Special Interest

I don't think I've seen this thread yet, but if I missed it please merge this with the other.

This year felt particularly good for shows, new releases and reissues. I didn't get to travel as much as I'd like but otherwise, no complaints.

Highlights
Shows
Linekraft @ Hospital Fest, 2018 - best live show of the year for me. an awesome combination of stage presence and performance with fucking perfect sound. a goddamn revelation. i'll post a long clip of the performance to youtube soon.
Ride For Revenge x2 @ Resident DTLA - absolutely worth traveling to the other side of the country to see this. both sets were top notch, but the first night with the opening electronic noise onslaught was my favorite. special shout out to Reptile Womb and Striations who killed the opening slots.
Boy Harsher @ Johnny Brenda's - the best darkwave/synthpop/etc. group going. electric sexual tension and real stage presence. can't wait for their album release party next year @ elsewhere.
Shifted @ Elsewhere - so loud and precise it felt like grains of digital sand were slowly swallowing up my brain.
Cooter, Sects and Legless @ Heaven's Gate and Hart Bar - two back to back nights of killer noise and penis removal. an excellent time with excellent people.

New Releases
Grunt - Castrate the Illusionist LP - are you fucking kidding me? makes me want to give up on CM completely. and the closer, Choir of Corpses has got to be one of the best Grunt tracks ever.
Wonderland Club - I Wish It Never Happened cassette - even better than Pageant to my taste. this one has teeth!
Linekraft - 33 Purgatories cassette - actually prefer this to the new LP on Hospital. real rough and tumble sound and Jim Jones samples. the best industrial artist in Japan currently.
Celebrity Appreciation Society - Selected Case Studies Vol. 3 - Idol cassette - the accompanying materials are as important as the music. and the music is the best from CAS yet!
Zyklon SS - Moral War 10" - again, best ZSS yet. understated but completely effective.
Worth - Blinder LP & The Steps cassette - gonna include the LP because I didn't even hear about it until this year. my two favorite new harsh noise releases. will be picking up anything Worth puts out from this point forward.

Throat - Bareback LP - how do they keep getting so much better?
Portal - ION LP - like having your dick struck by lightning in a haunted house
Vomitor - Pestilent Death LP - if reanimated skeletons played ultra raw thrash
Overlook - All of Them Witches EP / Public Image EP 12" - the best in drum & bass right now, hands down.

Reissues
Mo*Te - Life in a Peaceful New World & Cuffs CDs - the best reissues I didn't even know I wanted.
Genocide Organ - Mind Control  LP/7" - duh.
Final Solution - Half/Dead cassette - even more duh.
MERZBOW - Noisembryo 2xLP - fucking pricey but it looks and sound excellent. honestly would have preferred a CD reissue though :P
Transgressor - Twisting Brochus Demo II cassette - I absolutely love Transgressor and it's nice to get a faithful reproduction of this killer demo. totally underrated band.

I grabbed a lot of other really good stuff that I haven't listened to enough to put in my top of the year. First mention goes to Force Neurotic / Missing who is just absolutely killing it with his own style and aesthetic. music for those quiet hours and trance states. Cooter is another one to watch, the tour tape was especially good. Agonal Lust and Disgusting Sanctum continue to get better with each release. and if you're into drum & bass the UVB-76 label and related artists are absolutely on fire. they can do no wrong.

Lowlights
about half of the lineup for Hospital Fest '18. I do a full report on this soon but I left scratching my head.
missing the Anenzephalia / Genocide Organ shows in LA due to life obligations...
missing out on the Geography of Hell album earlier this year
going to five funerals

Highlights
Akitsa - Credo
Clandestine Blaze - Tranquility Of Death
Terror Cell Unit - Psalm 137:9
Archgoat - The Luciferian Crown
Lebanon Hanover - Let Them Be Alien
Grunt - Castrate The Illusionist
The Soft Moon - Criminal
Interior One - Revenge Against Society
Mania/Deterge - Lay Waste /Future Of Pulse
Geography Of Hell - Hiroshima 1945/Nagasaki 1945
VA- Missing and Exploited Children
Zusammenbruch - Alterations & New Beginnings
Blackwatch - In The Company Of Death Heros
Sarin Snow - Natural Architecture
Tomb Mold - Manor Of Infinite Forms
Ron Morelli - Disappearer
Agonal Lust - Modern Atrocities
Phrenelith - Ornamented Dead Eyes
Striations - Vietnamization
Cold Cave - You & Me & Infinity
The Rita - Letestu
Kjostad - Glacial Lake

Shows
Pseudogod


Lowlights
Missing the G.O. show in LA

Highpoints

L'eclipse Nue - Lifeblood
Insanely well-crafted Industrial noise. Perfect mixture of structure and free-flowing brutality.

Snuff - IV
Total monster of raw and hateful PE. "Pulp" is one of my favourite Snuff tracks.

Graustich - Morality Ends
Dirty post-mortem / Industrial Noise. Maybe not quite as good as my all-time favourite "Dedicated to those.
.", but still terrific.

Linekraft - 33 Purgatories
Didn't buy the tape and probably won't, since 10 € is simply too much for a tape. However, the rip was absolutely delicious - on hands brutality, old school flanger sounds. Lovely.

Detrimental Effect - Be my Enemy
Holy crap... such a beautiful straight-forward peace of Industrial violence. Zero bullshit, all power. Usually, I am not too big on the whole heavy industrial game, but this is a 10/10.

Celebrity Appreciation Society - Vol 3
Love anything by Fremann, so it would be an instant win simply because of that. The sounds are great too, though. Gloomy atmosphere, great composition - reminded me a bit of N12.

Rudolf Eb.er - Om Kult I & II
Intense psychoactive Electronics, deep crackles, some noise chaos, striking atmosphere.

Entre Vifs - Ontologie
Just what one would expect from EV. Nothing more to be said

Highlights
Cirrhus - Unimpeachable Madness
Best usbm going-refinement of their energetic sound into transcendental territory. Hoping for some shows in 2019.

Current 93 - The Light is Leaving us All
Beautiful, dense compositions with a hallucinatory sense of motif and repetition.

Gateway - Dawn of the Civil Savage
Masterfully crafted noise, taking a pretty kitchen sink approach but never giving in to excess. Huge fan of everything Castle Bravo put out this year.

Linekraft
Jawdropping live set at Hospital Fest-best of the show by far. The lp drifts into a more subdued sound, but I still found it enthralling. Consistently the most interesting industrial coming out of Japan.

Geography of Hell - Hiroshima 1945/ Nagasaki 1945
Another interesting case of extremely intense live show followed by a subdued lp, but I find so much to come back to here.

Vile Gash - Nightmare in a Damaged Brain
About twenty minutes of jet black pummeling hardcore, a perfect summation of their sound.

Universal Eyes
Huge fan of the releases that came this year; dissonant, menacing dubs

Lowlights
Death in June - Essence
Some intersting moments but not much here to hold ones attention.

Dispassionate live performances in general; local and abroad

An extreme glut of exhaustingly boring death and black metal, tourists....away!

Highlights for me

XE - 18
Respirator - Burst (reissue)
Various ‎– Elävä Olento Koneena

In no particular order, definitely not exhaustive, and restricted to noise and related genres...

Sissy Spacek - Trash Staging LP (New Forces)
Normally I wouldn't include something I released because it's probably an asshole move, but this LP stands above a crowded year of (all excellent) Sissy Spacek recordings. Obliterating the boundary between harsh noise and noisecore. Most extreme record of the 2018.

Chris Corsano, Bill Nace, Steve Baczkowski ‎– Mystic Beings LP (Open Mouth)
One of my favorite sets of the year was seeing Steve Baczkowski performing solo saxophone opening for Aaron Dilloway (another of my favorite sets). Add him to the reliable tandem of Corsano and Nace and you get an absolutely ripping record of noisy free jazz. Highest recommendation.

Skin Graft - Afflict CS (Prime Ruin)
Somehow Skin Graft is reaching even higher levels of excellence with recent recordings. You can dress your industrial music up in all the right imagery and get people excited without recording a second's worth of music, but no one does anger and disgust like Skin Graft, and he does it with sound.

Remnants - Marred By Time LP (Crisis of Taste)
Some of the best American tape music, and this one has more of an edge, which is a good thing in my book. The perfect album for angrily zoning out.

Jeph Jerman ‎– The Bray Harp LP (White Centipede Noise)
This record ignited an obsession with an artist I had previously mostly ignored, much to my regret. Amazing textural noise. A positive influence on my own recording, a reminder that the cliche "less is more" is often 100% accurate.

Limbs Bin ‎– One Happy World LP (Torn Light Records)
Pure American rock'n'roll. No artist was more consistently excellent live in 2018, and this record captured that intensity with an expansive sound honed to a razor-edge.

Mercury Hall ‎– Living Table CS (Joy De Vivre)
One of several excellent recent Mercury Hall releases. Pure tension and anxiety, crystal clear contact-mic'ed objects and field recordings assembled into engaging narratives.

Untitled Compilation on SKSK CS (Featuring Dog lady Island, Forest Management, Skin Graft, Hostage Pageant, Being)
This one flew under the radar, there didn't seem to be much distribution. But it's a gem. Things start out quietly with an anxious introduction from Dog Lady Island and an excellent new-age drone piece from Forest Management (remember 10 years ago when there was a ton of this stuff?). Then the comp gets really brutal with one of the best Skin Graft tracks I've ever heard, followed be three crushing tracks from Hostage Pageant (we need more from Shane) and a great Being cut to round things off. It's hard to do a good noise comp but when they succeed I love them. The Skin Graft, Hostage Pageant, and Being contributions are all long enough to be solo tapes. There's a copy for $6 on discogs, hurry and grab it.

Wince ‎– The Older Generation LP (Tordon Ljud)
Another step in the evolution of a modern harsh noise master. While the previous full length CD on Freak Animal tightened the screws for a more slow-burning approach to noise, "The Older Generation" opens up the floodgates for a torrential, pummeling harsh noise record. We are quite literally starving for noise full length LP's and CD's these days, probably because no one wants to take a chance on them financially, which makes this stand out even more. It was a good year for reissues (Merzbow, K2, Genocide Organ, Masonna, Nurse With Wound...) but the "scene" is better when there is widespread interest in newer artists taking the time to release full-length albums in bigger editions. It pushes the quality of the music higher. I can think of plenty of limited edition tapes that were released this year that deserved 200-300 listeners... All of which is to say that I'm glad this Wince record exists.

Current 93 ‎– The Light Is Leaving Us All LP (The Spheres)
No need to describe this at length. It captures the atmosphere that is totally unique to Current 93. One of my favorite C93 art layouts as well.

I won't put any more New Forces releases on this list, but needless to say, I'm not at all surprised to be seeing the Striations - Vietnamization, Worth - The Steps, and Shredded Nerve - Final Vision cassettes showing up on other people's lists.

Live Highlights
Merzbow, Aaron Dilloway, Jackson-Pratt, Linekraft, Kakerlak, The Rita, Limbs Bin, Reverse Baptism, Steve Baczkowski, Black Leather Jesus, Magnetic Coroner, Ligature, Plague Mother, Scant, and probably a bunch that I am forgetting.

Vernichtung Durch Arbeit ‎– Hungertod LP even not enjoying the lengthy samples, the other parts are so appealing that I believe this is the best new PE project out.
Bizarre Uproar ‎– High Risk Lifestyle Recorded straight to an answering machine or something.
Presage Feralheart - A sickening take on PE sounds and themes via harsh noise made almost entirely with an ms20
Gerritt Wittmer ‎– Creation Stories - something different, really dark stuff


I still need to get Rotat's Grease District and the Veprisuicida reissues but I think they would make the list.


Best Live - Young Hustlers, Alfarmania, Russian Tsarlag, Gene Pick, Hogg, Mortuary Drape

It's not completely over yet, and there's always some great album that I haven't picked up yet, but...

JEPH JERMAN - The Bray Harp LP (White Centipede Noise)
As much as I love Jeph's stuff, both new and old, the brilliance of this LP owes alot to his collaborators Ben Brucato, Eric La Casa and Oskar Brummel. It still has Jerman written all over it though, albeit being unusually heavy.

