Your Top Ten Music Albums of 2017

Here's mine:

1. Godflesh - Post Self
2. Mike Oldfield - Return to Ommadawn
3. Waveshaper - Velocity
4. Noveller - A Pink Sunset For No One
5. Gwar - The Blood of Gods
6. Prophets of Rage - Prophets of Rage
7. Foo Fighters - Concrete and Gold
8. Primus - The Desaturating Seven
9. Ministry - Live Necronomicon
10. Liam Gallagher - As You Were

You probably can tell but I'm so not into today's mainstream music. I'm super old skool; I love bands that play real instruments with real organic sounds. Heavy Metal is my jam but quite recently I've developed a strong taste for Industrial music, which is why Godflesh is on top of the list. Newcomers may find its unconventional songs very odd but I love the intensity of it mixed with the band's signature bass sound. It's almost like a soundtrack to a movie or video game.

Besides Metal and Rock, I also enjoy something a little softer like the legendary Mike Oldfield and super underrated Noveller. Waveshaper is pretty cool too with its homage to retro synthwave sound of the 80's.

Let me know what your favorite 2017 albums here in this forum.

Still a month to go yet bud. Will post you when I know :D

My favorite album of this year is probably gonna be Slowdive ( band and album are the same name ). I just listen to so much music it's hard to keep up a list, but i remember that Primus Album you listed being pretty good. Don't know how i feel about the foo fighters this day and age.

Let's see, new albums for me this year would be...

The xx - I See You
Mastodon - Emperor of Sand
Linkin Park - One More Light
Fleet Foxes - Crack-Up
Gorillaz - Humanz
Nine Inch Nails - Add Violence
Arcade Fire - Everything Now
Foo Fighters - Concrete and Gold
Twin Peaks: Music from the Limited Event Series
Twin Peaks: Limited Event Series Original Soundtrack

But I still haven't actually listened to it all...

Easy front runner for me is Add Violence since I'm already a huge NIN fan(plus this one worked way better for me than Not The Actual Events). Felt really "meh" about the new Foo Fighters, better than Sonic Highways but it didn't grab me like Waking Light did. I'll probably still end up listing to the new Beck, Queens of the Stone Age, Bjork, and U2 albums before the years over(and boy do I hope the new U2 album is better than the last, which did absolutely nothing for me at all).

I don't have a top ten yet, but the top five are:

1. Circa Survive - The Amulet (can't decide if it's my favourite Circa album or if it's still On Letting Go, but it's easily my favourite record of the year)
2. Brand New - Science Fiction (I've been on quite a journey with this band, going from hate to love. It was a long wait after Daisy, which was a brilliant album, but Science Fiction is even better. Would be a worthy #1 if not for the above)
3. Run the Jewels - RTJ3 (it dropped in Dec '16 but the physical release was this year. Not quite as great as RTJ2, but they're still the best thing in hip-hop right now and one of the very best things happening in music)
4. At the Drive-In - in.ter.a.li.a (it's not everything I wanted it to be, mostly because of Jim Ward's absence, and Relationship of Command is an impossible album to follow, especially after 17 years. That said, still a great record)
5. Lorde - Melodrama (hasn't sunk its claws into me quite like Pure Heroine did, but I still love her voice and she's a very fine songwriter)

Honourable mention - the Baby Driver soundtrack (Bellbottoms! Bellbottoms! Bellbottoms!)

Albums I still need to get into: the new Manchester Orchestra, the new Mastodon, the new Bjork, the new St. Vincent, and the new Kendrick Lamar.

Most Disappointing Album of 2017 - Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Luciferian Towers (I was so excited for them to be making new music in 2012 and I really liked 'Allelujah!..., but this is their third album in five years and each time I've been more disappointed. It's not that I hate them and find no joy in listening to them, but they all fall well short of the standard set by Lift Your Skinny Fists... and Yanqui U.X.O., two of my favourite albums ever, especially Skinny Fists.... I guess I don't know what I want from them any more - I just wish I loved their music)

ditto- i will return in a few weeks.

(dat fever ray tho- and bjork is right around the corner).

I don't get people liking Mastodon Emperor of the sand ! i think it's a terrible album listened to that piece of garbage twice ! Still don't like it ! i want my time back that i wasted on this album :D.

@yesiamaduck said:

Cool! See you then!

As it stands...

Big Thief - Capacity

Manchester Orchestra - Black Mile to the Surface

Mastodon - Emperor of Sand

Lorde - Melodrama

Wolf Alice - Visions of a Life

Kelly Lee Owens - Kelly Lee Owens

Aldous Harding - Party

Slowdive - Slowdive

Richard Dawson - Peasant

Paramore - After Laughter

Honourable mentions/Not had enough listens/Cheating by adding more great albums: Chastity Belt - I Used to Spend So Much Time Alone, Waxahatchee - Out in the Storm, Tera Melos - Trash Generator, Mogwai - Every Country's Sun, Out Lines - Conflats, Jamie Lenman - Devolver, Marika Hackman - I'm Not Your Man, Bibio - Phantom Brickworks.

This year has been pretty great.

Tyler the Creator - Scum Fuck Flower Boy

Kendrick Lamar - Damn

Kelela - Take Me Apart

Paramore - After Laughter

Big Boi - Boomiverse

Vince Staples - Big Fish Theory

...I haven't listened to a lot of new stuff this year. I usually wait until threads like roll around or music sites start doing their year-end awards to see what's worth checking out.

These threads are always bittersweet to me. There was a day when I could rattle off thirty albums I really enjoyed from each year no problem, now I struggle to hear 30 albums total. Damn podcasts and my work no longer being listening to music...

Anyway, CTRL by SZA is my ultimate favorite album of the year, an absolutely beautiful album that reminds me of the heights of Erykah Badu but without the sometimes pretentious feel that neo-soul sound could add. Bracingly self-aware, funny and honest with herself, SZA is also an amazing vocalist. It's a total package album that also has maybe the best first track/last track pairing I've heard since...Radiohead's In Rainbows? in terms of capturing the mood of the record. For other non-rap albums (or rap albums I've enjoyed but not written about and applied the science to), LCD Soundsystem's American Dream is the easy #2 pick. I also really enjoyed Khalid's American Teen, Aimee Mann's Mental Illness, Alvvays' Antisocialites, Big K.R.I.T.'s 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time, Brand New's Science Fiction, all three of Burial's single releases, Christian Scott's epic jazz fusion trilogy, everything Curren$y released was as solid as usual, Dizzee Rascal's Raskit, Joey Bada$$' ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$, milo's who told you to think??!!?!?!?!, The National's Sleep Well Beast, Oddisee's The Iceberg, Spoon's Hot Thoughts, Vince Staples' Big Fish Theory, and Playboi Carti's single, "Magnolia".

That name drop salad aside, here are my write-ups of ten albums that I listened to enough to write about, nine of which range from very good to, well, I listened to it a few times over and wrote about it for some reason.

