Summer Playlist 2019

It's summer again. The time of year where we spend a lot of time near water and sand while we consume the suns energy while trying our best to not be consumed by our demons. it's been a while but we are back with another rock n roll playlist for y'all. Link below

https://open.spotify.com/user/1241645468/playlist/3g5qrW9XcuP4zZjn7zJY39?si=Rw2aZm4eTm21A-o-MqOIDg

Washed Out - Life of Leisure

Genre: Electronic/Chillwave FFO: Teen Daze,Craft Spells, Wild Nothing

Favorite Track: Feel It All Around

As usual, we start with the obvious. I can't believe I forgot this one last time. Best known for the Portlandia theme, Washed Out is the definition of summer with Life of Leisure. You can really tell from the cover. You'll feel like the person on the cover listening to this one. Float Face up on the water and get ready to zone out.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!

Genre: Noise Pop/Indie FFO: Sleigh Bells, Interpol, The Ting Tings 

Favorite Track: Dragon Queen

This is a big one for weird music. I feel these guys had a huge influence on Sleigh Bells and on top of that, both feature members from metal/hardcore bands (This one being Head Wound City, a mathcore band featuring an ex member of The Blood Brothers). Nothing says summer like pop music, and the alternate influence encourages a hipster party, so get on it.

Japanese Breakfast - Soft Sounds from Another Planet

Genre: Indie FFO: Frankie Cosmos, Snail Mail, Petal

Favorite Track: Road Head

I have to admit, I'm still somewhat new with Jbrekkie, but that does not affect the talent they have. This is an album that screams long drive in the sun for me. A good indie album for both the highway as well as driving in the city. Not too mention getting your fill of an actual Japanese breakfast which I'm curious of what it would consist of. Hey look at that a new mission for the summer: Try a traditional Japanese Breakfast.

skycamefalling - To Forever Embrace the Sun

Genre: Metalcore/Post-Hardcore FFO: Poison the Well, This Day Forward, Hopesfall

Favorite Track: The Fall of Cain's Countenance

So Zach chewed me out for not including this in the last summer playlist. skycamefalling are a forgotten icon of 90's metalcore that reminisce the era very well (if you're old enough to remember it) Very similar to Poison the Well and unironically amongst the same era, skycamefalling have a heavy side garnished with post hardcore interludes similar to bands ranging from Refused to ISIS (the band). Zach states its a good one for a summer night, my preference is a sunset. Try it out and prove us wrong.

Miley Cyrus - She is Coming

Genre: Hip/Hop/Pop FFO: Demi Lovato, Nicki Minaj, Ke$ha

Favorite Tracks: Unholy, D.R.E.A.M.

 

Nothing More can be said than "If you didn't follow Miley through Bangerz, you don't deserve her now". I have personally been a big fan of hers since the beginning and will probably follow her til the end of time. The moment she announced this EP and I saw her wearing a Sex Pistols shirt, I knew it would be incredible. Did she disappoint? Absolutely not. She even threw us a curveball and did a song with none other than Ghostface Killah. Thank you for Coming Miley!

Kyuss - Welcome to Sky Valley
Genre: Stoner Metal FFO: Weedeater, Fu Mabchu, Orange Goblin
Favorite Track: 100 Degrees


We discussed Kyuss in the last summer playlist, but here they are again. More blues inlfuenced stoner jams for the desert. Sky Valley can speed up at times making it a good balance of skate and smoke. I could never get tired of this band and it just screams desert heat.

BROCKHAMPTON - IRRIDESCENCE

Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap FFO: Tyler, The Creator, Kids See Ghosts, Run the Jewels

Favorite Track: VIVID

I'm sure by now we are all familiar with the world's greatest boy band. BROCKHAMPTON is a 14 person powerhouse of a project. I don't think I've heard anyone say anything negative about them yet and probably won't anytime soon. I feel like you could call them a modern day Odd Future in terms of a lot of members, unique style, and beats you couldn't imagine, though the two are vastly different. Honestly if you don't know about BROCKHAMPTON, you live under a rock.

Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

Genre: Country/Indie

Favorite Track: Slow Burn

This album is really turning heads amongst people who don't like country. I personally despise country as a whole, but seeing this album on Neil's top albums of 2018 made me curious. I liked what I heard then showed my mums who is into this type of music and she loved it even more than I did. Its good to trust these two. Kacey Musgraves shows far more emotion than the "I fucked my cousin while drinking a frosty brew in my pickup" country that we all hate. This is the type of project I could see at the Sinclair but Kacey's fame would bring her to a much bigger and more expensive place. Seriously though this is definitely worth your time.

ISIS (the band) - Oceanic & Panopticon

Genre: Post Metal FFO: Cult of Luna, Neurosis, The Ocean

Favorite Tracks: Maritime (Oceanic), Syndic Calls (Panopticon)

I couldn't decide between these. Oceanic sounds like you're being pulled to the bottom of the ocean while Panopticon pulls you back up. As you float there you look around and notice there is nothing but water for miles. These two albums really show the line this band had when switching over. Oceanic is considered by some to be the last REAL Isis album because everything after wasn't as heavy. Panopticon coming out after was really the first album that made these same fans call them sell outs. The band has never released anything bad in my opinion and these two are perfect for summer near the water.

Aly & AJ - Sanctuary

Genre: Indie Pop FFO: Haim, CHVRCHES, Florence and the Machine

Favorite Track: Not Ready To Wake Up

Aly & AJ are probably the biggest reason I wanted to get this blog back in action. After seeing them play the Paradise in May, I regret not writing it up. We all remember the hits like Potential Breakup Song, Chemicals React, Rush etc. but the latest EP by the duo shows there artistic side and moves in a direction towards alternative music. I swear if BRU was still on air, they would be playing this. As  for that show, you would not beleive the passion these two still have for all the old and new songs. If I were to tell you the top 3 shows I've seen at the Paradise it would go: #1 The Dillinger Escape Plan #2 Denzel Curry #3 Aly & AJ.

Maylene & The Sons of Disaster - Self Titled
Genre: Southern Rock/Post-Hardcore FFO: He is Legend, Cancer Bats, Norma Jean
Favorite Track: Bang! The Witch is Dead


Maylene is the project of the mighty Dallas Taylor after leaving UnderOath in 20..whenever it was. It's an odd transition going from preaching about God in a blackened metalcore/screamo band to a tangy smoky southern barbecue with some gator wrasslin' on the side. If you haven't heard Maylene yet, your summer barbecues ain't gonna be the same. Best experience comes with a shotgun in hand.

Jex Thoth - Self Titled
Genre: Stoner Metal FFO: Acid King, Blood Ceremony, Windhand
Favorite track: Nothing Left to Die


Jex Thoth is the name of both the band as well as the front woman. Very bluesy stoner metal with a hint of evil. If Windhand was a magic user build in an RPG that focused on wind, Jex Thoth would be the fire. Of course by magic user I mean witch because her vocals are haunting and hypnotizing. All you will see is an empty wasteland as you start to hallucinate from dehydration and those blues riffs will give you some psychedelic visions you won't soon forget.

Princess Nokia - Metallic Butterfly & A Girl Cried Red
Genre: Hip-Hop/RnB FFO: SZA, Noname
Favorite Track: Dragons (MB), Your Eyes Are Bleeding (AGCR)

Nokia is a shining gem amongst this type of music. Both of these releases are impeccable and bonus points for that (sic) Slipknot shirt. Nokia gained fame with her hit single Tomboy which still bumps hard, however transitioning from rap to RnB always seems to be the way to go with most artists. For example, if Drake did a whole album like Hold On, We're Going Home, maybe I would care more to listen to him. Nokia goes down this path and keeps you hooked and wanting more. Both releases best listened to with ice cream in hand, on a pier.

Beach House - Depression Cherry
Genre: Indie/Dream Pop FFO:Beach Fossils, Cocteau Twins, Washed Out
Favorite Track: Space Song


Beach House have been around for a long time but I gotta say this album I feel they really out did themselves. No matter what album it is, I always imagine myself at...well a beach house watching the tides pull in and out through the entire course of a day. Depression Cherry gives it that flavor though. This one is like the waves crashing down with the sun setting and the sky is that purple into orange color. Gotta love it.

Pinkshinyultrablast - Miserable Miracles
Genre: Dream Pop FFO: Cocteau Twins, The Naked and Famous, Them are us too
Favorite Track: Dance AM


The name suggest the visual that comes with the music. All I imgine when I hear that twinkly synth, is one of those carnival style piers like at Orchard beach, only at night and everything is lit up and I just won an oversized Minion from knocking over the whole tower of bottles. The album really speaks for itself, listen to understand.

