The Year of 2004 in Music
The year of 2004 saw some great things in the metal scene. It saw the first full-length release of Imperial Crystalline Entombment, one of the best black metal bands I've ever heard. Then there was the first full-length of Wintersun, an excellent folk/power metal band. Despite being formed in 1994, Disillusion, a progressive melo-death band, released their first full length, featuring six songs totalling an hour, and instantly became a favorite CD amongst many. Enforsaken finally released a full-length after 6 years with only a demo and EP to show for it. Arsis created a fantastic death metal CD, that had jumped into my Top 10 of 2004 (at the time) instantly, before I had even finished listening to all of it. Shade Empire showed that they'll soon be a force to be reckoned with.
Then of course, we had some fantastic follow ups, being much better than the CD proceeding them. Anaal Nathrakh matured greatly, and gave us a CD with actual (distinguishable) lyrics, guitar solos, great melodies, and still kept that chaotic atmosphere found in the previous effort. Disarmonia Mundi produced an excellent followup, where at times I found myself reminded of Beyond the Embrace, but not too much. It's one of the few CDs where every song sounds completely different. Dragonforce finally earned my respect with Sonic Firestorm. Unfortunately for the incredibly talented band though, they seem to have a problem writing different songs. Still, the two songs they wrote for the CD (the
really, really fast one, and the ballad) are incredible. Ensiferum released Iron, which is every bit as good as their selftitled, if not better. Insomnium, one of the best melo-death bands to form in recent times, released a simply amazing follow up to an amazing first CD. Persuader, a Blind Guardian sound-alike, stayed with the proven to work style of Blind Guardian, yet, do everything better than Blind Guardian. Winds, a mix between classical/jazz/progressive/metal/whatever (you get the idea), released a CD that was much better than their first, and very respectable at that. Winds helped me start looking into a little more classical (such as Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique).
Of course, there were many already established bands that released excellent followups. Ayreon, Darkthrone, Death Angel, Exodus, Iced Earth, Motörhead, Opera IX, The Chasm, Nightingale all released great CDs. Dan Swanö was involved in a few CDs this year, from his own Nightingale, to Bloodbath, to Ribspreader. Megadeth released their comeback album, after several years of being broken up. It was an excellent CD, with a final world tour, that'll be ended back in the US this summer. Last chance to see them for awhile. From what I understand, Mustaine says that he doesn't want to do Megadeth anymore, and will only consider doing another tour if the ex-band mates decide to work problems out.
Though the year was great, there were several disappointments. Beyond the Embrace, Derek Sherinian, Dio, Dream Evil, Edguy, Elvenking, In Flames, Necrophagist, and Sonata Arctica all released CDs that did not stand up to their earlier releases.
And, there were some incredibly overrated albums. Velvet Cacoon, members of the Earth Liberation Front, received an incredible following with the first public release Genevieve (they've released 6 full-lengths before, but none were given to people other than friends). They are incredibly minimalistic black metal, yet very artsy. How can minimalistic black metal be artsy? From their webpage: "The band developed a guitar which functions off of the collected pressure of gasses from the flames of diesel gasoline instead of traditional electric pickups. The sounds are then channeled through a fiber optic cord into a 40 gallon aquarium where vibrato sensors record the final outcome. It has become Velvet Cacoons trademark sound, and in it you can hear everything from swirling voices to fireworks to harps, violas, and a myriad of netherworldy sounds which have no default definition. Velvet Cacoon make it no secret that they are addicted to only the strangest methods of musical creation and ambience." Sounds interesting, but let's face it, the CD is incredibly boring. It goes nowhere in 55:21 through 7 songs. Pain of Salvation's 2004, Be, also became highly acclaimed. Artistically? Great. Enjoyability? Little. It faced reviews out there that were even more pretentious than the CD itself was. I've seen the quote, "it transcends music and art," far too often. Or something to the likes of "what if you realize that Be is the best album ever made, transcending the boundaries of music and art, yet not as satisfying as another Pain of Salvation CD." Pain of Salvation (ironically abbreviated PoS) just doesn't live up to the hype. Be is by no means a bad CD. However, PoS's fanbase ruins it.
