Ah, a new year. With it brings the usual trappings, shitty weather, eating enough festive food to explode a-la Mr. Creosote, and of course - Spotify Wrapped. I thought I'd run you through my Spotify stats this year, and talk about what's shaping up for 2024.
Pretty good in my eyes to be honest. Let's tackle top songs here - Bored to Death by Blink-182 has been a mainstay in my playlist for a very long time. California is by far the best Blink project without Tom DeLonge and this song really encompasses that era of the band. Brilliant vocals, some hard hitting lyrics and brilliant pop punk instrumentals, it's just a perfectly written and performed track that's catchy and satiates the itch for both old and new Blink in my brain. It's an absolute killer.
Now, How Do you Know it's Not Armadillo Shell? by Hot Mulligan is proof that Midwest Emo is creeping its way into my listening habits in quite a big way. This band was introduced to me early last year, and their sound is unlike anything I've ever really got to experience before. The sound is one big dichotomy, with the heavy and often self loathing lyrics being thrown over some beautiful indie-esque picked guitar riffs. It's music that you need in your life when your feeling a bit down in the dumps, and Hot Mulligan are the kings of this genre in my eyes - alongside bands like Mom Jeans and Modern Baseball.
Blood Sport by Sleep Token is just a work of art. It begins as an emotional piano ballad, with the gentle sound of the piano working perfectly with Vessel's deep range, before slamming into a classic metal breakdown, with extreme vocals, slamming drums and guitar, and lyricism that cuts like a knife. Perfect for those times you need to hype yourself up, or take a minute to appreciate the near on perfect lyrics, this one is for any mood and any situation - just make sure you blast that shit loud.
I've been championing Daylily by Movements for the longest time to my friends. It's another brilliantly put together track, nailing punk rock rise and fall. This track's lyrics hit similarly hard, and hits that perfect middle ground between indie and punk that keeps everyone happy in the car when your on the aux. It's a track about taking the bad and finding some good in it, and when the lyrics are centred around a beautiful muted guitar progression, it's hard to not fall in love with it. And that voice, fuck. The real growl from Patrick Miranda and the emphasis he can place on words in the track just ties it all together. Amazing stuff.
Another entry from the anonymous four piece with Aqua Regia by Sleep Token sneaking into the number five spot. It's a more laid back track, based around an R&B type beat and gentle lyrics, before barrelling into another Sleep Token branded breakdown. It's an easy listener, and one I thoroughly enjoyed from Take me Back to Eden. I blasted this on my way to work, in the car, in the shower - as far as all rounders go, this track has to be your go to for that alternative metal fix.
Before we talk about artists, I think this picture encompasses my listening last year:
Yup. As far as #1 artist goes, I feel like this one is pretty impressive. And when Fall Out Boy have 23.7M monthly listeners...it either paints me as an absolute legend, or an absolute saddo with zero life. Fall Out Boy are usually in my top five, but them being number one is really due to the release of So Much (For) Stardust in March. What a record - the album is a zero skipper, and I listen to it a lot in my general rotation. Songs like Flu Game and Fake Out are perfect for a chilled vibe, and if you need to get a party started, let me point you in the direction of my favourite track Heaven, Iowa. Plus, seeing them live last year meant I was swotting up on all the classics, just in case something radical came up on my Magic 8 Ball song. This band's discography is absolutely timeless, and I find myself diving back in time after time to their more classic records, especially Take This to Your Grave. So, in the words of Radiohead, as far as this ones concerned, 'No Surprises'.
Sleep Token bag the #2 spot, and who can blame me? The Summoning was released, and I was instantly sold on them, their music, their look, the whole nine yards. I'll say with my chest that Take Me Back To Eden was my album of the year - sorry Fall Out Boy - but in terms of the spectacle of that record, and the genres it took on and played with effortlessly, it's just music for any time you need that fix. I also took more of a deep dive into their past discography, and fell even more in love with this band. On my playlist from last year, you're never more than a couple of skips from a Sleep Token track, old or new. I definitely think they'll be returning next year, and if they don't I'll be pretty fucking shocked.
