The year in review

Looking back through the albums tagged on my computer as 2011 I don't think I've actually gotten a bad record this year. If I have then I've already purged and deleted it from my system.

There are a couple in there that I haven't really listened properly to yet (Amon Amarth's "Surtur Rising", Balam Acab "Wander/Wonder", Rwake's "Rest" and Young Widows "In and out of youth and lightness") but everything I've actually had time to check out has been excellent.

I figured a quick rundown (with videos where possible) of my favourites was in order.

Trap Them released their third full-length, Darker Handcraft. It's a blistering piece of acerbic hardcore but the stand out track for me was one of the slower more solemn tracks;

Trap Them - Drag The Wounds Eternal

Staying on the heavier end of the spectrum, sludge-groove masters Red Fang released their second album and it's excellent. Their hilarious humour is still intact as seen in the video below (featuring a cameo from Brian Posehn). Managing to fuse elements of sludge, blues and rock in a drunken haze, they're definitely one of my favourite new bands.
Red Fang - Wires



Oathbreaker are pretty much the only brutal thing to come out of Belgium and their debut on Deathwish, "Maelstrom", is my absolute favourite hardcore album this year. I can't stop listening to it. For a band that only formed in 2008 these guys are doing awesomely and I really hope they'll play in Australia some time soon. The keep their tracks short, fast and to the point but without sacrificing the oversimplification that you sometimes see in young hardcore bands.
Oathbreaker - Origin



I never heard their first album when it came out but when a friend told me about the concept I knew I had to get in on it. Mariachi El Bronx is The Bronx' alter-ego as a Mexican influenced mariachi band (duh). I can't claim it to be in my top 10 of the year but Mariachi El Bronx (II) is worth a listen and might just surprise you. I entirely expect Mariachi to become more popular than their hardcore variants anytime now.
Mariachi El Bronx - 48 Roses



Belgian Australian Gotye channels Phil Collins in a way most pop-crooners can only dream of but his third album "Making Mirrors" demonstrates a huge variety of musical styles and an eclecticism I never expected after hearing the lead single "Somebody that I used to know". Don't let "Somebody"'s complete abuse by popular radio fool you, this is a skilled songwriter showing off his talents. Probably my favourite Australian album of the year. Oh and his videos are awesome as well, bonus!
Gotye - Bronte



Seasoned rock/doom trio Boris have released several albums this year but my first choice among them (and this might be divisive) is their more unusual and experimental number "New Album". When I say experimental though I don't mean in their conventional sense. Instead of noiserock influenced riffs and doomy guitars, they went more J-pop and even incorporated elements of electronica (as seen below with the dancefloor ready "Black Original"). In saying that, "Heavy Rocks II" is beyond belief. It's not often one of your favourite bands releases three albums in a single year.
Boris - Black Original



Interestingly one of my most-played albums of the year is also the soundtrack of one of my favourite videogames. Portal 2 - "Songs to test by (Volumes 1, 2 & 3)" is a fusion of classical, electronica, minimalist techno and proto-industrial. Created by Mike Morasky this is a fun, intelligent selection of tracks that not only compliment the game but work amazingly well on their own. You can download them all for FREE (no strings attached) here; http://www.thinkwithportals.com/music.php
The Aperture Science Psychoacoustics Laboratory - The Friendly Faith Plate



Battles parted ways with their singer, grab a whole bunch of new collaborators and cranked out a stunning follow up to "Mirrored" with "Gloss Drop". It's even got Gary Numan (not only is he a pop-star, he's also got a pilot's license, imagine that!). Nothing more needs to be said.
Battles - My Machines (Featuring Gary Numan)



Toronto punks Fucked Up released their concept album "David Comes to Life" based loosely on the track of the same name from "Hidden World". Having seen them live at Soundwave earlier this year and then at their solo show at The Standard a few weeks ago I can absolutely back the strength of their live show. That's what really sold me on the new album. Musically I prefer "Chemistry of Common Life" but if you have the opportunity to see Fucked Up live DO IT.
Fucked Up - The Other Shoe



