15. Toxic by Yours Truly
The minimalist punk trio from Sydney released their second album this year. Mikaela Delgado lays out their concerns in the high-powered opener “Back 2 U.” How do we go forward when doom and gloom is all around? “Sour” is an even more dynamic and angry exploration of that theme. “California Sober” is drenched in distortion that brilliantly manifests the relative degrees of what passes for “sober.”
Fellow Aussies Bloom gives a metalcore edge to “Sinking.” And even when they soften the sound, on the acoustic “Love Feels Like” or the downright romantic “Call My Name,” there is always a spiky, jittery energy that makes Yours Truly immediate. Late in the year, they released a stone-cold killer pop-punk single, “Love Bombs,” a collab with another Aussie punk band, BESTIES.
14. No Name by Jack White
No Name is the closest Jack White has come to the White Stripes since that iconic pairing split up more than a decade ago. “Old Scratch Blues” sets the tone immediately. There will be strong, guitar-driven blues alongside hooky melodies. “Bless Yourself” has more punk bludgeoning while “That’s How I’m Feeling” is far slinkier. But it all still remains powerhouse guitar and earworm melody.
The Titanic “Archbishop Harold Holmes” is a tongue-in-cheek, fire-and-brimstone sermon about the power of love. White can ricochet from bluesy to bouncy, and he usually manages to find a happy medium. Of course, there is no guarantee that whatever White does next will sound anything like No Name. That’s part of his charm. But it’s hard not to simply wish he’d do about ten more albums just like this one.
13. Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay
It’s hard to classify Magdalena Bay. In the same way that I’m pretty sure “Imaginel” isn’t a real world, their second album, Imaginal Disk, can sometimes sound like a made-up world with logic that we’ll never understand. A little less gonzo and silly than 100 gecs, Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin create both atmosphere and melody. There are major nods to disco-inspired pop hits in synth-drenched hits-in-the-making like “Death & Romance” or the dreamier “Image.”
The quirkiness of Magdalena Bay shows up most of all on “Vampire in the Corner,” which could be the photo negative of Butthole Surfers’ “Creep in the Cellar.” There is a spacy, other-worldly substructure that holds up a concept album, but TBH, I pay no attention to the concept. I just listen to the all-immersive music.
12. Box for Buddy, Box for Star by This is Lorelei
When you’re being judged in a group, you never want to go first. Well, when I sat down to review my long list of albums for this list, Nate Amos’ first solo album was the first thing I listened to. And one half of Water From Eyes was so endlessly inventive and tuneful in his This is Lorelei persona that the album held its place against almost all comers. I was immediately struck by the gentle country opener “Angel’s Eyes.” Then he instantly starts shifting gears, diving into R&B, trip beats, and pure pop. “I’m All F**ked Up” would be a simply inescapable radio hit if he just named it something else.
There will be more country-tinged balladry and more soft dream pop, a jangly title track, and “Where’s Your Love Now,” a spaced-out Neil Diamond kind of tune. Amos is astonishingly prolific. He has a lot of singles as This is Lorelei, and still performs with Rachel Brown as Water From Your Eyes. He has said that the duo is more concerned with experimentation, while his solo Lorelei work focuses more on classic pop songwriting. But there is always something a little off-kilter on Box for Buddy… and that is what makes Amos’ work so compelling.
11. Neck Deep by Neck Deep
What’s wrong with being a Welsh version of Blink 182? If you like Blink, and if the Welsh rockers are recalling the very best of them, nothing at all. The Blink comparisons go beyond the obvious sonic similarity. Neck Deep is the band’s fifth album. Blink’s fifth album, commonly known as untitled, is also referred to as a self-titled album. Both bands’ fifth releases maintained the pop-punk sound that they built their reps on but also featured somewhat more sophisticated, mature lyrics and songwriting.
Maybe “maturity” seems like a stretch when you read the title of the opener, “Dumbstruck Dumbf**k,” but it’s there if you listen for it. The swirling “We Need More Bricks” shouts out that “the kids are wide awake and they rage against the palace,” while the equally propulsive “Heartbreak of the Century” has enough wisdom to admit that “this won’t be the first time I’ve been wrong about you.”
Maybe the most poignant track is an unsteady attempt to come to terms with the whole idea of parents ”They May Not Mean To (But They Do)." They follow it with the supremely optimistic “It Won’t Be Like This Forever.” It’s nice to hear an emotionally vulnerable Neck Deep. But it’s even nicer to hear that the newfound maturity isn’t tempering their rock & roll chops.
Continued on next slide...