2018 has certainly been a hell of a year for music. Here, the Midwest Action staff pulled their favorites from a year characterized by standout creative work to form our Best of 2018 lists. Check out our 6 favorite vinyl releases from 2018 below.
On Watch (Deluxe Edition) by Slow Mass (LandLand)
Not only did Chicago post-pop, heavy riffers Slow Mass release a brilliant new LP this year they decided to work with local screen printers LandLand on an amazing deluxe edition. The gorgeous 7-color screen print is an incredibly intricate alternate album cover that turns this already fantastic LP into a true work of art. I could still smell the ink when it arrived in the mail.
–Dan Jarvis
Chapel Perillous by Calliope (Romanus Records)
What hasn’t Romanus done? From sand-filled records to LED vinyl, this beer filled vinyl is undoubtedly the most “party” of the bunch. Thank God prohibition’s over or else who knows what we’d be filling records with–maybe even nerds.
–Alyssa Lee
Chambers by Lightfoils
Big, bold artwork and random vinyl colours. And you can judge the music by the cover, because it’s another example of Chicago’s rich shoegaze output.
–Dale Price
Bored Immortals by Surgeons In Heat (Maximum Pelt Records/Shuga Records)
Milwaukee indie rockers returned this year with an album that is an undeniably danceable mix of well-crafted indie rock, lyrical bummers, and polished pop production. Old-school R&B meets Beatles pop sensibilities with a fair amount of ’50s doo wop and’80s synth pop thrown in for good measure. It’s hard not to love. The LP itself was lovingly pressed at 45 RPM for maximum sound quality and optimal danceability.
–Dan Jarvis
Parts by OHMME (Joyful Noise)
Joyful Noise released OHMME’s Parts on limited edition split color vinyl with a white splatter. Hell yeah! It carries the colors of the album artwork through to the record and make a gorgeous package all together. It also includes a bonus track on a flexi, which definitely “up”s the cool factor of this release.
–Alyssa Lee
Split EP by Meat Wave & Lifestyles
Two of our favorite garage rock rippers came together to put out this rad little 7″ on No Trend Records last October. Meat Wave’s “That’s Alright” is a driving rock groove that builds and builds until an abrupt end. The guitars start straightforward enough but evolve into these gorgeous post-punk melodies that play off each other perfectly by the end of the song. Lifestyles contribution lives up to it’s name. “Wail” is a nonstop punk powerhouse featuring singer/guitarist Hannah Hazard delivering some bone-chilling vocals.
–Dan Jarvis
Best of 2018
ALBUMS • EPS • SONGS • MUSIC VIDEOS • VINYL RELEASES • CASSETTE RELEASES
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