It also sounds like a good year for doom metal fanatics, though I can't stand doom metal at all. I even tried listening to Sunn O)))'s new CD, White2, but it became one of six 2004 CDs I promptly deleted from my computer because I was so ashamed of sharing such crap (and I'm still sharing St. Anger!). It was almost literally, a single note being held down the entire CD with the distortion changing a little bit throughout each song, instead of the note. Not that there were any vocals on the CD either. Well, they were there, but few and far between.
My top 10 of 2004 with a brief description:
10. Dragonforce - Sonic Firestorm
I never liked Dragonforce much. I disliked Valley of the Damned; I didn't think it was anything special. However, this CD is incredible. This power metal band just barely creeps onto the top 10, just beating out The Chasm, Shade Empire, Anaal Nathrakh, Wintersun, Gloria Morti, Mystic Forest, and Ensiferum, amongst others. Their vocals are high soaring, as is their guitar. It is some of the fastest metal around and features some incredible melodies. Though it gets repetitive after some time, where all the songs start to blend into each other, it's still worthy of a purchase.
9. Winds - The Imaginary Direction of Time
As soon as I heard the chilling opening with violins, I realized that this would be a good CD. It starts out with "What is Beauty?" Though it is my favorite song, the CD doesn't exactly get worse as it goes on. The sound of Winds is basically a mixture of classical, a little bit jazz, and progressive metal. The vocals are generally clean. It's really tough to describe this CD, aside from saying it's not really riff oriented. Just listen to it.
8. Disarmonia Mundi - Fragments of D-Generation
It's not until I heard "Oceangrave" that it really caught my ear. "Oceangrave" is proof that Disarmonia Mundi draw influences from just about everywhere, creating a unique CD where no song really sounds the same. At times, the guitar and vocals remind me of Beyond the Embrace, in a good way. This CD is how I wish the new Beyond the Embrace turned out. It's melo-death at its best.
7. Arsis - A Celebration of Guilt
The first time I heard "Maddening Disdain" was when I was making some of my original 2004 CD thingies. I immediately jumped it into slot #4 at the time, without even finishing the CD. I knew it was that damn good. It is death metal and it is great. It's aggressive and melodic, at once. There is incredible guitarwork to be found on this album.
6. Yyrkoon - Occult Medicine
The best death metal CD of the year goes to Yyrkoon. Similar to Arsis, with a different production style. It's no surprise that this is aggressive with its melodic times. As the melodious parts are what separates good death metal from bad death metal. Not too technical, but the riffs just make you start headbanging. The guitar solos aren't the fastest things out there, but they're very clean and very good.
5. Disillusion - Back to Times of Splendor
Disillusion is progressive metal meets melo-death. There's not much more to say about it than that. It features both clean and harsh vocals and fantastic songwriting.
4. Insomnium - Since the Day it All Came Down
The best melo-death CD of the year. Incredibly melodic, with one of the best vocalists featured in that style. I bought their first CD as a blind purchase, and did not regret it. After realizing they had a newer CD, I acquired it (before buying it), and it had exceeded all of my expectations. The CD gets better after each listen.
EDIT (05/02/2005): Upon discovering Blistered Earth's self-titled CD, I realized it would immediately jump into my top 10 of 2004. It would probably go about here, but I haven't put heavy thought into it. They're a fantastic thrash band. That's about all I can say about them.
3. Imperial Crystalline Entombment - Apocalyptic End in White
The newcomers, Imperial Crystalline Entombment, made an impact on me immediately. Not exactly the most melodic (as is the entire sub-genre), but the melody is still there. It's black metal. I never thought I'd even like black metal at the beginning of the year, but it happens. It creates a fantastic atmosphere. And not in the "raw" atmosphere either, the production is pretty good. The guitar is put into the front, with the vocals mixed a little more into the background, but still hearable. It's fast, abrasive, and pretty technical.
