Phil's Superpower of Enthusiasm

A place to write about things I enjoy, for my own edification. Headphones, audio gear, albums, whiskey, wine, golden retrievers etc.

recent posts

Lawyer, unabashed nerd and geek. Purveyor and pusher of excellent sci-fi/fantasy, good food, and repartee. He/him. Dog dad/servant to @Goldendenali.

I’m experimenting with Amazon Affiliate status in an attempt to defray some of the costs of headphone reviews; Amazon links may be affiliate links (depending on whether or not I’ve figured out how to use them correctly). Please feel free to buy elsewhere; this is just one way to recoup the costs of this hobby.

Phil's Top Ten Albums of 2018


  1. Janelle Monae–“Dirty Computer” (nothing else was even close)
  2. Brasstracks–“For Those Who Know, Pt. II EP”
  3. Kurt Vile–“Bottle It In”  
  4. The National–“Boxer(Live in Brussels)” 
  5. Marian Hill–“Unusual”
  6. Various Artists–“Black Panther The Album”
  7. Chvrches–“Love is Dead”
  8. Let’s Eat Grandma–“I’m All Ears”
  9. Lo Moon–“Lo Moon”
  10. twenty one pilots–“Trench”
  11. Little Dragon–“Lover Chanting EP” (couldn’t leave this off)

Honorable mentions (things I discovered too late in the year to really listen much, but that I’m liking a lot so far):

  • Christine and the Queens–“Chris”
  • The 1975–“A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships”
  • Young Fathers–“Cocoa Sugar”
  • Blood Orange–“Negro Swan”

    It was also a great year for soundtracks–in addition to Black Panther, I particularly loved “Annihilation” (very Alt-J-esque at times), Ali Shaheed Muhammed & Adrian Younge’s “Luke Cage: Season 2”, and Thom Yorke’s fascinating “Suspiria” score.

      [Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.]

      Posted in

      Leave a comment