Microshift

Wow, this is currently the absolute newest album on the list. No surprise, then, that it happens to be British, because why else would an album this unremarkable be chosen to represent that year? Be honest, who really thinks that this is something we MUST hear before we kick the bucket? To name a few from 2018 alone, I think Kacey Musgraves' Golden Hour, Earl Sweatshirt's Some Rap Songs, Tierra Whack's Whack World, SOPHIE's Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides, hell, even Travis Scott's Astroworld are all leaps and bounds closer to being "must-listens" before you die. I wouldn't say this album is bad music, but it's a pretty bland selection (and current conclusion) for this list. I liked a couple tunes, but I can't say I'd return to it. The bias is strong with this one. Favorite tracks: Static Resistance, Opener. Album art: The saving grace here is that the album art is pretty neat. I like the colors and the smooth, abstract art. Made me expect something funky and groovy, and the music didn't quite deliver. 2.5/5

Fifa15 bakgrundsmusik med krautrock beats???

Bribery is the only explanation as to why this is on the list. Notice how almost all the reviews for this album start with "Never heard of this band...". Seriously, who the fuck are these guys? Even you, currently reading this review, have never heard of this band before. I thought Wikipedia would help me understand why this could be considered an essential listen, but 75% of their page is about sexual assault allegations and their official site is an uncustomized Blogspot blog. Okay let's talk about the actual album now. It's nothing special. The first three songs are actually really good, but after that I think they forgot they were making an album. No fucks were given by anyone after that point. "Boxing Day" could have been the best song on the album, but it just abruptly ends without any rhyme or reason. 3/5 from a musical enjoyment perspective, but who cares man.

Yeah, so I really enjoyed this. A lot. So much so that I had to look up Hookworms - an act I'd literally never heard of. And I rather wish I hadn't. This album game me strong Spiritualised vibes - and that cannot possibly be a bad thing. Catchy, melodic and multilayered, this album stands up. I might even go an listen to their first two albums. Just don't go looking into the band and you'll be blissfully unaware of the need to separate art from artist and the context its made in.

In the interest of full disclosure, I was tripping out in a nice way when I listened for the first time. I'd like to report that it opened up a whole new world for me. And it actually did for a while. But then I started feeling like I was in the middle of the panic scene of Batman Begins when Cillian Murphy throws that fear gas at a young Katie Holmes, which made me realize she was in that movie before Tom Cruise entered her life, so much so that she didn't do The Dark Knight and we just had to accept that Rachel Dawes is now played by Maggie Gyllenhaal. I don't really have anything against Maggie Gyllenhaal, it's just, you know. Tough beat. Show up for half of what is considered the greatest superhero movie ever before your character is killed off. So yeah that's the rabbit hole I went down with this album. The shrooms did the heavy lifting, and I eventually stopped listening to this and chose some Fat Elvis alternate take of a Righteous Brothers song that the King allegedly performed after Midnight in front of a rapid Vegas crowd. I bet the Colonel was passed out, but I'm telling you, Elvis was BRINGING IT! He even came back and did the "Baby Baby, I get down on my knees for you..." part again at the end of the song. If there's anyone who could ever will you into bringing back that lovin' feeling, it's Goddamn Vegas Elvis in the wee small hours of the morning.

I went on a fruitless search to find a reason for this to be on the list. In addition to finding that this album's only distinction may be the very fact that it's on this list, I instead I found that they disbanded the same year this album was released following allegations of sexual assault against the lead singer. I thought the album sounded fine, but I'll take Janelle Monae's Dirty Computer instead, thank you.

first impressions: sounds like a Hot Chip side project? should I know this? seems like peak p4k bait from this era. pleasant enough, some fun songs that I imagine could have been singles. after listening through: i enjoyed this and appreciate that it sounds like a culmination of a lot of other work in adjacent genres (e.g., Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem, some lower-fi stuff) it doesn't seem like it merits a place on this list for innovation, though. post-reading reviews/wiki: yeah the reviews about this band falling apart after some allegations of s*xual abuse are not great. its also weird that there's so little information about this band even though they're so contemporary (relative to the rest of the list.) I know the question of separating art from artist is challenging, and i am v sure that MANY of the artists on this list have had similar allegations and if not/if they were downplayed bc "it was a different time" that that doesn't make them any better/worse... relisten?: I've added some of the songs I liked to my monthly favorites playlist, and might carry them over into my working playlist for this year, but I don't think I'll listen to the whole album again.

I’m not sure - is this sub par New Order or sub par LCD Soundsystem? Either way, not quite enough here to sustain engagement with the record.

