The 2016 David Music Poll Results
1) Beyoncé, Lemonade (39 votes)
2) Bon Iver, 22, A Million (18)
3) Solange, A Seat at the Table (17)
4) Frank Ocean, Blond(e) (16)
5) Radiohead, A Moon Shaped Pool (15)
6) David Bowie, Blackstar (10)
Various Artists, Hamilton Mixtape (10)
8) A Tribe Called Quest, We Got It From Here…
(9)
Sia, This is Acting (9)
10) Car Seat Headrest, Teens of Denial (8)
Runners Up: With 7 votes . . . Anohni, Hopelessness;
Rihanna, Anti; Mitski, Puberty 2. With 6
votes . . . Kanye West, The Life of Pablo; Angel Olsen, My Woman. With 5 votes . . . Anderson.Paak, Malibu;
Tegan and Sara, Love You to Death; Leonard Cohen, You Want it Darker; James
Blake, The Colour in Anything
Notes: Some years are close. This one was not. You
can even see it in the votes for Beyoncé – most of the people voted with her
assumed she would be the winner. And indeed, she was. Interestingly, we almost
had a one-two punch from the Knowles sisters, with Bon Iver squeezing between them
by one vote. This list marks the fifth
one Radiohead has hit since we started in 1999, as well as Bon Iver’s third
(one for each album of theirs), and second hits from Sia, Beyoncé, and Frank
Ocean. Previous listers Kanye West and Tegan & Sara came close; previous
listers Regina Spektor and Lady Gaga were wider off the mark. This year we had
87 respondents, from 89 last year. And for those of you who are curious, as we
hit this eighteenth year, there are five people in the mix who have been in it
since 1999. Now, for the individual
lists…
I am full of Love and Hate
My Essential Albums of
2017:
1) Michael Kiwanuka, Love & Hate
I like all the albums on
this list about the same, but this is the one that has most consistently blown
me away – the others are my kind of thing done well, whereas this is something
different from what I usually listen to.
And it’s been easy to recommend it to everyone I know, because I think
it’s virtuosity has wide appeal. And his
voice is killer.
2) Radical Face, The Family Tree: The Leaves
This seemed to be the
spiritual cousin to Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie
& Lowell, my top album last year.
I keep listening to figure out its stories – and it keeps hold of me
every time.
3) Ingrid Michaelson, It Doesn’t Have to Make
Sense
I always feel guilty when
bad things happen to good singers (in this case, divorce and death of a
mother), and please note that I really have loved Ingrid Michaelson’s albums
when she’s been happy, as well. This one is heartbreaking and affirming at the
same time – one of those “the only way out is through” albums that completely
gets under your skin.
4) Original Broadway Cast, Waitress
By a long shot, the album
I’ve listened to the most this year. At the risk of coming close to a bad pun,
this is pure comfort food – and, let’s face it, 2016 required a lot of comfort
food. (Though, like the best diner
waitresses, it also has a spine of attitude.)
5) Regina Spektor, Remember Us to Life
Back to form after some
time off, Spektor plays around with her tunes – lots of surprising shifts
between and within songs. And “The Light” is the most beautiful song of the
year, hands down.
6) Car Seat Headrest, Teens of Denial
Filling my Adolescent Male
Angst slot – this is like turning on college radio, circa 1993, but with a
modern flair. Reality, it seems, keeps
biting.
7) Beyonce, Lemonade
Confession: I’ve loved some of Beyonce’s singles, but
have never really felt strongly about her as an artist – she always was a
little too icy for me. But here? She goes all over the place . . . and it
totally works.
My Essential Songs of
2017:
Phantogram, “You Don’t Get
Me High Anymore”
Regina Spektor, “The
Light”
Ingrid Michaelson, “Light
Me Up”
Bastille, “Send Them Off!”
Tegan and Sara, “100x”
Radiohead, “Burn the
Witch”
Broods, “Recovery”
Roo Panes, “Little Giant”
Anna Q goes La-La
The La La Land soundtrack.
Regina Spektor, Remember Us
to Life
Lydia Loveless, Real
Daphne B-G Mixes is Up
I finally have something
to add- my essential album:
Various artists, Hamilton Mixtape.
Various artists, Hamilton Mixtape.
Phil B Surfs Malibu
In order of excellence...
1. Anderson. Paak, Malibu
2. Solange, A Seat at the
Table
3. A Tribe Called Quest,
We Got it from Here, Thank You 4 Your Service
Daniel H’s Epic List
Kamasi Washington - The
Epic
Leonard Cohen - You Want
It Darker
Frankie Meyes - Boleros,
Valses y Mas
Crissa C Flies Drones
Here's my list:
-- Hopelessness by Anohni
is my album of the year.
Single: Drone Bomb Me
(the Park Avenue Armory
performance was incredible)
--Bon Iver, 22, A
Million
--David Bowie, Blackstar
--Helado Negro, Private
Energy
--James Blake, The Colour
in Anything
--Plaid, The Digging
Remedy
Scott D is Pro Anti
Hey! Here are my top
three:
1. Rihanna, Anti
2. Frank Ocean, Blonde
3. Solange, A Seat at the
Table
Kate W’s Beywatch
Best Album:
Beyonce, Lemonade
10 Best Singles:
Tribe Called Quest, We the
People
Radiohead, Decks Dark
Beyonce, Freedom
Anderson Peak, Come Down
Glass Animals, Life Itself
J. Cole, Foldin Clothes
Alicia Keys, In Common
(Kaskade Remix)
Bruno Mars, Perm
Joyryde, Hot Drum
Local Natives, Fountain of
Youth
Martina B Takes a Seat at the Table
1. Solange, A Seat at the
Table
2. Beyonce, Lemonade
3. David Bowie, Blackstar
4. Alicia Keys, Here
5. Carrie Rodriguez, Lola
Steven M Tips His Hat to a Sailor
1. Sturgill Simpson - A
Sailor's Guide To Earth
2. Car Seat Headrest -
Teens of Denial
3. L.A. Salami -
Dancing With Bad Grammar
4. Chris Forsyth
& The Solar Motel Band - The Rarity of Experience
5. Emitt Rhodes -
Rainbow Ends
6. William Tyler -
Modern Country
7. Kevin Morby -
Singing Saw
8. Underworld -
Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future
9. Whitney - Light
Upon The Lake
10a. Jagwar Ma -
Every Now & Then
10b. Heron Oblivion
- Heron Oblivion
Len V’s Retro List
I don't listen to a lot of
contemporary music, so my choices are almost always going to be out of date. In
fact, I have a tie this year for #1, which shows just how late to the game I
am:
Sufjan Stevens, Illinoise
Bob Marley, Legend
My wife gave me a record
player for my birthday last May, so I started buying vinyl (oh what a pleasure
to sift through 12 inch LPs again!), for the first time in many years.