1		Migos Culture (2017) Overall: 8.52/10 Song Quality: 90 - 91% Enjoyment: 4/5 Great Tracks (13/13): 100% *1|Culture|2:334 - 4.5 *2|T-Shirt|4:025 *3|Call Casting|3:524 - 4.25 *4|Bad and Boujee|5:435 *5|Get Right Witcha|4:174 - 4.25 *6|Slippery|5:044.5 - 5 *7|Big on Big|4:504.5 - 5 *8|What the Price|4:084.5 - 5 *9|Brown Paper Bag|3:314 - 4.75 *10|Deadz|4:343.75 - 4 *11|All Ass|4:544.5 - 5 *12|Kelly Price|6:035 *13|Out Yo Way|4:484 Review Quote: "The value of Migos comes from the heart of the matter, that these guys have found a formula to embody the ethos of Gucci Mane's statement, "I'm a murderer, nigga, but I don't promote violence." Whether that's as literally true of the Migos boys as is Gucci is up for debate, and likely murky water, but their music across the entirety of Culture embodies everything that trap music has been striving for during its push into FM airwave dominance. Culture's violence is soothing, its hard edges sanded down, its pop aspirations weighed down by idiosyncratic tendencies, its dead serious subject matter cut off by "goin' big - whale!" If the music were less simpatico with the lyrics, if the group hadn't been developing their personal short hand for hours of music and years of discussion about said short hand, there are so many moments where their lyrics would disappoint. My issue is, you're missing the point that they get that if you find that #hashtag #whale lyric stupid because it's bad; it's stupid because it's stupid." (March 20, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating85892952
2		Future HNDRXX (2017) Overall: 8.35/5 Song Quality: 87% Enjoyment: 4/5 Great Tracks (16/17): 94% *1|My Collection|4:155 *3|Lookin Exotic|3:464 *4|Damage|3:573.75 - 4 *5|Use Me|4:164.5 - 5 *6|Incredible|4:085 *7|Testify|2:585 *8|Fresh Air|4:305 *9|Neva Missa Lost|3:574 *10|Keep Quiet|3:224 *11|Hallucinating|3:415 *12|I Thank U|2:214 - 4.75 *13|New Illuminati|3:014 *14|Turn on Me|4:244 - 4.5 *15|Selfish|4:113.25 - 4 *16|Solo|4:253.75 - 4 *17|Sorry|7:315 Review Quote: "This is the first time in a long time we've heard Future truly excited about anything other than getting back at someone who wronged him, and even if the lyrics often reveal an artist still clearly in personal turmoil ("is it impossible to do these drugs and fall in love?" he asks on "Fresh Air"; also implies he takes shots of codeine straight, no chaser, which is weird and sad) the sound of this album is something we've never caught in a sustained blast before. Future truthfully hasn't changed his perspective much, but he has gone full '90s R&B for the majority of this mixtape and the result is a re-contextualization that makes same old Future feel new and refreshing even if he not-so-secretly is up to the same tricks." (April 22, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating86825208
3		Kendrick Lamar DAMN. (2017) Overall: 8.21/10 Song Quality: 84% Enjoyment: 4/5 Great Tracks (14/14): 100% *1|BLOOD.|1:584 *2|DNA.|3:055 *3|YAH.|2:403.75 - 4 *4|ELEMENT.|3:284 - 4.5 *5|FEEL.|3:344 - 4.25 *6|LOYALTY.|3:473.5 - 4 *7|PRIDE.|4:353.25 - 4 *8|HUMBLE.|2:574 - 4.5 *9|LUST.|5:073.5 - 4 *10|LOVE.|3:334 *11|XXX.|4:145 *12|FEAR.|7:404 - 4.5 *13|GOD.|4:084 *14|DUCKWORTH.|4:085 Review Quote: "DAMN. is a very good album, and when he does the thing you want him to do ("FEAR.", right?) it's more proof that Kendrick Lamar has come such a very long way from his beginnings as the young kid in his crew. He can just casually toss a song like that, or "XXX.", or "DNA.", off into an otherwise far more massively palatable experience. In some ways, this makes DAMN. a far more impressive feat than his past three projects; despite a confrontational appearance, this is easily his most inclusive release. DAMN. is the album Lamar needed to make at this point in his career." (April 17, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating86675623
4		2 Chainz Pretty Girls Like Trap Music (2017) Overall: 8.03/10 Song Quality: 80 - 81% Enjoyment: 4/5 Great Tracks (12/14): 86% *1|Saturday Night|4:314 *2|Riverdale Rd|3:244 - 4.25 *3|Good Drank|3:455 *4|4 AM|4:155 *5|Door Swangin|3:084 *6|Realize|3:513.5 - 4 *7|Poor Fool|3:414 *8|It's a Vibe|3:304 *9|Rolls Royce Bitch|3:593.75 - 4 *11|Trap Check|3:064 *13|OG Kush Diet|4:104 *14|Burglar Bars|5:074 - 4.25 Review Quote: "Pretty Girls Like Trap Music implies a certain back to basics ignorance from one of the most hypnotically silly rappers of our time, it shouldn't come as a surprise that it continues the trend of 2 Chainz being smarter than most give him credit for ... His mixtapes are no longer event listening but his albums are." (July 10, 2017) Full Review: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating89105794
5		JAY-Z 4:44 (2017) Overall: 8.00/10 Song Quality: 78 - 82% Enjoyment: 4/5 Great Tracks (9/13): 69% *3|Smile|4:503.5 - 4 *4|Caught Their Eyes|3:264 - 4.75 *5|4:44|4:444.5 - 5 *6|Family Feud|4:114.5 - 5 *7|BAM|3:554 *9|Marcy Me|2:545 *10|Legacy|2:574.25 - 5 *11|Adnis|2:264.25 - 5 *13|MANYFACEDGOD|3:184.75 - 5 Review Quote: "With this album, Jay pulls off a trick few artists, let alone rappers, are capable of: he changes next to nothing about his work and somehow convinces the world he's doing it all for the first time. I wouldn't have Jay-Z define his legacy any other way." (August 27 2017) Full Review: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating90549262
6		Freddie Gibbs You Only Live 2wice (2017) Overall: 7.69/10 Song Quality: 83 - 85% Enjoyment: 3.5/5 Great Tracks (7/8): 88% *1|20 Karat Jesus|5:214 - 4.75 *2|Alexys|2:594.25 - 5 *3|Crushed Glass|4:355 *4|Dear Maria|3:553.75 - 4 *5|Amnesia|3:183.25 - 4 *6|Andrea|3:124.5 - 5 *8|Homesick|4:294 - 4.5 Review Quote: "In my opinion the most lustrous music of Gibbs' career, You Only Live 2wice is the definition of momentum from the word go, and if it has a litany of minor issues that creep up on close inspection (one more to point out: the tenuous theme of comparing his relationships with past women to the future he hopes for for his daughter), so too does it carry so many great macro-level moments that it's an exceptionally enjoyable listen. Brisk and tight, You Only Live 2wice may not be the album it could have been but just because I want one thing doesn't mean the thing I have isn't quite good at being what it was designed to be." (September 11 2017) Full Review: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating91015706
7		Future FUTURE (2017) Overall: 7.50/10 Song Quality: 79 - 81% Enjoyment: 3.5/5 Great Tracks (14/17): 82% *1|Rent Money|4:254 - 4.25 *3|Zoom|4:383.25 - 4 *4|Draco|3:454 - 4.25 *5|Super Trapper|3:504 *6|POA|4:084 *7|Mask Off|3:235 *8|High Demand|3:313.75 - 4 *9|Outta Time|2:484 *10|Scrape|3:373.75 - 4 *12|Might As Well|3:274 - 4.5 *13|Poppin' Tags|3:384 - 4.5 *14|Massage in My Room|2:354 - 4.25 *16|When I Was Broke|3:054 - 4.5 *17|Feds Did a Sweep|4:304.75 - 5 Review Quote: "FUTURE is cool, and there's definitely a reality in which this is someone's first Future full-length and they kind of love it. I kind of love it. This is all the slick, detached, aesthetically horrifying yet dopamine overloaded atmosphere Future climbed to the mountaintop with. I'm just a bit bored by it anymore, despite also feeling like this is significantly more engaging than EVOL. It even introduces some fun, lighter elements to his usual soundscapes ("Mask Off", "Outta Time", "Might As Well", etc.) that I'm a big fan of." (April 22, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating86820502
8		Your Old Droog Packs (2017) Overall: 7.23/10 Song Quality: 73 - 76% Enjoyment: 3.5/5 Great Tracks (8/14): 57% *1|G.K.A.C.|3:463.5 - 4 *3|I Only|4:104 *4|Bangladesh|3:343.25 - 4 *7|Just an Interlude|3:003.75 - 4 *9|Help|3:554 *10|Jeselnik Skit 3|0:114 *11|You Can Do It! (Give Up)|3:465 *14|Winston Red|4:584 - 4.75 Review Quote: "Droog is primarily a funny guy, in my opinion, and to my ears feels more like a blend of Edan's gift for imagery, any number of other Boston-area MCs' pronunciation styles and Sean Price's penchant for jab-quick jokes and broke rapper puns. Maybe this is brought on by the heavily Beauty & The Beat-influenced production throughout, or the Sean Price voicemail from beyond the grave, but that's how I feel. I really like it." (July 10, 2017) Full Review: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating89112172
9		Drake More Life (2017) [Mixtape] Overall: 6.67/10 Song Quality: 72 - 75% Enjoyment: 3/5 Great Tracks (11/22): 50% *3|Passionfruit|4:594.75 - 5 *4|Jorja Interlude|1:484 *5|Get It Together|4:104 - 4.5 *6|Madiba Riddim|3:254 - 4.5 *7|Blem|3:375 *10|Skepta Interlude|2:234 - 4.75 *11|Portland|3:574 - 4.25 *16|Lose You|5:053.5 - 4 *20|Fake Love|3:314 *21|Ice Melts|4:114.5 - 5 *22|Do Not Disturb|4:444 Review Quote: "More Life teases the best Drake possibly has to offer, surrounds it in a spastic vision of the Drake diaspora that, say what you will, is less focused than Views and suffers more for it because Drake is at his best when he's laser focused on broken iPhone 5S' and giving Noah Shebib the reigns to coat a full project in a determined aesthetic." (April 17, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating86670967
10		Young Nudy Slimeball 2 (2017) [Mixtape] Overall: 6.54/10 Song Quality: 68 - 74% Enjoyment: 3/5 Great Tracks (5/13): 38% *3|Peons|3:204 - 4.25 *4|EA|3:474 *5|I Got|3:014 - 4.25 *8|Shots Fired|3:214 *9|My Year|4:213.5 - 4 Review Quote: "While Nudy's far from a complete artist in so far as you give him four minutes to say something and he'll never fully earn the runtime, his rough edges also allow for the subtle risks he takes in his production choices and the shallow confidence that leads to hook after hook worming their way into your ear before the song's even over." (March 23, 2017) Full Review: https://rateyourmusic.com/collection/Nodima/rating85969587

