Ryan Adams : " Chris"

His 19th album. He is a great songwriter and has been around the block a few times. At this point he is who I listen to when most people would listen to Bruce Springsteen. These songs fall somewhere between his country folk and rock leanings. The strum of the second song, falls very comfortably into his wheelhouse so much so you might dismiss it as him just dialing it in, but there is something more urgent about the delivery than what people who dial it in normally do. Maybe he is just faking it. There is more of a rock swagger in the guitar to "Flicker in the Fade".  This might not be Adams at his most inspired. He is a songwriter, and he cranks albums out it seems once a year, but his dialing it in is better than most can they do when they try their hardest. 

The title track is reflective enough to convince the emotion he is putting into this song is genuine, which really is all I need from him. He replicates this without being a carbon copy but milks the vibe again on "About Time: that follows.  His singing voice is on the more emotive end of decent when he uses it right. He could do more if he wanted, is the feeling I get but he serves the song in a very safe middle register he is most comfortable in.  He picks up to a more deliberate strum and a more commanding narrative for "Aching For More" .  He continues down the reflective place I want from him on "Say What You Said". When I say his name many people think I am saying Bryan Adams, but I can hear where Byran Adams might write a song like "So Helpless" as it is more frantic rock that sounds somewhat 80s. There is a more introspective almost balladic tone to "Crooked Shake" . It reminds me a little of Neil Young. 

He is back in the darker moodier place of urgency I like for him to be in with "Dive" . Granted much of this might lie in the fact it reminds me of the Taylor Swift cover album he did. This was not my introduction to him but the album I listened to the most .  "Was I Wrong" is a much simpler folk song. The contrasts the much more up tempo strum of "Look Out". With 18 songs on this album it is surprising how little filler there is on this album. Not every song as as equally a slapper as the kids say these days, but it is not just him trying to come up with something to go on tour with. The deeper into the album you go the more the folk begins to come out, but it is well done.  The arrangement of "Replaced" give his melody something to work with and is a stand out amid the more folk latter half of the album. "Spinning Wheel' flirts with country to some extent, it is very well written no matter the genre. The album closes with the more John Mellancamp like "Letting the Light in" .  I will give this one a 9.5, as he stays snuggly within his wheelhouse which he is spinning into the kind of perfect that is gong to place his writing over time next to his idols.     

Ryan Adams : "Big Colors"

 

Before I began reviewing this album I was a few songs into the new Crowded House, and now I feel like this album is more in touch with the 80s than Crowded House. A great deal of this is due to the production. The softer touch to the vocals also add to that sound. By the second song it feels a little more like Adams, then drifts back into the smoother 80s pop for "It is so quiet it is loud" .  "Fuck the Rain" is not some of his hookiest song writing and just kind of drifts along. It also begins to make me think of the War on Drus of Neil Young at times. "Manchester" has one of the strongest choruses , it even reins him back in to sing in a manner that comes closes to what he is known for. There are some really strong guitar tones on this album though. 

It is hard to say this album is experimental considering the ground Ryan has already covered though out his career. This does seem to be a focused step away from certain signatures, to the point that when he goes back closer to something you might expect on " What am I" he sounds unsure what he is supposed to do vocally .  There is a more rock a billy feel to the driving "Power".  He does a better job with this more rock sound on " I Surrender" his voice falls right where it wants to be. The strum of the guitar on "Showtime" guides his voice back to what he does best .  "In it for the Pleasure" is almost a ballad , but the strum of the guitar gives it a little more movement. 

'Middle of the line " finds him rocking out , but with more of a strummed indie rock folk sense to it. He is go at this I would be interested in hearing more of this kind of thing from him. "Summer Rain' is a return back to the more 80s like sound we heard going into the album, but it comes together even better here.  Not his best album but there are solid songs and it is better than what most can do so I will give this one an 9.  

the Top 10 Folk / Country Albums of the Decade

The decade began before this blog was started , I can not just rely on sorting through previous reviews. I am just embedding video clips to support the reasoning for these albums to be listed as such, since I already did a best of the year list for each sub-genre. This is a sub-genre that split off from my pop . Country and Folk fi together best as I have very specific tastes when it comes to those genres .Perhaps  this is not going to be  the most hipster of the lists that say Vice puts out, what matters is the fact; these are the albums I listened to the most. Any ways here are the Top 10 Power  metal  albums of the decade.

