Top-10 albums of 2014 (part.2)

Let's dive straight in to the remaining 5 albums that made my year a tad bit better. Remember that these are all my personal opinions and favourites.



#5 BADBADNOTGOOD - III

I've been into BADBADNOTGOOD (BBNG) for about a year and a half with my first touch to them being the cover of Limit To Your Love from their sophomore album BBNG2. They continue to amaze me with every release and song they put out and I seriously cannot name a bad track by them. BBNG's sound is so distinguishable even among the vast genre of jazz. 

III is a step out from the last two cover-filled albums and features only original material written by the trio. And that's the key-thing in this album. There is no playing around with other people's material like in the previous albums - improvisation and solos are left out almost completely. To me this album focuses more on developing the sound of BBNG; what the band can achieve with a setup of drums, keys and bass. And this is where they succeed! Vibrant pianos, the mix of both acoustic and electric bass and somewhat lo-fi drum sounds are all featured perfectly. The trio is accompanied with their longtime friend and collaborator Leland Whitty a couple of times playing saxophone and some strings. Some guitar-work and other instruments are also utilised in making backgrounds more layered. 

Every song on this album takes me to a whole new world. The track Can't Leave The Night is filled with a hazy feeling of a club. It even features some sub bass to accompany the beat and feel of the song. On the other hand the track Kaleidoscope starts with a mystical feel which then breaks out to the theme of the song which somehow almost reminds me of something out of a Miyazaki film's soundtrack. Follow this up with an amazing bass solo and you have me hooked. 

Different, Still is a straight up jazz song with an old-time's vibe. Brings memories of Kind Of Blue to my mind. The song features an utterly beautiful piano solo of which is just out of this world. The last three songs Since You Asked Kindly, CS60 and Sustain feature more of BBNG's experimental side with weird synth sounds and other tidbits that create a really moody and otherworldly feel.

Over all, III is a solid album and a great jazz-experience for those interested in what happens in the world's jazz-scene these days. 

Favourite track(s): Kaleidoscope; Eyes Closed; Hedron; Differently, Still






#4 Night Lives - Shadow Of Man

Being a HUUGE post-metal fan I had to check out Night Lives' debut album the day it was released. Though the album is mostly melodic hardcore with just a hint of post-metal and metalcore influences it got me hooked from the start. The sheer emotion mixed with aggression is the driving force of this album. 

You can read my deeper thoughts on this album in this earlier post: http://bit.ly/13kPbOL

All in all Shadow Of Man is a great album that made me take a closer look at the hardcore genre. 

Favourite track(s): Vows, Shadow Of Man, Dawn 







#3 ∞ - Emme Näe Elämää

First of all a link to my review of this album: http://bit.ly/1z3YBHc

Emme Näe Elämää has definitely been playing constantly through these last two months on my iPod. I've grown to love this album even more than I did at first. The album just has this feel of sadness and longing all over it but also a thin veil of arrogant attitude in the mix. The lyrics and the sounds are somewhat romanticising too (the song Aarresaari particularly in my opinion has a feel of young desire in it). 

Eight's sound is something that I have yet to hear in any other band. Their delicate playing is so emotional it almost always gets me all goose-bumped. Eight definitely doesn't get the attention and respect they should be getting already with Emme Näe Elämää being their third full-length album. They've polished their sound through the years from almost a straight hardcore band filled with Converge-influence to a post-rock-ish post-hardcore band with beautiful lyrics and utterly amazing songwriting. 

Favourite track(s): Every single song







#2 Cassie - Old Light

My earlier thoughts track-by-track on this album from last March: http://bit.ly/1H5cF7C

I've been listening to this album for over a half a year already and it still gives me all the emotions it did the first time listening. All the little things that made this album great: the beautiful strings, post-rock crescendos, delicate vocals, feature by Jani Ala-Hukkala. It's all there. Even though Old Light is only three songs it features a ton more than a lot of albums did this year. Great compositions with versatile sounds. 

I'm so saddened that Cassie has come to an end after the release of this album. Would've loved to hear them live.

Favourite track(s): All three







#1 Totorro - Home Alone

Now where do I begin with this album...a perfectly solid piece of 8 songs that I can't find anything bad to say about. Great sound design, all the instruments sound amazing, clever writing, energetic playing, rhythmic playing of this world and all around dynamic and playful album that gets me joyful every time I listen to it. Post-rock and mathrock at their finest.

Home Alone starts with the title track that builds up really fast to a fast-paced phase. When the vocals kick in they are left almost as an effect in the background of the song. The song ends as fast as it starts and continues perfectly to the next song Chevalier Bulltoe (the first single off of this album that got a music video also). The song is a bit more calm than the intro track but it still keeps its big and energetic sound throughout the song. After the 1:40 mark the song takes a turn to up the tempo. The song then ends to a perfect state of calmness which then carries to the intro of the third song Tonton Alain Michel. This song features a great rhythmic guitar arpeggio in the beginning which then grows to yet again a great energising theme that keeps on growing and growing until a break near the two minute mark. The song then picks up the pace again to bring up the potential energy even more. The second break then slows the song down again and brings the dynamics to the ground again where it can start growing once more to a huge climax. The ending then hits you hard in the face and you're left with a perfect experience of the first three songs of the album. 

