#hello mary

[noxcordis]

Hello Mary by Jessica Gurewitz

[objectivesubjectivity]

My Favorite Albums of 2024*

*not necessarily from 2024

I'm back at it once again, sharing my Top 10 CDs, in alphabetical order by title, from the 151 I've acquired over the past year. They may not be from 2024. Hell, they may not even be from this century. But I didn't physically own them until this year. That's the only rule. And boy do I love making up absolutely meaningless rules. Let's get into it!

Say Anything - All My Friends Are Enemies: Early Rarities

Say Anything released one of the most unhinged, passionate, and self-indulgent albums I picked up this year and it may have made it on this list if it wasn’t for splurging on a 3-disc (!!!) compilation of all of their pre-Is A Real Boy material showcasing just how great of a songwriter Bemis can be. Plus, his commentary all over the liner notes is *chef’s kiss*.

Charlie XCX - Brat

I spent a decent amount of time declaring how this was “not for me” (I’m in my late 30s, I don’t go to clubs, I’ve never done coke, etc…) but it just didn’t let up. The overarching concept of accepting one’s full self, flaws and all, is universal and these songs have a depth that blossoms on repeat listens. There’s a reason this is on all the "best of" lists.

Cursive - Devourer

It’s been a year of “return to form albums” and none has been as exciting or as potent as Cursive’s 10th. The cello is back. The horns are back. It’s as loud, brash, and pessimistic as ever but Kasher also reminds everyone that he can also write one hell of a hook. Also, while “MUSTARDDDDDDDDDD” takes the cake for greatest yelled lyric of the year, Tim spewing “MOTHER FUCKER” on “The Age of Impotence,” is a close second.

Eels - EELS TIME!

I had given up on E’s lyrical prowess a good decade ago but maybe that was premature. While this album has a smattering of the lazy, cringeworthy rhymes gracing most things post “Blinking Lights,” it also is home to a myriad thoughtful and earnest ponderings on the temporal nature of life and how we choose to spend our finite amount of time. Oh, and an incredible verse about going on a date with someone who likes furries. EELS ARE FUCKING BACK, BABY.

Hello Mary - Emita Ox

I wanted to like Hello Mary’s self-titled album a lot more than I did. The Brooklyn 3 piece possessed a delicate fury and 90s post-grunge aesthetic that warmed my heart but the album never really stuck. That’s not the case with Emita Ox: it’s heavier and more mathy but it balances those elements with lush harmonies and superb melodies. This sounds like a band finding themselves and I cannot wait to see what they discover next.

Devon Kay & The Solutions - Grieving Expectation

Every year I go on a Pure Noise Records shopping spree (it helps that their cds are frequently quite cheap and BOGO) which allows me to discover a ton of music I otherwise wouldn’t have heard and every now and then, I find a gem. This is one of those gems. Blurring the lines between ska, punk, emo, and good ol’ fashioned “Alt-Rock,” this album hits like Jeff Rosenstock by way of “Bring Your Own Stereo” era Jimmie's Chicken Shack. It’s got great choruses, a killer horn section, and I found myself frequently reaching the end and starting it right back over again. Easily my favorite discovery of the year.

MJ Lenderman - Manning Fireworks

This is popping up in one of the top 3 slots on many of the End of Year lists I’ve checked out and for good reason. It’s instantly approachable with humorous and poignant lyrics that unearth themselves more and more on repeat listens. Also, to stand out in the crowded “Americana” field these days is a feat in itself. Bravo.

Macseal - Permanent Repeat

I saw this four-piece open for The Wonder Years a couple years ago and was immediately intrigued by how their melodies and chord progressions consistently shifted away from where I expected but not at the expense of the song itself. In yet another crowded field, this time emo-tinged Americana (“Emoacana?”), they definitely made a mark. A couple years later, they’ve replaced some of the twists and turns with a deeper ability to craft great, memorable songs, and, holy shit, is it effective. It’s pretty ballsy to name your album “Permanent Repeat” but that’s basically what this disc has been doing ever since it showed up in my mailbox. This is, hands down, my album of the year.

