Don Giovanni artists' favorite music of 2015 (Chris Gethard, Screaming Females, Downtown Boys, Tenement, more)
photo: Chris Gethard at TCGS Fusion premiere (more by Ryan Muir)
Like in past years, several Don Giovanni Records artists have given us lists of their favorite music (and more) of the year. This time we’ve got lists from Downtown Boys (who, amazingly, include the blink-182/Drake mashup), Screaming Females, Tenement, Izzy True, Shellshag, Worriers, Mikey Erg, Vacation, Aye Nako, Roadside Graves, comedian Chris Gethard, and label co-founder Joe Steinhardt. Check out all of their lists below. Chris Gethard’s two-item list has especially entertaining commentary.
Downtown Boys also just announced a tour with Sheer Mag, who are on their list.
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Joe Steinhardt (Modern Hut, label co-founder)
2015 media in alphabetical order:
Daniel Bachman – River (Three Lobed)
Bikini Kill – Revolution Girl Style Now (Bikini Kill)
Dave Rawlings Machine – Nashville Obsolete (Acony)
Drive-By Truckers – It’s Great To Be Alive (ATO)
Kristin Hersh – Don’t Suck, Don’t Die (University of Texas)
Jessica Hopper – The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic (Featherproof)
Jeffrey Lewis – Manhattan (Rough Trade)
The Salt Of The Earth documentary
Sheer Mag – II (self released)
Ian Svenonius – Censorship Now! (Akashic Books)
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Downtown Boys
Keep Movin, Abdu Ali
Someone Like That, Sneaks
Straight Lines, shopping
Carrie, French vanilla
Blink 182 and drake “hotline bling” mashup
Loveblood noun
Kendrick Lamar “alright”
Masculine Artifice G.L.O.S.S.
Ripe screaming females
Game Over, Sammus
Morning Sun, Holly Herndon
I don’t wanna fight, Tropic Green
Destiny Frasqueri “Soul Train”
Missy Elliott – WTF (Where They From) ft. Pharrell Williams
Cracks, Cold Beat
Whose Side Are You On, Sheer Mag
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Jarrett Dougherty (Screaming Females)
11 Releases That I Listened To A Lot This Year That Came Out This Year, In Alphabetical Order (like MTV12):
Joey Bada$$ – B4.DA.$$
Buck Biloxi and The Fucks – Streets of Rage
Evan Caminiti – Meridian
Courtney Barnett – Sometimes I Sit And Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit
The Coneheads – L.P. 1 (who’s got my copy?)
Alessandro Cortini – Forse 3
Downtown Boys – Full Communism
G.L.O.S.S. – Girls Living Outside Society’s Shit
Shellshag – Why’d I Have To Get So High?
Sleater-Kinney – No Cities To Love
Vacation – Non-Person
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Amos Pitsch (Tenement)
– D’Angelo – Black Messiah
– Kamasi Washington – The Epic
– George Clanton – 100% Electronica
– Vacation – Non Person
– The Bug – Demo
– Laffing Gas – Demo
– Jeff Lynne’s ELO – Alone in the Universe
– Trauma Harness – Tried My Hardest
– The Figgs – Other Planes Of Here
– Radioactivity – Silent Kill
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Izzy True
Fraternal Twin – Skin Gets Hot
Night Auditor – Drugzdilla
Downtown Boys – Full Communism
Sheer Mag – II
Kurt Vile – B’lieve I’m Goin Down
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Chris Gethard
“Many great albums came out this year. It would be too insular and easy to make a whole list of Don Giovanni releases, since Screaming Females, Worriers, Mal Blum, Laura Stevenson, Shellshag, Tenement and so many more made me proud to be a part of this label. And as a true born son of New Jersey I support anything The Front Bottoms do.
