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Before I continue I have a confession to make. I done goofed. I need to revise my list as I've come to the conclusion that some albums don't belong while others do. So here is my
Top 50 Albums 2014 - The Reboot:50. Green Carnation - Light of Day, Day of Darkness (2006)
Genre: Progressive/Doom MetalReturning for the sequel, but unfortunately not getting a bigger role is Green Carnation's monster 60 minute masterpiece, Light of Day, Day of Darkness. This song/album is just epic beyond scale. That being said, as awesome as the song is, I only listen to it a few times a year. Not to knock the rest of the epic, but the song really reaches it's peak at the 16 minute mark, but then that only lasts for 2 minutes. If the whole song had the same intensity, it'd be much higher, but as it is, it sits nicely at #50. Fans of dark atmospheric Doom Metal will love this. It's quite a journey. Check it out.
49. HolyHell - HolyHell (2009)
Genre: Power MetalPower Metal is a waning genre for me, but sometimes I come across a gem like HolyHell's self titled debut. As an added bonus the band contains female powerhouse Maria Breon. Her name might not have any significance as she isn't associated with any other known bands, but she has pipes that will make Ann Wilson blush. I'm picky about my female singers. A lot of symphonic or goth bands tend to have the Tarja style Operatic female vocals that I just don't care for anymore. I can listen to old Nightwish, but Tarja clones are to strong, and not pleasant. I much prefer the sweet and beautiful styles like Sharon of Within Temptation. Maria has the sweet and beautiful along with ear piercing wails and also a sinister tone as well. She's the full package. But what about the band? The music is a mix of classic Heavy metal and Power metal in the vein of Manowar, and although I'm not a fan nor am I familiar with Manowar, I can't deny how awesome their ex-drummer, Rhino sounds on this album. I like to compare HolyHell to Mystic Prophecy. Both bands are all about heaven, hell, angels, demons, fire, hell, hell, hell. The difference being that HolyHell has WAAAAYY better lyrics... And a better singer. My favorite song on the album is actually the ballad, The Fall, which is the case for a lot of albums, but it showcases just how great Maria is. Apparently they are keeping with the Hell theme for their next album, but I hope they do vary it up a little bit as it can get repetitive with the lyrics after a while. If you like Heavy Power Metal with symphonic elements, try this album out.
Favorite song: The Fall
48. Missy Higgins - The Sound of White (2004)
Genre: Pop/singer-songwriterAnother mainstay on the list, The Sound of White is a solid album that is far removed from what I normally listen to, but when the Metal Lake goes dry, I have to search somewhere else. I can thank my girlfriend for introducing me to Missy Higgins 'cause otherwise I would never have heard of her. I'm sure Blob would love that. Truth is, I'll listen to anything if it has a good melody and isn't annoying. Missy writes good feel good tunes and really deserves more attention outside of Australia. Her more upbeat songs like Scar and This is How it Goes can be compared to The Goo Goo Dolls to give you an idea of her sound. Her second album, On A Clear Night almost made the list, but there are a couple duds on it. I'd still recommend listening to it though. Her third album sucks though. I don't like the direction she went. If you like acoustic pop rock that isn't TOO poppy, check this album out.
Favorite song: The Special Two
47. Harvest - Chasing Time (2012)
Genre: Progressive RockAnother female fronted band, Harvest plays in a similar style to Marillion, who are like their heroes. With their second album, Harvest rock out a bit more this time but are still acoustically driven. Singer Monique Van Der Kolk's pleasant voice is a great compliment to the music. She's not your typical goth or symphonic singer, but more of a folkish style. One of my favorite songs, Intuition has a Porcupine Tree vibe (think Trains) driven by acoustic guitar and a great outro solo. As you might guess, all the songs on Chasing Time are about time in some way. The Machine being about a time machine. Subtle. If you're still reading this, I really suck at write ups. I've listened to this album several times, and I just can't figure out how to describe it. Acoustic rock mixed with folk and progressive elements. There we go. If you like atmospheric Folk Prog, Take a gander. I caught a cold and have writers block. What's your excuse? Oh you know what, the closer, Stars is amazing. Easily my favorite.
