Arca- Arca:
With the best electronic album of the year so far, Venezuelan producer Arca (a.k.a. Alejandro Ghersi) laments and croons over dark samples with even darker lyrics. While it is his third album, this is the first Arca album in which Arca himself sings on it. It is a wonder why he has not sung before, because his vocals chill the body so much it leaves you feeling numb. While quite high-pitched, they carry a weight of someone that has witnessed an insurmountable amount of pain. For example, on the opener "Piel", Arca bemoans in his native Spanish:
"Take off yesterday's skin
I don't know how to fall
The trees die standing up."
While the spacious instrumentals are vital to the record's atmosphere, it is Arca's tortured lyrics that allow us to dive deep inside his psyche. He struggles with identity, love, depression, and sex. For example, on the standout track "Desafío", Arca makes some of the most disturbing requests that I have ever heard uttered in a song:
"Ámane y átame y dególlame
(Love me, tie me, behead me)
Búscame y penétrame y devórame
(Find me, penetrate me, devour me)"
What I love most amount this record is its purely cinematic quality. Think of the most heart wrenching moments you've seen in film, and these songs could match up perfectly. I honestly do not feel the same while listening to this album, the experience is that intense. Definitely a record for those long and sleepless nights we all face at one point or another.
Listen to "Desafío":
Listen to "Desafío":
Idles- Brutalism:
This is the punk album I have been waiting years for. It combines every facet of the genre that I love: brutal instrumentation, clever and witty lyrics, and catchy hooks that make it insanely difficult not to dance along. It also helps that the British five-piece also throw in elements of post-punk to add a darker vibe often missing from the scene.
"Why don't you get a degree
Even Tarquin has a degree
Mary Berry's got a degree
So why don't you get a degree?"
This clever repetition is classic punk rock, and something that I think has been missing for a while. Idles tackle a series of different political and social topics, but do so without sounding preachy or like they are trying to sound super conscience. They just play the distorted, messy, chaotic music that they want to. Also, check out the song "Mother" and tell me it doesn't get stuck in your head. It's impossible.
Listen to "Mother":
Listen to "Mother":
Fleet Foxes- Crack-Up:
After an agonizing six-year wait, indie-rock giants Fleet Foxes made there triumphant comeback with the heavenly and effervescent Crack-Up. The group's most ambitious project so far, this album contains instrumentation so complex, it sounds like an entire orchestra was needed for recording. Even more simplistic songs like "If You Need To, Keep Time on Me" sound so vast, as though Pecknold's beautiful vocals could be heard the world over.
As with any Fleet Foxes release, the poetic lyrics take center stage. Dealing with topics of isolation, friendship, and even the Black Lives Matter movement, Pecknold approaches these ideas with incredible sincerity. You can really tell how much soul was poured into every single line and word. "Third of May/Odaigahara", for example, brilliantly uses the famous Goya painting to describe a loss of identity and loneliness. It's a wonder how such an idea is even conceived.
I keep debating whether or not Crack-Up surpasses the band's 2011 release, the seminal Helplessness Blues. I don't think it's that good (I mean, it's a perfect album, how could it?), but it does come awfully close, and in doing so puts itself in the running for the album of the entire year. It definitely makes me more excited to see them in September.
I keep debating whether or not Crack-Up surpasses the band's 2011 release, the seminal Helplessness Blues. I don't think it's that good (I mean, it's a perfect album, how could it?), but it does come awfully close, and in doing so puts itself in the running for the album of the entire year. It definitely makes me more excited to see them in September.
Listen to "Third of May/Odaigahara":
Future Islands- The Far Field:
After their 2014 landmark album Singles, which included a gigantic single in "Seasons", synthpop trio Future Islands are back with the sensual The Far Field. Of all the albums on this list, this has perhaps the strongest singles of any of them. The track "Ran", for example, is the complete package: an irresistible bass line, saccharine synths, all mixed with Samuel T. Herring's uniquely versatile vocals, which can range from deep growls to as light as a feather. Lyrically speaking, we find Herring struggling to balance a love life amidst constant touring, a problem any successful musician faces at one point or another. The tenderness of this song is really striking, as he begins to the point of being a successful band without that one person by his side.
Future Islands have established an uncanny ability to write an addictive hook. The one critique I have heard repeatedly of this album is its formulaic pattern where rolling bass lines always give way to Gerrit Welmer's synths before Herring continues on about love. I will concede that that is true to a certain extent. While the tracks do display a similar pattern, each contains its own unique hook that leave my head bobbing every time. Of all the records I have heard this year, I come back to this one the most. And if you haven't seen their performance on Letterman, what are you doing with your life?
