2009 was such a good year for metal. So good, the whole online community can’t seem to settle on which albums were the best. Just looking around at all the “best of” lists around the internets, one can see that every list is different from the last. Sure, there are some albums here and there that seem to consistently land on these lists. If it were a shitty year, then the lists would definitely look like carbon copies of each other.

So, here I am today with a new list. I have to say, however, that the list is pretty much arbitrary. Depending on my mood and overall level of excitement, this list could be all over the place, save for the top two or three, which were the only ones with a position set in stone.

Without further bullshitting, here we go.

10. Converge – Axe To Fall

Before Axe To Fall, I think it’s safe to say I didn’t care about Converge in the least. But there was so much hype surrounding this record that I couldn’t ignore it. Axe To Fall is a beastly album. The drums are unrelenting and the guitar work is dazzling. The vocal performances are intense as well, although I’m still not too fond of Jacob Bannon’s barking vocals. With Axe To Fall, Converge take a step into progressive metal territory here and there, and take chances, particularly on the last two tracks, Cruel Bloom (sounds like Converge wrote a song with the ghost of Johnny Cash) and Wretched World, featuring Genghis Tron. The album still has some downfalls, in that the middle tracks seem to blend together seemlessly, and tend to run together. Once when I was listening, I had gone through three or four tracks without noticing I had been listening to different songs. Luckily, Axe To Fall is a grower.

9. Enfold Darkness – Our Cursed Rapture

Newcomers Enfold Darkness attempt to make their name known with their Sumerian debut, Our Cursed Rapture.  Technical, brutal, and melodic at the same time. Blackened Death Metal has never sounded so good. One might have a hard time getting past the high screeching vocal performance, but it is easy to get used to with repeated listens. Turns out, this album was produced by Jamie King, who also produced all of Between The Buried And Me’s albums. You can’t really tell either. Jamie does a good job as far as having the band sound like themselves.

8. Devin Townsend Project – Ki

Okay, technically Ki isn’t metal for a majority of the album. But it’s Devin Townsend, so fuck it. It’s going here anyway. This was a great start to the Devin Townsend Project. Devin takes easy listening and ambient music and throws his own twist on it, creating something relatively fresh to the metal scene. Ki is a calming listen, evidently serving as therapy for Devin himself. Devin also takes a brief stroll through rockabilly territory on “Trainfire”. Ki is the musical embodiment of restraint (with minimal indulgence, of course).

7. Architects – Hollow Crown

There’s actually not much I can say about Hollow Crown. It sounds like Dillinger Escape Plan meets 30 Seconds To Mars; Both technical and catchy as hell, Architects combine mathcore with soaring vocal choruses. One could say that Architects are a more straightforward and less-spastic SikTh. This album’s beautiful and heartfelt choruses will definitely stick with you. This is also the best use of gang vocals I’ve heard in some time. Hollow Crown may be off-putting to people on either side of the metal spectrum, but it finds a middle ground and sits there comfortably.

6. Agoraphobic Nosebleed -  Agorapocalypse

I never cared much for Agoraphobic Nosebleed before this record. Grindcore typically isn’t my thing, as the norm includes super-short songs and muddy production. However, Agorapocalypse features a sleek production and the songs have decent length. The music is violent, but in a very satisfying way. I can’t seem to put my finger on it, but the album just seems full. With three vocalists (with vocalist Richard Johnson pulling crunchy bass duty), a guitarist, and a drum machine, there’s just a lot going on. Agorapocalypse is the type of record you should play when you get pissed, and just let it go. The instrumentation is fantastic, with a brilliantly programmed drum solo on “Question of Integrity”.

View Full Article »