ACL 2024 ~ The Top 20 Albums of the Year

This year, A Closer Listen received thousands of submissions and reviewed hundreds; today our international staff chooses twenty.  Three former chart-toppers appear on this year’s list, while one artist appears for the fifth time, but half are new, while our

ACL 2024 ~ Top Ten Electronic

Dancing is a primal activity; sometimes we want to dance, and other times we need to dance, as shown in the presence of two Ukrainian albums on this list. And while club music is a subset of electronic music, there are club

ACL 2024 ~ The Happiest Music of the Year

We all need happy music: music to lift our moods, raise our spirits and distract us from our problems. These ten albums provide a wide range of panaceas, from peaceful reassurance to high-energy cheer. Happy artists don’t ignore the world’s

estle ~ It’s Always Been You / galen tipton & Holly Waxwing ~ keepsakeFM

After releasing three singles in the past three years, Toronto’s Estle is finally getting ready to release their debut album.  It’s Always Been You starts in ambience and ends in beats, tracing the path of a romance, as indicted in the