Really curious for a top 20 or 10 or just one album that is your favourite for this year.

i'm pretty sure shaarimoth and venenum will be my top 2 when the year is out - very recently i've been digging the new aosoth

there'll most certainly be a top 2017 albums thread in the main section later on that'll fill up with stuff to check out

In no particular order...

Metal:

Enslaved - E

An interesting and unexpected album, maybe their most progressive in years. The new keyboardist/singer is amazing.

Anubis Gate - Covered in Black

Really good progressive/power metal. Darker than their previous albums, some interesting riffs and sounds here.

Pain of Salvation - In The Passing Light Of Day

What a comeback! The band's best album in years. Cool riffing and amazing backing vocals by the talented Ragnar Zolberg.

Black Anvil - As Was

Progressive Black Metal with catchy stuff; reminds me of Elegy/Tuonela-era Amorphis.

Darkest Hour - Godless Prophets & The Migrant Flora

Maybe their finest album. Melodic Death Metal/Metalcore with a gritty hardcore edge and cool riffing.

Foscor - Les Irreals Visions

Progressive Metal evolved from a blackened sound to a more alternative/avant-garde approach. Beautiful atmospheric sound.

Loss - Horizonless

One of the top albums of the year for me: superbly produced funeral doom metal with some black metal influences. Think Leviathan's Scar Sighted gone funeral.

Bell Witch - Mirror Reaper

Beautiful album. Really long and repetitive, but you just get lost within it's gloomy atmosphere.

Emptiness - Not For Music

Wow. Just wow. I'm not sure what genre of music is this (Industrial? Metal? Ambient? Avant-Garde?), but I want more of this evil dancey stuff!

Pallbearer - Heartless

An evolution from previous albums. They just keep getting better at what they do.

The Ruins Of Beverast - Exuvia

Insane album: I really dig the tribal/chamanic atmoshere. Not as good as Blood Vaults but still impressive.

Trivium - The Sin And The Sentence

A total surprise. Maybe Trivium's best album: a clever mix of everything they ever made. Even some melodic black metal influence in some songs.

Venenum - Trance Of Death

I really love this trippy death metal. In the same vein as Tribulation's The Formulas of Death or Morbus Chron's Sweven. To be honest, the progressive parts outshine the metal ones.

Ghost Bath - Starmouner

I really like it: some interesting guitar work and crazy ideas that make it a fun listen.

Aosoth - V: The Inside Scriptures

Downtuned french black metal. I love their unique take on the genre. Very atmospheric and violent.

Blut Aus Nord - Deus Salutis Meae

Another marvelous release from France. Really balanced album, but sadly, quite short!


Not Metal:

Code Orange - Forever

I love what this kids are doing: groovy hardcore/metalcore with some industrial undertones. Really dig their more melodic pop side too (see 'Bleeding in the Blur').

Rope Sect - Personae Ingratae

Pretty cool EP by this newcomers. Sounds like a more laidback and gothic Ghost, some Sister-era In Solitude influence too.

Jaden Smith - SYRE

I wasn't expecting such a good album by Will Smith's spoiled child. No kidding.

Converge - The Dusk In Us

Even though they are starting to get boring, they never fail to deliver. Pretty good album, featuring one of their best songs ever ('The Dusk In Us')

Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Caesar

Ulver doing synthpop is one of the best things I've heard in 2017. Definitely my AOTY.

Joey Bada$$ - All-Amerikkkan Bada$$

Best hip hop album of the year for me. Nothing too trendy (despite having a trap song), and overall a really honest release.

Marilyn Manson - Heaven Upside Down

Since Pale Emperor, he's making good music again. Not as good as that album, but still strong. The best songs are the less heavy ones.

Oxbow - Thin Black Duke

Oxbow's most accessible album to date. Somewhat catchy, a really clever and complex album by one of the most underrated bands ever.

Suicide Silence - Suicide Silence

I love how they pissed off their fans with this album. Truth is I really like it: lot's of nu metal/90s nostalgia.

Tyler the Creator - Flower Boy

Thought it was going to be another 'overhyped because of it's LGBT content' album just like Frank Ocean's Blonde was, but it is really good!

