BlushfulHippocrene
Emeritus

Reviews 47
Approval 100%

Soundoffs 1
News Articles 6
Band Edits + Tags 91
Album Edits 113

Album Ratings 1430
Objectivity 81%

Last Active 01-01-70 12:00 am
Joined 01-01-70

Review Comments 4,053

 Lists
01.01.22 A List of Albums I Listened to and Love ♦01.05.21 Music I like from 2020
07.14.18 A List of Words from Songs I Love ♦03.24.17 3/6/9
12.18.16 A Blushful 2016 ♦

A Blushful 2016

I didn't listen to much new music, in part because I had little time for it, and also because I was listening to a fair bit of other music - or at least more than usual. Instead of a top number of new music, then, which would be uninteresting because I'd list a lot of Sputnik albums, here are a number of albums I liked over 2016. Here's to 2017. Hopefully, that'll be more exciting.
1Kemba
Negus

3.0 / Hip Hop

FKA YC the Cynic, Kemba's sophomore album - the first under the new moniker - is seething, even aggressive at times. With this project, he explores some heavier topics, including, most predominantly, race. At times, the album feels calculated and focused to a fault, and I wish Kemba'd change up his demeanor a bit - a lot of the anger feels pent up and restrained, and I'd like to hear him lose control and let it all out - but it's a very solid hip hop album regardless.

Stream and download it (for free if you want) here: http://kembaland.bandcamp.com/album/negus
2Georgia Maq/Spencer Scott
Split

3.1 / Indie Rock / Folk Punk

Georgia Maq's had a good year with Camp Cope. But as good (and surprisingly successful) as the band's self-titled was, I still think a lot of Georgia's solo material exceeds what the band has achieved musically thus far. Her side of this split with Spencer Scott provides an excellent case for this, although Spencer himself is somewhat of a disappointment. Georgia balances fragile and scathing well in her solo singer-writer material.

http://georgiamaq.bandcamp.com/album/split-7
3Slowly Slowly
Chamomile

3.2 / Indie Rock / Emo

I saw Ben Stewart (Slowly Slowly) open for Julien Baker a few weeks ago. I'd heard the band on Triple J a few times, though their music had never quite caught my attention, perhaps because Ben himself is a lot less engaging on record. That said, I think this band has a lot of potential: there are some excellent songs on this album, the instrumentation just runs a little bland at times. Chamomile's been stuck on repeat for weeks.

http://slowlyslowlymusic.bandcamp.com/album/chamomile
4Camp Cope
Camp Cope

3.2 / Indie Rock / Emo

Georgia Maq's band. I reviewed this one. It's grown off me a little, in part due to the production which devalues a few songs I'd loved beforehand, but it's still an excellent listen, and a lot of people liked it more than me.

http://campcope.bandcamp.com/album/camp-cope
5White Noise of Anxiety
Awkward Silence

3.2 / Emo

Conmaniac's band, and a great one at that. E.N. remains one of the most heartwrenching things I've heard this year, and the EP itself gets better and better with each song. A lot of different inspirations make the EP feel a little bit scatter-brained at times, so it'd be interesting to see the band carve a more definitive sound for themselves, but this is extremely charming nonetheless.

http://whitenoiseofanxiety.bandcamp.com/
6Oddisee
Alwasta

3.2 / Hip Hop

One of two releases from Oddisee in 2016, the other being an instrumental album. Although The Odd Tape is significantly better than this, Oddisee still delivers some excellent rhymes, including a lot of politically charged statements, which at times focus a little too heavily on obvious talking-points, but hit hard nonetheless. If we're going to compare this to an album that focuses on similar topics (the Swet Shop Boys' Cashmere) I also think this handles its themes a lot more sophisticatedly. A short, pointed listen.

http://oddiseemmg.bandcamp.com/album/alwasta
7Terrace Martin
Velvet Portraits

3.3 / Jazz / Hip Hop / Soul

A great album from producer and saxophonist Terrace Martin, following some excellent work with the likes of Kamasi Washington, Robert Glasper and Thundercat, all of whom also appear on this album. Interest in it has waned for, but there are some very good moments, including a few instrumentals that made it on Kendricks To Pimp a Butterfly in some form.

http://ropeadope99.bandcamp.com/album/velvet-portraits
8Soulcast In Stereo
Soulcast In Stereo

3.4 / Folk / Emo

Some of the dreariest tunes I've heard all year, and something I've returned to quite a few times since released as a collaboration of musical projects Single Soul and Lost Salt Blood Purges, both of whom also released excellent albums in 2016.