Favorite song: Stars
46. Nemesea - The Quiet Resistance (2011)
Genre: Symphonic Rock/MetalHere's a band I happened upon just browsing my... Sources... And was like Hey these guys are pretty good. Nemesea started out as a dime a dozen Beauty and the Beast band, but on the very next album In Control did a 180 and became an Electronica Rock Band. We'll get to that later. The Quiet Resistance opens with an annoying skipable intro that serves no purpose and then the synth soaked riffage of Caught in the Middle begins. A great opening rocker and great introduction to the powerful voice of Manda Ophuis. More about this song later. The rocking continues with Afterlife and Whenever and then the obligatory ballad, If You Could. High Enough features the lovely Charlotte Wessels of Delain (can't believe I forgot to bring this album when I saw them. I'm sure it would have gotten a big smile out of her) in a rocking duet with some clean male vocals at the bridge rocking it Evanescence style. It's Over features some guest male vocals, and honestly, one of the guys sounds like Chad Kroeger. Not bad though. The melodies are great, my favorite being in the pre-chorus. My favorite song on the album surprise surprise is the second ballad, I Live. Beautiful song. Manda has such a great voice. The last few songs have a bit of a Linkin Park vibe to them. Not bad, maybe a bit too blatant at times. The closing track is an instrumental which definitely screams Linkin Park, but also dates itself as it's about the 2012 apocalypse which of course is now irrelevant. The bonus track which I'm pretty sure is on every release anyway is an homage to Rammstein. Apparently while making the song, it was giving off a Rammstein vibe so they just brought in a Rammstein tribute band singer, and made the lyrics in German. Decent song.
Why is this so low? Let's go back to Caught in the Middle. The bridge. Manda's voice breaks constantly during this short section and it really puzzles me why they didn't do another take. It's so off putting that I made an edit cutting out the whole bridge. Flows nicely I must say. Another thing, the drums are kinda boring. I don't think I'm spoiled by prog, but the guy could have done a few more things within some of the songs, but he kinda just keeps the beat. That being said, if you like Symphonic Rock, or Evanescence and Linkin Park, check this out. Great stuff.
Favorite song: I Live
45. Amanda Somerville - Windows (2009)
Genre: Singer-songwriter/RockThe last album on the list to feature the bodacious, babelicious Amanda Somerville. This time not so metal. Honestly I'd rather her release another solo album like this than Trillium. Windows is a bit of a genre mash-up album and that's good, but some songs don't leave as great a mark. While mostly being Soft Rock, there are a couple rockers like Inner Whore which is great. She can be my... Um anyway, as I mentioned, this album is a hodge podge of genres including a lounge song. It's alright. Her voice is perfect for it though. She should really be more famous with a voice like that. Hey, you know what my favorite song is? The wedding ballad. Yeah, it's a wedding song, like it could be played at a wedding. I love it though. I love ballads. You can have my man card. I don't care. Songs like Path of Safe Return and Moth would do great on Contemporary radio. Just really good tunes similar to say, Michelle Branch, without the Hetfieldisms. Windows is a definite improvement over her debut, and I hope she releases something again soon. It can only get better.
Favorite song: All That I Am
44. Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever (1989)
Genre: Rock & RollRemember those drastic drops I was talking about? Here's the first one. I've loved Tom Petty since I can remember. Dancing with my mom standing on her feet to the album is a great memory. So to have this as my number one album made sense, but then I took my nostalgia goggles off and while it's still a great album, it's not perfect as I thought for so many years. The first half is phenomenal. Side A
is perfect. Side B however does drop in quality. Side A is all about rocking out, while side B takes a different turn into an almost country style at times. Still great songs mind you, but not up to snuff with Side A. After saying all that, I will say that Full Moon Fever is more consistent than anything he's done with The Heartbreakers. I have the Anthology and it's really all I need from Tom Petty. But if you like Tom, and somehow haven't heard this album, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?! Listen to it NAO. Also, be on the look out sometime in 2084 when KrotchRaut releases their version of Runnin' Down a Dream.