The fourth song Festivalbini starts out sounding like a calm post-rock song but it has an ace up its sleeve. Not much can be said but the song is once again a huge display of emotions and talented songwriting mixed. The latter half of the album begins with the song Motte-rock which develops around a bass pattern repeated for almost the whole song. The sounds around the bass-line make the song interesting and intelligent. The song then traces to a polyrhythmic mathrock part which ends the song. 

The next track Osao San features once again some clever rhythms once it gets trough the intro. After a break the background vocals are once again thrown in the mix..Just beautiful. The second to last track Eric Colson brings immediately some Explosions In The Sky to my mind with it's melodies and carefree vibe. The last song Tigers & Gorillas wraps the album with a last bang which fades to a noise-like outro. 

This album is an experience from start to finish and it doesn't leave (at least not me) anybody cold. 

This concludes my year of 2014 and I have to say that this year has brought me a LOT of great albums that didn't make the list, so I made a little list of some honourable mentions:

Mastodon - Once More ‘round the sun

Rosetta - Flies to flame

Mid-American - Ancillary Colors

Maybeshewill - Fair Youth

MNTTT - Menetetyt

Whirr / Nothing - split 12’’

Skyharbor - Guiding Lights

The Algorithm - Octopus4

Pat Metheny - Kin

Periphery - Clear

Pallbearer - Foundations of Burden

Kiasmos - s/t

Botanist - VI:flora

The Chant - New Haven

Code Orange - I Am King

Tiny Moving Parts - Pleasant Living

I'm anticipating some great albums next year like the new Lapko, Callisto and Periphery albums. I also cannot wait to get my hands on some new bands while also working with my own bands upcoming release. Cheers to everybody and have a great end of the year.

Peace and Love 

- Matti

Top-10 albums of 2014 (part.1)

It's that time of the year again.. time to list my PERSONAL top-10 albums of the year. These are all albums that have had an impact on me as a music listener, a fan and as a musician. Once again I will release the list in two parts. I will exclude re-releases, re-masters, live sets, compilations etc..and focus only on new material released within this year. So, without further ado...Lets begin!


#10 Talons - New Topographics 

Talons was a new find for me this year. They're an UK-based instrumental post-rock/post-metal outfit who've been around since 2008. New Topographics is their third full-lenght album. It uses a lot of experimentation with chilling strings and noisy guitars. All the songs stand out from the mass of post-rock material released these days with their brilliant compositions. A lot of the timbre's bring Godspeed You! Black Emperor to my mind with a little bit more of pop-like parts thrown in the mix, yet keeping the songs diverse and emotional. 


Favourite track(s): Monuments, The Wild Places






#9 Pianos Become The Teeth - Keep You

Yet another band I found just this year, Pianos Become The Teeth is one of the bands from "the wave" of screamo/post-hardcore bands of the 2000's and 2010's along with bands like Touché Amoré and La Dispute. I came across their earlier material and noticed that their new album "Keep You" was being released this fall. I got myself familiar with PBTT's older material just in time for the new album to drop out and I got to say, at first I didn't enjoy it a lot. But Keep You kept growing on me during the following weeks. I guess that's what this kind of music a lot of times does with me. Keep You is filled with emotional lyricism and features a lot more softer side of the band than their earlier material. Sticking only with clean vocals was a bold but awesome move from PBTT. 

If you are a fan of emo and/or post-hardcore, then give this album a listen and let it grow on you. 

Favourite track(s): Lesions, Repine, Late Lives, Enamor Me







#8 DJ Kridlokk - Mutsi 

Ah..The first rap album of the list. The Finnish Dj Kridlokk is a rap artist/producer who's part of the KC/MD Mafia and is infamous for his Finnish Memphis sound. Mutsi is Kridlokk's follow-up to his album UG-Solo which was released in 2011. The album has a really grim sound and lyrics that are both critical and badass. Kridlokk rhymes about real life and how he's fed up with the world. But to me, the album is more about the sound, feel and atmosphere than taking the lyrics seriously. The two feature's of the album are by Kridlokk's colleagues Tuuttimörkö and Eevil Stöö and they both perform their verses just right. 

Favourite track(s): Lokin Ipsum, IDKFA, Stö & Lok 







#7 La Dispute - Rooms Of The House

I had great expectations for the new La Dispute album after their masterpiece Wildlife from 2011 which in my books is a solid 10/10 album. Rooms Of The House continues fluently with just about the same style as Wildlife. Sounds are just as raw and the lyrical themes are just as depressing as they were last time. Once again I had to listen to "Rooms" a little more than a few times to fully understand it's grace and all the emotions it emits. 

Once again the band utilises bits and sounds outside their live band with the inclusion of for example the glockenspiel. But I love how all their songs are played just as they are live - raw and hard-hitting. The guitar sounds are full of vibes which just give me the chills every time they hit a chord. Vocalist Jordan Dreyer's vocal performance is  heartbreaking and the emotions he is capable of producing with his voice are amazing. 

Favourite track(s): Hudsonville MI, 1956; 35; Scenes from highways 1981/2009

#6 Swans - To Be Kind

When this monster of an album hit everybody in the face in the alternative music scene I was really ignorant and left it without a listen (except for the song Oxygen which was released as a single before the album) until well into the fall. Upon revisiting To Be Kind I was really surprised when I found out how elaborate and powerful it was. I guess I just wasn't ready to listen to it when it released. I just had to have a right state of mind to sit through this 2 hour greatness. To Be Kind feels like such a flowing album that the time just flies by and it feels amazing.

