With 2013 rapidly coming to a close it’s time to look back at the outstanding music that made this another great year for music.
This year, in an effort to better represent the varying musical tastes out there, we reached far and wide to nearly every Vegas-based band and musician we could, as well as a few out of state friends.
This year’s lists will be broken up throughout the week, with today through Thursday showcasing the individual lists from our panel of music lovers and on Friday, we’ll be revealing our cumulative and definitive Punks in Vegas Top 20 Albums of 2013 list.
So without further ado, let’s dive into our first set of lists from Steven Matview (Punks in Vegas), Joel Kirschenbaum (Punks in Vegas, Alaska), Ryan Stokke (Last Call), Adam Blasco (Last Call, Broken Arrow Collective), Patrick “Pulsar” Trout (Ministry of Love, show promotor), Mac Miller (The Sheds) and Holmes Pooser (Show Marketing Mgr/Talent Buyer House of Blues).
Steven Matview (Punks in Vegas)
LPs:
1. Red City Radio – Titles
Big hooks. Gruff vocals. Sophmore album. These words can describe about 50% of my list this year. So what sets Red City Radio’s Titles apart from their like-minded brethren? Hands down it’s the lyrics. Most notably on standout track “Joy Comes With The Morning,” which sees the guys slow down the tempo for a dreamlike slice of nostalgia. When Garrett Dale sings “I tell you I dreamed you danced so gracefully you were like Dorothy Dandridge, and I was dressed like Gene Autry and you wore red so well you were my Ginger Rogers, and I was your Fred Astaire” it’s like watching a film by one of the great cinematographers of times past, only with the added bonus of knowing when you hear it live you’re probably going to be deep into a circle pit by the time the next songs starts.
Favorite Track: “Joy Comes With The Morning”
2. Iron Chic – The Constant One
Big hooks. Gruff vocals. Sophmore album… oh yeah, I did that already. Even though Iron Chic is clocking in at number 2 overall it gets first place in the fun factor department. Out of all the bands to rise phoenix-like from the ashes of Latterman, Phil Douglas’ Iron Chic comes off as the most direct successor, continuing with Latterman’s trademark huge sing-alongs and ability to twist the most angst-ridden moments of everyday life into cathartic anthems for the 30-something crowd. Douglas sings with such earnest urgency in his vocals, and even though much of the lyrics are bittersweet, when he gets to a line like “We’re here right now, that’s all that counts, so it goes” I can’t help but smile and know that everything is going to be alright. Also, this record has two songs named after classic DC books and one after the Bill and Ted sequel, so you know it’s going to be great.
Favorite Track: “New Miserable Experience”
3. Direct Hit! – Brainless God
The first song I heard from Brainless God, Direct Hit!’s follow up to the insanely infectious Domesplitter was the Weezer-esq “White Robes.” I was taken aback at first, surprised to hear frontman Nick Woods singing instead of utilizing his trademark shout/sing about partying and wizards. After a few listens the song, and the album, grew on me exponentially. The LP is a concept album about the end of the world but unlike a lot of concept albums the theme never makes it feel convoluted or overdone. The songs are still catchy, the production is slick without being off-putting and the dark subject matter doesn’t do much to erase the smile on my face when I listen to it.
Favorite Track: “Bank of Elevators”
4. RVIVR – The Beauty Between
Seattle punk rock foursome RVIVR is the second post-Latterman band to make my list this year. Erica Freas and Mattie Jo Canino sound so great when their contrasting voices mix together. So my favorite moments on this album are when the two share lead on a track, like the infectiously catchy first single “LMD.” RVIVR also stand for more than most punk bands today, taking extra time and passing on shows – even if it could be a benefit to the band – to ensure that gender and sexual equality is maintained. It may raise a grumble with few and cause others to dismiss the band completely but the fact that they’ve incited music fans into this conversation can only be a good thing, and they have the great tunes to back them up.
Favorite Track: “LMD”
5. The 1975 – The 1975
This is pop rock at it’s finest. Some might call it call it a guilty pleasure, I just call it great.
Favorite track: “Heart Out”
6. Caravels – Lacuna
Local indie/hardcore band Caravels has built up a reputation in Vegas as one of our most consistent bands, with each EP and split landing better than the one before. But that meant the pressure was on to succeed with a full length and they met the challenge head on, crafting a smart, challenging and exciting album that gets better with every listen, and I’m excited for more people to discover them on their upcoming tour with fellow screamo revivalists Touche Amore.
Favorite Track: “Hundred Years”
7. Mixtapes – Ordinary Silence
Mixtapes are songwriting machines, having released over 100 songs in their three short years of existence, all at pretty great quality. On this, their third full length, co-vocalist Maura Weaver steps into a more central role with more tracks lead by her voice. Weaver has a fantastic voice and it’s great hearing her really belt out the tunes on tracks like “Bad Parts” and the insanely catchy “Swirling,” and Ryan Rockwell providing backups creates a nice contrast. It took a little longer for this one to grow on me but once it clicked it didn’t leave rotation for weeks.
