I can’t think of any other band that is as consistently brilliant as Opeth (maybe Neurosis). From Watersheds’ opening melodic delicacy, on the first track coil, they drop down into Heir Apparent and then follow it up with Lotus Eaters; its outstanding, song after song of brilliance; it’s obvious that they’ve found perfect equilibrium in their progressive-death-morbid realm. Sure, there’s consistent parameters’ about their sound, there’s the risk of stagnation obviously, and its not like I’m going to be surprised by a radical change in direction their next album, but none of that matters because unlike other bands who stay rigid in their sound Opeth tweak, drop and add subtle textures and elements that always, always, produces something compelling and out of the ordinary (check out that keyboard solo in Burden). Watershed is magnificent.
Nachtmystium, Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1
I had high expectations for this album after Instinct/decay, especially with all the pre-release hype; thankfully my anticipation was amply rewarded. It’s got to be the blueprint for progressive black metal from now on, the perfect synthesis of late 70’s prog and the 00’s metal fury. Like Opeth’s Watershed, it was a headphones album for me, I kept getting more and more out of it the closer I listened, it’s nuanced but thick with slabs of blackened riffs, fucking heavy but almost gentle (which might seem like sacrilege when referencing what is essentially a black metal album). I haven’t got my head round it yet; don’t honestly know if I ever really want to, it’s a mystery to me, and all the better for it.
Black Mountain, In the future
If you haven’t heard this album you’re seriously missing out on something truly special. Hyped as bit of a retro stoner piece it goes infinitely deeper than a simple homage to 70’s hard rock. There are clearly Sabbath leanings but there’s also a load of more subtle influences bubbling through. There’s a real undercurrent of the fat blues roots but countering those are some distinct indie trappings left over from the previous album. I’ve listened to this repeatedly over the past year and each time I find another favourite song. Everyone I’ve met who has heard this loves it, all of them for different reasons too, for me it’s the tranquil ‘vibe’ it evokes, it reminds me of when I first got into Pink Floyd or Metallica and I just wanted to sit and listen for hours at every riff change, every kick of the drum and every bass rumble. I don’t even smoke pot these days but In the future makes me wish it was always winter and I was sitting in front of a roaring fire with an inexhaustible supply of weed.
Torche, Meanderthal
Speaking of weed, this one has been on everyone’s lists all over the place for best of 2008 so I feel like a bit of a hipster putting it on, but I can’t deny its quality, hipster quotient or not. There’s been plenty of debate about its ‘genre’ but fuck categorisation, sure its useful if you want to check something out and have a good handle on some reference points but albums like this defy that logic. Is it metal? Hard rock? Pop? Stoner-pop maybe? Who cares, it rocks along, it’s harmonic, melodic (in a grimy kind of way) and is loaded with killer hooks.
Harvey Milk, “life…the best game in town”
Harvey Milk are practically unknown down this end of the world, I picked this up on a website recommendation somewhere, I loved it. I’m a sucker for dirty sludgy mixes, the crustier the better, plus its got a faded old Maiden poster on the cover, Joe Preston is on it, and the photo inside the CD looks exactly like my room looked from the ages 17 to 30, I was hooked. It’s bloated (not in a bad way either) and chunky and has a fucking great big fat muddy guitar tone. I love the liner notes, the whole, ‘we don’t give a fuck either’ explanations for the tunes, when they so obviously do, it’s impossible they produced this album on a whim; it’s perfectly fucking soiled.
Earth, The bees made honey in the lions skull
Dylan Carson released this magnum opus in 2008 and it’s a flawless summation of all that’s been before, and possibly all that’s to come. I’ve loved the last two albums, Hex and Hibernaculum both showed an remarkable amount of promise, but Bees took Earth (MK 2) into a whole other realm. With a guest like Brill Frissell onboard Dylan stepped up to the mark and created a countrified jazz drone masterpiece. It’s obviously a huge leap forward from Earths early works, which I love as well, but it still retains that sense of narcoleptic heaviness and Dylan’s mesmerising tones. I listened to it a lot after a neck injury combined with some solid painkillers, I’m not recommended you throw yourself off anything, but pharmaceuticals and Earth are undeniably the perfect mix.
