ILM's Top 77 Albums of 2017

much as she has meant to me in the past, i honestly never want to hear her voice again.

first two tracks were cool but this really did not need to be 70+ minutes, bjork at her densest and most abstract gets tiring very quickly

First track is beautiful, but I got lost after that one.

my response to Living In The City was basically "oh cool, there's a female Hold Steady now" lol

I'm down with the Hold Steady but they are the whitest band ever, this is a Bronx singer of Puero Rican heritage staring down Trumpsim and doing it with tunes you could put on in Starbucks. That's kinda what I loved about it.

I never said my take was accurate! Just popped into my head, thought it was humorous that it made me think of that

i voted for the bjork album at #17 or therabouts. i thought it was gorgeous.

it was nice to hear her so happy after the spartan vulnicura

I'm down with the Hold Steady but they are the whitest band ever, this is a Bronx singer of Puero Rican heritage staring down Trumpsim and doing it with tunes you could put on in Starbucks. That's kinda what I loved about it.

― Matt DC, Monday, January 29, 2018 9:11 AM (four minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

the starbucks thing is offset by the intensity and occasional fury simmering in the lyrics and vocals but i agree.

my response to Living In The City was basically "oh cool, there's a female Hold Steady now" lol

one of my favorite parts of these rollouts is people checking out acts for the first time and coming up with totally off comparisons

https://i.amz.mshcdn.com/Rs9mbBsjqS5pdtnPKyM3Ki35I8w=/1200x630/2017%2F04%2F02%2F11%2Fc028267d1d8b4c6c8a995b10475f79e3.1af07.png

maybe this is all preemptive for when you all compare R Dawson to idk Sun Lol Moon or something

I am keeping that autocorrect

he sounds more like richard thompson getting strangled

Where was the voting thread? How did I completely miss it?

that's the spirit! xp

The voting thread was a bit anonymous this year, there's a lot to be said for giving it a big annoying title so that everyone sees it.

it was nice to hear her so happy after the spartan vulnicura

I loved Vulnicura and was bored by this one, but it would be really nice for her to be on the dancefloor again.

is that why votings down on metal poll is down? Nobody knows its on? I refuse to do puns but simon h done the threads (i did warn him no puns, lol)

was a bit bored by this bjork too, think that arca's own album was way more interesting and strange

I'm probably a little more oblivious than most tbf

Arca's vocals struck me as even more narcissistic than 2010s Björk. Kind of ruined my enjoyment of the rest.

it was nice to hear her so happy after the spartan vulnicura

I loved Vulnicura and was bored by this one, but it would be really nice for her to be on the dancefloor again.

― Matt DC, Monday, January 29, 2018 12:30 PM (three minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I liked them both, Vulnicura was probably the more impressive achievement, but I found Utopia was a lot easier to return to.

maybe this is all preemptive for when you all compare R Dawson to idk Sun Lol Moon or something

lmao <3

https://i.imgur.com/FJtxnd7.jpg

66 WAXAHATCHEE "Out in the Storm" (216 points, 8 votes)
spotify

here was my capsule length review of the bjork:

People often lament that the influence of the smartphone has driven people to isolate themselves from the physical world. Not Björk. On Utopia, which she describes as her “Tinder album,” technology has the power of bringing people closer together—“I literally think I am five minutes away from love,” she warbles on “Features Creatures.” Moving beyond the harsh, metallic soundscapes of Vulnicura, which was written and recorded at the end of a decades-long relationship, Utopia is a blissful and pastoral record, populated by flutes and bird sounds and overflowing with joy.

does this count as ameriplod too? it's good but i liked her last one a lot more

enjoyable but unspectacular indie, silver is really nice

*joins tinder*

it's good but i liked her last one a lot more

― ciderpress, Monday, 29 January 2018 17:40 (three minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I like the recent Bjork stuff I've heard but never explore it fully, not sure if that's just because I'm lazy and don't listen as widely as I used to or if there's something in it that doesn't completely gel with me.

I dutifully give every Waxahatchee album a listen but her arrangement and production choices are so fucking boring and drag even the good songs down.

I put Utopia high on my ballot. Adam Bruneau's and Ross's posts on the dedicated thread (Bjork - 2017 album) explain its appeal to me very well. And I still maintain "saint" near the end is a hidden pop gem.

Cool rollout so far: usually the boring stuff shows up around day three.

I dutifully give every Waxahatchee album a listen but her arrangement and production choices are so fucking boring and drag even the good songs down.

― Matt DC, Monday, January 29, 2018 11:03 AM (five minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

otm. feel like it's telling that my fav waxahatchee album (the debut) has basically no arrangement or production choices

I heard this one was supposed to be much fuller sounding, though.

It is fuller sounding but also stodgier.

What I've heard so far:

Elder - good stuff. Thought I had voted for it but I guess not.

The National - I like their albums up to High Violet included. I found what they release after that one to be super boring and this one is no exception.

The Weather Station - Gave up after a few tracks that left no impression whatsoever.

Will try to sample everything else later tonight.

I had Utopia in my top ten, it's a gorgeous record and a nice next step after Vulnicura. To be honest though I think Volta is the only time I've felt let down by a Björk album.

https://i.imgur.com/piRwG8e.jpg

65 TORNADO WALLACE "Lonely Planet" (219 points, 7 votes)
spotify

There it is

wish I liked this as much as I'm supposed to

Woo the first of mine to chart! This one is fucking lush m8

Here's one I've actually heard, my number 2 and in a roughly similar position to the artist's placer in the tracks poll

It's really different, but I like it for the same reasons I like old Ulrich Schnauss. It's large scale and cozy at the same time.

didn't listen to this until the results came in and its a very cool record, i like it

feel kinda bummed no one said "hey man this record is very gr8080, you should listen" to me at all last year

I tried my best but I couldn’t really get into old wally tornado

dude should change his name to like Cool Breeze Wallace or something

he could, but this guy would probably sue.

I thought I voted for this, but I actually didn't lol

Zephyr Wallace

yeah, I also didn't listen to this until it placed in the tracks poll. Enjoyed it quite a bit.

Other than this, L'Rain (which I voted for) and the Italian Dreamhouse compilation (listening to this right now, incredible) I've been a bit disappointed by the results so far.