Best of 2017

Well, here we go again. Another year toasted. Another attempt to organize art into a list and rank the unrankable. If it helps any, I'll be the first to admit that the exact order of my top 10 - 20 albums are often capable of shuffling spots depending on my mood during any given day. I imagine that comes as no shock to anyone.

Overall, I'd say it was a pretty good year. I've certainly found a lot of music - and a lot of bands - that I'm sure I'll be playing for the rest of my days. If you find something you like, I encourage you to invest in the album. In the meantime, you just know I'll be kicking myself for a pile of worthy omissions (which I'll attempt to collect on the upcoming Orphans mix).

The Un-Herd Music Top 50 of 2017

 1. Chuck Berry Chuck

You may suspect I'm gifting the #1 spot to Mr. Berry solely on the grounds of his importance to every single note on every single mix I've ever made in my life. And you may be right. And I don't care.

2. Needles//Pins Good Night Tomorrow

The band continues their expected trajectory, which combines the ragged hooks of the Replacements with the sonic wallop of a car crash, but with a truly impressive growth in songwriting.

3. The Crazy Squeeze Savior of the Streets

In the band bio they rightly reference 70s pub rock, but these guys remember the tough and melodic Ducks Deluxe brand over the ersatz Band-isms of Brinsley Schwartz. That's the way I prefer to remember it too.

 4. The Regrettes Feel Your Feelings Fool

Astonishingly, front woman Lydia Night was 16 years old when this album was recorded, but that didn't stop her from copping (and refining) moves from relatively ancient precursors like 90s riot grrls and 60s girl groups. The future is female.

5. The Stanleys The Stanleys

The inescapable descriptor is power pop, but these guys deliver an advanced thesis in muscular hook-craft that most comparable bands barely understand, let alone strive for.

6. Daniel Romano Modern Pressure

After releasing a number of straight retro-country albums, Romano reached back into his own punky roots and unleashed something that sounds like the Basement Tapes beamed in from a galaxy where Hank Williams played power pop.



 

 7. Spoon Hot Thoughts

At this point Spoon is flying far above the Un-Herd purview, but it's difficult to ignore the quality of Britt Daniel's songwriting, not to mention the breath-taking invention of the band's arrangements. Great band just keeps getting greater.

8. Biters The Future Ain't What It Used To Be

70s glam stomp meets 80s glam rawk meets modern punk attitude - this could go wrong in so many ways but is constantly redeemed by leader Tuk's gift for melody, as well as his apparently honest respect for his antecedents.

 9. Black Joe Lewis Backlash

I don't know what this guy needs to do to get more respect and/or attention out there, but I hope he keeps the pedal to the metal and continues in this skronkin' sax 'n' molten R&B mode. This shit's the real deal.

10. QTY QTY

The kind of album that could only come out of NYC. Droll vocals drenched in charisma and elliptical guitar lines make comparisons to Lou Reed and the Strokes (and all points in between) inevitable, yet there's a melancholy cool that is entirely the band's own.





11. Low Cut Connie Dirty Pictures (Part 1)
12. Bash & Pop Anything Could Happen
13. Suzes Fragile Development
14. The Rich Hands Take Care
15. Sheer Mag Need To Feel Your Love
16. White Reaper The World's Best American Band
17. The Rubs Impossible Dream
18. Colman Gota Fear the Summer
19. The Jesus and Mary Chain Damage + Joy
20. The Pilgrims No Focus

21. The Lowest of the Low Do The Right Now
22. The Singles Sweet Tooth
23. First Base Not That Bad
24. Dude York Sincerely
25. Plasticsoul Therapy
26. Gregg Stewart Gregg Stewart
27. New Swears And The Magic Of Horses
28. Ted Leo The Hanged Man
29. Wyldlife Out On Your Block
30. Aimee Mann Mental Illness

31. Indonesian Junk Stars in the Night
32. JD McPherson Undivided Heart + Soul
33. The Successful Failures Ichor of Nettle
34. Hanni El Khatib Savage Times
35. Sweet Spirit St. Mojo
36. The Church Man Woman Life Death Infinity
37. Shinyribs I Got Your Medicine
38. Eyelids or
39. Chuck Prophet Bobby Fuller Died For Your Sins

40. Two Cow Garage Brand New Flag
41. The Hooten Hallers The Hooten Hallers
42. Robyn Ludwick This Tall To Ride
43. Rancid Trouble Maker
44. Shilpa Ray Door Girl
45. Tim Heidecker Too Dumb For Suicide; The Trump Songs
46. The Rallies Serve
47. Pugwash Silverlake
48. Dirty Fences Goodbye Love
49. Willie Nile Positively Bob: Nile Sings Dylan
50. Sharon Jones Soul of a Woman

Honorable Mentions, Reissues, & Late 2016 Releases:

The Replacements For Sale; Live At Maxwell's, 1986
Teenage Head Fun Comes Fast
Sam Cash & the Romantic Dogs  Tongue-in-Cheek Vows
The Dollyrots Whiplash Splash
Samantha Fish Chills & Fever
Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires Youth Detention
Hayley Thompson-King Psychotic Melancholia
The Pink Tiles #1 Fan
Alex Lahey Love You Like a Brother
The Red Button Now It's All This