2. Nightingale - Invisible
Dan Swanö's newest attempt was a great success. Aside from the first song, Nightingale finally became a full-time band, as they did away with the conceptual story found in the first four CDs. It is fantastic prog-rock, though, a disappointment from Alive Again. The fact that a disappointment is #2 shows just how good I consider the CD I'm comparing this too. On it's own, this prog-rock CD is still fantastic. It's got fantastic vocals (what do you expect from Dan?) which take over the focus of the CD (unlike Alive Again, where the guitars were essentially the main draw). Just look at "Stalingrad." Fantastic vocals and lyrics, with a sad melody throughout. One of my favorites on the CD.
1. Ayreon - The Human Equation
Who didn't see that coming? Never a fan of Arjen Lucassen's work, I continued giving him another try. He assembled an awesome cast of singers to portray his story - a man put into a coma, as he confronts his various emotions and fears, visited by his best friend, wife, and eventually, his father. Because of the story and the way the concept is set up, the vocals and lyrics are clearly the most important thing on this CD. However, the guitar work held my interest and worked quite well with the song. I soon found myself listening to it several times in the first week I had it. I don't know why either, generally I'm a man who cares more about the instrumentation than the vocals/lyrics, but it was just too powerful to not care for.
Quicklist:
1. Ayreon - The Human Equation
2. Nightingale - Invisible
3. Imperial Crystalline Entombment - Apocalyptic End in White
4. Insomnium - Since the Day it All Came Down
5. Disillusion - Back to Times of Splendor
6. Yyrkoon - Occult Medicine
7. Arsis - A Celebration of Guilt
8. Disarmonia Mundi - Fragments of D-Generation
9. Winds - The Imaginary Direction of Time
10. Dragonforce - Sonic Firestorm
Here's a couple of recommendations (by genre) in the format of Band - CD, followed by three songs to check out:
Melodeath:
Disarmonia Mundi - Fragments of D-Generation
Oceangrave
Quicksand Symmetry
Swallow the Flames
Disillusion - Back to Times of Splendor
A Day by the Lake
The Sleep of Restless Hours
Fall
Enforsaken - The Forever Endeavor
Tales of Bitterness
Poison Me
Vertigo Equilibrium
Insomnium - Since the Day it All Came Down
The Day it All Came Down
Bereavement
Death Walked the Earth
Shade Empire - Sinthetic
Demonized
Human Sculpture
Creation of Death
A fantastic year for melodeath, as all five of these bands were in the running for my top 10, with three actually making it.
Viking/Folk:
Ensiferum - Iron
Tales of Revenge
Iron
Sword Chant
Turisas - Battle Metal
Sahti-Waari
Among Ancestors
As Torches Rise
With a disappointment from Finntroll, this folk inspired sub-genre was pretty stale this year. 2005 is already looking a lot better.
Power:
Angra - Temple of Shadows
Spread Your Fire
The Temple of Hate
Angels and Demons
Dragonforce - Sonic Firestorm
Fury of the Storm
My Spirit Will Go On
Once in a Lifetime
Dragonhammer - Time for Expiation
Eternal Sinner
Believer
Fear of a Child
Persuader - Evolution Purgatory
To the End
Fire at Will
Turn to Dust
Wintersun - Wintersun
Beyond the Dark Sun
Winter Madness
Battle Against Time
A decent year for power metal. The incredibly fast/melodic Dragonforce led the sub-genre, with the also fast/melodic Wintersun (with it's debut) coming out to help. Fans of Dragonforce and some folk metal will love Wintersun, which feature harsh vocals.
Death:
Arsis - A Celebration of Guilt
Maddening Disdain
Worship Depraved
Carnal Ways to Recreate the Heart
Augury - Concealed
Alien Shores
...As Sea Devours Land
In Russian Dolls Universes
The Chasm - The Spell of Retribution
Omnipotent Codex
Remains of the Covenant
From the Curse, a Scourge...
Demonoid - Riders of the Apocalypse
Wargods
Firestorms
End of Our Times
Yyrkoon - Occult Medicine
Doctor X
Reversed World
Schyzophrenic Carnage
A fantastic year for death metal, despite the disappointing Necrophagist. Augury is a neat little band to check out. It's at times - very brutal, and at others - very calm. The interesting thing about it is that there's a woman vocalist singing over some of the riffs. Of course, there's still the stereotypical growler for most of it though.