10- Strangeweather- "s/t" 2015 







9-Death In June- "Essence" 2018




 





8- the Decemberists -- 'the King is Dead"- 2011




 




 7- Chelsea Wolfe - "Unknown Rooms" 2012




 



  6- Twin Bandit- "For You" 2015











5-Marissa Nadler-"For My Crimes" 2018











4- Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell"2019




 





3-  Amigo the Devil - "Everything is Fine" - 2018



 




2- Ryan Adams- "1989" 2015



 



1-Chris Stapleton- "the Traveller" 2015

Soundtrack to Today

Life happens. Music is my best therapy for when it does. It is the best way for me to process some feelings. While there is common theme here, nothing is one shade. So there are variations of genres here to display the shades of this feelings, the circle around forms of pop.Lyrically they all speak to me in different voices. Maybe I need this because I am bi-polar so I will swing from one end to the other processing those feelings. I they are all here to represent the various aspect of this.So here i my sound track for today. If you find yourself in a similar place then perhaps they will help you as well. 



Slothrust - "Walk Away"




 Chelsea Wolfe -"Mistake In Parting"

 

Ryan Adams - "All You Had to Do Was Stay"

 

 Marissa Nadler- "Blue Vapor"

 


Chrvrches-" Never Say Die"



 The Shins- "Turn On Me"


 


Twin Shadow -"Obvious People"





Chevelle - "I Get It "





Pale Waves -"Black Waves"

 

Ryan Adams :"Prisoner"

While I have liked his work it's his covers that have been a little more compelling, until this point for some reason the opener of his new album connects right away. It is a like more rock and balances out some punches with melody in a manner not unlike some of Tom Petty's more rockin moments from the late 70's -early 80's. There is classic rock styled guitar solo in the last minute. The opening guitar riff to the title track would not be out of place on a Smiths album, but when his vocals come in the twang I associate with his work comes in. The songs seem to all clock in around the three minute mark. The harmonica on "Doomsday" brings out the more country side though it still holds more of a roots rock sense. His vocal hooks are tasteful on his choruses and it feels like his song writing has now stepped up to rub shoulders with the artists like Bruce Springsteen and Mellancamp whose influence can still be felt. Lyrically these are songs of love and loss, grounded speculation painting intimate pictures what you see in these songs as dating in middle America. It might have to grow on me , but while he sings it with more urgency "Shiver and Shake" doesn't click as perfectly as the other songs before it. I think this is because the drums sit out. The pace picks up into more of a lazy stroll in the country for "To Be Without You". "Breakdown" becomes more compelling as it progresses an might be one of the album's best. "Outbound Train" has a similar simple strum to the other songs on the album. There is a hopeful sound to the chord progressions tat work well with the honest vocal lines. He is not winning any awards for his vocal range, but he knows how to work with what he has got and makes the most of it. The guitar to "Broken Anyway" is even more basic in front of a minimal arrangement and slowly builds to compliment his vocals. Lyrically this might be one of the most heart felt of all the songs, as he stays out of anger when singing about relationships that fall apart and instead offers some more introspective reflection. You can hear how working on the Taylor Swift cover album. "Tightrope" find his bi-polar lyrical tone swing back to his more romantic side. His voice has more rasp to it on this one when reaches up for higher notes. The sax solo brings out his more Springsteen side. The swing comes back the other side lyrically though the song is a little more upbeat on "We Disappear" . This is another very strong moment for the album. I'll round this one up to a 9.5 as I can hear how this album is going to be one of those that grows on me.

The Top 10 Vocalists of 2015

Often left as the icing on the cake or as an after thought these days , particularly with metal, vocals are what I scrutinize the most and is most often the deal breaker for me. Here we are talking about singing, there are a couple on the list who incorporated screaming in various degrees into what they do , but this list are the singers that went that really poured their hearts and souls into each note.

10-Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden

 This is almost more of an honorable mention as there is more strain on his highs which are not as high as well even a "Matter of Life and Death" , but then again being the Trooper , Bruce came back from a bout of cancer that could have made matter's much worse so that combined with taking his age into consideration, Bruce still does better than most.

 9- Lariyah Hayes of Khaotika

Hayes dominates "the Flame Unleashed" with a range that dips down into a urgent alto before soaring up into her more power metal soaring register. She manages to pull off a classic metal vocal without getting mired down in cliches of 80s metal yodeling. Even at her most melodic she doesn't take away from the heaviness of her band and can rough it up with the boys who provide most of the backing growls. Expect big things from her in the future and check out their most recent album if you have yet to give it a spin.
 



