Yazz_flute: Musical Highlights Of 2010
I've got a few hours to kill before tonight so i'm making rranother list. rThese are just a handful of my top musical rmoments of the ryear, listed ralphabetically. |
| 1 | Amia Venera Landscape
Marasm
That riff that kicks in at 2:54, it's fucking huge. |
| 2 | Anathema
Thin Air
When the whole band comes together at the initial climax, about 1:44 in.
Gorgeous. |
| 3 | Avantasia
The Wicked Symphony
Best chorus of 2010, no competition. I don't even give a damn about the rest of
the album it's just not possible to listen to the chorus of this song and not feel
like a fucking king. |
| 4 | Avenged Sevenfold
Save Me
Outro: 9:22-10:56. It's strange that despite their general douchebaggery and
trite lyricism that the end of Avenged Sevenfold's fifth album manages to work
so well for me. Matt repeats one of the most cliche lyrics imaginable with
"Tonight we all die young...etc." However, his delivery of these five words I'd
state as the best vocal performance he's given, at least since Waking the Fallen.
It's entirely empathetic to their situation. The rest of the band builds in
intensity around him to compliment a fantastic denouement to an otherwise
unspectacular album. A7X are like the old friend that I grew apart from because
he became lame and annoying. This moment managed to remind me why I
liked them so much in the first case when I was in middle school just
discovering music. I'm proud of them for this one. |
| 5 | The Contortionist
Flourish
2:29-4:57. This might actually be THE moment of 2010 for me...and the album
it appears upon, Exoplanet, didn't even manage to crack my top 30 albums of
the year. For whatever reason, The Contortionist decided to throw in an awe-
inspiring instrumental interlude in the middle of an other wise standard
progressive-tinged deathcore song. It begins focalized on a singular clean guitar
motif, before the band slowly conglomerates into one solid entity. As the
distortion kicks in, the drums pick up in intensity and begin pounding out 16th
notes on the double bassand the guitarists begin destroying the strings via
tremelo-picking. Just as it's reached the apex of it's climax, a harmonized
version of the opening motif appears. This is about as powerful as the climax in
the middle of Yndi Halda's "Illuminate My Heart, My Darling." A Deathcore band
covering massive post-rock? What the fuck. I just wish this were placed at the
end of the album, or not smack in the middle of a deathcore song. Seeing as the
band blows you away on only the second song of the album, the remaining 9
tracks are pretty average deathcore. Disappointing really, these guys have a
world of potential. |
| 6 | Demians
Black Over Gold
When I first heard this song, I claimed it to be the most emotionally moving
song I'd heard all year. Now on the final day of the year, I still back that claim.
The climax beginning at 4:19 where the formerly subdued piece really begins to
flex its muscles is gut-wrenching. It chokes me up at times, especially listened
to with headphones. |
| 7 | Fang Island
Welcome Wagon
While most seemed to pick Daisy or Davey Crockett as Fang Island's strongest
track, something about Welcome Wagon stood out to me the most. The whole
song is pretty much straight cuddles on toast but the real kicker is from 1:23 to
the dual harmonies at the end. The next person you see? Give him a high-five. |
| 8 | Immolation
The Purge
Right from the beginning The Purge comes in and rapes the motherfuck out of
everything. It only gets worser(better) when that guitar solo rips in at 0:38. |
| 9 | In Vain
Sombre Fall, Burdened Winter
The atmospheric piano/guitar solo interlude thing from 4:40-5:55. This was my
SOTY for the first quarter of 2010. I'm having trouble putting this interlude in to
words but I'd imagine that if heaven existed, this is what it would sound and
feel like. It kinda transcends music. /hyperbole |
| 10 | Journal
Viela
Two moments here. The intro from 0:00-0:43 is pretty goddamn epic. I hate
using that word to describe music but it sounds like the opening narrative to a
fantasy video game (which the album is so mission accomplished). The bridge
from 2:22-3:16 becomes the true highlight of the song though. It's the first
instance on the album where the vocalist's clean singing is really put to use,
and layered against the clusterfuck of off-kilter rhythmic meter behind him, it
manages to work incredibly well. Never has mathcore been so catchy. |
| 11 | Kalmah
Bullets Are Blind
The prechrorus, 0:48-1:07. The motif appears three times in the song with
altered lyrics each time. It's hard to listen to this and not want to smash trolls
with Mjolnir. |
| 12 | Monomate
Grand Battle
4:57-8:04. The nerd inside me absolutely salivates at this whole album. At the
end of this manic "nintendocore" solo-project, Peet reflects on the previous 11
tracks with lyrical references to each of them (in the fashion of Dream Theater's
Octavarium). It's a little long, but it's incredibly cathartic to listen to. At the end
of Grand Battle, you feel like you just completely finished a difficult video game. |
| 13 | More Than Life
Scarlet Skyline
Pretty much the whole song is heart-crushing but the lyric that sticks out to me
the most has always been "Fading away with the scarlet skyline, pray for the
sun, to set earlier, every fucking day." (3:07-3:17). You could really pick any
moment from the song though, it's basically a four minute melodic-hardcore
highlight. |
| 14 | Mutiny Within
Oblivion
I'm gonna say this song's chorus is my second favorite I've heard all year. These
guys are basically your standard melodic metal band except they manage to do
it...better. This song is easily my favorite of theirs, and the chorus is about the
catchiest fucking thing you'll hear all year this side of cheesy power metal.
Would love to see if these guys could break their cliche habits a create
something truly spectacular. Probably won't happen, but they have the
potential to do so. Till then they're incredibly enjoyable regardless. |
| 15 | Orbs
Sayer Of the Law
Asleep Next to Science was my album of the year, and i'm including two songs
from the cd. The bridge from 3:05-4:04 is completely entrancing. And as with
the rest of the album, the incredibly cryptic lyrics are fascinating. |
| 16 | Eclipsical
10:29-11:32 "DOES ANYONE BELIEVE IN GOD. AND DO YOU FEEL THE
FLAMES OF HELL? CAUSE I DO. OR MAYBE I DON'T AT ALL, IT'S REALLY
FUCKING HOT IN HERE." Ugh that whole passage gets me. |
| 17 | Periphery
Racecar
13:10-13:40. The whole "I see light in your eyes part." Spencer wails the shit
out of that. |
| 18 | Sed Non Satiata
L'arrache C'ur
The climax at 5:46. |
| 19 | The Tallest Man on Earth
King of Spain
Pick a moment, any moment. Perfect. |
| 20 | Titus Andronicus
The Battle of Hampton Roads
I wasn't a huge fan of the whole album like the rest of sputnik, but 4:30-5:15
worth the price of the album itself. 5:20-6:50 is also a highlight, i'm sure you guys all know the lyrics.
Still waiting for the rest of the album to hit
me as a hard. |
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