This is it! This is what it's all about! Our end of season festivities conclude today with Part 2 of the ph5x5, where Phil counts down his top ten favourite records of the year. Grab some egg nog and switch things up with the family by listening to this episode instead of watching Love Actually or whatever - it's about the same length of a feature length movie anyway! Thanks so much to everyone for tuning in. ph5 will return in 2021.

Albums discussed below (in alphabetical order - to see how they ranked you'll have to tune in, sucker!)

Ad Nauseam - Imperative Imperceptible Impulse

Dean Blunt - Black Metal 2

Doja Cat - Planet Her

Eyelet - The Devil Shining Out Your Eyes

Fiddlehead - Between the Richness

GAS - Der Lange Marsch

Grouper - Shade

Halsey - If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power

Iceage - Seek Shelter

Injury Reserve - By the Time I Get To Phoenix

King Woman - Celestial Blues

Kowloon Walled City - Piecework

Lingua Ignota - Sinner Get Ready

Low - Hey What

Mach-Hommy - Pray For Haiti

Pi'erre Bourne - The Life of Pi'erre 5

Playboi Carti - Whole Lotta Red

Portrayal of Guilt - We Are Always Alone

Serpentwithfeet - Deacon

Spectral Wound - A Diabolic Thirst

Spellling - The Turning Wheel

Spirit of the Beehive - Entertainment, Death

Succumb - XXI

Taking Meds - Terrible News from Wonderful Men

Turnstile - Glow On

The year end festivities continue with the big kahuna, what we've all been waiting for...the ph5x5 (just my dumb way of saying the Top 25 of 2021). This episode, Part 1, covers #25 - 11, and Phil also discusses the first bunch of his favourite songs of the year as well. What made the cut!? What didn't?! How high did Red (Taylor's Version) place?! You'll just have to tune in to find out. Part 2 coming soon!

The year end celebrations will continue! But not today. Episode 12 is a traditional ph5 episode rounding up November's releases. Phil wasn't too impressed with what November had to offer (apart from a few fantastic records) but that's what happens when Adele drops. Shouts out to all those brave artists who released music anyway! Albums discussed below:

Burial Waves - Holy Ground

Converge & Chelsea Wolfe - Bloodmoon I

Corbin - Ghost with Skin

Emma Ruth Rundle - Engine of Hell

Glassing - Twin Dream

Jon Hopkins - Music For Psychedelic Therapy

Richard Dawson & Circle - Henki

Taking Meds - Terrible News from Wonderful Men

The first season of ph5 is almost over! That means it's time for treats. In addition to the standard ph5 episodes to round out the year, we're gonna have some fun with a series of special edition episodes that will switch up the format of the show a little bit!

The series kicks off with ...& Friends, where Phil chats with a few of the people in his life about their new music. The first conversation is with Kari Lyn, an east coast songwriter currently living in Toronto. We chat about the re-release of her fantastic debut album Hit The Ground, which is out NOW by the way. The episode also features a discussion with Toronto based 'psychedelic club music' artist (his words!) Wizard Of about his stunning new record Psychic Degradation., which is out on Friday! They are both very lovely so please make sure to connect with them through their various online presences, which I've linked below.

Stay tuned to ph5 for more fun end of year content! What's it going to be? Who knows! Not even me! But it's coming!

Kari Lyn

Instagram/Facebook - @karilynmusic

Bandcamp - karilynblacquiere.bandcamp.com

Wizard Of

Instagram - @bobmccully

Facebook - Wizard Of

Bandcamp - wizardof.bandcamp.com

Because you're not hardcore...unless you live hardcore...and the legend of the rent was way hardcore...School of Rock anyone? Remember that shit? October's round up contains a selection of heavy hitters (in every possible sense of the word) and one of Phil's biggest disappointments of the year. Was it you? Better tune in and find out! Albums discussed below:

Every Time I Die - Radical

Frontierer - Oxidized

Grouper - Shade

Kayo Dot - Moss Grew on the Swords and Plowshares Alike

Knocked Loose - A Tear in the Fabric of Life

Kowloon Walled City - Piecework

Mastodon - Hushed and Grim

Young Thug - Punk

As the days get colder and darker, so does Phil's taste in music. September's round up is a bit darker than normal, both in terms of the albums discussed and the general mood, as the episode begins with Phil reflecting a bit on National Truth and Reconciliation Day here in Canada. Put on a sweater, put on the kettle and settle in with Episode 9 of ph5, which sees Phil returning to the classic format after last month's rewarding (but admittedly lengthy!) guest feature. Albums discussed below:

Common Sage - It Lives and It Breathes

Injury Reverse - By the Time I Get to Phoenix

Little Simz - Sometimes I Might Be Introvert

Low - HEY WHAT

One Step Closer - This Place You Know

Pendant - To All Sides They Will Stretch Out Their Hands

Poppy - Flux

Succumb - XXI

What's better than one Phil? Two Phil's! Welcome to another very special episode of ph5! Along with the standard discussion on Phil's top 5 records from August, Phil is joined by friend and hip hop connoisseur Phil Masse for a discussion on the two biggest records of the year so far. You can probably guess which ones. There was a LOT to talk about this month, so fair warning - this episode is a marathon, not a sprint!

Also happy to debut the new art direction for the podcast. I think it's a noted improvement! What do you think? Let me know! Albums discussed below:

Deafheaven - Infinite Granite

Drake - Certified Lover Boy

Halsey - If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power

Kanye West - DONDA

Lingua Ignota - Sinner Get Ready

Raccoon City - For Nobody, Nowhere

Turnstile - Glow On

A whole month off school to listen to new releases sounds like paradise, right? Yeah, not quite. July didn't have much to offer in terms of compelling new music - until it did, that is. Join Phil in an episode where he may or may not have had way too much coffee for discussions on new albums by everyone from Billie Eilish to Alexis Marshall and reflections on the cyclical nature of pop culture and the one unlikely man behind the mainstream's shift towards something new. Full list of albums discussed below:

Alexis Marshall - House of Lull . House of When

Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever

Bizzy Banks - Same Energy

DARKSIDE - Spiral

Isaiah Rashad - The House is Burning

King Woman - Celestial Blues

Lantlos - Wildhund

Midwife - Luminol

WILLOW - Lately I Feel Everything

Yves Tumor - The Asymptotical World EP

Halfway through the year, halfway through the first ever season of ph5! Despite the drought of (good) heavy music released in June, the month more than made up for it with a slew of excellent hip hop releases and other, unclassifiable albums that rank among the best of the year. I also reflect on the show's format and am considering adding a mid-month show to tide everyone over between the monthly round ups - let me know if you're into this idea! As always, thanks for tuning in. Full listen of albums discussed below:

Backxwash - I Lie Here Buried With My Rings and My Dresses

Bfb Da Packman - Fat N***** Need Love Too

Dean Blunt - Black Metal 2

Doja Cat - Planet Her

Pi'erre Bourne - The Life of Pi'erre 5

Spellling - The Turning Wheel

Tyler, the Creator - Call Me If You Get Lost

Wristmeetrazor - Replica of a Strange Love

Episode 5 begins with 215 seconds of silence in tribute to the 215 bodies of Indigenous children recently found on residential school property here in Canada. If you can, please donate to the Indian Residential Schools Survivor Society at irsss.ca. May was a strange month, full of change that seemed reflected in the artists' music I was listening to. I was pleasantly surprised by some old favourites...and absolutely flabbergasted by others. Thanks for tuning in. Full list of albums discussed below:

black midi - Calvalcade

Fiddlehead - Between the Richness

Iceage - Seek Shelter

Iosonouncane - IRA

Mach-Hommy - Pray For Haiti

Panopticon - ...and again into the light

Portal - Hegbulbia

Storefront Church - As We Pass