100 Awesome Independent Album and EP Releases You Probably Missed in 2017
Here we are, back in December, and everyone knows what that means: more “Best of…” lists trumpeting the best new music on the scene. And as always, so much of the independent world flies completely under the radar.
For the last two years, I’ve drawn up lists of “100 independent albums and EP’s you probably missed” during the year. Here they are:
Now it’s time for list number three, and I am so excited partly because of how the map is expanding to include places which weren’t touched in the first two lists.
As with the first two lists, these 100 albums and EP’s come from artists all over the world. This year’s list includes artists from: Canada, the U.K. (England, Scotland, and Wales), Australia, Switzerland, France, Sweden, Russia, Finland, Belarus, Romania, Slovakia, Brazil, Japan, South Africa, Greece, Myanmar, Spain, Portugal, Chile, Serbia, Austria, Argentina, Ukraine, Indonesia, Poland, and 28 different U.S. states. The independent world is very, very big.
I’m also pleased to see an evolution of my own tastes and appreciation; this year’s list includes more pop, electronic, R&B, and jazz influences, obviously mixed in with a healthy helping of alternative, rock, and metal.
So here are 100 of the albums and EP’s that you probably missed in 2017. All were released during the 2017 calendar year; imagine if the mainstream paid attention to all the artists out there, and not only the handful we hear about.
As always, albums are in no particular order.
Go expand your universe. You’d be shocked at what you discover.
1. Why Am I Swimming Around Like This? — Fishtank — London, England, UK
2. Tube One — Okto Vulgaris — Chur, Switzerland
3. Space — The Head — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
4. It’s Butter — EP — It’s Butter — Los Angeles, California, USA
5. Grace Blue — Grace Blue — Los Angeles, California, USA
6. Machine — Hello, Mountain — Denver, Colorado, USA
7. The Hurricane EP — Morganway — Norwich, England, UK
8. Tooth & Nail — Freya Wilcox & The Howl — Brooklyn, New York, USA
9. Orphan Planet — Orphan Planet — Portland, Maine, USA
10. The Truth & The Lie — Skies Collide — Brisbane, Australia
11. Commitment Issues — Anyone’s Guess — Orlando, Florida USA
12. Dark Matter EP — Auditory Armory — Altamonte Springs, Florida, USA
13. Golden — The Talking Hours — Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
14. Animals — Blue Eyed Sons — Helsinki, Finland
15. Dark Swallows — Dark Swallows — Boise, Idaho, USA
16. Everything You Ever Wanted — Street Pieces — Brisbane, Australia
17. The Trouble With Teeth — Little Coyote — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
18. A Flood — Twin Strike — Brooklyn, New York, USA
19. Bad Habit — Beth Blade and The Beautiful Disasters — Cardiff, Wales, UK
20. Skiddish — The Fallaways — Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
21. Flux — Form Constant — Birmingham, Alabama, USA
22. Background Noise — Treading Water — Boston, Massachusetts, USA
23. Breaking the Line [EP] — The Strikes — Souchez, France
24. Wide Open — Weaves — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
25. Eclipse Of The Sun — Liquid Sunshine — Zurich, Switzerland
26. Worn Out Heart — Hollow Sidewalks — Portland, Oregon, USA
27. Start a Fire — The Burn Ins — Elkford, British Columbia, Canada
28. Coyote Gunfight — Dynamite Thunderpunch — Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
29. Monuments EP — Stereo Honey — London, England, UK
30. The Gang — The Gang — Bratislava, Slovakia
31. Drive — Sidewatcher — Detroit, Michigan, USA
32. End Times — Brother Sister Hex — Denver, Colorado, USA
33. Speak — Honey & the 45s — Chicago, Illinois, USA
34. With — EP — Fencer — Los Angeles, California, USA
35. Soul Sickness — The Versa Contrast — Revere, Massachusetts, USA
