#he lacks the wind capacity for wind and brass instruments.

[how-to-cast-your-mana-comics]

today we'll start introducing some of wilderin's companions and supporting cast.

First up is Makani, or Maki for short, has quickly become wilderin's first closest friend since coming to town. Maki for a time was a traveling musician, but some years before wilderin, maki would come to settle into town and now performs at the local taverns and during yearly seasonal events.

Maki is a rather charismatic character oozing with self-confidence, and at a first glance one might think him to be rather full of himself, but he's actually rather sweet and empathetic towards those around him. He's the first person to meet wilderin upon him entering town, and the first friend wilderin makes here. Maki is also extremely perceptive able to quickly pick up the smallest details in a room long before anyone else, especially when it comes to detecting signs of trouble or danger.

However for all his great qualities, he's also a crippling alcoholic, and is rather often found getting wasted drunk at the end of every performance, and just about most nights in general. This often makes him a rather unpleasant to be around, especially during the mornings when he's hungover. He doesn't stop caring about those around him but he's extremely irritable, and quick to lash out when drunk and hungover. Although in spite of this he does put effort into not hurting those he cares about, even if he's unwilling to change this habit, and when he does hurt his friends he does everything to make it up to them.

[ianmcfrazer-blog]

Albums and Songs From This Year That I Liked

Hello! This a post about songs and albums from this year that I liked. They’re not the only ones that I liked, but they’re the ones that came out this year and that I felt like I could write something about. The best album I heard this year was Life Without Building’s Live at the Annandale Hotel, but that came out in 2007.

Albums

Alvvays – Antisocialites

This album exemplifies what is, to me, an important distinction between “the best” and “the most enjoyable.” The Maritimes-bred, Toronto-based band doesn’t do anything that feels particularly innovative on its sophomore album. If anything, anachronism is the point, as demonstrated by the music video for “Dreams Tonite.” 

But the whole thing is so beautifully, flawlessly constructed that a lack of urgency or topicality can be forgiven. The way “In Undertow” expands into one of the most cathartic bridges of the year; the squiggly, infectious guitar lines throughout; the little details and characters that populate frontwoman Molly Rankin’s lyrics: This may not have been the best album of this year, the one that captured the zeitgeist and moved music forward, but it’s the one I enjoyed listening to the most. 

Tigers Jaw – spin

If I must brag, I knew about Scranton before “The Office” was big. My family would drive the mountain road overlooking the city on our way up to my grandparents’ house in New York, and it was invariably gray and rainy in that cold valley. But over time, I’ve warmed to the city, given its proximity to New York City and the mountains, and what seems like a strong music scene. 

Incidentally, this album from the Scranton-based duo of Brianna Collins and Ben Walsh has grown on me more than any other record this year. Like Antisocialites, it doesn’t represent any particular shift for indie rock, but it’s full of satisfying choruses and fun little details, like the verse riff on “Make It Up” and the bass line on “Oh Time.” Collins, the band’s keyboardist, takes on a bigger role vocally, and her contributions on “June” and “Brass Ring” are highlights.

(Sandy) Alex G – Rocket

There’s a whole Alex G mythos that I’m missing out on, a huge back catalogue that I haven’t fully explored, like real fans of the prolific Philly-based artist can say they have. He’s released seven albums, and he’s just four months older than me, so that’s...great, yeah. 

I’m on his train now, though. I eagerly awaited this album after hearing “Bobby” as a single and went to see him play live, which turned out to be one of the best shows I saw this year. Rocket fits under the indie rock umbrella of Alex’s previous releases while shifting in original, intriguing directions, most notably country and folk in the album’s early half. “Poison Root,��� the opener, is my favorite track of the year: It’s super fucking weird, with a chugging guitar riff, possessed-sounding violin and inscrutable, ominous lyrics, and it absolutely slays.

Japandroids – Near to the Wild Heart of Life

I needed some time and distance to appreciate this album. Celebration Rock, Japandroids’ sophomore album from 2012, is probably my favorite record ever. It both represents and exceeds everything I want from rock music. This album isn’t at that level: The songs don’t have the same energy and fire, the lyrics feel stilted at times, and, at its heart, it’s been done before.

