Doug's 2024 Music Recap! The Best New Music Of The Year

A very interesting year in music indeed and it’s time for the yearly recap! A whole bunch of music veterans released new material, and I’m talking legit veterans. Like, going back to the 60’s…. Deep Purple and David Gilmour both releasing incredible new music. But it doesn’t end there - The Cure and The The returned with their first new albums in 16 and 24 years respectively. I did still have some time to discover some new artists (or at least new to me) this year, but I also got away from hip-hop a bit… may have to fix that this year, although the path takes me where it takes me. I don’t typically try to force it, and it was a taxing and emotional year for me to be quite honest.

The other thing that didn’t quite happen is an LP emerging as a clear album of the year for me, so I think I’m just not going to pick one. That doesn’t mean the albums I’m highlighting here aren’t fantastic, I just don’t want to pick a random one for the sake of picking one if there isn’t a clear cut winner. With all of that said let’s get to the best of 2024! We’ll do it in reverse alphabetical order - you know, because that’s how I scanned through the stuff in my Apple Music to pick them - scrolling from the bottom up. Lol…

Doug’s 2024 Music Recap - The Best New Music Of The Year

Let’s do this.

Wilco - Hot Sun Cool Shroud I love when Wilco follows up a full length LP with an EP of more tracks. There’s usually a loose feel when they do this since it doesn’t come with the pressure or expectations of being the NEW ALBUM. This thing covers mutliple styles from the cool rocker of Hot Sun, to the manic minute long instrumental madness of Livid, to the whispered beauty of Ice Cream, and then the formula pretty much repeats on the second three tracks. This is Wilco still at their best in only 17 1/2 minutes.

Warren Haynes - Million Voices Whisper - Fantasy

Warren Haynes - Million Voices Whisper Back with his third proper solo effort, Warren Haynes has lost none of his vocal power, knack for songwriting or shredding in endlessly melodic and bluesy ways that deliver just about every time he steps into the studio with a batch of new material. It’s also really cool to hear him trading leads with his old partner in Allmans crime, Derek Trucks who helps deliver the beautiful opener These Changes.

Ty Segall - Three Bells Ty Segall is as prolific as ever dropping a new 15 song set that runs over an hour with Three Bells - his 15th proper studio album in 16 years, not counting the myriad of side projects he’s involved with. Plenty of odd time signatures and general weirdness in the best way that very few others can pull off , and he doesn’t waste any time doing it with the incredible opening 1-2 punch of The Bell and Void. Other highlights here include Reflections and Eggman.

Steve Kilbey & Martin Kennedy - Premonition K - Easy Action

Steve Kilbey & Martin Kennedy - Premonition K Speaking of prolific, Steve Kilbey continues to tend to one of his many concurrent (to The Church) projects like the one with Martin Kennedy that alone has yielded 8 albums now, along with a bunch of commissioned works. This project continues to evolve and explore in its own way and this could be my favorite album yet from these guys. Plenty of ethereal walking on the moon type of stuff you would expect such as Whispered Voices On Tape, but there’s also a bit of dabbling in dare I say……metal? Not like speedy or noisy, just heavy on the second track Nde, which recalls the very first self titled Black Sabbath track over a half century ago. That’s Gotta Hurt was the first single and it’s an all-timer that seems a bit slight at first, but when it hits you after a few listens and reveals itself it’s really something man…wow. As a matter of fact I’m going to link to another review of this album that digs in and does it justice by Arun Kendall on Back Seat Mafia.

St. Vincent - All Born Screaming - St. Vincent

St. Vincent - All Born Screaming Boy am I late to the St. Vincent train. But better late than never. This girl is so cool and she kicks much ass. There are a few killers on this album and I’ll be digging into her catalogue based on the quality here. Favorites for me are Reckless with its sense of dread, Broken Man with its over the top ten ton bravado, and the nasty groove of Big Time Nothing. I’m a fan.

