My Top 10 Albums Of 2016

10: Catfish And The Bottlemen The Ride

“To every ex I didn’t treat right / To every Monday I called in sick / To every argument I let slide”

At the start of the year I kept seeing the name Catfish And The Bottlemen. On Twitter. On Facebook. On ‘You might like’ suggestions on youtube but other than having a ridiculous name I knew nothing about them and never thought to venture into knowing more about them. Mainly because they had a ridiculous name. A friend then said they liked them and we soon saw them at Radio 1’s Big Weekend and they impressed greatly. Over the next few months I got to know the album very well on said friend’s car stereo. I became a bit of a unwitting convert to Botfish And The Cattleprods (or whatever they’re called).

There are all the elements of nineties Brit rock going: Sneering vocals, basic song structures and most importantly – catchy as fuck. There’s certainly a strong Oasis vibe too. These songs of being unemployed, getting drunk and having arguments with girlfriends are set to be soundtrack of a new generation the same way Oasis were mine. Yes, I’m old thanks for noticing.

 

9: The Duke Spirit KIN

“There you go into the light and break this heart of mine”

The very definition of a slow burner. It took me quite  a few listens to fully get how stunning a record this is. For KIN, the wonderful clattering, dirty sounding rock and roll of The Duke Spirit has been refined into an atmospheric wall of beautiful noise. Chiming guitars take over from full charged riffs. Leila Moss is still prowling your speakers, her husky voice as powerful as ever but the intent is less one of attack and more of contemplation.

Wounded Wing manages to sounds both world weary and optimistic. ‘100 Horses Run sparkles with pure beauty. These are tunes which will subtly enter your consciousness without you even realising. There is still plenty of bite in the stormers too. Side By Side is a brooding, unrelenting juggernaut of bashing drums with a killer chorus.

A different Duke Spirit maybe but this one as still as vital as ever. Get lost in KIN and you won’t want to come back in a hurry. Sometimes the things we have to work at understanding are the most rewarding.

 

8:: She Makes War Direction Of Travel

“We throw insults, the world throws stones”

She Makes war (AKA Laura Kid has lived up to the name of her third long player. It is Goth, grunge, poppy and electronic .Guitars, synths, strings and ukuleles combine to form a rich tapestry of masterful angst. It does indeed have many directions and an plethora of ideas but it is not a garbled mess. It’s focused, mature and incredibly beautiful.

Cold Shoulder is a dirty (in both senses) sounding rant at a lover: “What’s coming for me, ex-girlfriend or STD? / Don’t call me baby”. Then we have In Cold Blood which feels like it was recorded in a darkly lit room with Laura loitering around the corner holding a knife. The downbeat Alone still has a knack of making a chorus that says “We’re always all alone” sound kind of unifying.

Things take  a melodic turn with the lovely Paper Thin, a duet with Tanya Donelly which has an almost fairy tale quality to it. Stargazing is a light, floating string laden piece of epicness. The tune sounds positive despite the lyrics being less so. 5000 Miles is a club banger.. if that club is for introverts only. Mark Chadwick of The Levellers also pops up for a folky duet in ‘Time To Be Unkind’

On another note, Direction Of Travel would win the album cover of the year award. If I could be arsed to do one.

 

7: Muncie Girls From Caplan to Belsize

” For the next few years you can laugh and joke about your next victim / But when you’re all grown up and your daughter cries you’ll be sorry you did this”

Any band who references Sylvia Plath for their album title is more than OK by me. Fronted by the annoyingly multi talented Lande Hekt (singer, guitarist, drummer in a few bands) Muncie Girls have been part of the Exeter scene for a while now and it’s great to finally hear the songs on record.

From Caplan To Belsize is rammed full of what should be punk pop classics with more hooks than coat hanger fetishist cloakroom but there’s much more at play here. The brilliant lyricism which confront issues such as rape culture (Respect) and battling with anxiety (Social Side). The fact that a song called ‘I Don’t Want To Talk About It‘ perversely manages to be a euphoric singalong sums it up. OI! OI! Balloon also needs a shout out for being a tune of stadium sized proportions. It’s loud, bouncy and pretty much over before you’ve even had time to google what a ‘Muncie’ is.

