2015 In Music
I’ve put up album charts and song of
the year lists on my personal fb before so here I’m gonna talk a bit more in
depth about albums, songs, videos and other moments in music that stuck out to
me in 2015. Here…we…go kids. There was so much good music released this year so
some things may not have made it onto this here article thingy.
Album
of the Year: Counterparts: Tragedy Will Find Us
It’s no secret that Counterparts are
my favourite band of any genre and especially of melodic hardcore. While in
recent years there’s been an upsurge of bands playing that ragged, emotional
strain of hardcore Counterparts have always stuck out for their technicality
and sheer heaviness, both in terms of music and emotional punch. While Tragedy
Will Find Us does dial down the experimentalism found on their last full
length, it has resulted in their tightest, most focused and most vicious set of
songs to date. A perfect soundtrack for drinking cans in your room at 2 in the
morning regretting everything in your life.
Honourable
Mentions
Bones: Powder.
Make Them Suffer: Old Souls.
Death Grips: Jenny Death.
Kendrick Lamar: To Pimp A Butterfly.
Earl Sweatshirt: I Don’t Like Shit, I
Don’t Go Outside.
While She Sleeps: Brainwashed.
Debut
of the Year: Currents: Life // Lost
A fresh new injection of life into the
metalcore genre, Currents are definitely a band to keep an eye on this year.
Life // Lost shows off their instrumental skills, songwriting diversity and
ability to create some truly destructive tunes. Despite losing their frontman
this year, they’ve got a new single, Withered, out and I’m excited to see where
they go next.
Honourable
Mentions
Viet Cong: Viet Cong.
Bully: Feels Like.
Girl Band: Pears For Lunch.
Joey Bada$$: B4 DA $$.
Wolf Alice: My Love Is Cool.
Vince Staples: Summertime ’06.
Band/Artist
of the Year: Bones
Bones enjoyed his most successful year
this year, releasing more mixtapes, playing more shows than ever and getting an
A$AP Rocky remix on his Long Live A$AP album. Yet despite the attention brought
to him by that feature, he hasn’t curbed the darkness and experimental tendencies
that have brought him his massive underground following, with some of his
lightest and heaviest material to date being dropped. Truly one of the leading
figures of the underground internet rap scene.
Honourable
Mentions
Counterparts.
Earl Sweatshirt.
Crossfaith.
Death Grips.
While She Sleeps.
Kendrick Lamar.
Charting
Single of the Year: Florence+The Machine: Ship To Wreck
After a four year break and great
turbulence in her personal life, Florence and her Machine returned to the
charts with Ship To Wreck. Free of much of the orchestral parts and dramatism
that characterise her output, it’s a stripped back, slightly folky number
reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac or Belle And Sebastian, one of my personal all
time faves. While in the past some of her songs could get a bit irritating,
this took me by surprise so it goes above songs by artists I knew would
deliver.
Honourable
Mentions
Kendrick Lamar: King Kunta.
Stormzy: Shut Up.
JME: Man Don’t Care.
Calvin Harris & Disciples: How
Deep Is Your Love (purely cause of those vocals).
WSTRN: In2.
Skepta: Shutdown.
Song
of the Year 1a: Earl Sweatshirt: Solace
Is it one 10 minute long song or an EP
that never was? Is it an unfinished demo due to its rough quality? Whatever it
is, it’s one of the most beautiful expressions of sorrow as music. Its
sprawling nature, jazzy instrumentation, Earl’s mumbling flow and the overall
lo-fi vibes make it strangely compelling.
Song
of the Year 1b: Counterparts: Collapse
While it may be cheating to have two
songs of the year, Counterparts have truly outdone themselves with Collapse. A
haunting description of falling out of love with someone after things have come
apart, it is the most concise distillation of the traits that have made them
one of melodic hardcore’s most beloved bands.
Honourable
Mentions
Novelist x Mumdance: 1 Sec.
Like Moths To Flames: Fighting Fire
With Fire.
Veil Of Maya: Mikasa.
Bully: I Remember.
Crossfaith: Wildfire.
Bones: ItAllComesTogetherInTheFinalAct.
Most
Consistent Band/Artist Of The Year: Like Moths To Flames
Anyone at all familiar with the Rise
Records catalogue knows Like Moths To Flames are a band who…don’t have a lot of
highly distinctive factors and gimmicks helping them stand out from the crowd.
Their blend of metalcore isn’t especially techy, especially downtuned and
chuggy, or highly reminiscent of nu metal or the melodic death metal influenced
wave of bands like Killswitch Engage or Unearth. However what they do have is
strong songwriting chops, huge choruses and a whole lot of rage. Their
dedication to constant improvement and consistency makes them the shoe-in for
this award.
Honourable
Mentions
August Burns Red.
Counterparts.
CHVRCHES.
While She Sleeps.
In Hearts Wake.
Lorna Shore.
Reinvention
of the Year: Veil Of Maya
With the loss of their singer, notable
for his guttural lows, it was uncertain what the story was with technical
deathcore OGs Veil Of Maya. However they found a new vocalist and were able to incorporate
cleans into their style, something many were sceptical of. Fortunately the
cleans are soaring and powerful, combined with improved songwriting, VOM have
reinvented themselves as a more melodic metalcore act, though keeping the
insane guitarwork that made their name.
Honourable
Mentions
Parkway Drive.
Earl Sweatshirt.
Kendrick Lamar.
Northlane.
Stories.
Belle And Sebastian.
Music
Video Of The Year: Death Grips: I Break Mirrors With My Face In The United
States
Death Grips videos are always works of
art in their own respect and this one was no different. Featuring cameras on
the wrists of both MC Ride and Zack Hill, it captures the sheer visceral power
and chaos of this song and indeed any live performance from the band in a
unique way.
Honourable
Mentions
Denzel Curry: 6 Billion Dollar Nigga.
Counterparts: Collapse.
Stray From The Path: Badge And A
Bullet Part 2.
Novelist: Endz.
In Hearts Wake: Badlands.
Like Moths To Flames: Fighting Fire
With Fire.
Discovery
of the Year: tricot
While they’ve been active for a few
years, I wasn’t aware of tricot until this year and boy, have I been missing
out big time. Combining mathy intricacy with bags of energy and huge pop hooks,
this Japanese quartet make some of the most delightful music going, they’ve
quickly become one of my favourites.
Honourable
Mentions
Novelist.
Stories.
Capsize.
SOAK.
$UICIDEBOY$.
Currents.
Disappointment
of the Year: Bring Me The Horizon: That’s The Spirit
Lacking the heaviness and energy that
has always characterised their work, with many elements being instantly
recognizable thefts from other artists, and overall coming off as a calculated
move for greater mainstream popularity, That’s The Spirit let a long term fan
of the band down. While not an awful record, it was nowhere near up to the
standard of their previous albums.
Dishonourable
Mentions
Justin Bieber not reinventing himself
totally and joining a grindcore band.
Turnstile: Nonstop Feeling.
Drake winning the Meek Mill beef.
The demise of Funeral For A Friend
among many other great bands.
Sworn In: The Lovers // The Devil.
There’s still no Frank Ocean or Haim or Tool album, come on folks.
So there you have it folks, my 2015 in banging tunes, have a read, show your friends it, etc etc.
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