I am in no position to compare To Be Kind to Swans' earlier material as I have almost no experience of their albums before it (apart from a couple of listens of The Seer). I guess I'm fairly new to experimental music in a scale of this big. In To Be Kind I fell in love with the atmospheric building structures and the contrast of delicate timbres of clean guitars painting the soundscape to the crushing aggressive pounding of the bass and drums accompanied by Mr. Gira's menacing vocals.

Swans uses their instruments extremely diversely and create sounds out of this world. Every song on the double LP is a journey through the bands collective mind which seems to write every bit out amazingly naturally. Even though a lot the time the songs are very static the little nuances of for example sudden guitar harmonies or vocals that surprise the listener keep the journey interesting throughout the album. Not a single song feels too repetitive or too long (even though there are a lot of songs that surpass the lengths of typical rock songs). 

I can see To Be Kind being the "Skinny Fists" of the 2010's in the future being an experimental masterpiece and I can already see it getting a same kind of recognition throughout fans of alternative music listeners. 

Favourite track(s): Just A Little Boy (For Chester Burnett), Bring The Sun/Toussaint L'Ouverture, 





This concludes the first 5 of my top-10 albums of 2014. I will finish the list during these few days (within a week at most). 

Leave a comment if you agree with me on the list or have your own favourites.


Peace and LOVE
- Matti

Panopticon - A Throwback To A Greater Time

It's time to talk about my all time favourite album: Panopticon by ISIS. Ipecac Records put out a remaster to celebrate Panopticon's 10th anniversary earlier this year and I've been going back to that numerous times during the summer. To me the remaster wasn't such an improvement over the original as I thought it would be (considering the Celestial remaster a few years back from ISIS) but of course I enjoyed the album as much as the good old Panopticon from 2004. All the changes I noticed after a good amount of listened between the two versions was that the synths seemed to be clearer and more upfront in the remaster and some of the vocals seemed to be pushed down a bit. 

Anyway, I was here to talk about my opinions on the album itself. First of all I have to tell, the artwork of the album is absolutely and completely amazing and fits the themes of the album perfectly. Whenever I listen to the album all I can think of are industrial settings and blue (I wonder why??).

Panopticon starts out with So Did We, which I consider the epitome of ISIS to me. The structure of the song is beautiful. The creeping guitar sounds and tight drums accompany each other amazingly and the eerie but still aggressive vocals are nicely blended to not be the lead "instrument" of the composition. The so-called breakdown of the song where the harsh riffing cuts down and the clean guitar melodies paint a gorgeous landscape only to progress into the last crushing riff of the song which always send chills down my spine. At the end of the song I feel somehow pumped up for the rest of the album which I know is going to be as amazing as this was.

Backlit starts out a lot friendlier and progresses through the song with both quiet and loud points to a groovy break with and awesome baseline. The song also ends with a bang. Aaron Turners vocal performance is shining in Backlit as he changes back and forth with clean and harsh vocals. At this point I also have to mention the raw-like drum sounds which play a huge role in the album's grooviness. 

Next comes In Fiction which is one of the bands most notable songs with a great music video. The song's structure is a basic post-rocky post-metal song structure which starts out quiet and continues to grow until a breakdown which brings the song to ground level once again. I have to mention the moment when the drums shift to a hit on the snare rather than a sidestick is a great point in the song. The breakdown isn't the end of the song though as it teases you by raising the momentum bits at a time only to grow to a crushing guitar riff. The song ends by going back to it's opening motions, the clean melody.

The next song, Wills Dissolve is the shortest song in the album and it starts with an eerie clean motion followed by a groovy drum beat. The same theme continues with a distorted guitar and more heavy drumming. The vocals hit the song just barely after the four minute mark with a raspy clean melody. The rest of the song progresses to a heavy ending which crushes even harder than the earlier songs. 

Wills Dissolve ties well with the next song Syndic Calls which continues straight from where it was left. The guitar groove in the beginning has stuck in my mind since the first listens. The crescendo towards the end of the song is what post-metal is to me, distorted sound which somewhat still sounds like the most beautiful thing in the world. 

The opening riff of Altered Course shows how a good groove can be made with just a guitar and the drums. After the bass hits the song it becomes even more groovy. The song makes me nod every time I listen to it. Altered Course feels a lot more philosophical (if you can say that of an instrumental song) than the other songs. The melodies and the construction seem thought provoking and interesting. 

The ending track Grinning Mouths sums up all the feels of the album; the sadness, the energy and all the blue colour in the world. The song starts with a very creepy guitar melody.  When the heavy hits of crushing guitars and toms hit the scene only to carry the song on to the next section which - to everybody's surprise - isn't a crushing riff but a continuation of the creepy sound. Only after a brief break is the song lifted up and up to the heights of the sky. The tremolo melody leads the song to the heavy riffage and harsh vocals. After that comes the moment which is a very non-ISIS-like move; a sudden break to a strumming chord. The next riff is probably one of my favourites from the whole album accompanied by a perfect distorted melody. The same motif continues through the rest of the song which ends to a bang. 

