Desert Island Emo

An interlude as I continue work on the midyear albums list (the toughest part of those is that you just keep finding more and more great stuff to add). A fun little thought exercise brought about by this twitter post. As the usual "desert island" challenges go, you get only 5 albums to take with you. Which do you pick?

The Five:

The Hotelier- Home, Like Noplace is There

TWIABP- Whenever, If Ever

American Football- American Football (LP2)

Jimmy Eat World- Bleed American

Sorority Noise- Joy, Departed

Thoughts:

Man, emo bands sure do love their commas. The first two are the emo revival starter pack, both of them essential listening for understanding the scene and just making it through life generally. The recent SPIN revival ranking list (helmed by Ian Cohen, one of the few people I’d trust to do it) indicated how much the scene right now revolves around these two bands: they occupy spots 1, 2, 4, and 7 on the list. It’s fair to wonder if the scene would have become the force it is had these two bands not come around. Fortunately we’ll never need to know. The two bands sit at opposite ends of the musical spectrum: The Hotelier (at least on this album) drawing from the punk and screamo roots, and The World Is... stretching out in the Midwest style with keyboards and horns and varied arrangements, but reach the same end result: classic albums.

Choosing LP2 from American Football is probably the big unorthodox move here. It goes without saying that the original American Football is a classic to end all classics and a bedrock of the sound. Without counting up the responses, it looked like the most frequent selection on Twitter. But give me the second one, and let Mike Kinsella softly croon me into oblivion. I didn’t even give it top-two billing on last year’s year end post, but it’s grown on me every day since. If "divorce-core" is really becoming a thing, count me in.

Bleed American is I think the most fun album you can choose for this list, and is a hall of fame driving-with-the-windows-down album. “The Middle” is great now that it’s just an occasional radio play, and “A Praise Chorus” is a classic in the shoutout-other-music genre (as is, to a lesser extent, “The Authority Song”). Sure, this is the moment when emo really broke commercial, but you can't argue with the result, even if you don't like where things headed afterwards.

What to say about Joy, Departed…this album means more to me than almost any other. I never expected the song that told the story of my life to be titled "Art School Wannabe," but sometimes that's just how things go. Cam Boucher is an unbelievable lyricist, and the best I've ever heard at articulating those unspoken feelings that you don't ever know what to do with. Throw in some solid musicianship, even including a few guitar solos, and you've got an indispensable album.

On the whole, I think the list definitely shows my age (as in, young). I think it also shows that the overused trope that emo is just about being sad or crying over girls is no longer true (if it ever really was, which I suspect is not the case). There's a lot of heavy themes here, but I think the optimism on Whenever, If Ever shines through, and Bleed American certainly helps balance things out as well. 

I had to leave out a ton of really great music (continued below if you're interested) but I'm pretty satisfied with my choices. If any of these are new to you, I can't recommend them strongly enough. Enjoy!

2017 Mid-Year Report: Top 10 Songs (So Far)

Long time, no update but here we are. Lots and lots of good stuff already this year, from old favorites and some amazing debuts as well. There's sure to be more deserving coming later too (new Alvvays!) but let's see where we stand at the halfway point. 

Honorable Mentions:

Carly Rae Jepsen: “Cut to the Feeling”

              If there was any justice in pop music, this would be the “song of the summer” dominating radio stations. But there isn’t, so y’know, enjoy “Malibu” or whatever.

Horrid: “Cursed Dunes”

              Monster of a death metal song from a virtually unknown Italian band. It seems like their most recent album is getting increased coverage so we may be seeing a mid-career breakout. We'll check back in when I've gotten a chance to sit with the whole album.

Mitch Murder- “Outpost Alpha”

This came out digitally last year, but just got a physical release so we’ll count it. Mitch Murder makes synthwave that sends you directly to the 80’s, do not pass Go. I’ve yet to throw on “Outpost Alpha” and not run it right back at least once.  So groovy.

