2016: Year in Postrock review

of-the-vineIt's almost 2017, so let's reflect on the best music the genre had to offer in 2016. No worries, I don't believe in top 10 lists. I have 3 categories, and I'll mention the winner and sometimes the runner-up. That's it! Easy, right? Enjoy the great stuff you're about to read and listen to!

 

 



 


Best Album


Winner: Of the Vine - East the Water

I'm going to break the rules immediately. My winner isn't technically an album that was released in 2016, but I completely missed it in 2015! Nevertheless, it's my most played album of the year. Postrock can be all sorts of styles. Quiet and soothing, loud & brass. For all the loud bansd in the world: I can definitely like your music, but the more careful Postrock resonates the most with me. This release by Of the Vine has that exquisite melancholic and nostalgic feeling that I need in my life. I discovered their album two-ways: first by the excellent free sampler from A Thousand Arms (Do grab a copy of Sampler A and B, there's so much excellent music for you to discover) and secondly a tip from a friend of mine who specifically mentioned the track on this sampler from Of the Vine. I used the track "Tarka" as the title-song for my trip to Japan this summer and the imagery + music combines perfectly. I already have a lot of fond memories when I hear this track and that will continue to grow in the near future. This album is a sure-fire winner and a fantastic representation for the best music the genre has to offer.

Best tracks: Tarka and In Event of Moon Disaster

Runner up: All You've Seen - Translucence

Swiss based All You've Seen released their album "Translucence" in march 2016 and I can't stop listening to this album . It's Postrock with lots of ambient elements all mixed in a rather dark and bleak atmosphere. This album is a perfect companion to just close your eyes and let the music drift you to other places. I can imagine the landscape of Stephen King's bestseller "The Stand" with atmospheric shots of the bleak and destroyed world, accompanied by the music of this album. If Postrock is your way for escapism, this is the best release of the year. Enjoy the distorted guitars, drums and noise-soundscapes of this fantastic album that's available on Bandcamp for a "Name your price" amount. grab it!

Best tracks: Aspects and Veiled

 

Best Live Show


Winner: SPOIWO - Dunk! 2016 festival

After choosing SPOIWO's Salute Solitude as the best album of 2015, 2016 would be the year to see these guys live. The were announced for Dunk! 2016 festival, but the deal got even sweeter. Due to cancellation of Mutiny on the Bounty, SPOIWO received the possibility to play on the main stage! The band was beyond excited and I was super glad they got the opportunity to spread their excellent music to hundreds of fans on Dunk. What we all witnessed was the first true highlight of Dunk 2016: A small band turned big. The stage and sound was perfect for their music and the reception by the audience was fantastic. 

Best Postrock video


Winner: Mooncake - Dimension of Miracles

After Dunk! 2017 announced Mooncake, I strolled around the internet to discover their music. Michael Kegg from the amazing 6Forty project Postrock community reached out to me with this video and, wow.... This video features Mooncake  and a live orchestra playing their track "Dimension of miracles"  in Moscow. A fantastic track that's as fun to watch as to hear. A high quality release that deserves a lot more views. It's the ultimate fusion of classical music and Postrock.

 

Runner up: Sleepmakeswaves - Audiotree Live

Audiotree keeps delivering stunning live perfomance videos of lots of bands. Just watch the excellent videos from the Caspian and Tides of Man Audiotree sessions. This year, Sleepmakeswaves were on the show and they delivered a highly energetic and entertaining show. There's just something about a small room packed with guitars, amplifiers, drums and a couple of guys shredding. Excellent stuff!

 

Some other stuff...


Thanks Dunk! festival for another great festival edition. Thanks to Meniscus, for creating a track that I will remember for as long as I'll exist. Listen to "Doom" from the album Refractions. 



 

Reacties

  1. Hi Berrie,

    Bedankt voor je website en info. Regelmatig ontdek ik nieuwe bands via jou.
    Keep up the good work!

    Gr,
    Freek

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