End Of The Year Retrospectives, 2025

It's always been a favorite December ritual of mine to browse the end-of-the-year lists of music magazines, see which albums made the best-of lists, which had escaped my attention, and plan future additions to my record collection. Nowadays I only buy two magazines, Mojo and Uncut, but I keep including Classic Rock in my end of the year retrospective because it offers a very different viewpoint to the other two. Those always have a lot in common, including -this year- their no.1: Pulp's return to discography after 20+ years is entitled more, and it's a great reminder of what we had been missing all this time; I especially liked the track included in the MOJO sampler, the Gainsbourg-esque "My Sex". Tellingly, this is one of only 4 entries that all 3 magazines have in common. The second one is another 90s favorite, Suede (#2 for MOJO, #3 Uncut, #37 CR). This is their 5th since their reunion (in 2013, after a 10+ year hiatus); I regret to say I haven't followed them at all post-reunion, even though I liked their initial 5-album run a lot. They keep getting great reviews, and "June Rain" (included in the Uncut sampler) proves they're as adept as ever in Bowie-like melodrama. The third one I expected: a collaboration of Robert Plant with Suzi Dian, reminiscent of the former Zeppelin's great collaborative albums with Alison Krauss, only this time there's a bit more psychedelia mixed in with the folk and blues influences. The fourth one I never saw coming: the newest Neil Young LP, entitled Talkin to the Trees. I hadn't even registered it when it came out, because let's face it, the guy releases one or two LPs every year for at least the last four decades. You just know they're going to be good, and you also know they'll be more of the same.Van Morrison is another ultra-prolific veteran whose newest album is supposedly a return to form. CMAT is the newest Irish sensation from a country with a very active scene during the last years, while also of interest is an LP by proggers Cardiacs making the list (#51 Uncut, #29 CR) even though their leader Tim Smith has been dead for 5 years. If I'm not mistaken, the only CD I own which is also on this list is Wet Leg's Moisturizer; I enjoyed it as much as I did their debut, even though it didn't go as high in the end-of-the-year ratings. Two other albums on these lists, I've only ever heard played live: John Fogerty's update of his Creedence catalogue, and The Waterboys' concept album based on the life of actor Dennis Hopper: The last time I saw the band a couple of months ago, they played the whole thing live, and I thought it sounded very interesting. Classic Rock, as always, live in a world of their own; one where the return of the original Alice Cooper band (The Revenge Of Alice Cooper, on #2), is a significant event, and where a title like All Washed Up (Cheap Trick, #4) doesn't carry an uncomfortable whiff of truth about it. Their top choice though (Steven Wilson's The Overview) did get uniformly good reviews.

UNCUT MAGAZINE 1. More (Pulp), 2. Instant Holograms on Metal Film (Stereolab), 3. Antidepressants (Suede), 4. Bleeds (Wednesday), 5. End of the Middle (Richard Dawson), 6. New Threats from the Soul (Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band), 7. Interior Live Oak (Cass McCombs), 8. Twilight Override (Jeff Tweedy), 9. Sable, Fable (Bon Iver), 10. Saving Grace (Robert Plant with Suzi Dian), 11. Lotus (Little Simz), 12. Planting by the Signs (S.G. Goodman), 13. Time Indefinite (William Tyler), 14. Caroline 2 (caroline), 15. The Heat Warps (Modern Nature), 16. Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles (Alan Sparhawk and Trampled by Turtles), 17. Double Infinity (Big Thief), 18. Strawberries (Robert Forster), 19. Allbarone (Baxter Dury), 20. Foxes in the Snow (Jason Isbell), 21. Glory (Perfume Genius), 22. Touch (Tortoise), 23. The Universe Will Take Care of You (Holden & Zimpel), 24. Weirdo (Emma-Jean Thackray), 25. Phonetics On and On (Horsegirl), 26. The Land We Knew the Best (Chris Eckman), 27. Find El Dorado (Paul Weller), 28. International (Saint Etienne), 29. Getting Killed (Geese), 30. Inland See (Bitchin Bajas), 31. Exploding Trees & Airplane Screams (Patterson Hood), 32. Humanhood (The Weather Station), 33. That’s the Price of Loving Me (Dean Wareham), 34. Remembering Now (Van Morrison), 35. Get Sunk (Matt Berninger), 36. Crooked Wing (These New Puritans), 37. Antigone (Eiko Ishibashi), 38. Mr. Luck And Ms. Doom (The Delines), 39. What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow (Rhiannon Giddens & Justin Robinson), 40. Cotton Crown (The Tubs), 41. Real Warmth (Joan Shelley), 42. The Purple Bird (Bonnie “Prince” Billy), 43. Hard Headed Woman (Margo Price), 44. Can't Lose My (Soul) (Annie and the Caldwells), 45. Life, Death and Dennis Hopper (The Waterboys), 46. Michelangelo Dying (Cate Le Bon), 47. Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation (Edwyn Collins), 48. From Newman Street (Kassi Valazza), 49. Essex Honey (Blood Orange), 50. Moisturizer (Wet Leg), 51. LSD (Cardiacs), 52. Euro-Country (CMAT), 53. In Limerence (Jacob Alon), 54. It’s a Beautiful Place (Water From Your Eyes), 55. Headlights (Alex G), 56. A Sober Conversation (BC Camplight), 57. Pentimento (Carson McHone), 58. Sad and Beautiful World (Mavis Staples), 59. Blurrr (Joanne Robertson), 60. Desert Window (Lucy Gooch), 61. Who Is the Sky? (David Byrne), 62. Héritage (Songhoy Blues), 63. Luminal (Beatie Wolfe and Brian Eno), 64. Figure In Blue (Charles Lloyd), 65. Utopia (Gwenno), 66. Pinball Wanderer (Andy Bell), 67. Tall Tales (Mark Pritchard and Thom Yorke), 68. Mulatu Plays Mulatu (Mulatu Astatke), 69. Sinister Grift (Panda Bear), 70. Daylight Daylight (Steve Gunn), 71. Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory (Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory), 72. Talkin to the Trees (Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts), 73. Tether (Annahstasia), 74. Forever Howlong (Black Country, New Road), 75. Wolf of St Elmo (Slow Motion Cowboys), 76. Begging The Night To Take Hold (Emma Pollock), 77. Is (My Morning Jacket), 78. Never Enough (Turnstile), 79. Pequena Vertigem de Amor (Sessa), 80. Transform Me Then Into a Fish (Martin Carthy)

