Year End Lists
By Sowing
Thursday January 13, 2022
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Here and Now sees Gates return with their first new music since 2016. Frankly, it’s like they never left, with the EP’s six songs residing firmly in the band’s sweet spot, ensconced in the lush middle of the triangle of post-rock, emo, and indie rock. It’s all good, although the staunchly post-rockian (that’s a word) intro “Out Of Nothing” and the melodious anthem “We Are” stand above the rest. If Here and Now doesn’t quite reach the quality level of the group’s two full-lengths, that’s quite OK. Hearing something new from these New Jersey boys is always a treat, especially given the long drought between releases. –Sunnyvale

[Facebook] // [Spotify]
Hello and welcome to 2021’s most satisfying “redemption arc” — in quotation marks because I don’t think any teen star with approximately zero creative control over her past output requires any ‘redemption’ whatsoever. Nonetheless, Rebecca Black Was Here managed to divert some of the attention Rebecca Black still gets from the 2011 single “Friday” to some genuinely good music. The new 20-minute project fully and successfully embraces PC music aesthetics, featuring metallic production and hooks for days. Black’s vocal performance suits the stylistic choices brilliantly, detailing unremarkable but well-written tales of maturity, love, and drama. The
…
By Sowing
Wednesday January 12, 2022
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Leave it to JPEGMAFIA to create hip-hop that’s equal parts abrasive, experimental, and just plain bold. I guess it comes as no surprise when looking at his list of influences, which includes artists as stylistically disparate as Kanye West, Bjork, MF DOOM, and even Hanson. However, LP! might just be the best record of his career thus far: the balance between accessibility and risk-taking is at its strongest here, leading to a record that never stays in one place — musically or emotionally — for too long. “Hazardous Duty Pay!” and “Tired, Nervous & Broke!” bring out the aggro side of JPEG perfectly and manage to be two of the biggest bangers he’s ever put out, but it’s impressive that he’s able to juxtapose these songs so well with more tender, melancholic moments. You’ve got the gospel-inspired “What Kinda Rappin’ is This?”, the low-key vibes of “Thot’s Prayer!”, and even a goddamn Animals as Leaders sample on “End Credits!”. Moreover, LP! can be seen as JPEG’s “fuck you” to the hip-hop industry, which is even more apparent on the ‘(Offline)’ version, which he considers “the true LP!“. LP! largely acts as a commentary on exploitation and favoritism, as well as JPEG’s disillusion with an industry that “never had my best interest at heart.” Really, it’s no wonder that he wanted to go all-out with LP!, and thankfully, he did. –Brendan Schroer
29. Failure
…
By Sowing
Tuesday January 11, 2022
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Although Lord Huron have been of note in indie folk circles for a while, the group’s fourth LP Long Lost really sees them come into their own. While still treading indie folk/Americana waters, here the band have moved into a much more lush sonic direction (think Honey Harper with a tinge of Ruston Kelly), while also leaning into classic country influences. While the country aspects of this record can feel like pastiche, they work, especially as it’s pretty clear that Lord Huron mastermind Ben Schneider is self-aware enough to understand he’s not Waylon Jennings. For listeners who, like most of my music-loving friends and I, are enthralled by forlorn old songs drenched in bourbon and steel guitar, this album is a godsend. Before the sunset haze of a lengthy ambient drone closer brings us home, Long Lost leaves us with the repeated mantra, “What does it mean if it all means nothing?” — a line that ultimately isn’t just a reflection on familiar tropes of long lost love and hard-drinking wandering songsmiths. More than anything, it’s a reminder that simple words can capture elusive and quite deep concepts. Now that’s a true country music tradition! –Sunnyvale
49. Porter Robinson – Nurture

