Steve McLean's favourite music of 2018

I thought a lot of good albums came out this year but, for my tastes, not many great ones. However, I’ve compiled this list of those albums that made the cut and I considered good.

My favourite 10 albums

1. The Interrupters - Fight The Good Fight
2. Dan P and The Bricks - When We Were Fearless
3. The Longshot - Love Is For Losers
4. Bodega - Endless Scroll
5. The Whips - City Wide Special
6. Reel Big Fish - Life Sucks … Let’s Dance
7. The Nude Party - The Nude Party
8. Hicksville Bombers - Danger Road
9. Shannon and The Clams - Onion
10. Mark Sultan - Let Me Out

 The next 10 albums

11. Ike Reilly - Crooked Love
12. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Hope Downs
13. Subsonic - Flesh Colored Paint
14. Old 97s - Love The Holidays
15. Jeen - Gift Shop
16. Superchunk - What A Time To Be Alive
17. 6 String Drag - Top Of The World
18. Barrence Whitfield and The Savages - Soul Flowers Of Titan
19. Brian Fallon - Sleepwalkers
20. The Mountain Flowers - Bye And Bye

 The next 10 albums after that

21. Pete Astor - One For The Ghost
22. J.D. McPherson - Socks
23. The Mavericks - Hey! Merry Christmas!
24. Table Scraps - Autonomy
25. Frank Turner - Be More Kind
26. The Reverend Horton Heat - Whole New Life
27. Sunflower Bean - Twentytwo In Blue
28. Bad Sports - Constant Stimulation
29. Born Ruffians - Uncle, Duke And The Chief
30. The Mercenaries - Mark My Territory

 

The next 11 albums after that

31. Unlikely Friends - Crooked Numbers
32. The Essex Green - Hardly Electronic
33. Sloan - 12
34. Ethers - Ethers
35. Black Uhuru - As The World Turns
36. The Discarded - Manifesto
37. Low Cut Connie - Dirty Pictures (Part 2)
38. Sarah Shook and The Disarmers - Years
39. Jim James - Uniform Distortion
40. The James Hunter Six - Whatever It Takes
41. Miesha and The Spanks - Girls Girls Girls

 My favourite EPs

1. The Pandoras - Hey! It’s The Pandoras
2. The Beths - Warm Blood

 My favourite compilations, reissues and live albums

1. Joe Strummer - 001
2. R.E.M. - At The BBC

My favourite concerts (chronological order)

I generally try to stick to live performances I know I’m going to like. While some don’t live up to expectations, I came home satisfied after these shows:

The Holy Gasp - Jan. 14, Horseshoe, Toronto
Frankie Foo and the Yo-Yo Smugglers - Jan. 26, Grossman’s Tavern, Toronto
Frankie Foo and the Yo-Yo Smugglers - Feb. 2, Lee’s Palace, Toronto
Memberz, Mob Barley & The Railers - Feb. 9, Lee’s Palace, Toronto
Ferraro - Feb. 23, The Cameron House, Toronto
Dwayne Gretzky - Feb. 23, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Discarded - Feb. 24, Duggan’s Underground, Toronto
Bloodshot Bill & The Hiccups - Feb. 24, Monarch Tavern, Toronto
The Real McKenzies - March 9, Horseshoe, Toronto

The Real McKenzies

Sam Cash - March 14, The Cameron House, Toronto
The ARC Sound - March 17, Trinity Common, Toronto
George Westerholm, Luau or Die, The King Beez, Senores Calavera, The Cliff Divers - April 5, Cadillac Lounge, Toronto
The Slackers - April 6, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Harmonauts, The Slackers - April 7, Horseshoe, Toronto
KMan and The Radicals, Mustard Plug, The Planet Smashers - April 20, Horseshoe, Toronto
Stuart Joliffe memorial with Stuart Cameron, Tom Wilson, Ron Hawkins, Kim Stockwood, The Trews, Leah Fay and Peter Dreimanis from July Talk, Matt Mays, The ARC Sound  - April 22, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Cactus Blossoms - April 26, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Rizdales and guests - April 28, Cadillac Lounge, Toronto
The ARC Sound - April 28, The Artful Dodger, Toronto
Dream Wife, Sunflower Bean - May 5, Horseshoe, Toronto
Mad Caddies - May 8, Mod Club, Toronto

