Best of 2016. Honorable mention #1

To put it clear, it was a busy year. I rarely posted to this blog cos for the most of 2016 I was suffereing the writer's block but I never put myself out of the discource. So I spent a lot of time listening to the new records and a lot of money purchasing the new music - both physically and digitally. I've listened to 300+ albums - more than in any previous year. So now I'm not that easy-minded guy who tried to select 30 good records out of overall 55. Now the task is way too complicated.
Initially my aim was to select 50 best albums and say 'enough' but the more I dove into the more I felt like this aim is indistinguishable. There's huge amount of albums that didn't make it to the main Top50 list, but it would be the greatest injustice if their names were not pronounced. Respectively I've corrected the plan and added 40 more albums (that in sum with Top10 EPs and the main Top50 list will give us the amount of 100 albums in total). That's why the 'Honorable Mention' section is so wide this time. I've decided to divide the whole section onto two tiers only to keep the posts readable. There are no certain places within the tier as well as certain differences between the albums from the different tiers. All the albums within the tier are presented in alphabetical order (by band name). So you could presume all these 40 albums are allocated to the place #51.

Atlantic "1976" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
This band is the other side of one of my last year's favourites - Moonflower. And this incarnation (fronted by Josep Bartual instead of Maria Lopez) is equally great.
*walks around singing along to "...no pueda superarmeee..."*

Amaro Ferreiro "Biologo" (p)A Records
SPOTIFY
Please omit the fact that Amaro's creative abilities are often overshadowed by the stature of his elder brother. The main thing about "Biologo" is that you can listen to these songs without imagining them being sung by Ivan.

Chicharron "Postal" (p)Prenom
BANDCAMP
Very warm and beautiful indie pop/slowcore album by a Galician band. Low and Yo la Tengo influences are on the sleeve.

Como Vivir En El Campo "CVEEC3" (p)El Genio Equivocado
BANDCAMP
The freak folk pop trio is strangely attractive and beautifully quirky as ever.

Delbosque "Interferencias" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
The burgeoning dreampop/shoegaze wave meets southern psychedelia.

Doctor Lobo "Metodologia" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
The Valencia indie rock/dreampop quintet fronted by Pablo Naharro makes the big step forward since their 2014's mini album "Reiniciar".
"Mastered by Manuel Cabezali" is the trademark.

Fiera "Aljarafe" (p)Humo
BANDCAMP
The experimental duo from Sevilla makes minimalistic and uncomfortable noise rock/electro that causes dependence in high doses.

Kill Kill "Reacciones A Distancia" (p)Miel De Moscas/Gran Sol
BANDCAMP
The Spanish Black Keys with digital effects.

KUVE "Kuve 3.0" (p)EO! Musica
SPOTIFY
This work reminds me of the last efforts by Zahara and The Bright.

Lecciones De Vuelo "Caza" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
Lecciones de Vuelo play quite original mix of shoegaze and twee with distinct elements of post punk. For me, some melodic decisions are questionable - but mostly the band is good at what they do.

Los Amantes "Open 24 Hours" (p)Lucinda
BANDCAMP
The new power pop band fronted by Pat Escoin follows the pattern of any other band fronted by Pat Escoin: melody, high voltage energy, 'take no prisoners' approach. The voice of Pat is the national treasury.

Malandromeda "Os Corenta E Oito Nomes Do Inimigo" (p)Matapadre
BANDCAMP
The alternative form of hip hop from Galicia is something like the median of Delafe and Malaspecto.

Matoll "Matoll" (p)Repetidor Disc
BANDCAMP
All I know about Matoll is that they play the 90's indie rock. This album is a good reason to learn more about them.

Noiseed "Almost Human" (p)El Hombre Bala
BANDCAMP
The catchy Canarian-born electro-industrial with aggro elements (mostly in vocals).

Novedades Carminha "Campeones Del Mundo" (p)Ernie Producciones
SPOTIFY
Their best record by far. Been way too simplistic before, now Novedades Carminha have got that cool vibe that makes the heart beating harder.

