilly, same-y; #fidlarjr
High Llamas, the – Here Come The Rattling Trees : nice pop; #soundtrack
Iggy Pop – Post Pop Depression : Pop & Homme for the win; vibrant, crisp, and pointed!
Jason Collett – Song and Dance Man : easy, breezy s/s soft rock; #enjoyable
Junior Boys – Big Black Coat : techno-y electronica; #notmything
Kanye West – The Life of Pablo : wtf is this?
Kula Shaker – K2.0 : mildly interesting retro rockers
Lissie – My Wild West : too-dull-to-even-count-as-boring MOR pop-folk
M. Ward – More Rain : a mildly-depressing Sunday-drive AM-radio groove
Matmos – Ultimate Care II : a washing machine, really?; #notbadatall
Me and My Drummer – Love Is A Fridge : dream pop; #didnotstick
Nevermen – Nevermen : crazy vocal-driven art-rock #patton #adebimpe #doseone
Night Slaves – Night Slaves : super-interesting, complex and dark industrial-pop(?)
Old Man Canyon – Delirium : good synth-driven indie-pop/rock; #quitenice #80sflava
Pinkshinyultrablast – Grandfeathered : super-dense noise-gaze-pop; #notterriblyinteresting
Plates of Cake – Becoming Double : farly mmeh garage-rock/power-pop
POP ETC – Souvenir : workman-like indie-pop; #afewgems
Ra Ra Riot – Need Your Light : a band adrift in the indie-pop wasteland…
Sarah Neufeld – The Ridge : complex oddities of sound/rhythm/melody
Sivert Hoyem – Lioness : nice s/s; #adultrock
Skiffle Players, the – Skifflin’ : professionally boring
Sunflower Bean – Human Ceremony : fun, diverse, and pro-sounding indie/psych/pop
Suuns – Hold/Still : tightly paranoid and dark indie/electro/psych
SWMRS – Drive North : snappy, angsty power-pop/punk/indie
Thee Attacks – Strikes Back : excellent classic-rock sounds from Denmark
Tim Hecker – Love Streams : weird (but compelling) avant electro-classical
Triangulo de Amor Bizarro – Salve discordia : ripping good Spanish rockers
Turin Brakes – Lost Property : very solid indie-folk-americana; #notbeige
TW Walsh – Fruitless Research : delightfully weird space/synth/rock/pop
Ulrika Spacek – The Album Paranoia : space psych, #paranoidisright
Waco Brothers – Going Down in History : a very fun alt-country party!
Wet – Don’t You : lame break-up pop
Wild Nothing – Life of Pause : AM radio soft rock
Wolfmother – Victorious : heavy rock/metal riffs from the 70s
Working for a Nuclear Free City – What Do People Do All Day : diverse collage of pop
Wray – Hypatia : solid studio rockers
Yuck – Stranger Things : a band still sorting out what it wants to be; #solidaping
1975, the – I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It : it’s not ALL horrid; #butmostlyitis
Dan Sartain – Century Plaza : synth-driven electro-pop that feels like rock
DMA’s – Hills End : very enjoyable BritPop from AUS; #oasis
Dunwells, the – Light Up The Sky : mildly interesting indie-pop; #beige
Feels – Feels : nondescript indie-garage-punk; #earlydays
Golden Daze – Golden Daze : nicely lazy-hazy surf-gaze; #soveryLA
Heron Oblivion – Heron Oblivion : incredible loud-soft heavy-rock psych
Holy Esque – At Hope’s Ravine : (at-times-very) interesting dark guitar+synth rockers; #glasgow
Jack Oblivian & The Sheiks – The Lone Ranger Of Love : loose, fun and (sometimes) sloppy Memphis-rock
James Supercave – Better Strange : interesting and snappy indie-pop; #notnormal
La Sera – Music for Listening to Music To : indie-pop married to bent-string alt-country guitar; #decent
Little Star – Being Close : young band finding their own way; #derivative #promise
Magic Wands – Jupiter : great *-gaze, side 2 is genius; #toughMetric #wellpaced
Matthew Logan Vasquez – Solicitor Returns : solid s/s-heavy rockers; #roughisbest
Mavis Staples – Livin’ On A High Note : fun and solid R&B, #notquitereinvention
MENSCH – Tarifa : hypnotic guitar/synth-pop/rock
Poliça – United Crushers : fairly shit electro-pop
Santigold – 99 Cents : feels oddly under-produced; some fun electro-jams here
Seth Bogart – Seth Bogart : wonderfully, delightfully weird-o pop rock; #funasheck
Snails, the – Songs From The Shoebox : fun “teletubbies reggae”; #sideproject
Steve Mason – Meet The Humans : really, really great fun. Jaunty pop songs, with depth and strong Quality
Thao & The Get Down Stay Down – A Man Alive : there is something about this band that makes me hate them immensely
Tracy Bryant – Subterranean : lively, jangly psychedelia; #burger
Violent Femmes – We Can Do Anything : pack this up and head for the cataloge; #decent
Wendy James – The Price Of The Ticket : fun “NYC pop-punk”
Wintersleep – The Great Detachment : mostly-middling indie-rock
Wussy – Forever Sounds : Dark, noisy, smart, fascinating
