| 4.5 superb |
| ...and Oceans Cosmic World Mother |
| The best melodic black metal album this year, and potentially the best album in their catalog. Produced perfectly, full of fantastic symphonic arrangements and organized especially well as well. Love how the album starts to emanate little industrial flourishes as it blisters quickly towards its ending. |
| ...and Oceans The Regeneration Itinerary |
| 3 (USA) The End is Begun |
| 65daysofstatic The Fall of Math |
| 65daysofstatic We Were Exploding Anyway |
| A Loathing Requiem Psalms of Misanthropy |
| A Lot Like Birds Conversation Piece |
| Accept Blood Of The Nations |
| Accept Stalingrad: Brothers In Death |
| Aceyalone A Book of Human Language |
| Acrania (MEX) An Uncertain Collision |
| This is so underrated it hurts. Imagine 'Elements'-era Atheist, then add in samba drums and a sporadic sax solo. I managed to stumble across them because of this ass-tier deathcore act with the same name, and it's the greatest mistake I ever made. |
| Aesop Rock Labor Days |
| Aesop Rock Skelethon |
| Aesop Rock Cat Food |
| Aetherian The Untamed Wilderness |
| Agalloch Marrow of the Spirit |
| Ahab The Coral Tombs |
| Akercocke Renaissance in Extremis |
"My real question is: how many of the people who have rated this album so highly are revisiting
these days?" Well I just listened to this front to back in my car yesterday so s my d |
| Alcest Écailles De Lune |
| Alice in Chains Jar Of Flies |
| Alice in Chains Dirt |
| Alkaloid The Malkuth Grimoire |
| Alkaloid Liquid Anatomy |
| All Pigs Must Die Hostage Animal |
| This band beat my ass and took my wallet. I received my album in the mail a week later. |
| Allelic The Smoke of Atavistic Fires |
| The best 2.99 I've spent since Taco Bell had 1 dollar 5 layer burritos |
| Alon Mor Lands of Delight |
| alt-J An Awesome Wave |
| Alter Bridge Fortress |
| Amesoeurs Ruines Humaines |
| Amon Amarth With Oden on Our Side |
| An Abstract Illusion Woe |
| Just gets progressively better with every successive listen |
| Anaal Nathrakh Hell Is Empty and All the Devils Are Her |
| Anachronism Orogeny |
| Anachronism Meanders |
A strong successor to a strong successor.
Meanders builds on the dissodeath, meat
and potato tactic that Orogeny seemed to
patently perfect, by just marginally
tweaking their structures and general
sound to a more interesting effect.
What you get is easily one of the
strongest albums in this style to drop
this year |
| Andy James Andy James |
| Angel Vivaldi Universal Language |
| Animals As Leaders The Joy of Motion |
| Anthrax Among The Living |
| Anubis Gate Andromeda Unchained |
| Archspire All Shall Align |
| Fantastic album. Catchy and technical without sounding pretentious. |
| Arghoslent Incorrigible Bigotry |
| Armand Hammer Paraffin |
| Arsis A Celebration of Guilt |
| Arsis A Diamond for Disease |
| Arsis Lepers Caress |
| And not a mention of tightropes anywhere. Ah yes, Arsis is right back on track. |
| Art By Numbers Reticence: The Musical |
| Artificial Brain Infrared Horizon |
| Artillery By Inheritance |
| Ashenspire Hostile Architecture |
| Astra The Black Chord |
| Astronautalis This Is Our Science |
| At the Drive-In Relationship of Command |
| Atheist Jupiter |
| Atmosphere God Loves Ugly |
| Atmosphere When Life Gives You Lemons... |
| Augury Illusive Golden Age |
| AZ Doe or Die |
| Bad Rabbits Stick Up Kids |
| Bad Religion True North |
| BADBADNOTGOOD III |
| Barren Earth Curse of the Red River |
| Battle Of Mice A Day of Nights |
| Batushka Panihida |
| Beastwars Blood Becomes Fire |
| Bell Witch Mirror Reaper |
| Benighted Icon |
| Between the Buried and Me Colors |
| Between the Buried and Me The Parallax II: Future Sequence |
| Beyond Creation The Aura |
| Beyond Creation Earthborn Evolution |
| Hard to say which is better, between this and The Aura. Both are equally excellent releases, so take this as you will. |
| Beyond the Bridge The Old Man and The Spirit |
| Billy Woods History Will Absolve Me |
| Billy Woods and Kenny Segal Hiding Places |
| Billy Woods and Kenny Segal Maps |
| On first listen this might actually be better than Hiding Places, which was already a hella stacked album |
| Biz Markie Goin' Off |
| Black Crown Initiate Song of the Crippled Bull |
| Black Thought Streams Of Thought, Vol. 2 |
| Blackbraid Blackbraid II |
| This is the most engaged I've been by a black metal album all year |
| Blind Guardian At The Edge Of Time |
| Blood Spore Fungal Warfare Upon All Life |
| The production on this is everything I want from an album in this genre and the compositions are so mean they might as well be boomer retail customers 4.5/5 would feel filthy again |
| Blotted Science The Animation of Entomology |
| Blut Aus Nord Disharmonium - Undreamable Abysses |
| Blut Aus Nord Disharmonium – Nahab |
| Bop Alloy Bop Alloy |
| Borknagar True North |
| Born to Murder the World The Infinite Mirror Of Millennial Narcissism |
| Broken Social Scene You Forgot It in People |
| Cage (USA-NY) Movies for the Blind |
| Cage (USA-NY) Hell's Winter |
| Canibus Rip The Jacker |
| Car Bomb Mordial |
| Carcass Heartwork |
| Carcass Surgical Steel |
| Cattle Decapitation Monolith of Inhumanity |
| While quite a bit of their back-discography is bogged down by bland, aimless aggression, Monolith of Inhumanity sees CD spreading out their influences, and trying out more unusual concepts (at least for them). The clean vocals are extremely well done, and the songs play out in interesting ways most of the time. A surprising release, to be sure, and a contender for best death metal release thus far this year. |
| Ceremony Of Silence Oútis |
| Charizma and Peanut Butter Wolf Big Shots |
| Chelsea Wolfe Hiss Spun |
| This album beat my ass and took my lunch money... |
| Chthe'ilist Passage Into the Xexanotth |
| Cleric Retrocausal |
| clipping. There Existed an Addiction to Blood |
| Rap AOTY. Seriously. Incredible textures to the instrumentals and Daveed brings some of his most erratic, maniacal and straight insane verses to date. The last verse on 'Blood On The Fang' might be the best verse of the year. Highly recommended. |
| Clipse Let God Sort Em Out |
| cLOUDDEAD cLOUDDEAD |
| Cobalt Slow Forever |
| Coheed and Cambria From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness |
| Common Be |
| Communic Waves Of Visual Decay |
| Conception My Dark Symphony |
| Converge Petitioning the Empty Sky |
| Converge Jane Doe |
| Converge All We Love We Leave Behind |
| Cormorant Earth Diver |
| Cosmic Church Täyttymys |
| Csejthe Reminiscence |
| Cult of Luna Somewhere Along the Highway |
| Cult of Luna Vertikal |
| Cult of Luna and Julie Christmas Mariner |
| CunninLynguists Will Rap For Food |
| CunninLynguists Southernunderground |
| CunninLynguists Oneirology |
| CYNE Water for Mars |
| Cynthesis ReEvolution |
| Dabrye Two/Three |
| Dalek From Filthy Tongue Of Gods And Griots |
| Dan Swano Moontower |
| Danny Brown Old |
| Dark Time Sunshine Vessel |
| Dark Time Sunshine ANX |
| Dark Tranquillity The Gallery |
| Dawnbringer Nucleus |
| Deafheaven Lonely People With Power |
| Death The Sound of Perseverance |
| Deathspell Omega The Furnaces of Palingenesia |
| Deftones Diamond Eyes |
| Deicide The Stench Of Redemption |
| Deltron 3030 Deltron 3030 |
| Denizen Kane Brother Min's Journey to the West |
| Denzel Curry 13 |
| I don't know what the hell Denzel Curry is doing on Heartless but I love it |
| Denzel Curry Melt My Eyez See Your Future(The Extended Edition) |
This is probably one of the most unique "extended edition" type of albums I've heard. The
contrast between the originals is great, and the jazz rearrangements are very tasteful,
usually extremely smartly written, and definitely substantive enough to warrant another full
listen. Seems like a no brainer if you don't already have this. |
| Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats Unlocked |
| Der Weg Einer Freiheit Noktvrn |
| Destroyer 666 Cold Steel...for an Iron Age |
| Deviant Process Paroxysm |
| Devin Townsend Project Deconstruction |
| Well shit. This is fantastic. Wasn't following this too closely but I saw it dropped and gave it a listen. Was pleasantly surprised, though Devin Townsend always delivers pretty solid material, so I guess I shouldn't be. |
| Diamond District In The Ruff |
| Dilated Peoples Expansion Team |
| Dirge (FR) Elysian Magnetic Fields |
| Dismember The God That Never Was |
| Dismember Indecent And Obscene |
| DJ Muggs Vs GZA Grandmasters |
| Dog Fashion Disco Adultery |
| Draconian Under A Godless Veil |
| Dreadnought Emergence |
| Earl Sweatshirt Sick! |
| genuinely cant tell you what zooloperz is doing on vision |
| Edge of Sanity Crimson II |
| El-P Cancer 4 Cure |
El-P throws down some choice beats, and his wordplay and flow have never sounded better
here. Though some things work better than others, it's still a solid release, and a more
than worthy successor to ISWYD. |
| Elder (USA-MA) Reflections of a Floating World |
| Elder (USA-MA) The Gold and Silver Sessions |
| Elder (USA-MA) Omens |
| Eligh Grey Crow |
| Eligh & Amp Live Therapy at 3 |
| Empyrean Sky The Snow White Rose of Paradise |
| Enslaved RIITIIR |
| First listen reminds me of masterpiece progressive band Rush! Marvelous! Masterful! |
| Enslaved E |
| In Times had me falling asleep, but this one definitely has a certain energy to it that gets you from the beginning to the end, with little to no down time. While the Opeth comparisons are fairly accurate, Enslaved manage to make their compositions much more than just odes to the 70s and 80s; incorporating these ideas into their original sound with very little being lost in translation. This thing is filled with variety and, above that, solid songwriting, so definitely check into this if you're looking for something a bit more colorful in your metal. |
| Enthrope Tomorrow's Dead Days |
| Esoteric A Pyrrhic Existence |
| Eucharist Mirrorworlds |
| For how little it was promoted (and clearly how little the their label paid for the production and recording), this album is just exceptionally written for a melodic death metal record. There's a reason why Dark Tranquillity consider this band to be one of their direct ascendants. |
| Euphoreon Euphoreon |
| Exhumed All Guts, No Glory |
| Exivious Liminal |
| Fair to Midland Arrows and Anchors |
| Falls of Rauros Patterns in Mythology |
| Fallujah The Harvest Wombs |
| Fallujah Nomadic |
THIS SUMMER
GET READY FOR A STAFF REVIEW
THAT WILL CONTRADICT POPULAR OPINION
"FALLUJAH - NOMADIC REVIEW"
COMING TO A SPUTNIK NEAREST YOU |
| Fallujah The Flesh Prevails |
A potentially game-changing album, marred by some of the most horrifically brickwalled production I have ever heard. Very tiring to listen to front to back.
My two cents? Get the vinyl version, or at least a vinyl rip. Much, much better sounding, and less plain LOUD. |
| Fear Factory Mechanize |
| First Fragment Dasein |
| First Fragment Gloire Eternelle |
| Fleet Foxes Helplessness Blues |
| Fleshgod Apocalypse Oracles |
| Frightmare Bringing Back The Bloodshed |
| fun. Aim and Ignite |
| Gang Starr The Ownerz |
| Genghis Tron Board Up the House |
| Ghost (SWE) Meliora |
| Ghost Brigade Until Fear No Longer Defines Us |
| What a phenomenal album. The sludgy sections gel really well with the Agalloch-style accoustic bits, and it's a really unique sound, all in all. |
| Gift of Gab 4th Dimensional Rocket Ships Going Up |
| God Dethroned Under the Sign of the Iron Cross |
| Definitely on par with Passiondale in terms of intensity and performance. A solid album all around |
| Gojira From Mars to Sirius |
| Gojira The Way of All Flesh |
| Gojira L'Enfant Sauvage |
| Gorod Leading Vision |
| Gorod Transcendence |
| Gorod A Perfect Absolution |
| Gorod A Maze of Recycled Creeds |
| Might be my favorite Gorod album since Leading Vision. While perhaps not as immediate as A Perfect Absolution, this one is particularly weighty in the songwriting department. Also: it brings the fucking jazz. |
| Graveyard (SWE) Hisingen Blues |
| Grayceon All We Destroy |
| Grenadier Wolves of the Trench |
| Arghoslent derivative manages to out-Arghoslent modern Arghoslent while also adding tasteful and well integrated black metal additions |
| GridLink Coronet Juniper |
| GridLink Perfect Amber |
| Grip Grand GG DOOM! BUT HOW? |
| Gru Cosmogenesis |
| Haggard Eppur si muove |
| Hail of Bullets ...Of Frost and War |
| Hail Spirit Noir Pneuma |
| Hail the Sun Elephantitis |
| Haken The Mountain |
| Havok Time Is Up |
| Heathen Victims of Deception |
| Heavenwood Abyss Masterpiece |
| Hellripper Warlocks Grim And Withered Hags |
| Hilltop Hoods The Calling |
| HORSE the band The Mechanical Hand |
| Horseback The Invisible Mountain |
| Igorrr Savage Sinusoid |
| Illogic and Blockhead Capture the Sun |
| 2013 continues on as the year of good music. 'Capture the Sun' marks a definite high point in both artists' careers, with top tier flows riding top tier beats, creating a consistency that I haven't seen in a hip-hop album in quite some time. While Illogic has had trouble in the past keeping his albums wholly involving, this doesn't seem to be the case anymore. Both come together to create deep and rewarding tracks, and for any forward-thinking hip-hop fanatic, this release should be a real gem. |
| Immolation Providence |
| Immortal Technique Revolutionary Volume 2 |
| Imperial Circus Dead Decadence Kuruoshiku saita seisan na mukuro wa... |
| In Human Form Opening of the Eye by the Death of the I |
| In Twilight's Embrace The Grim Muse |
| On a short list for best melodeath album of the year. Well produced, well structured, and absolutely fuckin' rockin'. Album melodeath's so hard it was produced in Gothenburg. And it has Tomas Lindberg on it! |
| Inferi (USA) The End of an Era | Rebirth |
| Finally at the level of their last two releases. The production quality increase cements this as one of the sharpest tech death releases to come out all year. |
| Inherits the Void The Impending Fall Of The Stars |
| Mix is a little stuffy, but if you can look past a pretty minor snafu you'll find a rich and rewarding melodic black metal record that reads like a labor of love for the genre's rich and varied past. Definitely a rec for fans of the style, or more melodic metal at large. |
| Insomnium Since the Day It All Came Down |
| Insomnium Above the Weeping World |
| Intestine Baalism Banquet in the Darkness |
| Intestine Baalism Ultimate Instinct |
| Iron Savior Condition Red |
| Jack White Blunderbuss |
| Job For A Cowboy Sun Eater |
| Justice † |
| Kadenzza The Second Renaissance |
Unlike the majority of symphonic black metal acts, Kadenzza has plenty of depth underneath
it's various keyboard tunes. Phenominal riffs, solos and unique vocals put this one over the
top, and show how SBM can still stay interesting and relevant in the 21st century. |
| Kalisia Cybion |
| Kalmah They Will Return |
| Kamelot The Black Halo |
| Kamelot Epica |
| Katatonia Brave Murder Day |
| Kendrick Lamar good kid, m.A.A.d city |
| Kendrick Lamar To Pimp a Butterfly |
| Khemmis Desolation |
| Killer Mike R.A.P. Music |
| King Woman Celestial Blues |
| Kiuas The Spirit of Ukko |
| Kreator Enemy of God |
| Krzysztof Komeda Astigmatic |
| Kvelertak Kvelertak |
| Lantlos .neon |
| Large Professor The LP |
| Latyrx The Album |
| Leprous Bilateral |
| Leprous The Congregation |
| Little People Mickey Mouse Operation |
| Luca Turilli King of the Nordic Twilight |
| Lupe Fiasco Tetsuo and Youth |
| Lute West1996 |
| Majesties Vast Reaches Unclaimed |
| One of the best melodeath records I've heard in years. What seals the deal for me is the production isn't this ultra-glossy, plastic-y composite that removes most of the punch from the songwriting. |
| Malibu Ken Malibu Ken |
| Mar De Grises Streams Inwards |
Every now and then when I want an immense slab of atmospheric death and doom, I find myself
rotating Mar De Grises's 'Streams Inwards' again. It's melodic and haunting, compelling and
creative, and certainly one of the best of its kinds. It's a shame that the band went their
separate ways after this LP, but it certainly stands as their swan song. |
| Marco Polo Port Authority |
| Mare Cognitum Solar Paroxysm |
| Masterplan Masterplan |
| Mastodon Leviathan |
| Megadeth Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? |
| Melt-Banana Fetch |
| Metallica Master Of Puppets |
| MF Grimm American Hunger |
| Michita ONE |
| Minenwerfer Alpenpässe |
| Misthyrming Algleymi |
| Misthyrming Með hamri |
| Moby Destroyed |
| Moonlight Sorcery Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle |
| Mors Principium Est The Unborn |
| Mount Eerie Wind's Poem |
| My Chemical Romance Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge (Deluxe) |
| Nachtmystium Assassins: Black Meddle Pt.1 |
| Nader Sadek In the Flesh |
| I'm going to pretend Morbid Angel never released that abortion of industrial metal as their newest and plug this straight in there. Great classic-sounding death metal with some really interesting arrangements. |
| Native Construct Quiet World |
| Ne Obliviscaris Portal of I |
| Ne Obliviscaris Citadel |
| Necrophagist Onset of Putrefaction |
| Niechec Niechec |
| Night Verses From the Gallery of Sleep |
| Nightingale I |
| Nile Annihilation Of The Wicked |
| Nocturnus AD Paradox |
| Non Phixion The Future Is Now |
| Non-Prophets Hope |
| Oak (PT) Lone |
| Obscura Cosmogenesis |
| Obscura Omnivium |
| Obscura A Valediction |
| Definitely my favorite since Cosmogenesis (though Akroasis certainly had a handful of career highlights). It's apparent to me, listening to the full release, what brought Munzner back to the fold, as the songwriting this time around feels super melodic while retaining just enough of their signature technicality and progressive edge. I wouldn't call it a lighter affair, but it certainly does come across as snappier and more direct, which, in all honesty, has always produced the best results for the band over the years (Incarnated comes to mind). It's good to see them follow it up in a full length offering. |
| Oh, Sleeper Children of Fire |
| Oliver Hart The Many Faces Of Oliver Hart |
| How tf this only has a meager 3.8 average blows my pea brain. While Eyedea's entire discography is absolutely stunning, this is certainly his most potent work. A complete fucking shame that the world lost such an incredibly distinct voice in the hip-hop scene. |
| Omnium Gatherum Beyond |
| Opeth Still Life |
| Opeth Blackwater Park |
| Opeth Ghost Reveries |
| Orden Ogan Ravenhead |
| Orden Ogan Gunmen |
| OutKast Aquemini |
| OutKast ATLiens |
| P.O.S Never Better |
| Panacea (USA) A Mind on a Ship Through Time |
| Parov Stelar Coco |
| Paul Wardingham Assimilate Regenerate |
| Pelican The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon... |
| Pendulum Hold Your Colour |
| People Under the Stairs O.S.T. |
| Phideaux Infernal |
| Phonte Charity Starts at Home |
| Pillars of Cacophony Paralipomena |
| Very palatable, but still very heady dissodeath. Lots of interesting twists and turns, as well as good engaging songwriting. One of the best releases of the year, for sure. |
| Pitchshifter Industrial |
| Plan B Ill Manors |
| Planet X Quantum |
| Poison the Well You Come Before You |
| Polyenso One Big Particular Loop |
| Pomegranate Tiger Boundless |
| Prefuse 73 One Word Extinguisher |
| Prince Paul A Prince Among Thieves |
| Protest the Hero Fortress |
| Pumpkinhead Orange Moon Over Brooklyn |
| Quakers Quakers |
| Quannum Projects Quannum Spectrum |
| Quo Vadis Defiant Imagination |
| Radiohead OK Computer |
| Rancid ...And Out Come the Wolves |
| Ras Kass Soul on Ice |
| Red Sparowes At The Soundless Dawn |
| Reflection Eternal Train of Thought |
| Retromorphosis Psalmus Mortis |
| I'm gonna be peeling back the layers on this bad boy for weeks. It's like the world's largest onion. |
| Rivers of Nihil Monarchy |
| Rivers of Nihil Where Owls Know My Name |
| Imagine if Fallujah hadn't crawled so far up their own asses they were playing their colons like musical instruments and you've got Rivers of Nihil's 'Where Owls Know My Name'. Varied, sonically expansive and possibly the strongest material the band have ever put forth. |
| Run the Jewels Run the Jewels |
| Run the Jewels Run the Jewels 2 |
| Rush Clockwork Angels |
| Russian Circles Empros |
| Sacral Rage Beyond Celestial Echoes |
| Sadistik The Balancing Act |
| Sadistik Flowers for My Father |
| Saor Forgotten Paths |
| It does nothing different at all from the three albums past. The production is marginally better. |
| Sargeist Unbound |
| Satan Court in the Act |
| Scale the Summit Carving Desert Canyons |
| Scar Symmetry Holographic Universe |
| Scorpions Blackout |
| Secrets of the Sky To Sail Black Waters |
| Septicflesh The Great Mass |
| Serpent Of Gnosis As I Drink from the Infinite Well of Inebriation |
| Setentia Darkness Transcend |
| Shining (NOR) Blackjazz |
| Shining (SWE) V - Halmstad |
| Sigh Imaginary Sonicscape |
| Sigh Hangman's Hymn |
| Sigh Heir to Despair |
| Sigh I Saw the World's End - Hangman's Hymn MMXXV |
| Sigur Ros Agætis byrjun |
| SikTh Death of a Dead Day |
| sleepmakeswaves ...and so we destroyed everything |
| Slugdge Esoteric Malacology |
Potential album of the year material here. Some especially tight songwriting on tap, highlighted
by a dynamic and vibrant production job. Slugdge have never released an album outside of the
'excellent' range, but this sits firmly at the top of the list.