TIMO VAN LUIJK & FEEDERIK CROENE - Fortune De Mer LP (La Scie Dorée)
A great sort of morriconish maritime themed album. Dramatic but without being too much.

MNEM - Hegonon LP (Sediment)
A typical MNEM album, but MNEM in concentrated and distilled form, I think. Bareboned and dry. A bunch of tracks without any apparent crescendos or narrative arch, just amazing and very evocative sounds.

WINCE - The Older Generation LP (Tordon Ljud)
I'm not the only one enjoying this. Stefan/New Forces shares my sentiments above.

RUSALKA - Revisualizations CS (New Forces)
This has me thinking of AUBE in his best moments, but without really sounding like him. Something about the very careful and thorough approach. Serious business! Excellent tape.

WORTH - Blood Possessed CD (Prose Nagge)
I probably enjoy The Steps just as much, but I have a soft spot for CD's. Weird apporach on this one, almost like Chop Shop converted into rough harsh noise. As someone on the board wrote, "important noise".

TRERIKSRÖSET - Jkpg 2008/Sthlm 2013 C32 (Hatband)
Side A is of personal importance to me, and the flip (Sthlm) sees Tommy in a different, almost romero:esque mood.

I DISCHI DEL BARONE - 7" label
I am sort of biased here, but this is such a great label and this year has been the best this far. Favorite 7" of 2018... hard pick, but KOREA UNDOK GROUP - Continent, I think.

Best noise/whatever shows

Christian Mirande - Kinda Tropical, Austin TX
Heat Signature - Skeleton Dust Records, Dayton OH
Jackson Pratt, White Rhino Taxidermy - Hart Bar, Brooklyn NY
Worth - Heinz Hopf rehearsal space, Gothenburg SWE
Leda - Nejd, Gothenburg SWE

It's been a really good year. I could probably double the length of this list.

Quote from: ConcreteMascara on December 14, 2018, 06:56:51 PM
Linekraft the best industrial artist in Japan currently.

Maybe i'm uneducated but are there really any competitors, besides Grim perhaps?

Highlights (chronologically...)
Shows
Morton Subotnick @ REDCAT
Consumer Electronics @ Resident DTLA
Marginal Consort @ Zebulon
Peter Brötzmann & Keiji Haino @ Zebulon
La Monte Young & Marian Zazeela @ Walt Disney Concert Hall
Sunn O))) @ Echoplex
Grouper @ First Congregational Church of Los Angeles


New Releases
Portal - ION
Russell Haswell - Respondent
Grouper - Grid of Points
Beach House - 7
SOPHIE - Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides
Death Grips - Year of the Snitch
Amnesia Scanner - Another Life
Sleaford Mods - S/T EP
Consumer Electronics - The Weight/Hostility Blues
Heather Leigh - Throne
Brötzmann & Leigh - Sparrow Nights


Reissues
Sun Ra - Of Abstract Dreams
Prince - Piano & A Microphone 1983
Todd Barton & Ursula K. Le Guin - Music and Poetry of the Kesh


Film/TV
Sorry to Bother You
The Lobby - USA; banned Al Jazeera doc series about the Israel lobby: https://electronicintifada.net/content/watch-film-israel-lobby-didnt-want-you-see/25876 (https://electronicintifada.net/content/watch-film-israel-lobby-didnt-want-you-see/25876)


Lowlights
Being unbelievably broke
Yves Tumor - Safe in the Hands of Love
Suspiria remake

some highlights for me, trying to not forget earlier stuff from this year.

COOTER Presents...BESMIRCHED 2: UNCUT - c20 of hilarious psycho shit. themed around the guy who got his dick cut off by his vengeful wife, then he spitefully made a terrible porno afterwords to show her he's still got it. side a is crazy samples and weirdo shit while side b is insane full harsh noise.

Bizarre Uproar - High Risk Lifestyle - BU also still has it. this one is concentrated, hi fi and heavy. Less of a live sound and more of a studio quality. spun this one a ton this year

Celebrity Appreciation Society - Selected Case Studies Volume 3: アイドル/*Idol* - maybe my favorite of the year. The packaging is incredible and gives you access into a voyeuristic playground filled with busty asian girls. A giant 80 page book by david freeman really takes the cake, the tone is playful and cute despite the  the content. although the cs itself is short it is raw as fuck filled with pretty piano samples, asian dialect and then heavy electronics/vocals.

Agonal Lust - Modern Atrocities - If I'm in the mood for something really heavy and hard with my morning coffee this is a good go to. Perfect to start off another pissed off day. The tracks are short and concentrated and work great as an album. definitely one of my favorite current PE acts right now and can't wait to see them in chicago in march.

Disgusting Sanctum ‎– Pathology Of Abuse - perfect sounds and imagery. got a ton of plays this year enough said.

Human Agony - Goring Christ - was lucky enough to get a spare copy from my boy C Mumma a couple weeks back and it hasn't left the cs walkman i leave  in my car since. This shit gets me excited about a genre I've slacked on for so many years. Low fi and dirty but still you can make everything out perfectly. fast at times slow at times. perfect album.

Needle Exchange (2) - Kill Em All With Fentanyl - this one blew me away and i listened to probably 3 times in row. crazy cut up noisecore but it flows really well. it is experimental as fuck but also super fast and drum heavy. i guess this cs hits home because i know the guy who does vocals is a total psycho. he used to do a project with me until his mom found our first cassettes artwork and almost kicked him out. He has since quit his job, lives at home and has threatened to kill the other guy he is in needle exchange with. i don't know if they will ever make an album again but probably not seeing as the other member called the cops on his vocalist. good times. this cs is really sick though!

Operation Cleansweep - Release Now! Apathy Induction - so glad i scooped it even though it was a bit pricey with shipping to the USA... worth every penny. When i first got the LP i really didn't know how to open it because i really didn't want to have the cut the strip in center but i was left with no choice. This one is Rhythmic and industrial. lots of slow heavy beats and perfect synth tones that put my ass in a trance. Some tracks somber, some filled with hate and anger but there is an underlying negative tone throughout the LP. Great that this project is still making quality sounds. Xn label always brings the goods.

Snuff - iv - Everytime i finish a new snuff album i think to myself "whew i made it".... a lot like XE this project actually hurts to listen to.  i like making myself give it full attention, listening to the full album on a long car ride or commute and every time there are moments i really want to turn it off... i guess it is that feeling is the reason why i keep coming back to it. This one brought the intensity that iii had but is more raw and has more of a live improv feel.

Various ‎– Stadsbranden 3 - great compilation of some of my favorite artists. Was stoked for Will / worth as he killed it in 2018 with his recorded works and live gigs across the world. Thankfully he got one of these for me abroad. Not worth the retarded 75 dollars on discogs but an awesome document non the less. Young Hustlers tracks are my favorite.

Various - The Pain Factory (A Public Access Tv Noise Show 1995-1997) - had such a blast watching all these old videos. seriously am so thankful for this release and it is mandatory for anyone into the genre.

Mania (4) / Deterge ‎– Lay Waste / Future of Pulse - i was so stoked when i got this in the mail and even though the special edition is a bitch to store it looks fucking cool. These two acts together put a smile on my face. Both acts continue down their wormhole of style with an unflinching 0 fucks attitude. The cassette that came with it is just as good. Highly recommended. Fusty is just relentless... another huge batch just dropped? you can tell he cares so much for what he does and i respect that.

Pissoir Rouge - Pissoir Rouge - This cs is pure psycho shit. when i listened i had to stop what i was doing to kinda laugh and say what the fuck? blown out rough and nasty. it just had a perfect feel for me at that moment. the cover is retarded hand drawings with pen and is scotch taped onto the baggie. OFR has an ear for these kinds acts i would normally probably never otherwise be exposed to. Thanks Benni

Anenzephalia - Magenta - A massively dark and withdrawn album. Creepy and slow moving synth that creates such a scary atmosphere. Never blown out but always full on insane. Music for horror films or the end of the world. A master of his craft. Seeing him perform the day after GO in Los Angeles this summer was such an experience. The night before everyone was going crazy and pushing and fighting during/after GO, but during anenzephalia i had the feeling everyone was tired, burnt out or maybe just mesmerized. This album captures that performance.

Thanks to those of you who've given kind words - surprising but quite welcome.

Total agreement on the Final Solution reissue, Cooter tour tape, Mercury Hall C20 from JDV, V/A Elävä Olento Koneena (minus yours truly of course!). Bummed I missed out on the Remnants LP, and still have yet to hear the most recent Grunt and Anenzephalia albums. Dare I say a little envious of those who saw Christian Mirande live.

Quote from: Maurice on December 15, 2018, 09:00:28 PM
Lowlights
Being unbelievably broke

Highlights for me :
Agonal Lust - Modern Atrocities : Already mentioned by most others here. Splendid release. Dirty, gritty, effective.
Striations : both his Trauma Code and Vietnamization releases. His work always leave in awe. Hope they both get the vinyl treatment.
Graustich - Morality Ends : Being a sucker for heavy electronics, this one just had to hit me full in the face.
Alfarmania - The Waiting Grave : Probably my absolute favourite of this year

Releases:
Tracy Lords Loves Noise - The Ultimate Fantasy
Knelt Rote - Alterity
Striations - Vietnamization
Buck Young - Proud Trash Sound
Concave/Convex -Victory Over Body
Sentenced - Extinguishment
Grunt - Castrate the Illusionist
Basically Anything from any of Josh Peterson's projects
Stoker - Jump Street
Human Agony - Goring Christ
Oozing Meat - Contaminated
Terror Cell Unit - Psalm 137:9 and the accompanying cassingle
Worth - Neanderthal Camera/Blood Possessed/The Steps
Ferro Mortem -Underworld
Disgusting Sanctum - Pathology of Abuse
MK9 - Loss as Loss
BizarreSSMania - II
Celebrity Appreciation Society - Selected Case Studies Volume 3
Nihilist Commando/Neuss - Split
City Hunter - Deep Blood
Vile Gash - Nightmare in A Damaged Brain
Bacillus - Serial Infector
Psycho Ex Girlfriend
AntiChildLeague - Infect Your Gut Infect Your Thoughts
Sissy Spacek - Trash Staging/Ways of Confusion
Basically anything from Punishment Private Release
Striations/Human Agony - Live at Coaxial
Genocide Organ - Mind Control Reissue
Fecallove - Anal Lobotomy
Mania/Deterge - Lay Waste/Future of Pulse
Current 93 - Thunder Perfect Mind reissue
Godcage - Albatross of Faith (probably mostly for my personal connection to the artist and being glad to see his work still being release posthumously)
Vomit Arsonist - Further
Blackwatch - In the Company of Dead Heroes
DJ Speedsick - Death Trip '17
Lille Roger - Undead 1984-1987 Boxset
Agonal Lust - Modern Atrocities
Shredded Nerve - Final Vision
Body Carve - Guts in Red Plastic
Ariana Grande - Sweetener and really just that fucking video for "thank u, next".

Probably many more I've forgotten to add (just looking from my discogs collection by year).

Print:
Peter Sotos - Ingratitude (duh)
Everything from Amphetamine Sulphate, particularly Missing by Josh Peterson
David Fremann - AV Project
Whichever Noise Widow came out this year
Embalming Report #1 (I think that was 2018??)
David Fremann & John Gardner - Fucked by Moonlight (shameless, since I had a large part in this release but was very happy to work on this and how the finished product ultimately turned out)
Anything from New Juche that was released this year

Labels
Bacteria Field - consistently churning out great (and vile) releases
New Forces - Always purchase whatever new releases they have out
Dead Gods - Another I'll purchase anything from
Black Psychosis - Maybe a little biased as he released a tape of mine this year but Si always delivers on incredible artwork and packaging
Finders - Of course another one I have ties to but indisputably has curated an incredible selection of releases time after time with some of my favorite artwork
No Rent Records - Diverse selection of artists and I love the art style and design the label has developed

Shows, Experiences, Ephemera
Cooter, Legless, Sects tour - absolute blast. Each show had a great lineup, no car troubles, totally smooth, ideal tour. Highlights include: seeing Concrete Mascara nearly make my ears bleed at the Hart Bar and hanging with Frank for the few days he was around for the shows, Persecution Dragonness at Hart Bar, the soundguy DJ'ing Stoner Metal through the PA inbetween acts yet putting a limiter on the PA as to "not damage the sound system over a noise show", Jackson Pratt/Kiran Aurora live collab at Hart Bar, Legless and Stroker collab at Heaven's Gate and Sects' Philly Flyers Jersey at Heaven's Gate, literally just seeing Sects and Legless destroy every show we played, Life Appreciation Renewal in Richmond, going to "Cookout" in Richmond which apparently is the spot there and accidentally completely stepping someone's foot and them giving me the dirtiest look, Material Body Dysfunction headbutting me during his set in Cincinnati, Sects trying to give me MRSA in Cincinnati, Alba Cell, Brad Griggs, and Cominform all in Cincinnati, trying Cincinnati Chili for the first time and having some serious stomach issues with it shortly after. Also shoutout to Rachel's deer chili in Philadelphia.

