The Debate Rages: What are the Best Songs of the Last Five Years?
Mostly around here I concentrate on albums. Best albums of the year. Best albums of the decade. Still, kind of on a whim this morning I was thinking about the shape of heavy of the last half-decade — or rather, the shapes of it.
Different scenes moving in various directions, the emergence of the Pacific Northwest as a hotbed, the growth of West Coast psych and how in-conversation that seems to be both with California’s skater past and the current European market, itself branched out between heavy psych and ’70s traditionalism, which has also begun to take root throughout the US while, at the same time, a new generation has come up to embrace full-on stoner riffing and/or desert rock ideals.
While I have my album lists going back six years to refer to, this time around, I was wondering specifically about individual songs from the same era. What are the best songs from the last five years?
It’s not always the best album that has the best single piece of work on it, so it seemed worth asking the question separately.
Me, I go in for epics: YOB‘s “Marrow” (2014), Ancestors‘ “First Light” (2012), Colour Haze‘s “Grace” (2012), Hypnos 69‘s “The Great Work” (2011), Witch Mountain‘s “Can’t Settle” (2014), Elder‘s “Lore” (2015) definitely is worth having in the conversation, Solace‘s “From Below” (2010), Grayceon‘s “We Can” (2011), and so on.
But then you have Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats‘ “I’ll Cut You Down,” which has had a massive influence since it came out in 2011. And what about a cut like Clutch‘s “D.C. Sound Attack,” or Goatsnake‘s “Grandpa Jones,” or Graveyard‘s “Ain’t Fit to Live Here,” or Mars Red Sky‘s “Strong Reflection?” Does a track have to be long to make an impact? What if there’s a perfectly-executed two-minute verse/chorus trade? Shouldn’t that also be considered?
I guess that’s the question.
We haven’t done one of these in a while, so I’m hoping you’ll take the time to add your answers and picks for the best songs of the last five years 2010-2015 in the comments to this post. I know we’re not through 2015 yet, but we’re just trying to have some fun anyway.
Thanks to all who take the time to leave a note in the comments below.
Tags: Ancestors, Colour Haze, Elder, Grayceon, Hypnos 69, Solace, Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, Yob
Dig this shit!
1. Yob’s Marrow – Not a song but an ascending journey
2. Sammal’s Aika on alkamassa – Not of this era really
3. Harassor’s Winter’s Triumph – It’d be a dram to hear this on the radio
4. High On Fire’s Snakes For The Divine – nobody talk please
5. Royal Thunder’s Wake Up – wasting my time!
6. Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats’ Death Valley Blues – ooooh
7. Hail Spirit Noir – Against The Curse We Dream – I’d dance to this
8. Ice Dragon’s Beard Of Thieves – the tone
9. Living Colour’s Behind the sun – don’t belong here? sorry
Tried to limit it to 5 but that was folly on my part. This would probably change 1,000 times a day depending on my mood but mine are probably (in no particular order):
Mars Red Sky – “Hovering Satellites”
The Devil’s Blood – “The Madness of Serpents”
Royal Thunder – “Blue”
Yob – “Nothing to Win”
Clutch – “Mr. Freedom”
Boris – “Cosmos Pt2”
Honorary mentions:
Truckfighters – “Get Lifted”
Jex Thoth – “The Places You Walk”
Conan – “Battle in the Swamp”
Coffinworm – “Lust vs. Vengeance”
Selim Lemouchi & His Enemies – “Your Way Down”
Panopticon – “Where Mountains Pierce the Sky”
Grayceon – “End of Days”
in no specific order…
Hawk as Weapon- conan
Hexagon Riders- ice dragon
Spellpouch- ice dragon
Winter Sun- windhand
The Clarity- sleep
I so badly wanted to add Thebes from God is Good but it was 2009, dang…
I’ll probably have another batch of songs tommorrow but the first 10 that sprung into my mind were (in no particular order)
The Devil’s Blood – The Thousandfold Epicentre
Jex Thoth – Ehjä
Baroness – Eula
In Solitude – Death Knows Where
Solstafir – Fjara
Anathema – Untouchable Part 1&2 (they belong together for me)
Jess and the Ancient Ones – Sulfur Giants
High on Fire – Snakes for the Divine
SubRosa – Borrowed Time, Borrowed Eyes
Neurosis – My Heart For Deliverance
Man, this is tough.
Apostle of Solitude – December Drives me to Tears
Royal Thunder – Parsonz Curse
Monster Magnet – I Live Behind the Clouds
Those are the three I think of first, but there are a lot of good suggestions mentioned already. Elder, HoF, the first track on the last Om album, a few good options on Colour Haze – She Said… I could probably think about it longer and list another 10-15 legit contenders. I may do that.
December Drives Me to Tears!
Inter Arma – The Cavern
JJ, love these discussions/debates. Thanks for the passion & work on the site. Can’t possibly express the ridiculous amount of great music I’ve discovered here.
High on Fire – Madness of an Architect
Clutch – Crucial Velocity
Sleep – The Clarity
Kadavar – Black Sun
Elder – Lore
Red Fang – Dawn Rising w/ Mike Scheidt
Corrosion of Conformity – Psychic Vampire
Earthless – Violence of the Red Sea
Yob – Marrow
Graveyard – Hisingen Blues
Great Topic.
In no particular order:
Windhand – Winter Sun
Conan – Battle in the Swamp
Caltrop – Perehilion
US Christmas – Suzerain
YOB – Marrow
The Machine – Jam no U
Earthless – Violence of the Sea
Stoned Jesus – I’m The Mountain
Truckfighters – Mastodont
Baroness – Eula
All them Witches – Elk.Blood.Heart
Blues Pills – Little Sun
US Christmas – Suzerain: what a great song
Here are mines, those are the ones I constantly go back to :)
1. Graveyard – Uncomfortably Numb – The solo and pre-solo part is simply mindblowing
2. 1000mods – Track Me – The 5 minutes mark.
