Music Thread 2017

What y'all think of the new LCD Soundsystem album? Can't say I have ever listened to them much before, but I'm really digging it. I like how earnest and honest it sounds. I have personally no problem with the production/mix which I have read some people disliking.

It kind of reminds me a bit of B.C Camplight in a weird way. Also some real Talking Heads influences going on.

Oh yeah, change yr mind sounds STRAIGHT out of Speaking in Tongues. I'm not crazy about the album in general (I think it kinda falls off a cliff after call the police). I agree that it's a surprisingly earnest album, aside from tonite. I'm warming more and more to it since I've read someone put in the perspective that James Murphy is now past the "mid-life crisis" phase in his life that seemed to drive all the trademark snark that defines the first three albums.

New albums by Deerhoof and Ted Leo came out on the same day yesterday. These are two of my favorite bands, so I was very excited yesterday morning. Not so crazy about the result though =/

Deerhoof feels kinda like just going through the motions. Fun numbers that have their weird discordant stabbings, but nothing of it seemed to stick. The new Ted Leo felt flat as well. I hope these will grow on me more. At least this excellent music video came out of it.

I fell into a bit of a nostalgia hole today, listening to a bunch of old Euro-disco that was real popular when I was ~12-15. Following through related video to related video I was shocked to find that Vinny apparently had a healthy music career in Europe in the early 2000's, albeit under a pseudonym: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w15oWDh02K4

@muppjockey: Gigi has that constant glassy eyed drunken gaze that I expect from a late 90's-early 2000's Euro DJ who probably downs a bottle of vodka a day.

@roomrunner: Yeah that and other voices sounds like it is straight out of Remain In Light. I'll have to check out LCD's previous work because I've heard so many good things about them.

New single by Björk titled "The Gate" is out.
Fuck, she never disappoints.

@boonsong: It's so good, I always like stripped down Bjork. Had Biophilia on this morning as never really 'got it'. Think it has finally clicked, Mutual Core is such a peach of a song.

Last few weeks have been pretty great for albums I think:

Science Fiction - Brand New: Really strong comeback from them, I enjoy how it restrained it is, atleast compared to their own back catalogue. Same Logic/Teeth - good little epic, with some shades of Modest Mouse in there.

Every Country's Sun - Mogwai: Solid Mogwai album, reminds me of a mix between Happy Songs and Hardcore to be reductionist. Really enjoy it. Party in the Dark.

Trash Generator - Tera Melos: Really good indie math rock music. Don't Say I Know.

Light Information - Chad VanGaalen: Always good for off-kilter songwriter stuff. Old Heads.

Dedicated to Bobby Jameson - Ariel Pink: Will be listening to this later, but Another Weekend has been in my head since it was released a single a little while back.

Songs I have been liking recently:

Mountains Made of Steam - Silver Mt. Zion

Interstate Vision - Lomelda

Hastings Sunrise - Loscil and Kelly Wyse

Buried Guns - Out Lines

For Light - Jay Som

@chebbles: Yeah Biophilia was hard for me to get into as well, but now I think it's probably one of my favorite works of her outside of Debut and maybe Post.

Currently listening to The City That Always Sleeps by Biblical. Sounds like Hard/Stoner/Psych rock and I'm really liking it. Some real good guitar and drum work. Album is just under 40 minutes, recommended for anyone into stoner/psych rock type stuff.

Foo Fighters made a new album. Yeah, I know, it's dad rock, but I still have a soft spot for them. It's ok.

Emily Haines made another solo album (her first was over ten years ago!). I think it's... kinda pretentious. I know that word gets thrown around too much, but Haines... just... her lyrics aren't as impactful as she presents them to be. Still, this is way better than anything Metric has released in a decade.

I've been enjoying Brand New's latest album, Science Fiction. It's a gloomy and richly-textured record. I like the album art as well.

I also keep coming back to Kelly Lee Owens' debut, which came out earlier this year. It's a minimalist, mostly downtempo electronic record. Perfect for nighttime drives.

I've been catching up on some music this week.

As mentioned before, LCD Soundsystem released their new album. Generally, i'm not a huge fan of the band but i liked this album quite a bit. The music goes from saccharine to surprising harsh guitarwork. A nice surprise. Need to listen to it a bit more, but American Dream and Emotional Haircut are fun songs. Emotional Haircuts first minute almost sounds Joy Division-esque, which is a very welcome surprise. Oh Baby is a very typical LCD song, a good one of those.