I had a real love affair with Blink-182 last year - so it makes a lot of sense they're at number 3. With the hype surrounding One More Time building, I found myself sucked back into their old work, and then into their latest record. It's a scorcher, and one I've been trying to push a review out for since it came out, but every time I listen I find something new I love, a new detail or part I seemingly ignored and get lost in it all over again. This band are just solid, they know who they are, they make music they love, and they do it in such a way that you can't help but respect them for it. Even with Matt Skiba the band chugged on, and I can say that I enjoy those records almost as much as I do the original trio projects. These guys are just legends, and after the year they've had, they deserve that title more than ever.
Now - The 1975 are probably holding out at number four because at the beginning of last year I was big into them - I think I kinda hyper fixated on them for a while, and once their big moment in the sun faded off, my interest ended up waning too. After the release of Being Funny in a Foreign Language and seeing them on tour, I was in a bit of a phase of listening to the new stuff and the old self titled album - which still has some bangers on it. These days though, I'm not all that fussed to be honest. The old stuff is still alright, and the new stuff is also okay, but it's just not on my mind as much these days. Plus, Matty Healey is once again trying way too hard to be politically relevant and poignant, and therefore is coming across as just being a pretentious douche. But still, the music is alright, but a phase that is now pretty much over.
And, last but not least, Hot Mulligan close out the list. These guys are just good, and the amount that I had the aforementioned HDYKINAS? on repeat, it's fair that Hot Mulligan are on this list. I took myself down a bit of a rabbit hole last year, and ended up doing a deep dive into their albums - as well as enjoying their latest offering, and thoroughly enjoying Shh! Golf is on! amongst other new offerings. It's upbeat, has some awesome instrumentation, and hits all those funky musical itches while also being emo to a level that hits hard and isn't cringe - so zero complaints there. Although their not on repeat as much now, I still have a lot of respect for these guys, and if anything new comes around, I'll be sure to check it out.
Next Years Predictions
Right, it's early on to be making any predictions, but I'm gonna take a stab at my top artists for this year now, and then come back and see where I'm at when the next wrapped comes around.
I'm thinking Sleep Token are going to be top dogs this year. After Take Me Back to Eden and being able to see them live this year, I'm neck deep into their music, and can't see that stopping any time soon. I reckon when the year rounds out, there could even be a new album out along with this so called 'new era' of the band's look, so I'll be keeping a keen eye out for that over 2024.
Fall Out Boy I reckon won't be budging this year either. Their discography is so easy to listen to and comforting for me that I think it's pretty certain that these guys will be on my top five. In a few weeks I'm sure I'll be relistening to Take This to Your Grave or Foile a Deux and it'll be the same deep dive back into their music, and this will repeat for a while. No complaints there.
Third place I'm gonna give to Slipknot for this year. I know that this may or may not be a touch controversial, especially after I said I wasn't happy with their decision to remove Jay Weinburg from their ranks - but I am seeing them live this year at the O2, so I'll be back on my grind as far as studying their discography - especially their first record. I'm hyped to see them live to be honest, even through all the drama they're finding themselves in, because these guys won't be touring for much longer I don't think. Corey Taylor is already saying he hasn't got long left, and by the sounds of it, the band is ready to implode with inner tensions - so I took a leap and got tickets to see them in December, and can't wait.
Fourth, for the same reason goes to Peirce the Veil. I love these guys anyway, and am constant revisiting their discography both old and new. Plus, I'm seeing them live in April, so that will no doubt push up the listening hours exponentially. But it's something I'm not mad about, and I'm really excited to see them this year at Alexandra Palace - what a venue, what a band, what a great excuse to keep listening.
Number five really could be ANYONE but I'm going to give it to Green Day. Their new record Saviours comes out on the 19th, and if it's going to be as good as the singles have been, I reckon they'll be on this list in some shape or form. I'm also going to be seeing them live this year at the Isle of Wight Festival, so I'm looking forward to being able to see them again after Hella Mega almost two years ago! These guys were consistently in my top five for ages, since Spotify Wrapped first came out - back in 2020 I was in the top 1% of Green Day listeners, so keep that in mind when next time you think you're a fan. I'm an OG. (I'm being sarcastic)
So - that's that. I'm looking forward to this year quite a lot - there's going to be more music to enjoy, more gigs to go to and bands to see, and more time to enjoy the stuff we love. It's going to be a good one I reckon, and I'm looking forward to reviewing records and shows as much as I can over the next twelve months. Here's to that I guess - see you soon!
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