Converge - The Dusk In Us
Now, that was a pleasant surprise. The Dusk In Us is one of those records that hypnotizes you. From the first riff, I was sold! Then we go into 5 aggressive tracks with lots going on before diving into the 7 min title track. It's basically a post-rock song with a very slow build up and a great pay-off. And in one of those rare moments an album gets even better as you enter the second half. It has even more groove and killer riffs. Overall, the vocals are emotional and pissed off, the drumming is relentless, the riffs catchy and dissonant at times. It's modern music as art for a world that is completely fucked up. Album of the year material.
Sorcerer - The Crowning Of The Fire King
Despite being formed in the late 80s in Sweden, the epic doom band Sorcerer released their first album in 2015. A very good album. But tCofFK is even better. The songs are strong, powerful and obviously epic and doomy. The single and opener "Sirens" showcases that very well, but it's track 2 "Ship Of Doom" that ups the ante with an almost 10 min epic journey. The other 8 songs feature 7 songs between 6 and 10 minutes of the same quality plus a beautiful short acoustic instrumental. The tCofFK proves that Sorcerer has perfected the song writing, and delivered great riffs and guitar solos. But the most impressive performance is from the singer, Anders Engberg. The vocals are clean but powerful delivering epic melodies throughout the record. In sum this is record of the year contender for the doom, power and traditional metal lists.
Enslaved - E
Enslaved has released so many good album that every time the comparison is difficult. The good news is that E is also a very good album. They were able to seemly transition to the new key player and vocalist and maintain their sound progression from last albums. E opens with the powerful "Storm Son", a 11 min typical modern progressive Enslaved track. It features a slow build up intro, mixes black metal vocals and clean singing masterfully, and stays at mid tempo throughout. The chanting parts and some of the riffs give it a folk touch. "River's Mouth" on the other hand is a short and more accessible 5 min track dominated by clean vocals and catchy vocal melodies. Within this frame, It’s a good almost rock song. My favorite track is "Sacred Horse" which picks up speed and aggressiveness. It's dominated by harsh vocals, folk elements and features an interesting key solo, almost Deep Purple like. "Axis of the Worlds" starts with a bluesy riff, a bit out of place, but it doesn't compromise the song. Overall, the pace, melody and keys remind me a lot of Opeth's latest album with the addition of guttural vocals. Full of chants and clean vocals, the prog rock "Feathers of Eolh" is the softest track on the album. "Hiindsiight" mix some very doomy parts with Pink Floyd-ish sax over guitar arpeggios. It works for me. Despite an average production, overall E is a very good album, relatively short with easier to digest songs, there's a lot of groove and some different tricks like the keys sound and the sax. It won't be unanimously liked though.
Witherfall - Nocturnes And Requiems
This one is for the fans of Symphony X and the like. With that said, it’s unique. It’s almost like a tech death band with a power metal singer. The guitar work is superb and so are the vocals. The song structures are also very interesting, the guitar solos are all over the place and not only before the last chorus. The highlight is “What We Are Dying For”, a song full of riffs and solos, and most notably a Spanish guitar solo that pays homage to Al di Meola - fantastic. The bass and the drums are also high level and make a solid and perfect base. I hope for Witherfall to have a brilliant future! Debut album if the year? Likely.
The Contortionist - Clairvoyant
For me personally, this band is an example of why bands open shows. While I went to see Periphery I caught those guys and really enjoyed their show based on their previous album Language (2014). I was happy to see that Clairvoyant is another right step in their career, the forth to be precise. The set list of that show is consistent with this album: little to no screamed vocals and not really heavy, almost post-rock. But indeed compared to their first two albums, there's a big evolution in The Contortionist's sound and compared to the precious one an improvement in the song writing, production, and musicianship. If you are looking for a "djent band", you won't find it in Clairvoyant , but if you want a dreamy and unique experience, then you are in the right place.
Caligula's Horse - In Contact
Now here is another "djent band" that expanded their sound and with great evolution into a prog rock band. Think Haken with still touches of Periphery. Great vocals, guitar work, specially the solos and overall song writing. I do think however that the song with a spoken monologue breaks the album flow and doesn't work for me. One of the best modern progressive albums of the year.
