Yellow Eyes

Well well well, if it isn’t my old blog. Sorry about the false start the other day, turns out I wasn’t quite ready to bring this thing back full time. I did kick around changing formats and even got as far as discussing things with another person, and that was enough to derail me. But enough of the Jim Anchower routine, I have business to get to! It’s time to look at 2025 releases and absolutely fail to rank them. Massive respect for all the writers out there who do produce a list, that shit seems really hard. No, I’m going to cop out, put some half-assed “awards” here, and mostly just write a little about the albums that have really stuck with me for this year.

This Friday, 8/4/2017, Bandcamp will be donating all their revenue to the Transgender Law Center. I’m planning on buying a bunch of stuff from them that day, I hope you join me in supporting both human rights and musicians at the same time. Here’s today’s music.

Astronoid, “Trail of Sulfur”

In the wake of Deafheaven’s Sunbather, I’ve noticed more bands that are working in that same area: incorporating elements of black metal, but removing some of the ugliness that’s usually associated with the genre. It’s sort of partway between the old genre of shoegaze and black metal. Astronoid (and this track) is a good example. You have some of the hallmarks of the genre in terms of the tempo and drumming, but none of the shrieks or noise that you might otherwise get. It’s an interesting hybrid.