Show Review: The Know's 7th Anniversary Weekend

So there was a seven day show event at The Know for their seven-year anniversary. All of the shows looked phenonmenal, but due to minimal funds I had to choose only two (each show was only $5, which says maybe something about my financial situation). So I chose the Friday and Saturday evening shows as they would not mess with my newly acquired job, and they got out at 11:30 which made for an easy evening. Other evenings features Trauma , Raw Nerves, Autistic Youth, and The Artic Flowers who I both really wanted to see, but hopefully they will play again soon. Friday and Saturday were both excellent, and am glad I got to bring in my first shows of the New Year with some rockin punk and hardcore. (note: not all of the videos linked are from the actual shows attended, just clips of other performances)

Friday Night: Tragedy, From Ashes Rise, and The Bi-Marks

So it had been a while since I have seen Tragedy and From Ashes Rise, and it feels like they haven’t event played in Portland since I moved up here. Anyways I quickly realized there was still a pretty vibrant punk scene in Portland, and the whole night was solid in terms of performances. So my memory of this set feels skewed by the second night in terms of memory impact, and I am excited to be seeing consistently solid shows.

The Bi-Marks opened up the show, never having heard them before, I was impressed. They didn't necessarily fit the description of a Portland punk band sharing the stage with the latter two bands. They had a lot more early NYhC, like early AF or The Abused, happening with some skate punk sensibilities at times. The singer had some great energy and just rocked out in the crowd the whole time. They seemed to get a good response from the crowd, and were a pretty damn fun band to watch. Their demo is recorded in a lo-fi manner, and their live sound is consistent with that but sounds much better. The demo is full of energy, but I will be more interested to see what official releases they come up with.

From Ashes Rise played second, and they sounded much better than the last time I saw them a long time ago in Houston. They played a lot of songs off of ‘Nightmares’ which is what I have mainly listened to. They played other scattered ones from their earlier discography, and  got a good reaction. I feel like most people know what these guys sound like, and why they are good, I still don’t feel they are on the same level as the following band.

The Tragedy set was easily the highlight of the night. It has been years since I have seen Tragedy, and knowing that they were possibly working on a new album had me excited to hopefully hear a little sample. So they started off with “Call to Arms” and quickly cycled through a combination of songs from the First LP and ‘Vengeance’ and eventually got into some songs I had never heard, and for the rest of the evening they played a majority of new songs that were phenomenal. I enjoyed ‘Nerve Damage’, but it didn’t quite  follow up ‘Vengeance’, and the new songs I hear that night sounded much more quality. I feel that paints ‘Nerve Damage’ negatively, and it is a good album, it is just hard to match ‘Vengeance’ which one of my favorites of the 00’s. Tragedy always plays their loud and crushing brand of melodic crust punk which is eerily catchy and anthemic. I am excited for them to put out a new album, and will definitely be catching them at the WITTR show next week.

That being said, this first evening was a great show, and was blown out of the water by the following evenings event.

Saturday Night: Rabbits, Fist Fite, and Nasalrod

So this was the more memorable night for me. Not that Friday wasn’t great, but I had seen those bands before and I was going into this show with no expectations for the first two bands. I had seen Rabbits a couple of times, and dug their new album, but had no idea at all what Nasalrod and Fist Fite would sound like other than rock n roll. 

Well Nasalrod came on the stage as I was playing pinball, and I thought I would finish my round before going to check em out, but a couple of songs in and I realize that I need to make my way in. I was engripped by the sounds of chaos, an experimental aspect I haven’t heard in punk rock in a long time. It sounded like a smoothie made of The Dead Milkmen, The Big Boys, a gallop of Meat Puppets, a little bit of Flipper, a touch of the Minutemen, and a splash of Orange Juice (the band) would taste against the lips of your eardrums. As I creeped my way through ha thick crowd of people to work my way into the back, I am barraged by a wave of manic energy coming from the stage. The front man, Chairman, is all over the place, taking the classic moves of frontmen past and mixing it with with the theatrics of a vaudeville act. Taking the energy of the punk, and combing that with the erratic nature of the experimentalism, you get what I imagine would be a Randy Biscuit-esquelsd (if you are into that sorta thing). Here's a few clips from some of their earlier shows! Oh and if you don't notice, it is Spit Stix from Fear playing drums there.

Fist Fite come up next, and all I really know about them is they are supposed to be kinda like some “grimy rock n roll”. Grimy Rock n’ Roll is a good description, but it was more than I expected. So I will start off by saying that I bought there album that they released a few years back or so, and they have become something much better. The cd features their keyboardist/singer and drummer, and since then they have added a Guitarist and Bassist. They resulting mix in their new songs are some awesome gothic stoner surf tunes that are being played by a desert hippie while a lady goes between soulful crooning to some sludge-laden screams. It is some great horror themed rock that combines multitudes of heaviness into one. Their album was not that impressive, but I will say I look forward to whatever they may have coming up. 

