Urban75 Album of the Year - 2024

[neonwilderness]

Lankum - Live in Dublin

I knew I'd forgotten one

 

[Knotted]

I rarely listen to albums anymore. But this is my song of the year. I don't know if she has made an album or plans to. I don't care.

 

[belboid]

Yeah, thanks belboid Not enough from my list, but I suppose the bribes didn’t arrive in time.

I couldn’t open the darned things! If only there were a more portable format for documents

 

[AverageJoe]

OH FOR FUCKS SAKE!!! THAT'S TWO IN A ROW I'VE MISSED.

I'm so sorry. Will put my list up anyway as there are a lot of albums that aren't listed at all

 

[Steel Icarus]

What would an album have to have got votes-wise to get to no. 50 in the list belboid ?

 

[Knotted]

The full Top 49 (I'll edit the ='s ones in in a bit)

1 The Cure - Songs of a Lost World
2 Jane Weaver - Love in Constant Spectacle
3 Nala Sinephro - Endlessness
4 Shellac - To All Trains
5 Goat - Goat
6 Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath
7 Amyl & the Sniffers - Cartoon Darkness
8 Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Wild God
9 Charli XCX - Brat
10 Beth Gibbons - Lives outgrown
11 Four Tet - Three
12 Chat Pile - Cool World
13 Fontaine's DC - Romance
14 The Smile - Wall of Eyes
15 Jenny Sparks - Bassline Music
16 Kneecap - Fine Art
17 Warrington Runcorn New Town Development Plan - Your Community Hub
18 Jamie XX - In Waves
19 Beak> - >>>>
20 Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee
21 Skee Mask - Resort
22 Kelly Lee Owens - Dreamstate
23 Underworld - Strawberry Hotel
24 Floating Points - Cascade
25 Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow eyes
26 Kendrick Lamar -GNX
27 Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal
28 The Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis -The Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis
29 Jack White - No Name
30 Whitelands- Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day
31 MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks
32 Mono - Oath
33 Actress - Statik -
34 Beabadoobee - This is how tomorrow moves
35 Soccer Mommy - Evergreen
36 Ex-Easter Island Head - Norther
37 Godspeed You! Black Emperor - NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD
38 St Vincent - All Born Screaming
39 Porridge Radio - Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me
40 Jlin - Akoma
41 Frail Body - Artificial Bouquet
42 Kim Deal - Nobody loves you more
43 JPEGMAFIA - I Lay Down My Life For You
44 Craven Faults - Bounds
45 Pixies - The night the zombies came
46 Fucked Up - Another Day
47 The Staves - All Now.
48 Gruff Rhys - Sadness sets me free
49 Seefeel - Everything Squared Roots

No, nothing did get enough votes to be 50th. 310 votes all in all, 200 different albums voted for. You eclectic buggers, you.

The Lonely Number 1's:

Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere
Unicorn On Ketamine - PIPIPI
Mestizo Beat - Jaraguá
Arab Strap - I'm Totally Fine with It Don't Give a Fuck Anymore
Gossip - Real Power
Afterlands - We are the animals in the night
Taku Sugimoto - Since 2016
Early Day Miners- Outside Lies Magic
Geordie Greep - The New Sound

I'm particularly disappointed that last one missed out, as I wanted to call it 'Steely Dan covered by King Crimson'

The Spotify playlist, it omits two tracks as neither the Skee Mask or the Candy Lee albums are on there.

Spotify Embed

I thought Geordie Greep would come out at the top since everyone was into Black Midi a couple of years ago.

 

[MBV]

I did forget about some albums like Beak and Jane Weaver but my top 3 was unlikely to change. Thanks belboid for sorting it and everyone on the music threads.

1. Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee
2. Jamie XX - In Waves
3. Helado Negro - PHASOR
4. Michael Kiwanuka - Small Changes
5. Whitelands - Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day
6. Craven Faults - Bounds
7. Trentmoller - Dreamweaver
8. Washed Out - Notes From A Quiet Life
9. Tycho - Infinite Health
10. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD
11. Floating Points - Cascade
12. Nala Sinephro - Endlessness
13. The Smile - Cutouts

 

[belboid]

What would an album have to have got votes-wise to get to no. 50 in the list belboid ?

at least two people voting for it. Strictly speaking, nothing from Jpegmafia down should have been included, as they didnt get higher than the lonely Number 1's. But they did get multiple, low, votes.

 

[belboid]

I thought Geordie Greep would come out at the top since everyone was into Black Midi a couple of years ago.

Yeah, but...it sounds like Steely Dan played by King Crimson. Which is still Steely Dan.

 

[hitmouse]

No 13" Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips? Bunch of fucking savages.

My list was:

Charli XCX - Brat
Kneecap - Fine Art
Drug Church - Prude
Chat Pile - Cool World
Xiu Xiu - 13" Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips
Porridge Radio - Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me
Lightheaded - Combustible Gems
Shellac - To All Trains
Uniform - American Standard
Coughin’ Vicars - Curses & Prayers
Umbrellas - Fairweather Friend
Chemtrails - The Joy of Sects
Waxahatchee - Tigers’ Blood
Fucked Up - Another Day
Clyde & Algernon Cornelius - Stick a Fork In It

There's a few others like Kendrick and Vincent Van Sloth who probably deserved my vote but I haven't listened to enough to form a solid opinion on. And then almost certainly lots of other great albums I've not heard and will only hear in years to come, year-end lists always feel far too early for me. That Cindy Lee record does sort of sound like my cup of tea but even if I had found a few months to listen to it all the way through, I'd still probably refuse to vote for it on principle, I'm not sitting here trying to listen to Infinite Jest The Record. Did think that if anything the Waxahatchee record wasn't really up to her usual form, but then I'm not the critics I suppose.

 

[Spandex]

I should really get round to listening to the Jane Weaver & Goat albums as I've loved previous by both of them.

I went with:

Mestizo Beat - Jaraguá (Latin Funk)
Kelly Lee Owens - Dreamstate (vocal electonica)
Nia Archives - Silence is Loud (vocal Jungle)
Brian Kage - Timeless Times (Detroit techno/house)
Vika Kuchak - Stels (lo-fi house from Russia)
Brijean - Macro (Electropop from Mitski/Toro y Moi's drummer)
OST Fox - Seulement à Marseille (French techno)
Dar Disku - Dar Disku (Anglo-Bahraini psych-funk)
Juniore - Trois Deux Un (French psych)
The Cure - Songs of a Lost World (Goth)
Justice - Hyperdrama (French electropop)
Cold Cave - Passion Depression (electro-Goth)
Confidence Man - 3AM (La La La) ("the goth Aqua")
Abbaba Soul Meets Mad Professor- Babylonia Kingdub (Dub)
Kloke - The Cosmic Connection: Lost Tape (Jungle)
Kit Sebastian - New Internationale (Franco-Turkish psych-funk)
LEATHERS – Ultraviolet (Synthpop from US postpunk types Actors' keyboard player)
Molly Nilsson - Un-Amercan Activities (Swedish Synthpop)
L'Impératrice - Pulsar (French synthpop)
Gianni Bini - The House of Glass (Italian Disco)

 

[belboid]

My list:

(I can write it like this, cos its my list, Ha!)

Shellac
The Cure
Nadine Shah
Kim Gordon
Messthetics
Nick Cave
Chat Pile
Slim Cessna's Auto Club
Du Blonde
Goat
Jack White
Amyl & the Sniffers
Barry Adamson
Porridge Radio
Fucked Up
Kim Deal
Ex-Easter Island Head
Kneecap
Fontaines DC
Einsturzende Neubatten
Fat White Family
St Vincent
Craven Faults
Cumgirl8
Bob Vylan
Peter Perrett
Richard Thompson
Jesus Lizard
Gruff Rhys
Mdou Moctar

 

[Knotted]

Yeah, but...it sounds like Steely Dan played by King Crimson. Which is still Steely Dan.

