Tag: Best Of

The year is almost finished and it is time for my end of the year list, made by myself with extreme care. This list contains my favourite music of the year and is about 50 releases long. It was very difficult to make a selection but I really tried to add only the stuff I thought was exceptionally good and so ended with a really long list but I could not delete more bands, I just could not.

As you probably know this lists contains mostly Noiserock and Psychedelic rock and things that fit in between. Their is some very intense and heavy stuff but also some trippy chill hypnotic tunes although I believe this list is heavier then other years.

If there are bands on this you haven’t heard off I strongly suggest you check them out and that you buy the stuff you like to support the artists because they can use it in this sucky year.  Most of the links are bandcamp links so if you click it you can buy straight of the bandcamp page. 

I hope this list will make your end of 2020 a bit better, warmer, noisier and trippy.

Oh Sees

Ah Yes, Oh Sees or Thee Oh Sees or Osees or one of these names. One of my favourite bands on the planet. They have released three albums this year and all three of them are awesome and some tracks are more chill and kraut others are wild garage and psych.

Shifting

Extremly awesome Irish noiserock. Easily one of the better noiserock records of the year.

Population II

Quebec rockers Population II released their album on Castle Face Records (the label from John Dwyer from Thee Oh Sees) and it is a refreshing take on Kraut and psych and instantly one of my favourites of the year.

Reptoid

Jordan Sobolew is Reptoid. Reptoid is Jordan Sobolew. Reptoid is a one man noiserock deity. Reptoid is pure, raw, industrial tinged heaviness. ‘WORSHIP FALSE GOD’ is Godlike noise.

Metz

‘Atlas Vending’ is a bit different then their previous albums but they are as ferocius as ever and this album may even be more evolved. Metz is one of the leading noiserock bands in the universe and with this album they have proven it again.

Mong Tong

Mong Tong 夢東 are a trio from Taiwan with  the Brothers Hom Yu and Jiun Chi  who also play in ​Prairie WWWW​ (落差草原 WWWW) and Dope Purple. And now they released their new album ‘Mystery’ on Guruguru Brain. influenced by scifi/horror flicks and filled with samples and Taiwanese influences this album is extremely original and a fun listen from start to finish. They have released two albums this year, the latest one ‘Corps of light’ is more meditative and ambient. 

Blóm

Fast, wild, noisy and in your face punknoise. A very cool sonic rollercoaster. Listen to it and tell your friends and pets.

Locean

‘Top Ten Zen Meditations’ is all about amosphere, feelings, and intensity but it is most of all a very layered album wich makes you discover new dimensions with each listen. A brilliant album!

Napalm Death

I guess everyone knows who Napalm Death is. But this album, good lord, this album is goooood.

Moon Pussy

This is some groovy noiserock, riffs that wanne make you wanne wiggle. Buy it, you get a Cookbook with it too.

France

This is the most hypnotic album of the year. carefull if you press play, you can easily lose yourself for an hour or two.

Dirty Junk

Very dirty music, very very dirty.

Modern Technology

Riffs so heavy and slow it is difficult to do something else then lay on the ground and you let it destroy you.

Exhalants

Exhalants are intense and do not dissapoint. Very awesome riffs that keep on giving.

BENT ARCANA

The band is John Dwyer, Ryan Sawyer, Peter Kerlin, Kyp Malone, Brad Caulkins, Tom Dolas, Marcos Rodriguez, Laena “Geronimo” Myers-Ionita, Joce Soubiran and Andres Renteria. Together they make this jazzy and krauty stuff that is really nice for the ears.

Bruges

Bruges creates a very eerie atmosphere on their new records, one that easily grips you vy the balls and does not loosen.

Fuzz

Ty Segal and his buds made this really cool records that filled with heavy psych and garage with some winks to Black Sabbath.

Couch Slut

Fast paces, riff fueled noiserock of the highest order. Wild!

Pretty Lightning

Always been a fan of Pretty Lightning, their hypnotic tunes are very good in their louder strongs as in their softer tracks.

Black Pus

lack Pus is a one man band, and that one man is Brian Chippendale (you know, the drummer of Lightning Bolt). And he is back with a new album that is called ‘Def Vesper’ wich is a series of improvised songs, first thought/best thought, recorded over a few days from 2/18-2/28/20 on a Tascam 424 cassette 4 track.

Alex Maas

Frontman Alex Maas of The Black Angels released his first solo album called ‘Luca’ and it is a gorgeous psychedelic folk album.

Blacklisters

‘Fantiastic Man’ is a fantastic album. I said it.

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

‘K.G.’ is a really good psych album and I am really glad we got at least on king Gzzard this year. 

Gary, Indiana

This newish trio has only three songs out yet but it sounds so promising it has to be on this list. 

Bruxa Maria

Noiserock so loud that is almost grindcore.

Casual Nun

Not so casual rock, filled with psych and noiserock. Cooler than you or your friends.

