2019 has been a wonderful year for music, – at least for us listeners. So many great releases and so many new bands to love.
Here are the albums I have enjoyed the most this year. No ratings. All are good. The albums are listed by release-month. And no, I just can’t limit myself to only 10.
I think 85 is a better number.

Here is a playlist with 85 songs from these 85 albums. The playlist is set up the same way as the list below.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4PJyxzVYeJ69MgpDU6g5tL?si=ba9qcLhpQUGKn23pmyyKbA

I hope 2019 has been good to you, and brought you much joy! See you in 2020, – the year when EVERYTHING will get better.

 

January

Misty Coast – Melodaze || Dreampop  from Norway (Spotify)

Earache – Last || Jangly indiepop/dreampop (Spotify)

Pedro the Lion – Phoenix || Indie rock/pop. (Spotify)

Zach Haigley – Record-o-matic || Acoustic, bedroomy pop with experimental elements.  (Spotify)

The Bralettes – Cheers! || “bubblegum punk”. (Spotify)

 

February

Tiny Ruins – Olympic Girls || “delicate folk, lustrous dream pop and ebullient psychedelia”. Released on Courtney Barnett’s own Milk! Records. (Spotify)

It’s for Us – Stay || Melodic modern post-punk from Sweden. (Spotify)

Cherry Glazerr – Stuffed & Ready || An accurate Bandcamp review from listener Lee Tran Lam: “Like if Chromatics decided to time-travel back to the ’90s and start a grunge band” (Spotify)

Calva Louise – Rhinoceros  || Fuzzy energy-pop (Spotify)

Tullycraft  – The Railway Prince Hotel || Indiepop with brilliant lyrics.  (Spotify)

Jessica Pratt – Quiet Signs || Airy, dreamy, acoustic, quiet. (Spotify)

Star Horse – You said forever || Dreampop/indiepop/shoegaze. Interesting songwriting. (Spotify)

Pom Poko – Birthday || Weirdness, raw energy and fun rhythms. (Spotify)

 

March

CHAI – Punk || Japanese 4-piece. The album is full of fun, energy and cuteness.  (Spotify)

Westkust – Westkust || Fuzzy, shoegazy and melodic indiepop. (Spotify)

Stella Donnelly – Beware of the Dogs || Folky-ish pop with strong lyrics. (Spotify)

SASAMI – SASAMI || Dreamy pop. (Spotify)

Nanami Ozone – NO || “not quite pop, not quite punk, not quite shoegaze”, yet it is close to all of those. Kind of. (Spotify)

Alcabean – Confessions || According to the bio: “melodious guitar synth pop colored with dreamy duet vocals that take you to a blissful state of mind” (Spotify)

We Show Up on Radar – Zanzibar Whip Coral || Fragile, sweet indiepop. (Spotify)

Chris Cohen – Chris Cohen || Melodic indie with unusual and complex arrangements. (Spotify)

Mathilda Brink – Maestro || Poetic, rough, jangly with a touch of folk and a touch of indiepop. Sung in Swedish. (Spotify)

Shiny Times  – Can’t be depressed || Jangly, dreamy, soft-voiced indiepop/bedroom pop. (Spotify)

 

April

Elva – Winter Sun || Folky indiepop. The band from Moss, Norway includes members from Making Marks and Allo Darlin’. (Spotify)

Flying Fish Cove – At Moonset || indiepop, Heavenly-style. (Spotify)

Teen Body – Dreamo || dreamy indie pop, or “dreamo”, as they call it. (Spotify)

Bubblegum Lemonade – Desperately seeking sunshine || Catchy, jangly indiepop from Scotland, “rooted in bubblegum pop and jangly groups like Talulah Gosh and Primal Scream”. (Spotify)

Billie Eilish – When we all fall asleep, where do we go? || “Commercial pop” with a surprisingly experimental touch. (Spotify)

Jess Ribeiro – LOVE HATE || If  the girls from The Shangri-La’s were young today and had started a band, this may be how they would sound

. (Spotify)

Mammoth Penguins – There’s no fight we can’t both win || “Energetic, bouncy indie rock” (Spotify)

Evripidis and his Tragedies – Mia Triti Stin Cantina || Well crafted ndiepop with vocals sung in Greek. (Spotify)

 

May

Operators – Radiant Dawn || Electro-pop with guitars. The band features members of Wolf Parade, Handsome Furs, Divine Fits, Devojka and New Bomb Turks (Spotify)

The Ballet – Matchy Matchy || Catchy synthpop/indiepop with touching lyrics. This has been on repeat for a while here in my house. (Spotify)

Lowland Hum – Glyphonic || Warm and melodic “art-folk”. (Spotify)

Coral Collapse – Don’t wait to see me say goodbye || Dreampop/shoegaze from New York. (Spotify)

KUNG-FU GIRL – KUNG-FU GIRL || Rough, energetic, punky indiepop from Japan. (Spotify)

whenyoung – Reasons to dream || Energetic, powerful, catchy indie pop. (Spotify)

Maps – Colours, Reflect , Time Loss || Orchestral, electronic dreampop. (Spotify)

Vampire Weekend – Father of the bride || Hipster pop

. But good. 🙂 (Spotify)

 

June

Keel Her – With Kindness || Warm, rhythmic, melodic, a tiny bit melancholic, “dreamy in a Stereolab/Broadcast-ish way”…   (Spotify)

