When we ask artists to curate a playlist for The Dowsers, we request two things: a) their list of 10-20 songs, and b) a brief statement explaining their playlist concept. We’d like to thank all the artists who shared their collections with us this year—each provided a unique insight into their influences and obsessions. But we were especially amazed by the notable names listed below. They didn’t just provide us with a simple synoposis of their playlist, they crafted lovingly detailed liner notes that encourage you to follow along at home. Click on the links below for the full experience, and click here to browse our complete collection of artist-curated playlists.Dennis Lyxzén’s Favorite Songs From the American UnderbellyThe frontman for Refused, The (International) Noise Conspiracy and, currently, INVSN took us on a journey into the dark side of the States: “Growing up in the north of Sweden as a working-class kid there are certain elements of American culture that fascinate and enthrall ... under the glamour and glitz, there’s a darkness and depth that give way to a more nuanced picture of America.”Partner’s Favorite Songs to Get Stoned ToListen to Partner’s delightful debut album, In Search of Lost Time, and you will quickly learn that Canada’s foremost queer-positive fuzz-pop duo are also massive potheads. For this Dowsers playlist, they reveal the songs they like to crank up when they spark up, from Young Thug to Black Sabbath.Sweet Apple’s Songs of Sorrow PlaylistSweet Apple is the power-pop supergroup featuring vocalist John Petkovic and guitarist Tim Parnin of Cobra Verde, and bassist Dave Sweetapple and drummer J. Mascis of Witch. (You may also know the latter from another band.) To mark the release of their second album, Sing the Night in Sorrow, Petkovic created this Dowsers playlist featuring songs from the record, and the classic tracks that directly inspired them, from Devo to the Get Smart theme.Dale Crover’s Favorite Drummers / Buzz Osborne’s Favorite GuitaristsThe founding members of veteran sludge-masters The Melvins provided separate playlists saluting the preeminent players of their respective professions—though they both skipped over the obvious names to shine a light on more unsung heroes.Sparks’ Favorite SongsNow approaching their 50th (!) year as a band, Sparks (a.k.a. Ron and Russell Mael) have been at the forefront of many crucial developments in pop music—glam rock, electronic disco, New Wave, neoclassical baroque ‘n’ roll—and have put their own singular, absurdist stamp on them all. As their fabulous recent release, Hippopotamus, proves, Sparks’ flair for extravagant art-pop and whip-smart lyricism remains undiminished. And as their contribution to The Dowsers attests, nobody puts together a playlist quite like the Brothers Mael.Dälek’s Unsung Hip-Hop Heroes PlaylistSince the late ‘90s, New Jersey trio Dälek has been pushing hip-hop into harsh, dissonant realms, and their latest album, Endangered Philosophies (Ipecac Recordings), honors their reputation for raw rhymes, bruising beats, and extreme sonics. On this playlist, the crew’s namesake MC salutes his fellow rap iconoclasts: “This is a collection of songs and groups that move me. It is a playlist of underground musicians who each, in their own way, have pushed the culture of hip-hop forward. What strikes me is the sheer variety of styles, sounds, and experimentation here.”Uni’s Ultimate Glam-Rock PlaylistUni are a fab new glitter-rock trio from NYC featuring Nico Fuzz, David Strange, and Charlotte Kemp Muhl, best known for collaborating with Sean Ono Lennon in their psych-pop outfit The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger. The band recently released their starry-eyed first single, “What’s the Problem?,” with a full-length coming out in early 2018 on Ono Lennon’s Chimera Music label. To give you a taste of what to expect, the group curated a playlist that salutes their glitter-rock gods—and provided highly informative, totally fact-checked, irrefutable liner notes about each song’s creation.Shirley Manson Presents: Take All of My Broken Toys and Fix Them All—A Sad-Songs-Only PlaylistStill flying high on their 2016 release, Strange Little Birds, and their summer 2017 tour with Blondie, alt-rock icons Garbage also recently released a coffee-table book chronicling their two-decade history, titled This Is the Noise That Keeps Me Awake. But on this playlist, frontwoman Shirley Manson reveals the songs she turns to when she wants to cry herself to sleep.Tremor’s Latin American GamechangersTremor recently issued the Ave Reina Mora EP, which finds the veteran trio continuing to fuse Argentian folk traditons and modern electronic production in fascinating new ways. For this playlist, they salute the artists who’ve been at the frontlines of Latin American musical revolutions dating back to the 1940s up to today. “LatAm Gamechangers is a playlist of Latin American musicians that are of defining influence in our band’s opinion. Their approach to LatAm folklore music was daring for their time. They took risks and, in some particular cases, they experimented with elements, sounds, and arrangements that sometimes took decades for the audience and even other musicians to catch up with.”Los Macuanos Presents: Apocalyptic Political TheaterIn the spring of 2017, Tijuana avant-electronic duo Los Macuanos released their third album, Epilogo, an equally impressionistic and visceral work that reverberates with the unrest felt all over the world this year. Their playlist of key influences also doubles as a history of politically provocative electronic music: “There are common threads in all the works featured on this list: a global-mindedness that still references regional politics; an exploration of the body and identity as affected by larger systems of oppression; and a decolonial and hyper-aware approach to cultural referencing. It is, in broad strokes, the sound of living in the perpetual, perceived end of history.”
