Music – Page 12 – Disaesthetic

Best of 2017

Kendrick Lamar on BET

This is it, my top three of the year. Deciding the final order has me fidgeting even now, unsure if I’ll feel differently next year. It should be obvious who won out. So many on this list were so deserving of consideration. Any of these albums could top the list not just this year, but most years. These artists just happened to produce some of their best work during the prime of this generation’s greatest poet.

Julien Baker
Turn Out The Lights
3

Well after midnight one evening in December of 2015, I sat at this community table smoking cigarettes. Nothing felt like it was working. I wasn’t in a band anymore, I couldn’t find a job, Karlsberg and my grandfather had passed away, and something felt off about my girlfriend. Everything was about to change, but I didn’t know it yet. I didn’t understand everything I was going through and what I was about to face. I found empathy in Julien Baker’s debut album.

It came out of nowhere, like everything I was going through. I remember listen to “Something” and wondering why my eyes got so wet. Her raw and bare expression said everything you ever wanted to say, but couldn’t. Sometimes we can’t find the words, can’t discern the thoughts, or maybe we’re too afraid to speak.

I saw her two weeks ago in front of a sold out crowd at The Irenic. We all stood in silence, hanging on her every word. When she raised her voice, the hairs on your neck jolted. So much power coming from this frail-looking woman. When she spoke, her voice was quieter than sneaking back home without your folks finding out. Watching her erupt shocked you. There’s so much strength, yet it looks like she’s barely even hitting 80 MPH. She can hit another level if she wanted to.

I walked away from that show with my roommate, both in amazement, from just hearing her for the first time two years ago to seeing her live. The hold she has over a listener equals her control of a live audience.

Turn Out the Lights, the follow-up to Sprained Ankle, finds Baker still mastering her unbreakable emotional grip over listeners while expanding upon her sound. There’s a bit of church infused on this new project. Pianos, strings, organ, and some passion for faith. No, it’s not a religious album. Baker goes to church and played music in church. Naturally, it’s influenced her style.

Photo by Angela Owens

The first single, “Appointments”, leads the album in with new ingredients. The effect-doused guitar loop layered over the piano melody lets Baker reach into you deeper. One can make out the themes right away. I can relate to working through the isolation and duality between depression and happiness when our time with someone in life or death leaves us.

“Televangelist” dismantles into barrenness. There’s simply piano and Baker’s voice rising at a measured pace. The metaphor here is one of shame and condemnation. Baker, openly gay, tattooed, and whatever else preachers on TV damn people for these days, probably takes some reproach.

In reviewing lyrics and reading interviews, I learned about Baker’s struggle with addiction. “Happy to Be Here” and “Claws in Your Back” dive deep into overcoming mental illness, drugs, and depression. I’ve never abused hard drugs but I have had my own issues. Cigarettes in particular. It’s better now but I still can’t get past a month without incident. I’ve had other challenges too but I’ve gotten past the worst of it, I’m happy to say.

My favorite track “Shadowboxing” symbolizes fighting our own invisible conflicts no one can see. The chorus unleashes Baker’s beautiful voice with equally earnest lyrics. Read them for yourself, so this next part makes sense. For me, I enjoy a woman’s attention. I’ve been fortunate this year and grown more confident in myself, but there’s still room to grow. As much as I enjoy having mutual interest, I yearn for someone to go out of their way for me. I’ve never had that experience and maybe if someone did move heaven and earth just for lil’ old me my confidence could break an old barrier.

Maybe after all the progress I’ve made this year I won’t need a miracle like that. I’m far more comfortable going after what I want. I’m not as skilled at the pursuit as I’d like but I’m improving steadily. I’m not afraid to say I worship Julien Baker’s work. It’s tough to say you love someone you don’t know, but I’m in love with the idea of her. Our experiences aren’t the same but I feel a kinship with her, just as her audience does. Experiencing Turn Out the Lights is church without damnation. Just love.

