Wednesday 31 December 2014

Top 40 Metal Albums of 2014 - Part 2

Well the year is finally at an end, and without further ado, I give you the finalists who made it into my Top 20 for 2014. Hope you all had a fantastic year and I see you into the new with some of the best metal of recent months.









20. Behemoth - The Satanist



The Polish Death Metal fathers’ first studio outing since frontman Nergal rejoined following his battle with leukaemia. It seems that time away from the studio and all the pain he felt really had an effect on Nergal and his brethren. Here’s to one very catchy and enjoyable piece of Blackened Death Metal which has given Behemoth a whole new listenership.  



19. Gormathon - Following the Beast



Melodic Death Metal at its finest. There is nothing  ‘core’ about this release, it almost mirrors Heartwork on several occasions and has you singing along to the cleaner vocals all the time. This is that album you need to give to kids new to the scene to show them how to play melo-death correctly.



18. Tombs - Savage Gold



Post-Metal has really come into its own in the past three years. I first discovered it with Alcest and Old Silver Key, but that was confined to the black metal world. Now, we have a more experimental piece from New York which will really make anyone into My Bloody Valentine and An Autumn For Crippled Children feel very much at home. Experimenting tends to be a good move and here’s a band who know how to do it.



17. Premature Birth - A Ceremony of Power



Now I’ve ranked this band here, not because it’s a friends’ band, but because they are really coming into their own with their second EP. Premature Birth started out delivering blistering Death Metal in a similar vein to Cannibal Corpse and Dark Funeral, but having added in symphonic keys and more songs about dread and death related anxieties, they’ve brought us what can be best described as Cradle of Filth if they’d stuck to their ‘Principle of Evil Made Flesh’ roots.



16. Bloodred - The Lost Ones



An excellent debut from a one man DM outfit. Short, sweet, angry and vicious with all the right topics of death and murder nicely covered.



15. Alcest - Shelter



I wasn’t very impressed with the French post-black metal flagship’s third album – but they have certainly redeemed themselves. You’ll find all the regular clichés nicely melded together with some extra hints of Cocteau Twins here and there, and frontman Neige singing in English for the first time. Impressive move Alcest. 



14. Unaussprelichen Kulten - Baphomet Pan Shub-Niggurath



For the ultimate in Lovecraftian themed Death Metal, look to Chile. The scene coming from this latin American nation certainly knows its requirements. For any keen fans of Vader, these guys will not disappoint, for their latest venture is an entire concept album on the evolution of the Cthulhu mythos.



13. Albez Duz - The Coming of Mictlan



Anyone who likes Doom Metal and Type O Negative has to seek out this band. Germans Albez Duz have done the impossible and given us the idea of what the late Peter Steele would be doing today had he started making Doom Metal and not kicked the bucket too early.



12. Arcane North - Enter the Arcane North



The most original take on English Heritage Black Metal this year. Expect all the riffs of Winterfylleth, the mythologies of Wodensthrone and enough local myths and legends to please anyone who has visited the North of England.



11. AK-11 - Once Upon a Time in Europa



An Australian band obsessed with Siberian history. Sounds downright bizarre but putting it to the right war themed riffs certainly puts these guys on the map as the Eastern Front from down under.



10. Eastern Front - Descent Into Genocide



An now for the aforementioned Eastern Front. Having made an entire first album about a very specific period of WW2, I was wondering how they would follow up. And they certainly did not fail to disappoint by dedicating the whole thing to a massacre held in Ukraine during the Nazis retreat from the bloodthirsty Red Army following the battle of Stalingrad. WW2 metal at its finest.



9. Posthum - The Black Northern Ritual



Every cliché of early Norwegian black metal thrown together to give the best record to celebrate 10 years on the road for these guys. Imagine Darkthrone in the same room as Mayhem and Carpathian Forest.



8. Ordoxe - Beyond Mankind



Once again Canada impresses me with its diverse black metal scene. Imagine Immortal if they lived in Quebec and the stories they could tell about the ongoing winters at the roof of the world. And then they took a slightly rawer root, resulting in the love child that is Ordoxe.



