2024 YEAR IN REVIEW: Best EPs, Cover Songs, Vinyl, Final Lists and Our Favorite Things
Favorite EPs
Favorite Short Records
Favorite Cover Songs
20 More Excellent Albums Not on Our Top 50 List
Our Favorite Album Titles
A Mixtape With Our Favorite Song Titles of the Year
Our Favorite New Vinyl Acquisitions
and...
Our Annual List of the Pickled Priest's Favorite Things
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OUR 18 FAVORITE EPs OF 2024
An abbreviated list for an abbreviated format
18 FAN CLUB
Demonstration
Another Demonstration
(Self-released)
Seattle's Fan Club, formerly Lysol (you can see why that didn't work out, especially during the pandemic), hasn't changed their sound much over the years—it is thankfully still driven by that raw Pacific Northwest garage-rock petrol that launched the Sonics over sixty years ago and the Makers thirty years ago. They released two EPs as Fan Club this year and we combine them here because they don't take long to burn through. If you can't make time for this, what have you time for?
17 YANNIS AND THE YAW
Lagos Paris London
(Transgressive)
This EP is worth it just to hear the late Tony Allen do his thing behind the drum kit one more time.
16 GIRL SCOUT
Headache
(235 Music)
I discovered this after my songs list was made, but I would've put "I Just Needed You to Know" on my year-end mixtapes if I caught it in time. That's how this works. Songs keep pouring in. You can't stop them. The rest of this EP by Stockholm's Girl Scout, led by strong singer Emma Jansson, is similarly worthy.
15 EDIE MCKENNA
For Edie
(Devil Town Tapes)
We always try to include our beloved Chicago in our lists and this short, sweet EP from local Edie McKenna is a crisp four-songer that never misses, making me believe she's the natural songwriter she seems to be. I like what I'm hearing already. And why not dedicate your first release to yourself? I like it.
14 NOURISHED BY TIME
Catching Chickens
(XL)
Everything written about this acclaimed EP turns me off. But that's why it is always smart to listen to the music first and not the writer. I'll think Marcus Brown's songs will win you over in the end like they did me, but I can't be sure. So give it a few fair listens. If not, no harm done.
13 ANTENNA
Antenna
(Urge)
Shogun's second band and second EP of 2024, this one tops Finnoguns Wake's Stay Young EP from earlier because it comes closer to that Royal Headache sound that was so great...though they never should've called it quits in the first place.
12 JON SPENCER
Sick of Being Sick!
(Bronze Rat)
Not a formal EP, per se, just 18-minutes of Spencer doing his thing with the Bobby Lee's rhythm section so fuck you, it's an EP starting now.
11 TRÄUME
Wrzask
(Quality Control)
Warsaw's Träume (not shockingly, Polish for "trauma") shows that attitude knows no borders. And if you think you don't need your punk sung in Polish, think again. They've got more than their share of social ills to rail against and their latest album, Wrzask ("Scream"), is awesome in any language.
10 REDDY HOLLOW
Paper Days
(Self-released)
I was just poking around the internet, minding my own business, when I discovered New York's pure-popish Reddy Hollow. The name didn't give me much hope, it screams Americana, but one listen to "Tides" got me pretty excited. The next three songs on Paper Days did the same. I tucked it in my back pocket for later use
and just found it again. I'm glad I did because it sounds as good as I remembered. File under: Potential.
09 PANDA BEAR
Reset Mariachi
(Domino)
Panda Bear revamps their 2022 LP, Reset, as a mariachi EP in 2024? It happened!
08 SCREAMING FEMALES
Clover
(Don Giovanni)
Don't get excited; still broken up. This year, we got a few stray songs from last year's Desire Pathway sessions (our #8 record) and, of course, to rub salt in the wound, they're pretty much all great, too. Fuck.
07 BON IVER
Sable,
(Jagjaguwar)
It's been a long, long time since Justin Vernon sequestered himself in his cabin and recorded the masterpiece, For Emma, Forever Ago. The ensuing years since have been productive, but stress-riddled, so back to Wisconsin for this spare EP which gives us a little more of what Justin does best. And apparently what he needs.
06 JUANA MOLINA
Exhalo
(Little Butterfly)
Juana took some songs that didn't make the cut from her last album, Halo, from 2017, and released them this year. Far from tossed off leftovers, I think they are better than most of the songs on that album! Now it's time to get Juana back in the studio for a new record. It has been way too long.
05 CRACK THE SKY
The Baker Files
(Adobo)
Holy fuck, do I have a lot to catch up on here! Baltimore's Crack the Sky has been around since 1975, so I'm about 20 albums and 50 years in arrears on a band I had relegated to the back pages of Prog magazine, assuming I didn't need to go there. But intrigued by the band releasing an EP of "lost" songs from 1976, found by band leader John Palumbo, I tuned in and loved what I heard. Palumbo has turned those lost demos into some pretty cool sounding tracks from a bygone era. Looks like I may have a project for 2025 already.
04 MARGARET GLASPY
The Sun Doesn't Think
(ATO)
Last year, when I ranked her record, Echo the Diamond, in my Top 50 Albums list I wrote this about Margaret Glaspy: She's a wailing, brawling singer and guitarist, not some wallflower singing to herself in her upstairs bedroom. Well, guess what? Her new EP, The Sun Doesn't Think, features Glaspy singing to herself, possibly in her bedroom, possibly even upstairs, but definitely with an acoustic guitar. And, guess what again? It's still great—proof of talent, proof of concept. The definition of a real artist, able to do it all, any way, any day, anywhere.
03 GEORGIA GETS BY
Split Lip
(Fat Possum)
I'll listen to anything on Fat Possum once and Georgia Gets By is a great example of why. The work of New Zealand's Georgia Nott has that dreamgaze feel and she's got the songs to pull off a sound most others only approximate. Add to your watch list.
02 BABY ROSE & BADBADNOTGOOD
Slow Burn
(Secretly Canadian)
Canadian instrumental band seeks soulful singer for EP. Possibly the other way around. Either way, the result is this perfectly-titled 23-minute taste of those sessions. BBNG has been around for a minute, but regardless, Baby Rose is the breakout attraction here. Put it on and unwind. I have the suspicion that something big is in store for her in the near future.
