ANDREW WILHELM'S BEST OF 2009

Here's my top 10 list. Whee. Comment, praise, bitch, moan, do yo thang in the comments section. Now, onto to 2010.


10~

Tombs
Winter Hours [Amazon]
(Relapse)

A compelling metal record about city life - well, Ludicra's don't come out till next year, so this is it. Winter Hours, Tombs' debut full-length, shows growth by leaps and bounds from their self-titled EP. Mike Hill and his un-merry men distill black metal, noise rock, and doom metal and mix it into a spirit of urban anger, fear, and uncertainty. "Gossamer" was released as a single, and for good reason: its rage stews throughout the song, the band goes postal with blastbeats, and the outro feels like a lucid examination of all your regrets. Overkill this is not, though, as all the other tracks are equally as strong. The whole albums feels like a nightmare directed as a noir film, murky yet bristling with suspense. A witches' brew for the folks living in the decrepit high-rises.

Crucial Cut: "Gossamer" [MP3] [Video]


9~

Stinking Lizaveta
Sacrifice and Bliss [Amazon]
(At a Loss)

OG Philly instrumetallers Stinking Lizaveta continue their hot streak with Sacrifice and Bliss, though the latter part of the title seems to be most resonant feeling. Even though it's a metal album, it serves as a refreshing antidote to the academization, and subsequent stagnation, of jazz. "When I Love You" is a tender ballad too good for cock rock, and "A Day Without a Murder" is quite thrashy, yet they complement each other, as do all the other songs. Diversity and consistency - what so many strive for, but few can achieve. And the acoustic upright just SLAYS.

Crucial cut: "A Man Without a Country" [MP3]


8~

The Gates Of Slumber
Hymns of Blood and Thunder [Amazon]
(Rise Above)

The Gates of Slumber became unlikely metal media darling with last year's Conqueror, a superb effort that put a fresh face on the stylings of band like Manilla Road and Budgie. Barleywine and broadswords make for a winning combination, as Hymns of Blood and Thunder, released in September, is as valiant as Conqueror. "Death Dealer" and "Iron Hammer" are the workhorses of the album, and their only agenda is charging forth and kicking ass. They can prog out without losing intensity too, as evidenced by "Descent into Madness" and "The Mist in the Mourning." HAIL AND KILL!

Crucial cut: "Blood and Thunder" [MP3]


7~

Villains
Lifecode of Decadence [NWN! Shop]
(Nuclear War Now!)

W.A.S.P. with the decadence amped up, and none of the glitz. Venom knockin' back 40s of Olde English. Swans on a major Sabbat and Sacrofago bender. These are but a few ways you could describe Williamsburg's Villains, and their entry this year, Lifecode of Decadence, is wicked nasty. The production has been dragged through the very streets Villains creep on, a raw unpolished crunch that perfectly suits the band's aesthetics. "Headless Excruciator" indulges in Far East weirdness, Lino Reca's off-kilter, quasi-falsetto bringing to mind some of Japan's finest and weirdest. "Overdriven Lust" is exactly that, a pursuit of pussy Carnivore would be proud of. The band doesn't need slow parts or a horn section: they are here to steal your money for booze and crack whores. Thirsty, and miserable, and plain fucking brilliant.

Crucial cut: "On the Prowl"


6~

Beherit
Engram [Amazon]
(Spinefarm)

Finland Beherit's switch from brooding, doomy black metal to oddball eletronic music was alienating to their core fanbase, and that's saying something. Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance has reinvented Beherit again, thankfully, he has returned to metal and Engram is worthy to stand alongside Drawing Down the Moon as a black metal classic. While the production is 2009, the vibe is still 1992. Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance still has his snarl and Celtic Frost-on-downers sense of composition, especially evident on the 15-minute closer, "Demon Advance." Welcome back, man.

Crucial cut: "Demon Advance"


5~

Destroyer 666
Defiance [Amazon]
(Season of Mist)

Do the Australian Anti-Christians ever let down? Fuck no. Blackened thrash that doesn't sound like Exodus riffs played through a cheap Walkman, Defiance takes no prisoners, no prisoners at all. Many of the songs follow the Destroyer 666 recipe for success: speed, bestial lyrics, and attitude choking up your speakers. The closer, "A Sermon for the Dead," takes a different route by slowing down the tempo to mid-pace and pumping up the melody. It still ain't New Age music though.

