Chicago II--like most fair-minded music lovers, I've generally regarded their seemingly endless output as the clearest example of cultural decay. I've concluded, however, that this album is something of a masterpiece--in contrast to the AOR drivel that followed, it's actually soulful and raw-- just listen to those jagged guitar fills, random percussion parts and slightly off-key vocals. Plus the bass player really swings.
Richard Buckner, Surrounded--admittedly, there's not a ton of sonic variation in his ouevre, but he is a genius and noone comes close to doing this type of downcast Nick Drake-meets-Hank Williams stuff.
Earth, Angel of Darkness--my new guilty pleasures; they're usually mis-categorized as heavy metal, but to me actually sound closer to ambient, experimental guys like NIN or Tortoise. Intense, tuneful stuff.
