As the old saying goes: If you want to sculpt a statue of an elephant, you just get the biggest granite block you can find — and chip away everything that doesn’t look like an elephant. I am trying to take the same approach to my year-end lists. I start with the giant slab of music contained in The Long List of everything I heard; then I chip away more than half the releases to form this massive, woolly mammoth of everything I wanted to hear again; and finally, I whittle that down to a still-elephantine Short List of ivory-pure excellence that you’ll never forget. Read on:
Party Dozen
Crime In Australia
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Crime In Australia follows 2022’s The Real Work, the first Party Dozen record that (some) people were actually waiting for.
It was also the one that Nick Cave sang on; the one that had a track Billy Woods jumped on for a rework; the one that took them to the U.S.A., Europe (twice), Japan, China and New Zealand; the one that saw Party Dozen hook up with a cool American label; the one that inspired multiple outlets to declare it their album of the day / week / epoch / whatever; and the one that made KEXP invite the band in for a live session, and made Sub Pop add them to their hallowed Singles Club. To put it another (much shorter) way: The Real Work was not the first Party Dozen record, but it was in many ways where Party Dozen — the duo of saxophonist Kirsty Tickle and percussionist Jonathan Boulet — really started to put it all together. Crime In Australia continues to build on their foundation, and elevates their ascent with a slew of new songs that are simultaneously more focused and more feral than anything they’ve ever done. Across its 10 tracks, Crime In Australia showcases a partnership absolutely unafraid to explore their “many dumb ideas” — and as a result going places that are thrilling, visceral, face-melting, surprisingly danceable, and frequently ridiculous (often all at the same time).”
Pearl Jam
Dark Matter
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In 2023, the members of Pearl Jam — vocalist Eddie Vedder, bassist Jeff Ament, rhythm guitarist Stone Gossard, lead guitarist Mike McCready and drummer Matt Cameron — ventured to Rick Rubin’s Shangri-La Studios in Malibu, where they simply plugged in and played with producer-of-the-moment Andrew Watt (Ozzy Osbourne, Iggy Pop, Rolling Stones) at the helm.
The musicians faced one another in the same space and communicated sonically at the highest level. Writing and recording in a burst of inspiration, their 12th studio album Dark Matter was born in just three weeks. As a result of the circumstances behind its creation, Dark Matter channels the shared spirit of a group of lifelong creative confidants and brothers in one room playing as if their very lives depended on it. All of the blood, sweat, tears, and energy of a storied career felt renewed and poured into this one body of work. Vedder says, “We’re still looking for ways to communicate. We’re at this time in our lives when you could do it or you could not do it, but we still care about putting something out there that is meaningful and we hopefully think is our best work. No hyperbole, I think this is our best work.”
Peter Perrett
The Cleansing
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “There is typically talk of a ‘second coming,’ but much less, if at all, of a ‘third coming.’ But that’s what Perrett’s third album The Cleansing epitomises.
Following its two predecessors — his 2017 solo debut How The West Was Won was Perrett’s first album in almost 30 years, while his pattern of vanishing from sight was broken by 2019’s followup Humanworld — The Cleansing doesn’t just match his best work but expands it. The Cleansing is an ambitious double album comprising 20 songs, kicking off a new era with a new energy and a new approach. Alongside his trusted team of sons Jamie (guitar / production) and Peter Jr (bass) plus members of his live band, Perrett is assisted by a roster of starry guests including Johnny Marr, Bobby Gillespie, Fontaines D.C.’s Carlos O’Connell and Dream Wife guitarist Alice Go. Perrett’s narcotic and alluring melodies, gorgeous South London drawl and ravishing rock dynamic are now allied to a wider span of musical arrangements and lyrical concerns, touching on themes of art, addiction, aging, social media and witch trials, amongst others. “I know some of the subject matter is death, suicide and depression,” Perrett notes, “but I feel there is an uplifting atmosphere to the album, because I’m obviously enjoying recognising what is going on around me.”
Phish
Evolve
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Evolve was recorded in the fall of 2023 at Phish’s Vermont recording studio The Barn, and was produced by Vance Powell and Bryce Goggin.
True to Phish’s unique creative process, the album’s songs (including the already released Evolve and Oblivion) were selected from arrangements shaped by the band’s dynamic live performances. Some, like the fan favorite A Wave Of Hope, have become springboards for Phish’s most soaring improvisation. Throughout, the songcraft and production are confident and taut, with Phish’s distinct musical language on vivid display; still pushing boundaries, still very much continuing to evolve.”
Pipe-eye
Pipe-defy
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “For the first time since 2021, Pipe-eye, the moniker for Australian musician, singer and songwriter Cook Craig, has a new LP. With nods to the venerable influences of funk and ’70s / ’80s synth dance classics, Pipe-defy is a stylistic departure from his previous albums. For this project, Craig explains, he’s wearing his influences on his sleeve.
