I’ve not presented a list in the end of year malarkey gubbins for many a moon and I won’t be doing so again this year no siree Bob. However I will submit this wee list of the 2019 recordings that have helped keep me hog’s hairs supple and moist on more than one splattering outing. So without further blather off we go.
In no particular order of excellence.
Shake Stew – Gris Gris.
Nicolas Parent Trio – Mirage.
Greg Foat – The Mage.
Greg Foat – The Dreaming Jewels.
Cochemea – All My Relations.
Alfa Mist -Structurlism.
The Comet Is Coming – Trust In The Lifeforce Of The Mystery.
The Comet Is Coming – The Afterlife.
Ezra Collective – You Can’t Steal My Joy.
Joe Armon Jones – Turn To Clear View.
Lorenzo Feliciati & Michele Rabbia – Antikythera.
75 Dollar Bill – I Was Real.
Matthew Halsall – Oneness.
Resavoir – Resavoir.
Slow Meadow – Happy Occident.
Wayes Blood – Titanic Rising.
Fred Pallem – L’ odyssee Remix.
Caterina Barbieri – Ecstatic Computation.
Michael Kiwanuka – Kiwanuka.
Nils Frahm. All Encores.
Bersarin Quartett – Methoden Und Maschinen.
Jacob Collier – D’jesse Vol. 2.
Ruby Rushton – Ironside.
Floating Points – Crush.
Hector Plimmer – Next To Nothing.
Underworld & The Necks – Appleshine Continuum.
Portico Quartet – Memory Streams.
Karl Hector & The Malcouns – Non Ex Orbis.
Dustin O’Halloran – Other Lights.
Nerija – Blume.
Marcus Hamblett – Detritus.
Sarah Tandy – Infection In The Sentence.
Ash Walker – Aquamarine.
Yazz Ahmed – Polyhymnia.
Modern Nature – How To Live.
Sharon Van Etten – Remind Me Tomorrow.
Joan Shelley – Like the River Loves The Sea.
Faye Webster – Atlanta Millionaire’s Club.
And a smattering of E.P.s…
Rosie Turton – Rosie’s Five.
Ben Hayes – See Sun.
Dark Sky – Cold Harbour.
Four Tet – Anna Painting.
Kokoroko – Kokoroko.
I hope somebody finds something enjoyable amongst that lot.
Toodle pip.
Now then, I have hardly heard of any of them, but how am I to perceive the equivalent of the Arlet, to which you recommended me? I am playing that constantly nowadays – one of the great Afterword leads for me.
Well Mr. Cat knowing your musical predilections I would suggest you lend an ear to the Jacob Collier album. He’s an interesting young fella, a bit of a genius I reckons. This is the second of a proposed four album cycle in which he is using his prodigious musical talents across as many genres of music as possible. This is the sorta folk-ish one a bit kinda.
I cannot read the name Arlet without mentally saying it in Pencil voice. Aaaahlettt. Magnificent. I think we were on the same podcast when it came up Cat?
That’s right. It was no impulse purchase, but I kept the name in mind before eventually getting round to it. It’s a delight. It well scratches a current minimalist itch, crossreferencing Three Cane Whale and the cyclical styles of much of my dance music.
Are we talking about the Arlet album “Clearing”? The one with the green cover? That’s a little cracker!
The very one. They released a second album in 2016 called Big Red Sun, more of the same and why not. It’s available from Bandcamp.
Mr. Cat try Kate & Raphael’s album from 2017 if you haven’t already done so. I think it would be right up your cobbled gunny.
‼️Spoonerism alert!
😇
Well, as it happens, I was support for Kate & Raphael a couple of years ago when they were touring that album, and I catch up with Kate every now and then. She really is a genuine one-off, I reckon.
Point of Order
What is this support gig? Your solo singing?
Yup. Unplugged and unaccompanied.
Big Red Sun is the one I have.
Arlet? Is this who you are talking about?
I presume this is not who you are talking about!
Actually they sound rather fun.
Shower of bloody hippies.