Also it slugs hard |
| Smif-N-Wessun Dah Shinin' |
| Sole and the Skyrider Band Plastique |
| Solitude Aeturnus Into The Depths Of Sorrow |
| Soul Cycle Soul Cycle II |
| Soul Khan Soul Like Khan |
| Spectral Voice Eroded Corridors of Unbeing |
| Spirit Adrift Curse of Conception |
| Stake The Hutch |
| Steven Wilson Grace for Drowning |
| Steven Wilson The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories) |
| Streetlight Manifesto Everything Goes Numb |
| Streetlight Manifesto Somewhere in the Between |
| Streetlight Manifesto The Hands That Thieve |
I ask myself how an album can justify six years of hype
And then I listen to this, and it feels like such a natural progression from the last, but
with more maturity and cohesion. Where the last left off, this one picks up, like they've
never been gone at all.
Man, I've missed Streetlight Manifesto. |
| Substantial To This Union A Sun Was Born |
| A very solid album. The beats are phenomenal (though that's no surprise considering the entire CD was produced by Nujabes), and Substantial is competent as always. Very difficult to find, but well worth the effort. |
| Sulphur Aeon The Scythe of Cosmic Chaos |
| Sunken Livslede |
| Deafheaven are too busy being an indie rock band so somebody had to step it up |
| Sunless Ylem |
| Symphony X The Odyssey |
| T.R.A.M. Lingua Franca |
| Taphos Come Ethereal Somberness |
| Teeth Of The Sea Master |
| One of the most interesting post-rock albums of the year, through way of some truly original sonic experimenting. If this doesn't prove to be TotS's entry point into the big leagues than nothing will. |
| Testament The Gathering |
| Testament The New Order |
| Testament Para Bellum |
| Thank You Scientist Terraformer |
| Thantifaxath Hive Mind Narcosis |
| The Absence From Your Grave |
| The Black Dahlia Murder Ritual |
| The Black Dahlia Murder Everblack |
| The Chariot One Wing |
| The Contortionist Exoplanet |
| The Contortionist Exoplanet (Redux) |
This is how you do a remaster; differentiate the instruments more, clean up the mixes and add in elements that flow organically with the originally established material.
If you were looking for an entry point to the Contortionist's discography, or just want to give it a re-listen, this will most definitely deliver. |
| The Dillinger Escape Plan Option Paralysis |
| The Doppelgangaz Lone Sharks |
| The Fall of Troy Doppelganger |
| The Fall of Troy Ghostship Demos |
| The Great Old Ones Cosmicism |
| The Human Abstract Digital Veil |
| The Monolith Deathcult Trivmvirate |
| The Number Twelve Looks Like You Wild Gods |
| The Onyx Collective Lower East Suite Part Three |
| The Project Hate MCMXCIX The Cadaverous Retaliation Agenda |
| The Reign of Kindo The Reign Of Kindo |
| The Reign of Kindo Rhythm, Chord & Melody |
| The Roots Game Theory |
| Theophany Time's End: Majora's Mask Remixed |
| Thrailkill Everything That Is You |
| All you really need to know about this band is that they were formerly Mammoth, the dudes who released the mindfuck of an album that was 'Deviations'. |
| Thrawsunblat Wanderer on the Continent of Saplings |
| One of the most consistent folk/black metal releases in years, which isn't surprising considering the relation to Woods of Ypres. The material here is immediate, which is surprising given it's nature, but gives way to some impressive depths as well. If you've been looking for a solid folk release that holds more than a prance and a single glance, give this a shot. |
| toe For Long Tomorrow |
| Trioscapes Separate Realities |
| Trioscapes Digital Dream Sequence |
| Typhoon (USA-OR) White Lighter |
typhoon you have enraptured the oceans of my soul~
seriously tho this rules |
| Un Sentiment |
| Probably the single most potent doom album to come out in 2018. Lots of variations to keep the monolithic track durations interesting, as well as some surprisingly catchy riffs. Production feels very form-fitting as well, making the beautiful moments feel all the more stunning while allowing the heavier passages to absolutely pulverize you. Not an album to miss. |
| Uneven Structure Februus |
| Unexpect Fables of the Sleepless Empire |
| Unhuman Unhuman |
| This is the band that tech death bands recommend to other tech death bands. Unhuman have a definitive edge over their competition with their mastery of melody and technicality, and how they properly balance the two. It is incredibly impressive how memorable this album is, especially given that this is a debut. Highly recommended shit. |
| Unto Others Mana |
| Uyama Hiroto A Son of the Sun |
| Vader Litany |
| Vanum Ageless Fire |
| "Ageless Fire" is a perfect description for this album |
| Vektor Black Future |
| Vektor Terminal Redux |
| Vektor Outer Isolation |
| Vemod (NO) Venter pa Stormene |
| Venenum Trance of Death |
| This gets a 4 for the last three tracks alone. The final riff looping into the beginning violin passage is incredible as well. |
| Vhol Deeper than Sky |
| Vornagar The Bleeding Holocaust |
| Vulkan Technatura |
| Watchtower Control And Resistance |
| Watchtower Concepts of Math: Book One |
| Weeping Sores False Confession |
| White Ward Love Exchange Failure |
| You know how Rivers of Nihil found varying degrees of success with integrating saxophone into every song on 'Where Owls Know My Name'? White Ward have solved that paradox. By mixing abstract black metal and more free form jazz, they've created the perfect staging ground for intoxicating sax lines. If Noire Black Metal probably wasn't already copyrighted by Neige, these guys would certainly get the sticker. |
| Whores. Gold |
| Wilderun Veil of Imagination |
| Wintersun Wintersun |
| Wolverine Communication Lost |
| Wolves in the Throne Room Two Hunters |
| Worm Bluenothing |
| Xanthochroid Of Erthe and Axen: Act II |
| Everything that Wintersun's 'The Forest Seasons' should have been and more. Eat a dick Jari |
| Yellowcard Southern Air |
| YOB Atma |
| 4.0 excellent |
| '68 In Humor and Sadness |
| ...and Oceans As in Gardens, So in Tombs |
I think that, if you were to go into this record looking for the same unrelenting
aggressiveness that ...and Oceans' recent comeback record, 'Cosmic World Mother' seemed to
shovel out constantly, you might be a touch disappointed.
That said, this seems to tweak the formula moderately to good effect, and I think that goes a
ways toward giving it some additional longevity. Imagine if this WAS just a carbon copy of
the previous record...wouldn't that feel tiring?
Ultimately, I think the band made a smart move altering their course here, because they made
the changes intelligently. My only caveat would be the length. Truthfully, it's just too
fucking long. No black metal record needs to be 50 minutes. But that's my only serious issue
with it, thus far. |
| 1349 Hellfire |
| 1914 The Blind Leading the Blind |
| 65daysofstatic One Time for All Time |
| 7L & Esoteric 1212 |
| A Canorous Quintet Silence of the World Beyond |
| A Forest of Stars Beware the Sword You Cannot See |
| A Loathing Requiem Acolytes Eternal |
| A Lot Like Birds No Place |
| A Storm Of Light As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us... |
| A Wilhelm Scream Partycrasher |
| Abhorrent Decimation The Pardoner |
| Abigail Williams Walk Beyond The Dark |
| Abigail Williams A Void Within Existence |
| Abnormal Thought Patterns Manipulation Under Anesthesia |
| Aborted Global Flatline |
| Aborted TerrorVision |
| Abscession Rot of Ages |
| Ad Nauseam Imperative Imperceptible Impulse |
| Aenigmatum Deconsecrate |
| Aephanemer Prokopton |
| Aephanemer Utopie |
| Aepoch Awakening Inception |
| One of the best debuts I've heard in the progressive death subgenre in some time. Aepoch manage to incorporate thrash, death, prog and black metal into an ultra slick and melodic framework, with blistering, elaborate solos and tasty and distinct bass passages. My only real issue with the album stems from its length; it's clear that the band had an immense amount of content they wanted to pack in, and because of the lack of any real pruning, it can tend to drag at parts. Still though, the amount of promise on-board is obvious from the jump, and further honing might lead them to a true genre classic further down the line. Got to give it to Canada once again for quirky, semi-buried gems such as these. |
| Aesop Rock None Shall Pass |
| Aesop Rock The Impossible Kid |
| Not in love with the muddy, minimalist instrumentals, but pretty pleased with Aes's general flow and (of course) lyricism. Nice to see an emcee known for his brickwall abstractions go for something a little more direct and much more personal. rEdit: Kirby's a slapper |
| Aesop Rock Spirit World Field Guide |
| Aesop Rock & Blueprint Vigilante Genesis |
| Aesop Rock x Blockhead Garbology |
| Aether Realm Tarot |
| AFI Burials |
| Afterbirth The Time Traveler's Dilemma |
| Agalloch Faustian Echoes |
| Ageless Oblivion Penthos |
| Akasha Canticles of the Sepulchral Deity |
| Akhlys Melinoe |
| Alcest Le Secret |
| Alcest Souvenirs D'Un Autre Monde |
| Alcest Kodama |
| Alice in Chains Black Gives Way to Blue |
| Alice in Chains The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here |
| All That Remains The Fall of Ideals |
| All The Luck In The World A Blind Arcade |
| Allegaeon Formshifter |
| Allegaeon Proponent for Sentience |
| Allegaeon Damnum |
| my man really wasted his comment talking about bratwurst |
| Allfather (UK) And All Will Be Desolation |
| alt-J Relaxer |
| Altar of Plagues White Tomb |
| Altar of Plagues Teethed Glory and Injury |
| Alustrium A Monument to Silence |
| Amon Amarth Versus the World |
| Amon Amarth Twilight of the Thunder God |
| Amon Amarth Surtur Rising |
| Amon Amarth Deceiver of the Gods |
| Amon Amarth Berserker |
| Low-key one of their stronger albums. They're still varying it up just enough to keep the formula a hair away from full exhaustion. I am a little concerned they're running out of interesting Norse lore tho |
| Amorphis The Beginning of Times |
| An Autumn Try Not To Destroy Everything You Love |
| Anaal Nathrakh In the Constellation of the Black Widow |
| Anaal Nathrakh Vanitas |
| A return to form after the extremely lackluster 'Passion'. The melodies are phenomenal, the riffs are hard-hitting, and in general the production is excellent. It doesn't surpass some of their previous releases (Hell Is Empty, In the Constellation), but it's definitely in the same ballpark. |
| Anaal Nathrakh The Whole of the Law |
| Anamanaguchi [USA] |
| USA! USA! USA! |
| Anathema The Optimist |
| Anberlin Vital |
| Anciients Heart of Oak |
| Anderson .Paak Malibu |
| Andrew W.K. You're Not Alone |
| Andy Gillion Exilium |
| Animals As Leaders Animals as Leaders |
| Anonymuz Vice City |
Incredibly satisfying, especially with repeated listens. 'Vice City' finds the Florida cult rapper
on his S game, with verbal gymnastics unseen in the vast majority of modern rap, as well as
detailed and particularly challenging lyrics. The instrumentals assembled are incredibly solid as
well, ranging from restrained and minimalistic to thunderous and crunchy. Definitely on a short
list for best rap album of the year, and an easy recommendation, for sure. |
| Anonymuz There Is No Threat |
| Anthrax Spreading The Disease |
| Anthrax Worship Music |
| Arcade Fire Funeral |
| Arcane Roots Blood and Chemistry |
| Arcane Roots Landslide EP |
| This hurts more than that time my dad went out to get cigarettes and came back with a fallout boy album |
| Arch Enemy Burning Bridges |
| Arch/Matheos Winter Ethereal |
| Archspire The Lucid Collective |
| Arcturus Arcturian |
| Arghoslent Hornets of the Pogrom |
| Arghoslent Galloping Through the Battle Ruins |
| Arkaik Metamorphignition |
| Armand Hammer Race Music |
| The true successor to Billy Woods's 'History Will Absolve Me' (with no offense to the excellent Elucid), Race Music is dense and eclectic, with the beats fully fleshing out the immense lyrical passages presented by the abstract duo. While 'Half Measures' was an interesting sonic experiment, it lacked cohesion, but showcased the two's massive potential in full collaboration. This, in its entirety, is it's fruition of form. |
| Armand Hammer Rome |
| Armand Hammer Shrines |
| Arsis We Are the Nightmare |
| Arsis Unwelcome |
| Artefact Magic Spellcraft |
| Artificial Brain Labyrinth Constellation |
| Artificial Brain Artificial Brain |
| Artificial Brain but now the technically astounding robot is leaking oil and stuttering as it crawls after you |
| Astral Tomb Soulgazer |
| Probably one of the most interesting death metal records to release this year |
| Astronautalis Pomegranate |
| Astronautalis Cut The Body Loose |
| Astronoid Air |
| Astronoid Astronoid |
| At the Gates At War with Reality |
| At the Gates To Drink from the Night Itself |
| At the Gates The Nightmare of Being |
| Atoma Skylight |
| Atrae Bilis Apexapien |
| Atramentus Stygian |
| Augury Concealed |
| Augury Fragmentary Evidence |
| August Burns Red Leveler |
| Avantdale Bowling Club Avantdale Bowling Club |
| Avatarium Avatarium |
| Ayreon The Source |
| Gonna need some time to digest, but I'm enjoying this a little more than his past two releases. Has some pop sensibilities to it that I actually enjoyed (Everybody Dies, for starters) as well as some Queen influences all over the place via some truly bombastic chorus arrangements that really set some of the songs off. |
| Azusa Heavy Yoke |
| Bad Meets Evil Hell: The Sequel |
| bansheebeat Spiral Power |
| bansheebeat Lumine |
| Baroness Red Album |
| Baroness Blue Record |
| Baroness Purple |
| Baroness Gold And Grey |
| Barren Earth The Devil's Resolve |
| Barren Earth A Complex of Cages |
| Be'lakor The Frail Tide |
| Be'lakor Of Breath and Bone |
| Beardfish Mammoth |
| Beardfish The Void |
| Beast In Black From Hell With Love |
| Beastwars IV |
| Behemoth Demigod |
| Behemoth The Satanist |
| Being Anthropocene |
| Belphegor Goatreich-Fleshcult |
| Beneath the Massacre Evidence Of Inequity |
| Benighted Identisick |
| Benighted Insane Cephalic Production |
| Benighted Asylum Cave |
| Benighted Necrobreed |
| Rest assured, it's much, much better than Carnivore Sublime. Production really gives this a leg up on most of their earlier works, with chainsaw, Dismember-esque guitar tones that sound heavier and more aggressive than ever, and the songwriting helps in that aspect as well. These are some of the nastiest, most vitriol-encompassing tracks in the band's discography, blasting forward on the impeccable drums of ex-Necrophagist drummer Romain Goulon (!) as well as now ex-guitarist Liem "Litchy" N'Guyen's distinct riffage. While it's still too early to tell how this will stand in the lengthy Benighted discog, it is at least a sign that the band have stepped back and corrected course. |
| Benighted Dogs Always Bite Harder than Their Master |
| Benny The Butcher The Plugs I Met |
| Between the Buried and Me Alaska |
| Between the Buried and Me The Great Misdirect |
| Between the Buried and Me The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues |
| Between the Buried and Me Coma Ecliptic |
| Beyond (DE) Fatal Power of Death |
| Big K.R.I.T. ReturnOf4eva |
| Big K.R.I.T. Live From The Underground |
| Big K.R.I.T. King Remembered In Time |
| Big K.R.I.T. 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time |
| Billy Woods Dour Candy |
| Billy Woods Known Unknowns |
| Much better than his previous, thanks to Blockhead managing to make his per usual esoteric verbal approach more tangible through a brighter series of instrumentals, as well as giving this more cohesion between the varied sounds found throughout the album. Billy doesn't change much, much like Ka or MF Doom, so what you know of his work will set the precedent for what's found on here. If you love him, you'll love this; if not, well, keep moving. |
| Binary Star Light Years Apart |
| Black Crown Initiate The Wreckage of Stars |
| Black Fast Terms of Surrender |
| Schuldiner-esque vocals, tech thrash constructions, and Erik Rutan production. A solid thrash time. |
| Black Hole Deity Lair of Xenolich |
| Concise, varied and littered with good riffs. Definitely worth a listen if you like your death dipping its toes in black metal. |
| Black Milk No Poison No Paradise |
| Black Monolith Passenger |
| Black Sabbath 13 |
| Blackalicious Imani Vol. 1 |
| Better than The Craft, but not in the same atmosphere as Blazing Arrow (though I'm not sure anyone had that expectation). A surprisingly consistent return to form for a rap group out of time and out of place, but all the better for it. Blackalicious have premiered a solid set of old-school hip-hop tracks, full of charisma and genuine funk. |
| Blanck Mass World Eater |
| Blind Guardian Beyond The Red Mirror |
| Blind Guardian The God Machine |
A weirdly toothless production job mars what could be one of their most consistent records ever
composed
Edit: how the FUCK does the best vocalist in power metal this side of Roy Khan ruin the project |
| Bliss N Eso Flying Colours |
| Blockhead Interludes After Midnight |
| Blood Red Throne Altered Genesis |
| Blood Stain Child Idolator |
| Bloodbath The Arrow of Satan Is Drawn |
| On par with, if not better than 'The Fathomless Mastery'. Not the highest bar, but it is, finally, listenable again from front to back and, above all else, FUN. And that's something the band hasn't been since 'Nightmares Made Flesh'. |
| Blotted Science The Machinations of Dementia |
| Blu and Exile Below the Heavens |
| Blu and Exile Give Me My Flowers While I Can Still Smell Them |
| Best thing Blu's done since 'Below the Heavens', no joke. |
| Blu and Oh No A Long Red Hot Los Angeles Summer Night |
'A Tier' Blu performances over 'A Tier' Oh No instrumentals. Probably one of the best hip-hop
albums of the year so far. |
| Blue Sky Black Death Late Night Cinema |
| Blue Sky Black Death Glaciers |
| Bodom After Midnight Paint the Sky With Blood |
| Boldy James and The Alchemist Bo Jackson |
| Bonobo Black Sands |
| Born of Osiris The Discovery |
| Boss Keloid Melted on the Inch |
| Brain Tentacles Brain Tentacles |
| Brocas Helm Defender Of The Crown |
| Broken Social Scene Hug of Thunder |
| Brothers Of Metal Prophecy of Ragnarök |
| Busdriver Electricity Is on Our Side |
| Cannibal Corpse Tomb Of The Mutilated |
| Cannibal Corpse Torture |
| Cannibal Corpse A Skeletal Domain |
| Cannibal Ox Blade of the Ronin |
| Cantique Lepreux Paysages Polaires |
Black metal with riffs?