Annnnd finally TV on the Radio released the exceptional "Nine types of light". It's more varied than much of the previous work and significantly less heavy than "Young Liars" (my favourite of their albums/EPs) but still most totally rad. Relying on more traditional indie rock stylings than the walls of feedback and texture that dominated their earlier work, this is a far softer album than anything they've put out previously. It's still dominated by Tunde Adimbimpe's lyrical meanderings but if you're a fan of their earlier work you're sure to love this. Here's hoping they can continue to put out amazing music despite the loss of Gerard Smith.
TV On The Radio - Caffeinated Consciousness



Honourable mentions to go to:
Rustie - Glass Swords
Animals As Leaders - Weightless
Zombi - Escape Velocity
Mogwai - Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will
James Blake - S/T
I Exist - II: The Broken Passage
Tom Waits - Bad As Me

Electropunk or the genre that wasn't - Part 1

There are a few genres dear to my heart but I'm mainly into hardcore, punk, goth and industrial. What fascinates me the most is the intersection of all of the above.

Very rarely do you see hardcore or punk bands with synthesizers and conversely, while there are often elements of punk in modern industrial (Combichrist and BILE spring to mind) they lack a certain raw emotion. It's difficult for me to put into words but as an exemplar, compare this Modern Life is War (hardcore formerly of Iowa) track with the following ohGr track (Canadian Industrial).

Modern Life is War - D.E.A.D.R.A.M.O.N.E.S.

vs.

ohGr - Majik


There are some similarities certainly but anyone can concede that they're vastly different genres of music. So what about the rare occasions where the two collide?

The most famous example is most likely Mindless Self Indulgence. Popular with the hot-topic crowd and "true" industrial fans, MSI have been mining the punk/goth/industrial cross-over for slightly more than a decade (since '97 to be precise).

Mindless Self Indulgence - Shut Me Up (Directed by Jhonen Vasquez of Invader Zim fame)



It's got the droning 3 chord guitars of punk with the charged bass and electronics of industrial but more importantly, they have all the spite and vitriol of a punk band. Interested yet? MSI is a gateway drug for a lot of teens into industrial but honestly, I think they're much closer to punk.

Heading in another direction entirely, Sex Positions, the short lived Boston band that managed to fuse furious hardcore riffs with elements of glitch and broken IDM. Taking a far more minimal approach they used their electronic elements to bolster and compliment the more traditional hardcore sound. Really really wish these guys were still around and putting out music. Check them out on Deathwish if you dig.

Sex Positions - Commit It



Going in another direction and letting the electronic elements take the fore, XO Skeletons. Featuring members of numerous well known US hardcore bands, they manage to fuse the atmosphere of modern electro with post-hardcore. Still has some of my all time favourite lyrics - "I read the bible and I understand, I was bored by heaven and the holy land"



Everything so far has been coming out of the USA but the UK is somewhat represented. Cutting Pink with Knives were a London based "electro-grind" band in the mid-2000s. Their albums show a pretty distinct progression from a more grind based sound to a less harsh (although not that much) post-hardcore meets electro sounds. The song below is probably their mellowest track;



Notoriously hard to track down, A Trillion Barnacle Lapse formed, toured and put out a few records between 1999 and 2006. More similar to Sex Positions but taking a lot of cues from 80s pop and the heroin infused screamo of the early 90s, they never became particularly huge (much to my grand disappointment). This live track really doesn't do their recorded material justice.



If you've liked any of this then definitely check out:
Genghis Tron, Melt Banana, Gonin-Ish, Bright Calm Blue, The Epoxies, The Faint, Trencher, Infidel? Castro!, Pop. 1280, Fullmoon Bongzai.

I'm going to attempt to continue this in a second part soon.