Rabbits ended the evening, and they performed excellently, and I feel the newness and exciting nature of the opening two bands has skewed my perception of the Rabbits set. It was great, but it did not match the wow factor of Nasalrod, nor Fist Fite. That all being said, they are consistently a great band and a heavy band. Their drummer is one of the most enjoyable people to watch play of any local Portland band. He puts a lot of energy into the sets, and he hits the pieces super friggin hard. Rabbits played a solid mix of songs off their latest album, and wrapped up the night 

Overall it was a great weekend, and a great way to start off the new year. I wish I had made it to a few more of the shows that were at the Know, but hopefully there will be more opportunities to see all those local bands involved. 

Link: SFMTC Vol. 14 - The Know's 7th Anniversary Special

SFMTC Vol. 14 - The Know's 7th Anniversary Special

01. Nasalrod - Discoke
02. Tragedy - Beginning of the End
03. Arctic Flowers - Fall to Pieces
04. Trauma - No Hope No More
05. Fist Fite - If You Were a Bird and I Was a Fish
06. The Bi-Marks - Young Optimists Club
07. Autistic Youth - Deadbeat
08. Raw Nerves - Bleeding Toungues
09. Rabbits - Burn, Sun, Burn
10. From Ashes Rise - Reaction
11. Nasalrod -  Parade
12. Tragedy - You Are an Experiment
13. Arctic Flowers - Cri De Coeur
14. Trauma - End of the World
15. Rabbits - No Depth
16. The Bi-Marks -  the Mouth Smiles On
17. Autistic Youth -  I Don't Believe
18. Raw Nerves - The Elegant Dance Of World Destruction
19. From Ashes Rise - The Face of Poverty
20. Fist Fite - Goodnight in Clackamas

In CrustWe Trust!

(Crusties)

So, in light of this past weekend’s show of Tragedy and From Ashes Rise, I have not been to a crust punk show in a while. Since leaving Texas I have not met many people into the music up here in Portland, which struck me as odd since it seemed like it was the Crust Mecca in the early 00’s. What’s crust punk you may ask?? Well you know those individuals who are the vegan eating, all-natural living, cigarette smoking, back patch wearing, non-showering, odor stenching, hair dreadlocking, septum piercing, street living, hooch making, train hopping, anarchist loving, GOP hating, pamphlet giving, food not bombing, sometimes begging punk rock kids?? Well if you do or you don’t, they are the ones who make crust punk music. Now that may not necessarily describe the sound but it does give you an image of what the core fan base that the style is name after is like. (Note: Crusty punks are a specified population amongst crusties, as not all crusties are punks. Crusty punk could also be synonymous with the term gutter punk)

So with all that being said, there are a lot of fans of crust punk that don’t fit into that image, at least all of those qualities. I consider myself a fan of the crust punk, and would say most all of those things minus a few (you decide) do not describe me. It is the music that has drawn me in, and for the most part the message as well. I consider myself a pretty leftist individual, and most crust bands have adopted that political ideology, and some of them take it to the left leaning extremes. The lifestyle that comes with being a crusty can involve many different things, but let’s first examine the squat.

(Squat)

Ahhhhhh good ole Squats… a common place of residence for crusty punks, street kids, old hippies, hobos and crack heads (noted all of the above could also describe one individual). Squats vary from place to place and town to town, but the common principle is you have a place that a whole bunch of people are staying at without paying rent. As you can imagine it does not present for the cleanest of living environments. On a given day you could find a 17 year kid vomiting up loads of free vegan food he ate at food not bombs off the side of a dirty mattress after he had decided to rage a little too hard on some Night Train and Tylenol pm, or a scraggly lookin' dude named Troll whose missing a couple of teeth and shooting up in the corner and then promptly wetting himself. You would probably find a lot of dogs, stray or claimed, walking around and defecating. Don’t expect electricity or running water either, but every now and then you might be in luck do to timing or craftiness. If you decided to walk around just make sure to wear your shoes.

(an alright squat)

There are some alright squats, and some folks do ok limiting the complete dirtbaggery to a minimum, but it’s kind of hard to regulate a place no one owns, unless you got some muscle. Squats could definitely be a violent place, and crusty punk kid’s aint always the roughest of cats. Sure they talked like they could handle their own, but most of these kids are suburbanites who are rebelling against mommy and daddy republican-corporation lifestyle so they decide to skip out on a train or runaway with their older heroin addicted significant other named Kraven(male or female) to live in a roach infested house that is falling apart. They didn’t grow up in the streets and sure as hell can’t handle themselves as well as those who did. Needless to say when you are squatting, you don’t start shit with someone who has been stabbed 4 times and has a rusty screwdriver in his hand.

