This year produced two utterly refreshing death metal albums; this is one of them, and the other will be mentioned next. Gorerotted were a grind/DM band of a good standard, but the emphasis was always on 'standard'. This year, though, they changed their name to 'The Rotted' to reflect the new sound to be heard on this beast. Yes, this album is still very aggressive death metal, however it's so much more textured and well-executed than before. Thankfully they've retained their wonderful song titles ('Angel Of Meth', 'It's Like There's A Party In My Mouth (And Everyone's Being Sick)'), and while most other things have been changed they're all for the better. We can only hope the slowly building UKDM scene will be inspired by this, sparked to do something a little different.
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The Monolith Deathcult - Trivmvirate
It's been months since I first heard it, but to this day I still shit my pants when that choir kicks in on 'Deus Ex Machina'. This album is a masterclass in how to be unbelievably brutal, but not suck. It's unique in that it is, I swear, the only extreme metal album to use 'symphonic elements' and all that other bullshit to very much enhance the music. The bass sound is the unsung hero, providing a seriously thick foundation for the equally well-dialled guitars to mould on. The drummer seems to be more precise than a metronome and the vocals wrap it up as one coherent and very, very brutal package. These guys are a class act and you'd be very silly not to listen to them, even if you are only reading this article for the mention of Fall Out Boy.
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Metallica – Death Magnetic
Over the last 4 months you've all been overloaded with opinions on this (I know I have, I have to read all your damn comments about it!) so I will keep my own to the point. Death Magnetic is good. It has some fantastic songs that are called That Was Just Your Life, The Judas Kiss and The Unforgiven III. It has some good songs that are called Broken Beat And Scarred, All Nightmare Long and Cyanide. It has some average songs that are called The Day That Never Comes, My Apocalypse and The End Of The Line. It also has Suicide & Redemption, which is not a good song. St. Anger, like totally sucked and I wish they'd return to the sound they had when they were good. Fuck Dave Mustaine.
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Marionette - Spite
I got very lucky when I received this promo in the mail from Listenable Records; I had heard the song 'Legion' but a few days earlier, and was very much interested in acquiring the album. It's ferocious yet well thought-out, probably the sort of album you should listen to when you're pissed off as it provides both musical methods of dealing with anger: it's vicious and fast to connect with your mood, but by the end of it you are very much in a better place as something about the melodies is so...reflective that you get beyond whatever the problem may be in the short term and think about the big picture. That's my bloated and pretentious way of saying 'it kicks your fucking ass', by the way.
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Agrypnie - Exit
Agrypnie made the best black metal album of 2006 with 'F51.4' and they returned to make the best black metal album of 2008. They had some tough competition in 2006 from Keep Of Kalessin and Secrets Of The Moon, and this year they arguably had even more with Lifelover, Taake, Krallice and Ofermod (note: not Keep Of Kalessin) releasing fantastic albums as well. But really, the beauty of 'Exit' is more than the vast majority of black metal bands would even dare to handle. It's not every day that you find a black metal band as emotive as Agrypnie, a black metal band who display such warmth before utterly destroying it with true coldness.
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The Computers - You Can't Hide From The Computers
An 18-minute burst of blues-punk madness from Exeter's very own maniacs. Rather than being dominated by any one member, it is the chemistry between all of the instruments that give this EP the essential drive which makes it so much fun. Bluesy solos/progressions, harmonics and what an oh-so-typical 'classic' sound. High tempos, fierce screams and a perfect hardcore mixdown are just three of the many awesome things to be found in this short but sweet debut.
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Kanye West – 808s And Heartbreak
This one sure is interesting. Kanye West is one of the biggest rappers in the world, most well known for spitting a load of egotistical nonsense but being loved for it just because of how talented he is. So when he puts out an album where an auto-tune sings about getting dumped...it's interesting. I think nearly every fan's reaction to this was 'This sucks!', but once you get your head round how much of a departure it is this album can reward you. It's not hip-hop, not at all. It's a pop album, but a very thick, introspective one. Interestingly enough, a parallel between this and 'Traced In Air' can be made; both feature heavily processed, yet highly emotional vocals. I mean sure, Paul Masvidal can actually sing, but it would be a bit strange to hear Kanye deliver lonely lyrics in his normal rapping style. It is still beyond me as to how 'Love Lockdown' managed to be such a successful song, but I think I will keep on understanding this album better as 2009 gets going.
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Common – Universal Mind Control
Unlike '808s And Heartbreak', I am not expecting this one to grow on me. Common is quite easily the best rapper I've ever heard, however last year's 'Finding Forever' came as a minor disappointment, with several tracks ruined by Mr. West himself. Unfortunately this new album has not only continued involvement from Kanye, but also a majority of the tracks produced by The Neptunes, and it does not work. This is just an irritatingly poor album, with pathetically self-centred lyrics and beats that vary from mind-numbingly dull to a most blatant type of annoying. A little more 'Changes', a little less 'Sex 4 Suga', please. That said, more of the absolute genius that was smeared over 'Be' or 'Resurrection' would be appreciated.
