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Editorials

THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2008 — TOO SOON?

 Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 at 5:01pm by

Arsis - We Are the Nightmare2008 isn’t even half over yet and I already know it’s going to be tough picking my top 10 favorite metal albums of the year. So far there have already been a bunch of excellent releases that could be top 10 contenders:

  • Protest the Hero – Fortress
  • Torche – Meanderthal
  • Arsis – We are the Nightmare
  • Textures – Silhouettes
  • Scar Symmetry – Holographic Universe
  • Nachtmystium – Assassins: Black Meddle Part 1
  • Disturbed – Indestructible

PSYCH! But seriously folks, the first six in the list are the real deal.

I’m hoping for a slow second half of the year so I don’t have to make any hard choices. Actually, not. Keep ‘em comin’.

-VN

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  • http://www.myspace.com/jay234t Jason

    What? No Kataklysm? I’m ashamed in you.

  • http://www.nonelouder.com Iann

    We are going to have to do battle over this Arsis record I fear. Plus you forgot Ascend, Harvey Milk, Made Out Of Babies, Cursed III, Grave, etc.

  • ThrillHo

    What about Genghis Tron??

  • bucketochicken

    A few others to consider:

    Opeth – Watershed
    LOTM – War Metal Battle Master
    Meshuggah – ObZen
    Mats/Morgan Band – Heat Beats Live
    Porcupine Tree – Nil Recurring

    Cosign on Torche & Arsis, have yet to hear Nachtmystium.

  • Dr J

    I agree with ThrillHo, Genghis Tron is once of my favorite albums of all time and should definitely be on the list.

    I also bought Protest the Hero’s FORTRESS, since you guys seemed to love it so much, and it seems more like a rock album than a metal album to me.

  • amy

    um, Origin yo.

  • Ross

    C’mon guys. Meshuggah, Genghis Tron, Cursed all need to be up there.

  • http://www.myspace.com/evilsammy Sammy

    Testament: The Formation of Damnation

  • TJ

    Textures is on your list, but not Meshuggah? That’s funny, because every time I hear Textures, it reminds me of a crappy version of Meshuggah.

    I also think the new Daylight Dies deserves to be on here.

  • Jim

    Ohhh, I see what you did there, Mr. Tricky guy you!

  • http://www.metalsucks.net Vince Neilstein

    @ Everyone: ok, MESHUGGAH, add that to my list.

    I have yet to listen to the new Daylight Dies, but need to get on that ASAP.

    As for Genghis, you’ve got an argument there. I’d support its inclusion in any top 10, but it probably won’t end up in mine.

    @ Everyone else: fuck off!

  • http://www.myspace.com/evilsammy Sammy

    So, if the terms “death”, “core”, “prog” or “technical” are not listed, it’s not “metal”, eh?

  • Revrant

    That’s right Sammy, this is an elitist metal site, not a general metal site.

    @Original Post, u make’a me raugh wrong triiiime, oh ho ho! so wroooooong, wroooong triiiiime.

  • banter

    Wow.

    Opeth = Watershed

    literally

  • jaime

    Rev,

    Why the hell are you here? It’s obvious you don’t listen to any band still producing albums that resembles good music. So why come to a musical elitists website?

    PS, Textures might be the most boring, derivative band I’ve heard in ages. Seriously, what is special about this band?

  • Anthony

    Meshuggah, Scar Symmetry, Kataklysm, PtH, Genghis Tron.

  • Revrant

    jaime: So I can be the sensible intelligent front to stupid fucks like you who wouldn’t know music if it pounced up and bit their nipples off and instead listen to “music” based instead on what all the sheep tell them is “hip” enough or “underground” enough.

  • 36Thoughtless

    Yeah, Jaime, we need to be enlightened to our foul ways come around to appreciate maestros such as Everclear and Smashmouth.

  • Revrant

    36Thoughtless: Careful, I was referring solely to her, I actually know her horrible taste in music is based on being a counter-culture sheep, I don’t fully know that about you or anyone else.

  • don’t panic

    weak top 6. really weak. i can name 10 albums that are significantly better. have you guys heard ihsahn’s latest? if not, you definitely should cause imo that’s the best album of 2008 so far.

  • jaime

    Rev,

    the only thing you enlightened me on is the that you listen to very popular, easy to digest bands. As for “counter culture”, have you walked around in any city in America? We live in neon sewer, fucking A I’m counter culter. It don’t change the fact that you listen to shitty rock radio bands. Maybes it’s just because you are too lazy to find new bands you like? Or is is that the genre has passed you by and you’re bitter no one sounds like the bands you listened to while growing up?

    Hey Vince, I have an idea, since all this douche nozzle does is defends Disturbed and list how every other band he doesn’t like is only liked by “elitists” or “counter culturalist” how bout a 3 month hiatus from Disturbed stories?

