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TOP ALBUMS OF 2007

TOP 10 - FRANK ALLAIN Alcest – Souveniers d’Autre Monde (Prophecy) – Not extreme in the slightest but a blissful slice of shoegazer influenced atmospheric metal that boasts enough melancholy to appeal to those with a blacker streak. Krohm – The Haunted Presence (Debemur Morti) – Another more-than worthy addition to the ranks of USBM, this second album from the one-man project manages to weave deeply dark atmospheres whilst maintaining an ear for depressive melody and some captivating songwriting. Primordial – To The Nameless Dead (Metal Blade) – Seemingly a distillation of all that makes this unique band so great, ‘To The Nameless Dead’ is a windswept and emotive journey across pagan landscapes, drenched in haunting refrains and a palpable rage. Rarely has a band sounded so passionate. Watain – Sworn to the Dark (Seasons Of Mist) – OK, so it’s a bit cleaner than the predecessors but this Swedish mob’s ear for a riff is never in question. Doubters be damned, this is a relentless salvo of top-notch, blacker-than-black metal. Shining – V (Halmstad) (Osmose)– ‘Thank God for Niklas Kvarthorth!’ screamed the posters for their recent London performance. Whilst the mastermind is undoubtedly an egomaniacal show-off, the surprising subtlety and top-notch execution of this latest record goes some way to justifying such proclamations. Deathspell Omega – FAS (Norma Evangelium Diaboli) – Where do this band go now? With their latest record, DsO seem to have reached the limit of their pitch-black, ultra-technical approach. Ruthlessly uncompromising and utterly claustrophobic, this is almost too much to take in but still has one coming back for more. Glorior Belli – Manifesting the Raging Beast (Southern Lord) - Perhaps indebted (more than a little) to the band mentioned directly above, the latest album from this French three-piece is nonetheless a meaty blast of blackened blasphemy. Angelcorpse – Of Lucifer and Lightening (The End) - The production may be distinctly gash but the riffing is up to scratch and if anything, it’s good to have these chaps back and on raging form. Dimmu Borgir – In Sorte Diaboli (Nuclear Blast) – Yeah, yeah, over-processed, synth-heavy, sell-outs, not true black metal e.t.c. e.t.c. This may be so, but this is also the best set of tunes the band have penned in 10 years. Hooks galore. Xasthur – Defective Epitaph (Hydra Head) – Live drums and a heightening of Malefic’s penchant for barely-coherent, sprawling essays on madness and misanthropy render this a painful but ultimately rewarding listen.

TOP 10 - OLIVER CASS Top four albums of 2007: Endstille – Endstille's Reich (Regain) Helrunar – Baldr ok Iss (Lupus Lounge) Primordial – To the Nameless Dead (Metal Blade) Shining – V Halmstad (Osmose Productions) Honourable mentions: Deathspell Omega - Fas - Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum (Norma Evangelium Diaboli) Drudkh – Estrangement (Supernal Music) Opeth – The Roundhouse Tapes (Peaceville Records) Gigs of the year: Vader, Belphegor – London, The Purple Turtle 19th June. Behemoth, Kataklysm, Aborted – France, Lyon Ninkasi Kao 14th October. 1349 – London, The Underworld 18th October. Shining, Code, Skitliv, Hellsaw - London, The Underworld 13th December. Most eagerly awaited albums of 2008: 1349, Belphegor, Opeth, Secrets of the Moon…a few others too.

