Each year, our staff comes together to highlight our favorite albums released by local artists. 2017 felt like a big year for Twitter: Be it words shared by our courageous sisters, daughters, and mothers that earned Time magazine’s Person of the Year cover, or our President’s grammatically-challenged announcements, it was impossible to avoid reading (or at least hearing about) tweets. So, we felt it was only appropriate that our albums of the year list was conveyed in the language of 2017: tweets.
Here are our staff favorites, in no particular order:
Glory the Night by Atlas Lab
.@AtlasLabMusic‘s first full-length is echoing and distant—a smoky memory. Solei’s crackling fireside voice with jazzy guitar riffs and crisp cymbals tsk’s. Halfway through, get lost in the dizzying guitar solo of “Maze.” Glory the Night is a psychedelic glimmer of soul. -KB pic.twitter.com/CCBF8ZRcZq
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
November 3 by Oompa
Bubbly & bouncy, November 3rd is a sip of soda—one sweetened with snippets like a new take on Kendrick’s “The Blacker The Berry.” Don’t get too distracted by the fizzles and pops, though. You’ll need time to unpack @OompOutLoud‘s clever lines: the carbonated, serious bite. -KB pic.twitter.com/CcvWbsvddM
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Retrofit by The Max Tribe
A Polaroid photo of the Arctic Monkeys catches aflame. Smoldering guitar, crashing cymbals, and gritty vocals ensue. The question is no longer R U Mine? In fact, it’s hardly a question anymore. @themaxtribe serenades soon-to-be lovers: Will You Be Mine -KB pic.twitter.com/c6l3V582kc
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Shep by Yohannes
What do you get when a business major, an engineer, and a computer scientist pick up instruments? An album named after @whoisyohannes‘ apartment that embodies the “Sunday scaries.” It’s confrontational but understanding, where upbeat music balances uncertain lyrics. -AM pic.twitter.com/IN55PXCKzt
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
WNDR by Kyle Thornton & Co
An exploration of love and heartbreak at the intersection of hip-hop and theater, where violin meets R&B. @ktandtheco‘s sultry voice gets your heart racing in time with his. Muted trumpet and organ swim throughout the album, mixing a vintage edge with Frank Ocean vibes -AM pic.twitter.com/DWTLA1gG4C
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Bat House by Bat House
Sludgy, melting psych-rock straight from outer space. @bathouseband fuses math rock guitar riffs with echo chamber vocals. The results are delightfully disorienting. It’s @americfootball on an acid trip, & they’re reaching their hand out for you to join in on the fun—take it -AM pic.twitter.com/Q8q22SBRUH
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Ed Buys Houses by Sidney Gish
Intellectual, homegrown bedroom pop reminiscent of Lorde’s “The Love Club.” The 20-year-old Northeastern student wraps self-harmonies around hand claps and simple guitar riffs, layered with witty wordplay that’s all pieced together from voice memos recorded on T rides. -AM pic.twitter.com/2pnbgTLcFS
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Catacombs by Honeysuckle
More songs about birds and death but, that’s not a bad thing. @Honeysuckleband‘s characteristic somber tone, but with a newfound toughness. This is no sophomore slump: The band digs deeper emotionally, and finds grit in their voices and anger in their lyrics. -MO pic.twitter.com/6aeYZQfTxI
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Salt by Ben Cosgrove
Don’t be fooled by the serene scene of Salt’s cover, this is a sharp inhale on a cold winter day: tense & beautiful & alive at once. @bencosgrove music conveys its feeling as urgently as if he were screaming—except his language of choice is soft piano keys & guitar strings -MO pic.twitter.com/7cgpykgY7M
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018
Torch Song by STL GLD
Stuffed with spoken word samples and references from everything from Civil Rights Movement anthem “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize” to Eric Garner’s final words, the eclectic & conscious Torch Song demands an uprooting of the systematic prejudices plaguing today’s America -KB pic.twitter.com/9oWrYyndLG
— Sound of Boston (@SoundofBoston) February 5, 2018