Favorite Track: “Swirling”
8. The Wonder Years – The Greatest Generation
This is the third in a trilogy of albums dealing with difficulties growing up and adjusting to adulthood, living up to expectations and life in an overly religious society. Vocalist Dan Campbell has wisely chosen to askew the clichéd “my significant other” dumped me lyrics that, while fine in moderation, have become all too common in pop punk, and the result is a full on concept album that culminates with the best closer of the year “I Just Want to Sell Out My Funeral.” The song seemed to be the cap on their previous three albums, so I’m left feeling both satisfied and very curious as to where the band will take things next.
Favorite Track: “Passing Through a Screen Door”
9. The Front Bottoms – Talon of the Hawk
If any band this year defined quirkiness it was The Front Bottoms. On Talon of the Hawk, the Bergen County, New Jersey duo of Brian Sella and Mathew Uychich refine their genre bending indie pop sound – a mixture of Andrew Jackson Jihad-esq folk punk, Modest Mouse style eccentricity and Osker-esq personal lyrics that could be ripped from the diary of a madman – into one of the most fun and catchy listens of the year. People seem to either love them or hate them, but I can’t help but sing along.
Favorite Track: “Au Revoir (Adios)”
10. Signals Midwest – Light on the Lake
I’ve played my digital copy of Signals Midwest’s sophomore album Latitudes and Longitudes so much that if it was a cassette the tape inside would surely be tangled in a sea of knots by now. So Light on the Lake was one of my most anticipated albums of the year. If The Sidekicks Awkward Breeds and Lawrence Arms’ The Greatest Story Ever Told had a baby, this would be the result (and we’re all better for it).
Favorite track: “St. Vincent Charity”
EPs:
- The Smith Street Band – Don’t Fuck With Our Dreams
- Driver Friendly – Peaks + Valleys
- Narrowed – Thick Skull
- Mercy Music / No Red Alice – Ebony & Irony
- Pentimento – Inside the Sea
Ryan Stokke (Last Call)
In no particular order:
- Long Lost – Save Yourself, Start Again
- Minus the Bear – Acoustics II
- Misery Signals – Absent Light
- Stickup Kid – Future Fire
- Koji – Crooked in my Mind
- Moving Mountains – Moving Mountains
- Funeral for a Friend – Conduit
- RVIVR – The Beauty Between
- Broadway Calls – Comfort/Distraction
- State Champs – The Finer Things
Adam Blasco (Last Call, Broken Arrow Collective)
These are my most listened to and enjoyed releases from the past 12 months, a handful of which completely took me by surprise. Admittedly, some of these records I had fairly low expectations for, and they completely blew me away from my first listen. All in all, it was a great year for music, and I’m already looking forward to many releases in 2014. Here it goes…
LPs:
- Radical Face – The Family Tree: The Branches
- Into It. Over It. – Intersections
- Polar Bear Club – Death Chorus
4-10. (in no particular order):
- Fall Out Boy – Save Rock & Roll
- The Front Bottoms – Talon of the Hawk
- Iron Chic – The Constant One
- Paramore – Paramore
- RVIVR – The Beauty Between
- Senses Fail – Renacer
- The Wonder Years – The Greatest Generation
Favorite non-2013 release I got into in 2013:
- You Blew It! – Grow Up, Dude
EPs:
- Knuckle Puck – The Weight That You uried
- Last Call | Wolves At Heart Split 7″
- Living With Lions – Some of My iends Appear Dead To Me
- Betty Who – The Movement
Patrick “Pulsar” Trout (Ministry of Love, Pulsar Presents)
- Kylesa – Ultraviolet
- Paramore – Paramore
- Citizen – Youth
- Nails – Abandon All Life
- Mixtapes – Ordinary Silence
- Kvelertak – Meir
- Defeater – Letters Home
- The Swellers – The Light Under Closed Door
- Heartsounds – Internal Eyes
- Demon Lung – The Hundredth Name
And my favorite release PERIOD of 2013 that I can’t stop listening to:
- White Lung – Songs About The South 7″
Joel Kirschenbaum (Punks in Vegas, Alaska)
LPs:
1. TTNG – 13.0.0.0.0
13.0.0.0.0 is the most perfect album of the year, woohoo! Irrefutable! If my life flashed before my eyes, I would probably want to be listening to this album. In fact, I almost wish the world had ended this year so that this could be the capstone of human achievement. “2 Birds, 1 Stone an Empty Stomach” is pure genius, it’s all about that quarter note triplet riff. Every song is intricate and beautiful, 10/10 must listen. There’s even a song with a lute, come on man.
2. Caravels – Lacuna
Caravels is one of maybe two bands in Las Vegas that are still around pumping out those next level jams. According to google a caravel is a ship, the band Caravels has crafted an album that is literally a bulk of wood composed of the most refined planks from their previous release “Floorboards.” This ship of an album, though sturdy enough to face the sea, still ROCKS when faced with the crashing tides of cymbals and electric guitars. Eventually, the sea of shred settles into ambience and the album rocks gently to its final destination. It seems Caravels have chosen the perfect band name, though maybe they would be more aptly named “5/4-avels.” Fave tracks are “Lacuna” because of Dillon and “Ordinary Lives” because of that bass riff.