What year is this again?? |
| Captain Murphy Duality |
| Carcass Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious |
| Catacomb (FR) In the Maze of Kadath |
| Extremely underrated Lovecraftian death metal. It's held up really well over the years, too. |
| Catamenia Location:COLD |
| Cattle Decapitation The Anthropocene Extinction |
| Cecil Otter Rebel Yellow |
| Cellador Off The Grid |
| Better than their debut, which is pretty surprising considering its been ten years since they've put out a full-length |
| Celldweller Celldweller |
| Celph Titled and Buckwild Nineteen Ninety Now |
| Cenospecies Indefinition |
| It's interesting to see where P.O.S. more or less started. This is definitely different from his more punk-oriented solo albums, but it's more or less of the same quality. Definitely worth a look for fans of his, as well as rap fans in general. |
| Changeling (DEU) Changeling |
| Chapel of Disease ...And as We Have Seen the Storm |
| Chapel of Disease Echoes of Light |
| Charred Walls of the Damned Cold Winds On Timeless Days |
| Children of Bodom Halo of Blood |
| Chino XL Poison Pen |
| Chino XL Darkness & Other Colors |
| Very difficult album to listen to at times, but honestly one that's worth a deep delve, if just to get a better understanding of where Chino was at mentally directly before his unfortunate death. |
| Chris Stapleton From A Room: Volume 2 |
| Christian Mistress Possession |
| Circle of Contempt Entwine the Threads |
| Circuit Des Yeux Reaching For Indigo |
| clipping. CLPPNG |
| Coheed and Cambria In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 |
| Coheed and Cambria The Afterman: Ascension |
| Coheed and Cambria The Afterman: Descension |
| Coheed and Cambria Vaxis I: The Unheavenly Creatures |
| Colour in the Clouds Inosculation |
| This is a really beautifully detailed post-hardcore album. While I do think that some of the songwriting decisions are a little too on the nose, the overwhelming conviction involved helps to easily alleviate them. Definitely worth a listen for fans of the genre. |
| Coma Cluster Void Mind Cemeteries |
| Common Finding Forever |
| Contrarian Their Worm Never Dies |
This really surprised me. Their last LP felt aimless and overindulgent, and was hampered by a
pretty lackluster production job. This does not have any of those problems. The songwriting is
sharp, the production feels period specific, and the performances are really something. George
Kolias (Of Nile fame) gives a career highlight on drums, while Brian Mason lays down some eerily-
Schuldiner-esque guitar lines that sound both progressive and surgical in precision. Some will
call this derivative of early-era death metal, and specifically what both Death and Atheist have
laid down before, and while that's certainly true, it's also well played, well-constructed and
complimentary to any of those aforementioned bands. |
| Control Denied The Fragile Art Of Existence |
| Converge You Fail Me |
| Converge Axe to Fall |
| Converge I Can Tell You About Pain |
| Converge The Dusk in Us |
| Converge Bloodmoon: I |
| I think had this been billed as less of a Converge album and more of a culmination of both bands' styles this would have had a much more glowing reception. Certainly there was some foreshadowing of this sound on Converge's 'I Can Tell You About Pain' EP, as well as a handful of tracks off their previous LP 'The Dusk In Us' as well, but it feels like more than an evolution of just that one sound. It combines the slow and slithering, fogged out ethereal-work of Miss Wolfe with that barely containable rage that Converge are known for, and, in the process we get something crawling, bristled, erratic but overwhelmingly emboldened by two groups of musicians that clearly found a middle-ground where most people thought there wasn't one. |
| Convulsing Errata |
| Lowkey one of the best metal albums released in 2016. |
| Cormorant Metazoa |
| Cormorant Diaspora |
| An excellent addition to their already outstanding discography. The slower, somber, more doom-oriented riffs add extra dimensions to Cormorant's sound that I didn't think were possible, and though I still find that everything past Nigel's exit from the band is just a hair inferior, Migration may very well be one of the finest songs the band have ever composed. Good shit. |
| Corrosion of Conformity No Cross No Crown |
| Cradle Orchestra Transcended Elements |
| A wonderfully warm hip-hop/soul CD with plenty of twists and turns along the way. While not a revelation of any kind, it is incredibly solid, and every song is consistent in the album's vision. Definitely worth a look, in my opinion. |
| Craven Idol Forked Tongues |
| Creeping Death Wretched Illusions |
| Nothing innovative but hot damn are there some angry fucking riffs |
| Critical Defiance Misconception |
| Critical Defiance No Life Forms |
| Cronian Erathems |
| Cryptic Shift Visitations from Enceladus |
| Cryptosis Bionic Swarm |
| Cult Leader A Patient Man |
| Album title accurately describes the kind of person who will appreciate this the most. The compositions on here are multilayered and complex, and twist wildly from slow burners to barn burners, in just a matter of seconds. While it might take time to truly hook you, it's certainly worth the effort. |
| CunninLynguists A Piece Of Strange |
| CunninLynguists Dirty Acres |
| CunninLynguists Strange Journey Vol. 1 |
| CunninLynguists Strange Journey Vol. 3 |
Excellent album. The concept works extremely well, and the tracks are way more consistent
than on any of the other Strange Journey albums. Check it out.
|
| CunninLynguists The Azura EP |
| Superior to the first entry in this series, mainly on account of much more impassioned deliveries and instrumentals. The first entry in this series felt like the group re-applying their Dirty Acres sound, but this one feels much more comfortable; falling somewhere in between that album and their more recent outings. Both are free, so don't sleep on them if you haven't heard them. |
| Currensy, Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist Fetti |
| Cyborg Octopus Learning To Breathe |
| CYNE All My Angles Are Right |
| Cynic Ascension Codes |
| Cytotoxin Gammageddon |
| This is going to get a knee-jerk reaction from a few people, mainly on account of the excessive amounts of sweep riffs that Cytotoxin employ. They'll get some comparisons to Rings of Saturn on immediate listen, but definitely don't give in to that statement. Cytotoxin have a deep understanding of how to write interesting songs; weaving these intricate passages into heavy and driving grooves like it's some mathematical formula they've finally perfected. Imagine the newest Dying Fetus album on adrenaline and you have a pretty good picture of 'Gammageddon'. |
| Cytotoxin Nuklearth |
MASSIVE
DICK ENERGY
DETECTED |
| CZARFACE CZARFACE |
| CZARFACE Every Hero Needs a Villain |
| Czarface fires back with an album much more consistent than their debut. The two emcees gel better in general, and the tones are more level across the boards. This finally feels like the project that it was meant to be: somewhere between MF DOOM's goofy cartoon approach and the super sobering underground battle rap circuit. |
| Czarface and Ghostface Killah Czarface Meets Ghostface |
| CZARFACE and MF DOOM Czarface Meets Metal Face |
| A pretty consistent listen from front to back. On the instrumental end, this is the most varied sonic work that the Tzar Keys have ever put forth, ranging from slow and atmospheric crawls to high energy, cartoon-ish romps. On the verbal portion, CZARFACE members Esoteric and Inspectah Deck sound more comfortable and fluid than ever, and, maybe because of this, DOOM manages to come out with more imaginative material than I've seen from him in quite some time. The only real negative to his performance is the amateurish production surrounding him; he's low, fuzzy and unintelligible at certain points on this album, and that's frustrating given that his style is 90% quotables. Still though, the energy is so tangible between the three members that it even rubs off on the guests: Open Mike Eagle gives one of the best verses of his career and Vinnie Paz manages to sound more cognizant than he has since 'Servants In Heaven...' era JMT. My only real complaint is that the album starts and ends rather disappointingly; The first real track, 'Meddle With Metal' plods more than it marches with it's odd Wu Tang melody, and 'Sleeping Dogs', the closer, doesn't even feel thematically connected. For an album loosely based on comic book creations, interspersed with various sketches relating these characters, there is a very disappointing lack of follow-through. That said, this is still one of the most unabashedly old-school and 'fun' hip-hop albums to drop in 2018, and it definitely deserves a listen. |
| Daeva (USA-PA) Through Sheer Will And Black Magic… |
| Dalek Asphalt For Eden |
| Haven't enjoyed anything from Dalek post-Abandoned Language. Good to see that this is a solid revival LP, with more than enough apocalyptic hip-hop tracks to get them back up and running. |
| Dan Dankmeyer Arcologies |
| I thought this was much better than his previous works. Much more diverse with more distinct songwriting, to boot. |
| Dance Gavin Dance Instant Gratification |
| DangerDoom The Mouse And The Mask |
| Danny Brown XXX |
| Danny Brown Bruiser Brigade |
| Danny Brown Stardust |
| Dark Matter Secret Perfect World Creation |
| Instrumental tech death/prog metal with a nice, well-leveled production job and a strong sense of songwriting. While most tech metal acts are satisfied with writing a series of tangent riffs before, finally, abruptly ending, Dark Matter Secret understand the necessity of peaks and valleys; their leads ebbing naturally and rather coherently while also still surprising. For a debut project, this all feels rather veteran, with a lot of nuance to be found all over. Definitely check it if you're a fan of the genres. |
| Dark Tranquillity Construct |
| Dark Tranquillity Moment |
| Darkthrone The Underground Resistance |
| Darkthrone Astral Fortress |
| Das Racist Sit Down, Man |
| David Dallas The Rose Tint |
| Dawnbringer Into the Lair of the Sun God |
| Dead Congregation Graves of the Archangels |
| Dead Congregation Promulgation of the Fall |
| Dead Letter Circus This Is The Warning |
| Deadguy Near-Death Travel Services |
| these guys are too old to go this hard |
| Deadnight Messenger of Death |
| Deafheaven Roads To Judah |
| Deafheaven 10 Years Gone |
| Death Individual Thought Patterns |
| Death Grips The Money Store |
| Deathspell Omega The Synarchy of Molten Bones |
| Decapitated Carnival Is Forever |
| Deceased Fearless Undead Machines |
| Decrepit Birth Diminishing Between Worlds |
| Decrepit Birth Polarity |
| Defeated Sanity The Sanguinary Impetus |
| This shit makes me want to tuck my son into bed and front flip off of my roof |
| Deltron 3030 Event II |
| The 'Time' of hip-hop, except it doesn't suck shit |
| Demigodz KILLmatic |
| Denzel Curry Nostalgic 64 |
| Denzel Curry TA13OO |
| Denzel Curry 13lood 1n + 13lood Out Mixx |
| Dessiderium Aria |
| Destroyer 666 Phoenix Rising |
| Destroyer 666 Unchain The Wolves |
| Dethklok Dethalbum III |
| Deviant Process Nurture |
In a year where technical death metal has become something of a game of one-upmanship,
Deviant Process managed to, fortunately, release an album directly before those two pillar
releases (Gloire Eternelle, Bleed The Future), that decides not to play at all.
Nurture is an esoteric yet melodic offering of technical metal, offering the same rubix cube
quality that its genre conventions demand, yet infusing it with a a surprisingly fluid sense
of front flowing rhythm and grace that makes it a lot more listenable than perhaps it should
be.
And that matters. Because where the criticisms at the core of this genre stem from ear
fatigue via overload ad infinium, Deviant Process's stunning use of melody, groove and
overwhelming songwriting prowess seem to make this a non-issue altogether. While 2016's
'Paroxysm' was one of the most underrated efforts of the year, this one seems more so based
on circumstance alone. It doesn't have the absolute kitchen sink arsenal that First Fragment
does, and it doesn't have the warp drive capabilities that Archspire does, but, more
importantly than either, it has APPROACHABILITY, and in a sub-sect of metal that seems to
grow smaller every year, that'll be the part that matters the most, long-term. |
| Devin Townsend Project Epicloud |
| Diablo Swing Orchestra Pacifisticuffs |
| Dire Peril The Extraterrestrial Compendium |
| Dirge (FR) Hyperion |
| Dirge (FR) Lost Empyrean |
| One of the most underrated post metal bands of all time drop another scorcher. Cut and dry. |
| Disillusion Gloria |
| Disillusion Alea |
| Somewhere between 'Back to Times of Splendor' and 'Gloria' in terms of quality, 'Alea' suggests that Disillusion have found a way of incorporating that second album's groove into their first album's progressive packaging. While not quite back to those peak peaks, Disillusion have still managed to compose something wholly entertaining and entirely distinct, and well worth a listen. |
| Disillusion The Liberation |
I kinda think it's humorous that the crux of the argument from the staff soundoff is that when you
put this side-by-side with their previous effort it somehow makes the quality so stark
The album was made to be played back to back with their previous, and it actually increases the
connectivity and meta-narrative, like
The previous record ends and this one literally begins. That ending track and this intro are one
solid movement |
| Disillusion Ayam |
| Dissimulator (CAN) Lower Form Resistance |
| death and thrash with waaaaaay more of an emphasis on the thrash, which makes for a surprisingly refreshing listen |
| Diverse One A.M. |
| Diverse is a ridiculously talented emcee. His flow is absolutely incredible, while his lyrics are about on par, containing some deeper, thought provoking concepts. The beats that accompany his rhymes here are certainly on point, with J Dilla, RJD2 and Prefuse 73 creating some mesmerizing numbers worthy of their merits as producers. So overall, this is an album criminally underrated, given it's overall quality, and should not be slept on. |
| Dj Muggs Vs. Ill Bill Kill Devil Hills |
| DMX The Definition Of X: The Pick Of The Litter |
| Dog Fashion Disco Sweet Nothings |
| Dog Fashion Disco Ad Nauseam |
| Dog Fashion Disco Erotic Massage (Redux) |
| Doomtree No Kings |
| Dot Hacker How's Your Process? (Work) |
| Dreadnought Lifewoven |
| Dreadnought A Wake In Sacred Waves |
| Dream Theater A Dramatic Turn of Events |
| Dream Unending Song of Salvation |
| Dying Fetus Wrong One to Fuck With |
| Dyscarnate With All Their Might |
| Dysrhythmia Terminal Threshold |
| Good, memorable prog songwriting, and a good mix by Colin Marston. Really simple formula for success with this one. |
| Dzo-nga Thunder In the Mountains |
| Earl Sweatshirt Some Rap Songs |
| thank u based sweatshirt man |
| Eight Bells Legacy Of Ruin |
| El-P I'll Sleep When You're Dead |
| Elvenking Secrets Of The Magick Grimoire |
| Elzhi The Preface |
| Employed To Serve The Warmth Of A Dying Sun |
| Enchanter Defenders of the Realm |
| Encircling Sea A Forgotten Land |
| Endon Through The Mirror |
| "Converge comparisons are more than apt, the production on this out-Jane-Does Jane Doe."rWell when Kurt Ballou does your mixing, yeah, that would make sense |
| Enfold Darkness Our Cursed Rapture |
| Enforced Kill Grid |
| Enshine Origin |
| Entheos (USA) The Infinite Nothing |
| Entheos (USA) Time Will Take Us All |
| I think I like the members of Entheos more than I like Entheos but that's fine bc the music here is still pretty good |
| Epica The Quantum Enigma |
| Equilibrium Erdentempel |
| Equipoise Demiurgus |
| Noodles so hard the nation of Italy is looking for recompense |
| Equipoise Birthing Homunculi |
| Esoctrilihum Inhüma |
| Eternity's End Unyielding |
| Ever Forthright Ever Forthright |
| Evidence Cats & Dogs |
| Evile Enter the Grave |
| Evile Five Serpent's Teeth |
| Exhorder Mourn the Southern Skies |
It's strange to think that Pantera completely dissolved after Dimebag's death, and all of the
surviving members moved into completely mediocre butt rock outfits while Exhorder, the band they
originally ripped off, comes back after like a 20 year hiatus and puts out an album that does
their formula better than any member of that band could hope to do. Exceptional stuff.