MOJO MAGAZINE 1. More (Pulp), 2. Antidepressants (Suede), 3. Euro-Country (CMAT), 4. Double Infinity (Big Thief), 5. Can't Lose My (Soul) (Annie and the Caldwells), 6. Instant Holograms on Metal Film (Stereolab), 7. Strawberries (Robert Forster), 8. Cotton Crown (The Tubs), 9. The Collapse of Everything (Adrian Sherwood), 10. Moisturizer (Wet Leg), 11. Find El Dorado (Paul Weller), 12. Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles (Alan Sparhawk and Trampled by Turtles), 13. Lotus (Little Simz), 14. End of the Middle (Richard Dawson), 15. Sad and Beautiful World (Mavis Staples), 16. Saving Grace (Robert Plant with Suzi Dian), 17. Twilight Override (Jeff Tweedy), 18. Weirdo (Emma-Jean Thackray), 19. Tall Tales (Mark Pritchard and Thom Yorke), 20. Interior Live Oak (Cass McCombs), 21. Allbarone (Baxter Dury), 22. Lay Low (Eddie Chacon), 23. A Bridge To Far (Midlake), 24. The Bad Fire (Mogwai), 25. Remembering Now (Van Morrison), 26. Phonetics On and On (Horsegirl), 27. Who Is the Sky? (David Byrne), 28. Michelangelo Dying (Cate Le Bon), 29. In Limerence (Jacob Alon), 30. International (Saint Etienne), 31. Critical Thinking (Manic Street Preachers), 32. Getting Killed (Geese), 33. Foxes in the Snow (Jason Isbell), 34. Sable, Fable (Bon Iver), 35. The Purple Bird (Bonnie “Prince” Billy), 36. Begging The Night To Take Hold (Emma Pollock), 37. Totality (Natural Information Society and Bitchin Bajas), 38. Love Made Trees (Loaded Honey), 39. Only Frozen Sky Anyway (Jonathan Richman), 40. Sinister Grift (Panda Bear), 41. Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory (Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory), 42. The Overview (Steven Wilson), 43. A Sober Conversation (BC Camplight), 44. Daybreak (Sven Wunder), 45. Metalhorse (Billy Nomates), 46. Heavy Metal (Cameron Winter), 47. Tell Dem It's Sunny (Greentea Peng), 48. Love Chant (The Lemonheads), 49. So Kono (Salif Keita), 50. Hard Headed Woman (Margo Price), 51. Phantom Island (King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard), 52. Liminal (Beatie Wolfe and Brian Eno), 53. Possession (Ty Segall), 54. Humanhood (The Weather Station), 55. Desire On Ice (Tav Falco), 56. I Quit (Haim), 57. The Universe Will Take Care of You (Holden & Zimpel), 58. Earthstar Mountain (Hannah Cohen), 59. Talkin to the Trees (Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts), 60. Touch (Tortoise), 61. Forever Howlong (Black Country, New Road), 62. Till the Morning (Brian D'Addario), 63. Tether (Annahstasia), 64. Renascence (Cymande), 65. Dim Probs (Gruff Rhys), 66. Time Indefinite (William Tyler), 67. Altogether Stranger (Lael Neale), 68. Legacy: The Creedence Clearwater Revival Years (John Fogerty), 69. Flying with Angels (Suzanne Vega), 70. Glutton for Punishment (Heartworms), 71. Ride into the Sun (Brad Mehldau), 72. Golliwog (Billy Woods), 73. Radio DDR (Sharp Pins), 74. Die to Wake Up from a Dream (MF Tomlinson), 75. Abstraction Is Deliverance (James Brandon Lewis Quartet)

CLASSIC ROCK MAGAZINE 1. The Overview (Steven Wilson), 2. The Revenge Of Alice Cooper (Alice Cooper), 3. The End (Mammoth), 4. All Washed Up (Cheap Trick), 5. Dreams On Toast (The Darkness), 6. The Hives Forever Forever The Hives (The Hives), 7. Black & Gold (Joanne Shaw Taylor), 8. Breakthrough (Joe Bonamassa), 9. Sanguivore II: Mistress Of Death (Creeper), 10. No Rain, No Flowers (The Black Keys), 11. Curious Ruminant (Jethro Tull), 12. Saving Grace (Robert Plant with Suzi Dian), 13. June (De’Wayne), 14. Critical Thinking (Manic Street Preachers), 15. God Shaped Hole (Those Damn Crows), 16. Mirador (Mirador), 17. Satanic Rites Of The Wildhearts (The Wildhearts), 18. Bloom (Larkin Poe), 19. Bored Animal (His Lordship), 20. Welcome To The Future (H.E.A.T), 21. Everest (Halestorm), 22. The Painful Truth (Skunk Anansie), 23. V: Lamentations (Wytch Hazel), 24. Brotherhood (FM), 25. The Archer (Masters Of Reality), 26. Whomp Whack Thunder (Whiskey Myers), 27. Chosen (Glenn Hughes), 28. The Bestiary (Castle Rat), 29. LSD (Cardiacs), 30. Skeleta (Ghost), 31. Less Is More (Inspector Cluzo), 32. Futique (Biffy Clyro), 33. Everything (Eureka Machines), 34. Mad! (Sparks), 35. Leo Rising (Danko Jones), 36. Midnight At The Valencia (Cardinal Black), 37. Antidepressants (Suede), 38. Is (My Morning Jacket), 39. Something To Consume (Die Spitz), 40. Ad Astra (Ash), 41. Walking On Water (Luke Morley), 42. More (Pulp), 43. Giants & Monsters (Helloween), 44. I Beat Loneliness (Bush), 45. Gargantuan (Amplifier), 46. Here We Go Crazy (Bob Mould), 47. Circling From Above (Styx), 48. Roar Like Thunder (Buckcherry), 49. Duets Special (Chrissie Hynde And Pals), 50. Talkin To The Trees (Neil Young)

The Album Of The Year website publishes most of the end-of-the-year lists as well as an aggregate list derived (this year) from as many as 106 different publications. This is always different, much more pop-oriented than the magazines I read. According to this list, this year's top album was Rosalía's LUX. now, this is an artist I always dismissed, without really listening, as the latest Latina pop star, sort of a younger Shakira or J-Lo. Well, I certainly was wrong! From what I've listened on youtube, Lux seems to be a very complex and well-realized album blending wildly different genres, high-profile guests, and a heavy concept: each song is inspired by the life of a "saintly" figure from the past. The fact that it doesn't collapse under the weight of all this ambition, is a miracle. And yes, this girl sure can sing! Other than that, the list proves the unanimous acceptance of 90's stalwarts Pulp and Suede - the only two artists that can be found on all 4 lists presented here. Stereolab is another 90's indie band whose return is greeted with widespread enthousiasm while newer bands we've encounterd in previous lists include, among others, CMAT, Wet Girl, Big Thief, and Horsegirl.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR AGGREGATE 1. LUX (Rosalía) 389 Points, 2. Getting Killed (Geese) 384 Points, 3. Bleeds (Wednesday) 194 Points, 4. DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS (Bad Bunny) 180 Points, 5. EUSEXUA (FKA twigs) 177 Points, 6. EURO-COUNTRY (CMAT) 171 Points, 7. Let God Sort Em Out (Clipse) 167 Points, 8. choke enough (Oklou) 158 Points, 9. West End Girl (Lily Allen) 155 Points, 10. NEVER ENOUGH (Turnstile) 153 Points, 11. Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party (Hayley Williams) 152 Points, 12. Baby (Dijon) 146 Points, 13. Addison (Addison Rae) 145 Points, 14. GOLLIWOG (billy woods) 128 Points, 15. Essex Honey (Blood Orange) 125 Points, 16. More (Pulp) 121 Points, 17. Fancy That (PinkPantheress) 118 Points, 18. Moisturizer (Wet Leg) 114 Points, 19. The Passionate Ones (Nourished By Time) 98 Points, 20. Lotus (Little Simz) 96 Points, 21. black british music (2025) (Jim Legxacy) 95 Points, 22. private music (Deftones) 85 Points, 23. MAYHEM (Lady Gaga) 85 Points, 24. Lonely People With Power (Deafheaven) 82 Points, 25. The Art of Loving (Olivia Dean) 73 Points, 26. It's A Beautiful Place (Water From Your Eyes) 71 Points, 27. THAT'S SHOWBIZ BABY! (JADE) 70 Points, 28. Double Infinity (Big Thief) 70 Points, 29. Phonetics On and On (Horsegirl) 69 Points, 30. Instant Holograms On Metal Film (Stereolab) 65 Points, 31. viagr aboys (Viagra Boys) 63 Points, 32. The Clearing (Wolf Alice) 61 Points, 33. THE BPM (Sudan Archives) 61 Points, 34. Everybody Scream (Florence + the Machine) 60 Points, 35. New Threats From the Soul (Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band) 60 Points, 36. ICONOCLASTS (Anna von Hausswolff) 58 Points, 37. Virgin (Lorde) 58 Points, 38. SABLE, fABLE (Bon Iver) 56 Points, 39. Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You (Ethel Cain) 55 Points, 40. caroline 2 (caroline) 54 Points, 41. Headlights (Alex G) 52 Points, 42. Antidepressants (Suede) 50 Points, 43. Sinister Grift (Panda Bear) 49 Points, 44. hexed! (aya) 47 Points, 45. Big city life (Smerz) 44 Points, 46. Glory (Perfume Genius) 44 Points, 47. Who Let the Dogs Out (Lambrini Girls) 44 Points, 48. I Love My Computer (Ninajirachi) 43 Points, 49. People Watching (Sam Fender) 42 Points, 50. Pirouette (Model/Actriz) 42 Points.

