Whichever way you listened to music this year—LPs, cassettes, 7”, digital releases—there was plenty of the good stuff going around. Here are some of our favorites of the year, in no particular order, in no particular format.
King Tuff
Black Moon Spell LP (Sub Pop)
King Tuff is an expert at rock n’ roll. On his third album, Black Moon Spell, he continues on perfecting the garage/glam power-pop sound he is so good at—hooks for days, guitar shredding leads and feel good party vibes. Although his sound hasn’t changed much from his first album, it’s ok to do what you do best if you aren’t the type of artist that doesn’t need to reinvent themselves every 10 seconds. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it, and it this case, Tuff is good at making good rock tunes and continues to do so. Didn’t the Ramones sound the same on every album?
Holy Wave
Relax LP (Reverberation Appreciation Society)
These El Paso natives packed their bags and moved to Austin where they were really able to focus on their music and were able to create a truly masterpiece of an album. Relax is a perfect name for an album that has a mellow 60s psychedelic groove with sounds of early Pink Floyd, Gandalf or the Monkee’s album Head (it’s really good!). The band’s experimental nature sees them going into spacey jams that also remind me a lot of the psychedelia that was happening in the UK with bands like The Verve, The High and Stone Roses, but still sounding very 60s.
AJ Davila y Terror Amor
Beibi LP (Burger Records)
If there was ever a music scene to pay close attention to, turn your ears over to what’s happening in Puerto Rico. Davila 666 definitely helped to open doors for the explosive music scene going on in that tropical island—bands like Las Ardillas, Los Vigilantes and Los Pepiniyoz are all making great noise. I couldn’t get enough of Davila 666, and it was sad to see that band stop making music. AJ Davila y Terror Amor continue in the same vein as Davila’s former band—reverb lathered catchy garage-rock. Beibi also has spooky psychedelic touches and sugary pop.
The Horrors
Luminous LP (XL Records)
The Horrors are no one trick pony. Their latest album takes another turn in the direction of sound which if you’ve kept up with the band from the beginning, you know there’ve been a few. While their last 2 albums saw a departure from their aggressive punk beginnings into a more atmospheric vibe, the main differences on Luminous is that the band doesn’t sound so dark and the vocals of Faris Badwan, no longer taking cues from Psychedelic Furs or The Chameleons, as his vocal pitch has gone up a few registers, sounds a bit like Thom Yorke.
Institute
Giddy Boys 7” (Katorga Works)
The Giddy Boys 7” sounds like when the punk bands of the late 70s were breaking out into darker post-punk. The Syncopation DJs from Monarch Bar turned me on to this exciting new band from Austin, TX. I would say they sound like the earliest Joy Division demos you could find when they were more of a punk band, and before Martin Hannett helped to shape their more sonic sound. The Syncopation guys say Institute also sound like Crisis, a band that was around the same time as Joy Division in the late 70s.
Part Time
Late Night with Davida Loca Cassette (Burger Records)
Sounding like a completely different band at times, the new Part Time cassette brings a brand new experience to their already impressive output. The song “In This Life I Live for You” switches the script on what you think you’d normally expect from this band—a full on straight forward rock song with no hints new-wave. The vocals are also different keeping us the listener interested at the different sounds this band can provide, having so much talent. You also get a different version of the fan favorite “Night Drive.”
Mattox
El Consumidor Digital Album EP (Dust Empire Records)
El Paso’s own Mattox delivered this EP through their Bandcamp earlier this year and was kept on repeat whenever I was by my computer. The music has a subtle anxiety that builds up and feels like it will explode at any moment, and the moments come, and the electronic infused rock smacks you in the face while you question what the sounds you’re hearing are, as the music takes over your mind. The vocals of lead singer Miggs are always subtle and never pretentious as the music travels in and out of calmness and madness.
Ariel Pink
Pom Pom LP (4AD)
A highly anticipated album, Ariel Pink is truly a studio master and did not disappoint on his latest titled Pom Pom. One of the strongest songwriters of the current music scene, Pink is able to keep his lo-fi aesthetic but enhances those ideas with better studio quality. “Put Your Number in My Phone” has that classic style Pink is able to create effortlessly—echo friendly vocals layered on top of a dreamy tune that is so catchy it will get stuck in your head well after you listen to it. The rest of the album is unique and creative, and also good for dance floor action.
Revocation
Deathless LP (Metal Blade Records)
Metal is very much alive with the sounds of Revocation—a band from Boston, MA that is taking the metal scene by storm with their technical string busting riffs and pulverizing beats. The album Deathless is filled with bone crushing death metal influences from Morbid Angel and the faster paced thrash of Megadeath, Anthrax, early Pantera and Metallica. The band displays dynamic changes slowing down the speed at times and going into jazzy Black Sabbath style breakdowns. Metalheads, bang your head!
FKA twigs
LP 1 LP (Young Turks)
FKA twigs latest album LP 1 is not just an R&B record. The synth friendly moodiness that are carried over by the heavy presence of keyboards and synthesizers adding bleeps and blips of experimental electronica, make this album more than just a simple label that it is usually given—a R&B record. FKA twigs’ (as in Formally Known As Twigs) vocals are definitely the centerpiece, creating a dreamy sultry atmosphere spread around the subtle electronic storm of beats, kind of reminds me of a modern day Sade, but with an updated sound, reaching new heights.
TXT: Daniel Salas