We’re unashamedly big fans of Melbourne based UNFD and their impressive roster of bands in Australia and abroad. We reached out to hear from some of our favourite UNFD bands as to what their members pick for Album Of The Year 2018.
Thornhill
Name: Matt Van Duppen
Role: Guitarist
Album Of The Year: The Story So Far – Proper Dose
Matt says: “I think this record takes out my Album Of The Year because of how diverse it is without straying away from their original sound. A lot of bands will throw in a token soft song on their albums just to break things up but The Story So Far managed to make the soft songs some of the best on the record which is refreshing, and all of the faster songs are some of the best they’ve written too.”
Stand Out Tracks: “Stand-out tracks for me are “Proper Dose”, “Keep This Up”, and “Light Year”.
Matt adds: “Honourable mentions to Vein – Errorzone and Basement – Beside Myself.”
Void Of Vision
Name: Jack Bergin
Role: Vocalist
Album Of The Year: BROCKHAMPTON – iridescence
Jack says: “BROCKHAMPTON have stood out a lot to me in the past few years. The creativity/work ethic behind the group is equally insane as it is inspiring. Bringing their hive mind from their home studio in LA all the way to the iconic Abbey Road Studios, they’ve really let that maturity and raw energy shine on this record. Was lucky enough to see the album played a few days after release at The Forum, Melbourne and that whole experience definitely took it up a few notches.”
Stand Out Tracks: “Stand out track is between “TONYA” and “J’OUVERT” – two polar opposites which compliment each other flawlessly in terms of the emotion that is poured into them. Would honestly not be surprised if there’s another album in store from the group before the year is out – so that’s my runner up AOTY.”
Slowly Slowly
Name: Patrick Murphy
Role: Drums
Album Of The Year: Luca Brasi – Stay
Patrick says: “Stay was our most anticipated release of the year and it did not disappoint. It is impossible to put this album on without finishing it. Each song has so much personality that it leaves you feeling like you’ve just spent 40 minutes hanging out the band discussing what it’s like being in a band in 2018. Add to that the production, the subtle but beautiful guitar lines throughout and the insanely charming vocal harmonies and you’ve got Slowly Slowly’s Album Of The Year.”
After Touch
Name: Max Pasalic
Role: Vocalist
Album Of The Year: Boston Manor – Welcome To the Neighbourhood
Max says: “Equal parts infectious and moody, Boston Manor’s latest record delivers thirteen pop-rock masterpieces. From dreamy guitar leads to catchy choruses this album is sounds like a million bucks. A huge proponent of this record is Henry’s vocals, tracks like “Digital Ghost” and “Halo” have this grandiose, anthemic quality to them and I can’t help but sing along to nearly every word on this record. One of the few albums this year that I think is near flawless.”
Hellions
Name: Matt Gravolin
Role: Guitarist & vocalist
Album Of The Year: Father John Misty – God’s Favourite Customer
Matt says: “Father John Misty’s “Heartache album” was written over the course of a hedonistic two month stay at a New York City hotel. It is perhaps his most typically singer-songwriter album and it feels like his most sincere to date.”
Stand Out Track: “The stand out track for me is “Please Don’t Die”.”
[Band images by Albert Lamontagne, Rowan Donohue, Louie Mosscrop, and Liam Davidson]
