Emma’s Top Ten Albums of 2020

2020 has been overwhelming rubbish, hasn’t it? It’s been a weird ol’ year for new music although there hasn’t exactly been a lack of it. I started the year – pre-COVID but also through the beginning of lockdown and working from home (when I could listen to whatever I wanted as I worked) – being excited to discover new artists. According to my ‘Spotify Wrapped’ this year, I discovered over 600 new artists which is pretty good going, especially without going to gigs. Of course, I was also looking forward to hearing new albums from many of my existing favourite artists this year.

Unfortunately, it got to a point over the summer and beyond where I just wasn’t that enthused about listening to music in general – new or otherwise. (I listened to a lot of podcasts instead.) I also went through a period of not really feeling inspired to write reviews, even if I was enjoying an album, so I hope to rectify that somewhat with my end of year list (and honourable mentions). It’s worth pointing out that I still have albums that came out this year on my metaphorical ‘need to listen to properly list’ but I guess there’s always going to be more albums to listen to in a year and I will check them out when I can.

I’m afraid I haven’t been organised enough this year to put together a top ten EPs list as I have done in previous years. I do, however, want to give a little shout out to some of my favourites:

Ghosts, Guilt & Grandparents by Toodles & The Hectic Pity
Lobotany by Cheerbleederz
Whichever, Whatever by Expert Timing
The Bin Collection by Mitch, Please
Proper Confessions by Brightview

There are also some great albums that didn’t quite make my top ten but are certainly worth a mention here:

5 Years Behind by THICK
Cause A Stir by Charmpit
Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers
Jump Rope Gazers by The Beths
Dream Nails by Dream Nails

Now onto the really good stuff… without further ado, here are my top ten albums of 2020:

10. The Spaces In Between by Arterials

Perhaps it’s due to my increasing frustration at the state of the world, from people’s selfish panic buying to littering of single-use face masks and my overwhelming climate anxiety, but I’ve really enjoyed listening to somewhat heavier and angrier music this year than I previously would have. It’s a real good stress reliever. The Spaces In Between by Hamburg, Germany’s Arterials is certainly on the more singalong fists-in-the-air side of melodic hardcore but, whatever you want to label it, it sure packs a punch. With subject matter ranging from friendship, politics and climate change, there’s a lot of food for thought on The Space In Between and I think, particularly in 2020, having songs that really make you think and feel something are important now more than ever. I’m also gutted to have not been able to hear these songs played live at Booze Cruise Festival in the summer, maybe next year…

Favourite song: Pump The Brakes

9. Me, Myself And Something Else by Call Me Malcolm

Despite the ongoing pandemic, this year has been a big one for Kent DIY ska punks Call Me Malcolm. They returned with their third album, Me, Myself And Something Else in May – the follow-up to 2018’s CPRW favourite I Was Broken When You Got Here. It was self-released here in UK but was also released in the US through the amazing Wiretap Records. Understandably, they’ve been getting increasingly popular across the pond and I’m sure they’d have a tour booked and announced for 2021 (perhaps with Kill Lincoln) had this year gone a little differently. As for the album itself, it picks off where Broken left off with deep, hard-hitting lyrics tackling anxiety and depression that are accompanied by some of the catchiest horn lines and riffs in ska punk. I want nothing more than to dance like crazy and sing along to these new songs at our beloved New Cross Inn as Malcolm are a band best served live. Like many things, I’ll just have to wait and settle for bopping around my living room.

Favourite song: Also, Spiders

8. Untenable by Bad Moves

Bad Moves, from Washington, D.C., were a new discovery for me this year. I was intrigued to check out Untenable, which was released on Don Giovanni Records in June, when I saw several people raving about it on Twitter. The folks at Specialist Subject Records also talked about it on their podcast, Flick Through, and Erica’s love for the band was more than enough encouragement for me to give the album a listen. Untenable is twelve infectiously catchy, upbeat and feel-good – for the most part – tunes that I guess could be best described as indie punk or power pop. The vocals come from all four members of the band throughout the album and bring so much energy and enthusiasm to the table. It truly feels like a bunch of best friends just having the most fun making music together and all while managing to deliver a slick and intricate piece of musicianship.