(Squat)

So what kind of buildings are squats in? Any kind of building! It could be a shitty apartment complex, an old factory or warehouse, a foreclosed business or house that has been vacant and pretty much given up on, and so forth. Squats for the most part don’t last too long, and will eventually get busted up, or ratted out. Police are known to come in and bust it up with some baton action, and crusty smashin.

When away from the squat you will rarely find a “true” crusty punk working, as most have smells and appearances that would prevent them from getting the most basic of jobs that our society has to offer. More likely you will find them on some sidewalk, alley way or street corner, usually in proximity to a venue, shelter or popular drinking strip, hanging out with a small group and multiple dogs (93% of crusty owned dogs are pit-bull mixed breeds). They will usually ask for some change or to bum a smoke, and aren’t too persistent if you just keep walking and shrug your shoulders and give a look of “sorry brah, just smoked my last one”.

(Street Kids probably smokin'

Crusty punks are stereotypically smelly (it’s kind of hard to shower when you live in a place with no running water), and their clothes are worn for long periods of time without the use of cosmetic odor enhancers. Crusty’s are also known to be of the freegan lifestyle at times, although I feel most will eat meat as long as they aren’t the ones paying for it. Crust punks like to wear black… but I guess so do Goths. Either way the lifestyle of crustys does vary, the thing that they all have in common usually is the love of crusty punk.

So while there is this image and stigma that accompanies the styles name and the people who are usually associated with it, crusty punk is one of my personal favorites of the punk rock genus. Crust punk is the evolution of d-beat, anarcho punk, and certain styles of metal melding into one. That in combination with lyrics that typically surround bleak views, and sociopolitical themes, with topics such as animal rights, militarism, feminism, oppression, and fascism commonly found, all come together to create a fuel angst brand of punk that is unforgiving and unmistakable

(Discharge)

Tracing back the roots, you would probably find the beginnings of crust punk in the bands Discharge and Crass, two seminal English punk bands that helped to develop punk rock in a more intense direction. When you think of English punk initially you probably think of Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, X-Ray Spex and The Buzzcocks. Musically and ideologically, Discharge and Crass took what their predecessors were trying to do, and made it more of a punch in the stomach rather than a slap on the wrist. Crass with their unique sound in combination with political commentary paved the way for anarcho punk, while Discharge produced a heavy and faster sound characterized by a prominent distorted bass tone known as D-beat. Japanese Hardcore and early Black Metal were to other influences on crust punk, especially in terms of vocal sound.

(Amebix)

Crust Punk emerged in the mid 80’s with bands like Amebix and Hellbastard leading the charge and they were the some of the first bands to actually be labeled crust punk. This was followed by more and more British band, Euro and especially the Scandinavian punk rock scene produce a large amount, and eventually America started to produce some great crust records. The scene itself started to blend and merge with other underground extreme forms of music such as the likes of grindcore, powerviolence and thrash. Crust punk had an influence on all of those scenes in sound, but especially in imagery and philosophically.

(From Ashes Rise looking Fashionable)

So, I know that I have painted a dirty image of crust punks, and it is true that there are a number that fit that description, but there are a lot of exceptions to the overall stereotype found amongst a large scene. Overall though I would say the crowd you may find at a crust punk show a bit more diversified, and probably only a small percentage of them are actually true “crusties”, in the more complete definition. There a lot of individuals who dress in the general crust image, which is pretty much the common idea of a punk look, have the general crust ideals, and just not be on the streets, as stenchy or jobless. You will also find crust attracts fans of metal and other harder oriented music. There are the “crusty punks” who have the general image, but you can tell they take care of their image and hygienically are more “on top of things” so to speak.

(Amy Miret from Nausea)

One other observation I have had from my time at crust punk shows is that there are more females involved than other types of hardcore punk, and that there is a fair amount of cute women. For myself, there is something kind of sexy about a crusty girl who has a pretty smile, and has a well-kempt appearance. Some have the potential to have been cheerleaders or sorority sisters, but they chose a more interesting outlet and social scene.

