Trying to listen to a lot of music means that it is hard to find the time for repeated plays and the accompanying brain power that allows for a discerning “Best of “ list. So, this list is by no means complete, however, here are some of the records that a few folks at GGR found the time to listen to and enjoy this year:
Clint Holley (www.wellmademusic.net)
X- Live in Latin America
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio – Live at KEXP
Various – The Earnest Tube Presents: Analog Rebellion
Sam Lewis – Loversity
The Mavericks – Hey! Merry Christmas!
Belle Plaine – Malice, Mercy, Grief and Wrath
Tim Easton – Paco and the Melodic Polaroids
Cadabra Records – Edgan Allen Poe – The Black Cat
Witch – Salem’s Rise
St. Paul and the Broken Bones – Young, Sick Camilla
Dave Polster (www.wellmademusic.net)
Tim Easton – Paco & The Melodic Polaroids
The Village Bicycle – Terraforma
Cheap Trick – The Epic Archive, Vol. 2
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Polygondwanaland
Kelly Moran – Optimist
V/A – Queen City Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Pet Envy – For Keeps / Get Over It 7″
The Nazz – Fungo Bat Acetates
Anti-Flag – Their System Doesn’t Work For You
Birds of Chicago – Love in Wartime
V/A – Flower Moon Records
The Earnest Tube – Analog Rebellion
Monophonics – Bang Bang 7″
The Daves – Now and Then
Sam Lewis – Loversity
Bulldada – What a Bunch of Bulldada
Ricky Hell and the Voidboys – S/T
V/A – Ayahuasca: Cumbias Psicodélicas Vol. 1
Priscilla Renea – Coloured
Noel Quintana – Noel Quintana and the Latin Crew, Vol. 1
Ben Pirani – How Do I Talk To My Brother?
The White Blinds – Get To Steppin’
Brian Owens – Soul of Cash
Preflight Fantasy – Adventure
Edgar Allen Poe – The Black Cat
Cash Rivers – Do Not Try To Adjust Your Set I Am The Horizontal And The Vertical
V/A/Bungie – Destiny Original Soundtrack
swimclubtv – Waiting For the Night EP (Cut from 1/4″ Analog Tape!)
Alice Cooper – Live at the Astroturf
Basik Lee – 7
Vic Berger IV – The Cabinets and the Cupboards
The Mavericks – Hey! Merry Christmas!
Jesse Gannon – S/T
Witch – Salem’s Rise (2018 Reissue)
Bwak Dwagon – Underground and Passed Around
Matt Duncan – Free Music
Lupe Fiasco – Drogas Wave
Queen of Hell – Queen of Hell II
Larry Elefante – I Get Sentimental
Matt Earley
Ace of Cups – S/T
The Americans – I’ll Be Yours
Amy Rigby – The Old Guys
Asylum Party – Borderline
Belle Plaine — Malice, Mercy, Grief and Wrath
Ben Pirani — How Do I Talk To My Brother
Bill Eberle – Soft Light
Birds of Chicago – Love In Wartime
Black Pumas – Black Moon Rising B/W Fire
Bodega – Endless Scroll
Brian Auger and the Trinity — Berliner Jazzstage 1968
Broncho – Bad Behavoir
Cabdrivers – It’s Yours
Cash Rivers — Do Not Try To Adjust Your Set I Am The Horizontal And The Vertical
Chad Taylor – Myths & Morals
Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7 – The Basement Beat
Chris Shiflett – West Coast Town
The Choir – I’d Rather You Leave Me
Cochemea – Song of Happiness B/W Stranded In Space
Colter Wall – Songs of the Plains
Crush The Junta – Hermanos de la Muerte
Dean Wareham – Vs. Cheval Sombre
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio – Live at KEXP
Dr. Dog – Critical Equation
Eric – Eric
Erik Jekabson – Erik Jekabson Sextet
Ernie Johnson From Detroit – S/T
Expo 70 – Mother Universe Has Birther her Last Cosmos
Flamingo Rodeo – Said Unsaid