It's albums like this why I love the generator. Who the fuck are Hookworms? A 2018 album is essential listening? And I've never heard it? Well fuck all that, regardless of who made it or when this came out, this album is fucking fantastic. Hookworms magnum opus, so obviously they haven't made another since. No way to top this masterpiece

The perfect balance between noisy and catchy, poppy and experimental. Call me Goldilocks, because this was just right, and I’m gonna fucking devour this porridge.

a little boring

Krauty, rocky, beaty, lovely I needed this. Nice little injection of good modern music i hadn't heard before.

This is what I signed up to this site for. An album and a band I had never heard of that blew me away. Mesmeric beats and samples building up to a shimmering flow that drags me in. Sure, I couldn't tell you want the lyrics are about, or even remember them, but every song have ideas and their own hooks. No filler.

Its fine, but is it really good enough to be included so soon after release?

Enjoyed it, but kinda sounded like something I might make with a long weekend and a new bong.

I had this as my 23rd favorite album of 2018, and since then I’ve revisited it a few times and would have it rated higher since then. It’s an album that starts off as a 5 star album and probably finishes as a 3 star. I remember thinking that this band has tremendous potential, and this album was a near masterpiece. Unfortunately the band will be remembered for the alleged sexual abuses by the singer, an anonymous dude named L. Its a shame and the band has broken up, they had a unique sound that had potential for some great projects.

Reminds me of all the indie rock albums I listened to in college. This isn't a bad thing at all, but it feels of an era pre-2015. Surprising that it came out in 2018. Probably doesn't deserve a 4, and if I really think about it, I don't "get" why it deserves a slot on this list. But I like this kind of music a lot.

I'm not sure what about this album warranted being on this list. It wasn't a bad album but I don't think there was anything groundbreaking in it. It was nice to have on while working though.

Not painful to listen.

Such a middle of the road album. definitely nowhere near the best album of 2018. Why is there so many meh albums from British bands on this list?

A joyful bounce of sound from start to finish. I loved this and I'm so glad this project introduced me to Hookworms! The only dud was "Boxing Day" but it was so quickly negated by the ethereal "Reunion" that I quickly forgot any bad feelings.

Something I have come to learn about the general demographic of the userbase here is: 1. They (usually) don't like albums by British artists 2. They (usually) don't like post 2000 albums Why this is the case is just beyond me, because both have so much amazing music to offer. And this album, despite having never heard it before today, has become an instant favourite of mine. The blend of art rock with electronic and progressive soundscapes is just brilliant, and the album remains perfectly unpredictable and really keeps you guessing as to the direction it's going in next, and always pulling through with something you didn't expect, but that still sounds great.

Strong Stereolab vibe wearing dirty white gloves, scarlet tunics and missing bearskin caps.

I had never heard of this band. They are what would happen if Joy Division and Muse had a baby and then put that baby up for adoption, only to be adopted by LCD Soundsystem and Sonic Youth. I really enjoyed this album and was a bit surprised that I had never heard of it.

Honestly pretty good, although a few tracks kind of pulled me out of the flow of the album. Favorite track is probably "Opener."

Listened Before? N A surprising album. I've never heard of them before, but apparently they made 4 albums in their group's lifetime with this being the final. Its a great chill record with lots of synth influences from the 80s. I really enjoyed it and may check out some of their other stuff. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Opener

spacey indie that will probably get better the more you listen

Pretty decent indie rock album to be fair! Enjoyed this one without it blowing my socks off!

What would you call the british The Postal Service? Unfortunately I thought this would be a funny joke but now i'm on the wikipedia page for Post Office Act 1969 .... Pretty enjoyable, good soundtrack for an afternoon at work.

It was alright

Very generic indie pop. Not much to say about it. Totally fine.

I didn't mind this band or album but I wasn't blown away. I'll tell you though that Public Service Broadcasting, a band that came up several times on random listen after this album was done, did blow me away. Similar genre but that band and at least one of its albums deserves to be on this list. I think my problem with Hookworms is they can't hold up for a whole album. This album starts off great. Negative Space has a sort of Kraftwerk feel to open and it's got a nice electronic or spacey rock groove throughout. Static Resistance has a more modern alt rock feel (rivaling Arcade Fire) and it's even better than the opener. And then Ullswater has such a great opening synth rock riff (reminds me of the Decemberists) that carries into the rest of the song - it might be my favorite track. It also nicely segues into The Soft Season but that's about where it turns for me. I felt the rest of the song droned on and while it seamlessly segues into Opener, that also droned on - both literally (given the synth) and figuratively (given the long, boring first 3.5 minutes). I found the rest of the album repetitive or a little plain. Again, I didn't mind it but it started off so well and then ended up a little meh. Better than a 3 but not a 4.

Yet more incredibly average Brit rock. It's totally fine, but I guarantee you that this isn't something most of us absolutely MUST hear before we die.