Yeah it does. That would be awesome though but Fripp's too busy singing Christmas songs.

 

[hitmouse]

My list:

(I can write then like this, cos its my list, Ha!)

Jesus Lizard

Trying to think whether I knew about the new Jesus Lizard record before this post, but now I've just searched for it and seen they're touring in January, hmmm. I had been wondering who else helped that not-especially-great Fucked Up record get into the top 50.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Du Blonde

There's a new Du Blonde record and I wasn't told?

 

[belboid]

There's a new Du Blonde record and I wasn't told?

and its a cracker! Tour in the new year as well

 

[braindancer]

I'm curious who else voted for Fragile Body...

The thread has reminded me of so many albums I listened to but never went back to. My problem is I'm always chasing the new. There's a totally overwhelming number of great albums released every week and I'm constantly trying to keep up. I've developed a somewhat unhealthy obsession with death metal over the last couple of years and it's impossible to keep up within that niche genre - let alone all the other music! Boo hoo - isn't it terrible that there's so much amazing music in the world....

 

[AverageJoe]

20. Mount Kimbie - The Sunset Violent
19. Iron and Wine - Light Verse
18. Thom Yorke - Confidenza
17. Peggy Gou - I Hear You
16.MGMT - Loss of Life
15. Powerman 5000 - Abandon Ship
14. Cage The Elephant - Neon Pill
13. Ride - Interplay
12. Pearl Jam - Dark Matter
11. The Black Keys - Ohio Players.
10. Static X - Project Regeneration
9. Mushroomhead - Call The Devil
8. Foster The People - Paradise State Of Mind
7. Kerry King - From Hell I Rise
6. Underworld - Strawberry Hotel
5. Eels - TIME!
4. Grandaddy - Blu Wav
3. Bob Vylan - Humble As The Sun
2. Soft Play - Heavy Jelly
1. Bring Me The Horizon - Post Human

 

[danny la rouge]

Mine, though it was really what I could remember yesterday when I submitted it and there are others I’d include now:

Warrington Runcorn New Town Development Plan - Your Community Hub
Rosali - Bite Down
Chrysanths - Leave No Shadow
BODEGA - Brand on the Run
Causa Sui - From the Source
Laura Marling - Patterns in Repeat
Jane Weaver - Love in Constant Spectacle
Goat - Goat
Godspeed You! Black Emperor - NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD
Nebula, and Black Rainbows - In Search Of The Cosmic Tale: Crossing The Galactic Portal
Dirty Three - Love Changes Everything
Elephant Tree - Handful of Ten
Emilíana Torrini - Miss Flower
Mono - Oath

 

[braindancer]

Missed the Jane Weaver - very very good!

 

[Dr. Furface]

I'm particularly disappointed that last one missed out, as I wanted to call it 'Steely Dan covered by King Crimson'

Cheers belboid Yes, very good - although not a patch on your one about Nick Cave being our Man City

Geordie Greep - The New Sound
Moin - You Never End
Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal
Nilüfer Yanya - My Method Actor
Total Blue - Total Blue
Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee
SML - Small Medium Large
Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis
Gum.mp3 - Black Life, Red Planet
Nala Sinephro - Endlessness
Jessica Pratt - Here in the Pitch
Midland - Fragments of Us
070 Shake - Petrichor
MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks
Astrid Sonne - Great Doubt
Clairo - Charm
Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven
Jlin - Akoma
Skee Mask - Resort
Mk.Gee - Two Star & The Dream Police

To be honest I reckon this



was better than anything else released this year, but I didn't feel that voting for something that was recorded in 1971 by an artist deceased 17 years ago made sense. Then again, seeing what won, maybe there's not that much difference?

 

[hitmouse]

To be fair, anyone who sold you Fall tickets this year was ripping you off as well.

By the way, I'm still ill enough that breathing or laughing too deeply is liable to make me start coughing really hard, and this absolutely set me off spluttering, funny bastard.

 

[Buddy Bradley]

Excellent work as always belboid - it's always gratifying to see at least one or two of my choices made it into the top 30, despite my tastes feeling distinctly pedestrian compared to some of you.

