Track Roundup: June

   
     A lot of good songs this month! I have found myself openly exploring more music, and that is a good thing. I find that within a month's time, I will usually stick to one sort of "atmosphere" when it comes to music, by that I mean emotion. If i'm in the mood for "sad" music, as is per the norm, then I will listen to anything ranging from The Killing Joke, The Handsome Family, Opeth's Rock albums (more on those at some point in the future), Empyrium, and Light Jazz. A "happier" playlist might include Rap, Celtic music, Steve Winwood, or Mastodon. While it can be diverse, I feel like with the way that I listen to music a list made up of songs with the same "vibe" or "atmosphere" can get boring, or even worse: listened to for the sake of listening to something.

      Because of this, I explored a bit more into other moods this month and I felt very rewarded in doing so. In all honesty, this blog is as much for myself as it is for anyone who looks at it, I love music in all its forms and I love writing. It is simply a good outlet for me to write, discover new music, and talk about the music I love.

     Also, I apologize for the flip flop: I will now be including tracks released in June I found notable from albums I did not review, because there is one track from Josh's recent review, KIDS SEE GHOSTS that I found to be one of the best of the year so far. On to the tracks:

Chthe'ilist - Passage into the Xexannoth

(Selected track  from Passage to the Xexannoth: Released June 15 on Profound Lore Records)

   
     First up to kick off the roundup is Chthe'ilist, yes... I don't know how to say it either. Chthe'ilist are a band from Quebec, and their lyrical content and inspirations can range from Lovecraft to Legend of Zelda; though this is much more inspired by the former. Sometimes, the best way to describe a song is with one word; and this song is in one word: gross, and in a good way.

     After the mid-tempo intro backed by a chorus builds for a few moments, the vocals come swirling through an echo chamber into the forefront for one initial howl. Then an absolutely filthy bass break gives way to Philippe Tougas' wretched stuttered growling as per Chthe'ilist expectations. A typical, albeit great Death Metal song is capped off by a beautiful neo-classical guitar solo, which soars high through the grime of the rest of the song. I was most excited by this song on the list, and I hope it means there is another full-length on the horizon. Through all the hype that surrounds many new Death Metal bands, Chthe'ilist always stand above the rest for me.

Manu Katche - Tricky 98' - Le match de légende

(Unattached Single)


     Manu Katche is a French drummer, predominantly writing and performing in Jazz and Rock groups. Most notable are his contributions to the works of Peter Gabriel, and Sting.

     "Tricky 98" is unlike anything I've heard him perform or write, the Electronic and House influence I hear here is very strong; in fact it is both of these things in spirit. Very minimal are the flashy stadium drums he is most known for and in it's place we get a more subdued, night-riding darkwave electronic song. I do not drive here in the UK, but if I were back home I would most assuredly be testing this out on the 401.

Deafheaven - Canary Yellow

(2nd Single from Ordinary Corrupt Human Love: July 13 on ANTI- Records)


     I will not lie, this took some self-coercion to listen to. Deafheaven are a band that I find utterly tiresome, their brand is really just "hip Black Metal" and that's it. I've never found any of their previous releases to be creative at all, and I find that they rely mostly on their image and the "We're not like other Black Metal bands!" attitude more than anything.

     So with the impending release of their newest album Ordinary Corrupt Human Love(even the title is enough to make me roll my eyes) they release the second single from the album "Canary Yellow" a song I expected to hate almost based on the name alone. But I can eat my words and say confidently that I did not hate it: It has elements of Krallice, and I like that! There is a lot more originality I can hear with this track and for a 12 minute song it does simply breeze by, which is quite a big ask. I might not end up listening to the new album, but this has made me respect them just a tiny bit more.

KIDS SEE GHOSTS - 4th Dimension

(Selected track from KIDS SEE GHOSTS: Released June 8th on GOOD Music)


     Possibly my favourite track of the month and most definitely my favourite song from the June Kanye albums, "4th Dimension" finds Kanye in prime form, and Kid Cudi likewise.

