JULIA’S BEST OF 2010
It’s cliched, I know, but this year really did go by quick. Let’s see, last year at this time I was freshly back home with my parents (if I remember correctly, I finished my end of the year list the very night that I packed up out of Brooklyn and came home), and trying to decide my next move. I know that I promised a lot more writing this year, and that I kinda failed on an epic scale, but life happens. This year I moved back to Syracuse, got more serious with The Beardo (yeah, he’s still around), got a legit big girl job, and did a decent amount of travel in the US of A. It wasn’t the best year ever, but it wasn’t the worst. I know there’s better shit to come in 2011 and after, I just don’t know exactly what it’ll be. But enough about my personal life, that’s not what you’re here for.
As far as metal goes, I am proud that I challenged myself this year. I purposely listened to a lot of shit that I wouldn’t normally pick out, and surprised myself even more when I liked it. And on another note, it almost had to be a challenging year to pick out a top 10, as NONE of my favorite, go to bands had a new release this year. In all honesty, my top 10 were really difficult to sift through- the lower 5 and upper five weren’t too hard to chose, but within those brackets it was really difficult for me to pick an order. 5 through 1 especially could’ve been switched around in anyway depending on my mood that day. But, I know that you’re all going to agree, disagree, and interpret your own top 10 however you choose anyway, so get to it. All the best to our readers, you guys rule. ONTO 2011!!
#10) The Bled - Heat Fetish: Finally, I feel like one of my old high school faves have made up for the lameness that was Found in the Flood. No matter what, Pass the Flask will probably remain in my “All time favorites” list for years to come, but another decent album has been a long time in the making and I’m glad it finally came along. I miss the fun song titles of yesteryear, like “Get Up You Son of a Bitch, ‘Cause MIckey Loves Ya” and “You Know Who’s Seatbelt”, but I’ll take quality music over a decent joke anyday. It sure didn’t work for Panic! At the Disco. FAVORITE TRACK: SMOKE BREAKS
#9) The Ocean - Anthropocentric: Not gonna lie, I hadn’t really even listened to The Ocean before this year, because from what I’d heard about them they didn’t sound like something that’d be up my alley… And Anthropocentric met my expectations, if ya know what I’m sayin’. However, like trying weird toppings on a pizza, it wasn’t really that bad. Kinda Mastodon-y, kinda Dillinger-y, with a slight hint of… Isis? Going back to my pizza theory, it’s like having a slice topped with peanut butter- Not what you’d normally get or want, but pizza is pizza. And at the end of the day, even when it’s bad, it’s still pretty good. FAVORITE TRACK: SHE WAS THE UNIVERSE
#8) As I Lay Dying - The Powerless Rise: Holy crap, someone put some pep in AILD’s step this year! Along with The Bled, AILD is one of the main bands I jammed to as a teen in Catholic school, and while the old shit did it for me back then, as I got older they just lost their shine. Basically, it wasn’t “hard” enough for my growing tastes. But I’m pleased to see that they’ve toughed up and released a big boy album to rein their fans (like ‘lil ‘ol me) back in. On the first go around it was hard to believe that this was in fact the same band I loved in high school- everything is harder, faster, tighter and darker than before, but yet their still a solid metalcore band. You get a gold star from me this year boys ;) FAVORITE TRACK: WITHOUT CONCLUSION
#7) The Dillinger Escape Plan - Option Paralysis: I feel kinda bad for not putting it farther up on my list, but then I’m reminded… IT’S MY LIST IT’LL GO WHERE I WANT IT TO. So anyway, Dillinger made another good album- shock of the world. But the reason why they’re so good is just cause they think outside the box, plain and simple. Usage of piano wins bigs points from me, and there’s a lot of it on this record, but also I just like it when every song stands out from the one before it and after it and they don’t all mush together. That works for some bands (see #9 above) to create ambiance or what have you, but when it comes to DEP I like to hear each fabulous intricate song one at a time. FAVORITE TRACK: WIDOWER
#6) Daath - Daath: It’s official. Two years in a row of landing at number 6 on my list, and more importantly, 3 SOLID albums in a row- which nowadays is a tough hurdle to cross. Daath is just a really good, completely underrated example of why metal is as good as it is. At the core, their latest release just kills: each component is on point technically and although their style is familiar to the ear, the melodies in each song are so original that you’re surprised you haven’t heard something like it before. Or at least something you’ve never heard from Daath before. But now the pressures on, will they make the list again in 2011? I’ll be waiting… FAVORITE TRACK: INDESTRUCTIBLE OVERDOSE