http://soulcastinstereo.bandcamp.com/album/soulcast-in-stereo
9Somewhere South of Here
With Her Came the Birds

3.4 / Punk / Emo

A lot of the vocal performances on this are heartbreaking, and it has an interesting sense of cohesion with its narrative that's intriguing if nothing else. Part of me wishes it was a little longer, but for an EP that's under 15 minutes, it'd be a lot more concerning of me to think it was too long. It's a little too sorrowful for me to return to as much as a lot of these other projects, but to an extent, that's a testament to how effective it is at times. '...Only Sleeping' hits a bit too hard.

http://somewheresouthofhere.bandcamp.com/album/with-her-came-the-birds
10Kississippi
We Have No Future, We're All Doomed

3.5 / Indie Pop / Emo

Kississippi feels familiar, almost nostalgic. I wrote a review for this that I'm not too proud of, but it describes my feelings fairly accurately. This one stuck with me on repeat listens and really infected itself into my head.

http://softspeakrecords.bandcamp.com/album/we-have-no-future-were-all-doomed
11Shooter
Last Day

3.5 / Post-Rock / Ambient

I don't have too much to say about this one since I haven't given it as much time as a lot of the rest of the things on here, but it'd feel wrong not including it, considering how great it is.

http://shootermusicuk.bandcamp.com/releases
12Tash Sultana
Notion

3.6 / Indie Rock

I saw Tash Sultana perform a couple of months before exam season, and it was one of the best live experience I've had so far. She's sometimes bombastic and often overblown, but it's all part of her charm, and she has a great project to show for it. Notion will no doubt go down as one of my favourite songs of 2016.
13Hikrahe
Lily (The Wilt)

3.6 / Drone / Experimental

I'm not familiar with the genre at all, but this stuck with me for quite a while upon being released. All of the percussion and some of the samples work extremely well, and the album has some inspiring moments. This and a lot of the other projects on Solar Mass Collective are well worth the interest.

https://solarmasscollective.bandcamp.com/album/lily-the-wilt
14Jazz Cartier
Marauding In Paradise

3.7 / Hip Hop

Jazz Cartier released his debut album Hotel Paranoia which admittedly disappointed me a fair bit, only considering how great the preceding mixtape Marauding in Paradise was. A surprisingly varied and impassioned collection of rap songs, it's dark, catchy, and complimented extremely well by Lantz' often excellent production.

http://soundcloud.com/jazzcartier/sets/marauding-in-paradise
15Joel Alexander
Up in the Trees

3.7 / Electronic / Radiohead Worship

FKA verydeadly, Joel Alexander's dense flow of musical projects sometimes limits their shelf lives and interest often feels short-lived, however his short EP Up in the Trees seems to at last match his ambition with three of his best tracks yet.

http://verydeadly.bandcamp.com/album/up-in-the-trees
16Julia Jacklin
Don't Let The Kids Win

3.7 / Folk / Indie Pop

An underrated indie folk artist from Melbourne, who pens some of the most patient and soothing music I've heard. It also has some excellent lines scattered throughout, and sort of reminds me of Father John Misty, only a lot less ostentatious.

http://juliajacklin.bandcamp.com/
17Injury Reserve
Live From The Dentist Office

3.7 / Hip Hop

I won't say too much about this, but everyone needs to listen to their new album Floss: http://soundcloud.com/injuryreserve/sets/floss
18Daughter
The Wild Youth

3.8 / Indie Rock

I think this is the best example of what's so special about the band Daughter. Perhaps their latest album's somewhat disappointing in its attempt to blend more of its post-rock elements and develop its dreary tone. Nonetheless, the songwriting is sharp, as sharp as it was on The Wild Youth which contains some of the most simultaneously sad and comforting songs I've heard this year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50QOWi7nqQw
19The Internet
Ego Death

3.8 / Soul / Hip Hop

A tab bit underrated on this site. It feels a bit overlong at times, and the band still aren't as tight as I'd like, but this album has some of the danciest grooves I've heard in a while, and Syd's proving to be one of the most charming voices in the scene. With all the features she's had in 2016, I'm excited to see what she or The Internet plan on in the future.

http://open.spotify.com/album/69g3CtOVg98TPOwqmI2K7Q
20Sampa the Great
The Great Mixtape