10. White Ward: “Black Silent Piers” (from Futility Report)

              Saxophone infused black metal from the Ukraine. That alone should be enough to get you to check this out, but I’m obligated to assure you that the saxophone is more than just a gimmick and blends seamlessly into the music. Black metal continues to evolve in new and interesting ways, and White Ward have immediately established their name as one to watch.

9. MUNA: “So Special” (from About U)

              MUNA have laid claim to synthpop crown for the year, in the process thoroughly outclassing the well-regarded new Paramore. I anticipate seeing “Everything” showing up in the year end lyrics section, but “So Special” starts the album off with such a bang that it gets the nod. This is a powerful, moving record that I'll hold off writing more about right now because it is pretty much guaranteed to deserve a long section come December.

8. White Reaper: “Judy French” (from The World’s Best American Band)

              Impossibly fun, swaggering rock from the Kentucky based rock band. I can’t say they definitively lived up to their album title, but they sure as hell tried, and had fun doing it. On my first listen I called them the bastard son of Great White and Kill Cheerleader, and they are every bit as scuzzy and wonderful as that combo sounds. 

7. Tigers Jaw: “Same Stone” (from Spin)

              Tigers Jaw has moved into more a twee sound with their third album, resulting in catchier and more memorable hooks. Nowhere is this more evident than on “Same Stone,” a late album standout. This song also highlights Brianna Collins’ greater role in handling vocals. If this is the new sound of Tigers Jaw, we may end up not even missing Pity Sex.

6. Soen: “Opal” (from Lykaia)

              The references to Tool are inescapable for Soen, and the similarities are really quite evident. What keeps Soen so interesting is that although the music is quite similar, it always feels like Soen completely own their sound- they’re comparable, but Soen’s was independently derived, not copied. “Opal” (and Lykaia as a whole) continues right where Tellurian left off, and should be cementing their name as one of the best in melodic metal.

5.  Power Trip: “Executioner’s Tax (Swing of the Axe)” (from Nightmare Logic)

              Unbelievably tight thrash jam. This is the antidote to Vektor’s 7 minute musings that had everyone fawning last year. The riffs evoke the glory days of Metallica, but there’s an edge here drawn from crossover that never showed up in the Bay Area heyday. At a time when thrash is lagging far behind death and black in overall scene creativity and output, Power Trip have made a convincing argument that the race isn’t completely run.

4. no hope/ no harm: “Pony Boy”

              It’s hard for me not to gush about this band, and they’re now four for four on singles.* Still not completely sure how to describe them: “Grown-up emo” sounds like it could be condescending, but it accurately captures the mood. I threw an American Music Club comp on them last year and stand by it, though on the newest single “Hook & Ladder” the Sheila Divine influence comes through even stronger. Bottom line: get in on the ground floor here.

*Since I wrote this, they've released a fifth, "Our Vile Body" and it's also excellent. I cannot reiterate enough that you need to be listening to this band.

3. The Menzingers: “Your Wild Years” (from After the Party)

              The year’s biggest surprise hit for me, The Menzingers cleaned up their sound just a touch, and then went ahead and wrote at least half a dozen hooks catchier than anything from On the Impossible Past. They take on being an aging punk with wit and sincerity, with equal parts nostalgia for lost youth and appreciation for the way things have ended up. It's good, solid rock n' roll that will have you turning for it more often than you expect.

 2. Jens Lekman: “To Know Your Mission” (from Life Will See You Now)

              The obvious choice from the album is “What’s Perfume That You Wear?”, which is one of the best singles Lekman’s ever released, and hopefully will be on the playlist at every cool backyard cookout you’re at this summer. I’ve got “To Know Your Mission” here though because it’s the one that I find myself returning to most often. It feels like the song that Lekman has been waiting years to write. It also doesn’t hurt that his voice sounds better than ever both here and on the rest of the album.

