As 2014's twilight draws close, I noticed one glaring thing: I just don't know that I have the same emotional connection with heavy music as I once did. Startlingly few "heavy" or "extreme" albums quite hit that dark, melancholic and relatively dramatic spot that I've noticed seems to resonate most with me through years of obsessive music listening. That's not to say that I didn't enjoy many metal albums I heard, for varying reasons, but I didn't feel like many of them affected me, or made me think about anything other than taking another drink of my beer and telling whomever might be listening alongside me that I think a riff or two are pretty badass. Maybe it's shifting taste, over-saturation with heavy music as a part of my consistent touring schedule as a musician in a heavy band, or just not hearing the right things, but putting it plainly, I felt more moved, inspired and attached to albums from other parts of the musical spectrum.One caveat: As I've become more involved with recording and performing my own band's music around the world, I've found myself listening to fewer and fewer new albums, which saddens me. I feel like I used to be much more attuned and attentive to new music, but this year, not so much. As a result, this is not quite a comprehensive list, so much as a small manifest of albums I felt mattered.Sharon Van Etten - Are We There
No other album in 2014 had the immediate, and lasting impact on me that this one did. I came back to this LP over and over, with the same awe of how well the songs are composed and orchestrated, how beautifully the vocals harmonize, how deeply the lyrics cut and just how startlingly better this album is than Van Etten's previous records, in my opinion. I was truly blown away by this record and nothing else came close. I knew from the first listen that nothing else could match the outpouring of heart-rending honesty that I heard in this.Bohren und Der Club of Gore - Piano Nights
I've been a fan of Bohren for many years, and their expertise in the darkest shades of slow-motion Lynchian jazz fusion hasn't waned, even if its current spirit casts a subtler shadow than previous records like Geisterfaust or Black Earth. This record feels sexy to me; even with all the smoky, noir-heavy themes contained within, there's a lightheartedness to it that is alluring and even a little playful.Martyrdod - Elddop
This album just flat-out rules. This was my favorite "extreme" album that I heard this year. I listened to it while I was on tour in Europe, and was really taken in by how compelling and inventive the songwriting felt, especially for a style of music that has always been fairly static -- Swedish punk, complete with relentless downbeat drumming. Some moments within the interaction of the guitars bring to mind Dinosaur Jr., and I'm not even sure why; I guess it feels like these guys just really love what they're playing and it shows. I can't think of another album that I've heard in quite some time that just makes me want to drink beer, headbang or furiously air guitar (or all of the above) like this one.YOB - Clearing the Path to Ascend
To me, this album is the final word in declaring YOB as one of the legendary heavy bands of our generation. Much as albums like Through Silver and Blood and Times of Grace cemented Neurosis as an absolute cornerstone of creative, moving and spiritual heavy music, in my mind Clearing the Path to Ascend leaves little doubt that YOB has fully arrived in a similar capacity. On top of their already monumental discography, it feels like YOB has delivered a masterstroke that shows they are wholly themselves, existing outside of any influence other than their own past, and, in a way, are carving out a future for themselves by venturing into completely new territory like that explored on the gorgeous and stunningly contrite album-closer "Marrow," everyone's rightfully favorite song of 2014, so it seems. This record excites me for what will come next for YOB. The fact that they're reaching new heights this far into their discography is wonderful as a listener and inspiring as an artist.Wovenhand - Refractory Obdurate
I expected this to be my album of the year, and it was not. That was a little disappointing, but, didn't exclude it from being a great record regardless. My disappointment stemmed mostly from the left-turn of Wovenhand's transition from the dusky, Eastern-tinged mysticism of the past two albums (which, alongside the self-titled debut, are my favorites) into a grittier sound seemingly informed primarily by heavy post-punk. David Eugene Edwards' wild-eyed prophecies are still in full effect here, and I believe this record is a worthy addition to a nearly flawless discography, despite it not being the record that I initially hoped to hear.Strand of Oaks - HEAL
I'm new to this record, and one could argue that maybe its inclusion here might be premature, but I listened to it based on reading that a couple of songwriter Timothy Showalter's favorite records of the year were Sharon Van Etten's Are We There, and my own band's album, Foundations of Burden. This seemed like reason enough to give this record a shot, and it ended up being a varied collection of raw, honest and often beautifully written pop-informed rock-and-roll songs that I quite liked. When I reached the "Wake Up to the Light," I was fully sold on this record, and I ended up having to hit repeat several times, so I could keep taking it in. It sounds like this guy has listened to a lot of dad-rock in his lifetime, and so have I. I'd like to drink a beer together sometime and talk about how much I love virtually any band that's named after a city, country, or continent.Sun Kil Moon - Benji
