A list of one‘s favourite new releases in music is very, very personal, otherwise you are trapped by zeitgeist, fashion, blinded by common sense. When you have access to a lot of new stuff, you can easy peasy come up with fifty, sixty very good albums that make your year. One tricky thing is, really staying to the ones you love, not to the ones that are of fucking general importance. Another tricky thing is to order these beloved musics by numbers. Love and numbers? And here we are, again, in the zone of the personal. There is a reason we love – at a certain point in time – a record on no. 9 a tiny little bit more than the one on no. 10. Let’s call it the „angel in the details“. Or „the mood of the day“. Nothing can here really tumble up or down the ladder in the first or last place. It‘s all so good! Jeff Tweedy‘s solo recital is my no. 31, Gregs! It‘s big fun to post our lists, even some good days before Nikolaus, in an ancient coffee house in Prague! (m.e.)
MICHAELS TOP 30
- Father John Misty: Pure Comedy (my album of the year) *****
- Tinariwen: Elwan *****
- The Mountain Goats: Goths *****
- Anouar Brahem: Blue Maqam *****
- Sun Kil Moon: Common as Light and Love are Red Valleys of Blood *****
- Brian Eno: Reflection *****
- Jon Balke – Siwan: Nahnou Houn *****
- Ray Davies: Americana ****1/2
- Ryuichi Sakamoto: async ****1/2
- Fleet Foxes: Crack-Up ****1/2
- Gas: Narkopop ****1/2
- Dan Michaelson: First Light ****
- Vijay Iyer Sextet: Far From Over ****
- Anja Lechner / Agnès Vesterman / Valentin Silvestrov: Hieroglyphen der Nacht****
- Sam Genders: Dorothy****
- Neil Young: Hitchhiker****
- Erik Honoré: Unrest****
- Darren Hayman: Thankful Villages, Vol. 2****
- BJ Nilsen: Massif Trophies****
- Björn Meyer: Provenance****
- Crescent: Resin Pockets****
- Stephan Meidell: Metrics****
- Stein Urheim: Utopian Tales****
- Tom Rogerson w/ Brian Eno: Finding Shore****
- LCD Soundsystem: American Dream****
- Six Organs of Admittance: Burning The Treshold****
- Porter Ricks: Anguilla Electrica****
- Dictaphone: apr70****
- Carlos Casas: Pyramid of Skulls****
- Grandaddy: Last Place****
GREGORS TOP 30
- Olivier Messiaen / Martin Fröst / Lucas Debargue / Janine Jansen / Torlei Thedeen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps *****
- Anouar Brahem: Blue Maqams*****
- Stephan Oliva / Susanne Abbuehl / Oyving Hegg-Lund: Princes*****
- B J Nilsen: Massif Trophies*****
- Ray Davis: Americana*****
- Brian Eno: Reflection*****
- Father John Misty: Pure Comedy*****
- Tinariwen: Elwan*****
- Jan Balke / Siwan: Nahnou Houn*****
- Ryuichi Sakamoto: async*****
- Tom Rogerson & Brian Eno: Finding Shore*****
- Francois Couturier: Tarkovsky Quartet: Nuit Blanche *****
- Sun Kil Moon: Common as Light and Love are Red Valleys of Blood****1/2
- Björn Mayer: Provenance****1/2
- Stein Urheim: Utopan Tales****1/2
- Danish String Quartet: Last Leaf****1/2
- Jeff Tweedy: Together at last****1/2
- Diagrams: Dorothy****
- John Zorn: Hermetic Organ – Philharmonie de Paris****
- Erland Apneseth: Ara****
- Hans-Joachim Roedelius & Arnold Kasar: Einfluss****
- Grandaddy: Last Place****
- Dorothy: Diagrams****
- Erik Honore: Unrest****
- Michael Pisaro / Hakon Stene / Tjo: Asleep, Street, Pipes, Tones****
- Yuuko Shiokazu & Andras Schiff: Bach Busoni Beethoven****
- Dan Michaelson: First Light ****
- Valentin Silvestrov: Hieroglyhphen der Nacht****
- Neil Young & Promise of the Real: The Visitor****
- Wilco: Being There**** (because of a lot of new stuff inside!)