TONEwood's Top 10 Metal Albums of 2018

For fear of sounding like a Jerry Seinfeld joke, what's with all the insane death metal albums this year? Though I consider myself to have a broad taste, my greatest worry in making this year's top 10 metal albums has been whether or not the list would be too samey. I decided that censoring or catering the list for any reason wouldn't be right - After all it should only be about which albums were best - subjectively, of course. Now the biggest challenge is gonna be varying the descriptions...

1. Tribulation - Down Below
In truth Tribulation never really struck a chord with me before I saw the live for the first time in 2017. Listening to their material afterwards I still wasn't completely sold, in part because their sound has changed so much over the course of their four albums. But when I heard Down Below, it finally clicked - And it clicked hard. Their music has always felt highly conceptual, and for me that rarely works. But with Down Below it's far more than mere theatricals and masquerades. Their sound - which is by now a highly unique blend of gothic heavy metal mixed with the aesthetics of black and death metal - fits the visual style perfectly, without relying on it in any capacity other than an added visual dimension.


2. Torture Rack - Malefic Humiliation
Man, what a groove! Malefic Humiliation came to my attention at a time when I though I was getting bored with the slew of new death metal bands highly influenced by the sound of Incantation and Immolation, reigniting that spark of interest. Torture Rack's sound is rotten to the core, but simple and extraordinarily groovy. Among dozens of worthy contenders for top 10 death metal albums in 2018, Torture Rack's second album really hits a home run with its excessive groove and simplistic barbarity.

3. Galvanizer - Sanguine Vigil
Of all the debut albums I've heard in 2018, few stand out like Galvanizer's Sanguine Vigil. Among death metal maniacs this is undoubtedly a crowd favourite, and with good reason. Being from Finland, that rotten presence of doom, gloom and grind in their sound isn't exactly unexpected, but definitely not unwelcome either. If Carcass' Symphonies of Sickness or Xysma's Above the Mind of Morbidity are your jam, there's a good chance Sanguine Vigil could be your album of the year.

4. Whoresnation - Mephitism
I checked out Mephitism on a whim, and it's more or less been in near-constant rotation ever since. Whoresnation understand the value of keeping grindcore short and sweet, with plenty of lower tempo mosh parts to keep things interesting. Don't get me wrong, I love high speed grinding as much as the next guy. But the grooves - the contrast, if you will - is what has made the likes of Nasum, Wormrot and now Whoresnation favourites of mine.





5. Hyperdontia - Nexus of Teeth
Where would death metal be without the riffs? You can come up with your own deathcore jokes and put 'em here. With a pedigree like the members of Hyperdontia - which numbers people from Decaying Purity/Burial Invocation/Engulfed, Apparatus/Eldjudnir/Phrenelith/Sulphurous and Undergang/Wormridden, you know you're in for a real death metal rager. Though 2017's Abhorrence Veil EP paved the way, Nexus of Teeth really brought home the bacon.





6. Taphos - Come Ethereal Somberness
Well someone has been listening to a lot of Altars of Madness and Blessed Are the Sick. Not that I blame them, of course. Come Ethereal Somberness feels like a swirling mass of hellish riffing, demonic screams and frenzied pounding, where the simple setup of the band really helps emphasize just how effective their songwriting is in not only emulating the sound of the classics, but adding a bit of modern zeal to the style.

7. Tomb Mold - Manor of Infinite Forms
I'm personally not all to much into weird death metal, but Tomb Mold hits the sweet spot between classic, traditional death metal tunes and ambitious, eccentric dissonance. What they've elaborated on from the debut Primordial Malignity to Manor of Infinite Forms is a pure distillation of their prime components. Where Blood Incantation never truly sat right with me, Tomb Mold surpassed that threshold into regular rotation at the residence.

8. Hooded Menace - Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed
Fulfill the Curse and Never Cross the Dead have been household favourites for quite a few years now, but for some reason Effigies of Evil and Darkness Drips Forth never really saw the same amount of air time for me. Having taken such a long break from new Hooded Menace material, I was surprised at just how much I like Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed, especially considering Lasse Pyykkö's final departure as studio vocalist for the band. With Hooded Menace you can scarcely talk about a return to form or a departure from anything, as they've by and large been incredibly consistent. Even so, their latest album for me feels like so much like the Hooded Menace I know and love, with all their melancholic doom riffing set to ultra heavy drums and bass.


9. Visigoth - Conqueror's Oath
Traitor's Gate from Visigoth's second album is by far my most listened-to song of 2018. It was definitely a tough job topping the debut, The Revenant King, and I'm still not completely certain that they have, but Conqueror's Oath comes pretty damn close with tracks like the afforementioned and Steel and Silver. I'm definitely a sucker for powerful vocals and heavy handed guitars, and Visigoth once again deliver the goods.

10. Afsky - Sorg
Here you go, the only black metal entry on the list. For fear of it feeling a bit token, let me just assure you that Sorg - the debut solo album from Ole Luk of Solbrud - is highly deserving of every bit of praise that it receives. Contending against the incredible newest albums from the likes of Marduk, Immortal and Whoredom Rife, Sorg is definitely more on the atmospheric side of the black metal spectrum. The sound-wise similarities between Afsky and Luk's main band Solbrud are definitely there, and living up to the hype is by no means an easy task. But Sorg is far from being just rejected Solbrud riffs. As a solo project (although session members were used in recording and for gigs), Afsky feels very personal in both lyrics, music and especially in execution. These aspects all factor in when Afsky's Sorg takes it's place on the top 10.




Metal Honourable Mentions
Disrule - Sleep in your Honour
Local heroes Disrule once again deliver a brilliant bottom-heavy slab of Sabbathian stoner metal with a fair amount of Manchu-groove. Sleep in your Honour is heavier than the Omen Possessor debut, but leaves little to be desired in terms of catchiness. Case in point, tracks like Occult Razor and Enter the Void.

Deiquisitor - Downfall of the Apostates
Deiquisitor are definitely one of the most productive current Danish death metal bands, and their style is very different from the majority, even if it's all still kept oldschool. Downfall of the Apostates is as brutal as ever, hinting at even greater things to come.








Sulphurous - Dolorous Death Knell
Dolorous Death Knell is definitely top 10 material, but its late release date doesn't serve it well. Having listened to this more than a few times since it came out, I can tell that it probably would've made it onto the list proper if it had been out 2 or 3 months earlier. Like Taphos, Sulphurous aims for a reckless late 80s to early 90s sound that works incredibly well with their tasty riffs.






Archgoat - The Luciferian Crown
Is The Luciferian Crown Archgoat's best album yet? There are probably more than a few opinions regarding that statement, but for me it certainly feels like it. Though Whore of Bethlehem and everything after it is pure gold, The Luciferian Crown just feels like a non-stop tour of every layer of hell with a crushing, apocalyptic death metal soundtrack.







Michael Romeo - War of the Worlds // Pt. 1
Where the argument with Afsky was that it didn't just sound like throw-away tracks from a main project, my main gripe with War of the Worlds pt I is that it does kind of just sound like Symphony X runoff. With SX lead singer Russell Allan doing Adrenaline Mob/Trans Siberian Orchestra stuff, and SX bassist Mike LePond touring with ex-Manowar guitarist Ross the Boss (not the pedo one), you get the feeling that War of the Worlds is sort of an opportunity to keep the ball rolling - especially because the style sounds so close to Underworld and Iconoclast. The songwriting is still good, but there's a lot of filler that detracts from the whole experience, even if vocalist Rick Castellano does his best to elavate the hits from the misses.