ILM's Top 77 Albums of 2019

First one I haven't even heard of so far; naturally intrigued.

Eh, the comet isn't all it's cracked up to be. Like I said in the tracks thread, more improv (not necessarily of the 'free' variety) would've been welcome.

― toilet-cleaning brain surgeon (pomenitul), Wednesday, February 5, 2020 4:50 PM (thirty-four minutes ago)

Maybe this is what you meant by "ninja tune," but I got more into this album once I decided it wasn't really jazz and was more like cosmic funk--I can see what you're saying though, part of me wishes this was closer to Lawrence of Newark. I did vote for it, but I like it considerably less than the last Sons of Kemet album, and Shabaka & the Ancestors is still my favorite of his

my interest in this lasted as long as it took flopson to correct 'new wave' to 'new age' in its thread

yes (and wow) to CFCF placing this high

Succint call back to the atmospheric drum 'n bass days of yore, that is way better than it should be. I'd totally believe it was from 1996 if I didn't know any better. It's a doozy.

And we should send that guy a link to this thread because he lamented not being mentioned in any EoY list lol

was just gonna say it sounds retro but effortlessly so

OK I'll check it out, I always check it out eventually haha

xxp someone really should!

Effortlessly, yes!

LJ I'd be highly surprised if this was your thing but you should try it anyway :)

The CFCF album is great.

Fwiw I love the Ninja Tune aesthetic and was partly weaned on it, but something about The Comet Is Coming's attempt at maintaining the illusion of a live-band-first format in the studio rubs me the wrong way. Like, if you're going to stray that far from improv, might as well throw in a few more timbral tricks to make it thoroughly worthwhile (which is what Ninja Tune was so ace at back in the day).

xps obv.

as a fan of late 90s atmospheric dnb, this CFCF didn’t click. It makes PFM sound like Rotterdam Terror Corps. It sounds like dentist office waiting room music with breaks.

I'd enjoy Comet Is Coming if they laid off the pyrotechnic FX a bit.

So much echo and flange, it's like when a guitarist splashes out on a pedalboard, or they bought a bunch of cheap VST plugins in a sale and have to use them ALL.

CFCF is sounding great so far.

It sounds like dentist office waiting room music with breaks.

listening now and this is otm

That's... not a bad thing, actually.

Love that CFCF! Been a fan for a while, but that album was a really nice surprise

xp pretty much what he was aiming at tbh

immaculate production. the aesthetic just isn’t for me.

depends on how much you love waiting to get your teeth drilled i guess

Liking 'Oxygen Lounge' a lot less than 'Re-Utopia'.

They play Charli XCX at my dentist

Charlie FCF

https://i.imgur.com/HMhWZkE.jpg
#25 – Nilüfer Yanya – Miss Universe (378 points, 13 votes, 1 #1 vote)

Nilufer Yanya

https://www.npr.org/2019/03/14/702533463/first-listen-nil-fer-yanya-miss-universe

CFCF was very "I appreciate this intellectually"* and not at all "I want these sounds in my ears" for me, though I'm going to put it on now and see if it connects.

*his write-up of the album is brilliant: https://cfcf.bandcamp.com/album/liquid-colours

CXCX

Oh I almost voted for a track off this, is it all nice guitar pop?

Good album, this. Not surprised to see it place.

Brilliant album. It just kept growing on me throughout the year. I Love her style so much.

xxp it's as much in common with sade as guitar pop

re: CFCF if I'm in the mood for this sort of thing I would just seek out mid 90s atmospheric dnb shit tho. Or Tosca's Suzuki which I still go back to at least once a year.

probably closest to joan armatrading if anything

It's got pleasant guitar pop numbers and sophisti-Sade ones as well.

xps

Liked this, especially the slower songs, but bumped it from my ballot.

hmm.. I never saw the point in (what I like to call) spa'n'bass. I liked my breaks tear-out, and didn't see a reason for fast dnb music to be 'chilled out'.
But this is really working on me. Maybe I'm just getting old.

Also CFCF is very close to my own initials

anyway this is a great album: "paradise", "baby blu", "melt" all classics in addition to the headbanging single "in your head". unfortunately i missed her when she came down here in december and played a very tiny venue; unlikely to be that intimate an enivronment the next time around

I even found myself enjoying the interludes on this.

Or Tosca's Suzuki which I still go back to at least once a year.

Ha! I think both operate on different levels but I can see where your coming from.

Never heard Nilüfer, will correct that.

CFCF was nice, but Stenny's Upsurge and Special Request's Offworld were my breaks records of the year, for those who want more

Haven't heard Special Request but Stenny rules.

For those who were into the Skee Mask record a year back, Stenny is on the same label and the album garners a similar style/vibe albeit a bit darker

okay, i'll check back in six hours after you get a chance to listen to #24

https://i.imgur.com/EgRUgWB.jpg
#24 – Underworld – Drift Series 1 (391 points, 12 votes, 3 #1 votes)

Underworld - Drift

https://thequietus.com/articles/27470-underworld-drift-series-1-review

this is a bit from the bandcamp page for the CFCF record that rob linked to, just to put the record into some sort of context...

Liquid Colours started just like The Colours of Life*, as a simple challenge to myself to see if I could follow through on a continuous 40 minute suite in one style. Much like COL, it was a break in working on another more involved, complicated album. I was interested in ‘corporatized’ pop jungle — totally inauthentic to the genre’s roots. The jungle tracks on ‘Ray of Light’, Everything But The Girl, Towa Tei, Bahamadia, each member of YMO has respectively released some solo work exploring the genre. Bill Laswell plowing his fucking bass over a DJ Spooky remix of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion or something. TV interstitials, ads. At its most oversaturated, jungle and d’n’b was briefly the sound of capitalism. In fact once while I was in the middle of working on the album I had to make a call to some customer service line or other, my bank or something, and the on-hold music sounded exactly like this record I was making! I really knew I was onto something then.

*his previous album that iirc based its whole soundworld on one particular track ('Hand in Hand') off the first Phil Collins album

Right, so vols. 2-4 are coming up.

Spoiler: 2 is best and I hope it will be treated as such.

Nilüfer Yanya is very much Not My Thing normally but I found this record addictive, romantic, and compelling. I love the use of guitar-as-effect, and the way her dusky voice foiled it.

How so? It doesn't skimp on the poppish sophistication at all!

Spoiler: 2 is best and I hope it will be treated as such.

― toilet-cleaning brain surgeon (pomenitul), Wednesday, February 5, 2020 3:54 PM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

“drift series 1” is the name of the box set containing all five eps