Genocide Organ/Anenzelphia/and the Preshows in Los Angeles - Absolutely incredible weekend. Pedestrian Deposit was incredible at the first pre-show, basically every act at the second pre-show, specifically Deterge and Terror Cell Unit among all the great acts, seeing Genocide Organ obviously was an incredible experience as well as Anenzephalia and Puce Mary the next night. Pitchers of Long Island Ice Tea were definitely a highlight. Some shitty rave we went to after the GO show I guess was a highlight even though it mostly sucked, maybe that was a lowlight. Psychiatry: An Institution of Death Museum was a great experience; if that was not a propaganda exhibit funded by the Church of Scientology I would've thought it was the greatest art installation piece I'd ever have seen. Also going to some shitty strip club called "Dames and Games" that was recommended to us by some sketchy tattoo artist who advertised it as "Dave and Buster's but with topless women" was somewhat of a lowlight because there were literally no games besides strippers playing mind games...so it goes. They did have some great drink, I think it was like an appletini with a less embarrassing name or something but fuck it, it was delicious and I had about six. Basically just meeting a lot of folks I'd communicated with online was great and the weekend ruled.

Brighter Death Now/Pharmakon/Gnawed/Scant: Another fun trip and I enjoy getting out to New York whenever I can. I think my favorite set of the night was Gnawed who played his signature form of absolutely miserable death industrial. Also Roger from BDN kissed me on the lips so that was a plus.

Can't remember the dates but saw Worth a handful of times this year and he never disappoints live. Total harsh madness, everyone is aware of the praise he's received from the recent releases but his live sets hold up just as well. Jeff Plummer of Creeping did a number of fantastic sets that I saw this year as well, I think my favorite was at the Bad Timing Festival in Providence alongside Jason Crumer and FFH who also both performed great sets.

Seeing Marylin Manson and Rob Zombie were fun trips down memory lane for me, particularly Rob Zombie's hilarious "rockstar" on stage antics.

There was another set at Black Lace in Providence that I really enjoyed, I believe the act was called Isabella, not sure where she is from and was totally not a noise set by any means just a long (as in maybe 40 min-60 min) set of high BPM rave style techno. I'm by no means a big techno fan but was still a great performance.

Anyway, I think that's about it for live performances from 2018, was a great year for me.

Also, I really enjoyed season 2 of The Deuce on HBO, definitely worth a watch, and for anyone who cares about stupid internet bullshit, the Shane Dawson documentary on Jake Paul was pretty good.

Lowlights:
My boss being a fucking bitch 24/7.
Friends moving far away etc.

Well, my personal lowlight, which overshadows all possible highlights - my woman and partner for quite some years left me 2 months ago for reasons still not very clear to me. It seems that "she was my better half and I was just a dog", to quote from Tom Waits' "Bad liver & a broken heart". (I have both now)

Will have to think about the highlights, but all my records and stuff are still a huge mess from moving out of our house.

I'll just list a few general things rather than poring over a concise list....

Highlights:

Sissy Spacek - I've enjoyed every record, CD and tape I've picked up and there have been a bunch. Probably my favourite current act. I feel like 2016 was full of awesome releases, 2017 was a bit more subdued and 2018 had so many awesome LPs. Haven't gone as much into the Daymare/Dotsmark discs yet though.

Body/Head - The Switch: Sonic Youth had some amazing moments and a lot of cringey shit but Kim Gordon and Bill Nace making wild guitar noises for 40 minutes I could listen to forever and a day. Really looking forward to seeing them in March.

Striations - Vietnamization. Worthy of all the praise it's getting. Zine was great as well.

New Forces - I picked up almost everything this year. I can't think of a bad release but the Wolf Creek, Mass Marriage, Personnage 77, Sissy Spacek LP, Blind Date - everything was great and NF and Oxen are the top tier of noise right now.

Oxen - I try to pick up everything they do and they were all winners. The Scalding Feast 2xCD was a great way to cap off the year. Being, Mason and Boar tapes are great.  

Incinerated - Lobotomize: does this count as a 2018 release since the CD-R came out in 2017? Whatever, it rips so friggin hard.

Portal - Ion: "they've still got it"

Himukalt - I recently picked up the "Knife in the Spine" LP after picking up the Co e October tape - really interesting stuff! Very diverse, high quality PE/Industrial. Definitely going to have to keep an eye out for more of her records.

Sleep - The Sciences/Leagues Beneath: great records, great gimmick of dropping the records on 4/20, great riffs, great live set over the summer.

Reissues:

Merzbow - Noisembryo and Pulse Demon were excellent. More of this classic era, please!!

Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica DLP on Third Man. Everyone loves to shit on Jack White but this is a quality reissue. Would have been nice if they did a standard press so those who aren't willing to drop $100 on it could get this remaster. Nice tote bag though.

K2 - The Switch - great record, really glad this was reissued.

Low points: Black/Death metal overall. Not a lot of interesting records and the scene seeems to be fully morphing into edgelord central. I know it's always been there but it just seems like insufferable a-holes are the norm rather than the 10% festering below the surface.

Some personal highlights:

LP/CD:
Vile Gash - Nightmare In A Damaged Brain
Solid Space - Space Museum (re)
V/A - Dutch Wave (A History Of Minimal Synth & Wave In The Netherlands)
Low - Double Negative
Hiro Kone - Pure Expenditure
Alva Noto & Ryuichi Sakamoto - Glass
Dedekind Cut - Tahoe
Mo*Te - Life In a Peaceful New World (re)
François Dufrêne ‎– Cri-Rythmes (re)
Genocide Organ - Mind Control (re)

EP:
Brian Eno w/ Kevin Shields - The Weight Of History
Welfare - Useful Toil
Geld - Soft Power
Primorje - Etymology
Old Tower - Drachenblut

LIVE:
S.H.I.T., Permanent Debt, Pressure Pact - Amsterdam
Puce Mary, John Duncan - Rotterdam
Shark Attack, Shipwrecked - Eindhoven
Cock Sparrer - Amsterdam
Cigarettes After Sex - Utrecht
Pan Daijing, Nocturnal Emissions - Rotterdam
Marissa Nadler - Amsterdam
Svartvit - Leiden

MOVIE:
Dogman
You Were Never Really Here

Lows -

Not seeing Ramleh in London.
Not seeing MK9 on the recent tour after I'd bought so much stuff over the year.


Highs.
Discovering S.T.A.B. Electronics. Buying Day of the Male and Born for Righteous Abuse.
Seeing Vomir.
Ordering stuff from Unrest productions.
Seeing Skullflower live, sitting at the front and getting  a face full of incense.
Active Denial demo.
Discovering S.C.U.M. FC from that mad live performance on YouTube and getting some tapes.
Moving house.
Reviewing loads of stuff on my blog.
New ANTICHILDLEAGUE tapes on OFR and Bacteria Field, best releases yet by ACL.
The latest issue of Special Interests, no reviews, but it is the best issue in ages.
STARK - Caveat Emptor (Obsessive Fundamental Realism) + the Purge Electronics (one Master) and Bagman (Nth Degree) recordings I got of Steve Bagman.
Finally getting a copy of the 2nd Nekrofellatio cd - Pesadilla En Una Noche Sin Estrellas (Death Continues Records)

Highlights:

Unrest being invited to Paris by Au-delà du Silence was a welcome break from the insular day to day of running a label. Great turn out as well. A magical and inspiring weekend!
Featuring as a live member of AM NOT for a second time.
Discovering Wroclaw!
All the other travels. Long may that lifestyle continue!

Lows:

Low IQ colleagues finding new lows with which to torture those of us not in the single digit category.
When can I leave England next?

1. V/A - Amplified Humans Festival 2xDVD [ New Forces / Skeleton Dust Recordings ]

https://youtu.be/icZywz4QhDw

FILE UNDER: HARSH NOISE / EXPERIMENTAL / INDUSTRIAL NOISE

I am old, and so this is how I prefer to experience festivals now. Fuck having to buy a plane ticket, travel all the way to a distant city only to spend countless hours holed up in a dingy club. Now I can appreciate the festival sights and sounds, energy and vibes all in the comfort of my living room. This DVD has really incredible quality featuring mixing board recordings of all the sets. I don't care as much about the visual quality - much of the video is grainy but noticeable is that most of the sets have multiple camera angles which are switched to in the editing. There are so many amazing sets here as expected like Aaron Dilloway, Kazumoto Endo, T.E.F. but there are also a ton of other excellent sets like that of Facialmess, Deterge and more.

2. Reutoff feat. Deutsch Nepal - Eating the Dust CD [ Self Released ]

https://deutschnepal.bandcamp.com/album/eating-the-dust

FILE UNDER: POST INDUSTRIAL / ELECTRONIC

Incredible collaborative album of electronic post-industrial. Relaxed and deep rhythms collide with Lina Baby Doll's haunting vocals to make for a head-nodding experience through dark passageways.

3. Lille Roger - Box Set 6xLP [ Cold Meat Industry ]

https://youtu.be/BymPz7LpO2I

FILE UNDER: DEATH INDUSTRIAL / POWER ELECTRONICS

The old is new again with this harrowing collection of death industrial staples from the 80s. If you aren't familiar with Roger Karmanik he is the man behind the infamous project Brighter Death Now. Yet Lille Roger was his project before the realization of BDN and it's clear that this material is a precursor of what is to come. Yet these songs have much more a "punk" structure although the style is in lo-fi industrial moods there are some guitar and bass riffs here and there adding a subtle post-punk flavor to a few of tracks. The term "angst pop" is even dropped as a descriptor of the material within but I think it's a bit off the mark. This is not accessible music by any means. But to those who can swallow the style, it's quite the delight!

4. Spiritual Front - Amour Braque (Luxus) CD/LP [ Prophecy Productions ]

https://spiritualfrontofficial.bandcamp.com/album/amour-braque-luxus

FILE UNDER: GOTHIC ROCK / NEOFOLK / MELODRAMATIC POP

I'll start by saying Spiritual Front is certainly not for everybody. They are an Italian band mixing neofolk, goth rock, country, and melodromatic pop music. Yet I found myself listening to this album over and over again this year and finally submitted to it's memorable moments and catchy tales of love, lust, and loss. Although the album does drift into circus territory maybe more than I would like at times the bonus tracks that come with the luxus version more than make up for that with minimal interpretations of some of the hits from the album and it's almost like a separate EP that is very effective.

5.  Rome - Hall of Thatch CD/LP [ Trisol ]

https://youtu.be/d1XBijZFn7g

FILE UNDER: NEO FOLK / GOTHIC FOLK

I saw Rome fans complaining online that they are starting to sound too much like modern-day Swans but I, for one, and totally ok with that! Although this album perhaps isn't as experimental and varied as other albums what it lacks in complexity it makes up for in straightforward driving anthems of struggle. Beautifully embracing the projects neofolk roots, yet forging forward with a more polished sound Rome really hits it home with this one.

6. Soaplands - s/t C16 [ No Rent Records ]

https://norentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/s-t-nrr68

FILE UNDER: PSYCHEDELIC POWER ELECTRONICS

Arguably this release is much too short but it is just so damn unique, emotional and haunting that it made the proper list. Psychedelic power electronics is what we have here delivered by these Boston boys. Seething synthesizers converging in harmonic washes of devastation ebb and flow into droning fields of psychedelia. An utterly unique sound which is very impressive.

