100 Awesome Independent Album and EP Releases You Probably Missed in 2016
It’s that time of the year again — when all those “Best of…” lists come out telling us the supposed cream-of-the-crop releases in music. And as happens every year, they skate right over the slew of amazing independent releases that dropped into our lives.
Last year, I drew up a list of 100 independent albums you probably missed in 2015. Now it’s time to do the same for 2016.
In the interest of fairness, it’s important to note that most of these releases simply follow my personal taste in music genre-wise; they certainly don’t encompass all the amazing independent albums that came out this year in jazz, EDM, rap, classical, or other styles.
As with last year’s list, these 100 albums and EP’s come from artists all over the world. This year’s list has artists from: Canada, the U.K., France, Italy, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, China, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Belarus, Germany, Israel, China, Mexico, the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, and from 20 different U.S. states. That’s how big the independent universe is, regardless of genre.
So here are just 100 of the albums and EP’s that you probably missed in 2016. All were released during the 2016 calendar year, so this gives you an idea of just how small a window into the music world the mainstream actually cuts.
As always, albums are in no particular order.
Do yourself a favor and go expand your universe. You’d be shocked at what you discover.
1. Forget About It — It’s Butter — Los Angeles, California, USA
2. I Talk to Strangers — I Talk to Strangers — London, England, UK
3. The Centauri Conspiracies: Part 1 — The Awakening — Sunshine & Bullets — Tampa, Florida, USA
4. Colours — Chelsea Shag — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
5. Good Days — Skyline — Austin, Texas, USA
6. Muster Point — Jeeps — London, England, UK
7. Scars — Forever Still — Copenhagen, Denmark
8. Body Wars — June Divided — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
9. Silent Elephant — Silent Elephant — Lille, France
10. The Parts We Save — Heel — London, England, UK
11. Breaking Free — A Truth Divides — Fall River, Massachusetts, USA
12. Emergence — Hour 24 — Temperance, Michigan, USA
13. Hardly Loaded EP — PhantomHead — Lynchburg, Virginia, USA
14. Tough Love — Bloody Diamonds — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
15. A Moment of Silence — The Funeral Portrait — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
16. Epicentre — Bouquet of Dead Crows — London, England, UK
17. She Speaks — She Speaks — Kildare, Ireland
18. Wanderer — Red Handed Denial — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
19. Dark Narrows — Lights That Change — Flintshire, Wales, UK
20. The ReIntroduction — Almost Kings — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
21. Black — Suan — Athy, Ireland
22. Mean Something — Kinder Than Wolves — Orlando, Florida, USA
23. For Your Obliteration — The Dead Deads — Nashville, Tennessee, USA
24. No Mirror / Baby Steps — Birdeatsbaby — Brighton, England, UK
25. Screech Bats — Screech Bats — London, England, UK
26. Five Kites — Five Kites — Uckfield, England, UK
27. Pow Wow — Red Apple — Madrid, Spain
28. Hoopdriver — Hoopdriver — London, England, UK
29. The Mud Lords EP — The Mud Lords — San Francisco, California, USA
30. Stones — Cherry Water — Wilmington, North Carolina, USA
31. Please Welcome Imperial Jade — Imperial Jade — Barcelona, Spain
32. From The Cave — From The Cave — London, England, UK
33. Imminent for Your Interests — People Like Us. — Los Angeles, California, USA
34. Otra Vez I — Sidewatcher — Detroit, Michigan, USA
35. Eraserhead — Eraserhead — Aurora, Illinois, USA
36. Alterhood — Alterhood — Tel-Aviv, Israel
37. Eugenia EP — Darla and the Blonde — London, England, UK
38. Cosmophonie EP — Cosmophone — Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