“At around the time that I was starting to write songs for the album, my mum gave me a bunch of old CDs from my early teens that I hadn’t listened to in ages,” he says. “There was heaps of Grandmaster Flash, Herbie Hancock, Zapp, Stevie Wonder and other stuff like that. When I kept writing songs they kinda just started sounding like that… so I guess it kinda just kickstarted an old obsession I had for that style of music.”
Pissed Jeans
Half Divorced
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Pissed Jeans have never been a band that goes halfway — they’re known for their feral vocals, biting lyrics, buzzsaw guitars, and unhinged live shows — and their sixth album Half-Divorced is no exception. These songs skewer the tension between youthful optimism and the sobering realities of adulthood, and when viewed through frontman Matt Korvette’s scowl, everything takes on a level of violent absurdity.
Pissed Jeans’ notorious acerbic sense of humor remains sharper than ever as they dismember some of the joys that contemporary adult life has to offer, from helicopter parents to stolen catalytic converters to being $62,000 in debt. On Seatbelt Alarm Silencer, Korvette growls, “Call it a death drive but that ain’t fair / Drive implies I’m headed somewhere.” So where does a band like Pissed Jeans go after nearly 20 years of making music, after becoming fathers, after marriages, and after divorces? Existence has festered to a boiling point. Korvette said, “Half-Divorced has an aggression within it, in terms of saying, I don’t want this reality. There’s a power in being able to say, I realize you want me to pay attention to these things, but I’m telling you that they don’t matter. I’m already looking elsewhere.”
Prim
Move Too Slow
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Originally formed in 2020, Prim were established by founding members Kevin Flores and Mark Ramos as a departure from their previous bands in the Houston punk and hardcore scene. Still sharing the same ethos, Prim have become a platform for the band’s love of indie and alternative rock, mirroring the evolution of Deep Wound to Dinosaur Jr. Now based in Seattle, the band have transformed with the addition of Evelyn Frances and Shane Juretic.
Move Too Slow is their debut LP, solidifying their place in the Seattle music scene. The 11-track album showcases Prim’s knack for crafting catchy hooks backed by fuzzed-out guitar riffs and leads. Vocals are shared between Kevin and Evelyn, each leading their own songs while also harmonizing together. Songs like Make Your Bed evoke The Breeders, with Evelyn’s swirling, aggressive vocals. Don’t Count on Me proclaims their Dinosaur Jr. influence, featuring squealing guitar hooks, reminiscent of a ’90s movie soundtrack. Meanwhile, Cruisin’ features Kevin repeating the hook and guest vocals from Squint’s Brennan Wilkinson, making it one of the more straightforward punk songs on the record. Prim shine on their first full-length, clearly having the best time in crafting songs that are perfect for banging your head and moving fast.”
PyPy
Sacred Times
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “It’s been a long decade since Montreal’s PyPy (pronounced with a long ‘i’ rather than long ‘e’, thank you very much) landed with their debut Pagan Day. But the same lunatics behind CPC Gangbangs, Red Mass and Duchess Says are back with Sacred Times.
One might recall the thunderous pop of their banger She’s Gone carving out a place for itself in the high-end fashion world, becoming the soundtrack to Yves Saint Laurent’s 2016 show. If that album bounced, punched and clawed like Delta 5 covered in dirt and trying to get somewhere in a booted vehicle while dodging lightning rod guitar licks the whole way, Sacred Times takes things to somewhere far beyond the proverbial “next level.”
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
South Of Here
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Produced by Brad Cook (Waxahatchee, Bon Iver, Kevin Morby) and recorded at Sonic Ranch outside El Paso, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats’ fourth album South Of Here reckons with a lifetime of pain and trauma and transforms it into a stirring, soul-baring rumination on love, loss, hope and resolve.
Following And It’s Still Alright, Rateliff’s beloved 2020 solo LP, and The Future, The Night Sweats’ acclaimed 2021 release, South Of Here blends both sides of his immense talent: Emotionally potent, vivid storytelling and the rugged, R&B revivalism that has powered the band to world-wide acclaim over the past decade. Across 11 original tracks, all written by Rateliff and performed by The Night Sweats — Rateliff, Luke Mossman, Joseph Pope III, Mark Shusterman, Patrick Meese, Daniel Hardaway, Jeff Dazey and Andreas Wild — the band, in peak form, play with intuitive beauty while Cook’s production captures the group’s soulful fire with immediacy and purpose.”
Redd Kross
Redd Kross
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In 1979, two schoolkids all hopped-up on punk rock started their own group in their hometown of Hawthorne, California (also the birthplace of The Beach Boys) and soon found themselves opening shows for notorious pioneers Black Flag. Jeff McDonald was 15, his brother Steven only 11. But that didn’t stop their group from becoming one of the most remarkable, enduring and unique outfits punk ever belched up.