Turnover
Good Nature
2

I haven’t seen this one on anyone’s list, nor did I expect to. Turnover were just another solid band on Run For Cover’s impressive roster. I’d heard some of Peripheral Vision, not everything, but enough to dismiss them. I thought of them as a solid band, but not anything of what I’m about to say.

If it weren’t for the next album, Good Nature would have been my top album. I played it more than any other record this year. Most of this list champions artists sharing their private and vulnerable experiences. Things most of us never share with anyone, let alone publicly. Turnover deviates from everything on this list and what I normal enjoy.

Good Nature emanates joy. My mood improves whether I’m groggy or having the best day ever when I play these songs. Nothing negative can infiltrate these vibes.

Genres get created every day, but dream pop is an apt description for Turnover’s sound. They lull you into the most joyful fantasies. Singer Austin Getz has said “Super Natural” made him feel relaxed when they wrote it. Fitting that he made it about romantic love. Call it dream pop or whatever you’d like, I find the experience romantic. It sets a mood of being with someone with no superficiality.

Turnover

“Nightlight Girl” affirms romanticism isn’t about pussy or whatever Top 40 music wants us to celebrate. “Your bones have curves, your skin’s got lines, and that’s the way that you were designed.” I hum that to myself every time I hear it. I’m not looking for some social media, Tinder facade in a mate. These natural perfections draw me. All of these songs talk about living in reality, which we try to escape, rather than appreciate the goodness of the world and not just its quandaries.

Look this one’s simple compared to the rest of this list. I’m at ease when I put this on wherever I am or whatever mood I’m in.

Finding re-listenable albums in the streaming era seems futile. It reminds me of losing cable television. Living with my parents, I could always find Lord of The Rings and relax for a few hours. Good Nature is one of those rare experiences. You’re in all the way for forty-two minutes. Even if it turns up on shuffle or a playlist, you’re in for that song at least.

What I enjoy most though, is the allowance to daydream about the experience of being with someone again. I look forward to private moments of being together and building an experience. Perhaps I’m building up an impossible fantasy but why dream at all if you don’t have any real goals or hopes of what you want in life? Put maximum effort and energy into your desires. For me, even if I fail, I can live with that, rather than asking what would have happened if I tried.

Kendrick Lamar
DAMN.
1

“I think a player in his time is going to be great in all circumstances” says Howard Mudd, famed Offensive Lineman Coach, of Dick Butkus. I hope I don’t need to tell you who Butkus is. Watch this if you need to. I think of certain musicians in the same way. It doesn’t matter when or where they rose from. These people have timeless talent. Whether it’s destined or a blessing, these are the ones who outlive themselves.

I’m ready to call Kendrick Lamar the greatest artist of his generation. He’s the most important and notable musician of this decade. DAMN. crowns him the throne and the honor that comes with it. I’ve likened him to Metallica in the past, through each album release. To Pimp a Butterfly is his …And Justice for All.

Both push their makers’ ambition and abilities to the very edge of their abilities. James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett never played more progressive and challenging guitar. Those lyrics attack the glory of war, cherished laws, and legal processes. Kendrick raises the collective fist of Black America, infuses freeform jazz, chronicling the social climate of those ideas, and the coming Trumpian future.

After pushing yourself artistically to the best of your abilities, what’s left? Metallica asked themselves that question entering the nineties. You can play fast forever but someone will always come along and play faster or better. What’s left? They responded with a record that stands up against any record past, present, and future with The Black Album. I compare Kendrick with them because their narratives mirror each other.

DAMN. established him above everyone else, if anyone doubted him. Drake may always sell more records and have more temporary popularity, but he’ll never carry Kendrick’s reverence. No one has the same level of important albums in this decade.

The first single “HUMBLE.” made it clear that, not only would this be his year again, but he had a song as timeless as “Enter Sandman” or any Beatles song. I’ve heard friends and critics downplay in comparison to TPAB but, in the words of Rick Bobby, if you don’t like “HUMBLE.” then fuck you. The track hooks listeners like heroin to an addict. “DNA.” does the same. It’s the most furious track in Kendrick’s repertoire since M.A.A.D City. Also, who doesn’t dig the Rick James sample?

