MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2023

It's 2024 now! Here are some personal musical highlights from last year:

GREATHUNTER shook up our live lineup a little bit with the addition of a new vocalist and new guitarist. We played many shows throughout the year. A new song will be available January 26th with many more new recordings in the works as we speak!

PALLBEARER INDUSTRY released our 3rd full-length ANTARCTICA RISING and, with MASSIVE support from Canadian Label WE, HERE, NOW; American label ECHODELICK; and UK label UP IN HER ROOM - this album saw a physical release on vinyl. WE, HERE, NOW also did a cassette release called ALIVE IN THE MILLS which compiles some of our "live in the jam room" moments, as well as some unreleased studio tracks. We played a couple of shows as well, one being a sweet spot on night two of JOHN WESTSHAVER's PSYCHFEST! An awesome night indeed! Much more to come in 2024.

COASTAL PIGS put out our second full-length album GLASS CRIME TERROR. An album comprising several years of recording sessions. Awesome to finally get it out there. We hope to hit the stage again in 2024.

CELLAR made our live debut a couple of times this year. Really fun to blast that stuff out. I survived (somehow).

HAMN played a show.

Nothing new from THE SUN THROUGH A TELESCOPE but many new songs in the works with a full-length to be released....sometime prior to December 31st of this year.

2023 also proved to be an excellent year for seeing some amazing concerts and gigs. To name a few - SKINNY PUPPY (final tour), BRUTUS (in New York City), THE CURE, THE WAR ON DRUGS, THE SMILE, MR. BUNGLE, IGGY POP, GODFLESH, CLAUDIO SIMMONETI'S GOBLIN (performing the SUSPIRIA score along with the movie), BOTCH + CONVERGE + CAVE IN (in Boston), and hometown heroes FUCK THE FACTS!

Anyways, here's all the music I loved that came out last year. As always, in no particular order:

1) KEN mode - VOID "More unrelenting ugliness and biting sarcasm from one of Canada's finest. As per usual, it's the reliable JESUS LIZARD-through-a-MELVINS-filter vibe being augmented by some excellent deviations - this time out: speedy hardcore, post-punk, and seldom-heard cleanly-sung vocals. But again, the core elements are here in full force and I find it fascinating that, while obviously they've evolved and improved over the years, they basically figured out the sound of the band from the very start. That's pretty damn cool."

2) OOZING WOUND - WE CATER TO COWARDS "This is one of those 'Ah Christ, why didn't I think of that?!?' albums. The ideas are simple enough and never really break any new ground but still manage to sound totally fresh. These guys have been pretty grindy in the past but on this release, they're tapping deep into the pre-NEVERMIND grunge vibe. Lots of TAD/BLEACH flavours to be had. The grindcore sound rears its head here and there as well."

3) FULL OF HELL / PRIMITIVE MAN - SUFFOCATING HALLUCINATION "An excellent collaboration yielding some truly murky results. Both bands have proven themselves to be absolutely relentless within their respective realms of extreme music. Melding all these elements together makes perfect sense. Grindcore meets sludge with some real tasty passages of super dark droning ambience. Nice and compact at 5 songs too! Not a wasted moment!"

4) ANCIENT TEETH - DEATHBED "Infectiously catchy grungegazing 90s style shit from a bunch of oldsters like myself. The bassist is JAHMEEL RUSSELL who used to play with KITTENS (and KEN mode). Also, the dreadlock guy from MONEEN is in there. Speaking of KEN mode, JESSE MATTHEWSON was bigging this album up when it came out, which is how I happened upon it. Probably listened to this album more than anything else this year (ie: more than twice)."

5) BIG BRAVE - NATURE MORTE "Some crushingly heavy stuff from this Montreal trio. I loved their last album and this one is just as good. Not a lot of riffing going on here, just huge and brutal chords. But really, it's the vocals that make this band exceptional. Beautiful and desperate. Often walking a tightrope between a lovely melody and a guttural scream. Bleak."

6) KHANATE - TO BE CRUEL "I'm sure everyone, like myself, assumed these guys were done for good years ago. So, another release from this band is an absolute gift. And the many intervening years have only served to season the respective players in their collective approach to space and emptiness. The restraint these terrifying men show is unreal. Which makes it all the more effective when everything lets loose. The ugliest sound imaginable to come from your basic 'rock band' setup. The beats and the riffs are few and far between. Mostly claustrophobic atmosphere. Bleaker."

7) GODFLESH - PURGE "It's pretty rare that a year will go by without JUSTIN BROADRICK making the list in one form or another (or several). Here, he seems to be reacquainting himself with his love of old school hip-hop, much the same way as these elements seeped into 1992's PURE. Music for ugly, greying dads to dance to. GODFLESH are a beautiful and special band and we are very fortunate that their story isn't finished yet. I had the good fortune of finally seeing them live for the first time earlier this year. The fact that the 24 hours leading up to the show involved circumstances that left me mentally and emotionally shattered and left my not being able to attend the show a serious possibility right up until the last minute made it that much more of an incredible and cathartic experience." 

8) EMPIRE STATE BASTARD - RIVERS OF HERESY "Another album that I gave multiple spins over the course of the year. This is some kind of BIFFY CLYRO (I've never heard a note from this band) side-project that also features DAVE LOMBARDO on drums. It is some iteration of metal or hardcore but with different elements of noise and indie rock creeping in here and there. It is, at times, very beautiful and, at other times, like applying acid to one's eardrums. Having said that, I'm still not sure I'll ever check out BIFFY CLYRO."

9) JAMES PLOTKIN - THAESEA "JAMES PLOTKIN has been teasing this project, in a way, for a while now via  his many IG posts that show him to have taken a serious deep dive into the word of modular synthesizers. Each post would leave me hypnotized with the amazing sounds squeaking out of my stupid little phone speaker. Suffice to say, when he announced a DOUBLE ALBUM full of these modular explorations, I made a purchase sight-unseen (or sound-unheard). So, what you get is almost 3 hours of squelchy electro-industrial goodness. Absolute ear candy for the likes of me."

10) CEVIN KEY - BRAP & FORTH VOLUME 9 "My one and only Patreon subscription belongs to this man and it pays for itself time and time again. CEVIN has got to be THE most generous musician out there when it comes to fan service. Case and point - I've been privy to the early SKINNY PUPPY demos that make up this release for couple of years now. It only made sense to compile them into yet another BRAP & FORTH compilation and I'm super glad he did it. The seeds of REMISSION and BITES are all over this stuff. Fascinating for a die-hard SP fan and probably pretty enjoyable even if you're not."

11) THEY GRIEVE - TO WHICH I BORE WITNESS "Ottawa's finest example of crushingly heavy drone-doom. This duo just keep getting better and better. An excellent blend of sluggishly slow riffs and beautiful ambient passages. Props have to be given to TOPON DAS who recorded, engineered, and mastered the album. He knows how to turn anything into a full-on aural assault."

12) LOUD AS GIANTS - EMPTY HOMES "As I said, it's rare that ole JK BROADRICK will only make one appearance on my end-of-year list. This project sees him collaborating with DIRK SERRIES (real name of VIDNA OBMANA) on some truly beautiful, ambient soundscapes. This basically sounds like the more uplifting side of JESU with all the vocals and heavy guitars stripped away. I like it - it's good."

13) SLOWDIVE - EVERYTHING IS ALIVE "An incredibly strong late-career release from this band which I know next to nothing about. They are one of the classic shoegaze bands from back in the day. That's about the extent of my knowledge of them. Anyway, who cares. This album is damned enjoyable! Why can't more bands stay consistently good decades after their inception? Is it that hard? It probably is. For LOSERS!"

14) THE BLOOD OF HEROES - NINE CITIES "The third full-length from this collective of producers, musicians, DJs, etc. after an 11-year gap. The first album had some involvement from BILL LASWELL (which may have been how I first became aware of this project). No sign of him here but most of the other constant contributors are present - SUBMERGED, DR. ISRAEL, ENDUSER, and JUSTIN BROADRICK (there he is again) along with a longer list of newer contributors. Cool mix of dub, electro, industrial, dancehall, drum n bass, ambient, etc. Lots of awesome flavours."

15) SPIRIT POSSESSION - OF THE SIGN... "A fun mix of first-wave black metal (these guys have the CELTIC FROST thing down pat - there's no shortage of 'UGH!!!!' to be had on here), second-wave black metal, and a variety of other sounds for seasoning. All from a band consisting of only 2 members (I assume there's a DARKTHRONE type dynamic happening here as far as who plays which instrument)! The vocals are constantly drenched in delay which adds a chaotic element that you don't often hear in metal. I love the dry production too. The drums sound like DRUMS (not a typewriter)."

16) MIDWIFE & VYVA MELINKOLYA - ORBWEAVING "A tasty little something from the FLENSER label. This is shoegaze taken to a pretty extreme level. Drums/beats are few and far between. Every vocal sounds like it's coming through a dying kitchen radio. Songs consist of 1 or 2 parts/lyrics repeated over and over for 5 - 12 minutes apiece. Very cool, very soothing, almost mesmerizing. The shoegaze equivalent of  WILLIAM BASINSKI's THE DISINTEGRATION LOOPS? Sure, why not?!"

17) GEL - ONLY CONSTANT "I love this style of latter-day hardcore that just never lets up with the bulldozing. GEL do it exactly right. Compact songs chock-a-block with brutal riffs and excellent, pissed-off vocals overtop. It's no surprise this band is gaining some serious ground these days. They get it!"

18) THE PSYCHOTIC MONKS - PINK COLOUR SURGERY "I allllmost passed this band by due to their TERRIBLE name. My friend sent me their KEXP performance and I was hovering over the X button to close the window when the bass synth line from CRASH kicked in and got my strict attention. From there, it was a buffet of post-punk, post-rock, electro-industrial, artsy-fartsy, foo foo Frenchy fun! There's something for everyone here - whether you're a fan of THE JESUS LIZARD or DEUTSCH AMERIKANISCHE FREUNDSCHAFT!!! Ya just can't lose!"

19) TEENAGE WRIST - STILL LOVE "By all rights, I should hate these dorks. I probably would if I spotted them walking down the street. But damn if they don't know how to write a catchy tune! All set within a grunge-gazing cadence that is sure to put the hook right into Mr. Leigh Newton! Thanks fellas, I appreciate it."

20) THE DIRTY NIL - FREE REIN TO PASSIONS "All of the above basically applies to this album too. Additionally, I was in no hurry to check it out as their previous album was a HUGE letdown for me. Fortunately, they figured out how to bring it again. And nobody's perfect. All is forgiven."

21) BORIS / UNIFORM - BRIGHT NEW DISEASE "I never would have put these 2 bands together but it made perfect sense from the first note! UNIFORM's guttural noise rock blends perfectly with BORIS (in full on stoner/doom mode, that is). It's almost like flicking a switch between the 2 bands several times within each song. Also, I lied - BORIS isn't fully in stoner/doom mode here. There are a couple of excellent poppy/electro moments on here, complete with super catchy vocal hooks to really lift things up."

22) KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD - PETRODRAGONIC APOCALYPSE; OR, DAWN OF ETERNAL NIGHT: AN ANNIHILATION OF PLANET EARTH AND THE BEGINNING OF MERCILESS DAMNATION "Now that's a friggin' album title! Unsurprisingly, this is KG in heavy metal mode. No matter what style of music these guys put their hands to, however disparate, they manage to enliven the proceedings in a very unique way (ie: super-proggy, so-good-they-actually-piss-me-off). Lots of speedy, razor-sharp riffs flying around on here. Lots of cool, shout-along choruses too (GILA! GILA! GILA! MONSTER! WOO!!!). Excellent!"

23) JEREMIAH CHIU - IN ELECTRIC TIME "This release kind of came out of nowhere. Basically the result of Spotify playing similar music to the album I had been listening to once it ended. A collection of incredibly tasty improvisations utilizing a collection of vintage synthesizers at some crazy synthesizer museum in LA. It basically sounds like if APHEX TWIN spent a day conducting the 1960s era BBC orchestra."

24) ANDRE 3000 - NEW BLUE SUN "Okay, this was an absolute shocker to me and I can only assume I'm not alone here. Nothing against the guy or his music at all but my gut reaction to 'you should check out the new ANDRE 3000 album!' is almost always gonna be 'pass'. 'Hey Ya' is great and everything but, what do I care? However, when someone says 'you should check out ANDRE 3000's new FLUTE album!'.....okay, sure. Even at that, I was expecting it to still be at least remotely in the realm of a rap album. But no, this is full-on instrumental, experimental jazz a la ALICE COLTRANE or HERBIE HANCOCK* (*70s) with not one vocal to be found and only 2 of the 8 songs clocking in at under 10 minutes. Some seriously enjoyable sounds with layers upon layers of instruments, all played very freely (I'm assuming a lot of improvisation took place). A ballsy move, to say the least! Well done, Mr. 3000."

25) DAVE LOMBARDO - RITES OF PERCUSSION "A very cool album from a drummer who is so much more than your average thrash metal musician. As fantastic as some of his drumming is on the early SLAYER albums (the overplaying in the choruses of the song Seasons in the Abyss is beyond ridiculous), I think it was when he started playing with FANTOMAS, BLADERUNNER, and DJ SPOOKY (to name a few) that his drumming really started to develop. This album is most likely the end result of the wide variety of artists he's been playing with over the past couple of decades. It's basically the soundtrack to a non-existent movie. Heavy on the percussion, sure, but lots of other elements at play here. It almost comes off like a darker version of MARTIN DENNY style 'exotica'."

26) FULL OF HELL / NOTHING - WHEN NO BIRDS SING "An awesome melding of 2 fantastic bands who sound nothing alike. And yet, in many indirect ways...they do? Shoegaze meets grindcore? You betcha! This is beauty and brutality constantly vying for attention. Nice and compact at 6 songs, all within the 5 minute range. Every tune is a standout! Great!"

27) VERSTÄRKER - JENSEITS "Oh cool! A German band with a German name doing a modern take on classic German motorik....oh, they're from Kentucky. Cool. But seriously folks, this album rips. These Kentucky boys have got it! Excellent, spaced-out, droned-out jams. Love the production too. It sounds like they're all playing in a giant room together. Are we sure they aren't German?"

28) FIDDLEHEAD - DEATH IS NOTHING TO US "I guess you'd call this hardcore or maybe even emo, I'm not too sure. It's extremely catchy and very 'from the heart'. I found myself constantly coming back to this album. So many memorable parts that I wanted to hear again and again. Boston band, described as a 'supergroup', which probably means a few or all of them were in PIEBALD at some point."

29) SLOW WHITE FALL - FLOOD "This came out on JUSTIN BROADRICK'S AVALANCHE RECORDS label so I was more than inclined to give it a shot. He is the man, after all. Glad I did because this is a fantastic release that ticks many different boxes all at once. Industrial, ambient, experimental, post-punk, even some metallic elements here and there! Some dark and aggressive stuff counterpointed by spacious textures of gorgeous drones. Rock on!!!"

HONOURABLE MENTIONS - FANGE, GREAT FALLS, WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM, TIM HECKER, MUTOID MAN, BARONESS, BETTER LOVERS, TEENAGE DAZE

I believe I talked shit about THE SMILE in last year's sign-off. Well, I was dead wrong. Their album is fantastic and they were amazing to see live. Whoopsies. If I would have heard the most recent OTOBOKE BEAVER album when it came out last year, it definitely would have topped my list. Looking forward to seeing them in Montreal in a few months. I finally managed to delve into some bands that were on my "permanent backburner" - YO LA TENGO, GALAXIE 500, KRAFTWERK, WIPERS, WIRE. Every single thing is available at all times so there's no excuse. Happy new year!

MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2022

2022 is over and it is now 2023. I got to play a LOT more music in 2022 than I did in 2021! Here's what I did:

As THE SUN THROUGH A TELESCOPE, I put out the TORTOISE worshipping 2-song single FORM which I'm still pretty happy with (3 months later - that's usually enough gestation time to go from "like" to "loathe" so a good sign there). Check it out HERE!

My dream-pop/indie rock band GREATHUNTER finally managed to release our 2nd album ROAMER which we are also quite pleased with! Not only that, but the standalone track THE THINNING OF THE VEIL, as well as a contribution to the first edition of the OTTAWA GATINEAU COMPILATION SERIES (cofounded by GREATHUNTER's own Andrew Grosvenor). Check out some GH music HERE and the compilation HERE!

The punk/hardcore band CELLAR which was started up last year put out the RUBY EP this year. 5 songs in about 10 minutes! Ya can't say no to that! Check it out HERE!

PALLBEARER INDUSTRY managed to be the most prolific of my bands again this year with UNDEAD ANXIETY (our second full-length release), OVER THE CREST / ECLIPSE INAUGERATION (a 2-songer), and a live recording of our very first show! Said show was also my first time back on the stage since the pandemic (it would have been with GREATHUNTER but I managed to get Covid a week before the show). Awesome to be playing live again and especially with my fellow PI bandmates, both of whom I haven't shared a stage with since high school! Surreal! Check out some PALLBEARER INDUSTRY music HERE!

2023 promises to see some activity from COASTAL PIGS (we have a great many recordings in the can which we will surely release this year.....surely!), HAMN (we have a show booked in June!), and SOME kind of iteration of WORLD WAR 4 (whatever it is, it'll be less thrashy and more death metally). And more from the aforementioned bands as well.

But enough about me! Here are my favourite releases of 2022! As always, in no particular order:

 1) BORIS - W / HEAVY ROCKS "As far as W goes...well, their last album 'NO' was a full-on hardcore/sludgefest so, naturally, the only way to follow that up is....incredibly abstract, minimal, and (mostly) very mellow post-rock? Sure! This stuff is quite textured with many disparate parts working against each other, or at least they should. Lots of Wata vocals too (does that explain the album title?). You think you're gonna remain in this one sonic realm...and then the crushingly heavy guitars come in (not til track 5 though). 

And then we get HEAVY ROCKS (the 3rd time they've used this as an album title). Sounds like doom/hardcore/crust-punk being played by a garage band. Fuckin awesome. I tend to enjoy everything this band puts out."

2) BIOSPHERE - SHORTWAVE MEMORIES "I became aware of this Norwegian fellow through his collabs with HIGHER INTELLIGENCE AGENCY many a moon ago. Sadly, I keep forgetting to check in with his musical output. Before I know it, years have gone by and I've got some serious catching up to do. Glad I caught wind of this release in the moment because it's just lovely. An excellent blend of ambient, dub-techno, and downtempo groovy beats - all seamlessly blending together from track to track. It's a real journey!"

3) BLOOD INCANTATION - TIMEWAVE ZERO " What's that you say? A pretty cool death metal band has put out an entirely ambient album? You're talking wall-to-wall synths with nary a crunchy guitar chord in sight? You can bet your sweet bippy I'm on board with that! We're talking TANGERINE DREAM type ambience. Real analogue synth, 70s flavours (it really comes as no surprise if you've seen their episode of "What's In My Bag" - holy, what a bunch of NERDS!!!! [I love it]). And, when their next release (which will almost certainly be a return to straight up death metal) is available, I'll be checking that out too because they're pretty damn good at that stuff as well."

4) SOUL GLO - DIASPORA PROBLEMS "If RUN THE JEWELS were a fiery hardcore band, it would sound like this. It's breakneck punk one minute, lo-fi hip-hop the next. A bit of grindcore thrown in for good measure, some dirty soul with dirty horns. Awesome mish-mash of awesomeness!"

5) VOIVOD - SYNCHRO ANARCHY "Easily my favourite of the 80s French-Canadian sci-fi tech/thrash bands! Not to mention one station of the cross that is the Holy Trinity of Canadian Rock (along with SKINNY PUPPY and NOMEANSNO, of course)! So yes, another stellar late-period album from these guys. It was such a shame to lose Piggy so many years ago but his replacement Chewy has proven himself to be an absolute savant when it comes to emulating the very distinct VOIVOD guitar sound. The flavour on here is much the same as their last album - that being equal parts DIMENSION HATROSS, NOTHINGFACE, and ANGEL RAT. Works for me! Keep em coming, les gars!"

6) CAVE IN - HEAVY PENDULUM "The horribly tragic death of CAVE IN bassist Caleb Scofield seems to have drawn an undeniable line in the sand when it comes to the before and after. He was clearly a huge part of the songwriting process in this outfit since this album is quite different from everything that's come before. Not to say there aren't many, many trademark CAVE IN moments on here because there certainly are. Having said that, they seem to have shed all traces of the JUPITER sound. Is that a bad thing? I think it's a rad thing! This album rips!"

7) HELMS ALEE - KEEP THIS BE THE WAY "This band has proven to be extremely gosh darn reliable ever since they reared their incredibly unique collective head. This album features music that is textured, pastoral, meditative, as well as catchy, intense....grungy sometimes? I dunno! Adjectives! It's a great record!"

8) MAMALEEK - DINER COFFEE "Discovered this band as I was taking a look at what the excellent San Francisco-based weirdo metal label THE FLENSER had put out as of late. This grabbed me almost immediately and proved to be constantly intriguing and engaging with its many musical twists and turns. This sounds, to me, like the soundtrack to a David Lynch movie that doesn't exist. Or maybe what would happen if TOM WAITS decided he wanted to front a metal band and wrote all the music for it. Either way, it's jazzy, it's noisy, it's harsh, and it's waaaay out there, man!"

9) KEN mode - NULL "It's safe to say that, if this band of merry-makers put out an album, it's gonna make my list! NULL does not disappoint. It's the tried, tested, and true Km sound with some new elements in the mix (more horns, more synth parts). Some nice, long-form, cinematic tunes as well. Breaks up the usual pummeling quite nicely. Oh, and the opening line - 'I don't feel bad for insufferable people'. Perfect."

