Hand Habits - placeholder
Living Hour - Softer Faces
Cate Le Bon - Reward
Megan Thee Stallion - Fever
Urochromes - Trope House
Bill Orcutt - Odds Against Tomorrow
Acronym & Kali Malone - The Torrid Eye
Dry Cleaning - Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks EP

Rian Fossett, Matador Records
Aldous Harding - Designer
Jenny Hval - The Practice of Love
Big Thief - U.F.O.F.
Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell
Damien Jurado - In the Shape of a Storm
Chris Cohen - s/t
MIKE - Tears of Joy


Hiro Kone - A Fossil Begins To Bray
Pelada - Movimeiento Para Cambio
Pink Siifu - Black Sand

Andy Larsen, Matador Direct


Rakta - Falha Comum (Iron Lung)
Hiro Kone - A Fossil Begins To Bray (Dais Records)
Kaleidoscope - After The Futures (Toxic State Records)
Kali Malone - The Sacrificial Code (iDEAL Recordings)
Teitanblood - The Baneful Choir (Norma Evangelium Diaboli)
Equiknoxx - Eternal Children (Equiknoxx Musiq)
King Blood - Hocus Focus (Petty Bunco)
Nivhek - After Its Own Death (W.25th)
Andy Stott - It Should Be Us (Modern Love)
Carla dal Forno - Look Up Sharp (Kallista Records)


Anadol - Uzun Havalar (Pingipung)
Muslimgauze - Babylon Is Iraq (Staalplaat)
Sarah Davachi - Pale Bloom (W.25th)

Jake Whitener, Matador Records
Top 20 Releases of 2019


1. MIKE - Tears of Joy (10k)
2. Cate le Bon- Reward (Mexican Summer)
3. Purple Mountains- Purple Mountains (Domino Records)
4. Sarah Mary Chadwick- The Queen Who Stole the Sky (Sinderlyn)
5. Jenny Hval- The Practice of Love (Sacred Bones)
6. Slauson Malone- A Quiet Farwell, Twenty Sixteen to Twenty Eighteen (Grand Closing)
7. Deafkids- Metaprogramação (Neurot Recordings)
8. The Golden Dregs- Hope is for the Hopeless (Funnel Music LTD)
9. Chris Cohen- Chris Cohen (Captured Tracks)
10. Bad Breeding- Exiled (One Little Indian)
11. Boy Harsher- Careful (Nude Club)
12. Big Thief- Two Hands (4AD)
13. Mope Grooves- Desire (See My Friends Records)
14. Weak Signal- LP1 (Self- Released)
15. Mick Trouble- It's the Mick Trouble LP (Emotional Response)
16. Billy Woods / Kenny Segal- Hiding Places (Backwoodz Studioz)
17. Angel Bat Dawid- The Oracle (International Anthem)
18. Sequoyah Murray- Before You Begin (Thrill Jockey)
19. Dry Cleaning- Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks (It's OK)
20. Spelling- Mazy Fly (Sacred Bones)



Emily Zaremba, Matador Records
Kelman Duran - 6’s (ft. DJ NA)


Caroline Polachek - Hit Me Where It Hurts
Fontaines D.C. - Big
DJ Seinfeld - Please Slow Down
Angel Olsen - Lark
Floating Points - Last Bloom
Holly Herndon - Eternal
Mavi - Eye/I and I/Nation
Lil Uzi Vert - Free Uzi
Big Thief - Not
Show Me The Body - Madonna Rocket
Young Nudy & Pi’erre Bourne - Gas Station
Nivhek - After its own death
Triad God - Bdg
Ecco2k, Bladee & Thaiboy Digital - You Lose
Arthur Russell - I Kissed the Girl From Outer Space
(Sandy) Alex G - Hope
Big Thief - Jenni
Rosalía - A Palé


Slauson Malone - Off Me! And or the Wake, Pt. 1 & 2 (ft. Pink Siifu)

Favorite Icons:
Lil Nas X
Bernie Sanders
Lamar Jackson (Ravens QB)
Adam Sandler in Uncut Gems
Cast of 90 Day Fiance
Inventor of hard seltzer
TikTokers

