ILM’s Top 77 Albums of 2018

It's definitely an improvement over Title TK and Mountain Battles. I got a bit burned out on it when it came out after hearing it at work so many times. Probably time to revisit.

I loved the Foxing album despite the emo-y vox

"Slapstick" is a great tune

voted for this one, too low

This is my favorite Laurel Halo album by a quite a bit. I love the jazzy moods she explores. Reminds me a bit of Miles Davis stuff like "He Loved Him Madly"

ooh interest piqued

Does she sing on this one?

no

Then I'll have to check it out. I very much enjoyed Chance of Rain.

Yeah, her singing was kind of a dealbreaker for me in the past.

https://i.imgur.com/mv6YOe0.jpg
#48: Sleep - The Sciences - 270 points – 8 votes

Trystan MacDonald: "To the sober ear, the drawn-out chugging riffs, which are the foundation of the band's sound, come off as stretched and border dangerously on the verge of repetition. But stoned, those riffs are ploughing the fields of your mind, pulling you into a deep hypnotic state washing everything away with rich distortion."

Grayson Haver Currin: "The essential trick of The Sciences—and the reason it feels like more than an overdue cash-in—is these 40something dudes have managed to grow up without growing old. Their minds are still focused on weed and the escape that it offers, but that’s just the gag; these riffs, rhythms, and the mantra-like singing of Al Cisneros are a drug unto themselves, evidence of a band that’s improved upon their animating idea."

It's very different from her other stuff, sounds more organic

yes, sleep has surely nailed her colours to the folk mast here

Love Sleep, although I think Sleep's Holy Mountain will remain an early pinnacle for me.

One of the greatest 'Comeback' albums. Had no expectations for it at all but I just couldn't stop playing it all year. My #2.

I don't get these guys at all but this is the only one of theirs I've heard.

this record is fine imo

too high here

was beginning to worry it had been 78'd

This had a great sound and I think the rest is basically your dosage may vary if you smoke my drift

not sure if its her best but raw silk uncut wood is up there, the opening and closing tracks especially

as an inveterate stoner i was a bit disappointed to not vibe with a new sleep record as much as i wanted to

drugs a money wants me to post this reminder for him

The 2018 ILX Metal n' Heavy Rock Poll VOTING + CAMPAIGNING thread! Ballots due Saturday, Feb. 9th!

there seem to be a lot of guitars in this years 77

https://i.imgur.com/zfGktTW.jpg
#47: Neneh Cherry - Broken Politics - 275 points – 9 votes

Laura Snapes: "Cherry’s sage perspective weaves through these tender, bristling tracks, and elevates Broken Politics from being simply a beautiful record to a revelatory one."

Paul Carr: "It is a more even-paced, leaner affair with Kieran Hebden showing his ability to create subtly shaded melodic gems that allow Cherry's voice and lyrics to shine. In turn, Cherry turns out vocal hook lines emboldened by the intricate music behind her."

I just checked and there were only two genuine metal placements in the last 77. not a big year for full-lengths in many of the more popular genres I guess xp

How have I not listened to this one yet when I love most things Four Tet and Neneh Cherry are involved in? A couple of tracks in and this sounds really good.

xxxp

Yeah, remarkable amount of rock, metal, etc. Kind of cool, I thought rock was dead.

neneh album kinda went in one ear and out the other, which is weird cause i loved the blank project

i probably have to listen again

The solo closing track on the Hailu album is so good. This is more like real music than most of what I voted for.

not feeling the rollout so far :/

Yay, second one of mine to place. Four Tet production really suited her voice and 'Fallen Leaves' was robbed in the tracks poll.

I like the Neneh record but not as much as her last one.

This is more like real music than most of what I voted for

what on earth does this MEAN

Oh there's a '50 ways to leave your lover' beat sample on 'faster than the truth' and it works! Yeah really liking this on first listen.

https://i.imgur.com/Jr9wqBC.jpg
#46: Saba - Care for Me - 276 points – 9 votes - 1 first place vote

Saba - CARE FOR ME

Justin Ivey: "With Care For Me, Saba accomplished his objective by making an album that can endure for years to come. His higher aspirations won’t afford him the visibility of the rappers acting out for attention, but projects like Care For Me should put him into the discussions of his generation’s best Hip Hop artists."

AV Club: "There’s an introspective urgency to Saba’s songs, like they’re the only thing keeping the 23-year-old from succumbing to the systemic and social madness that surrounds him on Chicago’s West Side, and that rawness has only expanded on sophomore effort Care For Me."

not feeling the rollout so far :/

Oh good, I was worried Noname was going to place and not this which would have been strange.

Rollout accomplished its objective by convincing me never to visit hiphopdx dot com

Sweet, first one of mine that made it. Possibly the hip hop album I listened to the most last year.

this was my number one

xpost: hahaha I'm using quote sources from aoty wont quote hiphopdx anymore I promise.

i think about prom / king almost every day, it's an incredible climax made stronger by the subtle foreshadowing seeded throughout the record. and then the catharsis on heaven all around me.

beautiful

'Prom / King' is already classic imho.

https://i.imgur.com/81aB1va.jpg
#45: Helena Hauff - Qualm - 280 points – 9 votes

Helena Hauff - Hyper-Intelligent Genetically Enriched Cyborg

Elizabeth Aubrey: "The attraction of Qualm is often in its simplicity and its desire to create something with a more infectiously raw, cerebral quality."

Paul Simpson: "Qualm generally shifts away from the Drexciyan melodies of Discreet Desires, but it's just as precisely focused as that album, and anyone who has enjoyed her prior recordings or Hauff's unrelenting DJ sets should enjoy this one as well."

too low

id no idea Neneh Cherry had an album out this year!

not feeling the rollout so far :/

― ||||||||, Tuesday, February 5, 2019 11:41 AM (twenty-three minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i'm surprised this is one of the better years so far imo

I imagine the GEETARS are quite alienating for some. I expect they'll peter out as we go on.

The first half just bored me (with a literal drill), but the second half is mostly bangin'.

GEETARS GUD.