10) GREBER - FRIGHT WITHOUT "These cats are so damn feral and beastly, I can't not picture them playing their instruments with femurs and viscera and various ligaments and whatnot. But seriously folks, this dynamic duo are capable of some truly damaging stuff and this album is their best yet. Not only because of the constant, constant pummeling. There's some texture here too! And then it's back to the pummeling."

11) ZEAL & ARDOR - S/T "I heard their albums, saw them live, nothing really clicked for me. This album really grabbed me though. An excellent blending of sounds including blues, industrial, ambient, dreampop - all with a consistent black metal backdrop (this reminds me, at times, of that band SHINING [the proggy one, not the self-harm one]). Excellent vocals too. Equal parts bluesy torch song and shrieking witch black metal."

12) BRUTUS - UNISON LIFE "I always find myself at a loss when recommending this band to someone and trying to describe the sound. It's hardcore....but also new wave, dream pop, post rock, and......I guess we can just call it post-hardcore and leave it at that. Super intense and incredibly epic."

13) CHAT PILE - GOD'S COUNTRY "Been looking forward to hearing what this band would come out with next after a couple of really strong EPs released in 2019. They do not disappoint on this, their first full-length. It's a particularly brutal take on noise rock, that's for sure. Nowhere near as metallic as KEN mode but dipping into that realm for sure with some death metal style vocals here and there and I maybe heard a blast beat at one point? Maybe not. For all of it's metal edge (that was the name of a shitty metal mag, btw), there's just as much post-punk/new wave flavour. Creepy, chorusy guitars and are the drums programmed or is that actually a human playing, I seriously cannot tell??!?!?! Nevertheless, this is a sweet collection of dirty, ugly songs."

14) HOLY FAWN - DIMENSIONAL BLEED "Nice blend of mostly shoegaze with traces of black metal that come barfing through at times. Not sure how I came across this but I'm glad I did."

15) VIO-LENCE - LET THE WORLD BURN EP "Most of the 80s thrashers who are still at - God love em for continuing to put the pedal to the METAL but, more often than not, their contemporary studio work has very little substance to it (I'm looking at you OVERKILL, DEATH ANGEL, TESTAMENT). Such is not the case when it comes to this tightly wound batch of rifferama. This is a stellar tribute to the classic Bay Area sound c/o some classic Bay Area thrashers. These guys still got it!"

16a) PALE SKETCHER - GOLDEN SKIN "The moss does not get a snowball's chance in hell of collecting on the rolling stone that is J K Broadrick! First off, we have a welcome return to his PALE SKETCHER persona after leaving it silent for many years. I guess this would be the only real PS full-length as the first one was basically a JESU remix album. Apparently, this was originally supposed to be released by REPHLEX right before they closed up shop in 2014, so I'm guessing it's been sitting in the barn since then (which would explain the years of inactivity). Backstory aside, this is a lovely mix of unrecognizable samples that have been repurposed into an ambient.....techno isn't the right word but something along those lines. This basically sounds like WILLIAM BASINSKI's 'DISINTEGRATION LOOPS' with a dance beat."

16b) JK FLESH - NEW RELIGIONS OLD RULES / SEWER BAIT / VENEER OF TOLERANCE "Yeah, that's three fresh releases from Broadrick's industrial/dub/techno infused ugliness. Heavyweight beats, brain-shaking bass, and lots of eerie sounds overtop."

16c) JESU - PITY / PIETY "Getting one more in there right at the end of the year! A lovely 2-songer that features all the things we know and love about JESU. The hopeful hopelessness vibes are in full effect here in epic proportions, with each song clocking in at just under 18 minutes apiece. This man cannot be stopped!"

17) MARC URSELLI'S STEPPENDOOM - STEPPENDOOM "An excellent combination of psych/doom featuring a variety of guests, most notably the amazing Tuvan throat-singing group HUUN-HUUR-TU! Trey Spruance, Tanya Tagaq, Matt Pike, Steve Von Till are also on there, among others. I've always thought that throat-singing and doom metal were a hand-in-glove combination (check out the TSTAT 'ORANGE' EP for an example of that) so this is more than right up my alley!"

18) RUSSIAN CIRCLES - GNOSIS "I often forget this band exists which is a shame since I'm always into whatever album they manage to crank out every few years or so. Not that they're the kind of thing you can just throw on. Instrumental post-metal - definitely time-and-place kind of music that demands a little more patience than most stuff. Grindy, almost black metal guitar riffs with a variety of unlikely rhythms going on underneath. I love the cover art on this one too!"

19) DEAF CLUB - PRODUCTIVE DISRUPTION / BAD SONGS FOREVER EP "One can assume that, due to the untimely and horribly shitty loss of drummer Gabe Serbian, THE LOCUST are no more. DEAF CLUB serve as a perfectly fine substitute, filling the unfortunate void nicely. Both bands are equally crazy and spastic - it's in the finer details where the differences can be found. This stuff is more of a bulldozer of heavy riffs (compared to THE LOCUST's screechy, math-rock infused assault). But still with plenty of skronking synths (or synthy-sounding guitar pedals maybe?) and Justin Pearson's trademark nerd-screech to go around. Also, with a song title like 'BUT DOES IT FART?', how can you go wrong?"

20) DEAD CROSS - II "I was pretty hyped for this band when they first came out, then did an about-face when I heard Mike Patton was taking over the vocal slot. I've since come around on their first album. Not sure what changed, I just gave it another chance and it sounded damn good! This one, however, is a huge artistic side-step! The bombast is missed ever so slightly but I'll take these interesting new sonic avenues any day. Surf rock, post-punk, noise rock - it's a well-rounded package! And of course, the grindy hardcore parts do crop up here and there. Not to mention a song where Patton namechecks both SNFU and SNFU vocalist Mr. Chi Pig! Very cool!"

21) BLACK MAGNET - BODY PROPHECY "The fact that I really enjoy this album at age 46 is about as good an illustration as any that my musical tastes never had a hope in hell of maturing. I guess the most accurate way to describe this would be industrial-metal which should naturally send one barfing for the hills. I certainly wouldn't have hit play on this if those 2 words had been side-by-side in the recommendation. However! There's a lot more going on here than a techno beat with some token guitar chords at the end of every bar. Dark and moody EBM meets crushing riffs. This is like if THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL weren't a complete piece of shit! And I'm pretty sure it's just one guy doing everything on this album! Also, a remix c/o Justin Broadrick. Nice stamp of approval right there."

22) KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD - OMNIUM GATHERUM "These nutcases had a total of TEN official releases this year (most live, one remix album, but still!!!)! I've been loving this band for a few years now but a person can only do so much! I like other bands too! Even this particular album starts off with an 18 minute track and goes from there with an additional 15 tracks. Normally, this would be an immediate turnoff for me as, the older I get, the more my belief in "less is more" becomes more and more like religious fervor. But I can't resist these charming dorks. The pure love of all things musical just explodes off of their albums and this one is no exception. They just can't help it, the scamps!"

23) DIAMANDA GALÁS - BROKEN GARGOYLES "This woman has been unsettling the bejeezuz out of us for a few decades now. As is evidenced on this, her latest release, she has NOT lost her touch! Not one iota. Her voice is in as fine a form as it ever was (not bad for 67 years old). Her explorations into blues standards and whatnot over the past few years and releases were not really my cup of tea. This album is something of a "return to form" as it recalls the truly terrifying atmospheres that can be found on THE DIVINE PUNISHMENT and LITANIES OF SATAN. Music that would send even the most corpse-painted of black metal fiends crying to their mommies."

24) NO DEVOTION - NO OBLIVION "Nice blend of the less-heavy side of NIN and the more-anthemic side of TEARS FOR FEARS. All with a kind of shoegazing thread running through it. 80s, 90s....maybe some 70s too! It's all here! Enjoy!"

25) DARKTHRONE - ASTRAL FORTRESS "Probably their most black metal release in many years, though still through the tried, tested, and true NWOBHM filter. No punk or hardcore to be found here, nor is there much of anything in the faster tempo regions. This is slow, crawling, and very gloomy."

26) OFF! - FREE LSD "I was expecting some of that tried-and-true, classic BLACK FLAG style hardcore when I hit play on this. What I got instead? Well...THAT but through a serious stoner/doom filter! Much the same as when BLACK FLAG infamously took on the SABBATH mantle on MY WAR! Was this deliberate?? Actually, this stuff isn't so much SABBATH, more KYUSS meets SOULS AT ZERO era NEUROSIS. Shocking, to say the least! But it was probably time to try something new, rather than rewriting the NERVOUS BREAKDOWN EP yet again. However, that vibe is definitely still present. Long story short - this album rips!"

HONOURABLE MENTIONS - KRALLICE, THE YOUNG GODS, LAUNDER, ALEXISONFIRE, MINDFORCE, THE OTOLITH, BITCHIN BAJAS, HIGH VIS

And that is that. Nothing really blew my mind this year, it has to be said. But a solid collection of releases nonetheless. I can't believe I have anything positive to say about ALEXISONFIRE (I always thought they were the lamest band) but I saw them put on a fantastic show at Bluesfest this summer which prompted me to check out their latest album and it's pretty damn good! They are the RADIOHEAD of the punk/hardcore world. Who knew? Speaking of RADIOHEAD, I gave THE SMILE album a good, honest chance but I just don't get it. What is the point of having a RADIOHEAD side-project that sounds exactly like RADIOHEAD??? Of course, the answer might be - "because we only get to release RADIOHEAD music once every decade if we're lucky so please enjoy this workaround." Fair enough. Happy new year!

MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2021

2021 was fantastic, much the same way that 2020 was.

Didn't get to play very much music this year, not with other humans present at least. Here's what I got up to musically in 2021... 

We, the members of GREATHUNTER, have been sitting on a finished album for a few months now. Not too sure exactly how to move forward with it. The natural instinct is to play a show to celebrate the release of said album! Since that's not an option, I imagine we'll just quietly release it into the ether and that'll be that. While we busy ourselves with working on the follow-up to said unreleased album, we did manage to get one song released to the general public. Well, 2 versions of one song. It's called TO THE SEA. Check it out here! 

I also started playing drums in an as-yet unnamed punk/hardcore band as of about 2 months ago (featuring my friends Andy from GREATHUNTER and Kevin from ORNAMENTS). Coming along quite well and my first taste of playing music with other sentient beings again since March of 2020 so that's been a real gas, to say the least. 

Probably the most prolific musical endeavor of mine of late has been PALLBEARER INDUSTRY who managed to release one full-length (ASTRAL POLLUTION) and one EP (MAP OF THE MISTS), both in 2021. This band actually thrived as a result of the pandemic so that's been a bit of a beacon of hope for me. Check out some PI music here!

2022 - Really hoping to get back on track with COASTAL PIGS, HAMN, WORLD WAR 4 (if that's a band anymore, I'm not totally sure), as well as my own THE SUN THROUGH A TELESCOPE endeavors. We shall see.

On with the list! As always, in no particular order!

1) GENGHIS TRON - DREAM WEAPON "An awesome reinvention of sound from this band as they return from an extended hiatus. I liked em before when they were all screamy and grindy. This album, however, is a huge step up. Not a blast beat or a distorted vocal to be found. Cool, hypnotic stuff."

