.:TOP 10 - 2005:.
2005 has been one hell of a year with many different releases, from boring to masterpieces. And while top 10s can vary enormously because of personal tastes, I think the following albums were (for me) the best, close to the best and the least good (not to say 'worst') of this year:
Best of 2005:
01) KAMELOT - The Black HaloPart II of the Faust story. A mix of different tempos, first class musicianship, symphonic elements adding a certain depth and feel. Simply stunning!
02) SAVAGE CIRCUS - Dreamland Manor
The return of old BLIND GUARDIAN. Powermetal with the emphasis on 'power'. Rough, melodic and kick-ass.
03) PRIMAL FEAR - Seven Seals
Their best album so far. Heavy/Powermetal that simply moves you, maks you want to sing-along. Music that lifts you up.
04) NILE - Annihilation Of The Wicked
Masters of Death Metal. No words can do justice to this masterpiece.
05) EXODUS - Shovel Headed Kill Machine
Despite a big line-up change, they pulled it off again, just like on the predecessor "Tempo Of The Damned". EXODUS still know their Thrash.
06) KREATOR - Enemy Of God
The German masters of Thrash. Again a stunning album with which they remain on top.
07) KALEDON - Chapter 3: The Way Of The Light
After two 'good' albums, number three is amazing and promises for the future. KALEDON are no longer a band to mock with. They get better with every album and can be a serious competitor in the Powermetal genre.
08) PAGAN'S MIND - Enigmatic: Calling
Norwegian ProgPower like no other. Third album covering the special theme about life, third amazing album. Musically the band can create the right atmosphere, add the right hooks, back it up with an appropriate tempo, ... Great musicians too.
09) ARCH ENEMY - Doomsday Machine
The throat of Angela is amazing. The musicianship of the others too and in my opinion sometimes underestimated. A very solid release.
10) VANISHING POINT - Embrace The Silence
Progressive Aussie Metal, but damn good this time. The melodies, the vocals, ... it all fits perfectly together.
Honourable mentions (alphabetical order):
* ANUBIS GATE - A Perfect ForeverProgressive Powermetal, better than the first album, thanks to a better production, melodies, ... A couple of listenings might be needed to get into it, but then you really hear how good the songs are.
* DEMONS & WIZARDS - Touched By The Crimson King
ICED EARTH meets BLIND GUARDIAN, only here it's more ICED EARTH. Nevertheless, a solid album with some great and touching songs.
* DESTRUCTION - Inventor Of Evil
Still going after all those years and a split. A very good production, great riffs, ... Very solid album, but their colleagues from KREATOR did a better job to get in my top 10. ;-) Live, DESTRUCTION are unbeatable.
* DYECREST - This Is My World
The band's second album and better than before. It's not a masterpiece, however it is a solid album by a band that should be able to become big.
* GALLOGLASS - Heavenseeker
German Powermetal, but with its own sound determined by Carsten's vocals and the music. "Legends From Now And Nevermore" was already very good, "Heavenseeker" raises the bar even higher as this is very very good. They even implemented some Thrash in "Beyond The Mirror", something they hopefully will continue to do in the future, without giving up the Powermetal.
* NEVERMORE - This Godless Endeavor
NEVERMORE's best album so far, I reckon. Great vocals, very nice riffing... Despite some lesser songs, this is overall a thumbs up release and should not be missing in your collection.
* OVERLOADED - Hail The Kingdom
An unsigned Heavy Metal band making a more than good start with their first album/EP. Honest music from five American determined/dedicated guys who prefer quality above crap that sells easily. OVERLOADED deserve all the support they can get, for this is worth your money and time.
* SHAKRA - Fall
Swiss Hardrock, again a solid album following "Rising". "Fall" has a somewhat different, but still good production and nice compositions. SHAKRA's live performances are spotless.
* SPELLBOUND - Incoming Destiny
A new German Thrash band and right from the start, they show they've got much potential. Influences clearly come from masters like EXODUS, DESTRUCTION, ... but that's no problem at all for me. SPELLBOUND are a Thrash legend to be. ;-)
* STREAM OF PASSION - Embrace The Storm
Arjen Lucassen's new band. Scoring massively with his AYREON project, STREAM OF PASSION is in roughly the same vein, be it as a band instead of rock operas. This too is first class music.
'Worst' albums:
* CREOZOTH - CreozothA new band formed by CANDLEMASS guitarist Lars Johansson and drummer Jan Lindh, playing Doom rock with a clear distinction between 'faster' and slow songs. Compared to CANDLEMASS, this is rather average. I expected more from this. Fingers crossed for the next album.
* HAMMERFALL - Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken
HAMMERFALL started good to very good with their first albums and their following albums were also quite solid, but "Chapter V" lacks uptempo songs. the songs play too much in the midtempo range. Live is a different, but better story.
* Metalcore
Apart from a few (very few) bands, this kind of music means nothing to me, to be honest. Senseless screaming, the same kind of riffs (doesn't matter what song), no real depth in the songs, ...
* REBELLION - Sagas Of Iceland
The background story they tackled is nice on an educational level, but the music could have been more inspiring. Apart from some good riffs, the album overall lacks variation.
* MORNING - Hour Of Joy
Another Dutch Gothic band, only this album seems to have been released to soon. The production is not good, the vocals lack depth and on top of that, the QUEEN cover is a miss.
* SHE'S CHINA - Odyssey To Mars
These German rockers sure know how nót to rock. Their latest release is nice as bedtime music maybe, other than that it's to be skipped. Way too soft, also lacking variation.
* STRATOVARIUS - Stratovarius
The Finnish masters of melodic Powermetal have delivered something very unusual compared to their previous albums: no double-bass, no uptempo, no keyboard solos (or very few). This is more Hardrock orientated stuff and not so well done either. When you saw a STRATOVARIUS album, you knew what to expect and you'd buy it. The last time they released anything worth my money was in 2000 with "Infinite". Even the "Elements" albums are better than this self-titled album.
* WET ANIMAL - Wet Animal
Very much related to TROUBLE, a Doom rock band, but WET ANIMAL just couldn't convince me. Bad production, average vocals, no really great songs, ...
* YARGOS - To Be Or Not To Be
ProgRock à la AYREON, but too many samples and keyboard sounds make it messy. One of the few strong points is Andrew McDermott's vocals, which sound fuller than on THRESHOLD's albums, where he's also doing a very good job.