Vancouver power duo Japandroids kicked off 2017 with a big bang by releasing their biggest and boldest album yet, Near to the Wild Heart of Life, back in January. And if you caught the band on their subsequent never-ending world tour this year, then these songs may sound familiar… “For me, 2017 was a wild ride. I spent almost the entire year on tour—100 shows in 20 countries—so I was always on the move. There were highs, lows, and everything in-between, which is very typical of touring. If there was any one constant among all the craziness, it might be my pre-show playlist, which I listen to every night before we go on stage—you know, to get pumped up. I initially made this playlist in January, ahead of our first shows, and had every intention of keeping it the same throughout the year… but every so often, 2017 sent a undeniable jam my way, and thus some swapping inevitably occurred. And so while not all of these songs are from 2017, when I think back on the year in music, or at least my year in music, this is what I hear.”—Brian King of Japandroids
In August 2017, indie rocker Jen Cloher released her self-titled record, which cracked the Top 5 on the album charts in her native Australia; she also received a great deal of exposure in North America when her song “Fear Is Like a Forest” was covered on Lotta Sea Lice, the collaborative album from Kurt Vile and Cloher’s better half, Courtney Barnett. Before she heads out on her U.S. and European tours in early 2018, Jen shares the songs that defined 2017 for her. “2017 was a year where we heard more diverse voices break through, in Australia particularly. While global politics became more regressive, divisive, and fear-mongering, music did the opposite.”—Jen Cloher
In September 2017, Colombian-Canadian experimental pop artist Lido Pimienta shot straight out of the Toronto avant-indie underground to the international spotlight when her most recent album, La Papessa, became the first self-released album (not to mention the first sung entirely in Spanish) to win Canada’s prestigious Polaris Music Prize. Here, she shares the soundtrack to this transformative year in her life. “This year has been an exciting one for womxn in music and queer artists, like it always is, but the notoriety that womxn are getting as not just singers but producers is really inspiring and motivating. I am drawn to these songs because they carry interesting point of views and production. I enjoy making experimental music, so this list too reflects my personal taste and inspiration.”—Lido PimientaNote: Lido also wanted to include Xenia Rubinos’ “L.O.V.E.” on her playlist, but the song is not available on Spotify. You can listen to it here.
