Best Albums of 2018


     Due to the fact that I didn't really find many stand out EP's this year which I really loved, I have decided to not do an EP's list this year, I had planned to and even mentioned it in my songs list, but as I sat down to write it up I really couldn't find much to say about the ones I had shortlisted which made them sound like the best the year had to offer, so I'm just going to straight into the Albums list.

Honourable Mentions: (These 3 are here because I liked them quite a bit, but I listened to them and enjoyed them generally less than the other 7 listed)

10: Infernal Coil - Within A World Forgotten

9: OWL - Nights in Distortion

8: Dead Can Dance - Dionysus

Best of 2018:

7. Biosphere - The Hilvarenbeek Recordings


     Earlier this year I really expanded my tastes to include a lot of electronic and ambient music, and soundscapes. Biosphere's other albums scratched the itch for minimalistic and moody ambient music, and I found other outlets for my soundscape interests. However the newly remastered Hilvarenbeek Recordings became the best of both worlds for me. The use of melody and empty space in Biosphere's music is beautiful and a great contrast for me after listening to something like the above mentioned Infernal Coil. Though "Pipistrellis" is a very unpleasant and weird listen, what with it's unidentifiable bug noises, the rest of the album is very soothing and pleasant.

     While Biosphere's other albums are more enjoyable to me and I can tell this one was meant to be more of an experiment, I am glad that this kind of Electronic music is still being made/reworked today. I listened to this a lot this year, but due to the nature of the music I couldn't really put it higher than any other album here. Still a great album and one of my favourites this year.

     Superfjord's brand of retro Progressive Rock and Psychedelia is very refreshing, as it does not just sound like another "wrong generation" band, but rather that they are paying homage to classic bands and musical movements. I'm sure they are sick of the comparison, but I really hear a bit of Pink Floyd here, specifically their earlier albums. It's a shame this band hasn't had more mainstream attention, because their sense of sound and pure rock sound is a lot more enjoyable and deserves more attention than the ultra-derivative Greta Van Fleet. People say rock is dead, when really there is no musical genre that will ever be truly dead, people just aren't looking in the right places.

     This album flows very coherently and nothing feels out of place, due to this there is not much sound variety but it is all so proficient and enjoyable that this does not demote from it's listening experience. Personal highlight is album closer "Rainha da Floresta".

5. Cosmic Church - Täyttymys 


     The second Finnish band here, coming right after Superfjord. Cosmic Church released Täyttymys rather early this year in May, though after hearing it in full I knew that I would be hard pressed to find another Black Metal album I liked as much that year. I do enjoy a lot of Black Metal, but it's a big ask to get me to listen to a full album of it. Cosmic Church combine a sense of otherworldly atmosphere with very evocative synths that take up just as much space as the other instruments here, the closest band I can think of which fits Cosmic Church's sound are their fellow countrymen Vordven.

     There are both slower songs and faster here, but the quality never falters here, this is Melodic Black Metal at it's finest. I cannot pick a favourite song here, as the flow of this album never lets up. It feels like a single composition which is perfect from start to finish.

4. John Maus - Addendum



     Among the other albums here, this is the weirdest one. John Maus is a former Philosophy professor, and according to himself has been diagnosed "with every disorder under the sun". That being said, he knows how to make intriguing and odd music. Addendum is filled with very serious and dark sounding Organ driven songs, everything sounds like it could belong in an 80's slasher film. There is just one thing, and that is the lyrical concepts. Track one is called "Outer Space" and starts it's chorus with a baritone "They don't know shit about outer space". Believe it or not, personal album highlight "Dumpster Baby" follows the same lyrical head-scratching after Maus beckons us "You take that baby to the dump, to the dump"

     It might sound strange, but Maus' proclivity for odd lyrics makes sense when you hear how catchy every song is. It's almost believable that Maus simply intends for his fans to have lines like "I am i am the running man" floating through their heads.

3. Yaima - Antidote


     Nearing the end of December, I was disappointed in myself that I had not been able to get the end of the year lists out for the end of 2018, I didn't get too down on myself as it is such a busy time of year, I felt better about this fact when a few days later I discovered this album. Yaima's Antidote released on the 29th of December of this year, and I really respect that. That is such an unpretentious time to release an album, or it is rather pretentious depending how you look at it. Regardless it is clear that Yaima were not concerned about getting on any lists. Well, they found their place on mine.

     Antidote is a beautifully melodic New Age album, performed by Guitarist and instrumentalist Masaru Higasa and Vocalist Pepper Proud, this album is a breath of fresh air. Filled with a diverse variety of World music and instruments, the album travels to all corners of the globe. The production and clarity of the recording is really wonderful and every song, though often short and sweet shines with it's own character and melody. Highlights are "Rise" and "Odonato".

2. Alkaloid - Liquid Anatomy


     I reviewed this album earlier in the year, and it still holds on to the 9/10 rating I gave it then. Alkaloid are a Technical Death Metal band, this is notable because I more or less get so bored by this type of music usually, This album hit every mark I would want something like this to cover. It was heavy, yet melodic, progressive, yet still maintained a good edge to it that kept it from sounding wanky and clean cut like a lot of Tech-Death.

     I spoke highly about the tracks "Kernel Panic" and "Rise of the Cephalopods" and they remain my favourites on the album. Another thing that made this album stand out for me among other types of Tech-Death albums is the very clear and audible Progressive Rock influence, for example "Kernel Panic" has a very strong Rush/Yes influence that elevated it above the rest for me.

1. YOB - Our Raw Heart


     If you've followed this blog in the last year at all, you may not be surprised by this pick, YOB's Our Raw Heart was the most powerful album of the year, sonically and emotionally. Mike Scheidt's return from death's door, and his resulting celebration of life and death on Our Raw Heart impacted me in a way that no other album did for me this year. There is such a large divide between even my number 2 album of the year and this one, this album just stands so far above the rest this year. It makes me look forward to what YOB releases next, but at the same time I see this album as a very beautiful swan song, and if this were to be their final album I would not be upset.

     Though I am still not a huge fan of "The Screen", the context in which it fits on the album and it's place fits perfectly in terms of it's content. As you may have seen on my Best Songs list, "Beauty in Falling Leaves" has become one of my favourite Doom Metal songs of all time, the mark this album left on me was immense and this album will be in my regular rotation for a long time to come.
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Looking Forward:

     Going into 2019, I'm going to be changing up the formula a bit for the Blog. There will still be semi-regular posts regarding music, and album reviews but I will be leaving monthly Track Roundups off the schedule, they are very time-consuming and I would like more time to be able to write about different things, such as books, movies, TV shows, and other subjects. This will also allow me to step back and just enjoy music for a while, I couldn't do this for a job I think, much of the time it leaves me wanting to take a break from music which is the last thing I would want. So going forward, there will be a bit less in terms of posting, but the quality will be greater and much more diverse. Looking forward to what 2019 brings!

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