I haven't bashed out anything in writing for a while but if you're interested in hearing my views on the emerging sounds of the day then head on over to the bitchin Indie 500 website and listen to the radio show Matthew and I lay down every week or so and all will be revealed! Still no excuse for being such a lazy bastard I know so to make up for it here are my picks of the year in five easily digestible mouthfuls. Hope you like it and stay tuned for the rest over the course of December.
xxx John
50. Martyn - The Air Between Words
Since when did Ninja Tune get their mojo back all of a sudden? Between Machinedrum, Faltydl and this smokin' slab from Washington's Martyn the label's on a run of form they've not seen since the mid 90s halycon days of Coldcut, Kid Koala, DJ Food et al. 'The Air Between Words' is a parade of beats and breaks that are as smooth as freshly cut flowers but still more suited to fancy footwork than slurping a dry white at the bar while checking Tinder on your phone. Drop in a well-timed piano chord or two and cameos from the dextrous likes of Four Tet and you've got a tour de force of nimbly crafted magic on your hands. Martyn works in the same space between warm Piano House and clinical Techno tinkering that Robert Hood mastered on last year's stonking Floorplan LP, keeping things in check over six minute slabs rather than going straight for the money and this will provide the ideal soundtrack to getting slowly ready to a night of raging without popping off too soon.
Check out : 'Like That', a masterclass in capture and release ninja skills.
49. Cannibal Corpse - A Skeletel Domain
Having steadfastly refused to tone it down or pander to trend shifts over 14 solid albums of sense-battering DM madness you're tempted to award Cannibal token plaudits just for longevity and influence but to do so would be to overlook just how infectiously savage their new material is. The band's distinctive brand of audio hyper-violence has inspired countless troupes of younger, sprightlier headbangers but few could hope to match their ruthless delivery nor their well-honed songwriting chops and 'A Skeletal Domain' lays down yet another marker for uncompromising sonic barrage and flair for intricate gory detail. Switching producers again has sharpened their sound for a new run through the usual themes and the goods are delivered once again with their best set of tunes in a decade to singe eyebrows and put listeners off their lunch like they did back when they first emerged all those years ago. These dudes are looking increasingly like the zombies eviscerated in their lyrics so we might not have many more of these LPs to come, all the more reason to revel in the demented aggression served up here whilst the fun's still happening.
Check out : 'Kill Or Become', another stone cold classic. Fire Up The Chainsaawwww!!
48. September Girls - Cursing The Sea
A cursory glance at their name and the merest whiff of Spector-indebted echo in their music is probably enough to condemn Dublin's September Girls to instant pigeonholing under the garage Ronettes bracket that opened up in the late noughties with the Vivs, Dum Dums, Best Coast et al but it's worth remembering that most of the bands in that category changed it up after one record to move into more polished invention over later releases. 'Cursing The Sea' reminds me of the Horrors' cavernous debut, all youthful enthusiasm and simple melodies characteristic of teenage scenesterism but we all know where that led them and these gals have already evolved since this LP landed in January, October's 'Veneer' EP hinting at vaster ambition and pulpier production so their next steps are gonna be well worth following. I realise I'm almost apologising for this record being a straightforward run of catchy-ass garage rock when there's no need for any such excuses - this is a stellar launchpad for another bunch of potential legends and points to a bright future lying ahead.
Check out : the video for 'Green Eyed', which kinda reminds me of Heart's 'These Dreams'.
Check out : the video for 'Green Eyed', which kinda reminds me of Heart's 'These Dreams'.
47. East India Youth - Total Strife Forever
East India Youth’s William Doyle might just be the next James Murphy, although I should clarify before going any further with that analogy that I always thought LCD were overrated hipster twaddle with occasional moments of grace too often buried by a landslide of pretentious noodling and irritating delivery. As with Murphy’s own highly regarded ‘Sound Of Silver’ LP there are only two genuine stonkers on here whilst the rest is too polite to really get me going but there’s still enough to merit your attention and when he hits the target Doyle knocks it out of the park, the central twinset of ‘Hinterland’ and ‘Heaven How Long’ standing out as two of the year’s most vital electronic moments. He’s dreaming big here, don’t let the snarky title fool you. This sort of librarian electronica has ‘next big thing’ written all over it so we should at least be thankful that he’s making a decent go of it rather than just chasing the advert money or smoothing down the edges to slip neatly into a pre-established niche market. ‘Total Strife’ is perhaps not as good as others might lead you to believe but it’s still pretty bloody special and well worth a peep.
Check out : the video version of 'Hinterland' - he takes his time but it's well worth it.
46. Brody Dalle - Diploid Love
Check out : 'Dressed In Dreams', perfect for bouncing light beams around a stadium crowd.