7. To End It All - Scourge of Woman LP [ Scry Recordings ]

https://toenditall.bandcamp.com/album/scourge-of-woman

FILE UNDER: DEATH INDUSTRIAL / POWER ELECTRONICS

To End It All is a Seattle duo who creates densely designed monolithic structures of darkened death industrial. Extremely detailed and soaked with creative sound design while draped with haunting operatic female vocal performances. The LP is a culmination of almost 2 years of work with some of the material previously being released on cassette but it is their most complete work to date conceptually speaking. This is some of the most innovative heavy and dark industrial being made today.

8.Herz Juhning - Samsara CD [ Galakthorro ]

https://youtu.be/iWB56807FCs

FILE UNDER: INDUSTRIAL

As Haus Arafna continues to drift into more angst pop territory Herz Juhning continues to work in more aggressive and droning styles. Don't get me wrong, there are some dancefloor hits on this one but as an album it's varied contributions make for an excellent journey through the darkest corners of the mind.

9. Low - Double Negative CD/LP

https://lowtheband.bandcamp.com/album/double-negative

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL / ELECTRONIC / AMBIENT / INDIE

I used to listen to low back in the 00's but I haven't revisited the band for quite some time. I can't remember what piqued my interest in Double Negative but I was beholden to the over-compressed washes of digital distortion at first listen. Double Negative is to Low as Kid A was to Radiohead, except Low climbs much further out on the branch here into much more dangerous territory. Well it paid off. Imagine an indie rock album completely eviscerated to it's most extreme yet basic elements and you have this album.

10. Atrium Carceri & Herbst9 - Ur Djupan Dal 2xLP [ CryoChamber ]

https://cryochamber.bandcamp.com/album/ur-djupan-dal

FILE UNDER: DARK AMBIENT / NEW AGE

It's fewer and far between when I am really impressed with a dark ambient album but upon hearing this early in 2018 I knew it was going to a staple for the year. Beautifully layered synthesizers and spoken samples are composed into a soothing and dark soundscape that pays homage to Lustmord and Robert Rich's "Stalker" album. Dark ambient in the way I like to hear it.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

I'm going to cheat a bit this year because there was just too much damn good music that was released. It's really hard to pick only 10, especially in a year like this so the hell with it, I'm listing all the albums that really blew me away this year here:

Dave Phillips - Ritual Protest Music [ Urbsounds Collective ]
Sumac - Love in Shadow LP [ Thrill Jockey ]
Emma Ruth Rundle - On Dark Horses LP [ Sargent House ]
King Dude - Music to Make War To LP [ Van ]
Henrik Nordvargr Bjorkk - Metempsychosis CD [ Cyclic Law ]
Hide - Castration Anxiety LP [ Dias Records ]
Puce Mary - Drought DIGITAL [ PAN ]
Grunt - Castrate the Illusionist LP [ Freak Animal ]
Isenordal - Spectral Embrace C40 [ Self Released ]
Santogold - I Don't Want: The Goldfire Sessions DIGITAL [ Downtown ]
Inade - The Nine Colours of the Threshold CD [ Loki Foundation ]
Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want 2xLP [ Ipecac Recordings ]
Striations - Vietnamization C60 [ New Forces ]
Marathon - s/t C60 [ Divergent Series ]


TOP 10 LIVE PERFORMANCES:

Scott Kelly @ Slim's Last Chance Saloon

Boy Harsher @ The Biltmore Cabaret

Mass Marriage @ Vancouver Noise Fest VIII

Batushka @ Highline

Regosphere @ Black Lodge

Sistrenatus @ Lot 8

Hacavitz @ Convenant Festival

Bacillus @ Vancouver Noise Fest

To End It All & Vanessa Skantze @ Teatro de la Psychomachia

Pathogens @ Sub Station

This is why these year-end threads are such fun, if not downright necessary.  Too much.  Too much great stuff.

Quote from: xdementia on December 28, 2018, 10:39:57 AM5.  Rome - Hall of Thatch CD/LP [ Trisol ]

https://youtu.be/d1XBijZFn7g

FILE UNDER: NEO FOLK / GOTHIC FOLK

I saw Rome fans complaining online that they are starting to sound too much like modern-day Swans but I, for one, and totally ok with that! Although this album perhaps isn't as experimental and varied as other albums what it lacks in complexity it makes up for in straightforward driving anthems of struggle. Beautifully embracing the projects neofolk roots, yet forging forward with a more polished sound Rome really hits it home with this one.

Completely unaware of Rome.  Thank you.  This is very good.

Quote from: xdementia on December 28, 2018, 10:39:57 AM7. To End It All - Scourge of Woman LP [ Scry Recordings ]

https://toenditall.bandcamp.com/album/scourge-of-woman

FILE UNDER: DEATH INDUSTRIAL / POWER ELECTRONICS

To End It All is a Seattle duo who creates densely designed monolithic structures of darkened death industrial. Extremely detailed and soaked with creative sound design while draped with haunting operatic female vocal performances. The LP is a culmination of almost 2 years of work with some of the material previously being released on cassette but it is their most complete work to date conceptually speaking. This is some of the most innovative heavy and dark industrial being made today.

I particularly like, and was very surprised by, the Eric Wood/Bastard Noise-like vocals.  Another one I would have not known.  Thanks again.

Quote from: impulse manslaughter on December 25, 2018, 12:16:37 AM
LIVE:
S.H.I.T., Permanent Debt, Pressure Pact - Amsterdam

2018 was an all time low in live shows for me - but this was a good one indeed.

Probably forgetting a bunch but from the top of my head:

Infernal Coil - Within a world forgotten (Profound Lore)
Knelt Rote - Alterity (NWN)
Shredded Nerve - Final Vision (New Forces)
Christian Mirande - Scaled Deposits (Ascetic House)
Kali Malone - Organ Dirges 2016 - 2017 (Ascetic House)
Kjostad - Glacial Lake (No Rent)
Tomb Mold - Manor Of Infinite Forms (20 Bucks Spin)
Remnants - Marred By Time (Crisis of Taste)
Goddaughter - Goddaughter s/t (Prime Ruin)
Mercury Hall - Living Table (Joy De Vivre)
Blue Chemise - Daughters of Time (Students of Decay)
Moenen Of Xezbeth - Ancient Spells of Darkness (NWN)

Quote from: Zeno Marx on December 28, 2018, 09:26:28 PMI particularly like, and was very surprised by, the Eric Wood/Bastard Noise-like vocals.  Another one I would have not known.  Thanks again.

Yea thanks for this thread. Been finding a lot of stuff off other people's lists here that is also great!

I'll give this a try...

* Skin Crime X Wilt, The Horror of Fang Rock LP and CD. Urashima.
Even given my eager anticipation of this release, it has improved in stature steadily since. The LP was initially unexciting to me; however, now it is my preference over the CD. The minimalist nature of all these compositions strongly benefit repeated listens. I can say with confidence this is one of my favorite releases this year. Wilt adds only enough—something which does not endear them to me in their solo works. Here they are excellent collaborators to the minimalist sound creaks, moans and pops provided by Skin Crime. Neither artist overwhelms the other. The movement in some tracks is so minor as to be missed on first listen. This is where I warmed over time. There are moods achingly slight and all the more unsettling for it.

* Contagious Orgasm
Hiroshi Hashimoto provided an ambitious, invigorated release schedule for 2018. Seven releases: 1 new full album, 1 older remastered album, 1 live recording, 2 collaborative tapes, 2 EP length cassettes, and making available a rare CDr release from 2000 on Bandcamp. As is customary, the musical styles vary. New releases, though, are revisiting his industrial beginnings and dirge-like atmospheres. For those that wandered away from attending to Contagious Orgasm in the 2000's due to his electronica forays, you would be well served to try White Lace Curtains in the Window (Modern Decadence) and his collaboration with Caligula 031 (Nil By Mouth / Elettronica Radicale Edizioni). Purple Light Section Corners Feel Different, the new full length on SSSM, centers around three long experimental compositions ("Exploration and Seeking" parts 1, 2, 3) that may satisfy as well. Not everything released this year was my favorite. The full output, though, is a certain highlight of 2018.

* Andy Ortmann Pataphysical Electronics 3LP Nihilist
Following releases on Tabs Out and Fag Tapes in 2017 and Perfect Law in March, Andy Ortmann completes his two hour opus on his own Nihilist label. The previously mentioned cassettes contain mostly reworked portions of this triple vinyl release. The conclusive album exhibits Andy's quirk and gift with editing, electronics and musique concrète while showcasing a jaw-dropping maturity in sound composition. The genre identifiers collapse somewhere between noise and mambo without demanding explanation or jarring confusion. The variety of sounds are impressive in their cohesive mending. Even if I do not personally find Pataphysical Electronics on the outer edges of left field, admiration in the term 'Experimental' has been restored for me.

* MNEM Hegonon 12" Sentimental Productions
On the other side of musical exploration, this release fascinates me. The song structure is simple, basic to an absurd degree, yet the sounds! Never mind the beautiful, glossy sleeve with perfect, evocative imagery. The vinyl itself is wonderfully cut—not that I have any standing to make that distinction. It seems to be clear and with very little surface noise and a little thicker than most. That is my impression. Everything about this release speaks to care and attention to detail. I can only imagine the special edition(!) The music can no more accurately be described than has been already:

Quote from: Baglady on July 10, 2018, 01:23:20 PM
Like waking up on an unmanned and antiquated, rusty old space craft heading nowhere in the middle of nowhere, in outer space, constantly getting stuck in space time loops. Or on abandoned equally antique submarine suddenly coming to life by itself in the Mariana trench.

Great:
Autechre 'NTS Sessions' (Warp) - along with the Roland Kayn back catalogue this was probably about 75% of my listening this year. No one else is pushing sound architecture so far into the unknown presently. Yes, some of this still has noticeable 'techno' DNA, but only in the way that Fushitsusha has noticeable traces of Blue Cheer.
Autechre 'sinistrail sentinel' (Adult Swim/Warp) - excellent condensation of NTS into about 12 minutes, single of the decade.
Rudolf Eb.er 'Om Kult: The Ritual Practice of Conscious Dying' Volumes I/II (Schimpfluch Associates) - deepens the whole post-Brainnectar unnerving ritual sound, very uncomfortable atmosphere.
Eva-Maria Houben 'Breath for Organ' (Second Editions) - ultra-minimal work for cathedral organ, like the breathing of some unimaginable machine, needs loud playback to really feel it.
Kiyoharu Kuwayama 'Falsegraphia' (Lethe/KK) - excellent haunted factory sounds from the always-reliable KK, a little more layered than usual.
Okkyung Lee 'Dahl-Tah-Ghi' (Pica Disk) - recorded live in a mausoleum with excellent acoustics... Lee is the best solo improviser I've ever heard, much of what she does seems physically impossible, even when you are watching her do it.
Drew McDowall 'The Third Helix' (Dais) - his best work since Coil, beautifully detailed and quite unearthly.
MMMD 'Hagazussa' (Antifrost) - soundtrack to the (excellent) film of the same name, if you know MMMD/Mohammad already you know what to expect... maybe more of the same but when the same is this good it's hard to complain.
Nurse With Wound/TNB 'Changez les Blockeurs'/'Changez les Blockeurs And' (Dirter) - wasn't expecting much of this and was pleasantly (if that word can apply) surprised - Stapleton has lovingly boosted all the most irritating frequencies of the original and tripled the density. CD adds 25 more minutes of brain damage. The whole thing sounds more like TNB than TNB themselves, almost.
Dave Phillips 'Clearing' (Spalt-ung/Licht-ung)
Dave Phillips 'Ritual Protest Music' (Urbsounds Collective) these two are also more of the same but up to Dave's usual impeccable standards, really excellently recorded for maximum visceral impact.
Jakob Ullmann 'Muntzers Stern Solo II' (Edition RZ) - Ullmann is doing just about the most interesting work at the quiet end of the spectrum right now and this is his most minimal yet, newcomers should probably reach for 'A Catalogue of Sounds' and expecially 'Voice, books and FIRE' first but if you're already a convert then you probably already know about this. Edition RZ is the best contemporary 'classical' label operating right now, no question.