Lyrics are pretty cringe tho lol |
| Exhumed Horror |
| Exivious Exivious |
| Extol Extol |
| Faceless Burial At the Foothills of Deliration |
| Failure The Heart Is a Monster |
| Fair to Midland Fables From a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times is True |
| Fairyland Score to a New Beginning |
| Falls of Rauros The Light That Dwells in Rotten Wood |
| Fallujah Empyrean |
| Fallujah Xenotaph |
| Fat Jon The Ample Soul Physician Wave Motion |
| Fates Warning Darkness in a Different Light |
| This is the most exciting Fates Warning has been in a long ass time. |
| Fates Warning Theories of Flight |
| Fievel Is Glauque Flaming Swords |
| Filthy Young Impalers Pattern Blue |
| Five Deez Koolmotor |
| Flametal The Elder |
| Flash Bang Grenada 10 Haters |
| It's not very often you hear a rap album that does comedy that doesn't feel like a gimmick, but Flash Bang Grenada is that rare beast. Super tongue-in-cheek with hyper-inflated egos and overblown synths, this was a year highlight for me when it debuted, and it's only gotten better with time. |
| Fleshgod Apocalypse Mafia |
| Fleshgod Apocalypse Agony |
| Fleshwrought Dementia/Dyslexia |
| Flying Lotus Flamagra |
| Foo Fighters Wasting Light |
| Food for Animals Scavengers EP |
| Four Fists Four Fists |
| This has an insurmountable amount of potential. P.O.S. plays an exhilarating counterpoint to Astronautalis's quiet and reasonable delivery, and it creates a very interesting dynamic in the music. |
| Four Fists 6666 |
This has grown on me substantially since its surprise drop. When you get past the fact that two of
underground hip-hop's favorite alumni are putting out a joint album, you'll notice just how
expansive and adversarial these instrumentals are. They're aggressive, creative, varied, modern,
but never typical. They set the tone perfectly for the scorched earth approach to lyricism that
these two deliver on here. |
| Freddie Gibbs Baby Face Killa |
| Freddie Gibbs and Madlib Bandana |
| Neighbor aint runnin |
| Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist Alfredo |
| Beats on this are phenomenal and Freddie's flow has even more variety than normal. All the features are really electric as well, though, does anyone really NEED a Rick Ross feature? |
| Full of Hell Weeping Choir |
| Funebrarum The Sleep of Morbid Dreams |
| Funeral Chic Superstition |
| The ratio of good to bad riffs here is absolutely absurd. It's definitely not doing anything new but hot damn is it all peaks and zero valleys |
| Gaerea Limbo |
| grumpy stop being grumpy |
| Gallowbraid Ashen Eidolon |
| Gaza No Absolutes in Human Suffering |
| Genelec & Memphis Reigns Scorpion Circles |
| Ghost (SWE) Opus Eponymous |
| Ghost (SWE) Prequelle |
| Ghost Bath Moonlover |
| Ghostface Killah Twelve Reasons to Die |
| Ghostface Killah 12 Reasons To Die: The Brown Tape |
| While the original was a more complex and involving listen, this one is more in line with his older material, harkening back to classic Wu-beats. Definitely recommended for a different take on the material, as this is pretty much on par with that one. |
| Ghostface Killah and BADBADNOTGOOD Sour Soul |
| Gift of Gab The Next Logical Progression |
| Giraffes? Giraffes! Pink Magick |
| Gloryhammer Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards |
| It's hard to be objective when the material is THIS entertaining. Is it derivative? Absolutely. Is it cliched? Oh, for sure. With determination. That's the enjoyment factor of Space 1992, though: it revels in the genre's storied history, with just enough self-awareness to pull it off. If you can detach yourself from your inner cynic, there's a gem to be found here, for sure. |
| Gloryhammer Legends From Beyond the Galactic Terror. |
The Hootsman is a cyborg warrior as old as time itself (Also the King of California), powered by a
nuclear heart. In Space: 1992, he detonated it, sacrificing himself in a last ditch effort to
defeat Zargothrax, the dark wizard, therein destroying earth and opening a hole in the fabric of
reality.
However, it was all in vain, as Zargothrax escaped into the tear and began his dimensional
domination of all of existence.
Hope that helps, Mitch. |
| God Dethroned Passiondale |
| God Dethroned The Judas Paradox |
| A step up from Illuminati and their third WWI project. Doesn't quite hit like their best material, but the energy feels palpable again, and that's always been their draw for me. |
| Godflesh A World Lit Only by Fire |
| Godflesh Post Self |
| Good Tiger A Head Full of Moonlight |
| Gorephilia Severed Monolith |
Has a heavy Immolation influence hanging over it, despite the fact that the album name, artwork and track titles would seem to indicate deep, chasmous death metal of the ten minute affair (though this does have 1).
I think I personally prefer it to the previously mentioned band's newest, on account of some especially strong songwriting, and song construction in general. The riffs on here are not only unusually heady, but extremely varied as well, of vastly different tempos, techniques and with interesting transitions as well. Each instrument has an exemplar moment within the compositions (the drums having some particularly interesting fills and general patterns), but these leads absolutely steal the show.
My only real complaints with the album comes from A) the surprisingly formulaic vocal performance, and B) the inconsequential interludes, which add nothing of value to the album. Otherwise a standout album, and an early contender for death metal album of the year. |
| Gorod Neurotripsicks |
| Gorod Aethra |
| Gorod The Orb |
| Grand Cadaver Into The Maw Of Death |
| Enjoying this significantly more than the EP. I'd say anyone who found that one to be a little too unfocused and stuffed up with mid-tier riffs should give this a shot. Seems like it has a clearer aesthetic, marginally more clear-cut songwriting and, generally, a lot more quality arrangements. |
| Grave Miasma Odori Sepulcrorum |
| Grave Pleasures Motherblood |
| I missed out on a lot of unnecessary drama since Beastmilk's Climax, having missed Dreamcrash and not even being aware that these were essentially the same members. That ended up being a good thing for me, because having listened to the in-between album, Motherblood feels like a much more energized and fluid transition. Essentially just a sequel to the aforementioned album, and that's a good thing. |
| Green Druid At the Maw of Ruin |
| Grenadier Trumpets Blare in Blazing Glory |
| GridLink Amber Gray |
| Grizzly Bear Painted Ruins |
| I love how detailed and especially layered the songwriting is on here. While Grizzly Bear have always put out albums that grow out and expand over repeated listens, this one feels like the most extreme case of that yet. While my first couple of listens found it to be an album that was pretty decent, it wasn't until later that the various pieces started to truly form up into something extraordinary. |
| Hail Mary Mallon Bestiary |
| Much more consistent than their debut. Aes & Rob bounce off each other better than almost any other rap duo out there, and the beats are just incredible across the board. Time will tell how this holds up, but right now it's sitting solid. |
| Hail Spirit Noir Oi Magoi |
| Hail Spirit Noir Mayhem In Blue |
| A pretty excellent release, with some particularly diverse tones. You've got nods to Ennio Morricone's Spaghetti Western sound, general psychedelia, surf rock and even a little Sinatra on the final track, and it's all knitted together rather cohesively. My only two gripes are rather minor: the first track sets the tone more in line with their other works, and what comes after really isn't the case. The second is that it ends pretty abruptly. Otherwise, this is an especially solid offering. |
| Haken Aquarius |
| Haken Visions |
| Hallatar No Stars Upon the Bridge |
| Hammers Of Misfortune Overtaker |
| This is fucking wild. |
| Hannes Grossmann The Radial Covenant |
| Hark Crystalline |
| Hath Of Rot And Ruin |
| Slugdge have come back firing on all cylinders only a year after their roaring blackened death metal opus, 'Esoteric Malacology', sounding more powerful than ever before. The choral melodies are sharp, the riffs are eviscerating and the compositions are as tight as ever. It's disappointing to see a lack of slug-related content across the span of the full album, but the general consistency makes up for any disappointments therein. |
| Haunt (USA-CA) Burst into Flame |
| Havoc Unit h.IV+ (Hoarse Industrial Viremia) |
| Havok Conformicide |
| Havukruunu Kelle Surut Soi |
| A little one note but remarkably well-written throughout, enhanced by a solid, gritty production job and a distinct sense of genuineness. Even the album art builds on the texture here. Feels like a nice antithesis to Ghost Bath's vapid recent release. |
| Havukruunu Uinuos Syömein Sota |
| I think the second one may stand as one of the tightest written viking black metal albums of all time, but this certainly adds a lot of interesting additional layers to that sound. Still digesting it in it's entirety but as it stands it's a worthy followup. |
| Heaven and Hell The Devil You Know |
I'm reminded, after Black Sabbath's final concert, that 13 doesn't have to stand as the last "good" Sabbath album. After constant legal wars between the band and the Osbourne estate over using the fucking name, Dio and the 'Mob Rules' era Black Sabbath lineup brought Heaven and Hell together, in hopes of continuing that now defunct sound.
So how does it pan out? Quite well, actually. These are the heaviest tracks that Sabbath's ever released, and Dio sounds incredibly potent despite his advanced age, as well as deteriorating health. It wouldn't be long after this that he died fighting cancer, but you wouldn't know that listening to the material on here. It's a little too loud, and a little too long, but it's crafted with an attention to detail that's startling lacking on Sabbath's most recent releases, and stands as a strong debate point in the argument for best era in the band's long and storied career. It's an immense shame that this would be the only release to carry the moniker; regardless, this is a massive album and a worthy summary of Dio-era Sabbath. |
| Helga (SWE) Wrapped in Mist |
| Hell (UK) Human Remains |
| Hell (UK) Curse and Chapter |
| Hellripper Coagulating Darkness |
| Hellripper Black Arts and Alchemy |
| Hellripper The Affair Of The Poisons |
| Helms Alee Sleepwalking Sailors |
| Hermit and the Recluse Orpheus vs. The Sirens |
| This won't change anyone's opinion on Ka or his style, but this is the best set of beats the dude has ever rapped on, bar none. Definitely solid. |
| High Command Eclipse of the Dual Moons |
| high fantasy Power Trip vibes |
| High on Fire Death Is This Communion |
| High on Fire De Vermis Mysteriis |
| Hilltop Hoods Drinking From The Sun |
| Hollenthon With Vilest of Worms to Dwell |
| Homeboy Sandman and Edan Humble Pi |
The beats on this are phenomenal. it's like Edan just dropped out of a warphole in time that
teleported him from his prime, 'Beauty And The Beat'-era work to now. HS sounds really
reinvigorated here as well, experimenting with his flow to deftly navigate the abstract
soundscapes that Edan conjures. My only real complaint is that the ratio of HS verses to E's are a
little off. I don't know if Edan is still easing back in or what, but everytime he shows up in a
song he's the absolute highlight, and his recent teamup with Wiki was no fluke. Definitely makes
you want more. |
| Hyperdontia Hideous Entity |
| Hyperion (SWE) Seraphical Euphony |
| Hypocrisy Virus |
| I Self Devine The Sound Of Low Class Amerika |
| IDLES Brutalism |
| Iglooghost Neo Wax Bloom |
| Igorrr Spirituality and Distortion |
My first instinct was to say it didn't touch Savage Sinusoid, which is, in my opinion, Igorrr's
most complete work to date.
After five more listens, I would say that S & D clearly has other priorities, and the one first
and foremost is 'fun'. The musical chairs approach Gautier has always taken to songwriting seems
more melodic and straightforward in places, emphasizing the European folk melodies just a tad
more, driving home the themes that he seems to be indicating in the title.
While I would love to see more of Laurent Lunoir and her absolutely stellar operatic stylings, I
understand why Gautier took a step back, assessed and moved in a different direction. It certainly
makes for a more interesting listen, overall. |
| Ihsahn After |
| Ihsahn Das Seelenbrechen |
| Immolation Majesty and Decay |
| Immolation Acts of God |
| Immortal Technique Revolutionary Volume 1 |
| Immortal Technique The 3rd World |
| Immortal Technique The Martyr |
| Imperial Circus Dead Decadence MOGARI - Shi E Fukeru Omoi Wa Rikujoku Sura Kurai |
If you can get past how objectively cringe their album artwork is (and always has been) you'll
find one of the best Japanese exports in Metal today. ICDD manage to incorporate so many dissonant
parts smoothly, effortlessly and intelligently into a melodic and mean framework, and MOGARI is no
exception. It is admittedly a little on the long side, but has so few moments of weakness that it
is almost impossible to decide what to cut from the runtime.
As far as what you could compare the band to, they do lean on the symphonics relatively similarly
to Fleshgod Apocalypse, but their sound is certainly more digestible. I'd say they have a fair bit
in common with country-mates Shadow in the more melodic death metal sense as well, but the band
have a harsher, more aggressive general tendency.
In summary, this is a tough band to nail down, and a tough album to describe in general. It's
worth listening to, regardless, though. |
| Imperial Triumphant Alphaville |
| In Flames Whoracle |
| In Mourning Shrouded Divine |
| In Mourning The Weight of Oceans |
| In Mourning Garden of Storms |
| Inanimate Existence A Never-Ending Cycle of Atonement |
| Inanimate Existence Underneath a Melting Sky |
| Inanimate Existence Clockwork |
| One of the most reliably solid tech death outfits active in the scene today drops another gem |
| Inconcessus Lux Lucis The Crowning Quietus |
| Inferi (USA) The Path of Apotheosis |
| Inferi (USA) Of Sunless Realms |
| Inferi (USA) Vile Genesis |
Very meat and potatoes but the meat and potatoes are being prepared by a michelin star
restaurant |
| Inferno (CZ) Gnosis Kardias (Of Transcension and Involution) |
| Iniquitous Deeds Incessant Hallucinations |
| Insomnium One for Sorrow |
| Insomnium Winter's Gate |
| Insomnium Argent Moon |
| Intestine Baalism An Anatomy of the Beast |
| Intronaut Valley Of Smoke |
| Intronaut Habitual Levitations |
| Intronaut The Direction Of Last Things |
| Iotunn Access All Worlds |
| Iotunn Kinship |
| Incredible Builds: The Album |
| Irepress Sol Eye Sea I |
| Iron Maiden The Book Of Souls |
| This has all of the energy that Final Frontier was lacking. Front to back, 'Book of Souls' is one of the more consistent releases Iron Maiden have released in quite some time, and that's no small feat considering the sheer quantity of work on display here. Plus: cowbell. |
| Ironflame Lightning Strikes the Crown |
| Irreversible Mechanism Infinite Fields |
| Ithaca The Language of Injury |
| J-Live The Best Part |
| J. Cole Friday Night Lights |
| Jay Rock 90059 |
| JID DiCaprio 2 |
| JJ DOOM Key To The Kuffs |
| Joey Badass 1999 |
| He's got a ways to go before his flow is perfected, but he's well on his way to being truly great. The beats are all phenomenal, and the future holds great things for this kid. Props |
| John Frusciante Letur-Lefr |
| JPEGMAFIA All My Heroes Are Cornballs |
| Judas Priest Firepower |
| Kicks ass . |
| Juggaknots Re:Release |
| Junius Reports From The Threshold of Death |
| Kalmah Swamplord |
| Kalmah The Black Waltz |
| Kalmah Swampsong |
| Kalmah Seventh Swamphony |
| Kalmah Kalmah |
| Kamelot Karma |
| Kamelot Haven |
| Kanye West The College Dropout |
| Katalepsy Autopsychosis |
| Katatonia The Great Cold Distance |
| Katatonia Night Is the New Day |
| Kemba GNK |
| KEN mode Loved |
| KEN mode Null |
| Kendrick Lamar Section.80 |
| Khemmis Deceiver |
| King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Nonagon Infinity |
| King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Infest the Rats' Nest |
| King Mez My Everlasting Zeal |
| KK's Priest Sermons Of The Sinner |
| Kno Death Is Silent |
| Kreator Phantom Antichrist |
| Not your typical Kreator release. While some may call it a tad too melodic, or even softer than older albums, it definitely has some interesting ideas at work, that fit excellently within their already impressive repertoire. A fine release from one of the most consistent bands around. |
| Kreator Gods of Violence |
| Kronos Colossal Titan Strife |
| Kronos Arisen New Era |
| KRS-One The World Is Mind |
| Kvelertak Meir |
| Kvelertak Nattesferd |
| Kvelertak Splid |
| L'Orange The Mad Writer |
| La Dispute Panorama |
| Genre: Adult Contemporary |
| Lantlos Melting Sun |
| Last Chance to Reason Level 2 |
| Lazarus A.D. The Onslaught (Re-release) |
| Lazy Habits Lazy Habits |
| Leak Bros. Waterworld |
Esoteric but interesting production accompanies one of the most abstract hip-hop albums of all
time (and fittingly so, considering the source material, PCP). Cage and Tame One have a very
fluid, nonchalant back-and-forth, with album highlights split evenly between the two of them.
Definitely a recommendation for Cage fans, as well as hip-hop aficionados looking to explore
something a little bit more out there. |
| Leprous Coal |
| Les Discrets Septembre Et Ses Dernières Pensées |
| Lightfoot The Rudimentals |
| One of the more distinct instrumental hip-hop releases I've heard. Lightfoot's melding of funk, rap and just a sliver of electronica is mesmerizing, with it's atmospherics really shining through on particular tracks (Boom Bap Rat, for instance). He has the potential to carve out a niche unlike any other producer out there, so it's interesting to see how he explores this sound further. |
| Lik Carnage |
| The best album Bloodbath never made. Full of ludicrous, over the top horrorshow lyrics, bombastic, whirling chainsaws for guitars and replete with an especially energetic drum performance. Production slaps too. |
| Lik Necro |
| Lil Ugly Mane Oblivion Access |
| Lingua Ignota Caligula |
| Logic The Incredible True Story |
| Lor In Forgotten Sleep |
| If this wasn't mired in production problems I'd probably put it in the running for Album of the Year. As it stands, it's an exceptional release; a debut that reads like a veteran band's later progression (which makes sense considering how long the band has actually been around), with plenty of twists and turns that you probably won't see coming. It's hard to get the right mixture of folk and power metal, but Lor manages to somehow balance both of those with some light prog elements, and that's even more interesting. Definitely recommended. |
| Lor Edge of Eternity |
| Every bit as good as their debut. Shame the mix is so loud and...not good though. |
| Lord Mantis Universal Death Church |
| Loss Horizonless |
| Lost in Thought Renascence |
| Lost Salt Blood Purges and Boring Bathtimes Yellow Fog Sword |
| Lost Soul Atlantis: The New Beginning |
| Lowkey Soundtrack to the Struggle |
| Lunar Shadow Far From Light |
| Lunar Shadow The Smokeless Fires |
| Lupe Fiasco Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor |
| Lupe Fiasco Drill Music in Zion |
| Lurid Panacea The Insidious Poisons |
| Starts getting REALLY good around track 36 |
| Lychgate Lychgate |
| Machinae Supremacy A View from the End of the World |
| Machine Head Unto The Locust |
| Macklemore The Language of My World |
| Macklemore and Ryan Lewis VS. |
| Macklemore and Ryan Lewis The Heist |
| Major Parkinson Blackbox |
| Malokarpatan Nordkarpatenland |
| Mandroid Echostar Mandroid Echostar |
| Mansion Second Death |
| Manticora To Live to Kill to Live |
| Marty Friedman Wall of Sound |
| Masta Ace MA DOOM: Son Of Yvonne |
| Although the beats are recycled from Doom's Special Herbs collection (which isn't necessarily a surprise) Masta Ace flows well over them, and in general the tracks are extremely consistent. Solid release. |
| Masta Ace & Marco Polo A Breukelen Story |
The skits are ludicrously badly acted (I'm talking Resident Evil 1 tier) but overall this is a
return to form for Ace after the relatively lukewarm 'The Falling Season', which saw Ace
floundering over the worst beats of his career.
That's not a problem with Marco Polo on the boards, who not only creates an instrumental set lead
by powerful drum work and soul samples, but also manages to ring every last ounce of passion out
of the aging emcee. Ace's feature on the producer's solo debut was no fluke; the two have a
powerful chemistry on record, and it's evident absolutely everywhere.