2) QUICKSAND - DISTANT POPULATIONS "Probably the album I listened to the most this year. INTERIORS - the album prior to this one (their 'comeback' after being broken up for many years) was a good one. This one is even better. Super catchy, super memorable, and proof positive that not all the great guitar riffs have already been written. Check out the song 'Colossus' to see what I mean."

3) DINOSAUR JR. - SWEEP IT INTO SPACE "I'm just a sucker for the 90s bands who refuse to call it a day, huh? Actually, of the 4 albums DJR had released since reforming, FARM was the only one that really hit me hard. This, however, (their 5th) is pretty damn great. I love how it starts off quite mellow and works its way up into a rockin frenzy! What fun!"

4) NARAKAH - BLAST HAVEN EP "I don't remember how I came across these Pittsburgh-based deathgrinders. Probably cruising through some blog or another (Invisible Oranges, I'm guessing) to see what's good in metal. I'm always on the lookout for grindcore that hits just the right way. The problem is, I have the attention span of a gnat for this stuff and usually decide within 5 to 10 seconds whether or not a given band is worth a continued listen. This EP contains many interesting elements. It's fast and brutal, it's also ambient and strange. It also does not overstay its welcome which is a crucial component in metal. Oh, and the album art is also very cool and somewhat atypical of the genre."

5) DEAFHEAVEN - INFINITE GRANITE "A huge left-turn for these guys. Then again, it's one that we heard glimpses of on all previous releases, more and more as time went on. They basically took the vibe of the mellow interludes that show up in many of their twisted metal songs and made an entire album out of it. And that is just okay with me! Awesome blend of shoegaze, dreampop, mixed with some lingering heaviness. Some quite lovely clean vocals from mostly-screamer George Clark as well."

6) MIDWIFE - LUMINOL "THE FLENSER is a fantastic record label (found out about it via HAVE A NICE LIFE) so I check in from time to time. That's how I discovered this beautiful release from Denver, Colorado's MIDWIFE. Self-described as "heaven metal" which is pretty accurate. Strange, droning, ambient, experimental, minimal, you know. All those words that describe something very cool and unique."

7) KOWLOON WALLED CITY - PIECEWORK "A very interesting take on sludge metal from this band - you could almost call it math-sludge...post-sludge...I don't know. Lots of unfuzzed guitars, angular chords, and clean(ish) vocals. Also a lot of slow tempos with tons of space between the parts. I'm reminded very much of 90s post-rock by this, albeit with that unmistakable sludge thing running through it."

8) MOGWAI - AS THE LOVE CONTINUES "When it comes to MOGWAI, I am a complete idiot. Insomuch as I COMPLETELY ignored them the first time around. I mean, people were telling me about them from the very start and I was like "naaaaahhh, sounds stupid!!!!". Well, as we all know, I am the one who is stupid. So I'm making up for lost time here and, fortunately for me, these guys are still putting out amazing stuff. Beautifully textured post-rock for all to enjoy (unless you're an idiot, like I was)."

9) BIG BRAVE - VITAL "Another fantastic release from this Montreal-based band. Slow, sludgey heaviness with incredible vocals overtop. I'd love to witness this in a live situation if the world ever decides to stop having sex with itself."

10) THE WAR ON DRUGS - I DON'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE "I like this band. For me, I've always found that they had a good song here, good song there (Black Water Falls is a big favourite of mine). Never really found an album of theirs that did it for me. This one though really makes with the goods. I found myself coming back to it several times. Some fantastic songwriting and equally fantastic production. I get a real TEARS FOR FEARS vibe in spots."

11) SIGIL - NETHER "Again, I have no memory of how I came across this band. A fortuitous recommendation, I'm sure! After a striking, string-based intro, we get some totally decent blackened doom metal vibes. But then all these other sounds start creeping in. Eerie, ethereal guitar parts, very reminiscent of KILLING JOKE in places! Lots of atmosphere going on. And then its back to the pummeling riffs. Not your typical metal stuff, that's for sure! And you know that's right up Mr. Newton's alley!!! He hates the generic metal bullshit, don't he just?!?!?"

12) FULL OF HELL - GARDEN OF BURNING APPARITIONS "Hey, speaking of non-generic metal stuff! Here we have yet another full-length offering from a band within the grindcore/deathcore/etc genre who I've found to be just consistently on point. For 10 years now, these guys have been serving up the goods and this latest offering is more of the same. An incredible mix of brutal riffs, piercing noise, blast beats, slow & churning chuggers. Every song manages to have some kind of character to it in terms of memorable parts, even the super-fast ones. Well done again, fellas."

13) COLONIAL WOUND - DEGRADATION EP "A very cool 3-songer from this fairly new Florida band. A sweet mix of hardcore, post-rock, noise rock, all delivered with an air of desperation. Very tasty indeed."

14) TECH LEVEL 2 - DEPTHS EP "Turns out Justin Broadrick, along with being Mr. GODFLESH, JESU, JK FLESH, etc, also has a drum n bass alter ego and this is it. And it sounds pretty much the way I would have imagined his take on DnB would sound - old school and evil."

15) DARKTHRONE - ETERNAL HAILS...... "The band have stated that this album is their take on doom metal, which is pretty much right on the money if we're talking about the 80s/90s version of doom (think early TROUBLE or CANDLEMASS). Which is to say, it's got that gloomy vibe to it whilst still being fairly uptempo throughout. Which is to say, doom metal doesn't always default to 20 beats per minute. Which is to say, this is a great album! And it's so great that people are still making these kinds of albums!!!"

16) ARTILECT - INFINITE TENSION EP "If you like your drum n bass dark and eerie, then this is your guy. Not much more to say. He delivers the goods!"

17) FIDDLEHEAD - BETWEEN THE RICHNESS "Pretty sure I came across this band thanks to the 'Fans Also Like' section on Spotify (probably linked to GLEEMER or NOTHING or something). They've got that 90s emo sound down pat and do it up real nice. Every song is more or less an anthem. This band hasn't been around for very long but, since all the members look approximately my age, I'm sure there's a collective history there (if only there were some way to look into that oh well)."

18) EMMA RUTH RUNDLE - ENGINE OF HELL "A very stripped down offering this time around from ERR. Lots of piano, lots of acoustic guitar and lots of dry vocals overtop (the heavy reverb is almost completely absent). With nothing to hide behind, the songs must speak for themselves and what they have to say is 'we are incredibly beautiful songs!'. I agree, songs."

19) TEENAGE WRIST - EARTH IS A BLACK HOLE "A sweet mix of alt-rock, shoegaze, dreampop, and grunge. More 90s shit, basically. It's probably enough already, huh? Anyways, I really dig this. One super catchy song after another. It's the kind of thing I almost wish I disliked but it's not really up to me, is it? My ears told my brain that we enjoy this! Who am I to argue?!??!"

20) PORTAL - AVOW / HAGBULBIA "PORTAL put out 2 albums this year - a more typical sounding one and a 'weird' one which, in and of itself, is an absolutely ludicrous statement with regards to this band as a typical sounding album of theirs is the sound of an alternate universe where only indescribable nightmare beings exist ripping a hole through the fabric of space and time in order to pull you into said demonic existence for 30 to 40 minutes. So yeah, you get your reliable PORTAL fix with AVOW and then HAGBULBIA is kind of an ambient, atmospheric version of the band. Both are delightful."

21) FILMMAKER - SCREENING PLEXUS / MULTIVERSE NIGHTMARE / COUNTERSPELL / VLAD TAPES "4 releases in a year? Yeah, that oughta do it, I think! I love this guy's take on industrial music. Very old school, very colourful, very without vocals."

22) NADJA - LUMINOUS ROT "I'm dumb because I keep forgetting that this amazing Montreal duo exist and wind up missing the 4 or 5 releases they put out each year. I'm glad this managed to fly across my radar because it's so damn good. Ambient, shoegazy, industrial, doom metal with weirdo, lo-fi production and super droney vocals overtop. It somehow manages to be incredibly catchy and memorable as well."

23) SUGAR WOUNDS - CALICO DREAMS "This may or may not be someone's solo project. The precious little info I can find about this 'band' on the 'internet' would suggest so. Well regardless, what we have here is a full-on mashup of shoegaze and grindcore. Like a DISCORDANCE AXIS/MELT-BANANA/LUSH triathlon. Super spazzy with gratuitous use of the Whammy pedal."

24) BOTLFY - LOWER THAN LOVE "Awesome metallic noise-rock from these Halifax dudes. They might win best lyric of the year with 'I'm not here to impress/I'm just trying to feel less depressed'. Yes indeed."

25) GROUPER - SHADE "One of the few albums that might also show up on the more high-minded lists (Pitchfork, et al). Chances are, if Liz Harris aka GROUPER puts out an album, I'm gonna love it. That's been the case so far, at least. And continues to be, thanks to SHADE! Another beautiful offering of her very specific brand of ambient folk music. These songs would definitely stand on their own 2 feet if presented within a standard mix but what really does it for me is the insanely weird, lo-fi production value. If you don't like this, well that's okay. It's certainly not for everyone."

26) WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - PRIMORDIAL ARCANA "When it comes to atmospheric black metal, these students have, without a doubt, become the masters. All the elements are here - blast beats, eerie riffs galore, keyboards, passages of acoustic guitar, witchy vocals. This is like a pagan-themed journey through a freezing cold forest at night. They really nail it on the production value as well. Definitely a step up from the "necro" (shitty) quality of the 2nd wave black metal stuff but nowhere near the disgusting polish of some of their contemporaries."

27) KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD - BUTTERFLY 3000 "Really like the other album they put out this year as well but THIS one just grabbed me from the start and never let go. KGATLW are not unlike MR. BUNGLE in their ability to masterfully take on several different genres. The difference being, where BUNGLE will throw many different styles onto one album (or within one song even), KING GIZZARD will usually dedicate an entire album to a specific sound. In this case -  bright, shiny psychedelic pop with heavy, heavy usage of modular synths. Some serious DEVO vibes on here. Constantly catchy, even when things get really proggy. Just a darn tootin good time!"

28) PLEBEIAN GRANDSTAND - RIEN NE SUFFIT "This band has been putting out absolute nightmare music for about a decade now. Their sound falls somewhere within black metal, hardcore, industrial, and all out avant garde noise. Seriously intense and scary stuff! Have fun with it!"

29) CEDRIC NOEL - HANG TIME "I was fortunate enough to discover this New Brunswick-native, one-time Ottawa resident, now Montreal musician when he opened for NO JOY a few months ago (one of 3 shows I managed to see this year). He played stripped-down renditions of his songs (just him and his guitar), many of which appear on this album, and I was just floored. The album itself is filled out with a bit more of a 'band' feel to it plus a plethora of gorgeous vocal harmonies. Kinda folky, kinda indie rock, kinda singer-songwriter. An amazing collection of songs."

