Top 20 Non-Metal Albums of 2017
So, while my passion has long been heavy metal, there is so much other great music out there I felt it was worth my time to compile a list of the best of the rest. These twenty albums represent quite a number of genres, but they all share the quality of being awesome…
1. BLACK SEAGULL - Distant Lullabies
After the heart-breaking demise of one of my favorite band of the last two decades, On Trial, I was overjoyed to hear that a couple of ex-members had formed a new band called Black Seagull. While the sound is a bit more mellow and countrified, the songwriting quality is still top-notch and it sounds very much like a logical continuation of the Forever album.
2. ANVIL STRYKEZ - Anvil Strykez
My first impression was this would be a half-assed synthwave late-comer, based on the name, song titles, and album art, but damn if this isn’t one of the most thoroughly engaging albums all around. Vocoded vocals, pure 80s synth and drum machines, well-placed guitars, and a completely memorable and different approach for each tune add up to one hell of a spin.
The past few Mode records have been consistently good, if not quite as memorable as Playing the Angel or any of the classics. Spirit is a different beast and my favorite album of theirs since Songs of Faith and Devotion way back in in ’93. The songs “Going Backwards” and “Where’s the Revolution” rank right up there with anything they have penned and the lyrics throughout the album are the perfect reflection of our current state of devolved world affairs.
4. POPPY - poppy.computer
It’s happening again. Some things are weird. Let’s appreciate together. Am I doing this right? Someone sent me this. Can you see it? These are cotton swabs. Poppy loves politics. You are Poppy. I’m Poppy. Everybody wants to be Poppy, Poppy.
5. SNIFF 'N' THE TEARS - Random Elements
One of those groups that, save for one big top-40 hit back in 1979, has flown under the radar but consistently released top-notch albums over the years. Paul Roberts is the singer/songwriter that has helmed the group since the start (and even paints all the album covers) and he still sounds as unique as ever. He writes songs that have a certain melancholy to them that has always struck a chord with me and Random Elements is full of them.
6. DANCE WITH THE DEAD - B-Sides: Volume 1
While synthwave acts like GosT and Carpenter Brut have made a considerable number of fans among metalheads, Dance With the Dead goes the furthest in actually combining the styles. Retro synth lines are still the dominant feature but the chugging, thrashy riffs are nearly as omnipresent and the band add some very well-placed (and well-played) guitar solos on many tracks. This is their latest and they have only gone from strength to strength.
7. THE HAXANS - Party Monsters
This is the kind of thing I would usually roll my eyes at and dismiss straight away but this duo has put together a collection of songs that are so infectious, I can’t stop listening to it. It is the perfect mix of death punk, pop, and Rob Zombie-eque horror metal. Vocalist Ashley Costello is a real gem, too, delivering the campy lyrics with the perfect mix of sensuality and power.
These die-hard industrial rockers have been releasing slight variations on the same album for the past 25 years or so but, hey, it’s a fucking great album. Hell Yeah isn’t quite up there with WTF?! or WWIII but it’s better than the last couple and their revolutionary calls to action have never been timelier.
9. THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA - Amber Galactic
When it comes to paying tribute to classic AOR from the 70s and 80s, no one does it better and with more enthusiasm than The Night Flight Orchestra. Amber Galactic is not as consistently brilliant as the first two albums but it is still great and the song “Domino” is an instant classic.
This is Finnish ambient space trance. Repetitive, hypnotic electronics, looping guitars - it’s the perfect soundtrack for some meditation or that long, slow flight into the night. I’m always looking for chill stuff like this that works and, damn, this is executed with utmost perfection.
11. CHEAP TRICK - We're All Alright!
While Cheap Trick made some pretty mediocre records in the 80s and 90s, their 70s albums all stand up as classics and they have done some good work in recent years, too, most notably 2009’s The Latest. We’re All Alright! might be even better and the first half in particular is loaded with some well-crafted and hard rocking tunes.
12. CURSED MOON - Rite of Darkness
This album positively reeks of early-80s death rock in all the best ways. You’ve got driving basslines, reverby guitars, and gloomy synths, with the added bonus of gruff vocals that are more in the vein of early black or death metal. Not a ton of variety from song to song but it’s a highly enjoyable sound that works for a full album.
13. THE MOON AND THE NIGHT SPIRIT - Metanoia
This is a cool Hungarian duo that has been around for a good 15 years now. They make a very enchanting brand of folky darkwave with dreamy melodies and ethereal vocals. This is the first time I have had a chance to hear them since I fell in love with their 2011 album Mohalepte a few years back and I’m pleased to report they haven’t lost any of their charms.
14. LEGEND - Midnight Champion
Duo from Iceland that manages to capture the vibe and quality of classic industrial-rock and infuse it with modern and rather epic touches. The songs don’t just kick in and race to a catchy chorus; you have to be patient. The payoff is always worth it, though, and each songs follows its own dramatic course.
15. ADRENALINE RUSH - Soul Survivor
The debut from these Swedish hard rockers back in 2014 was a captivating collection of tunes that lived up to the band’s name. Soul Survivor is not quite as consistently good but it still has some damn fine tracks. The sound is big, melodic and surprisingly metal at times, with Tave Wanning’s vocals adding a great deal of charm, passion, and distinctiveness to the proceedings.
16. JESUS AND MARY CHAIN - Damage and Joy
I’ll admit I never paid much attention to these Scotts until the Automatic album came out and blew me away. Sadly, they seem to have slowly disintegrated after that, but after a lengthy break, they managed to return with one hell of a comeback record. Damage and Joy has some of the feedback from the early years, some of the electronics of the later years, and all of the sardonic humor and Velvet Underground chord progressions you would hope for.
Blondie has had some good tunes since their reunion in 1999 but this is the first album where nearly every track is a winner. The three most important contributors to the band’s sound - Debbie Harry, guitarist Chris Stein, and drummer Clem Burke - are all still intact and in great form.
18. BLACK MARE - Death Magick Mother
This is the solo project from Sera Timms, the lead vocalist of Ides of Gemini. Here she takes a far more traditional gothic tone with the music, while her vocals take on an even more ethereal feel than in Ides. No individual song really stands out but it all works together beautifully as a complete album.
19. RAINBOWLICKER - I Saw The Light But Turned It Off
My first listen to this Finnish outfit was truly one of those WTF moments. Elements of punk, electro, chiptune, industrial and goth all merge together with some suitably peculiar, snotty vocals to make a fresh sound that is at once annoying and endearing.
20. TARJA - From Spirits and Ghosts (Score for a Dark Christmas)
Christmas albums have a tendency to be either too campy or too cliched for their own good. Tarja instead presents a collection of traditional (and one original) tunes done up in a suitably dramatic and darkly original fashion. While her solo rock albums have left me rather flat, I love her voice and the orchestral pairing is simply gorgeous. No one sounds like Tarja, no matter how hard they try.
Some more bands with great releases in 2017 to check out if you are curious: AGUSA, BARDSPEC, CAMERATA MEDIOLANENS, DAN TERMINUS, FLAMES OF GENESIS, GALLEY BEGGAR, IIVII, KESHA, L.A. WITCH, LIVING COLOUR, PERTURBATOR, ROPE SECT, SOROR DOLOROSA, and UFFE LORENZEN.
