Avant Music News Best of 2017: Part II – Albums of the Year

To the extent that these lists mean much of anything, here are our favorite recordings of 2017. Many of these albums have been reviewed here at AMN, and such reviews have been linked in the list below.

This year, our list is so lengthy that we broke it into two separate postings. The “best of” is today, and the honorable mentions were yesterday. As usual, let me add the usual disclaimer that this list is incomplete, I have not heard all 2017 releases, and have probably missed a few really good ones. Enjoy.

Like this list? Feel free to peruse previous years’ lists.

Albums of the Year

Harris Eisenstadt – Recent Developments
Nathan Hubbard’s ER Quartet – Lattice Trust
Max Johnson – In the West
Matt Mitchell – A Pouting Grimace

Best of 2017

Rez Abbasi – Unfiltered Universe
Jessica Ackerley Trio – Coalesce
Ager Sonus – Book of the Black Earth
Lina Allemano Four – Sometimes Y
Lina Allemano / Titanium Riot – Squish It!
Gonçalo Almeida / Rodrigo Amado / Marco Franco – The Attic
Änglagård – Live: Made in Norway
Arcana – Petrichor
Daniel Barbiero / Cristiano Bocci – Non-Places
Bashan – EP1
Tim Berne / Snakeoil – Incidentals
Bernstein, Marcelo, Popejoy, and Podgurski – Propolis
Lea Bertucci – All That is Solid Melts into Air
Björkenheim / Sopko / James / Laswell / Yamaki – Inaugural Sound Clash (For the 2 Americas)
Raoul Björkenheim / eCsTaSy – Doors of Perception
Brooklyn Raga Massive – Terry Riley in C
Bubblemath – Edit Peptide
John Butcher / Damon Smith / Weasel Walter – The Catastrophe of Minimalism
J Butler – Real and Surreal
Chamber 4 – City of Light
Anji Cheung – Spirit as Creature
Chicago / London Underground – A Night Walking Through Mirrors
Cinchel – Temporary Radiance
Rodger Coleman / Sam Byrd – Who Doesn’t Fade
Colossloth – Heathen Needles
Common Eider, King Eider – Shrines for the Unwanted, Respite for the Cast Aside
Creation VI – Deus Sive Natura
DR MiNT – Voices in the Void
Ex Eye – Ex Eye
Flames of Genesis – Interstellar Transmigration Part I: A Bridge to Further Realms
Tomas Fujiwara – Triple Double
Gravetemple – Impassable Fears
Mary Halvorson Quartet – Paimon: The Book of Angels Volume 32
Haunted Me – Gretchen Feast on Slow Things
Haunted Me – Plague
Haunted Me – Slow (Remix)
Nathan Hubbard / Vinny Golia – Hunter’s Moon
Iurta – Notes Toward a Mental Breakdown
Jazznoize – Obra Sintética
D. Kamins / D. Smith / A. Fielder / J. Herntestein – After Effects
Noah Kaplan Quartet – Cluster Swerve
Reid Karris – Arbor Philosophica
Reid Karris – Divinatio Exitium
The League of Assholes – In Ogre Ate
Led Bib – Umbrella Weather
Louis Minus XVI – De Anima
Miriodor – Signal 9
Nicole Mitchell – Mandorla Awakening II: Emerging Worlds
Kyle Motl / TJ Borden – Appreciation
Nelson / Dahl / Podgurski – GRID
Neuringer / Dulberger / Masri – Dromedaries
Party Pack ICE – Party Pack ICE
Craig Pedersen Quintet – Approaching the Absence of Doing
Dan Phillips / Chicago Edge Ensemble – Decaying Orbit
Abbey Rader / Kyle Motl / Drew Ceccato – Ritual
Reflections in Cosmo (Thomas Strønen) – Reflections in Cosmo
Ben Richter – Panthalassa: Dream Music of the Once and Future Ocean
Penny Rimbaud – Kernschmelze II
Brandon Seabrook – Die Trommel Fatale
Seven)Suns – For the Hearts Still Beating
Elliott Sharp / Gareth Davis / Ensemble Resonanz – Oceanus Procellarum
Patrick Shiroishi – Tulean Dispatch
Wadada Leo Smith – Najwa
The Soundbyte – Solitary IV
Sua-Hiam-Zun- Scattered Purgatory
Tele.S.Therion – Luzifers Abschied
TenHornedBeast – Death Has No Companion
Thet Liturgiske Owäsendet – Wisconsin Mining State
Thinking Plague – Hoping Against Hope
Robert Scott Thompson – Of Natural Magic and the Breathing of Trees
Three Eyed Makara – Moonmilk Roof
Various Artists – Visions of Darkness (In Iranian Contemporary Music)
Vmthanaachth – Inferotemporal
John Wiese – Escaped Language
John Zorn – The Garden of Earthly Delights