The best.
Wrestling Moves was something of a sleeper hit for me. I had listened to Native's EP We Delete; Erase a little bit, but not enough to really know their songs all that sell. So when Sargent House (who is far and away my favorite record label) released this album I didn't really jump on board. I downloaded it but didn't play it too much. Eventually I started digging the songs when they came on shuffle and found later Ponyboy to actually be one of my favorite songs of the year. This record really came out of nowhere and now I'm in love with it. The group's style is fast and aggressive at times and more atmospheric at others. Musically, the band is incredibly proficient. The duel guitarists are able to work together really well and make the lines interweave and cross over each other while the bass pulls a lot of it together without being notice. The drumming is excellent as well, the beats are never standard and are able to mesh perfectly with the music despite how crazy it can be. Even in Pitchfork's horrible review of the album (they gave it a 3.7 because Pitchfork likes shit music) they remarked on how Nick's drumming was the saving grace of the record. But one of the main things people notice about Native is singer/bassist Bobby's vocal work. It's harsh, sparse, and a lyrically intriguing. The sound is somewhere between singing and a Keith Buckley-esque yell, almost a Bear Vs. Shark sound but less melodic. The only downside to this album is it feels rather samey, a lot of the songs are difficult to distinguish from each other but I still consider it one of the best releases of 2010.
New Protest The Hero, need I say more? Well yeah, I probably should, but this album is almost as new to me as it is to you. I'm only halfway through it right now but it sounds awesome so far, like an extension on Fortress, which is a very good thing. Check it out if you know what's good for you.
Bayside have been one of consistently good pop-punk bands out there over the course of the last decade. All of their releases thus far have been emotionally charged, cleverly written, and catchy-as-hell and this newest album is no different. The record feels like a combination of their last album, Shudder and their first, Sirens And Condolences. It's interesting to hear as they seem to alternate styles from song to song. A harder, edgier sound from early Bayside material then a song of Shudder-esque material followed by another call to the past. Many tunes combine both of these as well as styles from their whole catalog. Bayside is a band that doesn't try and be horribly different from album to album, they know what they're good at and they stick to that. That being said, the material is some of the widest-spanning music under the "pop-punk" label. Though I've only listened to it a few times, Killing Time may be one of my favorite Bayside records as it's more comprehensive than progressive. Hopefully the rest of 2011 will live up to the bar that his album has set.
2010 has come and gone quickly, but in that seemingly small amount of time a large amount of good music has been put out. So now is the time when we celebrate. Here's 23 of my favorite songs this year. It's 22 completely different artists with only 1 group having more than one song (I'm sorry, I just loved Settler's album so much). So hopefully you'll give it a listen, find some new music, and discover why 2010 was really that good. Some albums I've reviewed, some I haven't (shame on me) so some will have links to the full album set up. Hopefully 2011 will be half as good as 2010.
Fang Island have been on my radar for about a year and half now when I first heard their early EPs, but when I found out they were releasing their first full-length on Sargent House I got super excited. My favorite label meets with an awesome band? Good things are bound to happen. And they did. Their self titled record is a anthemic rock album that sounds like, as the band describes it "everyone high-fiving everyone." The semi-instrumental songs are epic in scope yet have a really fun feel to them, making you want to dance sing along. The album starts off with Dreams Of Dreams which is builds into the head-rocking Careful Crossers and sets the tone for the record. The rest of Fang Island is a roller coaster of excitement, never giving the listener time to cool down until the closer Dorian. Fang Island has created one of the most fun records I've heard in a while and is definitely one of the best of 2010.
I don't know why I originally looked up Rx Bandits (probably because of The Sound of Animals Fighting) but when I did, the first song I heard by them was Prophetic off of 2003's The Resignation. For anyone who's heard this song, they know it's a great jumping-off point from a great album. The record in general is another step away from the 3rd wave ska that the band started. It's more experimental, more intricate guitar work, and more powerful than what they'd released before. The use of horns was slowly being phased out, eventually having ...And The Battle Begun be the least record using them but on The Resignation they accent the music beautifully. The songs flow excellently from one to the other, using instrumental transitions and ambient sounds, the whole album feels connected rather than just a collection of tracks. This album is another reason 2003 was an amazing year in music and is one of my personal favorites of all time.
The only reason I regret not being a teenager in the 80's/90's (I would have preferred early 2000's, honestly) is that I missed out on emo bands. Not the My Chemical Romance emo, mind you, but the Cap'n Jazz and Joan Of Arc style emo, which is exponentially better (no offense, scenesters, just not a fan). Fortunately, I've been blessed to discover what seems to be a resurgence of emo out on the East coast. Snowing, while not on the forefront, is one of those great bands coming from it. The band has somewhat technical guitar work over-lying generally upbeat songs with raw vocals on top. One of my favorite parts of Snowing is the singing which would better be characterized under "yelling" because it's harsher than singing but not really screaming, think Bear vs Shark. Another awesome part of the record is the production. Rough around the edges, the EP sounds like it was recorded with the cheapest equipment the band could find, and it very well could have been, but that's one of the reasons it's so great. I don't think the sound would work very well being recorded in a big studio with fancy equipment, it works much better when it's unpolished and direct. Basically, everything from this band works because of how raw and untouched the sound is. Awesome album for driving or just sitting around listening to, you can't go wrong either way.
The boys of Circa Survive work fast. Their last album, Blue Sky Noise, was released in April and only 7 months later they put out the Appendage EP. The EP is a short 5 songs long which include 4 new tunes and full band remake of Everyway (the song was originally released on the deluxe edition of Blue Sky Noise as an acoustic bonus track). Overall, this release feels a little lighter for the band. The songs feel a bit less organized than on other albums, they seem to float by and don't have much direction. One of the highlights is the explosive ending of Lazarus. Though I don't like it as much as the band's previous record, it still is a great EP and adds to Circa's already impressive discography.
