Frownland's Top 20 Albums of 2017 (featuring 17 honourable mentions)

OccultHawk · 01-08-2018, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frownland

Also, anyone who can guess my number one album before I start my top twenty list gets a prize. Deadline is after I finish my 17 honourable mentions and other filler. Dead serious, you will get a dope prize if you guess correctly.

Err Guitar

**Frownland** · 01-08-2018, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

Err Guitar

Good choice, we'll have to see if you're right.

FYI the list is finalized so I won't switch it up on you guys to screw you out of the prize if you guess right.

~~MicShazam~~ · 01-09-2018, 04:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frownland

Also, anyone who can guess my number one album before I start my top twenty list gets a prize. Deadline is after I finish my 17 honourable mentions and other filler. Dead serious, you will get a dope prize if you guess correctly.

Don't think I have any chance of guessing it, but I'm going with this one, for a lack of better ideas.

**Goofle** · 01-09-2018, 07:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frownland

Also, anyone who can guess my number one album before I start my top twenty list gets a prize. Deadline is after I finish my 17 honourable mentions and other filler. Dead serious, you will get a dope prize if you guess correctly.

I have a few ideas but I have looked through your last.fm, so I don't really wanna cheat.

**Frownland** · 01-08-2018, 07:41 PM

I have to revise my list now.

OccultHawk · 01-08-2018, 08:17 PM

Also, I’m going to assume you know better than to choose Known Unknowns

**Frownland** · 01-10-2018, 10:38 PM

Honourable Mention Number Five

Merkabah - Million Miles

Only at number five? I should quit stalling.

Merkabah does the avant-prog/metal/jazz/brutal prog thing to great effect. As a record it's borderline cinematic given how cohesive it is despite all of the dynamic and disparate elements pulled together on the individual tracks and songs. While it maintains a lot of elements of what you'll find in this sort of Zu-inspired (very sad that Jhator was so dull and that the David Tibet collab never seems to have come through) metal jazz heavy thing. Excellent musicianship and a great sense of melody and songwriting on this record. It's got hypnotism, it's got the heavy, it's got the melody, it's got the saxy, it's got the drony, it's got the groove. Weasel Walter came up with the term brutal prog for this kind of thing, but I kind of see it as the new wave of jazz fusion. Check it out y'all. The honourable mentions aren't in order but if they were, this would be close to the top of it.

**Frownland** · 01-11-2018, 05:29 PM

Honourable Mention Number Six

Michael Chapman - 50

I might as well just come out and say it: I'm white.

This album is a nice bluegrassy contemporary folk record with dynamic instrumentation, cohesive songwriting, and well-traveled vocals. About the best Americana record that you could expect from an Englishman. Maybe that's why I like it so much: it's clearly rooted in these genre conventions but it filters them through an outsider lens (not like outsider music but you know what I mean). It jumps back and forth from meditative to honky tonk to electric to somber. It's just a really nice record, feel me?

**Frownland** · 01-12-2018, 12:08 AM

Honourable Mention Number Seven

Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra - Vula

Experimental big band never tasted so good. This album clearly comes from a place of next-level compositional skills that extend the avant-prog dialogue while breathing new life into. Frank Zappa would cry tears partially of joy and partially of jealousy that he's too cheesy to make stuff like this, the dead ****. This album is exciting, surprising, well-oiled, and gripping. So many artists take the long-form approach to free jazz with a big band/orchestra and just come off as dull classical musicians who only know how to convey a handful of jazz techniques, but this record goes above and beyond. It's got the sexy, you should hit on it.

https://andromedamegaexpressorchestr...com/album/vula

**Frownland** · 01-14-2018, 12:19 PM

Honourable Mention Number Eight

Algiers - The Underside of Power

Really interesting amalgamation of gospel, post-punk, noise rock, industrial, post-rock, and a whole bunch of other **** that works far better blended together than you'd expect. Definitely a grower since I dismissed it after a half listen when I initially heard about it (I think from Goofle posting on here) and it grew a lot on me when I came back around to it while searching for new albums. Some tracks are more energetic, others are more brooding, but what really brings me back to it is that it doesn't sound like anything that I've heard before. There are a couple of tracks and moments that drag on a bit but I'll be interested in hearing where these guys end up next. To me, this record shows that they're both capable of and willing to challenge themselves and that's a sign of greatness imo.