These were the two albums I went back to over and over, especially while
editing. I guess I like double albums.
Jordan H’s Grande Gesture
Albums from 2016: all essential
Ariana Grande, Dangerous
Woman
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Lady Gaga, Joanne
Cruel Youth, +30Mg
Album from 2015:
Melanie Martinez, Crybaby
(still obsessed)
Singles from 2016:
Guys My Age - Hey
Violet
Like This - Jojo
Cool girl -Tove Lo
Read U Wrote U- Rupaul
Milf $ - Fergie
Gingerbread Man- Melanie
Martinez
Singles from 2014/2015
(but found in 2016)
Easy -Bonnie Mckee
Fire Rides- Mø
Paul G is Jonesing
(Not technically an album,
but the most essential, inspiring sound I heard all year) Bruce Springsteen,
Born To Run audiobook
Also great (and proof that
I am now a REALLY old man):
Norah Jones, Day Breaks
Sting, 57th and 9th
Bonnie Raitt, Dig In Deep
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Paul Simon, Stranger to
Stranger
Nick Cave and The Bad
Seeds, Skeleton Tree
David Bowie, Blackstar
Leonard Cohen, You Want It
Darker
Rolling Stones, Blue and
Lonesome
Kyle Dixon and Michael
Stein, Stranger Things soundtrack
Early entry for 2017 DMP,
Category: Sweetest & Saddest Sound: Barack Obama, Farewell Speech
Fiona S Wants to Be in the Room
Various Artists, Hamilton
Mix-tape
Andra Day, Cheers to the
Fall
David Bowie, Blackstar
And going back
George Michael, Symphonica
Caleb H’s Glass Animal Collection
A lot of these didn't come
out in 2016, whoops. I did a bad job keeping current.
1) Porter
Robinson, Worlds
I've
listened to this album more than any other album for sure. While writing, while
walking, anything. Not featured on this album was the song Shelter, though, in
collaboration with Madeon, which deserves to be mentioned. The Shelter tour was
the best concert I've ever been to.
PICK
A SONG: Sad Machine
2) Carly Rae
Jepsen, Emotion
People raved about this last year, I think, but I came to it late and BOY. I
don't think I've gone a week without listening to at least one of these songs since
I first found it, which might be over a year now.
PICK
A SONG: When I Needed You
3) Glass Animals,
Zaba
Only
discovered Glass Animals a few months ago but they've eaten a lot of my time
since then. Amazing.
PICK
A SONG: Black Mambo
4) Neon
Indian, Vega Intl. Night School
This
album is weird and the videos are weird and I can't get enough. I don't have
the correct words to describe this album. It's sexy and catchy and full of
bizarre samples.
PICK
A SONG: Annie
5) Glass
Animals, How to Be a Human Being
See
above. I don't get as fully immersed in this album as Zaba, but it's still full
of stuff I want to keep listening to over and over.
PICK
A SONG: Season 2 Episode 3
6) Anamanaguchi,
Capsule Silence XXIV Original Soundtrack
I
actually just cracked this open this month and it'll definitely be on next
year's list, too. Everything I like about Anamanaguchi's last album ramped way
up. There's a song that I'm pretty sure is about Gastly. It rules.
PICK
A SONG: My Heart my Body (the Gastly song is Poisonous Gas, though)
7) Jukebox the
Ghost, Long Way Home (Live)
I
love Jukebox, I've seen them live a bunch of times. The album does a good job
encapsulating why I keep going back.
PICK
A SONG: Keys in the Car is the only new song on the album. It's good.
8) Panic! At
The Disco, Death of a Bachelor
Yeah,
yeah. I know.
PICK
A SONG: Death of a Bachelor
9) Marian Hill, ACT
ONE
These
tracks follow a pattern that hooks me every time. Start with a catchy simple
melody and then start screwing with it electronically halfway through. It's so
so so so good and this whole album is danceable
PICK
A SONG: I Want You
10) The McElroy
Brothers, MBMBaM
This should actually probably be #1, but it's not music, it's just the
podcast I listened to instead of listening to music for most of this year.
PICK
AN EPISODE: https://youtu.be/bR0Ubck0IRA is one of my favorite bits, but there's hundreds of
hours of these boys you can listen to.
Zach F Dives into the Pool
My top 5 from 2016:
1. Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
2. Tegan and Sara, Love
You to Death
3. Santigold, 99 Cents
4. Jim James, Eternally
Even
5. Beyonce, Lemonade
Brent G, Naturally Blond
(@bandwagon.series)
1. Frank Ocean, Blond
2. Anderson .Paak, Malibu
3. Billie Marten, Writings
of Blue & Yellow
4. Daughter, Not to
Disappear
5. Childish Gambino,
Awaken, My love
6. Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
7. Yuna, Chapters
8. Gwen Stefani, This Is
What The Truth Feels Like
9. Beyonce, Lemonade
10. Eagulls, Ullages
David A Wishes Upon a Star
In this order, my top 4
records of the year...