Favorite tracks: Sunken Place, Count Em Up, Three, Fight Song |
| Mastodon Remission |
| Mastodon Blood Mountain |
| Mastodon Crack the Skye |
| Mastodon The Hunter |
| Mastodon Once More 'Round the Sun |
| Mechina Empyrean |
| Megadeth Countdown To Extinction |
| Megadeth Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! |
| Megadeth Endgame |
| Mekong Delta Dances of Death (and other Walking Shadows) |
| Melechesh Emissaries |
| Men In Search of the Perfect Weapon Men In Search of the Perfect Weapon |
| Menace Impact Velocity |
| Mephistopheles Sounds Of The End |
Sounds of the End is a challenging, yet rewarding listen. While comparisons will always exist between Mephistopheles and Psycroptic in regard to both Chalky, who sang for the latter before leaving, and the sheer technicality that elevates both, this manages to escape the tech death comfort zone almost completely through innovative guitar work that shifts between varying ideas and genres, sometimes within individual songs. It's production can lend itself a little TOO well to the Willowtip roster, but even still, this is an easy recommendation.
|
| Meshuggah Destroy Erase Improve |
| Meshuggah obZen |
| Meshuggah Koloss |
| Messenger Illusory Blues |
| Mestis Basal Ganglia |
| Metaform Standing on the Shoulders of Giants |
| MF DOOM Special Herbs: The Box Set |
| Mgla Age of Excuse |
| MGMT Little Dark Age |
| Michita Dawning |
| Mick Jenkins Pieces Of A Man |
| Midnight No Mercy for Mayhem |
| Midnight Rebirth by Blasphemy |
| Misery Signals Absent Light |
| Mist of Misery Severance |
| Mithras Forever Advancing... Legions |
| Mithras On Strange Loops |
"The songwriting is a bit wonky here and
there"
Do you even Mithras? |
| Mizmor Cairn |
| Monotheist Genesis Of Perdition |
| Monotheist Scourge |
| Monuments (UK) Gnosis |
| Moonshade Sun Dethroned |
| Moonshade As We Set the Skies Ablaze |
| Moor Mother and Billy Woods Brass |
| Morbid Saint Destruction System |
| Morbus Chron Sweven |
| Mordant Rapture The Abnegation |
| Mors Principium Est ...And Death Said Live |
| Mors Principium Est Embers of a Dying World |
| Mors Principium Est maintain their supremacy in the melodeath genre with what may arguably be their best, most varied work since their breakout 2005 hit 'The Unborn'. Varied, impassioned and most definitely heady (both in the mix and otherwise) 'Embers of a Dying World' may not rewrite the playbook, but it sure as shit checks all the boxes and then some. |
| Mors Principium Est Darkness Invisible |
| I'm still incredibly disappointed with the way they handled Andy's departure, but this is easily some of the best material they've written since 'The Unborn'. |
| Mortifera (FRA) Vastiia Tenebrd Mortifera |
| Mr. Lif I Phantom |
| Mr. Lif Emergency Rations |
| Municipal Waste Electrified Brain |
| ??? Tf is wrong w the art |
| Murder Construct Results |
| Murmur (CHI) Murmur |
| Murs The Final Adventure |
| Muse Black Holes & Revelations |
| Mutoid Man Bleeder |
| Mutoid Man War Moans |
| Their most hostile release to date, fully realized by an absolutely inhospitable production job courtesy of one Kurt Ballou. Mutoid Man's greatest strength has always been their adept navigation of tempos, structures and whole genres, and 'War Moans' is no exception. From schizoid, post-hardcore attacks, to Slayer-esque war-anthems, to straight, anthemic cock rock cuts, this is just another example of one of the most talented, least-categorizable groups around doing what they do best. |
| My Chemical Romance Conventional Weapons |
| Napalm Death Apex Predator - Easy Meat |
| Nas Life Is Good |
| Natti Still Motion |
| Ne Obliviscaris Hiraeth |
| Ne Obliviscaris Urn |
| Is everyone ready for the front page review Xenophane's gonna poop out calling this thing pretentious because other people like it? |
| Necromancing the Stone Jewel of the Vile |
| As far as bands partially inspired by Michael Douglas action-vehicles go, this is p good |
| Necrophagist Epitaph |
| Necrophobic Mark Of The Necrogram |
| Necrophobic Dawn Of The Damned |
| This bumps a hell of a lot more than I thought it would. Kudos for the immense amount of variation they do on their signature sound here as well. Definitely keeps it interesting |
| Nekrogoblikon Welcome to Bonkers |
Probably their most varied effort to date, with tons of hilarious yet well composed detours
through different subgenres. I'd almost go so far as to call this avant-garde, because it expands
past melodeath for the majority of the run time. The gimmick of Nekrogoblikon might initially put
some off, but its the well composed, varied tracks, and weighed production that will cement this
particular album as something more. |
| Neuraxis Trilateral Progression |
| Night Verses Every Sound Has a Color...: Part I |
| I didn't LOVE this like the previous record, but it's certainly a high quality release, and continues their phenomenal streak of records since becoming an instrumental act |
| Nile In Their Darkened Shrines |
| Nile Those Whom The Gods Detest |
| Nile Vile Nilotic Rites |
| Nine Inch Nails Hesitation Marks |
| Nine Inch Nails Not The Actual Events |
| 4/5 bangers aint bad. Appreciate that Reznor's immediate thought after releasing his softest, most pleasant release to date is to crank out a serious of schizoid, aggressive cuts. A good move, imo. |
| Nithing Agonal Hymns |
| No Age Snares Like A Haircut |
| Nocturnal Breed Fields of Rot |
| Noise Trail Immersion Symbology of Shelter |
| Noisem Agony Defined |
| Noneuclid Metatheosis |
| Nothingness Supraliminal |
| bound to be one of the most underrated death metal records of the year |
| Nucleus (USA-IL) Entity |
| Oak (PT) Disintegrate |
I feel like the compositional logistics of making a 45 minute, one track death doom record
might have made the moment to moment melodies a little more humdrum than I would have liked,
but as a whole piece, there's no doubt it's cohesive, focused, and one of the most ambitious
records to drop this year. |
| Oblivion Called to Rise |
| Obscura Akróasis |
| Obsidian Kingdom Mantiis |
| Obsidious Iconic |
| Oceans of Slumber Winter |
| Oh No Ohnomite |
| Omnium Gatherum New World Shadows |
| On Thorns I Lay Aegean Sorrow |
| They really don't make sorrowful death doom albums like this anymore. Early-era Swallow the Sun definitely comes to mind, and fans of Paradise Lost will definitely have much to enjoy on here as well. |
| Opeth The Last Will and Testament |
| Ophidian I Desolate |
| Origin Omnipresent |
| Oryx Stolen Absolution |
| Heavy As A Really Heavy Thing Pt. II: This Time Nobody's Balding |
| Oublieth À l'Ombre du Royaume en Cendres |
| Ouroboros Emanations |
THIS is how you mix and assemble orchestral death metal. While Fleshgod are content with pushing everything as far as possible (especially on the mixing side) Ouroboros manage to A) evenly pace both the orchestrations and the guitars and B) find a production style that understands the qualities of both styles, while never brickwalling (or at least not as frequently).
Overall this was a pleasant rediscovery. Really enjoyed "Glorification of a Myth" and was pleased to see how this turned out. Not what I expected, but definitely good. |
| OutKast Stankonia |
| P.O.S Audition |
| P.O.S Ipecac Neat |
| P.O.S We Don't Even Live Here |
| When I first listened to this, I was not especially thrilled. I suppose I was expecting r'Never Better' 2.0, or at least something extremely similar. The more I listened to it, rhowever, the more I began to realize how much more focused this effort was compared to it's rpredecessor, and it has since grown on me quite a bit. rSo while I won't say it's equally as good as that other album, 'We Don't Even Live Here' is ra more consistent album, with more focus than anything else in his discography. And that's rdefinitely worth something. |
| Pan.Thy.Monium Khaooohs and Kon-Fus-Ion |
| Panacea (USA) 12 Step Program |
| Panacea continue their streak of consistency with another lively release. The beats are warm and endearing, the lyrics are well-spoken and at many times insightful, and the entire package comes together like few albums do. They're a group to be reckoned with, at this point, and their entire discography is worth a look into if you're a fan of rap. |
| Panegyrist Hierurgy |
| Panzerchrist Battalion Beast |
| Paul White Accelerator |
| Accelerator is the better of the two tracks (Lion's Den being a rejected Atrocity Exhibition cut), but they're both very good examples of the overwhelming chemistry between the two parties. |
| Pelican Australasia |
| Perturbator Dangerous Days |
| Perturbator New Model |
Very close to my favorite release that Perturbator has dropped thus far. If Vantablack was
instrumental, I'd give it the edge, but as is, the vocalist is awful, the lyrics are bad and he
generally detracts from an incredibly atmospheric instrumental. Seems like James's guest singers
have always been very hit or miss, and this is definitely a miss.
Regardless, this is well worth a listen, being one of the most detailed, progressive outings in
his back catalog. He continues to evolve his music in new and unexpected ways, and if this is the
just the beginning, sign me the fuck up for the rest of that journey. |
| Perturbator Lustful Sacraments |
| Pitbulls in the Nursery Lunatic |
| This album was waaaaay head of its time. Has major Gorod vibes, for sure, but they have a sonic identity that is entirely their own. |
| Pitchshifter www.pitchshifter.com |
| Plini/Sithu Aye I |
| Polyenso Pure In The Plastic |
| Polyphia Inspire |
| Power Trip Nightmare Logic |
| Prefuse 73 Vocal Studies + Uprock Narratives |
| Priestess Hello Master |
| Primitive Man Caustic |
| Pro Era PEEP: The APROcalypse |
| Professor Elemental The Indifference Engine |
| Protest the Hero Kezia |
| Protest the Hero Volition |
| Protest the Hero Pacific Myth |
| Psycroptic As The Kingdom Drowns |
| Their singer still sounds like how septic tanks smell but at least they have some fucking riffs again |
| Public Enemy It Takes A Nation (...) To Hold Us Back |
| Purity Ring Shrines |
| Purity Ring Another Eternity |
| Pusha T DAYTONA |
| Putridity Morbid Ataraxia |
| Pyrithion The Burden Of Sorrow |
| Pretty excellent, although this does feel more like an Allegaeon EP than it does a full-on different band's. Production is good though, as are the riffs, so fans of said band should be pretty satisfied with this one. Lambesis manages to sound pretty damn good too, so hey, there's that. |
| Pyrrhon What Passes for Survival |
| Queens of the Stone Age Songs for the Deaf |
| Queens of the Stone Age Rated R |
| Queens of the Stone Age ...Like Clockwork |
| Queensryche Empire |
| Queensryche Queensryche |
| I think it's pretty clear by this point who should have the Queensryche moniker. While Tate was using his band as a front for his childish insults, the other members were putting work into an actual album, full of interesting compositions that moved forward while finally remembering what made their older works interesting. So at the end of the day, while this isn't the second coming of Christ, it is definitive evidence that the Todd La Torre fronted Queensryche is the true Queensryche, at least in my book. |
| Quo Vadis Day Into Night |
| Qwazaar Bat Meets Blaine |
| R.A. The Rugged Man Legends Never Die |
| Probably the most consistent release of R.A.'s career. The beats are relatively consistent, and the flows are absolutely the best he's ever laid to record. I'd wager this is probably one of the better hip-hop albums released this year, so don't sleep on this. |
| Raekwon Lost Jewlry |
| Red Fang Whales And Leeches |
| This may not be the most consistent release of the year, but it sure is the most fun. Red Fang have perfected their formula here, finding the right balance in everything that made them so successful in the first place. |
| Regurgitation Tales of Necrophilia |
| Replacire Do Not Deviate |
| A pretty immense improvement over their previous work. More pronounced songwriting, a better mixdown and far superior clean vox really bring this up to the upper echelons. Definitely worth checking into. |
| Replicant Negative Life |
| Respire Black Line |
| Revocation Existence Is Futile |
| Revocation Revocation |
| Revocation Deathless |
| Revocation Netherheaven |
went to get my revocation cd at the music
shop in the local mall and they handed me
some kind of head-sized bag and told me
I'd need it wtf |
| Rhapsody of Fire From Chaos to Eternity |
| A well-crafted and solid album, full of solid tracks. Production is crisp and hits right where it should, the choruses hold up to the usual standard and the guitar weaves its way across the board in typical, yet awesome fashion. Definitely a fine album. |
| Ringare Under Pale Moon |
| I'd buy it if they told me this was recorded in a woodshed fifteen hundred miles from modern civilization |
| Ripped to Shreds 亂 (Luan) |
| Ripped to Shreds 劇變 (Jubian) |
My main complaint with RtS, generally, is that while the energy is there, as well as those
absolutely incredible, memorable, melodic leads, the nastier, grindier style they balance it
out with has historically been a touch bland.
I can finally say, with Jubian those two halves are finally about even. Some really ugly ass
riffs on here, for sure |
| Rishloo Living as Ghosts with Buildings as Teeth |
| Rivers of Nihil The Conscious Seed of Light |
| Rota Fortunae Hinterland |
| Royal Blood How Did We Get So Dark? |
| Run the Jewels Run the Jewels 3 |
| Run the Jewels RTJ4 |
| Rush 2112 |
| Rush Vapor Trails Remixed |
| The mastering on this is excellent. Vapor Trails was in and of itself a solid release, but it was incapable of showing off most of it's eccentricities due to the most muddled, deliberately poor production work I've ever heard. This release changes that. If you had any grudges against this release prior, give this a listen. |
| Russian Circles Memorial |
| RZA The Man With The Iron Fists |
| Saba Care For Me |
| Sabaton Primo Victoria |
| Sadistik Ultraviolet |
| Sadistik continues to improve in almost every area. The instrumentation is incredibly consistent all the way through, and each track flows especially well (besides the bizarre inclusion of Death Warrant). His delivery continues to evolve as well, and that's something to get excited about. He's always been a particularly stunning lyricist, but here his cadence is evolving; becoming far more organic. It's crazy to think that a year after his last incredible release we'd see one nearly as intense, but here's Ultraviolet, in all it's trippy glory. Check it out before the hype-train leaves the station. |
| Sadistik x Kno Bring Me Back When the World Is Cured |
| Sallow Moth The Larval Hope |
| bops |
| Samael Hegemony |
| Saor Guardians |
| Saor Amidst the Ruins |
Nice return to form after Origins. Nice to see him playing to his strengths again, even
though it IS a fairly safe release. |
| Saprogenic The Wet Sound of Flesh on Concrete |
| Satan Life Sentence |
| Satan Atom by Atom |
| Satan Cruel Magic |
| Satan Earth Infernal |
| Satan's Hallow Satan's Hallow |
| Some really strong early Maiden influences on this one, with an energetic and strong female vocal performance, to boot. Riff work is sharp on almost every track, and the production finds a nice middle-ground between throwback garage rock and modern stuff. Definitely worth looking into if you appreciate the style. |
| Satanic Warmaster Aamongandr |
| nah its p good |
| Scalding Nuclear Winter Spell |
| Scale the Summit The Collective |
| Scale the Summit The Migration |
| Scale the Summit V |
| Scimitar (DK) Scimitarium I |
| Scorched (USA-DE) Ecliptic Butchery |
| Also known as Lord of the RIFFS: Return of the RIFF |
| Sculptured The Spear Of The Lily Is Aureoled |
| Secret Band Secret Band EP (Remastered) |
| Sectioned Annihilated |
| Senses Fail Renacer |
| Septicflesh Communion |
| Septicflesh Titan |
| Septicflesh Codex Omega |
| Septicflesh Modern Primitive |
| Man I listened to this two times since midnight and I am pretty thrilled everything about this is all that exciting and original. I was kind of expecting a worse effort from these dudes |
| Seventh Wonder The Testament |
| It's really nice to hear Tommy opening up and using his full range again. Dude is one of the best vocalist in metal and he essentially fronts one of the biggest power metal bands in the world as a cover singer |
| Severed Headshop The Fuckening |
Great little piece of underlooked brutal death and grind with some humor thrown in for good
measure.
When the band get weird with it, they absolutely shine. Interesting and pretty non-standard
compositions with enough outside-the-genre flourishes to make it feel distinct, and interesting.
At the very least, check out the Psycroptic-inspired "Eternal Soul Penetration", as well as the
black metal influenced closer "...And The Night Was Dark As Fuck". |
| Shad Flying Colours |
| Shad A Short Story About A War |
| Shade Empire Omega Arcane |
| Shadow Shadow |
| Shadow of the Colossus End Game |
| Shape of Broad Minds Craft of the Lost Art |
| Shards of Humanity Cold Logic |
| ShinSight Trio Shallow Nights Blurry Moon |
| Shrapnel (UK) The Virus Conspires |
| Sigh Gallows Gallery |
| Sigh In Somniphobia |
| Sigh Graveward |
| The mixdown can be suspect at times (though with Sigh, this seems to be a deliberate measure), but otherwise Graveward stands as one of the more accessible, and especially cohesive albums that the band has put forth since their inception. A solid listen from front to back, which demands replays. |
| Sigh Shiki |
| idk why the solos are so much better on this one than on any of the other ones but it is unreal how relentless and memorable they all are |
| Sightless Pit Grave of a Dog |
| SikTh The Trees Are Dead and Dried Out, Wait for Something Wild |
| SikTh Opacities |
| Sinjin Hawke First Opus |
| Sithu Aye Set Course for Andromeda |
| Set Course for Andromeda or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love MS Paint |
| Skeletal Dreadful Life |
| Skeletal Remains The Entombment Of Chaos |
| Skeletonwitch Beyond the Permafrost |
| Skeletonwitch Serpents Unleashed |
| Really loving the experimental elements incorporated into their compositions. When the soothing saxophone came in towards the end of 'Unwept' and broke through the cacophony of riffs, I was in awe. It was like a single haunting dove fluttering below a black and massive storm. Chills. Everywhere. And when the pan flute opened up 'Born of the Light that Does Not Shine', I was off my chair and dancing like some creature out of a Tolkien novel. Delightful. Really pleased to see Skeletonwitch showing us their softer side. |
| Skeletonwitch Devouring Radiant Light |
| Skyforest A New Dawn |
| Sleep The Sciences |
| Sleep Terror Abreaction |
| sleepmakeswaves Love of Cartography |
| sleepmakeswaves Made Of Breath Only |
sleepmakeswaves have never been a band to operate outside of the standard post-rock archetype, but here they go just a smidge further than usual, with some instrumental prog arrangements (Polyphia come to mind, as well as more typical prog affair) as well as post-hardcore and electronica (somewhat reminiscent of genre stalwarts 65daysofstatic). These little adjustments to the formula do just enough to refresh, while little repeated musical motifs appear here and there to add a unified feel to the full album. All in all, consistency reigns supreme in the sleepmakeswaves camp, though, despite constant switch-ups, this does feel a bit too much like their previous.
Recommended tracks: Worlds Away, Tundra |
| Sleigh Bells Treats |
| Smut Peddlers Porn Again |
| SOHN Tremors |
| Solstice (UK) White Horse Hill |
It's unusual how far under everyone's radar this fell. Not only does it serve as an excellent
follow up to 'New Dark Age', one of the best new school doom metal records of all time, it
effectively replaces its original singer (crazy, because he was and still is the best of the best)
and alters their musical DNA in exciting and creative ways.