 

8- Joy Von Spain of Eye of Nix Joy

Von Spain  can belt out an operatic soprano, but isn't afraid to tighten up her vocal cords and give an anguished scream either. Her vocals set "Moros" ahead of the pack when it comes to bands experimenting with sludge encrusted metal. The dark back drop her band sets behind her compliments her voice and gives her the breathing room to belt it out as needed. Projects like Myrkur which might have gotten more press tried their hand and similar, Von Spain just executed it with a broader emotional range and a more expansive set of pipes.
 

7-Kennedy Ashlyn of Them are Us too

 While Ashlyn's style might wear it's influences on her black sleeves. To pay such homage to Elizabeth Fraser is a feat in and of itself and she nails. You can hear who she is and she doesn't sing in her own made up language so this is not a total hero worship affair. She bends her melodies with fey grace and really made "Remain" an album I keep returning to.
 

6-Ryan Adams

 It was a bold move to cover an entire Taylor Swift album. Up until this point I had respect for Adams and had a curiosity in regards to his stuff ,but the passion he injected into "1989" sealed the deal. He takes pop melodies and puts is heart into them blending a style that mixes Bruce Springsteen with Tom Petty, but much more melodious than either and allowing me to really hear his voice as never before.
 

5- Chelsea Wolfe

 "Abyss" found Wolfe stepping out of the ghostly shadows and baring her voice in a more vulnerable manner than largely shed the effects dripping approach she did so well and showing a lot of growth. Live she was even more impressive, and her praises have already been sung on this site a hundred times over, you are probably shocked that she is ranked higher and while she had the best album of the year , she worked well within the context of the songs and got the job, where the next four singers really caught me by surprise where I saw Wolfe coming a mile away. This is not to say she wasn't awesome after all anyone who made this list really accomplished something considering all the albums I heard this past year.
 

4- George Lewis jr aka Twin Shadow

 Here is where it gets really competitive , "Eclipse" hung tough on my iPod thought out thanks to smooth melodies Lewis had such mastery of . He was often dark yet very soulful and encapsulated everything I could want from a male pop singer as far as dynamics go, despite the fact he largely stays out his head register and I'm a sucker for a good falsetto, but we'll get to that one soon enough. His voice always goes to the perfect places in the song making for something very infectious.
 

3-Emma Beth Rundle - Marriages

 She really came into her own on "Salome" and displayed a more emotive power and greater range. At times she sounds like Tori Amos, but this speaks more to her willingness to cut loose and pour her heart out into the songs, which earned other singers like Ryan Adams a place on this list as well. Emma just managed to make my jaw drop a few more times than most.
 

2- Miny Parsonz of Royal Thunder

Miny  brought it on "Crooked Doors" taking her voice up into places where classic rock gods used to go. She not only flexed her pipes to a greater extent on this album , but really created melodies that stuck in my head and had me listening to this album in binges. She went to some grittier places and also back off and offered some more reserved lines that were just as emotional due to her willingness to get real lyrically and immerse not only herself in the experience , but the listener as well.
 

1- Abęl Makkonen Tesfayeaka aka The Weeknd

 When he preforms at the Grammys this year the secret will be out of the bag. I told you I'm a sucker for falsetto, by Abel comes with a Michael Jackson like tenor, but with more of a gangster lean to it. His music is darker than any soul music has been since Marvin Gaye's "Here My Dear " album, with Abel singing out drug induced antics in a tongue and cheek manner than has a passion to it that makes you wonder where his legend begins and life ends. "Beauty Behind the Madness" is what pop should be.
 

the Top 15 Albums of 2015

OK, this pretty much speaks for itself as this is overall, no genre left behind and ranked by how much I actually listened to it though out the course of the year, which is an impressive feat for an album to stay in rotation as I sometimes listen to an upwards of ten albums a day and that just to review, not counting in the car, walking to the gym etc. So here are the Top 15 Albums of 2015.

15- Tidemouth :"Velvet And Stone"

 If there had not been a hardcore/ punk list this year, this album would have been on the goth list. The trend in the maturation of hard core kids seems to be pulling out Nick Cave and Echo and the Bunnymen albums. This could be due to the interest in vinyl these kids took a few years back which might have caused them to stumble over these old 80s albums. I am fine with this as long as they do no become to slavish in their devotion only to Joy Division. I love Joy Division , but I do think dark music begins or ends with the. in the they do not abandon their hard core side. It is put through a darker filter. An incredible album that gives me just what I needed , they blend the "gothy" elements in a very fluid and natural manner similar to how Atriarch does this with metal. Each listen the more hard core emoish parts grew on me. It's one of those albums that becomes more enriched the further you dig into its grave. Worth your time for sure if you like dark and heavy music, these guys got the balance right without trying to hard.