Odio Paris "Cenizas Y Flores" (p)Mushroom Pillow
SPOTIFY
[At times] the lightweight drums' sound, [at times] beautifully jangling guitars and [at times] thick layers of synths give this record the possibility to cover the vast spectre of genres.

Parade "Demasiado Humano" (p)Jabalina Musica
BANDCAMP
Probably the best Parade album.

Pinocho Detective "La Vida Privada de..." (p)Delia
BANDCAMP
The angles of this record are too rounded to produce really strong emotions, but it's beautiful and pleasant anyway.

Solletico "Erra" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
The twee/indie/folk pop band from Madrid released the new album pretty quietly, and it came relatively unnoticed. But it's warm and beautiful enough to be the good companion to the glass of whisky and a twist of good grief.

Tucan Morgan "Moon Cabaret Rooms" (p)self-released
BANDCAMP
Read this

Best of 2016. EPs and mini albums

There's a lot of people around who tell us creating lists is stupid. Fuck'em. Creating lists is cool indeed, and it always gonna be cool. So I'd like to start my regular year-end ranking process from the EPs and mini albums Top10. It wasn't any easy to confine the strict 10 out of multiple items of the great music in shortened formats. I was forced to strip out the extended plays of such cool bands and musicians as The Trunks, Lua Gramer, Nuria Graham, La Maniobra De Q as well as the pack of Canarian delegates Ponyboy, Cumbia Ebria, Edui Bercedo and Noiseed.

Let's talk a bit about the structure of Top10. Geographically it covers vast territories from Galicia (Bestlife) to mainland southends (Murciano Total, Apartamentos Acapulco) through metropolitan area (Pasavento, The Levitants, Disciplina Atlantico) and then to Baleares (The Prussians), African enclave Ceuta (Higinio Orduña) and Canary Islands (Estratega Pencherjevsky, San Borondon).
In terms of acquaintance there are 3 bands that could be labeled as 'Sonorama discoveries' (Disciplina Atlantico, The Prussians, The Levitants) - I was learned about their existence but never listened to them before I saw their names on the Sonorama 2016 poster. 3 more bands (Pasavento, Higinio Orduña, Apartamentos Acapulco) are totally new to me while the other 4 are 'the old pals' (Bestlife, San Borondon, Estratega Pencherjevsky, Murciano Total).
Genrewise the list could be divided onto two large 'umbrella brands' of contemporary rock music - indie rock and electro, but it can be easily structurized further to the lesser particles. Of the 'electro' albums the one of Higinio Orduña is the foggy indietronica/ folktronica, while other two are inclined to synthpop (Murciano Total) and futuristic slo-mo techno that perfectly fits for sci-fi movies' soundtracks (Estratega Pencherjevsky). Of the 'indie' albums Apartamentos Acapulco are pure and perfect dreampop - this year is really the year of dreampop for me. San Borondon are the sunny bright power pop with catchy tunes and lo/fi sound. Disciplina Atlantico are the noisy post-punk band whose sound is as energetic as icy-cold. I really want more from them in 2017 as their eponimous 4-song EP is the good appetizer with these stop/start dynamics and masterful use of upbeats. For two 'The …s' bands there's some kind of strange situation. First I saw The Levitants performing on Sonorama's Burgos stage they seemed like the Spanish version of The Foals to me, but studio recordings are far from this impression. Otherwise, The Prussians didn't sound like The Foals onstage, but from the laptop speakers their "Kerala" EP sounds much in these British indie stalwarts' vein.
My dearest Bestlife (Under Your Seat) have added the new elements to their music so the sound pallette (yes, I use this cliche for the first time this year) of "Invincible Anymore" is quite diverse - from the Paul Weller'esque power pop "She's A Whisper" to grunge-laden rocker "As If I Needed Someone". Being compared to their previous "Taking You Back Home" EP the new mini album sounds like the improvement or the logical progression, and it's really interesting what will they do on the next effort.
Pasavento. This Madrid-based four-piece explores the sound I adore the most: the mixture of the 90's post-shoegaze britrock with hardly distinguished but tasty touches of intelligent 00's post-post-hardcore (The Jealous Sound's "A Gentle Reminder" is the best reference to what I'm trying to describe by the newly invented term 'intelligent post-post-hardcore'). All six tracks of "Tuvo Su Momento" are perfect, but they could be even better if they were ten (or twelve).