OK to good:
Albedo Fantastica 'Culvert and Starry Night' (An'archives) - very eccentric work by Sachiko Fukuoka (Overhang Party, Kousokuya, Musik Atlach) and Keiko Higuchi, definitly not for all tastes but there's not much else like it.
Thomas Ankersmit 'Homage to Dick Raaijmakers' (Shelter Press) - heavy modular synth work, pretty intense, catch him live if you have the opportunity.
Antoine Chessex 'Subjectivation' (Fragment Factory) - heavy electronics w. processed sax, grim, relentless.
Cam Deas 'Time Exercises' (The Death of Rave) - if you like Roland Kayn you need to hear this.
The Eternal Chord 'Semper Liber' (Spire/Touch) - nice group collaborations for pipe organ, maybe a little overlong though
MMMD 'Andromache' (Antifrost) - Ilios & Veliotis adapt earlier Mohammad tracks for damaged pianos, nice.
Mayuko Hino 'Lunisolar' (Cold Spring) - first piece is good, second is not. still, good to have her back in operation
Jim O'Rourke 'Sleep Like it's Winter' (Newhere)
Jim O'Rourke 'Steamroom 38/39' (Steamroom) - I prefer the Steamroom releases to the album itself which derived from them, O'Rourke is better when he focuses on one thing intently.
Anna Schimkat 'Spinhouse' (Fragment Factory) - if you thought Francisco Lopez's 'Buildings: New York' needed more aggression, this is for you. Fragment Factory is one of the best labels around at present, always top quality and uncompromising sounds.
Uruk 'Mysterium Coniunctionis' (Ici d'ailleurs) - sprawling psychedelic space music by Thighpaulsandra and Massimo Pupillo, highly immersive, somewhere between Cyclobe and Tangerine Dream's 'Zeit', maybe?
Alex Zhang Hungtai 'Divine Weight' (Non Worldwide) - the first four tracks are good but nothing special, the final title piece is an uncanny masterpiece which could have been released as a standalone EP instead.

Reissues/anthologies/archive recordings, etc:
Coil 'Wormsongs' (archive.org) - seems to be outtakes from the ElpH/Worship the Glitch period, quite ghostly, good to have this circulating.
Current 93 dreamt by Andrew Liles 'Like Swallowing Eclipses' - I normally can't tolerate Liles, who is a moderately talented engineer/sound designer but terrible composer, but these C93 remixes are really great, even more visceral than the originals at times.
John Duncan 'Organic' (États-Unis) - excellent, long-overdue rerelease of John's first LP from 1979.
John Duncan 'Riot' (iDEAL) - the best version of this classic record yet, completely remixed from the original 8-track master, in places like a totally new recording, mandatory!
Lethe 'Six Tables Sublimation' (Lethe/KK) - I was at the show this was recorded at, KK doing his dry ice on steel tables routine at the cavernous Darling Foundry, recording doesn't quite capture the room sound but it's nice to have this.
Mlehst 'Black Letter Ballad' Parts I/II (Mlehst) - this seems to be a comp of the various 'Black Letter Ballad' pieces scattered throughout the Mlehst discography but I don't know his work well enough to be sure - anyway it's nice lo-fi surrealism. Both parts were up on his now deactivated Bandcamp page earlier this year.
Roland Kayn 'Scanning' (?) - this has been circulating online recently, unsure of the provenance or how this was obtained as it was never released, but it is the ten-hour(!) piece recorded at the Institute of Sonology in 1982-83 immediately following the completion of TEKTRA. I only got this a few weeks ago so haven't had the time to really assimilate it but it is truly amazing, much more diverse in texture and structure than I expected, foreshadows the Electronic Symphonies that he would later do in the 90's.
Roland Kayn 'Simultan' (Die Schachtel) - this should have been CD instead of vinyl but the remastering is great and the sound is much better than the AGP transcription that had previously circulated. Much cruder than his later recordings, this (along with 'MAKRO I-III') would be the best introduction to Kayn's work for people into noise/industrial/PE - it was recorded in 1972 but totally anticipates MB, some of the more abstract Broken Flag things, early Merzbow, etc etc.
Merzbow 'Noisembryo' (Hospital) - not sure why this was on vinyl, CD would have been better (without remastering - the original still sounds perfect, much more dynamic than the brickwalled-to-death Relapse discs that came soon after), but its greatness can't be denied.
Eliane Radigue 'Oeuvres Electroniques' (INA-GRM) - Much needed, very well produced collection, some of the very finest electronic music ever made, but you already knew that.

Concerts:
Eliane Radigue + Quatuor Bozzini 'Occam Delta VI' w. Jakob Kirkegaard (playing Else Marie Pade), Fonderie Darling, Montreal
Keiji Haino w. Julia Reidy, La Sala Rossa, Montreal
Drew McDowall w. Group A, La Vitrola, Montreal

Yikes, that was long.

Highlights:
Releases. In order.

1. Nocturnal Triumph - The Fangs Of Miseries Past (Spectral Moon)
Second year in a row NT tops my list. Truly some of the best new black metal in the game. Best riffs, best atmosphere, well produced—yet not over-produced. Few things got as many replays this year.

2. Striations – Vietnamization (New Forces Noise)
Hands down the best PE album of 2018. While I like New Forces aesthetic, this really could have benefited from a larger presentation. Should have been a CD with a full color booklet of all the accompanying art that Mike made over the course of multiple years to coincide. We all know that would have been a money pit though, ha.

3. Geography Of Hell - Hiroshima 1945 / Nagasaki 1945 (Hospital Productions)
One of my favorite Hospital roster acts finally gets a vinyl treatment and it doesn't disappoint. Heavy as the bombs that inspired it.

4. Koufar - My Name Is My Name (No Rent)
I'm a little bias with this one because of my involvement, but it is incredible PE. Lengthy, but not tiring. Using special guests makes this diverse in style and structure and has the illusion of a rap album. Striations did the same thing with Vietnamization so maybe we should all start pooling our collective minds into full ideas as such. Proud to call these men my brothers.

5. Linekraft - 33 Purgatories (Zaetraom)
Yes, his performance at the Hospital fest was every bit as great as people have been saying (probably even better than can be fully explained). The full length on HOS is excellent, but I think this tape grew on me.

6. Akitsa – Credo (Hospital Productions)
Akitsa at their best. The riffs, the pride, the atmosphere. All things that are necessary in a good black metal release.

7. Concave / Convex - Victory Over Body (Breathing Problem Productions)
Excellent subject matter. Rusty has a keen wit to tackle true crime at it's peak. In this case the US gymnastics molestation scandal. Emeilia's vocal presentation is a breath of female power and submission simultaneously. My favorite of the BPP in-house projects.

8. Needle Exchange - Kill Em All With Fentanyl (Reanimated Miscarrage)
Best noisegrind I've heard in awhile. 1 part noise, 1 part grind. The way it should be.

9. Kjostad – Vermilion (Self Released)
Tape loops. Harsh Noise. Nature. Excellent, well-thought out packaging. Kjostad was very active this year and this was his best.

10. Najwyższy - An Orchestration In Shadows (Spectral Moon)
Another from Spectral Moon. Excellent black metal done right.

11. Various - The Pain Factory DVDs (Influencing Machine/Spastik Visuals)
It's amazing that these didn't get lost in time. So many essential 90s HN and PE heavy hitters gathered for many episodes on public access TV. This kind of thing cannot exist today so enjoy it here while you can.

12. Shredded Nerve - Final Vision (New Forces Noise)
Top 2 in Justin's output thus far. And at 60 minutes, this one couldn't be more worth your $7.

13. Various - Missing And Exploited Children (Breathing Problem Productions)
Bias on this one also due to my involvement, but there is a reason this one is on just about everyone's PE lists. Gathers 8 American PE acts on the top of their game all staying true to the comp's theme in their own way. We need more (good) vinyl comps.

14. Various/Goblin – Night of the Living Dead/Dawn of the Dead (Waxwork)
These are kind of reissues, but kind of not at the same time. They are the complete scores for each available for the first time. I've been waiting for these both because I refuse to pay for battered original copies for well over $100 each and they don't disappoint. Obsessed with the movie trilogy since a child, I always thought the music played a good role in why they were so successful and memorable. Day of the Dead is actually my favorite of the 3 as both a movie and soundtrack, but the OST for that one came out a few years ago.

Other:
Small tour with MBD
Getting a lot of weight off my shoulders with Fusty. Looking forward to 2019. Lots of vinyl and planning special packaging.
Hanging out with wife and dog a bunch
Finally seeing GO in LA
Linekraft @ Hospital fest
White Rhino Taxadermy @ Coaxial
Two collabs with Cloning in Pittsburgh


Lowlights:
NYC and Western Mass being crybaby chumps (not all of you, of course)
Tesco getting hopes up and refunding 10 days later.
People in general. Lighten up or just die already.

"Tesco getting hopes up and refunding 10 days later"
On the Civilization set?

Quote from: murderous_vision on December 31, 2018, 08:32:19 PM

"Tesco getting hopes up and refunding 10 days later"
On the Civilization set?

No, UmKhonto-We-SizWe

Quote from: PTM Jim on December 31, 2018, 08:06:44 PM

4. Koufar - My Name Is My Name (No Rent)
I'm a little bias with this one because of my involvement, but it is incredible PE. Lengthy, but not tiring. Using special guests makes this diverse in style and structure and has the illusion of a rap album. Striations did the same thing with Vietnamization so maybe we should all start pooling our collective minds into full ideas as such. Proud to call these men my brothers.

full support on the PE/hip-hop merging of ideas.

I posted my favorites via Instagram but since then I changed shit up a bit. Some things dropped in the order other things rose up the ranks but these are my best of's:

Top 10 PE/Industrial releases of 2018

1. Kontinent-Pornography of Power *****
2. Detrimental Effect-Be My Enemy **** 3/4
3. Agonal Lust-Modern Atrocities **** 3/4
4. Interior One-Revenge Against Society **** 3/4
5. Serration-Machine Survival **** 1/2
6. Anenzaphalia-Magenta **** 1/2
7. Augere Concret-Cephalophore **** 1/2
8. Deterge- One For the Gipper **** 1/2
9. Control-Blood Will Rain ****
10. Linekraft-Engineering Analysis For Inner Death****

Honorable Mentions: Heretic Grail Discography, The Vomit Arsonist-Further, Striations-Vietnamization, Obsidian Needles-Coronal Mass Ejection, and Geography Of Hell-Hiroshima 1945/Nagasaki 1945.

Top Harsh Noise of 2018

1. Wince-Bullets For German Radio *****
2. Worth-The Steps *****
3. Wince-The Older Generation **** 3/4
4. Body Carve-Guts In Red Plastic **** 3/4
5. Bacillus-Serial Infector **** 1/2
6. Striations-Trauma Code ****
7. Primordial Wound-Research Byproduct Disposal ****
8. Blind Date-Open Trap ****
9. Skin Graft-Afflict ****
10. Cooter-Besmirched For Bedwetting ****

Honorable Mentions- Facialmess-Eastern View, Cackle Car-Idling 1, Shredded Nerve-Final Vision, and Sentenced-Extinguishment.

