This year I discovered Hallelujah The Hills. Seriously, it's amazing the things you find when you fuck around on the internet. You can follow someone on twitter and a simple retweet can have you literally shouting, "Hallelujah!" This actually happened. By mere accident, or divine intervention, I was taken to a certain Bandcamp page for the latest HTH album, Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Trashcan. (Thanks, Captains Dead.) I am so glad it happened this way, because the album is an odds and sods collection of old and new music, so I was able to kind of hear a band where they had been, and where they might be going. I would say the most remarkable thing about Portrait... is how maddeningly and sickeningly consistent the thing is. It never once loses steam. And now let's get into content. Some of my favorite tracks I've heard all year are on this one: "Meet Me In The Car," "The Three Minute Mark," (Amazing song.) "Some Of Them We Lost,"(Do you hear Neutral Milk Hotel or at least Elephant 6 influences?) and "Nurses 5 Float Past," stacked back-to-back-to-back. In the middle end half you have tracks like, "(You Better Hope You) Die Before Me" a live track that makes me wish I was there, the super anthem "Amateurs" and my personal favorite, "Introductory Saints." The back end is equally great, some of my favorites being, "The Girls Are Here," "Cataloging Candy's Demise," and the title track. At twenty one tracks, and given all the singles, b-sides, and simply how damn good this is, I am reminded of The Smiths' Louder Than Bombs, because as my first introduction to their music, it remains my favorite. I'm so glad I discovered Hallelujah The Hills this year because they actually made my year a lot better. I am also glad to have contributed to the making of their new album via their Kickstarter. I hope 2014 sees these guys well.
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