Kendrick on BET

These songs aim for every ear. I give Kendrick a lot of credit for “LOYALTY.” and recruiting Rihanna as the feature. It abandons an M.O., at least that I’ve had for him. I wouldn’t expect him to work with someone I don’t regard with his artistic legitimacy. The combination works and gives Kendrick a recognizable radio song while giving his catalog more diversity. “LOVE.” also adds more dimension. It’s a pop/r&b song but it’s not something I’ve heard him try on M.A.A.D City or TPAB with its simpler chorus and overall palatability.

“XXX.” should satisfy TPAB fans with its free ranging structure. There are a couple of different songs in one here. Much like TPAB, each part seems as arbitrary as a jazz song, but the mess masks the intentional confusion to the uninitiated. This album seems meant for those who were just discovering or are still somehow unaware of Kendrick. Bono’s appearance seemed random at the time, but now it makes more sense with how they’ve worked together.

Just this month, the Collector’s Edition came out, reversing the initial track list order, which we came to find out was how the album was meant to be released. It’s like two different albums, even though the songs are the same. I enjoy the Collector’s Edition experience better. “DUCKWORTH.” and “GOD.” prologue the coming adventure better.

You can transition from TPAB‘s “Mortal Man” straight into the Collector’s Edition. It’s seamless. Starting with “DNA.” fits better with the current political climate. More abrasive and incensed. How you want to experience DAMN. depends on how you’re experiencing America today.

Either way, Kendrick created the best album of 2017. I must say, in another year where Kendrick doesn’t release a studio album, Julien Baker and Turnover would have won this spot. 2017 had so many great albums. There were obviously so many left off this list. They’ll get their dues elsewhere. Kendrick deserves this acknowledgement. This year helped solidify him as the greatest artist of this generation.

Best of 2017: #4-6

The Gentlemen of Hodera

Real Estate
In Mind
6

For my first vacation as an independent adult, I visited Japan during Golden Week. The country enamored me. Even just sitting on the Shinkansen, watching rice fields and cities pass by made me forget everything back home. It was a long overdue pilgrimage. Real Estate’s In Mind became the soundtrack to my travels for the week I was there. Something about its easy, calm vibrancy perfectly fit how at peace I felt five thousand miles away from home.

I can sum up my entire serene experience through “Holding Pattern”, the theme of my train travels. Think 70’s J-Rock with its warm guitar tune and hint of psychedelia. The fuzzy guitar hook sounds as pleasant as Japan and its people. I can’t help but reminisce about my stay at Deer Guesthouse, smoking Lucky Strikes and drinking Orions with Andrew. We’ll forever cherish our time in Nara, its indigenous deer, and treasure the coolest host ever, Yamamoto. Hope to see that guy again someday.

Real Estate made one of the best albums of this decade, in my opinion, with Days. Their last effort Atlas didn’t quiet hold up over time. In Mind, however, moved into new artistic spaces for the band.

They utilized synthesizers heavily like never before. The opener, “Darling”, introduces oscillating synths right away, foreshadowing the rest of the album. “Serve the Song” drenches a mellow song in phaser effects. This album possesses Real Estate’s established brand of indie rock which is treated with new dreamy soundscapes and far out grooves, man. Normally I’m not one for psychedelic rock, but it’s balanced here for those not dropping out, like me.

These songs sound as Japanese as The Pillows at this point of their careers. Different bands but both share the same Nippon vibe.

Admittedly, without my visit to Japan, In Mind wouldn’t rank this high. It’s definitely their second best album and I sense it will age well with me. The connection to my trip makes this album so important in canonizing my year. It’s the soundtrack to one of the highlights of the year, and of my life.