TOP 10 - LARS CHRISTIANSEN Evile - Enter the Grave (Earache)It’s been a while, but good ol’ uncle thrash is finally back after many years in the wilderness. Sure, cousin cross-over and aunty thrash-core have always been present and correct, but they were never as reliable for really wrecking your neck muscles like uncle did. ‘Enter the Grave’, for me at least, was as welcome as a breath of fresh air after a sprout fuelled Christmas Day evening fart-fest, replete with all the flailing guitars, pounding rhythms and charged vocals you could want, and more. Mayhem - Ordo Ad Chao (Season Of Mist) - After losing a lot of their fire-breathing, cave-dwelling fans for supposedly not being ‘true’ anymore after the loss of Dead and Euronymous, Mayhem were perceived to have lost their way in years of Maniac’s second stint as vocalist. One vocalist change later (back to he of the patented black metal groan himself, Attila Csihar), and the band seemed rejuvenated once again on ‘Ordo Ad Chao’, keen as ever to spew their bile-filled sickness into every pore of the listeners being. Disturbingly awesome. Nile – Ithyphallic (Nuclear Blast) - No surprises here, as Nile have undoubtedly been one of the most consistent bands in the history of metal. Once again, they brought their feast of ancient Egyptian tinged brutality to the table for the starving death metal fanatics to remorselessly chow down on every last musical morsel. Deathsters the world over were once again left in a dizzied state after the pummelling to the senses received after hearing ‘Ithyphallic’, burbling their best Oliver Twist impressions shortly afterwards - “Please Nile? Can I have some more?” Drool… Therion - Gothic Kabbalah (Nuclear Blast) - The last few Therion releases have been a world apart from just about every other band on the planet aurally. Their robust double album ‘Gothic Kabbalah’ pushes even further into the realms of mind-bending sonic-scope circa the route of choirs, clean and harsh vocals, bizarre yet captivating arrangements and most importantly thoroughly enjoyable songs. Also, for a double album, it does a pretty good job at keeping you on the edge of your seat, eager to be spellbound further into Christofer Johnsson’s musical journey by the next dramatic twist or change of style. Behemoth - The Apostasy (Century Media) - I was always a firm fan of the early ‘black metal’ Behemoth, never managing to be truly blown away by any of their albums from ‘Satanica’ onwards, until I wrapped my ears around ‘The Apostasy’ that is. Brutal and relentless, Nergal & co. released a tsunami like torrent of down-tuned musical carnage upon the general public with this album, sweeping myself and many others away like harmless pieces of flotsam in its wake. Entombed - Serpent Saints (Candlelight records) - Entombed are one of my favourite bands ever, but even an ardent fan like myself was disheartened by their last couple of releases. Uffe’s head rolled (or he left, dependant on whose version of events you hear), and Entombed suddenly realised that Death Metal was the game that they always played best. Flying out of the traps like Satan’s hellhound, ‘Serpent Saints’ saw them relishing in the waters of sheer massacre and bloodshed without let up. Primordial – To the Nameless Dead (Metal Blade) - Primordial impressed just about everyone and their dog with ‘The Gathering Wilderness’, so the expectations were high for ‘To the Nameless Dead’ to truly push the band into the stratosphere. Although taking a more rebellious path with this album compared to the fraught distress of ‘The Gathering Wilderness’, Alan Nemtheanga and the boys still manage to retain the wholesome heartfelt gush of musical genius that makes Primordial one of the most exhilarating bands out there in 2007. Blood of Kingu – De Occulta Philosophia (Supernal Music) - A late entry to my top ten, so credit where credit is due to these Ukrainian black metal beasts. Forming like a phoenix from the ashes of Hate Forest, these guys deliver the goods, and then some. If you’re ever after a band to completely blow away the cobwebs with a thoroughly authentic take on Sumerian/Egyptian Mythology, this is the band for you. Dark, menacing and utterly convincing, Blood of Kingu crush the pathetic pretenders with visceral intent. Watain - Sworn to the Dark (Season Of Mist) - With their first couple of releases, Watain became touted as the band to take the crown of melodic blackened death metal, left vacant by the once mighty Dissection. ‘Sworn to the Dark’ arguably saw them take up said crown, and mercilessly crush it in their icy palm. The album inexorably sliced, diced and minced with a plethora of crushing blast-beats, diesel powered chainsaw guitars and vomited vocal work. All this, when topped off with their thoroughly believable satanic attitudes, led to an album of grandiose proportions. Vital Remains - Icons of Evil (Century Media) - Messrs Suzuki and Lazaro took a lot of people by surprise when adopting Deicide’s Glen Benton into their ranks for 2003’s ‘Dechristianize’, seeing as Deicide were flagging at the time, and in danger of becoming a parody of themselves. This was of course, until they actually heard the album and were suitably crushed into oblivion. ‘Icons of Evil’ again saw Mr Benton taking up the vocal spot, and laying the aural smack down yet again. Riffs the size of Greenland, inhuman drum work and epic song structures all melded together effortlessly for a thoroughly enjoyable album from start to finish.