End of the year retrospectives 2024

As (any possible) regular readers would know, every December I buy music magazines for their end-of-the-year-retrospectives and publish the respective best albums lists on this blog. It used to be Q, Uncut, Mojo, and Classic Rock. Unfortunately, the former publication has closed, while I stopped buying the latter ever since it stopped giving away sample CD's; I do publish CR's list nevertheless because it has a singular focus that distinguishes it from the rest. This year, I noticed that the website albumoftheyear.org also publishes an aggregate list that draws from many different publications across many different genres, so I'm including the Top 20 albums from that list, too, for a more nuanced approach: So since my own focus is on classic and/or alternative rock, I would have completely bypassed Charli xcx's Brat which apparently is Metacritic's highest-rated album of 2024. I remember reading about the word "brat" being a big trend this year, and about the artist endorsing Camala Harris' presidential race (for all the good it did her), but had never listened to the music. So I had to go to youtube and seek the album's lead single, "Von Dutch", and was completely amazed.

 

Amazed that people can write about this shit as if it's important stuff! Like, people who actually write about music in magazines, not just 14-year old girls who follow whatever's the latest trend on tick tock. Seriously, what's to like? I mean sure, the singer is kind of cute, but she's got no voice, her "rebel girl" antics in the video are just pathetic, and the music is just generic beats which could have been written by an A.I. Thankfully, Fontaines D.C. are on number 2; a bunch of talented young men with a rebel attitude that's only partially rock star posing. Romance is their 4th album (I haven't got it yet, but I have the previous 3, all great). They performed almost all of it when I saw them live lately; lead single "Starbuster" almost brought the house down during the encore.

 

On No.3, The Cure's long-awaited return Songs of a Lost World. That's more like it! I'm about to receive this as a Christmas present, and haven't listened to it yet. For the purposes of this presentation I checked lead single "Alone" on youtube: total antithesis to the previously mentioned, upbeat, tracks: a return to the elegiac tone of 80's albums like Pornography and Disintegration that may well spawn yet another generation of emo kids.

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As for the rest of the list, well of course there's a lot of commercial stuff I'm not particularly fond of: pop, hip hop, modern R&B etc. The inclusion of the latest Nick Cave album Wild God isn't so much an indication of its worth (it's an above average Nick Cave LP, so of course it's great) as much as of an indication of the artist's growing acceptance by the mainstream: it took them 40 years, but the world is finally catching up. Another pleasant surprise is the inclusion of Jessica Pratt's Here in the Pitch; another artist in this Top 20 that I got to see recently- low key, but absolutely deserves all the plaudits

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AGGREGATE LIST (ALL GENRES, ALL PUBLICATIONS) TOP 20: 1 Charli xcx - BRAT 2 Fontaines D.C. - Romance 3 The Cure - Songs of a Lost World 4 MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks 5 Beyoncé - COWBOY CARTER 6 Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood 7 Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee 8 Billie Eilish - HIT ME HARD AND SOFT 9 Kendrick Lamar - GNX 10 Tyler, The Creator - CHROMAKOPIA 11 Jessica Pratt - Here in the Pitch 12 I Got Heaven - Mannequin Pussy 13 Sabrina Carpenter - Short n' Sweet 14 Mk.gee - Two Star & The Dream Police 15 Kim Gordon - The Collective 16 Clairo - Charm 17 Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future 18 Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Wild God 19 English Teacher - This Could Be Texas 20 Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us

MOJO's No.1 is the new Jack White, No Name. This album appeared out of nowhere when customers at White's Third Man record stores were given a mystery LP as a present, which of course turned out to be his latest album. Generally hailed as a return to The White Stripes' garage rock heyday; I've only heard the two tracks included in the two magazines' Best Of 2024 samplers but tend to agree.

  

MOJO MAGAZINE:  1. Jack White - No Name  2. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Wild God 3. Beth Gibbons - Lives Outgrown  4. Gillian Welch & David Rawlings - Woodland  5. Bill Ryder-Jones - Iechyd Da  6. Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More  7. Fontaines D.C. - Romance  8. The Lemon Twigs - A Dream Is All We Know 9. Jane Weaver - Love In Constant Spectacle  10. Kim Gordon - The Collective  11. John Grant - The Art of the Lie  12. Shabaka - Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace  13. The Smile - Wall of Eyes  14. Cassandra Jenkins - My Light, My Destroyer 15. English Teacher - This Could Be Texas  16. Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band - Loophole  17. Paul Weller - 66  18. David Gilmour - Luck and Strange 19. Peter Perrett - The Cleansing  20. Lady Blackbird - Slang Spirituals  21. Gruff Rhys - Sadness Sets Me Free 22. Mdou Moctar - Funeral for Justice  23. Richard Thompson - Ship To Shore 24. Mercury Rev - Born Horses  25. St. Vincent - All Born Screaming  26. Dirty Three - Love Changes Everything 27. The The - Ensoulment  28. John Cale - POPtical Illusion  29. Charles Lloyd - The Sky Will Still Be There Tomorrow  30. Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood  31. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World 32. Pet Shop Boys - Nonetheless  33. Ezra Collective - Dance, No one's Watching 34. Amyl and The Sniffers - Cartoon Darkness 35. Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future  36. Jessica Pratt - Here in the Pitch  37. Common & Pete Rock - The Auditorium Vol. 1 38. Leyla McCalla - Sun Without the Heat 39. Arooj Aftab - Night Reign  40. Brittany Howard - What Now  41. Laura Marling - Patterns in Repeat  42. Michael Kiwanuka - Small Changes  43. The Black Crowes - Happiness Bastards  44. Kamasi Washington - Fearless Movement  45. Nubya Garcia - ODYSSEY  46. The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy  47. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes 48. Nick Lowe - Indoor Safari  49. Joan As Police Woman - Lemons, Limes And Orchids 50. Lee "Scratch" Perry & Youth - Spaceship to Mars  51. IDLES - TANGK  52. Richard Hawley - In This City They Call You Love 53. Public Service Broadcasting - The Last Flight 54. MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks 55. The Bug - Machine  56. Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath  57. Johnny Blue Skies - Passage du Desir  58. Naima Bock - Below a Massive Dark Land  59. Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling & Andreas Werliin - Ghosted II  60. The Hard Quartet - The Hard Quartet  61. Oisin Leech - Cold Sea  62. Hermanos Gutiérrez - Sonido Cósmico  63. Floating Points - Cascade  64. Hamish Hawk - A Firmer Hand  65. Cassie Kinoshi's Seed - Gratitude 66. Khruangbin - A LA SALA 67. Ghost Dubs - Damaged  68. Julia Holter - Something in the Room She Moves  69. The Harlem Gospel Travelers - Rhapsody 70. Kelly Finnigan - A Lover Was Born  71. The Bevis Frond - Focus on Nature  72. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Flight b741  73. Tindersticks - Soft Tissue  74. Pom Poko - Champion  75. Field Music - Limits of Language.