 

6: Emma Pollock In Search Of Harperfield

” To never repeat / Is ambition sweet / These days that last longer / These days feel like weeks”

Emma Pollock fronted one of my favourite ever bands, lo fi pop noise makers The Delgados. They disbanded too soon like most of my favourite bands do. Her voice has always been like honey to me, imagine Sophie Ellis-Bextor with a strong Scottish lilt. This is ABSOLUTELY fine with me.

In Search Of Harperfield, her third solo album has a deep strong sense of reminiscing about a youth gone, the title itself refers to her parents home but there’s no rose tinted glasses being worn here for it is plaintive without being self absorbed, the sadness lifted by beautiful, catchy arrangements. Cannot Keep A Secret is a brilliantly dizzy waltz of an opener and is followed up by the punchier Don’t Make me Wait, shot through with punchy strings. Alabaster is a subtle synth death march (“Bring me the head of happiness dead”). The softly vengeful Clemency purrs “I will clip your wings whilst sleeping / If you venture home again / And I will cut your legs from under you / If you so much as say her name”. With poetry slaying like this, words win over power any day.

A record that drips with raw emotion and life affirming melodies. It doesn’t come with a huge fanfare, or even a small one for that matter. The music does the talking and I for one, am all ears.

 

5: Savages Adore Life

“Is it human to adore life?..”

Savages have stretched their short sharp slabs of military punk and contorted them into something a bit different which makes album number two an evolution from the debut. The bass as ever is at the forefront but the guitar playing and sound is at an extra level. Poetic in its heaviness, graceful in the solos and still sounding nasty as fuck, most notably on Surrender and T.I.W.Y.G. Jehnny Beth’s vocals are fierce, giving the songs an even further dimension of intensity.

There’s more feedback, more reverb, more breakdowns, more build ups, more gaps to let the sense of unease in. Adore ebbs and flows, narcissistically holding off the kick in almost as a form of punishment.

It’s almost a concept album on relationships but don’t worry, they’ve not turned all Adele on us. This is all about the darker side of love (“I’m not gonna hurt you/ ‘Cause I’m flirting with you”) and sexuality (“When I take a man or a woman / They’re both the same / They’re both human”) It’s the same but different. It’s Savages still being Savage and thank badness for that.

 

4: Black Foxxes I’m Not Well

“Just another empty face in this hollow resort”

There was me thinking i was pretty up to date on the local Exeter music scene but.. no. Black Foxxes didn’t enter my world until late in the year when someone told me about them playing in town. I didn’t go. I’m sure they must have played Exeter a few times but I guess lots of bands have the words ‘black’ and ‘foxes’ (albeit spelt correctly) in their title so maybe nothing stood out initially. Who knows. Better late than never I suppose.

I’m Not Well feels like grunge updated. Sort of like Pearl Jam if they had ever been good or rocked. Actually not like Pearl Jam at all then. Forget that. For a debut, the talent on offer is very special and it is also rare for a first outing to be so wonderfully produced. It’s heavy and clear as day. The use of screeching feedback and noise mid songs are a highlight. Mark Holley’s vocal’s sound fragile one second and like Smaug the dragon in an angry showdown with hobbits the next.

So the tune then, oh the tunes. Not exactly what you could describe as easy listening, the songs are shot through with lots of pain and anxiety. Some are instantly catchy and some you may have to break through the shredded guitars and anguish to grasp. Hearts are very much on sleeves, their blood and guts very much on the floor and all for our listening displeasure. It may not a joyous noise but what a fucking brilliant noise..

