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Post by greendemon on Dec 25, 2022 14:30:08 GMT 1
What could be more festive on Christmas Day than gloomy shoegaze? 19. Just MustardIrish quintet Just Mustard were a new discovery for me in 2022, and I don't know if I've seen much about them on Haven either. They formed in 2016 in Dundalk and have released two albums to date: their debut, Wednesday, in 2018, and their first major label release Heart Under earlier this year. As has so often been the case this year, I happened upon this band completely by chance thanks to a lucky roll of the YouTube dice which brought me to their single 'Still', a brooding, industrial trip-hop-influenced shoegaze track combining dark, atmospheric guitar and synth tones with Katie Ball's haunting vocals. The album came out a few months later and comes recommended by me for anyone to whom the idea of a band somewhere between Massive Attack and My Bloody Valentine with eerie female vocals appeals. Highlights: I've gone with 'Still' as this was how I discovered the band, and is probably still my favourite, but also because her vocals really remind me of CHVRCHES' Lauren Mayberry here!
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Post by greendemon on Dec 25, 2022 14:59:56 GMT 1
Not enough growling, you say? 20. Rolo TomassiAnother five-piece band, and another new discovery for me in 2022, Sheffield mathcore/post-hardcore band Rolo Tomassi have been around since 2005. Their sixth album, Where Myth Becomes Memory, released in February and has gone on to be one of the most acclaimed albums of the year across the heavy music spectrum. For me it was a case of deciding to check it out on the basis of the amount of buzz it had been getting, and I was pretty impressed with what I heard. The band are known for defying genre categorisation and the album takes you through everything from hardcore punk and mathcore screams to shoegazy guitars, pianos and synths. This wouldn't work nearly as well as it does without Eva Korman who is just an incredibly talented vocalist with a beautiful clean-singing voice matched by her savage, visceral screams, making for a diverse and atmospheric record. Heavy music isn't that popular here but if you are a fan and have somehow missed this album, I have to recommend checking it out. Highlights: I didn't actually chart any of the singles as I came to the album first and it just seemed a bit weird to go back and add them in! For Haven purposes, I'll share 'Closer' which was a back-up for me in one of the Rock Idol rounds - it's absolutely gorgeous (and is growl-free ) 'Drip' is probably a better taster of the album: www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL4VHwXI7_I
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Post by greendemon on Dec 25, 2022 15:00:33 GMT 1
This turned into one of those advent calendars that gets left at your house when you go to visit family for the holidays and gets binge-eaten when you get home At least I'll still get them all done by New Years' Eve at this rate...
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TheThorne
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*Hillside, slip and slide, feel the pain, it's no surprise!*
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Post by TheThorne on Dec 25, 2022 15:13:56 GMT 1
Not really a fan of Rolo Tomassi saw them supporting Biffy Clyro about 10 years ago , really like what ive heard from Just Mustard though
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Post by greendemon on Dec 25, 2022 15:59:33 GMT 1
5 more to come: two duos, one solo artist and two bands
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Post by greendemon on Dec 26, 2022 15:27:40 GMT 1
21. beabadoobeeBeatrice Laus, better known as beabadoobee, is a Filipino-British singer-songwriter active since 2017. I've been following her for a few years since I saw her supporting her label-mates, The 1975, back in early 2020 and was possibly more impressed by her than I was by them! This was also around the time her career really took off with her debut single, 'Coffee', going viral following its use as a sample in a Powfu track two years after its initial release; her first album, Fake It Flowers, also came out later in 2020. She made a welcome return this year with her second full-length, Beatopia, its name inspired by a fantasy world she invented as a young child. I loved her debut and I'm not sure this one quite matches up to it, but I love its sound - broadly categorisable as indie pop-rock steeped in 90s and 2000s nostalgia - and the singles have all been great, so she's earned a mention here. Highlights: My favourite is still lead single, 'Talk', though it's closely followed by '10:36' which was also great. She did have another track chart for me this year - 'fall in love with a girl', a collaboration with Cavetown - but while it's a nice enough bedroom-pop ballad, it doesn't come close to her other singles.
