Favorite Music 2024

Something Old, Something New

Here’s a link to an Apple Music playlist with songs from album mentioned on this list. It’s better on shuffle.

My favorite album last year was Laurel Halo’s Atlas. I have listened to it more this year than last year. If I had to pick a favorite for this year, it would probably be The Closest Thing to Silence by Ariel Kalma, Jeremiah Chu, and Marta Sofia Honer. My favorite pop record is Wishy’s Triple Seven.

I crossed a significant age threshold this year. Turning 50 is like turning 18. When you turn 18, you become old enough to be drafted and imprisoned. I’m not sure of the benefits beyond voting. You have to wait until 21 to be extended any fun rights and full access to all venues. Turning 50 is when people look at you differently, but you still have 17 years until Social Security, and what I assume for myself will be online teaching and a shift as a greeter at Walmart.

Two things will happen to me in 2025. I will pass the Brimley-Cocoon Line. I will also reach a point where I have spent more time in the 21st century than in the 20th century. Realizing I’m an artist whose life and career will straddle two centuries (two millennia) led me to look at artists whose lives bridged the 19th and 20th centuries. When was Matisse born? 1869. When did he die? 1954. Oh. Well, that brings my mortality into focus.

Let’s give myself a generous window of time and say that being born in 1974 is equivalent to falling within the 19th-century window between Henri Matisse, Piet Mondrian, and Igor Stravinsky’s births. What composer is slightly older than them that they would have potentially admired? Claude Debussy. Debussy and Stravinsky admired one another, but I don’t think Debussy liked Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring.”

Let’s roll with that comparison for a bit. If I’m Stravinsky, who is my Debussy? Who captured my imagination in my youth and is still doing quality work? That illogical logic explains some albums that grabbed me this year. I have listened to some of these groups since I was 15. Their catalogs are deep, full of classics, yet imperfect. A few have been written off over the years, but they all came through with excellent work in 2024.

Here are some long-established acts that lived up to their reputation this year:

The Cure - Songs of a Lost World

Since the pandemic, Robert Smith has discussed releasing a double album of new material. Fans were cautiously excited because the two previous albums were not good. But what if this was? A tour was planned, and new songs were debuted from the stage rather than released as singles. However, the album never materialized. Finally, hints began to drop. 10-second clips on social media that sounded like a band who remembered they recorded Disintegration. Then, the first single, “Alone.” It is a song in which the vocals do not arrive until the 3-minute mark. And that first line? “This is the end…of every song that we sing.” Pure Cure.

Songs of a Lost World is not Disintegration. But what is? There’s a story about Disintegration: Smith realized he was turning 30, and most major groups had released at least one classic by the age of 30. He got so depressed that he wrote the best album of his career from the position of desire and fear of not reaching that mark.

The new album is not that. It is the best of what The Cure are capable of minus some of the quirks and the catchy “hits” that Disintegration, Wish, or Head on the Door provided. The hits are not missed, but I wouldn't be upset if they put a couple of ridiculously optimistic gems on the next album. If not, this album allows a band to go out in respectable form. And that is a nearly impossible task in this business.

Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More

It was odd to see the news about this album accompanied by the phrase “Kim Deal’s first solo album.” How is that possible? I guess she is a team player. Between Pixies, The Breeders, and The Amps, Deal has always assembled a crew to work with. She released a set of great singles about ten years ago. If you added them up, they would account for a solo album.

Nobody Loves You More is her most eclectic release. Deal’s layered vocals have always had a 60s girl group croon, like a one-woman Shangri-Las, but wrapped around Deal’s unique songwriting and ever-heavy rhythm guitar. Throw in some horns and other unexpected arrangement ideas, and this album stretches her sound more than anything in years.

Do I want another Breeders album, or do I want another Kim Deal album? Yes.

Pet Shop Boys - Nonetheless

Sleaford Mods - West End Girls*

Pet Shop Boys create sophisticated pop with whip-smart lyrics, their eyes keenly observing the current culture. Occasionally, the lyrics misfire, but Bob Dylan doesn’t have a 100% success rate either. Neil Tennant also suffers from just the right amount of nostalgia.

Their catalog is bulletproof through 1994. It gets dicey after that as they tinkered with their formula (e.g., Bilingual and Release). However, the Electric, Hotspot, and Nonetheless albums show that the team that pioneered “Debussy to a disco beat” still has much to offer.

And if you haven’t heard a Pet Shop Boys album since 1993’s Very, you should know that they don't sound radically different when they’re not trying to fix what isn’t broken. If anything, they sound even more prepared for the dance floor.

Favorite track - “Feel”

*Sleaford Mods’ cover of “West End Girls” updates the Pet Shop Boys classic, bringing it into the world of grimy rap, amplifying the economics of the song without sacrificing the hooks. “How much do you need?”