Favourite song: Working For Free

7. The Distance Between by Arms & Hearts

This is probably the album that was most fresh in my mind when it came to deciding on this list. Arms & Hearts has been a firm favourite of mine for a number of years and their debut album was at least one thing I was looking forward to in 2020. Released in November, I knew that The Distance Between by the Manchester-based acoustic punk troubadour was certain to make an appearance here from the first time I listened to it – it was just that good. It is clearly a leap forward from their previous releases – which were by no means bad – and for a band that was essentially a solo project, the album has very full sound. At times, it feels like a melodic punk band rather than one man and an acoustic guitar. The Distance Between has some pretty dark and emotional subject matter but it’s a hugely cathartic listening experience from start to finish.

Favourite song: Kerouac On A Minimum Wage

6. Get Your Retaliation In First by 3dBs Down

What a surprise gem of an album this was! Colin and I know 3dBs Down as being Paul BeSharp’s favourite band of all time and we’ve had the pleasure of seeing them live a few times in recent years, despite not knowing them ‘back in the day’. Get Your Retaliation In First is the band’s first new music for 15 years (!) and I don’t doubt for a second that it was well worth the wait for long-time fans. I first heard this album when Colin was listening to an advanced copy in preparation for writing his review of it and I remember turning to him after just a couple of tracks and saying ‘This is really good’. It’s so distinctly unlike anything else that I’m not even sure how I would describe this album. There’s a bit of ska in there but this is not really a ska punk album, there are some super catchy melodies, singalong moments and incredibly earwormy harmonies threaded throughout but it’s not quite pop punk. I suppose it’s just a brilliant album and needs no further defining.

Favourite song: Idiot Ignorant Evil

5. Seamless by Pardon Us

Congratulations to Pardon Us for being the first band to appear on my end of year albums list for two years running! 2019’s Wait, which was also the band’s debut full-length, was a really great album and I think they may have surpassed it with the follow-up, Seamless, which was released in August this year on the always excellent Everything Sucks Music. The Liverpudlian three-piece play blisteringly fast paced pop punk music – there are twelve songs on Seamless and all of them are under three minutes long – with a strong political and humanitarian message. To paraphrase from my full review of the album, Seamless is a top notch album packed with catchy melodies and intelligent, thoughtful lyrical content that is hugely relevant to the world we live in. Basically, it has something for everyone.

Favourite song: Still Needs Singing

4. Show Me The Blueprints. by Days N Daze

I’ve always been a fan of punk music of the folk variety and one of my very favourite ‘folk punk’ albums of 2020 comes from Houston, Texas’ long-running band Days N Daze. Show Me The Blueprints. was released in May and it is the band’s eighth full-length as well as their debut release with the legendary Fat Wreck Chords. I’m not sure if it’s the label’s influence specifically but I would say that this album is perhaps more accessible to punk fans that are not necessarily likely to listen to a band with instruments such as a banjo in their ensemble. It’s still got the raw heart and soul of their previous material but is perhaps a little more well-crafted. Both Jesse Sendejas and Whitney Flynn’s vocals are brilliant throughout – often providing backing harmonies for one another – as they each sing of their own experiences dealing with addiction and their struggles with mental health. Of course, the melodies and instrumentation throughout the album are excellent but it’s the lyrics that really pulled me into this album and earned it this spot high up in my list.

Favourite song: Saboteurs

3. You Or Someone You Know by Worriers

When You Or Someone You Know by Worriers was released at the beginning of March, I didn’t know that my two (or was it three?) opportunities to see them live for the first time would soon be washed away when 2020’s hopes and dreams went down the drain. I also didn’t know that this album would come to be about so much more than just, ahem, the end of the world – or at least the climate changing, political meltdown end of the world as opposed to the global health crisis end of the world that 2020 has become. This is not a heavy, or even the most typically punk sounding, album but it has such a huge sound with hooky guitar melodies, dreamy keys and just the most incredible vocals and lyrics. Lauren Denitzio has one of my favourite voices in punk rock and their delivery is always so powerful regardless of the volume in which they are projecting. The album is on the one hand melancholic and on the other optimistic, either way it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling to listen to again and again.

Favourite song: What Comes Next?

