2013 was a year that started out slow for good music in the
first half but rebounded fiercely, contributing some strong contenders with potential
to become some of my favorite music of all time. As usual I listened to a ton
of music. The total is somewhere around 3700 songs. Out of all that, I was able
to pick my favorites and break them down with unprecedented verbosity, and I’m
grateful to have the time and effort spent result in anyone taking their
own time to read any of it. I mainly write this for the friends I’ve made over the years who share some or all of my music tastes but don’t have the time or
the impetus to dig for new stuff. Some of my best memories throughout my life
consist of bonding with friends over music, whether that be playing, listening,
or going to shows, so I’m always happy to expose people to new stuff they
enjoy. I sincerely believe any of you who like any of the same (sub)genres I do
should be able to find at least one new thing worth adding to your iPod or
phone. Better yet, buy some sweet looking vinyl & throw it on the
turntable. I've provided links to streams of everything, and I'm sure most of this can be found on Spotify. However you listen, be sure to give me a shout and let me know what you liked.
Enough jibber jabber, let’s get on to what you people came here for, the
countdown. Let’s start with EP’s & 7”s.
EP's & 7"s
20. Supastition - The
Blackboard
This dude from North Carolina has been in the game for 11+
years, with his fairly mediocre debut album 7
Years of Bad Luck having dropped in 2002. He then followed in 2004 with Chain Letters, to me his best & most
consistent output, which contained the banger "Soul Control" from
volume 12 of my hip-hop mixes. Along
with producer Nicolay, he also contributed the fantastic "The Williams" to the Okayplayer comp back in 2004. The trials &
tribulations of the music industry & the struggle to make a living as an
artist always seemed to really get to him & cause bitterness that permeated
his career decisions, causing him to switch to using his birth name (Kam Moye) in 2009 and then leaving the
industry altogether in 2010. Everybody knows a true MC never really retires
(only way out is dying) , so in 2012 he announced he was returning as
Supastition and then dropped this EP in early 2013. I'm glad I decided to give
him another try after not feeling the Kam Moye material because this is a very
solid EP with much improved production. I won't ruin the ending of it for you,
but "Best Worst Day" tells a cool story with a twist ending that, while not
entirely original, is used well & makes some great points about how hip-hop
treats those who create it. Hopefully in 2014 he drops an album that rivals Chain Letters.
19. Reservoir - I
Heard You As I Walked Away
These four young blokes from Pennsylvania do a great job of
paying respect to and faithfully recreating the Midwest 90's emo of such bands
as Mineral & Small Brown Bike. I guess there's some bicoastal influence as
well, as I also hear some Sunny Day Real Estate & early Thursday in the
mix. There's not much here that's particularly catchy or poppy, just a driving,
cathartic interwoven tapestry of melancholy that speaks to your bum-out or
fatigue. I was much higher on these songs after having my first listen be in a
live setting back in early January 2013, so I'm eager to hear what they could
do with an outside producer and better recording budget to capture that extra something they have live. Hopefully those things will come to fruition in 2014,
as well as getting another chance to see them play. "In Passing"
is my favorite song on this EP.
18. Former States - Heritage
This young band from southeast Michigan describes themselves
as "Midwestern gloompop". The Swellers' Nick Diener with
recording this, their debut EP. To me, they lie in the overlap of mid-tempo
pop-punk & crunchy, more aggressive emo. I'd say they lie about halfway
between Balance & Composure and The Story So Far while incorporating the
more savory elements of 90's "alternative" rock a la Title Fight. The
vibe is fairly similar to what fellow Michigan band Citizen went for with their
Youth album this year, but I find
this infinitely more powerful & engaging. There's definitely room for
improvement (the spoken word part comes off a little clunky) but also huge
promise laid out over these five tracks. The leadoff track, "Stone
Angel" is my standout.
17. Half Hearted Hero - Whatever
This band is a perfect example of how a path toward
musical maturity doesn't have to follow the progression toward pop that is all too
well-traveled. Their debut LP in 2010, along with a split & an EP in 2011, showed promise but too much reliance on typical pop-punk tenets to warrant much
distinction or recognition, but they've returned with this new EP that lends more
of an edge to their melding of pop-punk & skate-punk with twists of melodic
hardcore. The result is a significantly more memorable release for me.
"Vessel" is my favorite cut, with its slower sludgy groove playing
foil to the otherwise faster pace. The breakneck beginning of "River"
is them at their best as well. This is no-guilt pop-punk with zero
cringe-worthy moments.
16. Misser - Distancing
For those not in the know, Misser is the side project of
Transit guitarist Tim Landers, and this is their third release, following last
year's Every Day I Tell Myself… LP
and the Problems...
EP. The leadoff track, "Goddamn, Salad Days" blew me away upon first
listen and, combined with fellow ripper "Burn Out", comprises the
most aggressive material Mr. Landers has written since Keep This To Yourself. The closing track detracts from the overall likability for me, but
overall it's still a highly enjoyable listen.
15. Arrows In Her/Gifts - split
Arrows In Her just cannot catch a break. Their debut EP, the
fantastic leaving. (#10 on my 2012 list), still has not come out on vinyl over a year after the pre-order was
launched because the guy running Glass Nail Records took their fans'
hard-earned money and turned out nothing but endless excuses for his
incompetence. On top of that, he turned out to be a pederast (allegedly).
Seems fitting. What a creep. The task of putting out the leaving.
vinyl was graciously taken over by Meadowbrook Records, the same label putting
this split out, as a pro-bono deal. The only problem is that neither have come
out yet because Meadowbrook decided to shut down while promising to make sure
these still got out as their final releases, but they still haven't delivered. At
least photos of the test press for leaving.
surfaced in December. (Edit: The day after I typed this I got shipping notice
for what I believe is this split from MB. Hooray!) It's a real crying shame that
such a promising band has had their legs cut out from under them while they're
trying to gain footing. They play a particularly gripping and well-executed
take on semi-noodly 90's emo with twists of pop-punk & post-hardcore. They
definitely take the spotlight on this release, but Gifts are no slouches
either. Musically I would approximate them as somewhat of a poor man's Hey
Mercedes crossed with the more subdued sounds of The River Bed-era Small Brown Bike. I'll definitely be checking for
more from them in the future, and Arrows have already solidified themselves as
a small band destined for larger audiences and even greater music (assuming
they can get somebody fully competent to put out a god damn record for them). None of
the 4 tracks here really stands much above the rest; they're all good.
