A handful of new albums came out in 2016 that I really enjoyed. A few albums are from artists I have been listening to years, while others are recent discoveries. My taste in music tends to orbit around indie rock, with some ambient, jazz, and Japanese dance music mixed in.
The highlights from this year for me were the following albums:
- Blanco by David Bazan
- Ruminations by Conor Oberst
- 22, A Million by Bon Iver
- LP2 by American Football
- Art Nature by Tomggg
While I have enjoyed the aforementioned highlights, my favorite album of 2016 is Plays the Music of Twin Peaks by Xiu Xiu. It is a cover album of Twin Peaks music, and Xiu Xiu totally nails it. The interpretations of each song are a bit darker than the originals, which works to great effect.
My favorite songs from the album are:
Blue Frank / Pink Room — A combination of two songs from Fire Walk with Me, which go together like cherry pie and a cup of coffee. It’s one of the heavier songs on the album, and listening at a high volume is recommended.
Audrey’s Dance — The horns and animal calls mixed with the xylophone and ambient noise are spot on.
Falling — Jamie Stewart’s soft and emotional vocals are powerful in this cover of the opening song from the show. It gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it.
Plays the Music of Twin Peaks has been on repeat for me since its release. It has me so excited for the new series coming next year. Also, Xiu Xiu’s live performance that was commissioned by the Gallery of Modern Art is incredible: