decoyoctopus
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Soundoffs 8
Album Ratings 162
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Last Active 12-23-15 3:57 am
Joined 07-15-12

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 Lists
01.21.15 2014 Top Picks ( A Little Late)03.31.14 Top Picks Of March 2014 ♦
03.05.14 Best Of February 201401.31.14 Top Picks Of January 2014 ♦
12.22.13 Top 20 Of 2013

Top Picks Of March 2014

These are my top picks for March 2014. As always, these are just my personal opinion - if I rleft something off its because either I didn't care for it, or I didn't hear it. Comment, tell me rwhat you think!
13Pharrell
G I R L

Pharrel gets props for becoming an exceedingly talented producer. He loses points
for struggling as a vocalist to match the grandeur and scale of some of his
production. Pharrell utilizes lots of very 'classy' and 'regal' sounding production
on this album, similar to Justin Timberlake. The extremely popular single ?Happy?
is infectiously fun and uplifting.
12Moonlit Sailor
We Come From Exploding Stars

A post rock album, through and through. While it may be a little bit generic and
formulaic for the post-rock genre, it is still a nice listen. Expect the usual climaxes
characteristic of post-rock and song progression utilizing rises and falls to control
listener excitement.
11Sisyphus
Sisyphus

So it turns out this was actually a March release even though it appeared on my
February list. I heard it in February and that is why it appeared upon that list, but
now it's in its rightful place on the March list. Sisyphus is an alternative /
experimental hip-hop album with experimental electronic production. This is the alt
hip hop project of Sufjan Stevens, Serengeti, and Son Lux.
10Hark
Crystalline

Progressive Sludge Metal, relentlessly heavy and crushing. Really enjoyed the
instrumentation, but I had a difficult time getting into the vocals on this album.
9A/T/O/S
A/T/O/S

Calm and relaxing bassy trip hop with female vocals.
8Exit_International
Our Science is Golden

'Our Science is Golden' is noisy and aggressive, in-your-face, and very bombastic; all the
while very catchy and fun. A very solid album from the realm of noise-rock, post-punk, post
hardcore, call it what you will.
7Motorpsycho
Behind the Sun

Motorpsycho is a psychedelic stoner space-rock band. We were bound to get something
good out of this niche genre this year at some point, and its taken until March to happen.
This album is boldly anachronistic, clearly content to remain within the 70s while the world
of music evolves (or devolves depending on your perspective) around it. A good deal of
the guitar-work on this album reminded me of Colour Haze, to offer a point of perspective.
6CHON
Woohoo!

Instrumental progressive metal act 'CHON' deliver an EP deserving of its jubilant, if
not festive and peculiar title, 'Woohoo!' There is no metal to be found on this
album; simply light, ecstatic, airy prog rock / jazz fusion jingles. The entire mood of
this album is very bright and carefree. Perhaps one of my favorite aspects of this
album is the very jazzy, free form drumming. There were some moans and groans
to be found among the response to Chon's Ep when vocals made an appearance on
the third track, Ecco, but after repeat listens I decided that these vocals did not
detract from the quality of the track, but rather suited the mood of the track quite
well and only added to the listening experience. That being said, its still primarily an
instrumental EP; fans of light-hearted jazz music in the major register, as well as
fans of progressive rock should both appreciate this EP and find it suitable to their
tastes.
5The War on Drugs
Lost in the Dream

'Lost in the Dream' is a very soulful, catchy, rock album with roots in shoegaze,
indie rock, and Americana. LITD is absolutely dripping with 80s influence, ranging
from the sorta-Rod Stewart sounding vocal style to the sparingly used synth effects
and very distinguished, straight forward drumming technique. The use of echoes,
the illusion of distance, and very moody songwriting to create added depth to this
album really place the listener directly within the most somber moments of their
favorite 80s movies.
4Creepoid
Creepoid