TOP 10 - CHRIS DAVISON Primordial – To The Nameless Dead (Metal Blade) - Epic, sprawling and drenched with more emotion than your average funeral, this was even better than the landmark “The Gathering Wilderness” platter. Frankly stunning in scope and scale, it's hard to imagine the Irish massive producing anything that could possibly better this. Impaled – The Last Gasp (Candlelight) - After a long and difficult relationship with everyone’s favourite Necroticism plagiarists, they finally produced a worthy follow up to the excellent “Mondo Medicale” album. With more mid-paced chug alongs than your average Bolt Thrower concert, there are also plenty of excellent guitar solos and truly memorable tracks a la the eminently hummable “The Visible Man”. Aborted – Slaughter and Apparatus (Century Media) - Ok, so I like Carcass, so what? Aborted bounced back from the somewhat lacklustre “Archaic Abbatoir” to produce the hardest, least pleasant Belgian export since Stella Artois. Nastier than a psychopath on a slab of the old wife-beater, this had both musical muscle and serpentine melodies running through the death metal holocaust. Motorhead- Better Motorhead Than Dead (SPV) - It may be hard to see just exactly why I might pick yet another live album from the old warhorse, but there are some very special reasons to pick this recording of their 30th year anniversary gig as an album of the year. Firstly, I was there, and secondly I was too drunk to remember what it sounded like. If it was like this, it was awesome. Turisas – The Varangian Way (Century Media) - While not as immediate as the huge “Battle Metal”, the Varangian way is the more rewarding listen. More subtle and varied in tone than the predecessor, there is no finer album to wave a cheap plastic axe to. Korpiklaani – Tervaskanto (SPV) - On the back of their brilliant showing at this years Bloodstock festival, this album was a no-brainer purchase. Filled with infectious folk-metal, this is the perfect flagon-clanker, making even Tankard sound like tea-totallers. Obituary – Xecutioners Return (Candlelight) - Any year with a new Obituary album is a good one; sure, it still sounds like a middle aged man trying to re-ingest his vocal track, but they've never sounded hungrier or more cutting with their music. Teaching “br00taL” death metal kidz what death metal really sounds like... My Dying Bride – A Line of Deathless Kings (Peaceville) - Not their best, by any means, and with the feeling of a bit of a stop gap album, nether the less MDB have again shown that even when not quite firing on all cylinders that they're still better than many of the pretenders. Pale Divine – Cemetary Earth (Ihate Records) - From the album that brought you – well, let's face it, pretty much every great new doom band this century, the Pale Divine album is a magnificent affair. While the broad sheets salivate shamelessly over the likes of The Sword, those of us with a more discerning bent will point the finger towards this magnum opus. Peerless, towering excellence. Candlemass – King of the Grey Islands (Nuclear Blast) - Could Robert Lowe replace Messiah as the pipes of doom? Of course! This was proof (if indeed any were needed) that Candlemass revolves around Leif Edling, not the rotund one. More melancholy than a weekend manning the phones at the Samaritans!

TOP 10 - ANDREW DOHERTY Ephel Duath - Pain Remixes the Known (Earache) - If “Pain Necessary to Know” wasn’t quirky and avant-garde enough with its mix of Hardcore, Classic and Jazz riffs, this goes beyond imagination. What are they on? Utterly hypnotic and scary in parts, this album gets inside the skin and embeds itself in the psyche. Mors Principium Est - Liberation = Termination (Listenable) - On the face of it, this is template Melodic Thrash Metal from Finland, but “Liberation = Termination” is killingly aggressive and catchy, and remains on a high throughout. “Sinners Defeat” would be my track of the year – its timing and power give it an awesome impact. Nation Beyond - The Aftermath Odyssey (Burning Star) - A dark Power-Prog concept album which envelops the listener in the story with a range of sombre, powerful, beautiful and sad moments to suit a big occasion. Nahemah - The Second Philosophy (Lifeforce) - The perfect fusion of the styles of Opeth, Porcupine Tree and Moonspell. Always interesting, there are a number of epic, spine-tingling moments on this heavy progressive piece. Kongh - Counting Heartbeats (Trust No One) - Described to me as “like Cult of Luna, but darker”, this album plumbs the depths in ponderous and mind-numbing doomy soundscapes. Vesania - Distractive Killusions (Napalm) - Put your Dimmu Borgir away for a moment and listen to this. Vesania’s symphonic Black Metal is fresh and thickly painted with devilishly sinister tones. Imagine yourself standing in Hell with all your enemies around you and you’ve got the idea. Malsain - The Disease (Dark Essence/Karisma Records) - Very much in the vein of Dark Fortress’s “Séance”, “The Disease” creeps up and disarms the listener with melodies in amongst the measured malevolence. Proof, if it were needed, that Norwegians are masters when it comes to creating intensity in an evil environment. Ava Inferi - The Silhouette (Season of Mist) - The female singer of this Portuguese band has a voice which is haunting and angelic. The skill though lies in the integration of her voice with an ever transforming atmosphere of foreboding which gives this doomy album such variety. Novembre - The Blue (Peaceville) - Extravagant and exotic in style, “The Blue” provides evidence that Italy’s Novembre have developed a rich sound in which they seamlessly create timeless images of dreams and suffering. In my view, they go beyond Opeth in their progressive art. Diablo Swing Orchestra - The Butcher's Ballroom (Candlelight) - Eccentric and dilettantish, yet with a heartbeat, “The Butcher’s Ballet” is a musical delight containing influences from all genres and numerous parts of the world.