I've heard 3 songs of the new Foo Fighters album so far. Quite like Sky is a Neighborhood and The Line . Run doesn't really speak to me. Will have to listen to the whole thing.

The National also released a new album. Very solid, around the level of High Violet. Didn't really care about their album before this one, so this was a nice return to form in my eyes. Especially The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness is an awesome song (and name). There's a slightly wider variety in the music than usual, probably best demonstrated by Turtleneck.

Everything Everything's new album was okay. Liked their debut album quite a bit, but you definitely have to be able to put up with the singers voice. This one is very polished and has some pretty good songs on it ( Good Shot, Good Soldier, Can't Do)

St Vincent also released 2 new songs. Think they're both okay, but not amazing. (New York, Los Ageless) Especially New York felt a bit like a plain pop song spruced up by Annie singing motherfucker to make it less forgettable. A song like Krokodil does a better job to show off her being a tough chick than swearing in an otherwise sugar sweet pop song like New York.

Rostam (ex-Vampire Weekend)' s Bike Dream felt a bit like Vampire Weekend's first album blended with Rostam's Iranian roots. Lighthearted & fun song.

The Horrors seem to keep making the move towards full synthpop from their early days as goth / shoegaze / punk band. Something To Remember Me By is a good song, but i can see how early fans will see it as them fully selling out. I do dig this sound, but i thought Primary Colours was an amazing album and would love some more of that sound. Don't forget the guitars please :)

Ariel Pink also dropped some songs. They aren't as good as his last album, but i do dig the hazy 80's vibe of Feels Like Heaven

The XX released the pretty good On Hold. Too bad they stopped making that distinct sound of the debut album, but this is an okay popsong.

Liam Gallagher apparently went solo and created Chinatown. Don't think it's anything special but it's pleasantly light to listen to. Normally Liam is all about huge hooks and a wall of sound. Is this Brexit-pop instead of Britpop?

Final, but not least, Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile are making an album together. Over Everything is not a song that excites me greatly, but it sounds exactly like you think those two artists jamming together would sound. Hopefully they will create some cool songs that go beyond feeling like a jam-session.

Ohh, i forgot. Radiohead re-released OK Computer with 3 songs that have been played live since the 90's. All 3 are great. Especially Man of War and Lift are amazing, but I Promise is no slouch neither.

I also forgot to mention the new Queens of the Stone Age album. Don't think it's as good as Like Clockwerk, but still pretty good.

I need to check The National's new one out. Everything Everything lived and died on Man Alive. They've been wankers since.

@shindig: Don't think that this one is as good as their debut album sadly. But i always feel like i should check out new stuff from artists i once liked and this one had some catchy tunes worth mentioning. The National's new album is really good though.

edit:

Alvvays' Antisocialites is a cool surprise. Not all the songs hit, but songs like Lollipop and Dreams Tonite are very strong .

Some recent albums I've enjoyed:

Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra - Where the Gods Are in Peace
Death from Above 1979 - Outrage! Is Now
Regina Carter - Ella: Accentuate the Positive
Son Little - New Magic

I've spent the last few weeks just listening to PVRIS's All We Know of Heaven All We Need of Hell and Alvvays' Antisocialites on repeat and I absolutely love both of them. Also very much enjoyed Brand New's latest album but it's been a little harder to re-listen to since the tracks all kind of blended together into this one flowing piece that felt like it should all be listened through at once.

Not really feeling that new the national Album it's not bad it's above mediocre kinda meh the use of some electronic stuff reminds me of some early radiohead stuff when they made the switch.

Listening to Marilyn Manson's new album Heaven upside it's not bad but nothing for me will top Antichrist superstar and Mechanical Animals.

Hm, I disagree I think. Like almost every National album, it took me a few listens, but I really enjoy it now. It feels a bit more...feverish?...than some of their other albums, which I kind of dig.

@fenster: Also yeah i only listened to it once probably gonna give it more try's.

Also the new Chelsea Wolfe Album leaked on the net a few weeks back release is today ! And it's really disappointing IMO all the early tracks they posted where really really good but now to complete a Album you need more then 3 good tracks and a bunch off filler really disappointing :'(

The new Mastodon EP is good but not great. I feel like Mastodon is in a big of a lull. They haven't put out a bad album but they also haven't put out a truly great one since Crack the Skye IMO. It took me a few listens to really enjoy Emperor of Sand where as past Mastodon albums grabbed me right away. I'm also really digging the new With The Dead album.