7. Stench - Venture



To a lot of people, Death Metal is becoming too progressive and technical and up itself. I was one of said people until I found Stench. Stench certainly know how to play basic Death Metal using all the right elements from the early days of the genre. This is that album you must recommend to children if they want to play basic death metal without  being seduced by the next Deathcore act Scuzz and Kerrang overhype.



6. The Stone - Nekroza



Serbia’s leading Black Metal force give us their seventh studio release which is certainly keeping the scene alive in a country with such a bloody war torn history. Said history has certainly given them enough brutality to write about here too. Imagine Taake crossed with Cryptic Slaughter.



5. Krieg - Transient



And now for the top five. And entering that top five we have the most socially and politically aware black metal group from the USA. With covers of Crust Punk veterans Amebix and enough tracks spouting rage against the self righteous dull of everyday American life, Krieg have made the angriest piece of political metal I’ve heard all year. Using all the right clichés from the genre’s punk origins, you have black metal’s answer to Conflict. 



4. Sargeist - Feeding the Crawling Shadows



I’ve always enjoyed Raw Black Metal, and the USA is becoming the haven for this genre. If you’re up for a satanic ritual conducted against a buzzsaw guitar then Sargeist are that band you need to seek out. This album is angry, offensive and downright nasty to the ears.



3. Darkenhold – Castellum



Is it possible to make black metal sound happy? Well if you’re a medieval war buff like me then yes. French outfit Darkenhold have delivered the ultimate in medieval themed metal and they’ve done so by giving it the most refreshing edge you could possibly imagine. It’s like listening to a power metal album about chivalry and crusades but in the style of Mayhem. The addition of a harpsichord makes it all the more fascinating for anyone who’s spent hours playing Medieval Total War, so check out Darkenhold. Stick this on and you’ll be riding into battle with the wind in your heart and feasting at the proverbial round table with the victors of the day.



2. Mortals - Cursed to See the Future



Whenever people say ‘female metal’ these days you presume the band to be symphonic or operatic, as that still is a place where women tend to be shunned in the global metal world. So for any feminists in this scene, who want that image forgotten and buried, check out Mortals. This is the band that pulled out all the stops to show me that women can deliver the angriest and violent sludge metal imaginable. You would not think for a minute this is an all female group from the vocals alone, so here we have the band who can tell us women can do what men have been doing in metal with pure aplomb. This is the finest band since Astarte and I hope to hear more from Mortals as this album should give hope to all the women out there who want to show the world just how angry they are with the most evil of genres.




And the Number One Metal Album of 2014 is...



Falls of Rauros - Believe in no Coming Shore



As I said at the beginning, this has been a great year for Atmospheric Black Metal. And this band, having made a superb split with fellow band Panopticon last year, are there leading the USA into the ever changing world of Black Metal with the greatest melodies you can imagine. Acoustics, dark ambience and ten minute symphonies are all compiled into this beautiful package of all things USBM. This album knows just how to tug on your heart and your nerves when you’re feeling so down and troubled and will bring you back to earth and immerse you in the most beautiful of acoustics. Perfect timing is ideal for comedians, but it is also essential in making the most impressive music when musicians want to be experimental. And Falls of Rauros have given us just that. Perfectly timed experiments that will make you want to listen to this album again and again, regardless of its prog-rock-esque length.




Happy New Year Everybody!

Friday 26 December 2014

Top 40 Metal Albums of 2014 – Part 1



It’s been a good year for metal, atmospheric black metal in particular I’d say. And this has been the first full year I’ve written reviews for Metal-Rules and The Independent Voice Ezine and the London Metal Monthly. Therefore I have decided to pay tribute to this good year by ranking the top 40 metal albums that have stuck with me in that time.





Ladies and gentlemen and third gender, I give you the first half of the Top 40 Metal Albums of 2014.
 

40. Methedras – System Subversion





This is pretty middle-of-the-road Thrash Metal and hasn’t much replay value unless you’re looking for something heavy to work out to at the gym. It has rhythm but not quite the upbeat jolliness of a typical Euro-Thrash release


39. Centinex – Redeeming Filth




A nice comeback from some 90s veterans of Swedish Death Metal. Not all comeback albums cash in on a cult following like these guys have certainly proven.



