When you want to know what music you should listen to, it's wise to turn to the folks who make the music you love and see what they're into. So, we asked some denizens of Vermont's music community to share their picks for the best local and nonlocal music of 2016. And since this year has been depressing AF on so many levels, we also asked them to recommend a song from any year that gives them solace, comfort or hope. Here's what they told us.

Mister Burns

The Lynguistic Civilians

Local Album: Gang of Thieves, Born to Be Loud
Nonlocal Album: Masta Ace, The Falling Season
Comfort Song: Fink, "Looking Too Closely"

Britt Shorter

Section Sign Records

LA: Tyler Daniel Bean, On Days Soon to Pass
NA: Pinegrove, Cardinal
CS: Whitney, "No Matter Where We Go"

Craig Mitchell

DJ, Planet 96.7, Operation Prince

LA: Navytrain, Souls
NA: Maxwell, BLACKsummers'night
CS: Prince, "Purple Rain"

Sarah Matthews

Polite Society

LA: Tyler Daniel Bean, On Days Soon to Pass
NA: Gillian Carter, Dreams of Suffocation
CS: Mansions, "Tangerine"

Tim Lewis

Tim's Triangle Tribune, WBKM 107.1

LA: The New Siberians, Black Blue + White
NA: Slingshot Dakota, Break
CS: Gneiss, "Piano in Every Room"

Caroline O'Connor

Steady Betty, singer-songwriter

LA: Violet Ultraviolet, Pop City
NA: Solange, A Seat at the Table
CS: Bon Iver, "Holocene"

Mark Daly

Madaila

LA: Kat Wright, By My Side
NA: Frank Ocean, Blonde
CS: Solange, "Cranes in the Sky"

Justus Gaston

Sad Turtle, the Mountain Says No

LA: Jane Boxall, Field Notes
NA: A Tribe Called Quest, We Got It From Here ... Thank You 4 Your Service
CS: David Bazan, "Both Hands"

Ben Chugg

Little Slugger

LA: Gang of Thieves, Born to Be Loud
NA: Pill, Convenience
CS: Eric Bachmann, "Mercy"

Dan Smith

CBRASNKE, Tyler Daniel Bean

LA: Noodle, White Wax
NA: Kvelertak, Nattesferd
CS: James Vincent McMorrow, "I Lie Awake Every Night"

Brian Nagle

Disco Phantom, Waking Windows

LA: Banana Schlitz, Sports & Milk
NA: Sonny & the Sunsets, Moods Baby Moods
CS: Marvin Gaye, "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)"

Michael Roberts

Wooden Dinosaur

LA: Sam Moss, Fable
NA: William Tyler, Modern Country
CS: Hiss Golden Messenger, "Heart Like a Levee"

Brian Mital

Nectar's

LA: Seth Yacovone, Shovel Down; Madaila, Traces; Kat Wright, By My Side
NA: A Tribe Called Quest, We Got It From Here ... Thank You 4 Your Service
CS: No particular song, but the music of [New Orleans' radio station] WWOZ [90.7] FM, Lil Dickey and Jah's riddims have pushed me through this year.

Jeremy Gartner

Sad Turtle, Savage Hen, Burning Monk

LA: Barishi, Blood From the Lion's Mouth
NA: Meshuggah, The Violent Sleep of Reason
CS: The Dillinger Escape Plan, "Limerent Death"; Toto, "Rosanna"

Matthew Hastings

Ver Sacrum

LA: Wren Kitz, For Evelyn
NA: Daniel Lanois, Goodbye to Language
CS: Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster and Panaiotis, "Lear"

Jason Cooley

Blue Button, Banana Schlitz

LA: Vultures of Cult, Pastoral
NA: Car Seat Headrest, Teens of Denial
CS: Minnie Riperton, "Les Fleur"

Tyler Daniel Bean

Doom Service, Polite Society, Screaming Skull

LA: Wren Kitz, For Evelyn; The Path, Our Cancer Year
NA: John K. Samson, Winter Wheat
CS: Land of Talk, "It's Okay"

Forrest Brandt

Polite Society, the Bloomers

LA: Apartment 3, Apartment 3
NA: Cass McCombs, Mangy Love
CS: Parquet Courts, "Outside"

Ben Cobane

Doom Service

LA: Get a Grip, Endless
NA: Every Time I Die, Low Teens
CS: Hot Water Music, "Drag My Body"

Bryan Parmelee

musician/producer

LA: SnakeFoot & Steph Heaghney, All Gifted/Trouble EP
NA: Radiohead, A Moon Shaped Pool
CS: Sampha, "Plastic 100°C"

Matthew Hagen

Savage Hen, the High Breaks

LA: Kat Wright, By My Side
NA: Bruno Mars, 24K Magic
CS: Brian Eno, "1/1"

Reuben Jackson

host, "Friday Night Jazz," Vermont Public Radio

LA: Kat Wright, By My Side
NA: A Tribe Called Quest, We Got It From Here ... Thank You 4 Your Service
CS: A Tribe Called Quest, "Melatonin"

Charlie Frazier

Blues for Breakfast, 106.7 WIZN

LA: Dave Keller, Right Back Atcha; Seth Yacovone Band, Shovel Down
NA: Tedeschi Trucks Band, Let Me Get By
CS: Anything from Michetti, Heady Metal

Abbie Morin

singer-songwriter

LA: Henry Jamison, The Rains
NA: Thao & the Get Down Stay Down, A Man Alive
CS: Lucy Dacus, "I Don't Wanna Be Funny Anymore"

Ian Senesac

CBRASNKE, Tyler Daniel Bean

LA: Loupo, Enigma
NA: Destrage, A Means to No End
CS: Tyler Daniel Bean, "Year of the Snake"

Dave Keller

Dave Keller Band

LA: Rumblecat, 'Til the Neighbors Shout
NA: William Bell, This Is Where I Live
CS: Doyle Bramhall II, "Mama Can't Help You"

Gary Lee Miller

contributing writer, Seven Days

LA: Kelly Ravin, Bonneville
NA: Lydia Loveless, Real
CS: Bob Dylan, "Visions of Johanna"

Brian Clark

Anachronist

LA: Kelly Ravin, Bonneville
NA: Twin Peaks, Down in Heaven
CS: Public Enemy, "Fight the Power"

Alex Budney

Nectar's, Seth Yacovone Band

LA: The High Breaks, Droppin' Off With ... the High Breaks ; Sad Turtle, Ruthless & Toothless
NA: Aaron Neville, Apache
CS: Rolling Stones/Old and in the Way, "Wild Horses"

Matthew Hall

Bren, Marco Polio, Comrade Nixon

LA: Phonix Dark, Cashmere Phoenix
NA: S. Ayton, Slow Lose
CS: Catherine Warwick, "Pollyanna (I Believe in You)"

Kyle Thompson

DJ Fattie B

LA: Kat Wright, By My Side; Madaila, Traces
NA: A Tribe Called Quest, We Got It From Here ... Thank You 4 Your Service
CS: Prince, "Purple Rain"

Matt Harpster

guitarist

LA: Sad Turtle, Ruthless & Toothless
NA: Esperanza Spalding, Emily's D+Evolution
CS: Cat Stevens, "Peace Train"

André Maquera

West Street Digital

LA: Ben Patton, The Chantry
NA: Jeff Beck, Loud Hailer
CS: Jeff Beck, "Right Now"

Eric Maier

Madaila, Future Fields

LA: Willverine, Show Up Late
NA: Childish Gambino, Awaken, My Love!
CS: PWR BTTM, "West Texas"