Fu Manchu - The Action is Go
Genre: Stoner Metal/Southern Rock FFO: Kyuss, Red Fang, The Atomic Bitchwax
Favorite Track: Unknown World


Featuring former members of Kyuss, Fu Manchu are here to redefine rock n roll. The Action is go is all about skating with a blunt, no wait a fully loaded bong, in one hand and a big middle finger salute to a cop in the other. The rock n roll jam for all. I still question the album cover simply because that kid is on a pennyboard.

Polar Bear Club - Chasing Hamburg
Genre: Indie/Post-Hardcore FFO: Title Fight, Crime in Stereo, I Am the Avalanche
Favorite track: Light of Local Eyes


That whole scene of indie bands touring with hardcore bands is getting more and more relevant these days. I feel Polar Bear Club were the original indie for hardcore kids, as I recall them touring with TUI or something. Anywho, this is a good sundown album at the end of the day. Just you, me and this brick wall you built between us. Before you realize the pie you ate was a bomb, you will enjoy emotion filled lyrics with a punk edge and charming indie background.

Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, m.A.A.d City
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap FFO:Compton
Favorite Track: Backseat Freestyle

You know him, you love him. Kendrick's popularity began with this one the skyrocketed with the next, and acsended beyond by winning a Pulitzer Prize. The one thing Kendrick always had was his black pride which is absolutely shown in m.A.A.d. City. This  album features the same flow but not as much of a story like Damn. and Butterfly. This is one of those roll the windows down and blast at full volume type of albums. Halle Barry....Hallelujah!

Ligeia - Bad News
Genre: Metalcore FFO: It Dies Today, It Prevails, Vanna
Favorite Tracks: Teenage Wasteland, Hoodrat
 

Remember when you were a curious young lad who would get excited when a girl shows skin? Well if it wasn't for those curiosities, I would not have discovered  this album. Ligeia were an old school metalcore band hailing from our great state of Massachusetts who were alcoholic party monsters. If you grew up with this album, I know you know every word to I've Been Drinkin'. I feel this album was the start of that melodic style that The Ghost Inside etc. type of bands commercialized. These unsung heroes were all about two things: getting wasted, and getting rejected by babes (Johnny Bravo style). Change that party music and fight everyone.

Fleeting Joys - Despondent Transponder
Genre: Indie/Dream Pop FFO: Broadcast, Drop Nineteens, Miserable
Favorite Track: Magnificent Oblivion


Fleeting Joys were ahead of their time. I guess you could call me a new listener, but I'm more than impressed. This style is getting widely respected amongst the indie crowd and I could name many that sound influenced by it. Maybe I'm over exaggerating considering this album came out in 2006 and Fleeting Joys continue to make music but whatever. Thus album just makes me think of clouds floating by the sun. Shoegaze-y indie pop or whatever you want to call it is a fantastic balance of emotion, heavy, and w a v e y.

Unsane - Occupational Hazard
Genre: Noise Rock/Sludge Metal/Punk FFO: Whores.,Coalesce, Today is the Day
Favorite track: Over Me


Most of my generation that got into heavy music did it through Tony Hawk games, I bring this up all the time. Unsane I discovered this way but I feel they didn't stick with most. They definitely kept me company however. This album is the soundtrack to dangerous daredevil stunts. It always seems to be a trend for me in the past few summers that I do something stupid. To name a few: Doing a backflip off a bridge into the Charles River, tagging a railroad track then almost getting hit by a train, pushing zach down a hill in a shopping cart, I could go on. Nonetheless, this is the wipeout album. Unsane take hints of sludge and punk, add those weird ass noise riffs and massive amounts of distortion, and give it a gory theme to make your summer far more dangerous.

Colbie Caillat - Coco
Genre: Indie Pop FFO: Michelle Branch, Vanessa Carlton
Favorite Track: Oxygen


This is one I hope everyone knows. If you do, you know its euphoria at the beach with your significant other. Colbie mixes tropical backgrounds with a twinkly acoustic and her beautiful, somewhat southern sounding voice. This album is favorite of mine and has been for a long time.

