VAN DAMNED'S BEST OF 2009

So this was 2009.
And what have you done?
Another year over,
And a new one just begun.

What a year, what a year. The final year of the Aughts (or the Naughts, or the 00s, or the iDecade, or whatever we're calling 'em) saw both the return and demise of some old favorites, the introduction of some new classics, a few glimpses at greatness and enough desultory, bottom-dwelling, gutter-sucking dog-squeeze to fill this list, 10 times over. That's the way it is, though. The wheat, sheep and men separate from their respective chaff, goats and boys, and we're left with a jagged, scattershot representation of the Year in Metal. But unlike years previous, 2009 left no clear winner -- year-end lists are all over the place. I think that's part of the fun of these things: we all like what we like and listen to it when we can. So what did you dig this year? Agree with any of mine? Disagree with any of mine? Holler. We'll do this again in 12 months.

Happy New Year.
Let's hope it's a good one.

(With apologies to J.W.L.)

///


10~

Goatwhore
Carving Out the Eyes of God [Amazon]
(Metal Blade)

All bullet belts and spiked gauntlets, Carving is pure American blackened thrash fine-tuned to a blistering, 40-minute riff-fueled assault.

Crucial Crust: "Apocalyptic Havoc" [MP3]



9~

Magrudergrind
Magrudergrind [Amazon]
(Six Weeks Records)

Punky D.C. garage-grind upstarts shock with near-perfect, politically-charged, warts-and-all fury.

Crucial Crust: "Built to Blast"



8~

Anaal Nathrakh
In the Constellation of the Black Widow [Amazon](Candlelight Records)

British blackened grind industrialists deliver 35 minutes of unrelenting ferocity. Vocalist V.I.T.R.I.O.L. performs some seriously operatic acrobatics, lending Constellation some welcome majesty and depth.

Crucial Crust: "In the Constellation of the Black Widow"



7~

Agoraphobic Nosebleed
Agorapocalypse [Amazon]
(Relapse)

Kitchen-sink grind experimentalists introduce actual songcraft to their vulgar, spastic digicore with stunning results.

Crucial Crust: "Timelord Zero (Chronovore)"
Free Download: "Agorapocalypse Now" [MP3]



6~

My Dying Bride
For Lies I Sire [Amazon]
(Peaceville Records)

Manchester doom progenitors reinvent the gothic wheel. Poetic, poignant and sad, For Lies I Sire proves that devastation and gloom can be unbearably beautiful.

Crucial Crust: "My Body, A Funeral"



5~

Isis
Wavering Radiant [Amazon]
(Ipecac)

Epic, nuanced, emotive, Radiant is Isis' heaviest and most-cohesive missive to date. Tool's Adam Jones lends some leaden tonality to an already crushing sound. Too bad this might be their last: Isis finally hit the grand-slam of their career.

Crucial Crust: "Hall of the Dead"



4~

Velvet Cacoon
P aa opal Poere Pr. 33 [Amazon]
(Starlight Temple Society)

The sonic equivalent of Cascadian snowdrifts and thunderstorms, Portland's Velvet Cacoon enter another black ambient masterpiece in their mysterious – and controversial – oeuvre.

Crucial Crust: "2"



3~

Code
Resplendent Grotesque [Amazon]
(Tabu Records)

UK-by-way-of-Norway collective beats Opeth at their own game. Progressive, experimental blackness with dramatic clean singing, acoustic passages, gang chants, jackhammer D-beats, labyrinthine melodies and dissonant chordage. Thrilling.

Crucial Crust: "The Rattle of Black Teeth"



2~

Coalesce
Ox [Amazon]
(Relapse)

Part mathcore freakfest, part corn-fed, Pentecostal tent revivalism, Ox is Coalesce's triumphal return to hardcore supremacy. Worth the 10-year wait? You bet.

Crucial Crust: "Wild Ox Moan" [MP3]



1~

Converge
Axe To Fall [Amazon]
(Deathwish Inc.)

Some things you may not know about the members of Converge: guitarist Kurt Ballou was an aerospace engineer, singer Jacob Bannon has been nominated for "World's Sexiest Vegetarian," drummer Ben Koller is an amateur poker champion and bassist Nate Newton wears a mustache un-ironically. They whip each other with belts before going on stage. None smoke and only one drinks occasionally.

