Great Songs From Q2 2022.

(Spotify) || (Apple Music) || (YouTube)

Elephant Gym — 凝視(聖德宮Version) — WINDIE 收OUT!

A smooth and hanging beat with some dream-lite hooks open up this playlist. Elephant Gym has always come correct with copasetic and relaxing jams and this one is no different. The record this comes from has plenty more from this style and while it’s a bit of a departure from some of the more effervescent stuff they’ve made in their past, this was a welcome listen for an early morning read. (YouTube)

Northlane — Obsidian

A friend is absolutely obsessed with this band and their past two albums, so I was anticipating the April release of the record for a long time, even if only to see where he was at with it. I had listened to their last album and it came across as a bit commercial, a little more “safe” than I usually want my heavy music to be. This is the title track from the 2022 record and easily my favorite from the album, but it’s way more my speed. Heavy, lots of effects and strong production make this a phenomenal record. That same friend who is a massive fan of this band can agree: “Top 3 song of all time across everything for me.” (YouTube)

Heart to Gold — Sonic

This comes from whatever genre began as pop-punk and then is some new X Wave Emo. It’s like a twinkly band gone aggro. Vocally this song clutches onto a desperate yowl and screams from deep in the chest. (YouTube)

Beach Bunny — Karaoke

They have released a few singles in the past few months and it’s tough to pick a single track to share, but this one is absolutely going to do just fine. I don’t think I’ve found a BB song that I don’t enjoy, and there are a handful that I adore. It’s subdued and catchy as all hell. I love it. The simple and unforgettable hook on this one makes the song a gem, but the unassuming boppiness of the tune is what makes the entire personality of this one priceless. (YouTube)

GILT — 209 (feat. Carson Pace)

Frantic blasts of guitars pulse in swells while the vocals seem to claw at the walls. There is a brief reprieve, a segment of clarity, until the flood gates open and we find a flashing tunnel of escape and release by the very end of it. (YouTube)

Fairweather — Untethered

It’s so tough when one of your favorite bands releases a new record, especially if it’s been a great deal of time between their previous records. It’s almost like getting a phone call and seeing on the caller ID that it’s your ex. Is this going to be a normal call or is everything going to be absolutely brutal? To my great relief, not only is the new EP excellent, but this song is one of the best in their entire library. It’s a far different style than most of their library, taking on the entire mood of what some parts of their Alaska EP and what most of their full-length Lusitania hinted at. It’s slow, chunky and has heaps of mood and ennui weighing it down. The main guitar lead is slow and meandering, sounding like some behemoth gloaming above an entire landscape. This song really makes me proud to claim this as my favorite band, man. (YouTube)

Hikes — Better

It was tough to pick a track off of this brilliant split EP that Hikes did with Into It. Over It. Each of the four songs (two for each band) is absolutely brilliant. I ended up going with this one for the intricate and sweeping guitar work that the band put on display, and the joyous mood that the song imbues. If this big summer mood is something that you’re in for, check out this entire record. It will get you big and free and alive. (YouTube)

The Smile — The Opposite

This is such a high profile record that it, too, was difficult to be able to pick a single song that I wanted to share from it. All of the singles are brilliant, many in between stand out from one play through to the next. This seemed to be the song that jumped out to me first. There is a slick little infectious groove that lives within it, like a little secret that it wants you to have and you’ve sworn to keep. The entire song feels like one of those little parts that you’ll find in a song, right below the main theme and you catch it every time and no one else seems to quite know what you’re talking about. It’s a slick little simple song and I keep coming back to it as the focal point of the record for me. (YouTube)

Chamber — Cellophane Form

Punishing. I don’t have a lot to say about this track. This is coming from that modern style of metalcore that pushes extreme aggression to its limit, borrowing some elements from where nu-metal seemed to leave off in the early 2000s, taking the rest of the bulk from all of the innovations that bands like Misery Signals and Code Orange infused into the genre in the last decade. (YouTube)

Ethel Cain — Hard Times

This record is brutal in a different way than most that I’ll use that adjective to describe. It’s singular and sad and lonely. It bares all. This is definitely going to be one of those records that I find to be a favorite of the year, but not one that I can put on regularly. (YouTube)

Softcult — Been a Son

I’ve said great things about the new EP that the band released this year, but it stands to be noted that they released a couple of Nirvana covers in May. They manage to really capture not only the sound of the song itself in their own style, but also somehow the spirit of Nirvana as well. I think they did Kurt proud. (YouTube)

Malevolence — Karma

This a pretty standard fare metalcore track. Just obligatorily heavy, roaring vocals, big guitars that come together to form a Voltron of chugging and shredding. The first portion of the song is everything I’d want from a heavy track like this. There’s a break towards the end of the track where the vocals get a little butt-rock-y, but I think it adds to the more traditional metal sound of it all, chops up the stew a little bit. (YouTube)

Sweet Pill — Dog Song

So many of the singles that came out of this track were so great. I think this was the first one that I heard that really encompassed everything that I was loving about the sound that this band was putting together. The barking part is a little cringy, but it’s whatever. The complex guitar noodling is a signature sound that will always get deep into my heart, but I think the vocal lead and the big hook is really the thing that seals the deal. Listen to this full length for sure! (YouTube)

Minus — Plug (feat. Royce da 5’9”)

