January 30th, 2023
Hey, it's me again.
Hello readers, new and old.
I know that last year I was not very active on here, aside from a sporadic post here and there and then my year-end lists. I won’t lie to you and say that “this year, things will be different!!” but I will say that I hope if you’re reading this, you’re ok with my slack cadence. If I go a while without posting, know that at the very least you will be getting some kind of mid-year and year-end lists like I did for 2022.
For now, I’ll shake off the rust and dust with some new stuff and old stuff for you to peruse. As always let me know what you’ve been spinning these days on Twitter!
Buen Destino – Self-Titled (2023, BCore Disc)
Despite being released on January 27th, I didn’t come across this in my usual digital crate-digging. My path to pressing play on this one was more one of those spiraled webs of music discovery that reminded me of the good ol’ days so to speak.
Step one was the fact that I’m reading the Lookout! Records book right now (thanks Bruce!), which led me to Nuisance’s Sunny Side Down. I’ve heard Nuisance in the past but they never stuck with me and long story short Sunny Side Down was sticking more than it had previously.
That brought me to Rate Your Music, where I saw the album was listed on Nihilist_Scumbag’s (lol) “My Favorite Punk Albums of 1993”. A list that was about half expected heavy-hitters and half lesser-known albums. Rouse’s album Deep Wound caught my eye. Seconds later and I’m listening to it, and with no reviews on RYM I took to Google, landing on the BCore Disc Bandcamp page for what I assume was a re-issue.
And finally, I noticed the album art for Buen Destino’s new album in the top-right spot on the page. I clicked play, and my hair blew back. They’ve got Killing Joke, Discharge, Converge, Jesus Lizard, Daughters, Dead Cross, Breach and more name checked on their bio, so uh yes please. This stuff rips so incredibly hard, it’s been on repeat since the 28th. Likely 2023’s first instant year-ender.
Total Downer – Caretaker (2023, Just Because Records)
This one was a release day discovery, and was not on my radar at all before I randomly hit play based on the art alone. The kind of scrappy, poppy and noisy indie-punk that manages to pull off that tough balance of sounding a little bit like a party despite being (as written on their Bandcamp) “a largely autobiographical record revolving around childhood experiences of being hurt and misled by adult society.” Serious songs overlaid with huge hooks is always something I can get behind.
The Raymond Brake – Piles of Dirty Winters (1995, Simple Machines)
OK, what label is going to step-up and reissue this one? Released on Simple Machines (see also: Tsunami, Scrawl, Ida and more) in 1995, this band comes across like Archers of Loaf + Polvo divided by Built To Spill’s There’s Nothing Wrong With Love. Yup, it has that Chapel Hill sound, stuffed with guitar riffs that wind-up and hurl across horizons, skirting that emo/punk/post-hardcore sound without ever diving too deep into either one. This is basically a masterpiece and yet I’ve personally never heard anyone talk about it.
Pinebender – The High Price Of Living Too Long With A Single Dream (2003, Lovitt Records)
Speaking of albums I don’t hear mentioned, and masterpieces, Pinebender’s 2003 album came upon my radar earlier this year and was immediately one of those “where has this album been?” moments for me. Slowcore indebted grungey math-rock/indie-rock/post-hardcore that is ~heavy~ on the vibes and atmosphere. When I listen to this album, I want to crank it up until the thick distortion pours out of my eyes and ears. I suggest that you do the same.
📝 2023: Favourite Discoveries
Speaking of discoveries, here’s the start of my 2023 playlist where I keep track of “new to me” albums. I also will include stuff I’ve heard before, but felt revelatory enough of a revisit that it’s almost new to me all over again.
🔁 2023 Heavy Rotation
And here’s my on-going playlist where I keep albums from 2023 that are in my heavy rotation. I use this playlist to help guide and form the basis of my year-end lists so if you wanna play along with me, this is the one to keep your eyes on.
That’s it, that’s all. Be excellent to one other.
Buen Destino is nicely blistering! And I see you're another Josephine Odhil fan...did Tracy Wilson introduce you as well?