Sounds like a bunch of nerds, right? They are.

But 20 years into a career that's landed them mountains of critical and commercial acclaim, legions of zealous devotees and hosts of copy-cat bands who've made their careers ripping off Converge's signature sound, these four nerds from Salem, Mass., have created not only their best album, but also album of the year.

Lightning-fast and raw-throated, Axe's skeleton is hardcore to the marrow. But by coloring the record with post-everything experimental swaths, shovelfuls of doom and sludge and flourishes of synths and acoustics, Converge have expanded traditional metallic hardcore's palette yet again. And with members of such luminary groups as Cave In, Entombed, Neurosis, Genghis Tron and the Red Chord lending aid, Axe to Fall is a rich, innovative and rewarding listen.

Crucial Crust: "Dark Horse," [MP3] "Reap What You Sow," "Worms Will Feed/Rats Will Feast"

///
Honorable Mentions, Notable Releases and Other Sundry Items

Ancestors - Of Sound Mind (Tee Pee): LA psych-doom troupe go epic, show Kyuss some love.
Funeral Mist - Maranatha (Ajna): Marduk frontman's black metal bad acid trip.
Iron Age - The Sleeping Eye (Tee Pee): Young Austin thrashers do 'core, real hard. Real talk.
Skagos - Ást (Eternal Warfare): BC atavists show hungry Wolves true meaning of Cascadian black metal.

Nachtmystium - Doomsday Derelicts EP (Battle Kommand)
Coalesce - OXEP (Relapse)
Pelican - Ephemeral EP (Southern Lord)
Atakke - Avalanche EP (Mountains of Madness)

- Top Two "Holy, Shit! I Can't Believe What I'm Seeing" Reunion Shows (Tie):
Pentagram (July 6, Emo's, w/ Nachtmystium, Outlaw Order, Wolves in the Throne Room) & Eyehategod (May 24, Red 7 w/ Harvey Milk; Nov. 6, Emo's - also met Pantera's Rex Brown that night. Boo yah.)

- The New York Times goes metal: Hideous Gnosis, "Two Bands, A Million Decibels," "Repetitive Guitar Strums Rooted in Metal but Not Confined by It," "One Band Moves Its Metal Out of Iraq."

- Until the Light Takes Us
- Such Hawks Such Hounds: Scenes From the American Hard Rock Underground

- Decibel magazine's Precious Metal: The Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces
- Arik Roper's Mushroom Magick

- Anything written by Cosmo Lee, J. Bennett or Brandon Stosuy this year.
- Anything illustrated by Justin Bartlett, Arik Roper, Seldon Hunt, Funeral French, Florian Bertmer or John Baizley this year.

Continue Reading...

BEST OF 2009...FEATURING MIKE HILL, COSMO LEE AND SCOTT EVANS

This year we have a few special, humorous and interesting guest Top 10 Lists from some of our favorite artists and one of our favorite writers (who chooses to wield his keystrokes towards all things unholy and grim). Enjoy the absurdity and read more to see one of the best band logos, ever.


Tombs

MIKE HILL'S TOP TEN THINGS OF 2009:

10. Advance copy of Diet Pills / Dead in the Woods split
9. Deathspell Omega / SVART split
8. The US dvd release of Martyrs
7. "Gin" by Cobalt
6. Meeting Wino at South by Southwest
5. Seeing the Watchmen movie at midnight on it's opening day
4. Playing the Burnt by the Sun Reunion at the Cake Shop, NYC
3. Playing with Marduk at Blender, NYC this summer
2. Where the Wild Things Are
1. Isis - "Wavering Radiant"

Kowloon Walled City

SCOTT EVANS' TOP 10 SOFTWARE OF 2009

10. Google Docs. Shared spreadsheets are the new black metal.
9. Total Commander. There is nothing like this shit on the Mac. Why.
8. Eclipse. An acquired taste for sure, but it's actually pretty good.
7. Emacs. Perennial favorite. Current uptime 46 days, 173 open buffers.
6. Lightroom. Best photo tweaking software. Easy on the vignette, people.
5. Cubase. My wife of many, many years. She snores, she never does the dishes. She's no supermodel. But we understand each other.
4. WordPress. Have you heard of blogging? Shouts to GigPress, Lightbox, Redirection, and Viper's Video Quicktags.
3. WriteRoom. Where I go when I need peace and quiet.
2. Alpine. Pine, bitches. That's how I roll.
1. Universal Audio plugins. I would hate to mix without these. These guys are killing it. Go find a used UAD-1 for $100. It'll change your life.

