Looking Back At 2013: Part 2 of 3

This week, we progress further up the hill of our Best of 2013 list, now presenting you the #11 to #20 portion of it.

20. Hierophant, «Great Mother: Holy Monster»

Italy’s Hierophant had already injected mayhem into the ears of whoever got turned to them thanks to their self-titled debut in 2010. With that, they let everyone know that blackened metallic hardcore with sludge leanings were not a domain exclusive domain to the better known The Secret (no pun intended). With this year’s «Great Mother, Holy Monster», they surely got closer to that band’s sound but that is alright when your penchant for writing great blackened hardcore riffs is such that you can fill a whole album with them. Hierophant, who nowadays actually feature The Secret’s bass player Lorenzo Gulminelli as a guitarist, can slap you repeatedly in the face with their d-beat fueled downtuned anger yet they can be just as effective at bringing you down with their midtempo. Check “Son of Four-Hands Way” for evidence. All killer, no filler.

19. The Dillinger Escape Plan, «One Of Us Is The Killer»

The behemoths of math core - or whatever you want to call the seizure-inducing brand of hardcore these guys have been up to for a good while now - have refined their pop sensibilities (!) coming up with one of their best efforts while at it. Sure «Calculating Infinity» and «Miss Machine» will always be regarded as DEP’s timeless classics of schizophrenia but there’s no denying a song like “Nothing’s Funny” can dazzle just as much as “Unretrofied” did years earlier. More accessible, but no less uncompromising.

18. Gorguts, «Colored Sands»

Canadian entity Gorguts started as a regular old-school death metal band but was quick to devise a new language, writing its bible in «Obscura», an album that was light years ahead of its time with all the misunderstandings something like that entails. That time though has already come and Luc Lemay came back from a 12-year hibernation with a clear mission: to remind the world that technical death metal is still pretty much his domain. And now that the world understands the language, the end result is «Colored Sands» easily becoming a staple in the genre, while brilliantly retelling the history of China’s invasion of Tibet. How’s that for a history lesson, Van Drunen?

17. Hessian, «Manegarmr»

A close look at «Manegarmr»’s cover art might turn your stomach but it’s a damn good indication of the music contained within. Part of the Church of Ra collective and sharing members with Amenra and The Black Heart Rebellion, Hessian’s approach is however much more direct than that of those bands. The chaos induced by their frenzied, guitar-driven brand of crusty metallic hardcore can be exhilarating and the black metal aesthetic is never far away, but their strongest asset is on how they maintain full control over the proceedings, suddenly plunging into a huge breakdown as in highlight “Swallowing Nails” and easily getting back to speed. Intricate riffs, sharp guitars and a galloping, impactful rhythm section - what’s not to like?

16. Inter Arma, «Sky Burial»

It takes a certain quality to be able to mix up a gazillion different genres in one’s music but it takes a lot more than that to get it right. «Sky Burial» is where Richmond’s Inter Arma did it, the whole package emerging as something much bigger than the sum of its parts, simply because they have the ability to process all their obvious influences - from Pink Floyd to USBM by way of Neurosis, shall we say - and come up with something so meticulously crafted, it simply becomes their own. Being over an hour long can make it a tad overwhelming at first, but that is only until you surrender to it and just enjoy the ride. Which by the time third track “The Long Road Home” rolls out, you’ll most certainly do.

15. Terror, «Live By The Code»

This Los Angeles-based hardcore institution have been coherently doing their thing since 2003 until they really hit the spot with «Keepers Of The Faith» three years ago, a landmark within the hardcore community and one not at all easy to surpass. Whether they did so with «Live By The Code» is up for debate, but the fact of the matter is that after a couple of spins there is virtually no track in there that doesn’t stick to your brain like bubblegum. “From a broken home I was thrown straight into this world”, barks Scott Vogel in the first verse of initial cut “The Most High”, channeling all their renowned live energy, and that’s all the statement of intent you need going into this.

14. Whores., «Clean.»

With song titles like “I’m An Amateur At Everything” or “I Am Not A Goal-Oriented Person” you’re either a Pitchfork darling trying to channel the juvenile insecurities by way of Pavement or The Flaming Lips (cue hate mail) or you’re saying it tongue-in-cheek while delivering devastating noise rock based grooves, full of spit and bile. There are probably other ways, but this is the one Whores. chose with their music and in particular with their latest offering «Clean.». And what’s with all the trailing dots anyway? In any case, these guys are exactly how a power trio should sound like, each member contributing decisively to the mix, big fat guitar and bass and a no-frills approach to drumming that hits all the right spots. Imagine a groovier KEN mode without all the math and you’ll get the idea. [RD review]

13. Darkthrone, «The Underground Resistance»

They may have now delivered their 16th (!) record in a career foreign to stagnation, but never before has a Darkthrone album title been more fitting of the band’s ethos. They may be accused of messing up with people’s expectations, laughing about it while simultaneously being dead serious with their music, but one thing they can never be accused of is selling out in any shape or form. After a run of necropunk infused albums, Fenriz and Nocturno Culto have gone all NWOBHM and speed metal on our faces and, unsurprisingly, their approach hasn’t changed one iota. Uncompromising, old-school sounding heavy metal with an uncanny modern air of freshness, of which “Leave No Cross Unturned” is their definite statement. If you’re not headbanging and playing your air guitar right off the gates on this one, then something’s not kosher.

12. Chelsea Wolfe, «Pain Is Beauty»

Sounding fresh and innovative becomes an ever-increasingly difficult task nowadays. This may be an ongoing debate - whether everything has pretty much been done one way or another - but while you think about that you might as well just listen to Chelsea Wolfe. She’s been hovering under the radar for a good while now but «Pain Is Beauty» was the album that broke the door open and let her secret out. The fact that she accomplishes such feat while not compromising in the slightest is a testament to her art - and that of the musicians that she smartly surrounded herself with. Chelsea has a way about her - which is readily apparent to anyone who’s caught her act live on stage - appealing to extreme metal fans while at the same time soundtracking an art film featuring Sasha Grey (in a more… upright position) or repping for fashion designers. Her poise is hard to put into words but «Pain Is Beauty», dark yet delicate and almost Swans-esque as it may be, is the perfect starting point to work backwards on unravelling the wonders of this contemporary singer/songwriter.

11. Nails, «Abandon All Life»

A little over seventeen minutes is exactly how long it takes for Nails to obliterate all human (and inhuman) form off the face of the planet with their new album «Abandon All Life». It’s like the only thing remaining is the band members themselves alongside the charred remains of their own instruments, such is the vitriolic power of hatred contained herein. Their vengeful «Unsilent Death» debut had already established the band as perhaps the most destructive act in Southern Lord’s ever expanding hardcore punk roster, but this is a whole different ball game. Producer turned God Kurt Ballou has injected enough steroids in their sound to make a billy goat puke and its short duration, together with the menacing (and quite memorable) riffs, make its replay power immense.

Keep an eye out for the final part of our 2013 retrospective, the infamous Top 10, coming next Tuesday, 17 Dec.