But a slightly inferior Japandroids is still so much better than so much of today’s music. Seeing the duo live at the 40 Watt Club in Athens, eight months after this album’s release, reminded me of the value of the hooks, the sincerity, the loudness and fuzz that define Japandroids. I recognize this album’s flaws, and I love it nonetheless.

Big Thief – Capacity

Adrianne Lenker, this Brooklyn band’s guitarist and frontwoman, has lived a weird life. Her stories are in the music, in various degrees of specificity, and they give each of the songs a heart and life. The instrumentation easily carries them, with moments like the sparse, ungraspable guitar solo in “Shark Smile” and the swelling expansion of “Watering” carrying just as much staying power as Lenker’s lyrics.

Alex Cameron – Forced Witness

Cameron’s down-on-his-luck-weirdo persona is described on his Wikipedia as a “high-concept” act, and according to that same website, high-concept narratives typically involve an “overarching ‘what if?” scenario.” This album seems to poses this question: What if Springsteen had written Tunnel of Love after a weeklong bender in Atlantic City? Cameron’s characters and scenes can be sordid, cringeworthy and sympathetic, both timeless and topical. The synths, sax and funk-lite guitars make me want to listen to this album in a room with lots of glass brick. 

Paramore – After Laughter

Paramore’s evolution and staying power, through multiple seasons as a band and massive shifts in the public’s music taste and consumption patterns, is a remarkable story in music. I loved the band’s eponymous 2013 album for its hooks and post-punk-esque drive, and this year’s release shows a lighter, bouncier side, even as Hayley Williams’ lyrics tell a different story. Paramore finds grooves in less-likely sources, as Williams’ chanted vocals and Taylor York’s treble-heavy guitar licks work hand-in-hand with the rhythm section, rather than simply riding along with the drums and bass.

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – The French Press

I’ve been a ~guitarist~ for about a year and a half now. I’m completely self-taught and not very good. It has made me listen music differently, though: I try to gauge the techniques of guitarists, the difficulty of parts and see if I can play the stuff I like the most. It gives me greater appreciation for certain songs and makes me scoff at others. 

So while I knew of this Melbourne band and counted myself as interested follower before my axe-wielding days, my experience with the instrument has put them in a different light. They have three guitarists, all of their songs are built around the riffs – an increasing rarity in modern music – and it all just sounds fun as hell to watch and play. They haven’t come to the U.S. yet, to my knowledge, but I’ll be there for the presale when they do.

Kevin Morby – City Music

Kevin Morby has been around quite a bit in today’s indie rock scene, from his stint with Woods to his time as co-leader of The Babies to his current solo act, where he seems to have found the most success and acclaim. This set of songs, grounded in classic rock conventions but with strong punk and psych influences, feels particularly warm and familiar. Morby’s interplay with guitarist Meg Duffy is one of the most appealing dynamics in rock, and the six-minute ride the duo takes us on in the title track is one of the best cuts of the year.

The War On Drugs – A Deeper Understanding

There was no reason for Adam Granduciel to abandon the spacey variety of heartland rock that he hit upon with great success three years ago, so he didn’t. Like KTTWHOL, this album doesn’t equal the quality of its predecessor, but it does the juxtaposition of pounding, wind-in-your-hair tempos and slow-burning torch songs like no one else today. I don’t think anyone has the guts to try.  

Songs

Real Estate – “Darling”

The task of nailing down the “Real Estate sound” is a confounding one. Is it the keys, the effects, the composition? I can’t nail it down, which means that it’s probably a special combination of those elements and more. That sound has changed significantly with the ignominious departure of lead guitarist Matt Mondanile and the addition of Julian Lynch – the latter has a more abstract, experimental approach, as opposed to Mondanile’s precision – but with Martin Courtney still in the fold, the band retains its magic: The circular riff here is among its most memorable.

