Well, looky here, it's another new year. 2024 went out with a whimper, at least in this household. The only one of us with plans was Hannah, who went to a New Year's Eve party, while the rest of us stayed home and watched TV. Which is fine, honestly. Deb and I had gone to NYE gatherings in recent years, but nobody seemed inclined to throw one this year. I wasn't running the New Year's Day race in Salem so I didn't have to watch what I ate or drank, but we stayed up until about 1, when Deb went to pick Hannah up.
One of my 2024 goals was to write something every day and I ended up doing 346 installments of my Day After Day song writeups, so I'm happy with that. It was fun to do, but I'm glad not to have that daily pressure hanging over me this year. In 2025, I'm going to take on another writing endeavor: I'm resurrecting a feature I started in 2010 called Unsung, in which I write about a pop culture phenomenon (music, movie, TV, book, etc.) that has been forgotten or underappreciated. I think I only wrote three entries over the course of a few months before I was distracted by a shiny object, or more likely at that time, kid or work duties. But this time around, I'm planning to write one post a week, which is a realistic goal, and it allows for a lot more variety than just writing about music. Hoping to have the first one up tomorrow.
Other resolutions or goals for the new year include the perennial desire to lose weight. This is the fourth straight year I've done a Dry January in an attempt to detox a little and drop some of the excess poundage I acquired over the holidays. It's usually pretty effective; coupled with cutting out junk food and desserts, I've lost anywhere between 10-15 pounds in that first month. I haven't found it to be difficult to stop drinking; I enjoy drinking, but I usually only have 2 or 3 beers on any given night. One year, I kept it going until Memorial Day Weekend.
Part of the weight thing stems from the fact I've done less running the last few years. I aggravated my right Achilles in 2022 training for a half marathon and it's taken a long time to bounce back. I went to PT a few times and a sports medicine doctor who used a "dry needle" technique that seems to have worked. That said, my heel still tends to tighten up on me so I've only been running 1-3 times a week. I ran 400 miles last year, which was more than the year before but a lot less than I did a decade ago, when I was running about three times that and a lot faster. I'm sure part of it is getting older, but I refuse to accept that I can't get at least a little faster than I have been the last little while. I'm also realistic about it, though, and have been walking a lot more on days when I can't run.
On the plus side, I'm still lifting weights 3 to 4 days a week and playing hockey twice a week. I worked out almost every day last year and still ended up being 15 pounds heavier than I want to be. Hence the Dry January deal. A friend of mine posted on FB yesterday wondering why so many people do it and postulating that maybe if you need to do it, you've got a bigger problem with alcohol. While that may be the case for some folks, the rest of us realize that there are a lot of calories in alcohol, especially in the IPAs that I typically enjoy. I was a little annoyed at the judgment. If I want to stop drinking for a while, I don't owe anybody an explanation.
I'm also looking to read more this year. I have a lot of books piling up on my nightstand and I only seem to get a lot of reading done when I'm on a trip. With no long road trips or work travel planned until later in the year, I'm going to have to get more serious about carving out time to read. When your job requires you to read all day long, sometimes it's the last thing you want to do in the evening.
And another goal is to start playing guitar again. It's been a while (been a while) and I have no illusions about playing in front of people or anything like that, but it's something I've always wanted to pick up again.
Every year is filled with its share of craziness, and if you go by the sheer level of insanity, 2024 didn't disappoint: Moo Deng, the summer of Brat, the end of Bennifer 2, the Kendrick-Drake beef, the Rizzler and the Hawk Tuah girl were all over social media at different points. One of the fun things was the ubiquitous presence of Snoop Dogg at the summer Olympics. That guy was everywhere and having a blast (and he was paid handsomely for it). It was a nice distraction before the insanity of the fall, so there's that. This week on Stuck In Thee Garage, it's part 2 of my look back at the best indie rock of 2024. It's an eye-opener.
Snoop just spotted this playlist:
Hour 1
Artist - Song/Album
Kim Deal - Disobedience/Nobody Loves You More
Cindy Lee - Lockstepp/Diamond Jubilee
Kal Marks - Motherfuckers/Wasteland Baby
Los Campesinos! - A Psychic Wound/All Hell
Johnny Foreigner - This is a Joke/How to Be Hopeful
Neutrals - That's Him on the Daft Stuff Again/New Town Dream
Fontaines D.C. - Favourite/Romance
+/- - Calling Off the Rescue/Further Afield
Lunchbox - Dinner for Two/Pop and Circumstance
Waxahatchee - Evil Spawn/Tigers Blood
The Marias - Paranoia/Submarine
Bodega - Set the Controls for the Heart of the Drum/Our Brand Could Be Yr Life
Shellac - Girl from Outside/To All Trains
The Jesus Lizard - Hide & Seek/Rack
Redd Kross - Candy Colored Catastrophe/Redd Kross
Pearl Jam - Dark Matter/Dark Matter
Hour 2
Hallelujah the Hills - Here Goes Nothing (Patrick's Version)/Single
Cloud Nothings - Running Through the Campus/Final Summer
Gouge Away - Stuck In a Dream/Deep Sage
The Cure - Warsong/Songs of a Lost World
The Lemon Twigs - If You and I Are Not Wise/A Dream is All We Know
Ekko Astral - On Brand/Pink Balloons
Ex-Hyena - Shapeshifter/A Kiss of the Mind
The Folk Implosion - OK to Disconnect/Walk Thru Me
John Davis - The Future/Jinx
Nada Surf - In Front of Me Now/Moon Mirror
Chime School - Give Your Heart Away/The Boy Who Ran the Paisley Hotel
X - Sweet to the Bitter End/Smoke & Fiction
Jack White - Bombing Out/No Name
MJ Lenderman - Wristwatch/Manning Fireworks
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - Raw Feel/Flight b741
Osees - Look at the Sky/SORCS 80
Horse Jumper of Love - Today's Iconoclast/Disaster Trick
Glitterer - The Same Ordinary/Rationale
The Bug Club - Quality Pints/On the Intricate Inner Workings of the System
Editor's note: Check out my podcast discussion with Jay Breitling about our favorite music of '24 on Completely Conspicuous (here's parts 1 and 2).