http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/06/tidemouth-velvet-and-stone.html






14- Shape of Despair :"Monotony Fields"

 this Finnish band has taken the past fifteen years to perfect their very melodic and atmospheric brand of doom . The vocals range from are a low gurgle, to female oohs and aahs stacked like Type O Negative in the background. The stay on a depressing path through out. The oppressive feeling is almost tangible. The band is aware they have been notorious for putting long spans of time between releases, so everything is right where it should be with every nuance dialed in, so it was not time wasted. It might not dig as deep and dark of a grave as other funeral doom bands , but the songs are masterfully varied and dynamic to create an awesome album.

  http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/11/shape-of-despair-monotony-fields.html

13-Nechochwen : " Heart of Akamon"

 West Virginia is an unlikely breeding ground for this kind of music. Roughly black metal in some sense, it is highly progressive in the same manner as old Agalloch. The clean vocals are stronger and they layer clean sounds and the more metallic grim ones through a different lens than the Portland band. In some ways these sounds are blended much like their label mate Panopticon. The clean tones are very organic and often allowed to stand along. The blast pretty furiously into "Lost on the Trail of the Setting Sun". The drums are masterful insanity in motion. The footwork pretty breathtaking even in a genre where it is expected. The vocals are well layered and punchy. While they work in many twists and turns over the course of a song they do not exceed the seven minute mark. They are also good at not placing the clean vocals in the obvious Killswitch places to make it the good cop/ bad cop dynamic.

http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/12/nechochwen-heart-of-akamon.html
div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">

 12- Them are Us Too: "Remain"

 Right from the first song Kennedy Ashlyn Wenning's voice makes you take notice, before "The Problem With Red Heads" allows her to shed some of the Elizabeth Fraser worship when the duo drifts into an alluringly dreamy rock. Sure this would not have been out of place on  4AD, in the 80s and the band encourages these comparisons. This also reminds of the Gatherings post- metal moments. Her choice of melodies shows she cares abut crafting something that is not just a tribute. I can almost hear more Cure than Cocteau Twins until Cash Askew's guitar comes to prove he has discovered the lost secrets to Robin Guthrie's sound.Their influences might be worn on their sleeves ,but lets face it the Cocteau Twins are never going to make another album or tour again.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/04/them-are-us-too-remain.html

11 -Strangeweather: "S/T"

 Another album that forsakes metallic overdrive and instead employs a more organic yet dark hearted Neo-folk with an Appalachian breeze blowing through it. The members switch off vocals resulting in a wide range of moodiness to the dirge like mourning allowing each instrument and voice embraces while adding another swathe of gray to the sonic tapestry. hey have really created something unique here. The lyrics carry the indignant unease of post- punk, while they set upon a soundtrack with the elegance that is the x-factor many a wanna-be goth bands just doesn't get . This brings the emotional weight making it heavy in feeling rather than metal.When I played this for my wife just dismissed it as more of the droning drug music I like, so you have to listen to this as a whole work to really get the full effect or have to have been involved with heavy narcotic use for a period of more than five years. Do not play while operating heavy machinery.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/strangeweather-st.html />

10- Iron Maiden- "the Book of Souls"

 Right behind Black Sabbath when it comes being one of  the most revered classic metal bands  of all  time. This is for good reason as they have they have maintained tons of integrity over the years even if they did break down and use keyboards and made the poor choice of trying to replace Bruce with Blaze. This album upholds their legacy and I would not be surprised if it was their last as it feels they want to try everything they have yet to do and make the most of every solo. It would not be out of place if I decided to make a top ten power metal albums of the year or a top ten prog albums of the year... the latter being more likely as I doubt I listened to ten power metal albums this year, however they transcend both of those genres. Have done better and it might not be on the level of the albums that came before "Fear of the Dark", which is a bar held incredibly high, But they never outright miss the mark and even if this was just dialed in it would still be better than everything else. But that is the beauty of this they are still committed to putting their all into what they do and there is a lot of heart put into this, they are just older and wiser with that wisdom compensating for the fire that was in their music when they were a younger band, this is still an album made by one of the greatest bands ever.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/08/iron-maiden-book-of-souls.html

9- Eye of NIX : "Moros"

