As 2015 comes to its close and we look ahead to 2016, it's time to do the cliched task of recollecting the albums released in 2015 that we enjoyed. These are not presented in any particular order, but these were some of my favorites. What were some of your favorite albums!?
Duran Duran - Paper Gods
Duran Duran - Paper Gods album cover
Duran Duran returned this year with Paper Gods, an album that proves they still have "it." The album is a rich combination of what Duran Duran was most known for in the new wave/new romantic period of the 80s mixed with a refreshing flourish of pop bravado common to today. Like many 80s bands, Duran Duran still falls victim to the trend of trying to rediscover themselves, failing on the first couple attempts, but then reclaiming that flame with the newest album. For Duran Duran, Paper Gods is the reclaiming album they and fans alike have been looking for. We'll have to see what comes next for the group, but hopefully this is just the beginning of a strong upward trend.
Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss
Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss album cover
We reviewed Chelsea Wolfe's newest album a while back and it has only continued to grow on our ears. Easily her heaviest album yet, Abyss is a concept album of sorts that revolves around the phenomenon of sleep paralysis. Dark, brooding, moody music set to guiding vocals characterizes much of the album. Not only is it the heaviest album by Wolfe to date, but it may well be the most solid. Given how great this album is and previous effort Pain is Beauty, the only place for Wolfe to go is up, regardless of whether the music continues to get heavier or is reigned back. Added bonus - the live show is really strong and Wolfe is such a delightful performer. You're missing out if you've yet to see her on the live stage.
She Past Away - Narin Yalnizlik
She Past Away - Narin Yalnizlik album cover
She Past Away returns with their second album, Narin Yalnizlik. The Turkish darkwave group (yes, Turkish, and darkwave, and lyrics in Turkish!) makes a strong showing on this album, experimenting more with sounds and textures than they did on their debut album. While on the whole I prefer the debut album, this one is not an album to snub your nose at. She Past Away keeps a firm hold on their 80s darkwave roots (similar in ways to Xymox/Clan Of Xymox), meshing broken Turkish lyrics to a lush musical backdrop. The group finally reaches the US for a couple quick stops in California early 2016, but this is hopefully just the beginning of the group's foray into the US.
Killing Joke - Pylon
Killing Joke - Pylon album cover
Another album reviewed earlier this year here, Killing Joke returned full force with Pylon. Easily their strongest album in years, Pylon meshes the post punk aesthetic Killing Joke helped pioneer in the late 70s/early 80s with heavy distortion and an industrial feel characteristic of the group's more recent efforts. Almost their highest charting album ever, Pylon may well be the best album of 2015, for me at least. The group tours the US in 2016, hitting Texas towards the end of January.
Peter Murphy - Remixes From Lion
Peter Murphy - Remixes From Lion album cover
It wouldn't be a year it I couldn't write something about Peter Murphy, now would it? The Godfather of Goth (I can see his eye twitching at me saying this, but I didn't pick the title!) released a follow-up album of unused material from the Lion sessions. Most of the remixes offer an interesting reinterpretation of tracks from the main album. Better yet, the album includes the previously vinyl-only track "Gabriel" in all its multi-layered glory and a very solid series of newly released "The Sound of Water" and the Youth remix of "Loctaine," the one remix I think I may actually like more than the original (though the original take of "Loctaine" is also very strong and a favorite of mine). 2015 was a strong year for Murphy, even if quiet, in a sense. In addition to the Remixes album, two live albums were also released (the full audio from the Mr. Moonlight Tour as one and finally an official recording of the House of Blues show from April 2000 via Cleopatra). However, Murphy only played a handful of dates in June in California. By all accounts, 2016 may be a very loud year for Murphy, starting with a major role in the upcoming psychological thriller BlackGloveKiller.
Chelsea Wolfe returns with her newest experimental art-meets-rock album, Abyss, building on the successes of prior albums like Pain is Beauty (2013). Those seeking the short form need look no further - Abyss is another strong showing from Wolfe and you would be reminisce to merely dismiss it as art rock noise.
Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss (2015)
Nailing down Wolfe's work depends largely on which album you choose to listen to - from experimental post-industrial sludge to deeply brooding neofolk with nearly everything imaginable between, Wolfe has consistently gone for complete artistic freedom and an unwillingness to do the exact same thing every time.
Abyss is easily the darkest of her albums yet, and the first to truly bring to the forefront the flecks of metal genre influence that have been sprinkled sparingly in past albums. Where it was a subtle hint adding to the rich musical landscape in the past, those tones now growl to life as a barrage of doom and gloom guitar distortion that can only be described (by me, anyways) as industrial sludge (said with full affection and praise).
Chelsea Wolfe has always walked the fine line of goth aesthetic without plunging fully into it musically. That all changes with Abyss. Photo by Johanna Torell.
Another refreshing twist in the landscape of Abyss is an immediacy with each song. Wolfe's vocals are, as always, spot on and powerful, even as they serve in stark contrast to the music (clear perfection against a backdrop of sinister distortion). These are songs meant to be immersive from the start, not taking their time to build and grow into something. Where Wolfe's prior work certainly carries that indie "take it or leave it" feel, Abyss comes off being the first album to truly draw in the less musical savants among us.
Abyss, based around the concept of sleep paralysis, opens with "Carrion Flowers" and immediately throws the listener into that panic state of being unable to wake up, fighting to escape, before lightening up towards the end, resembling a moment of briefly waking and escaping the dream. As "Iron Moon" begins and immediately returns to that harsh panicked state, we lapse back to sleep and find ourselves surrounded by the nightmare once again. Other tracks of particular notice include "Dragged Out" with a particular haunting, ghost-like quality at the end, "Grey Days" for its more reserved feel and driving cello as Wolfe sings about the River Styx, and "Color of Blood" for its initially gloomy and persistent moody atmosphere molded around Wolfe's notion that we should all "Grow old, let [our] hair grow."
Throughout the album, Wolfe serves as the guiding light through the periods of unease, wakeful fits of hope, and vast depths of darkness. In the deluge of post-80s "gothic rock," so much of what is called goth has become mired in terrible cliches and drab (no pun intended) melodramas, perpetuating ages old stereotypes that none of the original art-meets-glam-rock bands would have endorsed. Wolfe brings the artistic expression back by creating a musical embodiment of sleep paralysis through a combination of visual lyrics, rapid shifts in music from panicked and schizophrenic to calm and comforting in the blink of an eye, and a voice to guide the dreamer through the nightmare they've embarked. Though not strictly a concept album, Abyss does a near flawless job of transforming the listener from start to end. While it won't be everyone's cup of tea, this may easily be Wolfe's strongest showing to date. And if her attitude is any indicator, this is just the beginning of what will surely be a long and lasting ride.
Wolfe returns to Dallas (fun fact, Abyss was actually recorded here in Dallas) at the Kessler Theater this Sunday (September 20,2015) with Wovenhand as openers. Tickets are on sale now (purchase tickets from the Kessler Theater). By all accounts, this won't be a show to miss.