 1. Sorority Noise: “No Halo” (from You’re Not As __ As You Think)

              The nature of Sorority Noise’s music and lyrics makes any attempt to write about and explain them intensely personal.  “No Halo” sees SN at their most epic- borrowing all the tricks from post-rock and stuffing them into an intense and cathartic three minutes. Cam Boucher has an unparalleled ability to capture the tmost intimate and fragile feelings with his lyrics, but here the band sounds like they could level a mountain if it stood in their way. 

Best of 2016 Compendium

After struggling to flesh out various lists, I decided it's more fitting of the ethos of this blog (highlighting and recommending cool stuff, rather than actual criticism) to just throw it all into one big post. Since it's the last day of 2016, I figured I should really get around to posting it, so here we are. It was a weird as hell year, both for me personally and the country and world as a whole, but there sure was a lot of great music released, so let's keep holding on to that.

Songs:

Astronoid- "Up and Atom"
Awful pun for a title, but a top 3 chorus on the year. I dig the blackgaze-with-clean-vocals thing they have going on, and they show how well it works on the monster hook here. I'm all the way out on calling their style"dream thrash," I'm just as all in on how it actually sounds. For everyone who's ever longed for the crunchiness of the heavier metal styles but didn't want to sacrifice the soaring harmonies and upbeat attitude of the cleaner styles, Astronoid is here for you.
Youtube

Pelander- "Umbrella"

Gloomy English folk, which was all the tagline I needed to grab this one. The album as a whole didn't quite live up to , but this lead track showed the high potential this side project (Magnus Pelander's main band is Witchcraft) has. 
Youtube

Hexvessel- "Mirror Boy"

More gloomy folk, but Finnish this time. The band got even more psychedelic on this album When We Were Death, and though I don't dig it as much as some of their other sounds, it still came together as one of the best albums I heard this year. If you have any interest in prog rock, psychedelic music, or full-band folk, I couldn't recommend them more highly.
Youtube

Oathbreaker- "Second Son of R."

Is calling these guys Deafheaven but with female vocals kind of lazy? Maybe. Am I above that? Not really. They are signed to Deathwish Inc. though, (that’s Jake Bannon from Converge’s label) which also released Sunbather, so I’m not making connections out of thin air. Anyways. Caro Tanghe’s vocals are extraordinary, splitting between haunting cleans and a vicious snarl, and the metal behind it is every bit her equal. This is really good stuff.
Youtube

Singles: Two songs from bands that didn't release full-lengths this year:

Ragana- "You Take Nothing"
Raw, angry sludge. It's difficult to separate this track from its release date, the day after the election here in the US. The singer infuses a awe-inspiring mix of rage and defiance into the three words of the title, as the guitars crash around her.

No Hope/No Harm- "This Living Wage"
Slow, melancholic emo from my new home in Boston. The play a style more akin to the earlier heyday of emo than the more atmospheric sound of the current emo "revival" of bands like The World is a Beautiful Place, et al. I kind of get an American Music Club vibe from them. Very excited to see where they head in 2017.



Lines:

“Was kinda banking on a future that’d be involving you/but I couldn’t ask this of you”
(The Hotelier, "Two Deliverances")

I'll write more about The Hotelier a little further down in the post, but Goodness was an album filled with brilliant lines. "Piano Player" is the star of the show, but "Two Deliverances" packs even more of a punch. I don't think I've ever heard a song more accurately capture the sense of empty, unfilled time after a breakup than when singer Christian Holden asks "in the quiet empty hours of my afternoon, what am I supposed to do?"
Bandcamp

“You can’t just forget/ all those other lives you lived” 

(American Football, "Home is Where the Haunt Is")

I mostly avoided writing about American Football's LP2 because I felt it was a very personal album- both in content and context. Decade-plus haituses are always a dangerous thing, and it's often not worth it to only end up with a merely decent imitation of a band's former heights (see Weezer, Blink-182 and Metallica this year, and many others). Others may be invested in knowing that a band still has it (or at least isn't tarnishing their legacy), but I'm usually content to stick with the classics. But I had to hear this one, and I wanted to do so without the burden of what others wanted and expected from the record. So in that spirit I'll limit my own discussion- this album is so, so, good. 

