BRANDON FLOWERS – The Desired Effect

Brandon Flowers – The Desired Effect (2015, Island Records)

Stuck in the 80’s since his debut in music, Brandon Flowers who’s also the lead singer of dream pop, alt rock, post-punk band The Killers, who released two of the best albums of the 2000’s Hot Fuss and Sam’s Town. While Flowers with his first solo album, Flamingo has digged more into his influences and use the easy hooks and 1980’s pop populate his album.

OBSEQUIAE – Aria of Vernal Tombs

Obsequiae – Aria of Vernal Tombs (2015, 20 Buck Spin)

Released in June this year, the second album of Obsequiae, Aria of Vernal Tombs, is a rich metal album that blends medieval music without being folk, viking, or out there too much. The parallel with Ophtalamia and early Ulver albums is quite obvious for a black metal fan. But for the common metal enthusiast, Obsequiae is a different offering in the sounds and blend of music and textures.

TSJUDER – Antiliv

Tsjuder – Antiliv (2015, Season Of Mist)

In this era of saturated genre albums, especially a genre where evolution or departure from the original guidelines is often quickly discarded. In the black metal genre, many good records are released each year. However, a few are or are potentially labeled as great.

NILE – What Should Not Be Unearthed

Nile – What Should Not Be Unearthed (2015, Nuclear Blast)

To state that I am a fan of the Ancient Egypt themed Technical Death Metal band Nile would be an understatement. For more than fifteen years I’ve spined each and every one of their albums endlessly. Trying to play them on the drums, as a soundtrack to my many hours on a snowboard and skateboard. And in the spring of 2014 I finally had the luck to watch them live in my hometown. I was in trance for the whole show and knew every song, every riff, and every drum combo.

BEACH HOUSE – Depression Cherry

Beach House – Depression Cherry (2015, Bella Union / Mistletone / Sub Pop)

The dream pop duo of Beach House formed in 2004 has release a series of widely celebrated albums. With their latest, Depression Cherry, they are doing a return to their original form of more minimalistic music and a more guitar oriented wall of sound. 

LEVIATHAN – Scar Sighted

Leviathan – Scar Sighted (2015, Profound Lore)

From criminal to rehabilitated metalhead, Jeff Whitehead or Wrest is coming back with another album on the excellent label Profound Lore. 

MYRKUR - M

Myrkur - M (2015, Relapse Records)

After making a burst into the black metal community with her EP in 2014, Myrkur, or Amalie Bruun, has united forces with producer and member of Ulver, Garm, Teloch from Mayhem and Sir of Nidingr to make one of the most idiosyncratic metal albums of 2015.

KRALLICE – Ygg Huur

Music Review : Krallice – Ygg Huur (2015, self-released)

Since ten years or so, American black metal has been revigorating the metal world with new band tenures and new extremity in a music that is probably the most repellent for the occasional listener. Of all those American bands, Krallice might be the most unique in sound with an almost metalcore clarity and a death metal intensity.

TAME IMPALA– Currents

Tame Impala – Currents (2015, Interscope)

Kevin Parker’s band, Tame Impala has been on a series of successes since its debut in 2007. First with Innerspeaker and then with Lonerism with which he earned a lot of money with the song Elephant only. The much awaited Currents is, to me, reaching in the spheres of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memory. In the way that it is far from the usual records I would listen by myself. It brought me out of my comfort zone, which is underground extreme forms of metal.

LOCRIAN – Infinite Dissolution

Music Review : Locrian – Infinite Dissolution (2015, Relapse Records)

While most Black metal bands are centered about the dark themes in human nature, the new generation of American black metal bands have taken an approach near light and the human introspection. This anti-conformism of a very conformist and hermetic genre is giving a fresh breath to a genre that could have stayed deeply rooted in its origins of Satan worshipers and underground influenced bands like Discharge and Black Flag.