My Favorite 19 Albums of 2019

 

1. STRUNG OUT - SONGS OF ARMOR AND DEVOTION 

1. Ulysses, 2. Strange Notes, 3. Bloody Knuckles

If you ask me we ain't got much time
So excuse the mess
it's just pictures in my mind
I need to show you
I need to show you
So you understand 

 

2. BLEACHED - DON'T YOU THINK YOU'VE HAD ENOUGH?

1. Rebound City, 2. Somebody Dial 911, 3. Heartbeat Away

You're more fun to be around
Higher than the clouds
Nod out on the couch
Saying such sweet things to me
When you're swimming in dopamine

 

3. RIVAL SONS - FERAL ROOTS 

  

1. Do Your Worst, 2. Sugar On The Bone, 3. Too Bad

I know you better than you think I do
You could've stuck with me, but a girl's got to do what she has to
But every now and then my name passes your lips
Your late night strolls down memory lane on your fingertips

4. PIXIES - BENEATH THE EYRIE

1. Daniel Boone, 2. On Graveyard Hill, 3. Long Rider

Last night I was driving around
Nothing to do
Thinking of you
I sighted here on the bend
Reindeer and then it was through

  

5. THE WILDHEARTS - RENAISSANCE MEN

  1. My Kinda Movie, 2. Dislocated, 3. The Renaissance Men

If I'm pacing up and down your hall
And if I'm casting shadows on your wall
Don't let my proximity mean what it may imply
I'm just working on a way to say goodbye 

 

 6. BETTER OBLIVION COMMUNITY CENTER - S/T

1. Sleepwalkin', 2. Dylan Thomas, 3. Service Road

You like beer and chocolate

I like setting off those bottlerockets

 

7. MICHAEL MONROE - ONE MAN GANG 

1. Last Train To Tokyo, 2. One Man Gang, 3. Black Ties And Red Tape

 From the heart of the city
to the out-of-the-way
Everybody's pissing on their own parade
But I'm a one man gang
and I'm runnin' on that P.M.A.

 

8. BAD RELIGION - AGE OF UNREASON

1. My Sanity, 2. Candidate, 3. Age Of Unreason

Hey kids on the right and left

Do you feel dispossessed?

If you're on the left or right 

I feel your pain tonight

So shake off reality it's as easy as you please

Soon everyone is dancing con-spir-a-tor-i-a-lly 

 

9. L.A. GUNS - THE DEVIL YOU KNOW

1. The Devil You Know, 2. Rage, 3. Stay Away

I got plenty of time

You got a fuckin' rock you live under

I am a zen motherfucker

You are rage

  

10. SNUFF - THERE'S A LOT OF IT ABOUT

1. Patient Zero, 2. Bob's Song, 3. Summer's Over

 A shark's a shark and sharks get hungry
I'll dress for lunch
See you next Tuesday

 

  

11. SUM 41 - ORDER IN DECLINE

1. Out For Blood, 2. A Death In The Family, 3. Heads Will Roll  

I believe that I am losing faith
in all of human kind
But then I realize it's plain to see
that a number is just all you are to me

 

12. THE SUBJUNCTIVES - SUNSHINE AND RAINBOWS

1. Hey Dad, 2. Pass It On, 3. Dumbass

 Hey Dad
Where's Mom?
She's gone dancing again

  

13. BLINK-182 - NINE

1. No Heart To Speak Of, 2. Darkside, 3. Black Rain  

Lying on the bedroom floor
Hanging on the words that you said before
No heart, no heart to speak of

 

14. THE DARKNESS - EASTER IS CANCELLED

1. Heart Explodes, 2. Easter Is Cancelled, 3. In Another Life

Take me to the open road
Run until my heart explodes
Take me to the open road
Or give me back the love I'm owed

 

  15. IDA MAE - CHASING LIGHTS

 1. Baby Be Mine, 2. Chasing Lights, 3. Love Is Still A Long Road

One day honey when we're free and clean
with a baby on the backseat like a jellybean 
You won't remember when you wanted more
or the shadows cooking at the kitchen door

  

16. DAVE HAUSE - KICK

1. Bearing Down, 2. Fireflies, 3. Eye Aye I

 I see you shining in the sun again and I know
For the first time in forever I'm certain I can't go
You're the one I want to wither with
I want to see you when you're old
And be the one to keep you warm when the world turns cold


 

 17. SACRED REICH - AWAKENING

1. Manifest Reality, 2. Something To Believe, 3. Awakening 

Give me something to believe
Give me something I can see
 



 18. MASKED INTRUDER - III

1. Stay With Me Tonight, 2. Just So You Know, 3. No Case

But he's lying next to you, I'm in the treehouse outside
He gets to hold you whenever he wants to
I sleep alone all night



 