The metal albums that have really stood out to me the most this year are:

Ungfell - Tôtbringære
Somewhat playful black metal with a lot of interesting guitar lines and howling vocals.

Cnoc an Tursa - The Forty Five
Atmospheric pagan black metal with a lot of melody and triumphant moments.

Woe - Hope Attrition
Fairly straightforward black metal with some Mgla-esque melody, just overall well done.

Falls of Rauros - Vigilance Perennial
Atmospheric black metal in the Wolves in the Throne Room style, but with a lot of nice change-ups to the style.

Artificial Brain - Infrared Horizon
Tech death that sounds like Wormed crossed with Krallice.

Archspire - Relentless Mutation
Very fast and catchy tech death that sounds like a lot of Spawn of Possession.

Bell Witch - Mirror Reaper
Funeral doom of the accessible variety ala Shape of Despair.

My full list of albums I like this year can be seen here: https://rateyourmusic.com/list/RyanCoon ... ases-2017/

These are my favorite albums of the year that I've heard. When reading this list, keep in mind that I haven't exactly kept up with what was "trendy" and didn't really focus on new releases this year.

Blood - Inferno (Death/grind)
Blood returned after the same amount of time making nothing new as Morbid Angel and released a killer album. This album sounds more death metal-ish than the previous album I heard (Gas. Flames. Bones., I haven't heard the album between the two yet) and reminds me of Christbait. Not surprising, since most of the lineup on that album appears here as well. My only gripe was that it was too fucking short. 8.5/10

Freeways - Cold Front (EP) (Heavy rock)
This is really good hard rock that I found by searching for "nwobhm" on Bandcamp. Not metal, but still great. 8/10

Hellix - Against Rationalism (EP) (Technical Thrash Metal)
This is basically WatchTower worship. If you really enjoy that band, you'll likely enjoy this one. 8/10

Heresiarch - Death Ordinance (Blackened Death Metal)
I figured this was going to be a good release, and it didn't fail to deliver. Brutal as hell and, while it is chaotic, is still rather orderly musically, unlike many bands like this. 9/10

Immolation - Atonement (Technical Death Metal)
To be fair, I wasn't expecting much at first. I mean, I haven't found much of Immolation's work after Unholy Cult interesting, so when I found out they made a new album, I had a mixed reaction towards it, especially when I saw the older logo was being used. That being said, this slays. Definitely worth listening to. 8/10

Manilla Road - To Kill A King (Epic Metal)
Basically, it's rather typical by Manilla Road's standards, but that doesn't stop it from being a good album. 8/10

Dead Horse- The Beast That Comes (Thrash with Death Metal elements)
This might just be my favorite album of the year. I was actually very surprised by this one. The artwork isn't my favorite (and it kinda turned me off), but curiosity got the best of me in the end. This is a stunningly good thrash album (in an era where most thrash isn't very appealing imo) and a very great comeback for this band. 9.5/10

Satan's Hallow - Satan's Hallow (Heavy/Power Metal)
Heavy/Power Metal that sounds something like Iron Maiden IMO. Very competent album. 8.5/10

Steel Night - Steel Night (EP) (Heavy/Power Metal)
Another release that worships Maiden. 8/10

On another note, the biggest disappointments for me:
Incantation - Profane Nexus (Death/Doom Metal)
This was boring as hell, and sounds more artistically bankrupt than the new Morbid Angel did. 2/10

Morbid Angel - Kingdoms Disdained (Technical Death Metal)
This album could've been a good album, but overall it failed to captivate my interest and was really just another mediocre death metal record made this year that happened to be connected to a legendary band. 4.5/10

And shit I've yet to hear that I want to hear:
Godflesh - Post Self (Industrial Metal)
Jag Panzer - The Deviant Chord (Power Metal)
Legendry - Dungeon Crawler (Epic Metal)
Nortt - Endeligt (Funeral Doom/Black Metal/Ambient)

And, that's about it, from what I've seen.

2017 is still going on

New album for listening:
https://www.metalnews.pl/newsy/iperyt-p ... -gehinnom/

For me one of the best in this year was Saule debut album.

There's a poll going on in the metal discussion subforum. Might want to keep an eye on that, eonblack.