Top 10 Albums of 2018 by Holding Absence’s James Joseph
2018 is drawing to a close and we here at Distorted Sound are hard at work in putting together what we believe has been the standouts in a year that has truly delivered. Whilst we still argue amongst ourselves in terms of putting together our best of the year list, we thought we’d reach out to people in our scene to get their lists in what they think has been the best of the year. To kick off this year’s edition is James Joseph, bassist of HOLDING ABSENCE, a band who have had a whirlwind year and have gone from strength to strength. Take it away James!
10. Palms – THRICE
To be completely honest, Palms has nothing on the THRICE record that precedes it To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere (2016) bar some neat electronics. However, THRICE is one of my all-time favourite bands have still produced a very enjoyable album. I feel like this album is a grower, the instrumentals are really strong, I just feel like some of the choruses are less hooky/memorable than from the previous album. I recently bought a baritone guitar so I’m playing tons of heavy THRICE riffs between writing sessions for HOLDING ABSENCE. What a band.
9. Total Retaliation – TERROR
TERROR are the best active hardcore band, hands down. They’ve just nailed the sound, the energy is wicked live and they’re the only band that can keep bringing new ‘pit hits’ on album eight (I think). TERROR was actually one of my first ever hardcore shows, at the time, I had only been to ‘big’ rock, metal and post-hardcore shows with huge barriers and minimal crowd interaction (push pits). I was eagerly stood at the front for TERROR when all hell broke loose for their first song, Scott Vogel smashed the mic into my face and I grabbed it and shouted the lyrics as loud as I could, at this moment in time, the idea of a ‘mic grab’ was alien to me and I couldn’t believe I’d shouted along to TERROR, I think that’s where I got hooked on hardcore and punk.
8. Errorzone – VEIN
Bit of an obvious choice is the debut LP by metalcore band VEIN. It’s fully bonkers. Absolutely bonkers. But aside from all the mad time signatures and mosh parts, the band really caught my attention with the clean section at the end of the track Errorzone, it’s super atmospheric and haunting, I’d love to hear more of this from VEIN, I think they could be the next DEFTONES in the sense that they could create their own lane from hardcore/metalcore beginnings.
7. Sick Feeling – BOY PABLO
I discovered this album and artist a few weeks ago. It’s so chill, I wish I had discovered it in summer, it’d likely be higher up my list if I’d have had more of a chance to listen to it. I don’t know how to explain BOY PABLO‘s music other than saying it’s a mix of shoegaze and honest/awkward rock music. Think MY BLOODY VALENTINE meets THE FRONT BOTTOMS, but with more of a slack, relaxed feel. I guarantee you’ll hear BOY PABLO getting played in any ‘cool’ relaxed clothing shop or skate shop near you soon.
6. Burnt Sugar – GOUGE AWAY
Oh man, this band gets me going. GOUGE AWAY sound like if THE JESUS LIZARD and FUGAZI had an angry baby. I’m really into Christina‘s voice, it’s harsh as hell, which I would usually struggle with but the production makes it very listenable and the lyrics are clear and audible. Unfortunately, I was on tour when they came over to the UK with CULTURE ABUSE, but I’ll be sure to catch them in the future. The bass on the track Ghost is so good! I’m fully going to write some songs that start with a bass part now.
5. Time & Space – TURNSTILE
This band is so fun, this record is a bop. But on a deeper level, producer Will Yip has managed to add musical depth into the bands sound, adding piano stabs, hip-hop beats and interludes such as Bomb. For me, it’s the most impressive sounding TURNSTILE record, but still has the raw hardcore punk energy that first drew me into the band. I really enjoy the song Moon which feature bassist Franz taking on vocal duties. I’d love to see how far TURNSTILE can push their sound on the next record, I’d also be interested to see what musicians TURNSTILE could collaborate with.
4. Springtime and Blind – FIDDLEHEAD
FIDDLEHEAD is the loud, indie rock project of Patrick Flynn, Shawn Costa (HAVE HEART) and Alex Henery (BASEMENT). Flynn has always been one of my favourite lyricists and with this album, he has delivered hard-hitting emotional songs that have a melancholic upbeat feel thanks to their energetic instrumentals. The band reminds me of 90s rock bands like SEBADOH and SONIC YOUTH and Dischord Records bands such as JAWBOX and DAG NASTY. I’m going to London between Christmas and New Year to watch them play a show and I can’t wait!
3. (Untitled) – MEWITHOUTYOU
I’m pretty late to the eclectic MEWITHOUTYOU party, but since diving into their discography after a suggestion from my friend Joel (BEING AS AN OCEAN) this band has me infatuated with them. I enjoy bands with lyrical content that takes a few listens to understand, I also love an album that you can get totally lost in. The band released their new album (Untitled) a month or so ago and I haven’t stopped listening to it. I believe their song Julia is my most listened to of 2018. The band’s discography is varied and each album has a different sound, most notably It’s All Crazy… which has folk-rock vibes.
2. Posture Of Apology – SOUVENIRS
The ultimate easy listening band for me. Whenever I’m cracking on with work I will listen to SOUVENIRS. With their newest record Posture Of Apology the band have grown from another ‘good’ emo band to something that’s completely in its own lane. I enjoy the nuances within the low-fi drum beats that really carry the songs. I love the vocal production on this record, plus the song Float features AFI‘s Davey Havok. I don’t know much else about SOUVENIRS other than they are from California and they’re signed to Other People Records, which is the label of Jesse Barnett (STICK TO YOUR GUNS/TRADE WIND/WISH YOU WERE HERE) and Tom Williams (STRAY FROM THE PATH/TRADE WIND). Other People Records is currently my favourite indy label, releasing the likes of TRADE WIND, MANY ROOMS and GLEEMER.
1. Arbiter – HOPESFALL
This album will make it’s way into many people’s top 10 lists purely because they’re happy that HOPESFALL are releasing new music after ten or so years. For me, it actually served as an introduction to HOPESFALL, another great 2000s post-hardcore band that I narrowly missed due to only being 23 years old. Many of my older peers cite HOPESFALL as one of the best post-hardcore bands so I clicked onto the lead single H.A Wallace Space Academy to simply see what all the fuss was about. Instantly I was hooked, in 2018, with so much music readily available to stream or purchase, it’s not often where you get a feeling that you’ve found a band that you NEED in your life. The spacey atmospherics, the variety of vocal styles on display and incredibly powerful drumming lock together to make long songs that really suck you in from start to finish.
And that rounds off James’ choices! What did you make of his top 10? Let us know in the comments below!
Holding Absence is set for release on March 8th via SharpTone Records. Read all about the upcoming album and their UK headline tour dates here.
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