1) In the span of one hour, I am going to walk away with 10-15 albums I had never even heard of before that I need to listen to immediately
2) I am going to hate myself and the music I listen to
It has got to be one of the most toxic environments on the internet, everyone is so high on their own dicks and the obscure drone/noise they listen to and they will tell you how lame your music is. Now, it's (mostly) all tongue-in-cheek and pretty funny at first, but the constant negativity eventually creeps into my head when I spend a few days on the site. I start thinking while listening to music, "Is this cool? Is this obscure enough? Do I like this only because it is manufactured to my taste like a Big Mac is manufactured to taste delicious? Am I challenging myself with this record?"
Isn't that fucking nauseating? I eventually break away from the site and remember that we like music because we like it, and everything else is bullshit.
After the cycle described above, I am still left with the 10-15 new albums I never knew existed, and there are always some gems amongst them. Here are the best finds from this month's foray into the /mu/ shithole:
Did you know Sigur Rós released a new album this year? I had not even the slightest. Kind of goes to show how tired this band had gotten, perhaps. Thankfully, the band has shifted their sound on this one, albeit not as drastically as many would have you believe. On Kveikur, the band sounds more aggressive at times, almost noisy, but still retain that good ol' Sigur Rós whineyness that we all love. If you liked Sigur Rós before, there's a good chance you will love this album. If you weren't a huge fan before, this one isn't going to sway you too far.
This is being called a cross-over black metal hit, bringing non-metal fans over to the... pink side. The tracks on here are around 9 minutes in length, so there's enough time in each song to squeeze in parts I love with other parts I don't care for. But all-in-all, I think this is a solid release. I tried unsuccessfully to get into black metal last year, so I can safely say this is the best black metal album I've ever heard. So that's something!
Deafheaven - Dream House
This album is funky as shit! It's got electro-noises, awesome tribal drumming, and the funkiest saxophone riffs that will make you think you are on acid. No, Mom I've never taken acid. But check out this album to see what I mean. However, by the end of this album, I was mentally exhausted. I hope that was just due to the number of new albums I was charging through and not so much the album's fault. Because it is damn fun.
Melt Yourself Down - Fix My Life
This album is really weird. When I first heard it, it sounded as if he were playing in a subway tunnel 100 yards away. Everything is really muffled, and half the songs are ambient pieces. I haven't listened enough to really develop an opinion, but oftentimes my favorite albums just leave me with a "what the hell was that?" feeling after I heard it the first time, so I am excited to revisit.
Dirty Beaches - I Dream in Neon
The Drones - I See Seaweed
This album rawks. This band has a "fuck it we'll do it live" feel to it. It's kind of like Wilco with a punk vibe (that's really the worst analogy, but it's all I can think of at the moment). I am really optimistic for this album to get many, many listens in the near future. It's probably my favorite album of all the ones I mentioned in this post. I don't have much to say yet because this one probably deserves it's own write-up.
The Drones - I See Seaweed
Fuck Buttons - Slow Focus
I didn't find out about this one on /mu/. In fact this was one of my most highly anticipated albums of the year. Unfortunately, due to /mu/'s onslaught of so many new albums, I haven't given this one the attention it deserves. I can tell you it feels somehow even more massive than the previous two albums from this duo, and my head bangs hard when I listen to it. My first impression is I enjoy Tarot Sport more, but it was gonna be hard to top that one in my head anyway. Check this one out if you love obliterating your eardrums.
Fuck Buttons - The Red Wing
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