As we enter the countdown to Christmas and with a mere
17 days to go it is time to present 16 of
the best albums from September, it is time for your SOUR 16.
You
know the drill by now, each month you the reader are unwittingly
compiling a list of the top16 records of the month, covering all
genres of metal. Is it not a chart, in which reviewers or contributors
extol their opinion about their favourite music. To put it simply, THE SOUR 16 are
the records that have been trending the most at SLUDGELORD HQ.
The
results are compiled based on the amount of page views the reviews have
received and are then calibrated into the list below. All reviews
can be viewed by clicking the artwork and we have included album streams
wherever possible. (Total views since their publication
are highlighted in the red)
16).
Sect – “No Cure for
Death” (823)
Sect have set the standard for hardcore music and what it should
aspire to in 2017. If you’re looking to heavy music with a message, look no
further than “No Cure for Death”.
15).
Slabdragger & Wren - “Mothers Of The Beef And The Magic Of
Invention” [Split] (874)
Both bands deliver the best kind of cover version; one that takes
the source material and imbues it with their own unique spirit to create
something new and exciting. An essential purchase for any fans of the UK
heavy underground and maybe it’ll turn some old Zappa and Beefheart heads
towards the sludgier side of life too
14).
Cannibal Corpse - "Red
Before Black" (938)
Once again, Cannibal Corpse have crushed all in their wake and
returned as conquering anti-heroes of the death metal genre. Cannibal
Corpse remain the death metal band by which many other death metal bands are
judged and remain my go-to band of choice if I want to listen to something
extreme, violent, uncompromising and also oddly, inexplicably, insanely
listenable.
13).
Hooded Priest - "The
Hour Be None" (959)
This is doom metal that will appeal to anyone with a sense of
theatre and anyone who wants to bang their head as well; there is some great
metal on offer here. Huge and sprawling in its ambition, “The Hour Be None” is
a doom tour de force and I recommend it highly.
12).
Amenra - "Mass
VI" (1054)
Amenra’s music is real and comes across as
brutally honest. The formula (sonic + emotional heft) = (a heavy album) is
one that’s been done many times before, but what Amenra does that sets them
apart from the pack is the diligence they use when drinking from the well of
inspiration. Amenra makes their listener feel and live with them. This keeps
Amenra in touch with why they started making music in the first place. It’s
this artistic integrity that helps make “Mass VI” what it is.
11).
Pale Horseman - "The
Fourth Seal" (1084)
Pale Horseman offers a special sort of heft
to their music, with mesmerizing guitars convulsing, vocals crunching and
the drums creating a war beat that is stifling in weight.
10).
Fister & CHRCH – “Fister/CHRCH” (Split LP) (1120)
Over the course of nearly forty minutes,
CHRCH and Fister, employing different sonic palettes and lineups, craft a
perfect split for the moment: unholy, polluted, funereal and dismal – a requiem
for humanity’s end times that is as beautiful as it is ugly.
9).
Manilla Road - "To
Kill A King" (1205)
In summary, To Kill A King is a superb and epic metal album, forged
from the finest steel.
8).
Dead Quiet – “Grand
Rites” (1255)
All of the nuance and balance on this record really make it an
experience that never bogs the listener down. It is for these reasons, that
Dead Quiet’s “Grand Rites” is one of the best Canadian Metal records of the
year.
7).
Purple Hill Witch - "Celestial
Cemetery" (1256)
From the Deep Purple-indebted organ intro,
to the bluesy pentatonic riffing, there’s no doubt that the latest LP from Norway’s
Purple Hill Witch is pure retro-metal worship. The pervasive garage
metal swagger elevates some pretty raw material and proves that they have the
chops to be a really excellent outlier in the doom metal underground
6).
Clouds Taste Satanic - "The
Glitter of Infinite Hell" (1381)
Clouds Taste Satanic’s blend of doom, stoner
and sludge chords, capacious basslines and drums set an imposing climate that
sets them apart from their peers. Each cut here feels distilled down
to the pitched greatness of its many influences. Guitars simmer like the hunt during
a horror movie and by the albums conclusion, chances are your mind will be
thoroughly mashed.
5).
Converge - "The
Dusk In Us" (1897)
Today, with random acts of violence, anger
and pessimism dotting our timelines, maybe Converge just now seems like a
soundtrack to our contemporary apocalypse
4).
Godflesh - "Post
Self" (2301)
It may be a disturbing, challenging last
will and testament of humanity’s futurist hopes and dreams, but “Post Self” is
an invigorating, complex, and honest piece of industrial metal. Perhaps
most importantly, in a genre that can be glutted with repetitive speed metal
riffs and samples of shouting despots, Godflesh stands as one of the smartest
bands working today.
3).
Norilsk - "Le
Passage des Glaciers" (2752)
French canadian doom duo Norilsk return
from a two-year layoff with a surprising new album, one that gives a reengaged
sound to the pair's signature style. Norilsk manages to be bold
without being alienating, and that is indeed refreshing.
2).
Electric Wizard - "Wizard
Bloody Wizard" (9121)
“Wizard Bloody Wizard” transcends
whatever the in-thing of the moment is, and focuses instead on musicianship,
the album's all-analog approach creates a warm, vintage sound for the songs and
on the whole Electric Wizard feels re-energized, whilst remaining true
to their seedy pedigree
1).
Morbid Angel - "Kingdoms
Disdained" (28760)
This album is a statement of intent, placing
the focus on convulsive rhythm changes and dissonant, jagged riffs over
accessibility. ‘Kingdoms Disdained’ is Morbid Angel's most uncompromising
album of their career and their best album in nearly twenty years, and I don’t
consider that light praise.
A
big thank you as always to our amazing writers, your dedication knows no
boundaries and for that I am truly grateful.
Novembers 2017’s “SOUR 16” features
reviews by: Richard
Maw, Ernesto Aguilar, Daniel Jackson, Mark Ambrose,
Victor Van Ommen, Charlie Butler & Mark Tremblay