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Post by greendemon on Jan 2, 2023 19:30:44 GMT 1
Let's get this done 22. Let's Eat GrandmaA musical duo I only knew of before 2022 by name alone (and what a name it is!), Let's Eat Grandma are lifelong friends Rosa Walton and Jenny Hollingworth, who grew up together in Norwich. They started making music together as children, but officially formed in 2013. Their brand of synth-laden electronic pop sits very neatly alongside that of CHVRCHES, a long-time favourite act of mine who they have supported on tour, so in some ways it's a surprise it's taken me this long to uncover them. Their third album, Two Ribbons, is a beautiful but melancholic collection of songs examining their evolving friendship, and is also shaped by loss, in particular the loss of Jenny's boyfriend who died aged 22. In addition to this, the duo also released a soundtrack album in 2022 for the Netflix series The Bastard Son & the Devil Himself. Definitely an artist whose discography I plan on familiarising myself with in 2023. Highlights: 'Happy New Year' would have been the perfect track to highlight here, but given its recent appearance in Xmasvision, I'm going for 'Levitation', the follow-up single and one which I think is even better. I also really enjoy 'Watching You Go' and 'Sunday' from Two Ribbons.
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Post by greendemon on Jan 3, 2023 15:04:23 GMT 1
23. SoftcultAn artist some might have expected to come up in this, and with good reason: Softcult scored seven hits in my chart throughout 2022 (more than any other artist) and all of them reached the top 50. Not bad for a relatively new band whose only release last year was an EP! Hailing from Toronto, Softcult are a duo made up of twins Mercedes and Phoenix Arn-Horn who officially formed in 2020, though were also both in an alternative rock band called Courage, My Love from the late 2000s. Their first release was the Year of the Rat EP in 2021, followed up in 2022 with a second, Year of the Snake. Softcult's music is grounded in 90s grunge but incorporates lots of shoegaze and dream-pop elements, and I can't get enough of it - which is handy, because it keeps coming: their third EP, See You In The Dark, is out in March 2023 and based on the songs so far it's going to be another great record. Without a doubt one of the newer artists I'm most excited about - they played near me in May last year and I really regret not making it out to see them! Highlights: Their biggest hit in my chart was a #2 in the summer with a shimmering, shoegazey take on Nirvana's 'Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle', but my highlight here has to be 'Uzumaki' from earlier in the year which has an absolute belter of a chorus. One of the first songs I fell in love with in 2022, and actually the one that inspired me to start making a chart.
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TheThorne
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*Hillside, slip and slide, feel the pain, it's no surprise!*
Posts: 27,551
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Post by TheThorne on Jan 3, 2023 15:13:56 GMT 1
I should be a fan of Lets Eat Grandma as they are a local band but not until their most recent record have I liked what they do. So they are getting there with me.
As for Softcult similar kind of stats think they have had 6 top 10 hits for me this year. Totally love them.
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Post by greendemon on Jan 3, 2023 15:48:37 GMT 1
I should be a fan of Lets Eat Grandma as they are a local band but not until their most recent record have I liked what they do. So they are getting there with me. As for Softcult similar kind of stats think they have had 6 top 10 hits for me this year. Totally love them. I think the last two will meet with your approval
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Post by greendemon on Jan 3, 2023 16:04:51 GMT 1
24. Eliza & The DelusionalsThe final new-to-me-in-2022 artist of this advent calendar, Eliza & The Delusionals were a breakout hit this past year for several of us at Haven. Formed in 2016, this four-piece from Queensland only released their debut album, Now And Then, in 2022, though already had a couple of EPs under their belt. I only discovered them thanks to seeing them hyped up in TheThorne and Razzle Dazzle 's charts, so decided to check out a couple of singles. They deal in the kind of gorgeously melodic indie-dream-pop that always goes down well with me, and needless to say, I was really impressed. In a year when I seem to have fallen down a metal-and-assorted-heavy-music rabbit hole, the sparkly sweetness of Now And Then has provided a welcome interlude, and I look forward to watching this band develop. Highlights: I suspect this is an unpopular opinion but 'Bed Song' is my favourite of the singles. That said, they're all great and most of the album tracks are strong as well. I'm a big fan of 'Halloween', 'Circles', 'Give You Everything' and 'Save Me' (those last two might be the best opening one-two of any album in 2022!)