Ooo, and there was me thinking it a quiet year in classictronica, and there you have me spotting a new Bersarin Quartett, a Dustin O’Halloran and a Nils Frahm, needing a quick hold the back page. I have the Floating Points in Mrs Path’s stocking, she (astonishingly) saying she liked it, on my increasingly rare moments of forcing her off the kitchen spotify speaker. (It’s been all Kovacs and Fink with her this year…….) Loads of stuff I haven’t heard of, give or take the lady chantoozies like Joan and Weyes: can you genrify some of the more arcane names to save you becoming Duco02
I love that Modern Nature track 1, it then fizzling out a bit. A real King Creosote vibe to it.
Dustin O’Halloran’s “Other Lights” mini-album was released in 2012.
Perhaps there was a slip of Squeezer’s pencil, and he in fact meant a different Dustin O’Halloran album?
Of course, Dustin O’Halloran is very much a part of A Winged Victory for the Sullen, who have a splendid new album out, “The Undivided Five”
I consider being mentioned in the same breath as the estimable Mr Duco01 a decided honour. I find his end of the year appraisal a stimulating read, akin to being pursued across rapidly melting ice floes by a ravenously hungry Polar Bear. Tense, exhilarating and unexpected as I live in Wales.
That’s a list full of wonderful music, Pencil. Many of the albums therein will be appearing in the duco01 Top 50 New Albums of 2019 in a couple of weeks’ time.
I see that the 75 Dollar Bill record is the 2019 album of the Year in the Wire magazine. 75 Dollar Bill are indeed an interesting band. They’re playing live in Stockholm next Monday (9 December). Where are they playing? A huge arena? A big theatre? A cool rock club? Nope, they’re playing a back room in Rönnells antiquarian bookshop. Bizarre!
Diolch Duco. I picked up on 75 Dollar Bill upon their first record release. Indeed I think that year was the last time I bothered with these end of the year (pier) shenanigans. Unheimlich.
I do hope you are attending their bookshop gig. It sounds like a little slice of heaven in prospect. Music & books who could ask more?
The Dustin O’Halloran is an odd one. You are quite correct in it being listed as an earlier release. However it is also being listed as 2019 maybe it’s been issued again with extra cuts? It’s new to me anyhoo and the music is timeless so bugger pedantry and let’s noodle… politely.
Does 75 Dollar Bill involve banjo?
Not a banjo to be heard. Try it you may like it.
What a lovely list full of gems. But not enough Jazz or sweet, female voices for my taste. Where’s Beyoncé, for example? Her Homecoming is a classic live album that should be in every household.
Blimey there’s no pleasing you Pop obsessed youngsters is there!
There is a ton of Jazz listed depending upon how loosely one applies the term and I apply it loosely daddio. So get hep to flow and don’t spit on my fairy cake and call it icing.
Beyonce is soooo last decade darling. I wouldn’t besmerch me dainty cockleshell lugholes with such as ‘er.
How about The Comet Is Coming isn’t Jazz but Joe Armon-Jones is? I pick on him because he sounds Welsh.
Anyway, this year’s Beyoncé is Lana Del Ray.
You’re just weird.
Ok Stripey how about I nonchalantly throw Binker Golding’s album Abstractions Of Reality Past And Incredible Feathers onto my list. How’d you dig those apples picky?
Not heard those. Ishall have to look out for them.
I saw Binker as part of the supporting trio to Seed Ensemble the other week. Have seen him previously in Sarah Tandy’s band.
I thought you were talking about two different albums there, but seemingly not. Is he trying to put people off with that title?
Anyway, I had a listen on Spotify earlier and was mightily impressed. Tenor sax/piano/double bass/drums quartet with no extra guests, frills or trickery playing pretty straight-ahead jazz. Excellent playing from all, especially Binker on sax and Joe Armon Jones on piano. Good compositions and very well-recorded. Possibly my favourite release yet from that exceptional stable of young London musicians.
Yup just cracking straight ahead Jazz daddio. There are a number of brilliant young British Jazzers around at the moment but you know that.
Binker! What an odd name. He sounds like a pupil at Greyfriars or one of BoJo’s cronies.
I don’t see him being booked to play at a Bullingdon Club dance, somehow.
Bull’s eye! Binker Golding’s is my favourite new jazz of the year.
* Nonchalantly polishes his fingernails on the lapels of his peacoat*
Hey @pencilsqueezer good to see your post on here.
both 75 Dollar bill and Joan Shelley would have appeared on mine if
Bugger the rules. Rules are for squares man. List as many as you like. Freedom for Tooting!