19. 24-7 SPYZ - SOUNDTRACK TO THE INNERMOST GALAXY 
  
1. Anthem, 2. Repeating Myself, 3. Thank You 

 On top of the game as they always did
bringing that noise man I'm loving it
All around the world they got it goin' on
Heavy Metal Soul pioneers from the boogie down Bronx
Spyz 24-7 
365 from '86 to the present 

My Favorite Albums of 2018

1.  SNAIL MAIL - LUSH

1. Heat Wave, 2. Pristine, 3. Deep Sea

And I hope whoever it is
Holds their breath around you
'Cause I know I did

 2.  THE DIRTY NIL - MASTER VOLUME 

1. Pain Of Infinity, 2. Evil Side, 3. Auf Wiedersehen

Let's do whatever you want
Whatever you want 
Whatever you want
Let's do whatever you want
Whatever you want 
Whatever you want
Whatever you want
Whatever you want
Whatever you want
Whatever you want
...That's what I want

 3.  SUPERCHUNK - WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE

 1. Erasure, 2. Dead Photographers, 3. Break The Glass

To see the rot in no disguise
Oh what a time to be alive
The scum, the shame, the fucking lies
Oh what a time to be alive

4. DADDY ISSUES - DEEP DREAM

1. High Street, 2. Dog Years, 3. In Your Head

Oh no, you scratched until I bled
I hope you choke on your own spit in your own bed
Cause I know
I know how it ends
We’re not gonna be friends
In dog years you’re dead

5. SATANIC SURFERS - BACK FROM HELL 

 1. The Usurper, 2. Self-Medication, 3. Madhouse

It's probably the stress, but it could be my age

Soon I'll be looking just like Mr. Clooney

Cause my hair is turning grey, a little day by day

And the U.S. elected a loony

6. DEL & AMP LIVE - GATE 13
1. Sit Ya Ass Down, 2. Get Some Of Dis, 3. Humble Pie

You’ll try humble pie
Yeah yeah, it serves him right
Sit down and eat a slice
You’ll try humble pie
That’s right, chow down
I’ma make you bow down

7. MONSTER TRUCK - TRUE ROCKERS

1. Young City Hearts, 2. True Rocker, 3. Evolution

I'm not an artist or a poet or a saint
I never claimed to be much of anything
I turn everything up until it breaks
I know who I am
...A True Rocker

8. MXPX - S/T

 1. All Of It, 2. Disaster, 3. 20/20 Hindsight

I'm in the kitchen
You're in the kitchen
In the goddamn refrigerator 

9.  PALE WAVES - MY MIND MAKES NOISES 

 1. Drive, 2. There's A Honey, 3. Noises

Is it all in my head, what they said?
I'm not feeling too good
I'm feeling misunderstood
Is it all in my head, what they said?
I'm not feeling too good
I would cry if I could

 

10.  ALKALINE TRIO - IS THIS THING CURSED?

1.  Goodbye Fire Island, 2. Throw Me To The Lions, 3. Demon & Division

Is this thing cursed?
It's been around for years
And every time my boat's about tits up
That goddamn thing is near

 

 11. BRIAN FALLON - SLEEPWALKERS 
 1. My Name Is The Night (Color Me Black), 2. Etta James, 3. Forget Me Not
 

Would you put your black dress on

And visit my bones?

And bring my football top

and a scarf for the cold.

Playing melancholy songs that somehow made us... 

feel a whole lot better.

 12.  JAGGER HOLLY - LAST OF THE INTERNATIONAL PLAYBOYS
1. It Ain't Over (Til' I'm Sober), 2. Bree Olsen, 3. Party Tonight

I'm having a party tonight
Yeah, you're all invited
I don't wanna hear about your kids
cause I'm over it if you really got to know

My Favorite Albums of 2017

1.  DEAD CROSS - S/T
1. Divine Filth  2. Shilelagh  3. Grave Slave

I took a pee and it came out red
I took a dump and it came out dead

2.  THE MENZINGERS - AFTER THE PARTY

 1. Tellin' Lies, 2. Black Mass, 3. Bad Catholics

Where we gonna go now that our twenties are over?

