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Oh God, I wish This night would go on like this forever These hands have seen love a thousand times But never like this, never like this

#To the Wolves #Mandroid Echostar

My 20 Favorite Albums of 2016

I know I'm late to the whole “end of year list” thing but really I don't think you can make a list of stuff that came out of a year until it's actually over. I see people with the top ten lists in mid December and I'm like, “the year isn't even over yet!” Ramble over, on with the list. 20. Dayshell – Nexus So here's the deal, I was really interested in what Shayley Bourget was going to do after he left Of Mice & Men because he was the only thing that kept me interested in that band. The 2013 self titled album Dayshell showed me that he could make it without his former bandmates and thrive delivering a bunch of fun, raucous rock songs and a few other songs while good in their own right I don't think really fit the style the band was going for and it resulted in a kind of odd reception of what would otherwise be a kick ass album for me. This new album Nexus does away with any of that dissonance and gives us a more cohesive vision of the band's sound. From the opening bass riff in Car Sick, I just have to fucking jam to this album. If you ever see me doing a weird chair wiggle with my earbuds on, odds are that I'm listening to this album. The mood the music gives me is the essence of fuckin' cool. Like, walking down the sidewalk in slo-mo with some sick ass shades on cool. If you're down for that, then get in an open top car, cruise down the highway, and bump the fuck out of this album. 19. Plini – Handmade Cities Plini's been killing it for a hot minute before this debut album with all his trilogy EPs offering up some of that good ass jazzy guitar. The songs on Handmade Cities are just as good as those trilogy songs but without the need of a musical narrative throughline. This is a good establishing album from a guitarist who's fit to be a breakout success. Get on board now because there's already an amazing backcatalog that's sure to get even better. 18. Frost* – Falling Satellites So this is a band I was seriously sleeping on. I legitimately had no idea progressive pop was a thing until I checked out Frost* and their sound is this odd mix of flavors that I really like but I would have never thought of putting together. Essentially it's progressive rock but with a penchant for pop production so you get the cryptic lyricism and scope of prog rock but with a reliance on synth and super glitzy studio effects that by all means shouldn't work but inexplicably does. Jem Godfrey goes HAM on the keys and has a really unique timbre to his voice that colors every track. 17. Mandroid Echostar – Coral Throne I was hype as FUCK for this album to come out. I heard these guys on the EP Citadels and was fucking blown away by the musicianship and passion on display. Their willingness to experiment while not always a 100% success was something I welcome in a band. Once I heard about the new album, I pre-oredered it along with a hoodie that's the coolest thing ever! That said, how is the album? To use a word that's essentially lost all meaning, EPIC. I mean that in the literal sense. Everything on this album is huge! The passionate, booming vocals, the shread-tastic guitar playing, the groovy as fuck bass licks, and the bombastic drums. This album took the experimentation on Citadels and crafted an amazing foundation on which I cannot wait for them to experiment and adapt from. 16. Emarosa – 131 I've been a big fan of this band for a while and even though Versus was a good comeback album for a band who had been on hiatus for the better part of 4 years it felt as though the band was still living in the shadow of Relativity and the self title and that music was good but I couldn't help but want the band to evolve. That's where 131 comes in. From the first notes of Hurt you know this is going to be a different beast entirely than the albums that came before it. Bradley Walden's voice is just fucking dreamy and instrumentally it goes from subdued and ambient to pounding and great. At the risk of starting shit, this album is fit to make you say “Jonny who?” 15. Polyphia – Renaissance There's instrumental bands but then there's Polyphia. In an era of down tuned guitars and five million note solos Polyphia asks the all important question, “can't we have some god damn fun!?” To that end, this new album answers a resounding Fuck Yes. I loved Muse but the overabundance of guest solos and musicians could leave one with the impression that Polyphia wasn't strong enough to stand on their own. Renaissance takes that preconception and kicks it in the fucking face because Polyphia delivers a more cohesive, catchy, and overall fun album. They have technical flair in spades on this album but never is it too atonal or verbose to keep away from the rest of the music. Polyphia has found a winning formula with Renaissance and I can't wait for new material. My only complaint is that after the album's release they made a remix of one of their songs and called it Lit and it was fucking awesome! So now my opinion of the album has changed to it was pretty great but it didn't have Lit on it so fuck!