2. Brave Faces Everyone by Spanish Love Songs

It would be a pretty fair observation to describe my adoration of emotional punk rockers Spanish Love Songs over the past few years as something close to an obsession. I was obviously excited for Brave Faces Everyone, which was released way back in February, although I was also fairly apprehensive. It couldn’t possibly live up to 2018’s Schmaltz. Could it? Well, now having listening to it an awful lot this year, I can honestly say that I think this is even better than Schmaltz. Similar to You Or Someone You Know by Worriers, this is an album that has taken on a new meaning as this year progressed – ‘“It won’t be this bleak forever.” Yeah right. “It won’t be this bleak forever.” I hope you’re right.’ Brave Faces Everyone has undoubtedly made the seemingly never ending dystopia of 2020 that bit more bearable. It’s heart-wrenchingly emotive from start to finish, not least because it’s relatable for any twenty or thirty something with a conscience, but also makes you want to throw your fist in the air and scream your lungs out. It’s an album to be listened to front to back and then all over again. And if that doesn’t make for a great album then I don’t know what does.

Favourite song: Optimism (As A Radical Life Choice)

1. Life, Death And Everything In Between by Stöj Snak

No surprises here! If you happened to read my essay of a review of Life, Death And Everything In Between by Danish folk punks Stöj Snak just a few months ago then I’m sure you saw this coming, such was my outpouring of passion for these twelve songs. Earlier this year I thought it was going to be tough for anything to top Spanish Love Songs but then Stöj Snak returned in October. Life, Death And Everything In Between is the band’s second full-length album that I’ve been waiting four long years for – to be honest, I wasn’t really sure it would actually be released this year. From the acapella opening track Reasons To Smile, through to raucous yet melodic fast-paced numbers such as Trees, This Condition and and Fire and not one, not two, but three tracks of epic proportions – Bliss Point, Songs About Beliefs and album closer and title track, Life, Death And Everything In Between – this album delivers on so many levels. Niels Højgaard Sørensen’s lyricism is so captivating that I find listening to his songs as enticing as a really, really good book. There are so many intricate touches interwoven throughout this album, it’s clear that the process of writing and recording it was not at all rushed. Everything has been considered and, I said it in my original review and I’ll say it again here, I consider this album to be a masterpiece. I can’t recommend it highly enough. Please, if you haven’t already, go away and listen to Life, Death And Everything In Between. If you have listened to it before, just listen to it again!

Favourite song: Songs About Beliefs

Thank you to all the bands mentioned above for making this year a hell of a lot more enjoyable. 2021 should hopefully be better than 2020 in many ways but it’s still going to be tough to beat some of the very best albums that this year has brought us.

This top ten was written by Emma Prew.

Richard's Top Ten Albums of 2020

It’s hard not to put 2020 into any sort of context without it touching on COVID in some way. I’d typically suggest that these lists are hard to produce due to the amount of material we listen to and in many ways 2020 is no different; and certainly I’ve got to acknowledge releases by bands such as Strike Anywhere and Silverstein as being unfortunate to miss out on this actual top ten despite them being exceptional. What I think has been different this year, and if you’ve heard us talking on the podcasts, is that many of our general listening habits have gone back to older material and bands we’ve grown up on; and this retrospection I think has translated across to musicians in some ways. Having reworked Silverstein classic in Redux II and semi-acoustic revisions of Bouncing Souls classics has been a real treat as has the From Exile collection delivered by The Menzingers. The COVID experience has in many ways given us the time to appreciate what we have and where we have come from and, whilst I’ve not included any of these reworked releases in my top ten, they should be highlighted as demonstrating what an effect the pandemic has had on us. Hope you enjoy the list; as always feel free to let us know what you think in the comments and stay safe!

10. Melee by Dogleg

The Michigan four piece’s debut is in many ways as if the twenty year bastardisation of “emo” didn’t happen. Certainly less pop ala My Chemical Romance and more post hardcore brilliance akin to Full Collapse era Thursday (or to be more accurate the wonderful but relatively unknown Prevent Falls), Melee by Dogleg is visceral, personal, angry and raw in every sense. Its complex arrangements off set by Alex Stoitsiadis’ painful yelps, turned raging howls. Whilst full of strong tracks,the imperious “Kawasaki Backflip” will be simply iconic in years to come; whilst last track “Ender” is every part the epic album closer… It’s a fantastic album full of surprises, and one that absolutely deserves its plaudits and acknowledgements.