Quite low at the list, but still a kind of vindication after decades of cultdom, Nick Saloman a.k.a. The Bevis Frond.  Not just a psychedelic legend, but a vastly underrated songwriter as well.

   

Uncut features Nick Cave on the top spot, and real-life couple Gillian Welch & David Rawlings on No.2. Somewhat expected, seeing as Uncut has a soft spot for Americana music. This is the couple's first album under both names, usually they release albums under either one or the other. Both magazines rate the return of the Kims quite highly: years after leaving The Pixies and Sonic Youth respectively, Kim Deal and Kim Gordon prove they have always been an artistic force to be reckoned. K-pop wunderkind Kim Jong Un doesn't make an appearance this time, but Former Portishead Beth Gibbons does, at both magazines' lists, at No.3.

 

UNCUT MAGAZINE:1. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Wild God, 2. Gillian Welch & David Rawlings - Woodland, 3. Beth Gibbons - Lives Outgrown, 4. Arooj Aftab - Night Reign, 5. Jessica Pratt - Here in the Pitch, 6. Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future, 7. The Smile - Wall of Eyes, 8. MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks, 9. Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee, 10. Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood, 11. Cassandra Jenkins - My Light, My Destroyer, 12. Julia Holter - Something in the Room She Moves, 13. Fontaines D.C. - Romance, 14. Mdou Moctar - Funeral for Justice, 15. Jack White - No Name, 16. Bill Ryder-Jones - Iechyd Da, 17. Johnny Blue Skies - Passage du Desir, 18. Shabaka - Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace, 19. Peter Perrett - The Cleansing, 20. Hurray for the Riff Raff - The Past Is Still Alive, 21. John Cale - Poptical Illusion, 22. Alan Sparhawk - White Roses, My God, 23. High Llamas - Hey Panda, 24. Phosphorescent - Revelator, 25. Nala Sinephro - Endlessness, 26. Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band - Loophole, 27. English Teacher - This Could Be Texas, 28. Jake Xerxes Fussell - When I'm Called, 29. Oisin Leech - Cold Sea, 30. Kim Gordon - The Collective, 31. Mabe Fratti - Sentir Que No Sabes, 32. Mabe FrattiBeak> - >>>>, 33. Willie Nelson - The Border, 34. Rosali - Bite Down, 35. Brittany Howard - What Now, 36. Myriam Gendron - Mayday, 37. Shellac - To All Trains, 38. Dirty Three - Love Changes Everything, 39. Brown Horse - Reservoir, 40. Grandaddy - Blu Wav, 41. Paul Weller - 66, 42. Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More, 43. Richard Thompson - Ship to Shore, 44. Christopher Owens - I Wanna Run Barefoot Through Your Hair, 45. Laura Marling - Patterns in Repeat, 46. Charles Lloyd - The Sky Will Still Be There Tomorrow, 47. Sarah Davachi - The Head As Form’d In The Crier’s Choir, 48. David Gilmour - Luck and Strange, 49. Still House Plants - If I Don't Make It, I Love U, 50. Oren Ambarchi / Johan Berthling / Andreas Werliin - Ghosted II, 51. Chuck Johnson - Sun Glories, 52. Basic - This Is Basic, 53. Bonny Light Horseman - Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free, 54. Kaia Kater - Strange Medicine, 55. Nilüfer Yanya - My Method Actor, 56. Fievel Is Glauque - Rong Weicknes, 57. Jlin - Akoma, 58. Linda Thompson - Proxy Music, 59. Charli XCX - Brat, 60. Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath, 61. Idles - Tangk, 62. Kamasi Washington - Fearless Movement, 63. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes, 64. Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft, 65. Tindersticks - Soft Tissue, 66. Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us, 67. John Canning Yates - The Quiet Portraits, 68. Taylor Swift - The Tortured Poets Department, 69. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World, 70. Arab Strap - I'm Totally Fine with It Don't Give a Fuck Anymore, 71. Beachwood Sparks - Across The River Of Stars, 72. Laurie Anderson - Amelia, 73. Nick Lowe - Indoor Safari, 74. Dave Alvin & Jimmie Dale Gilmore - TexiCali, 75. Pye Corner Audio - The Endless Echo, 76. Personal Trainer - Still Willing, 77. Kali Uchis - Orquídeas, 78. Wadada Leo Smith & Amina Claudine Myers - Central Park's Mosaics of Reservoir, Lake, Paths and Garden, 79. Yasmin Williams - Acadia, 80. Leyla McCalla - Sun Without the Heat.

Rather low at No.63, we find the return of Jesus and Mary Chain with Glasgow Eyes. Just like with The Cure (here at No.69), they sound as good as they did in their heyday 4 decades ago!

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Classic Rock's choices are usually wildly different from the others; this time, not so much: The Black Crowes'  Happiness Bastards (No.1) and David Gilmour's Luck and Strange (No.3) have received unanimous praise. Recent reviews focus on Gilmour embracing a simpler, less proggy, production approach. To me, it'll always come down to the voice and guitar of Pink Floyd:  I'm happy that Gilmour and Roger Waters still make great music, 40 years after the bitter divorce. Just don't ask me to choose between Mommy and Daddy.

