What Are We Listening To? - Feb 14, 2020

What Has Sam Been Listening To?

Merzbow - Pulse Demon (1996)

I’ve been attempting to educate myself about the vast annals of noise history. Merzbow is regarded as the king of harsh noise and this album is widely considered his opus. As a relative newcomer to this particular subgenre, the work strikes me as fairly boilerplate, but the style is intriguing to say the least.

Jinjer - Macro (2019)

After one too many “Pisces” reaction videos appeared in my YouTube feed, I decided to give the rising Ukrainian prog-metalcore darlings a shot. I think I understand the appeal—staccato djent riffs accented with soaring female vocals and occasional avant-garde dabblings executed with a sharp pop sensibility—but their most recent record feels ridiculously average and easily topped by the staggering heights of their contemporaries.

Hyper Olympic - Life Is But A Dream Team (2020)

This gem of a debut by Atlanta newcomers Hyper Olympic was uncovered in the depths of Bandcamp’s “math rock” tag. This is a fun and catchy take on the genre with impressive songwriting chops and tasty post-rock tendencies. I also had a pleasant convo with the band’s guitarist after buying the record, so positives all around.

Amygdala - Our Voices Will Soar Forever (2019)

I find a great deal of modern hardcore to be a tad bit one-note and increasingly derivative. This album is neither. Amygdala channel the crushing melancholy of modern America into intensely emotive expressions of pure catharsis. They weave this convincing tapestry with the unique palette of the style and top it all off with a phenomenal vocal performance by the band’s frontwomen, 

Green Day - Father of All… (2020)

When Anthony Fantano gives an album a 0 out of 10 (that video), one must stop and admire the burning wreckage. I’ve never been a huge Green Day fan, but this album is laughably bad. A perfect culmination of all the worst popular rock tropes with none of the band’s novel approach that crystallized pop-punk in the mid-90s.

Show Me The Body - Dog Whistle (2019)

Show Me The Body is an amazing live band. I had the pleasure of seeing them open for Daughters on their most recent North American tour and they brought a level of visceral intensity that manifested even in the oddly-spaced Boston venue in which they performed. Their potent blend of banjo/bass-driven hardcore is also quite impressive and their 2019 album remains a fun listen. Here are Adam’s thoughts on that venture.

Daughters - Daughters (2010)

Speaking of bands that I’ve seen live recently, Daughters are also pretty damn good. Their self-titled swansong is a fine example of what the Providence noise rock veterans do well. Ear-worm fuzzed-out guitar and bass loops complete with incredibly quotable vocal hooks that are delivered with the swagger and confidence of a southern evangelist. This record has some truly astounding and “catchy” moments.

Swans - The Glowing Man (2016)

Of the three records in Swans 2010s trilogy, this is the one I’ve spent the least amount of time with. Gira’s take on noise and post-rock remains exhilarating, but the album’s five 12-minute+ tracks still pose a high barrier of entry. I’m excited to really dig my teeth into this one the way I have with The Seer and To Be Kind.

Have A Nice Life - Sea of Worry (2019)

HANL is the definition of a “grower” band for me. When this album first came out, I found it underwhelming, but three months later I’ve found myself constantly revisiting it. Dan and Tim are masters of the slow build and a few of the tracks on here fully realize the promise of Deathconsiousness 11 years after that seminal work.

What Has Adam Been Listening To?

Loathe - I Let It In And It Took Everything (2020)

Have you been craving more modern Car Bomb, with a tad more deathcore influence and where the cloned Deftones and Ion Dissonance sections are far more spread out? Well, then you are in luck! UK metalcore outfit Loathe has exactly what you are looking for! In all seriousness, this album is phenomenally brutal, inventive and addicting (for those that can look past a band who wears a bodysuit of influences).

Poppy - I Disagree (2020)

Even though Sam talked about Poppy’s newest release last week, there is a reason it continues to permeate our listening rotations. An album so catchy, so recognizable and so spastic cannot just disappear from the spotlight. It’s truly amazing that I Disagree can continue to appeal to individuals so immersed in the underground.

God Is An Astronaut - All Is Violence, All Is Bright (2005)

After realizing I don’t know that many post-rock bands when deciding to do a special post-rock edition of my radio show, I decided to turn to the internet. One of the groups that stuck with me was God Is An Astronaut, and particularly this album. Breathtakingly beautiful and surprisingly intense, All Is Violence, All Is Bright is a perfect representation of short-form post-rock at its best.

Marrasmieli - Between Land and Sky (2020)

Finnish newcomers Marrasmieli have crafted a uniquely gorgeous album with Between Land and Sky. Accordion black metal is not often seen, especially with a Scandinavian folk tinge, but the band uses it tastefully and to their advantage. The Obsequiae and Mayhem vibes that represent the duality of this album are starkly different, but the group is able to twist and turn between them in order to make a grandiose piece of extreme music.

Sons of a Wanted Man - Kenoma (2020)

The debut LP from Belgian atmospheric blackened sludge metal group Sons of a Wanted Man is a release to be reckoned with in 2020. Tantalizingly engaging, the combination of modern blackgaze catharsis and hypnotization of Pelican-esque riffage breeds one of the strongest records so far this year. With the exclusion of the interludish closing track, Kenoma is chock-full of mesmerizing music start to finish.

Mortiis - Spirit of Rebellion (2020)

I’ve never really listened to dungeon synth before, and that held true until I listened to the most recent Mortiis album. Almost exactly what one would expect the music to sound like, the Dungeons & Dragons player in me has grown to love the background ambience that I would expect to hear in my favorite ARPG.

Nechochwen/Panopticon - Split (2020)

Inarguably the best black metal album of the year henceforth, the veteran Americana folk/black metal groups have released 5 songs that highlight exactly what the genre should be. Nechochwen’s four tracks are viciously hooky, playfully inviting and showcase the 15-year old band’s prowess in the style. The true highlight of the split is Panopticon’s only song, the epic 20-minute “Rune’s Heart,” which has one of the best climaxes of the year, and splits acoustic folk sections and ripping black metal perfectly.

Moloken - Unveilance of Dark Matter (2020)

Almost-Gorgutsian in quality, the Swedish four-pieces mix of post-metal and avant-garde death metal is immediately recognizable. The riffs are similar to that of an Ainsoph or Helium Horse Fly, but revert back to metal rather than experimental rock. While not nearly the best album of the year, definitely one to spin a few times along the way there.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Yanqui U.X.O. (2002)

If you are unfamiliar with this collective, you are sorely missing out. Godspeed You! Black Emperor may be one of the greatest artists of all time, and Yanqui U.X.O. is another step in their fantastic journey. As a follow-up to their opus Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antannaes To Heaven, it provides even more of the cinematic and vast atmosphers that the Canadians established on their past work that are both bleak, uplifting and magnificent at the same time.