About the Author:
Matt DeMello is a songwriter, producer, professional AI researcher and “grand theorist” of the Salieri Records label. His latest original album is 2022’s Confetti in a Coalmine, which was hailed by former Death Cab for Cutie guitarist and Ratboys producer Chris Walla as ”nuts and I’m not sure what time of day I’m supposed to put it on, but it’s far from awful!” You can check out his latest Abbey Road tribute and more at the Salieri Records bandcamp page. You can find bandcamp codes for some of the more prominent records in his discography via his GetMusic page while codes are still available.
Albums 1-25 can be found here
Key:
- Bold designates a “DIY” artist (=likely spends <$5,000 to release their record, has no large-outlet reviews, i.e. pitchfork, stereogum, etc.), please prioritize them and any direct bandcamp links in any promotions.
Caveats:
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- I listen to about 5 albums a day alongside a fairly demanding day job, if something is good enough to get repeated, it ends up in the top 50. The top 10 are played multiple times and the top 5 are played 20 – 50 times before year end, mostly because they seem to be worth the time investment but can tend to bias results toward May – October releases.
- The songs lists are almost always underdeveloped and should be taken with a grain of salt approximately twice as large as whatever salt dosage you’re taking the albums list.
- I try to go by gut instinct of what I think made the biggest impression on me personally, but part of including mega artists is to concede that I’m always part of a larger conversation. True taste is in finding and baring one’s niches and bandwagons honestly. And honestly, yeah, I liked one Jack Harlow song, okay?
26. Vibration Channel – Kroba & Kent
27. The whaler – Home is Where (Wax Bodega)
28. VOIR DIRE – Earl Sweatshirt & The Alchemist
29. And the Wind (Live and Loose!) – MJ Lenderman (ANTI-)
30. I Inside the Old Year Dying – PJ Harvey (Partisan)
31. be excellent to each other – ACTIVE PRESENCE
32. Blight Witch Regalia – Cicada the Burrower (Blue Bedroom)
33. Desire, I Want to Turn Into You – Caroline Polachek (Sony Music / The Orchard / Perpetual Novice)
34. ATTA – Sigur Ros (Von Dur / BMG)
35. BlurstNRG – doktorb
36. Black Rainbows – Corinne Bailey Rae (Black Rainbows / Thirty Tigers)
37. sestinas – infinity crush
38. S/T – Memorrhage (Big Money Cybergrind)
39. Follow the Cyborg – Miss Grit (Mute)
40. the unpopular parts of the pig/ the digger you deep – mcclusky
41. The Window – Ratboys (Topshelf)
42. In the Garden, By the Weeds – Josaleigh Pollett (Lavender Vinyl)
43. Let Her Burn – Rebecca Black
44. This Stupid World – Yo La Tengo (Matador)
45. The Path – Allah Preme (Amajin Records)
46. Hellmode – Jeff Rosenstock (Polyvinyl)
47. Nothing’s Gonna Stand in My Way Again – Lydia Loveless (Honey, You’re Gonna Be Late / Bloodshot)
48. temperence – addy
49. the record – boygenius (Interscope)
50. Rise of the Serpent /MOUNTAINS – ZATREBIL
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