3.  THE DARKNESS - PINEWOOD SMILE

 1. I Wish I Was In Heaven  2. Happiness  3.Stampede Of Love

And we're never gonna stop

Shitting out solid gold

4.  RYAN ADAMS - PRISONER

 1. Shiver And Shake  2. Do You Still Love Me?  3. To Be Without You

I've been waiting here like a dog at the door
You used to throw me scraps you don't do it anymore



 

5.  L.A. GUNS - THE MISSING PEACE

 1. Speed  2. The Flood's the Fault of the Rain  3. The Devil Made Me Do It

You and me we need it
We got the wander lust
Live for the forward thrust

6.  DAVE HAUSE - BURY ME IN PHILLY

 1. Wild Love  2. Divine Lorraine  3. Dirty Fucker

Springtime brought the fever
I'm buying flowers with a shake in my knees
I was fine on my own
Now she's got me dreaming about losing my teeth

 7.  BOOTSY COLLINS - WORLD WIDE FUNK

1. Candy Coated Lover  2. Hot Saucer  3. Worth My While

In Funk We Thrust
(and there's no hole in this doughnut
...if only I could fill you in)

8.  ROYAL BLOOD - HOW DID WE GET SO DARK?

1. I Only Lie When I Love You  2. Lights Out  3. She's Creeping

 I'm a devil to your addiction
Your affection
And your friction

9.  WEEZER - PACIFIC DAYDREAM

 1. Feels Like Summer  2. Mexican Fender  3. La Mancha Screwjob

Yeah it feels like summer to me

10.  LIVING COLOUR - SHADE

1. Blak Out  2. Program  3. Inner City Blues
 
I’ll be dressed impeccably
In a gray, pin stripe suit
With wing tip shoes, just a
Singin’ the blues
No one can refute

11.  AFI - THE BLOOD ALBUM

 1. Hidden Knives  2. Dumb Kids  3. So Beneath You


I left a little something on the table for you

12.  RACQUET CLUB - S/T

 1. Head Full of Bees  2. Boundaries  3. Blue Skies


 A head full of bees, you write such pretty songs
But not one is for me
A heart that waits impatiently

13.  RANCID - TROUBLE MAKER

 1. Where I'm Going  2. An Intimate Close Up Of A Street Punk Trouble Maker  3. I Got Them Blues Again

 

 Retaliation is my crime
Communication a waste of time
Inebriation suits me fine
Incarcerate my own mind
  

 

  

My Favorite Albums of 2016

1.  ANTHRAX - FOR ALL KINGS

Anthrax return once again with vocalist Joey Belladonna and like 2011's Worship Music, make one of the best albums of their career.  This was definitely my "go-to", especially when working out at the local YMCA.  Thanks in part to my favorite of "The Big Four" thrash bands, I ended up losing a big forty pounds this year!   Beautiful packaging too!  Long live physical format!!!

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Zero Tolerance **Defend/Avenge *Suzerain

2.  SUM 41 - 13 VOICES

Wasn't expecting this being so good.  This album marks the return of Dave "Brown Sound" Baksh after exiting ten years ago and he definitely puts his sorely missed heavy metal chocolate back into Sum-41's pop punk peanut butter.  Two of the bonus tracks ("Better Days" and "Black Eyes") on the deluxe edition are also worth your time. 

Top 3 Tracks: ***Fake My Own Death **Goddamn I'm Dead Again *God Save Us All (Death To POP)

3.  TEMPT - RUNAWAY

 Growing up a child of the classic MTV era, I've always had a soft spot for 80's glam rock.  Tempt are a young band from NYC and their debut album Runaway sounds like I put a Ratt or Dokken tape into my 1983 Sony Walkman.    

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Aamina **Under My Skin *Use It Or Lose It

4.  MONSTER TRUCK - SITTIN' HEAVY

Monster Truck owe as much to AC/DC as they do to Lynyrd Skynyrd.  This is their sophomore release and it's got a mean rooster strut with a crispy southern flavor that Colonel Sanders would approve of.  Finger Lickin' Good!!!

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Why Are You Not Rocking?  **Don't Tell Me How To Live *The Enforcer 

5.  BRIAN FALLON - PAINKILLERS

Great stripped down Gaslight Anthem album that's not a Gaslight Anthem album.  Fallon delivers some memorable, moody tunes with great storybook lyrics to sit back and sip Scotch to.

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Honey Magnolia **Among Other Foolish Things *Smoke

6. WHITE LIES - FRIENDS 

I may have missed out on White Lies fantastic 2009 debut ..To Lose My Life if I hadn't been working in a record store.  It was always fun discovering those albums by throwing on the promo copies inside the shop.  Three albums later and though the record store I worked at no longer exists, we get another great album from the UK's White Lies.   Brooding synths that at times can turn into downright jubilant anthems.   Mascara wearing new-wave post punk to dance to Friday nights at Mad Planet in Milwaukee.

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Don't Want To Feel It All **Take It Out On Me *Right Place

7.  DINOSAUR JR - GIVE A GLIMPSE OF WHAT YER NOT

This is the fourth album in a row featuring the original three members of Dino Jr and their streak of greatness continues.  This one definitely feels more melancholy than the standard amount of melancholy on a Dinosaur Jr record.  Reminds me of Green Mind-era a bit. 

