The Best Heavy Metal Albums of 2010, Part 2

Continuing on from where we left off, more of some of what I thought was the best.


(12) Twilight – Monument to Time End: I was let down by the first Twilight album. The potential was so huge, though, that it was hard to *not* be let down by whatever resulted. A Black Metal supergroup featuring Blake Judd from Nachtmystium, Imperial from Krieg, Wrest from Leviathan, Malefic from Xasthur, and Hildolf from Draugar? You’re setting yourself up for disappointment no matter what happens. But with this album, they’ve mixed it up a bit. The Black Metal core of Blake, Imperial and Wrest remain, but augmented this time by the mighty Sludge/Stoner/Doom influences of Aaron Turner (Isis), Stavros Giannopolous (The Atlas Moth) and Sanford Parker (producer extraordinaire, Minsk, Buried at Sea). The result is what Nachtmystium’s Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. 2 should have been (and admittedly came close to being). Heavy, throbbing, powerful stuff that’s as adventurous as it is conscious of influence.


(11) Zoroaster – Matador: Two words: Hell. Yeah. They’ve successfully managed to amp up the psychedelia without sacrificing focus, resulting in an album that’s simultaneously spacey and tight, while crushing you under layers of thick, rich, doom-laden guitar tone. It’s not all up to them having one of the best producers in metal (Sanford Parker) on board, either – it’s the stuff that the band brings to the table that ups the ante. These are, simply, some of the best songs they’ve written thus far, and the band’s performances are completely on point throughout the album. The one-two-three punch of opening tracks “D.N.R,” “Ancient Ones” and “Odyssey” just pull you in and keep you furiously nodding along with the music for the rest of the record. Not a weak link to be found here. Yet another album of the year contender.


(10) Danzig – Deth Red Saboath: While this doesn’t really push any boundaries at all, reclaiming ground once lost is often just as worthwhile, if not more so. To get the obvious out of the way, that title is ridiculous. But get past that, and you have what should have basically been Danzig V, instead of the weird shift off the rails that happened between Danzig 4p and now (don’t get me wrong – there are things I like off of every album the guy’s released, but there have been an overabundance of bad ideas and bad production decisions along the way). The production is dry and warm (though this would be better achieved if Glenn and Rick Rubin could get over their differences and collaborate again), and this lineup rocks harder than any band backing Glenn in years. The only problem I have is that the vocals are mixed too high on a few tracks and seem to ride over the instruments rather than seem to be of a piece with them, but other than that, this is a welcome return to form.


(9) Iron Maiden – The Final Frontier: Now this is a change. There are few typical Maiden tracks in the line of “The Trooper” or “Two Minutes to Midnight.” Instead, this is an album of epics. Almost as if they decided to make an album completely of progressive “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”-style songs. As a result, this winds up being their most expansive and exploratory album in years. Some have found this record boring, but I found it a constantly compelling listen (though, admittedly, it did take a few listens to get to that point). I love it when a band pushes itself out of its comfort zone and pulls it off. It’s what makes Maiden a continually relevant band, rather than an entertaining nostalgia act. They still have the chops to challenge themselves and their listeners, and that’s vital to staying relevant in this disposable culture. The album admittedly starts off kind of slow, but it grows as it proceeds, and by the time we hit “The Isle of Avalon” the record is hitting all the peaks it should. Bruce’s voice might lack some of the punch of his earlier recordings, but he suits himself to this material admirably, and the rest of the band turns in solid – as usual! – performances. The production is a little on the soft side, but that’s a small complaint overall.


(8) Ihsahn – After: Just one from the lineup of Norwegian Black Metal veterans on parade this year, the former Emperor frontman has unleashed his most progressive album yet. Like Enslaved further up the list, Ihsahn has transcended the Black Metal genre to become something completely his own, following a logical path from Emperor’s last album Prometheus – The Discipline of Fire & Demise and its boundary-pushing explorations. The new weapon in Ihsahn’s arsenal is his utilization of 8-string guitars, beefing up the bottom end of his playing with the addition of essentially two bass guitar strings. It largely foregoes the obvious Opeth influence of his previous album angL (while still keeping some of that album’s Pink Floydisms) in favor of incorporating elements of Jazz with the addition of saxophonist Jørgen Munkeby from Norway’s “BlackJazz” ensemble Shining. As always, Ihsahn has created a work of art that’s both eye-opening and compulsively listenable. The performances – in particular Ihsahn’s strikingly melodic guitar leads – are astoundingly accomplished, and the production is polished, but not glossy enough to smooth over the more abrasive aspects of the music. Make no mistake: this is a more extreme album than angL, and Ihsahn comes across as angrier and more aggressive than he has in years past. It’s not a return to Wrath of the Tyrant levels of pissed-offness, but it’s a “harder” record than you’d expect from Ihsahn at this point in his life and career.


(7) Burzum – Belus: Okay, I’m not going to even try to justify this. I could go on and on for paragraphs about how I’m trying to separate the art from the artist, and how Varg Vikernes (the sole individual behind Burzum) is a murderous, racist sociopath, and that the ultimate quality of Belus the album makes me want to forget about Varg the person, but I won’t waste your time. Look up Burzum, and if you think you can isolate this man’s recorded work from the things he’s done and said elsewhere, steal the album.