It's more difficult for me to keep up with music than with video games or movies, so I typically find these types of threads to be useful. That said, I still rarely listen to more than a handful of albums per year; here're my favorites:

Phases by Angel Olsen
Turn Out the Lights by Julien Baker
Science Fiction by Brand New
Out in the Storm by Waxahatchee
Kelly Lee Owens' self titled album

Although the recent news of Jesse Lacey's sexual misconduct significantly undercut my enjoyment of Brand New's music.

Cannot listen to Brand New anymore ever since the news broke out about Jesse Lacey broke out :( Which is a shame because it was an excellent addition to their catalogue.

I've always been someone who's able to separate the art from the artist, but there are definitely certain songs from the Brand New catalog that carry a significant sting to them now. "Me vs. Maradona vs. Elvis" was always a hard listen, but it was easier to accept as an artistically gratifying hard listen when you assumed it was a story about two people in a desperate, codependent situation rather than a one-sided description of quite likely a very real, abusive situation. That said, I still enjoy the music that they made, and my solution has always been to just not give those sorts of artists money anymore. To use another controversial group from this year as an example (that I personally don't like, but understand a lot of people really did), I would advocate pirating PWR BTTM's Pageant album if you wanted to continue listening to it rather than any channel that they might profit from such as Spotify or Google Play (if those services still offer that album, I don't know if it's been blacklisted).

Ne obliviscaris - Urn (Progressive Metal / Extreme Metal)

Beautiful mixture between Black/extreme metal, growls, clean singing, violin and progressive and calmer elements. Making those seemingly poorly matching parts work together like this is a feat in songwriting that makes my jaw drop every time. This is definitely my favorite album of the year.

Caligula's Horse - In Contact (Progressive metal / Progressive rock)

Fantastic melodies, interesting riffs and rhytms with plenty of hooks and clean soaring vocals. Not as perfect as an album as Urn, but has some of my favorite songs of the year and keeps coming back to my playlist.

Vola - Inmazes (Progressive metal / Djent / Electronic)

Groovy, catchy melodies, djenty riffs, some electronic elements and clean vocals. The songwriting is number one in this one too and technical wankery is a means to an end as it should be.

Voyager - Ghost Mile (Progressive metal)

Modern prog metal with lots of great melodies and hooks. Amazing clean vocals. I can almost sense a pattern in some of my favorites this year.

DVNE- Asheran (Progressive sludge / Stoner)

Progressive sludge, stoner, some post metal and prog rock and a whole bunch of other influences. There's an interesting play with dynamics with rough and cleaner vocals, sludgy guitars and mastodon-esque melodies.

Igorrr - Savage Sinusoid (Avant Garde?/?/??)

An insane blend of metal, baroque, trip hop, the occasional chip tune and chicken and god knows what else. After several dozens of listens It's still hard to find the words to describe this. A song with an accordion intro that fades into a blast beat and metal riffs while an extremely versatile singer growls and screams nonsense at you, which then transfers into baroque music and operatic vocals has no right to work this well. The vocals are a fascinating part of the equation here. As far as I know they're not sung in any known human language but still manage to deliver the intended emotions very well.

Mastodon - Emperor Of Sand (Progressive metal / Progressive rock)

Not a lot to say here. Mastodon is still Mastodon and I thought I'd be bored of their brand of prog by now.

Queens of The Stone Age - Villains (Stoner rock / Rock)

I have a soft spot for everything Josh Homme does. Villains somehow managed to catch me by surprise so I went in without having time to build up any expectations. After slowly waking up from the slumber between releases the first song "Feet Don't Fail Me Now" hit me hard. It made realize how much I had missed Qotsa.

Perturbator - New Model (Synthwave)

I have a soft spot for synthwave and Perturbators newest album is just amazing work music.

Junius - Eternal Rituals for the Accretion of Light (Post Metal)

Junius has a very distinct style I can't reasonably label with anything but post metal. Not as good as their previous album but still one of the best of the year.

Obviously there's still time left in the year, but I will return to this list if things change. There's so much amazing and diverse music that springs up in bandcamp and spotify these days that I almost feel bad listing so much prog metal and rock, but that's what I enjoy the most so that's what mostly makes the list.

I have a gaping hole in how to find new music that isn't metal. I know magazines, I know blogs, I have friends into it, so my backlog of 2017 is mostly metal. A lot of my not metal faves of 2017 are stuff I discovered this year that are older. Every year I say I'm going to find a place to get non-metal recommendations from that isn't just Pitchfork & Quietus, & then it never happens.