3.8 / Hip Hop

One of the best hip hop artists coming out of Australia, and it's been exciting seeing her blow up through bandcamp and Triple J. Unlike some of her more recent work, this mixtape is a collection of short, sharp rap tunes simultaneously fun and very smart. She's also very good at making fun of herself, which adds to her charm, and reign as one of the most likable MCs I've listened to this year.

http://wondercoreisland.bandcamp.com/album/the-great-mixtape
21Billy Woods
Today, I Wrote Nothing

3.9 / Hip Hop

Haven't listened to enough of his music to comment a lot on this, but along with Elucid and Armand Hammer, an artist's whose lyrics really increase the listenability of this album.

http://billywoods.bandcamp.com/album/today-i-wrote-nothing
22Milo
So The Flies Don't Come

4.0 / Hip Hop

Between this and between his project [i]Plain Speaking[/i] under the name Scallops Hotel, Milo's been one of the artists I've listened to the most these past few months. As good as A Toothpaste Suburb was, I like this more readable and impassioned Milo, which regardless does not compromise the more obtuse lines so characteristic of his writing and past work, a bit of which I need to catch up with.

http://miloraps.bandcamp.com/album/so-the-flies-dont-come
23Owen
No Good for No One Now

4.0 / Folk / Emo

As great as At Home With Owen and I do perceive. are, this is the album that I'm able to connect with best. There's also this sometimes painful lack of urgency in his music, which I love, that's more present on this album that in his later work. Of course, the songwriting's not as tight and well-structures as in the two aforementioned albums, but regardless, Mike Kinsella's most charming piece of work.

http://owenmusic.bandcamp.com/album/no-good-for-no-one-now
24Ghostface Killah
Twelve Reasons to Die

4.1 / Hip Hop

Its combination of weird gangster film tropes and B-rated revenge flicks, the sound of which is crafted expertly by Adrian Younge, with Ghostface's often aggressive, sometimes heartwrenching, flows intrigues and holds me its entire runtime.

http://soultemplemusic.bandcamp.com/album/twelve-reasons-to-die
25clipping.
Splendor and Misery

4.1 / Hip Hop / Industrial

Whilst it had initially disappointed me, clipping's Splendor and Misery's somewhat definitive narrative is just vague enough to have enticed me back fairly regularly since its release.

http://clppng.bandcamp.com/releases
26Horse Lords
Interventions

4.2 / Jazz / Experimental

I still haven't quite grasped this or the following two releases too well. I just know I adore all of them and that each has an excellent review.

http://horselords.bandcamp.com/album/interventions
27Sarah Neufeld
The Ridge

4.3 / Minimal / Classical

Entrancing

http://sarahneufeld.bandcamp.com/
28Colin Stetson and Sarah Neufeld
Never Were The Way She Was

4.3 / Experimental / Classical

Entrancing

http://colinstetson.bandcamp.com/
29Xenia Rubinos
Magic Trix

4.4 / Pop / Soul

Something about Xenia Rubinos' debut album just makes me happier than any other music can. It's certainly a feel-good record, but it's quite complex at times. As fun as it is, it builds some incredible grooves, and as sometimes strained her voice gets, Xenia herself builds some of the catchiest melodies, many of which repeat themselves throughout the project, almost as though they've spontaneously reinfected Xenia's mind as she sings and dances to herself.

http://xeniarubinos.bandcamp.com/
30Joanna Newsom
The Milk-Eyed Mender

4.7 / Chamber Folk / Baroque Pop

Hard to describe what I love about this album so much, but I think it has some of the best-structured though varied tracklisting I can recall. Sometimes it feels a little overlong, but I never want it to end. On one hand, I think this is the perfect introduction to Joanna for me, though on the other, I'm so used to her voice on this it's hard to listen to her following releases. Part of me thinks this album's perfect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5zH5nl_JrM
31Perfume Genius
Learning

4.7 / Indie Pop / Lo-Fi

Underrated and sad.

http://open.spotify.com/album/4JzLuZwSceTAKZtTxed5Pn
32Julien Baker
Sprained Ankle

I've spent a year on Sputnikmusic under this username, and a good three or so lurking. It's been a good distraction these last few months. Just wanted to thank a few users if they see this. YetAnotherBrick for inspiring me so much to write. Conmaniac for entertaining me so much on the threads and creating some of the best discussion on this site. AsleepInTheBack for being such an ace bloke, one of the coolest dudes on this site for sure. And the rest of the site for great discussion and some excellent recommendation. I hope you're all doing well. I love you all.
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