Listen to "Ran":
Listen to "Ran":
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard- Flying Microtonal Banana:
I very much like the fact that the cover of this record features a snake charmer, as this sound is replicated throughout Flying Microtonal Banana, the first of five proposed records to be released this year by these Australian psychedelic rockers. Whereas many rock bands use the acid rock genre for purely aesthetic reasons, King Gizzard makes it their identity on every single track. "Rattlesnake", for example, contains guitars that sound like they were concocted in the lab of some mad chemist. It fuses together elements of surf rock, punk, and psychedelia that give these long and winding tracks some wonderful hooks.
As expected, most of the album sounds like the freakiest acid trip you have ever been on. It exudes feelings of peace and relaxation, with a layer of crippling paranoia hidden beneath the surface. "Nuclear Fusion" has a much more darker vibe, with lead singer Stu Mackenzie humming along lethargically, leaving a slimy feeling oozing throughout your chest. Flying Microtonal Banana provides one of the more physical experiences I've had with music this year, and not in the form of dancing. I feel like these songs shift my chemical balance, leading to all kinds of weird feelings. Or maybe, I'm just losing it. Then again, that's probably the intention of the record.
Listen to "Rattlesnake":
Roger Waters- Is This the Life We Really Want?:
The best of his solo albums released so far, former Pink Floyd bassist Roger Waters came through on the conscience study of world affairs and love, Is This the Life We Really Want? He manages to comment on presidents, refugees, and war without sounding pretentious or preachy, a pitfall of many protest albums this year. Even though I have listened to it about a thousand times already, "Deja Vu" still leaves me shaking every time. He chooses a topic, the use of drones in warfare, mostly tied to the Obama administration and rips off the blindfold of the Western world, showing the civilians that bear the brunt of these attacks. The song paints a sobering reality, that world problems don't go away, they simply morph and change location. Whether in Vietnam or Syria, the suffering is still the same.
Of course, remnants of Waters' days in Pink Floyd are scattered throughout the track listing. Many songs implement soundbites of news broadcasts and other forms of television, a strategy used on hit Floyd songs like "Us and Them". However, the instrumentation isn't nearly as complex, possibly because Waters doesn't want a wall of guitars and synths to get in the way of his message, which is the most important part of the record. This album does require you to put on your thinking cap, but it does so as a plead, to pay attention to world outside of our borders for even a little bit.
Listen to "Deja Vu":
Perfume Genius- No Shape:
The career of Perfume Genius (a.k.a. Mike Hadreas) can best be pictured as the lifespan of a flower. With this first release in 2010, Learning, he was a seed just barely sprouting, only beginning to put his roots into a dark and scary world. Seven years later and with the release of his fourth record, No Shape, he has fully blossomed, standing above the rest. Listening to energetic and confident tracks like "Slip Away" makes me wonder where the Perfume Genius I found six years ago went. The instrumentals are infinitely more complicated, a virtual wall of glittery sound that he shatters and rebuilds repeatedly.
Many of his older songs dealt with a struggle to be oneself in the face of enormous insecurity. We now see a more self-aware Perfume Genius, one that possesses little interest in how others perceive him. The stellar "Wreath" sees him longing to exist outside his body, and exist beyond the limitations of a physical world.While the topic may seem depressive, Hadreas makes it a statement of power, because he knows exactly what he is capable of.
While his songs are pop, he is clearly not seeking to copy any trends. The songs contain a darker, more introspective side than we are used to seeing on this kind of record. It's pop music for real people.
Listen to "Slip Away":
Sampha- Process:
On his debut album, British musician Sampha comes through with one of the most unique R&B records in recent memory. A fusion of electronic, R&B, and soul, this album delves into a world of dizzying instrumentals juxtaposed with lyrics concerning the pains of the mind.
Sampha's vocals have a deafening quietness to them, their faintness coming to foreground of the track. On "(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano", his voice is at its strongest, pouring over tender piano notes in a very simple and heartfelt ballad. Without any complicated imagery or metaphors, Sampha explains the importance of music in his life, and how playing the piano allowed him a new kind of freedom he had never felt before.