Martha - Please Don’t Take Me Back

Positively pleasing, practically perfect, politically-charged, pop-punk from across the pond. Head-bopped to this one many times this past year. No skips.

The Pharmaceutical Bandits - Those Damn Bandits

This isn’t a “good” album per se (it’s the debut album from a late 90s teenage ska-punk band so expectations probably shouldn't be that high in the first place) but it was one of the only Drive-Thru Records CD I didn’t own, so of course it had to be on this list. 

To their credit, after this album, they altered their name to Rx Bandits and put out a ton of great ska-punk tracks. And then they went prog-rock and put out some great tracks in that style as well. It’s a strange journey but well worth it.

Other albums I liked from 2024 but haven't yet physically acquired.

Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal (Only Vinyl pre-release at the moment. Hoping for a CD as well.)

Tyler, The Creator - Chromakopia (Ordered it back in November. Possibly still stuck in transit?)

Kendrick Lamar - GNX (pre-ordered the CD from Amoeba. Feels right to get that from a Cali based store)

Other Assorted 2024 Stuff

Favorite Live Bands seen in 2024:

Emperor X (The Broadway - 4/27)

Something Corporate (Asbury Park - 8/23)

Soul Coughing (Brooklyn Steel - 10/4)

Hello Mary - (Warsaw 10/26)

The Blood Brothers (Irving Plaza - 12/13)

Favorite Plays seen in 2024

The Ally (The Public)

Wicked (Apollo Victoria Theatre)

Life and Trust (Connell Tower)

Medea RE: Versed (Sheen Center)

Gypsy (Majestic)

Favorite Movies seen in 2024

Love Lies Bleeding

Strange Darling

The Substance

Longlegs

The Endless

Beetlejuice (the original, I haven't seen the sequel)

We’re All Going to the World’s Fair

Late Night with the Devil

Milk and Serial

Labyrinth

Favorite TV seen in 2024

Alice in Borderland (Season 2)

Baby Reindeer

Rhythm and Flow (Season 2 - even though I disagreed with their final choice)

Abbott Elementary

Only Murders

Last Week Tonight

Just For Us

Favorite Podcasts listened to in 2024

Entrée PeeE Neur’s Entrepreneur Tour Featuring Appetizer P Neur

The "Drop Dead Gorgeous" Episode from Scott Hasn't Seen

The Secrets Hotline

Detoxicity

The Run Up

538 Politics Podcast

The Daily

Favorite Books read in 2024

All The Kings Men by Robert Penn Warren

Frankenstein by Mary Shelly

Basketball (and Other Things) by Shea Serrano

Slonim 9: A Memoir by Daniel Barban Levin

[indochineofficiel]

La playlist d'Indo : Hello Mary, Three.

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Hello Mary - 0%

[takayukiokada-photography]

[jeffcbliss]

(Left to right) Stella Wave, Helena Straight and Mikaela Oppenheimer of Hello Mary - The NAMM Show; Anaheim Hilton; Anaheim, CA (4-13-23). @hellomaryband @NAMMShow

Photo: Jeff Bliss

[mea-cuppa-part-2]

Special Treat - Hello Mary, 2023

[thejoyofviolentmovement]

New VIdeo: Hello Mary Shares Trippy and Uneasy "Spiral"

New VIdeo: Hello Mary Shares Trippy and Uneasy "Spiral" @HelloMaryBand @Frenchkissing @grandstandhq

Brooklyn-based indie rock trio Hello Mary — Helena Straight (guitar, vocals), Mikaela Oppenheimer (bass), and Stella Wave (drums, vocalsmutl) — can trace their origins back to high school: Oppenheimer and Straight started th band when they were high school freshmen. When they met Wave through happenstance, the trio became an inseparable unit with the band consisting of good friends, who are also…

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