Top 10 PE/Industrial/Noise/Experimental splits, singles, comps, misc of 2018

1. Mania/Deterge-Lay Waste/Future of Pulse *****
2. Am Not-Unpunished : Appendix *****
3. Wonderland Club-Pageant **** 3/4
4. Deterge/Heretic Grail-Split **** 3/4
5. V/A-Missing and Exploited Children **** 1/2
6. FFH-Zyklon and Leather **** 1/2
7. V/A-A Group Of Sexual Perverts 2 **** 1/2
8. Soaplands-S/T **** 1/2
9. V/A- Before Man Was, War Waited For Him **** 1/2
10. Alfarmania-The Waiting Grave: Live In Finland 2015/2017  ****


Top 10 Metal/Hardcore/Other Shit I Barely Listen to of 2018

1. Vile Gash-Nightmare In A Damaged Brain *****
2. Jesus Piece-Only Self *****
3. City Hunter-Deep Blood *****
4. Sect Pig- Crooked Backs **** 3/4
5. Akitsa-Credo **** 3/4
6. Archgoat-The Lucefarian Crown **** 3/4
7. Cadaver Dog-Dying Breed **** 1/2
8. Sissy Spacek-Trash Staging **** 1/2
9. Vein-Errorzone ****
10. Pig Destroyer-Headcage ****

Top 10 best Hip Hop releases of 2018

1. Roc Marciano-RR2: The Bitter Dose *****
2. Benny The Butcher-Tana Talk 3 *****
3. Pusha T-Daytona *****
4. The Hermit and The Recluse-Orpheus *****
5. Westside Gunn-Supreme Blientele *****
6. Roc Marciano-Behold A Dark Horse **** 3/4
7. Dark Lo and V Don- Timeless **** 1/2
8. Westside Gunn-Hitler Wears Hermès 6 **** 1/2
9. SmooVth and Giallo Point-Medellin II: Don Fabio **** 1/2
10. Conway The Machine-Blakk Tape **** 1/2

Honorable mention:
Earl Sweatshirt-Some Rap Songs, Freddie Gibbs-Freddie, Benny The Butcher & 38 Spesh-Stabbed & Shot, Freddie Gibbs, Curren$y & Alchemist-Fetti, Conway The Machine-Everybody Is F.O.O.D. 1 & 2, Dark Lo-Bucketlist, Benny The Butcher-A Friend Of Ours, Knowledge The Pirate-Flintlock, and Roc Marciano & DJ Muggs-Kaos.

Top Live Shows of 2018

1. Genocide Organ-LA
2. Genocide Organ-San Francisco
3. Deterge-LA
4. Anenzephalia-LA
5. Striations-San Francisco
6. Merzbow-Oakland
7. Anenzephalia-Oakland
8. Prurient-Oakland
9. Dagger Lust-Portland
10. Wonderland Club-LA

Top Labels of 2018

1. Unrest Productions
2. Breathing Problem
3. Fusty Cunt
4. Gutter Bloat
5. New Forces
6. Slave Chandelier
7. Bacteria Field
8. Endangered Species
9. Hospital
10. No Rent

Highlights
The release and reception of two of my most important records I've been apart of:

Koufar-My Name Is My Name
Terror Cell Unit-Psalm 137:9

Lowlights
The Bay Area is a cesspool.

that list is a thing of beauty! So organized!

will have to check out a lot of the stuff mentioned here! listened to himukalt which i hadn't heard of before - great stuff!

grunt - castrate the illusionist
bizarre uproar - verikiima
xe - 18
death in june - essence!
slægt - the wheel (great mix of heavy and black metal - their best yet, imo)
craft - white noise and black metal
clandestine blaze - tranquility of death
akitsa - credo

Top 15 LPs

1. Purity Renaissance - Purity Renaissance Aristocratic black metal. When I bought the promo tape earlier in the year, I was floored by it. The mastered LP sounds even better. The music and presentation are everything I find best in terms of black metal.
2. Graustich - Morality Ends My favorite PE/Industrial release of the year. It sounds malicious while keeping it subtle.
3. Circle of Ouroborus - Vangin Laulu Instantly captivated by anything this band releases. Melancholic dark metal.
4. Mania/Deterge - Lay Waste/Future of Pulse Constantly on the turntable this past year. The dedication to the compositions and themes is extremely impressive.
5. Cirrhus - Unimpeachable Madness Masterful USBM that stands on its own.
6. Interior One - Revenge Against Society This record is great in every way - the focus on sounds, mood, and subject matter.
7. Akitsa - Credo A long time favorite, while this record is a bit different than previous efforts, the quality is among their very best.  
8. Clandestine Blaze - Tranquility of Death Did not expect another album so soon after last year's City of Slaughter. Excellent as always. This project feels genuinely "evil" as opposed to the child like mass of overtly "satanic" black metal bands.
9. Terror Cell Unit - Psalm 137:9 The depth of sounds on display is insane. Usually I like to keep an arms distance from art and the process of art, but seeing how these guys operate makes my appreciation for this project increase even more. Genius.
10. BizarreSSMania - II Excellent collaboration. Everything on it sounds huge, yet intimate. The first half of side B is one of my favorite pieces I've heard all year. Unnerving, yet restrained.
11. Geography of Hell - Hiroshima 1945/Nagasaki 1945 This flows so well across both LPs. Well detailed and expertly executed.
12. Candelabrum - Portals Majestic black metal. I've seen complaints regarding how up in the mix the keys are, but I think that is my favorite thing about it.
13. Circle of Ouroborus/Cenotaphe Superb material from two idiosyncratic projects that compliment each other so well.
14. Vernichtung Durch Arbeit - Hungertod Forbidding and dark, very nice.
15. Infernal Darkness - Into Infernal Darkness... Truly depraved music. This is exactly how this sort of metal ought to sound. Makes Perverted Ceremony sound like a gay kids bop band.

Honorable mentions: Vile Gash, Cadaver Dog, City Hunter. Great records that provide a non-gay taste of modern hardcore/punk. I really liked these albums a lot, just found my mood for hardcore/punk reach record low levels.

Still waiting on acquiring some albums that would most likely have made my list like Necropole and Peste Noire. Never got around to buying the latest Lebanon Hanover.


Top 15 Tapes/10"/Comps

1. White Medal - Jorviking Anything by this project is essential for me and this release is no different. One of my absolite favorite contemporary black metal projects. Really like the leads featured on some of these tracks.
2. Zyklon SS - Moral War It just keeps getting better and better. The samples are woven into the tracks so well. The only con regarding this is the length. What a tease.
3. Blackwatch - In the Company of Dead Heroes This tape is incredible. Blackwatch has a sound and aesthetic of its own that really stands out among everything else currently in vogue. Really like the influence of 90s euro PE/Industrial, yet it avoids falling into tribute traps.
4. Najwyższy - An Orchestration In Shadows Supremely crafted black metal. Absolutely need more of this.
5. Annihilation of Human Faculties - s/t Endangered Species had a great year of top notch releases. This was my favorite of theirs.
6. Missing and Exploited Children compilation Great variation without losing any cohesion. Really stellar material from all contributions. This compilation will certainly be remembered.
7. Striations - Vietnamization The obsession poured into this release is astounding. The end result is no less impressive. Lucky enough to obtain a zine of the artwork made to accompany this release. Vinyl would do this release great justice.
8. FFH - Zyklon and Leather Excellent tape, but now I need to hear more new (and hopefully longer) material.
9. Deterge - Superannuated Considering the length, this never loses focus throughout the 100 or so minutes between both tapes.
10. Concave/Convex - Victory Over Body Fascinating and a bit disturbed, yet you can't stop from indulging. The constant output from this duo across their different monikers is the cream of the crop of modern PE/Industrial.
11. Agonal Lust - Modern Atrocities Deserves every bit of praise garnered. Extremely dark sounds and atmosphere.
12. Concrete Mascara - Decay Sequence Haven't been able to spend as much time with this release, but have been captivated by each listen. This project never disappoints.
13. Ærekær - MMXVII Intriguing and well done blend of dungeon synth with black metal. Not fully one or the other. Alluring and mystical.
14. Reptile Womb - Blood Sacrifice for Serpent God A genuine release that experiments with black metal and noise formulas without any sort of pompous wankery. Ends on a high note with a GG Allin cover.
15. Fless/Lampir My favorite material from both projects, really flows well together.

Highlights
- Ride for Revenge show. Was only able to go the first night. Its great that the promoters didn't just settle for whatever openers for this show as Ride for Revenge is mandatory on its own. They really put effort into curating an all around great show. Powerful headlining set that successfully translated the primitive ritualistic feel of their recordings. Excellent opening sets by all too, especially Reptile Womb.
- Genocide Organ/Anenzephalia U.S.A. shows. Was lucky enough to attend all 4 shows. Each performance was great, however GO's L.A. set stands as perhaps the best I have ever witnessed. Everything about it was perfect - the masterful performance, energy, video, and crowd response. The pre show was also great to be apart of and attend. Aside from the quality acts, it was great to gather everyone for one night. Both weekends provided a great time outside the shows as I got to spend time with people I've been corresponding with for a while and meet new people.
- Akitsa in L.A. Finally was able to witness this band. Excellent set.
- Prurient in L.A. High energy and captivating. Was worried about the use of guitar when I was first told about it, but it worked extremely well.
- Don't want to keep going on and on with shows, but it was a great year for live music personally. Others that stood out was Of the Wand and the Moon, Hellvetron, Nyogthaeblisz.
- Film wise, I didn't get to watch as much this year. Perfect Blue at the cinema was an amazing experience though.
- Fulfilling year spending time with people I value.

Lowlights
- Pest.

Carol - 1996 Reconstructed (WEB version has extra tracks)
Control - Blood Will Rain
Control • Genevieve Pasquier • Kommando - Cold War, Hot Love
Dave Phillips - Clearing
Dead Can Dance - Dionysus
Fatum - Edge Of The Wild
Himukalt - Knife Through The Spine
Hum of the Druid - A Strange Export, The Conservative Road Beyond the Bizarre, Down-Home Paganism
Kjostad - Glacial Lake
Sissy Spacek - all the 2018ers
Skin Crime - Ghosts I Have Been
Tarab + Artificial Memory Trace - Obex
Yannick Dauby - Arches

reissues:
Against - Welcome to the Aftermath
Éliane Radigue - Œuvres électroniques
Masonna - Exploring Self-corrosive Noise With Coquette
World - WORLD (discography)

considerations:
Grunt - Castrate the Illusionist
Herz Juhning - Samsara
Martyria - self-titled
Offerbeest - Afrika
S.E.T.I. - Sleep Environments for Interplanetary Travel (10 hours)
Zygome - Demo 2018

labels:
Malignant
New Forces
Radio Raheem
Unrest Productions

haven't heard:
Alberich - Precursor
Am Not - Incursions
Am Not - Unpunished : Appendix
Cirrhus - Unimpeachable Madness
Fire + Ice - Wanderer 10"
Graustich - Morality Ends
Incapacitants - Breath Of Insect
Incapacitants - Zouvneree
Jeph Jerman – The Bray Harp
Militia - Ambiorix
Tarab - Housekeeping
Tomb Mold - Cerulean Salvation
Tomb Mold - Manor of Infinite Forms
Walker Phillips - My Love Sunday

CHAOS CASCADE // releases and live!
All from Obsessive Fundamental Realism was over the mediocre.
I only have first re-release from Veprisuicida on IR but that hit straight to the sweet spot.

Not too many that i not like from Filth&Violence and all hail to ruski perversions.

Haven`t heard all releases of last year but releases that are golden was all those 3 " from FA, UNCLEAN, Sex Noise comp, CONTORTUS, KSNK, MASKHEAD, YANA, ENTARTUN, SCATMOTHER+, SICK SEED, SNUFF, XE, LEGION OF ANDROMEDA, KALIYOGANOISE and Kazumoto Endo(!)... there must be more since this year was year of quality noise.

-Postages and post. them will kill this culture.

Quote from: W.K. on January 09, 2019, 01:30:04 AM
Edit: Looking at the Curios & Oddities issued on cassette and record topic, I will add going to the thrift store and finding awesome tapes as a highlight as well. Especially finding tapes of religious or spiritual themed qualities, either prayers, motivations or help for life and local choirs, amazing what you can find in the rubbish of others.

You're telling me! Recently scored were two tapes of some weird therapy instruction/certification-type seminars, one of which deals with some hypnosis BS. Really good excerpts featuring anecdotes about patients, case histories, etc - been trying to copy some good moments for a certain Finnish friend for use in his work but it's slow-going as they're both C120s!

Quote from: Vermin Marvin on January 11, 2019, 09:16:48 PM

All from Obsessive Fundamental Realism was over the mediocre.

all hail to ruski perversions.

-Postages and post. them will kill this culture.

Oh yeah!

This might be the most useful incarnation of this thread I've seen on this board, gave me the push to check out a bunch of stuff I'd missed. In particular, it was a good reminder to catch up on some of the heavy electronics I'd missed... Graustich LP on Tordon Ljud is fantastic, been spinning that constantly the past few weeks. Bacteria Field Jake is spot-on with his review of the Operation Cleansweep record - both that it was too expensive so I didn't grab a copy (I think it was more than $50 in distros?) and that it is really good, a bit more high energy and dynamic without losing their usual plodding heaviness. I also failed to notice the Small Cruel Party - Island of Sleep reissue... catching up with that one now...