The new album by The Killers, called Wonderful Wonderful, is out. It's definitely a Killers album so if you like The Killers you'll like it and if you don't like them, you won't. I mentioned one song off it that's a banger a while back (that song being "Run For Cover"), and now that I've heard the album, there's a few other good ones. Funnily enough the songs that I've seen sites and Spotify feature off it ("Rut" and "The Man") are kinda meh whereas "Run For Cover" and "Tyson vs Douglas" are both really good and feel more like older songs by them. There's nothing wrong with "The Man", I just don't like it a ton. It doesn't feel like a song this band would do.

@ben_h: I used to be a huge Killers fan, them being pretty much the band that made me dig around deeper into music. Here's a demo that i really liked for the guitar work.Loved the first 2 albums, and was pretty happy with Day & Age and Sawdust. Battleborn & the solo albums pretty much ruined the band for me, and listening to The Man didn't fill me with confidence. Especially the man, plan , damn, tank , bank rhyming stuff annoyed me. It sounds like a song designed to play as introduction music for darters and MMA fighters.

I also thought Brandon's vocals on Hot Fuss were way more interesting to listen to than his singing voice nowadays, even if it's technically a better vocal performance now. I feel the same about Julian Casablancas' voice (The Strokes). It's not the most gifted singer, but it's a distinct sound that fits their songs like a glove.

That said, thanks for mentioning the album, because they do have the capability to make awesome songs. I hope i find some.

Josh Ritter's new album "Gathering" is out today. He's one of my favorite song writers working today. So far I really like the album even though it's more folk/americana than my favorite songs of his tend to be. Still wonderful and super excited to see him again in January.

Gave the new Killers album a listen and on the first listen Wonderful Wonderful, Tyson vs Douglas and The Calling seem to be the strongest songs. Not hugely into it though. Especially Rut till Run for Cover feels like a weak point in the album. (song 3,4 &5)

@msouza1991: While I appreciated the experimentation on Crack the Skye it kinda rubbed me the wrong way. It seems since then they've been perfectly content making fairly straightforward more radio friendly music imo.

Not feeling the new Killers album. Then again I haven't really been into any of their albums since Hot Fuss and Sam's Town.

Some recent stuff I've been into though:
Jonah Parzen-Johnson - I Try to Remember Where I Come From
Luna - A Sentimental Education
Ambrose Akinmusire - A Rift In Decorum: Live At The Village Vanguard

My thoughts on a few new(er) releases:

Brand New - Science Fiction: Being a huge fan of Brand New this release was a little bittersweet for me as it is the band's last project but with that said I like it a lot. Instead of going out with a bang they take a more thoughtful approach. Referencing things like anxiety and living up to fans expectations, going deep on depression and the effects of mental illness as well as current events and the slightest of political commentary. It all comes off very honest and focused and Jessi Lacey's lyrics are as on point as ever. I really dig it.

Milo - Who Told You To Think??!!?!?!?!: Really solid project from art rapper/philosopher Milo. His trademark ADD lyrical flow is still here in spaids backed by creative and trippy ass beats I think this is as good as the rapper has ever sounded. 2015's So The Flies Don't Come I liked overall but that album lacked consistency for me in a way this new album does not. To be shittily reductive if you want a great thinking man's rap album, check it out.

BROCKHAMPTON - SATURATION 2: Catchy hooks, creative beats, solid overall lyricism and flow' Kevin Abstract and friends deliver once again on their follow-up to just a few months old project Saturation. Proving they aren't just a throwaway gimmick if Saturation 1 showed they have a place in modern hip-hop 2 solidifies it. I would like to see more diversity with their third project when that releases later this year but from what I have heard they are killing it.

Open Mike Eagle - Brick Body Kids Still Daydream: Haven't had a chance to dig into this all the way yet but from what I heard so far Mike is sounding more serious than ever. Though his witty lyrics and trademark flow are still here I am missing some of the sense of humor Mike expressed on some of his earlier work. I'll keep digging into though and hope it hits me more than his last project with Paul White.