30) SWARM OF SPHERES - BROTHER, TAKE FIVE EP "One of Ottawa's finest offerings! So glad these guys are back at it! Another firey collection of cranked-up stoner/doom, complete with Mr. Jay Wishmaster's awesome barking vocals and the AMAZING drumming of Mark McGee! Well done, fellas!"

31) TEEN DAZE - INTERIORS "I had never heard of this British Columbia electro-dude until this year. Lo and behold, he has an extensive discography which I fully intend to dive into (at some point before I die). Starting with this! An excellent blend of ambient and house music."

32) CEVIN KEY - RESONANCE "Yet another installment in CEVIN KEY's neverending worship of all things synthesizer. Be it SKINNY PUPPY, DOWNLOAD, or a solo album, chances are I'm really gonna dig what this guy puts out (that's been the case for the past 30 years, give or take!). Some excellent contributions from Edward Ka-Spel, Otto Von Schirach, among others!"

33) GNOD - LA MORT DU SENS "These Manchester lads have been at it for a little while now. I've been vaguely aware of their existence for some time but finally checked em out thanks to a recommendation from a friend. And this is the album I checked out. And it's great! Super weird blend of doom metal, noise rock, psych, experimental, etc. Tons of driving rhythms. Oh, and you better believe there's some sax in there too!"

34) CONVERGE - BLOODMOON: I "A very cool collaboration between CONVERGE, Chelsea Wolfe (whose music I am almost totally unfamiliar with, gotta rectify that), and Stephen Brodsky of CAVE IN. The basic CONVERGE framework is there but what's really interesting is hearing them get way outside of their usual cadence. The sound of a hardcore/metalcore band branching out into folk, goth, and almost classic rock in places. The variety of vocalists on here (4, including bassist Nate Newton [great name]) is a real treat as well. Excellent!"

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: U-ZIQ, FRONTIERER, ZOMBI, TOBACCO, FAILURE, YEAR OF NO LIGHT, TOMAHAWK, HTRK, MOUTHBREATHER, CRUELTY, SCORN, TUNE-YARDS

And that's that. I feel like the new FAILURE album could grow on me, the last one certainly did. My initial impression was "good, very good, not great" even though the first single 'Headstand' really blew me away. THE DIRTY NIL, on the other hand, really had nothing for me. Hard to say why, it just rang really hollow for some reason. Then there's BLACK MIDI who I more appreciate than actually enjoy. Impressive as all hell but, I dunno, I just don't listen to that kind of music, I guess. I don't feel it's gravitational pull ever. I think probably, in this case, I'm wrong. I can't think of anything else to dump on. Thanks for reading! Happy new year!!!

 MY FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF 2020

Well holy cow, what a year 2020 was, huh????? SO GOOD!!!! Yes, we all know what happened so let's just skip it. A lot of horrid shit, I'll say that. But - one minor (very minor) silver lining is all the amazing music that came out this year (probably somehow linked to musicians having an ass-ton of free time). I mean seriously, I lost track of how many bands released 2 - 3 albums this year. More than a few! 

And to that end, I can personally say that I managed to crank out a THE SUN THROUGH A TELESCOPE full-length called FADING SUN this past September. Three months later and I've still yet to decide that it's actually a complete piece of crap so I take that as a pretty good sign that it ain't too shabby. 

My band HAMN also released a 5 song EP called SAD at the end of March, our second release to date, and I'm pretty pleased with how that came out as well.

And finally, GREATHUNTER put out the 2-song single MOVE INTO LIGHT / UNDERWATER just a few weeks ago with all the financial proceeds going to the Ottawa Food Bank which proves we are not only talented but extremely generous as well.

Okay! Onto the albums! As always, in no particular order! 

1) LOCAL H - LIFERS "There's a certain bitterness/stoicism that emanates from alt-rock's last band standing. It comes across in full-force on this super-heavy release. This dynamic duo can always be counted on for a solid collection of classic-rock infused grunge but LIFERS sounds to me like they really swung for the fences."

2) GLEEMER - ANYMORE "My cousin recommended this band to me a few years ago. It was a successful tip. I excitedly informed him that they had released a new album in 2020. He described it as reminding him of all of his ex-girlfriends. I countered that I found it to be a force-field against all ex-girlfriends. I think we're both right."

3) SHINER - SHADENFREUDE "One of TWO Midwest 90s-era post-hardcore shoegazey space-rocky bands who broke their almost 20 years of silence with a CRUSHER of an album! It's basically everything about them that was awesome back then set within an updated template written by whatever the hell has happened in guitar rock over the past couple of decades. Makes sense, right?"

4) RUN THE JEWELS - RUN THE JEWELS 4 "I wasn't too hot on RTJ3. For some reason, nothing stuck out for me. Which was a bummer since RTJ2 was wall-to-wall bangers. Well, I'm happy to say that RTJ4 has gone back to the classic format of filling the album up with bangers (which, if you think about it, is the only way to go)."

5) IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT - ALPHAVILLE "I discovered this album via the fact that TREY SPRUANCE of MR. BUNGLE (more on them shortly) produced it. I suppose you could describe this as death metal or blackened death metal. Whatever it is, it sure isn't typical. A very strange metal album indeed. Definitely from the same realm as PORTAL. However, if PORTAL represent CHAOS, then IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT are the purveyors of ORDER (sounds like some Marvel Comics GALACTUS type shit). And not in the ho-hum MESHUGGAH "we're so tight as a band that we're collectively constipated 365 days of the year" variety either."

6) NO JOY - MOTHERHOOD "This band has become one of my favourites over the past few years. This is a different release for them, for sure. Mainly because the "them" in question basically refers to singer/guitarist JASAMINE WHITE-GLUZ. And that is exactly what this album sounds like to me - a JWG solo album. It's also absolutely fantastic and beautiful. I think I prefer their previous "band" material is all. Oh well. It's still great. I think I covered that already."

7) EYE FLYS - TUB OF LARD "Awesome, crushing noise-rock from this relatively new group named after a MELVINS song. Some real grinding (not grindcore) riffs over pounding drums. I think one of the members also plays in FULL OF HELL, so that's cool."

8) TODAY IS THE DAY - NO GOOD TO ANYONE "I've probably said this before but I always get a sense from TITD that every album of theirs that sees the light of day is the result of constantly pushing back against adversity. That's probably a thing I've invented in my mind. Just something about the lo-fi production value, the lyrics, the themes - it all feels like a struggle. There seems to be a slight blues element on this particular release, otherwise it's just more of the same twisted take on metal/noise-rock that we've come to expect from STEVE AUSTIN and his sidekicks."

9) HUM - INLET "This is the other Midwest 90s post-hardcore yadda yadda band that put out an album after several years of not. See above for details."

10) ROBERT RICH - OFFERING TO THE MORNING FOG "At some point in the early 2000s, and I cannot remember how, I came to know the music of ROBERT RICH. Specifically, it was his album ELECTRIC LADDER that really caught my ear as a wonderful mix of ambient synth and organic instruments (sax, guitar, etc). Since then, I've checked in from time to time on newer releases (as well as gone through his extensive back catalogue) but nothing really stood out. But this one is very good."

11) ELDER - OMENS "Sweet psychedelic stoner rock with layers of tasty synths. These guys have been knocking it out of the park the past few years."

12) PYRRHON - ABSCESS TIME "I'm slightly loathe to big this band up only because their singer has been mean to a friend of mine on social media (god, that's a stupid sentence). But, in the spirit of separate-the-art-from-the-artist (within reason, of course), I can't deny that this is one hell of a messed up take on.....metal, I guess? I don't know what sub-genre you'd call it. Math metal, maybe. Either way, it is abrasive in a most satisfying way. I got into it with these 2 dorks on Youtube who gave it a terrible review because I'm an excellent judge of how I should be spending my own time."

13) SQUAREPUSHER - BE UP A HELLO "TOM JENKINSON has yet to disappoint. I feel like HELLO EVERYTHING kind of established a shift in style from his straight-up drum n' bass/hyperspeed jazz bass stuff. This album continues in that vein with tons of funky, vibrant parts hitting you in the face at top speed. The Dn'B is still there as well, which is nice because his take on that stuff is always unique and amazing."

14) BORIS - NO "Why the HELL is this album only available as a digital download on Bandcamp??? Easily one of the best things they've put out in years. So relentlessly heavy. Like a darker, doomier version of PINK. Damn you, BORIS! Is there no end to your awesomeness???"

15) DEFTONES - OHMS "Yet another solid release from this band. I literally can't think of one other band for which the quality of their stuff keeps rising and rising the later they get into their career. So weird. It'd be impossible for me to come up with a favourite album of theirs. It's more like my favourite songs of theirs are spread out over multiple albums. And this one is no different, I'm sure some of the songs on here will make the list. Out of curiosity, I watched the entire 1-hour+ flat-earth video the guitar player was recommending a few months ago. Wowee, what an infinity of shit-thinking."

16) SPIRIT POSSESSION - S/T "A shameless tribute to all things first-wave black metal ie: BATHORY, CELTIC FROST (I think I counted at least 2 TOM G WARRIOR type "UGH!!"s within the first 30 seconds of the first song). Is this a bad thing? Hellll no! It's a really fun take on black metal. Production is lo-fi but warm and full at the same time. It's also not strictly stuck in the past - there's definitely some interesting musical twists and turns throughout."

17) MR. BUNGLE - THE RAGING WRATH OF THE EASTER BUNNY DEMO "Easily the album I was looking forward to the most this year. Of the 4 demo tapes that BUNGLE released before their first full-length, RWOTEB was the one I listened to the most. To have a version recorded in a proper studio with 3 of the 4 original players PLUS DAVE LOMBARDO and SCOTT IAN lending their talents??? Oh man. This came out sounding EXACTLY the way I hoped it would. It is sooooo good and so much fun!!! Easily better than 90 percent of the bands they were aping at the time. Utterly insane. It's no wonder they went on to do what they did with music."

18) THOU / EMMA RUTH RUNDLE - MAY OUR CHAMBERS BE FULL "I'm a huge fan of ERR's music. Actually, the last show I attended (in February of 2020) was her performing solo between INTRONAUT and CULT OF LUNA. The darkness in her music works perfectly within the context of a band like THOU. It's like they were made to collaborate! Well done!"

19) NOTHING - THE GREAT DISMAL "A similar story to the whole RUN THE JEWELS debacle - TIRED OF TOMORROW blew me away in such a profound way. The follow-up DANCE ON THE BLACKTOP was a bit of a letdown which was a bit of a bummer considering the whole TOT situation. This album, while still unable to reach TOT heights, is nonetheless absolutely fantastic. A perfect variety of dreamy shoegaze and grungey fuzzed-out rockers."

20) BENJAMIN FINGER & JAMES PLOTKIN - WE CARRY THE CURSE "Some absolutely gorgeous ambient drone music from MR. PLOTKIN and some guy named BENJAMIN FINGER. DISCOGS tells me that he is a musician/filmmaker from Norway. That's nice."

