Awards 2004

The power metal flood still seems to be continuing but there's still lots of room to experiment. Stagnation seems to be setting in with bands like Primal Fear, Mystic Prophecy, Mob Rules and Iron Savior delivering album after album of very similar material. There's an infusion of great new progressive metal and the latest albums by Dreamscape and Magnitude 9 are certainly worth checking out.

Metal Reviews has expanded once again in 2004 with addition of very energetic young new reviewers who've added a whole new dimension to the site. We have been lacking with Death Metal and Black Metal reviews and these new guys are doing a great job filling in the void so to speak.

This March, it will be three years ago that I joined Metal Reviews. I still enjoy it very much and I sometimes find it hard to give it the time that's required (but I still manage somehow!!). Family responsibilities and our personal lives have to come first and that's part of the reason that you don't see Chris and Danny around that much anymore. That's the unique thing about the Metal Reviews team, we all chip in to help each other out and I see that sort of thing going on now with the global effort in support of raising funds for those devasted by the tsuamni disaster in South East Asia. If only people were like that all the time and not only in times of crisis, the world would be a much better place

Have a great and safe 2005.

Marty.

I've had trouble the last few years making these top 15 lists but this year was by far the hardest. Though 2004 had its fair share of junk CDs and slightly average releases, there were a lot more outstanding releases than in the past which made this year especially tough I suppose.

I always like to talk about the various key styles of Metal and what went on with them this past year so here it goes. Black Metal had a great year! The North American underground is stronger than ever and almost rivals Norway's scene in the early 90's for a shear number of quality bands. Black Metal is also a genre where bands are constantly pushing the boundries of minimialist and epic song writing and the result is probably the most prolific style in regards to originality and varied bands. Problem is, with such a high number of highly regarded releases I didn't have time to listen to everything which is why my list is somewhat devoid of Black Metal despite my comments.

Everyone complains about Power Metal becoming stale with all the bands just repeating each other... that might be true but what about Death Metal? Talk about stagnant! With the exception of Behemoth there just wasn't a lot going on in the style. Sure, there were a fair number of close to outstanding releases but overall it was really lack luster, especially for someone like me who prefers traditional Death Metal over Death Metat with tons 'o grindcore.

What about Thrash? Well, I'm still waiting for new Violence and Dark Angel but we did see the welcome return of Exodus and Death Angel. While not quite a come back year, Thrash did see some excellent releases by returning bands and from classics that never went away (Kreator for example). However, there's a still a huge void of Thrash bands that needs to be filled. If only these bands like Fall Of The Leafe and similar bands in the past (Tiamat, Theatre Of Tragedy) changed their style to Thrash instead of Gothic the world would be a happier place.

2004 was also a great year for Viking and Folk Metal. It seems more bands than ever are starting to play this style and the result has been very enjoyable. Much like Black Metal these bands have distinct approaches to their craft and the shear skill and song writing excellence within these bands is outstanding. Hopefully the genre doesn't become too watered down, and the fact the bar is being raised so high so very quickly by bands like Wintersun might prove to have a negative effect on the style. Only time will tell.

I would now like to take this time and abuse my powers in this words about the year section by giving some honorable mention to some CDs which didn't make my list. Thus, the following bands deserve special mention for releasing outstanding CDs this year that shouldn't be missed: Shadow's Fall, Graveland, Skyclad, Bloodbath, Persuader, Elvenking, Borknagar, Demonoid, Death Angel, Die Apok... Reiter, Rammstein, Sacred Steel, and Pyramaze. Okay, now I don't feel so bad about leaving these bands off of my list.

Now, I would like to state for the record that I'm apparently the only person in the world who liked Annihilator - All For You. Well, that's all for me and here's to another great year of listening to Metal!

Cheers!
Chris - aka Crims

So here I sit with another year over, staring at my list of top fifteen albums of 2004 and questioning whether or not that it is actually completely indicative of how I feel about this year’s metal crop. The top eight are solidly in place but it is near the end where I could rearrange some things and feel no worse for wear. Some albums that didn’t make it, but definitely would if this were a top twenty five would have been, Worlds Apart, 8 Deadly Sins, Subsurface and several more. Instead of bemoaning the fact that not every single cd I spun more than five times this year can make it into my top fifteen list and replacing the last three slots yet again, I’ll just comment on what I have before I spend another hour or so on this thing. Looking back at my past two year’s awards I came to the conclusion that this year, I’ll scale back the amount of comments on my list. I’ll just throw in a few words on some choice selections instead of my usual five page rant.