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Have no fear, ladies and gentlemen:…
By Sowing
Thursday January 14, 2021
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
The modern era of The Ocean Collective — a settled aggregate as opposed to the revolving door era of the early 2000s — forced audiences across the metal world to pay attention with Pelagial. Unlike the prior -centric series, it was a record that combined the band’s growing emphasis on atmosphere with their crushing post-metal soundscapes, threatening sludge background, and emerging vocal talent in Loic Rossetti. No longer did an identity crisis plague the group; their newfound individuality, birthed from the novel ambient and progressive leanings, had been solidified in perhaps the crew’s best flowing and paced output in a titanic discography. Striving to succeed such a laudable effort with yet another concept release dual threat seemed like a second chance, correcting the criticism of years past. Armed to the teeth with members that had now begun to cooperate at a high level, the run began with the promising Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic, which was designed with consistency in mind — a goal that the record, what with its stunning sonic environments populated by massive riffs and evocative moods, certainly excelled at reaching. Per the band’s own admissions, cliché as it may be from a marketing perspective, a treasure trove of surprises awaited in the anticipated second part. Eyes were predictably rolled in anticipation, yet what emerged precisely as advertised: a product that aimed to…
By Sowing
Wednesday January 13, 2021
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
You’d be hard-pressed to pick Mass VI Live out of a lineup of Amenra’s studio records were you not already well acquainted with their 2017 release of the same name. The live rendition of the Belgian post-metal legends’ most recent opus is sublime, sporting better production values than most bands’ core albums whilst still packing in all the immediacy, wonder and passion you’d expect from an ‘in the moment’ performance, even with the notable absence of a live audience. “Children of the Eye” still hits like a freight train, “Diaken” bristles with all of the same gorgeous little details and “A Solitary Reign” is “A Solitary Reign” which, as you’ll know if you’ve heard the original, is all that it needed to be. It may have only made it onto this list at the whim of two particularly determined users, yet it deserves to be recognised amongst the most impressive releases of 2020, whether live or otherwise, because Mass VI Live is an event. Come and witness it. –Asleep

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Three years after the fantastic Asheran, these UK proggers added a string to their bow by further smashing together metal genres. On top of their sludge/stoner recipe, some death, thrash, and even blackened elements spice up a formula that
…
By Sowing
Tuesday January 12, 2021
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Abel Tesfaye always had the ’80s flair in him. Instead of the blatant hedonism of his reference decade, he uses the same tropes to criticize the lifestyle he lives. Self-loathing his way through new wave-y, dream-poppy R&B, Tesfaye appears less dysfunctional than ever, yet fails in becoming the man he strives to be. It seems he possibly can never become that man: the night never ends, the drugs never stop, and plastic surgery isn’t unaffordable anymore. Under such conditions, it’s no surprise his newest collection of songs falls into the category of the nocturnal mega-bangers, the kind of songs that ravage everything in its path thanks to its intelligent fusion of 808s rhythms and ’80s nostalchic elements. I bet this guy will crush the competition at the upcoming Grammy Awards. –Erwann S.

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Naas Alcameth is part of a restricted niche of artists who manage to embody their spiritual dimension in all its fullness. Those who are aware of his many musical projects know that his own private reality roams between consciousness and dream, trapped within a disturbing parallel existence. It is simply not enough to add some random dark tone to a composition to make it terrifying; it must be able to genuinely reverberate that unsettling dimension. Melinoë…
By Sowing
Monday January 11, 2021
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Intronaut’s rise to fame over the last decade and a half has been anything but luck, but in a year as turbulent as 2020, the band’s Fluid Existential Inversions somehow moved past the success of their 2015 release and a change of drummers (normally a spanner in the works of any established band). Largely, the group’s newest piece offers up most of the familiar progressive nuance of the scene while adding a heavier all-around presence. Fans will find the likes of “The Cull” and “Speaking Of Orbs” more familiar — their mood reaffirms Intronaut’s more introspective, natural songwriting patterns — but it’s deeper cuts like “Contrapasso”, “Pangloss” or “Sour Everythings” that showcase a bunch of well-practiced musicians moving forward in a truly successful direction. Intronaut continues to meld a clinical display of rhythms into wonderfully crafted melodies while resonating with the success that’s followed them since their debut. –Robert Garland
49. Slift – Ummon

