Last updated on 10 July 2020
And it was a funny year: Seamlessly latching on to 2015, many more shades of black have been covered throughout these 12 months. At times it seemed like there is only black, just to find yourself in progressive country for quite long stretches. The symphonic and operatic divisions did not quite convince this year, albeit there are a few pockets of excellence that showed through the blankets of snow copiously covering the countryside. Then what a year it has been with many great names in music calling it quits last year and a new US president nobody expected to win. But enough of this, let’s start, shall we?
Here are the 2016 Top 10 records:
#10 Van Halst – World of Make Believe
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#9 Dark Portrait – A Harrowing Atrocity
A lot of Black Metal is often about ritual. This Greek outfit created a very special and captivating brand of Symphonic Black Metal. Mixing epic and operatic melodies with hellish Black Metal tones right down there in the metal abyss. For the purist, this may sound like sacrilege, but in the end, Dark Portrait have created a great and varied piece of work. Beats burning churches, don’t it? But then, perhaps they still do and we just don’t know about it.
#8 Darkend – The Canticle of Shadows
#7 Sojourner – Empires of Ash
#6 Overtures – Artifacts
#5 Fleshgod Apocalypse – King
What a kingly treat! The band served a surprisingly delicious, but very messy baroque battle of the styles this time. All this presented against a grand background of kingly endeavors. The record still manages to put a smile on my face, but boy this is complex. But on the other hand powerful like no other. And remember, some of their brethren just try to beat you into the dust and call this metal. Fleshgod Apocalypse – on the contrary – artfully pull out all the stops and deliver some of their own, hotly spiced pottage to go with their metal. Good quality stuff, from Italy. Straight from the times of the Borgia and the assassins. Just watch your back when listening to this.
#4 SIG:AR:TYR – Northen
This record will just pump up your metal juices once you start listening. It includes everything: From epic and cathedral to red-blooded riffs and soaring solos. This Viking longboat of theirs just relentlessly crashes through them stormy waves towards the far shores of modern-day Canada. I have twirled this disc many-a-day and never grow tired of it. This is simply great metal the way they almost don’t make it anymore. Clearly the change from Daemonskald pulling all toxic switches by himself to something resembling a band has been beneficial to say the least. Ways to go, guys.
#3 Huldre – Tusmørke
Now, go ahead and meet me in the forest. Deep down in its yonder green and leafy depths, you will find magical ponds where trolls meet and fairies dance. That’s the realm of Huldre and their twilight songs. The band has this knack to produce the perfect balance between modern and archaic instruments and concoct irresistible tunes out of that. The vocalist provides the icing on this folksy tale of theirs with quirky, yet unusual contributions. This gets you a sturdy but at the same time genuinely delicate Folk Metal brand that I have seldom found so far.
#2 The Reticent – On the Eve of a Goodbye
Never, and I mean never before have I heard such emotion put into a record. The genuine human compassion injected into a true story with a cartload of passion will already qualify this record to give it a listen. On top, you will find pretty stellar Progressive Metal on that disc that I have seldom seen topped. The record is like Chateaubriand with loads of Sauce Béarnaise; very heavy, but sinfully good. You should try a slice – or two. And don’t forget the Bordeaux to go with it.
#1 Insomnium – Winter’s Gate
Last year Myrkur‘s M rocketed from zero to top spot in about two milliseconds, usurping Da Numba One with a last-minute attack. Now, looking at the progress of things in 2016, Black Metal was a contender, but the North has struck. More precisely the Melodic Death Metal camp. Who would have thought that? The sleepless ones just went ahead and recorded one, single 40-minute monster track. This is usually fraught with danger and a lot of bands shipwrecked on this particular icy cliff. Now, as it turned out, Insomnium made it to a 9/10, which is relatively rare for records on this blog. The disc is simply grand Melodic Death Metal with a flow that I have seldom had the pleasure to listen to so far. The album is a delight and is best consumed in one go. Served ice-cold, on the rocks.
The guys who almost made it into the list:
Abbath – Abbath
It’s not Immortal, but gosh it is awfully close. The crabwalk on the loose again. Or in other words: The soul of the former band on a solo trip, one Olve Eikemo looking for his own without changing the corpse paint that always was his trademark before. Abbath is quite a thunderclap of a debut. Not necessarily novelty territory, but nevertheless done sturdily enough to convince and – for sure – to thrive later on.
Darkher – Realms
This is one love/hate relationship I have with this record. And I can’t really explain what fuels it or why on earth Realms should be on this blog at all. There is also the ever-looming question if this piece of work qualifies as metal or not. But in the end, a crisp metal tinge and a highly precise and (very) doom-laden tune carry the flag. Together with the fairy singing style of Ms. Wissenberg, this record exerts a pull that will make you return to the well all over again. Willingly or not will depend on you. Or on the magick spells cast on your mortal soul. Who knows…
NordWitch – Mørk Profeti
Cold shivers down your spine already when the band lets loose with the first track. The band offers highly seasoned Blackened Death Metal trickling down from Eastern Europe, growls delivered by a female front. NordWitch deliver this very mature down-to-earth style of very high quality. No doubt when knowing that the band – whilst still young in age – the musicians involved surely are no newbies. This results in a sturdy, very metallic, yet very energetic metal offering that you don’t want to miss.
Todtgelichter – Rooms
Ed’s note: The post successfully made it on the 2nd edition of the most popular posts. Congrats!
What does “The guys who almost made it into the list:” means? 😉
It means they did not get into the lifeboat. But at least they had life jackets. Whereas the others….