Number one on the list obviously goes to the debut album, Melancholy Beast by the best new band in the scene today, Pyramaze. If you’ve been a reader of this site for any extended amount of time you know how highly I regard this music so I really don’t have to elaborate that much anymore, everything that can be said to praise this album I have already stated. Having lived with it for over half a year now and having played it basically every single day since its inception, I can honestly say that this is the best album of the year and nothing else even came close.

I am as surprised as you that Platitude scored as high as they did. The more I listened to Nine after the review went up the more I grew to love it. A superb disc that blended two of my favorite genres, Power Metal and Melodic Rock, I see a bright future for this young band.

Dragonland have taken a complete 180 degree turn musically, lyrically, and stylistically. Gone are the heroic fantasy penned epics, what we have now are deeply personal crafts and a more mature sensibility, one that is a stark contrast to their current name. As a fan of their earlier works I welcome this new direction that they seem adamant in maintaining, this is how one evolves.

2004 was a big year for me personally, it is the year that I fully realized that what I am doing is benefiting the metal community more than I knew. Living in a completely unmetal town like I do, no one gives a shit who I interview, what I review, and what the metal news is but traveling to Prog Power, or seeing Iced Earth, Children of Bodom, and Evergrey in Austin and meeting fans of my work, including members of Kamelot, Helloween, Edguy, Platitude, Pyramaze, Manticora, Wuthering Heights, and Brainstorm has reaffirmed my eternal lust for metal and for spreading the word on what is, and what isn’t worth your time. I recently threw my cards down on the table and applied to Nuclear Blast USA for their publicist position, let’s hope they call me back.

I have noticed also that 2004 might be remembered as the year that metal began to make its way back into the US. With two hugely successful tours by big name acts, (the previously mentioned Iced Earth package that rivaled some of Europe’s tours, and Nightwish’s tour which they’re repeating with Sonata Arctica in 2005) this might open up the doors for other European bands to come over here and play who might have never even given the US the time of day before. There is also a resurgence in metal festivals now, and while the best is certainly still Prog Power USA, I would be lying if there wasn’t more than one other fest that caught my eye. I expect that number to increase this year, but I have faith that Glenn will always have the best lineup and the best package out of them all.

Sometimes brevity is the optimal option so this year I am going to close with a thanks to all our readers, I enjoy all your fanmail (and hate mail too, it shows me what bands have class and who doesn’t) and read every comment posted. Without you this site would not exist and we are eternally appreciative of your support. I wish you all the best in 2005 and if we ever meet up somewhere at a concert, or Prog Power then the first beer is on me.

So much to do, so little time ... I petition for an extra hour each day and for scientists to invent the pill, so that people can consistently survive on 5 hours of sleep without feeling completely burnt out by the end of the week. How many more useful things I could have done, not to mention many more Metal albums I could have given a better ear?

For Metal, 2004 was a good year. Every time I have to juggle the Top 15 and leave albums out, it was a good year. Even though you don't see them up above Stormlord, The Black League, Insomnium, Persuader, Ragnarok, Lifend, Lilitu and Polterchrist were just as deserving to appear on the list. Some tough choices were made ... so I petition for more spots as well. And what about those countless albums I have on my "to experience" list? Something I have yet to acquire? Yup, we definitely need more time.

For business, it was another year of survival. Isn't every year like this?

For my family, we had a brand new son, so I suppose it is good (where is that sleep now?)

For humanity, well, I have had some sad reflective editorials this year, so the state of it still can use a lot of improvement.

A bunch of personal thanks go out to The End and Dave @ Earsplit, guys I wish I could review every promo you sent my way. There is so much to listen to, plus I have to buy and listen to the bands I faithfully follow.

To the fans, someone once wrote on the forums that his tastes really conincided with mine, and he hasn't been disappointed with anything I quoted high and he later purchased. This is probably the largest praise a reviewer can have. Agree or disagree, I always welcome your opinion and comments in the forums.

To the team, it continues to grow, to welcome new members while staying pretty tight all the while. Guys on hiatus (you know who you are), I hope things are working out for you, and you will come back soon, stronger than ever.

Happy 2005 to you all!

It's unfortunate that this wonderful year of music is going to be forever remembered by the untimely and illogical murder of perhaps one of the most influential metal guitarists of the last 20 years. Dimebag's memory will live on. There is scant reason any musician to perish in such a fashion.

Another sad note of 2004 was the horrific blow dealt to the New York City metal scene. The classic club where virtually every band got their start, L'amour, closed it’s doors forever. The metal scene is reeling since a replacement has not been found. Lamours (as it was colloquially known) will be missed.

