#10
#10
#10
Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere
Genres: Death Metal, Progressive Metal
Best Tracks: The Stargate [Tablet I] -- The Message [Tablet I] -- The Message [Tablet III]
"Scrolling ancient tombs and searching the limitless bowels of the universe, four-piece Metal outfit, Blood Incantation fashion titanic space invocations on their third studio album.
Prodigious suspense is built by celestial Rock progressions, floating alongside echoing proverbs. Then, the bubble bursts, unleashing blood-curdling Death Metal passages full of erupting guitar, boiling bass, and blast-beat drumming. While these transitions lend to the overall theme and narrative of the record; a journey to find the meaning of everything, and the rude awakening upon discovering that meaning. A combination of vintage sounds, Absolute Elsewhere delivers a colossal performance, enriched in its primordial yearning for far-away truths and histories."
#9
#10
#10
Oranssi Pazuzu - Muuntautuja
Genres: Avant-Garde Metal
Best Tracks: Bioalkemisti -- Muuntautuja -- Valotus
"A metallic serpent slithers around ancient caverns, shedding its scales in ritual for an awakening. That is, the Eternal Serpent is released, feeding off dense Psychedelics and surging Metal.
Finnish Avant-metal group, Oranssi Pazuzu strikes the ear with a special sound, heavy in their razor-like guitar and synth, and slippery in their inebriating bass slides and kick drums. Pervasive rhythms unleash onto the listener, pulling them into a vortex of buzz; sinking bleeding teeth into shamanistic industrialism. The sound is emphatic; a bending alloy of slithering invocations."
#8
#8
#8
파란노을 [Parannoul] - Sky Hundred
Genres: Shoegaze, Noise Pop, Emo
Best Tracks: 황금빛 강 (Gold River) -- 고통없이 (Painless) -- Evoke Мe -- 시계 (Backwards)
"Basking in the disintegration of memory and sound, Korean Shoegaze icon, Parannoul sinks deeply into a nostalgic warmth of a childhood loathed.
Blazing VSTs saturate the ear in breakneck fashion, crafting gleaming densities and uplifting grooves. Striking textures and impressively cogent Pop dynamics melt eyes and liquefy the spirit as Parannoul deliquesces over youthful desires and flaring depression. Gallant and thick with comforting environments, Sky Hundred is a golden river fueled by the droplets of suffering and soreness that shine their fire back into the Sun."
#7
#8
#8
Xiu Xiu - 13" Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto With Bison Horn Grips
Genres: Experimental Rock, Neo-Psychedelia
Best Tracks: Maestro One Chord -- Common Loon -- Veneficium -- Piña, Coconut & Cherry
"Textures ablaze, Xiu Xiu's 14th studio album is a prodigious sound, intense in its fervent sexuality and hot in its Industrial timbre. Flurries of sharp guitar, gory bass, and racing synthesizer smash into one another, falling perfectly into place amidst chaos. The percussion makes this tumultuous yet balanced positioning possible, laying down diabolical kick beats and dominant cymbal rhythms.
13" is remarkably dependable in its strength. The duo converts Avant-garde instrumentalism into powerfully concise Rock songs, whirring and spitting at every turn. The album manages to hug trauma, embracing it as it blooms into an identity of desperation, violence, and dance. One can only behold with gleaming eyes the ensnaring diversity of Xiu Xiu, twirling and hurling themselves into a sanguinary discotheque."
#6
#6
#6
Charli XCX - BRAT
Genres: Electropop, EDM
Best Tracks: 360 -- Sympathy is a Knife -- Von Dutch -- 365
"Another trip to the neon stages of Electropop and EDM, Charli XCX finds a balance between brash electronics and traditional Pop songwriting. The theme here is FUN, but Charli has a knack for being quite reflective and emotional in her writing. The instrumentals carry the energy put forth from Charli's vocal dynamism, highly technical, yet rather simple in their display.
Whether it's through hyped-up bass bumps, wiry synth leads, exotic combinations of claps and kicks, or the legendary synth jabs heard on 'Sympathy is a Knife,' the production never ceases to deliver an intensely vibrant and bubbly sound. The record subscribes to an "in-your-face" attitude, expertly delivering hard-hitting Pop tunes one after another. Vocals alike, Charli embraces an industrial level of autotune to whip in rapped verses and electric refrains that elevate the music to cosmic proportions. The album takes time to reflect on a few more subdued tracks as well, as Charli contemplates social expectations, the loss of a friend, and the internal pressures of becoming a mother.
Assertive and free, yet tightly composed, BRAT is a bold statement on Pop music, effortlessly dancing in the damp streets and glowing raves it was born from."
#5
#6
#6
Beth Gibbons - Lives Outgrown
Genres: Chamber Folk
Best Tracks: Floating on a Moment -- Lost Changes -- Beyond The Sun -- Whispering Love
"Singer-Songwriter, Beth Gibbons is at a crossroads; a séance with impermanence. A nuanced look at death and what lays beyond is found in a rich and diverse Chamber sound.