10. The Levitants - "Coimbra" (p)self-released

BANDCAMP

09. Higinio Orduña - "La Cuesta Del Recinto" (p)Discos Imaginarios

BANDCAMP

08. Estratega Pencherjevsky - "Conache" (p)self-released

BANDCAMP

07. Apartamentos Acapulco - "Justo Y Necesario" (p)Discos Imaginarios

BANDCAMP

06. Murciano Total - "Enquinias" (p)El Genio Equivocado

BANDCAMP

05. The Prussians - "Kerala" (p)GreenUFOs

SPOTIFY

04. San Borondon - "POP!" (p)self-released

BANDCAMP

03. Disciplina Atlantico - "Disciplina Arlantico" (p)Limbo Starr

BANDCAMP

02. Bestlife (Under Your Seat) - "Invincible Anymore" (p)self-released

BANDCAMP

01. Pasavento - "Tuve Su Momento" (p)self-released

BANDCAMP

Best of 2016. Compilations of Foehn & El Hombre Bala

Below you may find the links to the annual compilations of Foehn Records and El Hombre Bala Records. Both labels celebrate their anniversaries this year (15 years and 5 year, respectively), and for the frequent readers of these pages there's no secret these compilations are the delight for your ears.

DOWNLOAD

DOWNLOAD

Viva Belgrado "Ulises"

Viva Belgrado "Ulises" (p)2016 Aloud Music

Being the perfect mixture of high voltage screamo/metalcore and ethereal post rock, the sophomore LP of the Cordoba-born combo wears no signs of so called 'second album syndrome' at all. The sound of "Ulises" is gorgeous, I believe it sounds ten times richer its recording costs. Definitely one of the best releases of the year, it's stronger than "Flores, Carne" in every aspect. So if you like the first Viva Belgrado album - as well as records of This Will Destroy You and Bring Me The Horizon - you will surely embrace this one too.

Moreover, the next February Viva Belgrado will come to Russia to present this album in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Nice news for me.

The best tracks: Pleiades/Pasaportes, Aeropuertos, Cassiopeia/Contraluces

LISTEN/BUY

Facebook

The Lazy Lies "The Lazy Lies"

The Lazy Lies "The Lazy Lies" (p)2016 Right Here Right Now

First of all I should praise Facebook for its positive impact on my life. The huge  part of the best moments in my life that occurred within the last 5 years period are strictly connected to the services Facebook provides to the people. But sometimes it really sucks. For example, the filtration of incoming messages really sucks. The reason why some messages appear in your messenger and some not, being stored in some non-apparent submenu is not clear. In the middle of this year I accidentally discovered some messages dated back prior to year 2015! From that moment on I made a habit of checking the storage of the filtered-off messages at least weekly. And this Thursday I found out that Roger Gascon from the band The Lazy Lies has contacted me in the beginning of this week. The 4 days lag was not so crucial as 1.5 years ‘filtered/found’ lag for the message of Guillermo from Wilhelm (formerly Wilhelm and the Dancing Animals) whom I never replied because felt the momentum lost, so I quickly contacted him back and promised to listen to his band’s eponymous album that was released in January’2016.
Later that evening I came to the band’s bandcamp page and pressed the 'play' button. In seconds it became apparent that The Lazy Lies are harvesting the meadows of the indie pop – more precisely the branch of indie pop that pays homage to the 60’s legacy. Though I’m hardly the massive fan of the 60’s music but I truly like a lot of bands from the 90’s that had been treading the same path - such as mid-era Lilys or The Ladybug Transistor or the multiple bands from the spinART label’s roster. So I just let it flow over and in the middle of the second track ("Who's That Sally?") I started to feel embraced by the sound and by the warm atmosphere of the album. While listening to the very pleasant 'boy/girl' paired vocals of Roger and Montse Bernad this feeling progressed further, and when the last song came to the end I pressed the 'play' button again to listen to the album the second time in a row.