Last night, after listening to three songs, I decided that Microshift by Hookworms is nice and tolerably boring. This evening, the rest of the album lanced much of my contempt. I'm not in love with the record, but 'Opener' had a powerful effect on me, and the motorik-pulse soothed my scorn away. Sorry I haven't called, S, been a hell of a week x

Never heard of this band before. They were OK, didn't mind them, not sure I had to listen to them before I die though

Very chill but somewhat unique vibe. No bangers/ memorable songs to me though

This was new to me, and not bad, but nothing remarkable.

You know what? I lived in Leeds 2013 - 2020, was vaguely involved in the alt electro scene… and I’ve never fucking heard of Hookworms! It’s probably a 3 star album, but I feel like people were doing kind of thing 5 years earlier. For the books selection, the people’s backstory and being a bit behind the curve I’m knocking it dow to a 2.

There is potential, but here, it spaces out and floats away to mediocrity.

Never heard of this but I'm going to say it's UK electronica. Cover has a retro vibe that I kinda dig. Song titles look appropriate. Could still be hipster shit like chvrches yesterday though. Fingers crossed eh? Ok, album art was a bit misleading but I was semi-right - it's UK indie rock. Ever so slight sci-fi vibe and a few electronic beats/sounds here and there... but mostly 3-chord indie. Wikipedia entry is one of those where "was included in 1001 albums" anecdote is a large % of its content. Overall very disappointing. 2/5.

Very quirky and interesting sound but also kind of slow for my taste. The song trailed too long too

Blah. Copy and paste electro psychedelia with all the heart of a refrigerator. Masking the fundamentally dull songs with bleeps and swirls maybe distracts for a song or two. 'Static Resistance' sounds like that muh-muh-muh-my moustache song by Sparks - were it devoid of any wit, charm or energy.

Unremarkable songs and way too derivative to get anything more than 1 star.

not even an album i needed to hear before the year ended. This wasn't even a relevant sound the year it came out.

Entirely inessential. A Can impersonation some guys from Leeds with an alleged history of abuse. No thanks.

honestly couldn't finish it because the sounds were hurting my ears. none of the songs really stood out to me but the first one was alright. overall, not a fan.

Oof. This was REALLY not my thing. I like experimental stuff, but not this. This just felt like noise to me. I don't really "get it", whatever there is to get. Wouldn't re-listen. Fave track: Shortcomings, I guess. Not wild about any of them though.

Fantastic surprise. 100% my shit.

Love this album, but had largely forgotten it. It was my #1 back in 2018 (not a great year for albums). So great front to back...a true no skips. 5/5

rock elettronico sperimentale. Ipnotizzante. tra il 4 e il 5

I actually really liked this one even though the beginning is weird

ООООО вот это моя тема,такое мне нравится!!! кайфанула

Man, did those first 30 seconds have me worried. But it turned out to be a very unjustified worry. In fact, just the opposite. Everything after that intro was fantastic. I had completely missed Hookworms’ 8 year career in the 2010s, Wiki calls them neo-psychedelia, but Hookworms has a lot of diverse influences in 2000s alt and indie rock. Radiohead and TV on the Radio and more ripple through “Microshift,” but they distill all of that into a sound still their own, and one that is very approachable (which those two aforementioned bands often aren’t). I’m on the fence between 4 and 5 stars, but I’ll give it the boost as a new discovery I’m happy to have encountered. I’ll have to check out the rest of their work.

As the children say, bruh…this album cooks! Holy shit great stuff!! MB and MJ are my synth boys!!!

A+ album cover. This album rocked. Felt like a mix of Arcade Fire, MGMT, and Kraftwerk. Was especially bumping to "Opener". Boxing Day and Reunion took me out of it a bit because I was on a run listening to this, but Shortcomings brought it right back. Contemplated a high 4, but this album deserves a 5 because I certainly want to come back to it at some point. Definitely on a heater right now!

Well what an absolute banger of an album from a band I'd never heard of, & never would have without this list. I was 62 when this came out ffs!! & it's totally brilliant there's not a track on it that isn't 5 stars & I've already played it again.

It's been a few days and I keep coming back to it. Updating my rating from 4 to 5.

The music sounds like New Order playing an Amon Duul II album (post punk, electronica, and krautrock genre mix). A very engrossing experience. While there are no "bangers", the album as a whole has a great flow and really works as just that - the album as a single piece of art, rather than a collection of songs.

I'd never heard of them before but I loved it.

Great songs with fun sounds

The most interesting and likely the best of the “modern” albums I’ve listened to on this list so far. Every song is sonically pleasing and has a lot to like. It’s a good mix of rock and electronic.

Quite the fun album. Reminds me a bit of MGMT. Would definitely re-listen.

