10.Deströyer 666 – Defiance
It’s been a little while between drinks for this legendary Australian-via-Europe blackened thrash metal group, but on their first album in seven years, the mighty D666 show no signs of slowing down. They’ve always been an underground favourite in the metal scene – not just Down Under too – and with this album it’s easy to see why. Blistering riffage and leads, truly evil vocals and a thunderous rhythm section, D666 are back and more defiant than ever before! Their no nonsense approach to their music always pays off well.
THE STAND-OUT: I Am Not Deceived
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Weapons of Conquest, The Barricades are Breaking
9. Porcupine Tree – The Incident
Well then, it’s yet another release from that band that just keep going from strength to strength! Some might not approve of the direction the band has taken in recent years, and I suppose that’s a little understandable, but the fact is they have become a band that are rapidly increasing their fanbase while still retaining the key sonic elements that we all know and love. I mean, you could hardly call this album a “sell-out” – it contains two discs of material, the first of which is comprised of fourteen “pieces” that together make up the 55 minute song cycle that is The Incident itself. The different tracks – with influences from ranging from discordant noise ambience to all-out heavy metal riffage to calm and gentle progressive passages – do of course stand up by themselves, but are linked together in such a way that the best way to experience the album is to listen to the whole thing together in one sitting. And indeed, that’s how the band are playing it live. The second disc isn’t too bad either – a collection of four extra songs independent of The Incident. Another classy effort from Mr Steven Wilson and co.
THE STAND-OUT: IX. Time Flies
OTHER STAND-OUTS: V. Drawing the Line, II. The Blind House, Bonnie the Cat
8. Sunn O))) – Monoliths & Dimensions
Sunn O)))’s “music” has been called many things in the past – many of them not complimentary – but one thing that has been noticeable in recent releases is their concerted effort to push the boundaries of their own sound, beyond the standard “LOUD SLOOOOOOWWWWW GUITARS” approach. The duo of Anderson and O’Malley do that very well here on this album, officially their seventh studio outing. Familiar guests Attila Csihar and Oren Ambarchi are once again present, as are newcomers such as experiment US violist Eyvind Kang. In just four epic tracks, Sunn O))) manage to deliver a record that is hypnotic, frightening at times, beautiful at others, and always crushingly loud and heavy. Brilliance.
THE STAND-OUT: Well... there’s just four tracks, so you know what? I’m going to give it to them all!
7. Mastodon – Crack the Skye
I make no secret of the fact that I think these guys are one of the most talented bands to emerge from the heavy metal scene in the past decade, and with their fifth studio album, they once again vindicate this opinion. Troy Sanders, Bill Kelliher, Brent Hinds and Brann Dailor have taken the foot off the pedal a bit since the all-out assault that was 2006’s Blood Mountain; on this album you can find a lot more clean singing, slower tempos and less in-your-face metal riffage. Not to say that it doesn’t sound like Mastodon, because of course it does. They’ve just adjusted their already amazing dynamic range a little bit, which should win them over a whole new audience without losing the loyal fans they’ve amassed over the years.
THE STAND-OUT: Divinations
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Quintessence, Oblivion, The Last Baron
6. Muse – The Resistance
I think this beloved trio of Matt Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and Dom Howard will continue to, ahem, rise (no pun intended) with every release they bring out, and once again on this effort they have set their own creative bar way up there, in the upper reaches of the stratosphere which their bombastic sound so effortlessly reaches. Though the familiar Muse sound is present and accounted for on tracks like Uprising and Guiding Light, they have managed to keep things sounding fresh and inspired with some new ideas thrown into the mix. Frontman Bellamy’s voice continues to truly impress, such as on Resistance and the very Queen-esque United States of Eurasia, while his symphonic influences are also given a healthy workout on tracks like I Belong to You and of course, the epic closing suite Exogenesis Symphony. The stomping guitar riffs, the dazzling keyboard/piano wizardry, the rumbling bass, the steady drums – this, ladies and gentlemen, is a MUSE ALBUM. And if you don’t like that (which it seems a lot of you don’t), then you can quite frankly...