David Bowie, Blackstar
Radiohead, A Moon Shaped
Pool
Bon Iver, 22, A Million
Daughter, Not to Disappear
David G Makes…
1. Beyonce - Lemonade
2. Chance the Rapper -
Coloring Book
3. David Bowie - Blackstar
4. Anohni - Hopelessness
5. Frankie Cosmos - Next
Thing
6. Blood Orange - Freetown
Sound
7. Radiohead - A Moon
Shaped Pool
8. Frank Ocean - Blonde
9. Rihanna - Anti
10. Kanye West - The Life
of Pablo
Favorite tracks of the
year:
1A. Beck - Wow
1B. Tyler the Creator
featuring Kali Uchis + Austin Feinstein (video version only, different from
album version) - Perfect
2. Rihanna - Love on the
Brain
3. Kanye West - Ultralight
Beam
4. Anohni - Why Did You
Separate Me From The Earth
5. David Bowie - Blackstar
Zehava C Knows it All
My two, but I might have
been late in the game for both. Still, I like them lots.
1) Alessia Cara, Know-it-All
2) Scott Helman, Augusta
Matt de la P ranks 22 #1
My faves (no big shockers
here):
- Bon Iver - 22, A Million
(fucking love this one)
- Radiohead, A Moon Shaped
Pool
- Frank Ocean, Blonde
Sean W Sends Word from the Underworld
This year I did actually buy something that resembles the present. So
here are my two picks for 2016:
Underworld, Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future
The 1975, I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so
unaware of it
Glenn B Looks Through the
Basement
A Weird List for a Weird
Year-
Here ’tis-
1) Basement- "Promise
Everything”
2) A Tribe Called Quest-
“We got it from Here…Thank You 4 Your service”
3) Bob Mould- “Patch The
Sky”
4) Kendrick Lamar-
"untitled unmastered.
5) Elliott Smith- “Heaven
Adores You Soundtrack”
6) Green Day- “Revolution
Radio”
7) ”David Bowie- “Black
Star”
8) Bruno Mars- “24K Magic”
9) Radiohead- “A Moon
Shaped Pool”
10) The Weeknd- “ Starboy”
Stef I Pokes the Animal
Here is my list:
ANIMAL by Big Scary (my number one).
And others on my list:
AWAKEN, MY LOVE! by Childish Gambino
THE COLOUR IN ANYTHING by James Blake
A MINERAL LOVE by Bibio
TELLURIC by Matt Corby
A SEAT AT THE TABLE by Solange
ANIMAL by Big Scary (my number one).
And others on my list:
AWAKEN, MY LOVE! by Childish Gambino
THE COLOUR IN ANYTHING by James Blake
A MINERAL LOVE by Bibio
TELLURIC by Matt Corby
A SEAT AT THE TABLE by Solange
Evan W Has More Fun
My albums in order of
importance are... Blonde by Frank Ocean; ANTI by
Rihanna; A Seat At The Table by Solange; and Views by Drake.
It was the year of incredible rap and hip-hop for me!!
Will W Goes Through Puberty
Albums:
1. Mitski, Puberty 2
2. Frank Ocean, Blonde
3. Solange, A Seat
at the Table
4. Bon Iver, 22, A
Million
5. Beyoncé, Lemonade
6. Sia, This Is Acting
SPECIAL ATHENS MUSIC SHOUT
OUT: Four Eyes, Welcome to Earth (https://foureyesathens.bandcamp.com/album/welcome-to-earth, contains my favorite song of the year, "St.
Francis Loves All the Animals")
Songs:
1. Four Eyes, "St.
Francis Loves All the Animals"
2. Mitski, "Your Best
American Girl"
3. Chance the Rapper,
"Same Drugs"
4. Sia, "Alive"
5. Beyoncé,
"Sorry"
6. Frank Ocean, "Self
Control"
7. Solange, "Don't
Wish Me Well"
8. Bon Iver,
"666[upside-down t]"
9. Rihanna,
"Higher"
10. Regina Spektor,
"Tornadoland"
Aaron H Loves LA
Favorite albums
1. La La Land
soundtrack
2. LANY - kinda
3. Satin Jackets -
Panorama Pacifico
Linas A Walks the Lin
At the risk of skewing
your results in a very dorky direction, it's been Lin-Manuel Miranda nonstop
since the election for me...
Various artists, Hamilton:
The Mixtape
actual Hamilton cast
recording
soundtrack to Moana
Jon S’s Bon Mots
The first time I heard 22,
A Million, I texted a friend of mine "This new Bon Iver is literally
killing me its so good.”
I stand by that hyperbole.
Bon Iver, 22, A Million
Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
A Tribe Called Quest, We
Got it From Here...Thank You 4 Your Service
Car Seat Headrest, Teens
of Denial
Mitski, Puberty 2
Adia Victoria, Beyond
the Bloodhounds
Angel Olsen, MY WOMAN
Minor Victories, Minor
Victories
Kate Tempest, Let Them
Eat Chaos
Explosions in the Sky, The
Wilderness
Collin R, Life of the Party
ESSENTIAL ALBUM
Andy Shauf, The Party
OTHERS
James Blake, The Colour in
Anything
Jessy Lanza, Oh No
Solange, A Seat at the
Table
Beyonce, Lemonade
Mitski, Puberty 2
Charlie XCX, Vroom Vroom -
EP
Bon Iver, 22, A Million
Carly Rae Jepsen, EMOTION
Side B
Frank Ocean, Blond
ANOHNI, Hopelessness
Lucius, Good Grief
Lucius, Good Grief
Chairlift, Moth
Angel Olsen, My Woman
Blood Orange, Freetown
Sound
Cakes Da Killa, Hedonism
SINGLES
Ariana Grande, Into You
PWR BTTM, New Hampshire
The 1985, Somebody Else
Sylvan Esso, Kick Jump
Twist
Perfume Genius, Can't Help
Falling in Love with You
Emmy L, No Stranger to Paul
Paul Simon, Stranger To
Stranger
Matthue R Wants it Darker
Essential album: Leonard
Cohen, You Want It Darker
2) Lady Lamb, Tender
Warriors Club
3) Bon Iver, 22, a Million
4) Regina Spektor,
Remember Us to Life
5) Alexander Hamilton,
Original Cast Recording
6) Emmy the Great, Second
Love
7) A Tribe Called Quest,
We got it from Here... Thank You 4 Your service (their capitalization, not
mine)
Best song that might not
be a song: Bon Iver, 715 - cr∑∑ks (his capitalization, not mine)
Best album that might not
be an album: The Avalanches, Wildflower
Best comeback: Nine Inch
Nails, Not the Actual Events. Can I explain this? I really didn't like
Hesitation Marks, their "return to form" a year or two ago. I'd just
gotten into them, was really needing some unrestrained angry music, and was
editing a book from 5 years ago which was ALL FREAKIN' ABOUT angry music and
angry sexuality. There was even a chapter called "I Will Make You
Hurt," which was ironic, and I really liked it that way. And then they
came out with a new album that sounded weirdly peaceful. Loud, but peaceful.