Japandroids
Near to the Wild Heart of Life
5
It’s almost been a year since Japandroid’s third studio album came out. Staying relevant this long for my annual list seems so unlikely. Human nature says we’re more likely to prize something fresher. Near to the Wild Heart of Life could easily wither away into memory but seeing them play in LA last year, their first American show in three years, and then again in March back home, made them a fixture.

Check my in-depth review here. I concluded Wild Heart needed time to marinate and would likely take several listens to stick. Many months later, I play it regularly on vinyl.

These tracks all hold up as a collective, a point I’ve focused on with albums in 2017. I’ll take eight strong songs instead of sixteen tracks with half or more garbage/filler tracks. “North East South West” sounds better now than when I reviewed it in February. Perfect song for a road trip through the American Heartland. Think Springsteen and Mellencamp. The verse on “Midnight to Morning” still hooks me. “No Known Drink or Drug” reminds you Japandroid’s simplicity is what makes them a special group.

Reviews varied heavily between writers upon release. Those who praised the record found its ambition to grow in the studio appealing, where detractors thought they lost their piss and vinegar. I understand both takes. Seeing them live, however, proved they’re still premiere performers. Celebration Rock soundtracked the indulgence of drinking Four Lokos and smoking cigarettes with my friends while growing into my twenties.

Wild Heart came out four and a half years later. I’m 26 now and I don’t drink out in the parking lot anymore. I’m entering my late twenties now and I go to bed at a reasonable hour, usually. I give kudos to The Guardian for perfectly naming it “emo-rock for adults.” It certain fits my own mantra. I’m a grown up emo kid now.

Hodera
First Thing First
4
“How do you find these bands?” asks Greg, one of my best friends. I shrug triumphantly like I’m Michael Jordan. I’ve set myself up on the proper channels to make sure new and up and coming artists hit my radar. Hodera showed up on a Facebook ad. They had just over a thousand fans, if I remember correctly. I knew when I heard “Baltimore” for the first time that these guys were already special. They painted the night you met a lover. Everyone tries to do it but few do it as vividly as Hodera.

I think about the ones who have passed through my life. You remember how fulfilling it felt. Makes me want to keep trying.

Reading the vinyl insert validated my affection for them. These guys cut their teeth playing basements in New Brunswick, New Jersey, like my favorite band, Thursday. Something about that area fosters bands who connect so personally with people.

First Thing First reminds me how urgent Full Collapse felt fifteen years ago. “Out of Sync” hominizes my mid-twenties existences. I think about growing up with Bro Gang and missing spending everyday with those guys. If everything could ever feel this real forever, maybe I would know what true happiness felt like.

It’s such a passionate beginning to a sincere and complete record. “Highways” and “Four White Walls” makes you examine yourself. I asked myself constantly what the fuck am I doing here or with this goal. Realizing that you’re working through obstacles helps keep the faith you’ll shed all the grime and find the gem you always were. Sometimes it feels impossible to see or believe in the best of ourselves but we are who we choose to be.

“The Saddest Sentence” owns a special place among these songs. Very light on lyrics but more powerful than most tomes. One composed thought can damage us so much. “I can’t do this anymore” or “Jesus wept” fill in the blank for yourself. That idea holds so much ground with me, and always will.

Hodera hasn’t toured out west yet. I asked them on Facebook if they planned on visiting San Diego anytime soon and got a nice wink to stay patient. I don’t care if I’m the only one who buys a ticket. I will buy mine as soon as they go on sale.

Best of 2017: #7-10

Reba Meyers // Credit: Marshall Amps

This is my second favorite time of the year, just after summer time. You get all the special holidays, NFL playoffs, and the NBA season getting more serious. I find time slows down more learning earlier this year it’s a great time to vacation. Everyone’s broke by new year day. I look forward to going somewhere next year. I’ll never forget my religious in Japan but I think I need something more… tropical I’ll say next time. Vacations add to the plus column for this time of year.

