These Seans' Best of 2008

I finished this list a month ago. Well, I mean the records, the order, all that. But already I've discovered so many more records that I totally love! I love the end of the year, and best-of lists, they are great ways to find new music. With that in mind I hope that you enjoy my list and maybe give something new a chance!


10~

Fucked Up
The Chemistry Of Common Life [Amazon]
(Matador)


The Chemistry Of Common Life brings together everything Fucked Up has to offer: classic hardcore punk with Fucked Up's signature thirst for musical exploration. On Chemistry Fucked Up manage to deliver their ideas in more concise packages. Not to say that there are not long songs (or even that the songs are short), they are simply crafted in such as a way as to make them attainable without sacrifice.

Crucial Cut: "No Epiphany" [MP3]


9~

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



Atmospheric blackened death metal with touches of doom and grind that somehow comes together in a much more cohesive fashion than its parts would lead you to believe. As a complete album, Folie Circulaire attains balance between slow, sludging harmony and technical death/grind making for a surprisingly easy listen. Truly a special album.

Crucial Cut: "Purification of Ignorance" [MP3]


8~

Have Heart
Songs To Scream At The Sun [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Bridge 9)


The best "modern hardcore" record of the year for sure. This album takes Have Heart's ability to channel the inspiration and camaraderie of classic positive hardcore, while furthering the band's creative horizons. On songs like "Bostons," Have Heart show a clear Modern Life Is War influence while still managing to maintain their own identity. Songs To Scream At The Sun finds frontman Pat Flynn sounding worn and beaten, but his attitude and performance make his voice the perfect fit for this hardcore triumph.

Crucial Cut: "Bostons"


7~

Opeth
Watershed [Amazon]
(Roadrunner)



Another stellar album from Mikael Åkerfeldt and gang. After going through some line up changes, Opeth push forward and deliver their most adventurous album yet. While this album features some of their most innovative songwriting to date, Opeth don't forget to give fans what they want (hard as nails death metal, ballads, prog, all with the footprints of doom) while making the whole album one smooth listen.

Crucial Cut: "Heir Apparent"


6~

Genghis Tron
Board Up The House [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Relapse)


The exception proves the rule, right? I mean seriously, who would think that there are still decent metal bands out there whose primary elements are keyboards and drum machines? On Board Up The House Genghis Tron give their electro-spazz-grind a chance to breathe with more space allowing for slower tempos, and much improved songwriting. Imagine Neurosis as a three piece (one guitar, one frontman/keyboardist, one full time keyboard player) that played electronic grindcore and you've got Board Up The House.

Crucial Cut: "Things Don't Look Good" [MP3] [Video]


5~

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



The masters of d-beat further elevate the hardcore punk sub-genre with Live The Storm. The addition of Tomas Lindberg on vocals and Uffe Cederlund on guitar feels more natural here than on Misanthropic Generation: Uffe's leads are now crucial parts of the songs and Tomas' rasp is commanding, possibly his best vocal performance ever. Underneath all the aggression, great songs are what really make this album special. The fruitful use of gang vocals coupled with Uffe's melodies make Live The Storm as enjoyable as it is punishing.

Crucial Cut: "The Furnace" [MP3]



4~

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


Bill Frisell's presence on this album is immediately recognizable. One of the few guitarists to truly have a recognizable style and tone, his guitar work is perfectly suited for Dylan Carlson's latest masterpiece. Normally I'm not one for slow, instrumental music; for Earth to make my top ten list (especially this high!) should demonstrate how special I feel this album is. The Bees drones with classic western phrasing and, while instrumental, The Bees truly possesses its own unique voice.

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


3~

Trap Them
Seizures In Barren Praise [Amazon] [iTunes]
(Deathwish Inc.)


D-beat meets grind with sooooo much attitude. What more could I possibly say?

Crucial Cut: "Day Twenty: Flesh and Below" [MP3]


2~

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



Much has (very justly) been said about Julie Christmas' exceptional performance on The Ruiner, but without the songs under her what would this album be? Brendan Tobin’s guitar work is wonderfully inventive, incorporating several different moods, perfectly serving as backdrops for Julie's ever changing narratives.

Crucial Cut: "Cooker" [MP3]


1~

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


A big problem I have with bands that mix genres is when it comes off sounding forced, planned. On Assassins, Nachtmystium mix black metal with a large dose of 70's pysch, peppered with power choruses and straight up rock. The end result is so good it almost has to be a mistake. Feeling more organic than black metal has in years, the anthemic choruses and wandering riffs come together to create an album that could have gone so wrong but managed to get everything just right.

Crucial Cut: "Assassins" [MP3]

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Honorable Mentions...

Hate Eternal Fury and Flames (Metal Blade) - Normally I'm not big on super technical death metal, but this album just does it right. My main problem is that I find a lot of groups sacrifice songwriting for technical proficiency, and while I was way into that stuff when I was 15, I no longer really care how awesome your sweeps are, or how fast your blast beats are. Erik Rutan finds a way to give this album some real soul. I read somewhere that this album sounded like a building falling down (MetalSucks?), which is very true, but after a few listens Fury and Flames becomes so much more.

Gaslight Anthem Señor and the Queen and The '59 Sound (Sabot Records and SideOneDummy, respectively) - Imagine if Bruce Springsteen decided to front a punk rock band and you've got Gaslight Anthem. This band completely took over my life for a big chunk of this year and probably caused me to skip over some important metal records. Check out the video for "The '59 Sound" here.

The Hold Steady Stay Positive (Vagrant Records) - I love lyrics man, I just love them. Craig Finn's swirling alcohol induced tales of raucous behavior make life seem perpetually as fun as it should be. Not to mention the whiskey soaked sound of the band, it all adds up to one great sing along of a time.

Suicide Note Empty Rooms (Hawthrone Street Records) - Hardcore punk that isn't heavy just to be heavy (in fact, it's really not that heavy). A record that seems to get better with every listen.

Verse Aggression (Bridge 9 Records) - A passionate political album if there ever was one. On Aggression Verse are able to truly infuse their listeners with their message, not just a hardcore record to hear, but one to feel.

~~~~~~

Records I didn't listen to until Decibel's top 40 came out, and now wished I had listened to them way earlier...

Bloodbath The Fathomless Mastery (Peaceville Records) - This album is really, really, good. If I didn't just get it two days ago, it may have made my top ten. Straight death metal with blazing guitar leads and riffs. Now Opeth drummer Martin Axenrot shows why he was such an shoe in for Opeth, while Mikael himself never sings a note, delivering just what this album needs: death vocals so serious it's almost absurd.

Rotten Sound Cycles (Spinefarm Records) - Cycles grinds with the best of them, but also brings in the best parts of death metal (a little -core here and there too). It's just, you know, "br00tal" metal done right.

~~~~~~

Records I still haven't listened to even though everyone and their mom thinks it's the number one record of the year...

Torche Meanderthal (Hydra Head) - Seriously, I haven't listened to it! Well, at one point me and gerf were drinking at the Levee and he was so offended that I hadn't heard it yet he put the whole thing on the jukebox, at which point I thought "this sounds cool." But that's it. There's just too much fucking hype! I can't listen to it now, I'll just be let down. It's on my computer, hell, it's on my iPod and my iPhone. I'll get to it in on my own, when the time is right.