That concludes my thoughts on Panopticon, an album so meaningful to me. I remember the day my brother introduced the album to me. The same day (or a couple days later) I just had to buy the CD and listen to it many times through. I can't wait to find an album to top Panopticon, though it seems highly improbable.

 

-Matti

Summer sounds lovely - let it rain

I've been busy and not-so-busy this summer with a lot of stuff (mainly my graduation, music festivals, my band and my civil service [equivalent to military service only non-military]). New bands have found their way into my library of music but I've also re-discovered some older material that has been totally forgotten (i.e found a copy of Brave Murder Day by Katatonia in a second hand music store last week). 

Lately I've also had a look towards Finnish rap artists like DJ Kridlokk, Eevil Stöö, Tuuttimörkö and such. 

Anyway, the main point for this update was to talk about Ilosaarirock music festival which is held in july every year in my hometown of Joensuu. For me it's the best festival Finland has for many reasons. First of all the festival area is beautiful, large and versatile (suiting a music festival perfectly). I have lots of memories regarding Ilosaarirock (for example the best show I've ever been to was ISIS at Ilosaarirock in 2009). The line-up is always great and variant with artists from different genres like hardcore, electronic, rock, metal, pop etc...you name it. 

This year was yet again a great one for Ilosaarirock as the line-up had some bands I was really anticipating for some of the bands. The memorable artists/bands this year were definitely Gracias & The Globe Band (hip-hop), OJJ (electronic), KC/MD Mafia (hip-hop), Oranssi Pazuzu (psychedelic black-metal), Night Lives (hardcore), Haim (indie rock), Opeth (progressive rock/metal) and last but not least Portishead!!

The highlights of the festival were definitely Opeth and Portishead. They both played an extremely pleasant show and I thoroughly enjoyed both of them. Opeth played some older material (early 2000's Deliverance/Damnation era) as well as newer stuff (mainly from Heritage and Watershed). Mikael was funny as always and his growls seemed fine to me. I don't really get the hate from fans towards his growling vocals (I mean c'mon the man is over 40 already with over 20 years of touring and playing in several bands and growling his lungs out like a beast for so long). 

Portishead was beyond magical and huge. They played songs from all of their albums and the total playtime for the show was over one and a half hours. They didn't speak anything in between the songs until a few thank-you's after the show. The visuals they had were very fitting to the songs with some psychedelic vibes and moody photography. 

All in all once again I had a great time in Ilosaarirock this year (also this is a bit late as it was a month ago but I've been busy so that's a valid excuse). 

Next time I will write about one of my favourite albums of all time and a re-mastered version that was released this year. 

Peace and Love
- Matti

Indie Shoutout vol. 5

Cassie is a Finnish post-rock band with much potential to grow over the barriers of ordinary post-rock. Their newest release is an EP titled Old Light which was released February 2014. The band's sound is very typical for the genre with dreamy guitar leads and long crescendos. The female vocals which are not so typical for post-rock bring a nice touch and the sound of the lead vocalist Sofia Thurén fits the sound of the band so well. Believable and beautifully emotional lyrics are a key point in the vocals also.

Old Light EP

Post-rock is known for bringing "non-rock" instruments to the mix and so does Cassie with the inclusion of a string quartet. The almost-a-cliche "post-rock tremolo" -sound is amazing combined with the tremolo violins in the opening track of Old Light. 

The first track simply called Old Light Is a pretty typical post-rock song with a long crescendo which erupts in the end. What makes this track for me are the beautiful vocal melodies and the AMAZING quest appearance of Callisto-vocalist Jani Ala-Hukkala. Being a huge Callisto fan I just couldn't believe my eyes when I saw he was in this track. His screams create a post-hardcore-ish vibe to the high-point of the track.

The second track Keep Your Kings In The Back Row starts out with a nice groove. The song has a nice tone to it with the strings bringing a nice touch of comfort. The track is very enjoyable and beautifully arranged to the point of myself failing to see any (even minor) problems.

"You are so afraid of life and I only have courage for myself"

The EP ends with a track titled White Waves. The track starts with a bang which sounds much like a Caspian song but then it continues with a beautiful melodic and dreamy part. The vocals carry the song towards the calming latter half of the song which starts out with a guitar lead. The song proceeds to a beautiful "explosion" of vibrantly colorful sounds again much like a Caspian song and continues to an even more tough part with a slow blast beat which erupts the whole song. The track ends and the listener is left with a complete expression of the bands sound. 

Overall the EP is a great piece of art with much potential for the future. What comes to the quality of composition, arrangement and production the sound of Cassie is on par with bands like Caspian, Explosions In The Sky and other epitomes of post-rock. The vocals are a major pro from me and I just fell in love with the vocal melodies of the album. The Old Light EP made me take a closer look on the band's earlier stuff which i have earlier considered as too cliche'd. 

I hope Cassie continues their effort to make more amazing releases and wish them luck on their tour which takes place both in Finland and the UK.

Love

- Matti

ps. more stuff coming soon as I'm done with my matriculation exams.

Deafheaven - Sunbather (Album Review)

I was totally blown away with the pure talent of the San Francisco -based Deafheaven's second LP called Sunbather. The deep post-rock parts contrast perfectly to the black metal and screamo elements giving an eerie feeling to the compositions. The album got me totally hooked from the get-go.

