Kinks Elvis Costello Nada Surf Nick Drake Yeah Yeah Yeahs Beatles Radiohead Iron & Wine Noel Gallagher Guster Elliot Smith Liam Gallagher Shins Orbison, Roy Nickel Creek Jordan Kiener Jeremy Humphries your turn!

In a year full of Orwellian/Atwoodian/Huxleyan stereotypes, I sought out music that was comforting, transcendent, or required me to think. The songs that piqued my interest both moved me and helped me to move past the challenges presented by 2020. kennybloggins.net/2021/01/10/bes…

Infusion of ’70s soul, funk, R&B, rock, neo-soul, hip-hop & Motown • poignant storylines w/ dance floor jams/gospel sounds create powerful protest anthems • No music challenged me more, addressing dynamics of being black in USA #sault #BestOf2020 #music wp.me/p2AwUB-kE

Heartbeats reminds us the issues we face extend beyond our country’s borders.Mystery Jets cover humanitarian-charged topics i.e. rise of alt-right politics, global racism & benefits of government-funded health on one of best sounding/important 2020 albums. wp.me/p2AwUB-kE

Kenny Bloggins is BACK in the danger zone - here are the best and most important records of 2022 kennybloggins.net/2023/01/02/bes… THE MARS VOLTA anthony green (he/him) The Smile STRANGE Death Cab for Cutie Anchor & Bear Andrew Bird brentfaiyaz FRONTPERSON

Parade is like a Sangria Lemonade, or a fresh Bellini during brunch. Calder & Hamilton make up indie pop duo FRONTPERSON; they are like two simple ingredients that when mixed create something fizzy & refreshing. They sit at 10 on my best of 2022 list wp.me/p2AwUB-lL

Wasteland is brutally honest R&B from brentfaiyaz with heavy beats & frictionless vocals— it excels when the soulful, smooth, slippery hymns are front-and-center in the mix, sliding alongside remarkably fresh production.   It’s #9 on my best of 2022 list wp.me/p2AwUB-lL

‘Sea Of Mirrors’ by The Coral flows like a long forgotten soundtrack to a non-existent film...the album’s entire triumphant sonic assault that is short but stunning at 38 min, leaving us wanting more. It's #1 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. bit.ly/4aI2rQr

Seattle adjacent singer-songwriter Noah Gundersen continues to establish himself as a master of eloquently wrestling with the human condition on the exhilarating ‘If This Is the End.’ It's #2 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

‘LIGHTBRINGER’ has scarcely a dull moment; in the age of algorithms making quick stars out of bedroom musicians, no one today does it “the old fashioned way” better than Rival Sons. It's #3 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

‘After Laughter’ might be paramore's poppiest effort yet, and ‘Self-titled’ their most straight-forward rock endeavor, but ‘This Is Why’ feels like their cooler/more mature older cousin. It's #4 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

'Valley of Vision' from Manchester Orchestra hits like a lit match, burning bright then slowly engulfing itself with a light that will sputter out, feeding on oxygen that will cause its demise. It's #5 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

On ‘In Times New Roman…’ we have QOTSA continuing to get better with age; less like fine wine & more like well-seasoned cast iron skillet bludgeoning you over the back of the head. It's #6 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

Architects Nickel Creek armed w/ little more than a few Americana instruments & an itch for innovative writing return after nearly a decade with the most thrilling work yet. 'Celebrants' is #7 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

‘Solar Music’ by BUTCHER BROWN is like a steam-powered train ride barreling down a track as you pass by stations w/ speakers blasting grooves laced w/ funk, boogie, R&B, hip-hop, soul, & jazz. It's #9 on my #BestOf2023 #music list. Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

‘Everything Harmony’ is as skillful an adaptation of 60s/70s record collections as one could imagine; The Lemon Twigs entwine listeners w/ a knack for being hooky, gentle, & dreamy all at once. It's #10 on my #BestOf2023 #music list Read the write-up here: bit.ly/4aI2rQr

2023 was packed with incredible #music and I took some time to write a brief review of my top 10 favorites over at kennybloggins.net/2023/12/31/bes… Including: The Coral Noah Gundersen Rival Sons paramore Manchester Orchestra QOTSA Nickel Creek Cut Worms BUTCHER BROWN The Lemon Twigs