9. Paradise by Red City Radio

It took a while for me to get Red City Radio; whilst I’ve enjoyed lots of songs, I’ve found them very much a one trick pony (although what a trick when you are throwing out songs like “Show Me On The Doll” or “Rest Easy”). Consequently I instantly got Paradise… it’s a much more nuanced album than they’ve produced previously. Sure it is not as brash as say Titles, and not as relentless as their self-titled, but Paradise has enough big hooks, gravel vocals and massive sing alongs to sit perfectly alongside their back catalogue, with “100,000 Candles” and “Gutterland” very much the equal to what are already considered essential songs. I’m confident in saying this is easily their most diverse and accessible release and the way their sound has expanded I’m sure it will broaden their appeal to the more heartland rock end of the punk rock spectrum.

8. Monuments by Fire In The Radio

There must be something in the Philadelphia water that keeps it churning out excellent bands. The third album from Fire In The Radio is stacked with huge songs that veer from a classic Menzingers inspired rock (“Rewind” / “Ex-SF”) to a more 80s UK indie vibe you’d associate with The Cure or The Smiths at their most catchy (“This Is My Document”). It’s one of those albums that really gets under your skin, driven by the excellent guitar work of vocalists Richard Carbone and Johnathan Miller and a rhythm section that is super tight, punchy and crisp (Adam Caldwell and Ed Olsen) there is plenty to love on Monuments. Personally this is one of those albums that came out of nowhere and blew me away immediately and it has only got more brilliant with repeated listens.

7. The Distance Between by Arms & Hearts

Steve Millar aka Arms & Hearts (taken from the Hold Steady B-Side of the same name) is in a league of his own. His heartfelt anthems invoke bleak Saddleworth moorland on windswept nights looking down on the bright warm lights of Manchester. Finally releasing a full length, which is a near perfect collection of acoustic fist in the air bangers. The Distance Between is stacked with excellent song-writing; endearing lyrics and a sharp attention to detail you associate with the acts namesake lyricist (Craig Finn). The album concludes with an excellent rendition of the previously released “Fortitude”, a song that is deserving of a massive audience belting out every word. Steve has delivered on the promise shown of the early EPs in abundance… an absolutely essential purchase from the Lancashire Springsteen.

6. Hide the Knives by Shellycoat

German skate-lite pop punkers Shellycoat dropped their third LP this year and it’s one that really deserves to take them to a wider audience. It’s a mature and confident album that plays with typical pop-punk tropes through a Euro-pop lens. Sure, it has some amazing straight up rock songs (“Antidote” and “Reverberation” the two stand outs), but leans into a really nice No Doubt pop territory on songs such as “Neonsomnia pt2”, or the magical “Harbour Scene”. Finally in Karen they have a vocalist with an explosive range. The first time I heard her voice I could sense the best bits of Tilt’s Cinder Block blasting from the stereo; it’s equal parts gruff and angelic. She packs so much character into the vocals that it’s easy to lose track of how talented the band are as unit. I really can’t wait to see where they go next!

5. Ways Away by Ways Away

Comprising alumni of some of punk / hardcore / emo’s most brilliant bands (just check the list: Samiam, Boysetsfire, Racquet Club, Knapsack, Paint it Black!), you’d expect the debut from Ways Away to stand out... and stand out it does. Full of anthemic, driving riffs, huge melodies and stacked with singalongs, this is a real tour de force that showcases the talent behind the band. From the opening “Die On The Vine” you’re treated to brilliant interpretation of modern punk-rock with a real emotional edge. Highlights have to include the raucous “Collarbone” or the ballad “Savannah”. Obviously if you are a fan of any of the aforementioned bands you’ll find something to love here; alternatively if you are desperate to find your new favourite band then you should definitely check out Ways Away.

4. Working Title by Nathan Gray

The second solo full length by Boysetsfire’s frontman is almost the complete opposite of his debut (the equally excellent) Feral Hymns. Where previously there was an all-encompassing darkness that permeated his work there is now a drive and positivity that shows Nathan Gray at his most forward looking and resilient. In fact I’d argue this is his most uplifting collection of songs to date and seeing him take such a personal and philosophical approach to life is just brilliant. This is absolutely one of the albums 2020 needed.

