Crustcake Gerf's Best of 2008

What a fantastic year for music, particularly heavy music. Not that it's all about competition, but in my eyes there were at least three legitimate contenders for the top spot-- any one of my top three (see below) could have potentially taken the gold. Let's get down to business...


10~

Withered
Folie Circulaire [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Prosthetic)


As David Bee Roth put it, Withered are "more like deathened black" than blackened death metal. Folie Circulaire is a somewhat last-minute addition to my top 10, simply because I managed to let it slip by all year until just recently. The first time I saw Withered, they didn't make much of an impression on me, but the second time I saw them was a different story. It was after that that I finally gave Folie Circulaire a few spins, and I'm glad I did. This is aggressive, angular American black metal with top-notch production and a hint of death metal for good measure.

Crucial Cut: "Purification of Ignorance" [MP3]


9~

Boris
Smile [Amazon]
(Southern Lord)


More or less an averaging of Boris' recent shifts in style and direction, Smile has something for fans of any previous Boris album. A couple rockers, many red herrings, the usual Japanese shenanigans, and unconventionally creative songwriting are all here, but my favorite track is the final untitled cut-- a fifteen-minute-long epic, the last nine minutes of which feature a simple, hypnotic, wall of guitars that will leave you breathless.

Crucial Cut: "Statement" [MP3]


8~

Earth
The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Southern Lord)

Earth puts me to sleep. And I mean that in the best way possible. This record is incredibly hypnotic-- a pastoral slice of Americana and a gorgeous piece of art.

Crucial Cut: "Omens and Portents I: The Driver" [MP3]


7~

Disfear
Live the Storm [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Relapse)


What more is there to say about Disfear? They are the kings of D-beat and Live the Storm, when played at the proper volume, will knock you flat on your ass. This album is energetic, relentless, and fucking badass.

Crucial Cut: "The Cage" [MP3]


6~

Opeth
Watershed [Amazon]
(Roadrunner)


Another commendable effort by our favorite Swedish progressive metallers. This album may rank third or fourth out of Opeth's complete catalog, but that's a pretty damn high standard of comparison. Many complained about the departure of drummer Martin Lopez but his replacement, Martin Axenrot, displays impressive skill and musicianship on Watershed. Yet another masterpiece in a long line of them for this band.

Crucial Cut: "Heir Apparent"


5~

Samothrace
Life's Trade [Amazon] [iTunes]
(20 Buck Spin)


This is probably the most surprising addition to my list. Though they may not have the name recognition of the other bands on this list yet, they certainly deserve their place in the top five. Strangely, this album is both heavy (particularly in the sense of 'weighty') and relaxing at the same time. Long, slow riffs build upon themselves and cascade forth, while Bryan L. Spinks growls passionately. Time stretches and bends, and beautiful mono-chromatic pictures are painted by the mind.

Crucial Cut: "Awkward Hearts" [MP3]


4~

Graveyard
Graveyard [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Tee Pee)


To put it simply, Graveyard are the 'blue collar' Witchcraft. While Witchcraft are medieval and bombastic, Graveyard are gritty and working class. This album is way better than it has any right to be-- every single song is a superb sample of good old fashioned rock n' roll. Sweet riffs, tasteful drumming, and wailing vocals make this album a solid #4 pick for '08.

Crucial Cut: "Thin Line" [MP3]


3~

Nachtmystium
Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1 [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Century Media)

This album is a masterpiece. There's nothing else to say that hasn't been said in a million other reviews. An unlikely, yet perfectly natural melding of Pink Floyd and Black Metal.

Crucial Cut: "Your True Enemy" [MP3]


2~

Made Out of Babies
The Ruiner [Amazon]
(The End)


In the interest of full disclosure, I must reveal that my current place of employment is The End Records, but I was a fan of Made Out Of Babies and this record long before I held my current position. The Ruiner is a shoe-in for the number two slot, simply because it kicks more ass than any other album this year but one. This record is already a classic, if you ask me.

Crucial Cut: "Cooker" [MP3]


1~

Torche
Meanderthal [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Hydra Head)


Like you didn't see that coming. Decibel may have stolen my thunder, but I knew this album would top my list shortly after I heard it for the first time. No other album has come along to dethrone it, so here it is: the best damn record of 2008.

I asked vocalist/guitarist Steve Brooks about the making of Meanderthal:

"We collected riffs and ideas over the past few years and the stuff that didn't get forgotten landed on the album. We had been playing "Sandstorm" and "Speed of the Nail" live for a few years, so those were the easy ones to put to tape. The other tunes were written faily quick during the 2 months before we recorded. Deciding the order of songs worked out rather perfectly. I can listen to the whole album from start to finish and not lose interest."

When I asked him if he had any interesting anecdotes to share from the studio, he responded with a wink, "What goes on in the studio stays in the studio." Well, maybe that's for the better.

Crucial Cut: "Healer" [MP3]

~~~~~~

Like my colleagues, I couldn't pick just ten records that defined the year for me, so let's get to some 'honorable mentions,' in alphabetical order:

ASG Win Us Over (Volcom) - Snowboard dude metal. That's what ASG sounds like to me. Gnarly, bro! But seriously, despite its closet Christian leanings, Win Us Over is a great collection of catchy jams that fans of Torche, Foo Fighters, and Queens of the Stone Age will find quite tasty.

The Black Angels Directions to See a Ghost (Light In the Attic) - This album is probably best heard with the aid of the ganj, but it conjures up such vivid images of smoke clouds, Vietnam, the 60's, and other nostalgia that it's enjoyable even without mind-altering assistance.

Coffins Buried Death (20 Buck Spin) - A rumbling mashup of doom and death as only the Japanese could accomplish. Dirty, gritty, and raw.

Danava Unonou (Kemado) - With a vocalist named Dusty Sparkles, how can you go wrong? This 70's space prog outfit is from another world, man. Trippy.

Dead Meadow Old Growth (Matador) - Sweet ass 60's hippie jams. Tone!!!!! If weed smoking had a soundtrack, this would be it.

Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes / Sun Giant (Sub Pop) - One of the only non-heavy records I listened to with any consistency over the course of the year, Fleet Foxes create a wonderfully melancholy mood of nostalgic Americana. In two words, heavenly harmonies.

Hate Eternal Fury and Flames (Metal Blade) - Fucking brutal. Erik Rutan is death metal. Death metal is Erik Rutan.

Intronaut Prehistoricisms (Century Media) - This Cali quartet mixes aggressive metal riffing, technical arrangements, jazz-fusion bass, and proficient drumming in a primordial stew of ferocity and finesse.

Saviours Into Abaddon (Kemado) - I almost forgot about this one because it came out on January fucking 22nd, but this is a slab of NWOBHM-infused stoner metal worth remembering. Riffs riffs riffs!

Sea Legs Untitled EP (unreleased) - This band was finished before they even got started. You've never heard of 'em, and no one ever will, but during their brief existence they banged out one of the best doom 'n roll debuts in recent memory.

A Storm of Light And We Wept the Black Ocean Within (Neurot) - Yeah, so Josh Graham's (ex-Red Sparowes, Neurosis visuals) band A Storm Of Light sound pretty much exactly like Neurosis. But they sound exactly like Neurosis so damn well-- and this record is such a fully-developed concept-- that it hardly matters. Dark, dismal, post-apocalyptic.

The Sword Gods of the Earth (Kemado) - Not as good as their debut, but this record still has several solid offerings to the metal gods.

Weedeater God Luck And Good Speed (Southern Lord) - Sludgey North Cakalak hillbillies who aren't afraid to cover Lynyrd Skynyrd.