(No full album sorry. Check Spotify or somefish)

01-08-2018, 07:41 PM	#5 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	I have to revise my list now. __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth. d e a f b o x

01-08-2018, 08:17 PM	#6 (permalink)
OccultHawk one-balled nipple jockey Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Dirty Souf Biatch Posts: 22,006	Also, I’m going to assume you know better than to choose Known Unknowns __________________ 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Member of the Year & Journal of the Year Champion Behold the Writing of THE LEGEND: https://www.musicbanter.com/members-...p-lighter.html

01-10-2018, 10:38 PM	#7 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	Honourable Mention Number Five Merkabah - Million Miles Only at number five? I should quit stalling. Merkabah does the avant-prog/metal/jazz/brutal prog thing to great effect. As a record it's borderline cinematic given how cohesive it is despite all of the dynamic and disparate elements pulled together on the individual tracks and songs. While it maintains a lot of elements of what you'll find in this sort of Zu-inspired (very sad that Jhator was so dull and that the David Tibet collab never seems to have come through) metal jazz heavy thing. Excellent musicianship and a great sense of melody and songwriting on this record. It's got hypnotism, it's got the heavy, it's got the melody, it's got the saxy, it's got the drony, it's got the groove. Weasel Walter came up with the term brutal prog for this kind of thing, but I kind of see it as the new wave of jazz fusion. Check it out y'all. The honourable mentions aren't in order but if they were, this would be close to the top of it. __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth. d e a f b o x

01-11-2018, 05:29 PM	#8 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	Honourable Mention Number Six Michael Chapman - 50 I might as well just come out and say it: I'm white. This album is a nice bluegrassy contemporary folk record with dynamic instrumentation, cohesive songwriting, and well-traveled vocals. About the best Americana record that you could expect from an Englishman. Maybe that's why I like it so much: it's clearly rooted in these genre conventions but it filters them through an outsider lens (not like outsider music but you know what I mean). It jumps back and forth from meditative to honky tonk to electric to somber. It's just a really nice record, feel me? __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth. d e a f b o x

01-12-2018, 12:08 AM	#9 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	Honourable Mention Number Seven Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra - Vula Experimental big band never tasted so good. This album clearly comes from a place of next-level compositional skills that extend the avant-prog dialogue while breathing new life into. Frank Zappa would cry tears partially of joy and partially of jealousy that he's too cheesy to make stuff like this, the dead ***. This album is exciting, surprising, well-oiled, and gripping. So many artists take the long-form approach to free jazz with a big band/orchestra and just come off as dull classical musicians who only know how to convey a handful of jazz techniques, but this record goes above and beyond. It's got the sexy, you should hit on it. https://andromedamegaexpressorchestr...com/album/vula __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth.* d e a f b o x

01-14-2018, 12:19 PM	#10 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	Honourable Mention Number Eight Algiers - The Underside of Power Really interesting amalgamation of gospel, post-punk, noise rock, industrial, post-rock, and a whole bunch of other **** that works far better blended together than you'd expect. Definitely a grower since I dismissed it after a half listen when I initially heard about it (I think from Goofle posting on here) and it grew a lot on me when I came back around to it while searching for new albums. Some tracks are more energetic, others are more brooding, but what really brings me back to it is that it doesn't sound like anything that I've heard before. There are a couple of tracks and moments that drag on a bit but I'll be interested in hearing where these guys end up next. To me, this record shows that they're both capable of and willing to challenge themselves and that's a sign of greatness imo. (No full album sorry. Check Spotify or somefish) __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth. d e a f b o x