Perfume Genius & his Twitter

 

Nick Boyd, Beggars Group
Extremely thorough and especially gratuitous full length version of this list is available here

• AceMo and MoMa Ready’s blockbuster year chock full of brilliant stuff that proves they are the sound of NYC dance music right now esp. MoMa’s SOFT, HARD, BODY and CONTROL EP, AceMoMa EP and  “We Dont Do This Shit 4 Free”, and AceMo’s All My Life with the instant classic  “Where They At??? (ft. John FM)”

• 
  
  
  
  • Octo Octa & Eris Drew’s stellar run of mixes, remixes, full lengths, and the launch of their new label T4TLUVNRG especially Octo Octa’s instant classic full length Resonant Body, Eris Drew’s Raving Disco Breaks Vol. 1, and Octo Octa’s ‘I Wanna Tell You A Little Story About House’ Mix.
  
  
  • The fantastic first year of Conducta’s UKG label Kiwi Rekords esp Sammy Virji - Shapes (Oh Will) 
  
  
  • Everything the crazy prolific Australian electro producer Jensen Interceptor put out this year
  
  
  • Everything from DJ Swisha’s 2019 output esp. “Moody” and “Losing Ur Mind” off HNR 03
  
  
  • Absolutely everything from Irish house/breakbeat/garage maniac KETTAMA’s banging 2019 output esp. G?-?TOWN CLUB TRAX 001 and DJ Haus - “Turn The Box Up (KETTAMA Graveyard Mix)”
  
  
  
  

• Vancouver house music institution Mood Hut branched out in a beautiful way this year with fantastic release from CZ Wang & Neo Image, Local Artist, Ciao, and People Plus

• Criminally underrated UK bass/techno/club label Scuffed Recordings have been frequently and consistently releasing quality music all year s/o Mitch Wade Cole, Croft, Fisky, Nikki Nair, etc.


• Another masterful and fruitful year from Unknown To The Unknown who still manage a pace of 2+ releases monthly across five plus imprints.


• DJ Lag proving himself to be a world class unique talent in multiple worlds from futuristic club records for Hyperdub to producing for Beyonce/Tierra Whack on the Lion King OST.


• The kind folks over at Sweat Equity have had a brilliant 2019 with diverse and exciting releases across the board from Ben Ritz, DJ Delish, Millia Rage, Macy Rodman, The Carry Nation, and Deli Girls.


• Everything Rosalía did. We do not deserve Rosalía. “Con Altura” forever.

J-Zbel - Dog's Fart Is So Bad The Cat Throws Up [BFDM]
DJ Delish, Ranika Kevin JZ Prodigy, Koolaid - V A G U E
Aurora Halal - Liquiddity [Mutual Dreaming] esp. Wata Igarashi’s otherworldly Eternal Blue remixes

Ilana Bryne - Low Earth Orbit EP [Naive] esp. “Dub Box Medicine” and “Mmm Mmm Mmm”
Soundbwoy Killah ?– Burning / Moving On [Hundred Flowers] esp. “Moving On”
SOPHIE - OIL OF EVERY PEARL'S UN-UNSIDES NON-STOP REMIX ALBUM [MSMSMSM/Future Classic]
X-Coast - Bailando [Dansu Discs]
Physical Therapy - It Takes A Village: The Sounds Of Physical Therapy [Allergy Season]
Huey Mnemonic - Huey Mnemonic EP [Vanity Press]
Clouds - Sharp Like A Razor [Headstrong]
DJ Plead - Pleats Plead esp. “Salt and Pepper”
Private Caller - Let Me Know / Want Me [ONEPUF]
Peder Mannefelt - Sissel & Bass 4 Ever esp. “Sissel & Bass (Perc Remix)”
Shinichiro Yokota - I Know You Like It & Ultimate Yokota 1991-2019
Lauren Flax - One Man’s House Is Another Woman’s Techno [The Bunker New York]
SOPHIE - OIL OF EVERY PEARL'S UN-UNSIDES NON-STOP REMIX ALBUM [MSMSMSM/Future Classic]
PlayPlay - Invocation [Knightwerk]
Too Late Productions - Cops On Da Floor [Knightwerk]
Dance System - Wind ‘Em Up [Monkeytown]
Super Tuff V/A 04 [Super Tuff] esp. See Other’s “Miss You (Edit)”
Rico Nasty - Anger Management
03 Greedo - Still Summer In The Projects
TisaKorean - A Guide To Being A Partying Freshman esp. “Apple Juice”
Unsound Podcast 49: SHYBOI
Nathan Micay - “Ecstasy Is On Maple Mountain”
AJ Tracey - “Ladbroke Grove” [Prod: Conducta]
Mura Masa - “I Don’t Think I Can Do This Again (with Clairo)”
Rico Nasty - “Sandy”
Flo Milli - “Beef FloMix”
NLE Choppa - “Shotta Flow”
Lil Tecca - “Ransom”
MC Kevin o Chris - “Ela É Do Tipo”

