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Intro

Well, a few days ago I realised it was my 3rd anniversary. Unfortunately, it was my 3rd birthday back on the 9th October. So, in true Martinesque fashion this journal is well over a month late. So I apologise for this very late journal, hopefully the content is worth the wait.

My 3rd Year

It’s been a bit of a funny old year really. I am sure I haven’t bought as many albums as I had this time last year. Were as last year, I was largely filling in the gaps of my music collection, this year almost all of my purchases have been new artists (except from a few new releases from bands already on my ipod). This seems to have largely been based around my attendance to a few gigs and trying to get as much of the bands back catalogue as possible both before and after the gigs. As well as new artists been added to my charts, there has been some movement in amongst my charts for the more established artists. From about 6 downwards, there has been movement. The top 5 still remains, but below there has been major movement which is an encouraging sign. The top 5 looks like it could finally get broken in the near future too. I feel this is last year’s purchases taking effect which have established some artists into higher positions.

The Gigs

Well since October last year, I have been to some cracking gigs. My first of that period was Priest Feast back in February of this year, were I saw Judas Priest, Megadeth and Testament. Now I had seen Megadeth before and was quite familiar with they’re material (see my charts ;-)) but I hadn’t had the pleasure of seeing Judas Priest or Testament or hearing they’re material. I checked both bands material and frankly both of them were very good. Testament were my favourite of the two though, but I must say that Judas Priest were the best of the bunch live. I have bought almost of each bands material now, which just demonstrates how gigs are a great way of finding great music.

My next gig was in April, with The Prodigy supported by Dizzee Rascal playing at Sheffield. I knew all of The Prodigy material however wasn’t expecting much of Dizzee Rascal and wasn’t intending to check out his material. But despite my low expectations for the bloke, he was brilliant. He had so much energy and he pulled off the beats brilliantly. In fact the whole venue was rocking, including myself! Despite Dizzee Rascal been somewhat of a positive surprise, The Prodigy would truly blow me away. They were absolutely phenomenal and remain the best act I have ever seen. They were so intense and I think I must have lost about a pint in sweat! I came out absolutely fucked and was still fucked in the morning.

The next gig was Progressive Nation in October. This was a good gig, but it wasn’t as good as it could have been. Despite me boning up on some Opeth, the majority of their set was from other albums. The same problem happened with Dream Theater, though this time it was even worse as I actually owned quite a few of their albums, yet they still barely played any material from them! Very disappointing, but just bad luck I suppose.

As a result of these gigs, I have checked out some quality bands who will make an impact on my charts within the next year or two. I am going to see Rammstein next year too, so I am checking out they’re material as we speak :-)

Hip-Hop: A Youtube Phenomenon?

One of the more bizarre events of this last year on Last FM was my “discovery” of Hip Hop via You Tube. Don’t ask me why, but one day I decided I would check out some Hip Hop/Rap on You Tube. I was at work and was a little bored. I decided rather than spend my time browsing the internet; I would design a signature for another site I post on. I started having a go, but couldn’t concentrate. I needed some music, but unfortunately my ITunes library at work was out of action. So I turned to You Tube and sat they’re thinking what I could listen to. I didn’t want to listen to rock/metal, I wanted something different or maybe something I hadn’t heard before. In the end, I thought of what was the opposite of metal. In a split second I thought Rap and decided to check some out. I instantly thought of Wu Tang Clan because I had heard Gravel Pit a few times and kinda liked it. That was the beginning of the end and I started checking out other Wu Tang Clan stuff. In a strange way, it helped me concentrate; I could appreciate the intelligent word play as well as the subtle beats in the background. Amongst my favourites of Wu Tang Clan were Protect Ya Neck, Da Mystery of Chessboxin' and Triumph. I then checked out some N.W.A, BodyCount and some Skee-Lo. So, for a genre I once hated, I discovered stuff I liked within a week. I haven’t bought any Hip Hop stuff, but it’s certainly a genre I would want to check out in future. So, watch this space guys!