14. Lions - Roosevelt/Forgettingism
For my money, these chaps from Tennessee are the best band
not currently signed to any label in all of the good ol' US & A. While
their name is woefully mundane (probably to the degree that it's hurting their
notoriety due to the plethora of other bands with "Lion" in their
names), vocalist Josiah's voice is unique enough to be memorable. When he
really belts it out, you can't help but take notice, and dude can fucking sing. Thankfully the music is
intricate, mathy, and memorable enough to demand notice as well, with jangly
noodly guitars laid over roller-coaster rhythms loosely rooted in 90's emo with
enough progressiveness to not come off as simple worship & tribute. These
two EPs are comprised of a total of six songs which build upon and go beyond
the foundations they constructed on their debut
MTNZ (see below), which came
out on UK label Enjoyment Records. I would really love to see them get picked
up by a label like Topshelf so these two EP's can get the vinyl treatment they
deserve. The leadoff track from Forgettingism,
"Defeating Verbs" is my favorite song off of these.
13. The Weeds - Roots/Routes
After the Promise
Nothing 7" that Transit put out between KTTY and Listen And Forgive,
they and guitarist Joe Lacy parted ways. Mr. Lacy experienced some rough spots with trying to get his Sleepsick project off the ground, but the premature
death of that project allowed the birth of this one. Thankfully my favorite
Sleepsick demo was salvaged to become the second track here,
"Attention", which features the lone double-time beat on the EP, as
most of it leans much more toward 90's emo than pop-punk. The vocals are co-ed
in nature, with Joe trading off duties with his co-pilot Justine. There are
very few female singers that catch my ear, but she is definitely one of them,
especially after having had the pleasure of seeing them live (where she claimed
she was sick and somehow still sounded great). Opener "Sunset Eyes"
is another highlight here. To top it off, the vinyl is one of the coolest looking of the year. This is a solid debut, but one that also leaves room to grow.
I look forward to more from them.
12. Gnarwolves - Funemployed
These English blokes' goofy band name and neon cover art
made me steer clear of them for over a year, until a random facebook post by a
friend (thanks, Joel!) alerted me to the possibility of them not sucking. As it
turns out, I did myself a great disservice by not checking them out sooner, as
their previous EP CRU is also damn
good. They play a dirty, jagged, & brash style of pop-punk (the
"pop" part being de-emphasized) with a slightly tongue-in-cheek feel
at times. They sound like an old locomotive barreling down the tracks so hard
that all nuts and bolts are about to fly off, but somehow it all stays together
and reaches the destination platform looking ragged but triumphant. Most of
all, it's a fucking fun
listen that inspires air guitar and at-home fist-pumping. They come off like a
British Latterman at times, while also bringing an old Rancid-esque approach to
bass and drums and occasional metal flourishes in the guitar riffs. Please
allow them to rip at your eardrums. You'll be better off for it. Sky's the
limit for these boys.
11. Pentimento - Inside The Sea
If you're aware of Pentimento & have an opinion about
them, this EP will do nothing to change it. It's another refinement of the
sound they've been building on since Wrecked,
and I for one am glad to have a great dependable band like this that doesn't
think they need to reinvent the god damned wheel every time they put out a new
record. Their secret weapon is drummer Mike Hansen, who not only provides an impressive
rhythmic backbone but also the well-paced guttural screams and shouts that
accentuate singer Jeremiah Pauly's singing, which also takes on its own bark at
appropriate times. Still, I've always felt their music to be a tiny bit
disposable despite the obvious sincerity and passion they obviously pour into it, so
I'm not as passionate about them as one might expect based on their similarities
to my most loved bands of late. All that said, they're still highly recommended
for anyone looking for incredibly well-crafted emo-rock with mid-tempo punk
leanings and catchy-as-fuck choruses. I go back and forth between "Any
Minute Now" and "Just Friends" being my favorite song off this.
10. Alkaline Trio - Broken
Wing
2013 was the year I fully let an old friend whom I felt had
wronged me back into my life. It pained me greatly to dismiss this friend after
the grossness of Agony & Irony,
but it had to be done so I could move on with my life. Then this friend came
back around showing hints of the former self I once adored with This Addiction, but I was not fully
convinced I should let him back in as the effort seemed somewhat insincere and
transparent. However, when this friend knocked at my door again in 2013, he was
holding not one but two offerings of friendship, and both were worthy of full
attention. That initial trust has long been broken beyond full repair, but
based on these new offerings a new, looser friendship has evolved which
acknowledges that things can be great again without being the same as they once
were. Alkaline Trio, I'm glad to have
you back in my life. When you came back around singing "I Wanna Be A
Warhol", my ears perked up while maintaining a leering uneasiness, but
when "Torture Doctor" came out of your beautiful mouth, I knew I
needed you around again. Then you gave me this glorious EP primarily featuring
your Dan personality, and offerings like "Balanced On A Shelf"
further substantiated the value of your return to prominence in my ears.
9. Iron Chic - Spooky
Action 7”
I'll save most of my gloating praise for this band for the
LP which also contains the absolutely stupendous title track of this 7",
but suffice it to say that the non-album track "Less Rest For The
Restless" is also damn good. To top it off, there's a Ramones cover on the
US version that’s decent. The style of the new songs is right in line with
their previous LP Not Like This,
which is to say it’s expertly executed emotive punk rock with killer hooks and
memorable lyrics built for sloshing your beer or holding your jay in the air
while singing along.
8. Sean Born & Dunc - Organic
Mr. Born is quickly becoming one of my favorite MC's
currently making music, and this superb EP only helps to supplement the
greatness he put forth on last year's BehindThe Scale LP (which I grossly underrated on my list). Dunc is the
beat-making half of duo DTMD, who also made my list last year. Put these two
together, and great things were bound to happen. Sean has just the right ratio
of swagger to smarts, and Dunc lays down a beautiful sample-based boom-bap bed
for Sean to lay his rhymes out on. My only real complaint with this is that it
should've been an LP with a few more songs. "Hardship (ft. Hassaan Mackey)" is my favorite
cut here.
7. Paper Arms/Nothington – split 7"
Nothington is a band I have been
aware of for a while but haven’t ever sought out because the few songs I’ve
sampled weren’t doing it for me, despite employing the gruff vocal style I
enjoy. Australian post-hardcore lads Paper Arms also employ that vocal style,
and while I enjoyed most of their debut LP Days
Above Ground in 2010, it didn’t leave a lasting impression. Upon hearing
they had new material out, I first heard “Run Away” from this and was floored at how far
they’d come. The chorus is damn near perfect. It’s hard not to conjure up names
like Hot Water Music (particularly Caution-era),
The Draft, Small Brown Bike (The River
Bed), Title Fight (Shed), &
Polar Bear Club when attempting to compare their sound, so of course I’m going
to like it. If that’s not enough for you, consider that Walter Schreifels of
Quicksand thought enough of their demo to produce their first album. So suck on that, Sanchez. Their side
alone is good enough to warrant the overseas postage to get it from German
label Uncle M, but the only actual song (the other is just a voice mail over music)
by Nothington, “Save This” is way more enjoyable than anything else I’ve heard
by them.
6. Polar Bear Club – Blood
Balloon 7”
I’ll save most of my thoughts on PBC in 2013 for the LP list
below, but the fact that one half of this is my favorite song from the LP
certainly helps its spot here. On top of that, the b-side “Saw Blade” would’ve
been my second or third favorite on the album had it been included. And while
we’re mentioning songs that were inexplicably left off the album in favor of
others that made it, be sure to check for “New Hollywood” from the Off TheBoard Compilation.