Paramore - After Laughter: This album really grew on me. I am an unabashed liker of Paramore though their last couple albums never really did it for me the way their first albums did. They have always been a band that straddled the line between punk edginess and pop appeal. Never has that been more true with their latest releases 2013's Self-Titled and all the way back to 2009's Brand New Eyes, Paramore seemed to lean more in the pop direction delivering really milk toast pop music sandwiched with watered down teen rock (with a few exceptions). This new album, however, I think is a great balance for the band. It's catchy where it should be, aggressive where it makes sense, and even shows unique self-awareness on tracks like Fake Happy and Idle Worship. Though the first single off this album Hard Times turned me off a bit I truly think this is the best release the band has had in a very long time.

Brand New - Lit Me Up

Milo - Sorcerer

BROCKHAMPTON - Junkie

Open Mike Eagle - Brick Body Complex

Paramore - Idle Worship

Other stuff I've been listening to:

Julien Baker - Appointments

Iglooghost - White Gum

Bjork - The Gate

Mount Kimbie - Blue Train Lines (feat. King Krule)

Big Boi's new album "Boomiverse" has been in my regular rotation since its release. Also, the Silicon Valley Soundtrack playlist on Spotify is full of great music, so that or the playlist radio are good listening.

I 100% agree. I was hoping he would continue in the same direction as half the songs on his last album. But hey, more Josh Ritter is more Josh Ritter, and at the end of the day, I'm happy. Also, "Dreams" is up there with his best.

I have tickets to see him in February. So that's exciting.

NEW SCREAMING FEMALES SONG! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

Really digging the new Cradle of Filth record, Cryptoriana. The track "Death and the Maiden" is absolutely banging. Just some good-ass, dramatic speed metal. "The Seductiveness of Decay" and "Achingly Beautiful" have some really stellar moments on them too. I'm a fan -- their best stuff since Nymphetamine I think.

The Chrome EP by Makeup and Vanity Set is also dope. Love "Telescreen" and "Implant."

The new Godspeed you Black Emperor was kinda meh was waiting for something big this felt like more of the same witch is a shame. Also people really liking Mastadons Emperor in the sand baffles me it's such a bad album just listen to the song text's alone there so dumb / fake / stale, i wish a could erase the 45 minutes i wasted to listing to that album that's how bad it is.

"Word to the Wise" is a straight-up great Mastodon song that no one would've questioned if it was a cut Crack the Skye track. The latter half of "Roots Remain" is their most intimate and beautiful song since "The Sparrow", and worth a lot more credit than some pretty disrespectful music fans would lead you to believe. If you don't like it that's fine, but some of the more spiteful and bitter comments bug me. No time is wasted if you know what you're doing with it; that's your bad.

As for the rest of the album, I had to politely bow out. It's just not very strong. Blood Mountain, Leviathan, and Crack the Skye have very clear directions, conceptually and musically, and flow beautifully as albums. The Hunter lacked the conceptual side and was more a mashing of different ideas infused with hard-edged yet funky bombast and moments of deep calm, but still had many weird, standout tracks ("Thickening" & "Bedazzled Fingernails.")

Once More 'Round the Sun followed that same conceptually blank canvas, but stripped down, with a lot of the songs kind of getting lost in themselves. Muddy; directionless; often sporadic; lacking brains and going all-out with riffs and catchy lyrics that came off more corny than classic-sounding. A prime example of that is the track "Aunt Lisa" which starts out like a dark Mastodon classic and drifts into the worst piece of music they've been involved with (three women in a room talk-singing "hey, ho, let's fucking go.") Embarrassing. "Chimes at Midnight" had classic written all over it, and it kind of just meandered its way, minute after minute, never seeming to convene solidly enough to even call a song. It's like an ambient interlude on repeat.

Emperor of Sand is their strongest concept since Crack, and their most consistent as a listening experience since, too, but never seems to find a balance between the emotive lyrics, technical playing, and lush grooves. It's lost somewhere between all three at all times, even on "Roots Remain" which is two different halves of different songs stuck together, or that's exactly how it sounds. Lost is a good word for it.

"Jaguar God" is completely misplaced in a way Brent's final tracks on the album rarely are. It's an absolute mess, unfortunately -- a beautiful one at times -- but a mess nonetheless. Every song is listenable but not more than a few times, arguably. I've listed to "Word..." and "Roots..." many dozens, however.

Some recent releases I've enjoyed. Whole lotta Jazz.