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Bloodbath - The Fathomless Mastery
OMFG! Mikael Akerfeldt! He's my god, and he's on this so his vocals will totally cover up any boring riffs, flaccid production or shitty songs!
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Mogwai – The Hawk Is Howling
'The Hawk Is Howling' manages what no Mogwai album has done before. It's made sure every song is absolutely as good as it could be, it's just the right length and it's just generally the best album they've made. It's one of those sublime albums where you can sit back and relax or you can really focus on what's happening and both ways of listening are equally enjoyable It's also one of those albums where, when summing them up for this blog, I end up paraphrasing my official review, so go and find that if you like. If not just remember that the only reason this isn't the best post-rock album of 2008 by a gigantic margin is one other extra-special contender who will be revealed at the end of this blog.
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Omnium Gatherum – The Redshift
I am so, so glad that this album was good. Their last was pretty duff, but Omnium Gatherum really kicked back into fifth gear with 'The Redshift'. The riffs and leads are gorgeous, Jukka Pelkonen's vocals really gel and Omnium Gatherum really sound so much more like a band that have full confidence in their material; more so than they ever have, including the classic 'Spirits And August Light'. Despite the fairly sombre 'Greeneyes' and 'Song For December', this is the 'feel-good' album of the year, because of the music and because of the fact it has come from this band once again.
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In Flames – A Sense Of Purpose
Maybe it's my pretty serious obsession with their entire discography already, but holy fuck, did this one blow me away. Despite being unbelievably pumped up by the four excellent new tracks from the accompanying EP, this album met and exceeded my expectations. Every little bit of this is just amazing, from the obscene catchiness of 'I'm The Highway' to the unprecedented scale and darkness of 'The Chosen Pessimist', from the class of 'The Mirror's Truth' to the pounding groove of 'March To The Shore'.
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Yet by some bizarre turn of events 'A Sense Of Purpose' was not the best album of 2008. Something very, very special must have happened for an album by In Flames having to make do with second place in my eyes. That album is 'Station' by Russian Circles.
Words cannot describe how much this album has done for me in the seven months it has been released. At different points in the year it has seemed as if this beautiful post-rock masterpiece was written specifically for any particular day I am having. It is utterly incredible from ‘Campaign’s melodic depth and swelling ambience, it is utterly incredible when ‘Xavii’ transforms from a desolate lament to a back-burning rage and it is utterly incredible at every single moment in between. This album is bliss, it is the best album of 2008 and it is the greatest post-rock album ever made.
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Thank you for reading all of that, you brave, brave soldier. Back to doing constructive and relevant things with my time!
Apologies for this being finished in january, but only being posted halfway through 2009.
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Hello, and welcome to my (highly delayed) drawn out ramblings about some of the music that came out in 2008. Please note that this isn’t just a run down of the best, as there are some stinkers included as well.
---------- Agalloch – The White
It only makes sense to start at the beginning, and this EP was the first new release I bought in 2008 as I preordered it as soon as it was made available. The EP features only the soft side of Agalloch, with minimal distorted guitars, vocals or use of a standard drum kit and caters quite nicely to the deluded 'neofolk/dark ambient' pseudo-pagans who manage to remain unbelievably metal whilst listening to the sound of trees and enjoying the feel of Midwest wind in their hair. Whilst some of the seven songs are more or less misfires, there are some stunningly beautiful tracks, namely 'Sowilo Rune' with its exotic positivity and 'Summerisle Reprise', which is more or less the exact opposite.
---------- Thrice – The Alchemy Index Vols. III & IV: Air & Earth
I have explained the concept behind Thrice's Alchemy Index project far too many times this year, so if you want to know what's up head off to Wiki. The 'Fire' and 'Water' discs were two of my very favourites from 2007, and I had thought from the beginning that the 'Air' disc would be the best of the four. As it turns out, I was wrong (that accolade goes to 'Water') but that doesn't mean that the final supplement of elemental experimentation wasn't absolutely bloody fantastic, both musically and lyrically. I still can't comprehend how these guys manage to come out with such different kinds of music whilst retaining both very high quality and their own recognisable sound. Just two more songs in the 'Flame Deluge' layout (sonnets written on humanity from the perspective of the respective disc's element, and a shared closing melody) would have been enough for me, but on top of the phenomenal 'Silver Wings' and 'Child Of Dust' sonnets, I got songs like 'Broken Lungs', 'Daedalus' and 'Digging My Own Grave', so I'm happy.