21) JESU - TERMINUS "When you consider the fact that the last 2 JESU full-lengths have been collaborations with SUN KIL MOON (and were both utter GARBAGE!), it's been a long while since we've had a straight up album from them (him). 2013, to be exact. So, I was very much looking forward to this and it does not disappoint. Heavy, beautiful, and utterly sad. I read an interview with JKB recently where he said something along the lines of nostalgia being intrinsically linked to feelings of depression. Nice to know it's not just me!"

22) PENTAGRIME - MVMNT EP / SOULLESS EP "Another project from JAMES PLOTKIN, this one being a solo effort and in the weirdo electronic variety. MR. PLOTKIN wears many hats and I, for one, am interested in all the variety of hats he has to offer. Be they 10-gallon hats or pirate hats made out of newspaper, I'm in! Anyways, onto the next hat!"

23) TRILBY

24) BOWLER

25) DEERSTALKER oh shit, sorry....

26) METZ - ATLAS VENDING "This album honestly didn't blow me away at first. It just sounded like more of the same great stuff that METZ has to offer with a few noticeable expansions into unfamiliar territory. But the familiar stuff kept sounding better and better and the unfamiliar stuff turned out to be the most engaging. Well done, METZ. You've done it yet again."

27) DEUX TROIS - REJECT "The last time I played a show (maybe ever????), it was alongside this Kingston trio (haha) who are always an absolute pleasure to share a stage with. Their brand of indie-rock mixes dark with light, emotional with fun, dancey with dissonance. Some excellent songwriting on here. Very, very cool."

28) TOBACCO - HOT WET & SASSY "In a lot of ways, there's really not much difference between a BLACK MOTH SUPER RAINBOW album and TOBACCO's solo stuff. Which is good because I love it all. That being said, there is a certain evil-groove/evil-funk thing going on here that you don't really hear on the BMSR stuff. Either way, it's awesome."

29) FUCK THE FACTS - PLEINE NOIRCEUR "I'm so glad FTF are back at it. They can always be counted on for a fresh spin on all things heavy. This album mixes things up quite nicely. Some songs bring in more melodic elements which is fairly virgin territory for FTF. And others are, of course, full-on crushers. Nicely done, my peeps."

30) ACxDC - SATAN IS KING "These guys are pretty reliable when it's time to enjoy something grindy. Or hardcore or powerviolence or whatever the internet says they are. Just awesome, short, fast, dirty, riffy, screamy tunes. Real nice."

31) FILMMAKER - ETERNAL RETURN / DIMENSIONAL / DISCORDIAN DISCO "3 albums from this prolific Colombian electro-dude (which, while impressive by most standards, is actually pathetic by his considering he cranked out 7 albums last year). I think my love for all things SKINNY PUPPY is how I came to find about FILMMAKER. Some serious 80s EDM/Industrial vibes going on here. All instrumental, all dark, all gothy."

32) BIGFOOT CORONERS - URBAN FOSSILS "A very cool release from 2 of my former high school chums (one of whom I had been jamming with as of late until the world ended). A super-tasty take on psychedelic rock. Definitely some jazz feels on here. Well worth checking out!"

33) ORANSSI PAZUZU - MESTARIN KYNSI "This is one of the albums that every single person making one of these 2020 lists is championing. Well, in this case, the hype is REAL! This is some seriously messed-up heavy metal music. I guess it's technically black metal but that's more just a way to give the listener some kind of familiarity to start with. This is just all-over-the-place weirdness. Not unlike ALTAR OF PLAGUES but even stranger. Ambient, post-rock, experimental, industrial, etc etc etc. So, naturally, I'm all about it."

34) BENT ARCANA - S/T "Fantastic jazzy psychedelia going on here! Shades of THE SOFT MACHINE, HAWKWIND, krautrock, even post-SYD/pre-DARK SIDE PINK FLOYD at times. Sweet production value too - sounds like you're in the room with the band. Put this on and get cozy with whatever book you happen to be reading. You'll rip through 10 pages in no time!"

35) HIGHER INTELLIGENCE AGENCY - DISCATRON "Okay, so this incredible ambient-techno dude decided to start releasing stuff again. His first proper release since 2000, I think. And, like almost everything, I didn't catch it the first time around but I've been enjoying the HIA sounds for many years now. As has anyone who I happen to be working with/near (it's good music to put on at work since it's equally conducive to be enjoyed/ignored). This is simply an EP of more of the same sweet IDM-type stuff."

36) CORIKY - S/T "I have to admit I really had no interest in checking out THE EVENS (IAN MACKAYE's first post-FUGAZI project). What little of it that I did hear did not inspire further listening. Maybe the fact that CORIKY (MACKAYE's second post-FUGAZI project) includes another FUGAZI member (JOE LALLY on bass) is why I made the effort. Glad I did cuz this stuff is great - really fun, funky, odd, and very much in the vein of the cleaner/funkier FUGAZI stuff."

37) CELL PRESS - S/T "A fantastic EP of heaviness featuring members of THE GREAT SABATINI, SWARM OF SPHERES, BIIPIIGWAN, and probably more. Some screamy metallic noise-rock to clean the ole ears out. Well done, men!"

38) EXPANDER - NEUROPUNK BOOSTERGANG "I'd checked these guys out in the past (at the behest of my THIS IS A DISASTER podcast partner PETER). I always liked what I heard but this album really got my attention. Awesome blend of thrash and hardcore with a kind of "cyber" thing running through it. Oh, and then I looked them up and realized they are from Austin and dress in costumes and shit. It keeps getting better!"

39) PRIMITIVE MAN - IMMERSION "I can't say this band evolves significantly from album to album but I can say that they can always be relied on to deliver the ultimate heavy take on sludge metal. This stuff is downright scary at times, it's so oppressively heavy. For fans of hanging out in the trash compactor from Star Wars whilst it's running."

HONOURABLE MENTIONS - PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS, VULNERE, AUROCH, HEXVESSEL, BLACK CURSE, UNIFORM, OLD MAN GLOOM, TERMINAL NATION, NARROW HEAD, SUMAC, GUIDED BY VOICES, THE OSCILLATION, JUCIFER, MARK RENNER, BLEEDING OUT

That's it! I know I missed out on some good stuff, I just had to say "when" at a certain point. Like I said, LOTS of great stuff coming out this year! So hard to keep up! Everyone was freaking out about the CODE ORANGE album for some reason. God, they've become lame. Also, I really enjoyed what I heard from the HUNTSMEN album that came out this year but, Jesus Christ, the thing is like 80 minutes long! Rein it in, guys!!! People have things to do! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

MY FAVOURITE SONGS OF THE TWO-THOUSAND TEENS

1) M.I.A. - TELL ME WHY (/\/\ /\ Y /\/\ 2010)

2) PALE SKETCHER - CAN I GO NOW (GONE MIX)  (JESU: PALE SKETCHES DEMIXED 2010)

3) DEATH GRIPS - TAKYON (DEATH YON) (EXMILITARY 2011)

4) CAVE IN - SING MY LOVES (WHITE SILENCE 2011)

5) RIVAL SCHOOLS - A PARTS FOR B ACTORS (PEDALS 2011)

6) THE WAR ON DRUGS - BLACK WATER FALLS (SLAVE AMBIENT 2011)

7) THE FIELD - LOOPING STATE OF MIND (LOOPING STATE OF MIND 2011)

8) BOB MOULD - THE DESCENT (SILVER AGE 2012)

9) MELVINS - THE WAR ON WISDOM (THE BULL & THE BEES EP 2012)

10) DEAFHEAVEN - DREAM HOUSE (SUNBATHER 2013)

11) PALMS - MISSION SUNSET (S/T 2013)

12) THOSE GULLS - THE OUT (FOREVERMORE 2014)

13) RUN THE JEWELS - CLOSE YOUR EYES (AND COUNT TO FUCK) (RUN THE JEWELS 2 2014)

14) KEN mode - BLESSED (SUCCESS 2015)

15) NO JOY - MOON IN MY MOUTH (MORE FAITHFUL 2015)

16) NOTHING - THE DEAD ARE DUMB (TIRED OF TOMORROW 2016)

17) DEFTONES - (L)MIRL (GORE 2016)

18) CRYSTAL FAIRY - NECKLACE OF DIVORCE (S/T 2017)

19) NINE INCH NAILS - GOD BREAK DOWN THE DOOR (BAD WITCH 2018)

20) DREAMSHELL - YOU CAN CRY (JOYDIVISION/YOU CAN CRY SINGLE 2018)

MY FAVOURITE RELEASES OF 2019

This website has basically become the place where I can post my favourite releases of whatever the hell year has just gone by. That's okay. Who the hell has a website anymore? Pointless waste of time. Anyways, 2019 proved to be pretty productive. It saw the inauguration of the THIS IS A DISASTER podcast and the TRY-ALL & ERROR web series. Not exactly a hot year for musical releases from yours truly, other than the BEACH SLAUGHTER EP from COASTAL PIGS. There are, however, many things in the works. 2020 should almost definitely see new releases from GREATHUNTER, HAMN, WORLD WAR 4 and, last but certainly not least, another full-length release from TSTAT. In the meantime, please enjoy this list of whatever it was that came across my radar in 2019.

1) DREAMSHELL - UNCONNECTOR "Almost certainly my favourite album that came out this year and easily the one I listened to the most. This local-to-Ottawa band are the best thing our fair city has to offer right now. Shoegazey dreampop with a rocky/grungy edge. It's weird that they aren't huge yet. They should be headling Edgefest or Somersault or something!"

2) MARK RENNER - SALT & FIREWOOD / THE PROPHET BIRD EP "I discovered this person and their music last year via a compilation that featured music originally released into totally obscurity many years ago. These 2 releases both feature brand new music from Mr. Renner. A similar vibe to his 80s stuff but much more abstract and atmospheric, with most of it being instrumental. Very artsy and very unaffected by anything contemporary."

3) HELMS ALEE - NOCTILUCA "It's getting to the point that, if this band puts something out, it's a safe bet that I'll love it. Elements of doom, elements of post rock, multiple vocalists, incredibly catchy, incredibly anthemic, doesn't overstay its welcome. Need I go on?"

4) TORCHE - ADMISSION "Same goes for these guys! If they put it out, I will enjoy! Consistently good - I like that in a band! I don't understand how they manage to be so damn catchy all the time without repeating themselves. I mean, their albums do sound the same, but it's somehow always fresh. I can't think of any other band that sounds quite like TORCHE. That's pretty cool."

5) CROSS DOG - HOLLOW "I've been enjoying this Peterborough-based band for a number of years now. I've listened to their albums, I've seen them live, I've even had the pleasure of sharing the stage with them a couple of times. This album, however, ups the ante like CRAZY! Every element of the band has gotten 10 times more brutal on here. A serious barn-burner."

6) KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD - INFEST THE RATS' NEST "This band basically transforms its sound from album to album. On this particular release (one of 2 full-lengths put out in 2019), they are flexing their hardcore and thrash metal muscles. I like the idea of a band who normally don't play heavy music turning around and giving it a go. On here, it totally works. Still has that psych-rock edge that they are well known for."

