Best Albums of 2011 I Heard in 2012

 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.

Top 10 New Thrash Metal Songs

Recently Lich King posted a question on Facebook asking users to name their top ten favorite songs from thrash metal bands that have formed since 2001.  Since I love thrash metal, I will list mine.  Youtube clips are after the jump.  Some of these are not pure thrash metal bands, with some black, death, or speed metal influence, but they will all lead to broken necks.

Initial Impressions: Vektor: Outer Isolation

Even in retro-thrash, it was only natural that some bands would choose the road less traveled. There were already plenty of bands aping the Bay Area sound, plenty seeking to sound like East Coast thrash, and plenty attempting the Teutonic thrash style. So it was natural that there would be a band choosing their major influence to be the Canadian sci-fi thrash metal band Voivod. Vektor is that band even going so far as to have a similar logo. Voivod was a very original band and Vektor has seemingly decided to model their foundation on Voivod's fundamental weirdness. But saying that Vektor is a Voivod clone is far too simple, and quite frankly, incorrect.

I wanted to check out Vektor for quite a long time, since reading positive reviews on their first release Black Future. Unfortunately, it took quite awhile before I was able to do so. Now that I have heard them though, I can say that they are definitely one of the most impressive bands from the retro-thrash metal movement. They are a truly unique band, with a wide spectrum of influences.

Vektor kicks things off with blistering 10+ minute opener "Cosmic Cortex" which features a whirlwind of riffs. Many of the songs have a bit of a mechanical, science fiction feel to them. The songs feature mostly progressive structures similar to Voivod of course, as well as groups like Atheist and Cynic. The vocals sound like a cross between Schmier of Destruction and Chuck Schuldiner's progressive material.

The opening track sets the pace and Vektor never really slows down from there. The guitars sound crisp and, even though the riffs are relatively straightforward, the music sounds complex. The bass is prominent which is definitely a plus. Voivod's bass was also always pretty noticeable.

This is really an incredible record. I am definitely keeping an eye on this band. Seeing the logo and the song titles would lead one to believe that Vektor was a Voivod clone, but that is certainly not the case. Vektor has their own unique sound, Voivod is just an influence. This album is on par with the top albums from last year. If I had heard it earlier, it probably would have been ranked fairly highly.

My Wife Came Through Again on Valentine's Day

My wife gave me the following CDs for Valentine's Day, plus Metroid: Other M on the Wii:


Thanks baby.