I love the flow on this track. It’s rapid and staccato, but it never goes to a place where it sounds like you need to lose the plot a little bit. It’s got its own organic sense of rhythm and motion that slthers and slides across the entire work. It barely comes up for air and the beat’s deep bass drop and undercover sound only adds to the slick style. Royce is always on that good shit. This track has such a good sense of what it means to build just enough to not oversell the climax. (YouTube)

Limbs — Slow Burn

I loved this band’s record from 2018. It was aggressive and powerful but at the same time showed a ton of experimentation and range from the band. Just recently, Limbs released an EP that is far more straightforward in its use of styles, but I think what they put on display is an arsenal that they are well-prepared to employ. It’s fast and heavy on the one hand, but they switch up the gears when they enter the chorus with the guitars going from more of a slicing attack to showcasing a massive size, and the singer using a more direct vocal approach. Such a good dichotomy at play here. (YouTube)

Lord Huron — Your Other Life

This beautiful song comes as a B-Side from the band’s absolutely brilliant 2021 record ‘Long Lost’. This is a forlorn and melancholy song that borders on country western without the over-accentuated cliches from the genre. It’s got a longing at its core, a begging stare that reeks of authenticity. It’s honesty and it’s promise. This entire record (even the songs that didn’t make it, apparently) are an entire universe I could live within. Those strings really bring the track to a whole new plane. (YouTube)

Twenty Duce — Beat Up Cars (feat. Mick Jenkins)

Such a chill song. The piano line, the smooth flow over the beat. The absolute definition of smooth. I could listen to this track all day, man. (YouTube)

Thrice — Dead Wake

While a lot of my friends have grown up with Thrice, have often cited it as a legacy band for them, I just haven’t ever been able to really let their hooks grab into me. However, when they finally are able to write a song that lands with me, it ends up being one of the best songs I’ve ever heard, one that makes me want to jump back through their entire catalog and try to dissect and find exactly what I’ve been missing. I want to find it. This song is one of those moments. The enormous sound, the gravelly voice when it’s time to simmer it down. The heavy screams when it's meant to erupt. What a track this is. (YouTube)

Counterparts — Unwavering Vow

I’m always game for more Misery Signals, and if I can’t get more Misery Signals, I will always take Counterparts. The torch for most ferocious and technically perfect metalcore band has been passed to this band and their last record ‘Nothing Left to Love’ was absolutely brilliant. This new song for their upcoming October record already has me prepared for a brand new favorite. So sick. (YouTube)

Ithaca — Camera Eats First

Man, this band’s new record is going to eat us alive. The riffs are choice, the range between the screams and the clean tones from Djamila are on point. And even some of the musical choices the band makes on this track are so interesting. On the surface and out of the gate, it feels like your traditional aggressive ripper, but as the song grows and breathes it showcases a lot more nuance and depth. There are three songs from this record released at the time of this writing and each of them promises that this full length is going to be one of the most memorable of the year. Can’t wait for more. (YouTube)

Wake — Swallow the Light

This sounds like an inferno blazing from frothing and foaming gasoline. A roaring forest fire in a decades long time lapse. It’s fast and unrelenting. It gets enormous and uncompromising. This is a perfect headbanging track for sure. (YouTube)

Astronoid — Sleep Whisper

I love the delicate delivery of this band’s sound. There are heavy elements to it throughout, lots of big and chunky guitars, lots of pounding drums. But the entire thing sounds like it’s in an open aerial space, big and majestic. The song shifts from floating and gliding sails to its driving and pounding conclusion. Love the style. (YouTube)

Polica — Blood

Polica has always had an interesting sound, but I think this record really shows off the most of their experimental chops. Lots of post-production and synthesizer add a great deal of character to a band who, at their core, have always been a vocal band on top of some interesting percussive rhythms. This song borders on triphop, borders on R&B, really just does a lot of interesting things sonically. The way it tinkers and plays with the entire aural galaxy is so intriguing. While the band have always had innovation as part of their arsenal, I think this particular song is the one that’s really honed their craft the most since their first record. (YouTube)

The Callous Daoboys — What Is Delicious? Who Swarms?

What an interesting sound! The closest approximation I can give on the surface is Dillinger Escape Plan, but there is so much more at play with this band. Their new record swears to be something new and unique, wildly interesting, taking massive chances and implementing a wide spectrum of styles. The best part about this song in particular is the fact that they’re able to take the highs and lows and all the curveballs and curate a song that makes perfect sense together, never burning out the clutch, never making it feel like any of the ideas should be in any other track. This is one of the most exciting bands active to date. Can’t wait for more. (YouTube)

Soccer Mommy — Bones

Holy shit what a catchy song. This whole record is a beautiful journey through some intimate and vulnerable emotion. She has always been able to craft something special, a single here or there that really takes a hold of me, but I think with this album she really channeled a great deal of focus and nailed a full length that will certainly be one of the best of the year for me. (YouTube)

Coheed & Cambria — Comatose

Coheed started off for me as a band that was really brooding and interesting and their sci-fi element kind of added something mysterious in terms of their storytelling. And then they got a little big and a little over the top, overall not really my thing. But throughout it all, even in the bombastic days, they’ve always been a really uplifting good time. And their last two records definitely have that feeling. This song is such a blast. It’s technical and has its fair share of stops and starts, but this feels like such a fun summer-style song. And for what it’s worth, there really isn’t a single bad song on the new record. Awesome to fall back in love with a band that was once such a big deal to you. (YouTube)