AM's Best of 2017

While we tend to wallow 50 years ago, AM isn't a dinosaur. The magic that was the era from 1966 to 198whatever, from Pink Floyd to New Order, Gentle Giant to The Smiths, didn't end with the 90s, Radiohead and Weezer are the proof, and from Muse to Something Corporate, there was still something to listen to in the new millennium, if fewer and far-between-er than that golden age. With that, AM offers its best of 2017, and while it would be appropriate to include Kendrick Lamar, we didn’t have to, everyone else did. Instead:

AM's most listened to LP of 2017 was Oso Oso's yunahon mixtape, if only because it was released way back in January. Impeccable lyrics and catchy riffs represent the best of Oso Oso mastermind, Jade Lilitri. yunahon mixtape is a tender, sweet, warm, wonderful LP should be on everyone’s best of playlist.

Named after The Beatles' "I'm Only Sleeping," Eisley's I'm Only Dreaming is the Esiley LP we were so worried about after the majoy line-up change in which Staci and Chauntelle left the band. This is a total revamp, but the essence of Eisley is there and this, like some of what you find below, is perfect music for the middle of the night.

For 3am, there Vasudeva's No Clearance, an ambient bent a la Brian Eno, a little bit Cocteau Twins without the vocals. Along those same lines, and along lines that mimic Steven Wilson and the best of prog, was Oh, Hiroshima's In Silence We Learn. And Speaking of Steven Wilson, I bought To the Bone on vinyl and glued it down to my turntable. Wilson says the LP was inspired by albums like PG3 and Kate Bush's Hounds of Love, LPs he couldn’t get enough of when he was young. Distant Dream's It All Starts From Pieces, is Floydy and filled with the kind of missing instrumentation that separates us from them. This one truly rocks in a spacy way that I thought was lost forever. While I was blown away by Anthony and the Johnsons, Anohni's Paradise EP was possibly the most emotive music of the year. There's a lot of sadness here, so beware. Another fab but overlooked LP was LCM Soundsystem's brilliant American Dream.

From an Americana standpoint, it's hard to include my fave LP of the year, Lord Huron's Strange Tales, simply because it came out in 2015 (alongside my other go-tos like Pierce Edens and Jamestown Revival). My saving grace face is that the single "The Night We Met" was released in 2017. Still a great listen. 

While The Killers  offering cannot compare with years past, there are two gorgeous hits to wallow in, and of course Foo Fighters and Lorde, but you already know that.