7) FULL OF HELL - WEEPING CHOIR "As per usual, the vast majority of metal ends up boring the arse off me. Overlong, one-note rehash. FULL OF HELL are a band that I know I can count on. Their riffs are brutal, their approach is a perfect blend of old and new school and they know a thing or two about being succinct. Was sorry to hear that they got basically every bit of musical equipment ripped off while they were on tour. Hopefully they can recover."

8) SUNN O))) - LIFE METAL "I find just about all this dynamic duo's releases have something to offer, no matter how far they stray from their original formula. This album, however, is basically said original formula shining bright like 1000 suns. Pigishly-long guitar drones screaming with feedback. That's the ANDERSON / O'MALLEY trademark right there."

9) CAVE IN - FINAL TRANSMISSION "I'll admit that this album is not incredible but it very well could have been, if not for the tragic and horrifying circumstances that took bassist CALEB SCOFIELD from this earth. This album consists of work-in-progress demos intended for their next full-length release. Things definitely sound a little half-baked (for good reason, obviously) but I think that it's great that they salvaged what they could in order to get CALEB's final contributions to the band out there. I saw them earlier this year and they were fantastic. The new songs fit in right with the older ones."

10) OOZING WOUND - HIGH ANXIETY "There's something about a heavy album that comes out on the THRILL JOCKEY label that makes me sit up and pay attention. It's a sure sign that the act in question is going to be out of the ordinary. In this case, an awesome assault of thrashy hardcore, shades of VOIVOD-type progginess - a nice old-school flavour. I got a nice old-school flavour myself, so this is right up my alley."

11) GUM TAKES TOOTH - ARROW "Some cool, way-out psychedelic soundsfrom this dynamic London-based duo. This kind of stuff can be dicey on the holding-ones-interest level but I find this album constantly engaging, never boring. It gets mellow, it gets heavy, it gets abstract, it gets catchy - you get the sense that these guys are having a lot of fun in their self-indulgence. We, in turn, have fun listening to it!"

12) HAVE A NICE LIFE - SEA OF WORRY "I'd been looking forward to this album for quite awhile, having loved their last full-length THE UNNATURAL WORLD in all its TEARS FOR FEARS worshiping glory (check out the album art for proof). This one leans even more into post-punk/new wave/gothy territory, harvesting all the best respective elements. A good soundtrack for walking along the beach. Alone. At sundown. In the dead of winter. The moment after you got dumped."

13) DARKTHRONE - OLD STAR "Another 'old faithful' type band for me - if they put it out, chances are I'm gonna love it. Drummer/vocalist/lyricist/mastermind FENRIZ has made his love of metal (and music in general) well known through interviews (and Spotify playlists). You can feel that musical obsession in the songs (not to ignore the contributions of NOCTURNO CULTO, it's just FENRIZ is easily the mouthpiece of the band). Every tune is a condensed tribute to all permutations of old-school metal and hardcore."

14) DRAB MAJESTY - MODERN MIRROR "I was supposed to see them (him?) open for DEAFHEAVEN last year but I believe Canadian Customs had a different idea about that so it was not to be (actually, the whole show ended up pretty fucked - we missed UNIFORM thanks to traffic and DEAFHEAVEN's main guitar player was also denied entry into Canada, making for a very weird but memorable show on their part). Anyways, I feel like catching the live DM experience would have been quite something, based on the promo pics I've seen. Nonetheless, this album is sweet. A modern take on post-punk/new wave/death rock that is infectious as all hell."

15) LOW DOSE - S/T "This is basically FIGHT AMP with a new vocalist. Well, on paper, that's what it is. In actual fact, it's like a super heavy, noise-rocking, doom-grunge take on BIKINI KILL. Or something to that effect. Either way, it rips."

16) TEENAGE WRIST - COUNTING FLIES EP "These guys are young and having fun, which in turn makes me feel old and dull. I can't help but enjoy these tunes though, especially since they are steeped in 90s alt-rock vibes. Some good rocking shoegaze right here."

17) FILMMAKER - THE LOVE MARKET "Sometimes that Youtube sidebar just gives you the straight up goods, which is exactly how I came across this Colombian gent and his dark take on synthwave. He released no less than 4 full-lengths this year so it was really a crapshoot as to which one is the 'best' (they're all basically of equal quality). I guess this one is just a cut above, maybe only down to the artwork? It's sweet stuff, either way. For the old-school industrial/EBM fan."

18)  ARTILECT - RHYTHM SEEKER EP "Every now and then, I get to wondering 'Hmm...what's up with drum n bass these days?'. It certainly set my head on fire back in the days when it....set everyone elses on fire, basically. Mid to late 90s I'm talking, when discovering the likes of APHEX TWIN, SQUAREPUSHER, and the like were enough to believe that music had truly been reinvented. Anyways, I certainly haven't lost my taste for that particular brand of techno but, for some reason, have made no effort to keep up (seems like the kind of thing where you're either all in or you just get left behind). Anyways, I did a little clicking around on Youtube and came across the Manchester - based ARTILECT and his take on DnB which is basically everything I want from the genre. Nice one."

19) PRIMITIVE MAN - SPLIT MMXIX "2 songs from the power-trio that is PRIMITIVE MAN on this split release with HELL (one track from them). These guys just cruuuuuuush eeeeeeverything with their super grim, sludgy take on doom metal. I saw them perform last year and it was like a tiny corner of Hell (not the band) had opened up. And then I got to go home, which is good. Better than being in Hell, probably."

20) HAWKEYES - LAST LIGHT OF FUTURE FAILURE "Some fantastic psychedelic sounds from this Kitchener/Waterloo based guitarmy. Less on the doom metal side of things, this time out. Not so much a worshiping of all things riff-based. Rather, a focus on creating some lush, textured soundscapes. An aural treat, through and through."

21) PINKISH BLACK - CONCEPT UNIFICATION "I've given this band a try over the years and, for whatever reason, nothing ever really stuck. Progressive/post-metal delivered by a drums/synth duo certainly seems like a great idea (to me, at least). This time out, it really clicked for me. A lot of it sounds like a soundtrack to a movie that does not exist but one that I really wish did. Some hypnotic, dystopian stuff, right here."

22) MYTHOLOGEN - ANTISOCIAL BACKGROUND MUSIC 2017 - 2019 "I know very little about this artist, other than I believe it's the product of one person and said person is Swedish. However this came across my radar, I'm glad it did. As far as electronic music goes, it ticks a lot of my boxes. Weirdo ambient techno that is sometimes super dense and noisy and sometimes minimal and super chill."

23) PET BRICK - I "A friend of mine recommended this band with no real disclaimer at all. It was only after a few very enjoyable listens and a little research that I realized the drummer in this experimental duo is none other than IGOR CAVALERA (former drummer of SEPULTURA). That is so cool! I've always thought he was a huge cut above most of his contemporaries. The fact that he has branched out into such unlikely sonic territory is, while not totally surprising, still very exciting. Anyways, famous drummer or no, this is some very enjoyable wacked-out experimental noise type stuff. I'm hugely interested in someone bringing a metal background to such non-metal music."

24) DEAD SEA APES - THE FREE TERRITORY "For me, this Manchester outfit is becoming a band to watch. They usually tend to go with an 'everything-but-the-kitchen-sink' approach on their albums, as far as pulling from different brands of 'heavy' music (doom, post-punk, psych, drone, hardcore, etc). This one leans heavily on the drone/doom thing, which is a-okay by me. Some long-form guitar droning on here. A very spacious, sometimes ambient take on feedback."

25) LOW SUN - NEW / SHINY "This twin-brother duo from Toronto have come a long way from their super sludgy days as SHAHMAN. The last (first) LOW SUN release was steeped in 90s slocore. This one stays there but adds a little upbeat energy to the mix. Really catchy and fun but still super weird and unsettling."

26) THE STILT HOMES - SPRING MIX "Got to share the stage with this Kingston-based trio a little over a year ago and I thought they were so great. It's that familiar, endearingly bad 'we-can-barely-play' take on indie rock (which used to be one of the many banes of my existence) but with undeniably pleasant and catchy melodies running through all the songs. I've always been a huge believer in 'it's not how good you can play, as long as you've got the songs.' These guys are a perfect illustration of that. All that said, they can definitely play their instruments, I don't mean to suggest otherwise."

27) DEATH STICKS - SOON THE TROUBLES WILL BE OVER "Another solid release of noise-rock weirdness from this Ottawa-based duo. I managed to miss every performance of theirs this year which is unforgivable on my part because seeing them is just as fun as listening to them. I often take for granted the fact that super-talented people are making music a stone's throw from my house. But, I do enjoy said house and all within, so...."

28) TERMINAL CHEESECAKE - LE SACRE DU LIÉVRE "I don't remember how this came to my attention but it seems like it had to be a JOHN WESTHAVER / FRIDAY MORNING CAR-TUNES recommendation which makes perfect sense since they are an experimental band from the 80s/90s who recently reformed and are still putting out quality shit, apparently. The more I look into this band, the bigger my homework assignment gets as their family tree seems massive and hugely interesting. Anyways, in and of itself, this album is a sweet slab of experimental noise with super fuzzy bass and pulsing drums pushing the whole thing along."

29) BOTFLY - TRUTH IN NUMBERS "A 2-song single from this Halifax-based noise-rock trio. Tense, aggro, sometimes metallic, sometimes sludgey as all get-out. Dig it!"

30) BIG BRAVE - A GAZE AMONG THEM "If BLONDE REDHEAD were a sludge/doom band, this is what it would sound like. Is that not enough to put a hook in you? Then you are silly. A silly, silly person. This stuff crawls along at such a satisfying snail's pace, leaving plenty of room for the riffs and the vocals to ring out gorgeously. They've been over there in Montreal doing their thing for years now, and here I sit, oblivious. Who's silly now?"

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: MINORS, BIG BUSINESS, DEVIL MASTER, BARONESS, DOWNLOAD, BRUTUS, SPURN, MORE PAIN, YOUNG GODS, INTER ARMA, GUIDED BY VOICES (3 full-lengths released this year!), THE GREAT SABATINI, CREEPING DEATH, GREYS, SABBATH ASSEMBLY

I feel like I missed out on a lot of really good stuff this year. My ability to constantly stay on top of new releases is definitely slipping. It's like a full-time job, in a way. I tell myself I'm gonna make an effort, then just end up listening to OZMA or TOO DARK PARK for the 50 millionth time. We all have our all-time faves, right? Anyways, I'll be going through everyone elses' end-of-year lists and see what I missed (as per usual). But oh man, that new TOOL album, right? BWAAAAHHH!!!! What a joke. I forced myself to sit through the entire thing once. Unreal. To think they were my very favourite band, once upon a time (in 1994). Anyways, happy new year!

