2019 Music Top 10

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Since people have been sharing their top listened to albums of 2019 I figured I would share mine as well.  It was a damn good year for music that I enjoyed, so here we go.

  1. Bad Religion – Age of Unreason – PUNK.  Bad Religion is my favorite band of all time, and 39 years in, this is one of their best albums ever.  Topical fantastic punk rock.  I can’t wait to see them next year in their 40th Anniversary tour alongside another of my favorites, Alkaline Trio.  Songs like Big Black Dog, Downfall, My Sanity and the title track are all fantastic.  There really isn’t a bad song on the album.
  2. Third Eye Blind – Screamer. ALTERNATIVE  T3B is another one of my favorites and they too put out an album that may be one of their best.  I’ve always loved Stephen Jenkins voice and songwriting and there some really great tracks like Ways, Tropic Scorpio, Screamer and Take A Side.  I love that they are still putting out music.
  3. Bring Me The Horizon – AMO – EMO/METAL/ELECTRONIC  Bring Me The Horizon started as a death core band years ago and as they have aged they have mellowed quite a bit.  So if you like the early sound, you might not like this, but the included electronic elements and more singing/less screaming means I love this album.  Heavy tracks like Heavy Metal, MANTRA, and Wonderful Life are faves, but even more melodic atmospheric stuff like In The Dark, Medicine. Sugar Honey Ice and Tea, and Nihilist Blues are amazing songs.  It also has my favorite lyric of the year “Some people are a lot like clouds like you, ‘cause life’s so much brighter when they go.”  Indeed.
  4. Dermot Kennedy – Without Fear – ADULT ALTERNATIVE.  Dermot Kennedy is an Irish singer/songwriter with a fantastic voice and real emotion in his songs.  You can feel the pain, empathy and more in his vocals.  Songs like Outnumbered, An Evening I Will Not Forget, What Have I Done and Power Over Me really hit home and I love listening to him.
  5. Motionless In White – Disguise – SCREAMO.  I’m not typically into a lot of screamy vocals, but man do I love Motionless In White.  The songs are so well crafted, heavy and melodic and the standard vocals are fantastic, and the screams fit perfectly with the emotions.  Standouts are Disguise, Another Life, Headache, Undead Ahead 2 and the song I love the sentiment of, Thoughts & Prayers.
  6. K. Flay – Solutions – ALTERNATIVE.  I saw K. Flay open up for Third Eye Blind and Dashboard Confessional years ago and she is a really cool alternative artist that blends hip hop elements and catchy songs that are really entertaining.  I love This Baby Don’t Cry, Sister, Nervous and I Like Myself (Most of the time)
  7. Tool – Fear Innoculum – PROG METAL.  After so many years without new music this album was highly anticipated by fans and it did not disappoint.  Another masterpiece of an album from one of the most technical bands out there right now.   Pnuema, Fear Innoculum, 7empest and Descending just flat out rock.
  8. Billie Eilish – When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go – ALTERNATIVE.  My daughters let me know about Billie Eilish for the past couple of years.  She had sort of an underground cult following with her breathy vocals and interesting arrangements that were all written and produced by herself and her brother Finneas.  This debut full length has taken the world by storm and Billie is one of the biggest names in music before turning 18.  Bad Guy, You Should See Me In A Crown, Bury A Friend, All The Good Girls Go To Hell and When The Party’s Over all are amazing.  She’s up for several Grammy’s including Best Album, Song and New Artist.  She deserves it all.
  9. Ed Sheeran – No. 6 Collaborations Project – POP.  After his multi year world tour and tons of accolades for his previous album, he released an album of collabs with tons of today’s artists and artists you should be learning about.  For some, an album like this is a throwaway, but not Ed.  This thing is strong.  Beautiful People, South of the Boarder, Blow, I Don’t Care, and my favorite Best Part of Me featuring YEBBA.  Trust me, you want to listen to YEBBA.
  10. Slipknot – We Are Not Your Kind – METAL.  Slipknot also came back after several years and people were hoping it would live up to the past, and they were not disappointed.  We Are Not Your Kind is classic Knot, very heavy, and possibly their best album since Iowa.  Unsainted, Solway Firth, Birth of The Cruel and my favorite Nero Forte.

I’m going to leave it at 10, but there are a couple of honorable mentions too.  Papa Roach, The Script, Lewis Capaldi and The Chainsmokers all had heavy rotational stints in my year of music.