Smashing Pumpkins - Aghori Mhori Mei - Martha’s Music

Smashing Pumpkins - Aghori Mori Mei I ranked this one towards the middle of Smashing Pumpkins albums at 8th out of 13 - it’s really solid. You can read my full comments at that link but it was presented by Billy Corgan as a return to approaching an album the way they did in the ‘90’s. You can hear that here even if it doesn’t quite reach those heights or have the power and intensity of those albums. But it’s still very good in its own right and would have benefitted from NOT having those expectations attached to it.

Silverlites The notable supergroup of the year featuring Peter Buck of R.E.M., Rich Robinson of The Black Crowes, Barrett Martin of The Screaming Trees and Mad Season, and vocalist Joseph Arthur. I love the sound they have going here. Joseph Arthur is a real find in my book with an understated but rich and soothing vocal delivery that I really dig. Not all supergroup lineups work but there’s real chemistry here from some legendary pros. The first single Don’t Go, Don’t Stay sold me and the whole set delivered on that promise. The album was finally dropped on November 15th and I’m nowhere near fully digesting this one yet but I like everything I hear. No One To Follow feels like a nice warm blanket. I’ll be spending a lot of time with this one methinks.

Red Clay Strays - Made By These Moments - RCA Records

Red Clay Strays - Made By These Moments Loving this band from Mobile, Alabama so far. Great to have another alt-country southern rock band this good on the scene. The songs and the performances are so good. They rock with a good ol’ southern fried jam like Ramblin’ but their ballads are gorgeous too like No One Else Like Me, Drowning and Moments. I love Brandon Coleman’s voice.

Pearl Jam - Dark Matter - Monkeywrench Records

Pearl Jam - Dark Matter Much like the Pumpkins latest I reviewed this one and ranked it 7th out of 12 for Pearl Jam LPs. It’s really solid and has plenty of those soaring anthemic Pearl Jam moments that always get me. You can get my full breakdown on it here.

Nada Surf - Moon Mirror - New West Records

Nada Surf - Moon Mirror These guys are great at making solid Nada Surf albums you can count on and Moon Mirror (their 9th) is no exception. Nothing ground breaking here per se but that’s just fine.

Mildlife - Chorus I think I discovered these guys by a random mention in the King Gizzard subreddit (?). I can’t totally remember but this album hooked me. Kind of a combination of disco, funk and jazz that really grooves.

LL Cool J - The FORCE - LL Cool J - The F.O.R.C.E.

LL Cool J - The Force I haven’t bothered with an LL LP in a long time and this is his first set of new material in 11 years. But I’ll always have love for this old school legend and his rhymes and delivery sound vital to my ears this time around. I love the line in the first minute of the album opener Spirit of Cyrus “Racism is a disease, it’s only right I kill it.” That’s right - let’s do this. Plenty of guests from Snoop to Nas to Eminem but LL is in charge.

Kings Of Leon - Can We Please Have Fun - LoveTap Records / Capitol

Kings Of Leon - Can We Please Have Fun Notice a pattern here? Another solid effort in a year of several solid efforts by bands that can be counted on for solid efforts. The three brothers and a cousin Followill have never changed lineups or the basic formula (for the most part) and it’s a good thing with KOL. This album is almost boringly good if that even makes sense. It sounds like a Kings of Leon album. Mustang is the first single and it’s really good. If you like this band you’ll like this album.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Flight b741 - KGLW

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Flight b741 Shape shifters gonna shape shift. KGATLW “only” released one full length album this year - their 27th. But they already released the single from album 28 which could drop any day. As for Flight b741 it’s kind of a 70’s inspired hoedown of Americana that does rock and is quite a bit of fun. I saw them for the first time live this year in an all-acoustic show and the new material sounded great live. The lead single Le Risque is fantastic with multiple members contributing lead vocals. As always the band leans into the style they’ve chosen to inhabit this time out after coming off the back to back companion thrash / electronic madness of 2023’s PDA/Silver Cord right down to the audible giggle at the beginning of Hog Calling Contest. These guys are the biggest fun trolls you’ll find in music with the flat out glorious audacity to do what they do and they continue to dominate my listening time.

The Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes - Cooking Vinyl

The Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes I still don’t totally know what to do with this album. The Jesus and Mary Chain are one of my all time favorite bands and there is some real weirdness happening here. Here’s another veteran act but one that went to left field a bit and yet most of it still works somehow. The lead lower case single jamcod (as in Jesus and Mary Chain overdose) is probably the most JAMC sounding track on the album which had me thinking we’d be getting a JAMC sounding album, with the instantly classic lyric “Fucking up and then falling down but it punts me to the door, and I can’t see the ceiling cause I’m face down on the floor.” But while this album is definitely a JAMC album it goes into a few strange detours. That’s okay though - there is some great weirdness here and it’s great to hear them pushing a few boundaries with the formula a full forty years in! From the ethereal and pulsing Mediterranean X Film, to the lyrically bizarre The Eagles And The Beatles, to the strangely misspelled somewhat epic closer Hey Lou Reid, to the straightforward and gloriously cheesy Girl 71. And what’s crazy is there was a 20 year break up in there with the famously feuding Reid brothers, so when they did finally reconvene for 2017’s excellent Damage and Joy I still wasn’t sure how permanent the reunion would be. Not to mention that album wasn’t all new material, so when this album appeared 7 additional years later it was a pleasant surprise, and they’ve already released another single to boot! And here’s the kicker - the engineer on the album LOST ALL of the recordings, forcing the band to re-record the entire thing. Anyway, it’s great to have them back. Let’s hope they keep it going.

Jerry Cantrell - I Want Blood - Double J

Jerry Cantrell - I Want Blood Jerry dropped this one on October 18th so it’s still early in the game for me on this one since his material often takes time to digest, but yes - it’s fantastic and I think I might dig it more than 2021’s Brighten which was still damn good. That’s my early impression anyway. The opening single Vilified is an instant classic. Jerry’s solo work has always sounded interchangeable with Alice In Chains and this album is no exception. It’s also great to know Robert Trujillo is back on 3 of the 9 tracks since he handled bass on 2002’s epic Degradation Trip. Even Mike Bordin is back on drums for one song from that lineup but not together with Trujillo so it’s not a “full reunion” of that lineup. Let It Lie is the killer evil slow burner here with the bendy riff - hell yeah. Held Your Tongue weighs several tons - heavy as shit and sounds like it was pulled right off of Degradation Trip. Ahhh yes, this stuff gives me life man. You know what you’re getting with Jerry and he never runs out of new riffs. He’s in fine vocal form too.

Jack White - No Name - Legacy Recordings

Jack White - No Name YES!!! Jack doing what Jack does best - maybe for the first time on a solo record. And that’s not to say this is definitely his best - it could be but that title could still go to Lazaretto in my book. But while his other albums have some experimental stuff going on (too much of it in a couple cases) this one is filled with straight up White Stripes style garage vibe jams. Great energy, great Jack White madness, great riffs, great ROCK. It was released on the same day as the Pumpkins album - both with no advance singles. What an amazing day that was. Now apparently the album was given away for free on vinyl at Third Man Records stores on July 19th with no label other than a “No Name” stamp on it. I wasn’t aware of that but how cool! Highlights here include the hilarious Archbishop Harold Holmes, Tonight Was A Long Time Ago with an absolute hall of fame riff, and the epic closer Terminal Archenemy Ending which just FEELS like a White Stripes song and I can’t put my finger on why. Those 3 are already 3 of my favorites he’s ever recorded.

Goat - Goat Goat’s 6th album is self-titled and this elusive outfit kicks out the jams once again with some great rhythms, killer guitar, and screaming vocals as usual. One More Death, Goatbrain and the closer Ouroboros are the highlights. That’s about all I can tell you because no one knows anything. They remain an “anonymous” band from Sweden, claiming to be a collective of hundreds from a small town that has a history of voodoo and wearing elaborate outfits and masks when they play. I don’t know how they pull it off….

Glass Beams - Mahal Oh look here - another anonymous band that plays with masks…. So not fully anonymous - we know the founder’s name is Rajan Silva who is Indian-Australian. But we haven’t seen the trio’s faces. They play a mostly instrumental mix of Indian Classical, Jazzy and Funk. It’s so cool. And Mahal is just an EP - 5 tracks and not even 20 total minutes, but it’s mesmerizing.

