Micshazam's album and song picks

~~MicShazam~~ · 10-28-2018, 03:44 PM

Just as I was thinking about how much I'm looking forward to it, a new single from an upcoming Jinjer "micro EP" is out. I think they're also working on a full album, but it's some distance away and it probably won't be out until well into next year.

Jinjer - Ape

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC3djB7-nc0
Definitely more progressive in style, like they said the EP material would be. Pretty complicated song, but it's still got a lot of immediately enjoyable grooves and melodies.

The video weirds me out a bit. Feels like it's both very 2018, and sort of oddly 90's with that Matrix trench coat and that silly haircut that makes me thing of Prodigy.

Questionable fashion aside, it's a cool little track. I also like the video. Performance style videos are always the best.

~~MicShazam~~ · 10-28-2018, 03:54 PM

Oh yeah, and I also just ordered the two newest Amaranthe albums. As far as the current crop of popular metal bands go, you're not gonna find one that pisses off old school metal neckbeards more. So of course I'm attracted to them like a moth to a flame. Well, I'm not sure how much I will like this overall, but these Swedes know how to do a mean pop-metal hook. I want to hear more metal that feels modern and forward looking. It's fairly slim pickings.

Amaranthe - Maximize

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfk7YZJtmeo

Amaranthe - 365

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDVycjDLx4Y

~~MicShazam~~ · 11-02-2018, 01:19 PM

New music. Oh yeah.

Marie Davidson - 'Work It'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23Df3jHYTrs

My god this is cheesy. I like it.

Farao - Lula Loves You

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYVp3AGShfw
Gonna try and be like a true MB resident: *ahem* "If you don't like this, I don't like you."

Doe Paoro - Loose Plans

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PtEYLAqPOk
Pretty basic old school r&b stuff. I would be lynched for this if anyone really noticed, but I feel like contemporary artists working in classic styles have more solid songs on average. Like the albums, even if nothing innovative, are more solid than the albums from the time where these styles were first pioneered. Hindsight gives you a lot of material and inspiration to work with. It's like contemporary genre artists often manage to laser focus and get rid of all the tripe. Just memorable tunes front to back. Most music geeks say the first bands in a style are the best. I say they're the worst*. Haven't actually heard this album in full, but I'm basically saying that I feel like it's probably solid overall.

*: There's a lot more to say there. It's too big a topic for this space and I already think I shouldn't have said it.

Ingrid Michaelson's Song's for the Season - White Christmas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta-HuVGtcH8
Oh. My. God. Just the right kind of nostalgic christmas vibe. I can't wait to visit my parents for christmas now

Totally gonna buy this album. Her voice is adorable. I'm fully convinced that this is worth my money.

Hélène Grimaud - Bagatelle I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vdn1gzvXPvk
Most gorgeous rendition I've ever heard of this piece. Gonna buy this album for sure.

~~MicShazam~~ · 11-03-2018, 03:44 AM

A while ago, I got a large amount of albums that were all by Danish artists. The thing is, that I've never really liked Danish music. Except for D.A.D, I just didn't actually have any Danish music in my huge collection. I've done a lot to explore Danish music now and found a lot that I actually really like. What surprised me was how easy it was to pull off. I took a chance on about 10 CD's and liked all of them right away.

Anyway, I just want to post some Danish music that I've been getting into. From some really solid albums.

Karen Busck - En Kærlighedsaffære

Karen Busck - Det Er Slut Nu

Karen Busck - Listetyv

Both from the album "En Kærlighedsaffære". A very beautiful, melancholy songwriter album. Some really good lyrical imagery on this album, like using a tennis metaphor to paint an image of failure and quiet despair: "(translated) I prepare to smash the ball and it rolls pathetically across the ground". Almost a shame it's in Danish, because the lyricism is one of the things I think is really amazing about this album.

Line Bøgh - Something Else and Something Else and Something Else Again

I just really like her somewhat odd voice. There's a lot of accent there, so it's obvious she's not English or American. I think this album is very strong vocally, but also in terms of songwriting. Very low key, but incredibly well done in terms of arrangements, textures and song structures. It's an album that's got a lot of feeling to it. Fortunately, I know she's got a few other albums too.

Fallulah - The Black Cat Neighbourhood

Just some good, modern indie pop. Had some hits years ago, but probably not across the border. Or maybe she did, I don't know. I really dig this kind of thing these days, so of course this album is right up by alley with ease.

I want to post some more, but for now I'm leaving it at this. Turns out it's actually hard-to-impossible to find songs from many of these various Danish artists on Youtube.