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Post by greendemon on Jan 3, 2023 16:45:03 GMT 1
Last one! (I'm aware most advent calendars only have 24 doors, but the image I used had 25 and my perfectionism wouldn't let me leave one square ) 25. Pale WavesAlthough the order of these was entirely random, I'm glad this artist came up as the 'bonus' option as they're possibly the ones I was most conflicted about including. Formed in Manchester in 2014, Pale Waves are a four-piece indie-pop-rock band and need very little introduction here. I've liked them since around 2018, when I happened upon the video for 'Television Romance', which was an instant hit with me for its strong The Cure and The 1975 vibes (I later found out that Matty Healy directed the video!) Since then their sound has evolved drastically, moving away from the 80s and into the realm of 90s and 2000s pop-punk and emo, with influences for their third album, 2022's Unwanted, including the likes of My Chemical Romance, Green Day and Avril Lavigne. The singles from Unwanted have all gone down pretty well with me - six of them made my chart in 2022 - but, as with all their albums to date, I struggle with the record as a whole. Musically I have no real complaints, I think I just wish their songs had a little more depth to them. That said, I do think the latest effort is their best yet and I'll be interested to see how they follow this up. Highlights: Their best finish in my chart was in the summer with 'Reasons To Live' (#22) but I actually really want to highlight 'The Hard Way'. It's a moving song that wrestles with the theme of bullying, its consequences and wondering if you could have done more to help. A ballad rather than a banger, but the harmonies are rather beautiful - it reminds me of Wolf Alice in places - and lyrically I think this is one of their best songs to date.
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Good Old Days
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Sielos grožio niekas nepavogs, kol širdy jaunystė gros.
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Post by Good Old Days on Jan 3, 2023 20:54:29 GMT 1
Did you include any acts, which I heard before ? Possibly, though maybe not ones you would like!I like some Alvvays songs. So it's 1 out of 25, which is better than nothing. Sylvaine must be mentioned as the most beautiful singer in this thread. Maybe one day she will release something interesting or I need to listen more her songs.
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Post by greendemon on Jan 4, 2023 15:34:06 GMT 1
1/25 is better than I expected! If you're waiting for Sylvaine to make anything that isn't post-black metal you'll probably be disappointed, though she might do a Myrkur and go folk at some point. (I can also highly recommend taking a chance on artists you don't find physically attractive, but maybe that's just me )
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Post by Razzle Dazzle on Jan 4, 2023 16:35:06 GMT 1
Pale Waves were my favourite new live act of 2022 I have to say new because Idlewild take the prize of best live act i saw in 2022
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Post by greendemon on Jan 4, 2023 16:49:13 GMT 1
Pale Waves put on a good show, I'll say that for them! I only managed to go to two gigs last year but both were amazing, can't really pick which I enjoyed more.
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Post by greendemon on Mar 19, 2024 12:09:20 GMT 1
Possibly, though maybe not ones you would like! I like some Alvvays songs. So it's 1 out of 25, which is better than nothing. Sylvaine must be mentioned as the most beautiful singer in this thread. Maybe one day she will release something interesting or I need to listen more her songs. I don't know how you feel about folk but she has just released the most beautiful stripped-back EP of her interpretations of some Norwegian folk songs. It may not be your kind of thing - it's VERY stripped back; really her voice is the main instrument throughout - but I found it utterly captivating since her voice is my favourite thing about her music. Also, at least it's not metal
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