As for stuff I have heard, well it's too early to say anything definitive, but I've been deeply enamoured with a really rough demo by a Russian riot grrl band called Viva La Vulva which I found on Bandcamp. I dunno, it's just got a shedload of heart and I've listened to it a hell of a lot. It's available for free and is only 7 minutes long so if rough sounding punk is at all in your wheelhouse give it a listen. Not reinventing the wheel here, it's just good fun.

Other good stuff is Bleached - Can You Deal? EP, Code Orange - Forever, Converge - The Dusk In Us, Gnod - Just Say No To The Psycho Right-Wing Capitalist Fascist Industrial Death Machine, Godhunter - Codex Narco, Iron Reagan - Crossover Ministry, Power Trip - Nightmare Logic & Propagandhi - Victory Lap. But my shortlist of shit to listen to before feeling comfortable compiling my list is 109 albums long and that'll only get longer as other people put out their End of Year lists & I find the indie & post-rock & hip-hop & electronic shit that I'd have otherwise missed. 2017 was a decent year in music. A lot of good albums, albeit nothing standing head & shoulders above everything else in my opinion.

1. BROCKHAMPTON - SATURATION I & II [boy-band, hip-hop, R&B, indie pop]

Fave tracks:

SAT1: GOLD, BOYS, HEAT, WASTE, STAR, FAKE, SWIM, MILK // SAT2: FIGHT, SWAMP, SWEET, GUMMY, JUNKY, CHICK

This will be the only song I'll post because the video (directed by the group's de-facto leader Kevin Abstract - who kills the first verse as well) is so visually arresting. 2017 will be remembered as, among many other more terrible things, as the year of BROCKHAMPTON, the greatest boy band since The Beatles. Is it unfair to count these two albums as one? Well, if they weren't #1, they'd be 1 and 2. Screw it. They deserve it anyway.

2. King Krule - The OOZ [lo-fi, jazz punk, darkwave]

Fave tracks: The OOZ, Dum Surfer, Half Man Half Shark, Vidual, Lonely Blue

3. Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 3 [hip-hop, BANG]

Fave tracks: Talk to Me, Legend Has it, Hey Kids (Bumaye), Panther Like a Panthers, Oh Mama

4. St. Vincent - MASSEDUCTION [noise pop, indie]

Fave tracks: Smoking Section, Los Ageless, New York

5. Kendrick Lamar - DAMN. [hip-hop, play-it-backwards-core]

Fave tracks: DNA, Humble, Loyalty

6. SZA - CTRL [R&B, neo-soul]

Fave tracks: Drew Barrymore, Supermodel, Go Gina

7. Rina Sawayama - RINA [glitch-pop]

Fave tracks: 10-20-40, Cyber Stockholm Syndrome

8. Iglooghost - Neo Wax Bloom [post-internet, glitch hop, wonky, UK bass]

Fave tracks: Super Ink Burst, Bug Thief, Solar Blade

9. Kelela - Take Me Apart [alternative/contemporary R&B, UK bass]

Fave tracks: Frontline, Onanon

10. Sampha - Process [alternative R&B, neo-soul, art pop, future garage]

Fave tracks: Plastic 100, Blood on Me

Plus a few stragglers:

BONES - NoRedeemingQualities, Migos - CULTURE, Mac DeMarco - This Old Dog, Thundercat - Drunk, Neil Cicierega - Mouth Moods

And some more great dance songs:

1. Frank Ocean - "Biking"
2. Jay-Z - "The Story of OJ"
3. ramriddlz - "Oceans"
4. Amine - "Caroline"
5. Forest Swords - "The Highest Flood"
6. Post Malone - "Rockstar
7. Moses Sumney - "Quarrel"
8. Cardi B - "Bodak Yellow"

EDIT: this new Bjork is v good. arca production on point

Geez, had no idea about Jesse Lacey. Always sensed that there was something wrong with that guy, but never expected anything like this. He's clearly a sick person who has hurt a lot of people. Not sure I'll be able to enjoy Science Fiction or their previous records as much now (always hated Your Favourite Weapon, but love The Devil and God... and Daisy). Feel bad for the rest of the band, assuming they're innocent of any similar crime.

Totally forgot that a new Converge album dropped this year. Add that to my "need to get to" list. All We Love We Leave Behind is a very important record to me.

Oh boy here we go, I don't think any of the bands I follow that closely are releasing anything else this year so I feel safe to right a top 10.

10. Surprise by Mystery Weekend

Rody Walker's, of Protest the Hero, punk side project. I have never been a big punk fan but I have always liked Rody's lyrics and vocals. The album is fairly simple and short but just full of fun songs that are clearly inspired by shit that annoys Rody in his daily life. Stand out songs are Nostalgia is for the Birds, and Mission Statement.

9. Villains by Queens of the Stone Age

Queens of the Stone Age need no introduction and while I didn't find Villains to be a real standout in their catalogue I still think it adds another great piece to it. I have enjoyed the direction that QotSA have taken in their last couple albums quite a bit. The two songs that I've played the most from Villains have to be Domesticated Animals(by far) and Un-Reborn Again

8. Echolocation by Gone is Gone

A super group including two of the best Troy's in music, Van Leeuwen of QoTSA and Sanders of Mastodon. I wasn't a huge fan of the firsts songs they put out but have really dug Echolocation. Just incredibly heavy and atmospheric with Sander's vocals ringing through in his typical haunting way. I find this album in particular excellent to listen to while chilling out playing an RPG. Resurge and Gift are both great examples of the band.

7. My Brain Hurts a Lot by Matt and Sam's Brother

Another side project, this time a solo project from Charlie Kerr of the Vancouver band JPNSGRLS. Much more radio friendly than the previous albums on this list I have just really loved this album, extremely catchy with well written lyrics with strong instruments throughout. It is very much part of that modern Indie Rock genre, which typically I enjoy but don't seek out, but this album just really hooked me. If I Pulled a Gun and Spacesuit are two of my favourites off it.

6. War Moans by Mutoid Man

Alright, indie rock out of the way and now back to some hard hitting metal. While I personally prefer Mutoid Man's last album Bleeder, I still love War Moans as well. Just fast, heavy, and dumb. When you say something is "Metal" this band and album is that. Almost every song is filled with dumb metal or sexual imagery and is matched with some top notch guitar, bass, and drums. Melt Your Mind and Bandages show some of the actual range on the album and just how they shred.

5. Homey by Chon

Homey just fits the sound of the album so well. Instrumental rock(?) from California that is just light and breezy. While the main focus of the band is the guitars they feature a great jazz sound to many of the songs. Even goes a little electronic/dubstep in a song or two but still feels like one cohesive album. Easily my favourite chill out album of the year, played many a Street Fighter set to Homey. No Signal and Glitch are excellent tasters of the album.

