The Mael brothers, better known as Sparks. An utterly bonkers and wonderfully flamboyant charm oozes out of a great majority of their music, spanning 23 studio albums across almost 50 years. There might've been a lull in the middle years but the fact that 30 years into the game they can write something as bafflingly odd and brilliant as Li'l Beethoven, and just two years ago come out with an album that stands proud with their greatest work of all time, is mightily impressive. I absolutely fucking love Sparks, they're one of the best bands who ever lived.
I'd also like to mention Kevin Barnes, primary songwriter of pretty much all of the music of the band Of Montreal. Have there been disappointing moments in his career? Without a doubt. But as a transformative whack job who reinvents himself either slightly or drastically for each new release, the ride has been dazzling and fascinating throughout. Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? is one of those albums where I just can't comprehend how faultless it is as a freak pop album. The hooks are totally bizarre but they're compelling and magical at every turn. Satanic Panic In The Attic is also a firm favourite, total psychedelic masterpiece that often feels so dizzied like you're about to fall off a carousel in a fever dream but, again, just weird hit after weird hit.
