Yeah not a bad list overall, agree that Morbid Angel shouldn't really make a list if stuff like Immolation doesn't it. I do love the Condor mention.

Not a bad list. Glad to see Jute Gyte, Vanum, Dodecahedron, Gigan, and even Morbid Angel getting a mention. Don't get the love for Locust Leaves, though - maybe needs more of a chance but I didn't find that all too interesting. But I like that list.

Oh, fuck, I haven't heard 3/4 of these.

I've heard 18 of the albums in that Stereogum list, most of which I was not a fan of. That list is definitely too "hipster-y" for my tastes.

Yeah don't bother, that Locust Leaves album is borderline garbage. There are a few cool ideas/riffs but even at 30 minutes or whatever it's an exhausting listening that doesn't give much at all to grasp onto. I tried for a while before realizing "this isn't over my head, it's just annoying."

The Stereogum list is one of the more respectable metal lists I've seen from a bigger publication, I suppose. Even better than a few offered by metal-centric blogs that I've seen. Still, there's a bunch of the usual odd or trendy picks. I mean, Go Be Forgotten at the top spot? Really? It's a good record, albeit not far removed from the usual Krallice affair, but A) it hasn't even been out a month and B) it's debatable whether or not it's even the best Krallice record of 2017 let alone the best metal one.


I'll throw my hat in the ring here. I would recommend A Subtler Kind of Light. I'm not saying it's an amazing album or anything (some moments are disjointed and a little directionless) but overall it's a pretty worthwhile and unique listen. Cool riffs, interesting vocals and flashes of wonderful songwriting. Made me more excited to hear a followup if the project could make a more focused and consistent record than anything. Also, I think I mentioned this in another thread but the first song "Light (Fos)" is so much better than the following two tracks that it effectively overshadows the rest of the album.

Haha, thanks for the tip.

^
nahhh, youve been led astray

In my twitter feed, someone posted the link to metal-hammer's year end list. I've never read their magazine/website; I really know nothing about them, but I'm guessing after viewing this list, they're not very reputable. I've never seen a list quite as bad as this.

http://teamrock.com/feature/2017-12-15/ ... -year-2017

Who in the fuck is actually reading this website/magazine?

Never thought I'd see a list of anything that includes both Forgjord and Papa Roach.

Came here to post the Metal Hammer list. Absolutely terrible. Top 5 is laughable:

5) Zeal & Ardor – Devil Is Fine
4) Enslaved – E
3) Code Orange – Forever
2) Myrkur – Mareridt
1) Mastodon – Emperor Of Sand

Also wtf with Comeback Kid and Papa Roach??

Agreed. Any album that Ayloss plays guitar on is OK with me, even if the rest of the instrumentation is a little out there. I'm not normally one for the avant-garde shit but I enjoyed that album enough to buy it.

In fairness, Comeback Kid absolutely rules. I got a lot of shit for putting Die Knowing on my best of list back in 2014 but I'm also 100% sure everybody who mocked me for it had never actually listened to it. They are not and should never be confused for a metal band, but I get the sense that a lot of people see their name and general aesthetics and assume that they're much wimpier than they are, because they go fucking hard.

But yeah Metal Hammer is a joke and most people know that by now. I think the most telling thing is actually putting Zeal & Ardor so high up. That album is a really cool idea that is so obviously underdeveloped and released by a guy who is in way over his head. There was an interview with Noisey where he even said as much, something along the lines of "I'm really glad and humbled that people seem to like it so much but I personally feel like I have a long way to go, the album is still really rough and I'm trying to find my footing still" or something like that. It's so true, because I came to the exact same conclusion. The metal parts come and go in like six second bursts, there's more melodeath riffing than black metal riffing, there are bizarre trip hop and other assorted electronic influences that do precisely fuck-nothing to convey the theme of the album, like 70% of it is made up of just slave chants and piano stuff. There is only one song that actually puts all of the influences together and doesn't separate them all between themselves, and it's far and away the best moment of the album because it shows how cool the project could be if the dude behind it could get his shit together. I hate to be a snob here but this is about as close to an objective truth I can find when it comes to music: the album is underdeveloped and borderline unfinished, the creator himself even admits that it's all basically still in first draft form and the main reason he's pushing to start touring and pumping out new music as soon as he can is because it became a surprise hit.