  • Pingback: THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2008 — TOO SOON? (ONE MORE FOR VINCE) | MetalSucks

  • Greg

    The new Scar Symmetry is unreal, as soon as I finished listening to it last night I had to repeat the process. So damn good. Can’t wait for IRON MAIDEN TONIGHT!!!

  • http://www.myspace.com/evilsammy Sammy

    People like what they like for whatever reasons they have. But liking something just because it’s not “easy to digest” is fucking retarded. It’s like eating staples just to prove you can do it.

    I don’t find Vince or Axl or the contributors via comments here to be elitist. I do, however, find many of them to be extremely narrow minded. Brutal (br00tal) for brutal’s sake is just as bad as sappy for sappy’s sake.

    Some of the commenters here seem to have the belief that the second a band goes from selling 10,000 copies to 10,001 they’re immediately mainstream and therefore shit, just because they appeal to a wider audience.

    I guess with the internet we could have bands writing to an audience of one. That un-mainstream and counter-culture enough for ya?

  • Revrant

    jaime: I can tell I right pissed you off, you couldn’t hardly type or form coherent sentences, I get the feeling you’ve been called a counter-culture sheep before, you had a pretty wild defense for it.

    I’m not going to bother replying to all of it, just to summarize: I like plenty of stuff that isn’t “mainstream” and that may in fact be liked by “elitists”, but as Sammy said, I see no reason to eat staples just to prove I can eat staples like you.

    I like to call it at least attempting to be an individual, you know, liking things because you find them appealing for what they are, not because other people find them appealing?

  • zach

    Cult of Luna: Eternal Kingdom.

  • kyle

    Disturbed? come on what about Nile, The Sword, Unleashed, Testament or Kataklysm you must be to busy listening to nu metal

  • http://hookssobig.blogspot.com Wayne

    Torche and Nachtmystium, along with Meshuggah, make up my top 3 so far. Bring on Made Out of Babies, Mastodon, Metallica, and Gojira!

  • adam

    so many albums come out every year nobody is going to be happy. I’ve bought PTH’s album and Arsis’s and they both rock. Good list, think of all the bands that are coming out with stuff later this year though. Trivium, Slipknot, Dragonforce, Metallica (will probably suck but o well) and so many other underground and main stream bands.

  • Sean

    Dragonforce? GTFO now! This site is for metal, now video game music. Obzen HAS to be at the the top of any true metal fan’s list. Seriously, come on now.

  • Solphyre

    Norther – N ? It’s my favourite album of the year! Bodom’s Blooddrunk isn’t too bad either. In Flames’ A Sense of Purpose is alright as well.
    Scar Symmetry is just pure awesome – Holographic Universe just kicks ass. I was actually surprised at Trivium’s Shogun, I don’t like the band too much but the album is quite good. Amon Amarth’s recent release of Twilight of The Thunder God is just epic. Disturbed’s album is pretty kick ass too. Kalmah’s For The Revolution is awesome as well!
    One Way Mirror maybe a new band, but their self-titled album is actually pretty good – at least I think so.

  • The Assassin

    Rock N Roll Devil by Helltrain
    Killing Season by Death Angel
    In Hatred’s Flame by Exmortus
    Time Insults the Mind by Black Anvil
    Angl by Ihsahn
    Assassins: Black Meddle, Pt.1 by Nachtmystium
    There Will Be Blood by Vindicator
    The Fathomless Mastery by Bloodbath
    Descendants Of Depravity by Prostitute Disfigurment
    Vertebrae by Enslaved

  • Josh

    Burst – Lazarus Bird
    Cult of Luna – Eternal Kingdom
    A Secret Death – S/T (Awesome Aussie band)
    Torche – Meanderthal
    Gojira – The Way of All Flesh
    Messhugah – Obzen
    Testament: The Formation of Damnation

  • Öwen

    I thought 2008 was a pretty weak year for metal in general. I wasnt enthralled by any of the releases by the bigger names.

    Textures wasn’t as good as good as latter albums, although still much better than the yawn inducing chuggfest of Meshuggah, anyone who cant tell the difference between the pair needs their hearing checked, I liked Textures more when their sound was clearer and less beefy though.

    Opeth was weak, too many cleans and not enough Åkerfeldt layrnx torturing growls for my liking. Not dark enough. All That Remains just turned into rubbish, as did In Flames, weak melodies – which both bands are usually excel at. Trivium and Unearth were the same standard middle of the road that I’ve come to expect.

    My picks for this year would be After The Burial’s Rareform, a terrific album, great guitar work, although the drums sounded fake and the bass needed turned up. Gojira’s The Way of All Flesh, not as good as FMTS I thought, but still a very solid album and finally Psycroptic and PTH’s offerings.

    Still a very very weak year.

  • Öwen

    Textures “former” albums rather.

  • Loyal

    Protest the Hero ftw.

  • http://phyoheinkyaw.info uncletom666

    Protest the Hero Rocks! \m/

  • http://www.last.fm/user/BootScraperSean Anger Unmanagement

    Yes im going to have to agree PTH does rock.