DJ/Live :

• Wata Igarashi (live) -  Sustain-Release Year 6


• J-Zbel  - Sustain-Release Year 6


• LSDXOXO - Sustain-Release Year 6


• Powder - Sustain-Release Year 6


• Bruce - Sustain-Release Year 6


• FALSEBOI (SHYBOI B2B False Witness) LIVE AT UNTERMANIA III


• Robert Armani - UnterMania III


• VTSS  - Unter x Discwoman: Mayhem


• Aurora Halal - Make Me, Corsica Studios


• Eris Drew - The Bunker Pride


• Fatherhood (Physical Therapy/Michael Magnan) - Sublimate


• Theo Parrish - 8am - 2pm set at Nowadays Nonstop on New Years Day


• Marc Acardipane - Spinoff Gabber


• Octo Octa - Mister Sunday - Nowadays


• DJ Lag - Nowadays


• Furfriend - Unter Christopher Street


• Noncompliant - Nowadays


• DJ Sprinkles - Nowadays


• DJ Swisha - Half Moon Boiler Room

Steve Burhans, Beggars Group
Most personally fulfilling LP's released in 2019:
Sunwatchers - Illegal Moves LP (Trouble In Mind) (Also: Winner best album cover of 2019)
Royal Trux - White Stuff LP (Fat Possum)


Wayne Rogers - The Air Below LP (Twisted Village)
Sarah Mary Chadwick - The Queen Who Stole The Sky LP (Heavy Machinery)
Tor Lundvall - A Strangeness In Motion LP (Dais)
75 Dollar Bill - I Was Real 2xLP (Thin Wrist)
Nivhek - After Its Own Death / Walking In A Spiral Towards The House 2xLP (Yellow Electric)
Joshua Abrams & Natural Information Society - Mandatory Reality 2xLP (Eremite)
David Behrman - On The Other Ocean LP (Lovely Music)
Michael O'Shea - S.T. LP (Allchival)

Five Live:
Mayo Thompson
Mdou Moctar
King Brothers
California Flashback Festival (all performers)
75 Dollar Bill

Matt Harmon, Beggars Group
ALBUMS
Sunwatchers – Illegal Moves (Trouble in Mind)


Joshua Abrams & The Natural Information Society – Mandatory Reality (Eremite)
Headroom – New Heaven EP (Ever/Never Records)
Hand Habits – placeholder (Saddle Creek)
Possible Humans – Everybody Split (Hobbies Galore/Trouble in Mind)
Lee Gamble - In a Paraventral Scale (Hyperdub)
Angel Bat Dawid – The Oracle (International Anthem)
M’dou Moctar – Iiana (The Creator) (Sahel Sounds)
Damon Locks and the Black Monument Ensemble – Where Future Unfolds (International Anthem)
Chris Cohen – s/t (Captured Tracks)
Beak - Life Goes On EP (Temporary Residence)
Fennesz – Agora (Editions Mego)
Kelly Lee Owens - Let it Go Omen single (Smalltown Supersound)
Jenny Hval “The Practice of Love” (Sacred Bones)
Shellac – The End of Radio (Live on BBC/ Touch & G0)
Gavilán Rayna Russom – The Envoy (Ecstatic Recordings)