MY FAVOURITE RELEASES OF 2018

I sure don't post much of anything anymore but the end-of-year best-of list is one you can count on like death and taxes! Now, normally I reserve this first space to ballyhoo about my own personal releases that came out during the year in question. Well, goddamn if I didn't release ONE THING in 2018! For absolute shame. Not for lack of trying, in some instances. Just, y'know, life and shit. The current state of some of my respective projects is as such - GREATHUNTER played many shows this year, both in and out of Ottawa and we're well on our way to having a new EP or possibly a full-length started this year. HAMN didn't do much but we are about 80% finished our 2nd EP which will definitely see a 2019 release. COASTAL PIGS played a bunch and, as per usual, we have many songs in waiting. Some have already been recorded and mixed and some are brand new. WORLD WAR 4....played a few shows. Always fun. PRAYER WHEELS has a stellar new EP in the works. Vocals to be done, that's it. And, of course, I did just put out a new TSTAT EP. On January 1st though, so I'll be talking about that again in about 12 months time. Suffice to say, 2019 should prove to be pretty productive. Onto some info about some real bands....

As per usual, these are in no particular order. Here we go...

1) PORTAL - ION "There really is no other band quite like PORTAL. A new release from them is a very special occasion indeed. As truly fucked-up as their music is, I can't help but think there's something wrong with fans of heavy music who aren't totally into them. I'M not crazy, YOU GUYS are all crazy!"

2) MARK RENNER - FEW TRACES "I came across this via an article about MARK HOLLIS of TALK TALK and his defection from music. In the sidebar, there was a related article about this fellow MARK RENNER who, very quietly and very independently, released his own music throughout the 80s. It went completely unnoticed and he divorced himself from music completely. Fast forward to this year when a compilation of his stuff was put out by RVNG INTL. This interesting tale compelled me to check out the man's music and it is just lovely. RED HOUSE PAINTERS meets THE DURUTTI COLUMN type stuff."

3) THOU - MAGUS / THE HOUSE PRIMORDIAL / INCONSOLABLE / RHEA SYLVIA "So Thou went and released one full-length and 3 EPs this year. Every single one is amazing and every single one sounds like a different band. These guys do not give a shit in the best way possible. But damn, that's a lot of music! Should I take a week off work to soak it all in?!"

4) DREAMSHELL - JOY DIVISION / YOU CAN CRY "I probably listened to these 2 songs more than anything else this year. These local-to-Ottawa guys have the shoegaze/dreampop thing sewn up tight. Beautiful guitar textures and incredible vocals."

5) DEAFHEAVEN - ORDINARY CORRUPT HUMAN LOVE "Nowhere near as thrashy as their last release. The blast beats and metal guitars are there but much more subdued. Makes for many more textures. I think the back-half of the song HONEYCOMB is the best thing they've ever done."

6) NOTHING - DANCE ON THE BLACKTOP "After being COMPLETELY blown away by TIRED OF TOMORROW, I had super high expectations for this. While it does not disappoint, it really doesn't hit me the way their aforementioned ToT does. That said, in and of itself, it is gorgeous."

7) NO JOY - NO JOY / SONIC BOOM "A very cool collaboration. Hard to tell who brought what to the table. It's basically NO JOY with a super-mellow, electronic slant. Very nice."

8) KEN mode - LOVED "An album I was looking forward to as much as, if not more than, the NOTHING album. In this case, my expectations were met and surpassed. This fucking thing RIPS!!!! Not a wasted moment. Also wins a bonus prize for best lyric of the year - 'Just because no one else is talking/doesn't mean you need to be'. So good."

9) NINE INCH NAILS - BAD WITCH "NIN's consistent output of quality stuff over the past few years has been a head-scratcher to say the least. Not that they're terrible or anything (although they certainly can be at times), just to step it up this late in the game is pretty unusual. This album though, damn! I couldn't stop listening to it. So good! Also, here's something I love. It's an album. It has 7 songs. Not an EP. That is awesome. Less is more. 12 songs? Who needs em!?!?"

10) SECT PIG - CROOKED BACKS "I don't remember who told me about this band. I mention that because there's very little chance you'd come across this by chance. I guess, in a very broad sense, it's black metal. It's also quite fucked. Very lo-fi, very noisy, very repetitive and very and strange. I could imagine most fans of metal hating this stuff. In an unrelated note, most metal bands are longwinded, boring garbage."

11) NOT OF - HYPOCRITIC OATH "Super-catchy noise rock. Nice balance between catchy/hooky and dissonant cacophony. Shades of SIX FINGER SATELLITE."

12) BLACK MOTH SUPER RAINBOW - PANIC BLOOMS "Discovering this band a few years ago (via my buddy/bandmate MIKE) was like finding the perfect pair of shoes (ones that never stop changing colour). This album is basically just more of their specific brand of lo-fi, psychedelic awesomeness. Perfect, in other words."

13) THE FINAL AGE. - S/T "My buddy JEFF pointed me in the direction of these guys. I believe it's a side-project from the drummer of ANTHROPROPHH. A sweet collection of psych/motorik jams. Sounds somewhat improvisational but the tunes never outstay their welcome."

14) THE DIRTY NIL - MASTER VOLUME. "When I see pictures of these guys, I really feel like I should stick to my own boring, old music, k grandpa? But dammital, these whippersnappers can write a catchy tune. And the vocals? Ugh! The perfect melding of singing/screaming. Lil punks. I bet they do drugs and kiss girls and shit."

15) THE GREAT SABATINI - GOODBYE AUDIO "Been a fan of these guys for years now, been lucky enough to share the stage with them a couple of times. I've always enjoyed their stuff but, on this album, they've really raised the bar. So much of it just hits the nail right on the head. Super sludgey and heavy but damn catchy at the same time. Runner up for best lyric of the year - 'I'm a sensitive FUCKING artist!'. Indeed."

16) DEAD SEA APES & ADAM STONE - WARHEADS "Awesome collection of sounds here. One minute post-punk, the next a 10 minute psychedelic exploration. Bleak and humorous at the same time."

17) VOIVOD - THE WAKE "An incredible release, especially considering how late in the game it is for these guys. They've certainly had their ups and downs, musically speaking, so a quality album is not always guaranteed. No two ways about this one though - they swung for the fences and scored big time. This is super heavy on the DIMENSION HATROSS vibe with shades of other releases (NOTHINGFACE, ANGEL RAT) thrown in. I'm so glad this band still exists and I'm even more glad that they're still awesome."

18) HUMANITIES - UNNATURAL HISTORIES "A fantastic group of people making incredible music. Another band I've been fortunate enough to play many a show with. I had a feeling that they were gonna come out with an even better release than their first EP (which, don't get me wrong, is awesome) and they did just that. Still the same 90s post-hardcore slant but with an interesting blend of 80s post-punk/goth."

19) FAILURE - IN THE FUTURE YOUR BODY WILL BE THE FURTHEST THING FROM YOUR MIND "My initial reaction to this (and all post-reunion FAILURE for that matter) had been pretty 'whatever'. My theory here is that they, as songwriters, have matured whilst I, as a FAILURE fan, have not. I want more MAGNIFIED, is what I'm saying. Anyways, as they doled out the EPs that eventually made up this album, I kept listening. And kept listening. Some real good songs on here. As a whole, it really works for me. It ain't the classic stuff, but it is damn good."

20) UNIFORM - THE LONG WALK "More amazingly overdriven post-punk with an industrial edge to it from this duo. This would probably sound like R.E.M. if you canceled out all the distortion. I tried and failed to see them this past year."

21) DEATHSTICKS - DEATHSNACKS "I had the pleasure of sharing the stage with this local-to-Ottawa duo earlier this year. They became one of my new favourite bands about halfway through their set. This release is a 2-song single but the CD (which I ordered from them via bandcamp and they responded by personally dropping it into my mailbox) compiles many other tunes from past releases. Seriously weird noise-rock/hardcore. Kinda funky in places. Lots of old-school BUTTHOLE SURFERS vibes here and there. Very cool."

22) BUMMER - HOLY TERROR "An awesome blend of noise-rock and sludge-metal. Super catchy and anthemic. Great big stinky riffs."

23) PHLEG CAMP - BRAVE NEW WAVES SESSION "A nice lil blast from the past from an incredible band that never really got their due. This recording is from the early 90s. Portions of it have been released before but never the full recording. Now we have it and it is glorious. Thanks eh, CBC!!!"

24) PERHAPS - HEXAGON "I came across this thanks to FRIDAY MORNING CAR-TUNES (hosted by JOHN WESTHAVER on CKCU every Friday from 9:30am til 1pm). Very cool blend of psych and motorik."

25) EMMA RUTH RUNDLE - ON DARK HORSES "I've been seeing this pop up on more than a few best-of-2018 lists. It confuses me as to why. Not because of how this album sounds but by some of the unremarkable garbage it's surrounded by on said lists. I guess she's achieved a certain badge of coolness, which is good because her music is amazing and should be checked out by many people."

26) HELLFIRE DEATHCULT - BLACK DEATH TERRORISTIC ONSLAUGHT "I came across this just through hitting the old "Fans Also Like" button on Spotify over and over again. This band is like PORTAL with one foot stuck in reality. Most of the metal that gets championed lately is so boring. Way too clean and way too long-winded. This recording is, I'll admit, absolutely ridiculous. But awesome at the same time. I'll take this super-sloppy, overdriven shit over some 5 - 7 minute black metal opus. Stop pretending that shit is awesome."

27) DEVIL MASTER - MANIFESTATIONS "A very strange recording. Elements of old school thrash/death with a guitar style that verges on post-punk/goth. The vocals are drowned in reverb. To describe this as 'heavy' would be a bit of a stretch but it definitely has a lot of those elements. I kept coming back to this just because it had a sound that was so compelling."

28) CITY HUNTER - DEEP BLOOD "Hardcore/grindcore with a serious obsession with 80s slasher movies. The song titles and the packaging and the entire presentation would be right at home sitting in the horror section at VIDEOFLICKS."

29) APHEX TWIN - COLLAPSE EP "More reliably awesome tunes from MR. JAMES. No end in sight to his genius, it would seem!"

30) HENRY BLACKER - THE MAKING OF JUNIOR BONNER "I've been super into this band since I heard their 1st album a few years ago. This, their 3rd, is more of the same good stuff - super-sludgey riffs upon riffs, 70s SABBATH style. Cool vocals too, always with the same weird harmonizing effect on them."

31) GREBER - CEMETERY PRESTON "A fantastic duo, bass and drums, not to mention dual vocals. Super feral, aggressive as all hell. Seeing them live is the aural equivalent of being beaten to a pulp. They're also 2 of the sweetest guys you'll ever meet. It's awesome when you have friends who make incredible music."


HONOURABLE MENTIONS - CONVERGE, TEENAGE WRIST, MIND SPIDERS, WAKE, SLEEP, GROUPER

There were a few bands who had releases out this year where I thought it would be a no-brainer as far as enjoyment went. The AMEN DUNES album did absolutely nothing for me. I've enjoyed his stuff a lot in the past but with this one, I went from ignoring it to being annoyed by it. People were flipping out over the return of DAUGHTERS, another band whose past releases I am still super into. Nope. I don't hear it. And that UNCLE ACID album. Another solid band with solid releases, especially their last one (NIGHT CREEPER). This new one, it ain't bad but there's just nothing on there that sticks out. And finally, HIGH ON FIRE - is there really any point anymore? Their albums are interchangeable. I hate to say it but we all know it's true. Happy new year.