TOP 10 - ANDY DUKE Aeon – Rise to Dominate (Metal Blade) - Building on the success of “Bleeding the False”, Swedish deathsters Aeon continue to give a boot up the backside to the scene with more passionate death metal full of monstrous riffs, speed, energy and an urgency that has been lacking from a lot of releases from the bigger names. Cerebral Bore – The Dead Flesh Architect (demo) - Forget what your told about this new band or that new band, Glaswegians Cerebral Bore drill a hole right through the Medulla Oblongata with a delightful brand of technical gore with crunchy guitars, pummelling rhythms and bile gargling vocals. Awesome! Vital Remains – Icons of Evil (Century Media) - Talk about beauty and the beast! Vital Remains are probably the only band that can pull off death metal songs in the 8 minutes region. A combination of brutal speed that you won’t believe with some of the better harmonies you will hear in this genre. Lazaro and co. Continue to gather steam! Obituary – Xecutioner’s Return (Candlelight) - This could be classed as a direct sequel to The End Complete! The guitar sounds are so deep and rich, the drums underpin the usual Obituary sludgy roar and Santolla’s guitar mastery works beautifully alongside Tardy’s feral growls. Obituary back to their best! Blotted Science – Machinations of Dementia (Eclectic Electric Records) - Can be summed up in one word – brilliant. A progressive, brutal and technical journey that will leave you begging for more. Blotted Science have produced a swirling mass of madness that is ultimately rewarding and enjoyable! Blood Red Throne – Come Death (Earache) - If it ain’t broke then don’t fix it! More pummelling rhythms, slamming mid-paced riffing and death howls from the Norwegian beasts mean that the Blood Red Throne behemoth continues to gather pace! An exercise in brutality! Malevolent Creation – Doomsday X (Nuclear Blast/Massacre) - Re-united with original vocalist Brett Hofman and bassist Jason Blachowicz, Malevolent Creation have produced and excellent straight ahead death metal album. Choc full of the chunkiest guitar work to keep even the most wanton of riff-sluts happy! Immolation – Shadows in the Light (Listenable) - Immolation produce ten trimmed down tracks of twisted aggression and warped harmonies that underpin this Juggernauts position as one of the best acts out there. A grower to be sure but a release that you will come back to time after time and I’m not even mentioning their live act – phew! Monstrosity – Spiritual Apocalypse (Metal Blade) - Perhaps a surprising choice for album of the year, but Florida’s Monstrosity have produced one of the best brutal death metal releases of last twelve months. These boys are on top form and I can only hope that they continue to show others how it should be done! Listen and learn!! Six Feet Under – Commandment (Metal Blade) - I’d always been a little cynical about these boys, but Thou shalt not doubt – as in Commandment, Six Feet Under have put out their crunchiest, coolest and heaviest album with a production that will leave you drooling for more these pus ridden corpse mongers!

TOP 10 - MARTIN HARRIS ----------- Therion – Gothic Kabbalah (Nuclear Blast) Candlemass – Kin of The Grey Islands (Nuclear Blast) Neara – Armamentarium (Metal Blade) Witchcraft - The Alchemist (Rise Above Records) Malevolent Creation – Doomsday X (Nuclear Blast) Gallhammer – Ill Innocence (Peaceville) Fleshcrawl – Structures Of Death (Metal Blade) Marduk – Rom 5:12 (Regain Records) Pig Destroyer – Phantom Limb (Relapse Records) Behemoth – the Apostacy (Century Media)