3. Skeleton Coast by The Lawrence Arms

I find that the Larry Arms only release songs when they have something meaningful to say, and as such it’s probably why their output has always been consistently (personally I’d go even further and say ridiculously) high. Skeleton Coast is no exception. From the franticness of “Planes, Trains And Automobiles” to the whimsy of “Last Last Words” (my personal favourite off the album), everything is executed with a meticulous precision and the heart and soul that only Neil, Brendan and Chris can deliver. Six years without new material may feel like a long time but if this is what they produce I’d happily, wait for six more!

2. Brave Faces Everyone by Spanish Love Songs

We’ve spoken at length at CPRW Towers about the fact that we can’t believe this album was released this year – such is the way the world has changed since this dropped in February. I can’t think of an album I’ve listened to as much and that has become as ingrained in me as this, the third long player by the Los Angeles misberalists. Brave Faces Everyone is almost like a forewarning for how crap 2020 would be, from its stoic title emphasising how we’ve all had to deal with the year alongside references to overzealous and out of touch policing of minority groups (“Losers 2”). Spanish Love Songs are fast becoming the time travelling Simpsons theory of the punk rock world, with their sharp social commentary which one would typically associate with exceptional hindsight. Brave Faces Everyone may not have the urgency or even the immediacy of the now iconic album that is Schmaltz but what it does have is an amazing personal resonance which rewards repeat listens with a more fervent appreciation for how great the album is, alongside demonstrating how a couple of years of intense touring have honed them into exceptional songwriters and musicians. I think we can now safely recognise Spanish Love Songs as our latest bona fide punk rock superstars.

1. The Weight And The Cost by Be Well

Brian McTernan’s return to the front of the stage is long overdue. The Battery vocalist turned producer extraordinaire has assembled a who’s who of punk and hardcore to deliver the most emotional and impassioned collection of songs this year; an album that touches all forms of mental health, especially depression, alongside the importance of family. It is an album that epically builds towards its conclusion which in this case is the single best song of the year “Confessional”. Be Well’s debut is a perfect snapshot of McTernan’s career with some excellent traditional hardcore moments, the kind of which Bane would be proud of, punctuated by gorgeous melody, pounding beats and proper pop punk moments that you’d associate with bands such as The Movielife. The Weight And The Cost is a masterpiece in every sense and news they are working on LP2 is incentive enough to get on board now before they blow up big time!

This top ten was written by Richard Mair.

Album Review: The Distance Between by Arms & Hearts (by Emma Prew)

We all know that 2020 has been difficult and strange year for a lot of reasons. It’s been an odd year for new music although there has been plenty of it, all things considered. Personally, despite starting the year being excited to discover new artists and hear new albums from my existing favourite artists, it got to a point over the summer and into autumn where I just wasn’t that enthused about listening to music in general – new or otherwise. There have however been some exceptions to that, including the album I’m going to be talking about today!

The Distance Between is the much-anticipated debut full-length from Manchester-based Arms & Hearts that was released on 13th November. We’ve been fans of solo songwriter Steve Millar, aka Arms & Hearts, and his heartfelt acoustic punk for almost as long as this blog has been around. I know fellow CPRW contributor Richard was very impressed by this album so hopefully I can do it some kind of justice in my review. Read on and see what you think…

The Distance Between opens with the somewhat bleakly titled Epitaphs. After a few seconds of an almost eerie sounding fade in, the track begins with some firm strummed acoustic guitar chords. The first lines of the song – ‘I didn’t come here to talk about dying, but lately it’s all that I’ve been thinking about’ – are indeed pretty bleak but it also feels honest and genuine. The song is about dealing with feelings of existential dread that unfortunately goes hand in hand with suffering from depression. There’s a sense of building throughout Epitaphs that feels very appropriate for an opening track and it leads us nicely into track number two. Kerouac On A Minimum Wage is up next and the pace is immediately ramped up for this melodic and catchy tune. There’s a lot more going on instrument-wise here compared to Epitaphs with steady drums, great layered guitar parts, subtle baking vocals (which I believe are courtesy of Sam Moloney of Mixtape Saints) and a decent dose of harmonica – have I mentioned that I love a bit of harmonica? The song is about working in a soul destroying minimum wage job in our unavoidably capitalist society and struggling to make ends meet – ‘This is how we live when we ain't really living, this is how it feels when the wheels ain't spinning, cursing Christmas lights as we welcome another year, another year of just scraping by’. It’s definitely one of my favourites on the album, maybe even one of my favourite songs of 2020. Track number three, Forever The Pessimist, opens with a wonderful melodic electric guitar part that is backed up by acoustic strumming. One of the things that immediately struck me about this album, particularly compared to some of Arms & Hearts’ previous releases, is just how much fuller their sound is. A full band Arms & Hearts live performance is certainly something I’d love to see one day. Forever The Pessimist is about Steve’s journey to sobriety and coming to terms with the fact that alcohol isn’t a suitable coping mechanism when you’re already struggling. It’s hopefully a song that some listeners will be able to relate to and find comfort in.

