It’s that time of the year again. The music magazines are already publishing albums of the year from their perspective. Over recent times I’ve made it slightly easier on myself by dividing the year into two. So back in June I posted in three separate instalments the standout albums for me up to that point. And now here are the my favourites from the second half of 2018.
Before I post any further, I recognise there is always a risk, whenever you post a list like this, that another fantastic album or EP is just around the corner. I’ve got that covered anyway, I will post an addition in a few weeks from now should I stumble upon a few brilliant new releases that are too good to leave out.
Oh, and one other thing. I’ve always struggled with brevity, if you listen to the show regularly and my conversation between tracks you’ll understand I’m sure. So this is not a lovely neat list of 10 or 20 records. That’s just impossible to slim all the great records to that small number. And finally it’s not a list that is in any sort of order. It’s simply a random posting up of the records that have meant something to me with wherever possible a video of a track I like from the album or EP. I’ll filibuster no more, here’s the list…. Enjoy exploring and please feel free to post up any comments and indeed recommendations you may have for me for releases that are your favourites from 2018.
Jess Morgan – And I can’t keep still EP
Eliza Gilkyson – Secularia
Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus – Boygenius EP
Katherine Priddy – Wolf EP
Kristian Kjellvander – Faux Guernica
Rab Noakes – Welcome to Anniversaryville
The Milk Carton Kids – All the things that I did and all the things that I didn’t do
Jess Morgan – Blue Jay single
Steve Tilston – Distant days
Robby Hecht and Caroline Spence – Two People
Alden Patterson and Dashwood – By the night
Jason McNiff – Joy and Independence
Lera Lynn – Plays well with others
The Innocence Mission – Sun on the square
Lachlan Bryan and The Wildes – Some girls quite like country music
Amanda Shires – To the sunset
Drew Morrison and the Darkwood – Electric-Notes Wild
Elephant Micah – Genericana
Lori McKenna – The Tree
Kerry Devine – Away from the mountains
The Cowboy Junkies – All that reckoning
M G Boulter and the Free – Blood Moon EP
Dan Webster – Devil Sky
Vanessa Peters – Foxhole Prayers
Grace Petrie – Queer as folk
Treetop Flyers – Treetop Flyers
Tunng – Songs you make at night
Drew Morrison and the Darkwood – Electric Notes Wild
Curse of Lono – As I fell
Me for Queen – Loose end
Gilmore and Roberts – A problem of our kind
Annie Dressner – Broken into pieces
Austin Lucas – Immortal Americans
Glorietta – Glorietta
The Willows – Through the wild
Ciara O’Neill – Arrow
Martyn Joseph – Here come the young
Sinnober – Projection
David Berkeley – The Faded Red and Blue
Ed Harcourt – Beyond the end
Kitty MacFarlane – Namer of clouds
Phillip Henry – True North
Jesse Matas – Tamarack
Kelly Oliver – Botany Bay
John Smith – Hummingbird
Marc Ribot – Songs of Resistance 1942-2018
Nathan Bell – Love bones and stars
Trevor Moss and Hannah-Lou Fair Lady London
Cam Penner – At war with reason
Karine Polwart, Steven Polwart and Inge Thomson – Laws of motion
William Fitzsimmons – Mission bell
Benjamin Folke Thomas – Modern man
Laura Gibson – Goners
Jess Vincent – Lions
Ben Kunder – Better human