 This is more experimental than prog, though it is progressive in the sense the songs go somewhere. That is more can be said for many so called prog bands that remain stagnant in favor of wanking on the fret board. The album starts off as a more post-rock version of Dead Can Dance. Lead singer Joy Von Spain lets it all out in an operatic soprano as things get blasty beneath her. Male growls add a grit to their shifts into crustier paces. While Mykur gave us similar dynamics earlier this year, each end of the dynamic range here is pushed a little further. Joy is dynamic range extends into the not afraid to shred her vocals chords a little with some screams. Sometimes they play by the more typical metal rules and the veer off into slow-core. They sometimes build into the type of chaos that can be found in some of Swans' freak out moments but with a more metallic command.They incorporate every element of music that love into this one album in a cohesive fashion.

  http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/10/eye-of-nix-moros.html

8- Kylesa : "Exhausting Fire"

 These Savannah rockers continue to evolve, in someways that makes them progressive , since they are not where I first found them when I picked up a copy of "To Walk a Middle Course" ten years ago. There sludge roots are still intact but they have enough dark psychedelics is place to appeal to the hesher sect. They used to cover Pink Floyd, so this side of the band should come as not surprise.  Laura's vocals which have continues to grow sometimes take on a more Siouxsie like croon to them. There are plenty of balls this times around injected to these heavy grooves. After a dazed and glazed cover of the Sabbath classic "Paranoid" the path of the band is best in explained in the lyrics of the closing song where Laura says she is throwing caution to the wind and taking her chances again here. Even when they wander off into a more heady direction the bass line holds down the fort, until they bring the smack down the happy ending that blazes out with solos in true rock god/goddess fashion. Another moment of triumph for this band.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/09/kylesa-exhausting-fire.html

7- Health :"Death Magic"

 I first questioned some of the reviews where this project referred to as industrial, they seemed more like edm with a dark and dirty slant to it and a kick , but Industrial ? Well it took many listens to convince me of this. This is their sixth album and it's been five years in the making, so no wonder  they  have become masters at layering some clever vocal melodies over yearning grooves to create some hooks that sink into your brain and pull you along for the ride. The first hint it might just be industrial came in the tribal pound of  drums that open " Men Today" that has some noise to it , while the sounds assembled are cool , for an album with such emphasis place on sex and drugs it feels sometimes like foreplay with no climax.Until the subtle hooks are latched into your brain. There's an old 80s dance feel to "Flesh World" the androgynous are very fey in the same manner of Sliversun Pick ups or Savage Garden. There are some glitch ridden sounds thrown into the sonic jumble. I have always wondered if the remixes are going to sound better than the originals , then why not just make the original songs sound like that in  the first place? Well the solve that by making "Flesh World" sound like it has already been re-mixed. This album made me want to go back and dig up their earlier stuff, which I was unable to do since I was so hooked on this one.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/08/health-death-magic.html

6- Ryan Adams : "1989"

 This album served as the methadone for my Taylor Swift addiction. My wife doesn't like Taylor Swift, she is banned from being played in the car, but this album is totally acceptable. Ryan Adams who also must be a pretty big fan as well as a metal head...just look up his cover of "Holy Diver", made a bold move in covering Swift's "1989" in its entirety and the results are pretty great.He really makes these songs his own which is an impressive feat and colors them with more of a Bruce Springsteen feel.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/12/ryan-adams



5-the Weeknd : "Beauty Behind the Madness"

 Abel Makkonen Tesfaye goes about things in a manner darker than your average r&b singer  and has been known to sample both Siouxsie and the Cocteau Twins, his drug use might explain for this taste in music .He gives many winks to another addict...Michael Jackson. Lyrically the album has bi-polar moments, either he's a pimped out playa or hopeless romantic in the tug of war his pimp side is lyrically more interesting. He is a master of hook and they keep me returning to this album.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/12/report-to-dance-floor-weeknds-beauty.html

4- Tribulation - the Children of the Night

 Was a little torn as to if this album even belonged here, until I went back and listened to the album and "Music From the Other " sealed the deal. While I liked the band's last album, but found them much more fascinating of a creature on stage when I saw them open for Watain, so I am hoping some of those more progressive and wandering qualities have carried over from the road and right from the first few chords of the opener it seems like they have. There is an almost Opeth like lushness to the sound. They don't use the traditional metal crunch, instead just going for an organic tone that they are playing loudly. The vocals are more intelligible than the previous album. When they dive deeper into the darkness answering the question what would it have sounded like if DeepPurple had written the soundtrack to the Exorcist. This is another step forward for the band that continues to grow with every album, they blend the more classic metal elements in with their more ethereal colors with ease, as they are not afraid to push the bounds of what death metal can be.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/tribulation-children-of-night.html