Youtube

“Saw your boyfriend at the Port Authority/ sort of a fucked up place” (Pinegrove, "Old Friends")

Evan Stephens Hall has the talent that truly great songwriters possess to fit a world of feelings, meanings and context in a single line (see the “saw Leah on the bus” in the same song for the best example), and does so again here. This album is showing up on top-10's all over the place, and for good reason. Probably example number 1 of why all your "[Indie] Rock is dead" thinkpieces aren't worth the bandwidth it takes to load them.

Youtube

“I always thought I’d be/ the picture saved on your screen” (Hannah Diamond, "Fade Away")

No artist other than Hannah Diamond could get away with a line like that. She continues to walk the infinitesimal line between irony and earnest sincerity. The lyric video even spells out the word “meeeeee”! It’s been 2+ years and we’ve still only got 5 individual singles, but two of them (this and “Every Night”) are certified classics. I get why people don’t love PC Music- on their weaker stuff they sound just like the run of the mill David Guetta/Calvin Harris knockoffs they kind of are—but Hannah’s songs aren’t their weaker stuff.
Youtube

“I’ll always think of your lips/ When I’m moving mine against his” (Pity Sex, "Burden You")

Goddammit why are all my favorite lines this year about heartbreak…oh, right. Anyways, unfortunately this was the swansong for Pity Sex, as Britty Drake announced she’d be leaving after the album. It’s a shame because I was late to the party on them, but I'm really enjoying the simple, fuzzed out guitar rock they have going on. 

Youtube

Albums:

The Hotelier- Goodness

It’s something special to witness a songwriter so utterly sure of themselves that there’s really nothing that they can’t do. It’s a testament to Christian Holden’s force of narrative that he can pull off something as cliché as watching a wild animal in the woods and imbue the moment with existential significance without teetering over the edge into melodrama. I found Goodness to be a dense record I think as a result of its general lack of choruses, and admit that it takes some close listening to really unlock its intricacies. But what a payoff this album is if you take the time.

Goodness is a breakup record, yes, but of a kind I don’t think I’ve ever encountered before. There’s no anger here, no righteous fervor . But there’s everything else- the hurt and the pain, the quiet shock of “what do I do now?” and “what could I have done differently?”, but also the acceptance, the appreciation for everything you did have, and the recognition that nothing is really permanent anyways. It was certainly the album I needed this year, but I think its emotional significance will resonate with anyone who gives it a chance.

The Hotelier has never hesitated to take huge swings in their songs, and it’s stunning to see how frequently they connect. Goodness was an undeniably ambitious record, and now as the year winds down, I can say an undeniable success.

Joyce Manor- Cody

Where the Hotelier made me feel many different things Cody only made me feel one- happy- and that’s enough to give it my top spot for 2016. This is an endlessly replayable record, hitting the sweet spot between keeping songs from overstaying their welcome (the longest is “Stairs” at an eternity-by-Joyce-Manor-standards 4:01) without getting bogged down by a long tracklist. Cody is carefully crafted and endlessly enjoyable pop-punk. This was a fun record that never feels like it's trying too hard to be so- the lyrics get serious at times, but nonstop hooks keep everything jamming. This was the easiest and most enjoyable listen of the year, and if you missed it the first time around I recommend you hop on posthaste.

[That wraps up our regularly-scheduled programming for 2016. See you all in the new year!]

Best of 2016 (Non-2016 Edition)

Best of 2016 (Non 2016 Edition)

Before we disappear completely into year-end retrospectives and top-ten season, I’ll take a chance to highlight my favorite stuff that I found for the first time this year. In the interest of saving space I didn't bother embedding Youtube clips, but there's links to check everything out.