In July 2017, New Jersey native Nicole Atkins released Goodnight Rhonda Lee, her fourth serving of lush orchestro-soul and regal R&B. But on her best-of-2017 list, she indulges her love of dark, heavy rock and oddball art-pop:1. St. Vincent, MasseductionI’ve always loved Annie’s lyrics. Romantic and smart. Here, she is at the height of her powers, like a female Prince. So glad she exists, because the world needs rock-star superheroes right now.2. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Murder of the UniverseI listened to this album so much this year I thought I was going insane. Kind of King Crimson in a space action movie, complete with a narrator to lead you through this journey.3. The Black Angels, Death SongI saw them perform this record live a few times this year and was blown away, as I usually am by The Black Angels. “Half Believin” breaks my heart.4. The Lemon Twigs, Brothers of DestructionThere are so many exciting and fun musical moments on this EP. Reminds me of the Kinks at times. These brothers are so young and have such a deep, musical understanding of history. I think they’re the most important band I’ve heard in a long time.5. JD McPherson, UNDIVIDED HEART & SOULJD McPherson has one of my favorite voices ever and, on this record, he takes pockets of songs to really unexpected places, turning older sounds into future sounds. Very original, while keeping you warm and fuzzy.6. Queen of the Stone Age, VillainsI put this on when I need to fuck the day.7. Mark Lanegan, GargoyleThis man could sing anything and I’d love it. Fortunately, his poetry is just haunting as his voice, and every record he releases reveals a deeper and more beautiful layer.8. Dion, Kickin’ Child: The Lost Album ’65There are so many melodies on the top of this record that put me in another world. It inspires me greatly.
I’ve shazamed a lot of songs on this album this year, like, “Whoa, what is this?!” Completely original. It melds so many different types of music, but doesn’t sound gimmicky. He gives me the same feeling I had when I was young and Trent Reznor (who he sounds nothing like) came out—like, this person is gonna start an entire new sound that a lot of people are gonna follow.
It’s powerful and raw and amazing and timely. I’m just getting acquainted with it, because it just came out and it’s on repeat.
Listen to Partners delightful debut album, In Search of Lost Time, and you will quickly learn that Canadas foremost queer-positive fuzz-pop duo are also massive potheads. For this Dowsers playlist, they reveal the songs they like to crank up when they spark up. "Stoner," Young Thug: This song is cool because, while there are a lot of odes to weed, this song is a little different: Its an ode to stoners. Young Thug thinks stoners are cool and is proud to be one. Plus, this track just buuumps."Cotton Eye Joe," Rednex: This song is good to get stoned to just cause its really hilarious and a total throwback to middle-school dances. No matter how lazy you are feeling, you might be able to muster a jig. Bonus points for the weird/scary video."Sweet Leaf," Black Sabbath: The original ode to weed. "You introduced me/ to my mind." SAME. Possibly the only song written in the second person, directed at weed, that doesnt use the term "Mary Jane.""Really Doe," Danny Brown: This song is great to get stoned to cause its a sick posse cut featuring a really cool stylistic array of rappers. Earls verse shouts out dirty spliffs and blunts. Everyones flow is completely different and they are all very impressive, especially when youre stoned."James Joint," Rihanna: "Id rather be/ smoking weed." Lots of people love to smoke weed, but Rihanna somehow also manages to make blazing seem glamorous and sexy. (Impressive.)"Solo," Frank Ocean: Like Rihanna, when Frank talks about smoking weed, it seems sophisticated and deep. This is a great track to listen to when youre blazing alone, at night, wondering what it all means..."Broccoli," DRAM (feat Lil Yachty): DRAM is all "good vibes" if thats what youre into, and this is a feel-good party-jam ode to rolling one up at a party. Infectious piano hook."HennyNHoes," Young M.A.: This is a good song to listen to at any time, and we will never not shout it out cause its our favourite and Young M.A. is cool as fuck."You Dont Know How It Feels," Tom Petty: This song is great to get stoned to cause when it gets to the part where he says, "lets rollll another joiiint," you can use it as an excuse to do just that."Dust on the Bottle," David Lee Murphy: This song is about homemade wine, not weed, but its great to get stoned to, cause it tells a great story and, lets be real, all music is good when youre stoned.
Playlists allow you to play the role of musical tourist, immersing you in a regional scene on the other side of the world without the need for airfare. Or sometimes, the scene is less a geographic construct than a spiritual one, coalescening around a record label or common, internet-facilitated aesthetic. These are the scenes we were drawn to over the past year:
The emergence of a viable rap scene in Seattle didn’t happen overnight. Even as Macklemore & Ryan Lewis briefly took over the pop airwaves with “Thrift Shop” in 2012, less-celebrated artists were determining the future of the Northwest city’s sound. In fact, much of the Seattle rap underground resembles other U.S. homegrown scenes that formed in the wake of indie rap icons like Lil B and Odd Future: The music is amorphous and electronic, the lyrics tend toward chemically enhanced streams-of-consciousness (with Shabazz Palaces’ surreal, Afrocentric-inspired treatises serving as a touchstone), and there are enough sonic quirks to make you want to crawl down a SoundCloud wormhole.