5. Pianos
Become The Teeth/Touche Amore – split 7”
I’ve been a
huge huge fan of Pianos’ brand of crushing, melodic, emotive post-hardcore
(some call it “screamo”) since before they signed to Topshelf, but they threw
everybody a little bit of a curveball with this one…and I loved it. The first time I heard it was on their tour with Title Fight a few months before this came
out, and I was instantly into it enough to rewatch the video multiple times
leading up to the release. The song is notably more somber and incorporates
much more singing than before, although the trademark yelps/screams are there
too. As usual the subject matter is as weighty as the vibe of the music. I love
the opening lines, “There’s no good in your eyes anymore/And it makes you want
to drive home drunk and alone/Curse the faces in the wheat/Drown yourself in
the gold, ‘cause you can’t let it go”. They go on to paint a picture of
watching someone you care about destroy his/her life with his/her own anger and
a lack of ability to cope with it, and it’s delivered in captivating, agonizing
fashion. On the flip side, I’ve never been a Touche fan, but their contribution
here, "Gravity, Metaphorically" (which should be subtitled "That's Heavy, Doc") is outside their normal wheelhouse and is a rewarding listen because of
that. They get going hard out of the gate as usual but go longer and slower
than ever before, and it sounds fucking great. If you’ve heard of them and want
a song to start out with, I can’t recommend this one enough.
4. NGOD – Bait Head 7”
I realized
something about myself in 2013: I can presumably only enjoy a falsetto voice if
it’s accompanied by a British accent. It’s a purely evidence-based assumption,
and this record is Exhibit A for the argument. “Probably Not” is a good song,
but “Bait Head” really steals the show here. I learned of these guys thanks to
the same Enjoyment Records digital comp on which I discovered Lions. It had
been years since I discovered a band via a comp, and it was pretty damn cool to
get two whoppers off that one. The
rhythm section is above average if not great and does an ample job of laying
down mathy emo beats upon which the noodly guitars and aforementioned vocals
are layered. The breadth of their capabilities is showcased on “Bait Head”
where a sparse passage instantly builds to a climax of
screamed, anguished vocals and stabbing rhythms. Give it a spin already. There
are some other digital releases of theirs included on the linked playlist. It’s
pretty much all recommended.
3. Prawn – Short Stay, Long Road
Along with
their NJ state-mates Gates, Prawn are one of the best bands around at blending
90’s emo and post-rock, and nowhere is that more apparent than on this 2-song
instrumental digital EP. This is essentially a throwaway release that pre-dates
Ships, as both songs are basically
demos that either died in the garage they were recorded in (“Your One Is My
Half Mile”) or got significantly overhauled before vocals were eventually added
and it became the album version (“Spring River” from Ships ). The latter is a cool reimagining of an already great song,
but "Half Mile" is absolute gold. It’s a shame it never got recorded properly in
a real studio, because it has to be my favorite post-rock song ever. When
things all come crashing together at the 0:39 mark, the guitars are heavier (in
the intensity sense, not the metal sense) than anything else I’ve heard in
post-rock, and the drummer beats the living shit out of his set as well.
Despite the short shrift these songs were given in terms of proper recording
& release, they are welcome additions to Prawn’s already killer catalog.
2. Big
Awesome – Birdfeeder 7”
I made an
absolutely egregious error in 2012 when I passed over this release on one of
the blogs I peruse with not even so much as a cursory listen. Then in January
2013 I was checking out the blog of a friend with similarly great music tastes who included this on his 2012
list. Upon giving it an actual chance to touch my eardrums, I was completely
blown away and ordered the 7” almost immediately. The upbeat feel of the music
and the rollicking drum beats really drew me in, and I heard traces of what I
love about bands like Latterman, Carpenter, & Algernon Cadwallader
overtaking me. Even though the lyrics are almost overly simple and direct,
they’re still effective at getting the point across and fit the music well. The
line “I know it’s your kindness that helps me fly” and the way it's sung resonate with me when I
think about all the kind people whose support have helped me through the
career/life transition I’ve undertaken these past two years. I’d be hard
pressed to pick a favorite from this because it’s always changing, but for a
first listen I guess I’d recommend “Birdfeeder” (and its killer bass line) or
“Living With Love”.
1. Somos – Demo
2012
Yes, that’s
correct. I must’ve been asleep for part of 2012 because here’s another
incredible slice of divine music that I was ignorant of until 2013. Major props
to Mr. Joe Lacy for urging me to listen and awakening me from my slumber. I
swear to you that if I had the clarity of mind to be able to dissect the sounds
of my more aggressive favorite bands of the last 15 years (especially Polar
Bear Club & Strike Anywhere) and then piece together the best parts, this
is the Frankenstein’s monster that would result. As a matter of fact, when I
listen to this demo, I feel like I have bolts in my neck and electricity
coursing through my body, and I feel the urge to run about and scare the townsfolk.
I really love all 4 songs, but “Embrace The Spare Change” & “Showed Up
Late” are particularly badass. The “woah-oh-oh, that’s just my selfish side” line
from “Showed Up Late” fills me with such fist-shaking enthusiasm that I want to
stage dive off the nearest table or countertop. I had the pleasure of hearing a
couple songs off their forthcoming LP (dropping sometime in 2014 on Tiny
Engines, the label that brought you CSTVT),
and even though they’ve allegedly made the decision to ditch the growly end of
the vocal spectrum (bummer), I can assure you they will still be kicking major
ass this year. The closing track here, “The Strangest Example” is possibly
going to be redone for the LP. My only complaint with this release is that it’s
not available on vinyl, and given that it’s a demo (though you’d never know it
by the quality) I’m doubtful that will never change. Anybody want to do a
sit-in with me at Tiny Engines’ office until they agree to press it on wax?
LP's
25. Worship
This! – Tomorrow, I’ll Miss You
Hey kids,
it's only fitting that we start out the LP countdown with a band that has that
raspy, glass-gargling vocal style. This not-so-young group of dudes is from
Akron, Ohio, and they rep the Midwest well. Much like the preceding EP The Nard Years, the music is more of the
punk-n-roll variety than with most bands I like that employ that vocal style,
but there are still significant minor elements of HWM/SBB/Leatherface influence
in the music. My only complaint is that they could use a greater sense of
urgency to help cut out some of the mediocre, aimlessly meandering parts. Those
don’t come terribly often though. My favorite song here is "Whatever
Happened To You Melissa", and the video for “Indifferent” is pretty cool too. I also have to shout out the Get Up Kids reference in the
title of "Jen, with 2 N's". Nice touch.
