So in order to convince you that 2016 was indeed a vintage year for music, here are my favourite albums from everyone’s least favourite year and if you know of any 2016 gems that I’ve missed please do tell me and if I like them I will buy them and add them to the page.
The list is in no particular order.
79 yrs old. Often described as the Brazilian Tina Turner. Fair Play.
Recorded in the 80s, first released in 2016. Madness sounding Norwegian band.
The guitarist from Limp Bizkit wrote a soundtrack to a film that doesn’t exist.
Taiwanese indie post rock is infinitely better than British indie post rock.
Recordings of prisoners in Mississippi, stonemasons in Japan and loads more keep all these sprawling jazz numbers grounded. Unique.
Two out of three of them compose music for films so that’s why this sounds so cinematic. Moody rock noir inspired by 1960s girl groups.
He released 12 albums in 2016 but this is my second favourite. Shout out to the title.
Unsigned musicians from North Carolina singing songs about food.
Folk supergroup featuring Neko Case, k.d. lang and Laura Veirs.
Supergroup feat doseone, Mike Patton of Faith No More and Tunde from TV on the Radio.
Unpredictable and engaging. Also, Quentin Blake cover art – yes please.
Icelandic singer and Belgian orchestra awesome collaboration.
Instrumental slow songs. They sent it off to film studios in the hopes of getting work writing soundtracks.
Don’t write him off if you didn’t like his early stuff, this is totally different.
Meant to be a full audiovisual experience with videos to accompany each piece. Improvised experimental stuff with surreal vocal acrobatics. From Poland.
They released this on Boxing Day, a move that is undeniably cocky as hell.
Alternative and mainstream all at once.
Experimental hip hop with jazz bits, punk stuff and loads of tabla.
Unpredictable electronic album. Constantly inventive and great production.
Like an Italian Tom Waits sing-talking over classical arrangements.
Exactly what you’d expect from the band name and album name.
The Play It Forward Campaign launched late 2015 but most of these songs were released in 2016. 73 different bands all covered I Love You All The Time by Eagles of Death Metal with all the money going to The Sweet Stuff Foundation.
Hugely anticipated and he delivered. Ivy is the best song of 2016 in my opinion.
Technically imperfect on purpose. Indie-ish country type sound.
The queen of my heart. Every track is a collaboration with a different musician.
Avant garde rock opera from Dave Tibet and Youth from Killing Joke. Spooky at times.
Feel good singer songwriter album. Indie with a touch of Americana.
Love the production on this 80s influenced hardcore punk album.
Mixtape, a taster before their 2017 SATURATION trilogy. Hip hop and boy band.
The main guy in this band wrote the music for Masterchef and Homes Under The Hammer.
Named after her father’s late sister. The album is more fun than that makes it sound though.
Always wanted to buy something by them but didn’t know where to start so I got this and I like it.
Pretty self explanatory.
Still moving forwards on a path of his own making, not trying to be anyone else, just letting his instincts lead him and letting his sound develop.
Duo from Pakistan now living and performing in Dubai. This album has a consistent moody ambient tone to it that I really like.
Gospel folk with some electro thrown in. Originally released in 2016 then re released in 2017 (for the pedants).
Her apartment burnt down so she wrote this album. The kind of emotional folk-y music that a company would use to sell you a car or a phone these days.
Collaborative metal album about space travel. Five long songs. Love the contrast in the vocals.
Named after a stage show she wrote about climate change. Inspiring vocal compositions with some other instruments thrown in at just the right times.
Darkwave. I don’t know what that means either. I think it’s synth music mixed with a type of metal.
Les Claypool and Sean Lennon are really peculiar fellas.
Mega tight psych pop with vocals in exactly the right places.
Featuring members of Guided By Voices. Straightforward stuff that grows on you.
Companion piece to their 2016 full length A Strange Exits which most people prefer but I like this weird 6 track release more for some reason.
He teamed up with British producer Paul White to make his best album so far. Hip hop.
Synths looping and then powerful melodic vocals out of nowhere and then more synths.
The lead singer and guitarist from Karate has formed this band and I still love his voice and guitar noodling.
A live radio session that recaptures the grittiness of their debut album. Available as one 40 minute track on their bandcamp page.
A guy from Deerhoof and a guy from Neutral Milk Hotel improvised these songs on the second day they met.
Borderline unlistenable. Mid Summer Night is one of my favourite tracks of the year.
Field recordings from Ibiza with Patti Smith doing poetry by Nico over the top.
Most people’s favourite ambient album of 2016.
B-sides, demos and alternative versions of songs from their last album.
Duo from Antarctica. Two bass guitars recorded outside and slowed down.
Every sound was made using their washing machine. One 38 minute track (the length of a single wash cycle).
Danish Brit-Pop Soul with a front cover so bad it’s good.
He’s essentially covered his own album from 1982. Completely different versions of the same songs. Love it.
The guitarist himself slagged this off before it came out but, like a lot of people, I really like it.
The title tells you all you need to know. All the titles are lifted from fortune cookies.
Heard this get negatively described as “demos – the album” but that’s exactly what I like about it. Great unconventional songwriting.
Another of my favourite album titles of the year. Never owned an album by them before!
Experimental electronic music but also great songs with great vocal melodies.
Recorded during travels and collaborations with musicians across India, Spain, Palestine, Italy and the UK.