Stats

As with the last “Last FM Birthday” journal I will analyse my top 10 and what’s happened well since last October/November within my top 10.

1. Megadeth

Overall Plays – 4,312
Plays Since Last Birthday – 1,193
Summary – Still top by a comfortable margin and frankly not much has changed. A new album gave these guys a boost but I think by and large these guys are living off the sheer amount of material I have of theirs already. They’re large discography allows them to have a heavy presence in the shuffles I play, so it’s certainly going to be a long time before these guys from the top spot. Not saying they are not a great band, but I have been listening to them a while and I am not as much of a fan boy as I used to be.

2. Iron Maiden

Overall Plays – 3,658
Plays Since Last Birthday – 1,078
Summary – Much the same as the Megadeth situation really. No new material for a while now and I say they are less likely to release new material than Megadeth are. Iron Maiden are, unsurprisingly, another non mover.


3. Red Hot Chilli Peppers

Overall Plays – 2,981
Plays Since Last Birthday – 862
Summary – Yet another band who have “stagnated” really. A new album is supposedly on its way. But I can’t see it making enough impact to move the RHCP’s into the top two. The only way is down really, especially as I have been listening to them even longer than I have Iron Maiden or Megadeth.

4. Led Zeppelin

Overall Plays – 2,445
Plays Since Last Birthday – 779
Summary – A band that I hold in higher esteem than RHCP’s but not Iron Maiden or Megadeth. I have by and large got they’re material except the odd live album and session album which I would be interested in. Unfortunately that’s not going to happen, because frankly I want to concentrate on either new bands or artists near the bottom of my charts who have little material. Another band I expect to go downhill in my charts, despite the new material I feel this will be of minimal impact.

5. Thin Lizzy

Overall Plays – 1,984
Plays Since Last Birthday – 586
Summary – Man o man, I cannot remember the last time I bought an album by these guys. A cracking rock band too. Despite been one of the more established artists in my charts, I still have plenty of material to purchase of theirs. I am very surprised they are still in the same place in my charts to be honest, they are obviously still relying by and large on the plays from the double disc greatest hits album I bought ages ago. Expect them to maybe fall before making a rise again once I get more material.

6. Madness

Overall Plays – 1,836
Plays Since Last Birthday – 791
Summary – A great year for these guys, they have moved up three places in my charts. They even have had more plays in the last 12 months than both Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy. Frankly it’s deserved after they have released what must be one of the albums of 2009 in Liberty of Norton Folgate. I still have plenty of material to check out and they are looking increasingly likely to be the first band to break the “big five”.

7. Jimi Hendrix

Overall Plays – 1,832
Plays Since Last Birthday – 741
Summary – Hot on heels of Madness, Jimi Hendrix is another artist that will break into the top five in my opinion. The man is an absolute genius and produces music that is simply out of this world. I still have a few more albums to purchase of his and like Madness, he has had more more plays in the last 12 months than Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy.

8. Black Sabbath

Overall Plays – 1,783
Plays Since Last Birthday – 505
Summary – A terrible 12 months for Black Sabbath. They have dropped like a stone by two places and could drop even further. However, like Thin Lizzy, there is hope. I do not own the majority of their albums, so hopefully they guys might “recover” if you like. Black Sabbath are another band who have been riding high on a greatest hits package and a few albums, only for the plays to dry up as other bands have developed and they haven’t. In fact, they are only rated 22nd out of 36 bands with regards to plays for the last 12 months. I think that tells its own story.

9. The Prodigy

Overall Plays– 1,761
Plays Since Last Birthday – 835
Summary – Well, the electro punks have finally gate crashed the party. I can’t think of many bands that I rate higher right now. The wall of noise they produce is downright astonishing and they are certainly trailblazers in my charts. They are the only electronica band in my charts and for them to even reach the top 10 is fantastic. They’re live show is fantastic and they’re new album is a return to form. I must say the amount of brilliant b-sides which I downloaded from ITunes recently won’t exactly have hindered they’re progression. Expect them to overtake Black Sabbath.

