Music I Liked in the First Week of 2018

I like to listen to music while I work, and one nice thing about working from home is that I don’t have to use earbuds. I can enjoy it, like Lena Lamont, “nice and loud.” Of course, since I work with words, a lot of lyrical music interferes with my concentration. So I often listen to heavy metal instead.

Sometimes the music pushes through my concentration. Last week, I spent a lot of time going through the backlog of unread posts on No Clean Singing, which meant a lot of year-end lists. I heard a lot of 2017 releases for the first time. Here are some of the ones that pushed through my concentration and forced me to enjoy them even though I was trying to concentrate on work.

Euclidean

Quod Erat Faciendum

I hate the faux Latin that is so popular among black metal bands. Then along comes Euclidean with a proper Latin translation of a quote from their Greek namesake: “that which was to be done,” used to indicate the end of the justification of a construction (a partner to the more well-known QED which concludes a proof). Plus, they’re from Switzerland! (insert Moulin Rouge gif here)

Blencathra

These Bones Became the Roots of the Forest

I’m a sucker for lengthy, poetic titles. Have been ever since Fiona Apple’s When the pawn... So of course I had to check out this album from UK-band Blencathra. Blackened post-metal or progressive black metal. Whatever you call it, I liked it.

Into the Storm

Where the Merfalo Roam

I love Seattle. I love Seattle’s music scene – it’s the reason I moved here 20-some years ago. But Seattle has never really been a great metal town, so I’m stoked to hear this local band tearing it up.

Deafcult

Auras

Calmer than the other selections. Shoegazey and a perfect backdrop for working.