That being said, there are two albums that came out this year that I think rank among my all time classics, albums that I assume I will play many times for my children and that helped me rethink how I approach my own art. I’m not exaggerating. These two rearranged my DNA a bit –
1. Jeff Rosenstock – We Cool? – First off, catchy. Secondly, you can’t hum a few bars of any song on this album without having it stuck in your head all day. This is a process known as “Being Rosenstocked”. You can also Rosenstock someone by singing a chorus from any of these songs in front of them and watching them have it stuck in their heads all day. His songs are so catchy his name is now a verb. Third and most importantly – no album has previously captured so well what it’s like to grow into your thirties, hanging on to your dreams while wondering if you should instead just go and be an adult. I think a lot of people in their twenties enjoy this album right now because it’s awesome and fun and Weezer-ish at points and you can sing along to it, but as someone who turned 35 this year it’s actually sad and poetic and chilling.
2. Hamilton: The Original Broadway Cast Recording – I know I’m supposed to be cool and stick to the pop music, but this shit rules so hard. Also, if you think of punk as smashing conventions and expectations on how to do things – to constantly wonder why things have to be the way they are – this is the punkest thing that’s ever happened. A hip hop Broadway musical where minority actors play white founding fathers and just doesn’t make sense and never feels gimmicky but actually feels like this story HAD to be told this way? Sign me the fuck up. Lin Manuel Miranda is the 2015 Joe Strummer. Dear Theodosia is the new Blitzkreig Bop. Leslie Odom Jr is Broadway’s GG Allin. Quote me on all this.
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John Gleason and Jeremy Benson (Roadside Graves):
In no particular order
Max Richter – Sleep
Joan Shelley – Over and Even
Low – Ones and Sixes
Majical Cloudz – Are You Alone?
Odawas – Black Harmony
Bruce Brubaker – Glass Piano
Peals – Seltzer
Joanna Newsom – Divers
Bob Dylan – Shadows in the Night
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Shellshag
Top 12 album. We probably forgot some and not sure what year it is but these really stick out at the moment.
Vacation- Non Person
Screaming Females – Rose Mountain
Tenemant – Predatory Headlights
Underground Railroad To Candyland – The People are Here
Delay – Circle Change
Basement Benders- Lydiad
Beach Slang- The things we do to find people like us
Pale Angels – Imaginary People
Acid Fast – Rabid Moon
Max Levine Ensemble – Backlash Baby
Laura Stevenson- Cocksure
Worriers- Imaginary Life
John Hays- John Hays tape
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Lauren Denitzio (Worriers)
In no particular order.
Hop Along – Painted Shut
Caves – Leaving
Lithuania – Hardcore Friends
Against Me! – 23 Live Sex Acts
Spraynard – Mable
Florence + The Machine – How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
Jeff Rosenstock – We Cool?
All Dogs – Kicking Every Day
Terrible Feelings – Tremors
Tenement – Predatory Headlights
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Mikey Yannich (Mikey Erg, Worriers)
1. XTC- Oranges & Lemons The Surround Series Blu-Ray
2. Yes – Fragile (Steven Wilson Remix Blu-Ray)
3. The Beatles 1+
4. Frank Zappa – Roxy The Movie/Soundtrack
5. Rainbow Ffolly – Sallies Fforth (MONO Vinyl Reissue)
6. V/A Ork Records – New York, New York
7. Pink Floyd – 1965 Their First Recordings
8. Refused – Freedom
9. Bob Dylan – The Cutting Edge (Collectors Edition)
10 Mike Krol – Turkey
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Vacation
1. Shellshag- Why’d I Have To Get So High
2. Screaming Females- Rose Mountain
3. Tenement- Predatory Headlights
4. Purple 7- Garden Eyes (Salinas Recs)
5. 50 Million-The Song Remains Insane (Starcleaner)
6. Tony and Mahoney- Oral History (self-released)
7. Nervosas-Self Titled (Dirtnap Recs)
8. Todd Killingz- Gold (self-released)
9. Notches- Huge (Hip Kid)
10. Whatever Bob Pollard released this year.
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Joe (Aye Nako)
Bomba Estéreo – Amanecer
didi – tape
Your Heart Breaks – America
Moor Mother Goddess – every song up on soundcloud
Guerilla Toss – Flood Dosed
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Mars (Aye Nako)
Bomba Estéreo – Amanecer
Sammus – Three-Fifths (it’s only one song but I don’t care because it’s urgent and relevant af)
Didi – Didi (cassette)
Potty Mouth – Cherry Picking EP
Speedy Ortiz – Foil Deer