          

CLASSIC ROCK MAGAZINE 1. The Black Crowes - Happiness Bastards, 2. Judas Priest - Invincible Shield, 3. David Gilmour - Luck and Strange, 4. Bruce Dickinson - The Mandrake Project, 5. Black Country Communion - V, 6. Pearl Jam - Dark Matter, 7. Ian Hunter - Defiance Part 2: Fiction, 8. The Black Keys - Ohio Players, 9. Deep Purple - =1, 10. Gary Clark Jr. - JPEG RAW, 11. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World, 12. Myles Kennedy - The Art Of Letting Go, 13. Jack White - No Name, 14. FM – Old Habits Die Hard, 15. Massive Wagons - Earth to Grace, 16. The Quireboys - Wardour Street, 17. Blackberry Smoke - Be Right Here, 18. Orange Goblin - Science, Not Fiction, 19. Von Hertzen Brothers - In Murmuration, 20. Bad Nerves - STILL NERVOUS, 21. Big Big Train - The Likes of Us, 22. Sebastian Bach - Child Within the Man, 23. The Lemon Twigs - A Dream Is All We Know, 24. IDLES - TANGK, 25. Jon Anderson & The Band Geeks - TRUE, 26. Magnum - Here Comes the Rain, 27. Moggs Motel - Moggs Motel, 28. The Hot Damn! – Dancing On The Milky Way, 29. Slash - Orgy of the Damned, 30. Royal Republic - LoveCop, 31. Terrorvision - We Are Not Robots, 32. Green Day - Saviors, 33. Fantastic Negrito - Son Of A Broken Man, 34. Hawkwind - Stories From Time and Space, 35. Tuk Smith & The Restless Hearts - Rogue To Redemption, 36. Blues Pills - Birthday, 37. Gun - HOMBRES, 38. The Virginmarys - The House Beyond The Fires, 39. MC5 - Heavy Lifting, 40. Opeth - The Last Will and Testament, 41. Joanne Shaw Taylor - Heavy Soul, 42. Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown - Electrified, 43. His Lordship - His Lordship, 44. Saxon - Hell, Fire And Damnation, 45. Peter Perrett - The Cleansing, 46. Nightwish - Yesterwynde, 47. The Cold Stares - The Southern, 48. Sweet - Full Circle, 49. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Wild God, 50. Bon Jovi - Forever.

 

Other artists that managed to draw praise from all three magazines include veterans Jack White, Nick Cave, and The Cure, as well as younger bands like The Lemon Twigs and Idles. The most surprising name included in all three lists is that of Peter Perrett formerly of The Only Ones. Where has he been since he wrote "Another Girl, Another Planet" 45 years ago? Further, I'm not surprised that the other magazines ignored albums lauded by CR by bands like Judas Priest and Deep Purple. I am nevertheless very surprised that no-one else acknowledged the release of new albums by Pearl Jam and Green Day. Have they already become the kind of nostalgia act that fills stadiums while their new release goes unnoticed? Let's hope that the new Trump presidency will inspire another masterpiece, the way George W Bush did with American Idiot. Besides, Trump did inspire Green Day's new single "The American Dream Is Killing Me" with its allegoric "zombie apocalypse" video:

End of the year retrospectives 2023

Another regular feature in my post (after the R.I.P.) is the End of the year retrospective. Alas, record companies neglect to send me any records to review, which means that, by the end of each year, I've listened to very few new albums. What I do is collect the retrospectives of music magazines and present their choices. I used to buy 4 music magazines every December; but now Q's publication has stopped and Classic Rock doesn't come with a CD anymore so I stopped buying that, too. I do continue presenting Classic Rock's best-of-the-year-lists however, because it's so different from MOJO and UNCUT's. These two often coincide, and this year they agree on very high placements for Lankum's False Lankum ,PJ Harvey's I Inside the Old Year Dying, and Lana Del Rey's Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. Nothing surprising about that, PJ Harvey and Del Rey have been consistently brilliant lately. Lankum I've heard on the magazines' sampler CDs and a little bit on youtube; I agree their take on Irish folk is refreshing and exciting while respecting tradition. It's rare for a folk band to top this list, but they're worth it. Speaking of folk, on the other end of the age spectrum from Lankum we have 88-year old Shirley Collins with Archangel Hill (MOJO list's No.22 and UNCUT's No.36). Can she still cut it, or is she only getting the "national treasure" treatment because of her age? It's definitely the former! As long as her artistry and composure remain intact, she doesn't need any kind of vocal prowess. This reminds me of an interview of hers a few years back: asked if she would record any Irish ballads, she answered that she wouldn't be good at it, because Irish ballads should be sung with passion while English ones call for a more restrained and dignified delivery. I found this revelatory, because I previously thought that the two musical traditions were very similar, but her observation suddenly made sense to me - which is why I share this with you, even though it's irrelevant to this specific post. Back to albums of the year, it seems that MOJO's list closed pretty early, since they didn't include the new Rolling Stones LP, Hackney Diamonds (Uncut's No.18 and Classic Rock's No.1). Their first album of new material in 18 years, and the first after Charlie Watts' demise, it evokes their glory days without ever reaching the same heights. I'd call that pretty satisfactory, nevertheless. Other old timers whose records feature among last year's best are Paul Simon, The Pretenders, John Cale, Iggy Pop, and Peter Gabriel. A lot of bands from the 80's and 90's also made well-received comebacks, Blur even topping Mojo's list. Teenage Fanclub,Yo La Tengo, Depeche Mode, and Slowdive also belong to the same category. The magazines' giveaway CD's contain many interesting samples from the year's best albums - I specifically enjoyed the tracks by Wilco, The Coral, Jason Isbell, and Robert Forster but the one that surprised me the most was the entry by Corinne Bailey Rae - a rough piece reminiscent of the Riot Grrrl movement rather than her old pop self. I just had to listen to some more samples to make sure she's being creatively eclectic rather than going through a midlife crisis. Lastly, I find it interesting that only Classic Rock acknowledged the existence of a new Metallica album - with Grammy nominations for Best Rock Album and Best Rock Performance, one would expect it to fit somewhere in Mojo or Uncut's 75-album long list. I'm sure Metallica will be quite upset about that omission while they're counting the millions they earned from their latest stadium mega-tour.

 MOJO 1. Blur - The Ballad of Darren 2. PJ Harvey - I Inside the Old Year Dying 3. Lankum - False Lankum 4. Robert Forster - The Candle and the Flame 5. Young Fathers - Heavy Heavy 6. Lana Del Rey - Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd 7. jaimie branch - Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) 8. Paul Simon - Seven Psalms 9. Everything But the Girl - Fuse 10. Julie Byrne - The Greater Wings 11. Wilco - Cousin 12. The Coral - Sea Of Mirrors 13. The Necks - Travel 14. Grian Chatten - Chaos For The Fly 15. BC Camplight - The Last Rotation of Earth 16. Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer & Shahzad Ismaily - Love In Exile 17. boygenius - the record 18. James Holden - Imagine This Is A High Dimensional Space Of All Possibilities 19. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Council Skies 20. The Pretenders - Relentless 21. billy woods & Kenny Segal - Maps 22. John Cale - Mercy 23. Teenage Fanclub - Nothing Lasts Forever 24. Lisa O'Neill - All Of This Is Chance 25. Yo La Tengo - This Stupid World 26. ANOHNI and the Johnsons - My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross 27. Mozart Estate - Pop-Up! Ker-ching! and The Possibilities of Modern Shopping 28. Fatoumata Diawara - London Ko 29. Billy Nomates - CACTI  30. Sparks - The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte 31. Sufjan Stevens - Javelin 32. Bill Orcutt - Jump On It 33. SBT - Joan Of Allay 34. Corinne Bailey Rae - Black Rainbows 35. Depeche Mode - Memento Mori 36. Shirley Collins - Archangel Hill 37. Sleaford Mods - UK GRIM 38. Gaz Coombes - Turn The Car 39. Slowdive - everything is alive 40. The Tubs - Dead Meat 41. Gina Birch - I Play My Bass Loud 42. Lloyd Cole - On Pain 43. Kassa Overall - Animals 44. Ian Hunter - Defiance, Pt. 1 45. Susanne Sundfør - blómi 46. Rickie Lee Jones - Pieces of Treasure 47. Animal Collective - Isn't It Now? 48. Dexys - The Feminine Divine 49. Osees - Intercepted Message 50. Jana Horn - The Window Is The Dream 51. Rogê - Curyman 52. Hamish Hawk - Angel Numbers 53. King Krule - Space Heavy 54. Blake Mills - Jelly Road 55. Eddie Chacon - Sundown 56. Janelle Monáe - The Age of Pleasure 57. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes 58. Lonnie Holley - Oh Me Oh My 59. Róisín Murphy - Hit Parade 60. Iggy Pop - EVERY LOSER 61. Baaba Maal - Being 62. Gabriels - Angels & Queens 63. Mitski - The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We 64. The Lemon Twigs - Everything Harmony 65. Public Image Ltd. - End of World 66. Jonathan Wilson - Eat the Worm 67. Cécile McLorin Salvant - Mélusine 68. Billy Valentine - Billy Valentine and The Universal Truth 69. bar italia - Tracey Denim 70. Alogte Oho & His Sounds of Joy - O Yinne! 71. Edgar Jones - Reflections of a Soul Dimension 72. Margo Cilker - Valley Of Heart's Delight 73. Irreversible Entanglements - Protect Your Light 74. Say She She - Silver 75. Robert Finley - Black Bayou