The albums receive was like a two-bladed sword. Black-metal purists bash the album for not being true black metal and other's seem to love the album for the new steps it takes in the world of black metal. I personally think the post-rock and shoegaze influences are a great addition to the otherwise-boring-ish endless stream of blastbeat and screeching vocals. The mix between the genres is constructed well in Sunbather. 

The album starts with a song titled Dream House which in my opinion is a perfect epitome of the band's style. Also some of the screamo elements come clear in the track. Dream House ties in with the next song Irresistible forming together a 12 minute duo of songs. Irresistible is sort of an outro to the starting track.

Next is the title track of the album, Sunbather which is first of the three over-10-minute songs of the album. It continues the strong feeling of the album. Sunbather shows amazing expression of feelings of loneliness and sorrow both lyrically and composition-wise. After Sunbather comes another one of the more soothing tracks called Please Remember. It derives elements both from noise and acoustic music and works as a bridge between Sunbather and the next monumental track Vertigo. Vertigo starts with a chilling and almost scary guitar play and develops to an explosion a bit after the 3-minute mark. The composition of Vertigo seems the most black-metal-ish to me of the album with all the tremolo-picking and blast beat. Of course the ending is has a lot of screamo influence being a lot slower than the mid-part of the song and features those identifiable post-rock guitars also.

The last couple of Songs are called Windows and The Pecan Tree. Windows is another one of the bridge tracks connecting the last song to the continuation. Windows has an amazing feel of depression and melancholy with the piano sound and samples. The Pecan Tree starts off with a surprising blast beat beginning. Then after 4-minutes of screeching and blast the song breaks to a post-rock styled part which then build up to it's full extent and lets off all the feelings it has left to pass on. The song fades out and almost leaves you wanting for a better ending (sort of a finishing touch, the last burst of feelings).

Other than the ending the album feels and sounds amazing giving you a full experience of the band's message.

8.5/10
--

Peace and love,
-Matti

Indie Shoutout vol.4

Rats Will Feast on suomalainen hardcore-punkkia ja post-rockia yhdistelevä bändi, jolla on kaikki tarvittavat eväät tulevaisuutta varten. Suomalainen melankolia puree kovaa ja haikeat melodiat tuovat sopivan kontrastin riistävälle hc-punk-mätölle. Rats Will Feastin nimikkoalbumi on kuuden kappaleen paketti pelkkää tunnetta. Bändillä on paljon yhteneviä piirteitä ∞ (Eight):in kanssa ja bändit sopisivatkin uskomattoman hyvin samalle lavalle (ovatpahan bändit vieläpä samasta kaupungista kotoisin).

Kuuntele ja vakuutu!

--

Rats Will Feast is a Finnish band that fits hardcore-punk and post-rock in the mix. The Finnish melancholy bites hard and the sad melodies bring about a huge contrast with the hc-punk riffing. Rats Will Feast' self titled album is a six song package full of emotion. The band has a lot in common with ∞ (Eight) and the two bands would fit nicely on the same stage together (and they even originate from the same town).

Listen and be convinced!

Garage Festin fiilistelyt! - Big feels @ Garage Fest

Kävin lauantaina fiilistelemässä Kerubin Garage Festissä Death Hawksia enkä ole vieläkään päässyt yli bändin ylivoimaisesta live-esiintymisestä! Happoisen psykedeeliset progekappaleet iskivät kovaa ja syvälle. Soundi-lehti ei turhaan valinnut Death Hawksin kakkosalbumia vuoden 2013 parhaaksi kotimaiseksi albumiksi; bändin lavaolemus ja kappaleiden tiukka progressiivinen soundi ansaitsevat arvostuksensa.

Olin koko keikan ajan aivan fiiliksissä lävitseni tunkeutuvasta musiikin virrasta ja pyrin vain antautumaan musiikin katkeamattomalle tunnevyörylle. Koko yleisö tuntui olevan kuin transsissa.

--

Last Saturday I went to Kerubi Garage Fest to see and feel Death Hawks and I've yet to get over the band's outstanding live-performance! Their acid-filled psychedelic prog songs hit me hard and deep. The Soundi -magazine didn't pick Death Hawks' second album as the best Finnish album of 2013 in vain; the band's stage presence and tight progressive sound surely deserve it's appreciation.

I was super hyped all trough the show from the flow of music going through me and I just tried to surrender myself to the continuous flow of feelings I received from the music. The whole audience seemed as if in a trans of some sort.

So This Is The New Year

Happy new year everybody!

Peace and Love!
- Matti

Top-10 albums of the year (part 2.)

Back to business! :D

#5 Rosetta - The Anaesthete 

Rosettan uusin levy The Anaesthete on astetta energisempi ja nopeatempoisempi verrattuna bändin aikaisempiin tuotoksiin. Space-rockiksi/ space-metalliksikin lajiteltu Rosetta tuo jälleen kerran ainutlaatuisen äänimaailmansa esille post-metalliin sekoitetuilla mausteilla. The Anaesthete ei aivan nouse edellisen kokopitkän A Determinism Of Morality:n tasolle, mutta kaukana ei olla. Albumi on ladattavissa ilmaiseksi osoitteessa http://theanaesthete.bandcamp.com/.