Profound Lore was founded in 2004 by Chris Bruni as a casual venture, but within a few years it grew to be a serious metal label. Based in Kitchener, Ontario—about an hour’s drive west of Toronto—Profound Lore has produced some of the most vital voices in contemporary black, experimental, and heavy metal.
Chicago’s underground has been on fire the past few years. Every other week seems to deliver a new batch of releases from the Hausu Mountain label, purveyors of madcap electronics and cyborg-bopping eccentricity. The shadowy Beau Wanzer, whose icy and forlorn productions disintegrate the divide between post-punk and techno, is nearly as prolific—and that’s just one dude. And then there’s Jaime Fennelly’s always progressing Mind Over Mirrors project: his latest album, the critically lauded Undying Color, wanders dense, rippling expanses of pastoral art folk and baroque électronique. For this playlist, we focus primarily on musicians, bands, and oddball geniuses who stalk the back alleys, linking DIY electronics, industrial, droning experimentation, and mutant dance music.
Maybe it’s the cheap rent that’s essential for sustaining the vitality and vibrancy of artists and culture in a modern metropolis, or maybe it’s the proximity to beloved landmarks and bit players from The Wire and the movies of John Waters; either way, Baltimore continues to thrive as a musical hotbed, one that retains a fierce loyalty among the many great acts born and bred there. With the release of Future Islands’ fifth album, The Far Field, we celebrated the city’s indie scene with a playlist of Baltimore acts you may already know and love (Beach House, Dan Deacon), and others who deserve more than hometown-hero status, like Ed Schrader’s Music Beat and relative newbies Sun Club.
Los Angeles rappers have a propensity for giving themselves two letter names. YG is the city’s most well-known export, but there’s also RJ, AD, T.F, and KR. Most of these artists have collaborated with each other, and are a hit or two away from breaking through at the national level. This playlist contains songs by these two-letter rappers, as well as the rest of the city’s best young talent.
On what feels like a weekly basis nowadays, Dais Records revive some long-forgotten synth/ambient masterpiece or a vintage industrial jam that’s exquisitely dark and dreary. Dais isn’t just an archival label, however—their catalog features churning brutality from hardcore-troublemakers-turned-EBM-fist-pumpers Youth Code, and Sightings, the most important noise-rock band of the 21st century. And not everything Dais puts out seeks to obliterate eardrums: On top of their taste for the ugly and abrasive, they have a deep love for the beautiful and sublime.
Home to international stars like Hugh Masekela, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and, um, Die Antwoord, South Africa has always been known for its music. Even during the days of apartheid, this country of 55 million people was a hotbed for pop, jazz, choral, and dance music. While Paul Simon worked with South African musicians back in the 1980s to make his career-defining album Graceland, these days it’s artists and label heads like Kode9 who are looking to the country amid the rising global popularity of gqom, the moody, broken-beat take on South African house that was first divined with the help of cracked Fruity Loops setups in the coastal city of Durban.
Afrobeats is the sound you heard on pop radio for much of 2016. It’s not to be confused with Afrobeat, the funk-based form that Fela Kuti made famous in the 1970s. Afrobeats emerged from Lagos, Nigeria and Accra, Ghana in the mid-to-late 2000s, and serves as an African response to post-millennial hip-hop, electronic music, Jamaican reggae and dancehall, and R&B. There are tracks that rely on familiar tropes—Auto-Tuned vocals, English-language lyrics about partying and sex—as well as build upon distinctive traditions like highlife and Afrobeat, resulting in songs that could only be African.
As cassette tapes and CDs proliferated in the ‘80 and ‘90s, music began to travel to uncharted territories—like small villages in South America. And thanks to the vast reach of MTV and, later the internet, that cultural cross-pollination has only accelerated. One of the more intriguing results of this process has been the rise of Latin American shoegaze: young South American musicians in thrall to U.K. bands like My Bloody Valentine and Ride, but putting their own spin on the genre.