We can also only hope for the painful and fast death of metalcore, screamo and any other pseudo-metal nonsense that assaults our ears.

Some additional notes: Best DVD of the year, without a doubt goes to the German power metal masters. I of course speak of Blind Guardian. "Imaginations Through the Looking Glass" has to be the best live concert DVD that I’ve ever seen. From pristine sound, incredibly sharp picture, to the excellent extras and packaging, this one had it all. Other bands should take note, this is how a DVD is done.

The Duskfall released their album "Source" on December 29, 2003. They don’t qualify for the list unfortunately but this album would certainly be in my top 5 if it had qualified. Don’t miss this wonderfully produced masterwork of Melodeath.

I compiled my list from a pool of over 100 albums. Whittling that number down to 15 was a real task. Naturally, some amazing music was shortchanged. Here are some albums that narrowly missed the cut.

Honorable Mentions for 2004: Borknagar – Epic Demonoid – Riders of the Apocalypse Die Apokalyptischen Reiter – Samurai Iced Earth – The Glorious Burden Omnium Gatherum – Years in Waste Therion – Lemuria / Sirius B Within Y – Extended Mental Dimensions Wuthering Heights – Far from the Maddening Crowd Vintersorg – The Focusing Blur

Thanks to all of my fellow reviewers for being smashing chaps to work with and splendid fellows to talk with. I will strive to be the best reviewer I can be in the future as long as I have you guys backing me up. Most importantly, a big thank you to the readers. Without you, we are nothing. Diuturnus victum Metal.

What to expect from 2005? As far as albums go, the coming releases by Nevermore, Kreator, Judas Priest, Soilwork, Dark Tranquility, Overkill, Audioslave and CHILDREN OF BODOM, along with many more are holding my patience very firmly in their grip. Great concerts are also heading to Finland, which of I hope to catch as many as possible. Especially that ICED EARTH European tour that was unfortunately cancelled, I hope will arrive on these northern shores.

It is not certain how many I will be able to attend because today I will begin my military training that is mandatory for all of us male Finns. This shall limit all of my personal activities, including my participation with Metalreviews. This will NOT mean that I will never write a review again (sorry to get your hopes up, all you Slipknot-bashers out there;) but that my schedule has other priorities for the time being. My reviews will be appearing whenever there has been time to do so.

I hope you all had as thrill-filled metal year in 2004 as I had and wish you all an even more unbelievably moshtastic 2005. Remember in the words of the almighty Diamond One, David Lee Roth: “Its not important whether you won or lost, but how good you looked while doing it”.

Till the next neck-breaking riff, Triple A signs off and salutes you all! ,,/,,/

2004 was year full of highs and lows, and surprises and disappointments - but overall a good year for metal. May 2005 bring us all health, prosperity, and an endless supply kick-ass Heavy Metal!

I’d like to also take this opportunity to thank the readers and the metalreviews team. Without the readers and their participation on the message boards this site wouldn’t be half as good as it is; and I must also thank them for the intelligent discussion about music that seems to be lacking on other metal sites.

To the metalreviews team: It has been almost a year that I have been part of metalreviews and each day I thank fate for letting me be part of such a great team. This site has really done a lot for me on many levels both intrinsically and externally and I am extremely grateful.

To be honest, the only reason I really liked this year was because of my beginning involvement in metal. If it weren't for that, this year would have been rather lackluster. I do hope 2005 will be more of a banner year for black metal, and that the next Darkthrone album is better then the snoozefest of Sardonic Wrath. Thanks go out to all the metalreviews forumists who made me feel accepted, and especially to the other reviewers, who have been nothing but helpful and kind.

Here's to a better year... next year!

Cheers,

Aaron (Dead Machine

As Empires Rise and Fall

The best way to analize a year in Metal is by checking your "top 15 albums of the year" list. A list like that can give you a very good idea pf how good a year in Metal was. Could you easily pick 15 albums? Where you obsessed with any of those albums for a long time? Did you have trouble letting three or four albums out of your list? or on the contrary: Couldn't you find 15 albums that you consider killer? See, by answering simple questions like these ones, a person can determine if the year was good or not for him.

In my case as you probably know, I'm a Black Metal freak, so I will analyse 2004 from a Black Metal perspective. As I said before let's take a look to my list and from there draw some conclusions.

Choosing the first, second and third possitions of my list was very hard considering the undoubted quality of the three releases that now occupy those places. At the end I decided to give the throne to the French horde Deathspell Omega