Mad Caddies

Peeling - May 8, The Baby G, Toronto
Thomas Thomas - May 9, The Cavern Bar, Toronto
Brett Newski - May 10, The Cameron House, Toronto
July Talk, Omni - May 10, Horseshoe, Toronto
Pony, Pkew Pkew Pkew, The Dreamboats - May 11, Horseshoe, Toronto
AntiSocial Surf Club, Miesha & The Spanks, Starcrawler - May 11, Bovine Sex Club, Toronto
Ferraro - May 11, The Cameron House
Starcrawler, Sloan - May 12, Yonge-Dundas Square, Toronto
Northern Pikes - May 12, Horseshoe, Toronto
Hinds - May 13, Horseshoe, Toronto
Skating Polly, Charly Bliss - May 19, Horseshoe, Toronto
Atomic Beliveaus, The Calrizians, Luau or Die, The Cliff Divers, Mark Malibu and The Wasagas - June 1, Cadillac Lounge, Toronto
The Royal Crowns - June 2, Dundas West Fest, Toronto
The Hard Toms - June 2, Duggan’s Underground, Toronto
The Mighty Swells, The Surfrajettes, Reverb Syndicate, Tsunamibots - June 2, Cadillac Lounge, Toronto
Street Dogs - June 10, Horseshoe, Toronto
Danielle Duval, Ferraro, Hutch - July 20, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Arsenals - July 21, Woodbine Park, Toronto

The Arsenals

The Discarded - July 28, Lazy Daisy Cafe, Toronto
Ferraro, C+C Surf Factory - Aug. 16, The Cameron House, Toronto
The ARC Sound - Aug. 17, 419 Brunswick, Toronto
Sarah Shook and The Disarmers - Aug. 25, Horseshoe, Toronto
Frankie Foo and the Yo-Yo Smugglers – Aug. 31, Grossman’s Tavern, Toronto
TUNS – Aug. 31, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Nude Party, Craig Brown Band – Sept. 7, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Black Pearls - Sept. 7, Cameron House, Toronto
The Greasemarks, The Surfrajettes, The Dreamboats - Sept. 8, Horseshoe, Toronto
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Sept. 11, Horseshoe, Toronto
Ramblin’ Deano – Sept. 13, 419 Brunswick, Toronto
The Hold Steady - Sept. 15, Horseshoe, Toronto
U.I.C., MC50 - Sept. 19, The Danforth Music Hall, Toronto

Frank Turner and The Sleeping Souls

Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs, Frank Turner and The Sleeping Souls - Sept. 20, The Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto
Frank Turner and The Sleeping Souls - Sept. 21, The Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto
The Hard Toms, Mark Malibu and The Wasagas – Oct. 12, The Linsmore Tavern, Toronto
Sarah Borges with Eric Ambel, The Bottle Rockets – Oct. 14, Lee’s Palace, Toronto
Public Image Limited - Oct. 19, Lee’s Palace, Toronto
Jeen - Nov. 1, Horseshoe, Toronto

They Might Be Giants

They Might Be Giants – Nov. 2, The Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto
The Black Pearls – Nov. 2, Cameron House, Toronto
The ARC Sound – Nov. 3, The Artful Dodger, Toronto
The Mahones, Stiff Little Fingers - Nov. 7, Horseshoe, Toronto
Stiff Little Fingers – Nov. 9, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Alarm - Nov. 15, Horseshoe, Toronto
The Dreadnoughts - Nov. 22, Horseshoe, Toronto
Luau Or Die - Nov. 22, Bovine Sex Club Toronto
The Green Wasagas – Nov. 24, Cadillac Lounge, Toronto
Pony, Charly Bliss - Nov. 28, Horseshoe, Toronto
Eddie Angel’s Guitar Party, JD McPherson - Dec. 2, Lee’s Palace, Toronto
The ARC Sound – Dec. 15, The Artful Dodger, Toronto
Joel Plaskett Emergency – Dec. 21, The Danforth Music Hall, Toronto

Joel Plaskett Emergency

The Skydiggers – Dec. 22, Horseshoe, Toronto