Nos' Year-End Recap (Bests & Worsts)

[Nos]

We're close enough to the end of the year that I don't know of anything else left to come out, and I don't think there would be enough time for anything to change my mind at this point, so let's get the ball rolling with some year-end thoughts.

Overall, I found 2019 to be a fairly weak year. The last couple of months tried to make up for the horrible summer stretch, but it didn't match up to some of the recent years. Looking at my list from last year, I liked the albums at the top more than this year's, and there was a deeper pool to pull from than this crop of releases gave me.

So before getting to what was good, let's mention that the pool of terrible releases was longer than ever. I was shocked by how many truly wretched albums there were. This doesn't even include Slipknot (since I didn't even give that a listen), or Tool (which wasn't bad, just mind-numbingly boring).

The Terrible:

Manowar - The Final Battle I (An EP with filler from a morally reprehensible band)
Devin Townsend - Empath (What a mess of ideas that don't belong together)
The Three Tremors - S/T (Three guys shrieking. No thanks)
Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal (Arch is a shitty singer. Slurring is failure)
Neal Morse - Jesus Christ: The Exorcist (Boring, religious dad-rock)
Leprous - Pitfalls (Weird is all I can say)
Quiet Riot - Hollywood Cowboys (Awful, awful production that makes a bad album terrible)
LA Guns - Devil You Know (How do people think they were ever good?)
Baroness - Gold & Grey (Worst production of the year. Utterly unlistenable, just like "Purple". Fuck Baroness)

Just Missing The Cut:

Year Of The Goat - Novis Orbis Terrarum Ordinis ("The Unspeakable" was better)
Sweet Oblivion - S/T (My favorite Tate album ever, I'm pretty sure)
Within Temptation - Resist (So good even the guys from Papa Roach and In Flames couldn't bring it down)
Avantasia - Moonglow (I prefered "Ghostlights", but Tobi keeps releasing quality stuff)
Killswitch Engage - Atonement (Much better than the last one, but I still find Jesse weaker than Howard)
Eclipse - Paradigm (Probably my favorite Eclipse, but I still like Nordic Union more)
New Year's Day - Unbreakable (One or two questionable songs, but the rest is great for being so modern)

The Top Stuff (in no particular order):

Dream State - Primrose Path (Anthemic, cathartic post-hardcore(?) Out of left field, but awesome)
Michael Monroe - One Man Gang (Not quite as good as "Blackout States", but still better old-school rock than almost anyone)
Vanishing Signs - S/T (A mixed bag, but the good stuff is really good)
Ray Alder - What The Water Wants (I don't need Fates Warning - this is better than any of their records to me)
The Beautiful Monument - I'm The Reaper (Lots of catchy, angst-y pop/rock)
Forever Still - Breathe In Colours (I'll take this dark modern rock over angry bro-rock any day. Beautiful)
Any Given Day - Overpower (The best Tremonti record. At least that's what it sounds like)
Yours Truly - Afterglow [EP] (Bright, shiny, happy pop/rock. Only drawback is it's not a full-length)
The Dark Element - Songs The Night Sings (Not as good as the debut, but more really good stuff. Love Anette's voice)

Album Of The Year: Soen - Lotus

Two albums in a row win the crown. I keep hammering home the same point; Soen right now is what Opeth should have become with Mikael ditched the growling. It's heavy, beautiful, rhythmic, melodic, and sophisticated. As good as I though "Lykaia" was, they went even further, creating one of the standout metal albums of the entire decade. "Fear Inoculum" is getting that kind of press, but it can't hold a candle to "Lotus".

[Random Axe]

This is great!

You and I occasionally have matching opinions on stuff, but what I most appreciate is your non-filter for music you dislike. You just throw that shit right out there and I love it.

And after more spins I agree on the Ray Alder album to a point. I think he's strongest with Jim co-writing but this is an amazing album I never expected to ever be released.

[Nos]

This is great!

You and I occasionally have matching opinions on stuff, but what I most appreciate is your non-filter for music you dislike. You just throw that shit right out there and I love it.

Thanks.

At this point, I don't have the energy to try to spin stuff I hate in a more positive light. Since music is just a hobby, I'd rather be honest.

[introclaus]

Overall, I found 2019 to be a fairly weak year. The last couple of months tried to make up for the horrible summer stretch, but it didn't match up to some of the recent years. Looking at my list from last year, I liked the albums at the top more than this year's, and there was a deeper pool to pull from than this crop of releases gave me.

Interesting - to me 2019 will stand out as one of the best years in a very long time.

Manowar - The Final Battle I (An EP with filler from a morally reprehensible band)
Devin Townsend - Empath (What a mess of ideas that don't belong together)
The Three Tremors - S/T (Three guys shrieking. No thanks)

Yes, yes, and yes ... don't like either of these 3 even if I'm a Manowar fan, I respect Devin, and at least one of the three (Harry) tremors is a great singer outside of this.

Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal (Arch is a shitty singer. Slurring is failure)

Slurring? Shitty? Oh well ...