Lempikappale albumilta: Ryu / Tradition

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Rosetta's newest album The Anaesthere is a bit more energetic and uptempo in comparison with the bands earlier releases. Often categorized in space-rock/space-metal, Rosetta brings once again a unique soundscape through post-metal mixed with some personal spices. The Anaesthete doesn't quite reach the level of their last long play A Determinism Of Morality but it's not far away. The Anaesthete is free for download at http://theanaesthete.bandcamp.com/.

Favourite song: Ryu / Tradition






#4 TesseracT - Altered State

Viime kesän kuunnelluin albumi omalta osaltani. TesseracT:n edellinen albumi One iski pari vuotta sitten niin kovasti, että jäin koukkuun bändin nerokkaisiin biiseihin ja laulaja Daniel Tompkinsin ääneen. Tänä vuonna jännitti miltä uusi TesseracT kuulostaisi uuden (jo kolmannella) laulajan Ashe O'Haran kanssa, ja voin paljastaa, en pettynyt. Ashen uskomaton ääniala sekä heleän kaunis äänen sointi rikkoo progemetallille (tai metallille ylipäätään) tyypillisen karjumisen ja matalamman äänialan. Ashen herkkä, mutta vahva lauluääni ei kuitenkaan mene hevikiljunnaksi, vaan kuulostaa uskomattoman tunteelliselta. Kitara-, rumpu-, ja bassosoundit ovat nykystandardien mukaiset - autentisuutta saa etsimällä etsiä, mutta se sopii TesseracT:in futuristiseen tyyliin loistavasti. Sitäpaitsi Chris Baretton saksofonit luovat mukavan kontrastin parissa biisissä bändin muutoin puhtoisen tietokonemaiseen soundiin. 

Altered State on jaettu neljään osaan (Of Matter, Of Mind, Of Reality ja Of Energy), jotka kuvaavat nimiensä mukaisesti ihmisen ulkoista sekä sisäistä muutosta. Myös bändin sisäiset ja musiikilliset muutokset näkyvät ja kuuluvat; uusi laulaja, vain puhtaita lauluja, kokeiluja uusilla instrumenteilla ja efekteillä. Pakko ostos progemetallin ystävälle.

Lempikappale albumilta: Of Matter - Retrospect

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Last summers most listened album personally for me was Tesseract's Altered State. Their debut album One blew my mind a couple of years ago so hard I was instantly hooked on their ingenious songs and the singer Daniel Tompkins' amazing voice. This year i was really excited to hear how their new album sounded with a new (already third) singer Ashe O'Hara and i was not disappointed. Ashe's incredible vocal range and bright sound breaks the typical metal growl and lower range. His vivid but strong voice is incredibly sentimental and not at all typical high pitch heavyscreaming. The guitars ,drums and bass all sound on par with contemporary standards - zero authenticity. Yet it works perfectly with TesseracT as they have this beautiful futuristic sound to them. Besides the saxophone parts of Chris Barretto create a nice contrast in a couple of the tracks with their otherwise clean and computer-like sound.

Altered State is divided into four pieces (Of Matter, Of Mind, Of Reality and Of Energy) which all tell (as suggested by the name) of alterations of life both inside and outside. Also the band's inner and musical changes show and hear out; the new singer, only clean vocals, experiments with new instruments and effects. A must buy -album for a prog-metal fan.

Favourite track: Of Matter - Retrospect

#3 Consciousness Removal Project - Tacit

Vuoden paras post-metal albumi Tacit on uskomaton kokonaisuus ja se välittää konseptin kuulijalle täydellisesti. Kerroin jo aikaisemmassa postauksessa Tacitista ja se Consciousness Removal Projectista, joten sieltä voi lukea lisätietoa albumista. 

Lempikappale albumilta: Colossus II: Thrashing

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The years best post-metal album Tacit is an amazing whole and it passes the concept and story on to the listener perfectly. I already wrote about the album and Consciousness Removal Project in an earlier post so if you wish for more information on the album, read there.

Favourite track: Colossus II: Thrashing

#2 Bring Me The Horizon - Sempiternal

Aluksi Sempiternal ei vaikuttanut niinkään hyvältä levyltä, mutta muutaman kuuntelukerran jälkeen albumi aukeni minulle ja tykästyin sen aiemmasta BMTH tuotannosta eroavaan tyyliin. Oli Sykesin "puhdas" lauluääni vaatii totuttelemista deathcorekarjumisen jälkeen. Melodisemmat ja elektronisemmat kappaleet ovat luonnollinen suunta BMTH:n tyylille ottaen huomioon nykypäivän keskivertojen deathcorebändien ylipursuavan lisääntymisnopeuden. 

Sempiternal on kuuntelijaystävällinen vaihtoehto BMTH:n ystäville. Elektro-soundien lisääminen tuo dynaamisuutta, mutta kitarariffit ovat silti murskaavia tuttuun BMTH-tyyliin. 

Lempikappale albumilta: Can You Feel My Heart

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At first Sempiternal didn't seem like a good record but after a few listens the album opened up for me and I fell in love with the new style which broke out of the earlier BMTH style. Oli Sykses' new "clean" vocals need some time to get used to after all the deathcorescreaming. The more melodic and electronic songs are a natural path of evolution to BMTH's style especially considering the overflowing reproduction of modern mediocre deathcorebands. 

Sempiternal is a more listener-friendly choice for someone new to BMTH. The added electro sounds dd dynamics but the good old crushing guitar riffs are still there.