01 POPULATION II
Serpent Échelle
(Northern Transmissions)
Just a few months after landing a song on our Top Songs of 2023 mixtapes ("C.T.Q.S."), Quebec's Population II returned with an absolutely magnificent EP titled Serpent Échelle (Snake Ladder). There's not a bad track on the four-song, nineteen-minute trip, each bringing the band's post-punk sound, French vocals, and otherworldly psych reverberations into a soft/loud tension-building maelstrom packed with tons of razor-sharp guitar riffs. The band is onto something here. If they get much better it'll be scary.
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OUR 10 FAVORITE SHORT RECORDS OF 2024
The long and the short of it is that these records are long on being short. (All must start with a 30:-- or lower)
10 DANIEL ROMANO'S OUTFIT
Too Hot to Sleep
(You've Changed)
Canada''s most prolific son with the possible exception of Connor McDavid, although far more interesting. (28:59)
09 PLEASANTS
Rocanrol in Mono
(Under the Gun)
What would we do without Australian rock and roll? It has become the lifeblood of the Pickled Priest offices for years thanks to raw and dirty bands like Pleasants. These guys call their brand of fast and frenetic rocanrol "cheap and cheerful" and that about sums up why we dig them. (20:41)
08 JESSICA PRATT
Here in the Pitch
(Mexican Summer)
A late night chill pill laced with just the right amount of melatonin. Just when it ends, so do you. (27:14)
07 PISSED JEANS
Half Divorced
(Sub Pop)
Rocking with humor will always score points around here, but this record also acted as audio therapy for adults ready to drive off a cliff. (30:08)
06 AMY SHARK
Sunday Sadness
(Sony Music)
First-rate Aussie girl-pop music from a 38-year-old. Just enough experience and perspective to lift her songs to a more relatable level. Safe for ages 9-99. (30:09)
05 X
Smoke & Fiction
(Fat Possum)
Our #50 album of 2024 featured on our Top 50 List. The only way to end a storied career is with an exciting final chapter. (28:31)
04 THE BUG CLUB
On the Intricate Inner Workings of the System
(Sub Pop)
Our #46 album of 2024 featured on our Top 50 List. Stopping into the Bug Club for a quality pint is the best decision you'll make today. (28:35)
03 THE JOY
The Joy
(Transgressive)
Our #35 album of 2024 featured on our Top 50 List. All the joy you need to start, or improve, your day. (30:18)
02 DUCKS LTD.
Harm's Way
(Carpark)
Our #30 album of 2024 featured on our Top 50 List. Enough jangle to earn you an Associates Degree in the craft in under 30-minutes. (27:48)
01 SHELLAC
To All Trains
(Touch and Go)
Our #19 album of 2024 featured on our Top 50 List. Normally, the perfect amount of Albini in one sitting...until he died. Now we all want more. (28:08)
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OUR 24 FAVORITE COVER SONGS OF 2024
Original Artist in parenthesis
24 DJ HARRISON | "Lil Birdie" (Vince Guaraldi)
Peanuts get a lot of love for their Christmas music, but kudos to DJ Harrison for plucking this gem from the soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (which originally featured a rare vocal from Vince Guaraldi). Updated here with just the right amount of modern flair, but without losing the amusing charm of the original.
23 REB FOUNTAIN | "How Bizarre" (OMC)
The original by New Zealand's OMC was better than you remember, but admittedly wore out its welcome as it was played day and night for all of 1996. Well, it's back via this Reb Fountain cover that makes it sound like Lou Reed wrote it while on laughing gas, so let it amuse you a while longer then.
22 MILTON NASCIMENTO & ESPERANZA SPALDING | "A Day in the LIfe" (The Beatles)
Taking on an all time classic like "A Day in the Life" is normally a fool's errand, but this endearing collaboration between Brazilian legend Milton Nascimento (81 years and still vital) and Portland's own genius in residence, Esperanza Spalding, works because they are simply a charming pair of friends enjoying each other's company with the tape rolling. In the process, they deliver a worthy version of the Beatles' original, keeping the melancholic reverie intact and also managing to do something new with McCartney's bouncy mid-section (not spoiled with explanation here).
21 STEVE EARLE | "I Fought the Law" (The Bobby Fuller Four)
20 RAUL MALO | "I Got Stripes" (Johnny Cash)
Better Than Jail, a benefit album to raise awareness and support for the urgent need to improve our criminal justice system, featured some killer performances from some pretty big names (Taj Mahal, Jason Isbell, Bonnie Raitt, Margo Price, et al), but few have lived their selected song quite like Steve Earle who managed to inject new, genuine life into an old warhorse. I didn't think we needed another version, but alas we did. Raul Malo, the big voice behind the Mavericks, gets the overall award for his mariachi-heavy take on Johnny's Folsom Prison gem. Knowing John R.'s affection for the genre, he'd surely approve.
19 JUSTIN TOWNES EARLE | "Graceland" (Paul Simon)
If I didn't hear Justin's take, I'd just assume Paul Simon's "Graceland" to be one of those uncoverable songs. Too distinct in sound and too Simonized in lyrics to transfer to another host body. JT's approach, unsurprisingly, was to strip it down to its basics. He once again proves the old axion that it's the song that does most of the hard work. This is taken from the late-Earle's posthumous collection All In: Unreleased and Rarities, which also includes minimalist Fleetwood Mac and Springsteen covers as well to varying degrees of success.
18 THE RAVEONETTES | "The Girl on Death Row" (Lee Hazlewood)
The typical covers album is a series of hits and misses and the Raveonettes' Sing... was no different. Some songs are so in their wheelhouse that they lose impact ("All I Have to Do Is Dream," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," "Leader of the Pack"). Others just don't cut it (The Doors' "In the End," the Who's "The Kids Are Alright"). Then there are the "nice attempt" cuts ("Venus in Furs," "Shakin' All Over," and a strangely low-energy take on the Cramps' "Goo Goo Muck"). In the end, if you get two or three real winners, I consider it a success. Such is the case here. My favorite cut on the record is "The Girl on Death Row," a cover of a 1960 song by Lee Hazelwood (with Duane Eddy on guitar), a song ahead of its time about a (supposedly) wrongfully convicted woman moments away from her execution. Considering the percentage of females to males on death row is historically low (2%, give or take), the subject matter is novel and the Raveonette's creepy shimmer in place of the original's overly melodramatic approach works to its advantage.
