JBaker

The National - High Violet Nothing dangerous or ground-breaking here, just nice melodic, accessible, slightly melancholic US indie with some lovely baritone vocals. Perfect chilled out listening for a serene late night. 'Wall-to-wall bangers' might not be a particularly appropriate description for this record, but it is a pretty faultless collection of tunes.

Deafheaven - Sunbather

The Gallows - Grey Britain Snotty, pissed off, theatrical UK punk rock. Faultless!

Sonic Youth - Goo

System of a Down - S/T I still say the unhinged weirdness and the unpolished, punk rock aggression, employed within the wider pop context, makes this their best album.

Btw, BAN, I've been getting a little more interested in black metal recently, and I'd like to try and get into Blut Aus Nord, and for some reason I figured you might be the guy to ask about where to start?

65daysofstatic - The Fall of Math More awesome post-rock! Mogwai meets Aphex, with some - I wouldn't call them heavy, but certainly pretty loud and explosive riffs. Again, definitely on the uplifting, life-affirming side of the genre. Someone described it as sounding like a computer that generates post-rock being affected with a virus and still trying to carry on, despite the glitches. Pretty apt description, imo!

Yeah, alternative metal, as it is used nowadays, does seem to apply solely to radio rock that is just a little 'heavier' than usual. I still like and use the description, but it is often mis-prescribed imo. Faith No More is definitely a band that I feel warrant that tag, and I'd probably throw Deftones and, to some extent, Tool in with that as well. NP: Explosions in the Sky - The World is Not a Cold Dead Place Continuing my post-rock binge. As the album title suggests, this ditches the common trope of dark, gloomy soundscapes in favour of something euphoric and blissful.

System of a Down - Toxicity

The Leviathan - Scar Sighted Definitely the nastiest, most unsettling thing I've heard come out of metal for a long time.

While She Sleeps - Brainwashed I genuinely think this band is the new generation's British answer to Machine Head.

Had a lovely afternoon sat in the sun listening to Swans' 'The Seer' on a pair of big, fuck off headphones, with the volume way up. Got to appreciate this mammoth of a record on a completely different level! Kicking off Spring the right way! Now: The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us is the Killer

Before: Swans - To Be Kind Now: Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger After many years, I'm finally starting to appreciate this for the overlooked gem of 1990s rock music that it is. Great hooks that never border on syrupy and some of the riffs on this thing rival Sabbath at their best, imo.

Swans - Cop

The Leviathan - Scar Sighted Holy fuck.

Meshuggah - Koloss Of the 4 Meshuggah albums I own, this is by far my favourite. Don't understand why it gets shit on so much.

While She Sleeps - Brainwashed

Skin - World of Skin Michael motherfucking Gira, how I love you so. <3

I think, after Ill Nino, anything goes, really.

Hawk Eyes - Ideas Quirky mix of QOTSA, Mike Patton, At The Drive-In, Mastodon, Dillinger and a host of other stuff. Just good anthemic heavy rock music that perfectly matches up the novel with the familiar.

Ill Nino - One Nation Underground The first signs of Spring start to appear, the Ill Nino records come out. It's become an annual thing. This is by far my favourite album from them. Whilst it does strike me as a little shallow and childish now, the match up of early Linkin Park and mid-career Soulfly is pretty fucking perfect on this one; considerably out-stripping both bands imo. The Jamey Jasta appearance definitely helps, too.