THE STAND-OUT: I Belong to You
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Exogenesis Symphony, United States of Eurasia, Undisclosed Desires
5. Portal – Swarth
Portal are truly one of the most unique bands out there in the ridiculously crowded, often same-old same-old scene of “death metal”. A band that is not focused on lightning-fast guitar solos, rapid-fire blastbeat-ery and those ridiculously guttural vocals, but puts more of an emphasis on atmosphere and dynamics. The sound of Portal is one that is NOT easy to listen to – hell, I’m still struggling – but it is one that will reward the persistent listener for its amazingly bleak journey into previously untapped sonic territory. (Sorry this review is a bit incoherent. If you know Portal, you’ll know it’s truly hard to describe what they sound like.)
THE STAND-OUT: Larvae
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Illoomorpheme, Marityme
4. Them Crooked Vultures – Them Crooked Vultures
Way back in 2005, a certain David Grohl, in an interview with Mojo magazine, quipped, “The next project that I'm trying to initiate involves me on drums, Josh Homme on guitar, and John Paul Jones playing bass. That’s the next album. That wouldn’t suck.” In 2009, this wonderful project finally came to fruition, with a series of highly-praised gigs that sold out very quickly despite the trio not having released any recorded music yet! Eventually, in November, the debut self-titled release from the Vultures arrived, and what an album it is! The songs sound pretty much like you’d expect them to from a trio comprising of a guy from Queens of the Stone Age and Kyuss, a dude from Led Zeppelin, and that legend from Foo Fighters and Nirvana. Down and dirty blues-tinged riff-driven rock ‘n’ roll as it should sound. Yes.
THE STAND-OUT: Elephants
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Scumbag Blues, Reptiles, Mind Eraser, No Chaser, Gunman
3. Karnivool – Sound Awake
And in 2009, the wait was over. It’s been an agonising four years since the Perth fivesome dropped their awesome debut Themata, and everyone was getting a little bit antsy, but I think we can all say it was worth the wait! As the album begins with a little crackly ambience and then, of all things, a freakin’ vibraphone, you wonder exactly what Karnivool have in store this time... before an EXPLOSION of thundering bass and drums threatens to tear your head off – and then, THAT VOICE comes in and you know everything’s going to be just awesome. It’s certainly one of those rare albums that delivers precisely what it’s expected of it – but of course, with a few surprises to keep things interesting.
THE STAND-OUT: Deadman
THE OTHER STAND-OUTS: Simple Boy, Umbra, New Day, most other tracks really!
2. ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail
of Dead – The Century of SelfThe indie world fell in love with this experimental Texan group after the release of their monumental third album Source Tags & Codes, but then what? The band followed up with the still-awesome but somewhat disappointing Worlds Apart, and then really pissed off a hell of a lot of people with So Divided in 2006... enter 2009. Free of their record label and with a bit of a re-jigged line-up to boot, ...Trail of Dead have finally lived up to their own standard with this cracker of a compact disc.
THE STAND-OUT: Isis Unveiled
THE OTHER STAND-OUTS: Halcyon Days, Luna Park, Pictures of an Only Child, Bells of Creation
This album also gets the gong, deservedly, for best cover art of 2009! Look at that. And now just remember that lead singer Conrad Keely DREW IT ENTIRELY WITH BLUE BIRO.
But anyway, it's now time for the big one! According to yours truly, 2009 belonged sonically to ...
1. Fuck Buttons – Tarot Sport
In 2008, a little duo from out of Bristol, England exploded onto the music scene with a little album entitled Street Horrrsing. With its melodic approach to noisy drone, Fuck Buttons’ debut release saw Andrew Hung and Benjamin Power become something of a household name in the hipster indie scene, as they toured the world with their explosive live show, very often playing on the bill of ATP events. Surprisingly, it took them just a year to record and release a follow-up, and they did so in the form of this little beauty. Tarot Sport marks a slightly different direction for the group, as they have all but eliminated those wonderful screamed-through-a-plastic-toy-microphone vocals that were their trademark on Street Horrrsing, and also taken things in a bit more of a beat-friendly direction. Nevertheless, the harsh synths and rhythmic percussive pulse will be familiar to those that loved their debut, and indeed, this release can only mean a joyous leap forward for the UK twosome.
THE STAND-OUT: Flight of the Feathered Serpent
OTHER STAND-OUTS: Surf Solar, Phantom Limb
OK, so that just about covers it! There were some other brilliant albums I picked up during the year, but alas there can only be ten entrants in a top ten, so some must miss out! Coming soon, the top 10 gigs of 2009!
No comments:
Post a Comment