BANDCAMP
FACEBOOK

Top40 albums of 2016 so far. 9 months report

Three quarters of the year are gone. The summer is gone. The vacation is gone. The creative spark is gone. Even the hope is partly gone. And it's raining out there for hours. But there's always something to keep you going.

40. Edui Bercedo "Historias De Calor" (p)Los 80 Pasan Factura

39. Parade "Demasiado Humano" (p)Jabalina Musica

38. Higinio Orduña "La Cuesta Del Recinto" (p)Discos Imaginarios

37. Nocturnos "Hemos Visto Lobos" (p)self-released

36. Kill Kill "Reacciones A Distancia" (p)Miel de Moscas

35. Stay "The Mean Solar Times" (p)Rock Indiana

34. Fira Fem "Vida Nueva" (p)Subterfuge

33. Postman "Life Can Change In A Moment" (p)Keroxen

32. The Levitants "Coimbra" (p)self-released

31. Apartamentos Acapulco "Justo Y Necesario" (p)Discos Imaginarios

30. Disciplina Atlantico "Disciplina Atlantico" (p)Limbo Starr

29. San Borondon "POP!" (p)self-released

28. Fiera "Aljarafe" (p)Humo

27. Escuelas Pias "Nuevas Degeneraciones" (p)El Genio Equivocado

26. Keep Out "Spicy Mud Cake" (p)self-released

25. The Prussians "Kerala" (p)Green Ufos

24. Biscuit "Biscuit" (p)La Castanya

23. Murciano Total "Enquinias" (p)El Genio Equivocado

22. Delbosque "Interferencias" (p)self-released

21. Retirada! "Victoria Derrota" (p)self-released

20. Bestlife (Under Your Seat) "Invincible Anymore" (p)self-released

19. Cala Vento "Cala Vento" (p)BCore Disc

18. La Habitacion Roja "Sagrado Corazon" (p)Mushroom Pillow

17. Kasparov vs Deep Blue "Flare" (p)self-released

16. El Tercer Semestre "33 1/3" (p)Aloud Music

15. Leon Benavente "2" (p)Warner

14. Monte Del Oso "Existen Moscas Que Se Relajan Durante El Vuelo" (p)Farmway

13. LostTapes "Let's Get Lost" (p)Mushroom Pillow

12. Power Burkas "Llarga Vida Al Taranna" (p)BCore Disc

11. Big Summer "Trigger" (p)El Genio Equivocado

10. Poomse "This Is How We Fail" (p)Espora

09. Sorry Kate "Haven Hood" (p)Foehn

08. Pasavento "Tuvo Su Momento" (p)self-released

07. Sr. Chinarro "El Progreso" (p)El Segell De Primavera

06. Joan Colomo "Sistema" (p)BCore Disc

05. Trinidad "Karma" (p)El Hombre Bala

04. Viva Belgrado "Ulysses" (p)Aloud Music

03. Berlina "Desertico" (p)Grabaciones A Montones

02. Linda Guilala "Psiconautica" (p) Elefant

01. Viva Suecia "La Fuerza Mayor" (p)Subterfuge

The new list is twice as long as the previous [semi-annual] version. There's a lot of 'old friends' in there (and the leader is still intact), but some newcomers have made it to the top10 in the third quarter. The most unexpected of them is, without a doubt, Pasavento's mini album "Tuvo Su Momento". Produced by the men of many talents Marti Perarnau and Ramiro Nieto the debut release of Madrid-based combo fronted by Ignacio Quintero is the noise pop perfection in the vein of Teenage Funclub and their peers with the beautifully jangling guitars and sublime melodies. Never heard of them before the moment when this album suddenly appeared in one of my friend's Facebook post, but now Pasavento are in the forefront of my 'bands to watch' list. 