I have mixed feelings about this record. I love it, but it feels embarrassing sometimes. Not because of the music, or from seeing it as a guilty pleasure, I don't believe in that sort of thing. I feel embarrassed because of just how far Mark Kozelek was willing to put himself out there. The lyrics are so exposed, naked and devoid of any sort of attempt to portray himself as something other than a very flawed human, throughout his life. I just can't fathom that willingness to show that to the world. I write about personal things too, in my own songs, but they're camouflaged within layers upon layers of (hopefully) impenetrable imagery, because I don't want people knowing more than I'm willing to reveal of just how flawed I sometimes believe I am. With the added context of Mark Kozelek's constant contrarian behavior this year, it's hard not to have an altered view of Benji, like he just wants people to think poorly of him, even at the cost of his dignity. That said, deep down part of me wants to somehow manufacture some form Pallbearer/Sun Kil Moon twitter beef, since Kozelek seems ready to entertainingly take offense over virtually anything these days.SWANS - To Be Kind
First off, I didn't really like SWANS' previous album The Seer all that much. It seemed overlong, lacking in any real direction and made me wonder why Michael Gira decided an album full of half-hour, bludgeoning hyper-minimalist jams was a good direction for one of the greatest bands ever. But, To Be Kind totally restored my faith. It felt like the same formula, but with many of the things that irked me about The Seer completely adjusted into what I wished that record could have been. For such a massive undertaking of a listen, I found this record to be totally engaging, sometimes harrowing, and in moments, even titillating, with a return of the underlying muted, but ever-present sexuality that has pervaded much of Michael Gira's body of work. If I could visualize this record, it reminds me in many ways of Eyes Wide Shut. To me, the song "She Loves Us" defines the word primal within the context of rock music.Adam Faucett - Blind Water Finds Blind Water
Adam Faucett is a singer-songwriter from the Little Rock area (like myself) and I'd like to think I'm not even a little bit biased on this one. He's my current favorite artist from my area, and this record encapsulates a lot of why Arkansas will have a piece of my heart no matter where I end up in my travels as a musician and living situation as a human. I know that's an incredibly murky description, but Adam's evocative writing and impassioned performances, on this record (and others), as well as in the live setting, speak volumes beyond what I could hope to describe in this small space.Godflesh - A World Lit Only By Fire
Godflesh is still Godflesh, and all will be right for the coming post-apocalyptic climate of planet Earth if they just continue to be Godflesh.
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No other album in 2014 had the immediate, and lasting impact on me that this one did. I came back to this LP over and over, with the same awe of how well the songs are composed and orchestrated, how beautifully the vocals harmonize, how deeply the lyrics cut and just how startlingly better this album is than Van Etten's previous records, in my opinion. I was truly blown away by this record and nothing else came close. I knew from the first listen that nothing else could match the outpouring of heart-rending honesty that I heard in this.Bohren und Der Club of Gore - Piano Nights
I've been a fan of Bohren for many years, and their expertise in the darkest shades of slow-motion Lynchian jazz fusion hasn't waned, even if its current spirit casts a subtler shadow than previous records like Geisterfaust or Black Earth. This record feels sexy to me; even with all the smoky, noir-heavy themes contained within, there's a lightheartedness to it that is alluring and even a little playful.
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This album just flat-out rules. This was my favorite "extreme" album that I heard this year. I listened to it while I was on tour in Europe, and was really taken in by how compelling and inventive the songwriting felt, especially for a style of music that has always been fairly static -- Swedish punk, complete with relentless downbeat drumming. Some moments within the interaction of the guitars bring to mind Dinosaur Jr., and I'm not even sure why; I guess it feels like these guys just really love what they're playing and it shows. I can't think of another album that I've heard in quite some time that just makes me want to drink beer, headbang or furiously air guitar (or all of the above) like this one.YOB - Clearing the Path to Ascend
To me, this album is the final word in declaring YOB as one of the legendary heavy bands of our generation. Much as albums like Through Silver and Blood and Times of Grace cemented Neurosis as an absolute cornerstone of creative, moving and spiritual heavy music, in my mind Clearing the Path to Ascend leaves little doubt that YOB has fully arrived in a similar capacity. On top of their already monumental discography, it feels like YOB has delivered a masterstroke that shows they are wholly themselves, existing outside of any influence other than their own past, and, in a way, are carving out a future for themselves by venturing into completely new territory like that explored on the gorgeous and stunningly contrite album-closer "Marrow," everyone's rightfully favorite song of 2014, so it seems. This record excites me for what will come next for YOB. The fact that they're reaching new heights this far into their discography is wonderful as a listener and inspiring as an artist.