17 EDDIE VEDDER | "Save It for Later" (The Beat)
Not a big Pearl Jam fan, I do have an affection for Eddie Vedder, song interpreter. He's got a keen eye for a song he can handle and a deep appreciation for rock history, too. I wouldn't have thought of it, but his take on the Beat's (aka English Beat) Pickled Priest favorite, "Save It For Later," has the one quality I look for most in all covers and that's a sincere and deep fondness for the original.
16 THE AFGHAN WHIGS | "I Love You, Suzanne" (Lou Reed)
You'd expect a Lou Reed tribute to bring in some big names and The Power of the Heart: A Tribute to Lou Reed, doesn't disappoint in that department. When you get Rosanne Cash, Keith Richards, Rufus Wainwright, Rickie Lee Jones, and Lucinda Williams to come out for you, you know you've earned some respect. My fave track, however, is the Afghan Whigs take on New Sensations opening track, "I Love You, Suzanne" with Greg Dulli—another guy seemingly built to thrive after midnight in a big city—delivering just the right lecherous tone on lyrics like "I love you when you're good, baby, I love you when you're bad." It's like the song was written just for him.
15 BARTESS STRANGE, ANJIMILE, & KARA JACKSON | "Wolf Like Me" (TV on the Radio)
If you mention random bands to me, some seem ripe for a good cover version and some do not. TV on the Radio, with their highly distinct sound and style, fall into the latter category. Hence, I'm not surprised it took three notables teaming up to pull off one of the band's signature tracks. Courtesy of the epic-length Red Hot comp, TRANSA, it retains the mysterious rhythms of the original and then keeps the whole thing on simmer throughout the two-minute fade-out. Very nice.
14 LEYLA MCCALLA | "Small Towns (Are Smaller for Girls)" (Holly Dunn)
One of the best tributes this year wasn't to an artist, but a songwriter. My Black Country: The Songs of Alice Randall highlighted the songs of one of country music's best and most successful black songwriters. The originals were all recorded by white women, but this time her songs were all done by black women and they are better for it, too. The emergent Leyla McCalla dusts Holly Dunn's staid take on "Small Towns (Are Smaller for Girls)" and proves the song was thematically ahead of its time in the process. One listen is all it will take for you to understand why.
13 AL GREEN | "Everybody Hurts" (R.E.M.)
If you think one of my favorite singers doing his take on one of my favorite songs won't make the list, you haven't been reading us very long. Al has a way of making every cover a religious experience for his congregation so I don't see why it can't work for the Pickled Priest cult as well. People love to say we're more similar than we think and while I don't completely buy that, I do think we can agree that if one person can heal all our hurts, it might be Rev. Green.
12 CHICANO BATMAN FT. MONEY MARK | "Crosseyed and Painless" (Talking Heads)
11 DJ TUNEZ | "Life During Wartime" (Talking Heads)
The Talking Heads tribute album, Everyone's Getting Involved, was better than expected, but not because of the big names like Miley Cyrus, The National, Lorde, and Paramore, although those weren't bad at all. In truth, the whole thing is pretty damn consistent. Five tracks made my final cut here, almost unheard of from a tribute album. In the end, my two choices are Chicano Batman's team-up with Money Mark for a killer take on "Crosseyed" only strengthening the song's already potent rhythms by adding a Latin psychedelic vibe that augments the original and arguably improves upon it. The biggest surprise on the whole comp, however, is the original take on "Life During Wartime," by DJ Tunez, an artist with whom I was not familiar prior to his appearance here. It's what a cover should be. A different take, but an inspired one. One that takes a little while to understand and appreciate. This electronic version with the laid-back streetwise vibe does just that.
10 LIFEGUARD | "Telepathic Love" (Wipers)
Chicago's Lifeguard, just out of high school, somehow locked onto the Wipers' 1980 EP, Alien Boy, and mined "Telepathic Love" for the B-side of their one single released in 2024. It's a killer take on the Wipers gem, adding their trademark jitteriness to this all-too-short 90-second energy blast.
09 DEAN & BRITTA W/ SONIC BOOM | "Snow is Falling in Manhattan" (Purple Mountains)
A gorgeous take on an already gorgeous song that really tugs at the heartstrings, especially considering it has been five years already since David Berman committed suicide right after one of his biggest artistic successes, Purple Mountains' self-titled 2029 LP. It's on Dean & Britta's Xmas album even though it's not technically a Christmas song. Slow moving like the original, it feels like it was recorded during an ice storm, only enhancing the Wintery ambiance.
08 NOUVELLE VAGUE | "What I Like Most About You is Your Girlfriend" (The Specials)
NV's entire business model is covers and business has been good because the French band's blasé vocal style and a bossa nova beats make any song a bit more amusing. I could've gone with any number of choices, but the cover that most improves upon the original is the band's take on the Specials' "What I Like Most About You is Your Girlfriend." Revisiting the original now, it's oddly bland for a Specials cut with a stupid video to boot. This version takes the song in a whole new direction with a clever gender reversal and a coquettish French vocal that makes it sound like the alluring come-on it was always meant to be.
07 SPOON | "The Way We Used to Roll" (Jesse Malin)
06 BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG | "Black Haired Girl" (Jesse Malin)
05 BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN | "She Don't Love Me Now" (Jesse Malin)
The best tribute album of 2024 goes, hands down, to Silver Patron Saints - The Songs of Jesse Malin. It was made to support Jesse after a spinal stroke left him paralyzed from the waist down (goal: walk again) and we now have proof of Malin's standing in the rock and roll community—a triple LP, star-studded tribute affair featuring Elvis Costello, Billie Joe Armstrong, Dinosaur Jr, Lucinda Williams, Spoon, Graham Parker, The Hold Steady, Rancid, and many others. The biggest name, of course, is Bruce, who delivers Malin's "She Don't Love Me Now," a song you wish Bruce could still write these days, but can't. It's a beautifully understated performance. Billie Joe Armstrong also checks in long after I had written him off for a fabulous version of "Black Haired Girl." Spoon does Spoon on their track, but that's just fine, because they generally can do no wrong, especially when picking songs to cover. I'll leave it there, but I could've picked a couple handfuls from this album and had plenty left over. Essential stuff, but also seek out the originals from this wildly underappreciated talent.