The year 2024 marks Redd Kross’s 45th birthday — an important anniversary for any group whose heart pulses at 45RPM — and the brothers are celebrating the event with a veritable multimedia extravaganza. There’s a memoir, Now You’re One Of Us, due in November, author Dan Epstein telling the group’s story in the McDonalds’ unmistakable (and occasionally contrary) voices. A brilliant rockumentary, Born Innocent, directed by Andrew Reich, will premiere later in the year. Most exciting of all, a new album — an eponymous double-album, no less, packed with 18 of their sharpest, most addictive songs yet — has hit the racks, courtesy of In The Red Records. These years of joyful service to rock ’n’ roll have seen Redd Kross evolve into a killer pop-rock concern, dealing in dayglo power-chords, choruses as tall as skyscrapers and a lyric sheet thick with acid couplets and arch pop- cultural references their loyal following will gobble up like quaaludes.”
Razorlight
Planet Nowhere
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Razorlight were at the forefront of U.K. indie-rock in the early 2000s. Hits like Golden Touch, Somewhere Else, In The Morning, America and Wire To Wire drove three Top 5 albums, earned nine platinum certifications, and led to slots at the Reading Festival and Live 8. After reuniting for shows in 2021, the classic lineup — Johnny Borrell (vocals/guitar), Björn Ågren (guitar), Carl Dalemo (bass) and Andy Burrows (drums) — have taken the next logical step with Planet Nowhere, their first album since 2008.
The move was inevitable. As the ever-ambitious Johnny put it: “Who wants to be a greatest hits band?” So he hatched a plan, and late in 2023 booked a five-day session with the legendary producer Youth (The Verve, James) at his Space Mountain studio in Spain. Youth knew what they had to achieve, telling the band, “Razorlight’s quite simple isn’t it? Just a driving bassline, driving drums and a story.”
Red Clay Strays
Made By These Moments
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Produced by Grammy winner Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Jason Isbell) and recorded at his Georgia Mae in Savannah, Made by These Moments is filled with Red Clay Strays’ signature blend of electric rock and southern soul. Across these 11 tracks, the Strays explore fundamental elements of the human condition, reflecting on faith, love and redemption.
“Made by These Moments shines a light on overcoming the battles we face in life like loneliness, depression, and hopelessness,” says singer-guitarist Brandon Coleman. “We hope you listen and recognize that our pain has a purpose.” One of music’s fastest-rising bands, The Red Clay Strays are Coleman, Drew Nix (electric guitar, vocals, harmonica), Zach Rishel (electric guitar), Andrew Bishop (bass) and John Hall (drums). Formed in Mobile in 2016, the group are in the midst of a breakout year, nominated for Emerging Act of the Year at the 2024 Americana Music Awards in the wake of their single Wondering Why.”
J. Robbins
Basilisk
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “J. Robbins‘ second full-length solo album Basilisk is out now on Dischord Records. Basilisk contains 11 songs recorded at Robbins’ Baltimore studio The Magpie Cage between 2021 and 2022 with the assistance of Brooks Harlan (bass), Darren Zentek (drums), Gordon Withers (cello and guitar), John Haggerty (guitar) and Dave Hadley (pedal steel).
Robbins has been the singer-guitarist and principal songwriter in several D.C. and Baltimore post-punk rock bands since the late 1980s — most notably Jawbox, Burning Airlines and Channels. He is also owner and operator of The Magpie Cage.”
Daniel Romano’s Outfit
Too Hot To Sleep
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In order to bring about the good song, there is a certain amount of magic to be summoned,” says Daniel Romano. “Though there are a variety of ways to achieve it, allow me now to break down one of my favourite methods: Without food, take to your post with the hungry wonder of the morning. Getting down to it, allow everything to begin slowly — thought, breath, moment — until you’re buried, little by little in a celestial blackness where all common ideas dissolve into ash and all that didn’t serve you is gone. It’s in this original darkness that the virtues of your heart begin to ignite.”
Come hither dialecticians! Come into the darkness to discover light! Creativity is technique, study, and process, and above all, a commitment, to the self and the self’s relationship to the world. So, too it is an opening, or the result of an opening, to the gifts the world and the world cosmos bring. One conceives as one receives. Magic, yes, but magic summoned actively.”
Bill Ryder-Jones
Iechyd Da
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Bill Ryder-Jones’ fifth album Iechyd Da is a record that is rooted in love, loss, pain, heartache and often a deep darkness, but also one that frequently ends up in places of profound beauty, hope and joy. “I love this album,” says Bill, “I haven’t been this proud of a record since A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart.”
His first new record in five years, Iechyd Da is also his most ambitious LP to date. Beautifully produced, rich in scope, at times joyous, grand and sweeping, at others heartbreaking, intimate and tender. “It’s my most produced record,” adds Ryder-Jones, who from his Yawn studios in West Kirby has recently been producing the likes of Mick Head, Gerry Love and Saint Saviour. “It’s basically me carrying on with myself again, but this time around I’m a bit more competent as a producer.” Lyrically, Ryder-Jones is also in potent form. At times he celebrates directness, being more open and honest than ever, while other moments are more complex and multi-faceted. He’s always able to seamlessly balance sadness with stunning beauty, and sly self-deprecation with palpable gentleness.”