A lot of “crust punks” involved in the scene do have jobs, or some form of income (i.e. trust funds, drug dealing). A lot are involved with bands, labels, social causes, or can be found bartending, piercing, tattooing or other professions more acceptable for a dirgy look. A lot have their own places which range from a legit house or apartment to an empty warehouse they rent out and have turned into some form of a squat. So while there is this general image of crust punks being dirty and smelly, the glove may not always fit so tight (sometimes a little large, or small). The scene today varies in image, and it is still the music that draws in the various crowds.

Today it is still a relatively underground form of music  in what is still an underground scene (the hardcore punk scene in general). It makes sense, a lot of the music is very lo-fi, grimy sounding, and just can be a blast of noise (all of those can be great things). I can see it taking a specific musical palate to stomach a lot of the bands, and while I enjoy quite a bit of it, there are those that exceed most of the other in quality of release. I would find it hard to understand someone not liking Tragedy’s “Vengeance” (possibly my favorite release of the 2000’s), but there are a lot of people that just aren’t into it. Crust punk will always be an underground form of music, it doesn’t have the traits that would open it up to mainstream enjoyment, and that is how most crust punks and the bands like it. I understand that logic, you have something you enjoy and feel is untainted, and you help to mold it in a direction that will keep it that way. It is funny to see scenes fluctuate in popularity, and I feel there was a trend for a while to be on the crust bandwagon (probably around the time that Tragedy album came out), but I have been out of the loop for a while. The Tragedy/From Ashes Rise show was pretty packed, so there scene is still going in Portland, so get dirty, stay smelly, and enjoy this mix of delicious crust covered punk. 

Link: SFMTC Vol 13 - In Crust We Trust!

SFMTC Vol. 13 - In Crust We Trust! 

01. Tragedy - Conflicting Ideas

02. Totalitar - Kannibalerna

03. Aus Rotten - American Ethic

04. Electro Hippies - Sheep

05. Amebix - the Church is for Sinners

06. Discharge - The Blood Runs Red

07. Hellbastard - Death From Above

08. Antisect - Your Standard, Your Law

09. The Holy Mountain - Genocide

10. Doom - Police Bastard

11. Man is the Bastard - Blood Gutter

12. Wolfbrigade - In Darkness You Feel No Regrets

13. His Hero is Gone - Scare Tactic

14. Warcry - Mania for War

15. Copout - Burned Up

16. Union of Uranus - Pancea

17. World Burns to Death - ...In Fear of Your Bombs

18. Bastard - Misery

19.- Born Dead - The Last to Starve 

20. Disfear - The true face of war

21. Nausea - Inherit The Wasteland

22. Severed Head of State - An All-Consuming Void

23. Dropdead - Nazi Atrocities

24. Anti-Cimex - Smell Of Silence

25. Deviated Instinct - Mechanical Extinction

26. Crass -  Where Next Columbus_

27. Deathreat - Consider it War

28. Antischism - Salvation or Annihilation

29. Extreme Noise Terror - Bullshit Propaganda 

30. Disrupt - Subject to Suffering

31. Deathside - Cut The Throat

32. Dystopia - Green Destroyed

33. Capitalist Casualties - Drug Culture

34. Disclose - War is Insanity

35. Skitsystem - Pain

2011... The Year of the Rabbit

So each year we can always count on one thing: new musical releases from establish, new or upcoming artists. 2011 was no stranger to the imbedded trend of musical output coming in high volumes. The variable in this audible equation is the quality of the music, and thus overall the quality of the musical year. There are definitely years in history which can be partially definied by their musical output, and what was happening was so engrained in the culture that it is hard to separate. There are certain musical years which were lambasted at the time by critics, and hindsight has shown us that things change. Artists who were praised become riducled, and artists who people thought would fade out have remained in the spotlight.

So what kind of year did we have here in 2011? Was it a year of monumental releases, genre defining outputs or was it forgettable and underwhelming? It all depends on who you ask, and what they are into. While I would not say there were any milestone releases, or genre defining albums that came out, there was plenty of albums that deserve more than just a few spins and hopefully will be celebrated in the future as well. There was definitely a lot of fluff, garbage, and unmemorable hits of the moments that hopefully will be forgotten over the years to come, but we wont let that stop us from finding the sounds we love.

Over this past month I have been debating what my top releases of the 2011 calendar year were, and then narrowing that into my top 20 to write about. I have been debating on whether or not there were any new artists that just blew me away and had a breakout release (in my opinion). Were there any bands that just crushed it live and made a lasting impression? I think that one right there s the biggest thing for me. In my younger years I would see a live act once to twice a week, and these days it seems it is more along the lines of once a month. That being said I am still enthralled by live music, and a band that can translate the recorded sound to a live show, and also one that can convert the energy of live music to a recording are hard to find. To start out this best of segment we will look at what was my personal favorite show of the year.