Moody guitar sets the stage for subtle symphonies, garnished in an orotund darkness. Whether it's the striking shrieks of violin, the Eastern flow of dulcimer, or the calamitous murmurs of cello and double-bass, an immense array of string instruments delineate cinematic movements. Yet, as much as the record is levitated in its sound, a perfectly crafted mix and raw production keep it grounded to Gibbons' remarkable voice.
A peculiar, but momentous production emanates a vespertine environment, dressed in the realities of confronting mortality. Lives Outgrown is a web of beauty, reaching out to what may be there, beyond the Sun."
#4
#4
#4
Geordie Greep - The New Sound
Genres: Jazz-Rock, Progressive Rock, Art Rock
Best Tracks: Holy, Holy -- Motorbike -- As If Waltz -- The Magician
"black midi lead singer, Geordie Greep debuts a distinct collection of Avant-Prog, reeling with Jazzy details and Latin influence. A magnificently dense and sundry sound tinkers away in grandiose progressions, blaring with brazen brass and spiraling bass lines. Rolling Acoustics encounters festive shakers and clever keys, salsa-dancing alongside a Fusion embed of electric guitar, organ, and pattering drums. Large-scale string arrangements swoop from above, accompanying canopy vocals, sharp synthesizers, and fretless bass declarations. It is clear that the intention of The New Sound was for more: more rhythm, more movement, more sound. This proclamation of density is profound, creating a distinctive texture as the record proceeds through dance-worthy tango tunes, dramatic piano/string ballads, and weighty Progressive Rock disruptions.
As with its sonic mass, the record also holds tight to the theme of toxic masculinity. A disturbing character is formed, indulgent in prostitution, STI-ridden-love affairs, egoism, mid-life crisis, and even genocide. Impressive eccentrics and psychotic imagery paint the picture of a truly horrifying individual, masking his insecurities through delusions of grandeur; a most disgusting modern Don Quixote.
In the end, The New Sound is a stunner. Modulated Jazz-Rock, concentrated theatrics, and a beautiful complexity obtain wondrous highs, shuttling a vulgar parade of ravishing insecurity."
#3
#4
#4
Mount Eerie - Night Palace
Genres: Slacker Rock, Avant-Folk, Post-Rock
Best Tracks: Huge Fire -- I Walk -- Non-Metaphorical Decolonization -- Co-Owner of Trees
"Night Palace is an impressive attempt at recapturing the subtle moments in life, fully immersed in the most authentic reaches of Phil Elverum's experiences. Clad with the Singer-songwriter's signature lo-fi Indie Folk sound, the album imposes both the beauty and brutality of nature, being a liaison between the listener and Elverum's deep connection with the Earth and its many vibrations.
A foreboding aura is built through buzzy acoustics and dark organ, acting as the roots to grand trees of electric guitar drones and strident synthesizers. Bushes of slapping drums and worm-like basslines add to the forest of harsh noise felt in bursts throughout the record. These storms are contrasted by the calm of grand piano echoes, Elverum's melodic whispers, the immortal ambiance of nature recordings, and the chilling blows of sampled wind. Violent gales and soft zephyrs alike come together in soothing harmony, consoling the ear with the gentle power of nature.
A satisfying bond between aesthetic and subject occurs as Elverum details thick sentiments of impermanence, disassociation, and ownership through the lens of Earth's offerings. Tender poetry describes a liminal space between society's reality and nature's reality, allowing Elverum to move on from loss, speak with and listen to animals and wind, and push to remove the human concept of "owning' Earth. Delicate and complex as these subjects are, they are navigated so organically that the album never ceases to flow, despite its extensive runtime.
Mount Eerie embodies the chaos of a mind between worlds, allowing grating manipulations of instruments to blend into the grace and mystery of Mother Nature, all in the blurry eyes of a gorgeously crafted lo-fi intimacy."
#2
Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
Genres: Neo-Psychedelia, Synthpop
Best Tracks: Image -- Death & Romance -- Tunnel Vision -- Cry for Me -- The Ballad of Matt & Mica
"Florida Synthpop duo, Mica Tenenbaum and Matt Lewin build a new image on their second full-length project, raising the bar of contemporary Pop music to the stars and beyond. Sonically flowing seamlessly from their debut, Imaginal Disk dives deeper into the Mercurial World, opting for a broader, more Psychedelic sound. While keeping a strong sense of their Dance-Pop roots, the group allows any and all influence to seep into the record, culturing an extensive blend of Electronica, Dance, Indie, and Psych. The mixture is so well crafted that it becomes difficult to separate such influences from track to track, making for a stunning coherence.