Crucial cut: "A Stand Defiant" [MP3]


4~

Amesoeurs
Amesoeurs [Amazon]
(Profound Lore)

Amesoeurs' simultaneous self-titled full-length debut and swan song, while less metallic than their EP, Ruines Humaines, is no less impressive. Neige reigns in the dreaminess of his Alcest project and manages to produce poppy yet appropriately gloomy tunes, almost as if the urban anger from the earlier mentioned Villains and Tombs is allowed to simmer. Audrey Sylvain act's as the groups Kim Deal, equally handling clean vocals and screams with the right sense of dynamic. The Daydream Nation for the bullet-belt set.

Crucial cut: "Les Ruches Malades"
Free Download: "Heurt" [MP3]


3~

Teitanblood
Seven Chalices [Amazon]
(Ajna Offensive/Norma Evangelium Diaboli)

It ain't called DEATH metal for nothin'. Teitanblood have transformed themselves from Blasphemy worship band to a full-on juggernaut of reeking death on Seven Chalices. Everything sounds like it's about to collapse and break loose from being injected with so much MADNESS. Oddly, there's a groove to the riffs, but Teitanblood isn't KC and the Sunshine Band. In fact, this music is far removed from sunshine, exactly how death metal should be. Maximum volume yields maximum results, motherfucker.

Crucial cut: "Infernal Dance of the Wicked" [MP3]


2~

Portal
Swarth [Amazon]
(Profound Lore)

All of Portal's records sound like hurling through the abyss in a Concorde, but it's not always the same ride. Swarth is jagged and angular compared to Outre's flowing chaos and Seepia's buzzy cranial-boring madness. Guitars still sound like the unholy fusion of Morbid Angel and György Ligeti, but Horror Illogium somewhat more clearly outlines his patterns, giving you a glimpse into his method of madness. The percussion, while still somewhat buried, is much more prevalent than before. What, you thought they couldn't keep a beat? They may wear fucking cuckoo clocks on their heads, but they're not amateurs. We're all going to hell eventually, may as well sound like this on our way down.

Crucial cut: "Larvae" [MP3]


1~

Sunn O)))
Monoliths and Dimensions [Amazon]
(Southern Lord)

If you can't get louder, if you can't get slower, get freakier. That's what Sunn O))) did on their latest, Monoliths and Dimensions. On "Aghartha" Attila Csihar provides a tenor that perfectly atones for "FREEZING MOOOOOOOON," layering it over the guitar drone and strings seemingly lifted out of "Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima." Eyvind Kang provides gorgeous string arrangements to the closer "Alice," a tribute to Alice Coltrane and her lucid, freeform approach to jazz. The godfather of drone doom himself, Dylan Carlson, contributes to the album as well. Of course, the roar of Greg Anderson and Stephen O'Malley's amps are still the star. Modern classical and avant-garde jazz were the main influences for Anderson and O'Malley, but this album represents what the evolution of metal should be.

Crucial cut: "Aghartha"

~~~~~~

Honorable mentions:

Pyramids w/ Nadja - Pyramids w/ Nadja (Hydra Head)

I gushed about this record for my Cake in the Oven a while back. Lush, experimental ambient drone doom.

Goreaphobia - Mortal Repulsion (Ibex Moon)

Goreaphobia's debut...19 years after their first demo came out. Old-school death metal done right.

Maudlin of the Well - Part the Second (Self-released)

Toby Driver of Kayo Dot fame revived his previous, more metal-oriented but still wonky, project for a fan-funded album. It is available to download here.

Heaven and Hell - The Devil You Know (Rhino)

Dio. Iommi. Butler. Appice. You know the drill.

HOD - Serpent (Ibex Moon)

Blackened death left under the swealtering Texas heat, morphing into an entirely different beast. If you like a little swagger with your leather vests and bullet belts, this is your shit.