But Z&A exemplifies a bunch of favorable qualities in yourself if you say it's among the best. It shows that you're open minded, deep, unique, sympathetic, high brow and understanding of the experimental. Devil Is Fine is basically a musical corncob pipe and dusty study chair. I'm gonna keep my eye on the project because I feel like it has a ton of potential and truly could be a standout of "weird metal" in the years to come, but the biggest giveaway that you're a giant fucking poser in 2017 is drooling all over it in its current state.

Excellent analysis, and I agree 100%. I saw Z&A's set at Psycho Vegas and the whole time he kept saying things like "I can't believe this is real" and "It's so crazy to be doing this." He seemed very just overwhelmed and confused to be put in such a position, and he's clearly not comfortable performing music live.

Decibel's list has got some way out of order stuff imo...you could easily swap Power Trip and Paradise Lost to make it way better.

Also, y'all keep bashing these other sites list (understandable- they mostly suck) and Code Orange...have y'all heard Forever? If so, did we listen to the same thing? One of my favorite releases this year, it's pretty damn close to the angriest thing I've heard all year

I pretty much agree with BastardHead about Z&A. The "album" is basically just a demo of a few ideas, far from fleshed out, and for every hit there's seems to be a big swing and miss (most of the electronic musings). Not to mention all the material has been floating around well before 2017, so I wouldn't even qualify it as a 2017 release. I've got a bunch of respect for Manuel Gagneux as an artist, though. That quote from him that BastardHead cited is pretty much all you need to know...

I agree. Light (Fos) is one of the best tracks for 2017 for me. Helm has a great voice and Ayloss's guitar is obviously great. Certainly not 7th best album of 2017, but give it a chance!

From Stereogram list, I want to listen to Dodecahedron & Cleric

They are onto to something with Integrity - that is a ripping album with some great soloing.

Otherwise, I pay little to no attention to these lists. Rather read lists put together by individual posters on here.

Are we only posting lists from well-known publications? If not, here's Heavy Metal Sasquatch's best of 2017.

For those that don't want to click:

1. Archspire - Relentless Mutation
2. Cloak - To Venomous Depths
3. Ex Deo - The Immortal Wars
4. Enslaved - E
5. Varius - Red Messenger
6. Kreator - Gods of Violence
7. Persefone - Aathma
8. Paradise Lost - Medusa
9. Widek - Hidden Dimensions
10. Power Trip - Nightmare Logic
11. Septicflesh - Codex Omega
12. Iced Earth - Incorruptible
13. Ne Obliviscaris - Urn
14. Obituary - Obituary
15. Intervals - The Way Forward
16. Vampire - With Primevil Force
17. Necrot - Blood Offerings
18. Temple of Void - Lords of Death
19. Suffocation - ...Of the Dark Light
20. Maat - Monuments Will Enslave
21. Dying Fetus - Wrong One to Fuck With
22. Cannibal Corpse - Red Before Black
23. Scale the Summit - In a World of Fear
24. The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers
25. Incantation - Profane Nexus

At least they got the #1 correct
I won't mind if we put any list here as long as it's not our own. But it's not my thread.

It's funny how all those lists never mention Acrimonious and their Eleven Dragons album. Probably my number 1 for 2017, such a fantastic album.

Metal Hammer is a joke. They clearly don't listen to enough stuff.

Yeah the Z and A record has no business whatsoever being in a top 10 list, not even a top 20, and I might even say top 50. The only reason people like this album (or most of the reason - I'm not saying it doesn't have any flashes of cool shit going on) is because first draft reviews commented on the "slavery" angle he played, so it got attention.