Invisible Oranges

COSMO LEE'S TOP TEN MYSPACE FRIEND REQUESTS FROM BANDS:

10. Airlines of Terror
9. Chicken Master
8. Unbreakable Hatred
7. So Much to Fear
6. Crimson Floods the Altar
5. my first kiss at a public execution
4. Grotesque Disfigurement
3. A Face to Kill For
2. 50 Ways to Kill Me
1. Basement Torture Killings

Continue Reading...

THESE SEANS' BEST OF 2009

10~

Iron Age
The Sleeping Eye [Amazon]
(Tee Pee Records)


Thrash and hardcore paced evenly, Iron Age never try to outplay themselves. Great songs, tons of power and bluesy leads combine for a record that is an easy, enjoyable listen but has enough depth for serious staying power.

Crucial Cut: "A Younger Earth" [MP3]


9~

Suffocation
Blood Oath [Amazon]
(Nuclear Blast)


Blood Oath is unrelenting, but a lot of death metal is. What really sets this album apart is that it is uncompromising. Mike Smith's drumming displays his signature style but involves new creative choices that apply an (almost) minimalist approach to some of these songs. There is nothing better than a band who has operated in the extremes for twenty years and still continues to expand their sound. Within this record there is plenty of the technical death metal that makes Suffocation great as well (especially some intricate (and hey, memorable too!) guitar riffs).

Crucial Cut: "Cataclysmic Purification" [Video]


8~

Converge
Axe To Fall [Amazon]
(Deathwish Inc.)


I am the biggest Converge fan-boy I know. But alas, I (and apparently I alone) was disappointed with Axe To Fall. To me this record feels like Converge doing everything that they've done before, all at once, better than they've done it before. Which is great, but one thing I've always loved about this band is that I've felt each album was a creative growth. I don't feel that way here. All that said, Axe To Fall still rules, and was one was best records of this year. Just wasn't what I wanted. (That's my problem, I know).

Crucial Cut: "Dark Horse" [MP3]


7~

Brutal Truth
Evolution Through Revolution [Amazon]
(Relapse)


Brutal Truth gave me my most physically and mentally punishing live set this year (playing for roughly 90 minutes after Pig Destroyer and Repulsion). Evolution Through Revolution on the other hand comes close to being too much, but knows just when to end. Despite Erik Burke's questionable guitar tone (what is with Lilker projects and weird tone? Crucifist?) Evolution Through Revolution sees Brutal Truth attack grindcore with renewed clarity. Instead of the "if we did it, it was grind" mentallity of albums like Animal Kingdom, Evolution gets experimental and weird, but does so within the normal chaos of grind. Surprisingly satisfying.

Crucial Cut: "Sugar Daddy" [MP3]


6~

Archgoat
The Light-Devouring Darkness [Amazon]
(Blasphemous Underground)


At times simple and slow, often bone chillingly scary. Deep bending riffs hang over the fastest moments. By far the most "evil" album on my list, with black metal sounds of yore. Archgoat's music is more sludge and punk than any modern black metal sounds.

Crucial Cut: "Goat and the Moon"


5~

Amesoeurs
Amesoeurs [Amazon]
(Profound Lore)


Black metal, meet pop rock. Simple as that? Well, no, but the result is just so damned enjoyable! Vocalist/bassist Audrey Sylvain's voice drifts over the blackened compositions with ease, while Neige (Alcest) keeps everything dark without sounding like a band genre jumping to "save face."

Crucial Cut: "Heurt" [MP3]



4~

Isis
Wavering Radiant [Amazon]
(Ipecac)


Isis missed the mark with their last record, In The Absence Of Truth, but on Wavering Radiant all their goals and ideas are realized and fulfilled. Melodies are incorporated in a way that adds to the songs instead of distracting. Drummer Arron Harris finds the happy medium between his stoic minimalist playing and his ever growing ability behind the kit. While Aaron Turner might be singing about his dreams, there is not a moment on Wavering Radiant that will put you to sleep.

