If nothing else, this past year was great for music, and a banner year for metal. It's hard to whittle it down to just a handful of favorites, but it's impossible to deny that our attentions tend to gravitate to specific influences, so here is a general list of my favorites from the year:
My favorite reissue of the year is Joanna Brouk's Hearing Music. Beautiful minimalist pieces, bordering on New Age, but mostly too off-center or melancholy to fit in to that often saccharine genre. Many different approaches to ambient minimalism, each track is most frequently only one or two instruments, from which Ms. Brouk coaxes the most alluring landscapes.
Shirley Collins - Lodestar. Long ago, Ms Collins had a high, delicate voice that brought to mind youthful days spent in sun dappled forests and golden meadows. She sang traditional British folk songs that were simultaneously naive and full of ancient wisdom. After a lengthy period of withdrawal from the musical life, she has returned to sing the ancient songs of her land anew. Her voice is a different instrument now, and casts an intriguing light upon the themes of these fables. If you are fan of The Pentangle, Vashti Bunyan and the like, or the more recent crop of psych-folk and dark-folk, this record is not to be missed.
Crystal Castles - Amnesty. I wanted to hate this too, but it's fucking great. Perhaps the most cohesive CC album to date.
Com Truise - Silicon Tare. The Com Truise take on 80's style synth music is continually the standard, as far as I'm concerned. Each track on this 5 song EP is densely layered and far beyond the typical style that simply apes the origins without adding any new or creative concepts. If you enjoyed the music of that ubiquitous show about pre-teen, D&D kids that came out over the summer, do yourself a solid and listen to this guy's full catalogue.
Courtney Marie Andrews - Honest Life. Lyrically, CMA needs a little bit more development, but when she nails it she nails it. "How Quickly Your Heart Mends" and 'Rookie Dreaming" are a couple of my favorite "pop" songs of the year, and her voice is Emmy Lou Harris reborn.
Huerco S. - For Those Of You Who Have Never (And Also Those Who Have). Soft blankets of bittersweet nostalgia, woven from simple ambient loops.
Ulaan Markhor - Detritus 2010-2016 & Ulaan Passerine - The Great Unwinding & Moss Cathedral. Steven R. Smith makes more soundtracks to the (encroaching) end and the barren landscape we are each doomed to walk alone. He's without a doubt my favorite musician of the past 15 years. Devastating and beautiful music for existential musing.
Darkthrone - Arctic Thunder. It seems like Metal is a genre that frequently has little sense of humor, or maybe I'm just not well versed enough to pick up on the subtleties. That said, there's no way these guys aren't having a great time. Arctic Thunder is equal parts horrifically intimidating and utterly hilarious, all while being catchy as fuck.
Vektor - Terminal Redux. Fuck, this album is the definition of intense. I'm not usually into the calculated pretense of prog-influenced music, but this is like five albums playing all at once and making perfect sense. I also love a solid concept album (which is something that's honestly hard to find) and Vektor's "Sci-fi or Die" approach is just uber-satisfying. I've probably listened to this record more than any other in 2016, beacuse there's so much to hear and unpack. Some people have told me that it's too much, but I just want more. Lots of fantastic metal was released this year, but this was without a doubt my favorite. And they absolutely destroyed live, too.
Vinyl Williams - Brunei. Super trippy, laid back psych-rock for when you want to forget about all the bullshit and feel like you're in a parallel dimension made of good vibes and kaleidoscopic crystal laser-beams.
Morgan Delt - Phase Zero. Brunei's psych-pop foil. This is Vinyl Williams' paranoid older brother who just escaped some secret, government-funded LSD cult. He's seen some shit and, while you might not believe it, there's probably more truth to his stories than there seems. Absolutely addictive songs that are seething just under the surface. Closer "Some Sunsick Day" is one of my favorite tracks of the year.
Debo band - Ere Gobez. Imagine if the Budos Band veered into moments of psychedelic improvisation and New Orleans street brass, while being fronted by an amazing Ethiopian singer. This is a vast and inspired album that gives more and more with each listen. Debo Band deftly careens through genres without ever once sounding contrived or unoriginal. This album is super exciting, and if you get the chance, see them live. They will blow you away.
Euvium - False Readings On. Grandiose-ambient, is that an oxymoron? Matthew Robert Cooper continues to evolve his sound. Boarding on twee melodrama at times, this is still an overwhelming listen that will leave have you enwrapped from start to finish.
Dungen - Häxan. Wow! I've been wishing for this album since I first discovered Dungen. Strange instrumentals have always been their strong suit as far as I'm concerned, and this album finally fully realizes that. I've listened to Häxan on repeat and I still can't get enough. My only complaint is that it's too brief.
It seems that only once every ten years or so, a game changing record is released, frequently without much fanfare. Something that really pushes the boundaries of what is acceptable on a broadly popular scale, and is maybe overlooked for it's first few years of existence. But then, when enough momentum has gathered, it swells like a great tsunami wave and the face of music is altered for at least another decade. R.E.M.'s Murmur, My Bloody Valentine's Loveless, Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane, Joanna Newsome's The Milk Eyed Mender all come to mind. Personally, I am frequently never ready for these milestones myself, and often find my first reaction to be one of shock in that someone would want to listen to the sound that is coming through the speakers. But, usually, there's a new and unusual hook that snags me, be it lyrically or musically, and then my eyes are opened like god himself has illuminated the path before me. With out a doubt, Adam Torres' Pearls to Swine is that album of the 20-teens. Sung from the perspective of some anchorite wandering the fringes, yet achingly personal, Pearls touches a universal nerve that only music's greatest mystics are capable of. Torres' voice is like the Aurora Borealis; ghostly, shimmering above our heads in some beautiful, untouchable liminal space. His words concisely convey the human condition in an utterly unique and poetic way that is somewhat like reliving your happiest and saddest memories simultaneously. And the music is the perfect, unseen companion to his journey, sometimes gently guiding, sometimes circling, sometimes calling out from behind, or perhaps it's more the landscape that each song walks us through. It's music like this that makes me grateful to be alive.
