I heard a lot of music this year but very little that was actually released in 2004. To make matters worse, a bunch of stuff I heard late last year only went into my head this year, so basically anything that made an impact on me in this calendar year gets a mention.
This is going to be a slightly warped year end list but all of this is fucking kvlt and is in no order of preference.
- The Chasm – Conjurations of the Spectral Empire
Daniel Corchado has been plying his brand of death metal for donkeys years now. Gaining a small incredibly devoted following in the underground, this Mexican death metal fanatic just keeps on going. The Chasm are old school death metal and Conjurations… just slowly but surely sneaks into your head and stays there.
- The Gathering – Souvenirs
This band just moves from strength to strength. Souvenirs sounds like a cross between If Then Else and How To Measure A Planet with a bunch of electronics thrown in for good measure. Trickster G’s involvement in the ep before this “Black Light District” might have played some part in this album. All to the good. The Gathering right from Mandylion have not put a foot wrong. Souvenirs just continues their tradition of quite brilliant music.
- Acid Bath – When The Kite String Pops
New Orleans fucking awesome bands and Acid Bath is right up there with the likes of Crowbar and EyeHateGod. Mike Sanchez and Sammy Pierre Duet make for an awesome guitar duo and Dax Riggs’ vocals are fucking fantastic. This band rocks. Odd Fellows Rest by Crowbar is pretty much my favourite album from that heavy as fuck scene but When The Kite String Pops is right up there.
- Art By Machinery – Dues Ex Machina
From Norway, AbM is a weird little rock band that a whole lot of people should know. Unfortunately the band were a well kept secret and broke up after only two albums. Dues Ex Machina is their debut. Almost impossible to classify or describe suffice to say that this is a killer album. Both albums are up for free download on the band’s official website so check this band out, They’re well worth your time and they are that damn good. www.artbymachinery.com
- Nevermore – Enemies Of Reality
This took a long time for me to get around to. In retrospect, every Nevermore album has taken time to sink in. Enemies is a great album let down slightly by a chutiya production job. Like fucking Queensryche over wasn’t enough, Kelly Grey had to fuck with Nevermore too. Still, the songs rock. The I Voyager video was a cause for raised voices and concern in Mohan’s but one thing’s for sure, Enemies Of Reality is another great album from Nevermore.
- Scholomance – The Immortality Murders
That the band broke up soon after this, their second album will be one of the tragedies of extreme metal. Scott Crinklaw got a whole lot better and while the drum machine is still there, the songs are quite something. Way better than Treatise Of Love, The Immortality Murders should appeal to everyone from fans of extreme metal to fans of guitar wankery to fans of classical music. Quite awesome.
- GWAR – This Toilet Earth
GWAR. I got a bunch of GWAR albums this year and while Scumdogs Of The Universe and America Must Be Destroyed are way more metal, and We Kill Everything is complete chaos, This Toilet Earth is just the most fun. Everybody should have at least one GWAR album in their collection. Thrash metal with bits of every other style thrown in the blender from jazz to punk, This Toilet Earth is pure fucking entertainment.
- Dark Tranquility – Damage Done
The boys from Sweden. This album looses steam around about song number 7 but Monochromatic Stains, Final Resistance, Damage Done and Cathode Ray Sunshine are among the best songs DT have ever written. Gothenburg death metal did you say ? Dark Tranquility own Gothenburg. Enough said.
- Soilwork – Figure Number Five
The album before this, Natural Born Chaos, was a stunning progression for this Swedish death metal band. Most of their death metal sound though has been discarded in favour of a modern groove ridden melodic sound. A slight sense of dik-chak prevails through the album. While Figure Number Five has the faithful up in arms, it takes balls the size of grapefruits for a band to follow up Natural Born Chaos with this. And just in case you were wondering, dear diary, Soilwork still write great songs. They’re just not metal anymore.
- Crowbar – Sonic Excess In Its Purest Form
I’ve always been a huge mark for Crowbar. Equilibrium was a little disappointing but Sonic Excess is an awesome return to form. Crowbar are incredibly heavy on this album and have also written some brilliant songs. Not as good as Odd Fellows Rest but pretty damn good all the same.
- Ministry – Houses Of The Mole
So Al gets rid of Barker, plays the guitar and records a bunch of angry pissed of shit. Ministry have not sounded this good or this pissed off since Psalm 69. What a completely brilliant return to form. If you’ve never heard Ministry then shame on you. If you haven’t heard this album yet, imagine the monster grooves of Psalm 69 mixed with the claustrophobia of Dark Side Of The Spoon. Houses Of The Mole fucking rocks!
- Nine Inch Nails – All That Could Have Been
I’ve only heard this album once. Even then I’m not sure if I heard the whole thing or not. Still, the songs have received a fantastic makeover. Reznor has managed to take each song and add to it. Its almost like he’s showing us all that could have been on each one of these songs. Quite a special live album. Genius.
- Oysterhead – The Grand Pecking Order
This should have been a prog. rock hippie loving wankathon with no balls whatsoever. Instead, Les Claypool, Stuart Copeland and Trey Anastasio have given us one awesome rock album. Yes, Copeland displays more skill on one of these songs than ten prog rock drummers put together and Claypool and Anastasio just own the bass and the guitar. However, it never ever becomes a wankathon. Awesome rock and roll.
- Forest Of Impaled – Forward The Spears
The debut album from this American black death metal band Demonvoid was lackluster, tepid and dull. Pretty much a standard extreme metal album that sounded like a 100 other extreme metal albums. Forward The Spears though is one hell of an improvement on the debut. This is still a hybrid of black and death metal but suddenly the songs rock. Forest Of Impaled kick ass.
- Mastodon – Leviathan
An off shoot of Today Is The Day, Mastodon will CRUSH you. Elements of hardcore, metal and a completely insane drummer means Leviathan is just one non stop adrenaline rush. Brutal, in your face and completely uncompromising.
- Neglected Fields – Synthinity
Technical death metal from some east European country, Synthinity is a very classy piece of work. The twin guitars and the keyboards work beautifully together. The cover of Prodigy’s Breathe must be heard to be believed. Neglected Fields differ from the garden variety tech. death band simply because they add melody in their songs. This is not death metal of the mindless countless tempo changes. This is death metal that is well thought out and superbly executed.
- Thought Industry – Short Wave On A Cold Day
Another metal band that’s changed its sound completely. From being this technical thrash metal band to sounding like a poppy Radiohead, Thought Industry have come a long way. The Mr. Bungle touches are still in places and the songs are catchy and fun. The album at a little more than seventy minutes is probably a bit too long but overall, there are enough great songs on this album to keep going back to it.
- Buckethead – Monsters And Robots
Virtuoso guitar wankery down Arkham Asylum way, right beside the Norman Bates Chicken Farm. This is mad. I really have no words to describe this suffice to say this does not belong to the Steve Vai school of guitar wankery. Monsters And Robots is a lot of fun.
- Martyr – Warp Zone
Canada has its share of brilliant death metal bands. While not as popular as Cryptopsy or Gorguts, Martyr on Warp Zone show that they are not far behind. An intense display of technical death metal, Martyr have the chops to make your jaw hit the floor and more importantly they can write great songs. Quite a brilliant death metal album.
- Khert – Neter – Arrival Of The Funeral Dogs
There’s nothing original about this band. The music is mostly Entombed/ Autopsy worship. There’s an Egyptian theme ala Nile and the use of a synth. metal-archives.com tells me it’s a project of two Finnish black metal bands. You would think Dear Diary, that this band has no real reason for existence. But, the songs fucking scream Death Fucking Metal at me and I can’t help but love it. \m/
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