Don't think it has the creative peaks of 'NDA' but overall it is extremely consistent and a more
than worthy followup to that hyperbole-laced, 1998 epic. |
| Son of Aurelius The Farthest Reaches |
| Son of Aurelius Under a Western Sun |
| Sonic Boom Six City of Thieves |
| Sorrow Plagues Homecoming |
| Soundgarden King Animal |
| Spaceships Ruins |
| Spectral Wound Songs of Blood and Mire |
| Spectrum of Delusion Esoteric Entity |
| Spires (MAN-UK) Spiral of Ascension |
| Extremely underrated progressive death metal, hailing from the UK. They've got a pretty distinct style that culminates quite a few influences, but Mastodon and Opeth (as strange as that may sound) are the immediate ones. Highly recommended. |
| Spires (MAN-UK) The Whisperer |
| Spires manage to break out of their Opeth cover group phase with a resoundingly intricate album, only barely marred by some jarring transitions. A hefty listen, but one that progressive metal fans will surely appreciate. |
| Spires (MAN-UK) A Parting Gift |
| Spirit Adrift Divided by Darkness |
| Star One Victims of the Modern Age |
| Stargazer (AUS) Psychic Secretions |
| Steven Wilson 4 1/2 |
| Stevens/Dessner/Muhly/McAlister Planetarium |
| Storm Corrosion Storm Corrosion |
| Stormkeep Tales of Othertime |
| Albums I Listened To Based On The Ridiculously Gorgeous Art Pt. 592 |
| Stortregn Impermanence |
| Streetlight Manifesto Keasbey Nights |
| Suffering Hour In Passing Ascension |
| ........................................................................what |
| Suffocation Hymns From the Apocrypha |
| Significantly better than expected |
| Sulphur Aeon Swallowed By The Ocean's Tide |
| Lovecraftian influenced, old-school death metal. What's not to love? The vocal effects give this an absolutely massive sound, and the hints at melody here and there break up the tedium pretty effectively. Not perfect, but a rock solid debut, for sure. Also: dat album cover. |
| Sulphur Aeon Gateway to the Antisphere |
| Sumerlands Dreamkiller |
I think the people writing this off as an early-era Ozzy solo act tribute band are doing this
album a massive disservice. It certainly owes that era of rock a significant amount, but it
also stands on its own two legs as a separate and distinct entity that culminates multiple
influences into something unique and novel again.
If you appreciate the massive resurgence of traditional rock and metal that's pervaded the
underground circuits over the last decade and a half, this has a consistency and variety that
will definitely make it stick out. A surprise, sleeper hit of 2022 for me. |
| Sunburst Fragments Of Creation |
| Roy Khan-era Kamelot vocals with Symphony X style compositions. What more could you ask for? |
| Sunless Urraca |
| Another band out-Ulcerate-ing Ulcerate. Phenomenal fucking mixing, too. |
| Suppression The Sorrow Of Soul Through Flesh |
| Sylosis Edge of the Earth |
| Sylosis Monolith |
| Sylosis Cycle of Suffering |
| Symphony X V: The New Mythology Suite |
| Symphony X Iconoclast |
| Talib Kweli Quality |
| Talib Kweli Gravitas |
| What happened in between this and Prisoner of Conscious? While the latter had pacing issues and consistency squabbles everywhere, this is solid. I haven't enjoyed much from Kweli since Quality, but this stops the trend. |
| Techno Animal The Brotherhood of the Bomb |
| Teeth (USA-CA) The Curse of Entropy |
| Temple of Void Lords Of Death |
| Tera Melos Trash Generator |
| TesseracT Altered State |
| Testament The Formation of Damnation |
| Testament Dark Roots of Earth |
| The Absence Riders of the Plague |
| The Atlas Moth An Ache for the Distance |
| The Black Dahlia Murder Nocturnal |
| The Black Dahlia Murder Nightbringers |
| The Comet Is Coming Death to the Planet |
| The Contortionist Language |
| The Dillinger Escape Plan Miss Machine |
| The Dillinger Escape Plan Ire Works |
| The Doomsday Kingdom The Doomsday Kingdom |
| The Doppelgangaz Beats For Brothels, Vol. 2 |
| The Doppelgangaz Beats For Brothels, Vol. 1 |
| The Doppelgangaz HARK |
| The Drowning The Radiant Dark |
| The Faceless Akeldama |
| The Faceless Planetary Duality |
| The Fall of Troy The Fall of Troy |
| The Fall of Troy Phantom on the Horizon |
| The Flight of Sleipnir Skadi |
| The Glitch Mob Drink the Sea |
| The Great Old Ones Tekeli-Li |
| The Great Old Ones EOD: A Tale of Dark Legacy |
| The Grouch and Eligh Say G&E! |
| The Grouch x Eligh x CunninLynguists The Winterfire EP |
| The Halo Effect Days of the Lost |
| The Killers Hot Fuss |
| The Left Gas Mask |
| The Mars Volta De-Loused in the Comatorium |
| The Mire Vice Regalia |
| The Mountain Goats Through This Fire Across From Peter Balkan |
Such a beautiful, understated release, even by TMG's standards.
While I have a feeling this collection of tracks won't connect with a portion of the band's
primary audience, it really resonated with me personally.
The strings and various other orchestral instruments really elevate the more adult contemporary
direction they've been headed lately, and the songwriting feels a little more thorough and
thought out this time around, as well.
Seems to me like their taking their time in creating this project yielded a much stronger final
project, and one I'm very personally happy about. |
| The Night Flight Orchestra Aeromantic |
| The Offering Home |
| The Omega Experiment The Omega Experiment |
| The Perceptionists Black Dialogue |
| The Prodigy Invaders Must Die |
| The Project Hate MCMXCIX Armageddon March Eternal |
| The Reign of Kindo This Is What Happens |
| The Reign of Kindo Play With Fire |
| The Roots Things Fall Apart |
| The Secret Agnus Dei |
| The Silver (US) Ward of Roses |
| The Summoned Sessions |
| Pretty underrated. Somewhere in between The Dillinger Escape Plan and a whole slew of dissonant tech death acts. |
| The White Stripes Elephant |
| Three Trapped Tigers Route One or Die |
| Thurisaz The Cimmerian Years |
| Tideless Eye of Water |
| Timeghoul 1992-1994 Discography |
| Tomb Mold Manor of Infinite Forms |
| Tomb of Annihilation Execration Rites |
| Tonedeff Archetype |
| Tonedeff Demon |
| Rolling in right towards the end, Tonedeff's Demon is worth the forced, experimental electronica that plagued 'Glutton'. Though this one does share similarities with it, it uses the better portions of the genre to produce synth heavy, wavy instrumentals that only serve to highlight Tonedeff's incredible flow. This is an excellent release, and I highly recommend it for anyone looking to finish their 2013 'Best Rap Album' list. |
| Tourniquet Gazing at Medusa |
| Toxic Holocaust Conjure and Command |
| Toxic Holocaust Chemistry of Consciousness |
| Toxic Holocaust Primal Future: 2019 |
| Toy-Box Fantastic |
| Trash Boat Crown Shyness |
| Trees of Eternity Hour Of The Nightingale |
| What a depressing state of affairs. Such a unique voice within the Gothic/Doom Metal scene, snuffed out far too soon. This album is definitely a worthy legacy, though. |
| Tribulation The Horror |
| Tribulation Down Below |
Tribulation have finally stopped toeing the line; this is full blown gothica, enveloped in
malevolent organs, shadowy choirs and insidious synths. The atmosphere that the band manage to
evoke is almost made corporeal. It doesn't feel like a band playing at an idea, it feels natural;
consistent in tone from beginning to end. While 'Down Below' certainly does feel low on individual
highlights ('The World' not withstanding), it more than makes up for it with its commitment to its
endgame, and it absolutely gets it from beginning to end. |
| Tribulation Where The Gloom Becomes Sound |
| The evolution of this band has been such an entertaining adventure. Not a huge departure from the last album, but definitely a more daring one, for sure, with bigger risks that seem to pay off more often than not. |
| Triptykon Eparistera Daimones |
| Triptykon Melana Chasmata |
| Tropical Fuck Storm A Laughing Death in Meatspace |
| Twelve Foot Ninja Silent Machine |
| Tyr The Lay Of Thrym |
| Tyr Hel |
| Uada Devoid of Light |
Nothing mindblowing, but well played, well crafted and definitely worth checking into for fans of
the genre. |
| Uada Djinn |
| Ugly Heroes Ugly Heroes |
| Ulthar Cosmovore |
| Ulthar Providence |
| Ulver The Assassination of Julius Caesar |
| Unexpect In a Flesh Aquarium |
| Until The Ribbon Breaks A Taste of Silver |
| Until The Ribbon Breaks A Lesson Unlearnt |
| Anyone who has followed U.T.R.B..'s EPs will know that they've yet to make an uninteresting track, and so it comes as no surprise to anyone that their first full length album follows suit (even if they do recycle some of that EP material here). The diversity found herein is its greatest strength, with straight up electronica tracks ebbing and flowing with more hip-hop styled, breathe easy tunes. Overall it's just well produced and well organized, so check it the fuck out. |
| Unto Others Strength |
| Upon Stone Dead Mother Moon |
| URSA Abyss Between the Stars |
| Usipian Dead Corner of the Eye |
| Pretty distinct as far as death metal goes. Production is a little aggravating, but Usipian had an excellent concept of songwriting, and each song on here benefits from it. |
| Vader De Profundis |
| Vader Impressions In Blood |
| Vader Welcome to the Morbid Reich |
| Vader Tibi et Igni |
| Vale of Pnath The Prodigal Empire |
| Vale of Pnath II |
| Vale of Pnath Accursed |
| Valkyrie (USA-VA) Shadows |
| Vehemence Forward Without Motion |
| A better successor to 'God Was Created' than their previous ever could have been. The songwriting is phenomenal throughout, though the patchy, rather muddy production can distract. Still though, 'Forward Without Motion' manages to answers the question of whether or not Vehemence can still create interesting and distinct death metal in the modern day with a resounding 'yes'. |
| Velvet Cross Blood Consumer |
| Vemod (NO) The Deepening |
| Vemod delivered the goods on this thing. Their debut was truly special, and somehow, after all this time, they've managed to create a very similar spark. |
| Vestiges The Descent Of Man |
| Vimur Triumphant Master of Fates |
| I'm being told this album is incredibly straight |
| Vince Staples Hell Can Wait |
| Vince Staples Big Fish Theory |
I was up late downloading
Counting up ratings by the thousands |
| Visigoth Conqueror's Oath |
| Vision of Disorder The Cursed Remain Cursed |
| VoidCeremony Abditum |
| Voivod Target Earth |
| Volahn Aq' Ab' Al’ |
| Vomitory All Heads Are Gonna Roll |
| Warbreed History Undone |
One of the most underrated melodic death metal albums of all time. Imagine a more pissed off, war-
focused In Flames and you have a pretty dreary picture of Warbreed and their debut album, 'History
Undone'. Full of sharp, nasty riffs, vitriolic vocals and powerful historical portrayals, this has
stood the test of time as one of the best war-themed albums around, putting the group easily atop
the same plane as bands such as God Dethroned, Hail of Bullets or Bolt Thrower.
Recommended tracks: The Hour Of The Wolf, Rotterdam In Flames |
| Warbringer War Without End |
| Warbringer Weapons of Tomorrow |
| The mix on this is rad. Also really digging the bass arrangements |
| Warbringer Wrath and Ruin |
| Warmoon Lord Sacrosanct Demonopathy |
| Warrior Path Warrior Path |
| It has the vocalist from Beast in Black and the guitarist from Firewind. I feel like you don't need to know much more than that. |
| Water's Edge An Abstract Collapse |
| While She Sleeps This Is the Six |
| White Stones Kuarahy |
| Imagine if you gave a shit about Opeth anymore |
| White Ward Futility Report |
| Wild Hunt Afterdream of the Reveller |
| Wintersun Time I |
| Album's been delayed indefinitely while the children of Finland take their summer vacation skiing the slope of Jari's big nose |
| Wintersun Time II |
Time II: comes out in 1 day
Jari down the end of his fifteen foot long
nose: o shit i shoulds probably mixes it
shouldn't I lol |
| Witch Mountain South Of Salem |
| Witherscape The Inheritance |
| Good to hear Swano's inhuman roars again. While this doesn't represent his peak works (I'm not aware of his partner's works), it does find itself a niche in the progressive metal genre as something very distinct and conceptual in nature. So overall, it still is solid, and every now and again the compositions will surprise. Definitely worth a listen. |
| Wizardthrone Hypercube Necrodimensions |
I have no idea where you guys are getting Children of Bodom vibes from lol. I definitely hear the
melodeath influence, but it sounds very symphonic black metal tinged as well, similar to the
concoction Wintersun peddled before Jari decided he needed a double-decker hot tub |
| Wolves in the Throne Room Primordial Arcana |
| Wombripper Macabre Melodies |
| Woodkid The Golden Age |
| While the singles already presented are for sure the best tracks on the album, the rest are of a similar quality, and are definitely worth checking out. Woodkid's concept of pop here is new and interesting, with gorgeous string arrangements as well as interesting drum patterns that do more than just keep pattern on the underside. Definitely recommended. |
| Wormed Exodromos |
| Wormrot Hiss |
| Glass Shards is easily one of the best tracks I've heard all year it is absolutely fucking unreal |
| Wormwood Ghostlands - Wounds From A Bleeding Earth |
| Overly long, but definitely one of the best debuts I've heard in a while. Some solid black/folk with a strong sense of melody. Think Vintersorg or a more cleanly produced version of Bathory's 'Twilight of the Gods'. |
| WRVTH No Rising Sun |
| Wugazi 13 Chambers |
| Xanthochroid Of Erthe and Axen: Act I |
| This album really exceeded my expectations. Billed as the calmer, more somber part of a two piece concept album to be finished in October, its mastery of atmosphere and mood is quite something. It'll definitely be a bit of a surprise from fans expecting an exact replica of their previous release, especially with how much softer this album appears, but don't let the initial confusion put you off: this is a great release, filled with tons of interesting ideas and great performances. |
| Xenoglyph Spiritfraud |
| Xoth Interdimensional Invocations |
| Yellow Eyes Rare Field Ceiling |
| Zephaniah Reforged |
One of the most underrated US power metal albums of the past decade. Mix is spotty in parts, but
the core components are especially solid. Lots of good moving parts and change-ups from song to
song, with a clear and concise proof of concept. |
| Zero Hour The Towers of Avarice |
| 3.5 great |
| '68 Two Parts Viper |
This was more of a grower than their debut. I'm not fond of some of the occasional grunge
influences, but regardless it still has just as much tooth, nail and bile as their previous, with
a little more variation present between tracks. |
| 1914 Viribus Unitis |
| love this new 1914 album vibrators unite us |
| 3TEETH shutdown.exe |
| 65daysofstatic The Distant and Mechanised Glow of Eastern Euro... |
| A Sense of Gravity Atrament |
| A Sense of Gravity haven't quite found their sound yet, but nevertheless they've delivered one of the most challenging releases of 2016. There's some Protest the Hero in here, some Dream Theater, and an absolute assload of general prog, but scattered throughout are smaller explorations into other genres, as well. Very entertaining from front to back, only really diminished by some inconsistencies in songwriting here and there (though that seems to come with the territory). |
| A Tribe Called Quest We got it from Here… Thank You 4 Your service |
Better than anticipated, though not without some pretty major caveats. 'We Got It From Here' could easily be condensed down to about half its track total, with a good chunk being decent but, ultimately, irrelevant. Some of the features feel rather superfluous as well, though I feel their inclusion may have more to do with Phife's untimely demise before the finishing of production.
Regardless, there isn't an album this year that feels quite like this. Tribe's absence from the rap scene has been deeply felt, and even with a couple bum tracks, this has a very warm tone to it almost alien in nature in comparison to today's synthetic, keyboard-driven rap landscape. Recommended for sure. Rip Phife. |
| Ab-Soul Do What Thou Wilt. |
| Imperfect, but all the better for it. 'Do What Thou Wilt.' finds the Black Hippy alumni off-kilter yet wholey on point, over a series of dark, brooding, and especially atmospheric arrangements. While the vaguely experimental nature of the album doesn't always pay off, it's still an incredibly interesting album, and one that'll be sure to see many top rap release lists come year's end. |
| Abigail Williams In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns |
| Abigail Williams Becoming |
| Abstract Void Back to Reality |
Shoegaze-y black metal combined with synthwave. I expected this to sound horrendous but it's
blended relatively seamlessly. Surprisingly, they mesh almost perfectly. I'm kinda surprised this
is the first attempt at something like this. |
| Accept Blind Rage |
| Aesop Rock Daylight |
| Aesop Rock The Blob |
| Aesop Rock Integrated Tech Solutions |
| Aesop Rock Black Hole Superette |
| Aesop Rock I Heard It's A Mess There Too |
| Aeternam Ruins of Empires |
| Afterbirth Four Dimensional Flesh |
| Alcest Les Voyages De L'Âme |
| Alcest Spiritual Instinct |
Remember when Neige put out multiple statements denouncing the white nationalist nonsense of the
bands he was just a marginal part of anyway? Why don't we jump ship from Metalsucks style,
clickbait soundoffs to actual discussions on the music in question?
It's solid, no doubt. It lacked definition on my first several spins, but it is turning out to be
an especially detailed album, and each incremental re-listen yields more and more reward overall.
The overarching concern of Nuclear Blast pushing the band into more mainstream territories might
have been warranted, but they almost certainly do the style with substance and grace. Another
excellent addition to their catalog. |
| Alestorm Curse of the Crystal Coconut |
| Allegaeon Fragments of Form and Function |
| Allelic À Contre Vent |
| Alluvial Sarcoma |
| Pretty decent, chunky prog death but god damn are the lyrics dumb as shit |
| Alterbeast Feast |
'Feast' is well-crafted for sure, but ultimately it sounds so especially derivative of its band's
main influences that it's hard to truly give it any definition. It has riff work and vocal
approaches that are a dead-ring for The Black Dahlia Murder, it has solos that are lifted directly
from Necrophagist, and especially with one song literally being a Dissection cover, a handful of
black metal influences. When the band reaches out and abstracts their sound is where this album
shines, but it happens rarely, and can make for a very safe and unexciting listen. It's still a
solid second outing for the band, but you can't help but feel like by this point you should be
able to more easily describe the band's sound, and, unfortunately, you really can't. |
| Amesoeurs Amesoeurs |
| Amon Amarth Jomsviking |
| An Abstract Illusion Illuminate the Path |
| A lot of potential here, not yet to be fully realized. It's excessive in length, has really gaudy, borderline hokey keyboard riffs and some less than inspired vocal performances, but even so, it manages to create some truly inspiring moments throughout these vast, winding tracks. If you enjoy Ne Obliviscaris, or just a more prog-oriented death metal act, give these guys a shot. I'm sure we'll be hearing more about them really soon. |
| Anaal Nathrakh Endarkenment |
| Anamanaguchi Endless Fantasy |
| Anciients Voice of the Void |
| Anciients Beyond the Reach of the Sun |
| Andy James Exodus |
| Angra Ømni |
| This is fine but boy do I really miss their original guitarist (who's for some godawful reason playing for Megadeth). His absence is definitely felt in the underwritten guitar leads. |
| Angus McSix Angus McSix and the Sword of Power |
Despite feeling undeniably rushed, there's a veritable, fervent energy that runs throughout
every track on the album, and it further cements the idea that Thomas was not just a simple
vocalist in the Gloryhammer canon, capable of being quickly and simply replaced.
A couple of small notes:
As much as I'd like to disconnect this project from the GH machine, there's no denying WHY it
worked. Storytelling throughout their albums' runtimes kept the listener engaged, while also
further incentivizing checking out the next album. On that front, AMatSoP doesn't quite offer
that level of storytelling, or storytelling *finesse*. There's no doubt GH's first album was
more concerned with setting up the characters at play rather then the drama at hand, but it
still managed to make most aspects, otherwise, a lot more clear. AMatSoP definitely struggles
to keep the narrative thread untangled, which is a shame.