Top 3 Tracks: ***Be A Part **I Told Everyone *Knocked Around 

8.  RIVAL SONS - HOLLOW BONES

 The blueprint to Rivals Sons may be rooted in blues based classic rock, but this album in particular really seems to imprint their own identity alongside their heroes.  There is no reason this album, along with the 2014's Great Western Valkyrie, shouldn't be played on mainstream rock radio alongside Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath or the Doors.

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Thundering Voices **Hollow Bones Pt.2 *All That I Want

9.  FACE TO FACE - PROTECTION

The is definitely my favorite Face To Face album in the past twenty years.  It lies somewhere in-between 1995's Big Choice and the self-titled album from 1996 .  Super tight, modern day-classic Face To Face skate-punk anthems with the bass popping like popcorn and plenty of "whoa-oh-oh" sing-along angst to shake your fist at. 

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Protection **Bent But Not Broken*See If I Care

10.  BLINK 182 - CALIFORNIA 

One third Alkaline Trio and two thirds Blink-182 equals the best batch of tunes either band respectively have put out in awhile.  Usually when a major member of a band is replaced I feel the band should change the name to reflect the new project, but Matt Skiba fills Tom DeLonge's spot quite comfortably and I'll be damned if this doesn't feel more like classic dick-and-fart joke era Blink than the last few releases with new more mature Tom.   

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Bored To Death **Sober *San Diego

Other albums I enjoyed in 2016...

 

AUGUSTINES - THIS IS YOUR LIFE

It has just been announced that Augustines are breaking up.  It's a pity, because it's a real head-scratcher how these guys never got bigger.  Three albums in and the lyrics and melodies still give me goose bumps.

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Landmine **Are We Alive? *The Forgotten Way

BLEACHED - WELCOME THE WORMS

These L.A. ladies play sunny, fuzzy (slightly grungy) melodic  tunes laced with some beautiful harmonies.  Feels like a 60's girl group but with a slacker surf vibe.  

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Sour Candy **Wednesday Night Melody *Keep On Keepin On

BIG JESUS - ONEIRIC

This debut had two of my favorite songs of 2016 ("Shards" and "Shrimp") and they couldn't have been any more different.  At times totally brutal with monster fuzzy riffs and shredding solos. Other times completely spaced out, riding a peaceful euphoria before being sucked into the center of a sonic whirlpool.

Top 3 Tracks: ***Shards **Shrimp *Lock & Key

 
DIRTY HEADS - S/T -

The new Dirty Heads satisfied my rasta rap sweet spot in 2016.  I obviously listened to this enough last year since I caught my 3 year old daughter singing in her room "let's all get hiiiiiigh..."

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Red Lights **Smoke & Dream *Moon Tower

GREEN DAY - REVOLUTION RADIO 
Definitely my favorite Green Day album since American Idiot.  This one feels a bit like 2000's Warning to me.  Every track is catchy and solid in a post Lookout! way.  Don't see how this wouldn't be all over modern radio... but then again...

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Youngblood **Bang Bang *Say Goodbye

PULLEY - NO CHANGE IN THE WEATHER                                                                           I've always been a fan of Scott Radinsky's vocals since his days in Scared Straight and Ten Foot Pole.  With his day job being a pitcher and now a coach in the MLB, this is the first full-length from Pulley in over a decade.  The alternating tempos in the riffs on "Syndrome", the final shredding solo at the end of "Farewell" and all the awesome harmonies throughout bring back their signature 90's Epitaph style of skate punk and it feels as comfortable as throwing on an old pair of Fuct jeans.   

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Syndrome **Farewell *No "I" In Team

  

BEACH SLANG - A LOUD BASH OF TEENAGE FEELINGS                               Released only 11 months after their fantastic debut, the new Beach Slang full-length picks up right where they left off without missing a beat.  Same great heart-tugging songs to sing along to.  If you liked the first then grab on to this bratwurst!                                                                                                                                                            Top 3 Tracks:  ***Punks In A Disco Bar **Hot Tramps *Spin The Dial 

WEEZER - WHITE ALBUM

So, I guess the story goes that the guy who produced this album was previously in a Weezer cover band and helped them rediscover that classic Blue Album/Pinkerton sound.  Whatever he did worked, because this is my favorite since the Red Album (C'mon..."Pork & Beans"!!!) 

Top 3 Tracks:  ***Jacked Up **Endless Bummer *Summer Elaine & Drunk Dori

PURPLE - BODACIOUS

The second album from this Texan Trio is a little less chaotic and a little more polished.  The singles "Mini Van" and "Bliss" were stuck in my head for a long time, even preventing me from sleeping.  This was one of those albums I had to take a break from for my own sanity.  As with their debut (409), they dip their toes in multiple genres from hip-hop to funk to punk to reggae to straight up pop.  I'm hoping to get a chance to see them live in 2017!

 

         Top 3 Tracks:  ***Mini Van **Bliss *Pretty Mouth

Hope for Florida