2009 was a great year for metal. So great that after making the first few top ten lists, I decided to break metal into two categories; metal and doom. As you’ll notice, these albums are mostly a mix of death, thrash and black metal. None are really commercial and hardly any were reviewed by major media outlets. Pulling the obscurity card in yearly lists is pretentious as hell, but I really enjoyed these albums throughout 2009 and many will remain in heavy circulation well into 2010.
Without anymore justification, here’s Prolly is Not Probably’s Top 10 Metal Albums of 2009.
#10 Excoriate – On Pestilent Winds – Sepulchral Voice
With clear influences from Vader, Possessed, Pestilence and even Sepultura, Excoriate’s final album pounds away a fresh death metal sound for a solid 35 minutes.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#09 Embrace of Thorns – Atonement Ritual – Nuclear War Now!
Embrace of Thorns is about as raw as you can get when it comes to black metal. It’s not for everyone to enjoy and I think that’s the point. You’ll probably hate it, but it’s a great album floating in a sea of banal and melodic black metal.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#08 Absu – Absu – Candlelight
These bad boys from Texas destroy shit. It’s like black metal Motörhead. Or, as they put it, “Mythological Occult Metal”.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#07 Blut Aus Nord – Memoria Vetusta II: Dialogue… – Candlelight
It’s no secret that Candlelight records has a lot of talent under their belts. Unlike the last band, these boys aren’t from Texas; they’re from France. Obviously there’s darkness to be found even in the land of art and baguettes. Icy-cold violence is what you’ll find here.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#06 Skeletonwitch – Breathing the Fire – Prosthetic
Seeing these dudes play is the perfect introduction for anyone who’s never been to a thrash show. Chance and the dudes have great stage presence and it translates incredibly well to their albums. They mix death, thrash and black metal in a tasteful way. Did I really just say that?
Read My Pal the Crook’s review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#05 Sacrifice – The Ones I Condemn – Roadrunner
Canadian metal! The thrash band Sacrifice regrouped recently and recorded The Ones I Condemn, their best release to date, spanning their 16 year career as a thrash metal band. Rob Urbinati’s vocals are just as sneering as ever, meshing his howling voice with an onslaught of well-orchestrated riffs.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#04 Fondlecorpse – Creaturegore – Razorback
This definitely wins the best album art of 2009, hands down. Seriously, commissioning Adam Geyer to do your artwork is dedication to your band’s branding. Creaturegore may sound like the name of a 1980’s movie along the lines of Critters, C.H.U.D., Ghoulies or Gremlins and rightfully so. This album mixes throwback horror sound bits with a classic death metal sound.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
Special note: the guys in Fondlecorpse loved my review of Creaturegore. Cheers right back at ya!
#03 Nocturnal – Violent Revenge – Death Strike
“Death is the Answer” is the culmination of the year’s best fucking thrash album, Violent Revenge. Blackened thrash metal for all occasions! This will quite possibly be a classic thrash album for generations to come.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#02 Sarke – Vorunah – Indie Recordings
Nocturno Culto’s side project took off in a rather thrashy direction; much moreso than his other band. After Darkthrone released Hiking Metal Punks, Nocturno began to work feverishly on perfecting Sarke’s sound. What you’re presented with will offer you many chuckles as you decipher the lyrics. A must have.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
#01 Fukpig – Spewings from a Selfish Nation – Feto
With band members from Anaal Nathrakh, Frost and Exploder, Fukpig is a melee of metal genres. Formed in 2001 and dismembered in 2004, the band barely had time to perfect their sound. After reuniting in 2008 to record Spewings from a Selfish Nation, it’s easy to say they’re back in full force. The album is one 30-minute long clusterfuck of blood-spewing vocals, distortion and drumlines. Usually that’s a bad thing, but not here. It’s addictive.
Read my full review on the Mishka Bloglin.
There you have it. On New Years Eve, I’ll be posting my Top 10 Doom Albums of 2009.
Previously:
Fixed Gear Freestyle’s Top 10 Web Edits of 2009
Fixed Gear Freestyle’s Top 10 Photos of 2009
