|
User
Reviews 1
Approval 100%
Soundoffs 21
Album Ratings 676
Objectivity 57%
Last Active 05-08-20 8:13 pm
Joined 06-18-11
Review Comments 220
| 2013
Favorites from 2013. It definitely was a great year for music. | | 25 |  | Scale The Summit
The Migration
Scale the Summit never fail to impress. The Migration is an excellent release that
shows Scale the Summit utilize what they do best-- make beautiful, progressive
metal music, and incorporates a lot of the atmosphere and tone from "Red Forest"
into the album, which works quite well.
Favorite song: Atlas Novus | | 24 |  | Lorde
Pure Heroine
The album that has everyone talking. The teenage pop sensation is adorable in
terms of music and looks, and the album is incredibly infectious.
Favorite song: (of course) Royals | | 23 |  | Laura Stevenson
Wheel
As I've warmed to female vocals over the past year or two, I've started to really
enjoy stuff like this. Wheel is a beautiful folk release, and the songs are really well
crafted. Laura really pours her emotions into the songs, and as a result the album is
significantly beautiful.
Favorite song: Journey to the Center of the Earth | | 22 |  | Locktender
Kafka
This album hasn't gotten a lot of reception, but I feel it is one of the better
releases this year. Strong post-metal atmospheres that are dark and brooding
whilst interspersed with beautiful moments. Overall, a great release.
Favorite song: Aphorism #17 | | 21 |  | The Circle Ends Here
The Division Ahead
The Circle Ends Here are relatively unknown, and it's a shame. They sound like Amia
Venera Landscape in a way, and their newest album is a fantastic release in that
vein. The songs are written very well and the album feels both dramatic and
intense. A great release.
Favorite song: Monument | | 20 |  | Vali
Skogslandskap
Vali is an instrumental master. Whilst listening to Skogslandskap, I felt as if I was
being immersed in a lush, yet deep, dark, and mysterious forest. The neo-folk
atmosphere is fantastic, and Vali's guitar skill is quite impressive. Certainly one to
check out.
Favorite song: Nordavindens Klagesang | | 19 |  | Cloudkicker
Subsume
Subsume takes everything released by Cloudkicker since Beacons and melds it all
into one, surprisingly cohesive and powerful album. The merging of the different
styles from Let Yourself Be Huge, Fade, and Beacons works to create an intense
and dynamic work. Easily my favorite Cloudkicker release since Beacons.
Favorite song: A Weather Front Was Stalled Out in the Pacific -- Like a Lonely
Person, Lost in Thought, Oblivious of Time | | 18 |  | Coheed and Cambria
The Afterman: Descension
A satisfying part two to Coheed's Afterman story. The songs, once again, are in a
similar vein to GAI, and the pop structures and catchy melodies help the album stay
in your head days after you've last heard them. Awesome album.
Favorite song: Away We Go | | 17 |  | Steven Wilson
The Raven That Refused to Sing
Steven Wilson really needs to get Porcupine Tree back into full gear, but until then,
his solo work will have to do. Thankfully TRTRTS is Wilson's best solo work to date.
The progressive element shines here, and Wilson's penchant for melody and
dynamics is heightened on songs like "Drive Home" and "The Watchmaker." Wilson
delivers an astonishing and heart-wrenching performance on the album's title track
as well. Overall, a great, great release.
Favorite song: The Raven That Refused to Sing | | 16 |  | Volcano Choir
Repave
Justin Vernon proves to us all that Bon Iver isn't the only outlet he can succeed in.
Volcano Choir's newest release is a lush album with similar flairs to Bon Iver, Bon
Iver, but with all new twists. Overall, the album is a definite success, and hopefully
Vernon continues to showcase his creativity in various outlets, as he has proven
here he can craft excellent work without the looming Bon Iver title.
Favorite song: Alaskans | | 15 |  | Touche Amore
Is Survived By
Touche Amore have always been a band I've enjoyed, and it wasn't until this album
that they really began to hit me. Is Survived By is entirely an emotional affair that
utilizes lush guitar playing with passionate, screamed vocals. A fantastic post-
hardcore release and Touche Amore's best overall.
Favorite song: To Write Content | | 14 |  | Vampire Weekend
Modern Vampires of the City
A fantastic alternative rock/indie-pop album that showcases Vampire Weekend at
their strongest, creating music that is upbeat and quirky. A really sweet album.
Favorite song: Worship You | | 13 |  | The Reign Of Kindo
Play With Fire
Another excellent release from the finest progressive pop band out there. The jazz
styling of their work helps the band create incredibly catchy, smooth, and unique
music. Definitely the band's best work yet.
Favorite song: Sing When No One's Around | | 12 |  | Gorguts
Colored Sands
Colored Sands is heavy, hard-hitting, and ballsy. Gorguts craft an atmosphere of
plague and darkness, which is both fantastic and also somewhat unsettling. Despite
this, the album flows along tirelessly with a torrential downpour of riffs and growls,
making for a fantastic listen.
Favorite song: Colored Sands | | 11 |  | Biffy Clyro
Opposites
Biffy's newest double album is an album that shows Biffy at their strongest, easily.
The songs range from upbeat, fun, quirky, depressing, intense, tragic, and
beautiful. Biffy show so many sides of themselves on this release and it helps the
album stay balanced and cohesive despite its length. As a whole, Opposites is a
fantastic release, and Biffy's strongest yet.
