by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Here we all are, still very much indoors, still waiting out the pandemic. It might be a while still (at least for reasonable people), but we can only really look ahead one day at a time. At least there’s an infinite amount of music to discover out their in the world… whether it was released a month ago, two years ago, a decade ago… there’s always something to listen to, and much of that music is on Bandcamp. In their ongoing quest to better the world, they are once again waiving their cut of all sales on Friday, May 1st (PST), and will continue to do so on the first Friday of month for the next few months. It’s a great way to support bands you care about and to discover new music / pick up all those albums you’ve been meaning to get. Artists are struggling to make ends meet without shows, tours, physical distribution, etc. and for one magical day, we can give 100% of the revenue to them (and let us not forget labels that are hanging on by a thread for the same reasons).
There are literally hundreds of thousands of records that deserve your attention on Bandcamp. We essentially recommend a few every day (you know… on this website) but we also understand that everyone has a limited income and you just can’t buy them all, at least not in one day. We made a list of some albums we recommend picking up, placed into twelve categories, semi thought out at best. We thought it beats just a big ol’ list, but who knows… we just hope you have some fun listening and purchasing music. That’s really the key. We tried (we failed, see category 12) not to repeat anything from the last feature, so be sure to reference that as well.
One parting note before the list, the Bandcamp percentage isn’t all that big to begin with, so when Friday ends… just keep buying. Buy all year. Support the bands you care about and those bands will be able to continue making music.
01. ASK A PUNK:
Here’s a few great punk albums we’ve been listening to a lot. From hardcore to “egg punk” and beyond, each of these albums would make a damn fine addition to your collection. Blow off some steam and up the punx, however you choose to do so.
02. NOISE ROCK ESSENTIALS:
These records have raised the bar for noise rock in the past decade, building and re-contextualizing the genre as they see fit, both freaky and often slurred. The 90s belonged to The Jesus Lizard (and Cherubs certainly did their thing back then too), but these are weird times and bands are getting weirder.
03. TEMPORARY TRANCENDANCE:
For all of this that want to simply drift away from the world for about an hour at a time, these albums are equipped to transport you away from this existence and into a new, more beautiful realm, if only temporary. Fun fact: one of these records is my all time favorite album.
04. YEARS PASS BY, YET THE MUSIC REMAINS:
I don’t know what this category is, but these albums were released in the past few years and remain big favorites around these parts. Not everything has a fancy press campaign and word of mouth goes a long way. We’re yapping our big mouth about these releases to anyone listening.
05. SPICY UP-AND-COMERS:
Here’s a selection of new bands and new(ish) bands that we think you’ll be enjoying for years and years to come. It’s just the beginning (or relatively close) and they’ve all shown such impressive foundations, we’re already sold on the future. Try something new, it’s a great way to live.
06. DIY LEGENDS:
This category is pretty self explanatory. These bands are all the type we can gain inspiration from, learn from, and look to as a model of longevity and endless creativity. Each of these bands have a restless work ethic that has found them always pushing new ground with exceptional results.
07. FRESH BAKED GEMS:
Keep your ear to the streets… or in the age of quarantine, just dig to find the best of the underground on the internet. Here’s some hot and fresh new releases from another batch of bands we really think you ought to keep your eyes and ears tuned in to. It’s kind of the same category as 05… but different.
08. FORWARD THINKING METAL:
There’s a lot of good mind-expanding metal out there and, depending on who you live with, now might be the time to turn it up and let it rip. I’ve found that I really truly love a lot of death metal (who knew) and it’s been helping me through this quarantine, but also, these releases listed here.
09. COME BACK SOON, THE WORLD NEEDS YOU:
It’s been a long time since any of the bands in this category have released an album, some are still “active” some of a forever long “hiatus” but maybe just maybe if we spend enough money on their Bandcamp, we can excite them into making new records… or we can simply dream about it.
10. FRONT-PORCH ESSENTIALS:
Whether you’re sitting on your porch with a stiff drink or stuck in your apartment wishing you had any sort of access to the great outdoors, these albums will make you feel the sunshine on your face and the breeze on your cheeks. Smooth as eggs.
11. MODERN MASTERPIECES:
We consider these to be perfect albums, the type where we know and love every second of every song, the way we did with our favorite albums growing up. True masterpieces released in modern times and we wouldn’t trade anything in the world for these records.
12. BECAUSE IT BEARS REPEATING:
I know I said I wouldn’t include releases that we included just a few weeks ago when Bandcamp waived their cut for the first time, but it would be down right negligent not to remind you that many of those aforementioned albums are (and forever will be) among the year’s best.