Terrorizer’s Top 50 Albums Of 2014: Part 3

Published: December 19, 2014

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Well, the time is finally upon us. As 2014 draws to a close, Terrorizer is proud to present our top ten albums of the year. If you missed Part 1 and Part 2, then here are the rules: We asked each of our writers for their twenty favourite albums of 2014, assigned their number one choice twenty points, their twentieth choice one point (and so on and so forth), and then totalled up the scores etc etc blah blah. The results are as follows…

10. Electric Wizard10. ELECTRIC WIZARD ‘Time To Die’ SPINEFARM

Plagued by stress, paranoia and an unstable line-up, Electric Wizard defied the odds to produce one of their most gloriously deranged records in years. Whilst not the all-consuming psychedelic experience of ‘Come My Fanatics’ or ‘Dopethrone’, ‘Time To Die’ is a document of mental, physical and spiritual fatigue, a strung-out death cry echoing deep into the void. Now that’s heavy. [Kez Whelan]

 

9. Pallbearer9. PALLBEARER ‘Foundations Of Burden’ PROFOUND LORE

Proving there’s much more to doom metal than untamed facial hair and rehashed Sabbath riffs, Pallbearer’s second full-length finds the Little Rock foursome expanding their sonic palette in every conceivable direction. Heartbreakingly beautiful in places, straight-up crushing in others, ‘Foundations Of Burden’ serves as their golden ticket to doom’s upper echelons. [Mike Kemp]

 

 

SUA 331LPES Trigatefold.indd8. SÓLSTAFIR ‘Otta’ SEASON OF MIST

Homogeneous to the cripplingly beautiful hinterland in which it was made, ‘Otta’, the fifth full-length from Sólstafir, is the most melodically striking and emotionally exposed album of the Icelandic act’s near-twenty-year existence. Each profound passage seamlessly blends into the next, resulting in a truly rewarding and cinematic listening experience overall. [Dean Brown]

 

Inlaysheet.eps7. PRIMORDIAL ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ METAL BLADE

If ‘To The Nameless Dead’ was Primordial’s watershed moment, the triumphant ‘Where Greater Men Have Fallen’ is undoubtedly their most confident. On their eighth full-length Ireland’s kings distilled those inimitable Primordial foundations into a record of unparalleled passion, intensity and bombast, defining their sound, identity and refusal to compromise all at once. [Rich Taylor]

 

6. Eyehategod6. EYEHATEGOD ‘Eyehategod’ HOUSECORE/CENTURY MEDIA

For all their sludge-drenched imitators, there’s no elixir quite like that of the original masters, and this return from the brink – chronicling an era in which this always-embattled band have struggled with hurricanes, homelessness and the death of founding drummer Joey LaCaze – proves their eternal worth as abject and essential wielders of primal catharsis. [Jimmy Martin]

 

5. Triptykon5. TRIPTYKON ‘Melana Chasmata’ CENTURY MEDIA

Its sole flaw is it ‘only’ comes second, in the wake of the already cataclysmic ‘Eparistera Daimones’ that also featured the horrid yet fitting art of the now defunct HR Giger. But ‘Melana…’ is nevertheless another massive 67 minute tour-de-force of utter darkness to behold, perpetuating Celtic Frost’s legacy and even, in places, exceeding it. [Olivier ‘Zoltar’ Badin]

 

 

4. Yob4. YOB ‘Clearing The Path To Ascend’ NEUROT

Considering their catalogue thus far, the fact that ‘Clearing The Path To Ascend’ is Yob’s most outstanding album yet is nothing short of astonishing. The band’s renowned meditative heavy sound reaches its zenith here with an utterly disarming intimacy that’s equally as commanding in its restraint as it is in its riffs. [Jonathan Dick]

 

 

3. Behemoth3. BEHEMOTH ‘The Satanist’ NUCLEAR BLAST

It’s like Brutal Truth once said: “fuck cancer!” What Sharp and the lads didn’t say was, “fuck cancer, spit in its face then write a killer album.” Sounding justifiably energised, Inferno, Orion, and especially Nergal present the sonic manifestation of living one’s life under the gun and putting everything you’ve got into what you’re doing today because there’s no guarantee you’ll be doing it tomorrow. [Kevin Stewart-Panko]

 

2. Swans2. SWANS ‘To Be Kind’ YOUNG GOD/MUTE

There aren’t many bands that go on to produce one of their best works three albums deep into a post-reunion career; but then, there aren’t many bands like Swans. After Michael Gira steered the new incarnation of the group into uncharted, thrillingly expansive territory with 2012’s ‘The Seer’, it was difficult to see how they could top it. ‘To Be Kind’ somehow manages to eclipse it in every aspect, however, immediately feeling more focused and visceral and revealing new intricacies with every subsequent listen – and trust us, despite its two hour length, this is one you’ll be revisiting both frequently and enthusiastically. [Kez Whelan]

1. Godflesh1. GODFLESH ‘A World Lit Only By Fire’ AVALANCHE

Reunions are always unpredictable, but in Godflesh’s case we had the gut feeling that Justin K. Broadrick would do it right. ‘A World Lit Only By Fire’ far exceeded just “right”, as it achieved oft-elusive perfection in its balance of past and present. Recapturing the true spirit of the band’s origins, which Justin stated all along as the true purpose of the reunion, it was however very much Godflesh 2014, a current, future-facing beast. Driven by the martial ruthlessness of the drum machine, it was a permanently tense and bleak listen, blending the organic and the mechanic into a tight and untouchable whole, ruling over anything else the year had to offer. [José Carlos Santos]

So, there you have it! We couldn’t wrap this up without a few words from the creator of our Album Of The Year, so here you go…

How does it feel to have your first album in thirteen years be made album of the year in Terrorizer?
Justin Broadrick (guitar, vocals): “Fantastic! It’s very nice to have our album receive such an accolade in a publication that isn’t quite as old as us, that essentially champions extreme music, specifically extreme metal. It feels completely right, and I am sure there are many more metal albums out there this year that contain much more ‘extreme’ sounds, but I guess ours is an idiosyncratic approach; wider than just simply being extreme and challenging.”

Is this encouragement to make another new album before long?
Justin: “It is certainly very inspiring – the reactions to this album have been generally overwhelmingly positive. Who knows how and when the next album will happen, but we’re certainly excited about it. 2015 is nearly all performing this album live, but I would hope to have time to begin the writing process for the next album before the end of the 2015, with a view to recording the album early 2016. Although we should still have a release or two next year – ‘A World Lit Only By Fire In Dub’ with additional real drums from Ted Parsons, and we hope to release the ‘Pure – Live From Roadburn’ too, so finally everyone can have the opportunity to hear that album with a production that we’re happy with!”

What’s been your favourite album of 2014?
Justin: “That is exceptionally hard to commit to! This year, a lot of my friends have released amazing albums: Sun Kil Moon, Cut Hands, The Bug, Old Man Gloom, Khost, Skullflower. All great friends who have made amazing new albums this year!”

The post Terrorizer’s Top 50 Albums Of 2014: Part 3 appeared first on Terrorizer.

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