 

3-Twin Shadow: "Eclipse" This album caught me by surprise I'll tell you right off the bat it's a strong contender for album of the year. From the first song he shows you how to make a chorus carry the most emotional impact possible.Who said pop music has to be a bad thing? More common with the 80s he sings in an urgent baritone, think Corey Hart but with a larger dose of soul injected in the phrasing. It's a crime not to check out this piece of greatness. Every vocal oozes like a hook in it's own right, one of the most perfect vocal performances.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/report-to-dance-floor-twin-shadows.html

 2-Royal Thunder: " Crooked Doors"

 This band continues to evolve from the blues soaked stoner rock, they have put the Black Sabbath albums away and now have become more of an indie rock band that takes on a rough edged hard rock dynamic. On the opener "Time Machine" which the band premiered on Npr,  Parsonz puts some angry husk to her voice when the band begins to climax toward the end of the song. The band was never fully committed to being a metal band even they they had a fetish for playing with metal bands , but they have taken another step away from metal with this album. This is not a bad thing as the new direction lends it's self to a compelling array of sounds and emotive glimpses into who this band is.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/royal-thunder-crooked-doors.html

1- Chelsea Wolfe -Abyss

 This might not have been the metal album every one hope it would be but it all works together perfectly. She might balk at being on this list because she denied begin goth when I interviewed her, though she said she like Nick Cave and the Cocteau Twins so she is in denial. This album might not be metal but it does have some pounding beauty. She stays true to her ethereal vocal style which works well over the hammering beats. Though "Iron Moon" seemed surprisingly heavy when the song was first released in the context of the album she is giving you are breather. Even more experimental than "Pain is Beauty" the fuzzed out bass to "Dragged Out" rumbles over her ghostly plea that sits back into the dark background. The chorus builds into a more industrial din as the song expands and contracts.he has not disappointed, in fact exceeded expectations  and the bar was raised really high. I didn't think she could beat "Pain is Beauty" , but that is what has happened.


http://www.cvltnation.com/cvlt-nation-interviews-chelsea-wolfe/

the Top 10 Rock Albums of 2015

This year there is an eclectic mix ranging for folk rock to hard rock, some albums are darker than others. The inclusion of a pop category this year took anything to happy to rock with it. Most of these albums speak for themselves. A couple of these some lists have had as metal, but not every one knows what metal is...oh, well. Here are the Top 10 rocks albums of 2015.
 10 Cairo Pythian: "Touched"

 Cairo Pythian might have been the best kept secret of the Pacific North Wast. There have been enough post- punk band's worshipping Ian Curtis and friends so why no one at the alter of Love and Rockets. Often they weave a weird piece of dark wave that pulls out the rock n roll more than I anticipated. The synths are darker than the guitar solos that are more Brit pop. The singer can sing, on some songs he carries a seventies glam streak. But we are getting ahead of our selves because it starts of with a colder electro synth pop streak.The industrial elements are glamorized for the dance floor and not really for rivet heads throwing punches in latex. The genius in the production is the lo-fi indie rock distance the songs have to keep them from sounding like something on the oxymoron that is mainstream alternative radio.If you are tired of "cold wave" albums that sound like they were recorded on a four track in the bathroom and open to some genre defying drug crazed nonsense that is fun as all hell, do not waste another second of your life by not hearing this "band". I was able to just stop keeping score as I knew I was going to like each song.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/01/cairo-pythian-touched.html

9-Nostalgist:"Of Loves and Days Ago"

 It's hard to argue against this Seattle band. The baritone vocals are like if the singer from Bellicose Minds sang for a shoegaze band. They have an incredible guitar tone and have combined an interesting array of elements, I can hear touches of everything from Hum and Failure to the more shoe-gazing side of black metal. Not that they go anywhere near a blast beat but they have a similar atmosphere. Being a product of the 90s I enjoy any band that can use samples as a narrative in the songs and they really contribute here. Luckily with a little clicking, I found the band's "name your price" as life currently has me too broke to pay the 8 bucks, though it would have been worth every penny and one of the few albums I would have put on my forced-to-buy list. Good Job kids. 


http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/07/nostalgist-of-loves-and-days-ago.html

8-King Dude:" Songs of Flesh & Blood -In the Key of Light"