~~MicShazam~~ · 11-17-2018, 06:14 AM

Some new music:

Azusa - Heavy Yoke (Official Music Video)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktjgXsNSSgo
Damn! That's pretty interesting. One of very few metal releases that have really caught my attention in 2018. Kinda worried that the album is gonna be too much one dimensional high speed smashing, but this one track certainly has several things going for it.

Sigh - Homo Homini Lupus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QF_gBJ1SjF4
New single from Sigh. Pretty Iron Maiden like in that opening riff, but more of what you expect from Sigh right after that. Still not sure what I think of this band.

ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN - Your Glorious Light Will Shine - Helsinki (Album Track)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzWAkj0uwfs
Anneke Van Giersbergen performing various Vuur and The Gathering track with a symphony and no metal instrumentation. Sounds pretty crisp.

~~MicShazam~~ · 11-25-2018, 11:06 AM

I was thinking if there was some not way-too-work-intensive approach by which I could write about every single band/solo artist in my current list of favourites, but I'll have to conclude that it is simply unrealistic.

Instead, I'll somewhat pointlessly dump a public Google Drive link to a folder with pictures that show my current 105 personal favourites. It's simply a backup of a folder I'm always updating on my computer.

My current 105 favourite musical artists: https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...8YsKIiKNp_4Vny

Similarly, here's my updated folder with pics of all of the 2018 albums that I'm interested in but haven't bought yet:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...1y?usp=sharing

~~MicShazam~~ · 11-25-2018, 11:09 AM

^Forgot to mention that all of the weird notation in the 2018 albums folder is there to push more important albums towards the top of the listing, mostly.

+ the list is incomplete. I've got a few album covers saved on another computer that I use sometimes.

~~MicShazam~~ · 12-02-2018, 02:45 AM

I don't know what to do with this journal.

Any serious suggestions?
Like, no trolling, but earnest opinions.

**Frownland** · 12-02-2018, 08:44 AM

Have you ever been to any shows? Do some concert reviews.

~~MicShazam~~ · 12-02-2018, 08:49 AM

I probably mentioned at least once in the distant past that I don't go to shows.

I've got fairly bad tinnitus and am scared to death of it getting any worse, so no shows for me. Whenever I'm near very loud noise for extended periods of time, I'm feeling so anxious that I'm having difficulties concentrating and carrying a conversation.

12-02-2018, 08:44 AM	#9 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	Have you ever been to any shows? Do some concert reviews. __________________ 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

10-28-2018, 03:44 PM	#1 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	Just as I was thinking about how much I'm looking forward to it, a new single from an upcoming Jinjer "micro EP" is out. I think they're also working on a full album, but it's some distance away and it probably won't be out until well into next year. Jinjer - Ape https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC3djB7-nc0 Definitely more progressive in style, like they said the EP material would be. Pretty complicated song, but it's still got a lot of immediately enjoyable grooves and melodies. The video weirds me out a bit. Feels like it's both very 2018, and sort of oddly 90's with that Matrix trench coat and that silly haircut that makes me thing of Prodigy. Questionable fashion aside, it's a cool little track. I also like the video. Performance style videos are always the best.

10-28-2018, 03:54 PM	#2 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	Oh yeah, and I also just ordered the two newest Amaranthe albums. As far as the current crop of popular metal bands go, you're not gonna find one that pisses off old school metal neckbeards more. So of course I'm attracted to them like a moth to a flame. Well, I'm not sure how much I will like this overall, but these Swedes know how to do a mean pop-metal hook. I want to hear more metal that feels modern and forward looking. It's fairly slim pickings. Amaranthe - Maximize https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfk7YZJtmeo Amaranthe - 365 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDVycjDLx4Y

11-02-2018, 01:19 PM	#3 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	New music. Oh yeah. Marie Davidson - 'Work It' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23Df3jHYTrs My god this is cheesy. I like it. Farao - Lula Loves You https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYVp3AGShfw Gonna try and be like a true MB resident: ahem "If you don't like this, I don't like you." Doe Paoro - Loose Plans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PtEYLAqPOk Pretty basic old school r&b stuff. I would be lynched for this if anyone really noticed, but I feel like contemporary artists working in classic styles have more solid songs on average. Like the albums, even if nothing innovative, are more solid than the albums from the time where these styles were first pioneered. Hindsight gives you a lot of material and inspiration to work with. It's like contemporary genre artists often manage to laser focus and get rid of all the tripe. Just memorable tunes front to back. Most music geeks say the first bands in a style are the best. I say they're the worst. Haven't actually heard this album in full, but I'm basically saying that I feel like it's probably solid overall. : There's a lot more to say there. It's too big a topic for this space and I already think I shouldn't have said it. Ingrid Michaelson's Song's for the Season - White Christmas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta-HuVGtcH8 Oh. My. God. Just the right kind of nostalgic christmas vibe. I can't wait to visit my parents for christmas now Totally gonna buy this album. Her voice is adorable. I'm fully convinced that this is worth my money. Hélène Grimaud - Bagatelle I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vdn1gzvXPvk Most gorgeous rendition I've ever heard of this piece. Gonna buy this album for sure.