#5) Istapp - Blekinge: Istapp is hands down my favorite new band of the year. And with a frontman named Mordechai von Renvaktar you know it’s gotta be black black black. It’s everything you’d want and/or expect out of your typical Swedish black metal band, but the melodies weaved into the most furious of tracks is what set Blekinge apart from the rest of 2010’s rookies. Plus, since I’m such a sucker for a little patriotism and homeland pride, the fact that the album is named after their hometown in Sweden and it’s lyrically mostly about Sweden is adorable… in a totally brutal kind of way of course. The lyrics also have a lot to do with snow and winter as well, and since I live in Syracuse Antarctica, NY it’s safe to say that I can relate. FAVORITE TRACK: I VÄNTAN PÅ DEN ABSOLUTA NOLLPUNKTEN
#4) Dimmu Borgir - Abrahadabra: I picked up this album on a whim. I was walking through my local Best Buy en route to find a cord for my Xbox, when out of the corner of my eye I spotted Abrahadabra. “Hmpf,” I thought to myself, “I didn’t even know they had a new album out. I wonder if it’s any good…” And thus, I was hooked. I love the dramatic inclusion of strings and orchestral instrumentation on this album, and that’s what I think makes Dimmu Borgir stand out from other black metal bands. And the guest vocals from Swedish singer Agnete Kjølsrud on a couple tracks add a different touch to it as well. Ain’t nothing like a little melodic black metal to get you through the day. FAVORITE TRACK: GATEWAYS
#3) Eluveitie - Everything Remains As It Never Was: I like Eluveitie for the same reasons I like Istapp: they love their country and they use their homeland as inspiration for their music. And they have a DAMN HURDY GURDYIST. It’s a little nerdy perhaps, with the bagpipes and flutes and fiddles, but none the less it’s solid songwriting and melodic structure that’s both characteristic and true to Switzerland, but can also translate to America and beyond. And this year it was also my favorite car jam, en route to work or roadtrips or the grocery store, it got a lot of play in my big bad Trailblazer, aka Big Dave. I still haven’t found a hurdy gurdy of my own, but I’m still lookin’! FAVORITE TRACK: QUOTH THE RAVEN
#1) TIE! Ihsahn - After and Howl - Full of Hell : After much deliberation and going back and forth with the number 1 and 2 spots, I just decided to say “FUCK IT” and make them BOTH number 1 for 2010! First, let’s talk about Ihsahn:
I gave it a listen in the first place because, frankly, Elise told me too. I didn’t think that I was gonna like it because her tastes, though fantastic in her own way, tend to be more obscure than mine, and I tend to favor more traditional styles of metal. On the first listen through, I thought it was kinda weird, but yet really intriguing because it was so different from what I had been listening to. As I listened to it more, I really began to like it. The most stand-out trait of the album is the jazz influence with the improvisational(?) saxophone throughout. I mean, wow. This is metal on a much smarter and seemingly honest level. Holler FAVORITE TRACKS: FROZEN LAKES ON MARS
And then there was Howl. I first heard about them before I saw them on tour with Skeletonwitch in the beginning of the year. Honestly, what first intrigued me was the name, and whether it IS or is NOT a reference/homage to the Allen Ginsberg poem of epic proportions I still don’t know (but I sure hope it is!). It’s almost surprising that with the oodles of bands that have used literary references in their band names and song titles that this one hadn’t been used yet. But I digress, the MUSIC itself is top notch. I’m usually not a fan of doom/sludge/whatever you want to call it, but there’s just something about it that makes it 10 times more interesting than the run-of-the-mill music of the aforementioned genre. Not too shabby for some newcomers, I hope they do just as well next year. FAVORITE TRACK: THE SCORPION’S LAST STING
Favorite shows:
- Arch Enemy, Exodus @ Nokia Theatre, NYC
- Skeletonwitch, Howl @ Valentine’s, Albany, NY
- Kittie, God Forbid@ Northern Lights, Clifton Park, NY
- Henry Rollins @ The Westcott, Syracuse, NY
Albums I wasn’t such a fan of:
- Ludicra - The Tenant
- 1349 - Demonoir
- Lightning Swords of Death - The Extra Dimensional Wound
- Sigh - Scenes From Hell
- Ov Hell - The Underworld Regime
Heroes of 2010
Ronnie James Dio 1942-2010 RIP Adam “Nergal” Darski, fighting Leukemia
Hot mess of 2010
Howard Jones (did he really go on hiatus for getting a pornstar preggers? The world may never know…)
Favorite album art
Ihsahn - After
Favorite music video:
Behemoth “Alas, Lord is Upon Me”
Looking forward to in 2011: New Lamb of God? New Nightwish? (Yes, I still love em) And still holding out hope for some good bands to tour Syracuse… (HINT HINT GODDAMNIT)
-Julia