@pencilsqueezer great to see your post on here mate. Both 75 Dollar Bill and Joan Shelley would have appeared on my list if I hadn’t restricted myself to 20. Both great albums.
Nice to see you here, Pencil That is a doozy of a list. A few names that I know and like and several that I have never heard of. I look forward to getting to know them.
Hmm. You fear you are morphing into DuCool? It might be an idea to consult your GP. If you nip it in the bud, you may be able to avoid the discomfort of 90 minute long atonal, free jazz, hurdy gurdy improvisations from North Norway.
Don’t Fear The Duco. I am resolutely my own person. Damaged and obstreperous. Difficult and awkward but I own myself entirely. Our tastes do enjoy a degree of crossover. This is a good thing. For me at least.
This list is not really about what I consider to be the year’s finest musical releases, I find the exercise of making objective judgements about the subjective pointless, what it represents is a cross section of the recordings I have listened to fairly frequently as the year has moved inexorably onward. There are others but these sprang to mind most readily.
Last year with your permission I included your picks in the ‘official’ poll. I’m happy to do the same again this year but given your “pointless” remarks I will wait for your aye or nae
Fine by me Mr. Wrongness. I couldn’t face the thought of all that typing again.
Don’t fear the duco . Laughed out loud at that .
Hurdy Gurdy improvisations, you say? Bring ’em on.
From the Lemon to the Squeezer.
I was intrigued by your list, having only heard of approximately one third of the artists on it, but liking enough of the those to believe there may be something in the unknown two thirds for me I made a Spotify playlist of track 6 from each of your choices.
At the risk of sounding like I’m a terrible crawly bum lick, I can confirm it’s a tremendous playlist and I thank you for posting.
You are a terrible crawly bum lick
Dear Mr Citrus Fruit, delighted you like it. May I ask a pertinent question?
Why track six?
You have to have a system.
And it works as well as any other.
I mean, what would you pick – track 1? Hahahahaha, ridiculous! [ 😉 ]*
* only joking @kaisfatdad
I do like the idea of taking the 6th track, lemon. Dullard that I am, I went for either the title track or the first track.
In some cases the first track seems to be very short or looked suspiciously noodly, so I took something else.
Aren’t Suspiciously Noodly a Steely Dan tribute act?
I’ve hear only a few of what looks a fascinating list. Have you heard the Snarky Puppy and the Bill Laurence records Pencil?
I have indeed. I’m a long time fan so obviously I like both recordings. They almost ended up on this list but I had to stop somewhere. That’s the only reason they are absent. You’ve just given them a nudge so all is well.
One fine day I will travel up to North Wales, have a pint and listen to some jazz with you, Pencil.
In the meantime, this playlist should take my lugholes on a pleasant ramble through the Kingdom of Squeezer.
I am really looking forward to hearing what all these artists actually sound like. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks butty. Lush.
Some mighty good selections there, Mr. Squeezer.
Another one you might like is “Driftglass” by SEED Ensemble. A ten-piece band out of the same stable as Kokoroko, Rosie Turton, Sarah Tandy, Nerija etc. Two trumpets, alto sax, tenor sax, trombone, tuba, keyboards, guitar, bass & drums. A very pleasant noise.
https://seedensemble.bandcamp.com/album/driftglass
I was impressed by saxophonist Dave O’Higgins and guitarist Rob Luft (and their organist Scott Flanigan) when I saw them recently. Especially Rob Luft, who is a very talented young guy. They have a great album out this year, “O’Higgins & Luft Play Monk & Trane”.
Someone else who impressed me when I saw her play was harpist Alina Bzhezhinska. Very much in the style of Alice Coltrane and Dorothy Ashby but using looping (subtly) in her solo performance. Her album “Inspiration” was released in 2018 though, so doesn’t qualify for this year’s lists.
I am delighted to report that all three albums that you mention are on Spotify, Mike.
I am just giving the SEED Ensemble a quick listen before bedtime. Very nice indeed!
Thanks Mike. I’ve heard Alina Bzhezhinska and as you say Inspiration is a little gem. The other two are new to me and will be getting an airing very shortly as I tackle the vexing question of the various hues of green. Which ones where and at what value and how saturated.