Top 14 of 2014

It has been a pretty bad year for me on this blog.  I have been a little burned out as I have been very busy with work.  It has been hard to find time to listen to new music as much as I would like.  I have been really bad with bands contacting me.  I still heard a lot of great new music though.  And I managed to put together a Best Of list.  Here we go:

14.  AT THE GATES: AT WAR WITH REALITY

The reunion of the year finds the pioneering melodeath band releasing their first new album since the landmark Slaughter of the Soul.  At The Gates manages to recapture the spirit of that album without remaking it.  Sure a lot of bands copied it over the years, but At The Gates still manages to sound fresh, even after all these years.

13.  SEPTICFLESH: TITAN
Other bands have come around that do what Septicflesh does better than them.  Rotting Christ does Greek mythology better and Fleshgod Apocalypse does symphonic tinged extreme metal better.  Nevertheless Septicflesh keeps going and they still do their thing damn well, as evidenced by this terrific album.

12.  OVERKILL: WHITE DEVIL ARMORY
If I had to name a favorite thrash metal band, I would honestly have to consider Overkill at this point.  Mostly due to the fact that the band has never really softened their sound.  Sure they were groove metal for a little while, but they were still good.  And they continue to put out amazing, kickass thrash metal albums.

11.  GOATWHORE: CONSTRICTING RAGE OF THE MERCILESS
Slightly disappointing after the terrific Carving Out the Eyes of God and Blood for the Master, this is nevertheless still a very strong album.  Goatwhore continues to put out uncompromisingly brutal metal.  They get more extreme with each release.

10.  EX MORTUS: SLAVES TO THE SWORD
Ex Mortus bring a lot of symphonic and classical influences to their style of riffing.  The solos in particular display these influences.  The band even goes so far as to cover "Moonlight Sonata".  Seriously.  The rest of the album is unapologetically cheesy and metal as fuck.  It's campy and fun, and we need that once in awhile.

9.  INSOMNIUM: SHADOWS OF THE DYING SUN
Finland's Insomnium are easily one of the best melodeath bands still going.  Their somber and melodic style comes as a welcome change from some of the other groups in the genre.  This is yet another melancholic masterpiece from the band that just keeps getting better.

8.  LORD MANTIS: DEATH MASK
Easily one of the most controversial albums of the year, particularly due to the album's insane cover art, Lord Mantis's third release is also one of the year's best.  Their take on filthy rotten sludge metal puts a lot of the mainstream sludge acts to shame.  Those who refused to check it out due to the cover are missing out.

7.  GRAND MAGUS: TRIUMPH AND POWER
Grand Magus makes this list every year they release something.  That should tell something about the quality of this band.  They just continue to put out terrific album after terrific album.  They are quite simply on of the best traditional metal bands going today.

6.  CORPSESSED: ABYSMAL THRESHOLDS
First of all, awesome name.  Secondly, awesome death metal album.  Corpsessed reminds me most of groups like Angelcorpse and Teitanblood, filthy, disgusting death metal that blows everything else out of the water.  This is just the band's first full-length album, which is shocking because they sound like seasoned veterans.

5.  VADER: TIBI ET IGNI
Vader is simultaneously one of the most consistent and most underrated metal bands in the world.  They just never seem to get the respect and notice that they deserve.  Every single album by Vader is terrific and the fact that the band has been doing it since the mid 1980's is astounding.  This is once more a very strong album in typical Vader take-no-prisoners style.

4.  TRIPTYKON: MELANA CHASMATA
Triptykon was the release I probably looked most forward to this year.  After all, their first album was my Album of the Year and it did not look at all like this would be a disappointing sophomore album.  While I do thoroughly enjoy this album, some of the songs seemed to be a little too similar at times and the band was often comfortable plodding along.  Certainly not the case with the opening crushing track.  All in all, a great album, but one that pales in comparison to the first one.

3.  MASTODON: ONCE MORE 'ROUND THE SUN
I have always liked Mastodon, but none of their releases have been so great that I listened to them frequently over and over again.  Until this one.  This album features some of the catchiest songs I have heard all year.  Mastodon seems much more focused on crafting songs rather than the meandering psychedelia the band once used frequently and they are that much better for it.