4. Concrete and Gold by Foo Fighters

Foo Fighters are one of the bands I've liked for the longest. They were my first big concert and remain as a band that I continually like. With that said I was pretty disappointed by Sonic Highways, so when Run came out as the single for Concrete and Gold I got super hyped that they were returning to a heavier sound. That isn't to say I only like the heavy songs from FF, some of my favourites are actually their slower softer stuff like Come Alive, it is just the uber radio friendly songs that I just find bland and boring. Concrete and Gold still has a bit of that, looking at you Sky is a Neighborhood, but also comes with some of the Foo Fighters most interesting songs in years (to me). Dirty Water is exactly what I love about the Foo Fighters, these epic songs that start slow and soft that build and build as Dave's voice gets harsher and harsher. La Dee Da and Sunday Rain are also stand outs to me, just really show that the Foo Fighters have a side which isn't big radio hits. (Couldn't find any youtube links to non-live versions of the listed songs)

3. Emperor of Sand by Mastodon

This is where ordering became way more difficult. I absolutely love Emperor of Sand. It feels like a return to a more progressive and creative Mastodon while still keeping the evolution they've had over the last two albums (which I enjoyed but did feel lacking). Almost every song stuck out to me as a unique part of the album and the theme of album is well communicated. I believe you can even hear most of the different "eras" of Mastodon in the different songs, Scorpion Breath reminds me of Leviathan, while Andromeda gives mad Crack the Skye vibes, Ancient Kingdom makes me think of Blood Mountain, and Show Yourself is similar to The Hunter and Once More Round the Sun (yeah I know nothing on the album is like Remission but that is a pretty distinct album for the band). I really feel like it is just the band settling into their sound once again after a few years of exploration, and returning even better for it. My favourite tracks off the album are probably Jaguar God and Word to the Wise.

2. Clairvoyant by The Contortionist

Language was one of my favourite prog albums ever and Clairvoyant is right up there with it. The Contortionist has just put together such a cohesive piece of music that just hypnotizes you and makes you fall into the atmosphere they create. I know plenty of fans are going to be upset with the lack of pretty much any screams or harsh vocals on the album but I really enjoy the vocals throughout. The band shows a great deal of creativity and restraint in the instrumental aspects of the album, they could have easily pushed for extremely intricate time signatures or crazy fast shredding, but rather they create this sound that I can only describe as hypnotic in its rhythms and harmonies. Clairvoyant is easily one one of my favourite examples of Progressive Metal. The Center and Return to Earth are excellent songs but really the album should be listened to as a whole.

1. Grand Rites by Dead Quiet

So up until a couple weeks ago when this album came out my friend and I were both fairly sure Emperor of Sand was a favourite for Album of the Year for us, with Clairvoyant an option for me, but then Grand Rites came out and blew everything else out of the water for us. Dead Quiet is a metal band from Vancouver which I've seen live a couple times, the first time I saw them they opened for one of my favourite stoner rock bands from Vancouver and it was my first time hearing them. Even through the distorted and blown out sound system of the bar we saw them at I knew I had to listen to them again once I got home due to the sheer intensity of their performance. Their first album, which is self titled, was just full of heavy hitting grimy metal that I loved. The second time seeing them was even better, being familiar with their debut album my buddy and I head banged along to the point of messing our necks up and talked to the bassist after their set. They had already started to put themselves pretty high up on my list of favourite bands but then they put out Grand Rites. The album opens with Moon Curser, heavy and filled with organ like keys which then transitions to breakneck riffs that culminate into a solo for the ages, it is 8 and a half minutes of just awesome. The album continues pumping out tracks that just force you to head bang along. In the middle are songs like Disgraced and Dear Demon, which are more slow paced and allow the vocals to really shine, the vocals are not pretty but just incredibly intense and feel true to the singer. The album ends in the titular track which ends in the only way the album could, with the bass and drums pounding, guitars and keys ringing away and the the vocal screams echoing out as the songs winds down and fades away. As you can tell I absolutely love this album, and can't wait to hear it live. It is hands down my album of the year. There aren't many good quality youtube videos of their songs so hear is the bandcamp link you can stream from.

Some other stuff that came out that is real good is: The Coyote Who Spoke in Tongues by John Garcia, Threq by Forq, Every Country's Sun by Mogwai, Cold Dark Place by Mastodon, and Reflections of a Floating World by Elder.

1. Midnight Sister - Saturn Over Sunset. It's like '30s-'60s soundtracks with unbelievably arresting, out-of-time vocals, garnished with furious moments here and there from disco to pop. It also has my favourite song in maybe seven years on it, "Daddy Long Legs." "Shimmy," is another soaring, classic-sounding gem; also, "Clown," and the beautiful album closer. I love the entire thing (rare for me). Masterfully done. My fave in a long, long time.
2. Arca - Arca. An open wound, oozing with unashamed, beautiful brutality. Love this man. A sonic piece of art. "Desafio," and "Reverie," make it for me. It's no wonder he's worked with Kanye, Bjork, and now Kalela.
3. Kelela - Take Me Apart. My favourite female solo artist since Janelle Monáe. She got the style, voice, attitude, and the grooves. Such a sleepy, creamy, rich and layered piece of work. Progressive R&B at its finest next to ArchAndroid. "Enough," is a prime example of all those adjectives; it's fucking divine. "Onanon," is bouncy, dulcet, and blissfully melodic. "Turn to Dust," is a 21st century, romantic dirge. "LMK," is a great summery tune. "Frontline," is a really strong opener. I couldn't be more positive. Should get a Grammy for best R&B album.
4. AFX - London 03.06.17 (Field Day). The track "T20A ede 441" is like drum machines arguing, it's dope. Some tracks are ugly, but there are fluffy moments like "em2500 M253X", and subtle bangers like, "T16.5 MADMA with nastya". Half the LP is kinda gold.
5. L.A. Witch - L.A. Witch. '50s-60s rock & roll with a modern sheen in the production, and a female Jim Morrison on vocals. It's so slinky and cool; throwback as fuck, but too groovy to trivialize. The tempo shifts in every track, like it's breathing and hijacking the song into different moods and vibes. It's an instrument in itself. Love it. Check out, "You Love Nothing," and "Drive Your Car," to start with. "Kill My Baby Tonight," and "Brian," got swag, too.
6. Anna of the North - Lovers. Another stellar throwback this year, this time a sort of ode to '80s pop, with some golden age R&B and dance sounds trickling in your ears, married with a hopeful approach to love gone awry in the lyrics. Ethereal, warm, and feel-good, rarely drifting into self-indulgence. I recommend, "Someone," and "Feels," to start with; you'll know immediately if it's your thing. Dope bass-lines. Some weak tracks lyrically, but the music is arranged well enough to prevent much eye-rolling.
7. Make Up & Vanity Set - Chrome.If this doesn't inspire a bunch of people to start making electronic music, I don't know what will. It's Hotline Miami good. Pounding, chest-thumping, skull-crushing beats and synth. Every track is basically a floor-to-ceiling banger. It just completely embodies everything I love about futuristic, synthy, beat-focused music. Tasty shit right here.
8. Cradle of Filth - Cryptoriana. Straddles the line between the dark, the symphonic, and the shredding. Delicious lyrics and tight performances. Big fan of Midian and Nymphetamine, and this became my third favourite by them fairly quickly.

I honestly haven't found 10 albums released this year that I've liked. The three that are in permanent rotation are;

Nine Inch Nails - Add Violence

Alice Cooper - Paranormal

Steven Wilson - To The Bone

Supposedly another NIN EP is coming before the year ends, so I fully expect that to join the list. The only other thing I've listened to is the Hamilton OST, but that's ineligible. For this list.

I hear you. With today's (god awful) mainstream music, it's hard to find REAL music unless you search for it far and wide. It took me awhile to explore even the most decent ones. Thumbs up for Alice Cooper!

Oh man, that Mutoid Man album is fucking killer. Hard to go wrong with a band featuring dudes from Cave In & Converge.

K.Flay - Everywhere is Somewhere

Queens of the Stone Age - Villains (probably one of the best songs to kick off an album with 'Feet Don't Fail Me Now')

Not 2017 releases but I also picked up Group Love's Big Mess and 21 Pilots' Blurry Face and that is some of my favourite music in years.