45. Triptykon - Melana Chasmata
It's perhaps edging into hyperbole but I reckon Celtic Frost have done enough to define what constitutes Heavy Metal since their inception in the early 80s as Black Sabbath have managed with a decade's headstart. Thomas Gabriel Fischer's flair for monolithic riff weight and avant garde invention has informed Metal's direction over recent years like no other artist and Triptykon's second only strengthens his position as the genre's steadfast monarch. Frost's earth-quaking return with 2006's 'Monotheist' projected their early menace against a universe-sized backdrop before Fischer buried them again and re-emerged with a new outfit to explore ever more cavernous sub-levels of cacophony. 'Melana Chasmata' builds on their 2010 debut to exert planetary tug and thrust, lurching forth like a hungover Balrog slamming down riffs like concrete paving slabs but this isn't just an exercise in momentum, there's a labyrinthine sense of dark theatre playing out across these tracks that feels like it's been fermenting for centuries. Unlike many of his peers Fischer's only improving with age - at this rate he'll be putting out his best work in his eighties, reflecting on a lifetime of woe as the Grim Reaper taps his watch. I can't wait.
Check out : 'Tree Of Suffocating Souls'....experts doing the basics, absolutely stunning.
Check out : 'Tree Of Suffocating Souls'....experts doing the basics, absolutely stunning.
44. Die Antwoord - Donker Mag
You know you're getting a bit old when popular culture starts to confuse rather than fascinate you and I'll admit that it took me some time to figure out what the fuck was going on here but eventually it all clicked into place. Die Antwoord sound like 2 Unlimited after two decades in a South African meth den but have somehow managed to muscle their way to the core of today's pop culture - basically take one part steroid-fuelled Donk pop, another of Scooter's deafening stadium rave and an online diet of violent video games and hardcore pornography and this is what the recorded result would sound like. It's graceless, tasteless and probably symptomatic of today's sensationalist web climate where shock value and short-attention span thrills triumph over content and substance but why blame the band for soundtracking the chaos that surrounds them? I'll opt for gazing into this creative abyss until I start to enjoy it and 'Donker Mag' channels the same idiotic genius as MTV's 'Jersey Shore', a thrilling nod to modern culture sliding down the back of the toilet that delights the senses with a stomach-churning mix of trashy Techno and brutal provocation.
Check out : 'Ugly Boy', Aphex Twin meets Cappella reimagined by David Lynch.
43. Plaid - Reachy Prints
The reclusive side of 90s electronica has come back into vogue over the last couple of years with revivalist platters from the likes of Aphex Twin and Boards of Canada sending listeners back to bean bag nirvana all over again. Plaid's newie could slot nicely into that category but in truth 'Reachy Prints' is like a more amiable Autechre, all elegant synth spirals and ponderous strolls across the analogue spectrum. No bangers, no clangers, just a tour of Techno's more hospitable climbs over nine tracks that can't fail to leave you in a better mood than the one they found you in. Ultimately it might have suffered from its own gentle nature but this was one electro treasure that kept on yielding new treats every time I slipped in back on the speakers. If you hear this shit in a department store a few months down the line then remember where you heard about it first.
Check out : 'Matin Lunaire', one for all you fluo heads out there.
Check out : 'Matin Lunaire', one for all you fluo heads out there.
42. Cheatahs - s/t
These kids might need to up their game now that Swervedriver are back on the road again but this woozy gem of a debut is as good as anything they put out back in the day. There's plenty of muscle behind their dreamy guitar fuzz, the tracks gliding by with streamlined grace as they revive the best elements of Shoegaze's golden era on both sides of the Atlantic and this was a welcome dose of reverb-soaked sunshine when it landed back in January. We dashed out to check out the live show when they came to Paris and whilst they've yet to really hit peak confidence onstage there's no doubting the strength of their material - 'Cheatahs' packs enough sugar-coated crunch and lysergic sway to merit repeat listens at full volume until they come back around with the next installment.
Check out : 'The Swan', as graceful and imposing as the title suggests.
Check out : 'The Swan', as graceful and imposing as the title suggests.
41. Horrendous - Ecydsis
Pretty much every half decent Death Metal band from back in the day has given in to fan clamour and financial pressure to tool up and get back on the road over recent years so today's tykes need to come out with something pretty special just to get noticed. Fortunately DM debutantes Horrendous have just the right mix of classic technique and modern flair to leap right out from the ranks and poke you right in the eye with this stonking mix of wailing leads and scrofulous aggression. If you're anything like me then 'Ecydsis' will slap a bit fat grin across your face as soon as you hit play, the trio channelling mid-80s Kirk Hammett and the cream of Scott Burns' progeny with a touch of modern day spark and invention to carve out ten absorbing slabs of calculated monstrosity. You could slot this one in between 'Left Hand Path' and 'Alice In Hell' quite comfortably even though its creators were mere bairns when those genre-shaping bombs first dropped and 'Ecydsis' carries that same torch proudly forward.
Check out : opener 'The Stranger' - seven minutes later I'd bought the record.
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