3. I Kill Giants – I Kill Giants
This album is Blink 182 on steroids and thrown in a blender. This was the first album this year that broke up the noise for me. Catchy, honest, smart and interesting, if I could date this album I would. Ya know, just to see how it would work out. Side note: this is not a metal core band! Aha! Favorite track is “Boys of Bummer” because of that outro and Eagles reference.
4. Foxing – The Albatross
The Albatross is freaking dope. Ten tracks of peaceful and contemplative emo jams. A little slow going, but once you get behind it it’s SO WORTH IT. Even thinking about this album brings tears to my eyes. There is also a lot of beautiful orchestration and extraneous instruments that bring this bad boy to life. The lyrics are poetic and imaginative, if I had more time to sit on this it might be higher up on the list! Top two tracks are “Inuit” and “Quietus,” so freaking good. Please listen to this.
5. Enemies – Embark, Embrace
Topshelf Records hasn’t released an instrumental album as good as Embark, Embrace since 2010’s release of “Forest of Polarity” by Rooftops. This is the highest compliment that I can give, considering Rooftops’ album might be the best album ever. Embark, Embrace is 40 minutes of groove poured straight from the core of your heart into a glass made of gold, drink slowly my friends. Favorite part/song is the explosive double drum kit and crazy guitar loop finish in “Coral Castle.”
6. Tiny Moving Parts – This Couch is Long And Full of Friendship
A million particles of teenage angst compressed into a half hour of crazy noodley riffs and spazzy drums. Every song is catchy and awesome and the interludes in between are Brett Favre’s retirement speech. There is nothing to dislike about this album. It is literally the auditory realization of teen angst. Favorite song is “Vacation Bible School.”
7. Tera Melos – x’ed out
This album is drugs on drugs. Wonky riffs, calculated rhythms, and grooves straight from cartoon hell contrasted with the chill-est vibes, the indie-est jams and the most ambient passages in math rock. Great album/mental workout, put on your thinking cap and get ready to kick it (your brain). Favorite track is “Until Lufthansa” (think The Strokes on acid).
8. And So I Watch You From Afar – All Hail Bright Futures
All Hail Bright Futures is sheer bliss under the guise of mathy, riffy post rock. Every listen is a wonderful adventure to some far-away place. Insanely catchy and inventive, hard to think of words other than amazing to describe this album. Think the kids TV show “Zoboombafoo” mixed with all the love you’ve ever known. Favorite tracks “All Hail Bright Futures” and “Big Thinks Do Remarkable” riffs riffs riffs.
9. The Speed Of Sound In Seawater – First Contact
Seems pretty simple at first, but is neat and nuanced in all the right ways. Beautiful guitars and rhythms accompanied by sweet, sweet vocals. Takes a little to grow on you but is absolutely great. Plus the guy that recorded this also did Patagonian Rats by Tera Melos, can’t go wrong with that. Fave track is “Soulmate 2.1” because Damien says the f word.
10. Zefs Chasing Cara – Ultra Gown
Super dreamy, Nintendo riff-filled, math rock beautiful enough to make a grown man cry. Even the names of the songs are playful and profound. Rarely has such “childish” sounding music made me so uncontrollably happy. This album is really, very great, 10/10 must listen. “Clay Brother” and “Pink Sweat” are where it’s at.
EPs:
- Downstaaiirs – weeping/creeping
- Soft Skills – A Future to Rmember
- Brighter Arrows – Locktender Split
- Adventures – Clear My Head ith You
- Foxing – Send Away Stranger Slit
Mac Miller (The Sheds)
- Streetlight Manifesto – The Hands that Thieve
- Bad Religion – True North
- A Wilhelm Scream – Partycrasher
- Have Mercy – The Earth Pushed Back
- The Flatliners – Dead Language
- Octaves – Which Way the Wind Blows
- Paramore – Paramore
- Stickup Kid – Future Fires
- Chvrches – The Bones of What You Believe
- Allison Weiss – Say What You Mean
Holmes Pooser (Show Marketing Mgr/Talent Buyer House of Blues Las Vegas)
- ASAP Rocky – Long. Live. A$AP
- Foals – Holy Fire
- Touche Amore – …Is Survived By
- A Wilhelm Scream – Partycrasher
- The National – Trouble Will Find Me
- Modern Life is War – Fever Hunting
- Wavves – Afraid of Heights
- Arctic Monkeys – AM
- The Appleseed Cast – Illumination Ritual
- Haim – Days Are Gone
Photos of Steven Matview and Adam Blasco by Aaron Matter. Photos of Ryan Stokke, Patrick Trout, Mac Miller and the House of Blues by Steven Matview. Photo of Joel Kirschenbaum by Hunter Wallace.
PIV “Favorite Music” banner by Adam Blasco of Broken Arrow Collective.
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