Annus in Mollis – 2023 Non-Metal favorites

While The Mary Wallopers eschew any modern instrumentation and play exclusively acoustic, they carry the punk spirit in many subtle ways. These Irish folksters are as indebted to The Pogues as they are to political American songwriters. Songs like "The Vultures of Christmas" feel like modern hymns of the working class in a time when being middle class seems like the new precariat. The album is aware of its musical heritage and frequently quotes, or otherwise adapts, traditional Irish material. However this is often warped and arranged in ways that give it new meaning. It is rare that truly good folk albums come along in this day and age, but these Irish lads might've just done it.

Cécile's last album had been a surprise hit for me, and I was eager to listen to her new one for that reason. This time, all of it is in French. Working with traditional songs as much as original compositions and jazz standards, chansons as much as experimental soundscapes, Cécile is one of the most interesting voices in jazz—and what a voice she has.

Nemesis & Nativity is many things. With a singer that might as well be a resurrected Leonard Cohen, instrumentals ranging from trip-hop to neofolk to outright post-metal, and a lush, dense and deep production, this album feels incredibly profound and emotionally resonant.

While Woods and Segal remain rooted in traditional hip-hop, the beats are cut up, rearranged and have what kids nowadays call the "drunk feel"—wonky instrumentals that always feel like they might fall apart. While the beats are dragging, rushing, stopping at unexpected intervals, Billy never loses the flow and makes the album seem much less experimental than it actually is by sheer force of talent.

For someone as hip-hop challenged as me, a metalhead cliché, finding Billy Woods's Aethiopes thanks to our resident Master Goat in last year's non-metal write-up felt like a godsend. I've spent months listening to that album over and over, and finding something else that's good in the genre seemed unlikely for some time. Enter SKECH185 and his succinct new album He Left Nothing For the Swim Back. With an almost noir feeling, jazzy backing tracks and beats courtesy of producer Jeff Markey, SKECH goes through stories of growing up, general creativity, and the trials of working behind a bar, skillfully extracting a message that can speak beyond his local situation. It seems I should have been looking at the indie hip-hop scene all along.

I've listened to a few Penelope Trappes ambient/field recording albums before and felt that although interesting, they didn't have much staying power. I am at odds with ambient since I want some kind of story to be told by the music. Heavenly Spheres, however, is where Trappes sticks the landing for me. With a cover that matches the music's noises-in-the-middle-of-the-night aesthetic, this is an album that I actively enjoy having in the background because it's distinct enough to feel like a dynamic movement, yet it maintains a gentle, ethereal presence. Subtle—worth it.

I only listened to one folk album in 2023. Luckily for me, it's a good one. Taking a page from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' Murder Ballads, Little Bird is much more downtrodden and doom focused due to being SubRosa's Rebecca Vernon's solo project. Tales of murder and behind-closed-doors abuse makes the lushly produced folk and rock take on a tragic atmosphere that hits heavily in songs like "The Truth", keeping my attention way longer than a 17 minute track should. Hit this up for the feels, stay for Vernon's fantastic vocal hooks. You won't be disappointed in anything other than humanity.

I already reviewed Dead Times' self-titled debut album on this blog earlier, but it bears repeating as it's a good debut. A bit harsher than my other non metal picks, this band's mix of throbbing industrial and drone mixed with noise and devotional choirs is something new and unlike anything I have heard before. The album goes through a few moods that build and hit with precision, making for a noise album that soothes and pulls you along competently. This is one to give a try or two if it falls outside your established genre listening as it is rewarding if it manages to hit.

Something of a guilty pleasure, I was unsure if I should include this on the list as depending on the day, or even time of day, I would find it pretentious. But Neil Gaiman is an important author for my development as an artist/writer and so I had to give it a shot. I found that Gaiman has a good enough voice to handle turning poetry into music, despite a sometimes monotone delivery. Songs like "Möbius Strip" and "The Problem With Saints" put a smile on my face because they are handled with humor and good delivery, which lifts the other material that doesn't hit as well. FourPlay String Quartet, not to be outdone, find good ways to make music that enhances the spoken word, somehow being both distinct but out of the words' way.

Zen instrumental music has been my metal side hustle for a while, and I do include quite a bit of post rock in this category. Was I then programmed to dig this Mogwai adjacent project? Who knows. Black Bay embodies an atmospheric and epic essence, just like any other honest release of this variety. I’ve always favored a hint of vocals in my post rock and I’m glad this one delivers them, with an extra tinge of Portishead’s Beth Gibbons that makes me love it even more. It burns slowly and shines bright. Crank up the melancholy.

When ambient hits, it hits with the force of a hundred bdm albums. Kenniff released my favorite ambient album this year. We All Have Places That We Miss is a collection of dreamy and evocative soundscapes—a long lost photo album in sound form that one might come across in a dusty attic. Her piano, a gentle breeze that caresses on a warm evening; synths, the waves sinking my feet deeper into sand; guitar, a delicate hand holding me and guiding me back home—45 minutes that feel like a fist punching the lump in my throat. Don’t fight it.

Deerhoof are an essential addition to this list. It remains a mystery how, at their 19th album, this band still present a fresh and innovative sound, although they do have a good track record—most albums feel like a total rebirth. Miracle Level is captivating and exudes a childlike chaotic charm that proves addictive. It offers a complete musical journey and an excellent starting point for delving into the enthralling rabbit hole of the band’s discography. We’re all mad here.

What if I told you that my favorite ambient release this year came from a solo trombone artist? Cause that's who Kalia Vandever is, damnit, a solo trombone artist, Julliard trained and performance-tested by appearances with pop stars on late-night shows and with jazz legends Wynton Marsalis and Herbie Hancock. There's none of that free expression or bouncy composition on We Fell in Turn though. All you'll find here is recklessly modulated, dilated, and warped brass emotion. A trombone often plays the character of a dumpy, sad fellow, but Vandever has the talent and vision to give it round, longing, reverent, and hopeful vigor. One of a kind.