10. Electric Light Orchestra

Overall Plays – 1,703
Plays Since Last Birthday - 724
Summary – Certainly the nicest band in my top ten, and I can’t help feeling they’re feeling the benefit of been great revising music. But, let’s not take anything away from them. They make lush, layered, progressive rock music. They are innovators and they’re whole sound fits in well together. It helps having a cracking front man and songwriter in Jeff Lynne too. They have produced classic albums and I have barely scratched the service with these guys really. Potentially another band who could find themselves moving up my charts.

Conclusion

Boy, I never realised what an interesting year on Last FM it has been until I actually sat down and thought about it. It’s been a nice surprise really, rather than simply filling in gaps in my music collection I have found myself integrating new bands into my music library. This is down to the gigs mainly, which have forced me to discover some cracking music. Judas Priest, Testament and Opethall have exciting futures ahead of them in my charts. I am checking out Rammstein as we speak because I am seeing them in February, which should be cool. While I am in the mode of checking out new stuff, I thought I might as well action some recommendations that Stubbsy67 gave me aaaggeesss ago - Machinae Supremacy and Soulcage. So do not despair Shaun, I have been listening ;-) So another exciting year of music beckons and frankly I can’t wait to get my teeth into it. Keep your eyes peeled for my next journal by the way, which will be my top 10 album discoveries of 2009.

Hope you enjoyed reading this journal, your comments would be much appreciated :-)

