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2024 titles

Before you proceed, we’d like to point out that two distinct versions of this page exist and you may decide you’d prefer one over the other. While both pages highlight the same titles overall, one page (this one, that you’re on right now) has all the details, artists, album titles, cover art, etc. removed leaving only a brief description of each album, which we thought might be a kinda fun way to objectively peruse what we released this year. The other page is fully featured and has all of the identifying information visible. Either page you choose, thanks for checking out what we’ve released this year!

<3 all of us at Topshelf

[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

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TSR268

FFO: Pup, Joyce Manor, Hotline TNT, Ovlov, atmospheric indie rock with hints of punkish pop

While [PERSON] and [ARTIST]’s other founding member, bassist [PERSON], no longer contribute the majority of songwriting they once did, morsels of their original sound remain. Signature wistful vocals and oblique-yet-nimble guitars are still a fixture, as are thematic elements that touch on burnout, climate crisis, and losing touch with a difficult reality. But [TITLE]’s stylistic turns are emphasized by deeper texture and simpler songwriting, influenced by the reemergence of 90s alternative and shoegaze.

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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

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TSR261

FFO: Alex G, Red House Painters, My Bloody Valentine, shoegaze-inflected guitar rock

Written during a time of immense inspiration, [PERSON] was able to peel himself away from detached nihilism, uncovering the physicality and therapeutic powers of songwriting. Newly emboldened by this discovery and the talented community surrounding him, [PERSON] channeled this revelation into his work, taking [ARTIST] from a bedroom experiment that merely wrote songs to a more substantial project with a purpose.



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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

vinyl
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/ digital
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TSR279

FFO: Sasami, Mannequin Pussy, Model/Actriz, Priests, fiery choruses in the depths of the mascara moshpit

[ARTIST] are here to uplift, a mission exemplified by the frenetic and bewitching pre-release singles “[SONG]” and “[SONG],” cornerstones of [TITLE] in both style and theme. The former serves as a reminder to keep your larger than life personality in a world that wants to downsize you, where the latter proclaims urgent solidarity with missing and murdered people. Such crucial messages of upliftment are the foundation of [TITLE], and, by extension [ARTIST], whose thrashing debut leaves no stone of solidarity unturned.

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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

digital
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order
TSR279

FFO: Sasami, Mannequin Pussy, Model/Actriz, Priests, fiery choruses in the depths of the mascara moshpit

On their standalone single "[SONG]", the rising D.C.-based [ARTIST] immediately grab your attention with a sense of verve, vitality, and uncontrollable excitement. Lead vocalist and frontwoman [PERSON] set out to make a funhouse mirror song that's all about the pain of being yourself and having a larger than life personality in a nation that wants to downsize you. With crashing drums seared with a piercing momentum, fuzzed-out guitar riffs, and [PERSON]'s biting and energetic vocal delivery, [ARTIST] locks you into the band's vigorous spirit in just under three minutes.

listen → more info →

 

[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

vinyl
↓ ↓ ↓
order
TSR276

This 7" vinyl features an exclusive track from both [ARTIST] and [ARTIST], released in honor of the bands' 2024 Japan tour.



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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

  cd
/ vinyl
/ cassette
/ digital
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pre-order
TSR264

FFO: Sufjan Stevens, Stereolab, Yo La Tengo, Crumb, Broadcast, Steve Reich

Across its fifteen songs, [TITLE] ultimately proposes a world of marvels and compelling complexity: “[SONG]” cheekily prods at mutually assured destruction; “[SONG]” explores the infiniteness within ourselves; while “[SONG]” unpacks an all too familiar stagnation. It’s all part of, and crucial to, [TITLE]’s transportive power, ever reaching for the wonder and magic of the world we live in.

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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

  cd
/ vinyl
/ cassette
/ digital
↓ ↓ ↓
pre-order
TSR263

FFO: Iglooghost, A.G. Cook, Hakushi Hasegawa, Soushi Sakiyama. blown-out, pop-forward electronica

[TITLE] expands on the heartfelt sibilance of [ARTIST]’s prior output with [ARTIST]’s penchant for epic song structures and tumbling climaxes, layered with diaphanous vocals that oscillate between hope and despair. Lead track “[SONG]” comprises elements of twitchy drum n bass and [ARTIST]’s overdriven pop-shoegaze, with pitch-corrected vocals interfixed through uptempo percussion, piano, and distorted layers of melodic atmosphere.

listen → more info →

 

[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

  cd
/ vinyl
/ cassette
/ digital
↓ ↓ ↓
pre-order
TSR281

FFO: Tortoise, Battles, Don Caballero, Pele, The Mercury Program, Explosions in the Sky

[TITLE] (2024), [ARTIST]’s fourth full-length album, is a bridge between the experimental restraint of their later work and the explosive abandon of their earlier output. From the opening tracks, [ARTIST] balance serpentine passages against meditative repetition. On “[SONG],” “[SONG],” and “[SONG],” [PERSON] reprises his role as part-time vocalist, breaking the band yet further from the instrumental work that formerly defined them. As a whole, [TITLE] closes the loop between early and late [ARTIST], giving them a clean slate for their new outlook.

listen → more info →

 

[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

digital
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order
TSR282

FFO: Pup, Joyce Manor, Hotline TNT, Ovlov, resurgent sounds of alt rock mixed with noodly emo

The final release from Montreal's [ARTIST].

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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

  cd
/ vinyl
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/ digital
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pre-order
TSR283

FFO: Beach Fossils, Real Estate, Triathalon, Chastity Belt, Boy Pablo, The Drums, Vampire Weekend, Frankie Cosmos, Another Michael

In the [TITLE] sonic universe, enchanting hooks about friendship and growing up in New Jersey orbit driving verses that prize brevity, never laboring longer than necessary. On lead single “[SONG],” [ARTIST] explore the mental gymnastics required for a career in music, pulling on the threads of fear and excitement they experienced in their early tours. Such reflection is abundant on [TITLE]: “[SONG]” refers to the peculiar beauty of a boat graveyard in the Arthur Kill tidal strait; where “[SONG]” interpolates a song that stuck with [PERSON] since high school. All told, [TITLE] continues what [ARTIST] started with [TITLE], honing their pristinely arranged indie pop morsels into a fully realized sound that vindicates the near ten-year wait.

listen → more info →

 

[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

digital
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order
TSR285

FFO: My Bloody Valentine, Grouper, TAGABOW, Cocteau Twins, Tony Molina, and You'll Never Get To Heaven

"[SONG]" is the final unreleased song from the [ARTIST] vault. Originally intended to be on the now beloved album [TITLE], "[SONG]" was pulled from the tracklist shortly before release. The never before heard song will be released on late songwriter [PERSON]'s birthday, October 11.

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[ARTIST]


[TITLE]

  cd
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/ digital
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order
TSRS015

Our year in review: 18 tracks from 18 different artists spanning twitchy drum n bass, math rock, post rock, screamo, overdriven pop-shoegaze, progressive rock-skewed artpop, and everything in between. Available on CD, cassette, and digitally.

listen → more info →

 

keep exploring?

We have a lot of fun revisiting our year like this and have done it for awhile now. Check out other years' recaps below:

2020 mystery recap / 2021 mystery recap / 2022 mystery recap / 2023 mystery recap / 2024 mystery recap