Hello and welcome to my 2022 year end album awards!!! I've decided to change up how to present my top albums this year. I got this idea from a podcast called Growing Up Punk, where they gave out made up awards (called guppies) instead of doing a top 10 list. It seemed like a fun idea and I honestly had troubled making a definitive top 10 list this year. There's just so much good stuff that came out it was hard to narrow down! So instead I'm focusing on albums that stood out to me, in one way or another. Hope you enjoy this new experiment I'm trying :)
For the song "Yo Canada" and the lyrics "We'll be giggin' in the town of Three Rivers, London, Brampton, Guelph/ Belle scène geniale up in Thetford Mines/ Moneen and Choke!" You get a 2 for 1 in these lyrics, with reference to the bands Moneen and Choke. Mad respect to those Canadian deep cuts from the early 2000s! This album is kick ass all around and definitely deserved a spot in my top 10! I created a whole blog post about why the album is worth your time.
Best album from Croatia award: Trophy Jump- feels
A very well done indie punk album that's a tight 30 mins and will have you singing their catchy choruses for days. This one has been on consistent rotation for me all year. There's also a blog post I created here about it.
The "That album is much too relatable for my comfort" award: The Wonder Years- The Hum Goes on Forever
I don't usually go into personal details about myself in this blog, however, I will a tiny bit for this award. This summer my life changed with the news that I'm going to be a parent and The Hum Goes on Forever became the album that I needed to hear. With the fear of being a new parent in general, along with raising a kid in these times...all I can say is, Dan Campbell, I hear you man. Another fantastic album in the Wonder Years discography.
The Ian Cohen recommendation award: Arm's Length- Never Before Seen, Never Again Found
A podcast that I religiously listen to is Indiecast, who's hosts are the music critics Ian Cohen and Steven Hyden. Every episode both Ian and Steven give a band recommendation and Ian's I especially pay attention to because his tastes are pretty close to mine. This year he recommended an album that he described as being similar to the Hotelier's Home, Like No Place Is There and it was a no brainer to give it a listen. The recommendation was Arm's Length's debut album Never Before Seen, Never Again Found and oh man did Ian hit it on the head. I look forward to seeing what mark this band leaves on the scene. Will they be like the greats of the 2010s, such as Hotelier or The World Is a Beautiful Place and I am No Longer Afraid to Die? Only time will tell.
The best screaming shoegazed Duck award: Still Water- We're Not Here To Be Loved
How could I not resist adding an award with a Duck incorporated when looking at that album cover? We're Not Here To Be Loved takes the best elements of grunge, shoegaze and hardcore from over the years and create their own concoction to feast into. Band member Marisa Shirar kills it with her vocals, that are backed up wonderfully by Vein vocalist Anthony DiDio, and I would dare say her voice is just as distinct as Chino's from the Deftones. Don't believe me or are skeptical? Take a listen for yourself and see what you think :) This is a must listen for any fans of bands like Hum, My Vitriol, Failure, and of course, the Deftones.
Best sequel to a song award: Cliffdiver- Exercise Your Demons
"Ikea Strikes Back" is the sequel the song "Lost in Ikea", off Cliffdiver's EP At Your Own Risk. "Lost in Ikea's" message is about learning to accept yourself and take accountability for your screw ups, so that you can become the person you want to be. While "Ikea Strikes Back's" message talks about what happens after you start that path of bettering yourself. It takes constant effort (or exercise some may say) to become and stay that better person, and that's ok if you aren't there yet or you take a stumble, as long as you keep trying. As a whole, the album is so much fun and heart warming. I've talked more about why I love it here.
The best Daggermouth project award: Rest Easy- Hope You're Ok
Is this actually a Daggermouth record? No it's not but the title might have caught your attention right? Rest Easy have members of the legendary melodic hardcore acts Daggermouth and the Shook Ones. Some would argue that Daggermouth were a pioneers in starting the easycore genre, for better or for worse (their words). Either way you can tell this band has experience and talent to back them up. This album is pure hardcore punk adrenaline, that prove they deserve their prominent status within the scene.
Most surprising album release: Martha- Please Don't Take Me Back
Have you ever found out one of your favorite bands released an album by happenstance? Then you stop everything immediately and open your streaming app to eagerly listen. It's one of those things that can make your shit day to an awesome one, especially when the album is a banger. This happened when I was at work and listening to an online radio show called The Rip (which I highly recommend for anyone that likes punk/ska/hardcore music). Please Don't Take Me Back is the 4th album by the British band Martha and it picks up right where Love Keeps Kicking leaves off. Martha showcases a new batch of energetic power pop songs that are melancholy tinged, my personal brand of drug in music form. Just listen to "I Didn't Come Here To Surrender" if you need convincing of how great their new work is.
The album that was my gateway to a new genre award: Holy Fawn- Dimensional Bleed
There's some genres out there that I just can't get into, for whatever reason. Black metal is one of them. Objectively I can appreciate bands like Deafheaven but I don't actively go to their albums for something to pay attention to. Holy Fawn was another band I could appreciate from afar but not want to listen to, until Dimensional Bleed come out. At first I listened to it because of the hype it was getting online. Then I surprisingly kept coming back to it whenever I wanted to listen to something atmospheric on a cold autumn/winter's night. I think the fact that Dimensional Bleed uses post-rock to compliment the heavier metal elements bridged that gap. It's just like Turnstile did last year for me with hardcore music, they used pop music elements to compliment the hardcore and it got me hooked. Cant wait to see what new bands I discover thanks to Holy Fawn!
The best not rock album award: Carly Rae Jepsen- The Loneliest Time
Yes that's right, I listen to pop music...sometimes. When you have pop behemoths like Taylor Swift out there, that you can't get away from as it's played in stores, radio and clubs, you sometimes can't help but begrudgingly like some of what you hear. In Canada, we have this thing called CanCon where the media has to play a certain percentage of Canadian content. So on pop stations you will hear more of bands like The Weekend, Drake, and Justin Beiber (ugh) then potentially an American radio station would. This year I was passively hearing Carly Rae Jepsen's latest batch of hit songs and found them stubbornly sticking in my head. Finally I gave in and just listened to the whole album, then did it again, and again. Finally I asked myself, am I a Carly Rae Jepsen fan now? Not sure if I would go that far yet but I can't deny her album's draw to me any longer. So congrats Carly, you got a very sought after award in my super popular blog :P
No comments:
Post a Comment