While Roland does the "stargazing indie child year-end-list" thing below, above, and probably everywhere else, I'm going to do one album a day until Christmas. My choices are predicated entirely upon personal taste, and as such, the following confession (and the title): I like metal. Not just the popular in orbit stuff of Mastodon or Isis, but metal in general. As such, there's a significant quotient of Europeans making sounds like they're gargling with steel wool scattered throughout these 25 days (but first, I have to catch up!), but no good album (even if it comes from the steel-gargling-Europeans section) is without general musical merit, and there's some wonderful gems from this year's metal crop for the purpose of general musical appreciation. As such, I include the metal of the year.
Now, to the actual records of choice:
25. Isolée - Western Store
Yes, I know it's a compilation. Yes, I know it's not technically an album. But you know what? This is my list, and as such, I fall back upon the old critics' standby: I-liked-it-it's-my-list-and-it-was-released-this-year, so-it's-all-good. Isolée, for those of you not familiar, is nice, stripped-down, groove-based electronica. There's little need or use of heartbreaking keyboard ambience or detached trance divas here: what is on offer is simple rising and falling action, all dressed up for the big ball with quirky rhythms and head-bopping beats. Is it really groundbreaking? No. It is however, fun, danceable, and perfect for happy, overenergetic moods.
Buy: Here
Official Site: Here
YouTube: Here
24. All Shall Perish - The Price of Existence
From a wonder of beat in electronica, to one in metal. All Shall Perish's wonderful 2006 release is our first metal album, and it's end-to-end hyperactive joy. So what makes this so good?
The most recent, most pronounced wave in American metal is metalcore, where angry teenagers mix hardcore punk with something called Gothenburg melodic death metal (no history lesson necessary there, just one album: At the Gates' Slaughter Of The Soul). All Shall Perish have grown out of that, and what makes this such a joy is that they turn down the melody and up the percussion. This album is built nearly entirely around rhythm, with the drums mixed amazingly high, and their accompanying human doing his best to sound like a jackhammer. It's a visceral, energetic thrill, where every layered passage just cries out to have something moved with it. Still, this album is one of the harsher on this list, with a singer who focuses on growling, and a very noisy sound. If you can crack it, though, if you can take some noise in your music, it's wonderful stuff.
Buy: Here
Official Site: Here
YouTube: Here
23. Poisonblack - Lust Stained Despair
Quick synopsis: Big-budget, high shimmer, polished till it gleams goth metal from one of Sentenced's splinter bands.
Finland is generally a really bad country for music from a lot of perspectives. From a metal perspective, the Finns are good people: weird, but good people. Nationally, they focus on taking the darkest, harshest stuff they can, and then throwing odd synth arrangements at it until it's actually happy. Their best commercial results are power metal (Nightwish) and melodic death metal (Children of Bodom) but from a critic's perspective, Finland does best with goth metal, such as in long-standing national highlights, Sentenced, who broke up in 2005 and left us with a number of child bands, including Poisonblack, the actual artists who created number 23.
Poisonblack, as mentioned above, play polished, well-crafted, radio-friendly goth metal. By metal standards. In reality, this means it doesn't sound like it was recorded in a tin can, there's an actual single, and the band take time off from going on about Satan and worse to talk about relationships and love. It's important to note that there's a very big difference between goth rock and goth metal: goth metal has a thicker backend (typically in the guitar production) which lifts it up and out of aimless emotional dirges by giving it focus and a sharper focus on songwriting (in short, if you've heard and hated HIM, there is actual merit here).
Frontman Ville Laihiala has the perfect voice for this: it's smooth enough to go down easy, but with just enough rough edges to give it weight and strength, while the guitars comfortably crunch, the synths lighten everything just a few steps, and the drums drive it all together. All-in-all, this seems like a pretty average record, but Poisonblack (just like their forebearers) have danced along the edge of the dagger between hopelessly gothic and powerless, or too heavy, and that's an accomplishment in and of itself. No matter the mood, no matter the like, Poisonblack go down easily and leave you with a fuzzy feeling, and that makes it great for anyone.
Buy: Here
Official Site: Here
YouTube: Here
mp3 of "Rush": Here
There will be another three albums later today. Look for a dangerous dance, a wonder from the sewers, and who says elder statesmen can't release excellent albums, anyway?
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