Crucial Cut: "20 Minutes/40 Years"


3~

Magrudergrind
Magrudergrind [Amazon]
(Six Weeks Records)


One of the best grind records I've ever heard. Hands down. A great example of something done right. The recording is perfect. The lone guitar sounds massive, with dueling layers of thickness. The drums are spot on. The songs bounce between kick you in the face fast, sludge that is better than most sludge bands, and down right catchy moments. Song writing? You bet your ass. Like a professional sports team winning a championship, Magrudergrind do all the little things right, the resulting awesomeness is undeniable.

Crucial Cut: "Lyrical Ammunition For Scene Warfare"


2~

Tombs
Winter Hours [Amazon]
(Relapse)


One of the most exciting records to come out this year. Tombs mix hardcore, black metal and genuine shoe-gaze rock. Winter Hours offers escape, punishment, exhilaration and wonder. Instead of sounding like a band who is mixing or jumping genres, on Winter Hours Tombs sound like three men who understand their common goal.

Crucial Cut: "Gossamer" [MP3]


1~

Coalesce
OX [Amazon]
(Relapse)


Like a lot of other records on my list, on OX Coalesce recognize what they are good at and execute perfectly. While the record does offer some "growth" in the addition of sparse melodic vocals and the embellishment of guitarist Jes' Americana interests, nothing ever feels out of place. Growth, or change in direction, with bands is often met with fan resistance, but when groups are able to realize what is working and what isn't, greatness can happen.

Crucial Cut: "Wild Ox Moan" [MP3]

~~~~~~

Notable 7"s/EPs

The Hope Conspiracy - True Nihilist

Coalesce - OXEP

Howl - Howl

~~~~~~

Honorable Mentions:

Anaal Nathrakh - In the Constellation of the Black Widow

Asphyx - Death... The Brutal Way

Gaza - He Is Never Coming Back

Mammoth Grinder – Extinction of Humanity

Marduk - Wormwood

Merrimack - Grey Rigorism

Narrows - New Distances

Nile - Those Whom The Gods Detest

Sunn O))) - Monoliths & Dimensions

~~~~~~

Favorite Punk Rock Listens:

The Bomb - Speed Is Everything

Reminds me of early R.E.M. meeting mid-era Fugazi. Ex- Naked Raygun frontman Jeff Pezzati is consistently good, the band is effective in melody, minimalism, atmosphere and structure.



Dear Landlord - Dream Homes

Pop punk that is actually punk rock. Repeated, repeated listens.





Heartsounds - Until We Surrender

Remember that band Light This City? No? Well, don't bother. Ben and Laura leave the remains of an average metal band to form an excellent skate punk band with huge chorus's, big hooks and awesome drumming.



The Lawrence Arms - Buttsweat and Tears

Dont't let the EP's name send you running (it's an inside joke of sorts), The Larry Arms make quality pop punk. Like one of my favorite bands good. Brenden's songs lean a little towards the big pop buried in whiskey moments of his side project The Falcon. Chris comes in with one of his best songs "The Slowest Drink At The Saddest Bar On The Snowiest Day In The Greatest City." This song has the duality of being heavy and depressing while reaching a moment of joyous pop rock gold in the build up, post-bridge.

No Friends - No Friends

Tony Foresta (Municipal Waste) teams up with 3/4 of New Mexican Disaster Squad to create old school hardcore punk. This record walks so many fine lines in 2009, but in the 80's this would have just been hardcore punk. Sounding energetic and pissed off, No Friends also create a record that is fun and enjoyable start to finish. Did I just sing along? I didn't even realize I knew the words yet!

Continue Reading...

CRUSTCAKE'S TOP 25 SONGS OF THE YEAR

by The WZA'd (Austin)

Lists are a lot of fun, and we've got a brand new one for you! Though it's probably useless to try and put some numerical value on art, the very act of ranking anything in list order tries to do just that. Lists can be thought-provoking, interesting and useful (for people trying to catch up on the past year), so we make them anyway. At Crustcake, not only have we each made a list for our individual top ten albums of the year, but we went ahead and created a top 25 songs of the year list as well. Presented below is a list created by four different people with four very different top 25 songs, a point system that involves some left over Tomas Haake drum patterns algorithms and 6 bottles of whiskey. We hope you enjoy it.

25. "White Stone" - Funeral Mist
24. "Aghartha" - Sunn O)))
23. "Said and Done" - Kylesa
22. "A Sermon to the Dead" - Destroyer 666
21. "Dark Horse" - Converge
20. "Blood Oath" - Suffocation
19. "Hellish Overdose" - Nachtmystium
18. "Timelord Two (Paradoxical Reaction)" – Agoraphobic Nosebleed
17. "Apocalyptic Havoc" – Goatwhore
16. "Geometry of Murder (Earth cover)" - Pelican
15. "Oblivion" - Mastodon
14. "Cataclysmic Purification" – Suffocation
13. "Werships" – Portal
12. "Evisceration Plague" – Cannibal Corpse
11. "Psycopathy Red" – Slayer
10. "Scapegoat" – Kylesa
9. "In my Wake, For My Own" – Coalesce
8. "20 Minutes / 40 Years" - ISIS
7. "Filled with Secrets" – Tombs
6. "The Sleeping Eye of the Watcher" – Iron Age
5. "Oma" – Howl
4. "In the Constellation of the Black Widow" – Anaal Nathrakh
3. "Hall of the Dead" – ISIS
2. "Wild Ox Moan" – Coalesce
1. "Gossamer" – Tombs

In honor of Tombs winning, we'll re-post the Gossamer Video. What a sweet frickin' prize!

Continue Reading...

The WZA'D'S BEST OF 2009

by The WZA'd (Austin)


10~

Mastodon
Crack The Skye [Amazon]
(Reprise)


I wasn’t going to include Crack the Skye on my list initially. For months, I hated this album (after a short love affair when it came out). But when I finally saw them live again with Converge and High on Fire, it clicked back into place. The sing-along choruses, memorable solos, ridiculous concept and fond memories make this album one of the best of the year for me.

Crucial Cut: "Crack the Skye"


9~

Portal
Swarth [Amazon]
(Profound Lore)


Death metal never scared me, and while Swarth doesn’t make me sleep with the light on either, it’s the closest thing to horrifying I’ve heard from a metal band. Get past the “pretension” surrounding the band and there’s a record here unlike anything else this year.

Crucial Cut: "Larvae"


8~

The Red Chord
Fed Through the Teeth Machine [Amazon]
(Metal Blade)


Clients is no longer the record we should judge The Red Chord’s future releases by. That’s not to say that Fed Through the Teeth Machine is their best album (it’s certainly between the two), but the album sees the band going in a different direction. Fans will need to redefine what the band means to them after this slow-grower of an album.

Crucial Cut: "Mouthful of Precious Stones"
Free Download: "Hour Of Rats" [MP3]


7~

Gaza
He Is Never Coming Back [Amazon]
(Black Market Activities)


Gaza’s newest record sounds pissed off, and urgently so. But after every show of brute force, an almost peaceful instrumental interlude comes in to let the album breathe, making the heavy parts all the heavier. Straddling the line between sludge, grindcore, hardcore and other appropriated genres (opener “How it is. How it’s going to be.” is a send-up to “Black Sabbath”), Gaza’s sound is almost indefinable but completely recognizable.

Crucial Cut: "Canine Disposal Unit" [MP3]


6~

Kylesa
Static Tensions [Amazon]
(Prosthetic)


Static Tensions leaves behind the spacey interludes found on Kylesa’s previous two records in favor of more solid, memorable songs. With two drummers, one per speaker, Kylesa sounds busier than ever but aren’t any worse off for it. Weaving together sludge, Kyuss-esque (Kyesque?) psychedelia and post-hardcore, Kylesa bring the heavy with a heaping portion of melody.

Crucial Cut: "Perception"


5~

Coalesce
OX/OXEP [Amazon]
(Relapse)


OX didn’t grab me at first. I listened to it, let it sit for a while, then came back to it and liked it as much as any good album this year. But when OXEP came out recently, I finally got it. With Nathan Ellis driving the band with his bass and Jes Steineger trying desperately to veer it off course with his guitar, the album is a calculated mess of spastic, mathy hardcore with Americana interludes peppered in.

Crucial Cut: "Wild Ox Moan"


4~

Burnt by the Sun
Heart of Darkness [Amazon]
(Relapse)


Heart of Darkness has become my workout music. While Gaza may sound pissed off, Burnt by the Sun don’t rely as much on atmosphere in their sound and have the riffs, speed and bottom-end I need when I’m pushing myself farther than my body is supposed to go. Similarly, the band pushes themselves farther than they’ve ever gone on what is their final album.

Crucial Cut: "The Wolves are Running"
Free download: "Inner Station" [MP3]


3~

Isis
Wavering Radiant [Amazon]
(Ipecac)


Soothing, layered, crushing, melodic, beautiful, triumphant. ISIS didn’t mess around with this one.

Crucial Cut: "20 Minutes/40 Years"


2~

Weekend Nachos
Unforgivable [Amazon]
(Relapse)


I didn’t realize it until recently, but it seems that I have listened to Unforgivable more than almost any other album this year. That’s what my computer says anyway. It’s not an accident either – this is some heavy, angry hardcore, with a guitar sound more sludgy than most sludge metal bands. Aside from the brutally short songs, the raw, dark production makes this album sound about as welcoming as a punch to the gut. Not that Weekend Nachos is any worse off for it. One of the best albums all year.

Crucial Cut: "Nights" [MP3]


1~

Agoraphobic Nosebleed
Agorapocalypse [Amazon]
(Relapse)


Some people might think that using a drum machine is cheating, especially when you use it like Scott Hull did on the new AnB album. But I submit that having a computer as your drummer isn’t cheating any more than having Scott Hull as your guitarist is. Add in two more singers than most bands have, one of them the piercing bloody scream of Katherine Katz, and the odds are already in AnB’s favor. The band doesn’t stop there though – with as much grindcore, powerviolence, metal and punk they could find, they created songs that attack at 1,000 BPM from all directions. If there’s an album this year that will make your head explode, this is it.

Crucial Cut: "Timelord Two (Paradoxical Reaction)"
Free Download: "Agorapocalypse Now" [MP3]

