So it turns out that not having a lot of music to listen to was actually a blessing. Now that we’ve ramped back up to 50 hours worth of music per week, it’s a lot harder to find the time to keep pace. This is especially true now that my other great love, college football, has returned to my television screen.
Of course, I’m still going to keep you all as up to date as possible when it comes to the latest, most exciting music. The previous week (August 23rd, since we’re a bit behind) brought two of my favorite non-metal albums of the year so far, so you know I can’t let those go unheard. Let’s dive in.
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
Fluisteraars - Gegrepen Door de Geest der Zielsontluiking
Fluisteraars showed the wide breadth of their capabilities last year with the incredibly impressive Bloem. A bright, sunny record (well, as much as a black metal album can be), Bloem showed that you could do straight up black metal without having to get too dour about it. On Gegrepen Door de Geest der Zielsontluiking they show that they’re more than capable of doing it dark too. The album borders on psychedelic, it’s whirling riffs and propulsive drums often give way to scintillating instrumental passages. Despite the complexity, Gegrepen Door de Geest der Zielsontluiking feels surprisingly light on its feet, allowing listeners of all experience levels to enjoy the record. Much like Bloem, I suspect that we’ll find Gegrepen Door de Geest der Zielsontluiking sitting on several best of the year lists from metal publications.
Great Metal from this Week
Botanist / Thief - Cicatrix / Diamond Brush: Electronic musician Thief and metal band Botanist come together to make a fascinating blend of styles that holds up with surprising integrity.
Hooded Menace - The Tritonus Bell: Hooded Menace proves that the tried and true formula of greasy, nasty death metal still works remarkably well.
Trhä - endlhëtonëg: Atmospheric black metal, heavy on the atmosphere, light(er) on the metal.
As always you can find songs from these albums and more on our Fresh Kills playlist.
Non-Metal AOTW
Turnstile - GLOW ON
This was one of the tougher weeks to sort out from the non-metal side, but there was never much question as to who could be number one. While The Bug’s Fire almost gave GLOW ON some competition, Turnstile’s revolutionary sound made this an easy call. GLOW ON combines the propulsive, energetic sounds of hardcore punk with candy-coated pop. But instead of falling into the dull trappings of mediocre pop punk, they never lose the edge that makes them so exciting. Adding to the appeal is the album’s wide range of different styles and sound choices, all of which manage to sound distinct without losing cohesion. It’s a masterful record that seems uniquely poised to reignite modern day interest in hardcore music.
Runners-up
The Bug - Fire: Legendary London producer The Bug brings in an eclectic list of collaborators to make a stylistically diverse album that makes songs about weed and songs about global war sound equally apocalyptic.
Container - Creamer: Container brings noisy, abrasive electronics to thrilling highs on Creamer. Held together by a tremendous command of rhythm, the album never falters into the nigh unlistenable space of pure noise.
Yann Tiersen - Kerber: A slightly inconsistent project with incredible highs that spell promising things for Yann Tiersen’s future.
CHVRCHES - Screen Violence: CHVRCHES return to form with a synth-laden album heavily indebted to slasher flicks and John Carpenter.
Big Red Machine - How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?: Aaron Dessner, Justin Vernon and company continue their incredible run of productivity and add another installation into the “Taylor Swift as indie-pop darling” canon.
Indigo De Souza - Any Shape You Take: Great instrumentals and lyrics make for a memorable indie-pop record.
Haiku Salut - The Hill, The Light, The Ghost: Soft, sweet and sad ambient music remains a staple in this household.
Westside Gunn - Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Sincerely, Adolf: Westside Gunn might be doing an impression of Action Bronson doing an impression of Ghostface Killah but it works. Gunn’s frequently hilarious lyrical inventions don’t hurt either.