Year end lists – Memphis Flyer

While we pride ourselves on covering as much local music as humanly possible in this music section, 2015 had some amazing albums released by artists who don’t call Memphis home. I guess it’s safe to say I have a thing for Australian bands. Pick up next week’s issue to find out what the flyer music staff and I chose as the best local releases of the year.

10. Royal Headache — High (What’s Your Rupture?)

Royal Headache had their work cut out for them trying to duplicate the massive waves generated by their self-titled debut album. High does not disappoint. An amazing sophomore record from a band that can get even the most serious crowd dancing and singing along.

9. Courtney Barnett — “Boxing Day Blues (Revisited)” B/W “Shivers” (Third Man Records)

Normally I wouldn’t include a record on a year-end list just for the B-side, but “Shivers” is no ordinary B-side. Barnett had a breakout year with her album Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, but her cover of the Boys Next Door’s “Shivers” sealed the deal for me. She absolutely nails the Nick Cave / Roland S. Howard classic. Expect to hear a lot more about Barnett in 2016, and hopefully she’ll dig more into Cave’s discography in the process.

8. Leon Bridges — Coming Home
(Columbia)

An amazing debut of a modern soul record from Houston, Texas, native Leon Bridges. This record sounds old enough to satisfy soul purists but modern enough to get a new generation interested in artists like Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. “Coming Home” is definitely the breadwinner track on this album, but songs like “Pull Away” and “Shine” are also instant classics.

7. Cheena — S/T Single (Sacred Bones)

2015 wouldn’t have been a successful year for punk rock without a few super groups, right? Meet Cheena, the New York band featuring members of Hank Wood and the Hammerheads, Crazy Spirit, Pharmakon, and Anasazi. After an amazing demo tape, Sacred Bones released the band’s debut single, featuring the slide-guitar slasher “Did I Tell You Last Night.” The band will be releasing their debut LP on Sacred Bones sometime next year, and if it’s possible for a New York punk band to gain more hype than any of the former bands listed, Cheena will be the group to do it.

6. Destruction Unit — Negative Feedback Resistor
(Adult Swim)

Adult Swim gave these Arizona psych lords some money to record an album, and then gave the whole thing away for free through their website. While this might have been some kind of weird publicity stunt similar to Scion’s attempt to infiltrate random facets of the underground music scene, Negative Feedback Resistor is anything but some sort of half-assed promotional tool. Those who caught the band live in Memphis this year might still have hearing loss, and the album captures the band’s live sound better than any of their previous work. Essential noise rock.

5. Earl Sweatshirt — I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside (Columbia)

My favorite hip-hop release by a non-Memphian (Juicy J and Yo Gotti killed it this year) was created by Earl Sweatshirt, the California MC who is so effortlessly cool on I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside he sounds like he could stop rapping and light up a joint at any moment. The most promising member of the now-defunct Odd Future rap crew still writes rhymes with ease, and the production on I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside is some of the best in recent memory with its ability to meld all kinds of genres into a laid-back yet powerful record.

4. Drinks — Hermits on Holiday (Heavenly/Birth)

I’m admittedly a fan of almost everything Tim Presley does. His latest band with songwriter Cate Le Bon caught me off guard with its stripped-down approach and effortless post-punk grooves. Mix Le Bon’s Velvet Underground-esque songwriting and Presley’s bedroom-recording genius, and you’ve got a winner. Album-opener “Laying Down the Rock” is the best I’ve heard all year.

3. Power — Electric Glitter Boogie (Cool Death)

A late entry to the 2015 class, Electric Glitter Boogie might have taken the No. 1 spot if I had more time to digest it. Taking all the best parts of glam rock, proto-metal, and pub rock, Power created an insane, rock-and-roll monster with Electric Glitter Boogie. From the ridiculous snake skin-embossed cover to the amazing Motorhead-meets-Coloured Balls-influenced lyrics, this album is one of the most promising Australian debuts since Royal Headache’s self-titled album or Total Control’s Henge Beat.

2. Institute — Catharsis (Sacred Bones)

When it comes to original-sounding punk bands, Austin, Texas, seems to have something figured out that the rest of the United States can only hope to imitate. Much like San Francisco had the psych-scene on notice during the mid-’00s, Austin seems to be America’s punk mecca. Catharsis might have nods to U.K. bands like Crass and Crisis, but the songwriting is still original and light-years ahead of any other band dabbling in that style. Singer Moses Brown turns self-loathing into an art form on songs like “Perpetual Ebb” and “Cheaptime Morals” while the band churns out meticulous post-punk behind him.