Now I was pretty hesitant to put this out. It was originally released with the Lifetime Fan Club Package as an exclusive download. Casey even wrote a little note saying he wanted to keep it within the members. Well I was holding back putting it up for that reason, but now it's going on here for 2 reasons, 1) it already "leaked" a while back and 2) when I talked to Josh (guitarist) at their show he just emailed it to a random kid that asked about it. If the band's down with sending it out, then so am I. And it's a good thing too, this little EP is pretty excellent. It's only 3 songs long but there's a lot of variety there. B. Linus (presumably named after the Lost character) is upbeat and sounds like a b-side of Act III. One of the really cool things about the track is that it's in 7/8 yet still has a really nice groove to it. The next song, Isabella is a slowed down soulful song ala Son or Life And Death. It's mellow, laid-back, and fits in great with Casey's voice. Closing the EP is Owls 1 which is really a strange song. Overall it's pretty simplistic and uses some different instrumentals such as a bell kit and electronic drums. Not a huge fan of the song but I know some people love it. If this EP is a tell of how the Colors EPs will sound then I'm beyond excited.
Absolute Punk's Free Music Friday is a godsend. I've found some awesome local groups from it and this is one of them. What's Left Of The Trees is a two-man group that has been kicking my musical ass for the past few days. The sound is reminiscent of Portugal. the Man's Church Mouth as well as As Tall As Lions and I'm loving it. Southern-ish but also soulful, it's kinda difficult to describe but also really familiar. The singer's vocals are pretty different from a lot out there, it's normal at some times then every now and again he'll do some vibrato-sounding bits as well. Really this is one that's kinda hard to critique but super fun to listen to and addictive. Support local music, yo.
This self-titled record from This Town Needs Guns is some of math-rock at its finest, with all the technical guitars and intricate melodies you could ask for. Tim Collis rockets over the fretboard with some ridiculous ability but still is able to keep the overall mood very chilled out and relaxed, which is not easy to do. Singer/rhythm guiarist Stuart Smith's vocals are absolutely perfect for the music, his crooning slides gently from song to song and somehow adds a laid-back atmosphere to the most eccentric of pieces. It's hard to accurately describe this band's sound in one paragraph so I recommend you just download the album and hear it for yourself. Let me know what you think!
Before Maps and Atlases got their folky vibe, they were a LOT more math-rock based. Tree, Swallows, Houses has some incredibly frantic guitars that make mince meat of the fret board. Dave Davidson's vocals are quirky as always and somehow sound right over the technical music regardless of his unique voice. Now I love me some technicality and crazy guitar work, but I feel like M&A took it a little too far with this EP. The noodling gets somewhat overbearing and can only be taken in small chunks, but it's still terribly impressive nonetheless. I think my favorite track is Stories About Ourselves, it starts off with an awesome Blink-182 ish bass line that then bursts into some typical M&A math-rock. The album might be a little heavy on the fret-jumping but it's still a classic for an math fan.
Tides of Man has been on my radar for a while now, but I was never really able to get into the band before now. Sure, Empire Theory was good, but it just didn't catch me like I was hoping. So last night as I was talking to Jack Appleby (editor/writer of Mind Equals Blown) he suggested I check out Tide's new record and I was blown away. The band has taken their sound to the next level and has moved to a more progressive sound, which I love. The guitars are technical and the vocals are excellent (they accent the music much better than I expected). Really this album is a great expansion on what ToM have already created and is now a contender for album of the year.
These tracks were originally released with the deluxe version of Blue Sky Noise and they're all awesome versions of the normal songs. The last track, Every Way is a b-side from the album that I think sounds more like an Anthony Green solo song. But either way, it's awesome and worth giving a spin.
Algernon Cadwallader sticks in my mind for 2 very distinct and important reasons. 1. They sound like a 90's emo band that somehow stayed underground for 15+ years only emerge now and show us how damn good they are, and 2. Their name is awesome (pronounced al-jur-non kad-wall-uh-der). The name aside, these guys are just kickass. The guitars have a technical tinge to them, but it's not overbearing and not the focus of the group. Vocals-wise, I just absolutely love it. The singer isn't amazingly talented and he can't hit high notes very well, but that's one of the draws. It feels so raw and emotional when he's yelling to try and reach the notes that are just outside of his range. I know some people won't like it, but I totally dig the sound. But overall, the band is happy and upbeat. I can imagine they would put on one of the best live shows just based on their energetic and fun-loving sound. The music is a little samey, but that's just how this genre is. Honestly, if you can catch them at a basement show anytime soon, go to it and tell me how it went while I sit at home and cry in envy.
The fact of the matter is, if you don't have this album in your music library yet, you're a bad person. So go ahead and download it in order to save yourself the embarrassment of someone discovering that your itunes lacks one of the most important records of all time. It's ok, I won't tell anyone. It can be our little secret.
Circa Survive's second album is a solid progression from their first. The guitar work is harder and more expansive, Anthony Green's vocals are more impressive and flow with the music, and the sound has just been stepped up. That being said, I'm still not sure whether I like it more than Juturna since both have such well written songs so the title of "Best Circa Survive Record" is still up for grabs. But one thing's for sure, the album has more "hard" songs that Juturna did. It's less "airy" (for lack of a better word) but that doesn't make it any less good. Just give it a listen and let me know which one you think is best (maybe you even like Blue Sky Noise the most, I wanna know!).