Neal Morse - Jesus Christ: The Exorcist (Boring, religious dad-rock)

"Religious Dad-Rock" lol
The album is neither Neil Morse Band quality, neither is it Jesus Christ Superstar (which I think was what Neil set out to "recreate" in his own right). I don't like the album either.

Leprous - Pitfalls (Weird is all I can say)

Weird ... (and that wasn't about the music, but you not liking this )

Year Of The Goat - Novis Orbis Terrarum Ordinis ("The Unspeakable" was better)

I kind of agree, and I kind of don't ... the jury is still out on that one, but there's no denying that no one does this genre (retro meets doom) better than YotG.

Within Temptation - Resist (So good even the guys from Papa Roach and In Flames couldn't bring it down)

Great album - completely under-appreciated in the metal scene, but loved by the mainstream crowd. Their audience has shifted, but their ear for good melodies and writing superb songs haven't ...

Sweet Oblivion - S/T (My favorite Tate album ever, I'm pretty sure)
Avantasia - Moonglow (I prefered "Ghostlights", but Tobi keeps releasing quality stuff)
Killswitch Engage - Atonement (Much better than the last one, but I still find Jesse weaker than Howard)
Eclipse - Paradigm (Probably my favorite Eclipse, but I still like Nordic Union more)

I enjoyed all of these for what they were, but none of them will make my top-whatever-list of the year.

Ray Alder - What The Water Wants (I don't need Fates Warning - this is better than any of their records to me)

Great disc, but saying it's better than FW is sacrilegious - I know you said "to me", so I'll forgive you

Quiet Riot - Hollywood Cowboys (Awful, awful production that makes a bad album terrible)
LA Guns - Devil You Know (How do people think they were ever good?)
Baroness - Gold & Grey (Worst production of the year. Utterly unlistenable, just like "Purple". Fuck Baroness)
New Year's Day - Unbreakable (One or two questionable songs, but the rest is great for being so modern)
Dream State - Primrose Path (Anthemic, cathartic post-hardcore(?) Out of left field, but awesome)
Michael Monroe - One Man Gang (Not quite as good as "Blackout States", but still better old-school rock than almost anyone)
Vanishing Signs - S/T (A mixed bag, but the good stuff is really good)
The Beautiful Monument - I'm The Reaper (Lots of catchy, angst-y pop/rock)
Forever Still - Breathe In Colours (I'll take this dark modern rock over angry bro-rock any day. Beautiful)
Any Given Day - Overpower (The best Tremonti record. At least that's what it sounds like)
Yours Truly - Afterglow [EP] (Bright, shiny, happy pop/rock. Only drawback is it's not a full-length)
The Dark Element - Songs The Night Sings (Not as good as the debut, but more really good stuff. Love Anette's voice)

Have no interest in either of these - some I've heard, some I haven't even tried for one of the other reason.

Album Of The Year: Soen - Lotus
Two albums in a row win the crown. I keep hammering home the same point; Soen right now is what Opeth should have become with Mikael ditched the growling. It's heavy, beautiful, rhythmic, melodic, and sophisticated. As good as I though "Lykaia" was, they went even further, creating one of the standout metal albums of the entire decade. "Fear Inoculum" is getting that kind of press, but it can't hold a candle to "Lotus".

Wonderful album, no doubt about that. It's not my AotY, but it's close to the very top.

[Nos]

Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal (Arch is a shitty singer. Slurring is failure)

Slurring? Shitty? Oh well ...

I can barely make out a quarter of the lyrics. That completely ruins the work of writing them, and I don't think I should have to read a lyric sheet to understand what the song is trying to say. I find it lazy that they wouldn't insist on getting a take where he enunciates better.

Year Of The Goat - Novis Orbis Terrarum Ordinis ("The Unspeakable" was better)

I kind of agree, and I kind of don't ... the jury is still out on that one, but there's no denying that no one does this genre (retro meets doom) better than YotG. [/quote]

Maybe not quite the same thing, but the new Avatarium has a similar take, and it's really good too.

[introclaus]

Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal (Arch is a shitty singer. Slurring is failure)

Slurring? Shitty? Oh well ...

I can barely make out a quarter of the lyrics. That completely ruins the work of writing them, and I don't think I should have to read a lyric sheet to understand what the song is trying to say. I find it lazy that they wouldn't insist on getting a take where he enunciates better.

I rarely listen for the lyrics unless I'm expecting something incredible poetry to be found in there - in that case singers will typically be very conscious about making that come across. What I find amazing about Arch is his ability to use his voice as an instrument, creating "lead" melodies that you don't hear from anyone else. He is simple in a league of his own that way. I can certainly understand why his voice doesn't appeal to a lot of people, but the "slurring" as you call it have never been a concern with him, as it's not about his lyrics, but rather his intonation that's important here. For all I care he could sing about blue cows making prank phone calls to Santa.

Year Of The Goat - Novis Orbis Terrarum Ordinis ("The Unspeakable" was better)

I kind of agree, and I kind of don't ... the jury is still out on that one, but there's no denying that no one does this genre (retro meets doom) better than YotG.

Maybe not quite the same thing, but the new Avatarium has a similar take, and it's really good too.

