1. Swervedriver - "I Wasn't Born to Lose You"
English shoegaze rockers reunite after 17 years and produce the best album of their career! Guitars distort, sizzle and chime through the melodic haze of vocals to create one addictive musical epiphany after another. I missed these guys the first time around but never again!
2. Radioactivity - "Silent Kill"
It's a breathless blitzkrieg of an album - 12 songs in under 30 minutes. Frantic rhythms and hooky melodies delivered to you by guitarists Jeff Burke and Mark Ryan from The Marked Men (one of my favorite bands of this century). So happy these guys are back doing what they do!
3. Wavves X Cloud Nothings - "No Life for Me"
A brief yet exhilirating EP of tunes from a collaboration by Nathan Williams (Wavves) and Dylan Baldi (Cloud Nothings). Nicely crafted indie tunes that will stay in your head for days! Dylan's solo turn "Nothing Hurts" may be my favorite song of the year!
4. Ryan Allen & his Extra Arms - "Heart String Soul"
I love Power Pop when it is done well and here is your benchmark for 2015. The genre can sometimes seem wimpy or cloying but the tunes on this album are full of fire, have energy to burn and are LOUD! Ryan Allen hits the Rock 'N' Roll trifecta here and we are all richer for it.
5. Tommy Keene - "Laugh in the Dark"
A Tommy Keene album is money in the bank. As sure as the sun rises you can count on every release to have perfectly crafted melodies, great vocals and incredible guitar work. His extended solo closing "All Gone Away" is one for the ages! It's easy to take such excellence for granted - but don't!
6. Noel Gallagher - "Chasing Yesterday"
Second solo effort from the Oasis mastermind is packed with track after track of Britpop awesomeness. Factor in Noel's wonderful guitar work and you have the sound of Rock 'N' Roll being saved! Tip: spring for the deluxe version to get four extra songs.
7. Best Coast - "California Nights"
Bethany Cosentino is back with another collection (3 LPs now and an EP) of songs about boyfriends and the west coast. You'd think I'd be ready to jump off this train by now but the choruses are huge and her voice is even bigger and better. Add Bobb Bruno's driving surfy guitar and I'm in!
8. Dungen - "Allas Sak"
It's like tripping down a psych/acid/prog/rock rabbit hole into the seventies! Sweden's Gustav Ejstes has been working his jam magic in this vein for years now, but does it matter that it's all in Swedish? - Nope, not a bit! Recommended if you like Tame Impala.
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9. Deerhunter - "Fading Frontier"
Another winner from Bradford Cox and his band that grows on you with each listen. Nice mix of the familiar dreamy Deerhunter pop ("Breaker" and "Carrion") along with some surprises (the slinky glam of "Snakeskin" is a highlight).
10. The Decemberists - "What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World"
Colin Meloy's distinctive vocals and literary heavy lyrics combine with the sometimes precious instrumentation of his troupe to trend toward the maudlin yet manage to produce another collection of memorable music - how do they consistently do that?! They also released the equally excellent EP "Florasongs".
More good stuff;Ryley Walker - "Primrose Green", Nick Piunti - "Beyond the Static", Death Cab for Cutie - "Kintsugi", Richard Thompson - "Still", Wavves - "V", Wilco - "Star Wars", AC/DC - "Rock or Bust", Martin Courtney - "Many Moons", The Chills - "Silver Bullets", Low - "Ones and Sixes", Cheatahs - "Mythologies", Johnny Marr - "Playland"