As a hip hop fan, it's been an insanely good year. Ordering these would take me far too long so in no particular order:

• Big Krit - 4eva is a mighty long time.
• Tyler The Creator - Flower Boy
• Brockhampton- Saturation I/II
• Daniel Caesar- Freudian
• SZA - Control
• Jay Z - 4:44
• Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.
• Jonwayne - Rap Album Two
• Smino - BLKSWN
• Joey Bada$$ - AAB

Shoutouts to Brent Faiyaz, Brother Ali and Goldlink too.

I think that the Gorillaz's Humanz is the only album from this year that I've actually listened to.

No wait! All of Bob Dylan's 2017 output as well (that would be number 1 in my top 2 for the year I guess)

I'll need to parse through the recommendations here, my knowledge of modern / recent music is embarrassing.

Didn't quite make it to ten this year. In no particular order:

Friendship - Hatred

God Mother - Vilseledd

Julien Baker - Turn Out The Lights

Converge - The Dusk In Us

Tera Melos - Trash Generator

Noam Pikelny - Universal Favorite

The Drip - The Haunting Fear Of Inevitability

Steven Universe, Vol. 1 (Official Soundtrack)

@foomanfat said:

No worries. A list is still a list.

I'm really bad at this so I'm just gonna list some of the albums i liked this year and put a top 3 at the end. We cool? Alright, here we go. i apologize to those that want to scroll past this.

The Horrors- V

Sounds like a very expensive industrial album. Every song is 5+ minutes long. It feels like machines are huffing and puffing in the background and there are all kind of electronic sounds thrown in. Sometimes all those sound effects start to feel a bit gimmicky, but then i find myself playing these songs again to hear the payoff at the end of them. But don't be worried, there's still a good amount of raw guitar work in this as well though. Also look out for a wacky Sonic the Hedgehog-like sound effect in 'Ghost'. 'Something to Remember Me By' and 'Machine' are the key songs here. Just a really nice album only bested by 2009's Primary Colours.

The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead (2017 remaster)

An absolute classic. The Queen Is Dead, I Know It's Over, Bigmouth Strikes Again, The Boy With A Thorn In His Side, There's a Light That Never Goes Out... There are just so many classics on this. I'm glad i discovered this band at some point. It all started with me recognizing How Soon Is Now as the Charmed themesong :) If you don't know them yet, give it a shot. There's a Light That Never Goes Out is the song you want. If you want more goosebumps, go to I Know It's Over. It's sad that the writer who wrote 'it's so easy to laugh, it's so easy to hate. It takes strength to be gentle and kind' turned out to be a terrible nightmare person.

Phoenix - Ti Amo

Didn't blow me away on first listen but over the year i've grown attached to some of the songs. Especially Fior de Latte is awesome and hits you in the face like a proper hitsong. Overall a very lighthearted breezy album. Pretty impressive how they sing in 4 different languages but still make it sound like such an unified connected album.

Kendrick Lemar - DAMN

Everyone knows this. I'm just gonna say that i think Fear & Yah are the stand out songs instead of Humble.

Wolf Alice - Visions of a Life

Was very impressed with some of their previous songs (Fluffy, Giant Peach, Moaning Lisa Smile , Blush). This album has less direct hits, but gave me some unexpected Velvet Underground-ish vibes A lot of spoken word vocals on this as well. Beautifully Unconventional and Planet Hunter are probably the best songs on this, but Yuk Foo is raw in a way that i appreciate. There's just a solid variety of sounds happening here. I've already heard Beautifully Unconventional play during TV-show commercials.

Arcade Fire - Everything Now

A disappointment . I quite like Arcade Fire, but this has some truly awful songs. It also boasts 3 songs named Everything Now and 2 songs named Infinite Content. Luckily it has some great songs as well. If you want the best version of this album, listen to Everything Now, the funky Signs of Life and the Abba-ish Put Your Money on Me. Electric Blue might be okay as well, but it might also irritate you greatly. Don't listen to 'Peter Pan'. Avoid 'Chemistry' at all costs. I'm not even going to link them , so you know i'm serious.

Courtney Barnett + Kurt Vile - Lotta Sea Lice

Very natural partnership. A nice collection of blues / country songs. They also do one of eachother's songs on this album which is a nice gift for the fans. Overall not really my style of music, but i can appreciate it. Main song ' Over Everything' is a good indicator on whether you'll like it or not.

St.Vincent - MASSSEDUCTION

Amazing album. I love the first 8 songs and tolerate the last 4,5 songs. It sounds like a perfect blend between aggression and laid back smoothness. There's some nice connective tissue between the songs as well. Like putting the melody of 'Los Ageless' halfway into 'Sugarboy' before you actually skip to that song. There's a lot of stuff happening in the background of some of these songs as well. It turns Sugarboy into a wild ride and even a small simple song like New York feels a lot more fleshed out if you focus on what's happening in the background. If only the latter songs did better i would play this on repeat.

Jens Lekman - Life will See You Now

Never heard of this swedish guy before Spotify put him in my Discovery list. It's a good album of lighthearted indiepop with excellent vocals and very relate-able lyrics. All his songs seem to actually tell a story which is sort of nice. It does sound like Christmas music at certain points though. Pleasant surprise! How We Met, The Long Version & To Know Your Mission are good samples.

King Krule - The Ooz

I heard his previous song Easy Easy and thought it was memorable, but didn't feel like i wanted to listen to his grating voice for more than 1 song. Heard some positive buzz about his new album and checked it out. I was not prepared to hear this underwater themed jazzy/ hiphop / rock album and vocals that somehow fit. Weirdest album i've heard this year, but i can't stop listening to it. There are so many good songs here. Dum Surfer, The Ooz, Vidual, Biscuit Town, Lonely Blue, The Cadet Leaps, Midnight 01 (Deep Sea Diver). . Youtube is not making it easy to share it, but it's of a high quality. Didn't expect to like this as much as i do.

Radiohead - OK Computer OKNOTOK 1997-2017

One of the best albums made. Now remastered. 3 unreleased songs from these sessions finally received proper studio versions and are all worth it. Man Of War , Lift , I Promise

Cameron Avery - Ripe Dreams, Pipe Dreams

This guy is a drummer for Pond, which is this scruffy Australian band that apparently has links to the bigger act Tame Impala. Quite surprising when he turns out to be sort of a Serge Gainsbourg type of crooner. 'Dance With Me' and Do You Know Me By Heart are the stand out songs. Disposable is also an okay tune.

Ariel Pink - Dedicated to Bobby Jameson

This guy might be an asshole but he has a penchant for writing awesome albums. 2010's Before Today, 2012's Mature Themes and 2014's Pom Pom are mainstays in my playlists, so i'm always up to listen to new material. This one isn't as good as those three, but still has some great old-timey sounding songs. 'Feels Like Heaven' is as dreamy as the title and 'Kitchen Witch' sounds like a song you would hear on Vice City's radio. Bubblegum Dreams is a silly fun song while 'Time to Live' and ' Revenge of the Iceman' sound halfway scary and halfway cheesy. Also, 'Time to Live' has parts that sound like the verses of Video Kill The Radiostar. Not always a great album, but it's a fun, unpolished and interesting ride.

The Killers - Wonderful Wonderful

This was the band that made me interested in music and through which i learned about all kind of other bands. So it was a huge bummer when i realized in 2012 that i didn't care for the Killers anymore. They released a new album and it's at least better than the 2012 album. It's sadly not grabbing me, but i can't deny that there are some solid songs on here. The openingsong Wonderful Wonderful sounds vaguely epic, Tyson vs Douglas is a very shouty high octane anthem and The Man is a 'We Are The Champions' - type of celebration song that feels tailor made for big events and MMA matches. It's a small step in the right direction, but not good enough yet for me to consider myself a fan again.

