Please note: This list is not culled in any way from the Readers Poll, which is ongoing. If you haven’t yet contributed your favorites of 2015 to that, please do.

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What’s a short release? Anything that’s not a full-length. I’ve done this list in the past and given a small list — The Top 20 EPs, Splits, Demos and Singles, or whatever — but “Short Releases” seemed more concise, and believe it or not, that’s something I shoot for.

Essentially, what we’re taking a look at here is everything else a band might put out in a given year. No question that albums are where the greatest impact is made over the longer term, but from landmark 7″s to EPs that provide crucial experiments or serve notice of bands solidifying their sound or marking pivotal first impressions, the shorter offerings have tremendous value, and it’s worth considering them on their own merit, rather than in comparison to LPs directly.

I know for a fact that there are releases I’ve missed here. Particularly among the Bandcamp-only demos, there’s just so much out there that for any one person to keep up with all of it is even more impossible than it’s ever been before. Before you berate me immediately with, “Hey you forgot X Band!” and start throwing tomatoes at your computer or mobile device screen, please keep in mind The Obelisk is run by a single individual and there are only so many hours in the day. As always, I do the best I can.

Here we go:

The Obelisk Presents: The Top 20 Short Releases of 2015

1. Foehammer, Foehammer EP
2. Mos Generator & Stubb, The Theory of Light and Matter Split
3. Sun Voyager, Lazy Daze EP
4. All Them Witches, A Sweet Release
5. Geezer & Borracho, The Second Coming of Heavy: Chapter 1 Split
6. Fatso Jetson & Farflung, Split
7. Eggnogg & Borracho, Sludgy Erna Bastard Split 7″
8. Shroud Eater, Face the Master EP
9. Bedroom Rehab Corporation, Fortunate Some EP
10. Stars that Move, Demo Songs
11. Wight, Helicopter Mama 7″
12. Thera Roya, Unraveling EP
13. Shatner, EP
14. Cities of Mars, Cyclopean Ritual EP
15. Pyramidal & Domo, Jams from the Sun Split
16. Sandrider & Kinski, Split
17. Mount Hush, Low and Behold! EP
18. Godhunter & Amigo the Devil, The Outer Dark Split
19. Groan, Highrospliffics EP
20. Rozamov & Deathkings, Split

Honorable Mention

The Sunburst EP by Valley continues to resonate, as do splits from Goya & Wounded Giant and King Buffalo & Lé Betre. plus Derelics‘ Introducing, Time Rift‘s demo, the Carpet 7″, Watchtower‘s EP, Eternal Black‘s debut demo, Dorre‘s half-hour single One Collapsed at the Altar, and Mount Desert‘s two-songer all deserve serious consideration, as well I’m sure as many others.

Notes

It’s something of a break in routine for me to put any kind of debut in a top spot (other, of course, than on the list of debuts), but Foehammer simply would not be denied. The Virginia trio’s three-song EP release on Grimoire Records (LP on Australopithecus Records), it was a self-titled that seemed to be telling you the name of the band twice as if in a warning against forgetting it. And that warning was one to heed. Foehammer‘s first outing brought the Doom Capitol region to new heights of extremity, and while at over half-an-hour long it could’ve just as easily have been called a full-length, part of the overarching threat is what the band will bring to bear when they actually get around to their first LP.

A good number of splits included here, with Mos Generator and Stubb‘s The Theory of Light and Matter (HeviSike Records), Geezer and Borracho‘s The Second Coming of Heavy: Chapter 1 (launching a series for Ripple Music), Fatso Jetson and Farflung‘s joint release (on Heavy Psych Sounds) and Eggnogg and Borracho‘s Sludgy Erna Bastard (on Palaver Records) all cracking the top 10. No coincidence that Washington D.C. heavy riffers Borracho show up twice in that mix. As Pyramidal and Domo‘s blissful Jams from the Sun, Sandrider and Kinski‘s one-two, Godhunter and Amigo the Devil‘s Battleground Records collaboration and Rozamov and Deathkings‘ joint single feature between #11-20, a total of eight out of the full included 20 releases here are splits. Last year it was only five.

