The Best Records of 2016

By most accounts 2016 was a shit year. From the deaths of musicians that shaped the way we listen to music to our own personal losses and struggles, most of us are glad to put this year to rest. With all the deaths in music from David Bowie to Leonard Cohen to Pauline Oliveros, whose music deeply and profoundly changed the way I listen, there was still a lot of great music released in 2016. These lists can easily get out of hand, so I limited myself to 13 of my favourites from this year. I could have easily made this list 25, 50, or even 100 albums long, but I chose to keep it brief. These following records, for one reason or another, got me through the year. A dark list? Perhaps.

1. Colin Stetson - Sorrow
   

   
2. Maja Ratkje - Crepuscular Hour
   

   
3. Jenny Hval – Blood Bitch
   

   
4. David Bowie – Blackstar
   

   
5. Leonard Cohen – You Want it Darker
   

   
6. Klara Lewis – Too
   

   
7. Angel Olsen – My Woman
   

   
8. Sean McCann – Music for Public Ensemble
   

   
9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Skeleton Tree
   

   
10. Weyes Blood – Front Row Seat to Earth
    

    
11. Ian William Craig - Centres
    

    
12. Felicia Atkinson & Jefre Cantu-Ledesma – Comme Un Seul Narcisse
    

    
13. Susanna – Triangle
    

    

My Favorite Records of 2015

My Favorite Records of 2015

This year I decided to narrow down my list a bit. Below are my 33 favorite records of 2015 with #1 being my absolute favorite. All of them are exceptional and are well worth a listen. They only represent a fraction of what I purchased and listened to throughout the year but for one reason or another somehow stood out. The list represents a combination of LPs, downloads, and compact cassettes.

1. Holly Herndon – Platform
   
2. Felica Atkinson – A Readymade Ceremony
   
3. Jenny Hval – Apocalypse Girl
   
   
   
4. Mette Henriette – S/T
   
   
   
5. FKA twigs – M3LL155X
   
   
   
6. Colin Stetson and Sarah Neufeld – Never were the way she was
   
   
   
7. Lucrecia Dalt – Ou
   
   
   
8. Matana Roberts – Coin Coin Chapter Three: River Run Thee
   
   
   
9. Julia Holter – Have You in My Wilderness
   
   
   
10. Circuit des Yeux – In Plain Speech
    
    
    
11. Bjork – Vulnicura
    
    
    
12. D'Angelo and the Vanguard – Black Messiah
    
    
    
13. Colleen – Captain of None
    
    
    
14. Ibeyi – S/T
    
    
    
15. Laurie Anderson – Heart of a Dog
    
    
    
16. GABI – Sympathy
    
    
    
17. Carter Tutti Void – f(x)
    
    
    
18. Chrstina Vantzou – No. 3
    
    
    
19. Darius Jones Quartet featuring Emilie Lesbros - Le bébé de Brigitte (Lost in Translation)
    
    
    
20. Akira Sakata & Jim O'Rourke with Chikamorachi & Merzbow – Flying Basket
    
    
    
21. Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress
    
    
    
22. Via Tania and the Tomorrow Music Orchestra
    
    
    
23. Dave Douglas – High Risk
    
    
    
24. The Revolutionary Army Of The Infant Jesus – Beauty Will Save The World
    
    
    
25. Deradoorian – The Expanding Flower Planet
    
    
    
26. Tiger Village – In Stereo
    
    
    
27. ZS – Xe
    
    
    
28. Rrose – Having Never Written A Note for Percussion
    
    
    
29. Beach House – Thank Your Lucky Stars
    
    
    
30. Kim Kashkashian / Sarah Rothenberg / Steven Schick / Robert Simpson - Rothko Chapel: Morton Feldman, Erik Satie, John Cage
    
    
    
31. King Midas Sound & Fennesz – Edition 1
    
    
    
32. Milford Graves & Bill Laswell – The Stone
    
    
    
33. Gwenno Saunders – Y Dydd Olaf