 Being the Chelsea Wolfe that I am you would think I'd already be all over this considering he is one of the few artists she has collaborated with and midway into the first song I am not sure why I haven't been. It's more post- punk meets rockabilly than folk or the Johnny Cash singer-song writer thing I assumed it to be. There is more of a Rome like strum to "Deal With the Devil". The things I like about it that is remains dark. Sure Nick Cave is an obvious influence, but Cowgill doesn't get lost in the narrative and forget he is singing a song an not narrating a story. I prefer the fuller sounds and production on this album to some of his older work I heard a few years ago. If you are a long time fan then some of the more sparse and droning moments that didn't grab me off the bat will be more of you thing.
 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/07/king-dude-songs-of-flesh-blood-in-key.html

7- No Joy :"More Faithful"

   I was anticipating  this new full length from No Joy. Having liked the glimpses I got from this project in the past , but have never gotten a solid taste of what the band could really do  so now we get the big picture. The show you many side right from the first song which has the driving post-punk bass pumping under dreamy vocals. The guitar doesn't come into clearer focus until the second song, which conforms to more indie rock standards than the opener. The vocals smooth out and glide over their brand of dream pop, that comes across more vocal more in the forefront than their previous work. Not quite dancey and shaded with equal dabs of My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth.Sure they can gleam like fragile crystal, but can also rock out when they feel like it.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/06/no-joy-more-faithful.html

6- The Decemberists: "What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World"

 What do I want from a new Decemberists album ? Why am I even asking that question aren't they out of place among the typical fare.You might not have guessed that I would be a huge fan of the Decemberists, having listened to the for over a decade and seen them four times live during that time. Their last album the "King is Dead" was a quaint stab at radio airplay, a gamble that paid off for them. So what do a think would be a perfect Decemberists album, well I would like to see the lyrics darken back up...of course and get back to the murder balladry of the past.  A cross between the Hazards of Love with Picaresque.I get this in doses, but not completely.Colin Meloy's voice has improved over the years.This can be heard in the tonal quality of it on "Lake Song". Strummed folk with a jazz like under current it works a familiar magic for the band. Other songs find bands classic sound minus and pirate shanty elements with "Till the Water is Gone". There are moments when You really get a good picture of how good of a guitarist Chris Funk. This is followed with "the Wrong Year" a pop song that is written in the classic world folk sound the band excels. It carries a hook with all the intention that they wrote the last album with, but draped in  sounds long time fans should feel more comfortable with.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2014/12/the-decemberists-what-terrible-world.html

5- Algiers: "S/T"

 Matador records is released this, but not doing much else to promote it. Good thing for the band they have a unique sound that should set them apart.  They formed in Atlanta, but like most other good music Atlanta doesn't know what to think of it so they relocated to varied parts of the world meeting up again in New York. They do take string synths that are slightly goth and set them as a backdrop to the gospel dirge. The singer's husky soulful voice has more rawness to it than I expected and it sits in a bizarre juxtaposition to the noisy industrial clanging that it emotes over. Sometimes it sounds like the rest of the band is going to go along with him and start busting out some 60s soul from within the din. fitting comparison to this band would be they fuse dark electronica to gospel in the same way Chelsea Wolfe has done it with folk. Lyrically I think any religious imagery is being used as a metaphor. If you have any inkling in regards to my spiritual path based on my writing for Cvlt Nation then it should be clear that if this was a christian band I would not give them the time of day. Without a doubt this is an excellent piece of work that was well worth the searching it took to hunt this down.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/06/algiers-st.html

4- Nadine Shah: "Fast Food"

 So many of these new post-punk revival bands are jacking from Siouxsie, but they are only latching onto one element of what  she does.  Nadine might be jacking from Siouxsie, but at least it's a different aspect of Siouxsie that is a path less travelled. The album opens up in a more straight forward manner than I suspected. It still has air-tight song writing.There is an interesting tone to album that juggles an androgynous longing in the lyrics and their delivery. I have no problem just keeping this album on and letting it play.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/04/nadine-shah-fast-food.html

3-Marriages: "Salome "

This trio spawned off of the Red Sparrows and have been killing the stage opening for the likes of Chelsea Wolfe after releasing the impressive "Kitsune". The first thing that grabs your attention this go around is their singer. Her singing gets the most improved award for the album. Not that she was a bad singer before, her vocals have really stepped up to the next level and given the space to be used as an instrument just as impressive as the guitar, bass or drums. She was a more purring alto, which she flexes into some vocal lines that are more aggressive that the guitar that has taken on an even more dreamy quality time time around. At times this gives them more in common with A Perfect Circle or Tori Amos then the Russian Circles post-rock they brewed before. Sure some of the melodies are more radio friendly, but this is a far cry from selling out. You can't blame a girl for wanting to sing. They deserve all the praise they might get for not being afraid to shed some of the pretense of post-rock and just focus on writing good vocal driven songs. Emma has stepped up to the mic with a vocal performance few albums are going to be able to beat this year.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/marriages-salome.html

