TOP 5 ALBUMS OF 2022

Given that the blog has only been active for a couple months, I wasn't even sure I was going to do a year end list.  But, the music nerd in me simply couldn't resist.  So, without further ado and in alphabetical order, here are five albums that I enjoyed the heck out of in this, the year of our lord 2022.

Bastard Noise & Merzbow - Retribution by all other Creatures (Relapse Records)  On Retribution by all other Creatures, Japanese God of Noise Merzbow and West Coast sonic terrorists Bastard Noise unleash just over an hour of music that's sometimes cold and cavernous and at other times relentlessly ultra-violent and punishing.  Whether sounding like a malfunctioning eighties arcade game that's being lowered into a vat of acid or a swarm of crackling, crawling glitched-out fuzz, the album is consistently compelling from start to finish and never becomes so harsh as to become completely unlistenable, but at the same time never lets up enough to be accessible to the average listener.  Overall, it's a pleasurably unsettling listen that perfectly showcases the sick sounds both artists are capable of and serves as a great reminder that Relapse was once just as much an institution for fans of noise and experimental music as it continues to be for fans of metal.

Boris - W (Sacred Bones Records)  One of the many wonderful things about Boris is that you never know which version of the band you’re going to get from album to album, and for W, their debut on Sacred Bones Records, the chameleonic Japanese trio have largely stepped away from the crushing drone/doom and sludgy punk of recent releases such as Dear and No to present us with one of their most ambient and atmospheric collections of songs to date. The album sees guitarist Wata handling the bulk of the vocals and her delicate voice works perfectly with the dreamy minimalism of tracks such as “Icelina” and “Beyond Good and Evil." Boris blends elements of shoegaze, ambient and noise to create surreal soundscapes more suited for hallucinating than headbanging, and while the direction of W may disappoint fans of Boris’ heavier/doomier material, those who also appreciate their wildly experimental side will find a great deal to enjoy here.

Masonna / Prurient - Annihilationism (Hospital Productions)  Holy. Shit. I haven't kept up with either Masonna or Prurient in recent years, but when I heard they were teaming up for a split, I absolutely had to check it out and now I wonder whether my ears will ever recover.  Alternating tracks between the two artists, Annihilationism is one of the most utterly extreme and obliterating harsh noise releases I've heard in a good long while.  Masonna hasn't lost a step since the days of Inner Mind Mystique and Spectrum Ripper and it's awesome to see Prurient has returned to harsher, uglier sounds after losing track of him around the time of Bermuda Drain.  This thing is like having someone crack open your skull and take a belt sander to your brain, reminding me of the joy and terror I experienced when first discovering harsh noise via Relapse Record's massive mailorder catalog back in the late nineties/early two-thousands.

Oren Ambarchi - Shebang (Drag City)  I'll be honest, I'm really only familiar with Oren Ambarchi thanks to his work with Sunn O))) and their spinoff bands Burial Chamber Trio and Gravetemple.  I've been meaning to check out his solo work for over fifteen years now and I finally decided to jump in with Shebang because it's got a big piece of cake on the cover and I fucking love cake.  Anyway, I also just so happen to love the way Shebang builds and builds over the course of its thirty-five minutes, beginning with unaccompanied guitar and slowly adding instruments until it blossoms into a full-blown ensemble piece that's jazzy and grooving, somehow managing to feel both thoughtfully composed and loosely improvised at the same time.  While instrumental music often has a tendency to fade into the background, the playing throughout this constantly morphing composition is so captivating that you can't help but give it your undivided attention.

Wardruna - Kvitravn - First Flight of White Raven (By Norse Music)  Technically, Wardruna's Kvitravn was a 2021 release, but it was re-released with a bonus live in the studio disc this year as Kvitravn - First Flight of White Raven and its probably the album I've listened to the most since it came out back in June.  Lead by ex-Gorgoroth drummer Einar Selvik (aka Kvitrafn), Wardruna craft bewitching Nordic folk that incorporates a variety of instruments, with origins dating back as far as the stone age, deftly bringing the musical traditions of the past into the present.  This stuff is pretty far outside the scope of my normal listening habits, but Wardruna's artistic energy is so unique that I can't help but be utterly mesmerized by tracks such as "Kvitravn" "Fylgjutal" and "Vindavlarljod."  The album proper is so compelling that the live disc feels like icing on the cake, with Wardruna treating us to faithful versions of some of their most well-known songs, such as "Solringen" and "Helvegen."

Before I sign off on this one, I just want to say "thank you" to everyone that's stopped by to check out Pukehammer so far, I appreciate it more than you know.  Hopefully we can get the comments section going in the new year as this thing starts to pick up some more steam; I'd love to start interacting with readers again.  I've had a lot of fun writing these past few months, and that's something I haven't been able to say in a long time.  Rest assured, more puke will be hammered in 2023 and beyond!