The first, and most obvious influence to be noted by Philadelphia rock band
'Creepoid' is Radiohead's Thom Yorke. The vocal style is nearly the same to earlier
Radiohead, circa Pablo Honey. The less obvious influences are found in the
distinctly grunge rock sounding instrumentation. There is something very noisy,
messy and unrefined about the entire album that makes it sound so good, and
the almost exasperated, mind-altered Thom Yorke style vocals only compliment it
further. There is just so much going on musically during this record as well, so
many different sounds and influences and styles being played at once. Terms that
come to mind while listening to Creepoid: alternative, grunge, shoegaze, folk,
indie, psychedelic, as I said, so much going on throughout this record.
3Nothing
Guilty of Everything

Nothing are yet another band of Philadelphia shoegazers to add to our growing list of Philadelphia shoe-
gaze rockers ((I am beginning to wonder as a native of the Philadelphia area if there is a Philly
Shoegaze scene and I've entirely missed it))! To be honest I enjoyed Creepoid and Guilty of Everything
just about the same, but the list is in numerical order and I arbitrarily decided to declare Guilty of
Everything the tie breaker. 'Nothing' delivers spacious, emotive, haunting, melancholic, dreamy,
shoegaze at its very best on 'Guilty of Everything'. Singer/guitarist Domenic Palermo has an
enchanting, soft, distanced voice eerily cast atop the thick and textured indiscernible buzz of guitar
strings. If you are a fan of shoe-gaze / dream-pop, or just atmospheric rock in general, be certain to
check this one out. Even more interesting is Domenic Palermo's back story, which is worth looking into
if you enjoy the songs on this album.
2Animals As Leaders
The Joy of Motion

The Joy of Motion is one of the most eloquent instrumental progressive rock albums I have ever
heard. This may sound like an awfully ambitious claim, but AAL's Tobin Abasi said it best when he
stated, 'I took a step back and made an honest statement about what each song needed rather than
showing how many sweep patterns I could throw in. The new record's more lyrical ((an interesting
choice of words when faced with an instrumental album)). I think I've gotten to a place where I am
comfortable with my playing, and I don't have to flaunt my ability'. The Joy of Motion keeps songs
short and sweet. These tracks are still showcasing the exemplary instrumental and technical
capability of the musicians in AAL, but it never feels like a simple show of guitar gymnastics. The
songs are polished to perfection, not only by Periphery's Misha Mansoor, who was responsible for
production on this album - but also by AAL themselves, for writing eloquent and to-the-point prog
rock tunes. Composition was the key to success on this album.
1Destrage
Are You Kidding Me? No

Italian mathy metal-core band 'Destrage' released the first metal album of the year that I can honestly say
I've really truly enjoyed. While there have been ample black metal releases, as well as a plethora of doom
metal albums thus far this year ? I've been waiting anxiously for the first progressive metal album to really
shock and amaze me. This was a very close competition with Animals as Leaders for my favorite from March,
as that was also a phenomenal prog metal album, but this one I enjoyed slightly more. There is just so
much going on in this album. The haphazard switching between a variety of genres makes it impossible to
resist smiling - such as the unexpected transitions from heavy bass pedals to funky jam rock. 'AYKM?N'
(how's that for an album acronym?), succeeds in accomplishing some of the same feats that make Dillinger
Escape Plan such a beloved band of mine ? the very catchy and accessible creation of spastic mathy prog
metal. It is taking collections of sounds that shouldn't be pleasing to the ear, and making it very pleasing,
and downright fun. While DEP's brand of extreme metal is more punk / hardcore based, Destrage's take on
it seems to be more in the alternative metal / metal-core direction ? yet both bands still manage to avoid the
technical / djent tag and create captivating, exciting, and organic music. There is nothing mechanical about
this album at all, all of the progression feels very loose and free. Its such a fun listen because it shouldn't
work at all, alt-rock riffs and vocals that border on occasionally sounding like Chester Bennington with a
poorer grasp on English, relentlessly merged with Fall of Troy guitar-work and the excitement and energy of
DEP. I can only imagine how fun a band like this must be in a live setting.
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