"Blood On Me" enthralls me in one aspect and confuses me in another. I am not sure whether to go crazy to it or just cuddle in a pile of blankets and cry. It's got such a captivating beat to it, but Sampha sounds so pained that I almost feel bad about having fun while listening to it. The lyrics are like a journey into the deepest, darkest nightmare:
Timber Timbre- Sincerely, Future Pollution:
With an album that sounds like it just came out of Blade Runner, Timber Timbre, the wonderful experimental rock band from Toronto, returned to unleash their unique take on rock and roll. I would label their sound as "blues music for serial killers". Not that they are a gory band, but a certain feeling of uneasiness lingers throughout all of their songs, creating an atmosphere telling your instincts that something is very wrong beneath all of the quiet. If that sounds like a turn-off to you, no worries, because this probably the band's least disturbing album so far. Despite this, it still contains tracks like "Velvet Gloves & Spit", with lyrics that discuss very erotic themes in a creepy way, as though the narrator was telling the story through a peephole.
I very much like the fact that the cover of this record features a snake charmer, as this sound is replicated throughout Flying Microtonal Banana, the first of five proposed records to be released this year by these Australian psychedelic rockers. Whereas many rock bands use the acid rock genre for purely aesthetic reasons, King Gizzard makes it their identity on every single track. "Rattlesnake", for example, contains guitars that sound like they were concocted in the lab of some mad chemist. It fuses together elements of surf rock, punk, and psychedelia that give these long and winding tracks some wonderful hooks.
As expected, most of the album sounds like the freakiest acid trip you have ever been on. It exudes feelings of peace and relaxation, with a layer of crippling paranoia hidden beneath the surface. "Nuclear Fusion" has a much more darker vibe, with lead singer Stu Mackenzie humming along lethargically, leaving a slimy feeling oozing throughout your chest. Flying Microtonal Banana provides one of the more physical experiences I've had with music this year, and not in the form of dancing. I feel like these songs shift my chemical balance, leading to all kinds of weird feelings. Or maybe, I'm just losing it. Then again, that's probably the intention of the record.
Listen to "Rattlesnake":
Roger Waters- Is This the Life We Really Want?:
The best of his solo albums released so far, former Pink Floyd bassist Roger Waters came through on the conscience study of world affairs and love, Is This the Life We Really Want? He manages to comment on presidents, refugees, and war without sounding pretentious or preachy, a pitfall of many protest albums this year. Even though I have listened to it about a thousand times already, "Deja Vu" still leaves me shaking every time. He chooses a topic, the use of drones in warfare, mostly tied to the Obama administration and rips off the blindfold of the Western world, showing the civilians that bear the brunt of these attacks. The song paints a sobering reality, that world problems don't go away, they simply morph and change location. Whether in Vietnam or Syria, the suffering is still the same.Of course, remnants of Waters' days in Pink Floyd are scattered throughout the track listing. Many songs implement soundbites of news broadcasts and other forms of television, a strategy used on hit Floyd songs like "Us and Them". However, the instrumentation isn't nearly as complex, possibly because Waters doesn't want a wall of guitars and synths to get in the way of his message, which is the most important part of the record. This album does require you to put on your thinking cap, but it does so as a plead, to pay attention to world outside of our borders for even a little bit.
Listen to "Deja Vu":
Perfume Genius- No Shape:
The career of Perfume Genius (a.k.a. Mike Hadreas) can best be pictured as the lifespan of a flower. With this first release in 2010, Learning, he was a seed just barely sprouting, only beginning to put his roots into a dark and scary world. Seven years later and with the release of his fourth record, No Shape, he has fully blossomed, standing above the rest. Listening to energetic and confident tracks like "Slip Away" makes me wonder where the Perfume Genius I found six years ago went. The instrumentals are infinitely more complicated, a virtual wall of glittery sound that he shatters and rebuilds repeatedly.Many of his older songs dealt with a struggle to be oneself in the face of enormous insecurity. We now see a more self-aware Perfume Genius, one that possesses little interest in how others perceive him. The stellar "Wreath" sees him longing to exist outside his body, and exist beyond the limitations of a physical world.While the topic may seem depressive, Hadreas makes it a statement of power, because he knows exactly what he is capable of.
While his songs are pop, he is clearly not seeking to copy any trends. The songs contain a darker, more introspective side than we are used to seeing on this kind of record. It's pop music for real people.
Listen to "Slip Away":
Sampha- Process:
On his debut album, British musician Sampha comes through with one of the most unique R&B records in recent memory. A fusion of electronic, R&B, and soul, this album delves into a world of dizzying instrumentals juxtaposed with lyrics concerning the pains of the mind.