24. Have
Mercy – The Earth Pushed Back
These fellas
are Reservoir’s rivals in terms of faithfully recreating that Midwest 90’s emo,
not only sonically but in aesthetic as well. Thankfully it has been a long time
since I went through the dissolution of a romantic relationship, but I remember
the intense hopelessness & anguish of such an event going up against the
minimal coping skills (and 8-month winter-related depression) in my
early-twentysomething brain. If you could drag a record needle back and forth
against the part of my brain that stores that memory, I’m pretty sure the
vibrations that would come out would sound just like “Let’s Talk About YourHair”. “Ancient West” is another highlight which really typifies everything
I’ve loved about the emo genre, especially in the guitar work. However, overall
the biggest detriment to this album is the seventh-grade poetry feel in much of
the lyrics. It just sounds like he goes for the most obvious rhyme every time
(“You used to love to hear me sing/And we would talk about everything”), and he
barely gets beyond monosyllabic words in too many cases. That’s OK though,
because the talent is there and the sky is the limit for these kids. I think
the lyric-writing improvement will come with time.
23. Polar
Bear Club – Death Chorus
Oh, where to
begin. If you know me, you know I’ve had an intense love for this band since 2006,
and a large part of that has been because of the range of emotion conveyed by
Jimmy Stadt’s vocal delivery as he transitioned between singing and throaty bark.
Thanks to years of touring and abusing vocal chords that may not have been
built for such things (not everyone can be Chuck Ragan), the growl is now gone
and clean singing seems here to stay. Given that other vocalists have faced
similar challenges and persevered to scream/growl again (Chino Moreno from
Deftones comes to mind), I can hold out hope that Jimmy can also re-learn how
to do so without ruining his throat, but I’m not holding my breath. That drastic
change is coupled with a noticeably stronger stylistic leaning toward pop-rock.
Some of the “whoa-oh-ohs” sound more akin to radio pop than punk this time
around, which just doesn’t hit my old, decrepit, hairy ears right. As a result of all the change,
I’m still having trouble wrapping my head around this album. It’s definitely good, and
outside of least favorites “Siouxsie Jeanne” & “Upstate Mosquito” I enjoy
the other 8 songs to varying degrees of like to love. But besides the
aforementioned “Blood Balloon”, there’s nothing else here that I feel any big passion for. Still, “Twang (Blister To Burn)” is a great song that gets second
place here because of the unorthodox riff in the verse which just fits my ear
perfectly. It’s one curveball I can hang with. A lot of the rest of the album reminds
me of post-Clarity Jimmy Eat World
(including “Chicago Spring”), which makes sense in light of my feelings of firm
like but not much passion (how anyone can say Bleed American is better than Clarity
is beyond me). Much like Chasing Hamburg,
I think this record unfairly but unavoidably takes a hit because of how
incredibly awesome its predecessor was and the associated inevitable letdown, but
in no way is it deserving of a full write-off of the band. I’m hoping the vitriolic
backlash against this album by a segment of their fanbase might piss them off
enough to write some not-so-nice sounding tunes next time around. And even if
they venture further out into territory I’m not comfortable with (not a forgone
conclusion), much like Transit I wish them all the success in the world no
matter how much I might personally dislike what they put out in the future.
They deserve as much for sleeping on hardwood floors for years, putting out
some of my most cherished music ever, and coming home to “how much longerwritten on your face”.
Go get ‘em, boys, and thanks for all you’ve done so far. And if nothing else,
the dislike some have for this album just proves the value and importance of
always digging for new bands to fill in the gaps when others leave your
listening range.
22. Rapsody
– The Idea Of Beautiful
Here’s
another 2012 release (reissued in 2013) I slept on for too long. If you want
poignant, honest lyricism over boom-bap beats with a soulful touch, look no
further. You can tell this young lady puts a ton of thought into her rhymes,
and she makes it clear that her goal is to be recognized as one of the best
MC’s of all time. She’s a founding member of the group Kooley High (who put out
a decent but largely unmemorable album in 2011), and she’s on 9th Wonder’s
label. 9th produces a number of songs here, including my favorite
jam “The Drums” (naturally). Fellow North Carolinians Khrysis and Amp also lend
some solid to great beats to round things out.
21. Paper
Arms – The Smoke Will Clear
While I
don’t find anything on this album to be quite as sweet as the previously
mentioned “Run Away” from the split 7”, this is still a straight run of good to
really good songs with occasional great parts and no duds. Check out “Tanks of
Dust”, double-time banger “Choke”, or my favorite “These Nights” with the
killer gang vocals.
20. Paranom
– Five Seasons
Here’s
another one that came out of nowhere to blindside me near the end of the year.
I became aware of dude when browsing the new releases section of
UndergroundHipHop.com and saw that he did an album with one of my two favorite
(relatively) new producers, Purpose (who contributed the rhymes for my #7 album
of 2012 with beats by my other new favorite, Confidence). I wasn’t able to
locate said album at that time, but did stumble upon P-nom’s bandcamp site. I
was in love from the first few seconds, as opener “Gifts From Above” is built
on the same sample as one of my all-time favorite hip-hop instrumentals. Dude’s got an ill voice and a nice flow too.
It’s great that sometimes things work out like that.
The real highlights of the album are “Let It Bang” and “Respects” so don’t
sleep on those. I have really high hopes for the album with Purpose after this kicked my ass like hitting a deer at 45 mph on a bicycle.
19. Alkaline
Trio – My Shame Is True
There's
probably not much more that needs to be said about the Trio's full return to
relevance for me beyond what I wrote for the Broken Wing EP. The corniness that accompanied the full integration
of the goth gimmick is still present in spots (most notably in Skiba's
delivery), but the earnestness of Andriano's offerings more than offsets it.
For me, "Torture Doctor" & "Young Lovers" stand above
the rest here.
18. Lions – MTNZ
I guess this
is listed as an EP on the label's site, but considering the vinyl version I own
has two bonus tracks, bringing the total to ten, I'm considering it a
full-length album, and one of the best debuts on the list (it preceded both
EP's previously mentioned). More mathy emo-punk/indie rock with noodly MTB-ish guitars
and unique vocals are what you'll find here. Help me spread the word about
these guys. It's about time they got some well-deserved recognition. For
sampling I'd recommend "Stuck In Our Small Town" & "Arizona
The Second". Hurry up.
17. Implants
– From Chaos To Order
This was the
year I got to suspend myself in the mid to late 90's not only in emo and
hip-hop, but punk rock as well thanks to this wonderful offering from a new
band of old dudes featuring guitarist Rob Ramos from Strung Out as well as
dudes from Pulley & Ten Foot Pole. Naturally the sounds don't stray very
far from the well-crafted technical metal-tinged skate-punk of Strung Out, so
if you are looking for a sonic trip to the heydays of Fat Wreck Chords , this
record is your time machine. In addition to the obvious Strung Out comparison,
I hear a lot of my favorite parts of No Use For A Name songs here as well. Be
advised that the vocals may leave something to be desired and seem to the the only
reason fans of the style can't get into this, but for me they were fine and
didn't affect my enjoyment at all. "Parallels", "Through The
Window", & "Once Was I" are all good starting points. Side
note: Just look at that fucking cover art. It has to be one of the worst
covers of all time. I seriously can't imagine someone green-lighting that, like
"Yeah! That looks great! That will really catch the eye of the prospective
buyer in a positive way."
