Most Anticipated of 2016?

[MacabreEternal]

37 minutes ago, FatherAlabaster said:

2016 releases by Lycus ("Chasms") and Clouds ("Departe") are both pretty top-notch, different takes on melodic doom-death.  Inverloch's "Distance|Collapsed" wins in the "fucking crushing" category, though.

That Inverloch was a fucking massive step up from that dull as fuck EP they released previously.  Enjoyed that Lycus to but I really have to be in the mood for it. Will add Clouds to my list of catch up things.

[FatherAlabaster]

9 minutes ago, MacabreEternal said:

That Inverloch was a fucking massive step up from that dull as fuck EP they released previously.  Enjoyed that Lycus to but I really have to be in the mood for it. Will add Clouds to my list of catch up things.

Clouds is less oppressive, more "Eurodoom" if that makes sense. Bunch of clean vocals, not quite as dark. Nice album.

https://doomclouds.bandcamp.com/

[MacabreEternal]

Okay, so I am going to start my top ten releases of 2016 and progressively build it as I have a few late comers to consider (Krallice being just released today) but still have a majority list to utilise until the top five.

10. Dopethrone/Fister - Split

Unusually I start with a split single/EP from two artists I have mixed thoughts about.  By far the most familiar of the two in terms of inclusions in my library are Dopethrone (I have their entire discography) but oddly they offer the weaker of the two tracks here.  It isn't terrible but to be honest if it wasn't for the scalding fury of the Fister track this whole release wouldn't be anywhere near my top ten.  The Fister track just kills with it's raw aggression and scathing vocal attack from the off and is clearly the work of a very pissed off group of people. I listen to this at least once a week (once a day when work permits me to be at home).

More to follow...

[Requiem]

4 hours ago, MacabreEternal said:

Okay, so I am going to start my top ten releases of 2016 and progressively build it as I have a few late comers to consider (Krallice being just released today) but still have a majority list to utilise until the top five.

10. Dopethrone/Fister - Split

Unusually I start with a split single/EP from two artists I have mixed thoughts about.  By far the most familiar of the two in terms of inclusions in my library are Dopethrone (I have their entire discography) but oddly they offer the weaker of the two tracks here.  It isn't terrible but to be honest if it wasn't for the scalding fury of the Fister track this whole release wouldn't be anywhere near my top ten.  The Fister track just kills with it's raw aggression and scathing vocal attack from the off and is clearly the work of a very pissed off group of people. I listen to this at least once a week (once a day when work permits me to be at home).

More to follow...

This would make a good thread of its own - Top 10 of 2016. I don't think I even bought 10 c.ds that were released this year, so I probably couldn't contribute. I find that about 80% of my purchases come from the dark past. 

[MacabreEternal]

1 hour ago, Requiem said:

This would make a good thread of its own - Top 10 of 2016. I don't think I even bought 10 c.ds that were released this year, so I probably couldn't contribute. I find that about 80% of my purchases come from the dark past. 

I have debated a thread to itself for this but I think the majority of members are like you and haven't bought a CD since 1992, so instead of making myself look really hip and with it as the only "current" metal loving member of the forum I have taken one for the team and chosen to make all you "squares" feel better.  Gorbo will be here in a minute to tell us he has just discovered Pentagram!

[FatherAlabaster]

1 hour ago, Requiem said:

This would make a good thread of its own - Top 10 of 2016. I don't think I even bought 10 c.ds that were released this year, so I probably couldn't contribute. I find that about 80% of my purchases come from the dark past. 

That's usually my experience as well, though I'm in contact with a few people who keep up with everything and I've started paying more attention as a result. Like Macabre, I was considering having a separate top ten thread for this year, but since we've been updating this one as the year has gone by, it seems as good a place as any if people want to post their lists. Or just go to the "Top Ten of any given year" thread... I hate making lists, my mind goes blank when I try, and ten is an arbitrary cutoff IMO, so honestly this post-as-we-go format works better for me.

So good of someone as hip and current as you to be thinking of our feelings, Mr. Dean Sir.