UNCUT 1. Lankum - False Lankum 2. Paul Simon - Seven Psalms 3. Wilco - Cousin 4. PJ Harvey - I Inside the Old Year Dying 5. Yo La Tengo - This Stupid World 6. Lana Del Rey - Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd 7. Lonnie Holley - Oh Me Oh My 8. The National - First Two Pages of Frankenstein 9. Julie Byrne - The Greater Wings 10. John Cale - Mercy 11. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes 12. Slowdive - everything is alive 13. Blur - The Ballad of Darren 14. Corinne Bailey Rae - Black Rainbows 15. Margo Cilker - Valley Of Heart's Delight 16. The Clientele - I Am Not There Anymore 17. Lisa O'Neill - All Of This Is Chance 18. The Rolling Stones - Hackney Diamonds 19. The Coral - Sea Of Mirrors 20. Hiss Golden Messenger - Jump For Joy 21. The Necks - Travel 22. Shirley Collins - Archangel Hill 23. Sam Burton - Dear Departed 24. Robert Forster - The Candle and the Flame 25. Kassi Valazza - Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing 26. boygenius - the record 27. Matthew Halsall - An Ever Changing View 28. SBT - Joan Of All 29. Depeche Mode - Memento Mori 30. Wednesday - Rat Saw God 31. Baaba Maal - Being 32. jaimie branch - Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) 33. Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer & Shahzad Ismaily - Love In Exile 34. Sunny War - Anarchist Gospel 35. Teenage Fanclub - Nothing Lasts Forever 36. Billy Valentine - Billy Valentine and The Universal Truth 37. Eddie Chacon - Sundown Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross 39. Califone - villagers 40. Israel Nash - Ozarker 41. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - V 42. BC Camplight - The Last Rotation of Earth 43. Blake Mills - Jelly Road 44. Everything But the Girl - Fuse 46. Modern Nature - No Fixed Point In Space 47. Cian Nugent - She Brings Me Back To The Land Of The Living 48. Allison Russell - The Returner 49. Margo Price - Strays 50. Craven Faults - Standers 51. London Brew - London Brew 52. Dexys - The Feminine Divine 53. Tinariwen - Amatssou 54. Ryuichi Sakamoto - 12 55. Pretenders - Relentless 56. Cian Nugent - She Brings Me Back To The Land Of The Living 57. Kara Jackson - Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?58. Mary Lattimore - Goodbye, Hotel Arkada 59. Sparks - The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte 60. Setting - Shone a Rainbow Light On 61. Fatoumata Diawara - London Ko 62. Deer Tick - Emotional Contracts 63. Meg Baird - Furling 64. Osees - Intercepted Message 65. Dot Allison - Consciousology 66. Jim O'Rourke - Hands That Bind (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) 67. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Keeping Secrets Will Destroy You 68. Sleaford Mods - UK GRIM 69. Alabaster DePlume - Come With Fierce Grace 70. Animal Collective - Isn't It Now? 71. Steve Gunn & David Moore - Let the Moon Be a Planet 72. Sufjan Stevens - Javelin 73. Grian Chatten - Chaos For The Fly 74. Jim Ghedi And Toby Hay - Jim Ghedi and Toby Hay 75. Elijah McLaughlin Ensemble - Elijah McLaughlin Ensemble III

   

CLASSIC ROCK 1. The Rolling Stones - Hackney Diamonds 2. Metallica - 72 Seasons 3. Foo Fighters - But Here We Are 4. Ian Hunter - Defiance Part I 5. Steven Wilson - The Harmony Codex 6. The Struts - Pretty Vicious 7. Queens Of The Stone Age - In Times New Roman 8. Mammoth WVH - Mammoth II 9. Skindred - Smile 10. The Pretenders - Relentless 11. Iggy Pop - Every Loser 12. Crowne Lands - Fearless 13. Rival Sons - Darkfighter 14. Great Van Fleet - Starcatcher 15. The Cadillac Three - The Years Go Fast 16. Ayron Jones - Chronicles Of The Kid 17. Danko Jones - Electric Sounds 18. Those Damn Crows - Inhale/Exhale 19. The Damned - Darkadelic 20. Wytch Hazel - IV: Sacrament 21. Avenged Sevenfold - Life Is But A Dream 22. Sparks - The Girl Is Crying For Her Latte 23. Duff McKagan - Lighthouse 24. Extreme - Six 25. Creeper - Sanguivore 26. Joe Bonamassa - Blues Deluxe Vol 2 27. Uriah Heep - Chaos & Colour 28. Geese - 3D Country 29. Alice Cooper - Road 30. The Answer - Sundowners 31. Def Leppard - Drastic Symphonies 32. The Hives - The Death Of Randy Fitzsimmons 33. Black Stone Cherry - Screamin' At The Sky 34. Maneskin - Rush 35. The Cold Stares - Voices 36. The Inspector Cluzo - Horizon 37. Peter Gabriel - i/o 38. Starbender - Take Back The Night 39. Grace Potter - Mother Road 40. Vega - Battlelines 41. Jethro Tull - Rockflote 42. Yes - Mirror In The Sky 43. Royal Thunder - Rebuilding The Mountain 44. Black Spiders - Can't Die, Won't Die 45. DeWolff - Love, Death & In Between 46. Ann Wilson & Tripsitter - Another Door 47. Brothers Osborne - Brothers Osbourne 48. The Defiants - Drive 49. Green Lung - This Heathen Land 50. Paul Rodgers - Midnight Ride

