Musical Lowlights of the Year

When music critics were directly called out by The New Yorker as losing their edge, there seemed to be a sudden shift against the poptimism that has plagued the industry for so long. Taylor Swift was the first to get it in the neck and she won’t be the last major star to feel the heat. With the strength of social media being diluted the stans have lost their iron grip on the narrative, hopefully letting critics free to be braver without fear of personal retribution. 

I’ve always erred on the side of caution with my own writing, preferring to stay positive with my reviews when covering new albums and independent artists. However I do think it’s fair to my readers to explain my thinking by once a year sharing what music I don’t enjoy.

I won’t call this my ‘worst’ of the year any more than I call my favourite albums of the year ‘best’. Everything is subjective. Instead I prefer to call these my musical lowlights of the year. Here’s what did not spark the joy. 

Firstly a slight digression where I want to bring up something that has caused me major disappointment this year, which wasn’t to do with the music any of these artists released but more to do with what they chose to use their platform for. 

Thanks to Carrie Underwood and the orange one, mainstream country music has been severely tainted to me this year. Before I would listen to anything with a Southern accent with an ignorant glee, now every American artist I hear has to be checked for traces of MAGA. I was disappointed in Lainey Wilson and Carly Pearce for liking posts about Trump and it’s been extremely difficult to watch Miranda Lambert support Morgan Wallen, go on Joe Rogan’s podcast and perform in front of Trump at the Kennedy Honors. 

I don’t even know if their politics are even clear in these actions but it’s hard not to be alarmed. I’m done with anyone who supports this MAGA madness and would rather know for sure so I can send my energy elsewhere. 

In terms of actual bad music I heard this year let’s begin with the Era defining star turned critical punching bag, Ms Taylor Swift. Finally what I’ve always found about her music became the critical narrative. She’s too try hard, too cringe, too cheesy, too basic, too damn popular. I just didn’t want to hear a millionaire complain about her boyfriend troubles so I certainly didn’t want to hear a now billionaire singing about her boyfriend’s wood or how much she loves her cancelled friends. Her flop era is here and I for one am glad to see the Swiftie bubble burst.

Elsewhere I absolutely despised the Lady Gaga song Abracadabra that was inexplicably voted song of the year by Rolling Stone. It just sounded to me like a drunk woman screaming at me in a nightclub in 2009. Truly tinnitus triggering music with nothing to say. I even prefer Katy Perry because at least she doesn’t take her own terrible music seriously. 

In terms of music that I should have liked but didn’t I’m going to have to say CMAT has been one of my biggest disappointments of the year. Here’s an artist that should have been designed for me: a little bit country, a little bit indie, Irish, smart, funny, full of personality and charm. However I just can’t get past how awful her voice is. I feel like she’s screeching wildly out of tune on every live performance I hear. And her styling is just so tacky and tasteless, which I know is the point but it just hurts my eyes. Of course it’s nice to see a new female artist doing so well and making it to the headline slots of smaller festivals, but she’s just not for me. 

I will also admit here that I struggled with Amanda Shires’s album ‘Nobody’s Child’. I found the first half of the album too heavy and depressing, even bitter at times and so I gave up midway and never reviewed. Compared to the cool confidence of ‘Take it Like a Man’ it felt like a backward, unnecessary retread filled with songs that should have stayed private. But maybe I just didn’t want to hear my hero being painted as the bad guy. Anyway I forced myself to listen to the album again last week and discovered the second half to be much more enjoyable and optimistic. Everyone is entitled to sing about their own experiences – sometimes artists just have to accept their fans won’t always like what they hear. 

Considering there has been songs made by AI charting this year this type of post may soon become obsolete because any music made by human beings, no matter how difficult, painful, narcissistic or tuneless is still infinitely superior to what the machines have to offer. 

Let me know what your disappointments have been this year and share anything you really have detested in the comments.