Fu Manchu - The Return Of Tomorrow - At The Dojo Records

Fu Manchu - The Return Of Tomorrow Stoner Metal lives! Another veteran act that has been at it for going on 40 years, Fu Manchu returns with new set that delivers what Fu Manchu delivers. Nice and heavy with Scott Hill’s standard half-spoken Ace Frehley-ish vocals. Jams like opener Dehumanizer, Loch Ness Wrecking Machine and Hands Of The Zodiac are killer, but I also love when they stretch out into spacier territory like the back to back Solar Baptized and What I Need. At six years since 2018’s Clone Of The Universe this is the longest break between albums, but at least they made it worth the wait.

Ella Galvin - The Way It Goes Ella Galvin is the breath of fresh air that you probably hadn’t heard of yet and didn’t know you needed - just light, fun, well executed catchy pop on this 6 song EP. It kicks off with Pink Shoes as you picture her (or yourself) stepping out into New York City on a sunny spring day with a world of possibilities out in front of her (you). Other highlights include Do Not Disturb and Don’t Look Ahead but everything here is solid.

Devon Allman - Miami Moon - Create Records

Devon Allman - Miami Moon Miami Moon is listed as R&B/Soul even though you might not think of Devon Allman as an R&B artist, but that’s really what this album is. There are jam band / southern rock influences here and some killer guitar solos throughout, but with pros like Karl Denson of The Greyboy Allstars, George Porter Jr. of The Meters and Ivan Neville (Aaron’s son) on board this collection is really top notch. Devon Allman has a fantastic voice and although he’s Gregg Allman’s son with plenty of recordings under his belt it wasn’t until the Allman Betts Band that I became a fan, and now with this album I’m so impressed. It’s so smooth and in spots it really cooks. The entire album is great and my favorites are You, the title track, the instrumentals Sahara and Take The Time To Taste It and the wicked Climb Aboard

Deep Purple - =1 Ian Gillan, Roger Glover and Ian Paice are 79, 79 and 76 respectively. And they are still making kick ass records. =1 is another legit entry in Deep Purple history. Just put on Sharp Shooter and erase any doubt immediately. Long time keyboard master Don Airey who has filled in nicely for the late great Jon Lord for over two decades (and 7 full length releases now) along with new “kid” Simon McBride on guitar really crush it on this album and THE Bob Ezrin has been the band’s producer now for over a decade. These guys are dead serious - not an oldies act in any way. They still have the chops and Gillan still has the voice - okay he might not let loose with screams a la Child In Time anymore but he still sounds great and he does go there for a sec on the classic Purple-sounding Now You’re Talkin’. These guys are having a blast - it feels great to have them doing what they do and doing it well. Why it’s relatively under the radar I can’t understand.

David Gilmour - Luck and Strange - Legacy Recordings

David Gilmour - Luck and Strange Let’s talk about another new one that feels good. The last few David Gilmour albums have been really good. Yes. But with lots of time passing between On An Island and Rattle That Lock I couldn’t help feeling each time that I wish he would have gone a little more in the Floyd direction. He didn’t let loose on guitar enough, the songs didn’t rock enough, they didn’t sound gorgeous enough - all of it. And part of me has felt bad for feeling that way. For not just coming along with him wherever his journey was taking him as an artist because those are very good albums in their own right. Well, here is the album that scratches that itch. But it doesn’t sound like a step backwards or a concession of any sort. This album sounds very vital, very natural and organic, and very now, and it’s fantastic. If you’re a long time Pink Floyd fan The Piper’s Call will make you feel so good. But everything here is solid, and it’s NOT Division Bell or Dark Side - not saying that. Just saying this a great David Gilmour album. I wasn’t quite sure we’d get one of these - he’s 78. His playing on A Single Spark is gorgeous. The album is a family affair too with wife Polly Samson writing most of the lyrics and his daughter Romany singing a gorgeous lead on the Montgolfier Brothers cover Between Two Points and contributing harp on that track and the instrumental Vita Brevis (like, actual harp). Sons Charlie and Gabriel contribute some lyrics and backing vocals as well. What’s also really cool is that the title track came out of a jam in Gilmour’s barn in 2007 with Richard Wright the year before he died, so that’s Wright on keys on the song, and the original 14 minute jam is included as a bonus. It’s incredible to hear.