11-03-2018, 03:44 AM	#4 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	A while ago, I got a large amount of albums that were all by Danish artists. The thing is, that I've never really liked Danish music. Except for D.A.D, I just didn't actually have any Danish music in my huge collection. I've done a lot to explore Danish music now and found a lot that I actually really like. What surprised me was how easy it was to pull off. I took a chance on about 10 CD's and liked all of them right away. Anyway, I just want to post some Danish music that I've been getting into. From some really solid albums. Karen Busck - En Kærlighedsaffære Karen Busck - Det Er Slut Nu Karen Busck - Listetyv Both from the album "En Kærlighedsaffære". A very beautiful, melancholy songwriter album. Some really good lyrical imagery on this album, like using a tennis metaphor to paint an image of failure and quiet despair: "(translated) I prepare to smash the ball and it rolls pathetically across the ground". Almost a shame it's in Danish, because the lyricism is one of the things I think is really amazing about this album. Line Bøgh - Something Else and Something Else and Something Else Again I just really like her somewhat odd voice. There's a lot of accent there, so it's obvious she's not English or American. I think this album is very strong vocally, but also in terms of songwriting. Very low key, but incredibly well done in terms of arrangements, textures and song structures. It's an album that's got a lot of feeling to it. Fortunately, I know she's got a few other albums too. Fallulah - The Black Cat Neighbourhood Just some good, modern indie pop. Had some hits years ago, but probably not across the border. Or maybe she did, I don't know. I really dig this kind of thing these days, so of course this album is right up by alley with ease. I want to post some more, but for now I'm leaving it at this. Turns out it's actually hard-to-impossible to find songs from many of these various Danish artists on Youtube.

11-17-2018, 06:14 AM	#5 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	Some new music: Azusa - Heavy Yoke (Official Music Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktjgXsNSSgo Damn! That's pretty interesting. One of very few metal releases that have really caught my attention in 2018. Kinda worried that the album is gonna be too much one dimensional high speed smashing, but this one track certainly has several things going for it. Sigh - Homo Homini Lupus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QF_gBJ1SjF4 New single from Sigh. Pretty Iron Maiden like in that opening riff, but more of what you expect from Sigh right after that. Still not sure what I think of this band. ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN - Your Glorious Light Will Shine - Helsinki (Album Track) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzWAkj0uwfs Anneke Van Giersbergen performing various Vuur and The Gathering track with a symphony and no metal instrumentation. Sounds pretty crisp.

11-25-2018, 11:06 AM	#6 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	I was thinking if there was some not way-too-work-intensive approach by which I could write about every single band/solo artist in my current list of favourites, but I'll have to conclude that it is simply unrealistic. Instead, I'll somewhat pointlessly dump a public Google Drive link to a folder with pictures that show my current 105 personal favourites. It's simply a backup of a folder I'm always updating on my computer. My current 105 favourite musical artists: https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...8YsKIiKNp_4Vny Similarly, here's my updated folder with pics of all of the 2018 albums that I'm interested in but haven't bought yet: https://drive.google.com/drive/folde...1y?usp=sharing

11-25-2018, 11:09 AM	#7 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	^Forgot to mention that all of the weird notation in the 2018 albums folder is there to push more important albums towards the top of the listing, mostly. + the list is incomplete. I've got a few album covers saved on another computer that I use sometimes.

12-02-2018, 02:45 AM	#8 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	I don't know what to do with this journal. Any serious suggestions? Like, no trolling, but earnest opinions.

12-02-2018, 08:49 AM	#10 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	I probably mentioned at least once in the distant past that I don't go to shows. I've got fairly bad tinnitus and am scared to death of it getting any worse, so no shows for me. Whenever I'm near very loud noise for extended periods of time, I'm feeling so anxious that I'm having difficulties concentrating and carrying a conversation.