The Wonder Years- No Closer to Heaven

Reasonably big name in the modern pop-punk scene, I started listening when I bought a ticket to see them (Moose Blood was opening). They were solid live, and this album has a few of my most played tracks this year. Check "A Song for Patsy Cline" to start out.

[Youtube]

The Deep Dark Woods- The Place I Left Behind (2014)

Enjoyable folk/alt-country from Canada. Mix of softly-strummed acoustic guitar + tambourine and some electric guitar flourishes, like on heartwrenching set-piece “The Banks of the Leopold Canal”. Inoffensive enough to throw on at any low-key gathering, but with surprising depths that makes for a rewarding close listen.

[Youtube]

Blut Aus Nord- Memoria Vetusta I: Fathers of the Icy Age (1996)

Huge name in the black metal game, just took me a while to work my way through. I’ve heard the What Once Was series but they didn’t really take. This album is a little cleaner and more melodic (hard to believe this is the same band that made The Work Which Transforms God) with wicked guitar work and some nice chanty vocals. Highly recommended.

[Youtube]

Sleater Kinney- Dig Me Out (1997)

Likely don’t need much introduction on this band. They’re classic for a reason, I was just too young at the time. Listen up. "One More Hour" was my top-played track from about August through October. The sound on the link below is pretty good for live from a record store in '98.

[Youtube]

Wuthering Heights- Far From the Madding Crowd (2004)

A very solid power metal album, named for two books, though as far as I can tell, lyrically it deals with neither. The album features some folk elements in the form of occasional flutes and bagpipes, but not overwhelmingly so. Too much to really call it “stripped down,” but the album definitely doesn’t suffer from the overproduction that plagues so many power metal releases (more Helloween than Rhapsody of Fire, if you get me). Yes, there is a song called “Bad Hobbits Die Hard,” and it’s basically three minutes of guitar solos.

[Youtube]

Gods Reflex- Scenes from a Motel Seduction (2000)

 Unknown emo band from the original heyday. You probably gotta really like emo to bother with this one, but if you do and are looking for a fresh sound (that of course sounds like everything else), take a look. Worth it for the album title alone.

[Bandcamp] 

Diocletian- Gesundrian (2014)

Monster of a death metal album from 2014. As the prevailing trend is for death metal to get more atmospheric, Diocletian go straight for the jugular. Derek Engemann from Cattle Decapitation grabs this one in their “What’s in My Bag” video at Amoeba Records, so that’s a pretty solid co-sign. Peep the dope album cover too.

[Bandcamp]

Playlist: Winter Metal

Threw together a winter-themed playlist as the temps start dropping.

I’ve never been big on Spotify before, but as my library continues to exceed my laptop’s hard drive space, it has its uses. There were some unfortunate omissions, but what can you do.

We start off with “The Northern Cold,” lead track from Woods’ 3^rd album. Woods 5 is the crowning achievement, but the run of 3/4/5 is as good as any metal band has had in a long time.

Segue into “At the Heat of Winter” which shows off Immortal at their peak. Immortal I think is a great place to get started with black metal before getting into the rawer stuff (like later on in this playlist!).

Borknagar helps segue us into the power metal phase, and I’ll mention that Borknagar has been consistently solid over their last few releases, and don’t receive as much praise as their quality deserves. Pharaoh put out probably my favorite power metal release of the last few years in 2014 in Year of No Light, it captures the fun and energy of the genre but with a little less fluff than some bigger names. Yes, this song is about a father sacrificing himself to feed his son as they're trapped by a blizzard. It can't all be poetry, man.

Later on we see one of the glaring omissions, as Spotify doesn’t have Stratovarius’ classic Visions, preventing me from including “Before the Winter.” This track will do in a pinch.

