

The Ants, “Golden Submarine”Lyrically ambiguous yet playful and humorous, the stories that live in the Ants’ latest exist alongside outsider melodies. “Desert Center” is loaded with splashy guitar and loads of reverb, a bright blast of garagey rock ’n’ roll.Ħ. Guantanamo Baywatch, “Desert Center”Surf rock is the dominant sound in their 2017 release – obvious via numerous instrumentals – but this Pacific Northwest punk band is as much Soft Boys as they are Ventures. In a tribute to banjo legend Don Stover, Barnes wrangled together a top-notch band to make a traditional bluegrass album that has just a touch of Barnes’ signature weird sound.ħ.

Danny Barnes, “Stove Up”The prolific and ever-experimenting Barnes took a step back in time to his roots as a bluegrass musician, albeit one that sits on the outside of the bluegrass genre. Hints of Thin Lizzy swirl around a Jason and the Scorchers roots-punk influence, featuring big riffs and sing-a-long bits exuding a loose Southern charm.Ĩ. Bohannons, “Luminary Angels”This Chattanooga, Tennessee, rock band channels the best of ’70s rock with an indie-rock mindset. He’s a Piedmont blues picker, and on “Dog,” he’s exercising personal demons file under blues, but Parr walks the rootsy-punk line.ĩ. Charlie Parr, “Dog”Charlie Parr isn’t interested in happy songs, and that’s what makes his narrative so stellar. Here are the albums that held me all year, the things that made me sad or tap my toe, or want to listen to over and over.ġ0.