16. The
Story So Far - What You Don't See
Previous
output by this young band of whippersnappers had me casting them off as
cookie-cutter kiddie punk-pop that was way too angrily focused on crimes of the
heart perpetrated by teenage girls on their male counterparts. In fact, moments
on their debut full-length Under Soil And
Dirt (soil and dirt are the same thing; call the Department of Redundancy
Department, kids) brought the slut-shaming to downright awkward levels to the
point where all my adult brain could think was, "Dude! No relationship
dissolution could be this one-sided. Please just show me one track where you
admit your part and show some self-awareness beyond self-pity." Thankfully
the subject matter is more varied here, and while the music doesn't avoid the
cookie-cutter construction completely, the cuts do not conform to tired and
well-worn patterns anywhere near as much. So no, they're still not all that
original, but holy fuck is the execution expertly done this time, to the point
that literally everything feels improved and fleshed out for maximum
foot-tapping and fist-shaking. I enjoy every song, but "The Glass" is
especially good. It will be very interesting to see where they take their sound
from here. It could get ugly, or it could get even greater if they keep an edge.
15. The
Swellers - The Light Under Closed Doors
After the
mild letdown of Good For Me, the
punk/rock darlings of Flint put out a 7" and EP in 2012 that fully
redeemed them for me. Accordingly, I was eagerly awaiting this LP, and for the
most part it delivers. There's not much resembling the groove of something like
"Running Out of Places To Go" (save maybe the ending of closer "Call It A Night") , but overall
it's an even listen traversing from good to great (but nothing I could really
call "excellent"). I think
it's a good representation of every sound they've pursued on their previous
efforts being thrown into a blender and repurposed. Suffice it to say that if
you bailed on them with Good For Me, I can reassure you it's now
fully safe to get back on the train. Now let's just hope they never let the
suited sharks of the music industry handicap them again. Favorite songs here
are "Should", "Big Hearts", & "Call It A
Night".
14. The Cabs
– Regenerative Landscape
Language
barriers are a bitch. Given what incredible musicians this group of Japanese
dudes are and how utterly enjoyable their music should be to most fans of 90's
emo, frantic/jagged punk (in the At The Drive-In vein), and math rock, the fact
that they sing exclusively in Japanese is the only logical reason I can surmise
for why they seem to be such a well-kept secret in the U.S. & A. The guitar
work occasionally matches the mastery of Minus The Bear's Dave Knudson but also
sometimes sounds like a 33-1/3 Mineral record played at 45 rpm (a very good thing).
And the drumming…holy fuck, the drumming! I don't know dude's name but he makes
up my current top 4 with Such Gold's Devan Bentley, This Town Needs Guns’ Chris
Collis, and Crash Of Rhinos' Oli Craven. This, their first full-length, follows
up two EP's (surely you remember me gushing incessantly about the latter last
year), and while it seems to falter a bit compared to the impossibly high
watermark of Recur Breath, it's still
another fun rollercoaster ride. If you can get past the awkwardness of
listening to someone sing in a foreign language, I swear you will be infinitely
rewarded with aural bliss. My favorite jam here is "Our Failure".
13. Pro Era
– Peep: The Aprocalypse
Somehow I
had no idea until a couple months ago that Joey Bada$$ was part of a crew. I
was fully aware of his reverence and respect for the same hip-hop icons I grew
up on despite being born in 1995, and it shows in his music. Still, I didn’t
think there was anything extraordinary on his mixtapes, just mostly solid
tracks. That changed when I saw the video for this mixtape’s leadoff track “Like Water” featuring two other members of
the Pro Era crew, CJ Fly & the now sadly deceased (suicide at 19…senseless)
Capital STEEZ, and production by Mr. Extraordinary Beats himself, Statik
Selektah. It’s a masterful creation, and although it can’t quite be topped by
the rest of this mixtape, there are a couple other extremely noteworthy joints
that come damn close. “Last Cypher” is a posse cut to rival the classics, with
an instrumental that could’ve been a lost track from Midnight Marauders, and “Resurrection of Real” features a sublime
piano loop and the perfect head-nodding drums to complement it. The rhymes are
not exactly all next-level shit, but they’re more than adequate and far better
than most of the garbage that passes for popular rap (not to be confused with
hip-hop) these days. The best part is
it’s a free download, so you have no excuse to not check it out.
12. CM Jones
- Perfect Hand Off
Here is a perfect
example of the rewards of digging far beyond the mainstream. Some of the
brightest flecks of gold might be off along the banks of the river, out of
normal sight. The main hip-hop blog I peruse is based somewhere in Europe and
accordingly posts a lot of amateurish crap from overseas which I almost always skip past with extreme prejudice if I haven't heard of them before. I guess something about
the group name & album art here intrigued me enough to give a song a
listen, and man am I glad I did because this is easily one of the best hip-hop
releases of the year. The MC is MoShadee from New Jersey, and the
producer/beatsmith is Creestal (an unfitting name to say the least) from
France. Europe has always had a greater appreciation for the boom-bap than the
States, and it appears obvious that Creestal was studying the scrolls of the
Golden Era of American hip-hop. I really haven't had enough time with this to
properly characterize the rhymes, but I can confidently say they don't detract
from the overall greatness of this at all. "On The Way" &
"On The Real" (no, seriously) are standouts here.
11. Seven
G.E.M.S. (Tragic Allies + Tragedy Khadafi) - Golden Era Music Sciences
Previously
mentioned producer Confidence's label Ill Adrenaline Records, who put this out,
is the best thing going in hip-hop today. Get past the pseudo-enlightened
bullshit on the intro to this record (seriously, it's as bad as Poppa Wu on Wu-Tang Forever), and you will be met
with more boom-bap goodness with a street-hardened (but not thug-moron) perspective. The functional catalyst to all this (despite the inclusion of
Queensbridge veteran MC Tragedy, who has worked with Nas & Capone-N-Noreaga
among many others) is my boy Purpose, who produced this entire thing, proving
he's just as adept behind the boards as he is on the mic. The other three hold
their weight on the mic as well, and the finished product is something to
behold if you love true-school hip-hop like I do. Bangers like "Time ToPonder" & "Wild Militants" (which breathes new life into the
killer sample The Roots used for "Thought At Work") prove why this is
my third favorite hip-hop LP of the year.
10. Moving
Mountains - Moving Mountains
It's so sad
to see this band go, but this is a fitting goodbye to endcap their existence.