---------- Cynic – Traced In Air
Despite what some chosen pessimists may tell you, this isn't a perfect album, or the best album of the year. It is, however, pretty damn good. I can't say I particularly cared for Cynic or their debut until I heard 'Integral Birth' on a zine compilation, and then saw them live. All of a sudden, it clicked and I am digging it all majorly. The thing with 'Traced In Air' is that I did overplay it when my combination of enjoyment and reviewing obligations came around, so maybe it'll take a while for me to return to it without being sick of the sound of that Tymon knobend supplying another weak growl or Sean Reinert sort of sucking at drumming. Yeah, I said it, but the majorly redeeming factor about this album is the vocals. They are absolutely sublimely performed and produced, and despite the fairly heavy dosage of vocoding, they are sung with real soul. In any case, it's an album most people will remember from this year.
---------- Coldplay – Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends
A lot of people didn't like 'X&Y'. I personally did but that doesn't mean I wasn't very receptive to Coldplay breaking out of their box as they made their most experimental record yet. Sure, you may say, it's not UneXpect (though that is undoubtedly a good thing), but it's certainly a step away from the simple format that a lot of people seem to hate Coldplay for. This one's filled with delicious textures and tones that one wouldn't expect from Coldplay, but is combined with the acute melodic ear that you would. Every single song serves a purpose and has its own very distinct identity, but for me it's got to be 'Life In Technicolor', easily one of the best songs of the year.
---------- Alkaline Trio – Agony & Irony
2005's 'Crimson' is one of my favourite albums of all time, and my first ever show was put on by the Trio, so you'll forgive me for being more than a little excited about this one. At first I was a little put off by the slower tempos and generally smoother sounding songs, however it's a grower, it's a very very big grower. The songwriting is as good as ever, the bass, guitars and drums are as good as ever, but what impressed me the most was the vocals. I mean yes, their vocal lines have always been fantastic, but the technical capability and range of Dan Andriano especially has improved massively (did you hear those high notes in 'Do You Wanna Know?'!?) It's got the feel-good hits and the frankly depressing moments as well, just as an Alkaline Trio album should. I'm still not all that convinced about 'Into The Night', but other than that this is a stellar effort, even if it doesn't top 'Crimson'.
---------- At The Soundawn - Red Square : We Come In Waves
Good god! A post-metal band that doesn't pride themselves on their oh-so-original use of dynamics, comgining twinkly, down-tempo guitars and dirty, down-tempo guitars! Sure, bits and pieces sound like whatever peer you'd care to mention but this debut from Italy's At The Soundawn doesn't waste any unnecessary mood establishing an 'atmosphere'; it's already there after a few bars. The bass playing especially is worth noting with that difficult yet heavily appreciated (by myself, at least) balance between emotive presence and that lo-mid EQ presence which just makes everything sound fat as fuck. Recommended if you still think Isis are the be-all and end-all of this style of music.
---------- Immortal Technique – The 3rd World
Everyone's favourite 'underground' rapper (I'm looking at you, rap threads in The Pit) returned after a 5 year dry spell, and released 'The 3rd World' which seems to feature more name-dropping from DJ Green Lantern than Mr. Coronel himself. He's not at his lyrical best on this one, delving a little too much into the sensationalist, but it's more than made up for by his toughened delivery and the consistently awesome beats from Green Lantern. It seems to be some kind of a side-project to his two other upcoming albums, 'The Middle Passage' and 'Revolutionary Vol. 3', but this isn't reflected in the music as I think 'The 3rd World' is, musically at least, his best album to date.
---------- Fall Out Boy - Folie a Deux
Some people have difficulties when it comes to understanding that Fall Out Boy don't make their songs entirely out of three power chords. They provide us with an absolute belter of an album, yet again showcasing Patrick Stump's considerable talent as a songwriter and singer. Sure, it begins to slope a little towards the end but that doesn't mean much when its songs suddenly take up a majority chunk of Fall Out Boy's top 10 of all time. There's the infectious 'Disloyal Order Of Water Buffaloes', the uplifting 'The (Shipped) Gold Standard', the sophisticated ballad 'What A Catch, Donnie', the subtly sinister 'I Don't Care'...I could go on. But, thinking about who will read this, I won't.
---------- Cult Of Luna – Eternal Kingdom
Oh boy, this one needs more than a little segment in a blog to do it justice. It took me long enough to fully understand quite how good this album is (that's right, my initial high score from my review wasn't high enough), and I can only hope that it can continue to unfold itself in front of me. It's got everything that makes Cult Of Luna great on every album they make (give or take stylistic changes after 'The Beyond') but it's got something else that's a little rougher yet a little more enthralling. Putting words on music like this is never easy so I'll just say this album kicked 2008's ass and there are only two albums that I would rate higher.
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Opeth - Watershed Oh, Opeth, why must you torture me so? Do you have to create one of the coolest fucking songs you've ever made, filled to the brim with death metal genius, and then go on to dismantle it piece by piece? Do you have to write songs like 'Hessian Peel', where you write two good songs and paste them together with a sketchy, self-indulgent 'interlude'? Do you have to write songs like 'Burden', that begin all well and good but totally miss the point? Do you have to write songs like 'Porcelain Heart', songs which insist on their own progressive nature despite being so linear? Do you have to write songs like 'Hex Omega' that just plain suck? Apparently you do.
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