1. Rule of Thirds — S/T (Nopatience)

My favorite record of 2015 came from a band I’d never heard until they played Murphy’s to about 20 people this past April. Rule of Thirds immediately demand attention with album opener “Any War,” the most abrasive, unrelenting song on the record. From there, the band flits between calculated synth-punk and goth rock, making for an instant Australian classic that is still being criminally underlooked. A flat-out amazing album.

Yo Gotti’s Birthday Bash at the Mud Island Amphitheater, June

White Lamborghini? Check. Nicki Minaj appearance? Check. Enough Patron to fill the Mud Island Riverwalk? Check. From Meek Mill to O.T. Genasis, this birthday party had it all and was proof that Memphis isn’t small potatoes when it comes to premier hip-hop shows. The only way to top this experience is to make a weekend out of the annual event, something I think no one would complain about. –CS.

Josh Miller

Yo Gotti

Jessica Pratt at Minglewood Hall, September

Jessica Pratt opened for Beach House on their most recent tour that stopped through Minglewood Hall, but to me the only thing that mattered that night was Pratt and her amazing acoustic folk rock. Her delicate music might be best-suited for a smaller setting, but the show was still excellent. –CS.

Hank Wood and the Hammerheads at the Hi-Tone during Gonerfest 12, September

Widely considered a favorite of this year’s Gonerfest for a reason, these NYC insular punk/hardcore weirdos brought a double-drummer onslaught that was as heavy with nuance as it was … heavy. –AE.

Cities Aviv and PreauXX at the Hi-Tone, August

The battle for the best underground rapper in Memphis is between two MCs who frequently collaborate with each other, and this late-summer show at the Hi-Tone proved that both Cities Aviv and PreauXX are fit to wear the crown. –CS

Jack Oblivian and the Sheiks at the Harbor Town Amphitheater, April

The River Series at the Harbor Town Amphitheater wrapped its second season this year, with each show well-curated and well-attended. Seemingly made for this type of gig, Jack O. and the Sheiks rocked on the river to a packed crowd, and the free hot dogs and Wiseacre beer made this show one of the best of the year. –CS

Torche at the Hi-Tone, March

The reliable deliverers of one of the best marriages of pop hooks and insane heaviness returned after a little while away from their perennial stops in town and didn’t stop short of expectations. –AE.

Evil Army Record Release Show at Murphy’s, December

The kings of Memphis metal recently returned to Murphy’s for a packed show, and all was right in the heavy music realm of Memphis. After everything that Evil Army has been through over the past few years, it was good to see the three-piece back in action, with a killer new EP in tow. –CS.

Destruction Unit, Ex-Cult, and Gimp Teeth at the Hi-Tone Small Room, March

I fancied myself accustomed to extremely loud live bands until Destruction Unit’s brutally intense yet oddly hypnotizing set literally caused something close to vertigo, and a few minutes of fresh air were required to set my head straight. –AE.

House of Lightning, WRONG, and Mayfair at the Hi-Tone, June

I went for the melodic prog-metal guitar acrobatics of the Torche/Floor-related House of Lightning, but got there early enough to be blown away by local heavy post-emo shoegaze outliers Mayfair, who have recorded a full-length (for release next year). Keep an eye on this band. –AE.

Public Image Ltd. at the New Daisy Theater, November

The New Daisy brought the prince of punk back to Memphis, and the band absolutely destroyed the place. John Lydon may be all about peace, love, and understanding these days, but his ability to captivate an audience with his abrasive stage antics and hilarious stage banter is still very much intact. –CS

Coliseum at the Hi-Tone, March

The busy but still unfairly overlooked Louisville trio that’s played Memphis many times put on a fantastically tight show of their heavy and dark post-punk earlier this year in the wake of their first full-length on Jacob Bannon’s unstoppable Deathwish Inc. label. –AE.

Show I wish I went to: Tommy Wright III at Juicy Jim’s, May

Tommy Wright III played at Juicy Jim’s this summer, and I’m still kicking myself for not being at what had to be one of the weirdest and best shows of 2015. Oh well, there’s always next year. -CS