The Finest Vinyl of 2016

Even though i'm not writing that much on this blog anymore lately (due to a writer's block and lack of time), i haven't stopped buying vinyl records. On the contrary! So compared to previous years this year's The Finest Vinyl might have a few more albums listed  that i haven't posted anything about during the year. Might still do that in the future of course.

That David Bowie's ★ would end up on #1 might come as no surprise. And the fact that neo-shoegazers like Flyying Colours and Nothing are high on my list, probably neither. The rest of the list is not that predictable though.
Here they are, the 20 best albums of 2016 according to yours truly:

01. David Bowie - ★ (Blackstar) (Sony)

02. Flyying Colours - Mindfullness (Club AC30)

03. Nothing - Tired Of Tomorrow (Relapse)

04. DIIV - Is The Is Are (Captured Tracks)

05. Brian Jonestown Massacre - Third World Pyramid (A Recordings)

06. Wolf People - Ruins (Jagjaguwar)

07. The Early Years - II (Sonic Cathedral)

08. Mogwai - Atomic (Rock Action)

09. Minor Victories - Minor Victories (PIAS)

10. Amber Arcades - Fading Lines (Heavenly Recordings)

11. School Of Seven Bells - SVIIB (Full Time Hobby)

12. The Stargazer Lilies - Door To The Sun (Graveface Records)

13. Death In Vegas - Transmission (Drone)

14. Primal Scream - Chaosmosis (First International)

15. Toy - Clear Shot (Heavenly Recordings)

16. Esben And The Witch - Older Terrors (Seasons Of Mist)

17. Pinkshinyultrablast - Grandfeathered (Club AC30)

18. Aiming For Enrike - Segway Nation (Name Music)

19. The Avalanches - Wildflower (Modular/XL)

20. The Dandy Warhols - Distortland (Dine Alone)



Besides brand new albums, 2016 was also a good year for reissues.
These 5 were the best, in my eyes:

01. Lush - Origami (4AD)
Brilliant boxset with all their albums and outtakes/b-sides on vinyl. Released for RSD 2016.

02. David Bowie - Who Can I Be Now? 1974-1976 (Parlophone)
Superb boxset; includes a.o. the long lost The Gouster album. There were more great Bowie reissues in 2016, like the The Man Who Sold The World picture disc for RSD and the A Reality Tour boxset, but this was definitely the best.

03. Original Soundtrack - Lost Highway (Music On Vinyl/At The Movies)
Music of the David Lynch movie, with a.o. Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie and Smashing Pumpkins.

04. Porno For Pyros - Good God's Urge (ORG/Warner)
Long overdue, finally on vinyl! Black Friday release.

05. Life Of Agony - Soul Searching Sun (Music On Vinyl)
Also this title for the first time on vinyl. My favourite L.o.A. album.


2017 is around the corner. Who knows what that year has in store for us? There has been a lot of recent action by bands that i love. Slowdive should have an album recorded by now. Ride has been in the studio too. More studio reports have come through, from Girls Names for example. The new Dead Horse One album is ready and will be released early February. Hopefully there will be My Bloody Valentine remasters; pics of the remastering have been posted on social media. The Jesus And Mary Chain have one new song out already; album Damage And Joy comes out in March. And chronologically, the next David Bowie boxset would contain his Berlin albums. I simply can't wait!
So there's a lot to look forward to. Will it be able to top 2016?

 

The Finest Vinyl of 2013

Mid December; time to look back at the year's best vinyl releases.
And i dare say it's been a darn good year in music. I found it pretty hard to compile a Top 10, because there were so many good releases this year. It was a tough choice between #1 and #2, for example, but also i had a shortlist of 20+ albums that i honestly think were just really good. Had to narrow that list down to less than half of them. It's only fair to mention the ones that nearly made it here, i think.

These are the ones that didn't make it to my Top 10 of 2013, but only just.
In alphabetical order: Austra - Olympia / Besnard Lakes - Until In Excess, Imperceptible UFO / Deafheaven - Sunbather / Edweena - Solar Days And Lunar Nights / Esben And The Witch - Wash The Sins Not Only The Face / Girls Names - The New Life / Still Corners - Strange Pleasures / Team Ghost - Rituals / The Knife - Shaking The Habitual / Tropical Popsicle - Dawn Of Delight / Younghusband - Dromes.

And this, my friends, is The Finest Vinyl of 2013:

01. My Bloody Valentine - mbv
Just when you thought it would never happen anymore, MBV makes a glorious comeback.

02. David Bowie - The Next Day
Berlin (and therefore his best work) revisited. Best Bowie album since Scary Monsters.

03. Stargazer Lilies - We Are The Dreamers
Hands down the best dreampop album of the year. Or even: of the past decade.

04. Sigur Rós - Kveikur
Ég elska bara þá.

05. Yuck - Glow & Behold
"Difficult second" passes the test without any problems.

06. Medicine - To The Happy Few
Really, really good. And really, really underrated, unfortunately. Hence the title, perhaps?

07. The Flaming Lips - The Terror
Weird but beautiful. As always.

08. Primal Scream - More Light
100% back at the top of their form.

09. Chvrches - The Bones Of What You Believe
Totally worth the hype.

10. Black Hearted Brother - Stars Are Our Home
Slowdive frontman going into the right direction again.

The Stargazer Lilies - We Are The Dreamers [12", LP]

I didn't know THE STARGAZER LILIES until a few months ago, when some teaser songs of their debut album WE ARE THE DREAMERS showed up online. The moment i heard those, i just knew i had to get this album. It's dreampop in its purest form. Loads of reverb, fuzzy guitars, soothing vocals, slow-paced tunes, and mostly in minor keys so in general it sounds pretty sad and melancholic. When songs like that are over-produced, they all start to sound the same and can get pretty boring; that's definitely not the case here. The songs usually keep a raw edge, especially when it comes to the guitar work (check Undone and Light Of Day for example).
At this moment, the songs Del Rey Mar, Sad Colored Tears and Endless Days are my favourites, but i keep on discovering new things when i listen to this album. At the moment i'm writing this, i'm listening to How We Lost and suddenly i start to think that parts of this song sound a little bit like a slow version of Radiohead's Creep. Ha!
This album is one of the best dreampop albums i've heard in years. Besides that, the artwork and the coloured vinyl really suit to the music and make it a true gem for vinyl collectors who dig shoegaze and dreampop.

Label: Graveface Records
Cat.nr.: Grave096
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. We Are The Dreamers
02. Del Rey Mar
03. Undone
04. How We Lost

SIDE B:
01. Endless Days
02. Well Versed To Verb Doubt
03. Light Of Day
04. Sad Colored Tears
05. Don't Waste My Time
06. Because