Sampha's vocals have a deafening quietness to them, their faintness coming to foreground of the track. On "(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano", his voice is at its strongest, pouring over tender piano notes in a very simple and heartfelt ballad. Without any complicated imagery or metaphors, Sampha explains the importance of music in his life, and how playing the piano allowed him a new kind of freedom he had never felt before."Blood On Me" enthralls me in one aspect and confuses me in another. I am not sure whether to go crazy to it or just cuddle in a pile of blankets and cry. It's got such a captivating beat to it, but Sampha sounds so pained that I almost feel bad about having fun while listening to it. The lyrics are like a journey into the deepest, darkest nightmare:
"They say there's somethin' bleedin' in me
Somethin' screamin' in me
Somethin' buried deep beneath."
With Process, Sampha has officially established himself as a rising star in the world of alternative R&B, surpassing, in my opinion, other artists like The Weeknd.
Listen to "(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano":
Listen to "(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano":
Timber Timbre- Sincerely, Future Pollution:
With an album that sounds like it just came out of Blade Runner, Timber Timbre, the wonderful experimental rock band from Toronto, returned to unleash their unique take on rock and roll. I would label their sound as "blues music for serial killers". Not that they are a gory band, but a certain feeling of uneasiness lingers throughout all of their songs, creating an atmosphere telling your instincts that something is very wrong beneath all of the quiet. If that sounds like a turn-off to you, no worries, because this probably the band's least disturbing album so far. Despite this, it still contains tracks like "Velvet Gloves & Spit", with lyrics that discuss very erotic themes in a creepy way, as though the narrator was telling the story through a peephole.
Much like smog over a city skyline, Timber Timbre's music drifts back and forth, slowly becoming more and more suffocating. Many tracks on the record contain an ambient quality previously unheard on Timber Timbre songs, with bright and buzzing synths coming to the forefront instead of creepy guitar or piano leads. While not as good as their other records, Sincerely, Future Pollution still stands out as one of the more interesting albums of 2017, which speaks to the innovative nature of the band, who are always looking to do something different with each release.
Listen to "Velvet Gloves & Spit":
Full of Hell- Trumpeting Ecstasy:
Ah, grindcore.With frantic and abrasive instrumentals, combined with often hellish vocals, it's probably one of the most exciting sub-genres of metal today. One of the leading bands of the scene, Full of Hell, dropped a face smashing new album this year that might just go down as the best of the year. Hailing from Maryland, Full of Hell have been releasing music since 2011, producing some of the most visceral grindcore of the decade. The secret to their success can be found in lead vocalist Dylan Walker, whose screams can vary from abyssal growls to glass shattering shrieks. The record makes various uses of layered vocals to showcase this ability, like on "Crawling Back to God", where Walker's voice adds to the feeling of frightening terror, especially at the end when all other instruments are removed.
For me, this album is a reminder of why I love metal in the first place. There is something beautiful in music that allows one to fully vent all of their anger and frustrations. The title track is proof of this, with the sugary sweet vocals of Nicole Dollanganger providing the same chilling effect as Walker in a completely different way. It's the most noise-influenced track on the record, and arguably the best, leaving me wanting the Full of Hell to continue in this slowly methodical, but still barbaric, direction. I understand the reservations people have when it comes to metal music, but if you are feeling skeptical about the genre, I implore you to give this band a shot. You might just be surprised by how much you enjoy it.
Listen to "Trumpeting Ecstasy":
Listen to "Velvet Gloves & Spit":
Full of Hell- Trumpeting Ecstasy:
Ah, grindcore.With frantic and abrasive instrumentals, combined with often hellish vocals, it's probably one of the most exciting sub-genres of metal today. One of the leading bands of the scene, Full of Hell, dropped a face smashing new album this year that might just go down as the best of the year. Hailing from Maryland, Full of Hell have been releasing music since 2011, producing some of the most visceral grindcore of the decade. The secret to their success can be found in lead vocalist Dylan Walker, whose screams can vary from abyssal growls to glass shattering shrieks. The record makes various uses of layered vocals to showcase this ability, like on "Crawling Back to God", where Walker's voice adds to the feeling of frightening terror, especially at the end when all other instruments are removed.For me, this album is a reminder of why I love metal in the first place. There is something beautiful in music that allows one to fully vent all of their anger and frustrations. The title track is proof of this, with the sugary sweet vocals of Nicole Dollanganger providing the same chilling effect as Walker in a completely different way. It's the most noise-influenced track on the record, and arguably the best, leaving me wanting the Full of Hell to continue in this slowly methodical, but still barbaric, direction. I understand the reservations people have when it comes to metal music, but if you are feeling skeptical about the genre, I implore you to give this band a shot. You might just be surprised by how much you enjoy it.
Listen to "Trumpeting Ecstasy":
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