Depressive Black Metal is easly becoming one of favorite sub-genres. Their is just something about how someone can take such a caotic subject as suicide and make it sound so beautiful and mind numbing at the same time. This is my first album from Lifelover and it will not be my last. Mix "Silencer" with "Shining" and Lifelover is what you get. Brilliant album!!!!

Brilliant album from former Emperor front man Ihsahn. I would even say it is one of the best Progressive Black Metal albums ever created. His debut album "The Adversary" was good but this is a giant step forward.

If you have never listened to these guys before you really need to give them a chance. They mix Progressive, Power and Melodic Death Metal all into one tight package. This album is more of a mix between their 11 Dreams album which was one of their heavier albums and Hours That Remain which had more of a Power Metal mix. Great Album!!

The reason I love these guys so much is they never make the same album twice. If I wanted to hear "Dark Medieval Times" again, I would just break out the classic debut. This ablum takes what "Now, Diabolical" started and builds upon it by slowing down the tempo a bit and adding some darker more atmospherical elements. Just listen to the track "Die By My Hand" and you will see what I mean.

Dark/Black Metal album full of twits and turns. The vocal work is what attracted me to this album, I guess I am a sucker for a vocalist that utilizes several different styles on a album. You gotta check this one out!

Surprising enough this is one of my top releases this year. They have a great Death/Sludge sound that jams.

The new self-titled album from Taake sees the band take a more straight forward and heavier Black Metal approach. Gone are the over melodic riffs you are used to hearing in their previous releases. Instead you are treated to some good old classic Black N Roll riffs remenicent of the days when Black Metal meant something more.

Death Metal from Finland. You can tell these guys had been listening to alot of Old School Swedish Death Metal before this album from the different guitar tone they used. Think Entombed with a bit of synth work mixed in. I am not talking about a ton of synths, just enough to spice it up a bit. Great band and album.

First off I have to say that I really enjoyed this album. The first three songs are unbeliveable and rank up there in the top songs of the year. But the album as a whole is not as strong as his last release "Psalms Of Extinction". Tracks "Don't Care", "No One Cares" and "Not Your Kind" are just simple filler tracks. Overall this is an excellent album worthy of a top 40 position.

This album gets better after every spin. The song writing has gotten better which ends up making the album very addictive and memorable. If you where looking for a heavy album like Pitch Black Progress then you might be a bit dissapointed at first since they use the clean singing way more often on this album.

This album blew me away, plain and simple. The only other band on my list that you can really compare the sound of Bison B.C. to is Lair of The Minotaur. They play a very aggressive version Of Sludge/Doom. Their formula is quite simple but what makes them stand out is their ability to write memorable riffs that are just addictive as hell!

Not quite as addicting as "From Mars to Sirius" but still one hell of an album that will more than likely stay in my top 40 list.

I am very surprised that such a great album flew completely flew under my radar for over a month. On the surface they play Technical Death Metal but after the first couple of tracks you realize it is much more. These guys have a very progressive look on the sub-genre and have created a brilliant album that never stands still.

Opeth always release great albums and this is no exception. I purchased this album the week it came out and never gave it the attention a Opeth album needs. I finally got around to it and I actually enjoy it quite a bit. The balance between the dark and light sections is very even which helps to keep the longer songs interesting through out.

I am a sucker for a great old school Death Metal album and this record bleeds old school. Its been like 7 years since Organized Chaos and this record in my opinion is worth the wait.

Brutal Melodeath? Yes Please!! I always wanted to know what Scar Symmetry would sound like if they focused on their heavier side.

It took a long time for me to come to terms that this album was not supposed to sound like "Goremageddon". Once I did, I realized that this album is quite amazing at times. Change can be hard to take when it comes from a band that you could count on making a certain kind of record every time. You can tell that this is a ablum from a band that was ready to change and try new things.

Hard to believe that only one guitarist is responsible for the great riffing on this ablum. The other high point of this great piece of Technical Death Metal is the drum work. If you are looking for one long double bass fest then this is NOT your album. It is full of technical fills that will blow your mind. Great album!

If you aren't familiar with these guys, they play Melodic Black Metal. This release worried me since I knew going in that they where using a new vocalist. My worries where set aside though once I spun it. The new vocalist's approach seems to be darker and helps to give the album a heavier feel. Top notch!

Doom/Folk/Black Metal from Illinois? The US actually has a very nice group of bands like Velnias that pull this weird subgenre off pretty well (Wolves In The Throne Room and Agalloch). Unlike the other bands though, Velnias are better at keeping the listener's attention without compromising the slow tempo and atmosphere.