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I expected this to be my album of the year, and it was not. That was a little disappointing, but, didn't exclude it from being a great record regardless. My disappointment stemmed mostly from the left-turn of Wovenhand's transition from the dusky, Eastern-tinged mysticism of the past two albums (which, alongside the self-titled debut, are my favorites) into a grittier sound seemingly informed primarily by heavy post-punk. David Eugene Edwards' wild-eyed prophecies are still in full effect here, and I believe this record is a worthy addition to a nearly flawless discography, despite it not being the record that I initially hoped to hear.Strand of Oaks - HEAL
I'm new to this record, and one could argue that maybe its inclusion here might be premature, but I listened to it based on reading that a couple of songwriter Timothy Showalter's favorite records of the year were Sharon Van Etten's Are We There, and my own band's album, Foundations of Burden. This seemed like reason enough to give this record a shot, and it ended up being a varied collection of raw, honest and often beautifully written pop-informed rock-and-roll songs that I quite liked. When I reached the "Wake Up to the Light," I was fully sold on this record, and I ended up having to hit repeat several times, so I could keep taking it in. It sounds like this guy has listened to a lot of dad-rock in his lifetime, and so have I. I'd like to drink a beer together sometime and talk about how much I love virtually any band that's named after a city, country, or continent.
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I have mixed feelings about this record. I love it, but it feels embarrassing sometimes. Not because of the music, or from seeing it as a guilty pleasure, I don't believe in that sort of thing. I feel embarrassed because of just how far Mark Kozelek was willing to put himself out there. The lyrics are so exposed, naked and devoid of any sort of attempt to portray himself as something other than a very flawed human, throughout his life. I just can't fathom that willingness to show that to the world. I write about personal things too, in my own songs, but they're camouflaged within layers upon layers of (hopefully) impenetrable imagery, because I don't want people knowing more than I'm willing to reveal of just how flawed I sometimes believe I am. With the added context of Mark Kozelek's constant contrarian behavior this year, it's hard not to have an altered view of Benji, like he just wants people to think poorly of him, even at the cost of his dignity. That said, deep down part of me wants to somehow manufacture some form Pallbearer/Sun Kil Moon twitter beef, since Kozelek seems ready to entertainingly take offense over virtually anything these days.SWANS - To Be Kind
First off, I didn't really like SWANS' previous album The Seer all that much. It seemed overlong, lacking in any real direction and made me wonder why Michael Gira decided an album full of half-hour, bludgeoning hyper-minimalist jams was a good direction for one of the greatest bands ever. But, To Be Kind totally restored my faith. It felt like the same formula, but with many of the things that irked me about The Seer completely adjusted into what I wished that record could have been. For such a massive undertaking of a listen, I found this record to be totally engaging, sometimes harrowing, and in moments, even titillating, with a return of the underlying muted, but ever-present sexuality that has pervaded much of Michael Gira's body of work. If I could visualize this record, it reminds me in many ways of Eyes Wide Shut. To me, the song "She Loves Us" defines the word primal within the context of rock music.Adam Faucett - Blind Water Finds Blind Water
Adam Faucett is a singer-songwriter from the Little Rock area (like myself) and I'd like to think I'm not even a little bit biased on this one. He's my current favorite artist from my area, and this record encapsulates a lot of why Arkansas will have a piece of my heart no matter where I end up in my travels as a musician and living situation as a human. I know that's an incredibly murky description, but Adam's evocative writing and impassioned performances, on this record (and others), as well as in the live setting, speak volumes beyond what I could hope to describe in this small space.Godflesh - A World Lit Only By Fire
Godflesh is still Godflesh, and all will be right for the coming post-apocalyptic climate of planet Earth if they just continue to be Godflesh.