Best Live Show:

10/08/2011 - Acid King, Premonition 13, Witch Mountain and Tomb Stalker

So I had been waiting to see Acid King for years, if you have read my Women of Doom post, you know that I have quite the affinity for their spacey take on doom metal. What made this show even more exciting was the amazing supporting cast that was put together for this event.

Tomb Stalker is a local Portland all female doom band. They changed their name to something else not quite as good, so I will stick to calling them TombStalker for now. This band opened the show just right, and set the mood for the evening. You can tell they are a young band, and have some areas to improve, but the potential

Witch Mountain is another band that I have been excited to see live. Their 2011 release South of Salem has been one of my favorite, and being a local Portland band I really enjoy seeing what this city is offering these days. Needless to say they did not disappoint. Uta Plotkin has such a lovely voice, and that translates live perfectly. As a singer, she has a kind of awkward whit girl dance stage presence that is all too adorable and fitting with the music, and is just as cute as can be. Music was heavy, sound was great, and the Elton John cover was spectacular. I am happy they are a local band and hope to see them in the new year soon!

Premonition 13 was touring with Witch Mountain and I just heard about this band due to this tour, but all I needed to know about them was one thing: Wino. The man has a solid resume, and so I trust most anything that he is a part of. Premonition 13 was overall solid and played very tight. Not my favorite Wino project, but still a great listen. Wino’s voice is so refined, and you can tell that he has been at this for years and perfected the 70’s metal voice. You probably wont find anyone who does it better now that Dio has passed. Overall a great performance!

Then the band of the evening came up, Acid King! As I stated, I have been waiting a long while to see this band perform. The crowd also seemed to wait in anticipation, and the moment that first note was struck the crowd helped to keep the energy flowing. Acid King was better than I could have asked them to be. I had pretty high expectations and they definitely surpassed it. Like Premonition 13, they just sound tight and polished. Not a note was missed or played incorrectly, the guitars and bass were heavy and feedback laden, and Lori’s vocals were hypnotic and just made you fall into a trance in which the bobbing of the head was inescapable. Overall the best set of the evening, from my favorite show of the year!

Runner Up: Youth of Today (reunion), Mouthpiece (reunion with Frosty guest spot) in Pomona, CA

There were some other great shows this past year, and one of my current resolutions is to get out and see some more live music, but I am at the mercy of what my town throws at me. That being said there are a lot of great local acts in Portland these days, and I unfortunately do not get to see them enough. We have Grails (who rarely ever plays in Portland), Witch Mountain, Tragedy, Rabbits, From Ashes Rise, Call of the Yeti, and a lot of other indie and folk bands but it’s the metal and punk rock that I have enjoyed finding out more so about from the area, and that brings me to my next acknowledgement.

Best up and coming and new(to me) band:  Rabbits

This is a local Portland punk/metal act that takes a lot of influence from the noiser and grindier aspects of the crusty/powerviolence sound, and some good heavy early neurosis influence. They released a new full length this year “ “ and it was a good listen, but live they put on a hell of a show. They are loud and on point, and full of energy. Each time I have seen them they nailed each of their songs, and even played a nice Black Flag cover to please. I am excited to see what they put out next, and to continue to get to see them locally a bit.

Favorite Song: "Lets Do Something Impossible" - William Elliot Whitmore

A beautiful and inspirational song, and each time I hear it my heart lifts up and a smile starts to form. W.E.W's voice is so comforting that when he speaks to you of triumph, of being able to reach your dreams, and having life throw you all the obstacles it can and it not slow you down, you cant help but believe him and feel there is some truth in what he is saying. This song prepares me to get through the heat of each day, and know things will be ok and it is what I make of it.

Favorite Movie: Red Dog (Australia)

So I just saw this movie pretty recently, and it was just an overall moving film. I did not see a lot of movies this past year, so maybe I cant speak as well on films, but I can tell you that Red Dog was a great one. It had character building, emotional hooks, and it had me tearing up throughout. I am also a sucker for dog movies, so if you are too then you should check it out. Acting was well done, and Australia is a very underrated film making country. One of the other great things about his movie was the soundtrack choice. It featured some good ole classic Australian tunes, namely a great singalong to The Dingoes "Way out West", which is one of the catchiest country rock songs of all time. That album is a very underrated one outside of Australia. Anyways Red Dog has a great cast, a great dog, great music, and just some fun stories.