Cd's I bought today:
Misery Index - Discordia
Voivod - Voivod

(All Bought)
!T.O.O.H.! - Rad A Trest
3 Inches of Blood - Advance and Vanquish
3 Inches of Blood- Trial Of Champions
Aborted - The Archaic Abattoir
The Absence - From Your Grave
...and Oceans - A.m.g.o.d.
Abaddon Incarnate - The Last Supper
Absu - Absu
Acid Bath - Demos: 1993-1996
Agathodaimon - Higher Art of Rebellion
Agathodaimon - Serpent's Embrace
The Agony Scene - The Darkest Red
Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Honky Reduction
Akercocke - Choronzon
Alice In Chains - Dirt
American Head Charge - Can't Stop The Machine
American Head Charge - The Feeding
American Head Charge - The War of Art
Amon Amarth - Fate of Norns
Amon Amarth - Twilight of the Thundergod
Amon Amarth - Verses the World [2 CD Edition]
Amon Amarth - With Oden on Our Side
Amorphis - Far From the Sun
Anaal Nathrakh - The Codex Necro
Anal Cunt - It Just Gets Worse
Angel Corpse - Of Lucifer and Lightning
Animosity - Animal
Anthrax - Among The Living
Anthrax - Attack of the Killer B's
Anthrax - Sound of White Noise
Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Apocalyptica - Plays Metallica By Four Cellos
Arch Enemy - Anthems of Rebellion
Arch Enemy - Black Earth
Arch Enemy - Burning Bridges
Arch Enemy - Dead Eyes See No Future
Arch Enemy - Doomsday Machine
Arch Enemy - Rise Of The Tyrant
Arch Enemy - Stigmata
Arch Enemy - Wages Of Sin [Special Edition]
A Tribute to the Four Horsemen
At the Gates - The Red in the Sky Is Ours
Austrian Death Machine - A Very Brutal Christmas
Austrian Death Machine - Double Brutal
Austrian Death Machine - Total Brutal
Bathory - Nordland
The Beavis and Butthead Experience
Behemoth – Demigod
Behemoth - Pandemonic Incantations
Behemoth – Satanica
Behemoth – The Apostasy
Belphegor - Pestapokalypse VI
Benümb - Withering Strands of Hope
The Berzerker - Dissimulate
The Berzerker - World of Lies
Beyond The Embrace - Insect Song
Biomechanical - The Empires of the Worlds
The Black Dahlia Murder - Deflorate
The Black Dahlia Murder - Unhallowed
Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath - Children of the Grave
Black Sabbath - Heaven And Hell
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Black Sabbath - Sabotage
Blo.Torch - Blo.Torch
Bloodbath - Breeding Death
Bloodbath - Nightmares Made Flesh
Bloodbath - Resurection Through Carnage
Bloodbath - The Fathomless Mastery
Bloodbath - The Wacken Carnage
Bloodbath - Unblessing The Purity
Blood Duster - Blood Duster
Blood Red Throne - Come Death
Bolt Thrower - Those Once Loyal
Bonded By Blood - Feed The Beast [2 Disc Special Edition]
Borknagar – Epic
Bring You to Your Knees: A Tribute to Guns 'n Roses
Buried Dreams – Necrosphere
Burn the Priest - Burn the Priest
Burzum - Hliðskjálf
Callenish Circle - Forbidden Empathy
Cannibal Corpse - The Bleeding
Cannibal Corpse - Bloodthirst
Cannibal Corpse - Butchered at Birth
Cannibal Corpse - Centuries Of Torment: The First 20 Years DVD
Cannibal Corpse - Evisceration Plague [Special Edition]
Cannibal Corpse - Eaten Back to Life
Cannibal Corpse - Live Cannibalism
Cannibal Corpse - Gore Obsessed
Cannibal Corpse - Kill
Cannibal Corpse - The Wretched Spawn
Cannibal Corpse - Vile
Cannibal Corpse - Worm Infested
Carcass - Necroticism-Descanting the Insalubrious
Carcass - Heartwork
Carcass - Reek of Putrefaction
Carcass - Swansong
Cardiac Necropsy - Scumwhore Superstar!!!
Carnal Forge - Who's Gonna Burn
Carnifex -The Diseased And The Poisoned
Cattle Decapitation - Karma.Bloody.Karma
Cattle Decapitation - To Serve Man
Cavalera Conspiracy - Inflikted
Celtic Frost – Monotheist
Century Media 2006 Sampler