SoundCloud rap sounds like an extension of a thread that arguably began in 2010 with Odd Future. As the genre of rap becomes more notional than actual—lyrics are harmonized and sung in barely recognizable hip-hop cadences, and beats are reduced to murky approximations of a boom-bap tempo—MCs trade form for texture, and professionalism for bellicosity. SoundCloud rappers are representative of the genre’s post-regional phase, when it’s no longer uncommon for a Philadelphia hook-man like Lil Uzi to sound like a trapper from Atlanta, a Texas melodicist like Post Malone to sound like a rapper/singer from Chicago, or a Florida bedroom producer like SpaceGhostPurrp to sound like a gangster from Memphis.
Sweet Apple is the power-pop supergroup featuring vocalist John Petkovic and guitarist Tim Parnin of Cobra Verde, and bassist Dave Sweetapple and drummer J. Mascis of Witch. (You may also know the latter from another band.) To mark the release of their second album, Sing the Night in Sorrow, Petkovic created this special Dowsers playlist featuring songs from the record, and the classic tracks that directly inspired them. Here, he breaks down the albums key influences on a song-by-song basis.SONG: "(My Head is Stuck in the) Traffic"INSPIRATION: “Girl U Want” by Devo“(My Head is Stuck in the) Traffic”—the opening track on our album, Sing the Night in Sorrow—features this driving, jagged riff on the verse. The obvious thing would have been to pair it with straight-ahead drums, but it wouldn’t have provided the kind of tension we were shooting for. Devo are one of the pioneers of the “herky-jerky” rhythm with songs like “Girl U Want,” “Mongoloid” or even “Whip It.” Devo popped into my head right away because they embraced the tension between guitar and drums. As a whole, none of those Devo songs sound all that much “Traffic,” but if you listen to the hi-hat and where it fits, and the loopiness of the rhythm, they owe a debt to Devo.SONG: “World I’m Gonna Leave You”INSPIRATION: The theme song from Get SmartI was flipping through the TV late at night and was stopped by the theme song to the 1960s secret-agent spoof Get Smart. The riff just sounded so bad-ass—these boisterous horns blaring out this punchy melody with this incessant rhythm underneath it. Right away, I hit pause and picked up a guitar and started playing along until that riff turned into something very different—which became the basis for “World I’m Gonna Leave You.”SONG: “You Dont Belong to Me”INSPIRATION: “Tubular Bells - Pt. 1” by Mike OldfieldOn the surface or in any other way, “Tubular Bells” sounds nothing like the Sweet Apple song. But the opening to Oldfield’s song, made popular by The Exorcist, always resonated with me because it features a circular note pattern played with layers of instruments. The strategy matched what we were trying to do with a note pattern played by Tim on acoustic and electric guitars on the intro and outro of what is otherwise a power-pop song.SONG: “A Girl and a Gun”INSPIRATIONS: The soundtrack to Duck You Sucker, and “Man With Harmonica” from the soundtrack to Once Upon a Time in the WestBoth of these Ennio Morricone soundtracks roll out sprawling themes. They also boast so many stellar details: A plucked banjo that acts more as an uneasy marker of time than an instrument; a detuned note played in unison with another to create a warbled melody; an incidental sound; those warped harmonicas; those haunting, weird vocals. “A Girl and a Gun” features all sorts of sounds that might not specifically sound like Morricone’s soundtracks, but there’s a similar strategy at work with the strummed autoharp, the layered vocals, the out-of-tune synth lead, and the warped toy piano. Meanwhile, the plucked banjo is straight out of these soundtracks.SONG: “She Wants to Run”INSPIRATION: The soundtrack to The Royal TenenbaumsI like some Wes Anderson films, but the sheer amount of whimsy in the scores borders on empty signifiers. I wanted to capture that kind of whimsy in the acoustic opening to “She Wants to Run," only to follow it by having a rock n roll band bust down the door and smash their acoustics and turn up the amps. So we recorded the sound of a cord being plugged into an electric guitar jack and then having a loud rock band blowing the acoustic troupe away.SONG: “Candles in the Sun”INSPIRATIONS: "Cocaine and Camcorders," by UNKLE and South from the Sexy Beast soundtrack + "Hey Bulldog" by The BeatlesThe UNKLE contributions to the Sexy Beast soundtrack boast these pulsating drones that make the songs mesmerizing, because they keep throbbing along even as other parts come in and out and change. The