ILM's Top 77 Albums of 2017

it's too spacious, lush, and dynamic to be comparable to someone like ID imo. it's mixed like a Steven Wilson record or something.

I'm guessing that Manchester Orchestra album is equal parts Radiohead and Dragonforce?

Sure, in that it sounds nothing like either of them.

the lead singer of MO's voice reminds me of the guy from Fleet Foxes

it's too spacious, lush, and dynamic to be comparable to someone like ID imo

i'm thinking specific of that last song, with its incredible pounding buildup. reminds me of bands that have a tomtom for the singer to play. but yeah it's really just tangential

async is a beautiful record and was high on my list. I think it is a great entry point into the music of Ryuchi Sakamoto. The washes of ambient background sounds and heavy treatment of traditional instruments give it a really lovely beamed from outer space quality

xp the Visible Cloaks album is abstract and hard to get a handle on but is also rewarding I think. Not sure about the comparison to OPN's music, it seems much lighter to me, although I guess its use of brittle electronic tones is in some ways similar. I think the comment about it being "music for breatharians" describes it perfectly

MO album wasnt for me. I just dont like emo rock

also i managed to catch MO on tour and they played every single song i hoped they would. it was amazing

I'm guessing that Manchester Orchestra album is equal parts Radiohead and Dragonforce?

― Matt DC, Tuesday, January 30, 2018 8:35 AM (five minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lmao i would listen to this theoretical band but no

i kinda get the "emo" label for MO but i kinda don't. to me, emo generally has strong lineage to punk styles. but MO seems to come more from "modern rock" than punk

King Krule in the studio pic.twitter.com/vsLVpBw7CB

— Bryan Tiller (@cuIerito) January 7, 2018

lmao

MO album is definitely not what you would normally think of when you say "Emo." They have a lot of similarities to Brand New, but they have spacious soundscapes straight outta mid-00's indie. Echoes of things like Brightblack or Shearwater.

Moon and Antarctica era MM definitely came to mind for me.

I was thinking Shearwater the whole time, but that could just be a cover connection

https://is2-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music117/v4/3d/b0/fb/3db0fb7f-35b2-be9a-ea4b-d1fbbf449c04/UMG_cvrart_00888072031364_01_RGB72_1800x1800_17CRGIM03389.jpg/268x0w.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/3d/Shearwater_rook.jpg/220px-Shearwater_rook.jpg

for those willing to give MO a chance, listen to the 3 song stretch the alien, the sunshine, and the grocery

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

54 WEDNESDAY CAMPANELLA "SUPERMAN" (234 points, 7 votes, 2 first place votes)
spotify

I've never even heard of this!

i've never heard of this but the first twenty seconds have been magnificent

2 #1s!

found this in the noms or 'pls vote' thread and loved it
thought i voted for it but apparently not!

Maybe Dua Lipa would have gotten a higher slot if I voted this year.

holy shit yes

Dunno if I need a whole album of this Wednesday Campanella stuff, but it's perfect for a quick mood booster.

my #1! figured if it was going to place it probably would have already so this is a very nice surprise

the fourth track on this is completely bonkers

good job voters

Great album. I think I heard it because it was high on the RYM list all year.

didn't vote for wednesday campanella but really happy to see them make the top 77, they're so consistently awesome. highly recommend their youtube channel for their music videos and live performances

Holy shit, is this the first time Wednesday Campanella have made it into an EoY poll? I know that there are always a few of us who try to get people to vote for 'em but I'm not sure we've ever been successful before.

yeah it's the first time i think

i don't know how they manage to be so consistently exciting and prolific since they've been releasing basically an album or more yearly since 2013

i love "audrey" a lot

haven't listened to this until now, and its pretty great! makes me feel like walking my dog and shopping for clothes and getting on an airplane to somewhere i dont have to work.

"Zeami" is fuckin sick

Weds Camp voter here. I think glenn got me interested in 'em in 2016 via his weekly New Particles playlists but this album was the first moment that they really clicked with me.

colleen record is excellent

It isn't quite Captain of None level, but it's excellent.

She's never made a bad album iirc.

https://i.imgur.com/9MrDDT8.jpg

53 LAUREL HALO "Dust" (241 points, 9 votes)
spotify

a nice yin to wednesday campanella's yang imo

^^ otm

Oh good. Didn't vote for this but pleased to see it place. Her best record, I think.

I think all three (or four if you count In Situ) of her albums are almost equally great! my favorite is still Quarantine, followed by Chance of Rain

I think this may be her brightest, "happiest" release

Why has this thread been so quiet compared to the tracks one? Where is everybody?

I'm at work.

You can listen to a song in four minutes and immediately post an opinion, engaging with an album you've never heard takes a lot longer.

So far the L'Rain album is the only one that I've listened to prior to the countdown. I think that's a new record low for me. So lots of catching up to do.

i didn't understand this laurel halo record *at all* but i did enjoy listening to it. feels like her songs are made out of some weird thick fluid instead of solid matter, like the music's been written on dough that's slowly being stretched and kneaded right in front of your ears. some good songs all the same though - 'do u ever happen', 'moontalk', 'jelly'

"Syzygy" is great, too. the desultory vocals and extremely loose arrangements on this album are very appealing to me