TOP 10 - LUCI HERBERT Evile – Enter the Grave (Earache Records) - What happens when you cross four thrash metal maniacs with the man who produced such seminal releases as Master Of Puppets? The answer lies in Enter The Grave which injects a lethal dose of pure thrash into the stream of metal. While the originators of Bay Area thrash are putting out sub-standard albums and the words “thrash” and “Trivium” are being used in the same sentence all too often, this is a real breath of fresh air. Finntroll – Ur Jordens Djup (Spinefarm Records) - Four years since Nattfodd, this mischievous horde of trolls returned early in 2007 with their much anticipated follow up. The harsh vocals of new frontman Vreth are one of the factors that make this perhaps their heaviest album to date, and this album even sees the band experimenting with Caribbean sounds. Necrodeath – Draculea (Scarlet) - 10 points if you can guess what this album is about judging by the title. Mixing all of the trademarks of thrash with an atmospheric twist and plenty of experimental sounds, this was one of the most surprising albums of 2007. Dark Moor – Tarot (Scarlet) - With a heavy neo-classical influence and beautiful orchestral arrangements, Dark Moor have a unique and intriguing sound that makes them stand out from the prog-power pack and Tarot is their most refined and focussed album to date. Sear Bliss – The Arcane Odyssey (Candlelight) - This was a very late contender for my top 10, having barely left my headphones since December. This sweeps from bombastic brass-infused black metal mayhem to melancholic and thought provoking soundscapes with magnificent splendour. Cage – Hell Destroyer (MTM Music) - This vastly underrated band returns with a powerful and well flowing concept album that is filled with classic crunchy riffs, speedy drumming and high pitched vocals that give Halford a good run for his money. Municipal Waste – The Art Of Partying (Earache) - They’ve come to drink your beer…and while they’re at it trash your house and throw up in the back yard. This is the kind of thrash that will act as a soundtrack to any wild party; it’s fun, it’s fast, it’s aggressive!! Therion – Gothic Kabballah (Nuclear Blast) - The consistently superb yet ever-changing Therion brought out this stunning double album early in 2007,which included more progressive elements and a beautiful interplay between vocalists. Simply stunning! Powerwolf – Lupus Dei (Metal Blade) - A new band to these ears, Powerwolf managed to win me over with their 2007 opus Lupus Dei. Combining powerful twin guitars with the doomish ambience of the church organ and the spine-tingling vocals of Attila, this was one of the best albums of the year for me. Dimmu Borgir – In Sorti Diaboli (Nuclear Blast) – It is clear why Dimmu Borgir have elevated to mainstream success with this majestically symphonic opus penned around the concept of a priest’s assistant as he discovers the left hand path.

TOP 10 - CHRIS KEE Reverend Bizarre – III: So Long Suckers (Spikefarm Records) Demiurg – Breath Of The Demiurg (Mascot Records) Candlemass – King Of The Grey Islands (Nuclear Blast Records) Marduk – Rom 5:12 (Regain Records) Centurions Ghost – The Great Work (I Hate) Witchcraft – The Alchemist (Rise Above Records) Thus Defiled – Daemonspawn (Shadowflame) Heaven and Hell – Live From Radio City Music Hall (SPV) Pantheon I– The Wanderer And His Shadow (Candlelight Records) Exodus – The Atrocity Exhibition: Exhibit A (Nuclear Blast Records) Honourable mentions and near misses… November’s Doom – The Novella Reservoir The Plague Symphony – The Black Gate Deathbound – We Deserve Much Worse Gallhammer – Ill Innocence

TOP 10 - WOJTEK KUTYLA Sieges Even – Paramount (Inside Out) - Incredible sound, modern, fresh and very well composed. Kick-ass played live. Progressive music at it's best. Like Rush on LSD ;) Deadsoul Tribe - A Lullaby For The Devil (Inside Out) - Buddy plays flute and rocks again, and he rocks hard - good stuff from past Psychotic Waltz vocalist. Energetic! Devin Townsend - Ziltoid The Omniscient (Inside Out) - Absolute masterpiece - Devin's best record so far, putting his previous work in the shadow. Cosmic and crazy beyond any extend, this is something which is really turning by old body parts on; D Nahemah - The Second Philosophy (Lifeforce) - A breath of fresh air from Spain, also know as "how Opeth would play if they would dare to include more experimentation in their stuff". Interesting. Not that I don't like Opeth though, it rules with... Opeth - Roundhouse Tapes (Candlelight) - Simple as that, it can't be wrong, it's Akerfeldt and his team. Thumbs up. Riverside - Rapid Eye Movement (Inside Out) - Apart from Polish vodka, this also kicks as a mule. But it's more like an old, great wine which you need to taste few times to appreciate. Recommended for any open-minded listener. The Ocean Collective – Precambrian (Metal Blade) - Wohoo, that's a kick. Isis + Cult of Luna and something much heavier, very well recorded and played with a great passion. Strong stuff. Ulver - Shadows Of The Sun (The End) - Minimalistic "movie soundtrack to a movie soundtrack" as my friend has described it. Flawless, as it usually is with Ulver. Needs headphones and good whiskey. Yakuza – Transmutations (Prosthetic Records) - Probably the most progressive band I know at the moment, in a true, good sense. They experiment a lot and they're not afraid of changes. A must have. Scarve - The Undercurrent (Listenable) - Something what can wake me up even after a whole night of Marillion (I love Marillion, by the way). Total fucking destruction :)