10. Ra- Critical Mass
Ra have always been a fun band that just exuded melody all the while utilizing a strange mix of exotic sounds. They are the kind of band that I would describe as radio friendly, despite never achieving the kind of success they deserve. Critical Mass is a bubbly album, jumping around with an eclectic mix of different styles. It took me a little while to get into some of the tracks, due to these varying styles, but once I did, I can safely say that their new album (which I also helped to crowd fund) stands up to the quality to with which I am accustomed to from the band. They sound focused and tight, with Sahaj Ticotin using some amazingly soaring vocals, and also some darker, angrier tones. There are some incredibly poppy tunes such as ecstasy throughout, which I swear has a Katy Perry sample at the start, and then Through The Valley and Brutiful are much heavier, raring to go style tracks. Great stuff.
Songs to listen to: Ecstasy, Through the Valley
9. The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us Is the Killer
Has anyone ever seen Dillinger live? A perfect representation of the music they perform, their shows are batshit, and often involve blood, fire, and like jumping or something. The music is frenetic and in-your-face, aggro and steam rolling, and yet their latest album contains a much stronger melodic nature to it than previous releases. Look no further than the title track, which actually has some soft croons throughout. Vocalist Greg Puciato is willing to let the nature of the song direct his vocal style, and is willing to quieten down where necessary, only to explode moments later. It shows a stronger sense of control the band now exhibits, and I appreciate their music all the more for it.
Songs to listen to: One of Us Is the Killer, Crossburner
8. Cloudkicker - Subsume
I discovered Cloudkicker a few years back, after the great Devin Townsend mentioned his like for them, and haven't looked back. Written and performed by one man, Ben Sharp, in his own home, it is soft and wandering, progressive and expressive. I often find that vocal-less music gives me an opportunity to ponder my own thoughts as the music creeps on by, the haunting melodies of the tracks being my company. Despite being described as soft, Subsume returns to a less gentle variant of Sharp's music, similar to the first album of his I heard, Beacons, with less of the acoustic sections of some of his more recent work. It's hard to determine what are the best tracks, as there are only four long ones, and they just bleed into the next. It is the kind of album that must be listened to as a whole to be appreciated.
7. Trivium - Vengeance Falls
Anyone who knows me, knows I love Trivium. After enjoying In Waves, despite feeling it was a little bit of a step down of their magnum opus Shogun, I was let down even further with their new release Vengeance Falls. As a whole, the album feels simpler, and less harsh. The production is crisp and clean, and the vocals borderline pop at time. It wasn't what I loved about Trivium! I loved the anger in songs, the harsh vocals, and the interesting themes and metaphors of the lyrics, along with the intricately written music. Their last two albums seem to have been following a simpler path. Why is it still on my top ten albums list? Well, Trivium is still Trivium, despite their differences. I hold Trivium to such a high standard, my first impressions often fall short because of the sheer magnitude of what I was expecting. The songs are still good, just not as good as I want them to be. The Dave Draiman production does sound overly clean at times, but it is still a well produced album with many good tracks, that after my initial disappointment, grew on me. I like the album a lot more now than I did at first, so it definitively creeped up on my list.
Songs to listen to: Brave This Storm, Wake (The End is Nigh)
6. Hacride - Back To Where You've Never Been
I had never heard of Hacride before seeing the recommendation on my most frequented metal website, Metalsucks. With comparisons to fellow frogs Gojira, I figured I'd give their latest album, Back To Where You've Never Been, a listen, and boy was I not disappointed. This is progressive heavy metal at it's finest, with a crisp and powerful production, that avoids being too clean and digital. The members play music that is neither show off-ey nor simple, just interesting and well constructed. At eight songs long, it doesn't overstay it's welcome, and each song sounds necessary to the album as a whole. The intro to album opener Introversion just draws you in for the appropriate amount of time, before spitting you out with some thumping music, and the album just never lets up from there.
Songs to listen to: Introversion, Overcome
5. Mercenary - Through Our Darkest Days
Mercenary's second album after a colossal line-up shift, I was mildly cautious when approaching. Their previous album, Metamorphosis, was neither as well written as their older efforts, nor as well performed. Now full time vocalist, Rene Pedersen (after taking over a split vocal duty role), failed to make the position his own, and struggled with the more melodic singing aspects of the band. Not an issue this time around. Having improved his voice exponentially, he doesn't hold anything back, and the band now seems tighter and more focused than ever as a result of it. The catchy riffs and great vocals lead to many hooky, anthemic choruses, that almost having you fist-pumping along with the tunes. Each song is powerful and uplifting, and makes for a much better product.