So returning to the music talk, we were asking what kind of year 2011 was musically. Well, it was a full year and had a lot of sift through, but I dont think it was one for the running in greatest musical years. That being said there were a lot of great records released that should stand the test of time, and the year itself just seemed consistent without being overtly anticipatory or mind boggling. With the advancements in musical media, it has become much easier to obtain albums, hear about what is coming out, so it makes it much harder to check out everything, but easier to find more to check out. Puzzling aint it? Anyways I listened to a lot of new music this year, and my preference is always going to lean a little bit more to the heavy side of things, but here is a list of my top 50 with a more detailed look at the top 20. The mix included will include a song from each of the top 20.

Top 50 Records:

50-21 

50. 40 Watt Sun - The Inside Room

49. Gillian Welch -  The Harrow and the Harvest

48 The Jezabels - Prisoner

47. Touche Amore - Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me

46. The Might Could - The Might Could

45. Cormorant - Dwellings

44. Drugs of Faith - Corroded

43. Defeater - Empty Days and Sleepless Nights

42. Trap Them - Darker Handcraft

41. Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost

40. Cunninglynguists - Oneirology

39. Weird Owl - Build Your Beast a Fire

38. The Feelies - Here Before

37. Blood Ceremony - Living with the Ancients

36. Pianos Become the Teeth - The Lack Longafter

35. Deafheaven - Roads to Judah

34. Graveyard - Hisingen Blues

33. Girant Squid - Cenotes

32. Sigur Ros - Inni

31. Dark Castle - Surrender to all Life Beyond Form

30. Wolves in the Throneroom - Celestial Lineage

29. Rwake - Rest

28. Tombs - Paths of Totality

27. Jesu - Ascension

26. A Storm of Light - As the Valley of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver memories Fade

25. Cults - Cults

24. Mastadon - The Hunter

23. Wilco -  The Whole Love

22. Fucked Up - David Comes to Life

21. Rabbits - Lower Forms

20 - 01

20. Subrosa - No Help for the Mighty One - So I was introduced to Subrosa this year, and this release has been one of my favorite metal albums. It is hypnotizing, doomy, and spiritual sounding. The eastern melodies that are laced throughout this album are catchy and help to create a vision of metal belly dancing and snake charming, while the opium pipe is being passed around. This has been a great year for female fronted metal, and Subrosa's No Help for the Mighty One is a solid reason for that.

19. Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light - Another well-established band performing pretty consistently, and Earth's new LP is definitely consistent. It has all of the classic elements of any Earth release, combined with a little bit more structure than some past releases. It has the classic minimalist aspects, with simple riffs being repeated throughout with a lot of accent and focus helping to characterize song development. Nothing groundbreaking on Earth's part, but they dot know how to compose a solid piece of post-rock heaven. 

             18. Kurt Vile – Smoke Ring for My Halo - What a wonderfully written record this is. It has a simple heartland feel to it, and is a great example of a singer songwriter combining tradition with modernity. Kurt Vile brings a lot of influences to mind, but none of them encompass all he has to offer. Smoke Ring for My Halo is the first of Vile’s albums that I have listened to and it made me curious to hear more from him, always a sign of a decent album. There is something ethereal at times about the songs, and the imagery that it brings to mind is thick and comforting.

      17. Wire - Red Barked Tree - Wire is a band that I am happy to see releasing an album in 2011. They were a huge influence on the punk rock, art punk, dance punk, post-punk, and alternative scene, and many bands over the years have capitalized on a formula they helped to create. Here we have Red Barked Tree being released and showing that Wire is still a relevant force. I admit I have not heard their other releases since their return back to the scene in the past 10 years, and was caught by surprise by Red Barked Tree. It takes cues from their earlier releases, and blends it with the post punk sound of their later catalog and then shakes it all up with a touch of modern indie pop. The combination is an albums worth of cohesive, catchy, electronic tinged pop music that still captures the emotional energy of their punk days.

1

1.      16. Bon Iver – Bon Iver – So this album has definitely been hyped and probably every hipster-esque brand of young people has been fondling this guys junk since this album dropped. That being said, it is still a great album through and through. Bon Iver leaves behind some of the minimalist aspects of their debut in favor of a more orchestrated and fuller sound. It is an album that is solid as an album. No songs necessarily stand out to me, but they all flow very well together making it easy to listen all the way through. A lot of times I find myself hating on things just to hate, but this album definitely has done well in thwarting my efforts. 

 

1.      15. Altar of Plagues – Mammal – So Altar of Plagues is a black metal band that at times doesn’t really sound like black metal. I guess they would fit in somewhere in between Wolves in the Throneroom and Alcest, or in the “Blackgaze” scene or whatever this new wave of bands that are trying to combine shoegaze aspects with the imagery and bleakness of black metal. Whether or not you are a fan of the impurities in this line of music, Altar of Plagues is a band that actually does it really well.