Andrew Bird – Are You Serious : fascinating, delightfully constructed and executed chamber pop/rock
Black Market Karma – Plastic Hippie : good-not-great psychedelic rock
Black Mountain – IV : broad, riffy, guitar+synth+prog+psych rock
Bleached – Welcome The Worms : zippy pop-punk tunez; #femvox #thincontent
Bob Mould – Patch the Sky : melody of rage, Sugar 2.0; #tourdeforce
Cat Empire, the – Rising With The Sun : groovy funk-soul-raggae-rock-jazz; #lcd #sojammy
Causa Sui – Return To Sky : very nice instrumental (heavy) psych
Charles Bradley – Changes : well-done retro R&B; #soundslikejamesbrowncovers
Coffee Or Not – Everything Is Falling Down : nicely paced and atmospheric indie-pop/rock, nice psych flourishes
Coral, the – Distance Inbetween : very good indie outing, diverse and inspired; #oldpeoplelovethis
Cullen Omori – New Misery : tolerable, hazy indie-pop/rock; #nomeat
Dunes – Bitter Charm : “hazy, guitar-driven, easy pop that plays like the soundtrack to a low-budget comedy about growing up in the suburbs”
Eerie Wanda – Hum : very nice, well produced indie-psych-pop; #dutch
Enemy Planes – Beta Lowdown : very MOTR atmosperic/’triptonic’ indie; #dullbeige
Explosions In The Sky – The Wilderness : big ‘ol post-rock boringness
Glitterbust – Glitterbust : weird and noisy guitar, ‘natch
Goon Sax, the – Up To Anything : quirky speak-sing indie-pop/rock
Greg Laswell – Everyone Thinks I Dodged A Bullet : sad-sack, moody folk; #autotuneisdeath #sappy
Heavy, the – Hurt And The Merciless : rockin’ garage-soul
Holy Wave – Freaks of Nurture : gently chiming psych; #lazyhazy
HÆLOS – Full Circle : darn interesting post-club/trip-hop/electronica
Joy Formidable, the – Hitch : solid (pedestrian?) loud-soft rock; #themagicislive
Kakkmaddafakka – KMF : delightful Scandanavian adult pop/rock
Kevin Morby – Singing Saw : very, very cool and expansive psych; #rocksolid
KVB, the – Of Desire : very interesting electro-psych; #isthis’darkwave’
Last Shadow Puppets, the – Everything You’ve Come To Expect : shallow-end arena/festival “rock”; #lame
Little Green Cars – Ephemera : gently affecting adult-pop/rock; #boringasshit
Lucius – Good Grief : great voices, good production, lame songs
Minotaurs – Weird Waves : (mostly) interesting and groovy afro-beat indie
Moderat – III : jittery electro-industrial racket
Mogwai – Atomic : deep, dark, and synthy; #ost
Muncie Girls – From Caplan To Belsize : A for effort, B for execution, C for songs
Nada Surf – You Know Who You Are : nice-enough Nada-pop
Night Moves – Pennied Days : easy-going indie-pop/rock (mild 70s radio tinge)
Parquet Courts – Human Performance : whip-smart DIY NYC angular rock; #awesome #Pavementsuccessors
Pete Yorn – ArrangingTime : simple, straightforward adult-pop/rock
Primal Scream – Chaosmosis : decent dance-rock, mostly interesting; #farfromgreat
Ray LaMontagne – Ouroboros : fever-dream psych-folk concept album with a couple real burners
Rob Crow’s Gloomy Place – You’re Doomed. Be Nice : solidly interesting prog-pop, sounds just like you’d imagine; #notgloomy
Soul Asylum – Change of Fortune : trying hard – but making crap songs
Struts, the – Everybody Wants : junk retro “fake glam”
They Might Be Giants – Phone Power : still cranking after 34 years; #fun #goodnotgreat
White Denim – Stiff : fun and energetic retro-party tunes; #thinbytheend
Bardo Pond – Acid Guru Pond (RSD) : drone/psych
Bear Hands – You’ll Pay For This : moderately interesting, newish take on modern rock; #postpunk #synthguitar #falsetto
Brian Eno – The Ship
Britta Phillips – Luck or Magic : very nice “drone folk/indie” very much in the G5000/Luna vein
Cellars – Phases : decent 80s synth-pop (if you’re into that…)
Chills, the – Silver Bullets : compelling, driving, and soothing at once; #dontcallitacomeback
Chris Cohen – As If Apart : hushed throwback to 70s AM radio, gently psychedelic
Coathangers, the – Nosebleed Weekend : super-fun riot-grrrl punk; #lessartmorerock
Coves – Peel : very well done indie rock, some 80s/90s/00s/10s; #femvox #original #promise
Dandy Warhols, the – Distortland : solid DW release, a couple nice gems; #nothingtoonew
Deftones – Gore : metal
Dylan Mondegreen – Every Little Step : Norwegian s/s-folk; #zzzzzzzz
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – PersonA : over-serious and pompous shite; #ppfffffffff
exmagician – Scan the Blue : very fun and expansive indie-psych/rock/(folk)
Frightened Rabbit – Painting of a Panic Attack : so somber and serious; #whynothavesomefun
Fuel Fandango – Aurora : electro-funk-flamenco ?
