Over the past few months I've been participating in this thing the interwebz has been calling "chartposting." Basically it's just a chart of the music you listen over the past week. I listen to music probably at least 3-5 hours/day, even longer when I have to write into the night. At the same time, I kind of miss writing about music. So this was a natural fit.
Every week I will explain some of my favorite albums or discovery over the week. Once in a while, I'll write full reviews.
Also, remember music isn't a sport. This is just me discovering soundscapes. So don't expect me to listen to mindblowing albums all the time. It's tiring. Sometimes I just want to sit down and listen to pop.
If you don't feel like clicking on the image above, here's a list:
If you don't feel like clicking on the image above, here's a list:
Fauxe - Ikhlas
Pallbearer - Heartless
Killeur Calculateur - Arus
Ramayan - Ramayan
Khôrada - Salt
At the Gates - Slaughter of the Soul
Thundercat - Drunk
The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers
JPEGMAFIA - VETERAN
In Flames - Whoracle
clipping. - CLPPNG
Skeletonwitch - Devouring Radiant Light
Scar Symmetry - Dark Matter Dimensions
Hprizm - Catching a Body
The Coup - Sorry To Bother You: The Soundtrack
King Geedorah - Take Me to Your Leader
OutKast - Stankonia
Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Caesar
Endon - Through the Mirror
Zeal & Ardor - Stranger Fruit
Death Grips - Year of the Snitch
Deafheaven - Ordinary Corrupt Human Love
MF DOOM - Best of MF
Kids See Ghosts - Kids See Ghosts
Deafheaven - New Bermuda
So here are some of my favorites for the week.
Choice Cuts:
Name: Khorada
Album Title: Salt
Genre(s): Post-Metal, Sludge, Black Metal
Year of Release: 2018
Born out of the ashes of Aggaloch, this feels like a distilled version of the band. While Aggaloch played black metal that flirted with folk rock, shoegaze and post-rock, this is less black metal but still retained the atmospherics of the genres they flirted with. It's calming yet heavy. It's the kind of metal you can headbang and close your eyes while imagining cold forest landscapes of Cascadia at the same time. There are several black metal passages but atmospheric sludge with a folky structure that takes center stage here. Deafheaven probably had more black metal passages than this album ironically.
Name: Fauxe
Album Title: Ikhlas
Genre(s): Hip Hop, Intrumental, Sampling
Year of Release: 2017
I'm disappointed that I didn't find this gem through Malaysian or Singaporean blogs/music sites. Instead, I found it on Bandcamp's Album of The Day write-ups. This instrumental/beat album samples all sorts of Malaysian folk sounds and added a modern groove to it. Distorted bass over Malay folk songs was something I didn't know I would enjoy. Malaysians and Singaporeans would probably remember Too Phat's sampling of the Malay folk song Anak Ayam for their break out single. If that track was fast food, this is the Michelin star version. With such a wide vocabulary of Chinese, Malay and Indian tracks from the 60s/70s/80s, this feels like a beat album made for Malaya. (Well Malaya mainly because someone needs to make a spiritual sequel to this with Sabahan and Sarawakian samples)
Name: Thundercat
Album Title: Drunk
Genre(s): Funk, Soul, Fusion
Year of Release: 2017
I admit it, I don't have the vocabulary to talk about funk. But all I can is that the track Them Changes is slowly becoming one of my favorite jams. I don't listen to Earth, Wind and Fire a lot of the track does remind me of them. Maybe some funk fanatic can school me on this.
Sidenote however, Thundercat intrigued me also because he is the bassist of crossover/thrash metal/hardcore punk band Suicidal Tendencies. So his admiration for funk is something I feel like I can relate to. The soundtrack of my teenage life started out with punk, metal, alt rock and then expanded to rap. Nowadays I try to expand my musical vocabulary and my pallette. Funk and soul are two genres I think I've admire for such a long time but I had no idea where to start. Glad that Thundercat exists.
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