Time flies when you're something something. That's what 2024 felt like. A lot happened, much of which wasn't good, and here we are in a new year. However, what was good in 2024 was the music, especially in the second half of the year. If you're looking for the big pop or country albums in this roundup, look elsewhere because that's not my bag. But there was plenty of indie rock to get excited about. Here's my top 15 albums of '24.
15. Ducks Ltd. - Harm's Way (Carpark): Charming jangle pop from a Toronto duo that cranks out great songs with regularity. Some similarities with acts like Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever. Choice cuts: On Our Way to the Rave, Train Full of Gasoline, Hollowed Out.
14. Ekko Astral - Pink Balloons (Topshelf): Angry noise rock from D.C. punk act that doesn't shy away from political hot-button topics: Trans rights, the Israel-Palestine situation, racism, you name it. Blistering rippers upon rippers and a great live act to boot (I saw them open for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists in June). Choice cuts: On Brand, Uwu Type Beat, Sticks and Stones.
13. Dale Crover - Glossolalia (Joyful Noise): Named after the term for speaking in tongues, the third album from the Melvins' drummer features Tom Waits leading off the album by doing just that. The album is chock full of excellent psych-rock jams, with guest guitarists Kim Thayil and Ty Segall contributing hot lead guitar work. Choice cuts: Doug Yuletide, I Quit, Spoiled Daisies.
12. Jack White - No Name (Third Man): On his sixth solo album, Jack White reverts back to his rip-roaring blues punk days, with fiery and fun blasts of noise throughout. He created demand in July via guerilla marketing, with unlabeled copies of the record slipped into the bags of customers at his Third Man Records store in Nashville. After folks started posting audio rips of the album online, White released it the old-fashioned way. The best thing he's done since the White Stripes. Choice cuts: Old Scratch Blues, Bombing Out, Bless Myself.
11. Kal Marks - Wasteland Baby (Exploding in Sound): Carl Shane continues to bring the noise rock heat with the latest Kal Marks release, a pissed off collection that explores frustration with the world at large while also looking inward as a husband and father. The title track, which Shane calls an apocalyptic love song for his wife, combines the punishing musicianship of bands like Pile and Shellac with a pop undercoating. Choice cuts: Insects, Motherfuckers, Wasteland Baby.
10. J Mascis - What Do We Do Now (Sub Pop): Another excellent solo effort from Mascis, working in some hot solos among the acoustic-based songs. Taking a break from the jet-engine roar of Dinosaur Jr., Mascis digs into more folk and country influences, balancing songs about longing and loneliness with the sheer brilliance of his guitar work. Choice cuts: Right Behind You, You Don't Understand Me, I Can't Find You.
9. METZ - Up on Gravity Hill (Sub Pop): Toronto noise rock trio returns with another blistering album, tempered by more melodic touches. Frontman Alex Edkins has previously done poppier stuff with his side project Weird Nightmare, but this time around brings that feel to METZ. Guests Amber Webber and Owen Pallet contribute to the new vibe. The band has announced this is their last album, which is a bummer, but if true, what a way to go out. Choice cuts: Entwined (Street Light Buzz), Light Your Way Home, 99.
8. Fake Fruit - Mucho Mistrust (Carpark): Second album from Bay Area post-punk trio fronted by Hannah D'Amato brings the heat with vocals reminiscent of Courtney Barnett. She rips into shitty ex-partners, bad relationships and other indignities with directness, frustration and humor. The band blows through these songs with panache and power. Choice cuts: Mas o Menos, See It That Way, Gotta Meet You.
7. Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven (Epitaph): Loud, self-assured punk pop from Philly. Frontwoman Marissa Dabice is a commanding presence, leading the band through punk ragers and more tuneful interludes. Dabice rides the edge of various emotions: love, lust, pain, annoyance or just sheer anger. The band can play it quiet and gentle one moment, vicious and profane the next. It's a fun ride. Choice cuts: Loud Bark, Sometimes, OK? OK! OK? OK!