The focus on characters feels a bit unbalanced, though I understand the need for a "victory
lap", as well. Thomas has an especially stacked roster of musicians at his disposal, but it's
difficult to get a gauge on their personalities; either through the songwriting or the
storytelling. Again, I understand the need to return with as much pomp and drama as possible,
but the rest of his band feels a touch underutilized, as a result.
I'm hoping, all in all, that these issues will be addressed as they take a bit more time on a
follow-up. This is a solid base, and it really just needs to be reiterated upon. Fun for
sure. |
| Anubis Gate Covered In Black |
| Apathy and O.C Perestroika |
| Apocalypse Orchestra The End is Nigh |
| Arch Echo Arch Echo |
| Somewhere between Liquid Tension Experiment and Polyphia, Arch Echo are a rock solid instrumental prog outfit with a distinct, uptempo style underlying all of their compositions. While the songs here on their debut have a tendency to run together on occasion, they manage to avoid some of the pitfalls of the genre through intelligent songwriting. Definitely worth a checkout if you're a fan of similar acts. |
| Arch Echo You Won't Believe What Happens Next! |
| Archspire Relentless Mutation |
| Arghoslent Resuscitation of the Revanchists |
| metalsucks journos jumpin on desks rn thanking the gods above for more melodic bigotry to post about |
| Armageddon (SWE) Captivity and Devourment |
| Arsis United in Regret |
| Astronautalis The Mighty Ocean and Nine Dark Theaters |
| Astronoid Stargod |
| Aura Noir Black Thrash Attack |
| Autopsy The Headless Ritual |
| Aversions Crown Xenocide |
| AZ A.W.O.L. |
| Backxwash God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of I |
| Bad Rabbits American Nightmare |
| Everytime BR release something I'm always marginally disappointed that they haven't really extrapolated on that 'Stick Up Kids' style. Still, this is solid. Very unique album with a load of highlights. |
| Baroness Yellow And Green |
| Baroness Stone |
| Behemoth The Apostasy |
| Behemoth Evangelion |
| Being as an Ocean Dear G-d |
| Beneath the Massacre Fearmonger |
| As someone who has put BtM on blast for years for popularizing an entire strain of homogenous tech core wankery, this was surprisingly decent. Production is very clean but punchy and the compositions have more variety than previous works. |
| Benighted Carnivore Sublime |
| One of the most consistent death metal bands around returns with another excellent and innovative slab of brutality in the shape of 'Carnivore Sublime'. Here, the band retains their signature off-kilter riffing style while pushing the envelope even further in any and all directions. Sure, the album can occasionally sound repetitive (there are riffs on here I'm sure I've heard on older albums), and the pig squeals can become grating due to their constant use, but overall this is an excellent album, defined by the band's unique compositions. Highly recommended. |
| Benighted Obscene Repressed |
| Benighted Ekbom |
| Between the Buried and Me Automata I |
| Between the Buried and Me Automata II |
Imagine if their label weren't a bunch of greedy fuckheads and we got one moderately impressive
concept album instead |
| Big K.R.I.T. 4Eva N A Day |
| Black Crown Initiate Violent Portraits of Doomed Escape |
| Black Fast Spectre of Ruin |
| A solid if homogeneous effort. It maintains its veracity throughout with tight, razor sharp riffs and one of the best vocal performances of the young band's career, but you can't help but feel fatigue set in towards the halfway point. Each song exists in the same tempo, and SoR sees the band tone down on some of their proggier tendencies as well, so some of the songs end up feeling more aggressive, but less interesting as a result. Still a solid effort, but definitely not as potent as their last offering. |
| Blood Stain Child Silence Of Northern Hell |
| Blood Stain Child Amateras |
| We really out here in 2019 making quality, electronica-influenced melodic death metal, huh |
| Brand New Science Fiction |
| Everybody and their mother have thrown their opinions in on this album, but as someone who has never really delved too deeply into their back-catalog, this is pretty decent, though it seems to have some issues here and there. It doesn't seem to know what it wants to be, first and foremost, swinging wildly between more modern song sensibilities and 90s alternate/grunge, and while this adds variety somewhat, it usually just gives it a lack of identity. It's all well-written, but it's missing focus, and that's made especially so when you notice how long this is. I get that this is a band with a lot to say and do, but 60 minutes is far too long when you aren't moving in one particular direction. I lose interest in this album about 3/4ths of the way through almost every time. And it's not that it's bad - quite the contrary, the songwriting is excellent on every cut - it's just that I have trouble seeing the end goal here, and while maybe repeated listens will clear this up (I've given it 6 - 7 spins) for now it just feels vaguely intentioned. Muddled, even. |
| Brymir Voices in the Sky |
| It doesn't have a lot of tricks, but those it has it doles out spectacularly |
| Built to Fade To Dust |
| Kno adds his usual flair to the instrumentals, and the two singers here are pretty talented. This needs some serious growing time, but so far it's shaping up to be a pretty substantial release. |
| C. C. Munster The Freetrack Collection Vol. 2 |
| Cage (USA-NY) Depart From Me |
| Cage (USA-NY) Kill the Architect |
| Cannibal Corpse The Bleeding |
| Carpenter Brut Leather Teeth |
| Cattle Decapitation The Harvest Floor |
| Cave In Heavy Pendulum |
| Cheatahs Cheatahs |
| Chelsea Wolfe Hypnos / Flame |
| Childish Gambino Because the Internet |
| clipping. Splendor and Misery |
| clipping. Dead Channel Sky |
| Closure in Moscow Pink Lemonade |
| Clutch Earth Rocker |
| Coma Cluster Void Thoughts From A Stone |
A bizarre release to say the least. Even after a dozen listens I'm still not entirely sure where I
stand with this one, even with a solid grasp of their last full length, 'Mind Cemetaries'. Here's
what I do know though: CCV are looking to expand out their sound in ways that are probably going
to turn some people off, even the more dissonant-minded, Deathspell loving metalheads. That seems
totally alright with them though, and you have to give them props for real sonic experimentation.
With time, this could be a release that truly lands them in the category of bands such as Gorguts
and Demilich, but for now, it's definitely novel, and certainly one of the most interesting
releases of the year. |
| Common Black America Again |
| Company Flow Funcrusher Plus |
| Complete Freedom Alpha |
| Conan Monnos |
| Conception State of Deception |
| I am so fucking glad to hear Roy Khan back out here belting this shit out |
| Converge Beautiful Ruin |
| Corelia New Wilderness |
This album is too good to have never made it to a proper mixdown. Fuck
Edit: there is an AI remastered version of these demos available and I highly recommend them.
Superbly listenable |
| Corpsessed Abysmal Thresholds |
| Countless Skies Glow |
| The clean vocals are the best part of the album, what are you on about |
| Crosses Crosses |
| Cryptopsy An Insatiable Violence |
| CunninLynguists Strange Journey Vol. 2 |
| CunninLynguists The Rose EP |
| While there isn't much information related to the release of this and (allegedly) two other companion EPs, this seems to be an introspective series of tracks that'll surely draw comparisons to their earlier works like Piece of Mind and Dirty Acres. Very much based off of the current socio-political climate in the United States, with lyrics relating to racism, the presidential agenda, and, in general, the lower class. Definitely feels like the right move for the group at exactly the right time, and I can't wait to see what else they have coming. |
| CunninLynguists Rose Azura Njano |
| Cynic The Portal Tapes |
| CZARFACE Czartificial Intelligence |
| Damn the Machine Damn the Machine |
Chris Poland has jumped between quite a few projects since his Megadeth days. Damn the Machine, a progressive rock act, stands as his most accomplished, though, with consistently interesting guitar craft (though the other components shine, as well).
The instrumental mixing is solid for as low-key as this truly is, and the vocals - a make or break mixture in prog - are fairly interesting. I'd say check this out if you're looking for some decent prog. |
| Darkest Hour Godless Prophets and the Migrant Flora |
| Dawnwalker House of Sand |
| Deacon The Villain Peace or Power |
| Dead Cross Dead Cross |
| Dead Letter Circus The Catalyst Fire |
| Deafheaven Sunbather |
| Deafheaven New Bermuda |
| Deafheaven Ordinary Corrupt Human Love |
| Deceased Surreal Overdose |
| Deceased Ghostly White |
| Deceased Thrash Times at Ridgemont High |
| Deceased Children of the Morgue |
I think that, once again, Deceased's penchant for lo-fi, early death metal production feels
at odds with its other hardcore habit of mixing said death with super saccharine traditional
heavy metal.
That said, if you can kinda move beyond its rough and intentionally sloppy exterior, the
material on here feels a lot more varied and experimental than almost anything in their
back-catalog.
Admittedly, some won't be able to break through that barrier, but, for those who can, you'll
find one of the most interesting and distinct records in the band's career. And just a solid
metal record, to boot. |
| Decrepit Birth Axis Mundi |
A pretty humble record from one of the most interesting progressive death metal acts since
the genre's inception. The tech and prog aspects are scaled back just a touch, acting
more like flourishes on top of more aggressive, brutal riffs, and while I'd be
hard-pressed to call these songs "straight-forward" (hint: they're not), they definitely
feel more reigned-in; more concentrated, if you will. Fans of the band's debut will
definitely find much to enjoy here, as this album has quite a few similarities. This is
not to say they haven't learned a thing or two since Polarity (Spirit Guide has a distinct
Polarity influence), especially in some of the keyboard passages strewn throughout, as well
as some of the more melodic leads. Quite the contrary, Decrepit Birth are a band evolving
over time, and this is a measured change of sound to set the board back up.
Edit: the covers are bonus tracks for the digipack edition. Calm your shit people. |
| Demons and Wizards III |
| Denzel Curry Imperial |
| Destroyer 666 Wildfire |
About par for the course for Destroyer 666. Solid, no-nonsense blackened thrash, with impressive
solo work and cavernous, pitch-perfect production. No complaints, really.
On a side note: get the deluxe edition. Deathblow is a beast of a track. |
| Devourment Obscene Majesty |
This might be one of the best brutal death metal production jobs I've ever heard. Nothing
revolutionary songwriting-wise but hot damn does it sound vitriolic and disgusting. Word. |
| Dismember Where Ironcrosses Grow |
| honestly one of the most consistent records of the band's career |
| Dr. Octagon Moosebumps |
| Dungeon Serpent World of Sorrows |
| I'll listen to anything that cites Intestine Baalism as a primary influence tbh |
| Duskmourn Of Shadow and Flame |
| Elvenking Heathenreel |
| Empyrean Sky Extending The Tangent |
| Ensiferum Thalassic |
| It's not insultingly bad like the previous 3 have been and that's probably the first and most important thing you need to know |
| Entheos (USA) Dark Future |
| The mixing on this is really mediocre. I really enjoy how they took their established sound and put it through the kaleidoscope here, while softening their sound just a touch (I'm sure the members of Scale the Summit and Animals As Leaders had a hand in that), but with everything sounding flat and lifeless it's just a bit disappointing. |
| Epic Beard Men This Was Supposed To Be Fun |
| Epica Epica vs Attack on Titan Songs |
| idk why this is a thing but I'm more amused than I ought to be |
| Evergrey The Atlantic |
| Ex Eye Ex Eye |
| Execration (NOR) Return to the Void |
| Really decent spacey, proggy, Dismember-style death metal with a production that, despite it's best intentions, manages to make it sound roughly produced in all the wrong ways. While there are a ton of interesting ideas on here, and the songwriting is pretty sound, it's just hard to listen to a solid block that's produced in such a sterile manner. |
| Exocrine Molten Giant |
| Exocrine Maelstrom |
| Exocrine The Hybrid Suns |
| Faetooth Remnants of the Vessel |
| Faetooth Labyrinthine |
| Falls of Rauros Believe in No Coming Shore |
| Fallujah Dreamless |
| Father Befouled Revulsion of Seraphic Grace |
| Why does the cover remind me of Defeated Sanity? Regardless this is decent |
| Fit for a King Dark Skies |
| Fit for an Autopsy The Sea of Tragic Beasts |
| Jake Boner why are you so mad at Fit For An Autopsy |
| Fleet Foxes Crack-Up |
| Folterkammer (USA) Die Lederpredigt |
| I don't feel like it always works as intended but the concept is novel and sometimes that's just enough to extend this beyond the absolute quintillion other black metal acts all vying for attention |
| Food for Animals Belly |
| I think that the best songs off of Scavenger trump any of the best songs off of this, but Belly finds Food for Animals creating more consistent soundscapes, across the spectrum of this release. What they have is an interesting sound, and with a little more polish, they could have some serious fire power on their hands. |
| Freddie Gibbs Soul Sold Separately |
| This isn't as good of a project as it potentially could be, but that's not a reason to talk down one of the most consistent rappers and instrumental curators of the past two decades. Dude works way too hard for such a lazy dismissal |
| Frontierer Unloved |
| Someone needs to tell Frontierer's producer to calm the fuck down with the brickwalling. This album is excellent but god damn is it tiring to listen to |
| fun. Some Nights |
| Gaerea Mirage |
| Gang Starr One Of The Best Yet |
Almost as good as a posthumous release can get. DJ Premier has clearly spent an immense amount of
time taking what little remained from these original sessions and cleaning, retooling and
repurposing them to fit within the confines of this LP. For what it's worth, he gives you the best
possible impression of the late Guru. He sounds smarmy, smooth, intelligent, and strangely more
dexterous than ever. The features that fill the album out from EP length to full length are
equally solid (with the exception of Q Tip making weird sound effects and calling it a chorus) and
see most of the old squad return, with some interesting additions that fit the sound of the group.
What's really excellent about these features is their lyrical reverence for the late rapper, which
only enhance the emotional resonance of the project.
My only real issue with the album comes down to some less consistent tracks across the backend.
'Get Together' has a very ungenuine sounding arrangement, 'Business or Art' unfortunately feels
very cutting room floor towards the hook and 'Bring It Back Here' just shouldn't be on the album.
The beat is awkward, and the full song only lasts a good 50 seconds before just kinda giving up.
The album ends well with a final part to the Militia series, as well as a nice, subtle closer in
'Bless The Mic' (which loops the album smoothly) but overall 'One Of The Best Yet' stumbles
slightly in it's escapades towards the finale.
Overall though, this is still a must-listen for early hip-hop aficionados, as well as fans of the
group. It checks every box that it needs to, and though it is marred by some incongruities towards
the rear, it's certainly still a memorable sendoff to one of the most underrated lyricists in all
of hip-hop. |
| Garroted Of Damnation and Abyssal Terrors |
| Ghost (SWE) Infestissumam |
| Ghost (SWE) Impera |
| Ghost Atlas All Is in Sync... |
| Glass Bones The Same Stories That Never Get Old |
| I'm enjoying this but it really feels like their weakest release to date :/ |
| God Dethroned The World Ablaze |
I'm kinda underwhelmed by this. 'Annihilation Crusade' and the title track are absolute barn burners of tracks, but the album really flounders around for a really long period of time after that, finally redeeming itself with the closing track. I don't feel like this would be as big of an issue was the production not punchier; Dan Swano's melodeath-style clean up job here really takes the sharpness out of the band's riff-writing, and actually kind of deflates the band's intentions.
For what it's worth, though, I feel like this is still a solid, somewhat varied release, and a much-needed change of pace from the two schools of thought on death metal; those who do it melodically and those who absolutely do not. God Dethroned have been compared to Amon Amarth for years (just listen to 2014 for irrefutable proof) in the sense that they do both without sacrificing either too much, but with Amon Amarth moving more towards a softer, more heavy-metal influenced style, these guys (and maybe the Absence!) are about the only band doing it right. Hopefully this isn't the final album they've been suggesting, because I'd like to see this get expanded on in future releases. |
| God Dethroned Illuminati |
| One of their most varied works to date. They've lost the Slayer solos again (thankfully) and have added the keys back as well as a lot of the more traditional black metal riffage found on their earlier albums. Certainly a very different LP from anything off of their WWI trilogy, but also showing that the band are more than capable of altering their material to set the mood for the content. |
| Gorod Process of a New Decline |
| Gorod Kiss The Freak |
| Grits The Art of Translation |
| Gunship Dark All Day |
| Not as good as their first release, though not without some highlights. Some pruning could have seriously aided this album's flow, as there are far too many tracks operating at the same tempo, with a lot of the same melodies. Sure, most of it is consistent (bar the confusingly sparse cover of Cindi Lauper's 'Time After Time'), but 66 minutes and 33 seconds (as cool of a number as that is) is waaaaay too long for a nostalgiac 80s synthwave album. These dudes are not Perturbator. |
| Hail the Sun Secret Wars |
| Hate Eternal Phoenix Amongst The Ashes |
| Haunt (USA-CA) If Icarus Could Fly |
A solid followup to 'Burst Into Flame', filled with memorable harmonies, an energetic drum
performance and that same sense of snappy, traditionalist songwriting. One might get the
impression, however, that if Haunt's Trevor Church were to have taken a longer period of time to
let the ideas on here gestate, he might be looking at a much more potent product. Choruses can
occasionally feel underwhelmingly simplistic, and all of the compositions following the same exact
formula can also sometimes wear the album kinda thin.
Regardless, it's a fun album, worthy of a couple beers and a full rotation. |
| Haunt (USA-CA) Mind Freeze |
| Hideous Divinity Adveniens |
| Ho99o9 United States Of Horror |
| While I wish they'd really hone in on their core sound a little bit, the scattershot approach to songwriting/genre-hopping does give the record quite a bit of variety, even if the lyrics come off as a little stock, or the atmosphere seems a bit tryhard at times. |
| Holy Fawn Death Spells |
| The highs on this album are absolutely skyscraper high but sometimes I wish the songwriting was a little better |
| Horizon Ablaze The Weight Of A Thousand Suns |
| Hoth Oathbreaker |
| House of Atreus From the Madness of Ixion |
| Iapetus The Body Cosmic |
| Ihlo Legacy |
| I didn't think this was amazing but it did make good, feelgood background music |
| Ihsahn The Adversary |
| Ihsahn angL |
| Ihsahn Eremita |
| Immolation Atonement |
Wholly enjoyable in parts, somewhat frustrating in others. Immolation's songwriting on here is inconsistent, with songs feeling rather piecemeal, ending on strange transitions or, even worse, fading out. And a band 30 years into their career shouldn't have to resort to that.