Favourite track: Can You Feel My Heart

#1 Sigur Rós - Kveikur

Wow...ei muuta. Kuuntelin Kveikurin ensimmäisen kerran vasta sen jälkeen, kun olin nähnyt Sigur Rósin keikan Ilosaarirockissa tänä kesänä. Kveikur on taattua Sigur Rós -laatua eikä jätä kylmäksi millään tasolla. Aivan edellisen albumin (Valtari, 2012) tasolle se ei kuitenkaan nouse. Live-kokemus paljasti albumin moniulottuvuuden. 

Kveikur poikkeaa tyyliltään hieman bändin edellisestä tuotannosta, sillä siinä on hetkittäin painostava ja raskas tunnelma ja siinä on jopa hyökkäviä motiiveja. Toki yhtyeen herkkä puoli tulee myös esiin (esimerkkinä kappale Stormur, joka on jopa viattoman kuuloinen). Jokainen kappale tuntuu omaltaan ja on kuin oma itsenäinen teoksensa. Kveikur on taidemusiikkia parhaimmillaan. 

Suosittelen lämpimästi.

Lempikappale albumilta: Hrafntinna

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Wow...nothing else. I listened to Kveikur only after i had seen Sigur Rós' gig at Ilosaarirock-festival last summer. Kveikur is once again guaranteed Sigur Rós quality and it will not leave you wanting more at any level. Still it doesn't quite reach the level of the last album (Valtari, 2012). The live-experience revealed the albums multidimensional levels to me personally. 

Kveikur sticks out a little from Sigur Rós' earlier material as it at times has a intense and heavy tone and even some aggressive motives. Surely the band's sensitive side shows also (for example in the song Stormur which sounds somehow innocent to me). Every song feels like its own and is like its own independent work of art. Kveikur is art at its finest. 

I warmly recommend.

Favourite track: Hrafntinna

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Siinäpä se lista nyt olisi. Jokin toinen päivä saattaisin muuttaa mieltäni järjestyksen suhteen mutta pitäydyn päätöksissäni. 
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There it is now. Some other day i would probably change my mind on the order of the albums but I will stick to my decisions. 

Tässä vielä muutamia mainitsemisen arvoisia albumeja vuodelta 2013:
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Here are some honorable mentions from 2013:

- PMMP - Matkalaulu
- KoRn - The Paradigm Shift 
- Adept - Silence The World
- God Is An Astronaut - Origins 
- Hammock - Oblivion Hymns
- Russian Circles - Memorial
- Blessthefall - Hollow Bodies 
- Cult Of Luna - Vertikal 

Now we have covered the year 2013 and are ready for new albums in 2014! I can hope for new albums by Lapko, Callisto, Periphery and Opeth but only time will tell us. 

Peace and Love
- Matti

A little about my soloproject

I started writing songs like almost 5 years ago when I was in junior highschool. At the time I didn't have my own guitar or anything... I had to resort to my dad's old acoustic guitar (which my brother had actually used for composing some post-rock a few years backwards) and Guitarpro 5. My first songs were not that good (well I guess you can't expect to write masterpieces right away). With time I got better and got used to writing with my equipment. I experimented with different genres and styles differing from electronic to rap to metal and even some classical-influenced but somehow post-rock and post-metal just stuck with me.

A photo of me with my acoustic Landola from early 2012

In early 2011 I had bought my first electric guitar and even upgraded to GuitarPro 6. I started composing and arranging my first album. Some pieces didn't fit to each other and some of the songs were not yet completed when I decided to record the album. During 2012 I had recorded Remedy (part.1) with my brother. I bought some recording equipment and started working on the recordings in November 2012 and decided to try to release it in time for Christmas as a present for my girlfriend. I composed Remedy (part.2) during the recordings and the whole Solitude, My Friend song was an experiment I did one day with recording different sounds on top of an ambient pad loop. 

The concept of the album kind of wrote itself. The songs tell of my loneliness in junior high when I didn't really have many friends and the title of the album Remedy For Solitude refers to my girlfriend who I got to know during my last year there (and we've been together since). 

Front and back cover of my album.

Only 10 physical copies of the album were made and I numbered them by hand

I've been working on new songs for a second release but I feel like I'm having a writers block as I have to write and do everything alone. Finding bandmates would help much with writing. 

You can download my album for free at bandcamp (http://untoldmemories.bandcamp.com/) and follow me in facebook (https://www.facebook.com/untoldproject). By donating money you can help me get new equipment to help me with the next release. 

I really don't feel like translating this all to Finnish :S 

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Peace and ΓΟΛΕ

 -Matti

Indie Shout Out vol.2

Toinen loistava löytö tänä syksynä oli suomalainen yhdenmiehen bändi/projekti Stars As Lights, jonka uusin julkaisu As If Time Had Stopped on huikea kymmenen kappaleen post-rock teos, jossa jokainen kappale kertoo oman tarinansa.

Stars As Lights on jyväskyläläisen Lauri Paavolaisen sooloprojekti. As If Time Had Stopped on kaikkine post-rock -kliseineenkin juuri täydellinen taidepläjäys minunlaiselleni musiikin ystävälle. Albumi erottuukin joukosta edukseen juuri sävellyksen ja tuotannon puolesta. Koko albumi on rauhoittavan kaunista kuunneltavaa alusta loppuun eikä yksikään kappale kuulosta samalta. Albumin kokonaisuus tuo mieleen Explosions In The Skyn alkutuotannon.

