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