38. Job For A Cowboy – Sun Eater




I’ve never been a huge fan of these guys but they’ve redeemed themselves in the last decade from their awful Deathcore roots. But now it seems their tech-death days are reaching that mid-period where they’ll be seeing albums just pass them by until they do something radical and unexpected to reform their fandom.



37. Cepheide – De Silence Et De Suie




A nice debut of French black metal. It has potential but didn’t blow my mind, so I’ll look forward to the next release to see if Cepheide have got it in them to rival the sounds of Anorexia Nervosa or Deathspell Omega.



36. Frozen Ocean – The Dyson Swarm




Atmospheric Black Metal delivered with aplom and a science fiction twist. However it contains barely any vocals so don’t expect much if you’re looking for something satanic or subversive.



35. Aghor – Necrolivonica 




A nice mix of old school death metal and hardcore punk and d-beat without falling into the dreadful ‘core scene’. But don’t expect great vocals as the band can’t quite decide if a death growl or a punk rock shout is best for their tunes.



34. Decapitated – Blood Mantra




The Polish veterans return with their sixth symphony of technical death metal. It has its fair mix of grindcore and some slam and bits and pieces of progression so give it a shot if you like your death metal complex.



33. Winterfylleth – The Divination of Antiquity




The forefathers of English Heritage Black Metal give us their fourth canto on the days of pre-christian England. It is both anguish laden and ethereal so give it a shot if you want something like Burzum with more celtic themes.



32. Oraculum – Sorcery of the Damned




Chile is making a name for itself on the global metal circuit. Expect much anger and anti-religious vibes from these new guys.




31. As Light Dies – The Love Album Vol. 1




Ever wondered what a Vincent Price film put to music is like? Well here’s your answer, coming all the way from Spain.



30. Ghost Brigade – IV: One With The Storm




A band who claim to be ‘genreless’ and have made a good attempt with fusing stoner metal with progressive rock and doom metal ballads.



29. Mayhem – Esoteric Warfare




The Norwegian veterans have really changed since their De Mystiris Dom Sathanas days, and their mid-period of avant-garde gave them a whole new sound. This sound is still evident on this new release but some bits of the old days still break through. It’s enjoyable but not as mind blowing as the earlier stuff. Nice though if you like arthouse cinema and black magic.



28. Vardan – Enjoy of Deep Sadness




I’ve never been really into the Depressive Suicidal Black Metal scene, but this French group have given us a good first release that might see them rival Forgotten Tomb if they take the right route.



27. 1349 – Massive Cauldron of Chaos




I’ve been a fan of these guys for over 5 years and they still have that chaotic insanity that got me into them in the first place. This release is just as raw and bitter and misanthropic as the last few albums. A good move from a band who’ve really come into their own.



26. Dark Fortress – Venereal Dawn




If you like themes of the occult or the escapades of Alistair Crowley, the German veterans will supply you with enough tunes laden with unholy choirs of backing vocalists to make your evening as melancholic as you desire.



25. Spectral Haze – I.E.V.: Transmuted Nebula Remains




The ultimate in Stoner Metal. A good mix of the progressive and the marijuana induced vibes of psychedelic rock. This band will put Norway on the map for more metal genres than just black in years to come.



24. Carcass – Surgical Remission




If you enjoyed the Deathgrind fathers’ recent comeback album, you’ll like this. Every deleted track that didn’t make it to Surgical Steel has been compiled here in a listing that has Carcass written all over it. Nice and putrid as anything Jeff Walker can deliver.



23. Enthroned – Sovereigns




The Belgian flagship gives us enough power and grimness to say that 21 years on the road has been good for their evil occultist rituals.



22. Necrophor – The Eye of Terror




The first demo from a band who know how to fuse death metal and rock n roll. They rival Vreid and Six Feet Under and I bet they’ll be leading the way with their first studio outing.



21. Psychotic Gardening – Hymnosis




Canada really has a lot to offer in the form of experimental black metal. These lads take themes of anxiety, mental illness, psychosis and neurotic anguish and give it the angriest and most haunting sound you can imagine for such topics. This album isn’t all fast or all slow, it has good pacing like a well edited movie.






I’ll see you on New Year’s Eve for the final 20 albums.