Today we bring you some of our favorite outer edge records of the year. These aren’t comfortable to listen to, or accessible in the least, yet they remain ultimately rewarding.
Wold- Screech Owl
The biggest comment of this album is “I couldnt get through the first two songs.” WOLD is black BLACK grind-metal, really harsh by itself, and with Screech Owl they push things further, adding a layer of static over everything. Under all of this, the screaming, the static, the noise, there is a melody, even what sounds like singing. Listen to the Field Hag with headphones, song is heavy maaaan. I am the Chisel is perfect for jamming, with a pulsing beat. The more you listen to the album, the more the upper layer of static melts away, and you discover the sound beneath it all. As I read in a review somewhere, “We may not be ready, but it’s here.”
Wold- Screech Owl
GHOST- Hypnotic Underworld
Featuring the sickest guitarist out of Japan, GHOST creates music ranging from minimal glitch to avantgarde plips and pops and tinks to triumphant riffage. The first half of Hypnotic Underworld is slow and brooding, not really even music. The second half is glorious, the instruments and vocals kick in, and we get an epic japanese saga in the form of guitar solo’s. A mix of Andrew WK, Pink Floyd, & the Mars Volta. Bow the fuck down.
GHOST
Xela- For Frosty Mornings
Re-released this year, FFM is glitchy, abstract ambient music, much much different from the dark zombie attack-soundtrack The Dead Sea from last year. This one is more accessible than Xela’s other releases, still, to novice ears its just unrelated pops and noises. Insanely catchy, perfect for summer.
Xela- For Frosty Mornings
Racoo-oo-oon- Behold Secret Kingdom
The kind of music you make when youre stranded in the woods and all you have are animal masks and mescaline, this is noise-music-lite, theres still melody and coherence amidst the chaos. While this isn’t as good as Feels, its better than most other cd of the genre. Its difficult to create a memorable, GOOD song when youre making this kind of music, and a few songs on here achieve greatness.
Racoo-oo-oon