Thrash:
Blistered Earth - Blistered Earth
Inside
1981
New God
Death Angel - The Art of Dying
Thicker Than Blood
Thrown to the Wolves
Prophecy
Exodus - Tempo of the Damned
Impaler
Blacklist
Tempo of the Damned
Megadeth - The System has Failed
Tears in a Vial
Back in the Day
Kick the Chair
Susperia - Unlimited
Chemistry
Years of Infinity
Situation Awareness
Thrash had a great comeback year. Death Angel, Exodus, and Megadeth (some old-timers in the scene) released good CDs and toured.
Progressive:
Ayreon - The Human Equation
Day Twenty: Confrontation
Day Sixteen: Loser
Day Fourteen: Pride
Nightingale - Invisible
Misery
Stalingrad
Still Alive
Winds - The Imaginary Direction of Time
What is Beauty?
Time Without End
Theory of Relativity
Progressive had a fantastic year. Even I liked a lot of it.
Black:
Anaal Nathrakh - Domine Non Es Dignus
Do Not Speak
Rage, Rage Against the Dying of the Light
To Err is Human, To Dream - Futile
Ancient Wisdom - Cometh Doom, Cometh Death
Cometh Doom, Cometh Death
Procreation Denied
Universal Annihilation
Darkthrone - Sardonic Wrath
Hate is the Law
Sjakk Matt Jesu Krist
Sacrificing to the God of Doubt
Deathspell Omega - Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice
Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice
Jubilate Deo (O Be Joyful in the Lord)
Blessed are the Dead Whiche Dye in the Lorde
Enslaved - Isa
Secrets of the Flesh
Bounded by Allegiance
Lunar Force
Imperial Crystalline Entombment - Apocalyptic End in White
Behold They Frozen Kingdom
Astral Frost Invocation
Cascade Cavern Catharsis
Opera IX - Anphisbena
The Prophecy
Anphisbena
Immortal Chant
Sear Bliss - Glory and Perdition
Dreams Spectre
Night Journey
Two Worlds Collide
Black had an absolutely fantastic year. I couldn't bring myself to even knock the recommendation down a few bands. They were just too good. None of these are really minimalistic, though, Darkthrone and Deathspell Omega feature the least amount of melody out of these. Some of them even have a few progressive parts in their songs.
Classic/Heavy:
3 Inches of Blood - Advance and Vanquish
Isle of Eternal Despair (Upon the Boiling Sea III)
The Phantom of the Crimson Cloak
Axes of Evil
Heathen - Recovered
Hellbound
Timeless Cell
Mercy is No Virtue
Metal Church - The Weight of the World
Leave them Behind
Cradle to Grave
Madman's Overture
Motörhead - Inferno
In the Name of Tragedy
Life's a Bitch
Terminal Show
Wolf - Evil Star
Evil Star
Devil Moon
Out of Still Midnight
It's a pretty dead sub-genre now, but these bands are still holding it strong. 3 Inches of Blood and Wolf are easily my top 2 of this sub-genre though, with Motörhead pulling up at third. Aside from 3 Inches of Blood, which feature harsh vocals, you could describe these as a similar sound to Iron Maiden, Dio, and Motörhead.
Gothic/Doom:
Lunatica - Fables & Dreams
Elements
Silent Scream (2004)
The Neverending Story
I can't really judge this style, but I really loved Lunatica. It's a much better Lacuna Coil. Same vocal style, but the guitar is more focused, and faster.
Metalcore/Grindcore:
Unearth - The Oncoming Storm
Endless
Zombie Autopilot
Failure
Pig Destroyer - Terrifyer
Towering Flesh
Restraining Order Blues
Pretty in Casts
I'm not really a fan of much -core, but I really enjoyed these albums. I was surprised I enjoyed Pig Destroyer, after their first CD didn't really hit it home with me. I've enjoyed some Unearth since their demo (mostly "Endless"), and found the CD to be enjoyable. I listened to a few other -core bands, but I really hated them, a lot, and got rid of them. Though, I did keep one song from Circle Takes the Square ("A Crater to Cough In"), which would be the band I'd use to define screamo. I haven't exactly heard screamo, but that's all I could think of after hearing them.