Although the album's coherence discourages any one song from truly standing out, each cut retains its own creative use of influence. The opener utilizes a tape sample as the backdrop to a shimmering synth crescendo, while 'Death & Romance' employs a bold key progression to anchor a destructive density of electronic components. This is all before 'Tunnel Vision' does away with convention, ending with a monstrous Prog-Rock breakdown, followed immediately by the Lil Yachty-inspired Funk groove on 'Love Is Everywhere.' The duo even gets gothic on the Disco track 'Cry For Me,' resembling a world where ABBA had a hand in the soundtrack for Blade Runner (1982).
Magdalena Bay's production prowess becomes even more impressive when detailing the specific sounds captured throughout the record. Filled to the brim with scintillating synth work, the virtual instrument is used as bouncing leads, blipping atmospherics, disintegrating bass notes, effervescent crashes, and piercing embellishments. The synth base is complemented by authentic drum machines, swelling strings, colorful keys, and an array of sparkling bells and other idiophones. Traditional elements and alternative influences alike enjoy a rush of brilliance, as the record glides through a balanced decoration of electronic vibrations.
This gliding sensation is also felt in the album's narrative, a utopian look at self-improvement. The Imaginal Disk represents a procedure; a rewiring of the brain towards self-betterment according to society's standards. The first few tracks serve as exposition, introducing the protagonist (Mica) and the idealized version of herself she falls in love with. The next five songs see the Disk's procedure at work, breaking down each of Mica's insecurities and fears, shaping her into her ideal self. 'Tunnel Vision' is where the product is complete, allowing Mica to realize the self-love she had been searching for. The next few numbers see the protagonist spread their newfound love of life, possibly even confronting others who may benefit from the Disk's power. 'Cry for Me' seems to be a final beckoning from the character's formal self, asking for a gracious remembrance despite being left behind. 'Angel on a Satellite' is the most convoluted in its concept, but possibly represents the former self truly moving on to join the present self in their newfound happiness. Lastly, 'The Ballad of Matt & Mica' serves as a credit to the journey the two Argentinians have gone through to create such a finely tuned world, finally ending the sonic loop of Mercurial World.
The duo's accessible ornamentation of various genres emanates undeniable creativity and viridity. With its exuberant synthetics, pristine cadence, and a rich interconnected narrative, Imaginal Disk finds itself in rare company as a smile-inducing space odyssey, exemplifying Pop as a means to progress and self-love."
Swans - Live Rope
Genres: Experimental Rock, Post-Rock
Best Tracks: Rope -- The Beggar -- The Hanging Man -- Birthing
"In the endless expanse of matter and molecule, sound begins to usher its influence in thin wavelets and gentle heat. It reaches the ear of man stupendously fast, unleashing its undying influence subject to the crude interpretations of the brain.
The most provocative and influential of these interpretations is that of music. There is a swirling notation; a rhythm, that captivates the ear like no other. Michael Gira and his Swans are a group that understands this ear-to-universe connection on a comprehensive level. Enter Live Rope, an amalgam of the most fundamental interpretations of rhythm and music, turning over the barrier between brain and spirit in the process.
The 148-minute live album (182 minutes for the CD edition) is a Brobdingnagian effort, empowering the group's palatial Post-Rock compositions with the tortured spirits of Gothic Rock and the brutal improvisation of Totalism and Noise. The sound is difficult to grasp but in essence, it is a calling: a gruesome proposition of rhythm to a higher power that controls the concepts of life and death.
Gira conducts the band in gradually building progressions, allowing dirty acoustics, exotic taishōgoto, creeping woodwinds, and synthesized drones to foster a grisly ambiance. Often abruptly, the group breaks the atmosphere into fragments as apocalyptic walls of elephantine guitar, smashing drum sets, and Earth-shattering bass boil a heavy smoke atop Gira's possessed shouts. Never withering, only weaving, the great fortifications of sound ascend as church keys, buzzy Mellotron, and Gothic choir sweep in from above. Minimalist beginnings give room for Gira's bloodthirsty verse to fester before being crushed by monstrous whirring and increasingly wicked ornamentations.
It is a sound and tempo that has never quite been accomplished before; A black hole that sucks one into the tortured headspace of Michael Gira. In his shamanistic howling, callous narratives of birth and death appear. These words are a call for understanding as much as they are a declaration of giving oneself back into the space they were created. Gira describes a parasite siphoning the lifeblood of its creator, weakening in body but growing in connectedness. It is a vague and primitive tale but a powerful summoning of spirit.
In the end (if there is one), Live Rope sunders convention, stripping back music into its rudimentary elements. The record is an unparalleled translation of body, mind, and spirit through the reigns of rhythm and vibration. The oracular experience presents a rope to climb, one that burns the flesh of hands that slip but bestows a momentous breakthrough for those who reach the top. Those who do reach the top will see exactly why Live Rope is deserving of 2024's Album of the Year."