Looking at my listening history from the past year, I've fully embraced nothing,nowhere. as my favorite artist (who has three times as many listens as the next highest artists, and was also my most-listened to artist in 2023). Here's to The Cult of the Reaper.
Favorite Albums
- Dark Magic – nothing,nowhere.
The Cult of the Reaper saved me. 🤞🏻 n,n.'s first release of 2024 (of four!) sets the mood with some some dark and dreamy emo-rap, building up the n,n. world through interspersed faux newscaster clips that flesh out a colorful moral-panic perspective of the Cult of the Reaper from the outside, while boastful lyrics describing Reaper Ranch paired with somber cultist testimonials illustrate the view from inside the cult. - Cult Classic – nothing,nowhere.
Cult. Cult. Cult. I kept going back and forth between Cult Classic and Dark Magic for my favorite record, but these are both gems. While Dark Magic has its tone set from reactionary newscasters, Cult Classic gets its color from enthusiastic radio DJ spots on Reaper Radio. Plus, this record gets a dreamy 80s track in Electric Heartbreak (with a backwoods-boy, New England twist, opening with the lines "Ooh, you're sweet like maple."). - Neck Deep – Neck Deep
My favorite record from Neck Deep so far, this whole album is a a fast, upbeat collection of well refined pop-punk songs. This one is just fun. - The Story So Far – I Want To Disappear
So just say you want out / And we can stop all this pain now. The Story So Far has continued to refine its sound too! 2018's Proper Dose felt like the band experimenting with maturation, and this year's I Want To Disappear feels like the version of the band they've been growing towards. Great record. - Casey – How To Disappear
But I still can't find the words to compensate for how vacant I have been / I never meant to take you for granted, but I know that I did / God, I hate myself for how you must think about me now / I know how much it hurts to grieve / but please don't hate me if I leave. Another heartbreaking post-hardcore meditation on grief and living in disharmony with the world from the Welsh band Casey, with a falsetto resolving on an unexpected note in the first track that gave me literal chills the first time I heard it.
More Year-End Playlists:
Bonus: Favorite Purchases of 2024
- My fixed-gear bike.
My favorite way to get around the city, this bike changed my life. - Chrome Mini Kadet Sling bag
This bag is basically perfect. It's tiny. It has a holster for a U-lock. It has an option for a stabilizer strap so it doesn't slide down when I'm on my bike. It has an option for a seatbelt-style buckle, so I can unbuckle it to get it on and off over my helmet. And it just looks great. I don't need to carry much around town, but also don't like to have much in my pockets. This is exactly what I needed, and if anything happened to it I would buy another immediately. - Nuphy Halo 65 (white, brown switches)
I type a lot for work, and my work laptop is a pile of cheap hardware that is largely unpleasant to interact with. This keyboard looks beautiful, sounds lovely, and feels incredibly satisfying to use with its tactile switches. I've used blue switches before (a little louder than is necessary) and red linear switches (okay for gaming, but not nearly as nice to type on), and this keyboard with these switches just feels right for me. I've used a handful of keyboards over the years, and have briefly peered down the rabbit hole of soldering together a custom one, but this keyboard is so good. My only gripe is that having the backticks on the esc key (accessible from holding down the fn key) is an inconvenience considering how often I use them when writing code. A full function-key row with the small tenkeyless layout would be perfect. - Buckwheat hull pillow
I favor firm sleeping surfaces, and enjoy sleeping on a tatami mat during most of the warmer months of the year. Adding a traditional Japanese-size buckwheat hull pillow just makes sense. It's cool, supportive, airy, simple, and after the hulls have been "polished," will remain consistent in volume in a way that fluffy pillows never could. - LED "neon" tube lamps
I added three of these to my apartment and it makes me so much happier during these darker months to have some extra light and color - Jianshui clay teacups
These feel incredible in the hand, and unglazed clay tends to add a little extra body to tea it comes in contact with. I only drink sheng pu-erh tea with these, and it always feels like a treat when these come out. - Earplugs
I've somehow been using the same foam earplugs for concerts since 2011, but decided to upgrade to something more audio-focused with a conical design. The first pair I bought made my ear canals a little too itchy, but I somehow managed to lose those when their case unscrewed itself while I was on my bike or at the grocery store, so I tried another variant from Earpeace, and I like them a little better. Any of these are an upgrade from foam plugs, and having them in my bag or on my keychain has been a lifesaver for concerts, movie theaters, or even loud cafeteria/social settings.