Still, it IS better than Kingdom of Conspiracy, with some especially standout moments (When The Jackals Come's mid-section slowdown, Fostering the Divide's blistering solo work that transitions into one of the best tremolo riffs of their recent career). It's just a shame that this level of consistency doesn't permeate throughout. |
| Imperial Triumphant Vile Luxury |
| In Mourning The Immortal |
| Inculter Fatal Visions |
| Inferi (USA) Revenant |
| Injury Reserve Drive It Like It's Stolen! |
| Insomnium Across the Dark |
| Insomnium Shadows of the Dying Sun |
| Intronaut Prehistoricisms |
| Iron Maiden Senjutsu |
| Ironflame Tales of Splendor and Sorrow |
| Irreversible Mechanism Immersion |
Awaiting Blood Music's mandatory 5'ing
Essentially sounds like Fallujah's 'The Flesh Prevails', with some pieces rearranged and
reassembled, which, imo, is not a bad thing |
| J. Cole Truly Yours |
| Joey Badass B4.DA.$$ |
| Judicator Let There Be Nothing |
| K-Rino Solitary Confinement |
| Kaelan Mikla Not Eftir Not |
| Kalmah 12 Gauge |
| Kalmah Palo |
| "That doesn't mean it's bad, though. It's still a fairly aggressive romp through the band's power metal/death metal hybrid, and is easily the second best album in Kalmah's discography."rThat's a hard nope there buddy |
| Kamelot Silverthorn |
| Karkosa Esoterrorcult |
| Kendrick Lamar DAMN. |
| Kids See Ghosts Kids See Ghosts |
| King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Murder Of The Universe |
| King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Polygondwanaland |
| King Goat Debt Of Aeons |
| Kno Kno vs. Hov: The White Albulum |
| Krisiun Southern Storm |
| Kryptos Afterburner |
| L'Orange and Kool Keith Time? Astonishing! |
| Lazer Throne Tomb of the Lunar Oracle |
| Leeched You Took The Sun When You Left |
| Leeched To Dull the Blades of Your Abuse |
| Letters From The Colony Vignette |
| Liberteer Better to Die on Your Feet... |
| Lil B I'm Gay (I'm Happy) |
| Lil Ugly Mane Mista Thug Isolation |
| Lo-Fang Blue Film |
| Logic Under Pressure |
| Logic still sounds like the sum of his influences, but his ear for incredible beats makes this one to look out for. Also: dat album cover |
| Loss Despond |
| Lovebites Judgement Day |
| It's impossible not to have fun w this record |
| Lupe Fiasco DROGAS Wave |
| Madder Mortem Red In Tooth And Claw |
Would benefit greatly from a reduction in the number of slow, ballad-esque tracks, but it's still
an entertaining prog metal record with interesting and varied female vocals.
On a side-note: Give BATS back their album name |
| Mandroid Echostar Coral Throne |
ME's worst release is still an entertaining, if largely disjointed listen. Coral Throne shines a massive light on some of their largest weaknesses as a band, which pertains to song structures and transitions. That said, the individual pieces are still of a particularly high quality, so this is still worth a listen, if perhaps a cautionary one.
Also the vocals are adequate. Calm the fuck down. |
| Mastodon Emperor of Sand |
| Mastodon Stairway to Nick John |
| Maze of Sothoth Soul Demise |
| Mega Colossus Riptime |
| Mega Drive 199XAD |
| Megadeth United Abominations |
| Megadeth Th1rt3en |
| Megadeth Dystopia |
| Melt-Banana Cell-Scape |
| Mental Cruelty A Hill to Die Upon |
feel like the black metal parts are far superior quality wise to the deathcore chugs they're
frankenstein'd on to but overall a pretty cool listen |
| Mental Cruelty Zwielicht |
| two albums into the damn they would be a hella excellent black metal band if theyd just drop the breakdowns argument |
| Messenger Threnodies |
| Mitochondrial Sun Mitochondrial Sun |
| Mors Principium Est Dawn of the 5th Era |
| Mother of Graves Where the Shadows Adorn |
| My Chemical Romance The Black Parade |
| Nas King’s Disease |
| Nas King's Disease II |
Nas Hype Cycle:
- Nas album drops
- People claim that Nas has finally returned to form and that the release is his best since
Illmatic
- Those same people listen to it more than twice
- They promptly move onto something else and forget it ever came out |
| Ne Obliviscaris Sarabande to Nihil |
| Necrowretch Satanic Slavery |
Well produced, well composed and, above all else, very true to its roots (those being the early death metal scene). The vocals feel especially unhinged, not being overly-processed like the majority of modern metal, and the guitar-work is excellent as well.
While I don't know you could even put 'original' in the same sentence as Satanic Slavery, you could definitely fit 'solid' in there somewhere with no real trepidation. |
| Nightbringer Terra Damnata |
| Nite Voices Of The Kronian Moon |
| Novembers Doom Aphotic |
| Numenorean Adore |
| Nyn Entropy: Of Chaos and Salt |
| Ocean Wisdom Chaos 93' |
| Once you get over Ocean Wisdom's constant verbal acrobatics (which you eventually will) you're left to wonder how many songs he can possibly dedicate to how great he is. All jokes aside, this is solid brag rap with some equally solid instrumentals. Nothing with long lasting appeal, but good. |
| Odious Mortem Cryptic Implosion |
| Odious Mortem Synesthesia |
| The mix on this blows and it's disheartening bc they're really proud of it |
| Omnium Gatherum The Burning Cold |
| Onyx #WakeDaFucUp |
| Wasn't expecting much from this, honestly, but it kicked my ass regardless. Snowgoons know exactly how to elevate Onyx's overtly aggressive rap style, and in general the synergy is excellent. It's streaming at the moment, so give it a shot. |
| Open Mike Eagle What Happens When I Try to Relax |
| Opeth Heritage |
| Opeth Pale Communion |
| Opeth In Cauda Venenum |
| Opeth have gotten comfortably mediocre over the course of the past three albums and nothing that's been mentioned thus far leads me to believe this will be anything other than another 3.4/5 dadcore album. I love these guys but this is not their finest hour |
| Origin Entity |
| Orphaned Land Unsung Prophets and Dead Messiahs |
| Pretty solid in spots, but especially over-indulgent in others (In Propaganda's nasally lead vocal melody meandering on for far longer than anyone cares, Yedidi's distinctly ethnic but not especially well-composed intro riff), 'Unsung Prophets and Dead Messiahs' certainly does a lot right, but because of how mid-tempo and excessive the album can be it can make it difficult to parse. An improvement over 'All Is One', but any chance of another 'Mabool' seems decidedly in the rear-view mirror. |
| Our Place of Worship is Silence With Inexorable Suffering |
| Overkill The Electric Age |
| Overkill White Devil Armory |
| P.O.S Chill, Dummy |
Where was there to go after the bombastic electronics of 2012's 'We Don't Even Live Here'? On 'Chill, Dummy', P.O.S both reigns it in and extrapolates on that initial premise, with a mix of minimalist and maximalist instrumental designs. What really ties it all together is the gritty, borderline schizoid nature to the album, feeling off-the-cuff and borderline improv'd.
While I don't think this will be remembered as P.O.S's best record, it's good to see him not dead, and back at making head-on collisions with the current sociopolitical climate, as well as more intimate detailings of his person life. |
| Panzerchrist Room Service |
| Panzerchrist Regiment Ragnarok |
| Parius The Eldritch Realm |
| Pretty fun and non-pretentious prog/tech death. Still has plenty of catchy, melodic riffs with just enough angle to really give it some depth. |
| Perturbator The Uncanny Valley |
| Phlebotomized Deformation of Humanity |
| I didn't realize how much I've missed these guys |
| Pierce the Veil Collide with the Sky |
| Polkadot Cadaver Echoes Across The Hellscape |
| Portal ION |
| Everybody complained about how hazed their production was in the past so the members of Portal manage a mix that almost looks cleanly by comparison. Of course, the album is also their most challenging album to date, maybe intentionally to compensate for that. Several listens in and I'm finally starting to discern all the dissonant yet compelling layers, and I'm sure several more will be equally as rewarding. |
| Process of Guilt Erosion |
| Propagandhi Victory Lap |
| Prostitute Disfigurement Descendants of Depravity |
| Pusha T My Name Is My Name |
| Pusha T King Push – Darkest Before Dawn: The Prelude |
| R.A. The Rugged Man Die, Rugged Man, Die |
| RATKING So It Goes |
| Rebel Wizard Voluptuous Worship of Rapture and Response |
| The vocal mixing on here drives me fucking nuts but gat damn does it riff hard |
| Revocation Chaos of Forms |
| Revocation The Outer Ones |
| Runemagick Evoked From Abysmal Sleep |
| Sadistik Altars |
Why would you drop your dream project on the same date as Kendrick's newest LP?
Regardless of any drop-date blunders, Sadistik is reliably solid, though he brings all his usual weaknesses into this new project too; some cringe-worthy vocal harmonies, some hokey instrumental choices as well as some other minor squabbles. This also has a little less variety than his usual foray, with it missing a massive climactic end-track like most of his projects do.
Still, Sadistik brings an unfiltered and unhinged persona here unlike any other in the rap scene, with dense word play, complex, spider-like flows and one of the most unorthodox approaches out there. None of that changes with Altars. |
| Sadistik Haunted Gardens |
| I kinda expected more out of Cody than meandering apathy. It's certainly more inline with his earlier material than the absurdity that was 'Altars' but you can clearly tell he's holding back, constantly. |
| Sadistik and Maulskull Oblivion Theater |
| Sadistik x Kno Phantom Limbs |
| An eerily concise, and thematic E.P., strangely punctuated by a posse cut that, while, phenomenal by its own merits, just confuses the track flow. Still, Sadistik is on point, and Kno brings his usual high-standing instrumentals. He even brings a solid set of bars (bizarre, right?). Not essential listening, but excellent nonetheless. |
| Sage Francis Copper Gone |
| Sanzu Heavy Over The Home |
| Sean Price Imperius Rex |
| Sevdaliza Ison |
| Seven Spires Gods Of Debauchery |
So I have a couple thoughts:
Seven Spires' integration of melodeath to their symphonic metal blueprint really does
work to break up the monotony of their previous LPs. They don't have an original sound in
that vein, per se, but it does definitely make their consistent listening experience much
easier, for sure.
Lightbringer is awful. The chorus is awful. The execution is awful. Even the music video
is really really not good. It grinds the pace of the album to a halt and it's a huge
bottomless maw in their discography. Do yourselves a favor and skip it in an effort to
save your sanity.
This album is ambitious as hell, but ambition does not necessarily justify length. This
thing is long. 1 hour, 17 minutes. And they try especially hard to justify that runtime
but honestly even with them firing off every gun in the arsenal, you still feel that
length. And it hurts the quality of the project.
It is good though. It's a definite step-up from their past two projects, and, bar some
minor missteps, is definitely worth investigation. The band have had an interesting
singer in Adrienne Cowan for a while but the rest of the members are starting to hit that
high watermark as well, and it's nice to see fruition coming across the board. |
| Shabazz Palaces Quazarz vs. The Jealous Machines |
| Shadow Of Intent Primordial |
Might be a little too masturbatory for some, but a pretty cool concept, nonetheless. Halo-themed
symphonic/technical death metal. Makes you wonder why somebody didn't already think of this. |
| Shadow Of Intent Reclaimer |
| Shadow Of Intent Elegy |
| Shadowrunners Cyberdine |
| She Must Burn Umbra Mortis |
| Sigh Scenes from Hell |
| SikTh The Future In Whose Eyes? |
My immediate thought about halfway through my first listen was "This is Diet SikTh". The vocals are leveled needlessly high in the mix, and they're especially irritating when you realize they just do a worse job imitating the band's past vocalist, Justin Hill, with more of a flare for the typical metalcore clean vocal approach. The guitar work is more reigned in as well, with there being more of a focus on vocal harmonies and slower, chuggier riffs. The band has always had these, but they're much more prominent here, and lead to some of the tracks coming off as monotonous on occasion.
A couple listens in, however, and the full answer is this: SikTh are still SikTh, and even with a more serious, streamlined approach, there are still some noticeable highs here. Riddles of Humanity has one of the fastest, snappiest riffs in the band's discography, Ride the Illusion feels like a proper realization of the band's newest priorities, and the overall concept, bolstered by a series of spoken word interludes, really sets the tone as well as makes these tangent tracks feel more unified. While any trepidation will, to some extent, feel warranted here, this is still a solid album, and is worth a check for fans of more abstract metalcore. |
| Sleigh Bells Reign of Terror |
| Slough Feg New Organon |
| Snoop Dogg Neva Left |
| Soilwork Verkligheten |
Who tf liked StaGD and StD more than their
recent stuff
What dimension have I entered |
| Solstafir Berdreyminn |
| Soundtrack (Film) Black Panther The Album |
| Spirit Adrift Ghost At The Gallows |
| Still doesn't hit like their older albums, but at least it's better than their last record |
| Strung Out Songs Of Armor And Devotion |
| Swans The Seer |
| Symbolik Emergence |
| Your resident enti-tech death critic will fucking hate this but for what it's worth it's nice to see this style done with more melody, despite a lot of it ending up feeling a bit too samey at times |
| Talib Kweli Radio Silence |
| Talib Kweli & Z-Trip Attack the Block |
| This is an unbelievably substantial mixtape. Kweli sounds more on point here than he has in years, and that's something to get excited about. The beats are equally qualitative, always highlighting the spirited deliveries on display, while standing on their own as powerful instrumentals in their own rights. So overall, this more than sets the stage for Kweli's new album drop this year, which is sure to be pretty darn solid. |
| Teen Mortgage Devil Ultrasonic Sound |
| Testament Brotherhood of the Snake |
| Definitely more varied than their more recent work, and ESPECIALLY more varied than 'Dark Roots of the Earth', AKA 'Ballads: The Album', 'Brotherhood of the Snake' finds Testament assembling concepts and song structures from all across their discography, while pushing out some new aspects as well. While the band stumbles occasionally and the production feels a bit too plastic, this is still a solid album, and a nice addition to an already impressive catalog. Good to see the death metal passages return as well. |
| Tetrafusion Dreaming Of Sleep |
I love a lot of the personnel on board this project, but I can't help but feel like the sum of it's parts don't always equal the whole. The vocals are adequate but don't really elevate any of the tracks, and there's a lot of needless meandering cast across the majority of these tracks; and at 60 minutes this definitely takes a toll.
I'd still check it out if you're a fan of prog, but it's not essential. |
| The Absence Enemy Unbound |
| The Absence Coffinized |
| So much better than AGFtO. Seems like the little hang-ups that came with them losing their primary songwriter have mostly been resolved |
| The Contortionist Intrinsic |
| The Dynospectrum Dynospectrum |
| The Faceless Autotheism |
| The Fall of Troy Manipulator |
| The Fall of Troy OK#2 |
| The Gigantics Die Already |
| The Great Old Ones Kadath |
| I'm not a big fan of the guitar tone on this record, but overall it's not far off from the quality levels of the past handful. |
| The Halo Effect March of the Unheard |
| The Horrors Skying |
| The Kennedy Veil Trinity of Falsehood |
| The Monolith Deathcult Versus I |
| Interesting conceptually (relating to the Nazis research into the far flung science fiction realms and the mystical) and interesting structurally. The Monolith Deathcult don't write songs so much as they write sweeping, vast pieces; sometimes starting and stopping in completely different locales. The first half has quite a bit of industrial style sampling, much like their older stuff, but this trails off gradually in the second half as the symphonics escalate the general mood into full movie score. It has its share of negatives; Die Glocke's immediate sample is flatout cringey, badly utilized and constantly repeated, there are lulls strewn here and there throughout the sonic meshes they call songs, and the final track plods so hard here it feels like it's walking on two broken legs. Still though, the band have always had an interesting idea, and here they expand on it in unusual ways while not scaring away their core fan base. |
| The Mountain Goats Goths |
| The Night Flight Orchestra Sometimes The World Ain't Enough |
| The Off Daze Couple's Skate |
| I'm genuinely amazed at how good Deacon's production has gotten. He must be taking lessons from Kno because these are some of the best beats I've heard this year. On the vocal front, everything is fairly funky and upbeat, and there are some genuinely good bars traded between the three emcees. It all culminates very well into the best throwback hip-hop album I've heard since Avanddale Bowling Club's self-titled album. |
| The Perceptionists Resolution |
| The Prodigy Music For The Jilted Generation |
| The Prodigy The Day Is My Enemy |
| The Roots ...And Then You Shoot Your Cousin |
| It doesn't hit the highs of some of their previous works, but it is a daring and incredibly consistent piece of hip-hop, as self-aware and sociopolitical as it is unique, especially within their discography. |
| The Ruins of Beverast Exuvia |
| The Seer Prologue |
| The Underachievers After The Rain |
| The Weeknd After Hours |
| YES A WEEKND SAXOPHONE SOLO |
| Thundercat Drunk |
| Thy Catafalque Naiv |
| Tides of Man Every Nothing |
| Tomb of Annihilation End of Time |
| Tool Fear Inoculum |
| Torae and Marco Polo Double Barrel |
| Torchbearer Death Meditations |
| Toxic Holocaust An Overdose of Death... |
| Triumvir Foul Spiritual Bloodshed |
| Twilight Force Dawn of the Dragonstar |
| Uada Cult of a Dying Sun |
| Uada's second album shows the band is more than capable of varying their sonic palette, though it doesn't seem to have that "it" factor their debut had. It could be the production, which just misses the mark, or the songwriting which approaches "aimless" at times, but this sits just a notch below that solid album. Give it to their vocalist, Jake Superchi though, he absolutely destroys at every single interval, somehow giving a standout performance on a black metal album. |
| Ugly Heroes Everything in Between |
| Ulsect Ulsect |
| Until The Ribbon Breaks The Other Ones |
| Not quite the caliber of his first E.P., but still head and shoulders over his peers' works, 'The Other Ones' does not disappoint. The arrangements here are intricate and gorgeous, and are well produced, to boot, so be sure to snag the stream while it's still online. |
| Vakill Armor of God |
| Varathron Patriarchs of Evil |
| Vektor / Cryptosis Transmissions Of Chaos |
| Venom Prison Samsara |
| Really passionate deliveries from all the individual members add up to something just short of amazing. If they dropped the monotonous breakdowns they'd be a force to be reckoned with within the death metal community |
| Vintersorg Till Fjälls Del II |
If these singles are anything to go off of than this will be one of the best black/folk metal
albums in years. Something about the creation of this sequel has brought all the passion back to
their music.
Edit: Seems like the singles are definitely the best songs on the album, but there's really a lot
of downtime as well, which is disappointing. If this thing had been cut down to one disc's worth
of content I could see this being better. |
| Viraemia Viraemia |
| Virvum Illuminance |
| Warbringer Worlds Torn Asunder |
| Warfield With The Old Breed |
I won't lie I keep thinking about a Garfield themed war metal band every time I see the band name
in the new releases
Regardless this slaps |
| Warforged I: Voice |
| Warmen Beyond Abilities |
His best effort by a long shot. Warmen might just be one of the most gifted metal keyboardists of
all time, and on here he really just amplifies his Children of Bosom efforts. Imagine a more
keyboard-focused, neoclassical power metal album, minus the vocals (more or less) and you've got a
fairly accurate picture. Shame he's completely wasted on CoB's more recent releases. |
| Watsky Cardboard Castles |
While there is still quite of bit of growth to be done here, George Watsky has the
potential, and that is what is put on display on 'Cardboard Castles'. His flow is definitely
fluid, and even when he stumbles, he still maintains an interesting lyrical setup to keep
things interesting. So overall, this is worth a listen, even if just to check out the
spectacular 'Tiny Glowing Screens, Pt. 2', which really defines him as a spoken word artist
turned hip-hop musician. |
| Wiki No Mountains In Manhattan |
| Witherfall Nocturnes and Requiems |
| Within the Ruins Phenomena |
| Wode Servants of the Countercosmos |
| Woodkid Iron |
| Woodkid Run Boy Run |
| Wounds (USA-IL) Light Eater |
| Wytch Hazel II: Sojourn |
| Xoth Exogalactic |
| Doesn't quite hit the same peaks as the previous, but still a really strong record that shows exactly why this band is special |
| Xuthal The Reclusive Dynasty |
| Zavala Fantasmas |