Century Media Distro Spring Sampler Volume 3
Cephalic Carnage - Anomalies
Cephalic Carnage - Conforming to Abnormality [Reissue]
Cephalic Carnage - Exploiting Dysfunction
Cephalic Carnage - Xenosapien
Children of Bodom - Are You Dead Yet?
Children of Bodom - Follow the Reaper
Children of Bodom - Hatebreeder
Children of Bodom - Hate Crew Deathroll
Children of Bodom - Trashed, Lost & Strungout
Chimaira - Chimaira
Chimaira - Impossibility of Reason
Chimaira - The Infection
Chimaira - Pass Out of Existence
Chimaira - Resurrection
Circle of Dead Children - Exotic Sense Decay
Coal Chamber - Chamber Music
Coal Chamber - Coal Chamber
Coal Chamber - Dark Days
Coal Chamber - Giving the Devil his Due
Coldworker - The Contaminated Void
Contaminated 5.0: Relapse Records Music Sampler
Contaminated 6.0: Relapse Records Music Sampler
Contaminated Vol. 7 Relapse Records Music Sampler
Council of the Fallen - Deciphering the Soul
The County Medical Examiners - Olidous Operettas [Special Edition]
Cradle of Filth - Bitter Suites to Succubi
Cradle of Filth - Cruelty and the Beast
Cradle of Filth - Damnation and A Day
Cradle of Filth - Lovecraft & Witch Hearts
Cradle of Filth - Midian
Cradle of Filth - Nymphetamine
Cradle of Filth - Thornography
Criminal - Dead Soul
Cryptopsy - Once Was Not [Special Edition]
Cryptopsy - None So Live
Cryptopsy - The Unspoken King
Cryptopsy - Whisper Supremacy
Daath – Hinderers
Dalmerot's Kingdom - Ha'mistorin Ha'nitzchi
Damageplan - New Found Power
Danzig - Danzig
Danzig - The Lost Tracks of Danzig
Darkane - Rusted Angel
Dark Tranquillity – Character
Dark Tranquillity - Damage Done
Dark Tranquillity - The Gallery [Deluxe Edition]
Dawn of Azazel - Sedition
Death - Individual Thought Patterns
Death - Symbolic [The Expanded Edition]
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
Death Angel - Act III
Death Breath – Let it Sink
Death Breath - Stinking Up the Night
Decapitated - Organic Halucinosis
Deeds of Flesh - Inbreeding the Anthropophagi
Dekapitator - Storm Before the Calm
Dethklok - The Dethalbum
Dethklok - Dethalbum II
Disgorge – Gorelics
Dismal Euphony - Autumn Leaves - A Rebellion Of Tides
Deicide - The Best of Deicide
Deicide - Insineratehymn
Deicide - Legion
Deicide - Once Upon the Cross
Deicide - Scars of the Crucifix
Deicide - Stench of Redemption [Box Set Edition]
Deicide - Til Death Do Us Part [Special Edition]
Demon Hunter - Summer of Darkness
Destruction - Inventor of Evil
DevilDriver - Devildriver
DevilDriver - The Fury of Our Maker's Hand
DevilDriver - The Last Kind Words [Bonus Track]
DevilDriver - Pray For Villains [Special Edition]
Dimmu Borgir - Death Cult Armageddon
Dimmu Borgir - For All Tid [Special Edition]
Dimmu Borgir - Godless Savage Garden [Reissue]
Dimmu Borgir - In Sorte Diaboli [Digipack]
Dimmu Borgir - Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia
Dimmu Borgir - Spiritual Black Dimensions
Dimmu Borgir - Stormblåst
Dimmu Borgir - Stormblåst [Reissue]
Disbelief – Disbelief
Disbelief – Infected
Disturbed – Believe
Disturbed - The Sickness (Signed)
Disturbed - Ten Thousand Fists (Signed)
Divine Heresy - Bleed The Fifth (Signed)
Divine Heresy - Bringer Of Plagues
Drawn and Quartered - Return of the Black Death
Drawn and Quartered - Merciless Hammer of Lucifer [Limited Edition]
Dream Evil - United
Dream Theater - Awake
Dying Fetus - Descend Into Depravity
Dying Fetus - Destroy the Opposition
Dying Fetus - Killing on Adrenaline
Dying Fetus - War Of Attrition
E-Force - Evil Forces
Emperor - In the Nightside Eclipse
Enforsaken - The Forever Endeavor
Ensiferum - Iron
Entombed - Entombed
Evile - Enter the Grave
Exhumed - Gore Metal
