Top 10 albums of 2019

RAMMSTEIN

Rammstein has been with me since I was seventeen years old, so when the music starts and Till Lindemann pipes up in that booming voice of his, I get goose bumps! Now, on their first album after a ten year gap, they are as great as they ever were. Tracks like "Deutschland," "Radio," and "Ausländer" are inspired and catchy songs, and there is a spark to the whole album that is like their early stuff. It's kind of like they've rebooted their original sound, the sound that made us fall for them in the first place.

NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS Ghosteen

There is a softness to the sorrowful songs on "Ghosteen," as though there's a need to hold back, a fear that too much emoting would have devastating consequences. Despite the pain, there is a lot of beauty there too, like Cave has creatively skipped the first couple of stages and gone straight for acceptance. His voice is tired, a little hoarse, but any fan worth their salt would consider it a privilege to be obliged to share his grief. 

LEONARD COHEN Thanks for the Dance

It feels like one had hardly gotten used to the idea that Leonard Cohen is no longer with us when the new album "Thanks for the Dance" dropped in November. But this is far from a rushed attempt to cash in on his memory. The album, which has been completed by Cohen's son Adam, doesn't feel like a serving of leftovers, but like a proper production. The music that accompanies Cohen's brittle voice is so soft that it is sometimes barely perceptible, but the real reason one comes to his music is the poetry, and the words are as strong, deep and beautiful as ever. 

EBONY STEEL BAND Pan-Machine

When you're a life long fan of Kraftwerk you can't help but be completely charmed by Ebony Steel Band's instrumental cover album, recorded using live instruments, mainly marimbas and steel drums, that give the German industrial synthpop quartet's music a decidedly Caribbean feel. I don't know how this album came about or why, but I love it, and that's enough for me! 

DAVE Psychodrama

I don't listen to hip hop much, but when a bloke like Dave raps, I can really get with it, for he doesn't just go "booty booty booty" and "money money money". Dave raps about social issues in an intelligent and authentic voice, as best exemplified by the moving track "Lesley," which ends with a passionate plea for women in abusive relationships to seek help. 

SWANS Leaving Meaning

Long and slow, but never boring - ninety minutes of apocalyptic intensity, "Leaving Meaning" builds suspense and maintains it, like a good film. At some points, it's like "Twin Peaks" in musical form, and at other times like Coil at their best. Hypnotic, testing the limits of poetic rock. The formidable old no-wave anti-pop Swan's fifteenth album is an album to be reckoned with!

KIM GORDON No Home Record

On her first ever release as a solo artist, Gordon's weird and marvellous little album contains nine tracks built on deep electronic beats, noisy post-punk and cool art rock accompanied by portentous and powerful half-sung lyrics. In other words, just the kind of avantgarde brilliance you could expect from a woman who spent thirty years of her artistic life as a leading member of Sonic Youth. 

ALA.NI Acca

This is perhaps the most underrated pop album of the year. British artist Ala.Ni's minimalist songs are arranged in an array of different styles, from conventional pop to jazz to R&B to doo-wop to show tunes to folk. Ala.Ni's cool vocals are gently accompanied by strings, sometimes an upright bass, even a saw on one track, but mainly by a capella scatting. The standout track, "Le Diplomate," featuring Iggy Pop, is incidentally the coolest thing he's done for years. 

KMFDM Paradise

During their 35 years, KMFDM has released a steady stream of new material and has re-invented themselves again and again. Small wonder then that they seem to be preoccupied with checking their rear-view mirror on their new album. There is nothing wrong with reminiscing a little when there is so much varied experience to look back upon. Tracks like the rap rock "K.M.F." and the dub-ish "Paradise" remind me of 1989's "UAIOE," whereas "WDYWB" and "Binge Boil & Blow" remind me of their 1997 masterpiece "Symbols," especially since the latter is a track by original member Raymond Watts, his first appearance on a KMFDM album in 16 years! 

BILLIE EILISH When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

Adolescent singer/songwriter Billie Eilish has received a million music awards. Words like "genius" have been bandied about, but the proof is in the pudding. Once you've heard "Bad Guy," it's impossible to get it out of your head. "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" is basically just an indie pop album with some hip hop influences, but it is quite cool and the production has enough weirdness and humor in it to make it endearing.