2022 - End Of The Year Retrospectives

The end of the year is approaching, and as it's our habbit here we look into some of the end-of-the-year reviews of music magazines. Some years ago I settled on 3 of them: Mojo, Uncut, and Classic Rock - even though I stopped buying the latter when it stopped giving away CD's. As usual, this year I've been busy researching the past and filling holes in my record collection, and haven't listened to a lot of new music. I believe I have 3 albums which were newly released in 2022: Fontaines D.C.'s Skinty Fia (Mojo's No.10, Uncut's No.17), Hurray for The Riff Raff's Life on Earth (Mojo No.30, Uncut No.22) and Los Bitchos' Let The Festivities Begin! (I believe it just made it into Rolling Stone's Top 100, but that's a list I won't delve into here). But I've listened to the free Best Of The Year samplers from Mojo and Uncut, as well as a few tracks on youtube, so I can share my impressions with you: Michael Head (formerly of Shack and The Pale Fountains) found himself on an improbably high position in these lists (No.1 Mojo, No3 Uncut). Based on what I've heard here Dear Scott must be a pretty charming acoustic indie LP, I was reminded of Paul Weller circa Wild Wood. Does that justify its high position? I'm not sure. Uncut's No.1 (Mojo No.11) is A Light for Attracting Attention by The Smile. Featuring two members of Radiohead, it's inevitably similar - but better than anything they've done in years, as here the experimentation doesn't lead to self-sabotage, opening them instead to different directions including funk - if your idea of funk is Can's "Vitamin C". Wet Leg (Mojo No.2, Uncut No.7) seem to have released the debut of the year - most other music publications seem to agree, too. It's a fresh-sounding upbeat indie-pop album with post-punk elements. Skinty Fia finally delivers on the promise of Fontaines D.C.'s debut, while Hurray for The Riff Raff's Life on Earth surprised me; based on what I had read about Alynda Segarra, I expected something folkier. Instead I got a combination of Lana Del Ray and P.J. Harvey - as you can imagine, I wasn't disapponted. Other magazines have placed Beyoncé's Renaissance on No.1 but it features relatively low here (number 27 Mojo, 53 Uncut). To be honest, I didn't find much to like either. I did like Horace Andy's Midnight Rocker (No. 4 Mojo, 32 Uncut). Nice to hear good old-fashioned dub reggae. Khruangbin have been on the rise for years, and here they team up with Vieux Farka Touré for an album dedicated to his legendary father, Ali (Mojo No.37, Uncut 39). Interesting pairing, but I think Khruangbin are the ones with the upper hand here. This sounds completely different from the Vieux Touré I saw in Groningen some 12 years ago, doing his "Hendrix in the Sahara" thing; I would have liked some more desert blues, certainly on an album named after Ali Farka Touré. On the Americana front, Wilco seem to follow a more traditional country route (the cuts I heard remind me of Grateful Dead and Gram Parsons) while Lambchop, Bill Callahan and Cass McCombs feature a more alt-rock sound. The new Arctic Monkeys LP makes a respectable showing (No. 5 Mojo, 23 Uncut), while Jack White has two albums in the lists: Fear of the Dawn (No.8 Mojo) and Entering Heaven Alive (No.69 Uncut). 90's rock heroes Spritualized (No.13 Mojo, 30 Uncut) and Suede (No.6 Mojo, 54 Uncut) are back in form; the sample tracks included are as good as anything they did in their heyday. Older veterans in these lists include Elvis Costello (No. 39 Mojo, 10 Uncut), Brian Eno (No. 65 Mojo, 9 Uncut) Levon Helm and Mavis Staples (No.22 Mojo, a version of "The Weight" on the free CD is reminiscent of their fantastic older takes on this song with The Band and Staple Singers), and Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder (Mojo No.38). Both free samplers also include tracks by Rich Ruth's I Survived, It's Over (No.16 Mojo, 47 Uncut). It's instrumental, somewhat experimental music. Interesting, but not for everyone. The last years a lot of great young female singers have appeared, and you can find some here (e.g. Aldous Harding, Weyes Blood, Joan Shelley, Angel Olsen, Julia Jacklin et al.) That's all very well, but as much as I like listening to the new Joni Mitchells and new Stevie Nickses, I have to ask: where are the female rockers? C'mon girls, you know you can rock! Just do it! Speaking of hard rock, Classic Rock magazine resides as ever in its own universe, a place where hair metal still rules: new albums by Def Leppard, Scorpions, Ozzy and Skid Row vie for the top position, while ZZ Top round up the top ten with yet another live album featuring 40-to-50-year-old tunes. If I'm not mistaken, the only overlap with the other lists is The Black Keys' Dropout Boogie (on No.47 here, 69 Mojo, 59 Uncut). Classic Rock is also the only one to include some prog rock in their top 10: Porcupine Tree on No.3 and Marillion on No.6. Nice to see some personal favorites like The Hellacopters, Fantastic Negrito, and Mongolian über-rockers The Hu make the list, too. Well, for some people Ozzy backed by Eric Clapton on guitar will always be infinitely more exciting than anything Michael Head can come up with. And if you think that bands like Def Leppard and Scorpions (not to mention Red Hot Chili Peppers, Muse, Rammstein, and Cult, whom mainstream magazines seem to have forgotten of) are irrelevant in 2022, just look at which bands are that fill the stadiums.

 

MOJO MAGAZINE TOP 75 1.Dear Scott (Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band) 2. Wet Leg (Wet Leg) 3. Cheat Codes (Danger Mouse and Black Thought) 4. Midnight Rocker (Horace Andy) 5. The Car (Arctic Monkeys) 6. Autofiction (Suede) 7. YTI⅃AƎЯ (Bill Callahan) 8. Fear of the Dawn (Jack White) 9. Stumpwork (Dry Cleaning) 10.Skinty Fia (Fontaines D.C.) 11. A Light for Attracting Attention (The Smile) 12.Warm Chris (Aldous Harding) 13. Everything Was Beautiful (Spiritualized) 14. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow (Weyes Blood) 15. Cruel Country (Wilco) 16. I Survived, It's Over (Rich Ruth) 17. This Is A Photograph (Kevin Morby) 18. Hyper-Dimensional Expansion Beam (The Comet Is Coming) 19. In These Times (Makaya McCraven) 20. Weather Alive (Beth Orton) 21. Pompeii (Cate Le Bon) 22. Carry Me Home (Levon Helm and Mavis Staples) 23. Welcome 2 Club XIII (Drive-By Truckers) 24. Reset (Panda Bear and Sonic Boom) 25. Angels & Queens – Part I (Gabriels) 26. The Spur (Joan Shelley) 27. Renaissance (Beyoncé) 28. Tresor (Gwenno) 29. Chloë and the Next 20th Century (Father John Misty) 30. Life on Earth (Hurray for the Riff Raff) 31. Timbuktu (Oumou Sangaré) 32. Endless Rooms (Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever) 33. Forfolks (Jeff Parker) 34. Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (Kendrick Lamar) 35. Cool It Down (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) 36. I Love You Jennifer B (Jockstrap) 37. Ali (Vieux Farka Touré & Khruangbin) 38. Get On Board: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee (Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder) 39. The Boy Named If (Elvis Costello & The Imposters) 40. The Mars Volta (The Mars Volta) 41. Breaking The Thermometer (Leyla McCalla) 42. Heartmind (Cass McCombs) 43. Gold (Alabaster DePlume) 44. Fear Fear (Working Men's Club) 45. The Overload (Yard Act) 46. Ants From Up There (Black Country, New Road) 47. Fever Dreams Pts. 1-4 (Johnny Marr) 48. For The Sake of Bethel Woods (Midlake) 49. Anaïs Mitchell (Anaïs Mitchell) 50. Jazz Codes (Moor Mother) 51. (watch my moves) (Kurt Vile) 52. All Of Us Flames (Ezra Furman) 53. Heart Is Strange (Xpropaganda) 54. Good and Green Again (Jake Xerxes Fussell) 55. Dentures Out (Proclaimers) 56. Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You (Big Thief) 57. Shebang (Oren Ambarchi) 58. Most Normal (Gilla Band) 59. Fossora (Björk) 60. Lucifer on the Sofa (Spoon) 61. See You in the Stars (Lightning Seeds) 62.Topical Dancer (Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul) 63. Riderless Horse (Nina Nastasia) 64. Loggerhead (Wu-Lu) 65. FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE (Brian Eno) 66. Big Time (Angel Olsen) 67. Spencer Gets It Lit (Jon Spencer & the HITmakers) 68. The Bible (Lambchop) 69. Dropout Boogie (The Black Keys) 70. For McCoy (Eiko Ishibashi) 71. Pre Pleasure (Julia Jacklin) 72. The Line Is A Curve (Kae Tempest) 73 Recordings from the Åland Islands (Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Sofia Honer) 74. LP.8 (Kelly Lee Owens) 75. I Got a Love (Elizabeth King)

