Let the indie bands hang with the big dogs where they deserve to be? Or let them shine on their own? Tough call. Next year I think I’ll bring it back to one list, but for now, I wanted to highlight some great indie releases under a spotlight of their own. These were my favorite discoveries this year.
Kyng Breathe in the Water
This album grows on me more each time I listen. It’s like Spiritual Beggars with a sprinkle of Alter Bridge. Melodic, soft and heavy in turns, and just flat out good. I saw them live in San Francisco with Clutch and Zakk Sabbath, but they were too loud for their own good and the music didn’t get a chance to breathe the way it should. However, this album is definitely worth picking up, it’s the only one that I’ve bumped the new Metallica for lately. I would have put this on my top five of the year if I had only one list.
Breathe in the Water
The debut full length release of this Seattle duo is a revelation of slow burn sludge, tasty and timeless. White Wizard is an instant classic. Amy rocks the bass and vocals, __ kills it on drums. There’s still a little of the LA rock fuzz punk from her previous band HDR in tracks like Temple of Apollo. The rest is pure slow stoner bliss.
Debut EP from new San Francisco stoner supergroup of sorts – the Watchers is made up of members of Spiralarms, Orchid, and . They’ve been touring heavily on the west coast since they put this EP together, catch them if you can!
Sabbath Highway
Damn this is some solid heavy rock. Right in there with some of the best stoner type rock I’ve heard lately, this Quebec City band’s debut gets you going right away with Damn Judas and just ramps it up from there. Dead in Time is just flat out killer. Keep an eye on these guys.
Balls out female fronted rock and roll with a 60s/70s throwback feel and a punk attitude. This Cincinnati band kicks serious indie ass.
I know virtually nothing about The Flying Eyes, I had never heard of them until this excellent album came across my Bandcamp feed via Ripple Music.