Songs to listen to: A New Dawn, Through Our Darkest Days, Dreamstate Machine
4. Soilwork - The Living Infinite
This mammoth two-part album is some of Soilwork's best work to date. A big ol' slab of Gothenburg metal, this is the band's first album since Peter Wichers second exit from the band, but his absence is hardly noticed as the band continues their return to form after 2011's The Panic Broadcast. Starting off with the thrashing track Spectrum of Eternity, this album just does not let up, ripping through tracks such as The Momentary Bliss and Let The First Wave Rise, all the while never getting too far from the melodious moments I have come to enjoy from the band, with both parts of the title tracks being real stand outs. Bjorn "Speed" Strid's vocals are stronger than ever, and listeners need not to look any further than Parasite Blues to see how well the man can truly sing. No autotune here folks! After such an ambitious project, it will be interesting to see how the band intend to top it!
Songs to listen to: The Living Infinite I and II, Drowning With Silence
3. Leprous - Coal
This new album from Leprous was an amazingly perplexing album to listen to for the first time. On the back of their most recent album Bilateral, this album took a much different approach, instead preferring to go for a much more "severe" album, not in terms of music, but in terms of tone. The slower music coupled with some seriously gorgeous vocals creates such a dark sound to the music, with each song being so mellow and dreary. As a listener, I found this very hard to get into initially, but with each listen I was drawn closer and closer into the music. Each song just resonated with me so deeply, and credit must be given to the vocalist Einar Solberg, who seriously puts in one of the most amazing vocal performances I have heard in some time. Some seriously beautiful music.
Songs to listen to: The Valley, Echo
2. Tesseract - Altered State
Just as the above album, the true strength of Tesseract's second album is that of the vocals. Armed with third(!) vocalist Ashe O'Hara, the band has really released a poppier, yet just as heavy, album than that of their debut One, with the album itself being presented as one song, broken into four parts, broken into ten songs. Now, the idea of this being considered as one song seem a little strange to me, considering there is some very obvious pauses and ends to certain tracks, but who am I to argue? It is a very focused album, containing the djent style music that Tesseract helped pioneer, whilst also incorporating strong elements of progressive rock. The vocals weave in and out of the music as another instrument, with O'Hara having mastered the different tones of his voice and how to best implement them into the music itself. Hopefully he stays with the band, because he is by far their best vocalist thus far.
Song to listen to: Resist, Nocturne, Singularity
1. The Ocean - Pelagial
Here it is, the number one album of the year. After discovering The Ocean in between their double albums about Christianity, Heliocentric and Anthropocentic, I find them suitably interesting and also enjoyable to listen to. This was a thinking man's band, with incredibly well written lyrics that made you stop and think. Fast forward two years, and the band began teasing a new release. A little bit of history on the album: originally written and recorded as a single instrumental piece split into 11 parts, conceptualised as mirroring the journey from the ocean's surface to the deepest depths, the music gets continually darker with a more claustrophobic feel to it as it goes on. At the time, the band's vocalist Loic Rossetti had a disorder that prevented him from recording any vocals regardless, hence the decision to write an instrumental piece. However, after they finished recording the music, Loic recovered from his disorder, and the band decided to write lyrics and record vocals for the album after all. This lead to the album being released in two versions: the original instrumental one, and the newer vocalised one. Lyrically, Pelagial is a physiological journey into our own subconscious; following the plotline of the 1979 film Stalker. Main songwriter and band founder Robin Staps describes the topic as below:
In the movie, 3 men are travelling towards the heart of a zone at the center of which one’s wishes are said to come true. But the closer they get, the more insecure they become with regards to what they should actually wish for, and fear arises that even those wishes which they have no control over, which they may not even be aware of, might come true. The protagonists are confronted with their own nature, the true essence of their characters, and this essentially leads them to their own demise. This topic is the lyrical backbone of Pelagial.
An interesting concept to say the last that plays in beautifully with the theme of the music. Some songs are slow and trudging, but sometimes there are sudden temp changes and songs feature quick and unexpected sections, all the while with samples of underwater sounds mixed in between. Sometimes you hear riffs you heard 30 minutes earlier. It's just so well written and complete. I can not stress enough to everyone that they should check out this album, as it is the best release in years.
Songs to listen to: Into the Uncanny, Signals of Anxiety, Let Them Believe
Some honourable mentions include -
Chimaira - Crown of Phantoms
Dream Theater - Dream Theater
Ulcerate - Vermis
Protest the Hero - Volition
Nekrogoblikon - Power
Christian Alvestam - Self 2.0 (not technically an album, hence the miss)
Bruce Soord with Jonas Renske - Wisdom of Crowds
Stone Sour - House of Gold and Bones - Part 2
Hypocrisy - End of Disclosure
Katatonia - Uncrowned and Dethroned
xoxo Rhysy Rhys and Funky Beats
