Listening Habits: 09-10.2019

It is the end of days for 2019 and for the second decade of the 21st century as well, which means that the time of reckoning is near! What were the albums that stood out in the last twelve months and, perhaps more importantly, what were the new music creations that meant the most to us in the last ten years of our lives? All these questions will be answered soon, but for now Cool Music Central asks and answers the more simple question of what have we been listening to the most in the last couple of months.

"No Home Record" is the first ever album that Kim Gordon releases under her own name and it marks her first venture into experimental electronic music. Her unmistakable vocal delivery and bursts of guitar noise here and there remind us of Kim's past work, but the only other record in her resume that came to my mind while listening to the the new songs, which often feel closer to Aphex Twin than Sonic Youth, was "The Whitey Album" where Sonic Youth, under the guise of Ciccone Youth, experimented with pop music deconstruction. The end result is nothing less than exhilarating, subverting what you might expect from a Kim Gordon solo record and finding new ways to bring together noise rock and electronic music.

Angel Olsen's "All Mirrors" is also a reinvention of sorts. She moved from folk to electrifying rock in her previous album, 2016's excellent "My Woman", and now lush string arrangements come into the picture, redefining her sound and creating a rich, textured orchestral background for her powerful, emotional delivery. Another masterful work by one of this decade's best songwriters!

In our Top 15 below, you'll find several more strong new releases that solidify my assessment that 2019 has been one of the best years in recent memory for music, including Diiv's "Deceiver", a deep dive into '90s dream pop with the spirit of My Bloody Valentine guiding their efforts, Thom Yorke's "Anima", perhaps his best solo effort so far, plus the amazing debut by Dublin's The Murder Capital, titled "When I Have Fears", which we recently had the pleasure of attending its live presentation.

Here are our Top 15 albums and tracks for September - October 2019:

Top 15 Albums

1.   All Mirrors - ANGEL OLSEN
2.   No Home Record - KIM GORDON
3.   Anima - THOM YORKE
4.   Deceiver - DIIV
5.   When I Have Fears - THE MURDER CAPITAL
6.   Any Human Friend - MARIKA HACKMAN
7.   The Center Won't Hold - SLEATER-KINNEY
8.   This Is Not A Safe Place - RIDE
9.   Close It Quietly - FRANKIE COSMOS
10. Venus In Leo - HTRK
11. In The Morse Code Of Break Lights - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
12. Stars Are The Light - MOON DUO
13. Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost Part 1 / Part 2 - FOALS
14. Eton Alive - SLEAFORD MODS
15. Years To Burn - CALEXICO / IRON AND WINE

Top 15 Tracks

1.   Blankenship - DIIV
2.   Green & Blue - THE MURDER CAPITAL
3.   Summer - ANGEL OLSEN
4.   Sketch Artist - KIM GORDON
5.   Not The News - THOM YORKE
6.   The One - MARIKA HACKMAN
7.   Hurry On Home - SLEATER-KINNEY
8.   Future Love - RIDE
9.   Falling Down The Stairs Of Your Smile - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
10. Lost Heads - MOON DUO
11. You Know How To Make Me Happy - HTRK
12. 41st - FRANKIE COSMOS
13. In Degrees - FOALS
14. Kebab Spider - SLEAFORD MODS
15. Midnight Sun - CALEXICO / IRON AND WINE