Alright, here's a list of everything I have on my computer (and therefore sharing):
3 Inches of Blood - Advance and Vanquish
Abandon - In Reality We Suffer
Amon Amarth - Fate of the Norns
Amoral - Wound Creations
Anaal Nathrakh - Domine Nos Es Dignus
Ancient Wisdom - Cometh Doom, Cometh Death
Angra - Temple of Shadows
Arsis - A Celebration of Guilt
Augury - Concealed
Avulsed - Gorespattered Suicide
Ayreon - The Human Equation
Behemoth - Demigod
Beyond the Embrace - Insect Song
Blaze - Blood and Belief
Blistered Earth - Blistered Earth
Bloodbath - Nightmares Made Flesh
Borknagar - Epic
Canopy - During Day One
Cans - Beyond the Gates
Carnal Forge - Aren’t You Dead Yet
Cattle Decapitation - Humanure
Cephalectomy - Eclipsing the Dawn
The Chasm - The Spell of Retribution
Cloudscape - Cloudscape
Core Device - Our Fellowship Eternal
Council of the Fallen - Deciphering the Soul
The Crown - Crowned Unholy
Damned Nation - Sign of Madness
Dargaard - Rise And Fall
Darkthrone - Sardonic Wrath
Darzamat - Semidevilish
Dead Soul Tribe - The January Tree
Death Angel - The Art of Dying
Deathspell Omega - Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice
Decapitated - The Negation
Deception - Nuclear Wind
Defeated Sanity - Prelude to the Tragedy
Deicide - Scars Of The Crucifix
Demonoid - Riders of the Apocalypse
Derek Sherinian - Mythology
DGM - Misplaced
Dio - Master of the Moon
Disarmonia Mundi - Fragments of D-Generation
Disillusion - Back to Times of Splendor
Dismember - Where Ironcrosses Grow
DivineFire - Glory Thy Name
Dragonforce - Sonic Firestorm
Dragonhammer - Time For Expiation
Dragonland - Starfall
Drawn and Quartered - Return of the Black Death
Dream Evil - The Book of Heavy Metal
Drudkh - Autumn Aurora
Eclipse Eternal - Reign of the Unholy Blackened Empire
Edguy - Hellfire Club
Eikenskaden - 665.999
Elvenking - Wyrd
Emeth - Insidious
Enforsaken - The Forever Endeavor
Ensiferum - Iron
Enslaved - Isa
Exodus - Tempo of the Damned
Fates Warning - FWX
Finntroll - Nattfödd
Fornication - Unleashed Wrath
Gloria Morti - Lifestream Corrosion
God Forbid - Gone Forever
Goratory - Rice On Suede
Gorgasm (Fra) - Neurotripsicks
Grave - Fiendish Regression
The Haunted - rEVOLVEr
Heathen - Recovered
Hypocrisy - The Arrival
Iced Earth - The Glorious Burden
Illogicist - Subjected
Imperial Crystalline Entombment - Apocalyptic End in White
In Flames - Soundtrack to your Escape
Insision - Revealed and Worshopped
Insomnium - Since the Day it All Came Down
Into Eternity - Buried in Oblivion
Iron Savior - Battering Ram
Jag Panzer - Casting the Stones
Joe Satriani - Is There Love in Space?
