My 10th – 6th favourite releases of the year.

Welcome to my picks for my 10th to 6th favourite releases of the year. Listed here are the releases that I enjoyed the most from this year, emphasis on the word ‘enjoyed’. This is not an objective list, nor will my picks for numbers 5-1 be. These are purely what I found myself listening to and enjoying the most. I am counting both singles and EPs in this list as well as full albums. Now let’s go!

10. bbno$, prod. DJ Yung Vamp – hyrule temple.

Meme rapper gets melancholic for a second. This ended up being my 5th most listened to song on Spotify. There is literally nothing more I can say. I love bbno$ (starting strong, I know). https://open.spotify.com/track/1b9Ab3ogNZcmcFEu2AjKhi?si=PeLIKgLwSgejFrJkwFtbgw

9. Bilmuri, No Dice – Slow Dancing in the Dark.

I will start off by saying I had no knowledge of either of these artists prior to hearing this track, and I have heard none of the other songs from the EP this track hails from. That being said, I adore this song. A melancholic emo rendition of Joji’s ‘Slow Dancing in the Dark’, this cover takes the downbeat beauty of the original track and ups it to 11. That coupled with the heart breaking lyrics about a relationship that is deteriorating being powerfully belt out by whoever the singer on this track is, makes for one of the saddest yet powerful tracks I have heard this year (not including any tracks from my no. 1 album from this year, but none of that now). The production is crystal clear; being a guitar player, a lot of my knowledge and judgement on the production of music comes from the quality of the guitar mix, and this track knocks this out of the park. The guitars are glassy clean, making every note audible. This helps in creating a fuller sound to the track without it becoming distorted or notes being lost. The clarity is unreal. Finally, something I cannot stress enough: The G sharp note the singer hits in the choruses. Absolutely heartbreaking. Hear it here: https://open.spotify.com/track/4ekmVfwZes6YUCFN09yfay?si=tNEPKlNmQH6swT8kSsyJvQ

8. Slipknot – We Are Not Your Kind.

2014’s ‘.5 The Gray Chapter’, Slipknot’s previous studio album, was a ‘testing of the water’ of sorts, a test if the band could still write and play together after the tragic passing of founding member and bassist Paul Gray. ‘We Are Not Your Kind’ is a return to form for the Iowa based metal outfit. Featuring a similarly full and clear production like ‘.5’, the band does more than deliver with one of the most developed and varied Slipknot records to date. With back-to-basics heaviness from tracks like ‘Birth Of The Cruel’, to the slow-burning ‘A Liar’s Funeral’, the band goes back to the roots of their signature heaviness and takes it in an unexpected and more experimental direction to what was expected, creating some of the best Slipknot songs in more than a decade.

My favourite track from this album is ‘Spiders’. With its creeping piano motif, growling and unrelenting bass guitars and Corey’s powerful vocals, the song evokes something more of a twisted David Bowie song than a Slipknot track. Jim’s augmented and atmospheric guitar solo compliments the song perfectly; There is just something not quite right about it, and it is wickedly wonderful. As I already stated, this album is a real return to form for the metal titans, and I cannot wait to see some of these songs performed live in January. Listen to the album on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/754RY5WpZ2LTUZsk8kDBju?si=O0wDkBhRTfagf_8GXk4o7w

7. JPEGMAFIA – All My Heroes Are Cornballs.

Baltimore based rapper and producer JPEGMAFIA is an outlier in today’s hiphop scene, mainly due to his uncompromising personality and refusal to follow the norm. As a follow-up to his phenomenal 2018 album ‘Veteran’, JPEG released ‘All My Heroes Are Cornballs’ earlier this year. For me, JPEGMAFIA is like a marriage of Death Grips, an experimental hiphop trio and rapper/singer Childish Gambino. ‘Peggy’ Produced and wrote everything on this album, as well as Veteran, giving the tracks a trademark experimental sense that is hard to portray effectively and present in a way that doesn’t feel tacked on. Along with his provocative lyricism and questionable song titles, everything Peggy creates is undoubtably original and very, well, fitting for him. Not many artists could release a lead single from their upcoming album with a title like ‘Jesus Forgive Me, I Am A Thot’.

A lot of the songs are chaotic and in-cohesive, ending abruptly or completely changing instrumental part way through, but Peggy manages to structure this in a way that doesn’t make the album as one entity feel disjointed or unfinished. The album is as extroverted musically as it is introspective of Peggy and his thoughts, and the level of social and personal awareness sets this album apart from its contemporaries. Peggy stays true to himself and his originality, creating one of the most provoking albums this year. Get weird with Peggy on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5ilsl5R2lGACTnPZMKIp7o?si=yYFz7X6bQeOCS7wkBWQPrQ

6. EARTHGANG – Mirrorland.

Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, Hiphop duo EARTHGANG deliver a lush and refreshing album in ‘Mirrorland’. Having the burden of being dubbed a spiritual successor to Hiphop giants Outkast, those who looked past the weak links between these artists found a brilliantly put together straight-up Hiphop album. For me, the contrast between the two members, Johnny Venus (pictured left on the album cover) and Doctur Dot (right) is a serious positive of the album. Both members bring a different flavour, Venus with his virtuosic riffing and Dot with his gravelly southern delivery. They split up the verses to great effect, Venus often bringing more energy to the song, whilst Dot brings a level of chill to his sections. The album is produced wonderfully; the songs are rich, and the instrumentals are more in-depth and layered than that of many contemporaries, taking inspiration not only form classic Hiphop tropes, but all manners of music, like the latin-esque brass-heavy instrumental on the song ‘Tequila’. There are some bangers on this album; songs like ‘Top Down’ and ‘Bank’, but the instrumentals are lifted out of being 2-Dimensional with the multiple layers and genuine instrumentation instead of purely programmed sound. Songs like ‘This Side’ bring a wonderful calm to the mainly positive and upbeat album. The song is introspective in its lyricism and intimate with its simple instrumental of a bass and what I believe is a synth.

My favourite track on this album is ‘Up’, particularly this live version. This was my introduction to EARTHGANG, and I was instantly hooked on the duo’s energy, namely Venus, the upbeat sense that the song creates and the effortless cool that both members exude. I feel like this song is the best example of the contrast between the capabilities of both members of EARTHGANG. Venus is an absolute power house, his breath control is god-like and his enthusiasm is infectious. Dot is a great stripped-back rapper. Whilst it may not be for everyone, I enjoy the slight southern drawl he inflects in his delivery; it gives his delivery character. Whilst at a lower level than Venus, he still has good energy, and cool just oozes from him. I have come to love this duo, this album and everything the pair do as people. They have a wonderful infectious energy. I look forward to see what they do in the future. Go to Mirrorland here: https://open.spotify.com/album/2JtlTPzThXs3Pvz8V2iBIB?si=kWg6QXn-SSKdNh0Kr_Y0SQ

And those are the choices for my 10th-6th favourite releases from this year. As I said at the beginning, I ranked these releases purely from my own enjoyment: These are all very subjective choices. All my posts until the end of the year will be individual and more in-depth looks at my 5th favourite to no. 1 album of the year. So thank you and keep posted!