Whether that means the form is growing in an attempt to capture fickle social-media-age attention spans while cutting individual vinyl pressing costs, I couldn’t say — likely a combination of the two and more besides — but it’s noteworthy that a split is more than just a toss-off, between-albums castaway at this point, something for songs to later be included on rare-tracks comps. One could easily say the same of EPs as a whole. To that end, Sun Voyager‘s Lazy Daze was a brutal tease for the NY psychgaze outfit’s first album, hopefully out in 2016. And while All Them Witches‘ A Sweet Release was over 50 minutes long — longer, actually, than their Dying Surfer Meets His Maker LP, which was also issued this year — they considered it an EP/live collection, and that indeed proved how it worked best, immersive though its stretch remained.

Shroud Eater and Bedroom Rehab Corporation both turned in impressive outings that showed marked progression from their last time out, while Shatner‘s first batch of tracks tipped off a songwriting process well-honed and Stars that Move, Cities of Mars, Thera Roya and Mount Hush — I’d put Mount Desert in this category as well — had compelling outings that, like Foehammer at the top, showed much potential at work in formative sounds. Not to be forgotten, Wight‘s Helicopter Mama 7″ gave listeners a heads up on the funkified stylistic turn their upcoming full-length, Love is Not Only What You Know, will take even further, and UK stoner miscreants Groan proved once and for all that, along with logic and reason, a constantly changing lineup can’t hold back their good times.

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Like I said — like I always say — if I left something out, let me know about it in the comments. Really let me have it. Call me a jerk. It’s cool. I can take it.

Please note: I can, in no way, take it.

Still, if I left something/someone out, I hope you’ll let me know. And please don’t forget that if you haven’t yet, you can still contribute your list of 2015 favorites to the year-end poll until Dec. 31. EPs, LPs, whatever, however many, it doesn’t matter. All entries are welcome there.

Thanks for reading.

First time I saw Connecticut duo Bedroom Rehab Corporation was Summer 2014. That doesn’t seem like that long ago, but it was far enough removed from 2013, when the New London bass/drum outfit released their debut full-length, Red over Red (review here), that I knew their next release was going to be one to watch for. Fortunate Some is a four-song EP, and on every level it is a step forward from the preceding release. In terms of the performances throughout of bassist/vocalist/pedal-board-wrangler Adam Wujtewicz and drummer and other noisemaker Meghan Killimade, most definitely.

I won’t discount the value of that album, because I enjoyed it plenty at the time and those songs continue to hold up live, but in the last two years Bedroom Rehab Corporation have clearly gained a firmer grasp on their sound, on the kind of band they want to be, on the atmospheres they want to convey and on the force with which they want to convey them. The fact that they returned to producer Justin Pizzoferrato, who also helmed Red over Red, and tracked at the same studio — Sonelab, in Easthampton, Massachusetts — only further conveys the progression they’ve made sound-wise. And in terms of presentation, Fortunate Some arrives as a pro-pressed 180g 12″ vinyl in gorgeous purple and gray swirl to match the Liz Walshak (Sea, ex-Rozamov) artwork’s weighted vibe. I like a CD as much as the next guy — probably more — but the uptick in professionalism all around is noteworthy, and since it comes coupled with the best songwriting Bedroom Rehab Corporation have yet proffered, it’s all the more welcome.

Aggression is a central factor in the band’s approach. Wujtewicz is a comfortable shouter, and slides easily into a post-Melvins gruffness that was raw the last time out, but is smartly mixed from the get-go here on opener “Riddles of Wind and Time,” pushed further back in the chorus of an already deep-running mix so that the bass tone around it sounds even larger. Couple that with an increased confidence in cleaner singing for the verses and “Riddles of Wind and Time” is barely past the minute-mark before it has effectively showcased some major elements of Bedroom Rehab Corporation‘s advancement. Killimade‘s drumming holds a tension efficiently via hi-hat in the verse and opens into crashing choruses, her snare punctuating the flood of fuzz as it cuts through, and the two move seamlessly into a fluid bridge before returning to the verse and riding the groove outward. Their propensity for roll was something Red over Red established well, but in keeping with the theme, they’ve upped their game there too. The catchiest hook of the four songs, “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” opens likewise fuzzy and sets into an almost immediate nod.

