Depending on who you talk to people either love or hate these end of year lists. Or is it love to hate them? I have been doing these lists in one way shape or form for many years and it suits me just fine. I love lists! The purpose of this one is not for me to lord over anybody else’s taste. My goal is to bring to light some great music I heard this year and share if with the few people who may or may not read this. I welcome comments and critiques from you all below. I actually hope you disagree with me and tell me where to stick it! But also, maybe I missed somebody awesome you can tell me about too. I listened to an estimated 380 albums, countless other EP’s (I have a separate list for them), split singles and one cassette! It is a gargantuan task that I mainly do for love, a lack of good common sense and not much sleep. My list will always be based my attempt at judging these albums based on a serious grading criteria (could be due to all of this Grad School stuff I’m doing) blended with my own tastes. That is, based on what I like and listen to for enjoyment as well as what gets send to me. I also based number of plays on my as a factor- as in I listened to it for “work” and then could not stop playing it. That definitely happened a few times, certainly with most of the top 20. The mundane questions do still linger: can you really judge art? What do I know anyway versus the next “expert”. Can you listen to the entire gamut of every sub-genre of metal and lump them all in one list? Well, I can, I do and I did! I got some neat hate mail last year after my list ran on Metal Army America so I’m hoping for much more this year. I guess I must be doing something right since I have haters now. Come At Me Bro, I’m ready!
Part I- 1-5-ish
#1.TOMBS- Path of Totality (Relapse)
The complete package.
From the first caustic notes of “Black Hole Of Summer” I knew that this was going to be more like an out of body experience than a standard album listen. Although I had liked Winter Hours, I wasn’t really prepared for what was coming on this release. Not that they did anything differently, just harsher and better. The perfect blend of art rock sensibilities with black and death metal inspiration. Add in some brilliant lyrics and sick playing and you have a masterpiece. My friend Urith recently described their music perfectly: “they just hit you with waves and waves of sound”. Few bands can be incredibly brutal and still control dynamic subtleties without compromising. Very few. TOMBS writes memorable riffs that are catchy, obtuse and droning at times and still brash enough for the hardest metal fans. With great bass playing and powerhouse drumming added to the mix, this band has it all. Producer John Congelton (BARONESS) did a great job keeping everything sonically balanced. Meanwhile front man Mike Hill screams, howls and occasional sings all full of wrought iron emotions you feel every inch of. A concept album lyrically about primal, instinctual fear The Path of Totality takes you on a journey both to the recesses of your mind and deep into your souls. Here is the link to my original review. http://www.metal-army.com/?p=20003
PREVIOUS ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
2010: EXODUS: Exhibit B
2009: MASTODON: Crack The Skye
2008:OPETH: Watershed
2007: MACHINE HEAD: The Blackening
2006: MASTODON: Blood Mountain
2005: MESHUGGAH: Catch Thirty-Three
2004: MACHINE HEAD: Through The Ashes Of Empires
THE REST OF THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2011
Live Photo by DEV Photography 2011.
(TIE)2. THE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT – Deconstruction
2. THE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT- Ghost ( both InsideOut Music)
A tie? At number 2? Yes. If you haven’t already fucked off and went to play Skyrim or whatever the kids are doing these days online, thanks. Yes, I put two albums by the same band as a tie at number two because a) both albums are amazing and because b) it’s my list and you can piss off! So, that out of the way we already knew Devin Townsend ruled beyond compare. Die hard STRAPPING YOUNG LAD fans still can’t get their heads around the fact that Devy is still Heavy, but in a different way. Still the bookends of the grandiose, four-album arc that began with Ki and Addicted. In Deconstruction Devin and his band have answered the ultimate question about his talent, it is in fact limitless. I think it is the best, most complete album of his career and there is almost nothing he can’t do and nothing the band can’t play behind him. Sweet melodies, the grandeur and spectacle of the best prog rock, tight musicianship and brilliant writing. And it is heavy as fuck too! With an all-star cast of equal giants in music like IHSAHN, PAUL KUHR, MIKAEL AKERFELDT, ODERUS URUNGUS and many more, it becomes an aural spectacle to behold. Then there is Ghost which honestly is more my favorite of the two works. Every bit of Deconstruction that is chaotic, beautiful madness, Ghost is gentle, naked and righteous. It is like the Wish You Were Here of the Devin catalog and I’m so stoked there is a part II coming soon. Devin is the modern heir to FRANK ZAPPA’s legacy, although he clearly is on his own path. Like ZAPPPA Devin is brilliantly smart and hilariously funny. Not bowing to any other muse, but his own twisted mind.
3. ORIGIN- Entity (Nuclear Blast)
This was pretty much a lock for near the top of the list from the get go. Tech Death may have had its minute in the Sun as a trend a few years back, but along comes ORIGIN with this album and flips the script again. This album just cooks. Without being to avant garde or jazzy like many of their peers -ORIGIN just slays with technically virtuosity and sick amounts of musicianship. I was lamenting the loss of vocalist James Lee for a long time before the album, because to me he was perfect for the band. As it turns out it doesn’t really matter who does the vocals, because as choice as some of the vocals are here, it all comes down to the music. Super brutal and inhumanly fast music. Tracks like “Expulsion of Fury”, “Conceiving Death” and “Saliaga” are just ripping tracks that are among the best in the bands history. Individually Paul Ryan, Mike Flores and John Longstreth are some of the best players in all of metal. United as one, they are like an evil Justice League of talent and killer ability. Having added ex-SKINLESS vocalist Jason Keyser live they are truly a force to be reckoned with.
4. WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM- Celestial Lineage (Southern Lord)
The brothers Weaver have reverence for two things: nature and music.
Is it possible for there to be a movement and a backlash against that movement at the same exact time? To me this was a banner year for USBM bands, but that is like saying a Kardashian commented on CERN. I was in fact, blown away by all of the quality releases by popular and underground bands. Brothers Aaron and Nathan Weaver are artists of the highest order and they are fully unpretentious and humble, even though some hipsters are slagging them off. Oh wait… that’s right, hipsters’ opinions don’t matter. Moving right along, Celestial Lineage is the third and final chapter in a trilogy of concept albums. But instead of a X-Men The Last Stand, they turned in a Return of The Jedi type performance. The story is as bold and detailed as the music. That is really the payoff here. Brooding, doomy, dirge laden, bleak and haunting all at once. Their trademark passages of melodic beauty meld with thunderous drumming and riffs galore to paint a backdrop for their world. “Astral Blood” is the best track on the album in my opinion, but the entire album is great top to bottom. Here is the link to my original review: http://www.metal-army.com/?p=22955
5. TRAP THEM- Darker Handcraft (Prosthetic)
TRAP THEM’s Darker Handcraft was another record I jammed out to for months. If I heard some un-reviewable crap record (there was lots of that) I would put on this record to wipe the slate between my ears clean. Raw, angry and powerful this record is the sound of true rebellion. The band has a lot in common with the early work of CONVERGE, so it’s no surprise Kurt Ballou produced them. He did a great job capturing this band at the height of their powers. Vocalist Ryan McKenney has one of the best voices in modern metal. He is the perfect foil the music the band creates full of hardcore insanity, d-beat crust, the best classic death metal sounds and grindcore influences. Also, lyrically this album is one of the finest this year has seen with McKenny’s fantastic, horrid thoughts splayed out for everyone to hear aloud like sneaking a peek at a madman’s’ journal. It comes down to great songs and TRAP THEM writes great songs. When you hear this album you can’t help but think this is the sound of metal in 2011 and that sound is beyond good. Here is the link to my original review: http://www.metal-army.com/?p=18015
Next post: 6-25……..
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