Also I should point out "This Is How We Fail", the perfectly crafted new album of Poomse (this time on mallorcan indie label Espora Records). Less dramatic, more Centro-matic - and it seems like to-date this album received more reviews from international reviewers than from local ones. The song that you may find below fucken blows my mind. 

There's still over 60 albums to come out up to the end of the year... A lot of stuff to listen to (and to choose the best from).

Sonorama 2016. The Report: The Best Of... Part Two

The Prologue
The Part One

What about my Assorted Selection? 

Copiloto (Thursday 11th, 19:50, Burgos). For me it was the consistent show, but for the better effect I would like to see some elder songs (such as "Moleskine" or "Marta Y Los Escaparates" from "Un Segundo Luminoso").

The Trunks (Friday 12th, 12:00, Plaza del Trigo). This was amazing, really one of the best shows of this Sonorama! Very loud, very melodic. Rodrigo Valiente is the great showman, and this show was the perfect confirmation of his abilities. Add to that the appearance of 1/2 of Igloo (Beni & JuanMa) onstage for one song, while Berto and Julian were backstage, depicting what was happening there with their mobile phones. One thing about The Trunks I should point out especially - the band sounded live MUCH better than on album. The album ("Bipolar" (p)2015) seemed to me quite overproduced, smoothed down to some kind of the averaged 'rich' alternative rock sound - but live the same songs were the delight to my ears. The songs became really alive.

Papaya (Friday 12th, 15:45, Charco). Yanara Espinoza and her small band were set to perform in the lovely place by the river. We were running as hell from Plaza del Trigo trying to catch her show and quickly found ourselves accompanied by other people that trod the same way. The audience was rather limited but it looked totally devoted. The music was apparently groovier than on the album, it got that vibe that would make you dance to it even if you had no such intention. 

Detergente Liquido (Friday 12th, 18:00, Carson Camping). This cool band didn't manage to gather much people as well, but it's not their fault at all. They were all what I expected from them in the best possible way. 

Amatria (Saturday 13th, 12:00, Plaza del Trigo). Joni started his concert from one of the best tracks of 2015: "Me Falta Algo". In seconds it made all the people on the square go dancing. It was pure fun with all these tracks like "Buhardilla", "El Golpe", "Chinches"... Closer to the final of the latter the members of popular dj duo ElyElla Djs appeared backstage with the pneumocrackers in their hands to make things brighter - and they surely made it as evidenced by the photo below. 

Paciente Cero (Saturday 13th, 19:00, Burgos). This band is hard to market. They play the alternative rock for sure - but their alt-rock has got this twist (some kind of Dredg's quasi-prog twist, I think) that makes them separated from most of the peers. So the passionate music of Paciente Cero hardly can be categorized as commercially viable - but it's ready for the cult following. The songs like "Mentiras", "Llevame" or "Solsticio" could be the hits on the 90's college radio stations - and live they sounded great.

Under the bottomline, I'd like to say the following. The post that I wrote on these bands (the link is above in the header of the section) quickly became the most frequently read post of this blog - this means that it's an interesting topic. To see such bands live is always the most interesting part indeed. Moreover, incidentally finding out the new cool bands is stunning process. It's star-crossed, it's godsend. Please never neglect the opportunity to see something new, and please remember that Sonorama is not about Miss Caffeina and Love Of Lesbian only. The most part of the line up is the bands you might have never been learned about. There's a lot of great stuff amongst them. 