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
The 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for black hole discoveries that revealed the “darkest secrets of the universe,” but Slift are the ones truly challenging the stretch of cosmic confines. With their blend of psychedelic space rock, stoner, and krautrock, the French riffaholics created an epic journey through space, time, and many, many mushrooms. –Erwann S.…
lol owned u guys so hard. April fools! get rekt losers!!
Can’t give y’all the decade list just yet (altho expect it soon!). Instead, here’s the next best thing: the OFFICIAL Sputnikmusic Staff’s ranking of the Top 50 Songs of 2018!
Me and the boys have been working hard on refining this since November of ’18, arguing intently for months on end as to which song belongs where, whether some of us listen to too much K-pop, where robertsona’s blurbs are, and so on. Nonetheless, I assure you that the below ranking is as accurate as we can possibly get it and we hope you guys appreciate the work.
I’d note in advance for you that some of the blurbs may be a little dated at this point (but really, I feel like you guys won’t even notice). Anyway, much love from all of us, and stay safe out there (note: for most of you, “out there” should be inside)!
50. “Baby Pink” – Moe Shop
This one radiates good vibes, and idk I just feel like the next few years are gonna be smooth freakin’ sailing for everyone.
49. “The Joke” – Brandi Carlile
Just a funny song about crackin’ silly jokes with the fellas. This would actually be so fitting for a list published on April Fool’s day, but sadly this list will
…
By Sowing
Friday January 10, 2020
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Whether you love Periphery or hate them, you can’t ignore them. Well, you can, but where’s the fun in that? 2019 was a pretty huge year for the shitposting meme-lords of the progressive metal world. They started their own record label and released Hail Stan, which is somehow simultaneously their most ambitious, cohesive, diverse, mature, and meme-y record yet. If you don’t believe me just look at the evidence: they named the album Hail Stan [sic]; opening track “Reptile” is an impressively epic and surprisingly engaging seventeen minutes long; they raised the heaviness bar with “Blood Eagle”; they raised the saccharine pop-savviness bar with “It’s Only Smiles”; they threw in a shockingly catchy industrial/synthwave track in “Crush”; and they capped an incredible Spencer Sotelo vocal performance on “Satellites” — Jesus, can that guy hit the notes or what? — the album, and hell, their entire decade, with an impersonation of Eric Cartman saying, “Suck my balls.”
I mean, if you can’t appreciate any of that, it probably means you’re a human being with taste, but it also probably means that you’re more than just a little dead on the inside. –SitarHero

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Hype. Sweet mother of unholy hype. When I heard that Blood Incantation were releasing a follow-up to Starspawn I…
By Sowing
Thursday January 9, 2020
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
Sailing Narrenschiff (aka “Ship of Fools”) is like getting your ass kicked for 20 minutes straight by a bunch of deranged Swiss freaks. Nevertheless, this massive display of power never really gets out of control, just like an experienced fighter who always delivers his blows at the right moments. Nostromo’s 2019 EP mirrors maturity and capacity for synthesis without ever losing irreverence. It’s a relentless slab of European grindcore, whose lethal riffs, fierce vocals, and tight musicianship should not pass under the radar. –TheNoTrap

[Official site] // [Spotify]
A number of lineup changes have warped the Sodom sound over the years. Having once commanded thrash supremacy in M-16 and Agent Orange back in their heyday, there was sure to be a question of unreachable quality thrash when it comes to the band’s new music. If anything, Out of the Frontline Trench adds a glimmer to the hope that Sodom are on the up-and-up, bringing back the same classic edge the band used to live on and redressing old cuts to match their longing, greying hair. –Nocte

[Soundcloud] // [Spotify]
Latinx influence on popular music in 2019 is hard to overstate, but most online music discussion seems to circle back to maybe five different artists. Bad Bunny and Rosalia are certainly progress…
By Sowing
Wednesday January 8, 2020
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Sonic Citadel is a timely reminder of exactly how much colour and joy can be packed into a solid noise rock album. While last year’s big name releases in that field (Daughters and KEN Mode) were harrowing and monochromatic, Lightning Bolt smash their way through every note as though they’re having the time of their lives. It’s still heavy as hell – “Blow to the Head”‘s opening notes mean business from the word go — but Sonic Citadel is less a merciless beatdown than a raucous stomp — along with an open invite for all your friends and family. “Air Conditioning” explodes all over the shop, “Halloween 3” drops riffs like spare change, “Big Banger” does just that, “All Insane” is a cute melodic shuffle, and “Van Halen 2049” is the most conclusive proof since Melt-Banana’s Cell-Scape that a band this proficient can do whatever the hell they like for ten minutes at the end of a solid record without incurring the slightest flack for it. Not from me, at any rate. Anyhow, with its glib track names and distorted deadpan vocals both well placed for a further wry touch, Sonic Citadel is a thoroughly competent album pulled off with a keen sense for craft and consumption alike. –JohnnyoftheWell
29. Jimmy Eat World – Surviving

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Emo bands aren’t known for ageing gracefully…
By Sowing
Tuesday January 7, 2020
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EP/Live/Compilation

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify]
In case you couldn’t tell from that gloriously stupid band name, Prince Daddy are a bit of an audacious bunch. Cosmic Thrill Seekers is the most ambitious emo release of the 2010s and can be counted as one of the best, too. Hung loosely on a narrative framework of watching The Wizard of Oz while tripped out on acid, this really just gives the band free rein to try pretty much anything they’d like. The fact that it results in a blissed-out masterpiece instead of a drug-addled mess instantly places Prince Daddy as one of the premier bands to watch in any genre. Combining Weezer-esque power-pop, outbursts of atonal punk outrage, and glistening emo theatrics, Cosmic Thrill Seekers deserves to be just as fondly remembered and endlessly influential as the likes of Whenever, If Ever or Nothing Feels Good Anymore within the always outwardly expanding genre of emo. –Slex

