My favourite albums of 2013
• The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas
Courtney Barnett
Ever listen to NPR’s All Songs Considered podcast? It’s a great way to discover new music. Exhibit A is this album from an Australian singer-songwriter
• The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight, the Harder I Flight, the More I Love You
Neko Case
She never disappoints, does she?
• Push the Sky Away
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
More mood and texture than rock ‘n’ roll, but still great
• We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic
Foxygen
Such good fun
• Southeastern
Jason Isbell
I did this list alphabetically, but if I’d ranked my top 10, this might have been number one
• Pushin’ Against a Stone
Valerie June
Discovered this one on a Billy Bragg recommendation (and speaking of Billy Bragg, he also put out a fine album this year)
• Perils from the Sea
Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle
“Baby in Death Can I Rest Next to Your Grave” is such a compelling song—and one of the best of the year
• Trouble Will Find Me
The National
I didn’t know what to make of this album when it first came out, but I couldn’t stop playing it. So that’s a good sign, right? Not as great as some of this band’s earlier work, but oddly compelling
• We the Common
Thao & The Get Down Stay Down
My love affair with this singer grows with every album
• Cerulean Salt
Waxahatchee
A fabulous follow-up to American Weekend
Just missed the cut: Phosphorescent’s Muchacho and Charles Bradley’s Victim of Love