SONGS
Garcia People “Feel So Great” (Beyond Beyond is Beyond Records)
Purple Mountains “All My Happiness is Gone” (Drag City)
Fontaines DC “Boys in the Better Land” (Partisan)
Boy Harsher “Westerners” (Nude Club)

RE-ISSUES
Marion Brown - Three for Shepp (Superior Viaduct / Impulse!)
Blue “Gene” Tyranny - Out of the Blue (40th Anniversary Remaster)
This Kind of Punishment – In the Same Room (Superior Viaduct)

FAVORITE SHOWS
This is Not This Heat @ LPR 3.18.19
Weyes Blood @ Music Hall of Williamsburg 5.29.2019
Kikagaku Moyo on Elsewhere Rooftop 6.26.19
Natural Information Society w/ Jim White @ Union Pool 10.4.19
Damon Locks and Black Monument Ensemble @ South Shoure Cultural Center, Chicago, IL 11.1.2019
Angel Bat Dawid w/ Junius Paul & Emma-Jean Thackary @ Ryewax, London 11.21.19

BEST ALBUM TITLE
A Loss Permitted to Open Its Eyes for but Three Hours and There Glimpsed, Finally in Focus a Mystery That Begs Earnestly, "Ask Me Nothing" Now, Once More the Problem Is Yours Alone (Keiji Haino + Charles Hayward)

Sonya Kolowrat, Beggars Group
best things I went to in 2019 :
Smokey’s round up at Sunny’s in Red Hook
black midi at Zebulon in LA
Thom Yorke at the Greek theater in LA
Genesis P Orridge art opening at Tom’s of Finland in LA
Toms of Finland
Hilma af Klint at the Guggenheim
Lankum’s Jan 2019 shows in NY followed by the Sunday Irish seisun at the 11th street bar
Bauhaus reunion shows at The Palladium



The Brainiac documentary

Laura Lyons, Beggars Group
My 10 favorite albums in no particular order
Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell!
Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride


Weyes Blood - Titanic Rising
FKA twigs - Magdalene
Solange - When I Get Home
Nilufer Yanya - Mis Universe
Sharon Van Etten - Remind Me Tomorrow
Megan Thee Stallion - Fever
Kelsey Lu - Blood
Toro y Moi - Outer Peace

Top tunes not on the aforementioned albums
Ashley O – On A Roll
Rosalia – Millionaria
KH / Four Tet – Only Human
Caroline Polachek – So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings
Burna Boy - Anybody
Peggy Gou – Starry Night
Solange – Binz
Sneaks – Money Don’t Grow On Trees
Velvet Negroni – Wine Green
Chinatown Slalom – Who wants To Be A Millionaire?
Nadia Tehran – Down
HAIM – Summer Girl
Angel Olsen – New Love Cassette
Baby Keem – Opinions
Crumb – Fall Down
Tyler, The Creator - Gone, Gone / Thank You
Kate Bollinger – Candy
Mega Bog – Diary of a Rose


Abby Rubin, Beggars Group
Favorite Records Released in 2019
Kelsey Lu - Blood
Weyes Blood - Titanic Rising
Hand Habits - Place Holder
Charlotte Adigery - Zandoli
Jenny Hval - The Practice of Love


Florist - Emily Alone
Big Thief - UFOF
Arthur Russell - Iowa Dream
Andy Stott - It Should Be Us
Carla del Forno - Look Up Sharp
Angel Bat Dawid - The Oracle
Anadol - Uzun Havalar
Dry Cleaning - Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks
Vanishing Twin - Cryonic Suspension May Save Your Life
Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell!
Angel Olsen - All Mirrors
Aldous Harding - Designer
Equiknoxx - Eternal Children
Sharon Van Etten - Remind Me Tomorrow
Little Simz - GREY Area
Kim Gordon - No Home Record
Purple Mountains - s/t
Ana Roxanne - ~~~
Moodyman - Sinner:KDJ-48
OLD TOWN ROAD
Mort Garson - Plantasia (reissue)

Best Books Read (but maybe not all published) this year
Normal People - Sally Rooney
The Pieces - Melissa Broder
Early Work - Andrew Martin
The Odd Woman and the City - Vivian Gornik
Motherhood - Sheila Heti
Trick Mirror - Jia Tolentino
Black Swans - Eve Babitz
Mars Room - Rachel Kushner

Naomi Scott, Beggars Group



On April 17th 2019 Beyonce graced us with Homecoming: The Live Album and it’s accompanying Netflix film, Homecoming. If you some how missed this earth-shattering event, Homecoming The Live Album is a live album recorded at Beyonce’s historic Coachella headlining performance in 2018, Homecoming is a film of those performances cut with rehearsal footage.

