Metal Awards

Crash's Top 15 albums of 2010

  1. Sigh - Scenes From Hell
    Sigh is one of my absolute favorite bands. After Hangman's Hymn I didn't think there was much else that they could do with this style but they proved me wrong once again. Scenes From Hell is a gloriously bombastic album that never fails to get me going. Songs like Vanitas and The Soul Grave are among their best work. Cheers.
  2. Little Women - Throat
    "This is what you should listen to if you want your brain scooped out of your skull and handed to you." - Anthony Fantano. This album is just pure unfiltered chaos. Somehow this musical word vomit somehow turns into music. It isn't something to like as much as something to experience.
  3. Foxy Shazam - Foxy Shazam
    Foxy Shazam make some of the most unapologetically fun music around. This is joy in music form.
  4. Ghost - Opus Eponymous
    Ghost is fucking awesome. This band is about as old school metal as it gets. Listen to this if you'd rather listen to Blue Oyster Cult than anything else.
  5. Martriden - Encounter the Monolith
    A progressive black metal concept album about 2001: A Space Odyssey. Need I say more?
  6. Equilibrium - Rekreatur
    This album is not Sagas. It actually is just Sagas Jr. This is not a great album, but it is a great collection of songs. And despite the fact that the album has no flow and no connection, the individidual songs by themselves are great.
  7. Atheist - Jupiter
    The only good technical death metal I heard this year. Atheist have a character about them that is impossible to replicate.
  8. Abigail Williams - In the Absence of Light
    Somewhere, Abigail Williams decided to stop sucking and write good black metal. I admit that my first review of 93 was way too high. I'd give it an 85 now. Those extra points are the initial shock that this band could ever release something that I would actually like. Coolio.
  9. Shining (Nor) - Blackjazz
    Holy crap. This album is King Crimson writing the soundtrack to the matrix. I love it. Move this up to number 6, cuz I'm too lazy to do it.
  10. Powerglove - Saturday Morning Apocalypse
    There is a cover of Winnie the Pooh on this album.
  11. Fear Factory - Mechanize
    With Dino back and Hoglan at the kit, this is easily the best Fear Factory album since Obsolete. In fact, it's the only album since Obsolete worth listening to.
  12. Watain - Lawless Darkness
    Watain do one thing very well: Write catchy and accessible black metal. I never need more than a few songs at a time, but Watain never fails to satisfy.
  13. Deathspell Omega - Paracletus
    I think that Deathspell really "understand" black metal. Like Mayhem's Ordo Ad Chao the album sounds like very little I have heard before, but it makes so much sense when put into the black metal frame of mind. There are bits that are a bit too drawn out and a little more variation would be nice, but when this album reaches the peaks it does, there are very few better musical moments this year.
  14. Mike Patton - Mondo Cane
    Mike Patton can do no wrong. There, I said it. Actually to be fair, Patton can at least never be blamed for not doing exactly what he wants to do, for better or worse. In this case, he has made an extremely light and enjoyable album. The album gives him a chance to just sing. Something he has never done before. I don't love everything Patton releases, but I can never say I am less than surprised at his choices. Some songs like "Deep Down" get the repeat button quite a bit with me.
  15. Nails - Unsilent Death
    It's fourteen minutes long. I wish more grind bands would see what a good idea this is. Heavy, unrelenting, and brief. This is grindcore done great.
Crash's Top 5 surprises of 2010

  1. Little Women - Throat
    Thank god that I got a recommendation about this. Completely took me by surprise.
  2. Ghost - Opus Eponymous
    I only heard about this band a week ago, but their album is truly splendid.
  3. Martriden - Encounter the Monolith
    Another new band for me, this album completely took me by surprise.
  4. Abigail Williams - In the Absence of Light
    Like I said, I never thought I'd ever like anything by this band.
  5. Hemina - As We Know It
    Quality prog. Let's hope the album uses their potential.
Crash's Disappointment(s) of 2010

  1. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
    So, being that this band is hailed as the next Beatles I had to take a listen. It definitely isn't bad, but I can't fathom why this band gets the rep they do when there are plenty of indie bands writing catchier and more interesting music without the pretentious overtones. The Black Keys, Sigur Ros, Of Montreal etc. are all way more worthy of your time.
  2. Nevermore - The Obsidian Conspiracy
    If you told me a year ago that I would hate the new Nevermore album I would burn your house down and kill your family.
  3. Finntroll - Nifelvind
    By no means a bad album, but Finntroll seem to have lost their fun. This album is good metal, but not the insane party band I fell in love with years ago.
  4. Blind Guardian - At The Edge Of Time
    Another album that is not bad, but a let down all the same. Rather than expanding on their sound this album is essentially a combination of their entire careers worth of sounds. That should be awesome, but in the end it just feels like their ideas are watered down. Songs about books just aren't as exciting as they used to be. Plus, the orchestra is a complete waste. This album should have been crazier and more bombastic than A Night at the Opera. In the end, it's Imaginations diet. Still good, but not great. And that is exactly what I expect from this band: Greatness.
  5. Helloween - Seven Sinners
    Helloween are incredibly hit or miss. This is more in the middle. Meh.
Crash's Joke(s) 2010

  1. Decrepit Birth - Polarity
    I gave this album a high review because for it's genre, it's quite good. Unfortunately, the genre of absurdly tech death pretty much flat out sucks. There is no variety at all. A one trick pony with a pretty boring trick.
  2. Nevermore - The Obsidian Conspiracy
    Nevermore have gone heavier and in the process dumbed down their songs, lyrics, and themes. I always said that they either needed to go into a more prog direction or a heavier direction. Unfortunately, being heavier meant writing bad songs.
  3. Star One - Victims of a Modern Age
    I thought this album would rock. it sounded liek Arjen was going to finally make that really heavy metal album he always wanted to. Instead, it's just disc 3 of 1011100001100010100111000.
  4. Avenged Sevenfold - Nightmare
    God dammit Mike Portnoy.
  5. Me
    For not hearing the new "Tallest Man on Earth" album. I don't know what's wrong with me, his last album was great and I straight up ignored this one. For shame. I also somehow never checked out the new Melvins and Melechesh albums, for shame on me.
Crash's words about 2010
  1. Every year I hear a handful of people say, "This wasn't a good year for metal." Well after hearing a good couple dozen albums this year I can say that it is never a bad year for metal. This year will not stand out in history for metal music, but there was plenty of stuff worth my time. Plus, with Dio and Peter Steele gone, Nergal contracting leukemia, and worst of all Mike Portnoy leaving Dream Theater we have all suffered losses. But we shall prevail as it is in the metal spirit.