Underrated records 2018

Kelly Moran - Ultraviolet

Bladee - Red Light

Kristin Hersh, Possible Dust Clouds
She Makes War, Brace For Impact
Little Boots, Burn
MNEK, Language
Emma Ruth Rundle, On Dark Horses

ooh thanks for reminder of Hersh!

The Kelly Moran record is fantastic

I've only seen the ERR record covered on metal sites, weirdly enough

Jeff Carey's Zero Player Game is a gem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cy5fbfGPNA

^ agreed

Dur Dur Band - Volumes 3&4

The Kelly Moran record is fantastic

This!

some more that I forgot in my initial revive:

Ralph White & Steve Marsh - Two Distinguished Gentleman (acid-fried loner folk styles, very very cool, from ex-Bad Livers guy)
Knife Knights - 1 Time Mirage - came out too late to have much impact? Shabazz Palaces related.
Bombino - Deran - solid desert blues album
Yamantaka/Sonic Titan - Dirt (OK I guess some of us are talking abt this?)
Black Moth Super Rainbow - Panic Blooms (not as good as Cobra Juicy but what is?)
Body/Head - The Switch (super dark and moody, great noise textures, my favorite release of theirs so far)

The Body/Head album is very good!

agree on the new the ex album, i kind of forgot about it but it rules

stuff i like that i'm not seeing much chatter about:
lonnie holley - MITH - ecstatic soul-jazz workouts
exploded view - obey - kraut-synth, like stereolab's evil twin
ovlov - TRU - pure dopamine rush indie-fuzz rock
warm bodies - s/t - spazz-out punk freaks
jerry quickley - (american) fool - somewhere in between hip-hop and spoken word
EXEK - ahead of two thoughts - PIL-like dub-post-punk
axis:sova - shampoo you - drum machine rockers with hooks

i don't love the whole "we're not talking" album by the goon sax but it has maybe 3-4 of my favorite indie pop songs of the year on it - "love lost" in particular is a great song

cool list, thanks

I just got that Lonnie Holley yesterday, have not even opened it yet but I'm excited

Black Moth Super Rainbow - Panic Blooms (not as good as Cobra Juicy but what is?)

Dandelion Gum

My two favorites of the year:

Rose Mercie: https://sdzrecords.bandcamp.com/album/rose-mercie

De Leon: https://manarecs.bandcamp.com/album/de-leon

new to me, and possible AotY. incredibly infectious.
https://badmoves.bandcamp.com/album/tell-no-one

^^good listen for anyone who thought the Beths record was too slick/polished (I am not one of those people but I do like this a lot)

Amerie's double EP -- Mulholland 4AM/After 4AM -- is one of my favorite releases this year, and it seems to be getting very little attention (I haven't seen it on any lists).

don't think the weird format did it any favours tbh

definitely not

Mih-Ty!!

Maybe new objekt ...

as per usual, most of the albums I have enjoyed this year are unloved.

the black dog - post truth/black daisy wheel
kenneth james gibson - fields of nothing
blood wine and honey - fear & celebration
oddzoo - future flesh
microfilm - cherry amore
fahrland - mixtape volume #1
thomas fehland - lagos
gui boratto - pentagram
gost - possessor
john tejada - dead start program
master boot record - direct memory access
hollywood burns - invaders
chrome sparks - s/t
jacco gardner - somnium
l'enfant de la foret - strangled

also the soho rezanejad LP is so amazing

Roy Montgomery's Suffuse is new to me and quite beautiful. He's got different vocalists on each track (including Circuit des Yeux, Grouper, Purple Pilgrims, Julianna Barwick) singing over some multi-tracked ambient guitar soundscapes. Perfect Northern Hemisphere December listening.

I'll second NA's above endorsement of the EXEK and Exploded View records.

