#5) Havukruunu - Uinuos syomein sota
I'm trying to brush aside my obsessive-compulsive tendencies as they relate to English grammar. Havukruunu hails from Finland, so their case-challenged album titles are technically correct. Only I would choose to open a blurb with such scrap-heap commentary. The muzak is what matters, and this album is a voltaic blast of Nordic battle metal so righteous, it can win over someone (like a writer I know) who doesn't prize viking-themed media. Not that Uinous busts your conk with a rosewood quarterstaff of viking clichés, but Havukruunu could easily tour alongside Amon Amarth. Give it a peep if majestic leads, 80's trad riffs, and gang vocals that you'll remember sound like your cup of mead.
#4) VoidCeremony - Entropic Reflections Continuum
Mournful Congregation mainman Damon Good plays fretless bass on this record. Being a bit of an MC freak, I knew that I had to dive into what was described as commanding progressive death metal. Well, did it command? I have it as my number four pick of the year, so what do you think? Entropic Reflections (title retrenched to conserve soil and water) has Cynic and latter-era Death written on the slate of its soul. That's my shit. Good is superlative on the bass. I won't pretend to know what "fretless" means (75% of the journalists tabulating similar lists don't know either), but his runs and solos ~ yes, solos ~ are hundred-proof. The guitars rip, too.
#3) Wytch Hazel - III: Pentecost
A most unexpected manifestation. To wit, I certainly wasn't expecting a Christian band to sneak their way onto my syllabus (much less in bronze), but here we are. This is a catchy, rollicking admixture of hard rock and old-fashioned heavy metal. Comparisons have been made to Boston and Thin Lizzy. I'm also hearing a twinge of Ghost. These dudes know how to construct a chorus, and if the weather agreed, I'd be blaring Pentecost while heading out on the highway in my corvette. Or whatever the hell. Jesus Christ wants you to crank these tunes, man!
#2) Psychotic Waltz - The God-Shaped Void
Let's revisit my July listicle, shall we? I marveled at Waltz's dexterity after lying dormant for twenty-four years. "I would have forgiven them for sounding a tad rusty and out of practice, but they put any fatalistic forecasts to bed with these proggy pyrotechnics." Then I made a lame joke about alliteration. Buddy Lackey's voice is as smooth as it ever was, even if he prefers to be called Devon Graves. I don't really understand the stage name. This isn't Deadsoul Tribe. Anyway, you probably have a void in your life in the shape of The God-Shaped Void. Fill it!
#1) Inexorum - Moonlit Navigation
The fact that this ceramic saucer of melodic black metal still holds the top spot speaks volumes to the quality of the songs contained therein. In July, I professed that "layers of rainwater chords (there are only so many adjectives to buoy this kind of music) converge to craft tunes that enter one ear and stay there. Somehow, Moonlit feels simultaneously morose and uplifting. The hooks hit you like a cool, vernal breeze." Beautifully said, Dom. Thanks, Dom. And you! Thank you for reading. If I decide to compile a kindred list in a year's time, I'll invite you again for tea and wings. We'll mibble and foffle. Our children will play chess by the fire. We will push them into the fire. We will laugh.
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