Structurally, it’s not all that different from the opener, with a quiet verse over a spacious foundation contrasted by a more intense, shouting chorus, but the difference is in the impression left by Wujtewicz‘s delivery of the lines, “When all you’ve got is a hammer/It becomes all you need/All I’ve got is this hammer/Everything looks like nails to me.” That chorus becomes a prevailing impression for Fortunate Some, ending side A with a fullness, thickness and meanness that builds on what the debut accomplished without casting the prior release entirely away. At over seven minutes, there’s room to explore, and the second half features a wash of noise that takes the spot a guitar solo might otherwise occupy, but here as well, Killimade and Wujtewicz skillfully make their way back into the chorus to finish.

Side B is immediately more ambient and/or noisy, but “Giants in the Ice” is ultimately more about a buzzing, rolling groove than experimental underpinnings, and it has that well in hand. Departing the back and forth of the first two tracks, “Giants in the Ice” is more linear in its energy, more consistent, but it does shift in its midsection to a quiet moment before surging ahead with more richly-toned fuzz, and Wujtewicz saves some especially vicious shouts for the end. That leaves only “The Serpent the Smiler” on the short release, and it’s the longest (8:28) and most ambitious inclusion on Fortunate Some, very much led by Killimade‘s tom work, which emerges over a bed of subdued noise and feedback only to be joined by the bassline shortly in a kind of not-quite-post-metal push (and better for that “not-quite”) of a verse that comes topped with cleaner vocals as the start of a build that will take Bedroom Rehab Corporation through the remainder of the runtime, that sense of atmosphere never lost on the patient, engaging but still near-manic thrust.

The release comes with a notification that, “There are no guitars or keyboards on this album!” and “The Serpent the Smiler” could easily be why, as the bass is pumped through whatever effect might make it sound like an organ in the chorus before a shift after six minutes to feedback introduces the progression on which Wujtewicz and Killimade will march out, a kind of instrumental hook, faster and almost low-end squibbly but infectious all the same. It is matched to a verse, Killimade swapping out cymbals all the while, and in kind with “Giants in the Ice,” it finishes intense, this time in pacing as well as vocals. The symmetry of the EP I suppose is another aspect one could look at as evidence of how far Bedroom Rehab Corporation have come in two years (they started in 2008, restarted in 2011, but still, thinking of the time since the debut’s release), but if anything, it’s a symptom of the larger refinement of focus on display across the board with Fortunate Some, which seems to build even as it tears down.

Bedroom Rehab Corporation, Fortunate Some (2015)

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Thee Facebooks

Preorder Fortunate Some on Bandcamp

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Twitter

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Instagram

It will not take too long into the seven minutes of “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” before the progress in Bedroom Rehab Corporation‘s style, songwriting and performance shows itself. The Connecticut two-piece were last heard from on their 2013 debut long-player, Red over Red (review here), and having seen them only get better on stage over numerous shows the last two years or so, I’ve been somewhat anxious to get my ears on some new audio, to see if they’d be able to translate their development into a studio setting. Recorded by Justin Pizzoferrato (Elder, Black Pyramid) and finished in the cold winter hours of early 2015, the new Fortunate Some EP will be released Oct. 3 (preorders are available as of this premiere) and if “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” is anything to go by, it will find them doing precisely that: bringing the tight heaviness and aggression of their stage show to completed studio tracks.

Bassist/vocalist Adam Wujtewicz and drummer Meghan Killimade are each well in command of their modus throughout the song’s semi-extended course. The verses showcase an increased capacity for melody and the chorus is more aggro, but still catchy in its shout and stomp. As the first audio to be made public from Fortunate Some it bodes well in its captured energy and also its spaciousness, the middle of “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” moving into an effects-laden instrumental section so fluidly you almost don’t know until you’re already in it working your way back, but of course they slam through with full tonal and percussive brunt to finish out. Directed by Peter Huoppi, the video takes the titular imagery head on. We see a blacksmith and a guy hammering rocks toward some unknown end out in the woods — that’s a job, right? — and both come to discard their hammers and hit the bar where Killimade and Wujtewicz happen to be playing. Somehow at the end, after a trek through the same rocky woods and what looks like the train tracks by Cherry St. Station in Wallingford, CT (actually they’re in Norwich, about an hour’s can’t-get-there-from-here New England drive away), the duo pick up both castaway hammers and make their way down the line.