Draw That Chalky Line All Around The Corpse of Truth

1. Needles//Pins Pressure Points
2. The Crazy Squeeze Ooh Baby I Love You
3. Suzes Pleasure Doing Business With You
4. The Rubs Why Won't You Wait
5. Black Joe Lewis Prison
6. Sheer Mag Rank and File
7. QTY Rodeo
8. White Reaper Another Day
9. The Regrettes Hey Now
10. Biters Callin' You Home
11. Rich Hands So What
12. Bash & Pop Unfuck You
13. Plasticsoul King of Hash
14. The Lowest of the Low Saint Spurious
15. Colman Gota Call It Quits
16. Low Cut Connie Angela
17. The Jesus and Mary Chain All Things Pass
18. The Singles Sweet Tooth
19. First Base Crybaby
20. The Stanleys Amy
21. The Pilgrims Dinky Betts
22. Daniel Romano When I Learned Your Name
23. Dude York Black Jack
24. New Swears Dance with the Devil
25. Chuck Berry Lady B. Goode

Faves of 2017 (vol. 3)

Well durn, it took a lot longer than usual, but here's the final installment of UHM Faves for this year. Of course, that doesn't include the inevitable Orphans mix that'll show up sometime early in the new year, which will compile all the great stuff I somehow missed in 2017. Nor does it include the upcoming Best Of 2017, which will join the yearly summation of my favorite albums (many of which are represented on this very mix). And there's probably still a Xmas compilation to post before the year is over.

I guess what I'm trying to say is sorry for taking so long. And, as usual, let me know what's missing! 

Discount Bins of Broken Things

1. Stag The Bedazzler
2. The Crazy Squeeze Twisted Little Secrets
3. The R1ch Hands Fast and Loose
4. First Base Sandra
5. Twin Temp1e Girl Trouble
6. QTY Dress/Undress
7. The Stan1eys What Are We Gonna Do
8. Terra Lightf00t Stars Over Dakota
9. Kitty, Daizy & Lewis Just One Kiss
10. Sweet Sp1rit Pretty Baby
11. Justine & the Unc1ean I'm In Love With You, Jackass
12. The Cheep Cassettes Hieroglyphics in Lipstick
13. JD McPhers0n Crying's Just a Thing That You Do
14. The High-tai1s So Long
15. A1ex Lahey I Love You Like a Brother
16. Ind0nesian Junk I'll Run Away
17. The Pink Ti1es Rocky Road
18. Shi1pa Ray Shi1pa Ray's Got a Heart Full of Dirt
19. Fuzzy V0x I Fell In Love With the World
20. Bu11et Proof Lovers One Last Night
21. D1rty Fences Never Over
22. The Dah1manns Conny Converse
23. Ha1ey Thompson-King No Room For Jesus
24. Watts All Done With Rock & Roll
25. Backstreet Gir1s Back Again

Faves of 2017 (vol. 2)

It's been a long time coming, but the new UHM faves mix is finally ready to rock dad's pants off at your next family gathering.

This one's chock full of stuff from albums that will undoubtedly be featured in my Best of the Year list. It's been great to hear some of this blog's all-time favorites return with maybe the best music of their careers (so far). But there have been some disappointments too. I try to stick with only the positive here, however, so my thoughts on long-awaited releases by Jim Jones and J. Roddy Wa1ston - as well as longer-awaited releases by the Dream Syndicate and the F1amin' Groovies - will have to be saved for elsewhere.

Fuckitfuckitfuckitfuckit

1. Sunshine & the Ra1n Come On Baby
2. The Real Sick1es Everywhere You Go
3. Shear Mag Just Can't Get Enough
4. Need1es//Pins Violet
5. Ho11erado I Got You
6. Biter5 Gypsy Rose
7. The P0pguns We Don't Go Around There Anymore
8. D0wntown Boys A Wall
9. Sam Cash & the R0mantic Dogs Carmen
10. Waxxahatchee Never Been Wrong
11. C0tton Mather Hijinks Dad
12. Successfu1 Fai1ures Misguiding Light
13. L0w Cut Connie Revolution Rock n Roll
14. Gregg Stewert R is for Rock Star
15. Fi1thy Friends Come Back Shelley
16. The Preature5 Lip Balm
17. Duncan Re1d & the Big Heads Bombs Away
18. Cyanide Pi11s Government
19. The Strype5 Get It Over Quickly
20. Boogie Patro1 Foolish Mind
21. New Swear5 Comfortably Hungover
22. Ted Le0 Can't Go Back
23. Danie1 Romano Pride of Queens
24. T0gether Pangea Alison

Faves of 2017 (vol. 1)

No case needs to be made for the importance of Chuck Berry to our modern world. He was simply one of the giants who shaped it. Pretty much every speck of sound spattered across these UHM posts wouldn't exist without his contribution to the continuum. And while it's true he had a long run and we all can't live forever, it's also true that Chuck took as good a shot at immortality, armed with nothing but a guitar and an idea, as is humanly possible. Goes to show you never can tell.

Let's a-Rock n' Roll Till the Break of Day

1. The Regrette5 A Living Human Girl
2. Dude Y0rk Tonight
3. B1ack Joe Lewis Wasted
4. Ba5h & Pop On The Rocks
5. Chuck Pr0phet If I Was Connie Britton
6. Vant I Don't Believe in God
7. Cl0ud Nothings Enter Entirely
8. B0ss Hog Black Eyes
9. Hanni E1 Khattib Gun Clap Hero
10. C0c0 Hames Tiny Pieces (Bash & P0p cover)
11. The G0dfathers You Don't Love Me
12. The Orwe11s They Put a Body in the Bayou
13. Ron Ga11o Young Lady, You're Scaring Me
14. Manche5ter Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
15. Samantha Fi5h I'll Come Running Over
16. Two C0w Garage Let the Boys be Girls
17. The Pi1grims Fuckuitude
18. Wy1d1ife Get Loud
19. White Reeper The Stack
20. Po1ish Club Whachuknow
21. T.S.0.L. Why Can't We Do It Again
22. Granddaddy Way We Won't

*Super secret hidden bonus track included