Wolf Parade – “You’re Dreaming”

The first two tracks of Wolf Parade’s first album since 2010 sum up the contrast gave Apologies to the Queen Mary, its 2005 classic, so much staying power. It’s the side-by-side existence of existential anxiousness, heard in album opener “Lazarus Online,” with exuberant, driving melodies, heard in this song. The shift feels a bit drastic here, but it works.

White Reaper – “Judy French”

The 1980s seemed to have a strong influence on indie rock this year, like in the aforementioned Alex Cameron and The War On Drugs albums, but rather than the synth-heavy feel of those records, this song goes straight for hair metal. It feels like a natural evolution from garage rock for this Louisville group, which has established itself as one of the most fun bands in the genre. Twice they came to Atlanta this year, and twice I was doing...other stuff, I guess. Regrets, regrets.

Charly Bliss – “Percolator”

Few things are better than a great drum fill, and the one at 2:10 or so here is a doozy, barreling ahead while the rest of the band is winding down from the pre-chorus. There’s a vaguely menacing feel to this song, like it’s meant to be played as you run a red light.

Queens of Stone Age – “The Evil Has Landed”

Villains, the album that QOTSA dropped this year, was fairly frustrating. It felt half-done, like the band hadn’t gathered enough strong ideas to meet the standards of their previous releases, but still had a deadline to meet. When the album hit, though, it hit hard, like with the interlocking guitars of “The Way You Used To Do” and this back-third jam, with its acrobatic riff, multiple freewheeling solos, and a late tempo change. 

Turnstile – “Real Thing”

This was quite a tease. The Baltimore group drops a monster of a track, at once sludgy and funky, and doesn’t pair it with the announcement of a new album. That announcement came later, thankfully, and I’m already antsily waiting for Generator to come along on Feb. 28.

Tim Darcy – “You Felt Comfort”

Darcy, the frontman of post-punk group Ought, went a decidedly different direction in his solo release from this year. Rather than the lengthy, labyrinthine songs the band is known for, Darcy went for the shorter and more conventional. Like this song, with its looping three-chord pattern – F-sharp, C-sharp, G-sharp – and chorus, albeit a wordless one. There’s still a feeling, though, of something against the grain, whether it’s the song’s determined repetition or cryptic lyrics.

The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die – “The Future”

How ironic that a band with a name like this has produced some of the most compact, thrilling emo tracks of the last decade, like this, the second song from Always Foreign. The breakneck pace makes “The Future” an addicting listen, even as the lyrics reflect the bleakness of our current sociopolitical situation. No matter how bad it gets, we’ve got to keep moving. 

Cloud Nothings – “Things Are Right With You”

Cloud Nothings’ songs are bracing enough in the studio, but the pure volume of the live experience, which I saw twice this year, can’t be equaled. Life Without Sound, the band’s album from this January, might be their weakest since the pre-Steve Albini days, but this song’s incendiary guitar break and sticky chorus put it up with the band’s best work. 

Special Explosion – “Fire”

When you’re a band from the Pacific Northwest, and you make this guy say this, that’s a good sign. I, for one, agree with Mr. Walla. This song sounds like mist coming out of my computer speakers.

Charli XCX – “Backseat (feat. Carly Rae Jepsen)”

It’s two of the most exciting pop artists in the world, together on a track. The result is obvious.

Sufjan Stevens – “Drawn to the Blood” (Live version + fingerpicked version)

Carrie and Lowell is a classic album, but it came out in 2015. Its songs were revived twice this year, though, first on a live recording of the album and then on a B-sides/alternate takes collection. To hear one of my favorite songs from C+L played writ large and set to a beautifully intricate arrangement was indeed one of The Greatest Gift(s) of the year.

Perfume Genius – “Slip Away”

The biggest, most ecstatic chorus of the year doesn’t have words. It’s an instrumental explosion after a measured lead-up. 

Remo Drive – “Art School”

This is the kind of rock music that the kids like these guys, I guess. The Minnesota band’s video for its debut single “Yer Killin’ Me” already has more than a million views on YouTube less than a year after its release, and Greatest Hits, their debut album, is a winning collection of pop-punk/emo hybrids. “Art School” hints at a certain weirdness that serves the band well, with its fuzzed-out riff and wonky verse chords.