Noise Floor’s 2019 Year in Review

Noise Floor looks back on the year’s live music highlights in Boston and beyond.
By the numbers: 590 sets, 147 shows, 7 festivals behind the lens. Or somewhere thereabouts, without counting the Riot Fest I attended but only kind of photographed. Indeed, another busy and adventurous year which saw me shooting Dolly Parton, flying to Vegas for four days of heavy metal, finally seeing Jawbreaker (twice!) and doing a lot of work I’m really proud of. Scroll through my personal, chronological 2019 best-of below, and scope out my top 50(ish) records of the year in a convenient playlist format, too.
Bethlehem Steel at The Sinclair – 1/4
Noname at Royale – 1/10
Jerry’s Kids at Paradise – 1/11
Big Ups at Great Scott – 1/12
Kacey Musgraves at the Wang Theatre – 1/19
Jon Spencer ands the Hitmakers at Great Scott – 2/1
John Maus at Brighton Music Hall – 2/5
JPEGMAFIA at afterHours – 2/10
Adrianne Lenker at The Sinclair – 2/13
Car Seat Headrest at Royale – 2/14
Peter Murphy and David J at the Palladium – 2/15
Deerhunter at Royale – 2/24
Vince Staples at House of Blues – 2/25
Ty Segall and White Fence at The Sinclair – 2/28
Cold Cave at The Sinclair – 3/2
Mike Krol at Great Scott – 3/3
Blood Incantation / Necrot at the Palladium – 3/9
Daughters at The Sinclair – 3/12
Black Midi at Great Scott – 3/18
Show Me The Body / Priests at afterHours – 3/21
Jawbreaker / War on Women at House of Blues – 3/22
The Antlers at The Sinclair – 3/26
Swervedriver at Paradise – 3/27
Spiral Stairs at O’Brien’s – 3/28
Better Oblivion Community Center at Columbus Theatre – 3/31
Viagra Boys / Birthday Ass at Great Scott – 4/2
Yob / Voivod / Amenra at Royale – 4/3
Lady Pills at the Lilypad – 4/4
Thou at MassArt – 4/5
Aphex Twin at Avant Gardner – 4/11
Spiritualized at The Wilbur – 4/14
Death / Minibeast at ONCE – 4/18
Sleep at State Theatre – 4/20 / 4/21
Orville Peck at Great Scott – 4/23
PUP / Diet Cig at Royale – 4/25
Sunn O))) at College Street Music Hall – 4/26
Foxing at Royale – 4/27
Twin Peaks / Tune-Yards / CUP / Sunflower Bean / Guerilla Toss / Rough Francis / Gurr / Boston Cream / Cindy Cane / Brass Balagan at Waking Windows – 5/3 / 5/4 / 5/5
Death Pesos at Somerville Porchfest – 5/11
mewithoutYou at Paradise – 5/14
Chromatics at Royale – 5/17
Oneida at Landry’s Bicycles – 5/18
Lizzo at House of Blues – 5/22
Peter Buck with Filthy Friends at The Sinclair – 5/23
Pile at Great Scott – 5/24
Tame Impala / Lil Nas X / Shame / Pile / SOB X RBE / Travis Scott at Boston Calling – 5/25 / 5/26
Weyes Blood at The Sinclair – 5/28
The 1975 at Agganis Arena – 5/30
Oozing Wound at O’Brien’s – 6/5
George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic at Blue Hills Bank Pavilion – 6/5
High Command at Great Scott – 6/8
Modern Life Is War / Krimewatch at Great Scott – 6/9
Jawbox at The Sinclair – 6/14
Earth at ONCE – 6/19
Pelican at Great Scott – 6/23
Glacier at Hong Kong – 6/27
Wilco (with Courtney Barnett) / The Minus Five / Mdou Moctar / Jonathan Richman / Rough Francis / Lakou Mizik at Solid Sound – 6/28 / 6/29 / 6/30
Stef Chura at Great Scott – 7/9
Bill Callahan at The Sinclair – 7/10
The Messthetics at Great Scott – 7/14
Haim / Low / Mavis Staples / Pusha T / Parquet Courts / Bell & Sebastian / The Isley Brothers / JPEGMAFIA / Charli XCX / Robyn at Pitchfork Music Festival – 7/19 / 7/20 / 7/21
Lukas Nelson / Maggie Rogers / Sheryl Crow and Brandie Carlile / Lucy Dacus / Dolly Parton at Newport Folk Festival – 7/26 / 7/27
Duster at The Sinclair – 7/30
Iron Maiden at Xfinity Center – 8/1
Howlin’ Rain / Major Stars at ONCE – 8/8
Waveform at Black Lodge – 8/10
Neurosis / Deafkids at Paradise – 8/13
Idle Hands / Corrosion of Conformity / The Crazy World of Arthur Brown / Yob / Goatwhore / Electric Wizard / Tomb Mold / Carcass / Clutch / Weedeater / Beach House / Deafheaven / Power Trip at Psycho Las Vegas – 8/16 / 8/17 / 8/18 / 8/19
Oso Oso / The Sidekicks / Future Teens at Brighton Music Hall – 8/22
Have a Nice Life at Great Scott – 8/30
Zac Brown Band at Fenway Park – 9/1
Vampire Weekend at Agganis Arena – 9/3
Ceremony at The Sinclair – 9/5
Culture Abuse / Fiddlehead / Gouge Away at Warehouse XI – 9/6
Fontaines D.C. at Great Scott – 9/8
Boris / Uniform at the Paradise – 9/11
Patti Smith / The Flaming Lips at Riot Fest – 9/13 / 9/14 / 9/15
Free Throw / Chris Farren at Great Scott – 9/17
Tropical Fuck Storm at Great Scott – 9/19
Massive Attack at the Wang Theatre – 9/21
Built to Spill / Prism Bitch at The Sinclair – 9/26
Stereolab at Royale – 9/29
The Number Twelve Looks Like You / God Mother at ONCE – 10/3
Billy Bragg at The Sinclair – 10/4
Girl Band at Great Scott – 10/4
The Black Keys at TD Garden – 10/11
Oranssi Pazuzu – 10/14
Idles at Royale – 10/16
Parquet Courts / Iceage / Empath at Octfest – 10/19
Cave In at Great Scott – 10/21
Against Me / Cursive at Royale – 10/22
The National at Agganis Arena – 10/24
Sleater-Kinney at House of Blues – 10/29
Nice Guys as Devo at O’Brien’s – 10/31
White Reaper at The Sinclair – 11/2
Superchunk (acoustic) at Columbus Theatre – 11/6
Exhumed at ONCE – 11/13
Angel Olsen at Royale – 11/19
Beach Bunny at Great Scott – 11/20
Cattle Decapitation / Atheist / Author and Punisher at Brighton Music Hall – 12/2
Lightning Bolt / Baby; Baby at The Sinclair – 12/4
Mother Iron Horse at Club Bohemia – 12/6
Pile at The Sinclair – 12/10
Lord Felix at the Boston Music Awards – 12/11
Mount Eerie and Julie Doiron at Arts at the Armory – 12/13
Hallelujah the Hills / Major Stars at Great Scott – 12/19
Daughter at Paradise – 12/21
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones at House of Blues – 12/27
Ryley Walker / Chris Forsyth / Garcia Peoples at Great Scott – 12/27
Yo La Tengo at Bowery Ballroom – 12/28