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Wild God

Can you write about a Cave album without mentioning that he lost two sons within a few years of each other? The Bad Seeds’ Skeleton Tree was started before but completed after the first death, but it was not thematically influenced by it. Cave would confront that loss in the Ghosteen record. Skeleton Tree is a challenging listen by Bad Seeds standards. Ghosteen is gorgeous as he attempts to build a space for his lost son to inhabit, but it is tough to listen to regularly. The loss forever changed the artistic process of Cave. Wild God is the first Bad Seeds album to show what the future may hold. Gone are the elaborate, violent narratives, although they were already on the way out in Push the Sky Away. By contrast, 1992’s Henry’s Dream sounded like Cave hearing Bob Dylan’s “Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts” and saying, “Hold my beer.” Wild God is not that. It is more surreal and opaque. It continues the Seeds’ experimentation with electronics, deconstructing the “band.”

Interviews with Cave make it appear he thinks “Frogs” is the center of this album. It’s not. It’s “Joy.” And we all need more joy.

Pearl Jam - Dark Matter

Am I a huge Pearl Jam fan? No. Did they make a good record this year? Yes.

I teach the Gen Z crowd. Their “classic rock” acts are Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, and Green Day. If you asked me in 1995 what rock bands from that era would still be packing arenas and stadiums 30 years later, I would not have said any of the four previously mentioned bands. But I tell these same students if you keep making art, the herd will thin. Sometimes, you succeed by being the only one that continues to work.

While not a card-carrying Pearl Jam fan, I did not join the backlash that eventually surrounded them. Their two songs on the Singles soundtrack are among their best. Ten is still good, but I never listen to it. I skipped Vs. I did, at one point, own Vitalogy and No Code. Those are risky albums for a band of that status (listen to “Bugs”). Experimental. No videos for the singles.

When the indie crowd was writing off Pearl Jam, someone interviewed Ian MacKaye. He said he liked seeing them in concert because they rocked without needing stage props, etc. They have an energy that does not require elaborate light shows and sets: Just play the stuff and crawl in the rafters. Who is going to argue with Fugazi? That said, they now have big light and projection elements.

Entering an elder statesman role, the band has produced reliable rock for 20 years for a world that no longer wants reliable rock. I listen to a new Pearl Jam record for a week and then move on, but Dark Matter has stayed in rotation since its release.

That’s it for the old people. Here are the youth I found engaging. Unsurprisingly, these acts resembled something I would have liked when I was younger.

Wishy - Triple Seven

Any press you read about Wishy describes them with a hyphenated mix of genres; “jangly” and “shoegaze” are always thrown in the mix. There is no denying those ingredients. They have dialed in every great guitar tone from 1987-1995. Bent, distorted strings grind against perfectly clean rhythms. Songs on Triple Seven bury soft vocals and treat them as we should all remember what vocals are- another instrument. I have a rule that puts me at odds with the small nation of songwriters surrounding me in Nashville: lyrics are secondary. I care about the music first. If I find out later, you have great lyrics, fantastic. But you stepped into the arena of music, not poetry.* So, if your music does nothing but serve the words, you have it backward. Maybe every group needs both people. One person argues for words, and the other for music. They fight to a draw every time. I have never tired of a loud, droney guitar making my chest rattle, but I want to bolt for the exit when someone with an acoustic guitar starts explaining the meaning of a song before they play it.

Beyond the drones and well-placed synth lines, Wishy has a rock-solid rhythm section and two songwriters who can blast out hooks and crank up the vocals when necessary. Wishy wrote the “hits” missing from the new Cure album.

I challenged myself to listen to more pop radio in the spring and summer. What I can tell you is that all new pop songs fit into a few categories: vibe, drama, sex, or hype. That’s pretty much it. What happened to love? What happened to heartbreak? That embarrassing level of revelation reserved for a high schooler’s journal? Did you all concede that ground to the Swifties? Your version of heartache is hearing about her hanging out with a British guy for two weeks?

Triple Seven gives you an alternative to that. Simple, direct, and desperate. Something vague yet personal enough to latch onto without thinking about Matt Healy.

Favorite track - “Persuasion”

*I’m deliberately reductive in the above statement. Bob Dylan is my favorite artist, so I value a well-written verse. That said, the first time I really paid attention to Bob Dylan was when I was 16 and saw this “Tangled Up in Blue” performance on VH-1. The words didn’t click with me because there were a lot of words to take in, but I knew enough about the performance to buy Blood on the Tracks the next day. The lyrics came later. Blood on the Tracks was initially a more stripped-down album, but Bob had enough sense to rework the arrangements. He knows the difference between a song and a poem:

Mount Kimbie - Sunset Violent

This is not a collection of songs. It’s an experience. I had this album figured out at one point, but I already forgot my equation. It’s like UNKLE’s Psyence Fiction minus the drum/dance quality. That introduces the question, what do you have if you make a dance album into something that’s not a dance album? I have no idea, but it bears repeat listens.