Mac DeMarco - This Old Dog

Very chill album from a very chill songwriter. Strong lyrics, solid backing tracks. On The Level and This Old Dog tell you what you need to know.

Foo Fighters - Concrete & Gold

Enjoyable album. And they do some songs that you wouldn't associate with Foo Fighters. Dirty Water is one of those. But if you like Classic Foo Fighter songs, songs like Sky is a Neighborhood and The Line will please. If you like your rock to be a bit harder, and your Foo Fighters a bit older, here you go with Run

Alvvays - Antisocialites

Great 2nd album from them. The frontlady sounded a bit screechy at times on their first album's hit 'Marry Me Archy', but she sounds super solid on this album. Dreams Tonite is a song that will undoubtedly pop up on all kinds of commercials as a coffeehouse-backing track. Lollipop (Ode To Jim) is a very sugary, love- it-or-hate-it, all out popsong. 'Not My Baby' is also a fine little tune. Might start out a bit hesitant but as it hits the 2 min mark i'm nodding my head.

Rostam - Half - Light

AKA the guy that left Vampire Weekend. And you will certainly hear some of that in here. Prepare for violins and cello's. His singing voice is quite unique and makes it sound like he's halfway cracking up at times. 'Bike Dream' and 'Gwan' are the songs you need to hear. Want more? Have some 'Half Light (ft. Kelly Zutrau).' it's a small lovely song.

The National - Sleep Well Beast

I think it's their second best album, only beaten by High Violet. Especially the song ' The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness' was the song that blew me away. It feels urgent, dark, exciting and scary. And it builds up real nice until you keep screaming to yourself in your head. Turtleneck shows a more energetic side of The National that you don't hear very often. Walk It Back is a small little gem. Day i Die is a solid but very safe song.

LCD Soundsystem - American Dream

I never really understood LCD Soundsystem. I've heard Dance Yrself Clean, All My Friends, I can Change & Daft Punk is playing at my house but it never clicked. Heck, Drunk Girls might've been my favorite LCD song. This album changes that. There are a lot of amazing songs on this. If i look on my Spotify list, there are 3 songs out of 10 songs that i don't have favored. Most surprising was the start of 'Emotional Haircut' which sounds like it could have been a song from Joy Division. Apart from that song, the songs feel like they're all made out of the same beautiful cloth. It often starts sugarysweet and slowly evolves into a heartfelt shout. Here's some American Dream for you guys.

Queens of the Stone Age - Villains

This album is produced by Mark Ronson. It means that the drums sound weak and canny. Which is a shame because some of these songs sound like real bangers , but it feels like i'm at the back of the club and can't fully enjoy it all. Still totally worth listening though. It's not as good as 2013's Like Clockwork , but i can't deny that songs like Domesticated Animals, Head Like a Haunted House, The Evil has Landed and Villain of Circumstance are good. The last mentioned song also made me wonder if they should do a bond theme...

Jessie Ware - Glasshouse

In an alternative reality, Jessie Ware would've been the huge popstar from England while the world shrugged at Adele. I think her vocals are of a similar quality at least. 'Midnight', 'Alone' and 'Your Domino' are the key songs. Your mothers will probably also appreciate this.

Pond - The Weather

Australian psychedelic rock. I only listened to this once and don't really have much to say about it, but i feel like i want to listen to it some more. Give it a try if you're feeling experimental.

Gorillaz - Humanz

Gorillaz was the first music CD i ever bought. This album feels like a return to those early hiphop days after Plastic Beach abandoned it mostly (To be fair, Snoop and Mos Def were on that album). You want Vince Staples? Popcaan? DRAM? De La Soul? Danny Brown? Kalela? Listen to this. Shoutout to bonustrack The Apprentice Feat. Rag‘n’Bone Man, Zebra Katz & RAY BLK. As someone that enjoys Damon Albarn singing through a speaker, 'She's My Collar' satisfies my needs.

Top 3:

3. LCD Soundsystem - American Dream

2. King Krule - The Ooz

1. St. Vincent - MASSSEDUCTION

honestly, this top 3 could change every time i look at it :D There are too many good albums. Especially Gorillaz, QOTSA, The National and The Horrors are contenders. I should still listen to SZA, Kalela The Oasis bro's and probably Dua Lipa? This is real good!

@alex Hi Alex. You're a rocker. Got any top ten albums of 2017 you'd like to share with us in this forum? I know it's a little too early but hey, if they can decorate the Christmas tree in November, we can do this one with this list too. Hope to hear from the legendary Rock Band drummer soon.

1. The Amulet - Circa Survive

2. Emperor of Sand - Mastodon

3. Dark Divine - Like Moths to Flames

4. Dead Reflections - Silverstein

5. Shadows Inside - Miss May I

6. Phantom Anthem - August Burns Red

7. Science Fiction - Brand New

8. False Idol - Veil of Maya

That's about all from new albums from 2017 I listened too. Honorary mentions go to Low Teens - Every Time I Die, because I didn't realize it came out in 2016, and The Madness of Many - Animals As Leaders (2016), because it's my go to work album.

Ten? Jesus, um...
I don't think there's anything from 2017 i can list.

This has been a year of older albums for me, so I really can only think of two from this year:

Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.

Marilyn Manson - Heaven Upside Down

The other three that have really captivated me this year are all older, and almost everything else has been albums I already know and love. I'll list the discoveries, but not the old favorites:

Albums of 2017 That Aren't From 2017:

Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill (I already knew half the songs on it, having existed in the 90s, but the rest are absolute bangers too. Turns out it was a massive success for a reason)

Leaves' Eyes - Vinland Saga (It's a bit of a schlep trying to separate the wheat from the chaff in symphonic metal, since the genre largely consists of two things: Trying to sound like Within Temptation, and trying to sound like Nightwish. Leaves' Eyes are more on the Nightwish side, but they have the addictive earworm choruses of a Within Temptation, and I love it)

The Residents - Demons Dance Alone (I discovered and fell in love with The Residents in general this year, but DDA is a standout among standouts. I defy almost anybody to not find something to like on this album. I'd seriously consider shortlisting it as one of my GOATs)

EDIT: Well hell, with days left to go in the year, I've discovered and can't get enough of HorrorPops. Shame that they only had three albums before suddenly falling off the face of the earth, but what three albums they are. So, three more for the Older Albums of the Year list: Hell Yeah, Bring It On, and Kiss Kiss Kill Kill. Fuuuuck, they're so good.

He'd probably say Metz and I'm sure he'd love Converge. So you should probably check those 2 out (especially Converge, that album is straight up 10/10 material)

In no particular order:

Neil Young - Hitchhiker

Pallbearer - Heartless

Elder - Reflections of a Floating World

Queens of the Stone Age - Villians

Overkill - The Grinding Wheel

Creeper - Eternity, In Your Arms

The Night Flight Orchestra - Amber Galactic

Power Trip - Nightmare Logic

Royal Thunder - Wick

The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers

Also want to mention Cheap Trick and Deep Purple who also put out really good albums this year.

IN NO ORDER

Tyler, the Creator - Flower Boy: Made me a Tyler fan. One of my favorite albums ever. Really love how personal and not-aggressive it is compared to his older stuff.

Brockhampton - Saturation 1 & 2 (can't wait for 3 later this year!): These guys are shockingly good. Their particular blend of musical styles and tones is like a dream come true for me. I've wanted a group like them to exist for a long time.

Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.: Another classic from the best emcee of our time. Nothing else to say.