3. The Socks – Some Kind Of Sorcery – Love that change in the middle of the song
4. Pet The Preacher – The Pig & The Haunted – Dat Heaviness & this sublime solo
5. True Widow – Four Teeth – Such a unique atmosphere…
These, off the top of my head:
Beelzefuzz – Hypnotize
Blood Farmers – Headless Eyes
Elder – Lore
Faith in Jane – Samurai Psalm
Goatess – Alpha Omega
OGRE – Son of Sisyphus
No particular order…
1 – Mars Red Sky – Strong Reflection
2 – Graveyard – Slow Motion Countdown
3 – Dead Meadow – That Old Temple
4 – Uncle Acid – Valley of the Dolls
5 – Elder – Gemini
6 – Elder – White Walls
7 – Sleep – The Clarity
8 – Naam – Sky Scrapers
9 – All them witches – Charles Wiliams
10 – Howlin Rain – Cheroke Werewolf
11 – Black Sabbath – God is Dead?
12 – Electric Moon – The Cosmic Creator
13 – Hellbender – Down the Mountain
14 – Orchid – Mouths of Madness
15 – Earthless – Violence of the Red Sea
Lots of good stuff on here, but a disappointing lack of Neurosis. Take any track off of “Honor Found In Decay” but “my Heart for Deliverance” is fucking miraculous.
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats – Death’s Door
Obake – The End of It All
Salem’s Pot – Pink Flamingos
OM – State of No Return
TAURUS – Increase Aloneness
Corrections House – Serve or Survive
On a fist pass through my albums – most are pretty recent favorites:
Alunah – Call of Avernus
Brant Bjork and the Low Deserts Punks – Stokley Up Now
C.O.C – Time of Trials
Elder – Lore
Monster Magnet – Gods and Punks (plus the video!)
Maybe not the best of the best, but figured I’d throw these out there to contribute
man, now that I look at it some of these aren’t all that recent – sucks getting old …
1-Eyehategod. New Orleans is the new Vietnam
2-Wovenhand. Hiss
3-Moho. Gargantor
4-Rwake. of grievous abominations
5-ZU. Chtonian
6-Tragedy. No cemeteries here
7-Mombu. Ten harpoons ritual
8-Earth. The driver
9-Sunn 0))). Alice
10-Sloath. Deep mountains
1) The War On Drugs – Best Night
2) Kurt Vile – Waking On A Pretty Day
3) Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
4) Tallest Man On Earth – Love Is All
5) The National – Terrible Love
6) The Helio Sequence – October
7) Phosphorescent – Song For Zula
8) Mikal Cronin – Weight
9) Morgan Delt – Make My Grey Brain Green
10) Nothing – Dig
1. Orange Goblin – Heavy Lies the Crown
2. Graveyard – Uncomfortably Numb
3. Solace – Six Year Trainwreck
4. Orchid – Capricorn
5. Black Spiders – Blood of the Kings
1 PRIMORDIAL Where Greater Men Have Fallen
2 GEEZER Ancient Song
3 MONSTER MAGNET The Duke Of Supernature
4 UNCLE ACID Runaway Girls
5 WOUNDED KINGS Lost Bride
6 ASG Day’s Work
7 JOHN GARCIA Her Bullets Energy
8 MASTODON Black Tongue
9 YEAR OF THE GOAT Angel’s Necropolis
10 OCEAN CHIEF Slipsten
Surprised that no one has mentioned Pallbearer yet. As far as game changing songs over the past 5 years I’d have to go with:
Pallbearer – Devoid of Redemption (or An Offering of Grief)
Deafheaven – Dream House
Inter Arma – The Cavern
Sleep – The Clarity
Windhand – Woodbine
In no order:
40 Watt Sun – Restless
Charles Bradley – This World (Is Going Up In Flames)
Golden Void – The Curve
Om – State of Non-Return
Audrey Horne – Youngblood
Rose Windows – Wartime Lovers
Kayo Dot – Library Subterranean
Laibach – The Whistleblowers
Yob – Marrow
YOB – Adrift the Ocean
Bongripper – Worship
Black Shape Of Nexus – 60WV
My Sleeping Karma – Ephedra
Omega Massif – Steinernes Meer
Well, damn…I only have about 15,000 songs in that range…I would agree with any song already mentioned by Yob, Elder or HOF…and “Dawn Rising” by Red Fang. Here are some that come to mind…
Soundgarden – “Kristi” Off Echo Of Miles.
Monolord – “Cursing The One” Still might be my favorite this year.
Stoned Jesus – “Black Church”
Clutch – “The Wolfman Kindly Requests”
Dwellers – “Creature Comforts”
Oxcross – “Fiery Fields”
Hark – “Clear Light Of…”
Las Cruces – “Cocaine Wizard Woman”
Taint – “All Bees To The Sea”
Sheavy – “War On Titan”
Trypticon – “A Thousand Lies”
Fu Manchu – “Evolution Machine”
Orange Goblin – “Bloodzilla”or “Ubermensch”, “The Fog”, “Red Tide…”
Orchid – “Loving Hand Of God” More Sabbath than Sabbath.
Crowbar – “Shaman Of Belief” What a riff!
…and about 1000 other ones. Portland, OR has to be the hottest bed right now. Great music coming from out there! And Boston on the east coast. Stockholm in Europe has held the crown for a while…and there seams to be more great bands coming out of Cardiff lately. A great 5 years for rock!