Gabriella Cohen – Full Closure and No Details : ho-hum garage-pop
Guided by Voices – Please Be Honest : good Pollard
Hallelujah The Hills – A Band Is Something To Figure Out : super compelling indie rock (albeit very derivative); #soundslikenewhistory #90sindie
Har Mar Superstar – Best Summer Ever : lots of melancholy ballads; #needsmoreparty
Jayhawks, the – Paging Mr. Proust : I’m not dead enough to find this interesting
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Nonagon Infinity : holy shit is this awesome
Lost Tapes – Let’s Get Lost : thoroughly enjoyable synthy dream-pop
Lumineers, the – Cleopatra : dreadfully SERIOUS
M83 – Junk : very well executed retro sounds, cheesy as hell
Misty Miller – The Whole Family Is Worried : grungy punk-pop w/ good songs; #riotchick #ageoldformula
Museyroom – Pearly Whites : intriguingly experimental headphone psych-pop, “future nostalgia”; #needsedits
Nothing – Tired of Tomorrow : confusing hodge-podge-gaze; #theresmaybesomethingthere
Pantha du Prince – The Triad : very compelling ‘glitchtronica’
PJ Harvey – The Hope Six Demolition Project : so good; #sodifferent #heavyhandedattimes
Plastic Animals – Pictures From the Blackout : thoroughly enjoyable atmospheric post-rock
Rogue Wave – Delusions of Grand Fur : enjoyable, flowing indie-pop/rock
Sébastien Tellier – Marie et les naufragés : quite lovely; #OST
Greys – Outer Heaven : explosively raucous post-rock/punk
Methyl Ethel – Oh Inhuman Spectacle : smoky dream-pop
New Madrid – magnetkingmagnetqueen : excellently diverse psych/drone/classic/roots-rock ; #grabsme
Pity Sex – White Hot Moon : decent ‘gaze-pop’; #femvox
Prism Tats – Prism Tats : exciting synth-garage-punk; #dense #howling
September Girls – Age of Indignation : dark and reverb-heavy dream-pop/gaze
Steve Gunn – Eyes on the Lines : breezy high-end-noodling
Tacocat – Lost Time : fun, loose, and super-catchy indie rockers; #builtforthestage #nottooserious #shortandsweet
Tales Of Murder And Dust – The Flow In Between : dark, post-rock psych
Telamor – Outside the Lines : intriguing, angular, modern rock
Teleman – Brilliant Sanity : angular indie-pop; #sobritish
Thermals, the – We Disappear : ‘acidic and adrenalized’ punk/pop/rock; #PNW #soanthemic
Unloved – Guilty Of Love : nuanced electro-noir musicscapes
Violent Soho – Waco : mmeh emo-punk
Wax Witches – Memory Painting : weirdo lo-fi-gaze surf rock with some awesome hooks
We Are Scientists – Helter Seltzer : shit/vanilla indie dance rock
Weezer – Weezer (White Album) : I want to like it, but the fact is it’s sorta shit
Whitney – Light Upon The Lake : nice-enough pastoral indie-pop; #cantgetintovox
Wild Feathers, the – Lonely Is A Lifetime : interesting rock band reduced to radio-ready shit-show; #soboring
Wire – Nocturnal Koreans : great post-punk; 40 years on, and still completely relevant
Woods – City Sun Eater In the River of Light : another solid psych-folk/rock outing, adding new (sampled?) beats
Xiu Xiu – Plays the Music of Twin Peaks (RSD) : SUPER weird. But really good. #notatwinpeakswatcher
Zolas, the – Swooner : (fairly) interesting indie-pop
Adam Green – Aladdin : odd concept OST; some fun pop tunes
Attic Abasement – Dream News : good ‘rough’ lo-fi indie rock; #welldone
Band Of Skulls – By Default : fat arena-blues-rock; #mmmeh
Beth Orton – Kidsticks : okay
Big Thief – Masterpiece : sweet introspective folk; #whylistentothis
Bird Of Youth – Get Off : nice throwback indie-rock; #femvox #pretenders
Black Pistol Fire – Don’t Wake The Riot : very solid blues-infected rockers; #twopiece #derivative
Bob Dylan – Fallen Angels : Sinatra standards, Dylan-style
Boxer Rebellion, the – Ocean By Ocean : “big tent” indie pop/rock, ala Coldplay; #mustbeboringonpurpose #fellasleep
Broncho – Double Vanity : damn good garage rockers
California Snow Story – Some Other Places : nice, soothing guitar-pop
Car Seat Headrest – Teens of Denial : adventurous and bold indie rockers; seriously needs editing
Catfish And The Bottlemen – The Ride : ho-hum indie rock;
Damien Jurado And Daniel Hart – Tumbledown OST : okay
David Bazan – Blanco : subtle and melancholic indie-pop; #boring
Death Grips – Bottomless Pit : #whateverthefuckisthis
Die Antwoord – Suck on This : #doesnotcompute
Eagulls – Ullages : boring as shit; #shitvox
Fitz & the Tantrums – Fitz & the Tantrums : such crap
Garbage – Strange Little Birds : solidly interesting angst-ridden indie rockers; #relevant
Gemma Ray – The Exodus Suite : heavy, haunting, brooding. With lots of reverb
Holy Fuck – Congrats : over-the-top, brash electro-punk/pop
Honey Island Swamp Band – Demolition Day : very diverse LA-based romp
Hotelier, the – Goodness : such serious
Islands – Should I Remain Here At Sea : nice, breezy guitar indie-pop/rock
Islands – Taste : quite excellent electro-based indie-pop
Jealous Of The Birds – Parma Violets : diverse indie-folk; #lovely
Kills, the – Ash & Ice : sexy sounds (so so songs)
Kongos – Egomaniac : very, very diverse rock-sounds, well executed; #promise
Magic Potion – Pink Gum : thoroughly enjoyable indie-rock debut: #SWE
Malcolm Middleton – Summer Of ’13 : warmly skittering indie-pop-s/s; #justhterightyouchofwamth
Mark Kozelek – Mark Kozelek Sings Favorites : MK cover album, nuffsaid
Minor Victories – Minor Victories : mildly interesting supergroup-gaze
Modern Baseball – Holy Ghost : shouty, anthemic arena-emo/indie
Monkees, the – Good Times! : super fun!