These new songs, though. They're tense as anything. They're like the diametric
opposite of Xanax. And I am so grateful.
Elisa L Takes a Seat
*Solange/A Seat at the
Table
Angel Olsen/My Woman
Steve Gunn/Eyes on the Lines
Wild Nothing/ Life of Pause
David Bowie/Blackstar
Angel Olsen/My Woman
Steve Gunn/Eyes on the Lines
Wild Nothing/ Life of Pause
David Bowie/Blackstar
Samantha M is on a Quest
1) A Tribe Called Quest,
We got it from Here...Thank you 4 Your service
2) The Kills, Ashes &
Ice
3) Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
Terribeth S Throws Some Tantrums
Fitz and the Tantrums,
Fitz and the Tantrums
1975, I Like it When You
Sleep for You are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It
Lumineers, Cleopatra
Tegan and Sara, Love You
to Death
Head and the Heart, Signs
of Light
Saint Motel,
saintmotelevision
Naked and Famous, Simple
Forms
St Lucia, Matter
Weezer, Weezer
Tribe Called Quest, We Got
It From Here, Thank You 4 Your Service
TB
Lance R, Puts One Iver on Us
My prediction is that
Lemonade is taking it this year.
But here's my #1:
Bon
Iver, 22, A Million
Other 2016 albums I love:
Tegan
and Sara, Love You to Death
Beyonce,
Lemonade
Original
Soundtrack, Moana
Aurora,
All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend
2016 singles I love:
Francis
and the Lights, "May I Have This Dance"
Empire
of the Sun, "High and Low"
The
1975, "The Sound"
Older albums I discovered
and loved:
2014:
Bleachers, Strange Desire
1998:
Outkast, Aquemini
Woo!
Stephen B Offers Up Hopelessness
I’ve been waiting for
this!
1. ANOHNI, HOPELESSNESS
(way too fitting for 2016, sadly)
2. Iggy Pop, Post Pop
Depression
3. David Bowie, Blackstar
4. Against Me!, Shape
Shift With Me
5. Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
[and here’s where I know
my list gets too obscure to line up with anyone else’s]
6. Bwana, Capsule’s
Pride
7. The Sword, High
Country/Low Country
8. Deftones, Gore
9. Pigeonchild, Pray to
the Cross in Between My Antlers
10. White Lung, Paradise
And honorable
mention/gayest album:
Alaska Thunderfuck 5000, Lil’
Poundcake
Nina G, Livin’ the Life
1. Kanye, The Life of
Pablo
2. Chance the Rapper,
Coloring Book
3. Rihanna, Anti
4. Beyonce, Lemonade
5. The Weeknd, Starboy
6. Childish Gambino,
“Awaken, My Love!"
7. DJ Snake, Encore
8. Angel Olsen, My Woman
9. Phantogram, Three
10. KAYTRANADA, 99.9%
Best new artist: Bishop
Briggs
Lauren M and Randy B Team Up and Go All American
1. Gangstagrass, American
Music
2. Tall Heights, River
3. Original Cast Album,
Hamilton
4. The National, Trouble
Will Find Me
5. José González,
"Stay Alive"
6. Johnny Cash,
"Hurt"
7. Disturbed, "The
Sound of Silence"
8. Vance Joy, "Fire
and the Flood"
9. Avicii, "The
Nights"
10. Tommy James and The
Shondells, "I Think We're Alone Now" (slowed down mix)
Stephanie P Looks to the Moon
I only had one essential
this year, but I'm happy to add it to your poll!
1) Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
Molly B Lets It Bey
Thanks for doing this --
it's a happy distraction this week.
Albums:
1. Beyonce, Lemonade (of
course)
2. Jamila Woods, HEAVN
(Chicago girl <3 o:p="">3>
3. Lizzo, Coconut Oil
(Lizzo is my happy place)
4. Common, Black America
Again (essential listening for the post-election blues)
5. Hamilton OBC (for the
second year in a row haha)
Singles:
1. Bey, Formation
2. Jamila Woods, Blk Girl
Soldier (SO GOOD)
3. Lizzo, Good as Hell
(the ultimate picker-upper!)
4. Avalanches, Because I'm
Me (ditto)
5. Common, Letter to the
Free
6. Maggie Rogers, Dog
Years (if she puts out an album in 2017, I predict it will be on next year's
list!)
7. Delta Spirit,
California (not a new song, but new to me in 2016)
8. Oh Wonder, Without You
(from 2015, discovered in 2016)
9. Hamilton Mixtape, Who
Tells Your Story
10. Hamiton Mixtape,
Satisfied
Special Recognition:
The Stranger Things theme
SNL, Crucible Cast Party
feat. Lin-Manuel Miranda
Pretty much every song
from Steven Universe <3 nbsp="" o:p="">3>
Hang in there in 2017,
everyone!!
Jeramey K is Free to Bey
Essential
Album:
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Essential
Albums Not By Beyoncé:
Glass Animals, How To Be A
Human Being
The Kills, Ash & Ice
Songs
I couldn't stop listening to after I saw drag queens perform them:
Grace Jones,
"Hurricane"
Patti LaBelle, "The
Alphabet"
RuPaul, "Read U Wrote
U" (the first 3/4s)
Songs
featured in TV and Film that forced me to have feelings:
Nina Simone,
"Stars" (BoJack Horseman)
Barbara Lewis, "Hello
Stranger" (Moonlight)
Rachel Bloom, "You
Stupid Bitch" (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)
Kate McKinnon,
"Hallelujah" (SNL)
Belinda Carlisle,
"Heaven is a Place on Earth" (Black Mirror)
Aimee F Goes to the Tape
Most Essential Album:
Various Artists, The Hamilton Mixtape.