2- Ryan Adams : "1989"

 This album served as the methadone for my Taylor Swift addiction. My wife doesn't like Taylor Swift, she is banned from being played in the car, but this album is totally acceptable. Ryan Adams who also must be a pretty big fan as well as a metal head...just look up his cover of "Holy Diver", made a bold move in covering Swift's "1989" in its entirety and the results are pretty great.He really makes these songs his own which is an impressive feat and colors them with more of a Bruce Springsteen feel.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/12/ryan-adams-989.html

1- Royal Thunder: " Crooked Doors"

 This band continues to evolve from the blues soaked stoner rock, they have put the Black Sabbath albums away and now have become more of an indie rock band that takes on a rough edged hard rock dynamic. On the opener "Time Machine" which the band premiered on Npr,  Parsonz puts some angry husk to her voice when the band begins to climax toward the end of the song. The band was never fully committed to being a metal band even they they had a fetish for playing with metal bands , but they have taken another step away from metal with this album. This is not a bad thing as the new direction lends it's self to a compelling array of sounds and emotive glimpses into who this band is.

 http://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2015/03/royal-thunder-crooked-doors.html

Ryan Adams : " 1989"

So it's time for me to come out of the closet about my Taylor Swift addiction if you have not already read about it on here. CHVRCHES served as a methadone to help me taper off, but here is an album to finish the job. Why do I listen to Taylor  Swift? Well after spending anywhere from six to eight hours listening to death metal and blackenedsludgecore, I need a palate cleanser. How can I really appreciate something heavy if that is all I listen to? And if that was all I listened to on my way out into the world I would be like the Hulk in my daily interactions. So it's like a reverse catharsis. It helps put on the Patrick Bateman like skin where I pretend to be normal, which makes perfect sense why he was really into Whitney Houston. My wife doesn't like Taylor Swift, she is banned from being played in the car, but this album is totally acceptable. Ryan Adams who also must be a pretty big fan as well as a metal head...just look up his cover of "Holy Diver", made a bold move in covering Swift's "1989" in its entirety and the results are pretty great.

While it depends on the song there are some of these covers I like better than the originals. I considered "Welcome to New York" more of a fast forward classic in it's original form, but now it carries an impassioned jangle that falls somewhere between classic Springsteen and Mellancamp. In the case of "Blank Space" the bar was raised pretty high, so his more subdued acoustic take on "Blank Space" might leave fans of the original slightly wanting until they get used to it. He blows the fucking roof off of "Style", it really drives and has more dynamics and emotional power than the original. This is the first time I notice where he changes the gender in the lyrics.



"Out of the Woods" is one of the songs where I didn't listen to the original as much so he had more of a clean slate to work with. But being that it was not one of the strongest songs on the original album the same can be said here. The song does pick up into a dreamier indie rock sound. Adams vocal arrangement surpasses the original again on "Stay" . He sings in higher register that emotes even better than than Swift's approach. He runs into a similar challenge with "Shake It Off" that he had with "Blank Space". He goes an almost "I'm On Fire' route with this version, which has a more restrained steam to it. He triumphs again with " I Wish You Would" opening the song with a more reserved vocal and acoustic strum , but builds the song at pretty much the same point the original also explodes. He soars into the melodies that follow this build and breaks it back down when called for. His phrasing is impeccable. "Bad Blood" was another tall order , but this time his take on it knocks it out of the park.

He is not too far from the original on "Wildest Dreams".  The chorus doesn't float away like Swifts , but maintains more of an Neil Young meets Fleetwood Mac like swing to it. I'm not sure about saying she is handsome as hell, but whatever. I have less of an investment in " How You Get the Girl' than most the album, so I was pretty open to the reinterpretation here. It's more somber. Adams really has to be applauded for pouring so much feeling into his vocal performance here. He  offer a delicate take on "This Love" , but it's hard to get the chorus of Swift's version out of my head. The oh oh oh's are a pretty important part he doesn't supplement this minimalist arrangement with.

He does well with " I Know Places" letting a bass line lead the song in and layering it with some chilling guitar. He surpasses Swift's version with his arrangement of "Clean". His more Americana flavored vocals are welcome on this song which only shows hints that Swift got her start as a country artist before totally crossing over. It goes without saying this one gets a 10.