Ambrose Akinmusire - A Rift In Decorum: Live At The Village Vanguard
Oded Tzur - Translator's Note
Jamie Reynolds - Grey Mirror
Zara McFarlane - Arise
Kamasi Washington - Harmony of Difference

I'm really digging the new Bronx album. It's a solid slice of hardcore punk rock.

Best song: Sore Throat

Kelela is really great. Love her new tracks "LMK" and "Frontline."

I love ambient, weird R&B, and I love that black music is smart again. I feel like the 2000s did a little damage in terms of what 'hits' were huge, but the 2010s has been a pretty great decade for hip hop and R&B so far. Electronic, too. I feel like Arca, Janelle Monae, The Weeknd, Kelela, Kendrick, Run the Jewels, Aphex Twin's return, Daft Punk's sample-free homage to the '70s and '80s (RAM), even Beyoncé getting a bit weirder on Lemonade, has made me enjoy the genres so much more consistently lately. There's always crap, but I feel like it's been better all 'round.

The new 36 Crazyfists record, "Lanterns." I'm digging it so far, though not as much as their last record. The performances are great, the production is slick, and this record has some of the most seriously heavy riffs this band has done. However, it lacks any big melodies or hooks, something which the band has been really good with in the past, especially with "Time and Trauma," which I think is one of their catchiest records. I think "Lanterns" is gonna be a grower. It's not immediately memorable but repeat listens will be rewarding. At the very least, it's very motivating gym/running music.

But hooooly fuck, the song "Sleepsick" is balls-to-the-wall bad ass, one of the best they've ever done. "Old Gold" has some amazing build up from the verses to the chorus, as well.

Just listened to The Horrors - V and it feels enormous. Like they threw all their money at it and turned all the sound effects on. Pretty much every song is a 5+ min work. I was sort of afraid that this would result in a boring but sleek package, but they actually managed to put some raw ass sounds in here as well. Overall the album feels very industrial, with machines huffing and puffing in the background. Don't think all the songs really hit on their own, but as a full album it flows really good and sounds like an awesome marriage between sleek electronics and raw guitars. It drags a bit in the latter half, but finishes strong. Definitely a very good album, although some songs rely quite hard on the special effects to warrant your attention. For instance Ghost lays down an okay groove for minutes, before it brings out this super crisp Sonic The Hedgehog-ish sound effect to announce the guitar solo is coming up. Point of Reply is similar, creating a hazy groove for 4 minutes and then starts garbling the lyrics while pumping up the beat to give it a sense of urgency. Those tricks definitly make the songs better, so i guess it's a good move. But at the same time, i feel like they could've shortened some songs without losing much. Gathering is a very enjoyable song without too many bells & whistles, showing that the album is not all about the soundeffects.

also realized that Fleet Foxes made a new album this year, but that wasn't very interesting imo. Some nice diddlies, but mostly forgettable compared to their first 2 albums.

Myrkur's latest album Mareridt might be my album of the year. It's a nice blend of Scandinavian folk, black metal and even a hint of pop when she goes into a Lana Del Rey-esque vocal performance. But my main interest lies in the Scandinavian folk/black metal aspect. It's a definite improvement over her debut M and I am really looking forward to where she goes from here.

I have also found myself listening a lot to Cradle of Filth's latest Cryptoriana - The Seductiveness of decay. I am not entirely sure why but they're a band I have started liking more at an age when I feel like I should have grown out of them rather than the other way around. I found them pretty laughable when I was younger with a few songs being exceptions. These days I sort of appreciate them for what they are and Dani's vocals can probably be described as better than the sum of it's parts since the growling is ok at best but with the high pitched parts there's something unique about it even still.

Still need to give Wintersun's new album The Forest Seasons a listen, totally missed it being released. Looking over a list of metal albums from this year I think I have been pretty bad at looking up new releases overall. Homework!

Here's one for blue https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjZzaTo-MYI

One for work (crap music but inspirational) https://soundcloud.com/dustee/vintage5

Enjoying music video: I prefer cover songs with different instrumental https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COnJtBSoaxI

Thanks for the The Killers posts, I'll check that out, also need to catch up on Foo Fighters's Concrete and Gold. I'm also interested in Evanescene's new album but that's apparently not out until next month.

Tom Petty has passed away at the age of 66

This one came out of nowhere

@gvalo: kind of a bummer but I expected it. I saw him within the last year and he looked real bad physically.

Still sucks though.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Some highlights of 2017 releases so far:

Junius released Eternal Rituals For The Accretion Of Light, a dark, moody piece of well crafted post-metal or whatever you want to call it. Heresy Of The Free Spirit is the highlight of the album, but since it seems absent from Youtube, here's The Queens Constellation

Voyager is an Australian band that plays modern progressive metal that often seems like it's just about to spiral out of control, but never does. The hooks are plentiful and things rarely get dull. Ghost Mile is a joy to listen to and seems to have made a permanent home in my spotify playlist.

Igorrr is something else entirely. Savage Sinusoid is a really awesome mess of baroque, trip hop, metal and the occasional chiptune. I can't really say anything coherent or intelligent about this, just go ahead and see/hear for yourself.

DVNE plays a sludgy mix of post-metal doom and progressive rock. Asheran seemed a bit unpenetrable at first, but after a couple of listens I fell in love with it's melodies, play between different vocal approaches and often jaw dropping guitar and drum work. The only thing I don't love is the bass sometimes getting lost in the mix. The Crimson Path is a fine example of what these guys are capable of.

Myrkur's Mareridt is pretty damn awesome. Critics and people seem to love it and better writers have said everything there is to say about it. Ulvinde.

Caligula's Horse is another Australian band that plays progressive metal. At least a distant relative to Voyager, they have sharp hooks like their countrymen, but they are often less obvious. In Contact is a fantastic album that requires a bit more attention to really enjoy, but rewards an attentive listener with some of the finest progressive metal released this year. Songs For No One is a strong contender for song of the year.

Bent Knee plays varied and well crafted rock songs with very skilled instrumentation that gets somewhat overshadowed by singer Courtney Swain's incredibly powerful vocals. The balance between giving space for both is not easy but the combination works mostly well. Holy Ghost has both a plenty, but the vocals are responsible for the chills down my spine.

Queens Of The Stone Age released a new album that managed to sneak up on me. I've always had a soft spot for Josh Hommes antics and when the band is done slowly bringing itself back from slumber at around the 2 minute mark of Feet Don't Fail Me Now the groove went straight to my spine. My legs started to uncontrollably shake with the beat and a warm smile, like seeing a good friend again after a few years of being apart, started to spread on my face. The rest of the album had some highlights and a couple of lows, but nothing overcame that first moment. Overall a positive surprise.

Wöyh! is a finnish prog rock band lead by brothers Hyyrynen, who have both separately been at the top of finnish charts with their(violence warning!) separate bands(btw, his music video has Alan Wake in it). With Wöyh! They've come together to play some extremely eccentric progressive rock. This is their third album and quite honestly I like this more than their more successful projects. The lyrics are in finnish, but hopefully Kellonpurija is still enjoyable even if you don't understand a word.

Relentless Mutation by Archspire is absolutely bananas. If you love technical death metal, you will love this album. The drumming is insane and the vocals are super interesting.

I was never really in to tech death, but I stumbled upon Relentless Mutation and really liked it. That and Beyond Creation's Earthborn Evolution are the only albums from that genre I've honestly liked.

Tomorrow is an exciting double-whammy, St Vincent (Los Ageless) and the Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett collab (Over Everything) - two of my most anticipated, very excited!

Last few weeks have had a few choice albums I feel:

Wolf Alice - Visions of a Life: For the first week or so this album was doing very little for me, but suddenly one day it clicked. So many sounds going on, it doesn't really flow perfectly but there are some really strong moments on here. This is the opener, Heavenward.

Black Mile to the Surface - Manchester Orchestra: Revisited this album yesterday in full, currently my favourite album of the year. It flows beautifully and is full of so many little touches instrumentally. The Alien.

H A R M O N I C - Behind the Shadow Drops: Solo album by Takaakira of Japanese post-rock band MONO, found it a very good chill-out album, very ethereal. Positive Shadow, Negative Light.

Thrice Woven - Wolves in the Throne Room: Only listened through a couple of times but really enjoyed it both times, guess it is part of the black metal scene more akin to Deafheaven or something, not my genre of expertise! But has that quite uplifting guitar tone. Born from the Serpent's Eye.

Ash - Ibeyi: Another album I need to spend time with, but the song Deathless has been in my head since first hearing it a few weeks ago.