Ranking my favorite albums of the year though, a tradition like Christmas eve. I’ve listed the best each year since I got started buying songs on iTunes almost ten years ago. I wish I had archived my old tumblr posts before deleting the entire account. I started extensively writing back in 2010 after joining a journalism class my senior year of high school. Check out my favorites last year. I fortunately listed previous years on my listography. Take a look before proceeding with this list. Those old lists archive where my tastes were that year. I look back ever year to remind myself of where I was.

Perhaps that’s why I find myself doing this each year. I’m anthropologist. Music says a lot about us individually and culturally as a society. Look back twenty years later and you’ll find music always tells the story of that year, and those times. My lists have evolved from me just gushing over albums I really liked into recognizing where I am now and how that might speak to the rest of us. I really hope you enjoy these entries below, at least a fraction of how much I reveled in writing this. Four through six next week!

Uniform
Wake in Fright
10

“Everyone was saying it was morning in America. Someone had to say, ‘It’s fucking midnight man!'” Vic Bondi said on the American Hardcore documentary eleven years ago. Just like then, we’re in another Reagan-esk climate where life gets crueler for most and the wealthiest among us retain and further ingratiate society’s resources. I’m not here to get political, only to indicate when people like Trump, the Koch brothers, or any other oligarch shatters the glass of society its pieces always reflect the eventual revolt.

When I see Black Flag’s four bars I’m reminded to never surrender. Symbolically its a way of life. The primal roar of Uniform and the image of their cross and scythe represents the same anarchy towards society’s numbness to cultural issues. Wake in Fright confronts a world on fire. There’s no amnesia with these guys about any moral that’s melting. “Tabloid” mobilizes the blood flow with Ben Greenberg’s buzzsaw guitar ripping flesh like Kerry King in Slayer. Michael Berden’s voice sounds like a smelting factory or burning witches.

Just two men and a drum machine make the sound of chaos for an audience. It’s a contemporary version of hardcore punk in the early eighties.

“The Killing of America” defines the band’s social voice yet sounds as gruesome as the subject matter. If Slayer orchestrated the symphony of war, Uniform would fit perfectly in percussion section. The music video shows every mass shooting in America by location. According to the Gun Violence Archive, in 2016 there were 383 mass shootings resulting in 432 mass shooting deaths. The reality and art match in unison. Most of the big publications have no awareness about Uniform’s unapologetic attitude to bring the worst of society into their art.

I haven’t heard another artist speak so directly to issues like gun violence since Uniform emerged. The urgency in their records and live show breath the kind of real life we’ve been missing since the original wave of hardcore.

Cigarettes After Sex
Cigarettes After Sex
9

A few years ago Cigarettes After Sex seemed like some bedroom gem I found on Bandcamp. Never thought they’d have a sold out a show in San Diego. Thankfully I won’t miss them again but they’re charging twice the price now, and why shouldn’t they? Obviously their sensual bedroom jams caught the attention of audiences across the county. They’re selling out multiple venues and embarking on a world tour next year. Their self-titled debut is a hipster foreplay soundtrack after a night out on the gentrified neighborhood, i.e. my North Park experience.

I haven’t seen the same level of appreciation I have from other publications. After another album release the Pitchforks of the world will probably trip all over themselves to praise how great this band is now. No, they were good 5 years ago, got serious in 2015, and put together a debut far ahead of bands together for three or four albums.

“Apocalypse” sounds exactly like waking up with someone you just met last night. He or she doesn’t have to be anywhere. You don’t want them to leave, so let the infatuation take over. You’ll find this theme throughout. They’re not breaking any kind of new ground in the love song department but Cigarettes After Sex have established themselves as the hipster millennial heart-ache band. Listen to “K” which sounds exactly like its title; a disappointed text message.

I can’t pick these albums each year simply off one single. When I hear an album I’m looking for some kind order or theme, but most importantly coherence. Not just talented people making great songs but the sculpting of a finished product. No filler tracks. Everyone song placed purposefully. On their first record Cigarettes After Sex don’t just manage but excelled beyond the years of their existence. I can’t stress enough this is their first album and on the level of bands multiple studio albums.