Frntbznzz – Cool It
Garrett T. Capps – In The Shadows (Again)
GBV — Ogre’s Trumpet
Huntertones – Passport
Index — Originals
James Booker – The Lost Paramount Tapes
Jr. Thomas & The Volcanos — Rockstone
La Redada – Avandaro Bogaloow
Laura Jane Grace & Devouring Mothers – Bought To Rot
Little Georgia – All The While
Los Sospechos – Postales Soundtrack
Luke Winslow-King – Mesa
Merzhexa — Achromatic
Middle Western – When Your Demons Are Underground and You’ve Got To Dig Them Up
Night People – Can’t Keep Crying
Princes of Nigeria – Alan Pozzer B/W Mugu Chase
The Modern Mannequins – Discography
O.A.R. – Any Time Now
OJT – New Originals For The Green Lady
Phyllis Dillon – One Life To Live
Quinn Deveaux – This Could Be Yours
Republican Hair – High and Tight / The Prince & The Duke
Ryan Martin – Gimme Some Light
Sam Lewis – Loversity
Sarah Shook & The Disarmers – Years
Sha La Das – Love In The Wind
St. Paul & The Broken Bones – Young Sick Camellia
Strapping Fieldhands – Alluvium Trinkets
Surgeons In Heat – Bored Immortals
The True Loves – The Dapper Derp
Tim Buckley – Live At The Troubadour
Witch – Salem’s Rise
Mitch Ribis
Inmates- “Creatures of the Night”
Witch-“Salem’s Rise”
Government Alpha/ Bastard Noise split
Sarah Snyder
Alex & Tokyo Rose – Akuma
Cave In – Until Your Heart Stops
Thrice – Palms
Goblin – Suspiria/Dawn of the Dead
Wax Mage Records Collection 2: Double Trouble
Steve Sandly
Inmates- Creatures of the Night 7″ (A+ thrash punk)
Tough Skins -Rock Quarry 7″ (100% goof punk)
Blue Oyster Cult- Rarities Volume 2 (100% Classic Rock Don’t Fear/Godzilla Style)
Hyper as Hell- 1987 Demos (Classic Kent Ohio punk thrashers)
Kyuss -Welcome to Sky Valley (Best 1994 repress ever, Stoner Rock Hall of Fame)
Hide- Castration Anxiety (Dark zone out trance vibes, scary stuff really)
Neutron Rats-Primitive Past, Nuclear Future (Heavy punk thrash, total the exploited worship)
Grimez- Absolute Existence (Soothing reggae jazz aztec tribal music)
Expo 70- Mother Universe Has Birthed Her Last Cosmos (100% meditation music, very relaxing)
Tim Thornton
Adult. – This Behavior (Dais)
Matt Akers – Rage (Lunaris)
Ambienti Coassiali – Vol. 1 (Reissue, Incidental Music)
Andrew Bernstein – An Exploded View Of Time (Hausu Mountain)
Bodega – Endless Scroll (What’s Your Rupture?)
Casiotone For The Painfully Alone – Etiquette (Reissue, Ordinal)
Charalambides – Tom & Christina Carter (Drawing Room)
Sarah Davachi – Let Night Come On Bells End The Day (Recital)
Death Commando – Pattern Nightmares (Going Home)
Diamondstein & Sangam – The Ocean Between Us (Doom Trip)
Phyllis Dillon – One Life To Live (Reissue, Real Gone Music)
Graham Dunning – Tentation (White Denim)
E-Sagilla – Dedicated to Sublimity (Bank)
Expo 70 – Mother Universe Has Birthed Her Last Cosmos (Sonic Meditations)
The Falbonauts – LSD & Heartache (Self-Released)
Fire-Toolz – Skinless X-1 (Hausu Mountain)
Forest Management – 21st Century Man (Terrible Cloud)
Government Alpha / Bastard Noise – Split (Anthems Of The Undesirable)
The Guerrilla Art Action Group – Action Interview At WBAI Radio Station N.Y. (Reissue, Primary Informations)
Hide – Castration Anxiety (Dais)
Hiro Kone – Pure Expenditure (Dais)
JGuy Laughlin & Bbob Drake – Liminality (Self-Released)
Matthew Lux’s Communication Arts Quartet – Contra/Fact (Astral Spirits)
Mad Daddy – Memorial EP (Norton)
Drew McDowall – The Third Helix (Dais)