I’d given up on hardcore a long time ago, about the same time metal-core arrived, I just got embarrassed by the number of bands who were hopelessly co-opting the posturing and none of the musical chops. Thankfully Blacklisted arrived with this in 2008 to renew my faith in hardcore with some solid integrity. This is sharp-dense bursts of hardcore guitar the way it’s supposed to be played, relentless, furious and threatening. Kurt Ballous’ production is once again outstanding, this and Disfears’ latest, are both exceptional production jobs, Kurt’s a bit of a genius all round.
Sunn O))), Pentemple
More caustic drone from the Sunn O))) ensamble. Recorded live it’s just one long dirge filled trip, broken into two parts so you can have a rest in-between. I don’t know if I enjoyed this album so much as it’s a fucking good challenge just to make it through till the end. Stephen, Greg, Attila, Oren and guest drummer Sin Nanna (Striborg) created the most unholy noise imaginable. I’ve been a fan of Sunn O))) for a long time, my blog is named after them because White 1 was named the 18th heaviest album of all time in a British (non-metal) music magazine (not that that is in anyway reflective of the truth, its way heavier). I’m always going to listen to everything that they put out, and I’m really looking forward to the new album, but this one, yeah it made the list because parts of it are just loaded with restrained menace, but its not my favourite release of theirs by any means, hopefully the new one will top 2009’s best of.
Ocean, Pantheon of the lesser
Where to even start with this one? Oceans debut, Here where nothing grows, sat in my stereo for months, it was unbelievably bleak and doom laden, you could hear the creeping sounds of winter in every single note, it was gloomy as all hell, but I couldn’t get away from it. Pantheon cranks things up another notch further, their debut was pretty much applauded by critics and fans alike and this one has had stellar reviews all over the place. It’s well deserving of all the praise, for me they are the perfect combination of Sunn O))) menace and Sabbaths promise. Their sound is as impenetrable as all good doom should be, but is recorded so superbly it’s also wide open to interpretation. It’s not just doom; it’s epic doom, with every conceivable nuance that title throws up (except the vocals, forget those, they are buried in there nice and deep). Easily one of my favourite records ever.
Asva, “what you don’t know is frontier”
Asva’s second album is an excellent example of drone metal done so well it’s not even remotely metal anymore, it transcends metal. I’d be tempted to call it metal 2.0, except that’s a fucking stupid term, and it’s ridiculous because Asva are steeped in a profound vintage drone vibe. I love early Krautrock and electronic music (Can, Tangerine dream etc) and Asva remind me those bands, where great things sprung from finding a new groove and digging in to investigate it fully. Asva mainman, G. Stuart Dahlquist, was formally a member of Sunn O))) and Burning Witch, that’s parts fairly obvious from listening to this, but there’s a huge amount of harmony here, something that’s missing from other drone artists obviously, and the use of keyboards, female vocals and treatments means there’s always something new to discover just around the corner. I think it’s like the flipside of the drone-metal puzzle to bands like Sunn O))), it wasn’t remotely challenging listen to this, I just dived in and let it all wash over me. Headphones on, its just sublime.
Enslaved, Vertebrae
What is it with these bands having late career bursts of magnificence? I’m not complaining, but take Darkthrone or Napalm Death, both of them are putting out albums now which are easily as good as their early, seminal works (yeah I know that’s metal heresy, but fuck it). Then along come Enslaved with Vertebrae, I’d loved Ruun so much that I’d had to buy a new copy recently, and I was kind of caught off guard with how much Vertebrae improved on that, I thought Ruun was kind of perfect. Like Nachmystium, Enslaved have managed to harness the groove and power of progressive rock and mixed it up with their own deathly sound to create something that is still firmly rooted in metal, but also reflective of more experimental, less genre specific times. I’ve not had this album long, just a couple of months, but its already been thoroughly thrashed. That’s a good sign.