Favorite song: Accident Without Emergency | | 10 |  | The Ocean
Pelagial
The Ocean's Precambrian was a fantastic album. While listening to it, it was as if
the listener themselves were being submerged into the murky depths, with no hope
of escape. Their following albums lost this sound, and as a result were a bit of a
disappointment when the band had so much going for them before. Pelagial brings
the band back to a state of excellence-- the music focuses on the atmospheres
and soundscapes created by the various instrumentation and the incorporation of
vocals at the perfect moments. The album is, once again, a journey into the depths
of the ocean, and this time the album provides hope for rising again. Overall a
melodic, beautiful journey.
Favorite song: Bathyalpelagic II: The Wish in Dreams | | 9 |  | Typhoon
White Lighter
I'd never listened to Typhoon before this, but this album was gold. The songs are
quirky and interesting, and some of the melodies are just fantastic. The vocalist
has an excellent voice that compliments the music well and overall the album is just
well-crafted.
Favorite song: Artificial Light | | 8 |  | Foxing
The Albatross
Another release that caught me off guard, Foxing's The Albatross is a beautifully
crafted album that is both a testament to the amount of feelings you can create
through simple guitar chords and the ability of a band to produce something that
others can relate to.
Favorite song: Rory | | 7 |  | There Will Be Fireworks
The Dark, Dark Bright
Well, this album came out of nowhere. Combining post-rocky goodness with tinges
of indie, post-hardcore and a soundscape similar to that of American Football, The
Dark, Dark Bright is an incredibly intense release that focuses on heavily emotive
lyrics alongside gorgeous music. The album is simply beautiful. The vocalist gives an
impassioned performance, and overall the album shines bright.
Favorite song: Rivers | | 6 |  | Alter Bridge
Fortress
In a year where all of my old, favorite bands from my younger years produced
either disappointing or abysmal albums (Avenged Sevenfold, Trivium, Dream
Theater, etc.) Alter Bridge decided that they would release easily their best album
yet. The album is melodic, heavy, and progressive in a sense. With two of their
longest songs to date on the album, Fortress shows Alter Bridge on top of their
game, creating songs that play to their strengths. This is no Creed clone, boys.
Fortress is a game changer in the world of hard rock, and stands as one of the
year's best.
Favorite song: Calm the Fire | | 5 |  | Deafheaven
Sunbather
SUN BAT HER. The album that has been praised on so many levels and also
unashamedly bashed to the ends of the earth. Black metal purists don't like how it
incorporates black metal into the overall post-rock/shoegaze style, and post-
rock/shoegaze fans aren't as into the black metal. But the people that enjoy the
blending, like me, easily fall in love with the soundscape presented here. Through
moving melodies, powerful screams, and sampling that sounds like it belongs on a
Godspeed record, Sunbather creates an atmosphere of hope and brightness despite
its association with black metal. Deafheaven's previous album was excellent as well,
but Sunbather is a step up, and hopefully a step forward to where Deafheaven will
continue to shine.
Favorite song: Dream House | | 4 |  | August Burns Red
Rescue and Restore
I've been a fan of ABR for a really long time, and Constellations was always one of
my favorite metalcore releases. I knew the potential these guys had-- they stood
out in the metalcore crowd, and they incorporated various experimentation into the
genre that allowed them to craft heavy, yet melodic and powerful songs. Leveler
was a slight step back for them, and I feared that with an album being released so
soon after Leveler and Sleddin' Hill (which actually ruled, but 'twas a Christmas
album) that their sound would stagnate. Boy, did they surprise me. Rescue and
Restore is easily their best release. The emotional lyrics, the heartfelt vocal
performance, the experimentation-- everything is fine tuned and carried out in a
way that speaks volumes. With Rescue and Restore, ABR have sealed themselves a
spot very near the top of the metalcore genre.
Favorite song: Spirit Breaker | | 3 |  | The National
Trouble Will Find Me
I got into The National early in 2013-- the year that I fell in love with the band. I
spent more time listening to albums by The National then I did any other band. I
could connect with The National on so many emotional levels, and being a baritone
vocalist myself, Berninger's voice resonated with me. They eventually worked their
way to being one of my favorite bands of all-time, and Trouble Will Find Me is
another excellent release that shows why. They blend emotional resonance with
laid back guitar work, fantastic drumming, and an overall unique sound. While they
may not sound exactly like the band from Alligator, The National's sound has
evolved in a way that allowed them to flourish and become one of the best indie
rock bands out there.
Favorite song: Pink Rabbits | | 2 |  | Protest The Hero
Volition
The fan-funded Volition was incredibly well-received by critics and fans alike, and it
is quite easy to understand why. The songs are melodic, catchy, and full of
amazing guitar lines, packed with Rody's intense and powerful vocals, with a
backbone provided by fantastic drumming. The album is like a blending of the high
points from Fortress and Scurrilous and overall the incorporation of different
elements that make the songs feel individual and unique is certainly a plus. A
fantastic album.
Favorite song: Clarity | | 1 |  | Haken
The Mountain
Haken have always been one of my favorite progressive bands since I first
discovered them a few years ago. I really liked Aquarius, and Visions was absolutely
outstanding. However, from the second I heard the clips from "The Mountain", I
knew this would easily become my favorite Haken release. The songs are melodic,
beautiful, and the vocals float atop the music with majesty, bringing everything
together in a wonderfully cohesive way. Every song sounds like a journey-- a
metaphorical, perhaps intrinsic journey; each song on the album is a step upon the
path, detailing various phases in life and the emotions felt whilst living. This was
the only album that has ever inspired me to review an album, too, so there's that.
Favorite song: Because It's There | |
ShitsofRain
01.07.14 | year was great | Observer
01.07.14 | yeah 77777777. wish i had found it last year though heh | afergusonart
01.08.14 | thanks guys
@Ponton, yeah it would've been nice to have heard it earlier, it was a late addition to my list |
|
