Introduction
Five Songs, 5/19/2021
Five Songs

Five Songs, 5/19/2021

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Consolidated, "This Is A Collective"

You know, if Consolidated had gotten rolling now instead of back in the early 90s, there would have been some Serious Discourse about them. Not just engaging with the politics of the band, but also probably a bunch of stuff around if what they are doing is cultural appropriation. I'm making up this whole thing and still making myself mad!

Ryan Porter, "The Psalmist"

Given how much I like ska and the horns in soul music, it should surprise nobody that this kind of thing is absolutely my jam.

...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, "Mistakes & Regrets"

The second Trail of Dead album, Madonna, is where I got on board. I was there for the unapologetic big rock. A lot of what I listened to at the time was more austere or noisy (or was ska), so this was a breath of fresh air. It's not their best album, but it still has a place in my heart.

Oranssi Pazuzu, "Uraanisula"

Finish psychedelic black metal weirdos Oranssi Pazuzu checking in here with a big slab of heaviness from Valonielu, their 2013 album. The psych stuff is what causes them to stand out from the standard, and makes their records pretty interesting.

Deafheaven, "Dream House"

And another different take on black metal! Deafheaven's 2013 record, Sunbather, gathered a whole bunch of attention outside metal cricles thanks to it sounding like the next logical step past shoegaze. That's really kind of unfair, of course, the drums and vocals are very metal, but there's not the same discordance that you would expect. It's just not ugly (except the vocals), it's actually kind of pretty. If you were looking for an album to kind of help you along the path to appreciating black metal, this is the one.

Joshua Buergel
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