2.  BEHEMOTH: THE SATANIST
One of the most hyped releases of the year managed to exceed even my expectations.  Behemoth has always been a favorite band of mine, but some of their releases have lacked dynamics, focusing instead on simply blasting away.  This release is incredibly dynamic and therefore blows away everything the band previously released.

1.  INNSMOUTH: CONSUMED BY ELDER SIGN
The debut album by this Australian death metal act is incredible.  Dark and mysterious with an obvious Lovecraftian influence, the album features twisted riffs and psychotic, gibbering vocals.  It is one of those death metal albums that simply grabs you on the first listen and will not let go.  I have mentioned that certain death metal albums, particularly lesser-known ones, sometimes have an intense quality that makes it difficult to turn them off.  This one has that same quality.

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 5.  TOXIC HOLOCAUST: CONJURE AND COMMAND
Toxic Holocaust is a band that focuses on a very specific timeframe in creating their music.  They play old school black/death/thrash metal with nods towards Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer, Sodom, and the like.  It is all fast and intense music.  Their albums are short and fun.  This one was no exception.

4.  INSOMNIUM: ONE FOR SORROW
Insomnium's somber take on melodeath can be heart-wrenching.  That much is sure.  The Finnish band has been putting out high-quality albums for years now and they certainly lived up to their past albums with this one.

3.  VADER: WELCOME TO THE MORBID REICH
The pioneering Polish death/thrash metal band has been one of the most consistent bands going for the last couple of decades.  Every album destroys.  You know what you will get with a Vader album, a steamroller of riffs and pounding drums.  They never disappoint.

2.  DISMA: TOWARDS THE MEGALITH
Incantation's Craig Pillard appears as vocalist for this album and the sound is fairly similar to Pillard's other band.  It's grimy, old school death metal with a nod toward the occult death metal that was rising from the grave in the late 1980's.

1.  VEKTOR: OUTER ISOLATION
I am a big fan of Vektor already and this is the only album I have heard to this point.  The band combines styles from Voivod and later Death into a very impressive and original sound.  The album is just a crushing beast of a release.  This one would have easily made my Top 10 in 2011, likely at number two or three.

Initial Impressions: Insomnium: One for Sorrow

Insomnium has solidified their status as the best ongoing melodeath band with this release. The Finnish band has put out a number of great releases in a row now and this album is not any different. They are one of the few bands from the much-maligned genre that has continued to put out excellent material.

Insomnium is known for their heartfelt and melancholic take on the melodeath genre. Their music is often full of sadness and pain and is often surprisingly beautiful. This style has continued once more with this release. The album opens slowly but magnificently with the instrumental lead-in track that opens into "Through the Shadows", one of the strongest tracks on the album. This track features a number of clean-singing sections, which with other groups have been often reviled, but Insomnium's always sound great.

There are a number of more aggressive songs, such as "Song of the Blackest Bird", which is as intense as Insomnium really gets. But, for the most part, this is Insomnium doing what they do best. Emotionally powerful melodeath, bordering on death/doom similar to Swallow the Sun. While the formula really has not changed at all from the last several albums, Insomnium create compelling music that feels timeless and powerful.

I am a big fan of Insomnium and have been since the very first time I heard them, on Headbangers' Ball no less. This release does absolutely nothing to change that. Insomnium continues to put out high quality somber melodeath.

Finnish Melodeath

Since most of the early Swedish melodeath bands have been declining in quality over the last decade, there needed to be a new wave of melodeath bands to take their place. Enter the Finnish scene. And no, I am talking about Children of Bodom, Kalmah, Norther, and their clones.

INSOMNIUM:
I discussed Insomnium earlier this week. Their take on melodeath features some influences from doom metal and gothic metal, but is still clearly more on the melodeath side of things. Their music is often done in a much more somber tone, which is the doom metal influence shining through. Think My Dying Bride playing melodeath and you will have a pretty good idea what this band is all about. In addition, the music has an epic, emotional atmosphere that a lot of other bands struggle with. Insomnium is an extremely impressive band and the only one of these three that made my Top 100.