Cower

The humans in this new band called Cower are also known from the other bands they play in, Gareth Thomas plays in USA Nails/Silent Front, Wayne Adams in Petbrick/Death Pedals/Big Lad and Thomas Lacey in Yards/The Ghost Of A Thousand. Together they mix new wave, gothic and noiserock.

Kooba Tercu

Tribal and ominous. Kooba Tercu can mold sounds into something very psychedelic and intense.

The Psychotic Monks

The French band has proven yet again how strong their songwriting is on their new album ‘Private Meaning First’.

Luminous Bodies

Luminous Bodies (Terminal Cheesecake, Part Chimp, We Wild Blood, MGF, Melting Hand and Gum Takes Tooth)  released “Nah Nah Nah Yeh Yeh Yeh” on Box Records and is deranged rock for deranged people.

Frankie and the Witch Fingers

Frankie and the Witch Fingers make fast paced garage and psychedelic rock and are getting better eacht time they release something. 

Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs

Thunderous riffs, stoner and noise on this great new record by PigsX7.

USA NAILS

The notoriously hard to google London band USA NAILS returns with their noisy postpunk wich offers eleven tracks of furious and noisy punk.

Michael

Michael is made up mostly of Bad Guys, Notorious Hi-Fi Killers, Hag, Lucozade, Black Shape and Princess Headbutt members. give it a spin, you will be addicted instantly.

Fake Indians

Fake Indians are a band from Antwerp, Belgium with and insane level of rocknroll, heavy fuzz and punk atmosphere. “The Pest” is one of those albums that is impossible to pin down, to much energy, to much of a fuck you.

All Them Witches

All Them Witchers is one of these bands that are always good for me, the music from All Them Witches always swings between psychedelic rock, blues rock and stoner and it is always good in my opinion. I always love their softer tracks too, on most albums you get a track like that and this time we get ‘Everest’ and ‘Children of Coyote Woman’

Eye Flys

Long ango I listenened mostly to metal but for years now I have been listening mostly to psych and noiserock and here and there some metal albums but I have to say this Eyes Flys band with members of Full of Hell, Backslider and Triac and stuff brings it all back for me. This is just no nonsense riffing heaviness. 

DEAD

“Raving Drooling” is an album made of riffs, riffs that we need, that you need, riffs that i am pretty sure could save us against the virus, they are so heavy and dense they could level a building with the first chord of the first track. 

S.H.I.T.

S.H.I.T. makes really really dirty hardcore punk, the kind that sounds vomity and agressive

SEX SWING

Type II” is out on Rocket Recordings! The album by Sex Swing (members an contributers from Mugstar, Bonnacons of a Doom, Part Chimp, Dethscalator, Earth, Dead Neanderthalls and Idles and who the hell knows who else) is released and is a ominous feast. The music Sex Swing makes is something in the psych/noise/postpunk spectrum but it is pretty bleak, their is an unnerving atmopshere throughout the whole album

Raspberry Bulbs

Well this is quite something, this NY band is called Raspberry Bulbs and makes the most dirty punk and noiserock I have heard in a while. Their music is raw, catchy and really really dirty. Their new album “Before The Age of Mirrors” is freshly released and contains 13 tracks of singalong heaviness, you can just feel the fuck you punk attitude dripping of this record.

Wasted Shirt

It is not so surprising that this new album “Fungus II” by Wasted Shirt (Ty Segall and Brian Chippendale) is extremely enjoyable. These are two are masterperformers and original rockers that have released a crapload of awesome music in the past. Put these two together and you get some kind of fast paced noise and garagerock. This LP is superfast and superfun to listen to.

Crowd of Chairs 

Very intense Belgian noiserock!

HEADS.

Heads. released their new album ‘Push’. This German trio has upped their game it seems after their previous album ‘Collider’. This album is a perfect dose of noiserock and postpunk. The chaos and agressive guitars combine perfect with the vocals. This album is really strong, the sound quality is superb and the tracks alternate between brutal and eerie postpunk.

Lovely Wife

Ominous drone and saxy sound + evil vocals. Yes Please.

Mummise Guns

Mummise Gunes is made of members of Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, Terminal Cheesecake, Luminous Bodies, Casual Nun, GHOLD, Black Shape, and Michael. I expected a lot and I got a lot.

Human Worth Vol I and II

The first release from Human Worth kinda blew my mind.  The label put together and incredible list of artists that each gave a track, a new one or an unreleased one or an older one. The compilation is to raise money for the Trussell Trust, to help support the food banks and people who need their support at this time of crisis.

Now only shortly after the release of the first volume (and the new album by Modern Technoly, wich is immense) we got the second volume. Now all proceeds for the second record are going to Harmless (To provide support, information, training and consultancy to people who self harm, their friends, families and professionals). 

Cronies

New York Cronies make noiserock infused with heavy psychedelia. They have not only released a new EP, they have fited us two!

Modulator II

very fuzzed out French heavy psych.

Skiska Skooper 

Fuzzed out Belgian heaviness!