UNCUT TOP 75 1. A Light for Attracting Attention (The Smile) 2. The Spur (Joan Shelley) 3. Dear Scott (Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band) 4. Big Time (Angel Olsen) 5. Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You (Big Thief) 6. Cruel Country (Wilco) 7. Wet Leg (Wet Leg) 8. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers (Kendrick Lamar) 9. FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE (Brian Eno)10. The Boy Named If (Elvis Costello & The Imposters) 11. The Sea Drift (The Delines) 12. How Is It That I Should Look At The Stars (The Weather Station) 13. Pompeii (Cate Le Bon) 14. Weather Alive (Beth Orton) 15. The Bible (Lambchop) 16. The Ruby Cord (Richard Dawson) 17. Skinty Fia (Fontaines D.C) 18. Tresor (Gwenno) 19. We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong (Sharon Van Etten) 20. (watch my moves (Kurt Vile) 21. Hellfire (black midi) 22. Life on Earth (Hurray for the Riff Raff) 23. The Cars (Arctic Monkeys) 24. Stumpwork (Dry Cleaning) 25.Heartmind (Cass McCombs) 26. I Love You Jennifer B (Jockstrap) 27. Ants From Up There (Black Country, New Road) 28. The Comet Is Coming - Hyper-Dimensional Expansion Beam 29. Julia Jacklin -  Pre Pleasure 30. Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful 31. Kevin Morby - This Is A Photograph 32. Horace Andy - Midnight Rocker 33. Sudan Archives - Natural Brown Prom Queen 34. Daniel Rossen - You Belong There 35. Panda Bear & Sonic Boom - Reset 36. S.G. Goodman - Teeth Marks 37. Bitchin Bajas - Bajascillators 38. Courtney Marie Andrews - Loose Future 39. Khruangbin & Vieux Farka Touré - Ali 40. Ty Segall - "Hello, Hi" 41. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Endless Rooms 42. Jana Horn - Optimism 43. Revelators Sound System - Revelators 44. Makaya McCraven - In These Times 45. Aldous Harding - Warm Chris 47. Rich Ruth - I Survived, It's Over 48. Carson McHone - Still Life 49. Bill Callahan - YTI⅃AƎЯ 50. Drive-By Truckers - Welcome 2 Club XIII 51. Jake Xerxes Fussell - Good and Green Again 52. Tim Bernardes - Mil Coisas Invisíveis 53. Beyoncé - Renaissance 54. Suede - Autofiction 55. Amanda Shires - Take It Like a Man 56. Father John Misty - Chloë and the Next 20th Century 57. Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling & Andreas Werliin - Ghosted 58. Pye Corner Audio - Let's Emerge! 59. The Black Keys - Dropout Boogie 60. Sarah Davachi - Two Sisters 61. Yard Act - The Overload 62. Jenny Hval - Classic Objects 63. Robyn Hitchcock - Shufflemania! 64. Ghost Power - Ghost Power 65. Beach House - Once Twice Melody 66. The Unthanks - Sorrows Away 67. Jake Blount - The New Faith 68. Kathryn Joseph - for you who are the wronged 69. Jack White - Entering Heaven Alive 70. Tommy McLain - I Ran Down Every Dream 71. Angeline Morrison - The Sorrow Songs: Folk Songs of Black British Experience 72. Širom - The Liquified Throne of Simplicity 73. Aoife Nessa Frances - Protector 74. Chris Forsyth - Evolution Here We Come 75. Drugdealer - Hiding in Plain Sight

 

CLASSIC ROCK TOP 50 1. Def Leppard - Diamond Star Halos 2. Ghost - Impera 3. Porcupine Tree - Closure/Continuation 4. Clutch - Sunrise On Slaughter Beach 5. Scorpions - Rock Believer 6. Marillion - An Hour Before It's Dark 7. Ozzy Osbourne - Patient Number 9 8. Alter Bridge - Pawns & Kings 9. Skid Row - The Gang's All Here 10. ZZ Top - Raw: That Little Ol’ Band From Texas Original Soundtrack 11. Tedeschi Trucks Band - I Am The Moon 12. Ann Wilson - Fierce Bliss 13. Massive Wagons - Triggered! 14. Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators - 415. Von Hertzen Brothers – Red Alert In The Blue Forest 16. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Unlimited Love 17. The Cult - Under The Midnight Sun 18. Thunder - Dopamine 19. Michael Monroe - I Live Too Fast To Die Young 20. Big Big Train - Welcome To The Planet 21. H.E.A.T.: Force Majeure 22. Saxon - Carpe Diem 23. Reef - Shoot Me Your Ace 24. Eddie Vedder - Earthling 25. Journey - Freedom 26. Halestorm - Back From The Dead 27. The Sheepdogs - Outta Sight 28. Rammstein - Zeit 29. Eric Gales - Crown 30. Rosalie Cunningham - Two Piece Puzzle 31. Muse - Will Of The People 32. Tuk Smith & The Restless Hearts - Ballad Of A Misspent Youth 33. The Hu - Rumble Of Thunder 34. Ginger Wildheart & The Sinners - Ginger Wildheart & The Sinners 35. Jethro Tull - The Zealot Dream 36. Megadeth - The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead! 37. Monster Truck - Warriors 38. Joe Lynn Turner - The Belly Of The Beast 39. Magnum - The Monster Roars 40. The Hellacopters - Eyes Of Oblivion 41. Dan Reed Network - Let's Hear It For The King 42. Fantastic Negrito - White Jesus Black Problems 43. Nickelback - Get Rollin' 44. Whiskey Myers - Tornillo 45. FM - Thirteen 46. Cardinal Black - January Came Close 47. The Black Keys - Dropout Boogie 48. Bonnie Raitt - Just Like That 49. Buzzcocks - Sonics In The Soul 50. Cats In Space - Kickstart The Sun