The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers
The 8th album of melodic death metallers is one of their best. While the last two album were quite good and I enjoyed them, Everblack (2013) and Abysmal (2015) were a bit inconsistent and longer. Nightbringers is only 33 min, 8 tracks below 4 min and the closer "The Lonely Deceased" is 5 min. All of that plays on Nightbringers advantage. The album is brutal, groovy, direct and easier to digest. Vocals and riffs are sick and evil as a fan would hope for. And despite the new guitar player, the solos are fantastic, different, but great. Fans will love this, and it will be all over year-end lists.
Paradise Lost - Medusa
Building on the highly acclaimed predecessor, Medusa is a logical next step for Paradise Lost discography. The album masterfully mix Gothic, Doom and Death metal without loosing its identity and also being true to the band's sound. The musicianship is superb and the songs independent and unique but glued by their gloomy and dark atmosphere.
Arch Enemy - Will To Power
While the previous album was bad, Will To Power is a huge step up for Arch Enemy with Alissia on vocals. I specially liked how she expanded her vocal range and sound more unique rather than simply mimicking Angela. The riffs and solos are also great, as expected. There are tons of hooks and groove to get you headbanging from start to finish. I hope this new era for the band will continue to ascend into new highs.
Archspire - Relentless Mutation
Yes, it's one of the millions of tech death bands, but credit must be given where it's due. Archspire makes a very unique take on this crowded genre. 7 songs in 30 min certainly makes it easy to get through and never gets overdone. The vocal delivery which is basically the 5th instrument makes Archspire's a unique affair. Not to mention that the guitars are also amazing. Relentless Mutation proves that you don't need long songs to be progressive
Trivium - The Sin And The Sentence
While not perfect, this is Trivium's best album in a long time, probably since Shogun. The production is OK, the vocals are dynamic and alternating the different styles . The new drummer is a monster behind the kit. Overall while the album features some of the heaviest moments of the band's career, it also don't shy away from catchy choruses, hooks and accessibility. Another highlight are the guitar riffs and solos, just great stuff all over it. welcome back guys, please don't loose track again and take it from here.
Now, that was a pleasant surprise. The Dusk In Us is one of those records that hypnotizes you. From the first riff, I was sold! Then we go into 5 aggressive tracks with lots going on before diving into the 7 min title track. It's basically a post-rock song with a very slow build up and a great pay-off. And in one of those rare moments an album gets even better as you enter the second half. It has even more groove and killer riffs. Overall, the vocals are emotional and pissed off, the drumming is relentless, the riffs catchy and dissonant at times. It's modern music as art for a world that is completely fucked up. Album of the year material.
Sorcerer - The Crowning Of The Fire King
Despite being formed in the late 80s in Sweden, the epic doom band Sorcerer released their first album in 2015. A very good album. But tCofFK is even better. The songs are strong, powerful and obviously epic and doomy. The single and opener "Sirens" showcases that very well, but it's track 2 "Ship Of Doom" that ups the ante with an almost 10 min epic journey. The other 8 songs feature 7 songs between 6 and 10 minutes of the same quality plus a beautiful short acoustic instrumental. The tCofFK proves that Sorcerer has perfected the song writing, and delivered great riffs and guitar solos. But the most impressive performance is from the singer, Anders Engberg. The vocals are clean but powerful delivering epic melodies throughout the record. In sum this is record of the year contender for the doom, power and traditional metal lists.
Enslaved - E
Enslaved has released so many good album that every time the comparison is difficult. The good news is that E is also a very good album. They were able to seemly transition to the new key player and vocalist and maintain their sound progression from last albums. E opens with the powerful "Storm Son", a 11 min typical modern progressive Enslaved track. It features a slow build up intro, mixes black metal vocals and clean singing masterfully, and stays at mid tempo throughout. The chanting parts and some of the riffs give it a folk touch. "River's Mouth" on the other hand is a short and more accessible 5 min track dominated by clean vocals and catchy vocal melodies. Within this frame, It’s a good almost rock song. My favorite track is "Sacred Horse" which picks up speed and aggressiveness. It's dominated by harsh vocals, folk elements and features an interesting key solo, almost Deep Purple like. "Axis of the Worlds" starts with a bluesy riff, a bit out of place, but it doesn't compromise the song. Overall, the pace, melody and keys remind me a lot of Opeth's latest album with the addition of guttural vocals. Full of chants and clean vocals, the prog rock "Feathers of Eolh" is the softest track on the album. "Hiindsiight" mix some very doomy parts with Pink Floyd-ish sax over guitar arpeggios. It works for me. Despite an average production, overall E is a very good album, relatively short with easier to digest songs, there's a lot of groove and some different tricks like the keys sound and the sax. It won't be unanimously liked though.