14. TTNG – Disappointment Island This is one of those albums I can only listen to once in a while because it is very emotional. Henry Tremain's falsetto is a beautiful haunting deity that pierces my soul and the instrumentation is a light kind of noodley which can be more punishing than the hardest breakdown especially on the track Whatever, Whenever where the strings pluck on after moody disaffection. This section is shorter than the others because I need to be in a very particular mood to listen to this album. If you feel moody and disaffected, put on this album and drift away. 13. Letlive – If I'm the Devil Another band I had been seriously sleeping on. Letlive is normally known for their high intensity fiercely political songs and while I love that and we desperately need voices like that who speak out against political injustices, it was somewhat nice to see them dial it back a little bit and become just a little more personal. I think the intro of the album, I Learned to Love Myself doubles as basically the album's thesis paired with the album title essentially that they have been shaped in a bad way but they're going to love themselves anyway and I think that is a message that needs touting and in the coming years of turmoil, I hope to look to Letlive as a vehicle for change and revolution. 12. Animals As Leaders – The Madness of Many You know how I slagged off noodliness and downtuned guitars in the Polyphia spot? Well, this is different. Animals as Leaders has a way of crafting the densest music that I find pretty accessible. From the opening notes of sitar from Arithmophobia, you know you're in for something you may not fully get your first listen but have an unparalleled appreciation for. While it is less melodious than their last album The Joy of Motion, The Madness of Many offers a lot of great songwriting for those willing to take the dive. 11. The Fall of Troy – OK Holy shit, The Fall of Troy had an album this year! These guys were on hiatus for 7 fucking years! The likelihood of them making an album at all was astronomically unlikely and the fact that it's so fucking good is a god damn triumph! If you've been missing their particular brand of post hardcore then this is a real treat! Thomas Erak is just as much a guitar god as ever and his voice has aged into a bitter howl that’s fucking intense. Hearing his refined screams and blistering guitar playing is amazing! I'm blown away that even as stripped down as this album is compared to In the Unlikely Event that just three guys can pull of this huge ass sound! 10. Haken – Affinity Affinity is one of those albums where really one song is worth the price of admission. Don't get me wrong, the rest of the album is great too but... 1985. As far as I'm concerned, the album could just be that song and I'd be like, “it was a little short but this album was fantastic!” This album positively oozes 80's synth prog but with a reckless progressive abandon that's quintessentially now that makes it the perfect tribute because you're struck with nostalgia (or if you're as young as me, secondhand nostalgia) for all the good stuff about the 80's like the first 5 80′s Rush albums but coincidentally forget all the shitty stuff about the 80's which happens to be basically everything else from the 80's. I swear the little synth break in the middle of 1985 evokes some kind of emotion in me. I either start crying or get really pumped or have a stupid ass grin on my face or some bizarre combination of the 3 and if you want to experience that too, listen to this album! 9. VOLA – Inmazes With Haken covering 80's synth prog, there's also a great place for electronic elements in modern metal and VOLA showcases that perfectly with Inmazes. It's a bizarre combination of heavy riffage with video gamey synths that works extremely well. I've heard VOLA described as Tears for Fears mixed with Meshuggah and if that sounds like a combination you might like, you need to check this out because odds are you will. Even if it doesn't seem like it will mix, trust me it will. 8. Three Trapped Tigers – Silent Earthling The fact that I'm putting another instrumental band higher than Animals As Leaders is seen as blasphemy in some circles but you have to believe me when I say that these guys are really that good. They have a really technical approach to synthy music that I haven't really seen anywhere else and are yet again another trio that makes everything sound really big and grand. At times it feels like the Hotline Miami soundtrack but other times it's super bombastic and crazy. The more I say about this album, the less good I get at describing it so I implore you GO LISTEN TO THESE GUYS THEY’RE REALLY GOOD!! 7. Deftones – Gore This album is both crushing and beautiful at the same time with both some of the sludgiest breakdowns I've heard and some of the lightest passages of ambiance. Chino Moreno's voice booms and croons and soars all over the damn place throughout this album and the guitars echo and crunch along with him. It's ultimately an uplifting album by the end but damn does it sink deep into depressions to get us there. If you need to fade away, pick this album up. 6. Balance and Composure – Light We Made Remember Deftones? Well now you don't have to! Okay, that's not quite it but at the same time though, Balance and Composure's latest shares a lot of similarities to Gore with its ambiance and overall melancholy. I