What a year for albums, some bands have even done two (I’m looking at you, Wand and King Gizzard). Finally a longplayer from The Belltowers, and the unexpected delights of The Magnetic Mind who deserve the #1 spot bigtime. There are a few more newcomers here, like Melbourne’s Little Desert (whom I believe where on the singles list last year), Thee Tsunamis and Uh Bones who both turn in impressive full-length debuts. As usual it’s been a painstaking process to single out the 15 best – even the runners up were hard to whittle down. There are way too many who deserve a mention, sorry! Hopefully I’ll have more time for running updates next year.
This list, in a shorter form, was also submitted to HYMN, where the lists from every contributor have been merged into a Top 40 list. Two of my selections made the cut – have a look to see which ones.
TOP FIFTEEN
The Magnetic Mind – …Is Thinking About It Heavy Soul
The BellTowers – Day Breakaway TSB
Blank Realm – Illegals In Heaven Bedroom Suck
Mystic Braves – Days of Yesteryear Lolipop
Thee Tsunamis – Saturday Night Sweetheart Magnetic South
The Achtungs – Welcome to Hell Going Underground
Dead Ghosts – Love and Death and All the Rest Burger
Uh Bones – Honey Coma Randy
Fungi Girls – Place Unknown Gnar
Jacco Gardner – Hypnophobia Polyvinyl
Little Desert – Saeva It
The Smoking Trees – TST Ample Play
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Paper Mâché Dream Balloon Castle Face
Heaters – Holy Water Pool Beyond Beyond Is Beyond
Frankie and the Witch Fingers – s/t Permanent
RUNNERS UP
Wand – Golem In the Red
Wand – 1000 Days Drag City
Warm Soda – Symbolic Dream Castle Face
Western Plaza – s/t Burger
The Mantles – All Odds End Slumberland
Widowspeak – All Yours Captured Tracks
Terrible Truths – s/t Bedroom Suck
Snooty Garbagemen – s/t 12XU
Royal Headache – High What’s Your Rupture?
BEST SWEDISH RELEASE
Death and Vanilla – To Where the Wild Things Are Fire
(and Black Time on Förbjudna Ljud)
So what do all these sound like? Well, not everything is on Spotify, but I’ve compiled what I could find and put in a few tasty extras to make up for the missing bits. Both album tracks and singles here, enjoy and see you next year.
(Check the comments for a full list of recommended releases from 2015)
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The Splits – II – Dirtnap
Tenniscoats & Maquiladora – Healthy In California – self
Power – Electric Glitter Boogie – Cool Death
Triptides – Azur – RPUT
The Golden Pelicans – Oldest Ride Longest Line – Total Punk
Angie – Free Agent – Rice Is Nice
Western Plaza – s/t – Burger
Dirty Fences – Full Tramp – Slovenly
The Madcaps – s/t – Howlin’ Banana
Jessica Pratt – On Your Own Love Again – Drag City
Buck Biloxi & the Fucks – Streets of Rage – Hozac
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Quarters! – Castle Face
Thee Oh Sees – Mutilator Defeated At Last – Castle Face
Peach Kelli Pop – III – Burger
Wet Blankets – Rise of Wet Blankets – Anti Fade
The Living Eyes – Living Large – Anti Fade
King Khan & the BBQ Show – Bad News Boys – In the Red
John Krautner – Fun With Gum Vol. 1 – Burger
The Raw Nerves – More Nerves – 1:12
The Zoltars – s/t – Burger
Totally Mild – Down Time – Bedroom Suck
Love of Diagrams – Blast – Bedroom Suck
Ducktails – St. Catherine – Domino
Darts – Below Empty & Westward Bound – Rice Is Nice
Kitchen’s Floor – Battle of Brisbane – Hozac
Hierophants – Parallax Error – Goner
Nervous Talk – s/t – Shake/arama
The Mandates – In the Back of Your Heart – Hosehead
Destruction Unit – Negative Feedback Resistor – Sacred Bones
Flesh World – The Wild Animals In My Life – Iron Lung
The Barreracudas – Can Do Easy – Oops Baby
Radioactivity – Silent Kill – Dirtnap
Fuzz – II – In the Red
Salad Boys – Metalmania – Trouble In Mind
The Hussy – Galore
The Butterscotch Cathedral – s/t – Trouble In Mind
Sonny & The Sunsets – Talent Night At the Ashram – Polyvinyl
Eternal Summers – Gold and Stone – Kanine
Mikal Cronin – MCIII – Merge
The Sunchymes – Present – Calliope
The Kontiki Suite – The Greatest Show On Earth – self
Beach House – Thank Your Lucky Stars – Bella Union
Molly Nilsson – Zenith – Night School
The Shifting Sands – Cosmic Radio Station – Flying Nun
Boogarins – Manual – Other Music
Ty Segall – Ty Rex – Goner
Shannon & the Clams – Gone By the Dawn – Hardly Art
Damon & Naomi – Fortune – 20/20/20
The Coolies – Kaka – Feeding Tube
Protomartyr – The Agent Intellect – Hardly Art
Thing – s/t – Solid Sex Lovie Doll
White Fang – Chunks – Burger
Sexwitch – s/t – Echo Label
Innoncence Mission – Hello I Feel the Same – Korda
Drinks – Hermits On Holiday – Heavenly
W-X – s/t – Castle Face
Ghetto Ghouls – Collisions – Monofonus Press
The Loons – Inside Out Your Mind – Bomp
No Joy – More Faithful – Mexican Summer
Primitive Parts – Parts Primitive – Hozac
The Chills – Silver Bullets – Flying Nun
Gal Pals – Velvet Rug – Papercup
Máscaras – Máscara Vs. Máscara – Resurrection
V/A – Wizz Vol. 3 – Born Bad
V/A – Back From the Grave Vol. 9-10 – Crypt
Anasazi – Nasty Witch Rock – Toxic State
Negative Scanner – s/t – Trouble In Mind
La Luz – Weirdo Shrine – Hardly Art
Hills – Frid – Rocket Recordings
The Electric Magpie – Begins – Wiener
Cuntz – Force the Zone – Homeless
The Baron Four – Out of the Wild Come… – Soundflat
Platinum Boys – Future Hits – Dusty Medical
Soupcans – Soft Party Telephone Explosion
Michael O. – Really? – Fruits and Flowers
Harsh Mistress – s/t – Burger
Sarah Bethe Nelson – Fast Moving Clouds – Burger
Jacuzzi Boys – Happy Damage – Mag Mag
Tenniscoats – Music Exists Disc 1 – Majikick
Todays Hits – s/t – Burger