04 LIZZ WRIGHT | "Who Knows Where the Time Goes" (Sandy Denny)
Perhaps the easiest job on the planet in 2024 was convincing me that Lizz Wright would absolutely crush Sandy Denny's classic song from 1968. And it is predictably astonishing.
03 MIKO MARKS | "I'll Cry for Yours (Will You Cry For Mine)" (Tamra Rosanes)
Our second selection from the aforementioned and essential My Black Country: The Songs of Alice Randall, is this devastating track that should now be a country-soul classic from this point forward. Miko just owns the song from note one. A drop-dead performance. Note: If interested, there is a book about Alice with the same title as the album in bookstores now.
02 ANDREW BIRD & MADISON CUNNINGHAM | "Without a Leg to Stand On" (Buckingham Nicks)
An original copy of the hard-to-find Buckingham/Nicks LP will set you back these days, but Cunningham/Bird won't. It's a song-for-song recreation and it's fantastic in its own way thanks to Madison's and Andrew's obvious affection for that 1973 record. I've been comparing both versions of "Without a Leg to Stand On" and I still can't decide which one is better. A classic case for answering "All of the above."
01 LADY BLACKBIRD | "When the Game is Played on You" (Bettye Swann)
I'm calling the categories as they appear on my list and one after the next falls to the great Lady Blackbird, the soul queen of 2024. I love how she continues to pluck unlikely gems from relative obscurity and revive them in her own special way. This isn't a cover, this is run for cover, because she gets down and dirty here. We love Bettye around here, but this adds the teeth the song always begged for.
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OUR FAVORITE LONG SONGS OF 2024
Length matters (8:00 to qualify)
Life's a long song
If you wait then your plate I will fill
-Jethro Tull, "Life is a Long Song"
15 THE DECEMBERISTS | "Joan in the Garden" (19:21)
Truth be told, it didn't need to be this long, it just is. One of the best songs on the Decemberists status quo 2024 record, As It Ever Was, So Will It Be Again. With that title, I suppose I shouldn't've been surprised.
14 AMARO FREITAS | "Encantados" (9:42)
Flute! Piano! Drums! Add a touch of Brazil and an all-star supporting cast and you've got a South American Peanuts special in the making.
13 MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO | "Tsunami Rising" (8:04)
This should be mandatory listening for all people, but particularly those who want to understand racial inequity. Powerful stuff.
12 FOUR TET | "Three Drums" (8:16)
Closing out his excellent Three album this year with a long-form track anchored by a repeating drum beat that eventually releases itself into the atmosphere for a slow fade out was the perfect way to segue back to the start of the record and play it all again.
11 ONEIDA | "Gunboats" (8:06)
Few bands do the long song quite like NY noise institution, Oneida, and "Gunboats" is more proof of their continuing abilities to maintain interest over time. They know how to make guitars sound cool.
10 CHES SMITH | "Exit Shivers" (8:31)
This is just fucked up enough to be "my kinda jazz." In other words, it's noisy, haunting, and oddly beautiful. Cue soundtrack work sooner than later.
09 WYTCH PYCKNYCK | "Frostbite" (8:36)
Good luck trying to pigeonhole England's Wytch Pycknyck once "Frostbite" exhausts its run time. After an album stuffed with crunching guitars they end with a part-rap, part-metal sure-to-be set closer that will toast all minds in proximity.
08 COLIN STETSON | "Strike Your Forge and Grin" (21:52)
Stetson's a musical and compositional genius and that is beyond debate. Here, what we get is what I like to call "The Full Colin." It sounds like a horror movie set underwater in some long-submerged alien watercraft.
07 MELVINS | "Pain Equals Funny" (19:08)
There should be a warning on every Melvins album that excessive exposure could mess with your state of mind. This song reinforces the need for that precaution. They are fully aware of what they're doing, too. The weight and consеquence of disgust, what else can I say? I say you need this, that's what I say.
06 SLIFT | "Uruk" (9:54)
French band Slift set the dials to dominance this year with their new record Ilion, where you'll soon notice that a full 7/8 of the songs on the record qualify for our long songs list. Few crank out the expansive psych riffery quite like these freaks. They're not a daily carry item, but when you need them, you'll know.
05 BASIC | "For Stars of the Air" (9:11)
Anything but basic, really. Guitar wizard Chris Forsythe doesn't work that way, even when he claims to be scaling back. His band for This Is Basic, his chosen project this year, fully understands the assignment. Here, their final exam perhaps, they pass with flying colors.
04 FATHER JOHN MISTY | "Mahashmashana" (9:20)
The title-track and centerpiece of FJM's new, and still undigested (undigestable, it could be claimed), record is clearly the immediate standout. An eventual tome, The Quotable Misty, will surely include plenty of this stuff, possibly starting with...
His pale bullets found your bloodline
In a midnight blue cayenne
She is patient, the act of creation
May one day produce a happy man
03 GARY CLARK JR. | "Habits" (9:05)
More proof we are undervaluing and misclassifying Gary Clark Jr. Maybe this qualifies as some form of blues, but nothing I've heard before.
02 THE CURE | "Endsong" (10:23)
They added this song to the end of their sets years ago for good reason and not just because of its title. It's due to the fact that nothing can come after it and they know it.
01 LADY BLACKBIRD | "Whatever His Name" (8:24)
This song, which sounds like the epic finale of a soulful rock opera tuned in from some other galaxy, should've rightly been our #1 song of the year. It deserved the spot, but the same could be said for several songs on our #1 album of the year. The coda alone, magnificent and otherworldly, elevates this to our long song of the year, yet another accolade to add to Lady's rich 2024 bounty.
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20 EXCELLENT ALBUMS THAT SHOULD'VE FIT INTO OUR TOP 50 LIST, BUT DIDN'T
Note: List in random order
ANDREW BIRD AND MADISON CUNNINGHAM
Cunningham Bird
(Loma Vista)
This late-year arrival is a solid take on the elusive Buckingham Nicks record made in 1973, just under three years before Lindsey and Stevie joined Fleetwood Mac. This version by Madison Cunningham and Andrew Bird is a damn easy listen, making the case for both versions to exist in the world. But this one is a lot easier to find and often just the right amount of different.