Favorite song: Side A
43. The Offspring - Ignition (1992)
Genre: Punk RockHere's the other album that took a huge fall down the rankings. There's nothing wrong at all with this album. It's great from start to finish. THE BEST Offspring album. But as I said before, over time, I just like other albums and bands more nowadays. Ignition doesn't get the nostalgia treatment, The Offspring has just been off my radar. Plus them sucking now doesn't help anything. Anyway, Ignition is amazing melodic Punk Rock. Before they hit the mainstream and became a goofy rock band, The Offspring were writing some pretty mature music. Yeah, they still wrote the occasional goofy song, but the songs had more heart. They had something to prove. And they did, from the opening "fucks" of Session to the fade out of Forever and a Day, These guys played their hearts out. For serious songs, besides Gone Away, they've never been able to touch the brilliance and sadness of Dirty Magic. Just a powerful emotional song. Actually, this album has more serious songs than any other album of theirs. Dexter Holland is a great lyricist when he's not just trying to be funny. If your first introduction to The Offspring was say Americana (which is great) but you don't like the overall silliness, check out Ignition, or even Smash, or the debut. Great stuff.
Favorite song: Dirty Magic
42. Megadeth - Countdown to Extinction (1992)
Genre: Heavy/Thrash MetalThis album is a big part of my childhood as it was in my life before I was really even a fan of the band. My older brother was the big Metallica and Megadeth fan so besides hearing the singles on the radio in the early 90s, I was hearing the albums when my brother was blasting them. I didn't really become a fan of Megadeth as in buying their albums until the late 90s. I want to say the first Megadeth album I did buy was Risk, but it could have been Cryptic Writings. It's fuzzy, but I do remember only buying Risk because Ex Wrestler Goldberg used Crush 'Em as his entrance for a while. I remember Megadeth playing live on WCW Nitro and after the song ended Goldberg returned. Cool stuff. But enough about that shitty song. What about Countdown to Extinction? Well, it showed Megadeth becoming more mainstream and straightforward Metal rather than the Thrash they were playing before. Rust in Peace was decent, half good half suck, so I think it was time Dave changed things up. It worked. Symphony of Destruction might be simple, but it's a solid metal rocker. lol metal rocker. Anyway, it's certainly not the best on the album, but a great introduction to their new sound. I'm sure there were riots when fans heard the ballady Foreclosure of a Dream, but it's a great song. Sweating Bullets is hilariously fun song. Proof that Megadeth (at the time) hadn't lost their thrash is Ashes in Your Mouth. My favorite on the album, and my favorite Megadeth over all. The song slays. There are a few filler songs on here, but they aren't bad. All in all, this album owns, and is essential to anyone's metal collection.