After the more aggressive Waves,
singer Greg Dunn has stated in interviews that he wanted to get back to the
mental place he was in when creating their emo/post-rock debut masterpiece Pneuma and do something a little more
nuanced. Initially I was completely underwhelmed by the restraint shown here
(there's not much in the way of the epic moments of something like "Ode…"),
but further listens proved more rewarding each time once those nuances could be
differentiated. It's definitely their mellowest release, so it doesn't really
reach right out & grab the listener, and you may have to give it the
benefit of the doubt and 4-5 spins before it starts to sink in. "Burn
Pile" is really good, but to me the crowning achievement here is
"Eastern Leaves". Once that baby kicks in with the drums, ohhhhh man
are my eardrums in a state of bliss. Thanks for all you've given us over the years,
Mr. Dunn & company. You will be missed.
9. This Town
Needs Guns - 13.0.0.0
Here’s
Exhibit B for the evidence supporting my realization about falsetto with a
British accent (see the NGOD blurb above). This is the follow-up to the 7” they
released in 2011 (my #5). I’ve adored this band since catching a case of
drop-jaw while watching them play at Bled Fest 2010.
Much like The Cabs, the musicianship is absolutely outstanding. When I saw them
in 2010 they were a 4-piece but now play as a 3-piece,
and it seems impossible that they achieve a sound so full & intricate with just three guys. I already mentioned my love for the drummer, but his
guitarist brother is just as talented, taking the finger-tapping style of Minus
The Bear and making other finger-tappers look like Muggsy Bogues compared to Michael Jordan.
It’s also worth mentioning that this is their first recording with new vocalist
Henry Tremain. I was concerned when I read old vocalist Stu Smith was leaving,
since I couldn’t imagine them finding another young chap whose voice could
match their music so well. All fears were assuaged upon hearing this record
though, because his voice is eerily similar, he has even more range than Stu,
and he plays a mean bass on top of it.
He sounds fantastic live as well (I saw them again in 2013,
and it was most triumphant – they even got a standing ovation from the crowd BEFORE playing),
and I don’t understand how he does it while playing complicated math-rock on
the bass. Based on what I’ve heard from others, playing 3-chord punk and
singing is hard enough. Hopefully this lineup stays intact for many years,
because they’re absolutely hitting on all cylinders right now,
and I dare say I enjoy this album even more than Animals. Blasphemy, I know. Favorites here are “Cat Fantastic”
& “Left Aligned”.
8. Balance
And Composure – The Things We Think We’re
Missing
This is the
first release from this band that I’ve really loved through and through. I dug
their 2011 debut LP, Separation, but
in my memory that album exists as “I Tore You Apart In My Head” and then a bunch of other songs that didn’t stick so much. However, on this one
the riffs are alternately crunchier and more memorably melodic, and the rhythms are
more driving. The palpable emotions main songwriter and vocalist Jon Simmons
has so effectively put forth in their previous music finally has a consistently
strong foundation and accompaniment to aid in its expression. Make no mistake,
this album is moody and angsty as fuck and makes no apologies for it.
Furthermore, the anguished screams sparsely peppered throughout are incredibly
well-placed to emphasize that aspect. This has 90’s emo influence all over it
like their previous works, but I see a lot of fans & reviewers referencing
this as a 90’s “alternative” (I really hate that term) rock throwback. I’m not
sure if those people were even old enough to remember much of the 90’s, but I
don’t remember any alternative bands sounding like this. Now, if we’re talking
about Daylight’s Jar album from this
year (ugh), then yes I can hear the Nirvana worship (by way of Puddle of Mudd),
but nothing sticks out to me like that here. Shit, I wish more bands of the
90’s had sounded like this. If extraordinary songs like “Reflection”, “I’m
Swimming”, & “Enemy” were around back then, I wouldn’t have had to pretend
like Pearl Jam was actually good.
7. Doppelgangaz
– Hark
One of the
most unique hip-hop acts of the past five years has returned with another
offering of neck-snapping boom-bap, killer flow, and “What the fuck did he just
say?” lyrics. The quality of the music that the ghastly duo of EP & Matter
Ov Fact make has been superb from jump (please tell me you didn’t sleep on
their 2009 debut LP 2012: The NewBeginning,
which I finally acquired on vinyl from Deutschland recently), and it’s so
impressive that they’ve built a sizeable fanbase (especially in Europe, where
they now tour regularly) and garnered significant industry attention without
any features from more well-known MC’s (save for one non-album remix with
Apathy) or any outside production work. They’ve also done everything DIY style
(up the hip-hop punx) including their low-budget videos,
with no label backing. That has enabled them to call all their own shots in
terms of creative direction, so they can still spit lines like “He bagged a cougar named Mabel at a Peter Luger’s table/Or was it a Bruegger’s
Bagel?/He knew he could include her to the stable/Shorty was pierced out from
her hooters to her cooter to her navel/She was a looter of her cable/Plus a
litterbug, add polluter to her label/He once saw her ram her pooter with a
ladle/This old freak should’ve gotten neutered from the cradle/He knew she was
slower hack/When he saw those letters tramp stamped on her lower back/It said
Roe vs. Wade/The color of the text matched her lipstick and purse’s shade,
jade”. Instead of flaunting their swag and jewelry, they endorse the Black
Cloak lifestyle, which consists of living in vans, dumpster diving for food,
and bagging the grossest chicks out there. Check: “It’s Matt ov Fact, the moocher & the future
diabetic/Just finished opening his 27th line of credit/He’s burdened
with that skinny fat/He’s out here tryin’ to shed it/He stuffs his face and
uses a laxative & diuretic/But ask your auntie Allison the medic/She’ll
tell you ladies lining up to help him with his calisthenics/His newest friend’s
a thin hag with some skin tags/Who walks around with everything she owns inside
a gym bag”. Fucking brilliant. The production here is my least favorite of
their three main albums (they also have more mainly instrumental releases), but that’s
really not saying much considering how much I love everything they’ve done. Overall
I would put this at one tiny crab-infested pubic hair beneath Lone Sharks & 2012. That said, “Barbiturates”,
my #1 joint here, might be their crowning achievement beat-wise thus far. “OnThe Rag” and “Sun Shine” are also good starting points for new listeners. Join the Shark Nation and get
behind these guys already.
6. Vasudeva
– Life In Cycles
I never knew
I could be so into instrumental music before catching this band opening for
Gates in 2012. The guitar work and rhythms are reminiscent of Highly Refined Pirates-era Minus The
Bear to the point of being downright danceable at times, and I know it would
shock more than a few of you to hear I like music that can be danced to. If
their debut EP Roots Of The Tree from 2012 (my #3) was a Super Mario type effort (and it definitely was), then
this is the raccoon suit that propelled them into the stratosphere (where
hopefully lots of gold coins await them for their superior efforts). The
drummer is a huge strength, as can readily be heard on the intro “Ritual”. He’s
the backbone of everything they do, even more so than most drummers. This album
begs to be listened to all the way through, but if you only have time for one
song, I’d go with “Stop Making Yourself Miserable”. (Note: I realize this has
only 8 songs and should probably be considered an EP, but the band and this review refer to it as a full-length so here it stays.