WUSSY
Cincinnati Ohio
(Shake It)
Yet another special record from these cult favorites, led by Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker, and the first since the tragic loss of beloved guitarist John Erhardt in 2020 (who had been with Cleaver since 1988, starting with Ass Ponys). Understandably, John's absence is felt everywhere on the record from the music to the lyrics, a beautiful tribute.
JOANNA WANG
Hotel La Rut
(New Tokyo Terror))
Are we close enough now where I can say "trust me" and you'll give something peculiar a shot? I hope so, because there is no explaining the weird pop world made by Joanna Wang on her delightfully odd, but strangely addicting Hotel La Rut. We love things that don't sound quite like anything else and this is a prime example.
SHANNON & THE CLAMS
The Moon is in the Wrong Place
(Easy Eye Sound)
Heartbreak or loss, often both at once, make for the most memorable records. I wish that wasn't a cold, hard fact, but it is. As I've noted before, Shannon lost her fiance only weeks before their wedding. That this record somehow finds joy in the grieving process is what makes it special.
ROBERT VINCENT
Barriers
(Self-released/Townsend)
I usually make an Americana list, but this year I'm not bothering. I need a little break from the genre to be honest. And I'm a little tired of pointing out that non-Americans like England's Robert Vincent are often doing them better than we do.
PILLOW QUEENS
Name Your Sorrow
(Royal Mountain)
Loved their debut (our #23 of 2020), appreciated their second but no love connection, and I'm back on board for album three, a clear progression for the Irish band. As you might expect, they are turning into more complex songwriters with many of the songs taking some time to hit fully. But in the end they do in a big way. "Just playing some rock and roll music" is working for them and I look forward to more of it going forward.
J. ROBBINS
Basilisk
(Dischord)
The Jawbox leader returned in 2024 with an album that contained a handful of great rock songs that would've gotten way more attention in the indie-90s, but if you know, you know, and we know.
THE JESUS LIZARD
Rack
(Ipecac)
David Yow, the Iggy Pop of 90s alt-rock, was back leading the Jesus Lizard this year and I wasn't alone in wondering if his body could take the abuse at age 64 that it needs to pull off a tour supporting the very physical Rack, not to mention working in some old classics, too. Recent video shows him crowd surfing, so it appears he's gonna die trying. Gotta appreciate that.
GARY CLARK JR.
JPEG Raw
(Warner)
Just listen to it. If you're not down with it after that, we can go our separate ways on this.
CINDY LEE
Diamond Jubilee
(Realistik Studios)
Overhyped, for sure—the media likes a great story—but certainly not unworthy of some significant analysis and attention. With an editor, perhaps in the Top 50; without, just honorable mention for the numerous moments that do connect.
EMILÍANA TORRINI
Miss Flower
(Grönland)
Iceland's Emilíana Torrini makes pop music that is pleasingly offbeat—does that sound like anyone else you know? Her charming minimalist creations bubble out of your speakers in a way that is conducive for letting them loop all day as your background soundtrack. Monitor her progress with us, I recommend.
AMY SHARK
Sunday Sadness
(Sony Music)
Rerun of our Short Album list comment for time savings: First-rate Aussie girl-pop music from a 38-year-old. Just enough experience and perspective to lift her songs to a more relatable level. Safe for ages 9-99.
BRITTANY HOWARD
WHAT NOW
(Island)
Just missed our Top 50 because I didn't feel as compelled to return to it like I expected. We're up for the immersive qualities of the record, but real life sometimes gets in the way.
MELVINS
Tarantula Heart
(Ipecac)
Don't be like us and assume you don't need the Melvins anymore because you're all growed-up now. In fact, I've found I need their brand of insanity now more than ever.
MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO
No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin
(Blue Note)
This 76-minute record should come with a college credit or two, so packed is it with important historical and sociological impact statements. You owe it to yourself to really give this a few listens front-to-back for no other reason or incentive than understanding the challenges and hurdles some people face in our society.
MABE FRATTI
Sentir Que No Sabes
(Unheard of Hope)
Honorable mention for opening up the rich and rewarding world of cello puns alone, Mabe Fratti consistently breaks the cello mold on her latest LP.
NADA SURF
Moon Mirror
(New West)
Here, I give long-awaited credit to a band that refuses to go away mainly because they're still in their songwriting prime and may never leave that stage.
PREVIOUS INDUSTRIES
Service Merchandise
(Rou)
A rap collective that references touchstones from my long gone youth? Almost too good to be true. But this is no nostalgia outfit, just some of the best wordsmiths anywhere.
ALICE RUSSELL
I Am
(Tru Thoughts)
Perhaps she got caught in the large Lady Blackbird wake this year, but Alice Russell, the UK's finest purveyor of modern soul, put out a record this year that shouldn't be forgotten. A sleeper.
LEON BRIDGES
Leon
(Columbia)
Some records slip by me that really shouldn't because I've loved the artist for years. Here, I formally apologize to Leon for missing his new record, whose coolness sneaks up on you when you least expect it. Soon, you're luxuriating in its originality and smoothness wondering how you could've missed it.
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OUR 15 FAVORITE ALBUM TITLES OF 2024
From Albums We Own Only, Ranked in Order of Preference
15 PLEASANTS | Rocanrol in Mono
I like this slangy spelling of rock and roll better, don't you? It's even better in mono.
14 TAYLOR SWIFT | The Tortured Poets Department
She couldn't use "Society" thanks to Dead Poet's, but this is almost as good.
13 FINOM | Not God
Clarification was needed?
12 NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS | Wild God
A wholly intriguing concept. Once tamed by society, but now an eccentric, free-range deity.
11 PREVIOUS INDUSTRIES | Service Merchandise
From my earlier post this year:
I'm old enough to remember the titular showroom catalog store where you'd fill out an order form, bring it to the counter so someone could notify the stockroom, and then wait for them to shoot it down a steep conveyor belt near the store's exit. Here's your foot massager, now get the fuck out! And you wonder why it went out of business in 2002.