MORS PRINCIPIUM EST:
Mors Principium Est sounds a bit like early Soilwork but with a lot more keyboard effects. Unlike a lot of other bands who use keyboards though, Mors Principium Est does not overuse them and they actually accentuate the music quite a bit. It has the effect of an almost industrial/techno melodeath. The vocals are fairly similar to Bjorn Strid's vocals on early Soilwork as well, but with some deeper growls thrown in once in awhile. The songs are all catchy as hell. Mors Principium Est comes closest of the three bands here to sounding like Gothenburg-style melodeath.

OMNIUM GATHERUM:
Omnium Gatherum sounds a lot like The Gallery-era Dark Tranquillity combined with Insomnium, with some more melodic sensibilities. Omnium Gatherum is a little poppier than a lot of the other melodeath bands. They would almost seem to be a fit for modern rock radio, were it not for the death growls utilized by their vocalist. Other than that though, I could see them breaking through to mainstream metal quite easily. That is not to say the quality of their music is not good, in fact they are quite impressive.

My 100 Favorite Metal Bands Pt. 59: Insomnium

Fitting in with melodeath week, we come to Finnish band Insomnium. Insomnium plays a slower and much more morose brand of melodeath. Their music is somber and sad, dealing with painful loss and sorrow. Nevertheless, the band's music is simply incredible. It's honestly spine-tingling and powerful. Everyone should be aware of this band.

FAVORITE ALBUM: ABOVE THE WEEPING WORLD

Initial Impressions: Insomnium: Across the Dark

Insomnium is one of my favorite melodic death metal bands. The Finnish band combines beautiful, sweeping guitar soundscapes, Dark Tranquillity-style riffs, and some doom metal elements to result in a sound that is at once electrifying, as well as heart-breaking.

The band arguably reached its majestic peak on their last album Above the Weeping World, however this album remains locked into that same vein. As a whole, the album is a little on the faster side and a little bit heavier. The band also uses clean vocals more often. All of these changes though do not mix up the band's sound so much that is no longer clear it's an Insomnium album.

Insomnium has once again put out a terrific album. Melodic death has continued to survive as a genre because of bands like this. Bands that still play the style but play it differently enough to stand out from all of the In Flames clones. Insomnium's additions of doom metal elements keep the band standing out from the rest of the pack.

Metallattorney's Top 21 of the 21st Century So Far Pt. 4

Here is the next set of albums:

#9. INSOMNIUM: ABOVE THE WEEPING WORLD
Insomnium is part of a newer wave of melodic death metal bands coming from Finland, along with Mors Principium Est and Omnnium Gatherum. Insomnium is the best of the bunch. The band combines melodic death metal with death/doom influences from fellow Finns Swallow the Sun. The resulting sound is heavy, yet somber and melodic. It’s slower and not as aggressive, but the atmosphere is often extremely heavy and emotional. Truly a heartbreaking album to listen to, but amazing nonetheless.

#8. KAMELOT: THE BLACK HALO
Kamelot is a very talented and melodic power metal band from the United States. This album came when the band was able to balance their sense of melodicism with aggression and power. It is widely hailed as a classic of the genre, and I agree. This is Kamelot at their best. After this album, they would go a little too soft. They are still not a bad band, but they were better when this album came out. A very catchy and enjoyable release.

#7. ROTTING CHRIST: THEOGONIA
This album was discussed earlier in a post on Rotting Christ’s discography. This album blends gothic metal and black metal elements and throws in some Greek folk elements. It is one of the catchiest albums I have ever heard and is destined to be a classic album from this underrated band. Rotting Christ has gotten a lot of flack from their name and many people refuse to check them out for this reason. These people are missing out on a truly original and interesting band.

#6. SYMPHONY X: THE ODYSSEY
This album was a blind buy for me. I saw that the band did a concept album on Homer’s The Odyssey and decided to check them out. I am very glad I did. The band plays progressive power metal more in the vein of Iced Earth meets Dream Theater with a little more aggression. The album is consistently good throughout, but reaches it’s high point on the sprawling epic 20+ minute closer “The Odyssey”.