Big Names:

Miss Caffeina (Thursday 11th, 15:00, Plaza del Trigo - concierto secreto). The big names are also important. The first of them appeared before our eyes on the Plaza del Trigo stage. The band played 9 songs including 3 main hits from their 3 longplays: "Capitan" from "Imposibilidad Del Fenomeno", "Hielo T" from "De Polvo Y Flores" and "Mira Como Vuelo" from "Detroit". "Detroit", the last album of Miss Caffeina, more than flirts with electronica - but live the songs sounded more guitar-oriented. For me it was OK.

Love Of Lesbian (Friday 12th, 15:00, Plaza del Trigo - concierto secreto/ Friday 12th, 00:25, Ribera del Duero). The most important thing you should know about Love Of Lesbian - this band got imagination. Their current status allows them to do everything they want. For their concierto secreto appearance they decided to turn themselves into The Cure cover band. It was funny and looked natural for LOL because they're always up to arrange something funny (apart from the cases when they choose more sad and bitter-sweet program to perform). 

For the main stage performance I expected them to be concentrated on songs from their latest LP "El Poeta Halley" but it was rather like '50% Halley/ 50% 1999 & La Noche Eterna...'. There was the huge crowd all around, and for the next 24 hours I thought I knew what band is The Most Important Band Of The Moment. 

After that performance I came to one important understanding: nothing could ever make me to dislike them. Even themselves.

Mucho (Saturday 13th, 19:40, Ribera del Duero). The band recently fronted by Marti Perarnau has oficially turned into 'Marti Perarnau and his friends' band. Does it make them worse? I doubt that, because there's no band in this world can be worsened by addition of Victor Cabezuelo. From my point of view, that show confirmed Mucho's ability to fulfill the later timeslots on the main stage.

Delorean (Saturday 13th, 02:50, Ribera del Duero). It was impossible for us to omit the show of the band most well-known outside Spain. Their sunshine electronica generated the happiness and warmth in our hearts, and what I remember the most is that I was smilling all this hour through standing there on the first line before the Ribera stage. Music's got a hold on me, it's shaking the ground where I am...

The pure bliss.

Cult Favourites:

Nino de Elche (Thursday 11th, 19:40, Ribera del Duero). We missed his performance. We tried to catch at least one last song running from Carson Camping after Clara Plath's set - but we didn't manage to do so. This is my only disappointment from this Sonorama.

Nudozurdo (Friday 12th, 19:00, Castilla Y Leon). After the secret concert of Love Of Lesbian we accidentally run into Clara and Roberto from Clara Plath. They were standing by the wall and drinking whisky with cola. "Are you going to see Nudozurdo this evening?" they asked us (Roberto already was in Nudozurdo's t-shirt), and we replied 'Sure!' 

I still consider "Tara Motor Hembra" one of the best albums Spain ever produced. Frankly speaking, I can't tell the same about their latest effort "Rojo Es Peligro" but I was pretty sure that live they would be louder and edgier than on "Rojo...". And it was exactly so. The plaintive vocals of Leo were supported by his intricate guitar work and the groundbreaking rhythm section of Meta (bass) and Ricky (drums).

Maga (Saturday 13th, 20:25, Castilla Y Leon). Newly reformed band celebrates now the fifteenth anniversary of "Maga (blanco)" and got this album re-recorded with participation of some of the most renowned musicians of local indie community (Ivan Ferreiro, Julio de la Rosa, etc.) These 15 years didn't make the songs like "Diecinueve" and "Agosto Esquimal" worse, and I believe in the next 15 years they will still sound fresh and cool.

La Banda Especial:

Shinova (Wednesday 10th, 0:00, Carson Camping/ Saturday 13th, 14:00, Plaza del Trigo). When Javier Ajenjo announced Shinova's appearance on Plaza del Trigo stage, he named them 'the future of Spanish music'. But before they had their scheduled gig on Plaza, Shinova performed in the General Guttierrez park on the opening night. Both times the Basque band did it very professionally, very emotionally and positively driving. Their kind of melodic alternative rock has got the potential, but what is more important - it has got soul.

Just to remind you: three years ago Izal walked exactly the same way, and look at them - who are they now? The indie superstars. So why not to repeat this?