Witherfall - Nocturnes And Requiems
This one is for the fans of Symphony X and the like. With that said, it’s unique. It’s almost like a tech death band with a power metal singer. The guitar work is superb and so are the vocals. The song structures are also very interesting, the guitar solos are all over the place and not only before the last chorus. The highlight is “What We Are Dying For”, a song full of riffs and solos, and most notably a Spanish guitar solo that pays homage to Al di Meola - fantastic. The bass and the drums are also high level and make a solid and perfect base. I hope for Witherfall to have a brilliant future! Debut album if the year? Likely.
For me personally, this band is an example of why bands open shows. While I went to see Periphery I caught those guys and really enjoyed their show based on their previous album Language (2014). I was happy to see that Clairvoyant is another right step in their career, the forth to be precise. The set list of that show is consistent with this album: little to no screamed vocals and not really heavy, almost post-rock. But indeed compared to their first two albums, there's a big evolution in The Contortionist's sound and compared to the precious one an improvement in the song writing, production, and musicianship. If you are looking for a "djent band", you won't find it in Clairvoyant , but if you want a dreamy and unique experience, then you are in the right place.
Caligula's Horse - In Contact
Now here is another "djent band" that expanded their sound and with great evolution into a prog rock band. Think Haken with still touches of Periphery. Great vocals, guitar work, specially the solos and overall song writing. I do think however that the song with a spoken monologue breaks the album flow and doesn't work for me. One of the best modern progressive albums of the year.
The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers
The 8th album of melodic death metallers is one of their best. While the last two album were quite good and I enjoyed them, Everblack (2013) and Abysmal (2015) were a bit inconsistent and longer. Nightbringers is only 33 min, 8 tracks below 4 min and the closer "The Lonely Deceased" is 5 min. All of that plays on Nightbringers advantage. The album is brutal, groovy, direct and easier to digest. Vocals and riffs are sick and evil as a fan would hope for. And despite the new guitar player, the solos are fantastic, different, but great. Fans will love this, and it will be all over year-end lists.
Paradise Lost - Medusa
Building on the highly acclaimed predecessor, Medusa is a logical next step for Paradise Lost discography. The album masterfully mix Gothic, Doom and Death metal without loosing its identity and also being true to the band's sound. The musicianship is superb and the songs independent and unique but glued by their gloomy and dark atmosphere.
Arch Enemy - Will To Power
While the previous album was bad, Will To Power is a huge step up for Arch Enemy with Alissia on vocals. I specially liked how she expanded her vocal range and sound more unique rather than simply mimicking Angela. The riffs and solos are also great, as expected. There are tons of hooks and groove to get you headbanging from start to finish. I hope this new era for the band will continue to ascend into new highs.
Archspire - Relentless Mutation
Yes, it's one of the millions of tech death bands, but credit must be given where it's due. Archspire makes a very unique take on this crowded genre. 7 songs in 30 min certainly makes it easy to get through and never gets overdone. The vocal delivery which is basically the 5th instrument makes Archspire's a unique affair. Not to mention that the guitars are also amazing. Relentless Mutation proves that you don't need long songs to be progressive
Trivium - The Sin And The Sentence
While not perfect, this is Trivium's best album in a long time, probably since Shogun. The production is OK, the vocals are dynamic and alternating the different styles . The new drummer is a monster behind the kit. Overall while the album features some of the heaviest moments of the band's career, it also don't shy away from catchy choruses, hooks and accessibility. Another highlight are the guitar riffs and solos, just great stuff all over it. welcome back guys, please don't loose track again and take it from here.