Quote from: spiritassembly on December 31, 2018, 07:14:29 PMDave Phillips 'Clearing' (Spalt-ung/Licht-ung)

I want to like his work more than I do.  It's disjointed, or something, in a way I can't deal with well.  Truly difficult listening for me.  But this one isn't.  This is genuinely scary and menacing.  Could easily be a horror soundtrack.

Quote from: New Forces on January 13, 2019, 07:18:56 PM
I also failed to notice the Small Cruel Party - Island of Sleep reissue... catching up with that one now...

It would be worth pointing out, then, a very late 19 December 2018 reissue: Resin, Parched, Chthonic LP on Ferns Recordings. It is supposedly reworked. Not having ever heard the original 1991 cassette, I have no idea how much. It is a quite different tonal palette than Islands of Sleep. Noisy. Brooding. Drone-ish. Excellent. The one that dropped well below my awareness is the *brand new* recording ἡσυχασμός ["Complacency"].

Quote from: New Forces on January 13, 2019, 07:18:56 PM
This might be the most useful incarnation of this thread I've seen on this board, gave me the push to check out a bunch of stuff I'd missed. In particular, it was a good reminder to catch up on some of the heavy electronics I'd missed... Graustich LP on Tordon Ljud is fantastic, been spinning that constantly the past few weeks. Bacteria Field Jake is spot-on with his review of the Operation Cleansweep record - both that it was too expensive so I didn't grab a copy (I think it was more than $50 in distros?) and that it is really good, a bit more high energy and dynamic without losing their usual plodding heaviness. I also failed to notice the Small Cruel Party - Island of Sleep reissue... catching up with that one now...

the graustich lp seems like it is worth buying, besides not having heard the whole thing.. i don't have a turntable rn, but think about buying it anyways. the 7" on f&v was great, only gave the tape one listen and wasn't impressed then.. maybe i'll have to listen again. "nelson" track from diversity tape sounded great! thinking about ordering that one too.  will have to get the operation cleansweep record also, reason for not mentioning it as one of the years best is that i haven't heard the whole thing. very nice thread!

Quote from: Zeno Marx on January 07, 2019, 11:47:56 PM


haven't heard:

Fire + Ice - Wanderer 10"

Thanks for bringing this one up. Didn't know about this, really.

When checking out the song-list it seems warming up some oldies but goldies in studio. The first track being almighty Drag Girls in the Sunset.

a few revisions to my list:  Himukalt, Offerbeest, and Hum of the Druid (3 releases in 2018).

will have to add the lebanon hanover LP - not usually af fan of this revival stuff, but this really hits a nerve..

BJNilsen – Focus Intensity Power LP (Moving Furniture Records) -- despite the ugly cover this is the best Benny did in recent years, back to more isolationist ambience, less field recordings.
BizarreSSMania – II LP (Freak Animal) -- solid, but also time for experimentation and breath.
Jerman, Jeph – The Bray Harp LP (WCN)
Kallabris – Red Square LP (Inselkind Schalltraeger) -- pop music.
Mnem – Hegonon LP (Sentimental) -- alien, dry, chilling, wonderful.
Plurals – Tri Tone CLEAR LP (Silken Tofu) -- would probably hate seeing this in a live setting but works great at home.
Rusalka – Revisualizations TAPE (New Forces)
Treriksröset – Kristen Musik Från Rågsved LP TESTPRESS (Harbinger Sound) -- still don't have the original release but it delivers.
Treriksröset – Jkpg 2008 / Sthlm 2013 TAPE (Hatband) -- the Stockholm show is the winner for me, showing a new side of Tommy's work.
Yana – Oka TAPE (Freak Animal) -- a satanic Toukaseibunshi?

Lowlights... the Small Cruel Party "come-back" (?)-tape on Banned felt a bit meh, Deathpanel CD on Tesco, Strafe F.R. CD on Touch, Graustich LP (sorry, can't understand the praise for this one, but then again i'm totally uninterested in "heavy" electronics of today, think it all sounds flat), Anna Von Hausswolff new CD (pathetic rocking shit, she should record an pump organ album with vocals -- skip the "band").

Highlight: The album I listened most to over last year was Atrium Carceri & Herbst9 collab "Ur Djupan Dal" on Cryo Chamber. Fell asleep to it many many times and I think it's just a very well-rounded pretty much flawless ambient album made by people who know their shit.

Lowlight: The intense and growing use of modern social media by people involved in the noise scene who otherwise like to portray themselves as "underground"

Quote from: deutscheasphalt on February 01, 2019, 10:31:04 PM

Lowlight: The intense and growing use of modern social media by people involved in the noise scene who otherwise like to portray themselves as "underground"

Completely agree

Quote from: IVX on February 02, 2019, 06:18:44 AM

Quote from: deutscheasphalt on February 01, 2019, 10:31:04 PM

Lowlight: The intense and growing use of modern social media by people involved in the noise scene who otherwise like to portray themselves as "underground"

Completely agree

Apparently one needs an Instagram account to even find out about many releases these days. Sucks to find out that friends whose projects I've supported for years (booked gigs for, distroed, etc.) have put out releases that I miss out on but 20-year-old kids who were listening to screamo last week end up with copies.

/rant

Quote from: yosef666 on February 03, 2019, 12:11:02 PM

Quote from: IVX on February 02, 2019, 06:18:44 AM

Quote from: deutscheasphalt on February 01, 2019, 10:31:04 PM

Lowlight: The intense and growing use of modern social media by people involved in the noise scene who otherwise like to portray themselves as "underground"

Completely agree

Apparently one needs an Instagram account to even find out about many releases these days. Sucks to find out that friends whose projects I've supported for years (booked gigs for, distroed, etc.) have put out releases that I miss out on but 20-year-old kids who were listening to screamo last week end up with copies.

/rant

Examples? I don't have instagram f.e. but I've never had troubles getting the releases I want

I guess Ritual releases count too?

Shibalba - Stars al med Hum
Damn enjoyable and possibly my favourite together with the Phurpa split.

Arktau Eos - Eremos
DEFINITELY my favourite  by this project. Perfectly executed with great sounds.

LOWLIGHTS:

- people still too stupid to send trades and paid orders. Fans afraid of calling rip-offs rip-offs. People making excuses for their rip-offs online and continuing to rip people off. Weird that nobody is ever too wound up with psychological issues and family business to ACCEPT orders and take money...

- Price policies of many labels. Times are tough, production costs - especially for analog releases- getting higher due to limited sales. But 10 - 12 € for a regular tape, 23 - 25 € for a LP that isnt even gatefold or heavy or marbled or anything else that would justify such price becoming normality... a bit too steep for me as a customer. I know, nobody is forced to buy etc, but come on...

Quote from: yosef666 on February 03, 2019, 12:11:02 PM

Quote from: IVX on February 02, 2019, 06:18:44 AM

Quote from: deutscheasphalt on February 01, 2019, 10:31:04 PM

Lowlight: The intense and growing use of modern social media by people involved in the noise scene who otherwise like to portray themselves as "underground"

Completely agree

Apparently one needs an Instagram account to even find out about many releases these days. Sucks to find out that friends whose projects I've supported for years (booked gigs for, distroed, etc.) have put out releases that I miss out on but 20-year-old kids who were listening to screamo last week end up with copies.

/rant

you mean the whole Skjold recs etc... trend ? 

Favorites of 2018:

PRESAGE - Feralheart CS (self-released)
TRERIKSRÖSET Live CS (Hatband)
PAIN APPARATUS CS (Maniacal Hatred/Phage Tapes)
SEWER ELECTION - Dismal CS (Team Boro)
BODY CARVE - Guts In Red Plastic CS (Gutter Bloat)
CAPERS - Dregs LP (Förlag För Fri Musik)
BLIND DATE - Open Trap CS (New Forces)
SISSY SPACEK - Trash Staging LP (New Forces)
RUSALKA - Revisualizations CS (New Forces)
MK9 - Loss As Loss CS (Bacteria Field)
WORTH - Blood Possessed CD (Prose Nagge)
MO*TE reissue CDs (Industrial Recollections/Audio Dissection)
THE RITA feat. TRERIKSRÖSET live in Berlin
RUSALKA live in Cologne
WORTH live in Warsaw

Re: social media / instagram

I have wondered how so many releases sell out with near instantaneous speed. The above comments motivated me to mire into the Instagram comments. I understand a little better now why. By the time a fair number of labels and distro's I pay attention to post the releases for general sale on their website—or, even later, here—only those in the Instagram feed knew they were going to be released and when. There is plenty of evidence that I see of sales directly through the comments section. The major disadvantage for everyone outside that feed is that even with a public Instagram account, none of the content is available through a standard internet search engine. I also discovered that bookmarking a profile doesn't seem to work—every bookmark I made in my browser goes back to whatever page I started on or last looked at or... ???. I suspect this is all purposely built into the site. Instagram wants you to sign in and create an account and assemble a personal feed, after all, so they can mine your information. I hope people realize that Instagram is Facebook. If you want to run that route, fine, but please go in with your eyes open.

Quote from: MyrtleLake on February 07, 2019, 08:48:17 PM
Re: social media / instagram

I have wondered how so many releases sell out with near instantaneous speed. The above comments motivated me to mire into the Instagram comments. I understand a little better now why. By the time a fair number of labels and distro's I pay attention to post the releases for general sale on their website—or, even later, here—only those in the Instagram feed knew they were going to be released and when. There is plenty of evidence that I see of sales directly through the comments section. The major disadvantage for everyone outside that feed is that even with a public Instagram account, none of the content is available through a standard internet search engine. I also discovered that bookmarking a profile doesn't seem to work—every bookmark I made in my browser goes back to whatever page I started on or last looked at or... ???. I suspect this is all purposely built into the site. Instagram wants you to sign in and create an account and assemble a personal feed, after all, so they can mine your information. I hope people realize that Instagram is Facebook. If you want to run that route, fine, but please go in with your eyes open.

That's a pretty accurate representation of how it happens. It's not all bad, in my opinion. I can understand artists and labels wanting to reach interested parties outside the scope of this forum or a Facebook page. Since Instagram allows artists to combine their personal lives with their musical identities into one highly manicured feed of pictures and information, and decide who sees what, it's a good way to get notice of your music/releases/zines/etc directly before the people most likely to buy them. It sucks for those who aren't savvy or constantly watching their Instagram feed, but music distribution continues to change. And besides, most of the bigger labels and distros continue to get the word out the old fashioned way and generally make enough copies for inventory to stick around for months or years.

The way I look at it is, if I didnt know some tape existed and I lived however many weeks/months/years without it, than was it really so important that I get it in the first place? While's it's nice to be on top of all of the bedroom tape labels, many of which are doing good things, I can also live with picking up just the bigger or less obscure releases. I can't even keep up with Freak Animal releases anymore so I don't stress over it.

I got Instagram earlier this summer at first exclusively to communicate with Dead Gods out in NY, and since then it's been a huge benefit with keeping up with releases as well as getting in touch with people, so.......yeah it's not "underground" but I'd always rather hear something than not.

Quote from: spiritassembly on December 31, 2018, 07:14:29 PM
Nurse With Wound/TNB 'Changez les Blockeurs'/'Changez les Blockeurs And' (Dirter) - wasn't expecting much of this and was pleasantly (if that word can apply) surprised - Stapleton has lovingly boosted all the most irritating frequencies of the original and tripled the density. CD adds 25 more minutes of brain damage. The whole thing sounds more like TNB than TNB themselves, almost.

Listened to an excerpt of this yesterday.  Definitely worth hearing, very good, and with its own identity.  Is this even the original material employed?  I wonder.

TOP 3:

◆ INCINERATED "Lobotomized"
So much retarded low end... madness. I fucking love this album so much, I don't think I listened to anything more than this.
◆ every release on Force Neurotic
Nothing caught the feeling of my year better. Onwards!
◆ HIMUKALT "Come October"
Leagues better than the LP.