Moon Hooch – Red Sky : fun sax-rock!
Moonface And Siinai – My Best Human Face : weird electro-indie post-rock
Mrs Magician – Bermuda : well-executed and easy to listen to amalgam of rock styles; surf/power-pop/indie/psych/classic rock
On Dead Waves – On Dead Waves : sinister-sounding goth-dream-pop
Oscar – Cut And Paste : very British melodic Brit-pop; #sobrit
Peter Bjorn and John – Breakin’ Point : Swedish summer pop
Posies, the – Solid States : solid (obviously) home recorded power-pop
Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool : Radiohead
Smoking Trees, the – The Archer And The Bull : very good, very trippy, 60s-esque psych; #shortbutsweet
Sonny & The Sunsets – Moods Baby Moods : fun tour of diverse styles over funky/quirky/new wave-y songs
Tegan & Sara – Love You To Death : glossy pop songs with lyrical depth; #stillunlistenable
Those Pretty Wrongs – Those Pretty Wrongs : pleasant little indie-pop tunes
American Authors – What We Live For : super shiny arena-pop/rock; #terrible
Avett Brothers, the – True Sadness : successfully hitting the middle of the ho-hum road.
Band of Horses – Why Are You OK : occasional forays into interesting depths amongst otherwise tepid shallow-water
Blood Orange – Freetown Sound : super creative and relevant soul-indie-rnb-avant
DJ Shadow – The Mountain Will Fall : interesting
Don’t – Fever Dreams : 20 min. blast of jittery punk; #greatvoice #femvox
Dope Lemon – Honey Bones : excellent, laid-back, stoned-psych/rock/folk
Drowners – On Desire : mmmeh indie
Eli ”Paperboy” Reed – My Way Home : quite good retro-soul/garage-gospel
Explorers Club, the – Together : Beach Boys harmonies;
Felice Brothers, the – Life In The Dark : ramshackle folk/roots with depth, heart, and fun; #campfire
Fort Frances – Alio : simple indie rock
Ghost Wave – Radio Norfolk : lovely psychedelic indie-pop/rock
Globelamp – The Orange Glow : earnest art-rock; #mmmeh
Hot Hot Heat – Hot Hot Heat : fairly mundane indie-rock; #cringeydancenumbers
Johnny Foreigner – Mono No Aware : angst-y emo/indie-rock; #notgood
Julie Ruin, the – Hit Reset : whip-smart riot-grrrl punk
Lees Of Memory, the – Unnecessary Evil : fun powerpop, 90s-style
Mystery Lights, the – The Mystery Lights : excellent throwback garage rock; #nuggets
Oh Pep! – Stadium Cake : classic pop wrapped in jangly indie spirit
Player Piano – Radio Love : (mostly) fun, rambunctious (classic) rockers; #bowie #looserisbetter
Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Getaway : not terrible for a bunch of old men trying to be relevnat; #butwhy
Rival Sons – Hollow Bones : classic blues rock
Stay – The Mean Solar Times : fun and jangly psych/power-pop; #Barca
Swans – The Glowing Man : two hours of post-rock/ambient mindmelters
Why We Run – Holograms : nicely crafted melancholic indie-pop’ #mostlyboring
Will Butler – Friday Night : very loose live rekkid; #chaotic
Wye Oak – Tween : gently atmospheric pop
Xylaroo – Sweetooth : sweetly melodic indie pop; #femvox #sisters #sundaymorningdrive
Yung – A Youthful Dream : ramshackle garage rock
GØGGS – LP : rough, aggressive, and noisy AF; #garagerules
Black Market Karma – Animal Jive : really interesting psych; #agrower #feweralbumsmightbebetter
Bosco Rogers – Post Exotic : fuzzy psych-inspired indie; #nicedebut
Charlie Hunter – Everybody Has A Plan Until They Get Punched In The Mouth : swinging Stax/R&B-flavored jazz
Cody Dickinson – Leeway for the Freeway : interesting with diverse blues-inspired styles; dry and single-threaded
Descendents – Hypercaffium Spazzinate : mature, bratty, pop-punk; #wtfdidijustsay
Dinosaur Jr – Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not : classic DinoJr – ripping git w/killer melodies
Gap Dream – This Is Gap Dream : loose psych bedroom-indie; some great spots
Nice As Fuck – Nice As F##k : interesting “new wave” indie; #jennielewis
Relient K – Air For Free : it’s-not-completely-horrible indie-pop
Ryley Walker – Golden Sings That Have Been Sung : noodling, rambling jazz-folk; #didntsayitwasntgood
Sleep Weather – Lake Joy : emo-ish; not good
Steven Tyler – We’re All Somebody From Somewhere : okay… next
Sugar Candy Mountain – 666 : lovely and sensuous indie-pop; #sundaydrive
Trashcan Sinatras – Wild Pendulum : great sounding but totally uninspiring adult jangle-pop
Travis – Everything At Once : professionally pleasant adult alt-rock
Twin Peaks – Down in Heaven : groovy, swinging indie-blues/rock/pop; #lesspunkmoreStones
United Fruit – Eternal Return : noisy, hook-filled anthemic-indie; #emoundertones
White Lung – Paradise : very excellent punk rock; #soundscleananddirty #femvox
Yak – Alas Salvation : sludge-y punk rowdiness; #excellentdebut
Ages And Ages – Something To Ruin : solidly executed indie-pop; #anthemic
Album Leaf, the – Between Waves : nicely done contemplative electro-indie-(ambient)
Angie Stone – Covered In Soul : bar covers
Cheena – Spend the Night With : straight-ahead NY punk; coked-up blues snottyness
Hockey Dad – Boronia : fun and loose, if throwaway, indie-surf-jangle-rock
Jeff The Brotherhood – Zone : good old-fashioned sludge-y ‘influences rock’
Lydia Loveless – Real : gorgeous s/s #powerpopnotcountry-soshesays
Moose Blood – Blush : over-cooked emo
Morgan Delt – Phase Zero : delightfully freaky bedroom-psych
Of Montreal – Innocence Reaches : dipping into ‘current electronica’ (EDM?), keeping a few psychedelic flourishes; #almostgood
Pfarmers – Our Puram : mildly interesting prog-jazz-rock-weird; menomena+the national
Preoccupations – Preoccupations : dark and gloomy post-rock
Russian Circles – Guidance : it’s a prog-jam, baby!
Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox – Swing The Vote! : fun gimmick, fun sound
Shotgun Sawyer – Thunderchief : raucous, fuzzed-out modern blues; #twopiece
Teenage Fanclub – Here : clever little blasts of jangly indie-pop
Thee Oh Sees – A Weird Exits : wacky & propulsive garage rockers; #alwaysdifferentalwaysthesame
Tobacco – Sweatbox Dynasty : insane psychedelic-electro-pop/classic-rock; #madness #alieninvasion
Viola Beach – Viola Beach : jaunty posthumous collection
White Owl – In League With The Devil : mildly promising indie-psych; #painfullylofi
Ball Park Music – Every Night The Same Dream : indie-pop, just enough ‘interesting’ to be interesting
Britney Spears – Glory : awesomely don pop!; #noembarassmenttolikethis
Cass McCombs – Mangy Love : really, really excellently executed s/s
Cosmonauts – A-OK! : fun blast of 90s influences; jangle, neo-psych, surf, modern rock, ….
David Brent – Life On The Road OST : expected comedy, got whatever this is; #maybeishouldseethemovie
De La Soul – and the Anonymous Nobody : fun lyrics, groovy beats, live instruments and interesting guests for the win; #interludeskillrelistens
Dead Gaze – Easy Travels : infectuous psych-pop w/ just enough fuzz
Frank Ocean – Blonde
Frank Ocean – Endless
Gringo Star – The Sides and In Between : fun short blasts of jangly garage/classic-rock
Magic Trick – Other Mans Blues : delightful psych-pop/folk; #sundaymorning #timcohen
Medicine Boy – Kinda Like Electricity : quite interesting ‘noise pop’; pop, psych, folk, atmospheric…
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez – Arañas en La Sombra : weird noodling; #somegems
Orange Grapefruit, the – Now and Then : (very) occasionally brilliant Britpop+(sitar-)psych
Radio Dept., the – Running Out of Love : groovy, swinging indie-dream-pop; #SWE
Rifles, the – Big Life : fun, summery guitar-pop; #onenotebutitsagoodone
Shearwater – Shearwater Plays Lodger : songs so good even these derps couldn’t ruin (all of) them
Veils, the – Total Depravity : dark, gothy pop with excellent sonic textures #elp
Work Drugs – Method Acting : glossy, shiny pop; #zzzzzzzzzzzzz
Against Me! – Shape Shift With Me : solid punk rock, with some interesting depth
Allah-Las – Calico Review : lilting, rambling, psychedelic folk-rock; #quitegood
Beyond the Wizards Sleeve – The Soft Bounce : “thrillingly unpredictable aural adventure”, psych/pop/ambient/EDM/… ; #toodisco4me
Cold Pumas – The Hanging Valley : one-of-many post-punk; #futurepromise
Cymbals Eat Guitars – Pretty Years : screechy modern-emo
Dawes – We’re All Gonna Die : (potentially) great songs given the middle-aged AOR treatment; #searchingforanaudience
Divine Comedy, the – Foreverland : quirky, poignant and fun chamber pop
Drugdealer – The End Of Comedy : Laurel Canyon psych-folk/rock; E6lite
Ex-Cult – Negative Growth : brutally heavy, fuzzy, and sludgy post-everything punk
Grouplove – Big Mess : trying-to-be-something indie-pop; #stupidboringlame
Head And The Heart, the – Signs Of Light : delightfully open mildly-folkie modern pop
James Vincent McMorrow – We Move : compelling falsetto-vox folk+hip-hop/r&b; #notmything
Jamie T – Trick : super-diverse punk/rap/pop; #soLondon
Keaton Henson – Kindly Now : indescribably boring and pretentious
KT Tunstall – KIN : B O R I N G
La Femme – Mystere : innovative and expansive French darkwave-indie-krautrock-pop; #femvox
Lakuta – Brothers and Sisters : party-friendly Afrobeat/dance/soul/pop
Lvl Up – Return to Love : hooky melange of “indie” styles; #promising
M.I.A. – AIM : rambunctious production and lo-fi/found-sound feel; still a bore
Mild High Club – Skiptracing : gently rambling pastoral psych; some great high points
Monochrome Set, the – Cosmonaut : quite fun jangly guitar-pop/rock; #modernANDretro
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds – Skeleton Tree : the deep dark genius strikes again
Nosound – Scintilla : evocative and melancholic prog/indie/ambient/…
Papa – Kick At The Dust : almost interesting lad-rock; #needtoknockoffthearenacrap
Pill – Convenience : chaotic and aggressive NY ‘no-wave’ punk; #femvox
River Whyless – We All The Light : tame and non-descript folk; #notbadnotgood
Scott & Charlene’s Wedding – Mid Thirties Single Scene : simple slacker rockers ; #decent
St. Paul & The Broken Bones – Sea of Noise : mostly solid radio white soul/R&B; #quitetame #liveistherealthing
Toy – Clear Shot : fun, propulsive psych-rock
True Widow – Avvolgere : dark, sludgy shoegaze via doom metal
Ultimate Painting – Dusk : languid simplicity in stretched-out guitar-rock/pop tunes
Varvara – Death Defying Tricks : fun indie rock from Finland; #collegerockthrowback
Warpaint – Heads Up : pretty great vocals, but damn this is boring; #noexcitement
Wedding Present, the – Going, Going : occasionally fabulously brilliant