I love the Avatarium disc, and yes it combines doom and retro, so I can see the "crossover" ... however, they approach it very differently and have two very different types of production as well.

[Nos]

I rarely listen for the lyrics unless I'm expecting something incredible poetry to be found in there - in that case singers will typically be very conscious about making that come across. What I find amazing about Arch is his ability to use his voice as an instrument, creating "lead" melodies that you don't hear from anyone else. He is simple in a league of his own that way. I can certainly understand why his voice doesn't appeal to a lot of people, but the "slurring" as you call it have never been a concern with him, as it's not about his lyrics, but rather his intonation that's important here. For all I care he could sing about blue cows making prank phone calls to Santa.

I come at it from a different perspective. As a writer of various stripes, I love language. Even if the meaning isn't something I resonate with, the words themselves can contain beauty that I enjoy in tandem with the music. It's why I'm hard on songs about drinking and rocking, and those filled with expletives. Words mean something to me, and I'm sad when an album throws that whole aspect of the music completely out the window.

[elendil]

Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal (Arch is a shitty singer. Slurring is failure)

Slurring? Shitty? Oh well ...

I can barely make out a quarter of the lyrics. That completely ruins the work of writing them, and I don't think I should have to read a lyric sheet to understand what the song is trying to say. I find it lazy that they wouldn't insist on getting a take where he enunciates better.

Year Of The Goat - Novis Orbis Terrarum Ordinis ("The Unspeakable" was better)

I kind of agree, and I kind of don't ... the jury is still out on that one, but there's no denying that no one does this genre (retro meets doom) better than YotG.

Maybe not quite the same thing, but the new Avatarium has a similar take, and it's really good too.
[/quote]

Have you guys heard the last Flight of Sleipnir album, _Skadi_? They got pigeonholed as stoner, which I don't generally like, but it's retro 70s prog rock meets doom metal with some unique elements. One of my top 10 of whatever year it came out ('17? '18?).

[Nos]

Have you guys heard the last Flight of Sleipnir album, _Skadi_? They got pigeonholed as stoner, which I don't generally like, but it's retro 70s prog rock meets doom metal with some unique elements. One of my top 10 of whatever year it came out ('17? '18?).

I cant' say I have. I don't listen to much doom-adjacent music. Pretty much only Candlemass (who are dead to me), Avatarium, and that last Sorcerer album that's bloody fantastic.

[Norén]

Been a good year for me and both Devin and Leprous are in my top 5. I love both more than I expected.

[Mardoch]

I either have no dog in the fight or agree with most of these, but you take on Empath is just wrong, lol.

[Nos]

I either have no dog in the fight or agree with most of these, but you take on Empath is just wrong, lol.

Can you explain to me why he has a meowing cat in one of the songs? It's weird for the sake of weird, and makes no sense. It also sounds stupid as all hell.

[Mardoch]

I either have no dog in the fight or agree with most of these, but you take on Empath is just wrong, lol.

Can you explain to me why he has a meowing cat in one of the songs? It's weird for the sake of weird, and makes no sense. It also sounds stupid as all hell.

It's a piece of soundscape like any other digital randomness that's all over music these days. It does feel incredibly random and chaotic, yes, but that's also the point since the entire album has to deal with taming storms of mental health issues.

[Nos]

It's a piece of soundscape like any other digital randomness that's all over music these days. It does feel incredibly random and chaotic, yes, but that's also the point since the entire album has to deal with taming storms of mental health issues.

Random. Chaotic. A reflection of mental illness.

That sounds like what I said about it; it's a mess.

[introclaus]

Have you guys heard the last Flight of Sleipnir album, _Skadi_? They got pigeonholed as stoner, which I don't generally like, but it's retro 70s prog rock meets doom metal with some unique elements. One of my top 10 of whatever year it came out ('17? '18?).

I've spent a day with "Skadi" now, and while I like it, it's never gonna be a favorite of mine - I don't really hear the "70's prog rock meets doom" much in it. Sure, there's some folk elements (which might make you think of Jethro Tull, so that's the closest to 70's prog if hard pressed), a bit of doom black (think early Empyrium/Ulver/Agalloch), and a strange fuzziness (Count Raven/Spiritual Beggars stoner doom mixed with post-rock Neurosis?). It's okay, but would not have been a top anything for me personally.

[elendil]

Have you guys heard the last Flight of Sleipnir album, _Skadi_? They got pigeonholed as stoner, which I don't generally like, but it's retro 70s prog rock meets doom metal with some unique elements. One of my top 10 of whatever year it came out ('17? '18?).

I've spent a day with "Skadi" now, and while I like it, it's never gonna be a favorite of mine - I don't really hear the "70's prog rock meets doom" much in it. Sure, there's some folk elements (which might make you think of Jethro Tull, so that's the closest to 70's prog if hard pressed), a bit of doom black (think early Empyrium/Ulver/Agalloch), and a strange fuzziness (Count Raven/Spiritual Beggars stoner doom mixed with post-rock Neurosis?). It's okay, but would not have been a top anything for me personally.

There's a, like, three-minute Hammond organ solo! OK, maybe not a lot of funky time signatures, but def. some timbre/textural overlap with retro prog.