Merzbow + Hexa – Achromatic (Dais)
Kelly Moran – Optimist (Reissue, Primal Architecture)
Ikue Mori & Christian Ronn – Chordis et Machina (Nische)
Jon Padgett – 20 Simple Steps To Ventriloquism (Cadabra)
Edogawa Rampo – The Human Chair (Cadabra)
Roots Radics Band – Scientist & Jammy Strike Back! (Reissue, Real Gone Music)
Rubella – Gallows Humor (Eleventh Hour Recording Company)
Surachai – Come, Deathless (BL_K Noise)
Them Are Us Too – Amends (Dais)
Viper – You’ll Cowards Don’t Even Smoke Crack (Reissue, Animated Music)
Vince Slusarz
So many records, so little time, would be an even longer list if I had the chance to listen to more or our pressings…
LPs
Various Artists -Analog Rebellion (Earnest Tube)
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit-Live From The Ryman (Thirty Tigers)
Belle Plaine- Malice, Mercy, Grief and Wrath
Advance Base- Animal Companionship (Run For Cover Records)
Parker Millsap-Other Arrangements
Bottlerockets-Bit Logic (Bloodshot)
Amy Rigby-The Old Guys (Southern Domestic Recordings)
Wreckless Eric- Construction Time & Demolition (Southern Domestic Recordings)
Witch- Salem’s Rise (Gotta Groove Records/Eargasm)
Luke Winslow-King- Blue Mesa (Bloodshot)
Bob Schneider- Shockorama (Shockorama Records)
Birds of Chicago- Love in Wartime (Signature Sounds)
Sam Lewis- Loversity (Loversity)
Delvon Lamar Organ Trio- Live at KEXP (Colemine)
Ben Pirani- How Do I Talk To My Brother (Colemine)
Various Artists- Double Trouble 2 (Wax Mage)
Mike Uva- Lights Coming Up
Robbie Fulks and Linda Gail Lewis- Wild, Wild, Wild (Bloodshot)
Amanda Shires- To the Sunset (Thirty Tigers)
Dana Fuchs- Love Lives On
Sophia Pfister- Birdcage
Edgar Allan Poe-The Black Cat (Cadabra Records)
Sha-La-Das – Love in the Wind (Daptone)
Colter Wall- Songs of the Plains (Thirty Tigers)
Bob and Una Walkenhorst- For Tomorrow
Dr. Dog- Critical Equation (Thirty Tigers)
Ruby Boots- Don’t Talk About It (Bloodshot)
Matt Duncan- Soft Times (Soul Step)
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard- Polygondwanaland
Nazz-Fungo Bat Acetates (MVD)
Alice Cooper-Live From the Astroturf (Good Records)
Redd Kross- Hot Issue (Merge)
Broncho- Bad Behavior (Park the Van)
Laura Jane Grace and the Devouring Mothers -Bought to Rot (Bloodshot)
Catfish Keith-Reefer Hound (Fish Tail Records)
Ace of Cups-Ace of Cups (High Moon Records)
The Hellenes- I Love You All the Animals (300mics)
The Black Lillies-Stranger to Me (Attack Monkey/Thirty Tigers)
James Booker- The Lost Paramount Tapes (Thirty Tigers)
swimclubtv-Waiting for the Night (Seehurst Records)
Tim Easton and the Melodic Polaroids (Earnest Tube)
Terrell Stafford-Brotherlee Love (TSI Digital Media)
Roscoe Mitchell- Roscoe Mitchell Discussions (Wide Hive)
Son House-Live at Oberlin College (MVD)
7”
Part-Time Lover – Everything in Season/Magic Child/Day Glow (Blue Arrow Records)
Wesley Bright and the Honeytones- Happiness/You Don’t Want Me (Colemine)
Miriam and Nobody’s Babies- Get the Message/You Got to Me (Norton Records)
The Choir- I’d Rather You Leave Me/ I Only Did It Because I Felt So Bad (Norton Records)
Avett Brothers- The Second Avett Guild 45 (Ramseur Records)
The Sentiments- What’s So good About Saying Goodbye? (Transistor Sound)
Tim Easton/John Calvin Abney- Travelin’ Days/Full of Farewells (Different Folk Records)
Charles Bradley-Stay Away/Run It Back (Daptone)