Monolord - Rust
Genre: Stoner Metal FFO: Ufomammut, Sleep, Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard


Destructive, psychedelic, doom. Rust is the equivalent of tripping your balls off and being teleported into a desert wasteland where the gravity is 20x stronger. Heavy heavy heavy. Monolord are fucking heavy.

Miguel - War & Leisure
Genre: R&B FFO: SZA, The Weeknd
Favorite Track: Pineapple Skies


I discovered Miguel from hearing his interview on the Breakfast Club on the radio one day. Later that day I realized he was the mastermind behind the hit single, Skywalker. Miguel drops a modern spin on R&B that is both smooth and sexy. I honestly can't listen to this album and have a bad day. War & Leisure will drag the sun out from behind the clouds on a stormy day.

The Naked and Famous - Passive Me, Aggressive you
Genre: Alternative/Dream Pop FFO: Passion Pit, Matt & Kim, Tegan and Sara
Favorite Track: Young Blood


Another long time favorite of mine. You know those days where there's a small amount of rain but the sun shines thru like the pictures on those church fliers? That happens because someone somewhere is playing this album. I think of this as my orginal gateway into dream pop considering the twinkly and bright melodies. By the way, now you know a project from Iceland.

Playing Enemy - I Was Your City
Genre: Mathcore/Sludge Metal/Zachcore FFO: Coalesce, Knut, Swarm of the Lotus
Favorite Track: Monaco


The soundtrack to doing criminal shit. I Was Your City is for when its stupid bright out, and you wish everyone was dead. You guessed it, this one is for the city. Playing Enemy probably sticks out the most on this playlist considering its heavy, chaotic, and features members of Kiss it Goodbye. Well we gotta balance it out, besides I Was Your City is a good one for desert temperatures in the city while you scream out of pent up rage. Go fight a cop.

Rule Them All - An Alignment of Polarity
Genre: Hardcore Punk FFO: Vantage Point, Abuse of Power
Favorite Track: Lukewarm


Not long ago I took time out of my weekend to head on down to Providence to see a hardcore show since its been a very long time. Rule Them All headlined this show and the first thing I thought of was "I gotta skate to this". I gotta say, for a hardcore band they give off a melodic feel and a very rock n roll pattern with the vocals. I don't get impressed by hardcore very often anymore so definitely take my word for it.

Red Fang - Self Titled
Genre: Southern/Sludge Metal FFO: Big Business, High on Fire, Fu Manchu
Favorite Track Night Destroyer


Red Fang is one of those bands that you don't really know what to expect if you never heard them. For example when this album first came out, judging by the cover and logo I expected powerviolence. Little did I know it was a desert sounding rock n roll anthem. Red Fang's debut from front to back is something you would expect to be on a Tony Hawk game. A good skate sesh as well as a hike in the mountains. A slow sludgey sound with subtle blues influence and lots of sweet southern BBQ riffs, gotta love it.

Boris - Pink
Genre: Various FFO: Earth, Melt Banana, Kylesa
Favorite Track: Pink


Once you see the cover, Pink is the only color on your mind. Because of that I think its a good one for the sun. If you're not familiar with Boris, know that they never stuck with one genre. They never started one then matured with another, or did the Eighteen Visions thing where every album sounds different. They literally jumble every genre together for the most part. Primarily they tend to stick with a doom and punk structure, but they have released other albums that are entirely different. nyway we're talking Pink. This one is a good mix of punk rock and drone. Yeah you read that right. It's sometimes like Black flag used the same effects as Sunn O))), others its just straight drone doom. oddly enough everything fits perfect together. More credit to Japan for giving birth to incredible bands like this.

Helmet - Meantime
Genre: Sludge Metal/Grunge/Alt. Metal FFO: Melvins, Prong, Corrosion of Conformity
Favorite Tracks: In the Meantime, Unsung


I don't know many who don't like Helmet. The legedary album is more than worth the summer playlist. Not much I should really need to say other than no heavy band that formed after the 90s matters without saying "Helmet was a huge influence for us".
Avril Lavigne - Let Go
Genre: Pop Punk/Rock
Favorite track: Losing Grip


Don't act like you don't know it. Don't act like you don't love it. Don't act like you don't know every word to Complicated. Don't act like you don't know every word to Sk8er Boi.

Ho-Kago Tea Time - Ho-Kago Tea Time II
Genre: Light Music FFO: Really Cute Things, Things That Taste Really Good


Fuck you.