notes and instruments are different, but the guitar riff provides a similar function, pushing along even as chords modulate. As for the guitar tone, check out George Harrison on later-period Beatles songs, like “Hey Bulldog” or “I Want You (Shes So Heavy).”SONG: “Summers Gone”INSPIRATION: “The Great Dominions” by The Teardrop ExplodesThe idea of doing some sunny ode to the end of summer in a place where the sun doesn’t shine often was the basis for the song. It features sunny back-up vocals, but there is also a drone throughout the song. A song that incorporated the drone to moody effect so well is “The Great Dominions,” by Julian Cope’s early band The Teardrop Explodes. The drones continue throughout and in many ways glue the song together with this deep, hypnotic underpinning that gives it a sense of foreboding menace.SONG: “Thank You”INSPIRATION: "Saturday Night Special" by Lynyrd SkynyrdThe perception of Lynyrd Skynyd as some "southern-rock" band overshadows just how great and timeless the production is on the band’s records—from the guitar and bass sounds to the deep snap of the snare. When we went into this one, I was imagining that snare run recorded really hot—ditto for the guitars.SONG: “Crying in the Clouds”INSPIRATION: “Morning Sun Rays,” by Popol VuhThe German group created a number of stellar soundtracks for Werner Herzog and so few groups managed to make the acoustic guitar so evocative and otherworldly—especially when combined with other string and wind instruments. The Sweet Apple song features six- and 12-string acoustics paired with a droning harmonica and a toy accordion, as well as a collage of various instruments in the middle part. While it doesn’t sound like anything Popol Vuh, it embraced the group’s expansive view of acoustic music.SONG: “Everybodys Leaving”INSPIRATION: “By the TIme I Get to Phoenix,” Glen CampbellSongs about leaving are bound to be moody and full of longing and loss, but how do you convey that without being melodramatic? Glen Campbell hit it with the string arrangements on the Jimmy Webb-penned classic “By the Time I Get to Phoenix.” It’s accentuated with the breezy pacing of his vocals and the space to breathe in the music—which makes it all the more evocative. “Everybody’s Leaving” might be a very different-sounding song, but there was a general strategy at work—and we hoped these little layers, like the echo-y electric piano on the bridge, accentuated a similar atmosphere.
Kendrick Lamar is the most important hip-hop artist of his generation. For this special feature from The Dowsers, we take an in-depth look at his life and art through a 10-part playlist investigation...
It was a weird year in American life. It was a weird year in hip-hop, too. Much of mainstream rap descended into a dark pharmacological haze that was alternately illuminating and horrifying; few embodied those twin impulses like the dead-eyed, flat-voiced rapper 21 Savage. Every major chart hit seemed to include Migos, or one of its members. Most rappers spent more time singing and harmonizing than actually rapping, whether it was Future, Lil Uzi Vert, or Kendrick Lamar. Drake entered his Aerosmith/rock-dinosaur phase—likeable enough, still one of the biggest stars, but no longer generating the kind of critical excitement and discourse he once did. And the top newcomer of the year (though technically her debut mixtape dropped last year) was Cardi B, a former Bronx exotic-dancer-turned-reality-TV-star-turned-social-media-darling who may not be a technically proficient rapper, but made up for it with a delightful mix of personality and panache.Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN. was arguably the year’s best album, but it also seemed purposely muted and focused on addressing past triumphs, personal failings, and searching for a path ahead. Its defining quality may have been a surplus of hooky, memorable tunes that didn’t overwhelm intellectually like his past work. By contrast, Vince Staples’ Big Fish Theory delved into fame, disappointment, and UK beat culture in vivid yet perplexing fashion. Migos’ Culture simply offered a cavalcade of hits. Its magnificently scattershot quality was akin to a Stephen Curry highlight reel: Even the best shooters in the NBA merely average over 50 per cent makes. Playboi Carti’s self-titled debut was wonderfully ephemeral. Nothing felt like a genre-shifting achievement on the scale of last year’s Coloring Book, or 2015’s To Pimp a Butterfly and DS2. But in a year when optimism about the world around us was in dangerously dwindling supply, modest artistic breakthroughs felt like small yet important steps forward.