No Aloha – Okay Alone ||  Indiepop, with lovely melodies, arrangements and atmospheres. (Spotify)

Palehound – Black Friday || Good songs and lyrics, with a little bit of the good kind of roughness. (Spotify)

Jeanines – Jeanines || Jangly, classic indiepop. (Spotify)

Fresh – Withdraw || Energetic  “jump around” punky indie pop

. (Spotify)

Rat Fancy – Stay Cool || Rough, upbeat, kind of punky, melodic indiepop. (Spotify)

 

July

Cat Apostrophe – Lifelong Amateurism || Rough, melodic and jangly guitar-pop. (Spotify)

Jesca Hoop – STONECHILD || Mostly acoustic, interesting both musically and lyrically. (Spotify)

Florist – Emily Alone || Melancholic, beautiful , calm songs. (Spotify)

seablite – Grass stains and novocaine || Fuzzy, melodic indiepop. (Spotify)

Penelope Isles – Until the tide breaks in || Dreamy guitar-pop out on Bella Union. (Spotify)

U.S. Highball – Great Record || Jangly, catchy pop songs. (Spotify)

Smaller Hearts – Honestly || Electronic pop/synthpop.  (Spotify)

Fashion Brigade – Fvck the heartache || Collaborative project feat. members of Scotland Yard Gospel Choir, Frankie Cosmos, LCD Soundsystem, Dirty Projectors, Icy Demons, Prince Rama, Phosphorescent, and loads more. (Spotify)

 

August

0 stars – Blowing on a marshmallow in perpetuity || Unique sound, and difficult to put in a genre other than “pop” or “indie”. Warm, intimate songs. (Spotify)

Joyero – Release the dogs || Fragile, organic pop, – based on electronics. (Spotify)

Psapp – Tourists || Playful pop. (Spotify)

Black Belt Eagle Scout – At the party with my brown friends || Indie/folk-ish-ish. (Spotify)

Modern Nature – How to live || Psychedelic/folk project from Ultimate Painting/Mazes/Beak members. (Spotify)

Queen of Jeans – If you’re not afraid, I’m not afraid || Indie (Spotify)

Slaughter Beach, Dog – Safe and also no fear || Indie (Spotify)

Orange Crate Art – Astral lullabies on the treshold || Big-sounding, warm, psychedelic “space pop”. (Spotify)

Francis Lung – A dream is U || Harmony based, orchestral pop. Beach Boys anno 2019? (Spotify)

 

September

Operator Music Band – Duo duo || “art pop”-ish and angular, with lots of old-school synths. (Spotify)

Frankie Cosmos – Close it quietly || Indiepop (Spotify)

Boat to Row – Rivers that flow in circles || Warm, calm indie, with elements of  the sound of late 60s/early 70s folk. (Spotify)

Babe Rainbow – Today || Psych-pop with folk elements. There is even a bit of bossa-nova here. (Spotify)

Simen Mitlid – Neutral || Fine, melodic pop from Norway. (Spotify)

The Needs – You Need the Needs || Powerpop with sunshiny melodies and cool guitar hooks. (Spotify)

 

October

Gold Celeste – The gentle maverick || Sun-drenched psych-POP (Spotify)

levitation room – Headspace || Very catchy, dreamy psych pop, leaning both on 60s pop and the more modern indie-sound. (Spotify)

Lisa Prank – Perfect love song || Fuzzy, catchy, punky indiepop. (Spotify)

The Leaf Library – The world is a bell || Playful, experimental art pop “covering a wide stylistic range that falls somewhere between mellow indiepop and droning post-rock”. (Spotify)

DIIV – Deceiver || “shoegaze bliss with grunge catharsis”, according to the band. (Spotify)

Mousey – Lemon law || These songs can go from catchy, upbeat pop to calm, melancholic emotional ballads. I like both parts. (Spotify)

Shana Falana – Darkest light || Psych/shoegaze/dreampop (Spotify)

yeule – Serotonin II || Calming, dreamy electronic pop with whispery vocals (Spotify)

Rocketship – Thanks to you || Indiepop, both very catchy and  with more experimental elements (Spotify)

 

November

Daybehavior – Based on a true story || Probably the album I have listened the most to since November. Catchy electro-pop. (Spotify)

The Model Spy – Serenest (A long play on truth, deceit and souvenirs) || Indiepop/electropop/dreampop from Greece (Spotify)

Fenella – Fenella || Synth-heavy ambient pop featuring Jane Weaver (Spotify)

Green Buzzard – Amidst the clutter and mess || Sydney based “indie pop unit with a penchant for pairing  big Brit-pop hooks with Guided by Voices-esque garage punk” (Spotify)

Pomme – les failles || Melancholic French songs. (Spotify)

Cloth – Cloth || “Angular alt-rock with deep electronic grooves”. Lovely, soft, reverbed vocals. (Spotify)

Pure Moods – Upward Spiral || Melbourne-based lo-fi-ish melodic indie (Spotify)

Pastel Coast – Hovercraft || French indiepop/dreampop band with influences from bands like The Drums, Beach Fossils , DIIV and Motorama. (Spotify)

 

December

Nothing has impressed me – as usual – in December. It’s all bells and (reissues of) The Hollies. See what I did there? I am so clever.

Listen to the songs from this list on Spotify: