Rock – Page 103 – 7th Level Music

Top 40 albums of 2016 – 2020: #’s 25 – 21

This latest batch of my top albums of the last five years includes a lot of excellent shoegaze and psych-rock. Which made the cut? Read on…

#25: Slowdive – (self-titled) (2017)

Slowdive returned with this gorgeous shoegaze record sounding like they never took a twenty-two-year pause. It’s lush, luxurious, and sometimes loud, and it reminded everyone how much they missed the band and how much everyone needed a warm hug.

#24: Moon Duo – Stars Are the Light (2019)

The cover of Stars Are the Light sums up the album pretty well – psychedelic disco from another planet. It was a welcome return for Moon Duo and a bit of a surprise direction for them, but one much needed and appreciated as we were about to get walloped with a pandemic. This record would become a respite from COVID blues whenever you needed it.

#23: A Place to Bury Strangers – Pinned (2018)

Pinned is the first APTBS album featuring Lia Braswell on drums and backing (and sometimes lead) vocals, and the energy she brings to the band is palpable from the outset. The band somehow gains even more power than they had before and takes on a new sound that bodes well for future endeavors.

#22: Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Monsters Eating People Eating Monsters… (2020)

This double album is chock full of epic riffs, psychedelic freak-outs, and jaw-dropping grooves. It sounds like they went into the studio and unloaded every frustration and desire they’ve had since 2016. It blends Stooges‘ power with Zappa jams, Thin Lizzy funk, and Oh Sees trips.

#21: Here Lies Man – You Will Know Nothing (2018)

I discovered Here Lies Man with this album after their label sent it to me with the question, “What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?” You have my attention. HLM‘s second record knocked me out of my shoes, and I immediately began telling everyone about them. The Afrobeat rhythms combined with fuzzy bass, synths, and guitars were intoxicating and thrilling. Add to that the band’s philosophy that every album is meant to be thought of as a film / story, and it’s a film you’ll want on 4K Blu-Ray to play through your giant home entertainment system to the annoyance (or love) of your neighbors.

As we reach the top 20 albums of the last five years, we’ll see more shoegaze and psychedelia and the return of a legend.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 40 albums of 2016 – 2020: #’s 30 – 26

We reached the top 30 of my top 40 albums of the last five years. Whittling my list down to 40 records was hard enough, how about 30?

#30: Underworld – Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future (2016)

Easily one of the most optimistic and uplifting albums of the last five years, Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future was a triumphant return for Underworld and had all of us look up to a shining light ahead that could be reached if we all worked together. The themes became more important each passing year.

#29: Blanck Mass – World Eater (2017)

Speaking of records built around synths, drum machines, and analog gear – Blanck Mass’ World Eater is a powerful record that expands on Underworld’s optimism and fuels it with some trepidation and danger.

#28: Soulwax – From Deewee (2017)

The electronic music hits keep on coming. This stunning record combines vintage synths with double live drumming to produce a wicked record that was recorded in one take. One. Take. It never ceases to impress.

#27: Cookin’ Soul and MF DOOM – DOOM XMAS (2018)

Made all the more special since the untimely passing of MF DOOM, this is not only a great rap album, but it’s also a great Christmas record. Cookin’ Soul mixes samples and beats with def(t) talent and layers them over freestyles by DOOM. The result is brilliance.

#26: Ron Gallo – Stardust Birthday Party (2018)

Zen punk. It’s the best way I can describe it. Ron Gallo created this album after doing a two-week silent Zen retreat and filled it with great hooks and rip-off-the-veil lyrics about embracing presence and impermanence. It was a shot in the arm well before the COVID-19 vaccine and songs like “Always Elsewhere” will stay relevant until some sort of global consciousness is reached.

What’s coming next? A lot of shoegaze and psychedelia, that’s what. Stay tuned.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 40 albums of 2016-2020: #’s 35 – 31

As always whenever one makes such a list, there are many albums you want to include but you have to draw the line somewhere. That line was drawn at 40 records, and we’re now at the top 35.

#35: Night Beats – Who Sold My Generation (2016)

No question mark. That’s one of the first things you notice when you look at the cover of Who Sold My Generation. It’s not a question. The album is a statement. It’s a rough, bluesy, psyched-out statement about how the Nights Beats‘ generation was sold out by one-percenters, trickle-down economics, and the tech industry.

#34: Partner – In Search of Lost Time (2017)

Hey, rock is supposed to be fun. Remember that? Well, Partner do. That’s pretty much their motto, and In Search of Lost Time reminds us that rock is often best served with massive riffs, shredding solos, lyrics everyone will remember and love (and sing at live gigs), and themes of sex, drugs, and, well…rock.

#33: Föllakzoid – I (2019)

There’s no way this album should’ve worked. The three members of Föllakzoid each recorded their own parts separately and then gave those parts to their engineer, who hadn’t heard any of them, and then more or less told him, “Make a record.” As my wife asked when I told her this story, “Then whose album is it?” The answer, according to Föllakzoid, is “Everyone’s.” It’s theirs because they made the parts, the engineer’s because he put them together into some kind of krautrock / Blade Runner sequel synthwave soundtrack, and the listener’s because he / she will interpret it however they want.

#32: The Beths – Future Me Hates Me (2018)

These pop-rockers from New Zealand weren’t on my radar until I stumbled across this record while working at WSND. I was floored by their great hooks, sharp lyrics, and the sense of fun that permeated the entire record. They blew up on radio across the globe with songs like the title track (about dreading a relationship as soon as it begins) and “Whatever” – an ode to slacker aesthetic.

#31: The KVB – …Of Desire (2016)

I don’t remember where I first heard …Of Desire, but it grabbed me and would not let go. This sexy shoegaze album never gets old and is suitable for everything from a synthwave / goth DJ set to waiting in your car for a train to pass to having sex to a quiet dinner at home. The duo use all their vintage analog gear to maximum effect, making you feel like you’re floating in some kind of electric warmth.

Come back soon as I crack open the top 30 albums of the last five years.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 40 albums of 2016-2020: #’s 40 – 36

I realized that I’ve been running and writing 7th Level Music for five years now, and that the five-year anniversary coincided with the end of the last decade. So, in the spirit of “Everyone loves lists!”, I’ve decided to rank my top 40 albums of the last five years. I went with 40 records after I averaged the number of albums I reviewed from 2016 to 2020 and then chopped that number approximately in half.

This wasn’t an easy task (although my #1 album was quickly determined). The list went through four revisions before I felt it was “right.” Lists like this are always subjective, and there are always good, if not great, albums that don’t make the cut. There were also bands like King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Oh Sees, WALL, and Here Lies Man that had multiple excellent albums within the five-year span that I wanted to highlight, but I opted to choose one from each (another difficult task) in order to get more artists onto the list.

Shall we begin?

#40: CHAI – Pink (2018)

Japanese pop punk? Yes, please. These four ladies have made some of the most fun music of the last five years. They’ve also created their own sense of fashion by trashing fashion standards and love donuts and dancing. There’s nothing to not like. Lead single “N.E.O.” was like a shot in the arm of pure dance-punk adrenaline.

#39: Caroline Rose – Superstar (2020)

Superstar is Caroline Rose’s best album yet and one that covers everything from doing things your own way to the weird world of fame that found her after she released the excellent Loner album. Rose tackles these subjects with her witty lyrics, funky grooves, and lovely voice, starting off the record with a track called “Nothing’s Impossible” and carrying that positivity through the whole record.

#38: The New Pornographers – Whiteout Conditions (2017)

For the record, The New Pornographers saw everything we experienced in the political landscape for the last four years coming as soon as the 2016 election ended. Whiteout Conditions was A.C. Newman and company’s response to the results. He and the rest of the band knew then what was coming, creating songs like the title track (about the rise of white people embracing fear more than ever and dreading what that would cause down the road) and “This Is the World of the Theatre.” It certainly was, wasn’t it?

#37: Mdou Moctar – Ilana (The Creator) (2019)

Simply a beautiful record of Tuareg music that was all about positivity, embracing light, and searching for and finding peace through love and compassion. Moctar is a phenomenal guitarist, creating stunning riffs and power, and cool dude all around. When I saw him live, he was selling Tuareg jewelry at his merch table to support a school he was building back in Algeria.

#36: L’Epee – Diabolique (2019)

This psychedelic supergroup’s debut album is a stunner and seemed to come out of nowhere. It sounds like it was unearthed from a time capsule buried in a small French coastal town in 1966 and combines the powers of Anton Newcombe, The Limiñanas, and Emmanuelle Seigner. It’s one of those records that can instantly put you into a trance or change the mood of an entire nightclub, let alone a room.

There’s plenty more to come. Stay tuned.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Here Lies Man – Ritual Divination

Ritual Divination, the new album by Afrobeat / metal / funk / psych / who gives a damn band Here Lies Man, is the first one they’ve recorded as a full four-piece (Marcos Garcia – guitar / vocals, Geoff Mann – drums, J.P. Maramba – bass, and Doug Organ – keyboards) and the power and chops of their heavy groove live shows comes through on each track.

The opening guitars in “In These Dreams” is straight-up classic metal with keyboard stabs to shove you into the first scene of the “movie” that is Ritual Divination. In case you didn’t know, each HLM album (and live show) is essentially written and performed like a soundtrack to a film that’s different for everyone hearing it. With “In These Dreams,” you’re already thinking, “Well, this is a bad-ass movie and we’re still in the opening credits.”

The next track deals with one of HLM’s favorite subjects – mortality. “I Told You (You Shall Die)” starts out with a slow, trudging rhythm and then transforms into an epic space rock jam with the band both reminding us of our impending departure from this reality, but also telling us to not fear something we cannot truly comprehend. “Underland” is the shortest track on the album, clocking in at just under two-and-a-half minutes, but it packs a lot of guitar power into that short (compared to the other tracks) time frame.

The riffs on “What You See” immediately make your whole body sway forward and back with them. It’s a certain groove that HLM do so well and gets your attention at the outset. As good as it is, somehow the groove on “Can’t Kill It” is even better – possibly because it ups the funk and stirs it up with killer bass and keyboard work. “Run Away Children” is almost hypnotic with its trance-like vocals.

“I Wander” is a standout, with Maramba’s bass hitting hard, Mann’s jazz background being on full display, and Organ and Garcia working so well together it’s difficult to tell where one of them ends and the other begins. HLM let us know that you can cut and strut all you want, but “night comes all the same” on “Night Comes” – another reminder of our mortality and to embrace impermanence. “Come Inside” chugs along like a train powered by onyx instead of coal.

“Collector of Vanities” could be a song for most of us. How much junk do all of us have? How many selfies do we take? How many do we filter, polish, and recolor in order to project an illusion to the world? HLM encourage us, through the power of fiery rock, to de-clutter our collection and focus within instead of on the surface. The title of “Disappointed” is repeated almost like a mantra through the track. As for what HLM is disappointed in…well, they did record the album in 2020 so it’s anybody’s guess.

“You Would Not See from Heaven” gives a strong nod toward their Black Sabbath influences – in both the sweaty, heavy groove and its somewhat doomy title – although I suspect the song is more about how, in heaven, you would not see your desires, vanities, and illusions because you are free from them. “I want to run, I want the night…” Garcia sings on “The Fates Have Won.” They always do. You might not think they will, but they have infinite patience. “Out Goes the Night” is a song that is both heavy as stone and yet uplifting as the sunrise at the same time (“In comes the light, out goes the night.”). The closer, “Cutting through the Tether,” puts down a slick drum groove (with extra hand percussion to boot) as Organ’s keys, Garcia’s guitar, and Maramba’s bass slither in the background like asps waiting to strike.

It’s another solid record from Here Lies Man, who continue to put out work that is hard to define, but once you hear it you want all of it you can get.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave at US / THEM Group.]

Review: Shame – Drunk Tank Pink

What do you do when you spend a good chunk of your young adult life as a touring rock band, build your identity around said band and said touring, and then have all of that yanked away from you by a pandemic?

If you’re British rockers Shame, you look inward, ask yourselves “What the hell were we thinking? We’re more than…whatever we were during nonstop tours and parties.”, and refocus on how they (and the rest of us) were going to deal with reality in 2020 and beyond. You also write and record an outstanding record like Drunk Tank Pink.

Named after a color used in jail cells to calm, you guessed it, drunks, Drunk Tank Pink has Shame taking their angry, bratty punk sounds down multiple avenues that include post-punk influences like Talking Heads and pop icons like Elton John.

“Alphabet” starts off with snappy drums and singer Charlie Steen telling us flat-out “What you see is what you get.” He and his mates are through with perceived notions and crafted images. They’re just as pissed and antsy as the rest of us, and Sean Coyle-Smith‘s guitar certainly amplifies that notion. “It just goes on,” Steen sings on “Nigel Hitter” – a song about repetition and how life can and will continue whether you want it to or not. “Born in Luton” has Steen raging about feeling trapped alone in his own home (“There’s never anyone in this house!”). The song dissolves into a slow burn of boiling anger at a world that botched its collective response to the pandemic and thus left millions feeling like him.

“I should just go back to sleep…In my room, in my womb, is the only place I find peace,” Steen sings on “March Day.” It’s a rather plucky song about depression, with Steen poking fun at himself and realizing that self-medicating his way through the pandemic wasn’t a good idea. “Water in the Well” has a deceptively wicked bass line from Josh Finerty and some fun horror movie imagery and great percussion from Charlie Forbes that runs around the room like a cackling gremlin.

“I live deep in myself, just like everyone else!” Steen yells on the wild “Snow Day” – a barrage of punk and prog fury that has great, sly lyrics like, “I know what I need, I just haven’t got it yet.” Finerty’s bass is at the front of “Human for a Minute,” which would be a great name for a Gary Numan song but sounds more like a slightly heavy Edwyn Collins track with its groovy swagger and lyrics about finding a new identity with a new lover (“I never felt human before you arrived.”).

“Great Dog” builds and builds to wild, mosh pit-filling riffs and then plunges off a cliff at the end to leave you breathless. “6/1” has Steen proclaiming, “I pray to no God! I am God!” He’s determined to be in control of his own destiny / fate / life, even more so as he watches so much of the world tear itself apart over petty things while the rich get richer. Coyle-Smith and Eddie Green‘s guitars on “Harsh Degrees” come at you from so many different angles it’s like you’re being attacked by a a dozen Shaolin monks. “I need a solution, I need a new resolution and it’s not even the end of year,” Steen lazily sings on the closer, “Station Wagon.” He’s looking for something, anything, to turn a lame year into something worthwhile. We were all doing that in 2020 and still are not even a full month into 2021. “Look up there. There’s something in that cloud. We’ve seen it before,” Steen says. “Won’t someone please bring me that cloud?”

Drunk Tank Pink comes to us in 2021 to remind us that, yes, 2020 was one of the worst years ever (“No one said this was going to be easy,” Steen says on the final track.), but, you made it here if you were lucky. You survived. You have the moment, the moment all of us have had and ever will have, to move forward and emerge stronger.

You can come out of the drunk tank with a new perspective. It’s okay to acknowledge what you suffered. There’s no shame in that. This album reminds you to put that rage down after you’ve acknowledged it, to learn from it, and to keep moving ahead.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jacob at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Miss Grit unleashes heavy title track from upcoming album – “Impostor.”

Miss Grit, moniker of Korean-American musician Margaret Sohn, releases the title track from her forthcoming Impostor EP, out February 5th. It follows the “addictive” (Consequence of Sound) lead single “Dark Side Of The Party.” Throughout Impostor, Sohn explores the titular “impostor syndrome” that so often characterizes the insecurities of the early 20s. This is clear in EP closer “Impostor”: “They’re clapping awfully loud // For no tribulations or trials // Your reward’s // Faking worth // You’re no star // Impostor.” In Sohn’s words, “‘Impostor’ is the shredder I put all of the nagging voices in my head through.” The track bursts with fuzzy chords and bright keys, and when it hits its climax, Sohn’s vocals fade into a fury of heavy, eruptive guitar. Subsequently, there’s a stretch of bliss, Sohn’s voice floating over atmospheric keyboard and acoustic guitar: “Let ‘em smile // Let me smile.”

Listen to Miss Grit’s “Impostor”

Sohn makes relatable songs that masterfully dissect the feeling of self-doubt. Her songs can drastically shift from delicate to explosive as they show her technical prowess as a guitarist and melodist, and her evocative lyricism. On the heels of her Talk Talk EP, a “truly awe-inspiring first work” (NME), Impostor is a six song collection that’s more cathartic, resolute, and fully documents the array of talents she brings as a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and producer.

Impostor addresses her life-long navigation through the racial impostor syndrome she experienced as a half-Korean girl “trying to fit into the white space” of the Michigan suburbs where she grew up. Not even a move to New York City, where she studied music technology at NYU and began to dream of creating effects pedals for a living, could ease her internal conflict. Part of that uneasiness for Sohn was her initial success with Talk Talk and the feeling “she was someone who was impersonating a musician.” Her solution was producing the EP by herself at Brooklyn’s Virtue and Vice Studios so that she had complete creative control.

“I’ve gone my whole life feeling really uncomfortable defining myself,” Sohn says. “I realized that a lot of the time, I’m more comfortable with other people defining me and making up their mind about who I’m supposed to be.” Writing this EP helped her understand that futile pattern. Miss Grit is a project that allows Sohn to break through self-bias, creating a version of herself that doesn’t need to be limited. Expressing herself through her powerful, confident music while still being vulnerable about her insecurities is a dynamic that characterizes her work, with all of its pushes and pulls of emotion. Ultimately, Sohn says, the Impostor EP is about feeling self-doubt, working through it with music, and letting it all subside.

Listen to “Dark Side Of The Party”

Pre-save Impostor EP

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jessica and Jim at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – KG

As they are often happy to do, prolific psych-rockers King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have released an album enshrouded in mystery and riddles. I’m sure that the cover, with its imagery of a collapsed structure, has produced many Reddit discussions about hidden messages within it. Is that a totem pole on the bottom left corner? Are those snakes to the right? What does the block with nine holes in it on the upper right represent? What’s with the crosses? Finally, where’s “volume 1” if K.G. is “volume 2?” It wouldn’t surprise me at all if KGATLW’s next album is called A.T.L.W. and it’s listed as “volume 1” on the cover for reasons unknown to anyone but the band.

To further stir the pot of witches’ brew, the first track on K.G. is “K.G.L.W.” The short instrumental harkens back to themes heard on Murder of the Universe and it drifts like incense smoke into “Automation” – a track that returns the band to their psychedelic roots (a much welcomed return at that) and some of the microtonal sounds they brought us on Flying Microtonal Banana. “Minimum Brain Size” is even better as it pushes the psychedelic elements a bit further with its Middle Eastern-tinged guitars and spiritual song vocals.

“Straws in the Wind” reminds me of some of the stuff KGATLW released on Sketches of New Brunswick East with its mellow tones, excellent acoustic guitar work, sitar touches, and slightly krautrock timing. “Some of Us” continues our trek through a starlit desert while KGATLW sing about the “destruction of everything” and enlightenment.

“Ontology” picks up the pace. It sounds and feels like we’re heading down a river that slowly grows more rapid by the moment. Then, to throw us out of the mandjet and into the Nile for a wild tumble, along comes “Intrasport” – an electro dance track that any DJ could drop into any set and fill the floor. Thumping synth bass, disco drums and synths, 1970s porn film guitar…it’s all there.

“Oddlife” then mixes the disco synths with psychedelic vocals (“It’s an oddlife, ’til you get it right.”) and killer drumming. The harmonica and acoustic guitar on “Honey,” one of the first singles from the album, make it a standout. It sounds like a fun bike ride around the back forty of a mint farm in the late summer (complete with harp flourishes).

The first time I heard the closer, “The Hungry Wolf of Fate,” the local tornado siren test started just before the song’s intro ended. It was a perfect mix. A warning of danger and a song about a fierce beast with heavy drums and howling guitars.

K.G. works quite well and is a nice return for the band to shorter songs with concise songwriting. Mind you, I love their epic ten-minute-plus jams, but here they show they can cut in, cut up, and cut out.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 35 albums of 2020: #’s 5 – 1

Here we are. We’ve reached the cream of the cop.

#5: Yardsss – Cultus

This album is “only” three tracks, but one of them is over twenty-three minutes long. The other two are over seven minutes each. Even more impressive? This entire psychedelic / prog-rock album was improvised. Yardsss came in without a game plan and created a monster of a record that you can’t believe was done on the fly.

#4: Caroline Rose – Superstar

This is Caroline Rose’s best album to date. She tackles subjects like fame, flying your freak flag, sex, love, lust, and finding the self with power pop riffs, playful, lovely vocals, and some of her wittiest songwriting to date.

#3: Windhand – Levitation Sessions

I watched several livestream concerts this year, and all were good. This one by doom metal giants Windhand, however, literally gave me chills. That moment came during “Forest Clouds” when I could feel something happening. The hairs on my arms stood up and I couldn’t stop grinning. It was a powerful moment that I needed to remind me that live music will return. Nothing can stop it (or Windhand, it seems), and this entire live album was like being handed a battle axe as a hobgoblin army advances on the city.

#2: Automatic – Signal

I knew right away upon hearing Signal that (A) it was a post-punk gauntlet thrown down at other bands, (B) it was sexy as an underground 1960s dance club in Paris, and (C) it was going to be my favorite debut album of 2020. Everything on this album works at a high level. It makes you feel like a sexy bad ass, and all three ladies in Automatic are such. Tread lightly, however. They’re not screwing around and might whack you with a claw hammer if you cross the line.

#1: Flat Worms – Antarctica

This psych / garage / punk masterpiece by Flat Worms went into my #1 spot upon first hearing it in April 2020 and never moved. It is stunningly powerful and chock-full of killer lyrics about fighting against the rat race, internet addiction, the depersonalization of others, economic inequality, and toxic relationships. This is one of those albums that sounds new every time I hear it. It’s a shame they couldn’t tour to promote it, because this album could’ve and should’ve made them big-time draws.

I’m already hearing good stuff in 2021, so let’s stay healthy and get back to shows and festivals.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 35 albums of 2020: #’s 10 – 6

We’ve reached the top 10 (of nearly 80) albums I reviewed in 2020. Who made the cut? Read on…

#10: The Wants – Container

The only thing bad about this album is that The Wants didn’t get to extensively tour to promote it. Screw you, 2020. Container deserves to be heard by everyone, especially post-punk fans or anyone else who likes their rock with a slight goth edge. I was lucky enough to see them in February 2020 before the country and touring and venues shut down. I hope they’re able to get back to the road soon, because hearing this record live is even better.

#9: Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals

This album is so heavy that it might break your turntable if you have it on vinyl. The Black Sabbath influences are evident, but Pigs X7 sound like they had fun while making an album to unleash their wrath upon Brexit, COVID-19, politicians across the pond, and jackasses in general.

#8: Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Monsters Eating People Eating Monsters…

I’d only heard a few tracks by Frankie and the Witch Fingers from earlier records before hearing their new album, Monsters Eating People Eating Monsters… Holy crap. This record floored me. It’s double-album-full of prime psychedelia, shoegaze, and garage rock jams. Let this album consume you.

#7: BRANDY – The Gift of Repetition

I don’t remember where I first heard BRANDY’s music, but I’m glad I did because this is the most fun punk record I heard all year. The repetition mentioned in the album’s title is used to great effect throughout the record with killer beats, riffs, and choruses.

#6: Hum – Inlet

The biggest surprise release of the year also turned out to be one of the best albums of the year. No one expected or even considered a new, full-length album by 1990s shoegaze legends Hum, but along came Inlet to knock off our socks and remind us that these guys can mop the floor with just about any other band out there.

Only five more to go! Who takes the title of best album of 2020? Come back tomorrow to find out.

Keep your mind open.

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