Highlights:

◆ KALI MALONE "Organ Dirges 2016-2017"
Favorite drones of the year, easily.
◆ C.L. LOBBESTAEL "Particle Dissolution"
And one of my favorite ambient albums ever. This will stick.
◆ MATTIAS GUSTAFSSON "Tapeworks Vol.s VII (Landmusk)/VIII"
Still one of my favorite artists. New album on BAADM, can't wait to hear it!
◆ CHRISTINA VANTZOU "No. 4"
She shook off the modern classical vibe entirely. Thank god.
◆ NO DREAMS "Fantasies Of Affection/Been Bitter For So Long"
Been bitter indeed...
◆ CHRISTIAN MIRANDE "Sealed Deposits"
90 minutes and I'm rarely feeling bored or moving onto the next tape.
◆ EVENINGS "Blinding Grey"
I loved his set in Detroit I got to catch in 2017. What a great artist and tape.

◆ SCHAKALENS BROR & VMS ELIT, Dayton @ Skeleton Dust HQ
◆ SISSY SPACEK in Baltimore
◆ THROAT in Baltimore
◆ KELELA in DC ;)
◆ REMNANTS in NYC

(Lots of noise/PE bangers that I loved for sure, but they've been mentioned here how many times now?)

Lowlights:
◆ Just about every day that passed. Fuck that year.
◆ Having to listen to THE HELLACOPTERS and MINDSET at the shop every day all year.
◆ Having to listen to CITY HUNTER and THE SMITHS every day at my new shop >:p

No Dreams: "Fantasies of Affection / Been Bitter for So Long"

"Fantasies.." is the 12" on Torn Light. What's the latter?

Quote from: MyrtleLake on February 12, 2019, 06:57:10 PM
No Dreams: "Fantasies of Affection / Been Bitter for So Long"

"Fantasies.." is the 12" on Torn Light. What's the latter?

Correct! There were a few special editions with a tape included. Very nice as well!

Still struggling with all the mess from relocation, but as I'm listening right now, I can say that one of my favourites from 2018 was and is the KSNK CD, the sound as well as the artwork/cover/metal.

These were some of the real standouts of 2018 for me. Organized by genre. In some sort of order but not really. No reissues or compilations included. I'm sure I forgot plenty.

Black metal:
Ride For Revenge ‎– Sinking the Song
Akitsa ‎– Credo
Hail Conjurer ‎– Dreams of Serpent
Moenen of Xezbeth ‎– Ancient Spells of Darkness...
Nécropole ‎– Solarité
Abigor ‎– Höllenzwang - Chronicles of Perdition
Altar of Perversion ‎– Intra Naos
Nocturnal Triumph ‎– The Fangs of Miseries Past
Dreadful Relic ‎– Hyborian Sorcery
Witchcraft ‎– Nightmare Goetia
Purity Renaissance ‎– Promo
Cénotaphe ‎– Horizons
Clandestine Blaze ‎– Tranquility of Death
Rites of Thy Degringolade ‎– The Blade Philosophical
Najwyższy ‎– An Orchestration in Shadows
Cirrhus ‎– Unimpeachable Madness
Runespell ‎– Order of Vengeance
Hargne ‎– Réaction

Doom/Death Metal/Grindcore/Thrash:
Mournful Congregation ‎– The Incubus of Karma
Grave Upheaval ‎– Untitled
Sissy Spacek ‎– Ways of Confusion
Faustcoven ‎– In the Shadow of Doom
Siege Column ‎– Inferno Deathpassion
Necros Christos ‎– Domedon Doxomedon
Chaos Echoes ‎– Mouvement
Oksennus ‎– Kolme Toista

PE/Noise/Industrial:
Terror Cell Unit ‎– Psalm 137:9
Koufar ‎– My Name is My Name
Anenzephalia ‎– Magenta
Kontinent ‎– Pornography of Power
Linekraft ‎– Engineering Analysis of Inner Death
Mania / Deterge ‎– Lay Waste / Future of Pulse
Agonal Lust ‎– Modern Atrocities
Disgusting Sanctum ‎– Pathology of Abuse
Am Not ‎– Incursions
Zyklon SS ‎– Moral War
Striations ‎– Vietnamization
Heretic Grail ‎– Gleaming Spite
Wonderland Club ‎– Pageant
Operation Cleansweep ‎– Release Now! Apathy Induction
Bizarre Uproar ‎– High Risk Lifestyle
Interior One ‎– Revenge Against Society

Punk/Oi:
Rixe ‎– Cassette Promo
Condor ‎– Cassette Single #1 / Cassette Single #2
Schadenfreude ‎– Demo 2018
Physique ‎– Punk Life is Shit
Lace – Human Condition
ZyanosE ‎– Chaosbender
L.O.T.I.O.N. ‎– Multinational Corporation [Declassified Audio Document_2018:]

Neofolk:
Death In June ‎– Essence!
Current 93 ‎– The Light is Leaving Us All
Spiritual Front ‎– Amour Braque
Fire + Ice ‎– Wanderer
Sol Invictus ‎– Necropolis
Rome ‎– Hall of Thatch

Etcetera:
Kulttimaa ‎– Punainen Uni Vuotaa Sikojen Luolaan
Position Parallèle ‎– Escalier de Service
Michael Gira ‎– I Am Not This
The Body ‎– I Have Fought Against It, But I Can't Any Longer.
Old Tower ‎– Stellary Wisdom

Quote from: yosef666 on March 08, 2019, 10:12:16 PM
Neofolk:
Death In June ‎– Essence!
Current 93 ‎– The Light is Leaving Us All
Spiritual Front ‎– Amour Braque
Fire + Ice ‎– Wanderer
Sol Invictus ‎– Necropolis
Rome ‎– Hall of Thatch

It's crazy to think that pretty much all of the old guard of neofolk put out worthy new albums last year, most of them in the last quarter. I haven't heard the Sol Invictus album yet but Di6, C93 and Fire + Ice are all solid.

Strangely enough not one mention of VIHANMIEHET on this forum, so I will do it - one of my favourites of last year. VIHANMIEHET=Äijälä & Markkula

Quote from: cr on March 10, 2019, 05:41:14 PM
Strangely enough not one mention of VIHANMIEHET on this forum, so I will do it - one of my favourites of last year. VIHANMIEHET=Äijälä & Markkula

I just got this one a couple weeks ago so it missed my list. Awesome crude sounds. Perfect traditional art. Basically sounds just like BU... so the more the merrier. Seems lots slept on this one though? I still love f and v maybe people are losing interest I don't know... correct me if I'm wrong.

Quote from: absurdexposition on March 08, 2019, 10:36:21 PM

Quote from: yosef666 on March 08, 2019, 10:12:16 PM
Neofolk:
Death In June ‎– Essence!
Current 93 ‎– The Light is Leaving Us All
Spiritual Front ‎– Amour Braque
Fire + Ice ‎– Wanderer
Sol Invictus ‎– Necropolis
Rome ‎– Hall of Thatch

It's crazy to think that pretty much all of the old guard of neofolk put out worthy new albums last year, most of them in the last quarter. I haven't heard the Sol Invictus album yet but Di6, C93 and Fire + Ice are all solid.

Wasn't at all pleased with 'Essence!'. It was funny to read the interview with Douglas in Noise Receptor and see his remarks regarding the album having heard it only a short while before. I thought to myself "if this is the 'essence' of Death in June, I've been a complete fucking rube all these years!" The songs just seem flat and half-finished/written to me.
But, I am a few songs into this latest C93 right now and it honestly has me floored! The best of Tibet's output in a long time to my ears.

Quote from: theworldisawarfilm on March 13, 2019, 03:12:12 PM

Quote from: absurdexposition on March 08, 2019, 10:36:21 PM

Quote from: yosef666 on March 08, 2019, 10:12:16 PM
Neofolk:
Death In June ‎– Essence!
Current 93 ‎– The Light is Leaving Us All
Spiritual Front ‎– Amour Braque
Fire + Ice ‎– Wanderer
Sol Invictus ‎– Necropolis
Rome ‎– Hall of Thatch

It's crazy to think that pretty much all of the old guard of neofolk put out worthy new albums last year, most of them in the last quarter. I haven't heard the Sol Invictus album yet but Di6, C93 and Fire + Ice are all solid.

Wasn't at all pleased with 'Essence!'. It was funny to read the interview with Douglas in Noise Receptor and see his remarks regarding the album having heard it only a short while before. I thought to myself "if this is the 'essence' of Death in June, I've been a complete fucking rube all these years!" The songs just seem flat and half-finished/written to me.
But, I am a few songs into this latest C93 right now and it honestly has me floored! The best of Tibet's output in a long time to my ears.

It took me a couple listens to get into Essence. I didn't like it at first and now I think it's one of his best in a long time. It's at least as good as Peaceful Snow (which I loved). The C93 album was the one that let me down a little bit, to be honest. It's still good and likely the best in years as well, but it feels like something is missing.

I enjoyed parts of Essence a lot initially but the Alex Jones style lyrics in some tracks really killed the album for me. I don't know about the C93 album either, saw them perform it start to finish and while it was fine and all, was just waiting for it to be finished so they would play a few classics as an encore. However both records are still significantly better than I expected, considering both groups have been active for close to 40 years

Quote from: totalblack on March 13, 2019, 05:17:19 PM
[...]the Alex Jones style lyrics in some tracks really killed the album for me.

Speaking truth to power right here hahaha. I've always had a lot of appreciation for the many puns/wordplay/tongue-in-cheekedness with DIJ. Here, it was just awful.

I haven't really followed C93's output as closely as most of the more recent releases I've spent any time with have all fallen decidedly flat , so this probably contributes a fair deal to my reaction.  Nice to come back to something I'd turned my attention from for a while and find strong elements of some of my favourite C93 releases. DIJ, having significant gaps in new output my hopes were pretty high I suppose.  At any rate, I share the sentiment that after such  long careers it's great to see them not pumping out pure trash at this point.

As far as C93, it's all about the gravel born in the voice of the second-from-last track Fair Weather. It's taken Tibet a good while to attain this gravitas but there it is.

To the nicely layered strains of melancholic voice and drone-
and the fragile birds soar and sing

Makes the album for me.

Quote from: theworldisawarfilm on March 13, 2019, 03:12:12 PM

Quote from: absurdexposition on March 08, 2019, 10:36:21 PM

Quote from: yosef666 on March 08, 2019, 10:12:16 PM
Neofolk:

Wasn't at all pleased with 'Essence!'. It was funny to read the interview with Douglas in Noise Receptor and see his remarks regarding the album having heard it only a short while before. I thought to myself "if this is the 'essence' of Death in June, I've been a complete fucking rube all these years!" The songs just seem flat and half-finished/written to me.

Ha! I got a chuckle with the above! Anyway, I assume you are referring to my review in Noise Receptor? Personally on initial listens I too thought the album was not fully formed, but there was something about it that over the course of the month I had it before the review was posted I listened to it 2-3 times a day and all those initial misgiving completely fell away. I am now in a position where I can't even 'hear' those elements I had misgivings about. I guess it is that process of some albums 'settling' over time, where others are immediate. Needless to say i like it a lot. Although when I refer to it being the 'essence' of Di6 that was meant as Douglas doing exactly what he wants with the group, and not just 'ringing in' a typical (or expected) 'neo-folk' album.

Interesting to hear what others thought of Essence!... At first I wasn't so sure about the first half of the album (didn't think it was bad), but was immediately into the second half. After a couple listens, the first half just clicked. Obviously, the older material is superior, but I do think this album stands on its own and isn't just a case of nostalgia. Really like that he incorporated loops/samples that have been missing the past few releases. Lyrics are great IMO and seem to take a more personal/introspective approach, which makes sense given what he had to say in the Noise Receptor interview regarding mortality. I don't think I get the Alex Jones comparison above. My only gripe with the lyrics and really the whole album is the "dark net" line. When I listen to Death In June, it takes me to a place that is atavistic or romantic. That line is just too modern... It just slightly ruins the mood. Whatever. Still a very strong album.

I bought Essence for my friend for Christmas as he is a huge Death In June fan. I got it off the short lived Death in June BandCamp, ordered the picture disc, there was a delay with it being pressed on time, but my friend says it's the best album by them in a while. They're not for me, but he was happy.

Flagellatio Orgasmus - Painful Sex

Another one of my highlights from 2018.