The ’90s have never sounded better than they do right now—especially for modern-day indie rockers. There’s no shortage of bands banging around these days whose sound suggests formative phases spent soaking up vintage ’90s indie rock. Not that the neo-’90s sound is itself a new thing. As soon as the era was far enough away in the rearview mirror to allow for nostalgia to set in (i.e., the second half of the 2000s), there were already some young artists out there onboarding ’90s alt-rock influences. But more recently, there’s been a bumper crop of bands that betray a soft spot for a time when MTV still played music videos and streaming was just something that happened in a restroom. In this context, the literate, lo-fi approach of Pavement has emerged as a particularly strong strand of the ’90s indie tapestry, and it isn’t hard to hear echoes of their sound in the work of more recent arrivals like Kiwi jr. or Teenage Cool Kids. Cherry Glazerr frontwoman Clementine Creevy seems to have a feeling for the kind of big, dirty guitar riffs that made Pacific Northwestern bands the kings of the alt-rock heap once upon a time. The world-weary, wise-guy angularity of Car Seat Headrest can bring to mind the lurching, loose-limbed attack of Railroad Jerk. And laconic, storytelling types like Nap Eyes stand to prove that there’s still a bright future ahead for those who mourn the passing of Silver Jews main man David Berman. But perhaps the best thing about a face-off between the modern indie bands evoking ’90s forebears and the old-school artists themselves is the fact that in this kind of competition, everybody wins.
It may be that 2019 was the best year for ’90s metal since, well, 1999. Bands from the decade of Judgment Night re-emerged with new creative twists and tweaks: Tool stretched out into polyrhythmic madness, Korn bludgeoned with more extreme and raw despair, Slipknot added a new drummer (Max Weinberg’s kid!) who gave them a new groove, and Rammstein wrote an anti-fascism anthem that caused controversy in Germany (and hit No. 1 there too). Elsewhere, icons of the era returned in unique ways: Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor scored a superhero TV series, Primus’ Les Claypool teamed up with Sean Lennon for some quirky psych rock, and Faith No More’s Mike Patton made an avant-decadent LP with ’70s soundtrack king Jean-Claude Vannier. Finally, the soaring voice of Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington returned for a moment thanks to Lamb of God guitarist Mark Morton, who released a song they recorded together in 2017.
Taking a look at the playlists for my show on Boston’s WZBC might give the more seasoned college-radio listener a bit of déjà vu: They’re filled with bands like Versus, Team Dresch, and Sleater-Kinney, who were at the top of the CMJ charts back in the ’90s. But the records they released in 2019 turned out to be some of the year’s best rock. Versus, whose Ex Nihilo EP and Ex Voto full-length were part of a creative run for leader Richard Baluyut that also included a tour by his pre-Versus outfit Flower and his 2000s band +/-, put out a lot of beautifully thrashy rock; Team Dresch returned with all cylinders blazing and singers Jody Bleyle and Kaia Wilson wailing their hearts out on “Your Hands My Pockets”; and Sleater-Kinney confronted middle age head-on with their examination of finding one’s footing, The Center Won’t Hold.
Italian guitar heroes Uzeda—who have been putting out proggy, riff-heavy music for three-plus decades—released their first record in 13 years, the blistering Quocumque jerceris stabit; Imperial Teen, led by Faith No More multi-instrumentalist Roddy Bottum, kept the weird hooks coming with Now We Are Timeless; and high-concept Californians That Dog capped off a year of reissues with Old LP, their first album since 1997. Juliana Hatfield continued the creative tear she’s been on this decade with two albums: Weird, a collection of hooky, twisty songs that tackle alienation with searing wit, and Juliana Hatfield Sings the Police, her tribute record to the dubby New Wave chart heroes (in the spirit of the salute to Olivia Newton-John she released in 2018). And our playlist finishes with Mary Timony, formerly of the gnarled rockers Helium and currently part of the power trio Ex Hex, paying tribute to her former Autoclave bandmate Christina Billotte via an Ex Hex take on “What Kind of Monster Are You?,” one of the signature songs by Billotte’s ’90s triple threat Slant 6.
