Just as last year’s “Garage Rock Summer” inadvertently yielded a major project in the form of the American Garage Rock Road Trip, my seemingly harmless decision to revisit debut albums this past January ultimately led me to spend the entire calendar year immersed in “debut mode.” As such, my listening, writing, and album purchasing this year has subsequently been heavily skewed towards debuts; and, despite the fact that it has provided for ample genre-hopping, there’s an interesting sense of continuity that has come from focusing on first offerings.
While the shared fruits of this endeavor have only been featured in full on Strange Currencies’Instagram and Facebook pages, I’ve posted excerpts from those mini reviews in the monthly summaries that are collected here. Most months have centered around a particular theme — some more defined than others — and each features a wide range: from the ‘merely okay’ to the ‘genuine masterpieces.’ In the sprit of keeping this project primarily on the aforementioned social media profiles — which you should follow, if for no other reason than to see our daily mini reviews in real time — I’ll keep this intro brief. Below, you’ll find links to each month’s summary article. Enjoy!
Matt Ryan founded Strange Currencies Music in January 2020, and remains the site's editor-in-chief. The creator of the "A Century of Song" project and co-host of the "Strange Currencies Podcast," Matt enjoys a wide variety of genres, but has a particular affinity for 60s pop, 90s indie rock, and post-bop jazz. He is an avid collector of vinyl, and a multi-instrumentalist who has played/recorded with several different bands and projects.