There’s a lot to enjoy here for those who heard Red over Red, but even if “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” is your introduction to Bedroom Rehab Corporation, it’s a good time to be introduced, as they’ve just brought their approach to an entirely new level to emerge as a more confident, sonically powerful band.

Video and info follow. Please enjoy:

Bedroom Rehab Corporation, “When all You’ve Got is a Hammer” official video

Bedroom Rehab Corporation – “When All You’ve Got is a Hammer” from the new EP ‘Fortunate Some’ available on LP/Digital October 3, 2015.

Pre-order ‘Fortunate Some’ from BandCamp (you will receive immediate download of “When All You’ve Got is a Hammer”): https://bedroomrehabcorporation.bandcamp.com/album/fortunate-some

Director: Peter Huoppi
Featuring: Chris Holdridge, Clint Wright & Rich Huoppi
Live footage filmed on location at 33 Golden Street, New London, CT

Featured in live footage:
Marko Fontaine, Stephanie Johnson, Pete Egner, Ben LaRose, Bobby Crash, Tim “Grim” Riley, Suz Manning, Corina Malbaurn, Kim Zajehowski Case, Tracy Tremblay, Paul Brockett, Tracey Hollins, Sean Beirne, Greg Gates, Jim Villano, Courtney Cole, Jerrica Cole

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Thee Facebooks

Preorder Fortunate Some on Bandcamp

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Twitter

Bedroom Rehab Corporation on Instagram

Release Show Info

A mastering process still lay ahead of them, but Connecticut duo Bedroom Rehab Corporation have completed recording their second album, Fortunate Some. Bassist/vocalist Adam Wujtewicz and drummer Meghan Killimade will release it sometime later this year either on their own or through a yet-to-be-announced label, and I guess that’s not really the news, since it’s not like they’d make the album and then not let anyone hear it — snatch it back all like “no way it’s ours!” — but the fact that they’re done tracking it is the part you’re supposed to focus on. Their 2013 debut, Red Over Red (review here), impressed with its variety and impact, but where the two-piece have continued to shine is on stage, so I’m interested to hear how they’ve translated their live ferocity to the upcoming Justin Pizzoferrato-recorded long-player.

They posted a couple studio updates during their time making Fortunate Some, the rest of which you can view at their website and the last of which follows here:

Studio Day 4

I couldn’t write about day 4 on day 4 because i was driving home and settling back in but as I listened to our reference mixes in my car last night or now on my home stereo I’m starting to realize what we’ve done. We spent all of day 4 mixing, re-amping and applying effects but mostly listening. When you’re critically listening like that you don’t get to take in the whole picture. Having now had time to do that it is apparent truly how far we have come since Red Over Red.

While we still love those songs and that album, Fortunate Some will be more than a step forward… it’s a short sprint ahead of Red Over Red. Needless to say Justin is a hugely responsible for this. The notes and suggestions he gave us as well as his ability to mic a room and mix sounds to make them more than a sum of their inputs has made this album so much bigger and better. Not only was he willing to let us get weird when we felt the need but he encouraged it and nurtured our weirdness and helped translate it to sound. So thank you Justin, you have once again made recording an enjoyable and enriching experience.

I’m not exactly sure what else to say here. The recording process is complete and mastering wil be taking place in around 3 weeks once again with Carl Saff. We still have to figure out art and things so don’t hold your breath but rest assured we are going to continue to work to get this album out to you. Be prepared for weirdness and some singing and a whole bunch of heavy and did I mention weirdness? Thanks for reading, keep your eyes peeled for more updates as they happen.

http://www.bedroomrehabcorp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/BedroomRehabCorporation
http://bedroomrehabcorporation.bandcamp.com/

Bedroom Rehab Corporation, Red Over Red (2013)