They’re simply impressive and I’m excited to see them next year. I get a great sense of satisfaction doing these lists with bands I remember putting great work when no one was paying attention. Well they’re listening now.

Joey Bada$$
All-Amerikkkan Bada$$
8

In a few years I might regret only putting this eighth. Joey Bada$$ popped up on my radar five years ago with his 1999 mixtape. Still one of the best summers of my life. His vibe recalled conscious rap from the early nineties. Think Nas and Tupac. All-Amerikkkan Bada$$ modernizes his influences for today’s political and social landscape. Just take “For My People” his best song to date and an anthem for all time. It’s one of the best songs of the year too. Joey throws respect to Jay with “I don’t wanna be good, nigga, I’m tryna be great.” There’s a positive unionizing theme that’s easy to remember and vibe with.

“Temptation” borrows more from Me Against the World than anything else. Zianna Oliphant’s speech in the intro gets my eyes a little wet when I even think about it. Joey has a knack for tapping into your emotions in the beginning of songs like this one. In the first verse there’s a great diss at Drake “I really came up from the bottom. Strugglin’, my momma on her last dollar.” Drake started in acting and made his way as a rapper. Joey made his way a couple years ago on Mr. Robot with a reoccurring role.

His ability on this record to utilize his influences and add more anthemic pop sensibilities makes him a unique individual. Joey writes songs now to reach the ears of the world, not just the rap community. He’s becoming more like Jay-Z than any other MC.

“Y U Don’t Love Me? (Miss Amerikkka)” and “Devastated” feel more uniquely his own than heavily influenced by the nineties. Miss Amerikkka finds Joey hating America in one breathe but longing for it to love him back. It’s a bit more ambitious than the rest of the project and doesn’t try any pop gymnastics. I enjoy the album being front loaded with “singles” or hits and the back end features traditional riffing with Schoolboy Q and J. Cole. More for the people than the masses.

As great and raw as 1999 was it didn’t have these kinds of captivating elements. It had all the pure lyricism but not the advanced song crafting. Clearly Joey matured past being a kid making mixtapes. He’s starting to master song writing. He’s not good, he’s great.

Code Orange
Forever
7

I’ve admitted over the past few years feeling distant from metal. When I quit City of Crooks in 2015 I started checking out of the scene. I’m not one of these pretentious “I grew up” guys. I still love certain bands. Meshuggah and Metallica made some of my favorite albums last year and of their careers. I totally missed the boat on Fallujah last year. It’s just not dominating my ears like in past years. Rap, indie, and everything else impacted me more. This year even more so. There’s only one heavy record on this year’s list, a first for me, but it’s a seminal career defining album.

Code Orange appointed themselves among the elite heavy bands on the planet. In my opinion the number one live act you should go see right now. I bought tickets to see them with Meshuggah January 29th at The Wiltern. It’s going to be a wet dream to see these two nuke Los Angeles that night. I missed them coming through San Diego with Gojira and couldn’t miss them again on an even better ticket.

Forever like I mentioned before is already critically acclaimed. I wrote a review back in February. If you want in depth analysis I encourage you to read my piece. I prefer to talk about its impact since the release. The album is universally praised by their peers. When Randy Blythe, Lamb of God, loves your album that’s all the justification you need.

If I could draft a band for a chaotic anything goes group I’d pick Reba Meyer. She can sing beautifully and thrash on guitar with the best of them. Watch her performances on social media since Forever came out. The whole band devastates every performance but she’s the one leading it. They’re special as a group but she strikes me as the mastermind, especially as a fan of her side project Adventures.

I can’t get over how fucking slow metal publications are on these guys. Metal Injection called the album “a little inaccessible at first” while drooling over other chaotic projects. This is far more accessible than anything Nails or The Dillinger Escape Plan has done overall. Find me a better metal album that’s more artistically pleasing in every way.

The musicianship is insane, yet it crosses over into popular territory earning them a Grammy nomination. Say what you want about the academy, the acknowledgement to me says it all and hopefully a win will say even more.