[Requiem]

4 hours ago, MacabreEternal said:

I have debated a thread to itself for this but I think the majority of members are like you and haven't bought a CD since 1992, so instead of making myself look really hip and with it as the only "current" metal loving member of the forum I have taken one for the team and chosen to make all you "squares" feel better.  Gorbo will be here in a minute to tell us he has just discovered Pentagram!

Excuse me, I'll have you know that I buy scores of CDs a year. I'm a CD fiend. It's just that when I buy them I'm very often buying things that were released back in the day rather than the latest album by whatever the trend kids listen to these days. 

In fact, the majority of new release CDs that I buy are usually from older bands that are still going. 

So even though I've purchased maybe 40 CDs this year I might only manage to scrape together 10 that were actually released in 2016. So it wouldn't be so much of a 'best of' as an 'all of'. 

1992... the cheek! 

[MacabreEternal]

On 21/12/2016 at 4:39 PM, MacabreEternal said:

Okay, so I am going to start my top ten releases of 2016 and progressively build it as I have a few late comers to consider (Krallice being just released today) but still have a majority list to utilise until the top five.

10. Dopethrone/Fister - Split

Unusually I start with a split single/EP from two artists I have mixed thoughts about.  By far the most familiar of the two in terms of inclusions in my library are Dopethrone (I have their entire discography) but oddly they offer the weaker of the two tracks here.  It isn't terrible but to be honest if it wasn't for the scalding fury of the Fister track this whole release wouldn't be anywhere near my top ten.  The Fister track just kills with it's raw aggression and scathing vocal attack from the off and is clearly the work of a very pissed off group of people. I listen to this at least once a week (once a day when work permits me to be at home).

More to follow...

9. Sun Worship "Pale Dawn"

German BM makes a deserved entry onto my countdown as the trio that make up Sun Worship kept me mightily entertained from May onwards with their blend of beefed-up "post" influences and straight up tremolo riffing.  Consistent stuff as always form Sun Worship.

8. Ghoul "Dungeon Bastards"

After the mediocre "Transmission Zero", Ghoul managed to maintain my interest in them via a couple of decent EP and split releases whilst I waited to see how their next full-length shaped up.  Thankfully the momentum from those min-releases was kept up into "Dungeon Bastards".  All the use tongue-in-cheek antics from the sack-faced thrash metal maniacs is on show here with riffs galore and their very own "I Am The Law" with the superb track "Word Is Law".  Fun beyond mere entertainment.

7. Ruinous "Graves Of Ceaseless Death"

So much win right here folks!  Forget the technical mastery of Gorguts and Ulcerate for a second here and just revel in the old school way of the Death Metal for a bit. Unapologetic to the point of being predictable in parts yet done with enough "Blam" and "Kaboom" to make Batman and Robin look like cheerleaders.

6. Altarage "Nihl"

No two ways about it, "Nihl" tilted my head back and shat down my throat!  Then it slammed my jaw shut and repeatedly jabbed my in the throat to ensure I swallowed all of the murky, vileness it had delivered.  Death Metal throws up some real treats still in 2016.

5. Gorguts "Pleiade's Dust"

I originally thought this would be higher in my list but the combination of the releases above it being too strong and the fact that I am not altogether that much in love with the single song format as I originally thought, have influenced enough to drop this onto the periphery of my top five. Now don't get me wrong here, I love the work and the thought that has gone into this but I just find that I miss too fucking much, even though Lemay has cleverly weaved end points into each movement of the track my puny human brain still struggles to hold on to what is happening.  Still trumped by "Colored Sands" but that in no way is a bad thing.

4. Ritual Chamber "Obscurations (To Feast On The Seraphim)"

Two months ago this wasn't even in the picture, but subsequent plays from week to week have seen me increasingly attracted to the horror of the majesty of Ritual Chamber.  Derna's multi-instrumentalist talents are blatantly on show here as he creates horrific atmospheres with organs, rips holes in ear drums with tremolo riffing and affirms everything with good use of pace and the solidity of the song structures also.  This record stays with me for days after I have heard it without ever coming across as simplistic, it is so memorable for all the right reasons.

 

More to follow...