Whiskey Myers – Mud : compelling southern/country-rock; #bythenumbers
Wilco – Schmilco : straightforward, honest folk-rock
Wovenhand – Star Treatment : difficult fire-and-brimstone rock/folk; #dontknowifilikeit
Bad Plus, the – It’s Hard : not for me
Bad Suns – Disappear Here : arena-sized radio pop/rock; #notterrible
Billy Bragg And Joe Henry – Shine A Light Field Recordings From The Great American Railroad : two folkies singing about trains; just as predictable as it sounds
Black Bombaim & Peter Brotzmann – Black Bombaim & Peter Brotzmann : freak-out free-jazz/prog
Brant Bjork – Tao Of The Devil : loose, fun, stoner/blues rock; #baritone
Conor Oberst – Ruminations : does not compute; #didnotblowmybrainsoutcountsasawin
Dead Rabbits – Everything Is a Lie : lethargic psych/gaze; #poorlymixed
Deap Vally – Femejism : strutting, snarling blues-punk; #soundslikethekills #femvox
DePedro – El Pasajero
Drive-By Truckers – American Band : straightforward topical southern-rock protest album
Elephant Stone – Ship Of Fools : quite good psych-rock/pop; #tameimpalalite
EZTV – High In Place : soothing, pastoral indie-folk/pop/rock
Flyying Colours – Mindfullness : lovely modern showgaze
Fuzz Evil – Fuzz Evil : ho-hum stoner/metal/noodling-rock
Goat – Requiem : VERY weird, varied, ritualistic indie-psych/folk/rock/pop/noise; #SWE
Green Day – Revolution Radio
Growlers, the – City Club : a mixed bag. Interesting expansion of their sound, but now sounds like a Strokes rip-off
Grumbling Fur – Furfour : very dense but enjoyable psych-ambient-new wave
Handsome Family, the – Unseen : real-deal Americana with ace songwriting
Hiss Golden Messenger – Heart Like A Levee : lovely (mostly) acoutisic modern folk; #ipreferminemoreupbeat
Jagwar Ma – Every Now And Then : occasionally interesting dance-psych
Jim Lauderdale – This Changes Everything : TX/country-flavored Americana
July Talk – Touch : sweet & sour pop-dance; #occasionalbarritone
Moby & The Void Pacific Chior – These Systems Are Falling : driving, frantic and intense guitar-driven electro-rock
Mono – Requiem For Hell : powerfully gripping post-rock instrumentals; #epic
Mowgli’s, the – Where’d Your Weekend Go : bubbly, light, indie-pop; #sosoearcandy
Nick Waterhouse – Never Twice : pretty-darn-fantastic retro R&B/soul/jazz/…
Pixies – Head Carrier : trying hard, but missing the boat; #hohum
Public Access T.V. – Never Enough : fun, loose indie-rock/power-pop
Red Fang – Only Ghosts : heavy drone metal; #lovetoseethematFFF
Slaves – Take Control : snotty, snarling Brit-punk
Solange – A Seat at the Table : great modern r&b; #politics #race #gender #dumbinterludes
Springtime Carnivore – Midnight Room : delicate psych-pop; “feels like an hour’s worth of lucid dreaming”
Tycho – Epoch : very excellent electro-rock-ambient; #sneakyrelease
Wooden Indian Burial Ground – How’s Your Favorite Dreamer : spazzed-out, manic, psych freak-out weirdness; #unhinged
Alpines – Another River : decent electro-pop/R&B; #stylish
Benoit Pioulard – The Benoit Pioulard Listening Matter : interestingly experimental field-recordings/pop/ambient; #neat #veryshort
Brian Jonestown Massacre, the – Third World Pyramid : excellent ‘classic’ psych, lives up to it’s cover…
Coloured Clocks – Test Flight : decent (same-y) psych-pop; #twoinayear
Crocodiles – Dreamless : fun, diverse, and creative; #minimalguitar #sofun
Feeder – All Bright Electric : ho-hum loud-soft indie that never quite goes anywhere
Golden Suits – Kubla Khan : pleasant-ish indie rock; #breezy #easy #nofear
Hidden Cameras, the – Home On Native Land : (assuming the comedy is intentional) amusing Canadiana tunes
Honeyblood – Babes Never Die : fizzy, buzzy, indie-rockers; #tight #tiredears #femvox
Hooton Tennis Club – Big Box of Chocolates : very fun and catchy indie-rock; #deeperthanitfirstseems
Hope Sandoval & the Warm – Inventions Until the Hunter : hypnotic dream-pop; #soundsexactlylikeyouthinkitdoes
Jim James – Eternally Even : mildly psychedelic and lyrically topical; #bestjjyet
Kaiser Chiefs – Stay Together : stupid indie pop
Kevin Devine – Instigator : earnest politi/indie/college/folk-rock; #hackypolitics
Kings of Leon – Walls : a boring failure to write “arena rock” songs
Lambchop – FLOTUS : delicious new sonic territory #triphop #electropop #countrysoul
Laurels, the – Sonicology : ‘densely psychedelic wall-of-sound collages with clear dance floor and hip-hop leanings’ #*gaze
Lemon Twigs, the – Do Hollywood : ingeniously calculated and delightful indie-pop
Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker : dark and deep
Lewis Del Mar – Lewis Del Mar : intriguing super-modern cut-paste style art-rock/pop
Light Fantastic – Out Of View : jangly Nor-Cal dream-pop/indie
Lorelle Meets the Obsolete – Balance : groovy, laid-back modern psych
Loretta Lynn – White Christmas Blue
