Chris Begg

My Top 5 Albums of 2009

// December 27th, 2009 // News

With 2009 drawing to a close I thought I’d put together a list of my top 5 albums of the year.

It was a very hard decision coming up with a top 5 due to the amount of top quality releases the year has produced. So without further ado here is my top 5 albums of 2009.

5. Sirenia – The 13th Floor

The Thirteenth Floor marks the first album by Sirenia with new singer Ailyn.  It’s a brilliant album with heaps of melody and grunt.  Perfect if you’re into Gothic Metal.

Highlights

• The Path To Decay
• The Mind Maelstrom
• Winterborn 77

4. Marduk – Wormwood

It had been a while since I’d listened to a Marduk album, but this year I decided to give Wormwood a good listen.  This is an awesome black metal album, and Marduk are also experimenting more with the music which breaks up the monotony that can sometimes be too much in Black Metal.

Highlights

• The Phosphorous Redeemer
• Whorecrown
• As a Garment

3. Forest Stream – Crown of Winter

I had never heard of Forest Stream before picking up this album,, but I wish I had.  This album is a mix of Black Metal, Gothic Metal, Doom Metal, and more, and Forest Stream do it well.

There is a certain beauty about the way the songs are written, although in some instances their influences are extremely clear as I could hear distinct early Katatonia sounding riffs in certain songs.  But that doesn’t diminish from the quality of the music.  Definitely worth a listen.

Highlights

• The Autumn Dancers
• Bless You To Die
• The Beautiful Nature

2. Amorphis – Skyforger

I’ve been a fan of Amorphis since the Tales From the Thousand lakes album, and it’s very rare that they disappoint me.  This album is no exception.

Skyforger is a continuation in style from both Eclipse and Silent Waters, and you can tell that they’ve got comfortable with Tomi as the singer.  A brilliant album.

Highlights

• Silver Bride
• Majestic Beast
• From the Heaven of My Heart

1. Katatonia – Night is the New Day

Well here is my album of the year.  I had high expectations for this album as I’ve been a huge Katatonia fan since Brave Murder Day / For Funerals to Come.  As usual Katatonia delivered a masterpiece.

The style is a continuation of The Great Cold distance, however Night is the New Day sees Katatonia experiment more with synth sounds and see Jonas delivering some incredibly moving vocal performances, moving in to realms unheard of before for Katatonia.  A great album to listen to while you’re feeling down.

Highlights

• Onward Into Battle
• Departer
• Forsaker
• Night & Then The New Day
• Every bloody song on the album

On a side note, it’s sad to hear that Frederik and Mattias have decided to leave Katatonia so soon after the release of this album.