1.      14. Shabazz Palaces – Black Up - Who doesn’t love Digable Planets? Well probably a lot of people. One of the originators of the alternative/jazz laden hip hop sound has come back with a new group to continue to show their own evolution of hip hop. Most people have been super hyped on Drake ( if you haven’t read Big Ghost’s reviews of Drake then check it here) and that Kanye/Jay-Z album, but somehow a true gem tends to get overlooked in Shabazz Palaces Black Up. I guess its understandable, this album has some pretty out there beats that may slow down things on the dancefloor, but the composition and the rhymes are all solid. It is a fun album that shows a little more creativity and exploration than a lot of hip hop. There is definitely a little bit of that woooooooooomp woooooooooomp sound in at times, but it is creatively mixed to create a soundtrack to robots dancing on cough syrup or something like that.

1.      13. The Decemberists -  The King is Dead- A back to basics album made the Decemberists become that much more palatable for my own tastes. I cannot say I have thoroughly listened to much of their earlier material, but hearing Gillian Welch was a part of this album seemed to lower my hesistancy to get this album. I cant say why I have been iffy on decemberists before, but this album has helped me to continue to breakdown preconceived notions. Alterna-Country has continued to grow and expand, and The King id Dead continues to help that movement remain important. The combination of the indie rock imagery, the honky tonk feel, and more roots based instruments allows The Decemberists to create an album that brings images of Tom Petty and John Cougar hanging out with Townes and Doc Watson. A fun and enjoyable listen all the way through

      12. Explosions in the Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care- Explosions in the Sky prove that they continue to be the kings of the post-rock scene (along with Mogwai) with the release of Take Care, Take Care, Take Care. So many bands have emerged over the past 10 years trying to recreate, capitalize on, or just join in on the fun of what Explosions in the Sky have been doing, and none of them though have quite the ingenuity of this band. If you have heard Explosions in the Sky then you know what to expect at this point. Take Care x3 is not groundbreaking, but it is consistent and still extremely well done.

1.      11. Amebix – Sonic Mass – This album has already been touched on recently, and it ended up making its way on to this list. This album is definitely a Sonic Mass that crashes through your ear canal and saturates your brain with an intense wave of crust layered metal. I did not know what to expect a new Amebix record to sound like, but for their return record they have done a great job of continuing with a classic sound and not being archaic, and sound relevatnt to whats happening without losing your basis.

1.      10. YOB – Atma – I hadn’t heard YOB before their 2009 comeback release  The Great Cessation, but since that album graced my ears I have made sure to keep in touch with what this band was doing. That being said 2011’s Atma was an album I was excited to hear from the local Oregon Doom band and it definitely did not diassapoint. YOB returned with heavy doom laden riffs, ethereal sounds, and songs of epic proportions… pretty much what we have come to expect from YOB. They do a great job of not sounding stale and repetitive, but continue to take what can be a formulaic genre and build upon it to create a soundtrack for the post-apocalyptic wasteland. 

1.      09. Moonface - Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I'd Hoped – This somehow made its way into my rotation over this past year, and pops back into the listening rotation here and there enough to have made it on to this list. I don’t know much about Moonfaces single songwriter Spencer Krug, but I do know he has done a great job creating catchy hooks on this album. At first listen I kinda just passed through a lot of the songs, but eventually when it was shuffled in with a few albums and songs came on as I was driving here and there I found myself checking to see who it was and Moonface kept coming up. They songs are long in construction and take a bit of building at times, but altogether it makes sense. The hooks start out basic, and build upon each other and finally are accented by Krug’s voice which brings an 80’s electro-pop feel reminiscent of Ian McCulloch. It was my surpise album of the year in that I didn’t think I would enjoy it as much as I do now.

1.      08. Grayceon – All We Destroy – Progressive Metal has come quite a ways since the 70’s and one of my personal favorite front runners for this genre is Grayceon. When looking at this album we see that there are songs of epic lengths, classical elements, and beautifully sung vocals, all ingredients when combined together make a great prog record. Singer/Celloist Jackie Gratz has been making great guest appearances over the years, made some great music with Giant Squid, but Grayceon is where I feel her style really shines. The hypnotic electronic cello arrangements are haunting and create a delightful visual sensation through the mind.

1.      07. Boris - Heavy Rocks II/New Album - This is a band that does not relent, and continues to bust out with new projects one after the other. Boris released three full lengths, a split with Merzbow and maybe even more for all I know. With all that time in the studio and energy spread through so many projects, one may feel that the output would suffer. After listening through all of these Boris albums, I would say they did a great job of creating solid products whose sound could not all be described in one paragraph. Boris has always done a great job of mixing and mashing sounds together to not become pidgeonholed, but what they all have in common is that they should be played loud! You will get doses of experimental rock, doom metal, Japanese pop, and indie rock and all it sounds just right. 