Madness – Can’t Touch Us Now : very fun and original ska/pop/rock; #vibrant #modern #oldmenrock
Mike Doughty – The Heart Watches While The Brain Burns : diverse and fabulously interesting; #distinctivevox
Miniature Tigers – I Dreamt I Was A Cowboy : buoyant indie pop; #touchofpsych
Minus Five, the – Of Monkeys And Men : super-fun tribute to Monkeys and (other) Men
New Mastersounds, the – The Nashville Session : slick, jazzy, retro-funk outing; #soundslive
Pink Martini – Je dis oui! : truly international pop
Pop Group, the – Honeymoon on Mars : skittering post-punk; #notveryengaging
Sam Roberts Band – Terraform : slick, fun rockers; #CAN
Savoy Motel – Savoy Motel : fun and funk 70’s sonic pastiche; #beck #royaltrux #promising
Courteeners – Mapping The Rendezvous : tolerable radio-rock
CRX – New Skin : trying hard, heavy indie rock; #exstrokes
Dan Melchior – Plays ‘The Greys’ : outsider lo-fi/garage/’blues’ rock; #wantoloveit #difficult
Iván Ferreiro – Casa : lovely
Parekh and Singh – Ocean : interesting Indian dream-pop
Purling Hiss – High Bias : raucous driving and gritty rockers
Seth Swirsky – Circles and Squares : gorgeous, perfectly-constructed pop songs; #purepop
She And Him – Christmas Party
Sleigh Bells – Jessica Rabbit : schizophrenic kitchen-sink noise-pop; #needsMOREchaos
Slothrust – Everyone Else : ho-hum loud/soft+jazz rock
Spirit Club – Slouch : goofy attempt at Beach Boys sound
Syd Arthur – Apricity : interesting prog/pop/psych/indie
Terry Malts – Lost at the Party : pretty-great indie/pop/power-pop
Two Door Cinema Club – Gameshow : Professional Arena Pop; #blandandboring
White Lies – Friends : milquetoast pop; #pffffftt
Alejandro Escovedo – Burn Something Beautiful : solid rockers
Anohni – Hoplessness : gorgeously executed, the lyrics could use some subtlety
Colorist & Emil¡ana Torrini, the – The Colorist & Emiliana Torrini : intventive remakes, those gorgeous vox…
Damien Jurado – Other People’s Songs Volume One
David Bazan – Dark Sacred Night
Dead Horse One – Season Of Mist : chill psych-gaze; #FRA
Dean Ween Group, the – The Deaner Album : so brown
Dr. Dog – Abandoned Mansion : good old-skool feel-good rockers; #fullybaked
Dungen – Haxan : fucking brilliant instrumental psychedelic jazz-rock
Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong – Ella and Louis Christmas
Flat Five, the – It’s a World of Love and Hope : simple, clever and tight vocal-pop
Greasy Tree – Greasy Tree : straightforward barroom rock n’ blues
Griswolds, the – High Times for Low Lives : terrible arena-pop
Here Come The Mummies – Underground : ho-hum light funk
Howe Gelb – Future Standards : a joy to listen to; #wellnamed
Killers, the – Don’t Waste Your Wishes
Kylie Minogue – Kylie Christmas
March Divide, the – Saturdays : ho-hum indie-pop with some horrible ‘arena’ moments
Matt Pond Pa – Winter Lives : lovely winter-themed indie-pop
Men, the – Devil Music : raw and noisy
Monomyth – Happy Pop Family : intriguing indie-psych-pop-folk; #Canada
Nouvelle Vague – I Could Be Happy : cute
Pack A.D., the – Positive Thinking : very solid indie rock; just enough blues and punk
Penny and Sparrow – Christmas Songs
Rolling Stones, the – Blue & Lonesome : old guys play the blues #rippingguitaristtho
Sad13 – Slugger : bratty indie pop/rock; #middleschool
Split Single – Metal Frames : enjoyable indie rock with some great power-pop moments
Swampmeat – Gin & Tonic : loose, bar-rockin’ fun rockers; #LowCutConnie
Thee Oh Sees – An Odd Entrances : pure psych vibe, tight as hell; #alwaysdifferentalwaysthesame
Tigercub – Abstract Figures in the Dark : fuzzy, grungy, adventurous rock; Homme+Nirvana comparisons on point
Wave Pictures, the – Bamboo Diner In The Rain : solid, interesting and well-executed indie; “booze-soaked, bluesy love letter to guitar music”; #uniquesound
Weeknd, the – Starboy : super-glossy r%b-pop; #overdonestillfun
Wolf People – Ruins : darkly interesting folk/metal-rock
Wonder Stuff, the – 30 Goes Around the Sun : solid middle-age-rock outing
MV & EE – Root/Void : minimal and laconic brand of psych/folk/rock/…
Burnt Palms – Back On My Wall : indie surf rock – decent attempt; #tiredears
-live-
Matt Valentine – Union Pool, Brooklyn NY 08-14
JEFF The Brotherhood – Market Hotel, Brooklyn NY 09-27
Luna – The Birchmere, Alexandria VA 09-29
Luna – Rough Trade, Brooklyn NY 10-01
MV & EE – Trans-Pecos, Queens NY 11-13
Death from Above 1979 – Live at Third Man Records
Jack White And The Bricks – Live At The Gold Dollar
Radio Moscow – Live! In California
Smithereens, the – Stages
Titus Andronicus – S+@dium Rock Five Nights at the Opera
Beatles, the – Live At The Hollywood Bowl
Nada Surf – Peaceful Ghosts
Notwist, the – Superheroes, Ghostvillains And Stuff, pts 1&2
Metallica – Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite, Metallica!
