As the Year End List and Best Records threads tend to be dominated by Pitchfork stuff, I thought it's about time we start a thread to discuss only metal albums from 2009. Maybe we can even make a poll at the end of the year.

I'll start by mentioning Funeral Mist - Maranatha and Vreid - Milorg as the two albums I am enjoying quite a bit so far this year.

My first post! I've been enjoying:

Saros - Acrid Plains (Reversion is ethereal!)

Nice place to start your posting, el chu!
I see on Encyclopedia Metallum, that the band is listed as blackened progressive death/thrash metal. Is it leaning more towards thrash or death? I'm a fan of more primitive black metal myself, and usually prefer thrash over death metal.

some Jesu releases and the Iroha record will probably make the list. It depends if the Jesu releases are metal :P

The new Obscura is pretty solid. Haven't really listened to anything else from this year.

Cobalt's "Gin" is blowing my mind right now. It's like what Nachtmystium's last one should've been.

Catchy Black-Metal with tribal parts? Somehow it works, and to fantastic effect.

I just started listening to the new Kylesa album. Pretty awesome.

The new Mastodon is the best metal album I've heard in a few years and may be the best overall album of 09 so far. So fucking good.

quote:

Originally posted by chaos:
The new Mastodon is the best metal album I've heard in a few years and may be the best overall album of 09 so far. So fucking good.

I'm so far from a trad metal fan, but I agree, this album is simply jaw dropping - I just listened to it through a couple of times (we got it late down under) and it caused me to shut eyes and smile so many times, with of course numerous head thrashing interludes! A number of albums have moved me, tendng towards dark folk, but it is such a thrill to have an album rock so hard and still get my imagination flying - album of the year - so far!

The Kylesa and Mastodon albums both kill. I wish more metal music like this would come out.

quote:

Originally posted by crob3888:
The Kylesa and Mastodon albums both kill. I wish more metal music like this would come out.

Well, if Baroness releases a new album this year, which they might (at least that's what I've heard), then you'll have a holy trinity of Georgia melodic sludge.

quote:

Originally posted by crob3888:
The Kylesa and Mastodon albums both kill. I wish more metal music like this would come out.

you really need to listen more metal...

quote:

Originally posted by odysseyandoracle:
The new Obscura is pretty solid.

i don't like some technical death metal stuff i've heard so far. do you think i can like it? Why is it good?

quote:

Originally posted by eggtweedyegg:

quote:

Originally posted by odysseyandoracle:
The new Obscura is pretty solid.

i don't like some technical death metal stuff i've heard so far. do you think i can like it? Why is it good?

To be completely honest, if you don't like other tech death, you probably won't like this. It doesn't break new ground. But they manage to stay brutal and rhythmic without compromising their technicality and melody, which is something not a lot of tech bands can do. Lots of nice fretless bass playing as well...they obviously have a huge Atheist influence, which is never a bad thing as far as I'm concerned. I've gotten the impression from you that you only like the gloomy/doomy metal stuff so I'd guess you wouldn't like it.

quote:

Originally posted by cuneyt81:

quote:

Originally posted by crob3888:
The Kylesa and Mastodon albums both kill. I wish more metal music like this would come out.

Well, if Baroness releases a new album this year, which they might (at least that's what I've heard), then you'll have a holy trinity of Georgia melodic sludge.

I wish I could remember why Baroness suck...

...oh yeah, they think they're Mastodon.

And Mastodon can't even pull off "Mastodon" anymore.

I think you've injected a record number of wrong-headed opinions on the board this week...

but to each his own, i guess. I love Baroness, Mastodon and Kylesa. So take THAT!

Crimfall's first album is amazing for their first work. If you have any interest in pagan/symphonic metal at all and even if you don't at least check them out. Otherwise of course Cannibal Corpse's new album came out which was pretty good, not fantastic. Bloodbath's "Fathomless Mastery" was amazing but that might have been late 2008... dun remember (same with the new Amon Amarth.) Battlelore's new one is good (really more of the same though.) My favorite though is the newest Alestorm EP!!!! Fucking pirate metal!

quote:

Originally posted by cuneyt81:
I think you've injected a record number of wrong-headed opinions on the board this week...

but to each his own, i guess. I love Baroness, Mastodon and Kylesa. So take THAT!

I remember the first conversation I had with my girlfriend's brother. He's a metal head so we wound up talking music. I brought up Mastodon and we both quickly agreed that anything pre-Blood Mountain was great and that Remission and Leviathan are easily classics.. a little later on I mentioned Baroness because the Red Album had been making Baroness big. He mentioned that he wasn't a fan and I asked "why? because They're a Mastodon cover band?" and he quickly agreed.

I've had that conversation with several metalheads... but yeah, First and Second aren't bad but the Red Album is pretty meh.

quote:

Originally posted by jack(gl)ass:
[I remember the first conversation I had with my girlfriend's brother. He's a metal head so we wound up talking music. I brought up Mastodon and we both quickly agreed that anything pre-Blood Mountain was great and that Remission and Leviathan are easily classics.. a little later on I mentioned Baroness because the Red Album had been making Baroness big. He mentioned that he wasn't a fan and I asked "why? because They're a Mastodon cover band?" and he quickly agreed.

That doesn't surprise me, but I dunno, seems shortsighted. And having similarities to another band isn't enough of a reason not to like them. Furthermore, I don't think they sound that much like Mastodon.

But I'm not a purist and I'm not really interested in what bands are metalhead approved. I'm just interested in good music.

I was just responding to your comment about "wrong-headed opinions" by showing that actually, many others agree with my point of view..

they're also just not very good. Red Album especially (so why hold out hope for a new album to be any better?)