Haven't seen much EOY hype on the following:
State Champion - Send Flowers (calling all Silver Jews fans)
Thee Open Sex - White Horses (single-minded Krauty psych done right)
Primo! - Amici (charming ramshackle indie-pop from Australia)
Constant Mongrel - Living in Excellence (more Aussies, fans of the punkier side of
Total Control would dig)

I was gonna mention Constant Mongrel

some other stuff I've liked from this year that I haven't seen mentioned:

Beta Blockers - Stiff Prescription
Candy - Good To Feel
Life Fucker - Z
Permission - Drawing Breath Through A Hole In The Ground
Shopping - The Official Body
Snob - Snob

and Bib - A Band In Hardcore which is a comp of singles etc from before 2018 but is excellent snotty hc punk

I really dug the Lonnie Holley record on my first listen, cool stuff, reminds me of Van Morrison's more amorphous side with a healthy dose of Lonnie Liston Smith vocal styles

plus "I Woke Up In A Fucked Up America" is one of the year's best song titles

may be that it's just a more digestible amount but the new E-40, gift of the gab, has become my favourite of his in a minute

The Rezzett LP is not on very many lists so I guess it's underrated. Really thought it'd be on the FACT list.

Hollow Hand - Star Chamber

It’s arguable that Hollow Hand’s first full release trumps the lot; an assured, inspired record that mixes English eccentricism, glorious pop, folk and psych, and which matches Ray Davies at his best. It’s that good.
https://www.thefourohfive.com/music/review/review-hollow-hand-find-a-blissful-melodic-balance-on-star-chamber-154

Sums it up well enough for me. My favorite release of the year.

― afriendlypioneer, Friday, December 7, 2018 2:35 PM (one week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I like this one. Thanks for the tip

Die Nerven - Fake
German tuneful punk from Stuttgart. The loudest concert I have ever been to. Ferocious hypnotic stuff.

keysha’s “stop it”

diana gordon’s “wolverine”

Amanda Shires - To The Sunset

keysha’s “stop it”

100% otm

agreed, but isn't it from like ~1990 or something?

one of my favourites is this cheeky bassline banger from sharda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqC1RtSIdRI

also this song is incredible imo but no-one is talking about it or the album it came from...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRbR7qKcZrM

Fatima - Westside

Gouge Away- Burnt Sugar
https://gougeawayfl.bandcamp.com/

Self Defense Family - Have You Considered Punk Music
https://selfdefensefamily.bandcamp.com/album/have-you-considered-punk-music

Closer - All This Will Be
https://closernyc.bandcamp.com/

agreed, but isn't it from like ~1990 or something?

Plus not sure it's really underrated as it's got lots of love from the Balearic (and connected) communities

$320 for an original copy on discogs ugh

Hilary Woods - Colt

Jack Drag - 2018

the amen dunes guy kinda lost me with that new one, surprised people think it's his breakthrough. still think 'love' is their best

― global tetrahedron, Friday, December 7, 2018 1:55 PM (two weeks ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

otm, i also think he's pushing the goat warble vocals to the breaking point and like i just can't vibe with it

not all the way through the record yet, but the debut full-length by the babe rainbow ("double rainbow") out of AUS is sounding very good to my ears! subdued, good hooks, mellow mood, interesting textures, less '60s worship-y than they get credit for, just very enjoyable, pleasant, MOR indie rock. which isn't a diss at all.

recommended if you are flappy bird

:)

https://thebaberainbow.bandcamp.com/

And on a totally different tip the Catherine christer hennix is a nice spooky slice of fucked up just intonation noodling

R.Seiliog - Megadoze is nice if you need a 'doze' of some ambient, minimal techno. I've been aware of hm for a couple years, but wasn't aware he had a new release in 2018--November 2018. Looks like it even got reviewed by a couple outlets. I think it's a pretty good record that could've hit a wider audience, but that name! I get some early MOM vibes from this, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4VnSt1BVVU

The Roves LP is flying way under the radar, but it's the best jangle-rock album I've heard in a long while:

https://theroves.bandcamp.com/album/the-roves-lp

And on a totally different tip the Catherine christer hennix is a nice spooky slice of fucked up just intonation noodling

― Vapor waif (uptown churl), Thursday, December 27, 2018 7:07 AM (four weeks ago)

Catherine Christer Hennix yes yes

the No Age record