What a year, what a year of music. There were drone attacks, midnight surprise drops, the 1990s, earthquakes, tsunamis, low-flying panic attacks. Although I have to say, and this may be apparent by the fact that it's going up on December 30, this year has been among the least prepared I’ve felt going into a best of music list. There was a lot of music I liked a ton for sure, but there was also a lot out there I feel like I didn’t get to. Maybe a sign of busyness, or the slow-motion trainwreck that the year was. I felt more distracted from art in musical form than in other years. (I swear I'm going to get back to my podcast)
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Blue Line 15: Pep Pep
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music, and other sounds. An homage to the free-roaming chihuahuas of southern Arizona.
The Sun Roars Into View by Colin Stetson & Sarah Neufeld
Have Love Will Travel by The Thing
Recovery by Sonne
Arpeggiated Love by The Field
Empire Systems by Rafael Anton Irisarri
Birds Fly By Flapping Their Wings by Biosphere
No Eyes by Donny McCaslin
Best Music of 2015
I love year end lists. Love reading them, love writing them. Something about listing music in particular captures the spirit of the year in a bottle. So here's mine. I don’t have many thematic insights this year, except the fact that in some years my favorite artists let me down and this was not one of those years. I think Calexico, Protomartyr, and Sleater-Kinney of all bands, put out records at the top of their body of work. And some surprises from bands like Jamie XX and Grimes, who I was only a little into before but blew me away this year. And of course, all of the runners up, mostly because I just haven't had a chance to listen enough—Titus Andronicus, Beach Slang, Eskimeaux, a Mount Eerie record I somehow completely missed. So without further ado.
Read MoreBlue Line 14: Hartland
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds, including the frogs and crickets of rural Vermont this round.
Le Goudron, Brigitte Fontaine
Focus On Sanity, Ornate Coleman
Scud Books, Hudson Mohawke
Ages Upon Ages Upon You, Prefuse 73
Pandi, The Bug
Nattoget Spokelser, Dirty Knobs
Sweet Slow Baby, The Field
Total Strife Forever I, East India Youth
Blue Line 13: A Wonderful Day
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds. Why wouldn't you take the opportunities presented to you? Someone is going to. Someone has to.
Maximus to Gloucester, Letter 27 (Withheld), Bang on a Can All-Stars
Motherless Child, Romare
Lonely At The Top, Holly Herndon/Beatrice Pt. 2, The Dead Texan
Aluminum, The Thing
Window Seat, Portico Quartet
While the Cold Winter Waiting, Trentemøller
Morning Sun, Holly Herndon
Wish, Flying Saucer Attack
A Wonderful Day, Bag on a Can All-Stars
Blue Line 12: 17 Years
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds. Feeding on xylem fluids from the roots of deciduous forest trees in the eastern United States.
Gosh, Jamie XX
Expect, Balam Acab
A Little Long Way, Woo
Before Tigers (Gold Panda Remix), Health
Interlude
Folie a deux, Nicolas Jaar
diskhat ALL prepared1mixed 13, Aphex Twin
The Wizard, Albert Ayler
Klimek - ruined in a day (buenos aires), Pop Ambient
Peace Piece, Bill Evans
Summer Cicada Sound, Escape to Nature
Blue Line 11: Humm
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds. After a wedding-related hiatus, the podcast is back.
Scaling Snowdon, Daedelus
Chimes for Dreams, Jeff Bridges
Virus, Bjork
Hummmmmm, Jeff Bridges
Lo Boob Oscillator
Second Narrows, Loscil
Like Home, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
Gillie Amma, I Love You, Four Tet
The Sailor's Bonnet, The Gloaming
An Owl With Knees, The Books
Best Music of 2014
I was kind of down on 2013 in general when I did a roundup last year, but I have to say that 2014 is the best year for music I can remember, since maybe 2007. Which makes me think maybe there’s some kind of math thing that creates a surge of great music every seven years, although more likely it means I have some kind of brain disorder. But the striking thing about 2014 is how deep the bench was. There were some standouts, but the list of great music that I liked was really long, and consistent. And there was so much I just never got to. I have a long list of music to catch up on and I’m finding all kinds of great stuff buried in others people's lists.
Read MoreBlue Line 10: Winter Moths
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds. Adults are active in the depth of winter.
Twiceshy, Submerse
Piano Months, Teebs
Cut Into Pieces, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Nose Grows Some, Thom Yorke
Another Body, Lawrence English
Aperitif, Brian Reitzell
The Magic of the Autodidact, Christina Vantzou
Suite No. 2 in D Minor, Yo Yo Ma
Loomer, My Bloody Valentine
Blue Line 9: Metropolitan Woods
in Blue Line
Mix of mostly instrumental, electronic, ambient music and other sounds. Welcome to the neighborhood.
Sin Guia, No, Juana Molina
Tricky Pose, The Range
Nouveau Nova, Daedelus
Sister, Christina Vantzou
Silo Tear, Kid Smpl
Ghost in the Room, Oneida
Liminality, Fennesz
The Field, Jon Hopkins
The River, John Hopkins
I'll Be Around, Yo La Tengo