5. A Wilhelm
Scream – Partycrasher
Here’s a
band I never would’ve expected to be on this list at all, let alone top 5,
despite the gravelly bark of the primary vocals. They’ve always been a band
that has fittingly toured with other bands I enjoy and their style is not far
off from most of the punk/melodic hardcore stuff I like, but I’ve never been
able to get into anything of theirs besides a few songs from their 2004 album Mute Print (especially the stupendous
“Anchor End”). Obtuse guitar
theatrics bordering on hair-metal solos are my least favorite part of Strung
Out’s repertoire, but these guys managed to push it to levels I really couldn’t handle
on 2005’s Ruiner. After that I wrote
them off until, on a whim, I checked out the track “Boat Builders” off the 2012
7” of the same name and found it to be a welcome surprise of enjoyment. That
led me to want to check the album out, though I assumed that would be the only
song I’d like from it. I couldn’t have been more wrong. A re-recorded version
of “Boat Builders” leads off what is an absolute fucking RIPPER of a punk rock album
that manages to pummel the listener while still maintaining catchy choruses and
instantly memorable lyrics perfect for fist shaking & finger pointing. I
haven’t had time to sit down with the lyrics yet, but with more listens as I’ve
worked on this blog, I’m noticing themes of realizing what a crippling burden
it can be to hold on to anger and a shitty attitude, along with the clarity
that can result from leaving such things behind. That’s stuff I can relate to,
so this record is really starting to hit home for me, and thankfully the guitar
theatrics aren’t so obtuse this time, so I can really get into it. If you need an
album to get you fired the fuck up, this is it. Besides “Boat Builders”, my
favorites are “Devil Don’t Know” & “Sassequin” (the “don’t blame meeeee” part
is absolute perfection). Hurry up and rock your face off with this.
4. Ghostface
Killah & Apollo Brown – Twelve
Reasons To Die: The Brown Tape
Leave it up
to Ghost to continue to keep the Wu-Tang name relevant and respectable almost
singlehandedly. Take away his output for the last 15 years, and all you're left
with from solo and group albums is a widely distributed smattering of
relatively few solid songs, a couple decent albums, and a large pile of dung
made of poor efforts, non-existent quality control, ill-advised mainstream
crossover attempts, and plenty of good lyrics wasted by lackluster delivery and
weak production (coughGZAcough). So it's not like Ghost needed to separate
himself further from the pack, but he has indeed done so by adding an expertly
executed concept album to his resume. I find this
remixed version to be far superior to the original Adrian Younge production,
which still stands on its own as a solid album. I think Apollo Brown really
killed it with the beats on this, stepping far outside his usually rigid
formula for most of these songs. He definitely has a signature sound that,
while still being quality boom-bap that doesn't chase today's trends, often
tends to be too mathematical and repetitive to be truly memorable for me. I
think the difference here is in how he had to approach this one. Without ever
hearing the original Younge mixes, he was asked to take Ghost's a capella
verses and create music to fit around them, which is totally ass-backwards and
was likely an enormous challenge. To go about it that way and have this turn
out so well is a major feat that Mr. Brown should be proud of. "Rise Of
The Black Suits", "The Center Of Attraction" and especially
"Blood On The Cobblestones" (5 stars all the way despite the U-God
appearance) are unfuckwittable.
3. Iron Chic - The
Constant One
I normally don't get really into a band if the rhythms and
drumming are on the more mundane side, but when the total package is as
appealing as this, I can't front on how awesome it is. It is literally
impossible for me to not tap my foot, bob my leg, and nod my head to these
songs. I can't listen to it while walking because those involuntary movements
inhibit my ability to do so. There's just something that feels so right about
the simple riffs and thoughtful lyrics that I can't help but get sucked in. It has
been a while since I listened to Not Like
This, their very solid first LP, but I know I'm way more enamored with this
one. Most of it is mid-tempo melodic punk rock, but they change it up enough by
going full-bore with "Prototypes" and then slowing it down and
bringing out the groove and post-rock riffs on "A Serious House On Serious
Earth". I also really love when they turn up the disparity between the
catchiness of the music and the introverted lyrics, such as in "(Castle)
Numbskull" with the female guest vocals leading the "ba-dut,
ba-da-da" in the background underneath the refrain of "There's a
darkness inside of me/And it's starting to frighten me". Thankfully they
include a re-do of the excellent "Spooky Action At A Distance" from
the aforementioned 7", which is one of my favorites along with "A
Serious House…" and "Bogus Journey". If you like Latterman or
Banner Pilot and haven't given these guys a full chance yet, you are destroying
your own life. Recognize.
2. Banquets
- Banquets
Way too many
good bands come out of New Jersey, and here's another one to pile on the heap.
I can't even recall what made me give them a listen after being ignorant to
them and their previous full-length Top
Button, Bottom Shelf and debut EP This
Is Our Concern, Dude (be still my heart), but I instantly liked what I
heard and grew to absolutely adore it over the following months. I would call
this equal parts rock n' roll and (mostly) mid-tempo punk, with a heaping
helping of melody and hooks that begets way more accessibility than most stuff
I listen to and just begs you to sing along to it. I hear elements of many of
my favorite bands of the past, such as Face To Face, Alkaline Trio, and
Carpenter (I've also seen The Loved Ones referenced, but to me this blows them
out of the water), plus there's something I can't place that reminds me of
super-catchy 80's band The Outfield. The band themselves list The Get Up Kids,
The Promise Ring, and Hot Rod Circuit as influences, so there's pretty much no
way that I could not love this. "Little Shallow", "March
19th", "Bums In The Breeze", "The Flicker & The
Flame", and especially "Daggers" and "Big Big Waves"
really get me going and I hope they do the same for you.
1. Crash Of
Rhinos - Knots
After
grossly underrating their somewhat uneven but delightfully ambitious debut LP Distal back in 2011 and subsequently
growing to love it (should've been top 5 in retrospect), I had very high
expectations for this album. The fact that they had signed to my favorite
label, Topshelf Records, who I knew would do a bang-up job with the release,
only made me more excited. This is grown man's mathy emo with twists of angular punk,
managing to convey heavy emotion without the slightest hint of wimpy
sentimentality or self-indulgence that I will admit is present in some of the
emo stuff I like. This is a record that reminds you that the term
"emo" is short for emotional hardcore, and the emotions conveyed here
are perfectly fitting for something called Knots.