10 KID CONGO & THE PINK MONKEY BIRDS | That Delicious Vice
The vice is rock & roll. Knowing that, it's a great title.
09 MDOU MOCTAR | Funeral for Justice
Sometimes the title fits the year perfectly and nothing more needs to be said.
08 JOANNA WANG | Hotel La Rut
A title inspired by a Kids in the Hall sketch? Guaranteed to get you on this coveted list.
07 PISSED JEANS | Half Divorced
Split the kids. Split your assets. But don't split before the divorce decree is final.
06 THE REDS, PINKS AND PURPLES | The World Doesn't Need Another Band
No truer words, but this is not the band we don't need.
05 GUIDED BY VOICES | Strut of Kings
So our king should walk like he's had 23 Budweisers?
04 THE PARTY DOZEN | Crime in Australia
Assume all knife-related?
03 THE BUG CLUB | On the Intricate Inner Workings of the System By Means of Popular Music, on the Contemplation of Pretty Faces, Tinned Bubbles and Strife
The Fiona Apple of British rock, complete with sense of humor. An added bonus.
02 DANCER | 10 Songs I Hate About You
The title of my Bon Jovi "anti-tribute" record is finally decided.
01 LADY BLACKBIRD | Slang Spirituals
Yup. She's just won Best Album Title, too! She's like Stevie Wonder at the Grammys in the 1970s! Bottom line is this: You have to know what she means by this title. How does it sound? I have to know. I need to know!
Nice try...
BOECKNER | Boeckner!
Adding an exclamation point to your last name doesn't, in itself, generate excitement. You've got to earn the accolade first.
___________________________
FICTIONAL MIXTAPE: 26 SONGS FROM 2024 WITH GREAT TITLES
Song quality optional, but encouraged
SIDE A
01 "Linoleum Smooth to the Stockinged Foot" | The The
02 "Secret Taliban Wife" | Peter Perrett
03 "It's Rough on Rats (If You're Asking)" | Jack White
04 "eBay Purchase History" | Faye Webster
05 "When I Was a Teenage Horse" | Dancer
06 "Seatbelt Alarm Silencer" | Pissed Jeans
07 "Your Worst Song is Your Greatest Hit" | The Reds, Pinks and Purples
08 "Area Woman Yells at Junk Mail" | Rick Rude
09 "You Lost Me at the Spanking Machine" | Joanna Wang
10 "You Blister My Paint" | English Teacher
11 "Remote Convivial" | Ches Smith
12 "Baptized By Nitro" | Pepe Deluxé
13 "She's Got Weird Arms" | Melvins
SIDE B
14 "All That School For Nothing" | John Grant
15 "Creepin' Jesus" | Wytch Pycknyck
16 "Prep-School Gangsters" | Vampire Weekend
17 "If I Could Show You What I Mean (Then You Would Know What I Mean)" | Andrew Gabbard
18 "Olympus Cock in Radiana" | Guided By Voices
19 "So Say the Soaring Bullbats" | Colin Stetson
20 "Scabby the Rat" | Shellac
21 "Humanity Upon Request" | Punitive Damage
22 "Have You Ever Heard a Turtle Sing?" | C Turtle
23 "Zayre" | Previous Industries
24 "I Don't Miss My Mind" | Kim Gordon
25 "Best Looking Strangers in the Cemetery" | The Bug Club
26 "Candy Coloured Catastrophe" | Redd Kross
___________________________
OUR 10 FAVORITE VINYL ADDITIONS IN 2024
Believe it or not, our record collection got better once again (unranked)
01 THE COMPLETE STAX/VOLT SINGLES, VOLUME ONE AND VOLUME TWO
(Rhino)
The holy grail of my record collection is the Complete Stax/Volt Singles 1959-1968, so far issued only in a 9 CD box set. For years, it has been the one major part of my collection just screaming for the full vinyl treatment. Well, this year Rhino has started that long process by releasing the first two volumes over six LPs. My only hope now is that they don't cut the process short for some reason. They wouldn't do that to me, would they?
02 CAL TJADER
Latin Kick
(Craft)
I'm a huge fan of the album art for Cal Tjader's Latin Kick LP from 1956, which was created by Arnold Roth. In fact, it ranked #1 on my favorite jazz album covers list (x-Blue Note) I made a couple years ago. I've always wanted a vinyl copy but original specimens in good condition are not cheap, but thankfully the record has now been beautifully reissued (with a glossy retro sheen) and I finally have it in my grubby little hands. Oh, and the music is excelente!!
03 ART BRUT
A Record Collection, Reduced to a Mixtape
(Demon)
You knew these guys would name a compilation this someday, didn’t you? Maybe at the time they didn’t contemplate the return of vinyl, instead assuming the mixtape would still be a common thing, but we’ll take four sides of Art Brut’s best stuff any day. It’s rock and roll with heart that also has a sense of humor. Pretty much what we thrive on here at Pickled Priest. And if you’re gonna sponge off your fans, be sure to make it worth their while. In this case, with an Eddie Argos autographed insert, rich green vinyl, and a killer album design. too.
04 ISAAC HAYES
Hot Buttered Soul
(Craft)
The record industry simply cannot get enough of my money it appears, for I have now purchased about seven different copies/versions of Isaac Hayes’s Stax classic, Hot Buttered Soul. Willingly! This time they lured me in with a “small batch” pressing with audiophile sound using the original masters, all analog mastering, tube mixing console, “discrete” electronics made in–house, a solid-state lathe, and lacquers cut using a one-step process and pressed on 180g vinyl utilizing TPC Plastic’s VR900 compound. I don’t know jack shit about what all this means, but I think I also just ejaculated in my pants. Needless to say, it sounds like the definitive version to me, unless they press the album into 230g hot butter next time with masters personally cleaned by Isaac’s very own bald head.
05 THE EFFIGIES
For Ever Grounded
(BFD)
It’s great to see Chicago punk legends, the Effigies, getting some love. A new album this year and a 40th anniversary reissue of their first LP, For Ever Grounded, too. It's sad singer John Kezdy had to die in a bike accident in 2023 for it to happen though. This one is a no-brainer for punk fans, but more bitter than sweet overall.
06 SAM PHILLIPS
A Boot and a Shoe
(Omnivore)
Great to see the ultra-special songwriter and singer Sam Phillips getting some reissue love this year. Picking a favorite Sam album is a fool’s game, but I was thrilled to see her vastly underrated A Boot and a Shoe reissued by Omnivore this year. I snapped up my copy on day one of release, being a massive fan of her work. You will not be disappointed by this one.
07 ALICE COLTRANE
The Carnegie Hall Concert
(Impulse!)
If you can make it at Carnegie Hall, you can make it anywhere. At least if you are a musician, that is. This reissue of Alice Coltrane’s 1971 concert has been getting tons of year-end love for good reason. It’s pretty amazing, a double-LP with a total of four songs, one per side. Alice likes to stretch out and on this magical night in New York, she did so with a cast of amazing talent in support. Put this on and lose yourself.
08 THE CARS
Candy-O
(Rhino)
Rhino is in the process of reissuing the classic early Cars records and here Candy-O gets the full glossy-cover treatment and full-budget pressing the record deserves. Honestly, I might’ve even bought it if the record wasn’t included. That’s how iconic the cover art is. Here, you’ll get both in the deal and the record has never sounded better to these ears. So let’s go already.
09 THE BLASTERS
The Complete Concert
(Liberation Hall)
If you regret never getting the chance to see the Blasters live, like I do, here’s the closest you will get to experiencing their ripping stage show. Record Store Day releases can be a bit of a letdown at times, the rarity more important than the quality, but not this time. A great document from a phenomenal band in its prime, recorded live across the pond in London.
10 EAST VILLAGE
Drop Out
(Heavenly)
We end with one of those obligatory “lost classics” that critics like to trot out to establish their superior music taste. In London, they find a new such record just about every day at tea time, so no need to get your shorts in a bunch about East Village, then, right? Well, this time the hyperbole is closer to being justified than usual. I’m a bit enamored with the record right now, but will it have the staying power of other like-minded Brits that took the jangle and twang and ran it through a melancholy Sunday afternoon? It sure sounds like it might. Note: the CD version is expanded to include early singles and the like, so that might be the way to go if this floats your boat.
PICKLED PRIEST'S ANNUAL LIST OF OUR FAVORITE THINGS
24 for 2024 Edition
01 Fezz (aka "The Professor")
Our new Pickled Priest office hound is none other than The Professor, known around here as Fezz for short. He's a blind toaster oven with paws and he looks like a relative of Moo Deng twice removed (or more). He's our little miracle man, living on the streets of Chicago without getting hit by a car even once. Well, he's found his safe harbor now, right here next to us in our office. Every song we listen to now has loud snoring in the background and we like it that way. Wouldn't change a thing.
02 McCartney: A Life in Lyrics podcast
Hearing Paul casually talk through the ins and outs of one song per episode was manna from heaven for us this year. Something for even the most knowledgeable Beatlemaniacs present.
03 Pizza Wednesday enamel pins
I guess we're collecting enamel pins now, is that right? Like we needed another hobby. I blame this Etsy shop for luring me in with their fabulous creations. Well-made and they don't always stick to the usual suspects which I also like (Hall & Oates, Bonnie Raitt, et al). Extra credit for including an inspired idea to recreate the infamous Beatles "butcher" cover and adding a moveable arm to the Pete Townsend figure that simulates his iconic windmill riffing style. Businesses that think outside the box and pay attention to the little things will always retain my loyalty! For a few examples, see below.
04 Big Star neon sign
Big Star was named after a supermarket chain with this same kind of neon sign, so when I saw one for sale, I put this in my shopping cart immediately. I’m not a big neon guy, but this fits perfectly in the corner of my office, touting my love for this great Memphis band. When the light goes on, so does the music. The best kind of Pavlovian response.
05 We Were Famous, You Don't Remember: The Embarrassment (documentary)
I'm a sucker for a labor of love, quite obviously, and this certainly qualifies. I’m very thankful there is at least one documentary filmmaker out there who also loves the edgy, nerdy punk made by these out-of-place Kansans. They're well worth getting to know if you haven’t yet, but absolutely essential for any fan of the band or fan of music in general. I love an unlikely story.
06 Stillwater pennant
I searched Almost Famous on Etsy once and this came up so I bought it, of course, because I'm weak and nostalgic and now it hangs on my wall. Fuck Etsy! But I do love it.
07 Steve Martin: "King Tut" picture disc - RSD Black Friday
We fell in love with Steve Martin’s comedy at an early age. I was often seen wearing my Steve Martin tour
t-shirt back during his prime and memorized all his routines, too. Cruel Shoes is still on my bookshelf. I even have my original 45 of “King Tut.” But when Black Friday rolled around and RSD announced a “King Tut” picture disc, I was all over it. This now hangs proudly on my office wall. Oh, we’re gonna need more walls soon.
08 Video of Springsteen dancing with his mom
RIP Adele Springsteen. Hello from the other side! If this video of Bruce dancing on the front porch with his mom doesn't melt your heart, nothing will. And I mean nothing.
09 The Return of the CD?
Personally, I think the CD is underrated. Sure, vinyl is sexier and now comes in every possible color, but let’s admit that they are inflexible, take up tons of room, and can be a little temperamental, too. You really have to stay on your game with vinyl. I’m willing to do that work, but I also cherish my giant CD collection, too. I’ve read numerous articles lately that the much cheaper CD is making a comeback, which pleases me. If people can’t make the jump from paying $12.99 for every song in existence each month, asking them to shell out $40 for a reissue of a single record is a harder sell. Maybe CDs can meet people with a need for a physical connection to their music halfway. The CD is a great way to support artists without going broke.
10 Logo Rhythm (book)
Shortly after starting my post on the Best 50 Band Logos, I heard that a new coffee table book on the subject was about to come out. Great minds! This lovingly put-together book is an anchor, some 450 pages, and certainly tramples my post into the ground (although more than one opinion is still needed and I’d argue my choices are better, of course!). Kudos to Jim and Jamie for this epic tome. Lots of great legwork done and plenty of great interviews, etc. Pretty, too!
