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Year in Rock 2024

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So, how weird is it to post a Year in Rock 2024 write-up a year late? Honestly, this is just for posterity; with a post to wrap up 2025 possibly posted by the time you see this, I couldn't stand the gap that would otherwise be present.

I'll have more to say, but will wait until the Year in Rock 2025 post to say it. Instead, I'll just dive right in with the list. This will be the least exciting Year in Rock post you've ever seen.

 

25. The Smashing Pumpkins - "Aghori Mhori Mei"

24.  Japandroids - "Fate & Alcohol"

23. Pearl Jam - "Dark Matter"

22. Cheekface - "It's Sorted"

21. Kim Gordon - "The Collective"

20. High Vis - "Guided Tour"

19. Acid Mammoth - "Supersonic Megafauna Collision"

18. Microwave - "Let's Start Degeneracy"

17. IDLES - "TANGK"

16. Jerry Cantrell - "I Want Blood"

15. Chat Pile - "Cool World"

14. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - "Flight b741"

13. Better Lovers - "Highly Irresponsible"

12. Soft Play - "Heavy Jelly"

11. The Last Dinner Party - "Prelude to Ecstasy"

10. Father John Misty - "Mahashmashana"

9. Waxahatchee - "Tigers Blood" 

8. The Cure - "Songs of a Lost World"

7. Geordie Greep - "The New Sound"

6. Yard Act - "Where's My Utopia?"

5. Amyl & The Sniffers - "Cartoon Darkness"

4. Knocked Loose - "You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To"

3. The Decemberists - "As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again" 

2. Jack White - "No Name"

and your Year in Rock 2024 Album of the Year is:

 

Romance - Album by Fontaines D.C. | Spotify

FONTAINES D.C.

Romance 

 

In the closing of my review of Fontaines D.C.'s third album in 2022 (back when I was doing reviews), I opined "Though it doesn't quite obtain the status of masterpiece, Skinty Fia proves that Fontaines D.C. are more than capable of delivering one, and I get the feeling we may not have to wait much longer to get it."
 
Well, I don't want to call myself a psychic or anything, but just two years later we got it.
 
Romance is every bit as rewarding as I could have possibly hoped for, its runtime packed with thrilling breakthroughs, unexpected detours and a masterful sequencing that keeps you engaged throughout the entire album, an increasingly rare thing in a society that prioritizes flashes in pans and quick hooks over anything approaching artistry.
 
For the proof, just press play; the dark, sinister intro title track leads into Starburster, a brash and forward-thinking track whose thick groove and earworm chorus (those gasps!) have lived rent-free in my head most of 2024. There are moments scattered throughout that crackle with an urgent, nostalgic edge, with many tracks settling into a haunted, depressed state that mirrors real life perhaps a little too effectively.
 
Then, there's album closer Favourite, which will quite possibly eclipse Starburster for me as the album's top pick given more listens; a heartfelt rocker packing a hopeful tone that belies its melancholy, it's the sound of the potential I heard from previous efforts not just made good upon, but thoroughly exceeded. 
 
Romance finds Fontaines D.C. hitting their creative stride; it's their finest batch of tunes to date, it rewards more and more the more you play it, and I dare say it allows for the hope that there's still another level for them to reach. Even if that ultimately proves false, I simply can't deny Romance its well-deserved recognition as Sound Bites Album of the Year for 2024.

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