Withered, Folie Circulaire
Dirty, speedy, crusty, blackened death. It’s intimidating, exasperating and one of the best grindingly aggressive albums I’ve ever heard. I love the fact it gets so intense it just washes out in a hiss and a roar of white noise. I’d love to see how they manage to transfer an album this powerful into a live setting. I bought this on impulse; I’m real glad I took it home.
Amon Amarth, Twilight of the thunder gods
I often wonder what it is about this album I like so much; frankly I think it all comes down to the chorus of Twilight of the thunder gods itself, when it kicks in I just feel so fucking euphoric. It’s ridiculous, these guys live at the complete opposite end of the world from me. I’m due south, they’re due north, they’re Vikings, I’m the product of some timid British colonisers. I guess the answers pretty obvious when you think about it; it’s metal. Metal is universal, it’s for everyone, anytime. Metal tells us that whatever our location, whatever our gender, our colour, our financial position, our choices in life, there’s a brotherhood (or sisterhood) waiting for us, we’re protected, we’re respected…Is it obvious that I’m listening to Twilight of the thunder gods as I type this?
Disfear, Live the storm
I wonder if Thomas Lindberg has any idea how amazing he really is. I hope not, because this album sounds like Thomas is pushing himself hard here. I’ve loved this album from the first moment I put it on, there’s something immediately engaging with their take on the crusty metal-punk infusion. I know loads of reviews compared them to Motorhead, or maybe suggested them as the new Motorhead? Whichever, they are infinitely more powerful than Motorhead; Lemmy wished he had this much grunt in the tank; it’s a blazing grubby rock ’n’ roll feast from woe to go.
Krallice, Krallice
I’m not normally a big fan of the technical stuff but Krallice put paid to that prejudice this year by throwing in some outstandingly proficient guitar work over a solid blackened base, along with the wickedest metal production I’ve heard in a long time. I watched some live footage recently keen to see how they could reproduce this live and it was flat out awesome. I shouldn’t have been to surprised with the skills Mick Barr and Colin Marston bring to the band. It sits nicely next to the latest Wolves in the Throne Room; it’s fantastic to listen to some sustained epic tracks that still have at there core the quick black metal blasts. There’s an excellent review for the album here that pretty much sums up its brilliance.
Conifer, Crown fire
Conifer offered up some intricate math-rock on Crown Fire, but If Conifer are anything they are post-rock, not that they aren’t afraid to drag in some heavy instru-metal and Krautrock influences. Like all mathy rock it’s all about the dynamics and positioning of riffs and chords and twinkling solos and such. It’s a superb blend of metal and instrumental rock, except for the closing track with Eugene from Oxbow screaming along, it’s fucking brilliant intelligent hybrid rock.
Darkthrone, Dark thrones and black flags
It’s the new Darkthrone album. What do you think I could say about it that could even come close to its magnificence? Um…it’s as good as the last two, no better, no worse, and they were great little blasts of scabby blackness too. Everything that needs to be said was covered in Deciblogs Darkthrone week. This one, and Disfears’ latest are the two albums I play in my library when nobody else is around in the morning, they sound incredible bouncing off of high ceilings. It must really upset the neighbours.
Slomo, The bog
Slomo isn’t metal in the slightest, but they are definitely heavy. It’s all synth and drone on this album, which is album number two for them. This time the legendary Julian Cope drops in another of his cryptic odes amongst the mix. Their first album was one of the creepiest albums I had ever heard, especially listening too it in the dark, I’m positive that album and a dose of ‘shrooms would change my life. Stephen O’Malley, of Sunn O))) fame, said they are “A completely culty piece of oozing metastain.” I couldn’t say it any better, seek this out, or the first album and turn off the lights, easily as terrifying as any blackened filth.
Om, Live in Jerusalem
I don’t even own this one; it’s a Vinyl only release, which I heard from a friend who has it. It’s everything an OM show should be, and more. Rhythmic, pounding, shamanistic, trance inducing whatever. It’s a full on body experience. Om can’t be listened to in isolation; you need the essential elements to tune in, namely close the curtains, fire it up, if you’re inclined, and get comfortable. It’s like sinking into a warm bath, or drinking way to much red wine and suddenly everything slows down, listening to Om live reduces everything to particles and elements. It’s beautiful, man.