11 Zip It Up! The Best of Trouser Press (book)
My music writing idol is Ira Robbins of the Trouser Press, so when he releases a new compilation of the best stuff published in his magazine of the same name, I am all in. A total pleasure to read articles about bands that many weren’t paying attention to at the time. This is the perfect book to read right before bed. Bedtime stories for music fanatics.
12 Stax: Soulsville USA (HBO documentary)
When word of a four-part Stax documentary came through, I basically ran around for weeks with unrestrained glee, hoping and praying it was going to be the definitive history of the legendary record label. And it is, with only minor quibbles on content, storytelling, and quality. For the most part, it was magnificent. If you haven’t paid attention to Stax, the time is now. It’s a remarkable American story.
13 The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal (documentary)
Another great trend is the multi-part band documentary. Why limit a great story to 90 or 120 minutes when so many platforms exist to expand on that limitation and deliver a thorough assessment of a band’s career and impact? Case in point: The Tragically Hip. We’ve been fans for a long time and rank some of their concerts with the best we’ve ever seen, but we’re from the US, a place that never fully hooked onto the band’s majesty. But Canadians knew better and the band’s relationship to the country is the real story here, ending tragically with the death of Gord Downie, the definition of a national treasure, from a brain tumor. The outpouring of love for this band throughout this exhaustive documentary is beyond music.
14 Muna | Live at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles (record)
Why not claim you're "The Greatest Band in the World"?! They wouldn't be the first to put their name out there. I haven’t considered myself a Muna fan over the last few years, but I do respect what they’ve done and even liked some of their songs. But upon hearing the infectious energy of this live record recorded at L.A.’s Greek Theater, I think I’m fully on board now. It’s hard not to get caught up in the total investment of the crowd in every, and I mean every, song they play. I am a sucker for fans communing with bands, but you get the feel here that there’s way more than just that at play. Something much deeper than music. Something bordering on community. And that’s how lifetime relationships begin.
15 An Ideal for Living: A Celebration of the E.P. - Extended Play by Corey du Browa & Friends (book)
Don’t expect to see this book on the New York Times Bestseller List anytime soon. This is a boutique item for sure and I’m happy it exists, even if only a few select music fans will ever read it in its entirety. It covers a subject most wouldn’t even think of—the importance of the EP through time. Yup, short records with massive impact are the order of the day and along with the story of the EP in general comes a list of the 100 best EPs of all-time, a futile pursuit if there ever was one. But lists like this aren’t meant to be definitive, just to start the argument and get people talking. And if enough people start talking maybe more will reward the author, long-time music writer Corey duBrowa, with a few more purchased books. He took one for the team here and I appreciate it!
16 Rubber Ducky Records
Rubber Ducky Records is a floating record store in England that drifts up and down local canals selling mostly electronic LPs to DJs, clubbers, and the like. Not a business model that’s likely to return much on its initial investment, but as we’ve said, we love passion more than anything at Pickled Priest, and this requires it in spades. Especially when said record store sinks, as it did recently (photos attached). That’ll teach him to overload the port side with too many remixed Skrillex singles! Nonetheless, a shout out to this yellow "duck" meandering through Londontown shilling records. May your future journeys be safe and fruitful. I hope I can hop on board for a cuppa and some beats sometime soon. Cheers!
17 Pretenders live at Riverside Theater in Milwaukee, WI
Fuck anyone who thinks age prevents someone from rocking out. Chrissie Hynde pissed on that notion at a show I witnessed at Milwaukee’s stately Riverside Theater earlier this summer. She still sounds amazing, her band the full cracker, particularly phenom guitarist James Walbourne, and they play at a volume unhealthy for any living being. In other words, heaven on Earth! Add to that the fact that the band’s new material sounded as great as the classic Pretenders material of yore and we have ourselves the concert of the year. Unexpected at the time, but the more I thought of it the more I realized Chrissie wouldn’t settle for less. Her snarl won’t allow it.
18 Moo Deng
Perhaps, like me, you’ve fallen for a pygmy hippo named Moo Deng, too? This chunk of “bouncy pork” (her name translated) has dominated my social activity this year, with me routinely skipping all other content in my relentless search for more hippo-related news. I am in love with the lil gal and I don’t care who knows it. If she were here with me now, I’d let her nibble on my kneecaps all afternoon.
19 Snoop Dogg Olympic enamel pin
Yup, more enamel pin talk. Sorry. The best thing about the Olympics this year was clearly Australian breakdancer Raygun, but a close second was the omnipresence of Snoop Dogg, who was everywhere throughout the games. I hope that never changes. Fittingly, this pin, with Snoop blowing Olympic rings into the sky, set the bar for all other trading pins on the streets of Paris. You didn’t have to be a pole vaulter to get high at these games, that’s for sure.
20 Satin patch from first Who concert
Once lost, now found! A cherished memento from my first Who concert. From way back when Schlitz Beer was still rockin' America!!!
21 We Buy Records podcast
I get a kick out of these two chaps, one a record store owner in England, one a record store owner in Belgrade, talking about records for the entertainment of other people who love talking about records. Right up our alley. They have a charming repartee, packing their all too infrequent episodes with record store news, vinyl reviews (courtesy of their pal Gareth, the show's most outwardly enthusiastic contributor), and a quiz at the end that never ceases to marvel at ludicrous people who overprice their records. It's like spending an hour at a local pub with some friends and it always ends too soon. If it were up to me they'd keep it going in real time 24/7. That way you could hang out with them whenever you wanted to!
22 RIP: A heartfelt acknowledgement of some tough musical deaths from 2024
23 Mom
The matriarch of Pickled Priest passed just days after our final post of 2023 but even a year later, her presence is felt. That said, she never even knew about this blog (I didn't want her to read anything profane!). Not that she would've been interested in our content anyway. That's irrelevant, for she was the salt of the Earth in all ways; loving, giving, caring, and amusing in equal measures. My whole family owes her everything and she will be missed forever. She deserves a blog of her own, one that would tell her amazing life story from beginning to end.
24 Our readers!
Thanks as always to every reader, whether you loved what we wrote or hated it, we're thankful for your time and hope you've found some new music here or just got reminded of some of your old favorites. Cheers from the Priest!
-Fin-
See you in 2025.
Cheers...in moderation,
The Priest
© 2024 Pickled Priest