Exodus - Fabulous Disaster
Exodus - Shovel Headed Kill Machine
Faith No More - Album of the Year
Faith No More - The Real Thing
Fear Factory - Archetype [Digipack]
Fear Factory - Demanufacture [Digipack]
Fear Factory - Digimortal
Fear Factory - Hatefiles
Fear Factory - Obsolete [Digipack]
Fear Factory - Soul of a New Machine [Digipack]
Fear Factory - Transgression
Finntroll - Ur Jordens Djup
Five.Bolt.Main - Venting
Fleshcrawl - Structures of Death (Digital Release)
Freddy Vs. Jason OST
Gadget – Remote
Gama Bomb - Citizen Brain
Goatwhore - A Haunting Curse
God Dethroned - Into the Lungs of Hell [Digi-Pack] (Signed)
God Dethroned - The Toxic Touch
God Forbid - IV: Constitution of Treason
God Forbid - Gone Forever
Gojira - The Way Of All Flesh
Gorgasm - Masticate to Dominate
Gorgoroth - Antichrist
Gorgoroth - Pentagram
Gorgoroth - Twilight of the Idols
Gorguts - Considered Dead
Gorguts - The Erosion of Insanity
Gorguts – Obscura
Graveworm - (N)utopia
Grimfist - Ghouls of Grandeur
Gwar - America Must be Destroyed
Gwar - Beyond Hell
Gwar – Hell-O!
Gwar - Scumdogs of the Universe
Gwar - Violence Has Arrived
Hammerfall Sampler
Hatebreed – Perseverance
Hatebreed - Rise of Brutality
Hatebreed - Supremacy
Hate Eternal - I, Monarch
The Haunted - The Dead Eye [Special Edition]
The Haunted - Made Me Do It
The Haunted - One Kill Wonder
The Haunted - rEVOLVEr [Digipack]
The Haunted - Versus
The Heart of Roadrunner Records
Heaven Shall Burn - Antigone
Heavy Metal 2000 OST
Hecate Enthroned - Kings of Chaos
Hellhammer - Demon Entrails
Hypocrisy – Abducted
Hypocrisy - The Arrival
Hypocrisy - Into the Abyss
Hypocrisy – Virus
Hyngd - Demo
I – Between Two Worlds
Iced Earth - Days of Purgatory
Iced Earth - Framing Armageddon
Identity 5: I Defy
Identity, Vol. 8
Impaled - Medical Waste
Impaled Nazarene - Pro Patria Finlandia
Impending Doom - Nailed. Dead. Risen.
Imperanon – Stained
Incantation - Mortal Throne of Nazarene
In Flames - Come Clarity [Digipack] (Signed)
In Flames – Colony
In Flames – Clayman
In Flames - Lunar Strain/Subterranean
In Flames - Reroute to Remain
In Flames - Soundtrack to your Escape
Into Eternity - Buried In Oblivion
Into Eternity - The Scattering of Ashes
Ion Dissonance – Minus the Herd
Jagermeister Rareties 2004
Jungle Rot - Dead and Buried
Kataklysm - In the Arms of Devastation
Kataklysm - Prevail
Kataklysm - Serenity In Fire
Kataklysm - Shadows & Dust
Kataklysm – Sorcery & The Mystical Gate of Reincarnation
Killswitch Engage - Alive or Just Breathing
Killswitch Engage - As Daylight Dies [Special Edition]
Killswitch Engage - The End of Heartache
Killswitch Engage - Killswitch Engage
King Diamond - Abagail II: The Revenge
King Diamond - Conspiracy
King Diamond - The Puppet Master [Digipack]
King Diamond - Them
Kingdom of Sorrow - Kingdom of Sorrow
Kreator - Enemy of God
Krisiun - Bloodshed [Special Edition]
Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake
Lamb of God - As the Palaces Burn
Lamb of God - New American Gospel
Lamb of God - Sacrament
Lamb of God - Wrath
Lay Down Rotten - Reconquering the Pit (Digital Release)
Lollipop Lust Kill – My So Called Knife
Machine Head - The Blackening
Machine Head - The More Things Change
Machine Head – Supercharger
Machine Head - Through the Ashes of Empire
Maddface – Denatured
Mahavatar - From the Sun, the Rain, the Wind, the Soil
Malevolent Creation – Envenomed
Man Must Die - The Human Condition
Manowar - Louder Than Hell
Marduk -Dark Endless
Mastodon - Crack The Skye
Mastodon - Leviathan
Megadeth - Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?
Megadeth - So Far, So Good...So What!
Megadeth - The System Has Failed