[Official site] // [Spotify]
Following on from the growing pains of the transitional Dark Bird Is Home, I Love You. It’s A Fever Dream. might just be Kristian Matsson’s most accomplished release yet. While it isn’t as raw or effortless as the landmark 2011 album The Wild Hunt, it’s exponentially more layered, musically and otherwise. There’s a juxtaposition of warm and weightless wide open space being…
By Sowing
Friday January 11, 2019
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EPs/Live Albums/Compilations

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]
Artificiality gets a bad rap. Despite the divide between “natural” and “unnatural” being a nebulous and slippery one, many people are highly invested in establishing and maintaining a hierarchy between the two. These people affix the “unnatural” label onto a laundry list of new, scary phenomena, from smartphones to genetically modified foods, hoping everyone else shares their assumption that artificiality is inherently negative. Somewhere on that list, you’ll find pretty much everything queer people do. Same-gender relationships are “unnatural.” Lack of sexual desire is “unnatural.” Feeling that you’re a different gender than everyone says you are is “unnatural,” as is anything you might do to feel more like that gender: makeup, hormone replacement therapy, plastic surgery, etc.
SOPHIE has no regard for such condemnations; throughout Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides, she revels in the artificial. She takes the raw electronic elements of club bangers and alternately fashions them into blasts of industrial surrealism or impressionist strokes of ambience. The voice that declares, “My face is the front of shop” and sings about “immaterial girls” is not her own; when she does grace the mic, her voice is so unintelligibly distorted that a listener can only just make out her command to “synthesize the real.” Not since Floral Shoppe has such…
By Sowing
Thursday January 10, 2019
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EPs/Live Albums/Compilations

[Bandcamp] // [Spotify] // [Facebook]
By now Iglooghost has solidified himself as one of the most talented producers, being able to take the most frantic drums of Aphex Twin’s and molding it into something that’s altogether his own. Within the splashes of melody lines, one can hear influences of bubblegum bass, rap breakdowns, fluttering ambient passages, and at times even twinkly math rock arpeggios. All of these are on full display on Clear Tamei, yet he’s taken it a step further within the overall atmosphere of this EP; Iglooghost wants to become a world-builder. Instantly, you’re immersed into this alien land, filled with many characters speaking gibberish while metallic clangs of synths and samples elongate across the ground — much like blowing up a balloon, only to have it pop and burst into nonstop explosions of robotic sound effects. At times this world seems like it’s underwater, like an unimaginable Atlantis filled with multicolored sea life. Other times, it seems as if you’re in some jungle as birds chirp by your ears gracefully among the gorgeous chaos happening before your eyes. It’s meant to be confusing only in the sense that everything you are hearing and experiencing is completely and totally new, making it one of the most successful EPs for immersing you into foreign, dreamed up lands. While it’s…
By Sowing
Wednesday January 9, 2019
50-31 | 30-11 | 10-1 | EPs/Live Albums/Compilations
30. Tim Hecker – Konoyo

[Official Site] // [Spotify] // [Bandcamp]
The location: an unnamed New Zealand city, a suburb which I will grant anonymity. A long-disused industrial warehouse, fallen into dilapidation, on the corner of a noisy major thoroughfare and a street which exclusively houses those kind of depots, tin expanses stowing wares no-one wants or needs, strange buildings which for whatever reason require constant power-tool sounds to screech from them. Some entrepreneur repurposed the place as a café without doing much to clean up, assuming perhaps that ghosts are less frightening when visible. The tables were arranged outside under a concrete awning with a prime view of the main road, which ran less than ten metres away. The place was invariably packed; people crowded the tables, sipping their coffees, viewing the traffic and maelstrom of cars they would rejoin in a matter of minutes, a constant drone of labour audible though impossible to echolocate.
It’s less that it was an oasis and more a signifier that there was no reprieve. The proximity to garish brutalist architecture and the transportational march of progress, people stifling in their cars, getting one place to the next, became a fixture. People were watching regurgitated, endlessly and recursively perpetuated versions of themselves: the ultimate postmodern experience. Not so much voyeurism as exhibitionism right? I remember going there once, drinking what I imagine the Allied forces in WWII…
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