Welcome to the inaugural edition of GSYHLT. Since I’m writing this at the peak of a bout of inspiration (and haven’t fully thought things through), I don’t have an album review for you yet, but I thought I’d kick things off with a quick look at my last.fm for the last week or so and talk about some standout tracks.

IT’S CATCHING UP - NOMEANSNO

NoMeansNo is by no means^hehe an unheard of name in the Vancouver scene, but I was not made aware of them until a few years ago - and at that time, their music was not available on streaming services, so I had to make do with an MP3 rip provided to me from a buddy of mine. It’s been a staple of my music collection since - not just as a representation of a scene I wish I could have been present for, but because the riffs are f&@*in’ JUICY. This song in particular has an instrumental break in the middle that has burrowed so far deep into my brain that I will, inevitably, rip it off at some point without realizing it.

The album’s up on streaming now and has been repressed on vinyl (which I was very happy to discover), so while the best time to get into NoMeansNo was in the 90s, the second best time is now.

Get funky and break stuff.

NIHIL STRENGTH - AUTHOR & PUNISHER

I have a fascination with Author & Punisher that extends past my enjoyment of the music in and of itself - mostly because of the crazy shit he’s built to play his music with.

Beastland is a great album through and through (other standouts include The Speaker Is Systematically Blown and Nazarene) and is well worth checking out even if you’re not the same weirdbrain as I am that likes to see big machine make heavy music.

Drone machines go brrrr

PYRAMID SONG - RADIOHEAD

I don’t need to sell you on Radiohead.

This album came up because I asked my wife to put something on while driving out to Abbotsford, and it was the first album alphabetically from an artist she recognized on my Plex library. I hadn’t actually listened to Amnesiac before, so it was a new experience for both of us. I can’t speak for her (nor would I dare to) but I certainly enjoyed it.

I forgot what I was writing about

Rule of three determines that I can’t do focused pieces on anything else I liked so here’s a list of other songs. No, I’m not making a playlist - do some work yourself, for once in your life. It builds character.

• Deathtripper - Pig Destroyer

• Amazonia - Gojira

• Samsung Washing Machine Song (DUTCH REMIX) - Explorers of the Internet

• The Dripping Tap - King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

• THE TERRIBLE SECRET OF SPACE - The Laziest Men on Mars

• Lights Out - Royal Blood

• Black Waters - Skeletonwitch

• Shake My Blood - Cave In

• Noncompliance to ASTM F 899-12 Standard - Carcass

• Seraph I - How To Disappear Completely