We segue back out with Sculptured, a strange band that featured Jason Walton and Don Anderson from Agalloch (RIP). They’ve formed a new band, Khorada, from the ashes of Agalloch so hopefully we’ll hear new stuff soon. This song, “Snow Covers All” is a little strange (like all Sculptured) but I only get so many chances to rec songs with creamy sax solos so I take them when I get them.

That brings us to a triple header of black metal to close out. Two legends of the Norwegian 2^nd wave in Darkthrone and Mayhem, and then unsurprisingly Agalloch to close out. I’ll take a moment to strongly recommend every metal fan to check out Darkthrone’s commentary tracks, in which they (usually Fenriz) talk over and explain their songs. Fenriz is probably the coolest and truest guy in the metal community, and his comments are very interesting and often very funny. I know they’ve done A Blaze in the Northern Sky, Hate Them (my favorite Darkthrone album) and even Fenriz’ old solo project Isengard.

Back to the playlist, we finish with absolute classic “Freezing Moon”, from the Live in Leipzig album because we do not fuck around here, and then “Falling Snow” from Ashes Against the Grain, which hardly needs me to spill more digital ink on it.

Transition Radio: Music for Fall (Part 1)

A little late on this one so we're a few weeks into the season, but man this is the best time all year for listening. Here's a few to pick up as the temp drops.

Unsilence- Under a Torn Sky

A lost epic doom classic. The Warning comparisons are inevitable given the singer’s powerful voice and extreme Englishness. Unsilence picks up the pace a little bit more than Warning however, and the closest touchstone I can think of is Vast Oceans Lachrymose era While Heaven Wept (another excellent record, by the way).  This album could be a good way to dip into the waters of doom, as the clean vocals and medium tempo offer a more accessible entry point than the more extreme styles.

Tigers Jaw- s/t

I’ll admit this may only be a fall album to me, but that’s just where it feels right. A great album for evening walks as the temperature drops, trying to figure out where it all went wrong, and is it even all that bad? There isn’t much groundbreaking poetry in the lyrics, but it’s standard emo fare that hits you in the feels a few times. Combined with pleasantly intricate guitar work and a nice rumbling bass and you’ve got one of the best albums of the contemporary emo revival scene.

Hexvessel- No Holier Temple

I may have already repped this one, but it doesn’t matter this album is good enough for double treatment. Psychedelic folk from Finland (that sounds like it's from England) made for getting lost in the cold wet woods. The first half carries the album, but man what a first half it is."Woods to Conjure" (below) sets the stage well, but the 10 minute "His Portal Tomb" brings the house down.

In the Silence- A Fair Dream Gone Mad

“Can you show me what’s it’s liiike, to dream in black and whiiiiite”

Ok Breaking Benjamin references aside, that’s a pretty good description of the feel of this album. This often gets tagged as progressive metal, but that’s really for lack of a better term. Even without invoking the dreaded DT comparisons, this just doesn’t really have a lot in common with what we usually call prog. “Atmospheric” is an especially overused term at the moment, but it does a decent job conveying the feel of this album. This is a tightly written and well executed album with minimal waste. The track below, “Serenity”, has retained a place in my top 100 since its release and doesn’t figure to fall out any time soon.

Three for the Women

Some great 2016 stuff here. A couple of these songs will probably end up on my year-end lists.

case/lang/veirs- “Atomic Number”

The lead track from the self-titled collaborative effort from three talented singer-songwriters. While the album doesn’t hit enough high points to be truly “great,” it’s an enjoyable listen and features some stellar vocal performances.

Marissa Nadler- “Dissolve”

Delicate and beautiful, Marissa Nadler’s latest collection of songs closes with the stunning “Dissolve.” The Mazzy Star influence is heard more clearly on opener “Divers of the Dust,” but the same sense of fragile, melancholic beauty pervades throughout.

Mitski- “Your Best American Girl”

Now that’s how you use distortion. The chorus to the song is one of the top musical moments of 2016. There’s important themes at work here as well, but man that is how you kick a song into overdrive.