Public Service Broadcasting – Live At Brixton
Yo La Tengo – Murder In The Second Degree
-re-release/comps/mixes-
Tycho – Awake (Remixes)
va – MOJO Presents: …2015
va – MOJO Presents: Pretty Vacant
Black Sabbath – Master Of Reality (deluxe reissue)
Black Sabbath – Paranoid (deluxe reissue)
Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath (deluxe ed)
Moodymann – DJ-Kicks
va – MOJO Presents: Gimme Danger
va – God Don’t Never Change; The Songs of Blind Willie Johnson
Yoko Ono – Yes, I’m A Witch Too
Uther Pendragon – San Francisco Earthquake
Metallica – Ride The Lightning (remaster)
Metallica – Kill ‘Em All (remaster)
va- California Soul Funk & Soul from the Golden State 1967-1976
va- MOJO Presents: Paint It Black
va- Tributes Or Not Tributes Vol 10
Flaming Lips, the – Lightning Strikes the Postman (RSD)
Public Service Broadcasting – The Race for Space remixes
Sonic Youth – Spinhead Sessions
Alex Calder – Bend
Boris – Pink (deluxe reissue)
Left Lane Cruiser – Beck In Black
White Stripes, the – The Complete John Peel Sessions
va – Day of the Dead
va – Summer Party
va – Olafur Arnalds Late Night Tales
Turtles – All The Singles
va – MOJO Presents: Blonde On Blonde Revisited
va – MOJO Presents: How Soon Is Now?
va – MOJO Presents: Jamaican Explosion
va – Running the Voodoo Down: Explorations in Psychrockfunksouljazz 1967-80
va – This Is It! MOJO Presents: The Next Projected Sound of 2016
Jack White – Jack White Acoustic Recordings 1998-2016
Morphine – Like Swimming (orig 1997)
va – Punk 45: Chaos in the City of Angels and Devils: Hollywood from X to Zero & Hardcore On the Beaches Punk in Los Angeles 1977-81 : #oldskool #blackstagefffun
va – MOJO Presents: Reurn to the Star-Club
va – Say Yes! A Tribute To Elliott Smith
va – Surinam Funk Force
va – Uncut: What’s Going On! The Sound of 2016
Wolf Eyes – Strange Days
va – Born Good: Songs Tiny Tim Taught Us
va – Brian Wilsonesque: The Pocket Symphonies To God vol 2
va – De Afrekening 61
va – MOJO Presents: A Life in Music
va – Quiero Creedence
Mini Mansions – Flashbacks : fun power-pop b-sides
Blonde Redhead – Masculin Feminin
Afghan Whigs, the – Black Love (20th anniv remaster)
Daniel Avery – DJ-Kicks
Islands – Return To The Sea (10th anniv remaster) : great album, but nothing additional here?
Joseph Washington Jr. – Merry Christmas to You (reissue)
Tygers Of Pan Tang – Burning In The Shade (remaster)
va – MOJO Presents: Out of Time
va – Nigeria Soul Fever: Afro Funk, Disco and Boogie
va – Polyvinyl Plays Polyvinyl
va – Punk 45: Les Punks: The French Connection. The First Wave of Punk 1977-80
va – Uncut On the Highway
Radkey – Delicious Rock Noise : formerly Dark Black Makeup (2015); former Misfits cover band??
Tubes, the – White Punks and Others
-singles/EPs-
Massive Attack – Ritual Spirit EP
Donkeys, the – Midnight Palms EP : delightfully sun-shiney pop
Black Sabbath – The End EP
Bob Dylan – Melancholy Mood RSD EP
Feelies, the – Uncovered RSD EP
Junior Kimbrough – I Gotta Try You Girl (Daft Punk Edit) single
Lush – Blind Spot EP
Solids – Else EP
Space Daze – Terrestrial Mosey EP
Tokyo Police Club – Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness, Pt. 1 EP
Blonde Redhead – Peel Sessions single
Holy Ghost! – Crime Cutz EP
Jarvis Cocker – Music From Likely Stories EP
Strokes, the – Future Present Past EP
50 Foot Wave – Bath White EP
Aphex Twin – Cheetah EP
Mumford And Sons – Johannesburg EP : sounds nothing like Mumford and Sons – best rekkid yet!!
No Joy – Drool Sucker EP
Philadelphia Collins – Derp Swervin’ EP
Porches – Water EP
LP – Death Valley EP
Joy Formidable, the – Sleep Is Day EP
La Sera – Queens EP
Tokyo Police Club – Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness Pt. 2 EP
Cut Copy – January Tape EP
Fujiya And Miyagi – EP1
Fujiya And Miyagi – EP2
Chrysta Bell – Somewhere In The Nowhere EP
Call The Wolf – Little Golden EP
Last Shadow Puppets, the – The Dream Synopsis EP
Magnetic Fields, the – 5 Selections From 50 Song Memoir EP
Metallica – Jump In The Fire EP (remaster)
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