6385 replies to this topic

[arkin]

pretty interesting feature. The part about 'prom dress metal' was pretty funny. I think the lack of metal in year end lists can be frustrating, at the same time, you can lead a horse to water...

[Saskadelphia]

At PopMatters our editors openly say that they don't care for metal personally, but at the same time they do want to see it well represented on the site. Which is great, but it's next to impossible to get some good consensus metal picks for EOY lists, because the huge majority of my fellow, more indie-minded staffers view metal with outright disdain.

[Saskadelphia]

Oh, and new Wolves in the Throne Room! Malevolent Grain EP is due in February (with two new tracks), followed by album number three on March 31.

[arkin]

At PopMatters, our editors openly say that they don't care for metal personally, but at the same time they do want to see it well represented on the site. Which is great, but it's next to impossible to get some good consensus metal picks for EOY lists, because the huge majority of my fellow, more indie-minded staffers view metal with outright disdain.

Yeah, for a lot of people there's serious resistance. On one hand, I feel like, as a metal listener, I've only really scratched the surface and that it's sort of intimidating to take on such an immense genre, and all of its different subgenres and whatnot. Unfortunately, a lot of people don't even want to bother taking that first step.

[James Iha]

completely agree w/ the convo posted on the last page. considering the fork's position as tastemakers and overseers of most music thats close to being worth listening to, i expect better. this year was especially disappointing. all of those rackety indie buzz bands are really better than the finest 2008 metal? there is just no way that is the case. also, im hyped for that wolves in the throne room record. good news.

[Backslash M Forwardslash]

Asva will be worth seeing, definitely.

Nice! Thanks!

To elaborate (which I should have done at the time), I wasn't that enamoured with their new album, but I reckon it might be the kind of thing that takes a while to grow on you. Conversely, their ambience and sunn(o)))-ish tendencies would probably go over really well live. And Trevor Dunn is in the band. He's awesome.

Yeah, I gave it a spin today. I still haven't figured out the whole ambient doom thing. Sadly, I don't think this was the "gateway" album for me to decide I love the genre.

Have you listened to Altar and Black 1 a few times? If you don't like those, I can't think of much to convince you otherwise.

I haven't..... I think I have Altar somewhere, I'll give it another shot. Let's hope this does it.

[Alky 2009]

Phew. I'm ready for 2009 metal, but I'm still catching up on some of what I missed from last year. Was listening to the Warbringer album yesterday - decent, if not exactly thrilling, thrash. Lots of good stuff on the Invisible Oranges end of year mixtape that I missed out on too.

Listening to the High On Fire Live at the Relapse Contamination Festival right now, pretty good. Missed it when it originally came out, but I'm reviewing the wider reissue.

[James D]

http://www.mastodonrocks.com/splash/

Oh man

[taste the waste]

http://www.mastodonrocks.com/splash/

Oh man

Duuuuuudddddeee: they say inside that website that the bit playing is snippet from the opening track. Cannot wait to hear that thing crack the fuck open and roar.

[Saskadelphia]

That Mastodon clip is far too brief to get excited about.

I'm really kicking myself for not getting into this album sooner:



Easily one of the best melodic/prog metal discs of 08, everythnig about it is tasteful, never over the top. Exceptional guitar work (alternately Gathering-like and Floydy), while the female singer has a beautiful voice but never goes of into those wild diva-like histrionics that the European divas do. Very Anneke-like.

http://www.myspace.com/braveband

[swede]

wow....
Neurosis + Sleep + Melvins + Wino = Shrinebuilder
"This is something like a stoner-metal Mount Rushmore, and the album is probably going to make us want to celebrate by going out and killing a lion and then using the lion's skull to make a bong." -p4k

[Alky 2009]

So that whole Brave album is good Sask? That was one of the tracks on the Invisible Oranges mix that piqued my interest.

[Saskadelphia]

The title track from the new Cannibal Corpse album can be heard here:
http://www.metalblad...e/preorder.html

I love it when they go all slow. Great song.

So that whole Brave album is good Sask? That was one of the tracks on the Invisible Oranges mix that piqued my interest.

Yeah, the whole thing is excellent. Quite diverse, too.

[velocity]

I've never seen Cannibal Corpse...gonna have to fix that next time they tour.

Speaking of 2008, Alky, have you checked out Wetnurse - Invisible City? It's pretty swell (post-rock-ish, RIYL Between the Buried & Me/Black Elk). Has anyone heard their self-titled album & if so, how is that?

[Saskadelphia]

Obsessives can track the Shrinebuilder progress here: http://www.weburnthr...t.blogspot.com/

I've never seen Cannibal Corpse...gonna have to fix that next time they tour.

You most certainly do!

Alky, have you checked out Wetnurse - Invisible City? It's pretty swell. Has anyone heard their self-titled album & if so, how is that?

It's not as varied and rich as the new one, but still pretty good.

[throughsilver]

"This is something like a stoner-metal Mount Rushmore, and the album is probably going to make us want to celebrate by going out and killing a lion and then using the lion's skull to make a bong." -p4k

I fucking despair.

[Vivian Darkbloom]

Nice avatar, Alky 2009.

[velocity]

I've wanted to compliment your avatar, Viv. What's it from? Sask, who's that in yours?

[Vivian Darkbloom]

I've wanted to compliment your avatar, Viv. What's it from?

It's the cover art from Rudi Arapahoe's Echoes from One to Another, a cool, ambient-pretty-Helios strummy record with dreamy chick vocals that I dig and included on my EOY. I just really like the image. You can see a much higher resolution GIF of it here

[Saskadelphia]

Sask, who's that in yours?

It's from The Double Life of Veronique, where Irene Jacob is on a train and looking at the scenery through the refracted images of a transparent ball. Wonderful movie.