Fifteen Epic Songs
So yeah...fifteen songs that never seem to lose their luster. Songs in no particular order. |
| 1 | Kalmah
They Will Return
While I haven't particularly enjoyed every album by Kalmah and I don't rate their 2002 release "They Will Return" very high, the title track is quite a brilliant melodeath song that seems to persist in memory hours after I've switched it off.
Memorable, catchy and intensely melodic, the track is one of their best compositions. |
| 2 | Hacride
Zambra
French avantgarde act Hacride's "Amoeba" is a stunning album that experiments with many different sounds."Zambra" manages to weave Spanish flamenco with polyrhythmic metal with surprising fluency and ease. The female vocals are excellent and never once during its playtime does anything seem even slightly incongruous. |
| 3 | Mirrorthrone
The Fecal Rebellion
Mirrorthrone's symphonic style of going about black metal isn't one that is unique or innovative. However, what the one-man project accomplishes with 2008's "Gangrene" is an amazingly composed album that is infused with considerable energy. In particular, the fifteen minute "The Fecal Rebellion" is a monolithic track that features brilliant piano pieces, strings and a violent barrage of black metal riffs. |
| 4 | Mitochondrion
Trials
Apart from Behemoth, Mitochondrion is the only band I have listened to when it comes to blackened death metal. Their latest album "Parasignosis" seemed to have infinite replay value for me for quite a while. While most of album's songs grew over after some time "Trials" is still addictive to me owing to Shawn Hache's deep guttural vocals and the thick dark atmosphere this band has become so well known for. |
| 5 | Mors Principium Est
Pure
Mors Principium Est's sophomore release "The Unborn" incorporated slight industrial elements to their technical melodeath sound. Though the entire album is quite enjoyable in its own right, album opener "Pure" is unarguably the standout track. Beautiful female vocals, Ville Viljanen's deep growls and a technically proficient guitar performance make the song quite memorable. |
| 6 | Anaal Nathrakh
Volenti Non Fit Iniuria
British black/grind outfit Anaal Nathrakh's latest outing "Passion" was pretty dull and underwhelming to say the least. The lone spot of brilliance in the abysmal album is its opener "Volenti Non Fit Iniuria". The song is the an excellent example of the black/grind formula done right, creating an excellent balance between aggression and substance. A balance that was sadly missing for the most part of the rest of the album. |
| 7 | Origin
Antithesis
Origin's brand of technical death metal is indisputably one of the fastest things that have ever been recorded. Their fourth album "Antithesis" is unabashed in its speed and ferocity with riffs and drum patterns being executed at terrific speeds. A shining example of this is the closing nine minute title track which twists and turns through multiple sections of sublimely composed death metal. |
| 8 | Paul Wardingham
Fields of Utopia
Solo guitar instrumental albums aren't exactly my thing since I do not play the instrument. However, on listening to Paul Wardingham's debut "Assimilate Regenerate" any layman will tell you that the album is quite phenomenal in both melody and technical proficiency. "Fields of Utopia"projects an incredible atmosphere mainly due to its well written main riff and effective synth use. |
| 9 | Ever Forthright
The Little Albert Experiment
Ever Forthright's self titled debut is one of the more successful proponents of the djent scene. Possessing a well polished sound composed of dysrhythmic deathcore and the occasional saxophone passage, "The Little Albert Experiment" perfectly epitomizes Ever Forthright's vibrant sound. |
| 10 | maudlin of the Well
Birth Pains of Astral Projection
Toby Driver's current main project Kayo Dot is a little too avant garde for me. However, Kayo Dot's predecessor, maudlin of the Well's amalgamation indie music and death metal seems a little more digestible for my tastes. The ten minute "Birth Pains of Astral Projection" is a wonderful track featuring both the calm and heavy sides of the band's music very succinctly. |
| 11 | The Waters Deep Here
Mammon
Post metal is definitely not my genre. This makes "Mammon" even more incredible given that I sat through this thirty minute post metal epic without virtually batting an eyelid. Truly powerful stuff that never lags anywhere during it's monolithic playtime. |
| 12 | Novembre
Tales of A Winter To Come
I found Novembre while searching for bands that resembled Opeth. While on paper, the characteristics of both bands seem identical, the execution of their ideas varies considerably. I'm not a big fan of the band but "Tales of A Winter To Come" is an awesome song that is highly emotive and captures the cold atmosphere of winter very well. The guitar work is quite notable here. |
| 13 | Ea
Aullu Eina
Death/doom metal band Ea's sound is lush, dark and ominous. Integrating pianos and strings into a doom metal frame of reference, Ea's brand of death doom has a lofty, majestic feel to it. The band's third album "Au Ellai" is more guitar oriented than its previous endeavors. The album opener "Aullu Eina" has a rich textured feel thanks to intelligent synth placement and a lovely set of slow heavy riffs. |
| 14 | Deadlock
Fire At Will
Deadlock's "Manifesto" was one of my favorite melodeath albums for quite some time. The definite stand out by far was its sixth track "Fire At Will"; a song that boasted of strong growls,versatile female vocals, a long blazing guitar solo and perhaps most importantly an astounding saxophone solo that seems surprisingly fitting in the melodic death metal context. |
| 15 | Amia Venera Landscape
Empire
Amia Venera Landscape's progressive hardcore music is incredibly rousing and emotive. Their debut "The Long Procession" opens with the seven minute "Empire", a song that is equal parts aggression, restraint and melody. The way the last three minutes of the song somehow managed to surpass the first four in terms of sheer emotion and brutality astounds me every time it's on playback. |
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