2017 was a terrific year for music, overwhelming me week after week with new releases, making it the busiest year for me consumer wise. The year saw a perfect storm of artistic inspiration due to all that’s gone on in the world the last couple years, and many artists just happening to be on a 2017 release schedule. However, much like last year I just don’t really have the motivation or time/energy to do any write-ups or even delve too deeply into analyzing all the releases I came across this year. So once again, I’ll just be releasing my rankings without much to back it up. I did increase that ranking to a Top 50 this year, so there’s that. As always, I start with a list of all the albums I came across throughout the year.
This past year I purchased, in some form, 109 albums, 106 of which are eligible. I do not include EPs, reissues, soundtracks, live albums, holiday albums, or b-side/rarity type releases as eligible for my list. There’s plenty of albums that I never got around to procuring, or merely just streamed, meaning there’s going to be very worthy albums that don’t make my list. So if you have questions as to why your favorite album isn’t on my list, well it’s because I either didn’t get it, or just plain didn’t care for it as much as you, simple as that. After the jump, you can see the list of all albums I purchased, in order of release date. Over the next couple days I’ll post my top 50 as well as 2017 mixtape.
The xx – I See You
CEP – Drawing The Target Around The Arrow
Cherry Glazerr – Apocalipstick
Foxygen – Hang
Allison Crutchfield – Tourist In This Town
Japandroids – Near To The Wild Heart Of Life
Priests – Nothing Feels Natural
Cloud Nothings – Life Without Sound
Julie Byrne – Not Even Happiness
Sampha – Process
Hand Habits – Wildly Idle (Humble Before The Void)
Strand of Oaks – Hard Love
Jens Lekman – Life Will See You Now
Vagabon – Infinite Worlds
Los Campesinos! – Sick Scenes
Thundercat – Drunk
Dirty Projectors – Dirty Projectors
Peter Silberman – Impermanence
Blanck Mass – World Eater
Mega Bog – Happy Together
David Bazan – Care
Jay Som – Everybody Works
Laura Marling – Semper Femina
The Shins – Heartworms
Sorority Noise – You’re Not As ____ As You Think
Spoon – Hot Thoughts
Real Estate – In Mind
Mount Eerie – A Crow Looked At Me
Kelly Lee Owens – Kelly Lee Owens
White Reaper – The World’s Best American Band
Future Islands – The Far Field
Father John Misty – Pure Comedy
The New Pornographers – Whiteout Conditions
Kendrick Lamar – DAMN.
Shamir – Hope
Charly Bliss – Guppy
Sylvan Esso – What Now
Feist – Pleasure
Perfume Genius – No Shape
Slowdive – Slowdive
Fazerdaze – Morningside
Mac Demarco – This Old Dog
Harmony Woods – Nothing Special
The Mountain Goats – Goths
(Sandy) Alex G – Rocket
Chastity Belt – I Used To Spend So Much Time Alone
Beach Fossils – Somersault
TOPS – Sugar At The Gate
Big Thief – Capacity
Phoenix – Ti Amo
SZA – Ctrl
Snail Mail – Snail Mail on Audiotree Live*
Lorde – Melodrama
Kevin Morby – City Music
Fleet Foxes – Crack-Up
Jasen Isbell & The 400 Unit – The Nashville Sound
Algiers – The Underside of Power
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires – Youth Detention
Washed Out – Mister Mellow
Broken Social Scene – Hug of Thunder
Haim – Something To Tell You
Sheer Mag – Need To Feel Your Love
Waxahatchee – Out In The Storm
Japanese Breakfast – Soft Sounds From Another Planet
Lo Tom – Lo Tom
Arcade Fire – Everything Now
Girl Ray – Earl Grey
Brand New – Science Fiction
Grizzly Bear – Painted Ruins
Rainer Maria – S/T
The War On Drugs – A Deeper Understanding
EMA – Exile In The Outer Ring
Queens of the Stone Age – Villains
Oh Sees – Orc
Iron and Wine – Beast Epic
Turnover – Good Nature
LCD Soundsystem – American Dream
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart – The Echo of Pleasure
The National – Sleep Well Beast
Alvvays – Antisocialites
Susanne Sundfør – Music For People In Trouble
Hundred Waters – Communicating
Rostam – Half Light
Phoebe Bridgers – Stranger In The Alps
Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Luciferian Towers
Hiss Golden Messenger – Hallelujah Anyhow
METZ – Strange Peace
Cut Copy – Haiku From Zero
Moses Sumney – Aromanticism
Torres – Three Futures
Protomartyr – Relatives In Descent
The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die – Always Foreign
Kamasi Washington – Harmony of Difference*
Alex Lahey – I Love You Like A Brother
Wolf Parade – Cry Cry Cry
Cults – Offering
The Mountain Goats – March Witch Visions*
The Weather Station – The Weather Station
Kelela – Take Me Apart
St. Vincent – Masseduction
Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile – Lotta Sea Lice
A. Savage – Thawing Dawn
Jeremy Enigk – Ghosts
Makthaverskan – Ill
Destroyer – ken
Julien Baker – Turn Out The Lights
Shamir – Revelations
OCS – Memory of a Cut Off Head
Bjork – Utopia
* Not Eligible
A Round of Sound 