Kataklysm - Serenity in Fire
Kotipelto - Coldness
Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake
Lunatica - Fables & Dreams
Mägo de Oz - Belfast
Malevolent Creation - Warkult
Mastodon - Leviathon
Mayhem - Chimera
Megadeth - The System has Failed
Metal Church - The Weight of the World
Motörhead - Inferno
Mystic Forest - Romances
Nargaroth - Prosatanica Shooting Angels
Necrophagist - Epitaph
Nightingale - Invisible
Nightwish - Once
Nocturnal Rites - New World Messiah
Norther - Death Unlimited
Nyktalgia - Nyktalgia
Olympos Mons - Conquistador
Omnium Gatherum - Years in Waste
Opera IX - Anphisbena
Pain of Salvation - Be
Peccatum - Lost In Reverie
Persuader - Evolution Purgatory
Pig Destroyer - Terrifyer
Primal Fear - Devil’s Ground
Probot - Probot
Rhapsody - Symphony of Enchanted Lands II - The Dark Secret
Ribspreader - Bolted to the Cross
The Ring - Tales From Midgard
Rotting Christ - Sanctus Diavolos
Salamandra - Great Moravian Elegies
Saltatio Mortis - Erwachen
Sear Bliss - Glory and Perdition
Shade Empire - Sinthetic
Skyclad - A Semblance of Normality
Skyfire - Spectral
Sonata Arctica - Reckoning Night
Steel Attack - Enslaved
Steel Prophet - Beware
Suffocation - Souls to Deny
Susperia - Unlimited
Symphorce - Twice Second
Ten - Return to Evermore
Therion - Lemuria
Therion - Sirius B
Third Moon - Sworn Enemy: Heaven
Today is the Day - Kiss the Pig
Torchbearer - Yersinia Pestis
Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Lost Christmas Eve
Turisas - Battle Metal
Twilightning - Plague-House Puppet Show
Unearth - The Oncoming Storm
Vader - The Beast
Vehemence - Helping the World to See
Velvet Cacoon - Genevieve
Vintersorg - The Focusing Blur
Visceral Bleeding - Transcend into Ferocity
Winds - The Imaginary Direction of Time
Wintersun - Wintersun
Within Temptation - The Silent Force
Wolf - Evil Star
Woods of Ypres - Pursuit of the Sun & Allure of the Earth
Yyrkoon - Occult Medicine
I had intentions of listening to...
Bane of Existence - Humanity's Splintered Salvation
Choronzon - Panic Pandemic
Dawn Of Azazel - The Law Of The Strong
Elysium (POL) - Deadline
Evergrey - The Inner Circle
Forgotten Tomb - Love's Burial Ground
Necrotic Disgorgement - Suffocating In Shrinkwrap
Sotajumala - Death Metal Finland
Urfaust - Geist Ist Teufel
...but I couldn't find them, and nothing really sounds that fantastic, so I guess I can just forget about them.
For people interested in doom metal, here's a few CDs released in 2004:
Aarni - Bathos
Boris - The Thing Which Solomon Overlooked
Cult of Luna - Salvation
Electric Wizard - We Live
Explosions In The Sky - The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place
Eyes of Fire - Ashes to Embers
Fantomas - Delirium Cordia
Forsaken (MALTA) - Anima Mundi
IQ - Dark Matter
Isis - Panopticon
Jesu - Heartache
Mar de Grises - The Tatterdamalion Express
Neurosis - The Eye of Every Storm
Orphaned Land - Mabool
Rwake - If You Walk Before You Crawl, You Crawl Before You Die
Shape of Despair - Illusions Play
Sunn O))) - White2
YOB - The Illusion of Motion
And that's my year of 2004 of music in review.
2005 is already looking good, with...
Dark Tranquillity - Character
Extol - Blueprint
Grave Digger - The Last Supper
Impaled - Death After Life
Korpiklaani - Voice Of Wilderness
Kreator - Enemy of God
Masterplan - Aeronautics
Spock's Beard - Octane
Strapping Young Lad - Alien
...already being leaked (and shared by me). Just a few other albums that are expected this year are:
Dark Moor - Beyond the Sea
Hammerfall - Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken
Kamelot - The Black Halo
Moonsorrow - Verisäkeet
Mors Principium Est - The Unborn
Suidakra - Command to Charge
Usurper - Cryptobeast
And of course, there's still potential for a Symphony X, Children of Bodom, Bruce Dickinson, and Helloween CD (since they've all been recording to my knowledge).