Obviously, by this point of The Distance Between, we know that this isn’t exactly a cheery, sunshine and rainbows album – but let’s face it, that’s not really my cup of tea. Things do however take a seemingly darker turn with Static. At the start of the song, the guitar playing is muted and Steve’s vocal feel bitter as he begins to sing of struggles with his mental health, focussing on the unpleasantness of having a panic attack. A real highlight of the track is towards the end when Steve’s vocals are complimented with backing harmonies – ‘because all I wanted was to feel something now all I feel is nothing, all I feel is empty’. It’s something that I know would/will sound incredible live. The fifth song, Community, features Jared Hart from New Jersey punk bands The Scandals and Mercy Union. The song is about life on the road as a touring musician and the sacrifices you have to make – both physically and mentally – in order to be able to do so, something that both Steve and Jared both know a thing or two about. Often the life of a touring musician can be glorified as a life of partying and seeing the world but the reality, at least for DIY punk musicians, is not so black and white. I’ve said it a few times already but this is going to be another great tune to sing along to in a live setting – it’s even got some classic punk rock whoa-oh-ohs. Up next is Out For Blood which, if I remember rightly, was the first single released from The Distance Between earlier this year – check out the excellent video by Fish Outta Water Films. This is definitely one of the more upbeat songs on the album and I mean that both in terms of melody and subject matter. Out For Blood is about eliminating toxic people from your life and the track is pure catharsis to listen to. You also can’t complain about the infectious nature of the chorus, even if it does have the potential to get stuck in your head for days. ‘If you're out for blood then come and get some, If you're out for blood then come and get some, If this year's taught me anything it’s how evil people can be, If you're out for blood then come and get some, If you're out for blood then come and get some, if you bring the lighter fluid I'll bring something to make a spark, and we'll burn it down.’

The seventh track on The Distance Between is titled Worry In The Walls. It’s a slower paced and more stripped back song than some of the others on the album but that simply allows the listener to fully focus on the emotion in Steve’s voice – ‘Will we ever find the money, to live half a life?, all this work to live to work beats it out of me’. It could perhaps be said that there’s a bit of a New Jersey influence throughout Arms & Hearts’ music – often compared, understandably, to Brian Fallon – and on Worry In The Walls I am definitely getting Bruce Springsteen vibes. The haunting harmonica playing that breaks up the song and the horns towards the end further support this. The penultimate song on the album is its title track, The Distance Between. Starting slowly with a muted guitar part and hushed vocals, The Distance Between gradually builds into something with such a huge, dare I say epic, sound. It’s unlike anything else on the album before it – very much a full band affair with layer upon layer of dreamlike guitar parts. The song reaches its final crescendo with thirty seconds to go before fading out in a distorted fuzz. The album could have ended there and it probably would have made perfect sense… It doesn’t and that’s okay because what comes next is the icing on the cake for me. Fortitude is not a new Arms & Hearts song, having originally been recorded in 2017 and featuring as a live set closer for many years, but I was so happy to hear it as The Distance Between’s closing track. I’m sure I’m not the only one who would consider Fortitude to be my favourite Arms & Hearts song and this new version is just even more wonderful. It’s an acoustic track that somehow manages to have such a big sound and instantly begs you to sing along with Steve. There are some flawless group backing vocals on the track that really give it a similar feeling to hearing the song live. I love it and it’s honestly just awesome to finish listening to the album with a big smile on my face.

I was always going to like whatever Arms & Hearts released next but The Distance Between has surpassed my debut album expectations. Yes, it’s got some quite dark and, at times, miserable subject matter but there’s also a real catharsis to it all and there’s no denying that it ends on a more hopeful note. An excellent album in a not so excellent year.

Stream, download and [pre]order the vinyl on Bandcamp now and like Arms & Hearts on Facebook.

This review was written by Emma Prew.