2019 another phenomenal year for metal
Just wanted to show some love back to the bands that kept me motivated through 2019. Some of these are pretty well known some of these are sleepers. They are loosely in order of favorite to least favorite. This is just all personal opinion. I know their are bigger records, these are just the ones I really liked and i'm hoping someone can find something they hadn't heard of here. |
| 1 |  | Mass Worship
Mass Worship
I feel like this album is being criminally slept on right now. Century Media doing a bizarre job pushing them. They have a Swedish death metal tone, hardcore sounding roots. Slick songwriting and frontman presence. I definitely recommend this album if you haven't heard it. |
| 2 |  | Mortiferum
Disgorged From Psychotic Depths
This album is just awesome. Not sure what else to say. Really thoughtful song writing and pretty diverse. I appreciate that the production is clean but not overdone. Profound Lore really does a good job with this on their death metal releases. |
| 3 |  | Throes (USA)
In The Hands Of An Angry God
This release was another one I didn't think got much press. This band is out of Boise ID (formerly known as Bone Dance). These guys have a very unique take on some pretty raw metal. Strange guitar work that isn't rigid but is still very driving. |
| 4 |  | Towering
Obscuring Manifestation
I came across this in a NCS double review with the Fuming Mouth record. This this is awesome. Reminds me of Behemoth from the Demigod/Evangelion sound. Really cool release and highly recommended. |
| 5 |  | Gatecreeper
Deserted
I own more merch and have seen this band more than any others on this list. They are probably my favorite active band. The song writing on this showed maturity from previous releases. It got more expansive and after years of a run and gun style it had to happen. I would have been happy with another Sonoran but for the band to grow and have longevity they needed to mature. Songs have more depths and diversity. Probably the only reason why it isn't first on my list is because of the production on the album. Normally Gatecreeper opts for a punchy round production style. This one seemed thin and I think they lost some venom as a result. Other than that this album is close to flawless. |
| 6 |  | Cult of Luna
A Dawn to Fear
This might me my favorite CoL album. They go for a darker sound on this and as usual they deliver. The song Lights on the Hill alone is worth the price of admission. |
| 7 |  | Krypts
Cadaver Circulation
I think Krypts really hit their stride here. Seems like lots of others felt that way. It moves a lot better than previous works and its just awesome. |
| 8 |  | Fuming Mouth
The Grand Descent
I just love this album. It's not the most complex piece on this list but man it is great. From start to finish I never find myself skipping anything. The vocals are on point, the drumming is slick and the riffs keep it simple but interesting. It's just an easy record to throw on and keep the day moving. |
| 9 |  | Blood Incantation
Hidden History of the Human Race
So I have not had a lot of time to sit with this record. My preorder still hasn't arrived and I would like to listen a bit more on wax. However I do think the record is quite good. It has a bit of an awkward feel in that it seems closer to two EP's put together. I do think its 2-3 track short of a complete full length and initially I don't like it as much as Blood Spawn. That said the song writing shows more range and it never leaves the listener bored. The final behemoth of a track I would say overshadows most of the first half of the album and its a metal masterpiece. |
| 10 |  | Fetid
Steeping Corporeal Mess
20 Buck is dropping awesome albums by the dozens. It can be hard to keep track. This one I found myself coming back to quite a bit. Saw them live a couple months ago and the songs sound great live. |
| 11 |  | Sleeping Ancient
There Is No Truth but Death
I don't listen to a ton of black metal which is why there is not much on this list. I did really enjoy this record and listened to it pretty frequently since it dropped. |
| 12 |  | Vitriol (USA)
To Bathe From the Throat of Cowardice
I was a big fan of the EP these guys put out before this. I don't listen to a ton of tech-death but this album is an absolute ripper. Front to back, its moves and has interesting riffs which I find can be lacking in a lot of tech death. These guys look like they are from Mad Max and their sound is equally as wild. |
| 13 |  | Carnal Tomb
Abhorrent Veneration
OSDM without question. Seems like a lot of that is dropping these days. I felt like this album really stood out. Really enjoyed this, not much else to say. |
| 14 |  | Ossuarium
Living Tomb
This was early on in 2019. This album showed an impressive range. At time even kind of reminding me of Crowbar. Really bleak soundscapes at points. I felt like this was a little under the radar compared to some other 20BS. |
| 15 |  | Mutilatred
Ingested Filth
This is an EP but jesus this is some rough stuff. Just really well executed and really hellish material. I felt like their previous incarnation Premonitions of War was really ahead of its time. Hopefully this EP starts to make some waves. |
| 16 |  | Creeping Death
Wretched Illusions
These guys are really young and the potential is there for them to put out a certified classic. I saw them play with fuming mouth and they have great energy live. I think in the future if they expand and make some parts a bit more intricate they will start to land in top 5's of a lot of peoples lists. |
| 17 |  | Noctambulist
Atmospheres of Desolation
Really cool tech death album from Colorado that I thought deserved more shine. Really interesting riffs and great song writing. If you are a fan of Ulcerate I would highly recommend checking this album out. |
| 18 |  | Nails
I Don't Want to Know You
Not really sure this would even be considered an EP. I put it on the list because I did listen to these two songs a ton. It's nails being nails. The Max Cavalera feature is pretty epic and the song has massive groove. |
| 19 |  | Judiciary
Surface Noise
Not a ton of hardcore on this list. This is probably the most traditional and straight forward hardcore record on here. It is very metal and it is riff city which is a bit different for hardcore. This is a super solid release for these guys and I am expecting big things from them in the future. They are keeping a sound alive that I think many have checked out of. |
| 20 |  | Tomb Mold
Planetary Clairvoyance
This is a tricky record. I liked it a lot at first but pretty quickly over time I found I lost a lot of interest. I saw a lot of other people have the same trajectory. These guys are clearly talented and the potential is through the roof. This being their 3rd full length in 3 years. I think they could benefit a lot from taking 2-3 years to really craft a great album. The other major issue I have is the production is absolutely awful. I'm not even sure what they were going for. I don't even get an OSDM production vibe here. It is just flat and sounds unmixed. Everything just blends together and is in the same frequency range. Tomb Mold has some of the most intricate guitar work in metal and I would really love to hear it with some quality production. Its a cool record but I think these guys are capable of something much greater. |
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