6. Daniel Romano's Outfit - Too Hot to Sleep (You've Changed Records): Shit-hot collection of power pop scorchers from prolific Canadian Daniel Romano. Ten songs that rock shit up in under 30 minutes. Romano has bounced from genre to genre, whether it was folk, country or orchestral prog. This time around, Romano and his Outfit kick out the jams, motherfuckers, with catchy and riffy garage rock that satisfies and leaves you wishing there was more. Choice cuts: Where's Paradise?, Steal My Kiss, Field of Ruins.
5. Fontaines D.C. - Romance (XL Recordings): Dublin outfit ditches the post-punk sound of their earlier albums, going for a bigger arena-ready sound that still captivates. They changed their look to something that would have worked at the height of Y2K-mania 26 years ago, but their sound is very much modern and dark. Frontman Grian Chatten is a confident presence as he navigates the band through new territory. Choice cuts: Favourite, Starburster, Here's the Thing.
4. MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks (ANTI-): The fourth solo release from the guitarist of Wednesday, the album is a feedback-drenched alt-country tour de force. I discovered Lenderman early in '24 thanks to his live album And the Wind (Live and Loose), which is excellent. He drops hilarious vignettes about losers and goofballs in a deadpan delivery that never gets excited, just acknowledges the situation, and includes plenty of pop culture references. You've gotta love an album that closes with a 10-minute song about playing "Bark at the Moon" on Guitar Hero. Choice cuts: Wristwatch, Rudolph, She's Leaving You.
3. The Hard Quartet - s/t (Matador): This wide-ranging debut from a group featuring alt-rock luminaries Stephen Malkmus (Pavement, Silver Jews) and Matt Sweeney (Chavez, Zwan) works because it doesn't sound like either man's past work. Both are hot guitarists and split lead vocals. Along with Emmett Kelly (Will Oldham) and drummer Jim White (Dirty Three, Oldham), the Hard Quartet covers a lot of ground: Scuzzy garage rock, power pop, prog excursions, angular indie rock, stoned country rock and Stonesy swagger. The HQ feels like a real band as opposed to a supergroup dominated by one or two members. Choice cuts: Rio's Song, Chrome Mess, Earth Hater.
2. The Cure - Songs of a Lost World (Fiction, Polydor, Lost, Universal, Capitol): A masterpiece of a return after 16 years from Robert Smith and Co. Majestic soundscapes that take their time to develop. The band is firing on all cylinders, with Reeves Gabrels providing sharp lead guitar, Simon Gallup with heavy bass and Jason Cooper with thunderous drumming. Smith sounds the same as he ever has, although this album's lyrical content is more serious that Cure albums of the past, with lots of ruminations on death and doom. Choice cuts: Alone, A Fragile Thing, Warsong.
1. Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More (4AD): Crazy to think that after 37 years in the biz, this is Kim Deal's first proper solo album. Although maybe the Amps one-off in '95 might qualify, or the occasional singles she released under her own name over the years. Some songs ("Are You Mine?" and "Wish I Was") were written in 2011-2013. Steve Albini helped with production. Deal sings a lot about loss; she took care of her parents before they both passed and her good friend Albini died earlier this year. There's a lot of interesting instrumentation; the title track includes strings and a brass section, but there are still rockers in abundance. Old friends Britt Walford and Jim McPherson and sister Kelley Deal all help out. It's warm, full and flat-out brilliant. Choice cuts: Disobedience, Coast, Wish I Was.
Honorable mention:
Cloud Nothings - Final Summer
Mary Timony - Untame the Tiger
Buffalo Tom - Jump Rope
IDLES - Tangk
Johnny Foreigner - How to Be Hopeful
John Davis - Jinx
The Jesus Lizard - Rack
Oceanator - Everything is Love and Death
Illuminati Hotties - Power
Horse Jumper of Love - Disaster Trick
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - Flight b741
Osees - SORCS80
Chime School - The Boy Who Ran the Paisley Hotel
Los Campesinos! - All Hell
Redd Kross - s/t
+/- - Further Afield
Shellac - To All Trains
DIIV - Frog in Boiling Water
Sharp Pins - Radio DDR and Mod Mayday 23
Les Savy Fav - OUI, LSF
St. Vincent - All Born Screaming
The Lemon Twigs - A Dream is All We Know
Neutrals - New Town Dream
Mdou Moctar - Funeral for Justice
Pearl Jam - Dark Matter
Bodega - Our Brand Could Be Yr Life
Kim Gordon - The Collective
Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood
Boeckner - Boeckner!
The Bug Club - On the Intricate Inner Workings of the System
Rick Rude - Laverne
The Smile - Wall of Eyes
Sleater-Kinney - Little Rope
Jesse Malin - Silver Patron Saints: The Songs of Jesse Malin
Reissues:
Sloan - Smeared box set
The Tragically Hip - Up to Here 35th anniversary reissue
Velocity Girl - UltraCopacetic (Copacetic Remixed and Expanded)