In a move of unspeakable badassary, this was dropped between the two weekends of this year’s Coachella and as a consequence completely eclipsed the event. WHO EVEN HEADLINED COACHELLA THIS YEAR? We have no way of knowing.

On a personal note: I got married on April 19th and my wife and I saved Homecoming to watch in the downtime between our wedding and the evening meal. It was as much part of the festivities as everything else. I’m not saying without Beyonce there would be no wedding, but I’m also not not saying that.

Anyway, in no particular order, here are some highlights:

• Alongside her usual band, Beyonce was backed by full drumline, choir, strings and dancers, all from HBCUs, and it sounded awesome. Less than a month later, Taylor Swift performed with a drumline at the Billboard Music Awards, it was not awesome.

• The same show was performed on consecutive weekends but with different costume colors (yellow weekend one, pink weekend two), there are parts of the Netflix film that cuts from one to the other mid-dance move so it looks like everyone’s clothes change color as they move. I have never recovered from the first time I saw this.



• That bit where Beyonce notices someone miraculously has on the same outfit as her. One of many miracles in Homecoming.



• That bit where Beyonce says “Are you ready Coachella? Let’s go get em” and I want to go get em.

• That bit where Solange comes out basically just to dance and they both fall over some how. They fall over just like the rest of us. Amazing.

• That bit where Jay-Z comes out for a bit so we can all have a bathroom break.

• The fact that I have since re-evaluated several songs I didn’t like very much in light of how good they sound on Homecoming. I can only apologize for my shortsightedness.



It would be remiss of me to not point out that Homecoming won zero Emmys, losing out in the Best Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) category to fucking Carpool Karaoke. I feel I should take this opportunity to once again apologize on behalf of my people for the existence of James Corden. He’s only here because we couldn’t cope with him any more.

Anyway, in conclusion, BEYONCE.



Steve Cross, Remote Control
Spike Fuck -Body By Crystal


June Jones - Big Art Museum
Metric Systems - Your Room
Danika Smith - Suit Of Armour
Gena Rose Bruce - Angel Face
HTRK - You Know How To Make Me Happy
Screensaver -How Any Down



40 Watt Banana -Maharashana
Sunbeam Sound Machine -Talking Distance
Tropical Fuck Storm -Maria 63

Giulia Distaso, Spin Go!
Kim Gordon – No Home Record
Lightning Bolt – Sonic Citadel
clipping. - There Existed an Addiction to Blood


Lingua Ignota – Caligula
Pharmakon – Devour
Chelsea Wolfe – Birth Of Violence
Nivhek - After its own death / Walking in a spiral towards the house
DEAFKIDS – Metaprogramação
USA/Mexico – Matamoros
The Dead C – Rare Ravers
Uboa – The Origin Of My Depression
Thegn – Loss
Yatta – Wahala
Klein – Lifetime
ISS – Alles 3rd Gut
Rakta - Falha Comum
Taiwan Housing Project - Sub-Language Trustees
Diat - Positive Disintegration
Uranium Club – The Cosmo Cleaners
Billy Woods & Kenny Segal - Hiding Places
Moor Mother - Analog Fluids of Sonic Black Holes
JPEGMAFIA - All My Heroes Are Cornballs
Kinlaw & Franco Franco – Mezzi Umani Mezze Macchine
Harrga - Héroïques Animaux De La Misère
Mai Mai Mai – Nel Sud

Valerie Lynch, Spin Go!
Fountains D.C. - Dogrel
Sharon Van Etten – Remind Me Tomorrow
Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell!
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Ghosteen
Billie Eilish – When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do we Go?
Mavis Staples – We Get By


Bad Breeding – Exiled
Chelsea Wolfe – Birth Of Violence