As If Time Had Stopped kuuluu ehdottomasti tämän vuoden parhaimpien post-rockjulkaisujen joukkoon Sigur Rósin ja God Is An Astronautin uusimpien albumien rinnalle.

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Another great discovery from this fall was the Finnish one-man-band/project Stars As Lights whose newest release As It Time Had Stopped is an immense ten track post-rock work in which every track tells its own story.

Stars As Lights is the solo project of Lauri Paavolainen from Jyväskylä, Finland. As If Time Had Stopped is just the perfect piece of art for a music lover like myself even with all its post-rock cliches. The album sticks out from the crowd with its amazing compositions and production quality. The whole album is restfully beautiful from the beginning all the way until the end and none of the songs sound too much alike. The album as a whole brings to my mind the earlier works of Explosions In The Sky. 

As If Time Had Stopped belongs easily to the top post-rock albums of the year alongside the new albums by Sigur Rós and God Is An Astronaut. 

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Also the artwork is absolutely amazing! :)

- Peace And ΓΟΛΕ - 
Matti

Indie Shout Out Vol.3

Tamperelainen Consciousness Removal Project (lyhyesti CRP) on soinut jo useamman vuoden iPodissani enkä vieläkään ole kyllästynyt Antti Loposen projektityylisen bändin tuotoksiin tippaakaan. CRP luo uskomattomia tunneilmauksia äärimmäisen taitavasti tuotetuilla albumeillaan (joita bändin katalogista löytyy jo 5 ja lisäksi aikaisempia albumeille päätymättömiä yksittäisiä kappaleita). Uusin albumi Tacit julkaistiin tämän vuoden alussa. Itselle tämä albumi on alkanut aueta vasta viime viikkoina (sen jälkeen kun luin albumin tarinan CRP:n sivuilta (http://consciousnessremovalproject.com/)).

Tacit tuo projektin post-metal-tyyliin uusia kokeilullisia piirteitä elektronisesta, ambientista ja jopa dronesta. Jokainen kappale tuo jotain uutta mukaan ja albumin kohokohta Colossus III: Deadlock luo käännekohdan, jonka jälkeen loput kappaleet käyvät läpi kauniita tunnemaailmoja. Koko albumi loppuu yli kymmenminuuttiseen progressiiviseen ambientvaikutteiseen kappaleeseen The Unknown Known, joka huipentuu post-metalriffittelyyn ja albumin ainoaan vokaaleja sisältävään motiiviin.

Myös CRP:n aiemmat albumit The Last Season, Do You Ever Think It's The End Of The World, 852 ja bändin nimikkoalbumi tuovat levy levyltä jotain uutta CRP:n tyyliin syvällisillä konsepteilla ja äänimaailmoja laajentamalla. Joka levyltä löytyy vierailevia muusikoita, jotka rikastavat albumien musikaalisuutta.

Arvostan Consciousness Removal Projectin etumiestä Antti Loposta sekä säveltäjänä, että taiteilijana ja odotan innolla projectin seuraavaa albumia, joka lienee odotettavissa ensi vuoden puolella.

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Tampere based Consciousness Removal Project (CRP for shortened) has blasted in my iPod for several years already and I have yet to be bored by a single piece of art by this project-like band of Antti Loponen. CRP creates unbelievable expressions of emotions accompanied with skillful productions on their albums (which the band has already 5 in their catalog plus earlier songs that have not been released on albums). Their newest album Tacit was released in early 2013. For me personally the album has opened its true meaning only during these few weeks (after I read the story behind the album at their website (http://consciousnessremovalproject.com/)).

Tacit brings new experimental traits from electro, ambient and even drone to the projects post-metal style. Every single track adds something new to the mix and the highlight of the album Colossus III: Deadlock marks a turning point after which the rest of the songs undergo beautiful worlds of sensation. The whole album ends with a ten minute progressive ambient-influenced track called The Unknown Known which culminates to slow post-metal riffs and the albums only part with vocals.

Consciousness Removal Project's earlier albums The Last Season, Do You Ever Think It's The End Of The World, 852 and their self-titled album add something new to their style album by album with deep concepts and expanding soundscapes. Every album has quest musicians who enrich the musical traits of the albums.

I respect the frontman Antti Loponen of Consciousness Removal Project both as a composer/songwriter and a respectful artist and I'm eagerly waiting for their next album which can be expected to be released sometime during next year.

 

Cheers to CRP and everyone who respects them as much as I do

- Matti

Come On Die Young

"Of all I knew,
I held too few
And would you stop me,
if I tried to stop you?

Old songs, stay till the end
Sad songs, remind me of friends
And the way it is, I could leave it all
And I ask myself, would you care at all?

When I drive alone at night, I see the steetlights as fairgrounds
And I've tried a hundred times, to see the roadsings as day-glo

Old songs, stay till the end
Sad songs, remind me of friends
And the way it is, I could leave it all
And I ask myself, would you care at all?"

Mogwai - Cody

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The saddest song I know, Cody had an instant effect on me when I first heard it when I was like 14 or 15.
The line "Old songs, stay till the end, Sad songs, remind me of friends" stuck in my head for eternity and even today is one of the most inspirational piece of lyrics I've ever stumbled upon.