 

3: Honeyblood Babes Never Die

“HEY, HEY, IT’S JUST A LITTLE HEARTBREAK”

This is Honeyblood’s lo-fi grunge gone a full screen, cineamatic technicolour. Clearly not a band to rest on their laurels, Stina and Cat have raised the bar even higher with a collection of what might constitute as heavy, twisted power ballads (Sea Hearts and Walking At Midnight in particular). Sister Wolf is a dancey slice of sinister fun as is Love Is A Disease with an added kick from “new bassist” Seb. Tour in-joke. Don’t ask.

The heavier moments growl with menace, especially the chugging riffs of Justine, Misery Queen which melodically switches between bitter and sweet.Gangs sounds like Howling Bells on a really bad day. It’s a compliment, honestly. As for Ready For The Magic, it simply kicks arse. The title track too is a raucous feminist anthem about sticking together.

It’s an album which shows a broader range and a vision that truly marks Honeyblood as ones to watch (if there was any doubt before). Babes Never Die conjures up images of dark spirits in a gloomy woodland and a very brightly lit future in the trees.

 

2: Slaves Take Control

“Abide by the rules that were set by the fools”

In a year when we’ve heard the literally meaningless slogan “take back control” spouted again and again by career politicians it’s nice that Slaves have taken back taking control from them. Sort of. Clearly a prolific band, this follows very quickly on from last year’s debut which must mean the quality suffers, right? No chance.

It starts in a fit of rage with the a Mikey flatmate offending Spit It Out, that is all spiky riffs and shouting and they keep hammering at your senses. Consumed Or Be Consumed is a tirade on .. well consumerism with snarling riffs and rapping. It’s like the Beastie Boys let loose on the streets of Laaandan. Money, class and the elite play strongly on their minds. Rich man berates a rich man. Or a man called Richard Man. Maybe. Lies is a heavy blues take on the theme: “Hollow eyes / suits and Ties / power comes at a price / one mans hell / another’s paradise”. It continues “Stopping signs of life in the factory of death / in the shadow of the city, we’ve got nothing left”. As ever with Slaves, the messages are well meaning and (mostly) serious but the soundtrack is so heavy and loud that you don’t have to have a social conscience to have fun. Though please do have one because that would make you weird otherwise. It sweeps you along on pure adrenaline and bravado. It’s all magnificent. Unless you’re a hi-hat. In which case you’re fucked. The People That You Meet is a unique tale of bumping into local characters around town: “I walked into a sex shop / the lady had a beard”.

Then they go and surprise us in the second half. Steer Clear is a low key eighties indie ode to road safety (“Please don’t kill yourself behind that steering wheel”). Cold Hard Floor is an atmospheric dirge driven by deep bass and pained yelping. STD’s/PHD’s is a gloriously moody, chiming club floor filler.. or club floor emptier depending on your opinion. Though “TV meals / self destruction / know how it feels don’t you?” hardly screams Pete Tong. Though society has all gone Pete Tong and Slaves are supplying the best possible soundtrack to our end of days. They might just save the best for last – Same Again is viscous and it’s drum / riff breakdown towards the end is the stuff of dreams. This is not more of the same from Slaves. The best second albums take the work of a debut and adds new twists. Slaves have so much energy, fury and imagination they are already at the top of their game. Wherever they go from here will be noisy, fun and life affirming. If they aren’t headlining Reading by their third album then the world is more wrong than even Slaves think it is.

 

1: The Tuts Update Your Brain

“I can’t cry off my eyeliner flicks for anyone”

A case of faith rewarded, belief justified. When your own personal hype for a band is exceeded it’s not just rare, it’s frankly miraculous. The energy of the band’s personalities and live show has been compressed into twelve soundbites that implode at every opportunity.

It is an album that is extremely fun, deeply serious and very loud. Through indie, punk, ska, pop and rap they take on the media, sexism, politics and to be honest, the whole wide world. It’s confidence is staggering, it walks the walk, talks the talk and has the courage to back up its conviction.

Back in September I gave Update Your Brain 9/10 for much the same reason the judges on Strictly don’t dish out tens in the first week. Put simply, this is only album number one and there are still even greater things to follow. Just wait until you see their next dance.

This is my original review of ‘Update Your Brain’. It has slightly more words.