Without further adieu, here are 2017's Runners Up, in alphabetical order:
American Dream
Dance-Punk : Listen
In 2010, LCD Soundsystem disbanded forever. Now, less than 10 years later, "forever" is over and LCD is back and bigger than ever. The fourth title from the long-standing dance-punk outfit, led by singer-songwriter and hyper-talented producer James Murphy, picks up exactly where This Is Happening left off without missing a note. What many have spurned as a cash-grab reunion is anything but; American Dream is a revelation that intrigues, confuses, and saddens. Album closer "Black Screen" alone is worthy of a spot on this list, with Murphy's pleading grief--stemming from the death of mentor/father figure/coolest man ever, David Bowie--slowly devolving into an ambient wash of synths that fade in the same way we all do with time. Other standouts like "Other Voices," "I Used To," and "How Do You Sleep?" kick up the album's intensity with that tried-and-true must-be-LCD combo of shouted bad poetry, ultra-complex percussion, and hypnotizing bass lines. God, it's good to have them back.
Sleep Well Beast
Indie Rock : Listen
Anyone who has spoken to me about the state of sound-saturating indie knows how much I find the National incredibly boring. It is, therefore, with much chagrin, but also with a pleasant surprise that I find myself including Sleep Well Beast this high on my year-end list, or on the list at all. Each song is a piece of a larger whole, yet starkly isolated, beginning low and rising and building to a dreadful crescendo that is unparalleled in the indie rock scene. Even the National's contemporaries like Grizzly Bear and Sufjan Stevens have a hard time equaling the raw power dripping from each note that is Sleep Well Beast, its every moment overflowing with untamed emotion and fully-realized aura. And that's totally leaving out Matt Berninger's heavy, eloquent lyricism and nostalgic Echo-and-the-Bunnymen-esque delivery. Every part interplays and intertwines perfectly, creating one of the most satisfying records of the year.
Process
Alternative R&B : Listen
The past couple years have been very kind to British R&B. We've had beautiful releases from Michael Kiwanuka, Rina Sawayama, and Jessie Ware, just to name a few. And now Sampha joins the mix, with his alternative, nearly minimalist style on Process. Almost clashing with the extensively electronic sounds, Sampha lays his soul bare, putting all his regrets, pains, and dreams on display in vignettes that approach perfection. Every song embraces the tumult that is life on our pale blue dot, an epiphany that catalogs all the longing and memories in a bastion of pure grandeur. "Blood on Me" could easily be a song that defines a career, delivered with complexity and gut-wrenching power, over a smooth electro-beat that could just as easily be hosting a hip hop hook rather than its much more moribund croon. "Reverse Faults" is a revelation within the genre, with a glitchy loop reminiscent of Anohni's debut last year, experimental and sublimely confusing. This and many others fit like tattered, overused puzzle pieces in a rich tapestry of catharsis, nay, apotheosis.
Slowdive
Shoegaze : Listen
If you know me, then you know I'm a sucker for shoegaze: I count down the days until A Place to Bury Strangers release an album, I fall asleep to My Bloody Valentine's Loveless, I seek out any band who will try their damnedest to blow my ear drums with a squall of pure noise. Slowdive is a sleeping giant of a band, one who waved the flag of this once revolutionary sound. But the hallmark of a revolution is that it comes back around, and the giant stirs from his slumber. Perhaps inspired by MBV's 2013 return, itself marking the end of a 22-year hiatus, the group have come back to us after the same expanse of silence. And much like MBV, as well as the above listed LCD Soundsystem, Slowdive respect their own legacy, releasing their first self-titled album that is both an extension of their discography as well as an essential addition to it. The sound is familiar, but innovative in its atmosphere; filling in gaps from the past, yet unflinching from its forward leaps toward an unknown and terrifying horizon. At some times abstract, at others casual, this album is truly worthy of carrying the ingenious band's name as its own.
Masseduction
Pop/New Wave : Listen
Praise the Lord, St. Vincent released an album. It doesn't matter which one, it's one of hers. One of the few insanely talented guitarists not interested in grinding themselves into a genre-rut, AND able to create beautiful songs while exploring new sonic territory, Annie Clark is the musician/singer/ass-kicker of a generation. Her collected works could inspire an entire memoir, or at the very least, and 18th century-style pamphlet. And Masseduction truly is an about-face of style for St. Vincent's fifth release. Taking cues from electronic, pure pop, techno, and glam rock, Clark once again creates a voice and musical universe uniquely hers. The lyrics are darker, yet somehow more inviting and enlightening. The songwriting is varied, complicated, and still so easy to consume, like putting gold leaf in a smoothie of Forbidden Fruit. The undertaking of creating and finishing the album put Clark back almost a full year, but the extra effort has clearly paid off, making Masseduction not only an incredible St. Vincent album, but perhaps the best St. Vincent album.
P.S. Seriously, who is Johnny and why are all his songs so sad?
Big Fish Theory
Hip Hop : Listen
Summertime '06 was one of the best hip hop albums of the decade when it was released just two years ago. It was, therefore, with great anticipation that I waited for Vince Staples' Big Fish Theory, and he did not disappoint. Staples is a master of taking west-coast rap conventions and turning them on their ear. What would normally be chest-pounding boasts become caricatures of the overcompensating. Club banger beats are purposefully overproduced to create tinny loops that force the listener to focus inward rather than lose themselves. Don't worry though, Staples isn't so out of touch, as you still get insane dance floor favorites as "Yeah Right" and "Big Fish," but they're all imbued with a cautious withdrawal that is patently him. Nothing show-boats but every detail is excessively important--rococo rap. Big Fish Theory is the best continuation of a personal style that I still can't wait to hear more of: Vince Staples' off-kilter delivery and avant-garde beats are the best thing in an industry full of one-note trap slogs.
A Deeper Understanding
Rock/Americana : Listen
My bad, everybody. I'm super late to the train for this one. The War on Drugs has been releasing quality heartland rock songs for years, apparently, creating an almost insufferably talented niche for himself as the modern Springsteen, Petty, or even Dylan. I never heard Slave Ambient, and I didn't even consider 2014's Lost in the Dream until I was going through other publications' lists and saw it in so many #1 spots. As such, I had to catch myself up, and goddamn was it worth it. Every song is a sumptuous palette of sound and story-like vocals, delivered with a voice that, while unique, still seems comfortably familiar. Despite the extensive use of synthesizers and other electronic studio tricks, Adam Granduciel's songs sound incredibly warm, and worn; listening to them is the musical equivalent of your favorite sweater. The stories in each song are both intense and polished, and well worth the time to explore in depth.
Stay tuned, readers. Later this week, we'll be releasing our Albums of the Year listicle!
If our Runners Up aren't enough to hold you over, check out our Honorable Mentions.
--S^E
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