So, it’s been out there, but why not publish this for myself as well. It’s one of the great privileges every year to share a list of the best records. My top 20 of 2016, a year of highs, lows and Donald Trump (that’s a special sort of low). Here goes! My End of Year list with music, but of course also some other talk.
2016: A good year for rock’n’roll
I can list tons of great shows that I was able to enjoy this year. From the Roadburn sets of Converge and Amenra to the dazzling display of Kvelertak and The Goddamn Gallows. The most insane crowd I saw during a show of Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes in Dynamo and as always the grindcore-mayhem on Bloodshed Fest was a pleasure, but so was the soaring hights of Eindhoven Psych Lab or the metal inferno of Eindhoven Metal Meeting. There was also the experiment of Avant.Wav and a bit of Incubate… so much good stuff! Oh, did I mention that I got to see Black Flag?
The list
- Amenra – Alive
- Winterfylleth – The Dark Hereafter
- Dälek – Asphalt For Eden
- Rebel Wizard – Triumph of Gloom
- Possessor – Dead By Dawn
- David Bowie – Blackstar
- Furia – Księżyc milczy luty
- Nails – You’ll Never Be One Of Us
- Murmur Mori – O
- Wildernessking – Mystical Future
- Trap Them – Crown Feral
- Kvelertak – Nattesferd
- Opeth – Sorceress
- Zeal and Ardor – Devil is Fine
- Black Tomb – Black Tomb
- Rotting Christ – Rituals
- Waldgeflüster – Ruinen
- Oskoreien – All Too Human
- Wędrujący Wiatr – O turniach, jeziorach i nocnych szlakach
- Sun Worship – Pale Dawn
Some more words
Truly, 2016 had so much great stuff to offer. I’m glad I could check out so many of the records that I love, but there’s plenty that I feel should be on the list too. Sometimes you have to make choices though. There was plenty to chose from in 2016. I have high hopes for 2017. I feel the underground is stronger and richer than ever. Music thrives in bad times I guess. Punkrock for example was one of those things, so what will the next year bring? Will Trumped up economics bring back bands we thought lost to us or will a new protest genre rise from the ashes of liberty?
If anything, I recommend listening to these 20 records. I feel that many of them demonstrate return to something more pure, perhaps turning way from the society that produces so much crap. Back to the essence of their respective genres. Well, that’s how they feel to me. Listen to music, listen to new records and if you can buy them. On bandcamp you can purchase music for a few euro’s, but every euro you invest may come back in the shape of another great record. Records make life better, trust me.
What’s your list?