Jessica Pratt - Here in the Pitch

If Pratt had emerged in 1990 with a 60s throwback album, it would have made some sense. In 2024, it’s a miraculous oddball. It sounds built on institutional recording knowledge, but who is left to teach Pratt and her team how to do this?

Nat “King” Cole - Live at the Blue Note Chicago (reissue)

Cole is a class act in this recording. Maintaining pure professionalism amidst a crowd that sounds like they all have babysitters and are prepared to regret the next morning.

Arooj Aftab - Night Reign

There is something special about a performer who will sabotage their set in a risky effort to do something unexpected and impressive while knowing that if they mess up, they can quickly get the crowd back. This is not a genre-specific ability. I’ve seen Flying Lotus do it with a mixer and a laptop.

Aftab is a spell. How she manages to conjure up arrangements like this is beyond me. Finding a thread through an entire album is impressive. It’s the voice, not the lyrics. Aside from a cover of the standard, “Autumn Leaves,” she sings in a language I do not know and never will. More impressive is her ability in a live setting to demystify the experience with her between-song banter and pull the audience back in with the next song.

Drahla - angeltape

If you took Pylon, substituted the singer with the woman who sang The Waitresses’ “I Know What Boys Like,” and threw in a dirty saxophone, you’d have the second-best rock album of the year, no matter the year.

Ducks Ltd - Harm’s Way

These two guys were supposed to start a great jangle rock band in 1985, but they got lost in shipping. Like listening to R.E.M., the Smiths, the Church, and Feelies 33 rpm records played at 45. It's the catchiest sped-up rock I have heard since Unrest’s Perfect Teeth album.

Fabiana Palladino - self-titled

MOODY! SYNTH! POP! PLUS! GUITARS! WITH! CHORUS!

MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks

I think this is where I say, “Neil Young, Stephen Malkmus, Scud Mountain Boys, and Jay Farrar,” and move on. But I say that with all respect. It’s a good album.

T Bone Burnett - The Other Side

He may always be better known for backing up Dylan or producing, but Burnett can put together solid albums in a similar way that people forget Daniel Lanois makes good records. I hope always to remember seeing Burnett play guitar for Sam Phillips in the early 90s circa Martinis and Bikinis. His guitar cut through the air like no other.

Pop honorable mentions:

Erika de Casier - Still

Ariana Grande - eternal sunshine

Peggy Gou - I Hear You

David Gilmour - Luck and Strange

Thus ends the aging white hipster portion of the list. I don’t pretend to possess the vocabulary to discuss the rest of this list. I’m over 2,000 words anyway. Anything else on this list is something I would toss in a set of buckets: ambient, electronic, experimental, jazz, or classical. Some of my favorite albums of the year are listed below in bold type. Why? Gut. It’s hard for me to explain. I’m sure there is a music theorist who could tell me what chords I like and a producer who could tell me what sounds and effects I like.

I will highlight Nils Frahm’s 90-minute Paris (Live) album because it was released late in the year and didn’t get much attention.

Ariel Kalma, Jeremiah Chu, and Marta Sofia Honer - The Closest Thing to Silence

Adam Wiltzie - Eleven Fugues for Sodium Pentothal

Skee Mask - Resort

Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling & Andreas Werliin - Ghosted II

Michael A. Muller - Mirror Music

Mixmaster Morris, Jonah Sharp & Haruomi Hosono - Quiet Logic (re-issue)

Kirill Gerstein - Debussy/Komitas: Music in Time of War

Jonathan Biss, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra - Beethoven 5, Vol 1 (Live)

Lang Lang - Saint-Saëns

Kali Malone - All Life Long

Egil Kalman - Forest of Tines (Egil Salman plays the Buchla 200)

Bill Frisell - Orchestras (Live)

Nala Sinephro - Endlessness

Ethnic Heritage Ensemble & Kahil El’Zabar - Open Me, A High Consciousness of Sound and Spirit

Jim White - All Hits: Memories

Ex-Easter Island Head - Norther

Cowboy Sadness - Selected Ambient Works, Vol 1

M.Haiux - Summer Nights and Still Water

Snorri Hallgrimsson - Longer shadows, softer stones

Tourist - Memory Morning

Monty Luke - Nightdubbing

Jürg Frey - Quatuor Bozzini

Orchestre De Paris & Klaus Mäkelä - Stravinksy…

Franz Wesle-Möst and the Cleveland Orchestra - Prokofiev: Symphony No. 6

Jakub Hruša, Isabelle Faust, Bavarian Radio Symphony - Britten: Violin Concerto, Chamber Works

Yuja Wang - The Vienna Recital