You all always key me in to something new.
I didn’t buy a lot of new music this year, but my few favs are (basically in order):
Miles and Coltrane — Final Tour. It’s everything I’d want. And like all the pro reviewers say, you really can feel the tension
Kevin Galloway — The Change. I’d never heard of this guy, heard the song Drive For Miles on the radio and it made me want the album. I haven’t been so unexpectedly struck by an album in years. I love it. Kind of a country soul feel.
Revivalists — Take Good Care. I think I’m in a minority, but I’ll take this over Men Amongst Mountains.
Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real. The thing that was unexpectedly nice here? His guitar playing.
Marcus King Band — Carolina Confessions. I’ve noted on here a few times that he still wears his influences on his sleeve, but I really like this one and feel he has much more his own voice (guitar-wise) on this one.
Father John Misty — God’s Favorite Customer. Kinda hipsterish singer songwriter stuff. Not normally my bag but I really like this one.
I’ll add that Van Morrison’s new one really didn’t do much for me. People love it but aside from a couple cuts it just sounds rote.
[Edited on 12/30/2018 by cmgst34]
Good topic. I always like to check out these suggestions on what I may have missed.
Pretty boring year for new releases to me. Two standouts were: Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats "Tearing at the Seams" & Magpie Salute "High Water"
Really hoping the new TTB album is killer in 2019.
cmgst34, RE: Kevin Galloway, I just got into Uncle Lucius this year!. I went to give this a listen and it their old lead singer!
The Greyhounds - Cheyenne Valley Drive . . . r&b, soul, funk, texas boogie, phenomenal musicianship
https://www.americanbluesscene.com/greyhounds-create-huge-sound-on-cheyenne-valley-drive/
Clutch - Book of Bad Decisions . . . just happened across this recently on the jukebox, hard-driving rock heavy blues, monster funk, hearing Rare Earth, Pearl Jam, Kennedys, Zz Top, Sabbath, potent mixed drink - blistering, uptempo. Just now clawing their way out of the majorlabel toxic waste dump, where they were doomed for decades, got their own label, sounds really good.
This one is a lot of fun: "In Walks Barbarella" https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ9GSFZZY6c
Clutch site, good backstory, tour http://www.pro-rock.com
Fantastic Negrito - Please Don't Be Dead . . . Grammy winner in 2016, this record nominated 2018 - R&B, rockin blues, soul, great lyrics
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=djWziMwFVWw
[Edited on 12/29/2018 by BrerRabbit]
here are some 2018 releases that are in constant rotation here.
The War and Treaty - Healing Tide
Pistol Annies - Interstate Gospel
Tony Bennett/Diana Krall - Love is Here to Stay
Wild! Wild! Wild! - Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis
Jim Lauderdale - Time Flies
Out of the Blues - Boz Scaggs
Shannon Shaw - Shannon in Nashville
Won't Let You Down - Bridget Kearney
Free Yourself Up - Lake Street Dive
Golden Hour - Kacey Musgraves
Accomplice One- Tommy Emmanuel
Blackberry Smoke - Find a Light
Tinsley Ellis - Winning Hand
Buddy Guy - The Blues is Alive and Well
Carolina Confessions - Marcus King Band
Frank Zappa - Roxy Performances
I have become a big fan of Steven Wilson - his work and his surround sound remasters of various artists. He was in Opeth, No-Man, Porcupine Tree and Blackfield. He is solo now, but I have gone back and bought a lot of his previous work. Because of this, I have gotten into a couple other bands - Pineapple Thief and Riverside. so add these 2 -
Pineapple Thief - Dissolution (drummer is now former Porcupine Tree and King Crimson - Gavin Harrison)
Riverside - Wasteland - this is becoming one of my favorites. They are from Poland.
Check out some of their videos here. Whenever I play Lament I have to turn it up....
https://riversideband.pl/en/me/videos
They are mostly prog - rock, heavy at times, but also nice acoustics. I have been picking up some of their older albums too. I am seeing Riverside in Chicago in May at a small place that only holds 450-500 people ..... just hope I can stand thru the whole show... 
Just checked out Riverside - nice, thx
here are some 2018 releases that are in constant rotation here.
The War and Treaty - Healing Tide
Heard these folks on the radio for the first time just the other day. I immediately wanted to hear more.
In 2018, I mostly spent time on Youtube! I did buy some older albums but will try to stick to things that were actually released this year:
John Coltrane: "Both Directions at Once: The Lost Album" - even if it is leftovers, it is Coltrane in his prime, so come on, people.
Van Morrison (with Joey DeFrancesco): "You're Driving Me Crazy" - a light, swingin' disc that is fun, fun, fun. Nothing too heavy or revelatory but still very cool.
Jeff Tweedy: "Warm" - as with any offering by Tweedy, it takes me some time to assess. It is growing on me for sure, and in many ways it is his biggest throwback to Tupelo / early Wilco yet.
Steve Hackett: "Wuthering Nights: Live in Birmingham" (DVD) - really great stuff from a prog master on top of his game, serving up one set of solo material and new stuff, and then one set of Genesis classics, focusing on "Wind and Wuthering." Since the guitar was kind of buried on "Wind and Wuthering," this live set really brings out some elements in those songs that I had not fully grokked.
Khruangbin: This is a band that a friend of mine turned me on to, and they are wonderful. I do not have any of their work yet, but have been checking out their stuff on Youtube A LOT. They are a 3-piece band that play great spacey instrumental music, sort of like if The New Mastersounds drank a lot of cough syrup - some Latin vibes, surf rock sounds, funk drum beats - great music to zone out to. Here is their 12-minute NPR Tiny Desk concert:
And here is them live for a longer show (50 min):
My catch-up 2017 discs that I didn't get until 2018:
I finally got "Hudson," the Scofield/ DeJohnette/ Medeski thing, and it is EXCELLENT. Scofield sounds like Jeff Beck circa 1972 at times here. Lots of excellent playing on this disc with a few throw-away numbers.
I got Greta Van Fleet's "From the Fires," and I can see why some people write it off as too derivative while others just crank it up and let it kick ass all day long. It IS unoriginal and it DOES rock.
Finally, I got the first Magpie Salute disc, and I really love it, so I need to get the newer one ASAP.
