Music kind of makes my world go 'round. So I like to list the stuff that got me most excited and inspired. Generally, I tend to put all my favorite stuff in one lump, but this year I definitely had some favorites over others, so it's ranked. It was tough because this really has been an excellent year for stuff that I'm into. One thing remains consistent though- I like guitar-based music. So there's that. The section with my favorite shows I saw is just in chronological order. So yeah, feel free to compare thins with your own list, discuss, and if there's things on here you haven't heard this year I highly encourage you to give it a listen and see what you think.
FAVORITE RECORDS 2018
1.)
TILE, “Come On Home Stranger”
I started getting excited about this record in the fall of
2017. It didn’t come out until
somewhere in August of this year.
That’s a lot of waiting.
But it sure paid off. Ever
since they released their last full length a few years back I have been
anxiously awaiting new stuff from Tile and they delivered in a big way. It’s everything I want in a heavy
record- huge dumb riffs, the type of distortion and feedback that sounds like a
garbage truck being sucked into a jet plane’s intake, vocals that are shouted
with total disdain for any pleasantries the locals of their hometown of Allentown,
PA may extend to their neighbors, and pushing that sound so that it teeters on
the edge of catchy songs with great songwriting and the endless chasm of
unlistenable noise. It’s a perfect
balancing act. Honestly, they just
kill it. So damned heavy and so
damned good.
2.)
TURNSTILE, “Time and Space”
3.)
HOT SNAKES, “Jericho Sirens”
When a band can take about 14 years off and then come back
and kick the shit out of everyone else, like they spent that entire time honing
their skills, it’s a beautiful thing.
Even more, Hot Snakes may have made their best album. That’s completely subjective. I’m still considering if this is their
overall best record. It’s
definitely at least number two in their discography for me. It’s all things off-the-rails, aggressive,
fun, and completely knowledgeable of the fact that each member of this band is
a total master of their craft.
4.)
RED HARE, “Little Acts Of Destruction”
This was most definitely one of my most anticipated records
for this year and it did not disappoint.
There’s something about bands that make great music, but due to time and
distance they’re pretty limited to playing out only every once in awhile, or
making a record once every few years, that really keeps me excited about any
sort of news they have. And it
keeps me on my toes because I know Red Hare is one of those bands that are
always going to deliver. Every
single time. In fact, basically
any member of this band could do something and I know it’s going to be quality. They blend that DC/Dischord
punk/melodic post-hardcore with a jagged edge only seasoned pros (or architects
of that style) can create. An
excellent record from start to finish.
5.)
WRONG, “Feel Great”
The album where Wrong has totally come into their own. To be clear, I have had absolutely no
issue with this band pulling a Helmet worship thing because they do it
incredibly well. However, they
have traded some of the riffy grooves for speedy technicality and it’s made
this band a little more their own thing.
It’s still a parade of riffs, crazy solos, stop-start rhythms, and
barked vocals. They’re just
getting better and better at it.
6.)
JAYE JAYLE, “No Trail”
I was a little hesitant on my man Evan’s new-ish band when
he started fumbling around with solo type stuff a few years back under the name
Jaye Jayle. But within those few
years the project found some life and direction and now they’re a fully-staffed
touring machine playing an amalgamation of really weird stuff. Well, it’s more like stuff I don’t
typically find myself listening to, but I’m really feeling this newest record,
which melds all these elements of neo-folk, Krautrock, dusty desert
trance-sessions, and other stuff that might be more at home on Thrill Jockey or
Drag City. Whatever it is, it got
me hooked and I think this is an excellent surprise of a record.
7.)
Oh hi, we’re a new band from Texas and we’re about to
fucking destroy you. Yeah this
just really popped up out of nowhere and completely blew me away. I previously made a comparison that
this band sounded like the offspring of Unwound and Unsane, and it’s really
true. I mean, I don’t know why no
one else went for that combo in the past, but this trio nails it- super dirty
and heavy aggression, mixed with fuzzy production, vocals through a bashed-up
microphone, and more strangely melodic sounds… like some filthy-ass early 90’s emo band with great
songwriting chops. This is
probably the most exciting new band to me right now.
8.)
MARRIAGE AND CANCER, s/t
Once I moved out to Portland I had the chance to see a
number of local bands do their thing and within a couple of months of living
here Marriage and Cancer released their debut full length, and I have to say,
I’ve never heard a band quite like them.
Easily the loudest damn band in town and with a jangly, weird, heavy,
and strange sound all their own they found a way to make the wild sounds of
bands like Drive Like Jehu sound downright creepy, discomforting, and
melancholy. It’s quite a feat and
as odd as that may sound it still rocks my socks off.
9.)
COMING DOWN, s/t EP
10.)
SHAME, “Songs Of Praise”
A bunch of this list is loaded towards early in the year and
this young English group’s debut is among the crop released right after 2018
got started. Barely old enough to
drink (on this side of the pond anyway) this non-stop touring machine blends
incredibly catchy post-punk with snarly/smarmy aggression that has the lads in
all the pubs smashing pints and doing other funny British adjectives that we
don’t say over here. Far and away
one of the wildest live bands I was lucky enough to see twice this year.
Bonus:
GOUGE AWAY, “Burnt Sugar”
I generally keep things to a top 10, but this one just had
to sneak in there. The progression
of this band’s sound is nothing short of mind-blowing and is becoming this
fully-realized awesome thing. I
totally love when a band can go from being a hardcore-punk band to sounding
like something significantly different while still being aggressive and still
being hardcore/punk as fuck. Gouge
Away are one of those rare breeds of bands. They’ve definitely adopted some great Jesus
Lizard/Superchunk vibes to their grungy, wild hardcore and I’m loving it.
FAVORITE SHOWS OF 2018:
2.19.18- Shame and Dreamdecay at Doug Fir Lounge. The young English punk band on their
first US tour going completely apeshit and impressing the hell out of the 50 or
so people who showed up on a weeknight.
4.10.18- Finally, after twenty-some-odd years, getting to see
The Breeders. They may have played
a huge place like the Crystal Ballroom, but they made it feel super cozy and
intimate.
5.16.18- I hadn’t seen Hot Snakes since 2001 or 2002, so
seeing them completely tear up the Wonder Ballroom was incredibly
exciting. John Reis kept leaning
into the audience, making them kiss his guitar on multiple occasions.
6.23.18- I’ve never seen Will Haven and I have thoroughly
enjoyed their records for over 20 years.
They played a perfect set at the Star Theater of all the songs I’d want
to hear and they had tons of energy.
7.8.18- There’s a lot of ‘I haven’t seen this band in
forever’ in this list and Neurosis is another one that I have not seen since
the beginning of this century I think.
But they were every bit as crushing and entrancing as ever when they
leveled the Roseland over the summer.
8.11.18- I ventured up to Seattle for the Sub Pop 30th
anniversary and saw the always entertaining Pissed Jeans (with Dreamdecay) do
what they do so wonderfully at the Crocodile.
10.27.18- Report Suspicious Activity set specifically at
Fest in Gainesville, FL. Not only
was it good to be back in a town I enjoy, but to see this gathering of old punk
vets/pros work their magic in front of a small crowd was a rare and beautiful
thing.
11.14.18- Drug Church and Gouge Away at Black Water. A perfect pairing of two of the
hardcore scene’s more exciting bands who go together wonderfully playing a tiny
punk bar. Excellent sets from
each.
