Top Albums for 2009
1) Redemption - Snowfall on Judgement Day
2) Epica - Design your Universe
3) Subsignal - Beautiful and Monstrous (for fans of the last two Sieges Even albums)
4) Nosound - A Sense of Loss
5) Katatonia - Night is the new day
5) Dream Theater - Black Clouds and Silver Linings
6) Blind Ego - Numb
7) OSI - Blood
8) Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion
9) Oceansize's Feed to Feed (amazing box set)
10) Devin Townsend - Addicted
11) Shadow Gallery - Digital Ghosts
12) Porcupine Tree's The Incident
13) Vertical Horizon - Burning the Days
14) Creed - Full Circle
15) Derek Sherinian - Molecular Heinosity
15) Riverside - Anno Domini High Definition
Notes:
-DT's Black Clouds was a return to top form. I think the next album will be a monster.
-Subsignal is an amazing band by two former members of Sieges Even....but 10x better. I definitely recommend this one.
-Creed's Full Circle is the return to top form by this band. It is very different from their previous outings.
-Katatonia's Night is the New Day was my discovery of 2009. I had never heard of this band before but now, this album is balls to the walls!
-Nosound was another 2009 discovery. Very atmospheric/post rock kind of vibe.
-Can't say enough about Redemption's album. It's my album of the year full of great lyrics and melodies topping it off with a great production. Nick van Dyk is becoming one of my favorite all-time lyricist (list includes Jim Matheos, Kevin Moore, John Petrucci).
-Devin Townsend's output this year includes Ki and Addicted. We will see a couple of more albums next year. While Ki wasn't my cup of tea, Addicted was played consistently in my Ipod. I personally prefer the 2nd half of the album.
-Vertical Horizon is one of the few rock/pop bands that I listen to. Burning the Days remains my favorite output by VH. Their signature sound never went away and Matt is also becoming one of my favorite lyricists out there.
-Porcupine Tree still remains as my 2nd all time favorite band even with The Incident down in my list. I personally feel that while the direction of the record/band was great (sounds, instrumentation, etc...), the concept of the 55 min song was a bit lacking. If the band would have carried the sound used in The Incident (i.e. Deadwing, FOABP, In Absentia) but with a different concept, the record could have been amazing. I think it The Incident was a bit dragging but still has some of PT's greatest songs: Time Flies and the 1-2 punch with Circle of Manias and I Drive the Hearse. Maybe hearing The Incident live can change my view.
-Epica's Design your Universe is the band's best record to date. It instantly blew me away!
My disappointment of the year was Transatlantic's The Whirlwind. 2nd disc sounds more TA-ish than the 1st one but still has some amazing TA moments. I think the lyrics were part of this disappointment. I think the references to God were way more obvious than TA's previous albums and that was a turn off for me. I think this record stands between Bridge Across Forever and SMPTe (BAF being their best).
Finally, I'm listening to the new 30 Seconds to Mars album...and I'm loving it. Let's see if the list changes on Dec. 31st.
PS - I'm trying to write a piece on King Crimson's 40th Anniversary show that I attended at Chicago in 2007. I think I finally undestand what Robert Fripp's gripe on cameras is...I'll keep you updated...
1) Redemption - Snowfall on Judgement Day
2) Epica - Design your Universe
3) Subsignal - Beautiful and Monstrous (for fans of the last two Sieges Even albums)
4) Nosound - A Sense of Loss
5) Katatonia - Night is the new day
5) Dream Theater - Black Clouds and Silver Linings
6) Blind Ego - Numb
7) OSI - Blood
8) Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion
9) Oceansize's Feed to Feed (amazing box set)
10) Devin Townsend - Addicted
11) Shadow Gallery - Digital Ghosts
12) Porcupine Tree's The Incident
13) Vertical Horizon - Burning the Days
14) Creed - Full Circle
15) Derek Sherinian - Molecular Heinosity
15) Riverside - Anno Domini High Definition
Notes:
-DT's Black Clouds was a return to top form. I think the next album will be a monster.
-Subsignal is an amazing band by two former members of Sieges Even....but 10x better. I definitely recommend this one.
-Creed's Full Circle is the return to top form by this band. It is very different from their previous outings.
-Katatonia's Night is the New Day was my discovery of 2009. I had never heard of this band before but now, this album is balls to the walls!
-Nosound was another 2009 discovery. Very atmospheric/post rock kind of vibe.
-Can't say enough about Redemption's album. It's my album of the year full of great lyrics and melodies topping it off with a great production. Nick van Dyk is becoming one of my favorite all-time lyricist (list includes Jim Matheos, Kevin Moore, John Petrucci).
-Devin Townsend's output this year includes Ki and Addicted. We will see a couple of more albums next year. While Ki wasn't my cup of tea, Addicted was played consistently in my Ipod. I personally prefer the 2nd half of the album.
-Vertical Horizon is one of the few rock/pop bands that I listen to. Burning the Days remains my favorite output by VH. Their signature sound never went away and Matt is also becoming one of my favorite lyricists out there.
-Porcupine Tree still remains as my 2nd all time favorite band even with The Incident down in my list. I personally feel that while the direction of the record/band was great (sounds, instrumentation, etc...), the concept of the 55 min song was a bit lacking. If the band would have carried the sound used in The Incident (i.e. Deadwing, FOABP, In Absentia) but with a different concept, the record could have been amazing. I think it The Incident was a bit dragging but still has some of PT's greatest songs: Time Flies and the 1-2 punch with Circle of Manias and I Drive the Hearse. Maybe hearing The Incident live can change my view.
-Epica's Design your Universe is the band's best record to date. It instantly blew me away!
My disappointment of the year was Transatlantic's The Whirlwind. 2nd disc sounds more TA-ish than the 1st one but still has some amazing TA moments. I think the lyrics were part of this disappointment. I think the references to God were way more obvious than TA's previous albums and that was a turn off for me. I think this record stands between Bridge Across Forever and SMPTe (BAF being their best).
Finally, I'm listening to the new 30 Seconds to Mars album...and I'm loving it. Let's see if the list changes on Dec. 31st.
PS - I'm trying to write a piece on King Crimson's 40th Anniversary show that I attended at Chicago in 2007. I think I finally undestand what Robert Fripp's gripe on cameras is...I'll keep you updated...
posted by Oscar Quintero at 1:25 PM
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