Favorite song: Ashes in Your Mouth
41. Sirenia - Nine Destinies and a Downfall (2007)
Genre: Symphonic Gothic Metal/RockThis album is relatively new to me, and unfortunately the only album of theirs I'm gonna like, which is weird cause research has told me that this is the most hated from Sirenia fans. It is a drastic change in their sound, but that's what makes it great to me. I'm not a fan of Beauty and the Beast bands. They bore me, and the growls ruin what might be good songs. While this album does have growls, they're only on 3 songs, and they're actually done well and don't detract from the songs. I remember when I would have never said that. Thanks
Obama KrotchRaut! Monika Pedersen has a unique voice, but it's quite nice. The songs pretty much all follow the same formula. In a perfect world, all of these songs could be radio singles. What can I say, I'm a sucker for well written hooks. Mainstream music isn't all bad. Mostly bad, but not all bad. One minor flaw is that the songs after a while sort of start to sound the same because of their formulaic nature. Not the melodies, it's just the songs are sort of predictable. Except the closing ballad, Glades of Summer. That changes it up to end the album on a sorrowful but great note.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Otm4RusESNUFavorite song: The Other Side
40. Vanden Plas - Christ 0 (2006)
Genre: Progressive MetalHere's another newcomer to my collection... Except it isn't quite new. When I joined DT.net in 2006, there were 2 albums that were all the buzz: 10,000 Days and Christ 0.. Oh and some live album was being talked about as well. Can't remember the band though. Sleep Arena or something. Anyway, I tried 10,000 Days, and it was eh. I actually bought it, but never made it through the whole thing. I've heard most of it. The nifty packaging was all fucked up too. Then shortly after I bought it they rereleased it with better packaging. What the fuck? Huh? Oh right, Vanden Plas. So I didn't give Christ 0 a listen until 2010, but just put it on and was doing something else not really paying attention. It didn't sound that interesting. Fast forward like a month ago, my co-worker walks by me and says, "VANDEN PLAS" "Huh?" "Vanden Plas, have you heard of them?". It took me a few seconds to figure out what the hell he was asking since I was half asleep, but I was like, "oh Vanden Plas, yeah I've listened to Christ 0 a while back." So after that I decided to give it another chance, and it was ok. Nothing wrong with it. Decent prog Metal. I listened again the next day, and it started sounding better. After maybe the 3rd or 4th listen the album finally clicked, and what a great click. I'm really glad I gave this album another chance, 'cause it is truly something special. Usually I tend to avoid all the popular stuff being talked about as it tends to get over hyped for me. When I discover something on my own, it always has a greater impact. This happened with Stone Sour's Come What (Ever) May. My brother's like "listen to this, it's awesome". So I did, and was like "eh". Months later I decided to give it a go again, and was like 'this is awesome". So yeah, Christ 0 is a pretty awesome album. Great melodies, great instrumentation, great vocals. I'd say check it out, but I think everyone on the forum has heard it already.
Favorite song: Somewhere Alone in the Dark
39. Mercenary - The Hours That Remain (2006)
Genre: Melodic Death Metal/Progressive MetalI don't really remember how I discovered this album, it might have been someone else's list. Who knows, but I have tried out Mercenary before with 11 Dreams, but I didn't like it. The Hours That Remain is a huge improvement, but that might be due to the overall clean vocals on the album. Not many bands, OK only one band can get my attention when growls are prominent throughout an album, but we'll get to that later. There are some metalcoreish style vocals, but they actually don't sound awful. The album itself is awesome. Heavy Fucking Metal throughout with great vocal melodies. The production is that "wall of sound" style that is just relentless, but for a band like Mercenary it's required. I've listened to some of their other albums that came after The Hours That Remain, but they really can't touch the quality of it. Their newest album was pretty good though. Great album. Go listen.
Favorite song: Lost Reality
38. Delain - April Rain (2009)
Genre: Symphonic Rock/MetalDelain were another one of those Beauty and the Beast bands who realized that that style is tired and old and boring [
citation needed] and for their next album decided to have 99% clean female vocals. Good job Delain, I'm proud of you. Besides, any band with Charlotte Wessels should always give her the spotlight. Delain changed their style to a more poppish Symphonic Rock and Metal, and it really was for the better. Although I did enjoy the songs they played live from the first album, I couldn't get through Lucidity. It bored me. The music on April Rain is more alive, and interesting as are the melodies and such. Charlotte is great and her accent bleeds through which makes her voice more attractive. Virtue and Vice is the only song to feature any growls and they only appear in the bridge. Marco Hietala of Nightwish makes another cameo appearance on a couple of songs, and it's always great to hear his voice. I'm glad I finally gave Delain a chance because I initially wrote them off as soon as I found out there were growls. The band only got better...
Favorite song: On The Other Side
New albums tonight!
Topic: Zook's Top 50 v. Screw it, here's #13-1! (Read 16100 times)