My top 20, including a lonely number 1:

1. Real Power - Gossip
2. Scream from New York, NY - Been Stellar
3. Midas - Wunderhorse
4. I Got Heaven - Mannequin Pussy
5. No Obligation - The Linda Lindas
6. All Hell - Los Campesinos!
7. Dark Matter - Pearl Jam
8. I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU - JEGMAFIA
9. What Now - Brittany Howard
10. OATH - MONO
11. Love in Constant Spectacle - Jane Weaver
12. No Souvenirs - Fightmilk
13. Blu Wav - Grandaddy
14. Romance - Fontaines D.C.
15. TANGK - IDLES
16. This Could Be Texas - English Teacher
17. Salt - Marla Hansen
18. Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day - Whitelands
19. Little Rope - Sleater-Kinney
20. AUDIO VERTIGO - Elbow

 

[May Kasahara]

Working my way through some of the stuff I missed. Whitelands = pleasant and capably produced shoegaze, handy if you're between Slowdive albums. Skee Mask = good once it gets going.

 

[May Kasahara]

19 Beak> - >>>>

The fourth and final album from the ex-Portishead dude and it’s a cracker. I wonder what happened to that lass he sang with?

This is amazing! Would definitely have featured on my AOTY list if I'd listened to it before now

 

[nogojones]

Mine:

Unicorn On Ketamine - PIPIPI
Jenny Sparks - Bassline Music
Jlin - Akoma
Wrong Dome - KULOARE AKTUAL
Kneecap - Fine Art
Suzi Analogue - ONEZ
DJ Chad - Ghetto Origins
Trajectoire - Volume 1
Floating Points - Cascade
The Widdler - Zero G
Vincent Van Sloth - Punx on Drugz
Dissimulator - Lower Form Resistance
Bruk Rodgers - Loopholes
Frail Body - Artificial Bouquet
Illaman - Offkey
Nala Sinephro - Endlessness
JPEGMAFIA - I Lay Down My Life For You
I Like To Sleep - Bedmonster's Groove
Ivy Lab - Mild Snake
Resin Tomb - Cerebral Purgatory

I want to know who else went for Jenny Sparks

 

[marty21]

I think it was a jolly good year - I listened to more new music than usual - could probably have put in 20 or more albums - settled on 15

1. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World
2 Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes
3. Fontaine's DC - Romance
4. Ride - Interplay
5. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Wild God
6. Jane Weaver - Love in Constant Spectacle
7 The Last Dinner Party - Preclude To Ecstasy
8. Yungatia - Shoelace & A Knot
9. The High Llamas - Hey Panda
10. Whitelands- Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day
11. Liz Lawrence - Peanuts
12. Sleater- Kinney - Little Rope
13. Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath
14. Camera Obscura - Look to the East, Look to the West
15 . The Staves - All Now.

 

[girasol]

The three albums I listened to the most this year were Brat, TTPD and My 21st Century Blues (although I think that's from last year) so erm, those are my top three! . I also listened to Genesis, also by Raye, a few times, pretty good. But it's an EP I think, not an album.

I listened to The Cure album a couple of times - apart from the stand out song, the rest didn't really do much for me.

all very mainstream, but I'm too old to be cool anymore

​

 

[zedr]

Managed to miss all the fun again. As always I largely listened to music from the previous year because I'm slow to pick up on things. Had already compiled a little list for something else (forgive the eps and split), so here's my ten, in no particular order.

Biblical -Bib
Sultan - Shabjdeed
No Title as of 13 February 28,340 Dead - Godspeed You! Black Emperor
I Got Heaven - Mannequin Pussy
Cool World - Chat Pile
Split - Judy and The Jerks//Shitty Life
For Frank Forever - Piglet
How To Be Hopeful - Johnny Foreigner
We Are Making A New World - Gimic
Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day - Whitelands

Slowly compiling a playlist of lots of the records everyone else has posted about. So many things have passed me by, again!

 

[marty21]

As usual - Thank you for your service Belboid .