36. A Sign of the Times — Cold California — Aberdeen, Scotland, UK
37. Auto Racing EP 2 — Auto Racing — Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
38. Note to Self — EP — Ready The Prince — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
39. Decade — Fighting Jacks — San Jose, California, USA
40. Gates Of Expression — Wildchild — Sibiu, Romania
41. virus. — Novembervägen — Stockholm, Sweden
42. Hypnotic Illusions EP — Living Still Life — Sydney, Australia
43. A Show For No One — Just Noise — Des Plaines, Illinois, USA
44. All Systems Go — CODED — Cape Town, South Africa
45. Wasted EP — Kreepy Krush — Minsk, Belarus
46. Better Days — The Clock Tower — Fukuoka, Japan
47. Tales of Betrayal and Deceit — The McMiners — Belo Horizonte, Brazil
48. Black and Blue EP — Little Raven — Nashville, Tennessee, USA
49. Hydra Plane — Hydra Plane — Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
50. Arcadia Feliz — Attikus Finch — Pamplona, Spain
51. Sublimation — Gravelarks — Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
52. The Words We’ll Never Say — In Good Nature — Boston, Massachusetts, USA
53. Polaroids — A Fire With Friends — Scranton, Pennsylvania, USA
54. Plan Of Action — The Kingpins — Montreal, Quebec, Canada
55. No Time to Die — Daeodon — Louisville, Kentucky, USA
56. Relics & Cycles — Before And After Science — Oporto, Portugal
57. In Arcadia — Field Of Giants — Oxford, England, UK
58. REM — SIAN — Tokyo, Japan
59. Aura — Set Fire — Boston, Massachusetts, USA
60. Karate Break EP — Karate Break — Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
61. Starla — Starla — Tacoma, Washington, USA
62. Fine Motor — Fine Motor — Reno, Nevada, USA
63. Clones — Naked Shark — Ann Arbor, Michigan USA
64. Salting — Keeper — Washington, D.C., USA
65. Radio Silence — Paranoir — Thessaloniki, Greece
66. Secret Demo — Shadow Party — Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
67. Flying High — Laneslide — Petrovsk, Russia
68. Weight — Old State — St. Louis, Missouri, USA
69. Playground — Paranoid — Lille, France
70. Crash The Gate — Cab Ride Home — Manassas, Virginia, USA
71. Space and Grit — Domestic Blend — Omaha, Nebraska, USA
72. Attic Salt — Attic Salt — Springfield, Illinois, USA
73. Demo — Piines — Toronto, Ontario, Canada
74. Heavy Dreaming — Painted Shut — Garden Grove, California, USA
75. MUTT E.P. — Whorehound — Terre Haute, Indiana, USA
76. Cinder Box — Cinder Box — London, England, UK
77. Heavy High — Bruiser Queen — St. Louis, Missouri, USA
78. The Endless and Unseen — Like The Ocean — San Francisco, California, USA
79. In Plain Sight — Elastic Blur — Downingtown, Pennsylvania, USA
80. As Far As The Stars — Nine Year Sister — Queensland, Australia
81. Fever Dreamin’ — Billy King & The Bad Bad Bad — Austin, Texas, USA
82. Sleep — Fawner — Cheltenham, England, UK
83. The Forge Sessions — Hot Raisin — Norwich, England, UK
84. Primeval — Iron Heade — Rancagua, Chile
85. Escapade — Pandelic — Yangon, Myanmar
86. Patterns — Longclaw — Portland, Oregon, USA
87. Defector — HEAVYCRAFT — Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA
88. Change — Traces — Tamworth, Australia
89. Thomas — The Shaftons — Vienna, Austria
90. Parasite — The Coathangers — Atlanta, Georgia, USA
91. Widower — Widower — Sydney, Australia
92. Rock for Life — Early Grey — Moscow, Russia
93. First Attack EP — Snappy Strokes — Krakow, Poland
94. The Story — Oceantides — Kiev, Ukraine
95. Forgiver EP — Shoplifters — Novi Sad, Serbia
96. Skoll — Astro Diver — Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
97. Alter Ego — Replica — Buenos Aires, Argentina
98. The Best Things — Beat Off! — Kediri, Indonesia
99. Kings — EP — August Tides — Cleethorpes, England, UK
100. Demos 2017 — Goodnight Cairo — Seattle, Washington, USA
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Originally published at adammarxsmind.com on December 15, 2017.
