Saturday, December 3, 2016

2016 BEST NEW ARTISTS...




Another year of artists that I'm just discovering. Here are the best:







Anderson .Paak: the new Superman of black urban music, Paak has literally been every where, on every project and delivered a stunning soul album all by himself in the process. I look forward to what further feats he'll give us next year!





and now the rest in no particular order...




Mitski: four albums in and she's now really started to take off.





DVSN: Canadian horn dogs Daniel Daley & Nineten85 are picking up the pieces where The Weeknd once trod.





Bayonne: Roger Sellers doing nuanced electronica the way Animal Collective should.





Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam: nothing like two young pros teaming up for an exciting venture.





Gallant: how quick critics have forgotten about him, but dude's album remains silk.





Lemon Demon: Neil Cicierega is not a household name but mark my words, he's the new Kevin Barnes (Of Montreal)--you heard it here first.





The Frightnrs: many years ago Marlon James noted how Jamaicans had abandoned ska and rock steady...and here, out of a tragic A.L.S diagnosis, comes a band that's taken up the mantle.





St. Lenox: the brainchild of Andrew Choi, producing a debut that works like an earnest yet stellar history lesson.





St. Lucia: though he released his debut three years ago, Jean-Philip Grobler really caught my attention with the pop candy "Home", one of the standout songs of the year.