And then my top 5 singles:
Beyonce, Formation (best
video too!)
Leonard Cohen, You Want It
Darker
Sia, Cheap Thrills
Rihanna, Work
DNCE, Cake By the Ocean (I
think this may technically have been a ’15 release, but I heard it for the
first time in ’16, maybe because I’m #old?)
Roberto R Gains Kontrol
Kristin Kontrol,
X-Communicate
I have a feeling I'm going
to be the ONLY person with that one.
Kathleen P Ades and Abets
Beyonce, Lemonade OF
COURSE
Otherwise essential:
Blood Orange, Freetown
Sound
Sia, This is Acting
Anderson .Paak, Malibu
Solange, A Seat at the
Table
Kanye West, The Life of
Pablo
Maya M Goes in Formation
No contest.
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Recommended listening
space: anytime, anywhere, for any occasion. No other music from 2016 matters.
However, IF other music
from 2016 did matter I would say:
The Avett Brothers, True
Sadness
Recommended listening
space: a hammock, preferably near water. If a hammock is unavailable, a horse
pasture will do.
Watsky, x Infinity
I had the same experience
with x Infinity that I did with every album he’s ever released. I listened to
it once and thought it was terrible. I listened a second time and found it
tolerable. I listened a third time and was awash in the feeling that he is a
true genius and national treasure. Recommended listening space: walking in
Manhattan.
Jukebox the Ghost, Long
Way Home
My favorite live album
from this year. A guaranteed good time.
Recommended listening
space: driving along a highway, outside of rush hour
A 2015 album I found in
January of 2016:
Mipso, Old Time Reverie
When you’re in Kentucky it
just feels right to listen to Mipso. When you’re far away it reminds you of
home. Recommended listening space: a forested area AND/OR Rabbit Hash, KY, a
town where the mayor is a democratically elected dog.
Jinny W Brings it Bach to Us
Most Essential Album:
*MURRAY PERAHIA: BACH—THE
FRENCH SUITES. Deutsche Grammophon. In some ways Bach is the father of us all,
and Murray Perahia lets the music narrate our tragedy, our solace, our joy.
Other Essential Albums:
*JOSHUA BELL, STEVEN
ISSERLIS, JEREMY DENK AND THE ACADEMY OF ST. MARTIN IN THE FIELDS: FOR THE LOVE
OF BRAHMS. Sony Classical. Potent
music-making by colleagues who continue to surprise one another in light and
shadow. Try to keep your heart from
breaking.
*DANIIL TRIFONOV:
TRANSCENDENTAL: DANIIL TRIFONOV PLAYS FRANZ LISZT. Deutsche Grammophon. The
complete concert études. Virtuosic and introspective power and flow. And he’s
only 25 years old.
*SHIRLEY HUNT, BAROQUE
CELLO & VIOLA DA GAMBA: J.S. BACH SUITES & SONATAS, VOLUME ONE.
Letterbox Arts. A versatile, adventurous Baroque cellist whose chops and
musical grace illuminate each performance.
Keirsten G is Feeling Swell
It’s hard to find a whole
album that I like but dug up a few:
Swell, theres still us EP
James Blake, The Colour of
Anything
Moderat, III
Sango, Hours Spent Loving
You
Who likes electronic
music?! I do! : )
Amanda M Picks a Lemon
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Mitski, Puberty 2
Things Can Only Get Better, Bill K
Here to add my two cents,
knowing for certain that my top pick will get just the one vote. But hey, this
is America, and it's still a Democracy (we think).
Top Album: Better/Haley
Reinhart
Other Essential Albums:
Lemonade/Beyonce
We Got It from Here.../A
Tribe Called Quest
Esperanza Spalding/Emily's
D+Evolution
In Case You Didn't
Know/Rhonda Ross
Top 10 Singles:
10. All In the Name/Bright
Light Bright Light
9. You Say/Dori Freeman
8. All We Ever Knew/The
Head and the Heart
7. Better/Haley Reinhart
6. Make Me Like You/Gwen
Stefani
5. We the People/A Tribe
Called Quest
4. Love Yourself/Justin
Bieber
3. All I Want/Rhonda Ross
2. Can't Stop the
Feeling/Justin Timberlake
1. I Belong to You/Haley
Reinhart
Drew L Takes it to the River
Great year for music, if
nothing else...
1. Okkervil River, Away
2. Conor Oberst,
Ruminations
3. Carseat Headrest, Teens
of Denial
4. John K. Samson, Winter
Wheat
5. Hamilton Leithauser +
Rostam, I Had a Dream That You Were Mine
6. Ezra Furman, Big
Fugitive Life
7. AJJ, The Bible 2
8. Parquet Courts, Human
Performance
Brian M Climbs Every Mountain
Here's my annual
contribution of albums most contributors couldn't care less about :)
Most Essential
Black Mountain, IV
Other Essential:
Goat, Requiem
Howlong Wolf, Owl
Jack White, Acoustic
Recordings 1998 - 2016
Sivert Hoyem, Lioness
Jim James, Eternally Even
Rolling Stones, Blue &
Lonesome
Woodpigeon, Trouble
Yeasayer, Amen and Goodbye
The Besnard Lakes, A
Coliseum Complex Museum
Korn, The Serenity of
Suffering
Woods, City Sun Eater in
the River of Light
Pete Doherty, Hamburg
Demonstrations
The Jayhawks, Paging Mr.
Proust
Ryley Walker, Golden Sings
That Have Been Sung
The Coral, Distance
Inbetween
Emma Ruth Rundle, Marked
for Death
Red Hot Chili Peppers, The
Getaway
Andy M Goes Blonde
1. Frank Ocean, Blonde
What can I say about this
one that hasn’t already been said? If the entire album consisted of “Nikes” it
would still probably be my #1 for 2016. Thankfully there are like 15 more
tracks.
2. Deftones, Gore
I don’t know how these
guys did it, but this—their eighth album—might be their best. Or at least tied
with White Pony. Triangles placed in your mind, indeed...
3. Katatonia, The Fall of
Hearts
This sounds a little bit
like Nick Drake fronting a melodic Swedish metal band. Melancholy and punishing
in roughly equal measure. Something for everybody!
Josh L in a Drive-By
Most essential:
Drive-By Truckers,
American Band
Honorable Mentions:
Babymetal, Metal
Resistence
Neil Young, Peace Trail
Elizabeth K Keeps Dreaming
Laura Mvula, The Dreaming
Room
Josephine, Portrait
Michael Kiwanuka, Love
& Hate
Tiffany S Goes from A/B to A/B
Looking through my
playlists, my year has been low on new music and high on lullabies.
Kaleo, A/B
Catfish and the Bottlemen,
The Ride
Hamilton Mixtape
Moana soundtrack :)
“Fire Escape” - Andrew
McMahon In the Wilderness
"All the Pretty
Girls” -” Kaleo
“Take it All Back” - Judah
and the Lion
“Closer” - Chainsmokers
“Spirits” - Strumbellas
“Lungs” - Vancouver Sleep
Clinic
“7” - Catfish and the
Bottlemen
Uada See Chris K’s List
Here you go, sir.
Album of the year: Uada, Devoid
of Light
The Lot:
2. Rebel Wizard, Triumph
of Gloom
3. Ghoul, Dungeon
Bastards
4. Kehmmis, Hunted
5. Not Blood Paint, Believing
Is Believing
6. Tombs, All Empires
Fall
7. Brutally Deceased, Satanic
Corpse
8. Ravencult, Force of
Profanation
9. Sumac, What One
Becomes
10. Mortem, Deinos
Nekromantis
Best Single of 2016:
Ghost, "Square
Hammer"
Best Album Art of 2016:
Lectern, Precept of
Delator
Blake N’s Rising Empire
Oh I only have one album:
Two Vines, Empire of the
Sun
One single:
Starboy, The Weeknd
One late discovery:
The National ( I know I
know)
Bryant P’s Ocean Playlist
Here's my list:
1) Frank Ocean, Blonde
2) Bon Iver, 22, A Million
3) Glass Animals, How to
Be a Human Being
4) Whitney, Light Upon the
Lake
5) Solange, A Seat at the
Table
6) James Blake, The Colour
in Anything
7) Car Seat Headrest,
Teens of Denial
Brant R Goes Through Hoops
My Essential Albums of
2016:
Hoops/EP, Tape #2, and Tape #3
Frankie Cosmos/Next Thing
Britta Phillips/Luck or Magic
Eleanor Friedberger/New View
Kevin Morby/Singing Saw
Kamaiyah/A Good Night In The Ghetto
Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam/I Had a Dream That You Were Mine
TV Girl/Who Really Cares
William Tyler/Modern Country
Tegan and Sara/Love You to Death
Benji Hughes/Songs in the Key of Animals
My Essential Tracks of 2016 (in mix order):
De La Soul/Exodus (Outro)
Hoops/Going Strong
Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam/Sick as a Dog
Frankie Cosmos/Fool
Anderson .Paak/Celebrate
Mitski/Fireworks
Eleanor Friedberger/A Long Walk
Britta Phillips/Drive
Anohni/Drone Bomb Me
Kamaiyah/I'm On (Prod. by Drew Banga)
Tegan and Sara/Boyfriend
TV Girl/(Do the) Act Like You Never Met Me
Justin Timberlake/Can't Stop the Feeling!
The Avalanches/Subways
Kool A.D./Rest in Power Dr. Sebi
Frank Ocean/White Ferrari
Belle and Sebastian/Olympic Village, 6AM
Benji Hughes/Longshot
Kevin Morby/Drunk and on a Star
Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein/Stranger Things
Solange/Rise
A Tribe Called Quest/The Space Program
Elder Albums I Found Essential in 2016:
The Carpenters/A Song for You [1972]
Buddy Miles/Them Changes [1970]
Three Dog Night/The Complete Hit Singles [1969-1975]
Patterson Hood/Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance [2012]
Daryl Hall & John Oates/Daryl Hall & John Oates [1975]
Brett Dennen/Loverboy [2014]
Junior Wells/Hoodoo Man Blues [1965]
Beach Fossils/Beach Fossils [2010]
Stereolab/Transient Random-Noise Bursts With Announcements [1993]
Buffalo Springfield/Buffalo Springfield [1966]
Toto/Toto [1978] (love isn’t always on time)
Hoops/EP, Tape #2, and Tape #3
Frankie Cosmos/Next Thing
Britta Phillips/Luck or Magic
Eleanor Friedberger/New View
Kevin Morby/Singing Saw
Kamaiyah/A Good Night In The Ghetto
Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam/I Had a Dream That You Were Mine
TV Girl/Who Really Cares
William Tyler/Modern Country
Tegan and Sara/Love You to Death
Benji Hughes/Songs in the Key of Animals
My Essential Tracks of 2016 (in mix order):
De La Soul/Exodus (Outro)
Hoops/Going Strong
Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam/Sick as a Dog
Frankie Cosmos/Fool
Anderson .Paak/Celebrate
Mitski/Fireworks
Eleanor Friedberger/A Long Walk
Britta Phillips/Drive
Anohni/Drone Bomb Me
Kamaiyah/I'm On (Prod. by Drew Banga)
Tegan and Sara/Boyfriend
TV Girl/(Do the) Act Like You Never Met Me
Justin Timberlake/Can't Stop the Feeling!
The Avalanches/Subways
Kool A.D./Rest in Power Dr. Sebi
Frank Ocean/White Ferrari
Belle and Sebastian/Olympic Village, 6AM
Benji Hughes/Longshot
Kevin Morby/Drunk and on a Star
Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein/Stranger Things
Solange/Rise
A Tribe Called Quest/The Space Program
Elder Albums I Found Essential in 2016:
The Carpenters/A Song for You [1972]
Buddy Miles/Them Changes [1970]
Three Dog Night/The Complete Hit Singles [1969-1975]
Patterson Hood/Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance [2012]
Daryl Hall & John Oates/Daryl Hall & John Oates [1975]
Brett Dennen/Loverboy [2014]
Junior Wells/Hoodoo Man Blues [1965]
Beach Fossils/Beach Fossils [2010]
Stereolab/Transient Random-Noise Bursts With Announcements [1993]
Buffalo Springfield/Buffalo Springfield [1966]
Toto/Toto [1978] (love isn’t always on time)
Derek M Peeks Out of His Cave
Most Essential Album:
-Nick Cave and the Bad
Seeds, Skelton Tree
Other albums of note:
-Bon Iver, 22, A Million
-Leonard Cohen, You Want
It Darker
-Mitski, Puberty 2
-Car Seat Headrest, Teens
of Denial
Most essential songs:
-Nick Cave and the Bad
Seeds, “I Need You” and “Distant Sky”
Iain S Feels it in His Soul
My 2016 new stuff
consumption has been tracks rather than albums, mostly. I give you (ahem)...:
De La Soul ( feat Snoop
Dogg), Pain
Vince Staples, Senorita
Mr Fingers, Outer Acid
Rae Sremmurd, Black
Beatles
Arabrot, The Gospel
Ultimate Painting, Bills
Warpaint, New Song
DJ Koze, Burn With Me
Not much use, and straining
for corroboration from your other pollsters perhaps.
Adam G Goes Gaga
Lady Gaga, Joanne! I wish
I could vote for it three times!!!
Preeti C, On a Hai
Can't wait to see what
bubbles up to the top!
1. Various Artists, Ae Dil
Hai Mushkil soundtrack
2. Various Artists,
Hamilton Mixtape
3. Riz MC, Englistan
4. Beyonce, Lemonade
5. Michael Giacchino, Rogue One Soundtrack
1. Pritam, Amit Mishra,
& Shilpa Rao, Bulleya
2. Beyonce, Freedom
3. K'naan, Snow Tha
Product, Riz Mc, & Residente, Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)
4. Bruno Mars, 24K Magic
And random oldie but
goodie I rediscovered and did not stop listening to in 2016:
1. Duran Duran, Ordinary
World
Bill C’s Song Song Blue
#1
Lila Blue, The Hollows Hold the Healing
Ray LaMontagne, Ouroboros
Bon Iver, 22, A Million
Lady Gaga, Joanne
The Weekend, Starboy
Sia, This is Acting
Justin Bieber, Purpose
Andy P’s Belated Invasion of Troye
I’m the worst with these…
um… and I’d nominate Troye Sivan, Blue Neighbourhood, but it apparently came
out in December of 2015, so I’m terrible.
Emmanuel H Sets the Table
My faves from 2016:
Solange, A Seat at the
Table
Banks, The Altar
Ariana Grande, Dangerous
Woman
Britney Spears, Glory
Rihanna, ANTI
Angel Olsen, MY WOMAN
Marisa P Waves Good-Bey
MOST
Beyoncé, Lemonade (OBVI)
OTHER
Bon Iver, 22,
A Million
Sia, This is Acting
John Paul White, Beulah
Charlie O’s Late Bloomer
Essential Album of the Year:
Beach House, Bloom
Others: Little Dragon, Nabuma Rubberband
Dead Flowers, Dead Flowers
The War on Drugs, Slave Ambient
The National, Trouble Will Find Me
Leonard Cohen, Songs of Leonard Cohen
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Architecture and Morality
Non-music
thing that gives me life: This guy’s
review of Patti Labelle’s Sweet Potato Pie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQRwFn7WPk8& (I want to love anything as much as this guy loves
Patti Labelle)
Teri Y’s B-Side Himself with Emotion
I went through my music
from 2016 and was a little shocked to discover I had only bought one complete
album: Carly Rae Jepsen, Emotion Side B
Plenty of other good music
from Sia, Tegan & Sara among others, but I guess CRJ wins my pick for album
by default. :-)
Jasper D Knows What He Wants and He Wants It NAO
Most essential album of
2016: NAO, For All We Know
My other very essential
albums:
Daughter, Not To Disappear
Poliça, United Crushers
Beyoncé, Lemonade
Keaton Henson, Kindly Now
Bon Iver, 22, A Million
My best discovery:
Benjamin Clementine, At
Least For Now (2014)
Kaleb N’s Acting Lessons
Best
Album
Sia, This Is Acting
Honorable
Mentions
Lady Gaga, Joanne
Ariana Grande, Dangerous
Woman
Best
Artwork
Young Thug, Jeffery (I
haven’t heard it but the art is 2016’s best)
Flume, Skin
Kate H’s First Ade
1) Beyonce, Lemonade
2) Bon Iver, 22, A Million
3) Phantogram, Three
4) Tegan and Sara, Love
You To Death
5) Sturgill Simpson, A
Sailor's Guide to Earth
Ronnie A Drives it Like She Stole It
My "alternative
facts" soundtracks from 2016:
Gary Clark, "Drive It
Like You Stole It," Sing Street
[Robbed of an Oscar
nomination for best song, and yeah, I'm looking at you, La La Land]
Mica Levi, Jackie
Danny Bensi and Saunder
Jurriaans, Christine
Nicholas Britell, Moonlight
Anne Dudley, Elle
Mark Korven, The Witch
[I dare you to listen to
the track "Witch's Coven" while you are alone.]
Jo Yeong-wook, The
Handmaiden
Nick Cave and Warren
Ellis, Hell or High Water
Jóhann Jóhannsson, Arrival
And finally, a
song written ten years ago but was performed Off-Broadway this year
and should be mandatory listening today:
Anaïs Mitchell, "Why
We Build the Wall" sung by the cast of Hadestown
Lindsay R, Yuri Tops the Jury
I have been trying for two
weeks to make a list, but I honestly don't care about anything except the Yuri
On Ice soundtrack.
And yes, that's my real
answer. >.>
Sia Later, Corey W
I'm just TOO behind on
music for this year's list. But I can't wait to see it anyway and have a
soundtrack for surviving the apocalypse.
