The last couple years, I’ve been noticing a trend of female singer-songwriters picking up electric guitars and coating their otherwise gentle compositions with thick layers of doom metal and shoegaze (see also: Chelsea Wolfe, King Woman). It’s a simple enough formula, but it works, and I am here for it. Continue reading
Post Rock
Record #520: Collections of Colonies of Bees – Hawaii (2018)
I’m not sure if there are many bands in the indiesphere with a more surprising career trajectory than Milwaukee’s Collections of Colonies of Bees.
Having started out as a bluegrass/electronica side-project (that’s not a typo) of math rock heroes Pele, they became bastions of intricately composed post rock before eventually forming the experimental pop supergroup Volcano Choir with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon.
Record #518: God Is An Astronaut – Epitaph (2018)
Sucker that I am for post rock, I’ve never given much time to Ireland’s God Is An Astronaut. I’ve heard the name plenty, and I had a couple of their albums on one of my work playlists, but I never paid close attention to it.
But when I saw that they released a new record, I made a note of it. I haven’t noticed many good post rock records this year, and I had a hunger.
And by God (who is an astronaut), this record satisfies that hunger.
Record #513: Deafheaven – Ordinary Corrupt Human Love (2018)
There is no curse greater than a masterpiece, and no one knows that better
than Deafheaven.
Record #498: Les Discrets – Ariettes Oubliées (2012)
I’m an absolute sucker for blackgaze.
On paper, it might seem like black metal, post rock, and shoegaze are a strange mixture. The three genres share a fascination with ambient textures and heart-rending emotion, but they take wildly different paths to get there.
Blackgaze splits the difference, and manages to capture every good bit of each—and then some. Continue reading
Record #497: BLAK – Between Darkness and Light (2017)
Post rock is a strange beast. While there’s no shortage of climax-chasing, effect-laden, instrumental guitar bands, it can sometimes feel like very few post rock acts are able to use that template to create authentically engaging music. Most of them are just boring.
But BLAK isn’t most bands.
Record #485: Lantlôs – Melting Sun (2014)
Every once in a while, I’ll hear a record that ushers me into new revelations, that shift my musical center within the moments of the first song.
Albums like Sunbather, Panopticon, and Palms self-titled album.
Melting Sun as firmly among them.
Record #458: Explosions in the Sky – The Wilderness (2016)
Austin, TX natives Explosions in the Sky have long been celebrated as the standard bearers of patient, cinematic guitar-led, climax-chasing post rock.
Their huge delay-soaked guitar riffs and narrative-based composition have led them to write a number of soundtracks.
Record #451: Infinite Third – Channel(s) (2017)
Last year, some friends of mine were playing through town with a solo post rock musician I hadn’t heard of. After his set, we got to talking.
“I didn’t get your name,” I said.
“Billy Mays III.”
“Descended from the original Billy Mays, of course?” I joked.
He smiled. “Yeah, that’s my dad.”
And that’s the story of how I met Infinite Third.
Record #446: Deafheaven – Roads to Judah (2011)
Five years ago, I was an ex-scene kid who had little to do with the sort of screamy, bombastic music that metal had to offer. I thought my taste in Radiohead and Sigur Rós precluded me from finding any enjoyment in the metal genre.
Then, Sunbather happened.