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The Noteworthy Indie Music Albums Of 2019 You May Have Missed

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In terms of hit rock and pop albums, 2019 was a very eventful year dominated by such acts as Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Lil Nas X, Vampire Weekend, Ariana Grande, and Lana Del Ray—all of whom were recently nominated for Grammy Awards. But there were also many indie music artists who made some terrific and critically-acclaimed albums this year that shouldn’t be overlooked. They may not have the wider name recognition in the eyes of a larger mainstream public, or placed hits on the Billboard Top 10 and sold platinum records—but their latest recordings reaffirm the true meaning of music that goes beyond commercial aspirations and trends. In no particular order is a very partial list of some of the most notable albums from 2019 by both emerging and veteran indie music artists (Apologies in advance of other equally worthy records not mentioned here).


Sharon Van Etten

Remind Me Tomorrow

(Jagjaguwar)

While Remind Me Tomorrow was not technically a comeback for singer-songwriter Sharon Van Etten (she never really left the public eye through her appearances on The OA and Twin Peaks)  it did mark a return to making music for her after taking some time off in between studio albums to focus on motherhood and school. The result was a dynamic record that represented a further expansion of her sonic palette  from her early folk work, as indicated by the intense rockers “Comeback Kid” and “Seventeen,” and the beautiful ballads “Jupiter 4” and “Stay.” In an interview with NYLON earlier this year, Van Etten commented on Remind Me Tomorrow and the new sonic flourishes incorporated onto the record such as synths: “It's still me. Even though I was a little nervous about stepping up production and leaning more on synthesizers and keyboards, there are musicians playing on the record, and it's my lyrics, my voice. It's still my songwriting. I want to keep fans excited and knowing that I'm going to try something different every time, so I can grow as an artist, too.”


Kate Davis

Trophy

(Solitaire Recordings)

Speaking of Sharon Van Etten, the emerging New York City-artist Kate Davis had a hand in the former’s recent album: she co-wrote the anthemic track “Seventeen.” Davis’ name may be recognizable to those who remember her viral jazzy cover of Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass,” performed on an upright bass from five years ago. But Davis’ new and debut record, Trophy, was worlds away from the American Songbook sound that she became initially associated with; instead, Trophy was a very serious and thoughtful rock album touching on personal themes like loss (“Daisy”) and relationships (“Open Heart”). “This is kind of the first time that I'm able to put out a record that feels really truthful,” she told recently to Forbes about her proper debut record, “just a really good representation of where I'm at.”

Juliana Hatfield

Juliana Hatfield Sings The Police

(American Laundromat Records)

Juliana Hatfield’s career goes back to the mid 1980s when she was a member of the alternative trio Blake Babies. Following the break-up of that band, the Boston-based artist went on to a long and prolific solo career that included her recording an album of Olivia Newton-John covers. This year Hatfeld paid tribute to another favorite act of hers, the British New Wave band the Police, for Juliana Hatfield Sings the Police. It was a unique covers album in that while it featured a number of the Police’s greatest hits like “Every Breath You Take” and “Roxanne,” it also contained some really deep cuts including the rare B-side “Landlord,” “Murder By Numbers” and “It’s Alright for You” that really showcased what a true fan she is. And some of the songs underwent unique rearrangements in a sort of fuzzy and noisy way that put the music in a new light. “I think a lot of [the Police stuff is] more outward-looking in talking about society, culture and stuff,” Hatfield said in an interview with Forbes. “That's part of what I love about the Police. I feel an affinity for what they're talking about.”

