ICYMI

ICYMI: The Bees returned as 77:78 (listen to their debut LP)

UK band The Bees went into hibernation after 2010’s ’Every Step’s a Yes’ but main members Aaron Fletcher and Tim Parkin returned as 77:78 this year, with the same vintage pop, crate-digger style.

ICYMI: Max from Parquet Courts has a band called Maxband (listen to debut LP)

Parquet Courts drummer Max Savage sings and plays guitar is Maxband, who lean more dreampop than his dayjob. Their debut LP came out in August.

ICYMI: Mark Lanegan released an album in 2018

Mark Lanegan is a living legend, and he remains so prolific that it’d be understandable if you missed one or two things he did. ICYMI, he put out a very good album this year with collaborator Duke Garwood…

ICYMI: Mark Peters (Engineers / Ulrich Schnauss) released solo debut 'Innerland'

If you’re jonesing for the ambient shoegaze Mark makes with Engineers (and with Ulrich Schnauss), ’Innerland’ will be welcome territory.

ICYMI: Chris Dave released a 2018 LP ft. Anderson Paak, Bilal, Phonte, Elzhi & more

Of all the ”jazz albums that hip hop fans would like,” the latest from Robert Glasper drummer Chris Dave is among the most accessible, as it’s filled to the brim with guest rappers and R&B/soul singers.

ICYMI: Suede released 'The Blue Hour,' their most ambitious LP in decades

Suede are unlikely survivors, twice over, and this year’s dark, orchestral ’The Blue Hour,’ shows they are still a creative force.

ICYMI: Khorada (ex-Agalloch) released their debut LP, played first show w/ YOB

After Agalloch split up, 3/4 of the band formed Khorada with former Giant Squid vocalist Aaron Gregory. This year, they released their first album and just recently played their first show. They have two more this weekend…

ICYMI: Confidence Man released one of the most fun LPs of the year

If iPods still existed, they’d be in all the commercials, and their debut, ’Confident Music for Confident People,’ is disposable, silly, gloriously cheesy and one of the most fun records of the year.

ICYMI: Jon Hassell released his first album in 9 years in 2018

Veteran trumpeter, ambient composer, and Brian Eno/Talking Heads collaborator Jon Hassell returned in 2018 with his first album in nine years, and it’s as vital as the work he was making four decades ago.