PS: Sia's This is Acting
would be at the top of mine. :)
Tyler G Takes the Lemons He’s Been Given And…
My List:
1. Beyonce, Lemonade
2. Mitski, Puberty 2
3. Frank Ocean, Blonde
4. Margaret Glaspy,
Emotions and Math
For Jonathan V. III’s the Charm
I seriously didn't realize
that my favorite two albums of the year both had the same name (or that their
name...was a number) until just now:
1. Moderat, III
2. Miike Snow, iii
3. Anderson Paak, Malibu
4. Angel Olsen, My Woman
5. Beyoncé, Lemonade
6. Mirage, Digitalism
7. The Avalanches,
Wildflower
8. Omni, NAVVI
9. Frank Ocean, Blonde
10. Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
Biggest discoveries from
"the past":
The Chameleons, Script of
the Bridge - They were playing this band over the sound system at the Cobra
Club and I asked the bartender (who was in her 20s) "What band is
this?" Well, I am apparently zoned for this band agewise, because she
totally looked at me like I'd asked her if she knew what city we were in. Then
I mentioned this band to someone my age at work, and when I told him I'd never
heard of them he gave me the same look. This particular album, "Script of
the Bridge," rewards repeated listens, and makes dourness feel like
something that carries bragging rights--though when carried like this, it
totally does.
Fleetwood Mac, Tusk - I
wanted to hear this one because it's so infamous: the not-so-well-liked
follow-up to one of the most popular albums of all time. But unlike a lot of
other misunderstood experimental recordings, this is strong stuff, and fun.
It's also far enough ahead of its time to have, by now, actually arrived. (You
really have to do your homework to tell why it was ever considered weird to
begin with.) I wound up listening to it for like a month. One spin of
"Sisters of the Moon" and YES WE CAN have nice things...
Michael T Gives it a Headrest
My album of the year is
Car Seat Headrest, "Teens of Denial"
Followed by Rihanna,
"Anti"
Song of the year would
have to be "Black Beatles" by Rae Sremmurd, no contest.
Chris R’s Solange, Farewell
1. Solange, A Seat at the
Table
2. Bon Iver, 22 A Million
3. Beyonce, Lemonade
4. SALES, Sales Lp
5. Lumineers, Cleopatra
Christopher P Has Something on His Conscious
Look forward to
participating every year. Here's what I got for 2016:
Broods, Conscious
Lucius, Good Grief
El Perro Del Mar, KoKoro
Anohni, Hopelessness
Mayer Hawthorne, Man About
Town
Sia, This Is Acting
Roisin Murphy, Take Her Up
To Monto
Garbage, Strange Little
Birds
Teddy Thompson & Kelly
Jones, Little Windows
Ladyhawke, Wild Things
Elizabeth W, Sitting on the Dock of the Bey
Such a weird year…
Essential Album
Beyonce, Lemonade
Tribe Called Quest, We Got
it From Here…Thank You 4 Your Service
Radiohead, Moon Shaped
Pool
Solange, Seat at the Table
Singles
Beyonce, Formation
Nick E, in the Gloaming
Unfortunately, I didn’t
find much new music I loved in 2016. Even Bon Iver, whose previous albums are
among my favorites, didn’t win me over this time. In truth my favorite album of
this year was LAST year’s Carrie & Lowell by Sufjan Stevens. I listened to
it at least once a week in 2016.
I’ve got high hopes for
2017, already loving the singles from upcoming Magnetic Fields and Slowdive
albums.
Here’s what I liked OK
this year:
1.
The Gloaming, 2
2.
Conor Oberst, Ruminations
3.
Minor Victories, Minor Victories
Favorite new song:
Minor Victories,
“Scattered Ashes (Song for Richard)”
Favorite new song to dance
to:
Ariana Grande, “Into You”
And favorite new song from
a movie soundtrack:
Sing Street, “Drive It
Like You Stole It”
Maggie S Gives It Her Very Best
My Top 12 2016 Singles
with The Most Plays:
1. "Don't Let Me Down
(feat. Daya)" - The Chainsmokers
2. "Boomerang" -
She is We
3. "Baby Moses"
- Joden Klassen
4. "Choke" -
OneRepublic
5. "Empty" -
PVRIS
6. "Undertow" -
Satchmode
7. "Life Itself"
- Glass Animals
8. "Team" - Iggy
Azalea
9. "Gerson's
Whistle" - Yeasayer
10. "Hope" -
Jordan Max
11. "River" -
Bishop
12. "Breakin'
Point" - Peter Bjorn and John
Top 2016 Albums
Mumford & Sons, The
Very Best, & Baaba Maal - Johannesburg
(If you don't feel
something when "Si Tu Veux" plays, you have no feelings left).
SAFIA, Internal
(this collects all of
their really punchy singles into one place, finally)
Tove Lo, Lady Wood
(yeah, yeah, I know, me
and everyone else)
Lawrence U, Wrking for the Weeknd
Top 10 Albums of 2016
Albums
25 – Adele (from
last year)
Starboy - The Weeknd
Waitress (Original
Broadway Cast Recording)
The Color Purple (New
Broadway Cast Recording)
It Doesn't Have To Make
Sense - Ingrid Michaelson
Signs of Light - The Head
and the Heart
Singles
Hello - Adele
Water Under The Bridge -
Adele
Hell No - Ingrid
Michaelson
I’m Here - Cynthia Erivo
Starboy - The Weekend
You Matter to Me -
Waitress Original Broadway Cast
Reminder - Starboy
All We Ever Knew - The
Head and the Heart
John A Goes West (Is Life Peaceful There?)
1. Kanye West, The Life of
Pablo
2. Band of Horses, Why Are
You Ok
3. Diiv, Is the Is Are
4. Radiohead, A Moon
Shaped Pool
5. A Tribe Called Quest,
We got it from Here...Thank You 4 Your service
6. Rogue Wave, Delusions
of Grand Fur
7. Preoccupations, Preoccupations
8. Frank Ocean, Blonde
9. Parquet Courts, Human
Performance
10. Twenty One Pilots,
TOPxMM
Billy M’s Daddy Said Shoot
Here are my top albums of
2016!
1. Lemonade by Beyonce
2. Ego Death by The
Internet
3. Everything Is Burning
by IAMX
4. The Altar by Banks
5. Waitress (Original Cast
Recording)
Other contenders:
Human Ceremony by
Sunflower Bean
A Moon Shaped Pool by
Radiohead
Late to the game
discoveries / obsessions:
Let England Shake by PJ
Harvey
Heavy Starch by Dirty Art
Club