Filthy Friends

Emerald Valley

(Kill Rock Stars)

Supergroups generally tend to be a dicey proposition, but in the case of Filthy Friends — which consists of Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker, R.E.M.’s Peter Buck, the Baseball Project’s Linda Pitmon, the Minus 5’s Scott McCaughey, and Fastbacks’ Kurt Bloch—there is strength in numbers. Filthy Friends’ second album Emerald Valley was a timely record in Trump-era America, tackling subjects such as the environment and big business (“The Elliott,” “Pipeline”), politics (“November Man”) and the border situation (the heartbreaking “Angels”); the music verged between highly-charged and thoughtful. Tucker told NYLON earlier this year: I especially wanted to focus on lyrics. I started thinking about what kind of images really come up for me, especially with Peter's guitar-playing. There is so much in terms of change in our landscape, climate, and weather—it's really disturbing to me. As someone who is a total Northwesterner, that naturally came up in this record, and we started writing.

JS Ondara

Tales of America

(Verve)

It may be one of the most unlikely stories in Americana music: a Kenyan who was drawn to the sounds of Nirvana, Radiohead and Bob Dylan travels to Minneapolis to make his mark as a singer-songwriter. The result of Ondara’s experiences as an immigrant in a new land was documented on his heartfelt record Tales of America. On this debut record, he channeled the spirit of his hero Dylan but also forged his own style and perspective as heard on a number of notable songs like “American Dream,” “Saying Goodbye” “Days of Insanity” and “God Bless America.” And like Filthy Friend's Emerald Valley, Ondara’s record has a message pertinent to today’s political and social climate.  “I hope that by singing folk songs and speaking about things that affect me and other immigrants and Americans at large, that I can in some way contribute to moving us together to a better place,” he told City Pages earlier in 2019.

The Dream Syndicate

These Times

(ANTI-)

The legendary Paisley Underground group the Dream Syndicate don’t appear to be in any danger of being labeled a nostalgia act, as was the case with their most recent record These Times—their second one since the band’s reunion in the early 2010s following a 30-year hiatus. It was a prime example of what a veteran group with a history and cult following should do: honor the past but also live in the present. In the case of These Times, the songs recalled the best elements of the group—noisy, guitar dominated rock and noir-ish lyrics—and yet still sounded contemporary. There’s not a clunker within the diverse-sounding tracklist: from the driving rockers “Put Some Miles On,” “Recovery Mode” and “The Way In,” to moodier numbers like “Still Here Now” and “Treading Water Underneath the Stars.” Said Wynn upon the album’s release: "Especially these times, when everybody needs a chance to maybe escape a little bit or shut down the noise, I find myself late at night wanting to find a record that just will take me away, that I can close my eyes and go into another world. I wanted to make a record like that this time around, a record that would serve that need that I have and probably other people’s as well."

Weyes Blood

Titanic Rising

(Sub Pop)

Outside perhaps a classical or New Age recording, Titanic Rising by Weyes Blood (the stage moniker of singer-songwriter Natalie Mering) was the most exquisitely-sounding and produced rock album in recent memory. Dreamy and lush, this textured music from Weyes Blood’s fourth studio album made one wonder if Enya had recorded in the 1920s or 1970s—Titanic Rising sounded like a cross between psychedelia, Tin Pan Alley, classical and folk accompanied by Mering’s lovely and delicate voice; some of the standout cuts included “Everyday,” “Movies,” “Andromeda” and “Picture Me Better.” Interestingly, according to the press notes for the record, Mering cited an unlikely inspiration in rocker Bob Seger: “The clarity of Bob Seger is unmistakable. I’m a big fan of conversational songwriting. I just try to do that in a way that uses abstract imagery as well.”

Ex Hex

It’s Real

(Merge)

Led by alt-rock veteran singer-guitar goddess Mary Timony, the trio Ex Hex released their much-anticipated follow-up to 2014’s excellent debut Rips. It didn't disappoint one iota—It’s Real continued to build on the group’ penchant for unabashedly radio-friendly retro punk (“Cosmic Cave”),  glam and arena rock (“Tough Enough”), New Wave (“Radiate”) and pop metal (“Rainbow Shiner”). The album combined the worlds of the Runaways, the Sweet, Blondie and Def Leppard while also sounding very much in the present. Brimming with attitude and self-confidence, Ex Hex’s musical contribution to 2019  gladly didn’t suffer the dreaded sophomore jinx. 

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