The frequency of albums I was interested in slowed down drastically in the final three months of 2016. I also purposely decreased my rate of consumption because I had finally managed to burn myself out after a whirlwind year of keeping up with new releases. That being said, the small number of albums I did fall in love with prove the truth of the phrase "quality over quantity." I also managed to discover some earlier albums that had slipped under my radar and form a clearer opinion of others I had neglected. The result may seem like a hodgepodge of "leftovers," but listening to them (in my opinion) quickly proves they are anything but.

Trying hard to breathe, head between my knees.
Take my hand and squeeze, say I'm alright.
Whisper in my ear. Happy you are here.
Everything seems clear, and we're alright.

Tell me not to trip or to lose sight.
You are walking in my dotted line.
Take my hand and help me not to shake.
Say I'm alright, I'm alright.

It's okay to feel. Everything is real...


...Well, the whole truth is like the story of a wave unfurled,
but I held the evil of the world.
So I stopped the tide, froze it up from inside,
and it felt like a winter machine that you go through and then
you catch your breath and winter starts again
and everyone else is spring-bound.

And when I chose to live,
there was no joy; it's just a line I crossed.
It wasn't worth the pain my death would cost,
so I was not lost or found...

Well, the sun rose with so many colors it nearly broke my heart.
It worked me over like a work of art,
and I was a part of all that...

When you live in a world,
well, it gets into who you thought you'd be,
and now I laugh at how the world changed me.
I think life chose me, after all.

Hi, everyone. Let me get straight to the point: I know I'm a terrible blogger. I've had a couple other posts drafted for at least two months now, but I haven't been in any sort of mood to finish them. Hopefully, this is the post that knocks me out of whatever writing slump I'm currently in.

A lot of exciting albums came out during this year's third quarter, particularly in September; in fact, about a third of this list was released in the last couple weeks of the month, which is why I waited slightly longer to post than I might have otherwise. You'll also notice my favorites don't particularly align with the big releases everyone else has been talking about, either because I find them overrated or because listening to them is an overwhelming prospect. Besides, I'd rather focus on smaller (but no less important) releases that are more likely to slip under the radar. You can go read about all those other albums somewhere else.