Hvis was so fun and nice and interesting

I really liked this! This is definitely my type of music. I wasn't blown away but I'm going to listen to it again and see if it grows on me even more. Edit: 2025-01-31, coming back to change this to a 5 because I recently rediscovered it and absolutely love it.

Very much a 2000s indie rock sound, so I can't say it hasn't been done before, but it was done very well. A couple of certified bangers carried the album. Just don't try to Google the band's name

Esta muy bueno, super sampleable y enérgico. 10/10

Chucha que bueno este álbum. 10/10

Microshift feels like a mix of The War On Drugs' indie sound mixed with an organ and some arcade/slot machine sounding sound effects. And boy do i love it for that. While this might be considered a noise album which a lot of people don't seem to like very much, this album managed to find a way to make the noise come together extremely well and make it sound absolutely beautiful at times. It also does help that the album is on the longer side when it comes to most of it songs which allows the album to grow on you a lot. Tracks 7 and 8 might have dropped the ball a bit when it comes to quality but they were the shortest songs making that not much of an issue. I think that this is a really great album that is really underrated. Best Song: Negative Space Worst Song: Boxing Day

This was gorgeous all the way through, and I loved the energy

If The Postal Service grew up and married Devotchka and was best friends with Moby and Architecture in Helsinki

Top!

My first time listening to Microshift, but this was fantastic. A swirl of pop, dream pop, indie, and electronic influence.

Album was sick

First time hearing Hookworms and I like it!

Loved it

I didnt know this one, was awesome!

I think I need to re listen to this with some HiFi headphones. This seemed really interesting but I feel like I missed a lot of the point

9/10 - I quite liked this album. Everything but Boxing Day I thought was fresh and interesting. Some of the transitions were so smooth between songs. Its interesting to see how this is the newest album we have listened to so far and it is still kinda old timey but I can hear the more modern aspects.

A cool blend of psychedelic space rock and electronics with good vocals and a propulsive groove. Love the organ, sounds very retro in a good way. Highly enjoyable.

Ullswater — это же прям краутрок какой-то. Вот этот забавный долбящий ритм в ушах. Много дисторшна, музыка такая, по большей части трансовая, с кучей повторений. И да, краут тут почти в каждой песне — вот этот вот фиксированный бит кажется уже ни с чем не спутаешь после группы Neu! The Soft Season — привет группе Spiritualised и их «Ladies and Gentlemen we are floating into space» А ещё альбом построен в форме многочастных произведений, которые плавно перетекают одно в другое. Я очень долго не мог понять, в какой момент случается переход от одного к другому — но в целом, это и не нужно здесь.

Сладко кайфанул и был бы не против сделать это ещё раз. Хорошо, что сезон начинается именно так.

сындром самазванза лайт по музыке, чутка смеси с левисом дел маре, особенно по текстам о потере флешбекнуло. а эти две (три, включая продюссера лдм) имени у меня во врапде. так что (добавив немного флешбеков на крафтверк), тут ничего иного не поставлю

I somehow missed Hookworms entirely, but this is a great album! I am now going back through their catalogue - they’ve got a great sound.

Hookworms MORE LIKE HOOK LINE AND SINKER HAHA. No but really this is some of the freshest stuff I've heard this year. Didn't know what to expect and was pleasantly surprised along the way. It's been a while since I've been surprised by an album that wasn't meant to be something experimental. The high pitched vocals tickle the prog-rock fan in me in the right way. The lyrics are touching but floaty enough to zone out to if one wishes to do so. The songs feel high energy at first listen, but the synths, keyboards, and the at times appropriately monotone guitar riffs provide enough calmth to hone in on.

That shit was lit.

Very interesting album. This sounds unique

Wow this was a fantastic surprise. Never heard of them before and this was right up my alley. Moody almost progressive like, easily one of my favorite discoveries. This will definitely be getting added to the main rotation.

loved it loved it loved it

Never heard of Hookworms before so didn’t know what to expect. If I had heard the music and been asked to guess the artist I might have said Stereolab. This is great to just sit back and chill out to or play in the background while I work.

This album is like the backing for a techno rom com set in the 80’s. If Tron Legacy had been about Flynn falling in love with a computer.

Singer sounds a little like Brandon Flowers on some songs… and I love Brandon Flowers. This was very good. I’ve never heard of Hookworms but will dive deeper into them now.

вау!! очень классный альбом!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great. It hit me in the right mood. Good mix of modern indie electronics and psychedelia

Voice is slightly annoying but the music is really good and Im into it. Great album

Primeira música é impressionante, demonstra opção de psicoldelia ampliada.

Great stuff! Sounds a bit like gizz, a little like arcade fire, but all around very enjoyable song writing

Leuk plaatje. Blij dit te hebben leren kennen

this was great! and totally new to me

idk

Cool synth album

A New Favourite