The more I examine that MH list the more of a joke is becomes. I mean every album in their top 5 shouldn't even be in a top 10. Perhaps the Enslaved record could make it, but surely none of the others.

Not sure what the issue is with Zeal and Ardor. BH has a point that this is pretty underdeveloped and the guy will hopefully refine it more - but it sure is cool and interesting. I'm really liking this. Not really metal though, no.

And it seems pretty obvious to me that a mainstream rock/metal publication isn't gonna have a list that gels with some of you guys' tastes. Metal Hammer at least had Ruins of Beverast on there. And Converge, though I haven't heard the new one yet so I dunno if that particular album is a 'best of the year.'

If anything, just the concept of having a Top 100 is weird - that's such a broad number. It just seems dumb to me to bitch about that as if we expected them to poll us and ask us what we wanted on it. Of course they're gonna put big mainstream bands and weird metalcore or whatever on there.

Heavy Blog is Heavy top 25 of 2017

(Some non-metal in this list, too. I guess this blog looks at many genres, but most of these are metal.)

1. Full of Hell - Trumpeting Ecstasy
2. Artificial Brain - Infrared Horizon
3. Elder - Reflections of a Floating World
4. Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Caesar
5. Archspire - Relentless Mutation
6. Converge - The Dusk in Us
7. Pyrrhon - What Passes For Survival
8. Trivium - The Sin and the Sentence
9. Caligula's Horse - In Contact
10. Dreadnought - A Wake in Sacred Waves
11. Pallbearer - Heartless
12. NYN - Entropy: Of Chaos and Salt
13. Zeta - Zeta
14. Sikth - The Future in Whose Eyes?
15. Mastodon - Emperor of Sand
16. The Black Dahlia Murder - Nightbringers
17. Bent Knee - Land Animal
18. The Contortionist - Clairvoyant
19. Dodecahedron - Kwintessens
20. Ingurgitating Oblivion - Vision Wallows in Symphonies of Light
21. Yazz Ahmed - La Saboteuse
22. Colin Stetson - All This I Do For Glory
23. Bell Witch - Mirror Reaper
24. Ne Obliviscaris - Urn
25. Ex Eye - Ex Eye

I'm surprised by the positive response the new Caligula's Horse is getting. I thought it was a pretty big step down from the previous two.

I'm not a fan of Archspire and I can see why some people are, but having them at #1 in anything is hilarious

I think they pushed there sound to a new place. I agree that it's different from "Bloom" and "The Tide, The Thief..." in being flashier and perhaps more focused on melody (and a touch softer), I would not see it as a qualitative step down in any way. Some people will not like it, I'm sure, and that's fine. I really dig it and have put it in my Top 10 this year.

While they won't be #1 for me, Relentless Mutation is amazing. Love the band when they started and this album really pushes them. I like that.

Heavy Blog is Heavy reminded me of Ingurgitating Oblivion. Need to get on that one.

That list definitely have some albums that I have as well. But ... Trivium? And also I just don't understand Pallbearer. I don't find their latest effort to be interesting at all.

But, Venenom - Trance of Death... por que, no?

Replying earlier in the thread, I think doom is far over represented in most metal lists, but I'm also bored to tears by doom metal, so... yeah.

Found another list: Agoraphobic News top 30 metal albums

For those that don't want to click:



Good list that becomes great the closer to #1 you get. Plenty of worthy additions there.

Here are some good lists worth checking out. Both Heavy Blog Is Heavy and No Clean Singing posted aggregate lists of a bunch of different music publications. NCS actually included HBiH in their article, so check that one out first. Gives you a very good picture of what's trending:

http://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2017/12 ... bums-2017/

http://www.nocleansinging.com/2018/01/0 ... -of-lists/

Many intelligent points made in those articles about how lamestream metal journalists mislead their readers about what's going on in metal.