~~~~~~

Honorable Mentions

You may have noticed that Baroness and Converge aren’t on my top ten. They’re not on this list either, but I don’t think I need to tell you that they’re good albums.

1. Brutal Truth – Evolution Through Revolution

Classic grind from a classic band that not only still holds up today, but does it better than most.

2. Cannibal Corpse – Evisceration Plague

Straight-up brutal death metal. Kids shouldn’t have to listen to Job for a Cowboy when there’s still a band like this around.

3. Howl – Howl EP

Next year’s best band.

4. Hull – Sole Lord

This one got a lot of rotation, but I didn’t include it on the list because the production was so-so. Doomy, progressive, down-to-earth. Wonderful.

5. Javelina – Beasts among Sheep

I wish I knew Philly had a sludge metal band when I was still up there. This is for fans of Kylesa, Buzzov-en and Black Tusk.

6. Laudanum – The Coronation

Doom, but with unsettling noise parts. When it hits, it hits hard.

7. Mammoth Grinder – Extinction of Humanity

My favorite Austin local band just got signed to Relapse. Sludgy death metal in the vein of Autopsy, but more straightforward.

8. Magrudergrind – Magrudergrind

Weekend Nachos beat them out for a spot on my top ten, but this is definitely one of the best grindcore releases all year.

9. Pelican – Ephemeral EP/What We All Come to Need

Filled with hooks and riffs, Pelican’s releases this year exceeded my expectations.

10. Shrinebuilder – Shrinebuilder

You know the people in Shrinebuilder, so you have a good idea of what this sounds like. The album is great, but live is where the band really gels.

11. Tombs – Winter Hours

What more can I say about this that we already haven’t said a billion times?

12. YOB – The Great Cessation

This album was THIS close to making top-ten status, with the first, second, and last tracks being absolutely stellar. Definitely the most crushing doom release this year.

Continue Reading...

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.

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