If life has ever gotten you all twisted up like a little wiener package, you
should find something relateable here. This album manages to come off both
beautiful and hard-hitting, the latter being due in large part to the stellar
drumming and thundering dual bass action. All five guys sing, with one of them possessing
the raspy glass-gargling voice, which only helps to add different textures to
the already engaging & dynamic music. They also make great use of buildups
and payoffs. At times it's like watching a team of skilled artisans building a
sand sculpture. From your starting vantage point, you may only have a good look
at one artist working on his part (a single guitar riff), and then you circle
around and start to glimpse another artist whose part is starting to approach
the first one (second guitar overlaying the first riff). You start to think,
"Huh, I wonder what this is going to look like when it's done", and
as you continue circling and a third artist's part comes into a view (drums
come in subtly with escalating urgency), you think, "Holy fuck. This is
going to be awesome, whatever it is". And then eventually the whole thing
comes together and you're blown away by the beauty and intricacy of it all; the
whole being far greater than the sum of its parts. It is indeed “fucking
awesome”, in the truest sense of those overused words. This is another record
where my favorite song has changed a lot, and really it's one that just begs to
be listened to all the way through. But if you really want to understand what
I'm trying to convey in a nutshell, listen to "Impasses". The part
where the sand sculpture reaches fruition is at about 2:15, with just the
smallest pause giving way to the crashing chorus crescendo of "Could've
been a waste of your time". Ironically enough, my friends, this album is
the absolute antithesis of a waste of time. Your time could not be better spent
than giving this 3-4 listens to let it sink in and give your brain a chance to
make sense of all the moving parts. I know it took that many for me to get a
handle on it and start to really love it. As I was writing the first part of
this paragraph, I started to feel like I couldn't properly explain my love for
this, so I asked someone who loves it as much as I do, my brother, to give me a
paragraph or two. He managed to finish it while I was finishing this, so
these were totally independent reviews. Picture this like Q-Tip
handing the mic off to Phife Dawg. You on point, T?
All the time, R. Crash of Rhinos is apparently part of this
(Midwest) emo revival thing going on right now. I think that idea is a limiting
label to put on these guys, and I’m reasonably certain it wasn’t their
intentions. The kind of beauty about entertainment as art is that none of it is
original - it’s all just recycled parts put back together. Sometimes it’s a big
shitty kindergarten safety scissors and paste eating giraffe that not even the
parents can tell what the fuck it is. Sometimes it’s some sort of a flawless dick
hammer with a brain sculpture suspended triumphantly over a wasteland of
weathered, broken shit that at one point was good for something or another.
Crash of Rhinos has taken everything I’ve loved in
post-hardcore-punk-emo-indie-something-or-another over the past 15 years and
made one hell of a collection of music that is greater than the sum of all
those parts - I can’t stress that part enough - “is greater than the sum of all
those parts.” I like music that lyrically addresses introspective human problems
ambiguously, and musically brings the aggression, motivation, and tenacity to
be hopeful and functional in tackling them. Knots balances those aspects in
ways classics like Small Brown Bike’s Dead Reckoning and Hot Water Music’s
Forever and Counting accomplished. In the interim, I’d be hard pressed to say
CoR has not refined that balance with this record. Musically, they incorporate
enough technical playing to keep it interesting and engaging after repeated listens (six months constant for me), once again utilizing that sense of
balance, never allowing it to over shadow hooks or more accessible aspects of
their music. Oli on the kit alone is enough to keep your ears busy for years.
Each song has a balance and each song contributes to the reflection of the
record’s balance as a piece. Staccato rhythms somehow morph into lullabies; layered, raspy yells dissolve into introspective singing; and contemplative,
repetitive signatures explode into steering-wheel-pounding crescendos. It’s a
beautiful thing when the words and music seem to envelope and encircle and complement
each other in an intimate way that only those people at that time in that place
can create. Knots is a true, honest document of real life with a finesse never attained by most, and it's untainted by a depletion of creativity or frustrating
years in the business. These boys are young and hungry and doing it way better
than their assigned history would have anyone believe.
Well, there you have it, kids. I
know I’ve already given you more than enough to chew on, but there are a few
more releases I thought were worthy of an honorable mention and your awareness.
The first three are Michigan bands that I have to give some “home state
represent” love to.
Bike Tuff – Into Shore
Cheeseless pop-punk with emo &
beard-punk overtones. Check “This Canada House Is Not A Home”.
Louder Than Bombs – What Resonates
Harder edged pop-punk and beardy
melodic/post-hardcore (go figure).
Lawnmower – Whack Yer Brain
Lighter-hearted indie rock with
slight emo/pop-punk influence. "Team Spirit" is a great lead-off track.
Braid + Balance & Composure – split 7”
In the 90’s emo world, this is
like Ric Flair teaming up with CM Punk.
Castle – Gasface
This new jack comes correct with the
boom-bap courtesy of the second best label in hip-hop today, Mello Music Group
(not to be confused with the other MMG that puts out ignorant bullshit music).
Don’t miss “Orientation”.
Durag Dynasty – 360 Waves
Planet Asia & crew won’t wow
you with the lyrics, but Alchemist did really well with the beats.
Gatherer – Between A Rock & A Sad Place
Wickedly sweet emo/post-rock-ish
music with screamed/shouted vocals. Call it “screamo” if you will.
Ghostface Killah & Adrian
Younge – Twelve Reasons To Die
I love the cinematic feel of Mr.
Younge’s production, but too much of it was boring & repetitive to make the
countdown.
Heartsounds – Internal Eyes
Male/female-fronted punk rock
mixing melodic hardcore with skate-punk & pop-punk. Highly recommended for
fans of Strung Out & A Wilhelm Scream.
Ivy League TX – Transparency
Most fans of newer The Story So
Far and old Transit should dig this mix of melodic hardcore & pop-punk, put
out by the scummiest label in punk rock today. Fuck you, 6131!
Lewis Parker – The Puzzle, Episode Two: The Glass Ceiling
Quality honest boom-bap from the
UK.
Pete Rock & Camp Lo – 80 Blocks From Tiffany’s Pt. 2
All-new material that’s extremely
uneven, but as a result you get some really high points to balance out the
clunkers. Features one of the all-time worst verses I’ve ever heard, thanks to
Uncle Murda on “Clean Getaway”, which is otherwise a highlight, as is “Ladies
& Gentlemen (ft. Talib Kweli)”.
Red City Radio – Titles
Still a good album from a band I will
continue to love, but a little underwhelming for me. It seems like they lost
the bombast and some of the energy in favor of more traditional punk song
structures.
Reks – Revolution Cocktail
Here’s another mild disappointment
from one of my favorites of years past, though there are mostly solid tracks
here. No Statik production hurts it. “Melancholy” (track 19) stands out.
Slum Village – Evolution
This was a big pleasant surprise.
When it comes to Detroit hip-hop, I’ll still take Elzhi any day, but there are
7-8 good songs here, especially “Bout That” (9).
Spectac & Amiri – Soul Beautiful
This dude Spectac has been around
the NC hip-hop scene for a while and was affiliated with Little Brother’s crew.
Amiri provides some solid simple boom-bap backdrops for him, and it sounds real
real nice.
Turnover – Magnolia
These guys moved on from pop-punk
really quickly and went with a way more alterna-emo sound. It’s still a solid
listen for me even if I think they were better at the old style.
OK, that’s officially all I have
for you. See you next year. Thanks again for reading.