1.      06. Horrible Crowes -  Elsie – So this is an album that was put out as a sideproject by the dude from Gaslight Anthem, I still have not heard Gaslight Anthem so I can’t really compare, but it is said to be a departure. The album caught me off guard. I had heard one song and thought it was ok, and then checked out the full thing and it easily became one of my favorites. The lyrics and dark and brooding with the music being soulful and catchy, and they pull off that combination well. Dude definitely has a Bruce Springsteen sounding voice, and also similar to Chuck Ragan at times, and that is definitely not a bad thing. I am sad this is only a side project, and am hoping to hear more!

1.      05. Witch Mountain – South of Salem - Witch Mountain has been featured on the Mixtape Collections in a few different articles, and their full lenth South of Salem has definitely made its way into my routine listening since coming out this past summer. I have to say seeing them live definitely helped bolster this release, as they play the songs with precision and lead Singer Uta Plotkin’s voice sounds crisp and soulful. Crooning through _ tracks of classic doom, we are given a delightful journey from this Portland band. What separates Witch Mountain from the bolster of female fronted doom bands is the power of Uta’s voice, and the hark it gives to singers such as Ronnie James, and Grace Slick.

1.      04. Grails -  Deep Politics - Grails played at one of the Northwest Music Fest shows with Neurosis and YOB and kinda blew me away. The fluidity of the sound, the imagery each song creates, and the solidity of the musicians makes Grails one of my current favorite bands. They have been hard at work since their arrival on the Portland music scene in 1999, and have released a slew of albums proving to be one of the harder working bands out there. Deep Politics is a find addition to an expansive catalog. It is an album that needs to be listened to as an album, each song duitifully builds upon the other, and none is complete with out its predecessor or successor. Grails takes cues from other experimental, post-rock bands but has a distinct gloominess. A highly recommended adventure.

03. Chuck Ragan - Covering Ground -  Chuck Ragan’s latest full length solo release is another gem of emotionally driven alternative country. This man has been writing sings with catchy melodies, and hooks layered throughout since his time in Hot Water Music. Covering Ground is nothing less than an excellent follow-up to a so far distinguished catalog. I think Gold Country is probably still my favorite, but this may be a close second. The album as a whole is a solid listen and there is not a song that needs to be skipped. The lyrics are touching, emotional, and feel sincere. Too many artists of the past 10 years have turned emotional music into a caricature of itself, too many are late 20 year olds stuck in adolescence and writing lyrics found in the spiral notebook of a tortured high school freshman. Chuck Ragan communicates a genuine relatable feeling expressed in an adult manner, in a way that shows his experience and maturity in self-reflection.

1.      02. Nightbirds – Otherside of Darkness- The Nightbirds caught my attention with the release of their EP Midnight at the Movies, so when I heard they were releasing a full length this year I got pretty stoked. This is arguably my favorite punk release of the year and does a great job capturing that late 70’s-early 80’s OC sound reminiscent of bands like The Adolescents and Agent Orange, and other early Cali bands The Dead Kennedy’s. Throughout the album you will find furious down-picked verses, gnarly back up vocals, dick-dale style solo’s and a heavily surfy drumbeat. It will make you want to grab your board(of any kind), vans, and beach gear. Rik Agnew would be pleased I feel if he heard this. A simply fun and enjoyable album that should easily please the purists and youngin’s alike.

1.      01. William Elliot Whitmore – Field Songs - And finally we end with Mr. Whitmore, whom I enjoy featuring. There is just something wholesome about a guy who tours his butt off, and in between he spends his time helping out on the farm he grew up on while continuing to write songs about the life lessons that are being presented and experienced. This is a man whose entire catalog I have enjoyed thus far, and Field Songs is a great new addition to it. Whitmore keeps a fresh theme of life on the farm running throughout the album, a change from the more politically minded Animals in the Dark. That being said it is the song and words of a genuine farm worker, someone who has toiled in the fields on a hot summer’s day and knows the joys and struggles it takes. There doesn’t seem to be a phoney bone in Mr. Whitemores entire body which helps to make his albums that much more enjoyable.

 

 So there ya have it, the best of for 2011. Hope ya enjoy, and remember I did not check out everything, so if your favorite was not on my list I may have not heard it. Cheers to 2012 being a great year for music, and that it is a year to remember!

Link: SFMTC Vol. 12 - Year of the Rabbit 1-10

Link: SFMTC Vol. 12 - Year of the Rabbit 11-20

Li