Testament, The Formation of Damnation
You know how you feel when something or someone you really love dies. That’s sort of how I felt about thrash, for years. Right after Metallica’s Black album it kicked in, when suddenly all those great thrash bands decided they needed a few more hooks, a little ‘pop’ in their crunch. Then, when that didn’t work for them, they went the other way, getting way darker, or seemingly reaching the end of their tether and just re-recording their catalogue, its not a good look. So, when Testament roared back into life, with the original line-up I was nervous, where would they go? Thankfully, I was stoked, beyond measure, to hear this album. A good old fashioned thrash gem, and while it may be a little retroactive, that’s ok because the quality of the songwriting lets it shine. It doesn’t feel in the slightest like a band living on their past glories, it feels exactly like it should, like a bunch of musicians, with a bunch of great experience, releasing what is probably their second best disc ever. It’s a fucking shame this didn’t sell in the truck loads that Metallica’s latest did, there was never a chance that was going to happen obviously, but you know, it would have been nice to see due credit finally delivered to Testament.
(image courtesy of lucy-my-control)
Rory Storm, Huron
And finally, here’s one you’ve never heard. Huron is a double disc album, coming out very soon on a label based in Dunedin, here in New Zealand, which is called Radio Jaundice. I’m going to post further on this one so I’ll keep it brief here, but essentially Huron is Rory’s metal album, which is a step away from his usual post-rock experimental fuzz. I know Rory and he’s probably going to hate me for saying that, but I’m not eloquent enough to be able to describe his ‘sound’ in more complex terms (sorry Rory). Huron is ‘experimental’ in the sense it’s indebted to a legacy of awesome New Zealand bands that have pushed against the boundaries of rock, and metal, and come out with something that’s is certainly heavy, definitely noisy, but doesn’t necessarily come loaded the accoutrements of metal (check out anything by the Dead C or Birchville Cat Motel if your curious). Listening to this I’m reminded of Alcest, My Bloody Valentine or a number of metal artists who’ve taken on board the sweeping repetitiveness of shoegaze and drone, and released albums that invite the listener to dive into the riff, rather than many nosier bands who simply build a wall of powerful chords to bash against. I’ll post some more on this later, but after listening to two excellent new noisy drone albums this year, in Asva and Earth, I think Huron stands up along side either of these in both spirit and trance inducing potential.
Some more albums I’ve been listening too constantly in 2008 but I couldn’t bring myself to write about them because my wrist was sore and I’m off to watch Hellboy 2 on DVD (not that they aren’t great because they are, it’s just that Hellboy 2 is greater, seriously)
Down III: Over the under. (Alongside Baroness, this is the album that hung around on my mp3 player most this past year, it’s brilliant)
Band of horses- Cease to Begin (Twee indie country folk rock from South Carolina, heartbreakingly good)
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds- Dig!!! Lazurus Dig!!! (Nick brings some of his Grinderman grunt back to into the Bad Seeds fold, its righteous mucky rock ‘n’ roll brilliance)
My Mourning Jacket- Evil Urges (Radiohead for rednecks? I love it just because it has a song about a librarian)
Spiritualized- A&E (Jason Pierce’s post almost fatal illness album, nothing like a serious illness to bring the swagger back, it’s awesome)
Fleet Foxes- S/T (Soft and gooey 70’s harmonic rock, hyped to all fuck critical darlings, but sometimes that’s just well deserved)
Craft- Fuck the universe (if I’m ever making a compilation for anyone, Craft goes on somewhere)
Kosmos, S/T (with the legendary Michel Langevi of Voivod fame! Picked it up for $5 in a sale bin, it’s incredible!)
Wolves in the Throne room- Two Hunters (New album arriving soon!)
Ulver- Shadow of the sun (It’s Ulver, enough said)
Neurosis- Given to rising (Nobody does sludgy doom like Neurosis, nobody)
Mogwai- Hawk is howling (fucking awesome return for my all time favourite Glaswegian instrumental rock band).