was a fan of their previous albums but this new album is almost a complete departure from that style and whereas most bands feel very odd in new territory Balance and Composure seems to thrive. The long stretches of guitar tones and soft ambient vocals layered with light keys is something they've never attempted before but absolutely nail. This is another fade album for those of you who need to fade away. 5. The Dear Hunter – Act V: Hymns With the Devil in Confessional You know how award shows give out awards to actors who recently starred in something that the award show just now recognizes and the award is well deserved but really you know it's for their earlier works and this is kind of penance for all the other better stuff? Okay, well maybe not that specifically but that's my place with The Dear Hunter. I had heard of these guys and checked out a few albums before but this is the year that I really dove into their discography and discovered the treasure trove of gems awaiting me. This isn't to say that the album isn't worth this spot, it totally is. Casey Cescenzo's lyricism is on point as ever with a poetic gravity that makes each bit hit super hard and this album basically went full on musical with songs like The Haves and the Have Naughts I can basically envision taking place on stage. The reason I had that little caveat before this however is that you need to be familiar with The Dear Hunter's previous acts to really get into the album. Granted, the album itself is great, but knowing about the previous acts going in makes it much better. 4. Thank You Scientist – Stranger Heads Prevail None of the people I watch had this album on their top lists and honestly I think they're doing a disservice to themselves. Thank You Scientist dropped one of the most creative, imaginative, and fun releases of the whole fucking year and the so called “critics” didn't do shit! This album is an explosive blast of jazz fusion that's at once technical and crazy but also accessible and catchy. You know what? Instead of me waxing poetically about this album, go check out the song The Amateur Arsonist's Handbook and thank me later. There's a violin solo that's beyond words it's so good! 3. Dance Gavin Dance – Mothership Some of you may know that Dance Gavin Dance is one of my favorite bands and this year they released one of their best albums to date and I'm tempted to say that this is their best album ever. Yes, even better than DBM 1. Where DBM 1 is lightning in a bottle, Mothership is pure cultivated skill over the course of their decade long career. Everyone has never sounded better. Tilian is raw and emotional but still possesses amazing skill and range from screaming along on Chucky Vs. The Giant Tortoise to his soaring over Deception. Jon Mess sounds better than anything he's put to record before with an unparalleled clarity to his screams. Will Swan's guitar playing has been gushed about to death and honestly I can't add anything to it except another glowing appraisal. Matt Mingus' drums are bombastic and crazy but consistent and Tim Feerick's bass provides a much needed spine to the songs. Before I gush myself to death I implore you to listen to this album. Even if you weren't on board with Dance Gavin Dance before, give this a spin because it may make you a fan. 2. Periphery – Periphery III Select Difficulty This is one other instance where one song or in this case, cluster of songs is worth the price of admission. I saw a lot of people turned off by The Price is Wrong's lyricism and I'm hoping that the triple threat of Flatline, Absolomb, and Catch Fire are enough to bring them back. I also see a lot of people wishing that Periphery would go back to their Periphery 1 sound but that's for another time. The fact that this was made right after what I consider their magnum opus Juggernaut and it's still pretty damn good is a miracle in itself. The fact that it's just as good as Juggernaut I can't even fathom. To keep this from just becoming a bunch of gutterances I'll just say please check out this album. If you’re anything like me, the bass line in Absolomb will awaken things in you. 1. Iamthemorning – Lighthouse Technically if we're going by favorites, Periphery would be number 1. However, sometimes I have to forego personal taste and showcase something masterful. Iamthemorning's Lighthouse is a work of genius that needs to be remembered. From the first track I Came Before the Water Part 1, Marjana Semkina graces the ears with her operatic falsetto that I just cannot praise enough and when combined with Gleb Kolyadin's piano work, and a veritable studio orchestra it creates a thing of unbridled beauty. This all culminates in what I think is the best track off the album, the title track where Mariusz Duda shows up and I just fucking die because it's just too beautiful. This is yet another album I can only listen to sometimes. It tells the tale of somebody suffering through mental illness and their suicide. It's very bleak but not without hope. At the end of the album in the liner notes the band has a message that says, “This album is dedicated to the subject of mental illness and we'd like to pass on the message to all the lost souls out there: you are not alone, ever.” I want to take that sentiment with me into the coming years and I hope you do too. Thanks if you read this far. If you want more of this music talk abouty type of thing, tell me.