Gorillaz - Humanz: Not as great as Demon Days and Plastic Beach, which are two of my favorite albums. But it's still got some good stuff on there, and it just makes me happy that the Gorillaz are back.

Frank Ocean: His loosies this year have all been really great. I hope his next album sounds like his 2017 singles. More rapping, heavier production.

Joey Bada$$ - All-Amerikkkan Bada$$: Good album. Nothing crazy, but very solid.

Vic Mensa - The Autobiography: Not bad. I hope Vic continues to improve. He's like 85% of the way to being a really great rapper.

OLDER STUFF

Anderson .Paak - Malibu and Venice: .Paak is one of the best artists out there, incredibly talented. I've loved his work so far, and I'm really excited to see where he goes from here. Hope he can bring back some of the production style from Venice in the future.

Frank Ocean - Blonde: Beautiful album. I could listen to it all the way through every day of my life.

Saba - Bucket List Project and ComfortZone: Wow Saba is a good rapper. Everything he makes is smooth as hell. Hope he continues to get better and makes it big.

Modest Mouse: I got back into Modest Mouse and they're a good band. I like their newer stuff better. They're pretty weird but they make it work.

Here are some recommendations from me that I haven't seen mentioned yet...

Soft Sounds from Another Planet by Japanese Breakfast
Harmony of Difference by Kamasi Washington
Pure Comedy by Father John Misty
Midnight Signals by Starcadian
Colors by Beck
Plunge by Fever Ray
Utopia by Bjork

I really liked Humanz by Gorillaz when it came out but I find there's very little taking me back to it.

Mastodon - Emperor of Sand is probably the one good record I've heard this year.

Maya Janes Coles - Take Flight

Goldfrapp - Silver Eye

Gorillaz - Humanz (Though I didn't really like it all that much there a few good tracks on it that felt very Gorillaz-esque, I might get the extended version and see if the new songs on that one are good)

10. Chronixx-Chronology

9. Open Mike Eagle-Brick Body Kids Still Daydream

8. Arcade Fire-Everything Now

7. Kelela-Take Me Apart

6. Haim-Something To Tell You

5. St. Vincent-MASSEDUCTION

4. Kendrick Lamar-DAMN.

3. SZA-Ctrl

2. Lorde-Melodrama

1. The New Pornographers-Whiteout Conditions

RIght now I feel comfortable in submitting a top 10

1. Converge - The Dusk In Us
2. Iglooghost - Neo Wax Bloom
3. Protomartyr - Relatives in Descent
4. Susanne Sundfor - Music for People in Trouble
5. Japanese Breakfast - Soft Sounds From Another Planet
6. Arca - S/T
7. Jesca Hoop - Memories Are Now
8. Big K.R.I.T - 4Eva Is a Mighty Long Time
9. Alex Lahey - I Love You Like a Brother
10. Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings - Soul of a Woman

For those who want all a top 100 here is a playlist I compiled (in reverse order) ~ https://open.spotify.com/user/yesiamaduck/playlist/3cY4k6LvEMqOrV62gOmq8V

I thought it was a rather good year, hence why I was able to come up with 100 albums I liked a lot.

@psykhophear: Hard to quite say "Live Necronomicon" is a new album when it's just a slightly more complete rerelease of "In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up" from 1990 (and still isn't the entire live set from the 1989 Christmas show, missing a couple of Jello Biafra tracks as well as some Revolting Cocks stuff), but, yeah, it's still a fantastic live album.

Their recent rerelease of the Toronto 1986 live performance is even better in my mind though, as it focuses on the Twitch era stuff.

Haven't really heard a lot of 2017 albums, but I guess I'd rank these as a top four:

1. Rättens Krater - Urrah!

2. Uniform - Wake in Fright

3. Nine Inch Nails - Add Violence (EP, but gets even better played back to back with last year's Not the Actual Events making it feel like a coherent album)

4. Fever Ray - Plunge (Not as good as her self-titled album, but still a decent thing sounding more like what she was doing with The Knife in the early 00's).

(no order)

Queens of the stone age - Villains
Japandroids - Near to the Wild Heart of Life
Oh Sees - Orc
Alex G - Rocket
Big Joey Bada$$ fan, loved his new album which I couldn't be fucked spelling.
I would have loved to have put MGMT's new album here too, but motherfuckers post-poned it (again) till next year. ;_; Recommend giving the two singles a listen though. My hype is through the roof.

Sun Kil Moon - Common as Light and Love are Red Valleys of Blood: A great album if you have 2 hours to listen to a man ramble about anything and everything. Faves are I Love You Forever and Beyond Eternity, Philadelphia Cop

BROCKHAMPTON - Saturation 1/2/3: Ok, so 3 isn't out but like, 1 and 2 are so good that I literally fail to see how 3 could be bad. All good, all the time. They're all my favorites.

Run The Jewels - RTJ3: Bangers while also weaving in interesting political viewpoints. Fave tracks are 2100, A Report to The Shareholders/Kill Your Masters

Mount Eerie - A Crow Looked At Me: It's immeasurably sad, as you would expect an album made by a man who's wife had just died. It seems wrong to say anything is my favorite about this because it's not exactly pleasant to listen to.

Alvvays - Antisocialites: A great example of what dream pop can be, with a twinge of punk for good measure. Faves are Your Type, Already Gone

Tyler, The Creator - (Scum Fuck) Flower Boy: As a long time Tyler fan, this is exactly what I was hoping for out of him. Something personal while retaining the same raw quality to his character. Faves are Who Dat Boy, November

Jay-Z - 4:44: Immensely interesting and shows great use of Jay's talents. Faves are 4:44, The Story of O.J.

https://septicflesh.bandcamp.com/album/codex-omega is my best of the year...

I don't know how I put DVNE on that earlier list, but forgot that Reflections of a Floating World by Elder came out this year. It's somewhat similar, but deserves a spot above DVNE. Elder does magnificent, heavy and sludgy but at times light and complex compositions that hit the sweet spot for me. It occasionally makes me think of Pink Floyd with heavy distortion while playing more pure stoner chug at other parts.

Special mentions for this year that didn't make the cut to top 11 or came out only recently:

Cloak - To Venomous Depths (Black 'n roll)

Great mix of black metal and rock. They sail in the waters between their chosen mix of styles fluently and have some serious song writing chops so the album stays interesting at least most of the way through.

Enslaved - E (Black metal / Progressive rock)

Long time fans of Enslaved will probably hate me for this, but I like this album much more than their early work. I seem to enjoy them more when they let loose the dogs of prog to balance the blackness.

Toothgrinder - Phantom Amour (Alt. metal / hardcore / metalcore / prog)

This album has some low lows, but the highs more than make up for it. It's not what I'd usually listen to but I choose not to fight it. It's a mixed bag in which they mix up and modernize some of the nu metal and alternative metal antics I was fond of when I was younger.

she - Chroma (Synthwave)

I only recently bumped into she and immediately liked it. The older stuff is more varied, but Chroma is also a great album. It's less glitchy and modern and chooses to stay deeper in the 80's.

Royal Thunder - Wick (Hard rock / Rock)

I'm new to this one after seeing it pop up in several end of the year lists. The mix of bluesy hard rock and amazingly powerful vocals has definitely made an impression.

It's not ten.

But 'Forever' by Code Orange is a perfect reason why that band will be everyones influence in twenty years.

'Vestigial' by Lo! Powerful, grinding, and fast paced sludge.

I also made some discoveries this year. Helms Alee, High Tension, Ratking, Russian Circles, The Great Sadness. Check them out if you like metal/hardcore.