The Cure - Songs of a Lost World - Capitol

The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World Practically Tool-esque in the build up and delay waiting for this album for years, Robert Smith finally delivered with Songs Of A Lost World. Definitely their best since at least 2000’s Bloodflowers and probably since 1989’s Disintegration. Granted that’s not saying a ton since they’ve been really inconsistent since then, but here they are back to form. Originally supposed to be released in 2019 according to Smith, this one will be a grower - it dropped on November 1st and it’s just starting to reveal itself to me. I haven’t quite digested it yet, but I know I was blown away by the opener Alone when they opened with it when I saw them live 6/13/23 - a show where they played 5 of the 8 songs on this album over a year before it was released. The overall feel of the album is more mellow / melancholy Cure which obviously they are masters at when they go there. Drone:No Drone is a funky jam though with a killer Simon Gallup bassline (after announcing on Facebook he’d quit the band in ‘21 but then deleting the post on Facebook), but with lyrics that might not be out of place on 1982’s uber-bleak goth masterpiece Pornography such as “I lose my reason when I fall through the door, endless black night lost in looking for more. At least I know now how I lose it before one last shot at happiness.” The closer is the 10:23 epic straight-out-of-Disintegration-era Endsong with the vocals not beginning until the 6:23 mark. The album begins with Smith asking “Where did it go?” and it ends with him saying “It’s all gone. The end of every song. Left along with nothing….Nothing.” No one can make you feel so hopeful by feeling so hopeless as The Cure, and it’s a beautiful thing.

The Crosseyed - Born In The Bowery - Malcontent Records

The Crosseyed - Born In The Bowery The debut full-length from my buddy Jeff Malkin is a step forward from his 2022 EP Burnt with a reworked Dope Fiend Love Machine from that release to kick it off, and a solid set of jams that are basically a southern rock / Americana / funk stew. The band is a lineup of pros that came together to record this in the East Village in NYC. The lead single Chasing Down The High Road is a wistful tune perfect for roadtrips, the Cage The Elephant cover Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked will make you smile and other highlights include California’s Calling and the pretty Surrender.

Honorable Mentions:

My honorable mentions aren’t typically “a step below” or anything, they are usually just stuff I haven’t gotten totally into yet but are very likely worthy. I’m just not able to fully review them yet. A couple of them I literally just found out about within a week or so of writing this.

American Aquarium - The Fear Of Standing Still Beans - Boots n Cats JD Simo & Luther Dickinson - Do The Rump! Judas Priest - Invisible Shield Kerry King - From Hell I Rise Observers - Robot Dawn The Obsessed - Gilded Sorrow The Smile - Cutouts The Smile - Wall Of Eyes

Collections / Reissues:

Swervedriver - Doremi Faso Latido Jimi Hendrix - Electric Lady Studios: A Jimi Hendrix Vision The Greyboy Allstars - Grab Bag: 2007-2023

Singles:

The Jesus and Mary Chain - Pop Seeds Simple Minds - Your Name In Lights Steven Wilson - December Skies Sublime (featuring Stick Figure & Bradley Nowell - a sample of an unused vocal) - Feel Like That King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Phantom Island KRS-One & Diamond D - KINGS

To be clear, I didn’t listen to every single thing that came out in 2024. That’s pretty much impossible and I have no desire to do that. So don’t get upset with me if I missed something - tell me what I need to hear in the comments!

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M10 Social is owned by Doug Cohen in West Bloomfield, MI and provides social media training and digital marketing services from the Frameable Faces Photography studio Doug owns with his wife Ally. He can be reached there at tel:248-790-7317, by mobile at tel:248-346-4121 or via email at mailto:doug@frameablefaces.com. You can follow Doug’s band Vintage Playboy at their Facebook page here. You can also visit our other business Detroit Jerky at the website www.DetroitJerkyLLC.com!

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Doug's 2024 Music Recap! The Best New Music Of The Year