39. Hit the Air — Basic Land — Monterrey, Mexico
40. Born to Dance — Pürple — Brighton, England, UK
41. Double A-Side — The Mis-Made — Sydney, Australia
42. Refuse to Shine EP — Mr.Mountain — Portsmouth, England, UK
43. Gaining Perspective — Glory Days — Brisbane, Australia
44. The Sky, the Lie, and Who We Are Before We Die — True North — Los Angeles, California, USA
45. Luxury EP — Patio — New York City, New York, USA
46. Phantasmagoria — White Claudia — Chicago, Illinois, USA
47. Cruise Deal — Mirror Travel — Austin, Texas, USA
48. Call Me by Name — Good Fiction — Albany, New York, USA
49. Bipolar — Kreepy Krush — Minsk, Belarus
50. Good Hangs — Lauren Patti — New Jersey, USA
51. Copper Crown — Copper Crown — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
52. Cuatro — Tranparentes — Alicante, Spain
53. It’s Too Bright Inside — Lush Vibes — Vallejo, California, USA
54. Ropes End — Ropes End — New York City, New York, USA
55. Only Roses — Carissa Johnson — Boston, Massachusetts, USA
56. Theories of the Universe — Haunted Ghost Town — Sunnyvale, California, USA
57. Soft Grudge — Mulligrub — Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
58. Dirty Lyxx — Dirty Lyxx — Boston, Massachusetts, USA
59. Stages — Kopacetic — Shreveport, Louisiana, USA
60. Much Love — Microwave — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
61. Metadonna — Metadonna — Valencia, Spain
62. Break Down the Walls — Break Down the Walls — Hawthorne, New York, USA
63. Stuff EP — My Cruel Goro — Iceland
64. Shadowbox — Vivienne the Witch — Perugia, Italy
65. In the Arms of the Sun — Vox Vocis — Phoenix, Arizona, USA
66. Discourse — Sex With Strangers — Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
67. Sleep Tight, When You Wake Up We’ll Be Gone — The Few. — St. Louis, Missouri, USA
68. Harmony and Disconnect — Rising Down — Tampa, Florida, USA
69. Vectors — Yeah Sure Whatever — Marin, California, USA
70. DEVILTRAIN — DEVILTRAIN — Bamberg, Germany
71. Buried in the Sound — Lost Frontiers — Pomona, California, USA
72. Nosebleed Weekend — The Coathangers — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
73. The Eternal Sea — The Eternal Sea — Tauranga, New Zealand
74. Traces EP — Traces — Phoenix, Arizona, USA
75. Elevation — We Are The Catalyst — Gothenburg, Sweden
76. MABON SONGS — Crypt Trip — San Marcos, Texas, USA
77. Angel — Heroes — Los Angeles, California, USA
78. Swan Valley Heights — Swan Valley Heights — Munich, Germany
79. Abandoned — Counter Theory — Valparaiso, Indiana, USA
80. Ants — Ants — Rivergaro, Italy
81. The Journey (EP) — Rusty Joe — Casais, Portugal
82. Spectra — Myrrias — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
83. Dimensionauts EP — Robot Jurassic — Edgewater, Maryland, USA
84. Believer — Weird Neighbours — Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
85. Hell Is Not Other People, It’s You — The Republic of Trees — Scarborough, England, UK
86. The Lippies — The Lippies — Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
87. Far Away, As We Fade — AggronympH — Yichang, China
88. The Departed — Summer Drive Home — Weymouth, England, UK
89. Mix Tape — The Hang Lows — Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
90. SweetMeat — The BlackLava — Torino, Italy
91. Singularity — Fight Like Sin — Lafayette, Indiana, USA
92. Chasing a Phantom — Changing Scene — Bel Aton, Maryland, USA
93. Abandoned Homes — The Aesthetic — Seattle, Washington, USA
94. Connector — Fable Circuit — Shepherdstown, West Virginia, USA
95. Inburn — Inburn — Illigan City, Phillipines
96. The Lost Ones (EP) — LUNGS — Sacramento, California, USA
97. Ambulance — The Amazing — Stockholm, Sweden
98. Detox — Pyke — Arendal, Norway
99. Start Again — The Middle Ground — Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
100. Valley Queen EP — Valley Queen — Los Angeles, California, USA
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Originally published at adammarxsmind.wordpress.com on December 14, 2016.