     Built around a darkly chopped sample of a 30's Christmas song, "4th Dimension" is, although I hate to admit it: a fine example of the fact that a short song can be just as effective as a long song, and though I lamented the length of ye and wish KIDS SEE GHOSTS were longer as well, I cannot fault Kanye and Kid Cudi for making a great song that can be noted for its conciseness. The only fallback to its length is really just the fact that I don't have much further to talk about.

Thou - The Changeling Prince

(Single from Magus: August 31 on Sacred Bones Records)


     All of the Metal tracks I have included this month are heavy, and this one is the biggest of the bunch. I am not normally a huge fan of Thou, their brand of Doom Metal can be simply put as being unpleasant to listen to and though they can be experimental, it often just isn't for me.

     There is a profound change in Thou's sound on "The Changeling Prince", and it is the inclusion of a greater amount of melody than anything I've heard from them. The more typically Black Metal vocals provided by Bryan Funck elevate the low and slow sound of the rest of the band, and the groove they set into after the 3:30 mark is undeniable in its catchiness if you even passably enjoy this kind of music. I will very much be looking forward to Magus, which releases in August.

Khanus - Surrupu

(Single from Flammarion: July 20th, Independently Released)


     The last Khanus album, Dance of the Shaman has been in my Bandcamp wishlist for the last year or so. What this means is that it puts it in the category of music I'd really like to have but do not want to spend money on if it's not on streaming services. I like their sound, from what I've heard. That being said, "Surrupu" is the only song I've heard in full from them, and I don't know what to classify it. I love when I find music I have no words to describe, but I will try my best for this track.

     "Surrupu" is a very angry and deranged sounding mix of Black Metal principles, with a very tasteful touch of Mastodon-esque progressions and vocals thrown in. There is no singing here interlaced with the expected growls, instead more of a hillbilly groan. I hear some tinges of Voices as well, a London band whose experimentation has left me breathless before. "Surrupu" sounds sort of like Voices, if the experimentation was reigned in a bit. I don't think I've done the greatest of jobs describing the song, but if it's worth anything: I liked it!?

Marisa Anderson - Sant Feliu de Guíxols

(Selected track from Cloud Corner: Independently Released June 15


     After the last track, it feels very nice to be writing about such a simple, relaxing song. Marisa Anderson is an Americana guitarist out of Portland, and there's nothing here but a clean finger-plucked Fender Stratocaster, its an unmistakable sound. I don't think there's ever been a guitar that is more American than a Stratocaster.

     There is something comforting about such a simple piece of music; whether a solo Grand Piano, Harp, Flute, or Guitar, listening to something played by a single person focusing on what they are doing can be a more intimate listening experience for sure, though it might bore some and that's okay. "Sant Feliu de Guíxols" is a short Folk ballad, which lets the guitar do the talking. There are no vocal accompaniments, or drums. In short, it really is just a nice song.

Jon Bryant - Paradise

(Unattached Single)


     I used to really like Indie music! Examples being Deerhunter(a band who thinking about now, I realise I should listen to more), Beach House, Arcade Fire, Grizzly Bear, and Department of Eagles. Much of this music took up my high school listening, along with Metal. But I did mention "used to" when talking about Indie music, this is because I feel like the tropes associated with the genre can really weigh it down(this can be said about any genre, but still).

     See when I say Indie music, you can almost hear in your head what you think it is. This is probably due to the over saturation of it heard in commercials or movies. But for me at one point, if I heard one more *clap* or one more enthusiastic "Hey!" I thought I'd never listen to music again. But I will now stop ranting, and get to the song...

     I'd never heard of Jon Bryant before, and saw "Paradise" on Spotify's new releases. Seeing the album cover and knowing just how it might sound, I gave it a shot to see if I was still so cynical about Indie music. I was wrong though, cause this wasn't bad! The song does have a very relaxed summery feel to it, and though it does overstay its welcome a bit at almost 5 minutes(I'm sorry for flip-flopping so much on the length of songs, simply put I often find songs with verse, chorus, verse structure rarely work in longer lengths), it does maintain its energy and enjoyability throughout.

     There, who would have thought that my longest track review would be about a just decent Indie song, not me! Ok goodbye for now.

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