I’m actually finishing my top 5 before New Year’s Eve. Santa must have given me some inspiration for Christmas. That and it’s raining (instead of snowing) so there’s not much else to do other than stare at the tree and watch the Grinch steal Christmas again.
My top five for 2015 is decidedly heavier and a bit more doomy than the rest of my top 10. Bonus points for some nice vinyl options and Swallow The Sun’s box might get its own shelf, if only to support the weight of 5 LPs.
#5 Shape Of Despair - Monotony Fields
One of the best of the genre-defining Finnish doom bands returns after 10 long, cold years to plumb the darkest depths of the human experience. With their latest, Shape of Despair chills the bones of the listener, burying them in the sonic landscape of darkness and ice. At times suffocating and at others wildly freeing, it's wonderful to get lost, knowing that you cannot return unchanged.
#4 Myrkur - M
I think Myrkur was in my top 5 last year, too. This year's full-length release was highly anticipated and has been well-received by fans and critics alike. Amalie Bruun's 'black metal project' breathes unique life into black metal forms. In doing so, she creates a fascinating blending styles and cultures- from ethereal choral passages to bleak blast-beat ferocity - all in the blink of an eye.
#3 Paradise Lost - The Plague Within
It's always nice when you find a new band that isn't new. UK's Paradise Lost have been around for some time now. On this one, everything comes together and the band delivers a clinic in melodic death metal. With diverse songs- from slow burners to thrashy riffing to catchy clean/growl interplay - there's always a reason to come back to listen to some more.
#2 Amorphis - Under The Red Cloud
Amorphis. Ambassadors of Finnish mythology, heavy metal icons for over two decades, and the most metal microphone in music. When I say I will travel for music - this is the band that I have traveled the furthest to see (and in doing so I've been introduced to the land and people of Finland and Scandinavia). So it should be no surprise that their new album is one of my favorites this year. Under The Red Cloud contains all the epic poetry, heavy riffs, soaring vocals, death growls, and folk instrumentation needed for the perfect exemplar of Finnish death metal.
#1 Swallow The Sun - Songs From The North: Parts I, II, & III
Sometimes a single album isn't enough. Or even a double album. Swallow the Sun goes all-in on a three-disc album, with each disc dedicated to a particular aspect of death metal, attempting to match the depth and complexity of their native Finland. Songs From The North Part I is an album showcasing STS's signature sound - a blend of emotional highs and lows accompanied by slow, brooding beats with both elegant and guttural vocals. Part II is an acoustic affair, stripping the wall of sound back to its foundation. Part III is true funeral doom. With the speed and power of tectonic forces, the despair is real and reverberates through your bones. There's a lot to listen to and it will probably take a full year to make it all the way through this one. But that's ok because the rewards are as epic and vast as the scope of this record, even at the price of all your emotions and maybe your soul.
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