On a personal level 2018 has been one of the more stressful ones in recent memory for me, with the birth of my first child ranking as probably the biggest change in my life. The way your priorities change has definitely made it harder to find the time to delve into new music. Even so, I've managed to listen to hundreds of new tracks in 2018 - though my year-end list does definitely lean heavily toward bands and groups I was already acquainted with, and albums that released before I became a parent.
1. Carpenter Brut - Leather TeethMan, what a kick-ass album. Being released early in 2018, it'd be easy to have forgotten about it come time for list-writing - if it hadn't been for how good it was. Following up on his incredible trilogy of EPs can't possibly have been an easy task, but altering the format with this faux-film soundtrack sees Carpenter Brut's signature hard-hitting bass section and eerie, throat-cutting synth overlays repurposed to fit an album format with great success. Leather Teeth takes chances, but still feels like everything we could have ever asked for in a Carpenter Brut album.
2. The Night Flight Orchestra - Sometimes the World Ain't EnoughUpon the huge achievement in arena-oriented rock in modern times that was 2017's Amber Galactic, you'd be hard pressed to follow up on that with anything that comes remotely close to the same thrill. That is, unless you're Sweden's NFO. Sometimes the World Ain't Enough, like its predecessor, brings metric tons of those Boston/Foreigner/Journey styled hits to the table. You could argue that it's too much of the same recipe, but one listen of the new album and you'll be convinced that the format definitely hasn't worn out yet.
3. Sammal - SuuliekkiSammal is such a unique band. Though their influences are unquestionable and easily identifiable, the Finnish ensemble twists and weaves each element and influence into their own sound in a way that none have duplicated. Their progressive and organ-heavy classic rock sound is immediately endearing, and coupled with their flairful songwriting filled with hooks it makes Suuliekki a welcome addition to their already stellar discography.
The Swedish songwriter and musician Anna Von Hausswolff has really been gaining traction with her previous album (The Miraculous from 2015), in both indie, rock and metal scenes all over Europe and North America. Dead Magic solidifies the deservedness of her popularity, and the things we already knew: That Anna Von Hausswolff is both an incredible songwriter, able to write captivating songs across a spectrum that spans incredible genre-wise width, and that her ability to perform her pieces with the adequate emotions and amount of passion is close to unrivaled.
Ruins is likely the poppiest of the lot on my top 10 non-metal entries for 2018, and I definitely have a soft spot for the Swedish sisters. Where Stay Gold to me seemed like a departure from the classic country-folk feel of The Lion's Roar into more pop-oriented territory, Ruins perfectly balances the two between meaningful slow burners and captivating hits.
When it comes to spinning up a tale of fantasy and far away lands, few do it as well as Sequestered Keep. Across his many albums the basic instrumentation of synthesized strings has changed very little, but in this field it's more about creating that special atmosphere and taking the listener to places. Vale of Ruined Towers is the exact type of dungeon synth that I love, because it's so finely crafted to fit into Sequestered Keep's own universe.
Progressive rock tends to get a little too colourful and pompous for my own tastes. Crippled Black Phoenix's post-rock infused prog provides a musical narrative that strays the perfect length from the extravagant melodies of more traditional prog rock without leaving it entirely in the background. Horrific Honorifics is also kept commendably short and concise when compared to most well known bands in the scene, making for a much more to-the-point experience. The fact that these tracks are cover songs went completely over my head through my first listens to the release. Each track is bent to the sound of CBP so well that not recognising them feels almost justified.
Their latest is arguably the duo's most cheesy outing yet, but that unabashed unceremonious and childish attitude still hasn't worn out its welcome. Helped along by several juicy and instantly memorable tracks, Head Over Heels' brash bass lines, groovy synths and catchy vocals hits home right in the nostalgia gland that is also satisfied by the likes of Daft Punk, Justice and Breakbot.
9. Fief - IVThe mysterious figure colloquially known as merely "the Utah guy," who is supposedly the man behind both Sequestered Keep, Fief and perhaps even Thangorodrim (all well-known names in dungeon synth circles), hits another home run to Middle-Earth with the fourth Fief album. Perhaps a little more to the point and less mysterious than Vale of Ruined Towers (by Sequestered Keep), IV shows that incredible flair for melodic progressions that Fief has become so well known for in that little DS niche of the internet.
Morcheeba is the only artist featured on this list that I wasn't acquainted with already, and I'm a little ashamed to say that my main reason for checking it out was something so superficial as taking a liking to the cover art. Blaze Away hits the same notes that strike my fancy as Massive Attack, The Avener and Nicola Cruz, where the sound is both warm and familiar, but the feel at the same time so weirdly alien. With a few well-placed (and well chosen) collaborations, Blaze Away really does bring the listener through all sorts of feels and atmospheres.
Non-metal Honourable Mentions
For Ever feels like it's been a long time under way, even if the debut came out in 2014. Though the group is British their unique take on neo-soul has a distinctly American sound, and it's definitely something that Jungle have embraced here on their second album. Generally speaking the singles are poppier and less experimental. Though there are several great tracks on For Ever, it simply doesn't have the same impact and newcomer flavour that the debut did.
Just in time for Halloween 2018, Frights brings another set of horrific soundscapes from Acid Witch founding member Slasher Dave. With strobe-like synths, choppy drum machines and eerie washes, Frights feels like the American horror freak's most experimental album yet. The influence from Italian composers like Claudio Simonetti and especially Fabio Frizzi is, as always, obvious but welcome. Frights satisfies the need for campy Halloween synths, but the greatest songs are a little far between compared to earlier efforts.
The synthwave scene has probably been one of the quickest to rise, and subsequently the one to make the sharpest drop and longest fall. By 2018, the truly extraordinary releases are precious, few, and far between. OGRE Sound has since the 195 album been one of my favourite synthmongers, leaning harder on the soundtrack format than italodisco/synthpop sounds of many contemporaries. It certainly helps that OGRE Sound has been among the most consistently good artists within the scene as well. Ballard is OGRE Sound's tribute to the works of science fiction author J.G. Ballard, and though I have yet to become intimately acquainted with his literary works, the Ballard album feels like a neatly crafted soundtrack that works with any classic science fiction work, be it Dick, Gibson, Asimov, Herbert, or Ballard.
Dead Can Dance - DionysusWith Dead Can Dance you're never really too sure of what you're gonna get when they release a new album. After all they've never been ones to adhere to a single genre calling. Dionysus in many aspects feels like a direct sequel to 2012's Anastasis album, where tingling strings move ever so faintly behind a harsher tribal rhythm section. It is also much more of a concept album than any of their previous efforts, comprised of just 2 tracks in 3 and 4 seamless movements respectively. Dionysus is fantastically evocative of many cultural doctrines, without ever commiting to any one in particular. I know the sound of Dionysus isn't for every DCD fan out there, but as someone who came a little late to the ball it feels as much as the DCD I know as any album they ever did.
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