Meshuggah - Catch Thirtythr33
Meshuggah -Chaosphere
Meshuggah -Nothing
Meshuggah - Obzen
Metal For The Masses Vol. 2
Metal For The Masses Vol. 3
Metal For The Masses Vol. 4
Metal Massacre XIII
Metallica - ...And Justice for All
Metallica - Death Magnetic
Metallica - Kill 'Em All
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Metallica - Metallica
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
Misery Index - Discordia
Misery Index - Retaliate
Misery Index - Traitors
Mnemic - The Audio Injected Soul
Moonspell - Darkness and Hope
Morbid Angel - Covenant
Morta Skuld - Surface
Motograter - Motograter
Mudvayne - L.D 50
Mudvayne - The Beginning of All things to End
Mudvayne - The End of All things to Come
Mudvayne - Lost and Found [Dual disc Edition]
Municipal Waste - The Art of Partying
Mushroomhead - Savior Sorrow [3-D Artwork]
Mushroomhead - Superbuick (Signed)
Mushroomhead – XX
Mushroomhead – XIII
The Music of Grand Theft Auto IV
My Dying Bride - A Line of Deathless Kings
Nachtmystium - Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1
Naglfar – Diabolical
Napalm Death – Conspiracy in Capitals
Napalm Death – Diatribes
Napalm Death - Leaders Not Followers: Part 2
Napalm Death - The Code is Red...Long Live the Code
Nasum - Grind Finale
Necrophagia - Black Blood Vomitorium
Necrophagia - Season of the Dead
Necrophagia - Slit Wrists and Casket Rot
Necrophagist - Epitaph
Necrophagist - Onset of Putrefaction
Nevermore - Dead Heart in a Dead World
Nevermore - Enemies of Reality
Nevermore - This Godless Endeavor
Nile - Annihilation of the Wicked
Nile - In the Beginning
Nile - Ithyphallic
Nile - Legacy of the Catacombs
North - Na Polach Bitew
Nothingface – Skeletons
Novembers Doom - Into Night's Requiem Infernal
Nuclear Blast: Weapons of Musical Destruction 2006 Sampler
Obituary - The End Complete (RR two from the Vault)
Obituary - World Demise (RR two from the Vault)
Obscura - Cosmogenesis
ohGr - Devils In My Details
Omnium Gatherum - Spirts and August Light
Opeth - Blackwater Park
Opeth - Ghost Reveries
Origin - Antithesis
Origin - Informis Infinitas Inhumanitas
Overkill - Killbox 13
Overkill - Years Of Decay
Ozzfest 2001 Summer Sampler
Ozzfest 2001: Second Millennium
Ozzfest 2002 Summer Sampler
Ozzfest 2003 Summer Sampler
Ozzfest Live 2002
Pantera - Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys' Vulgar Hits
Passenger – Passenger
Pig Destroyer - Phantom Limb
Plague Bringer - As the Ghosts Collect, The Corpses Rest
Plague Bringer - Life Songs in a Land of Death
Polterchrist - Engulfed by the Swarm
Possessed - Seven Churches
Powerman 5000 - Tonight The Stars Revolt!
Powerman 5000 - Transform
Primus - They Can't All Be Zingers
Probot - Probot
Protest - The Truth Enslaves Us
Psychostick - Sandwich
Psychostick - We Couldn't Think of a Title
The Punisher OST
Rage - Speak of the Dead
Rage Against the Machine - The Battle of Los Angelas
Rammstein - Mutter
Rammstein - Reise, Reise
Rammstein - Rosenrot [Special Edition]
Rammstein - Sehnsucht
The Red Chord - Clients [Deluxe Edition]
Requiem for a Scream - Requiem for a Scream
Relapse Records Extreme Music Sampler
Resident Evil O.S.T
Resident Evil Apocalypse O.S.T
Rise Against - Appeal To Reason
Roadrunner Records Fall 2005 Sampler
Roadrunner United (The All-Star Sessions)
Rob Zombie - Hellbilly Deluxe
Rob Zombie - House of 1000 Corpses Soundtrack
Rob Zombie - Past, Present, & Future
Rob Zombie - The Sinister Urge
Rotting Christ - Passage to Arcturo
Rumpelstiltskin Grinder - Living for Death, Destroying the Rest
Samael - Era One
Samael - Lesson in Magic
Satyricon - Now, Diabolical
Satyricon – Volcano
Savatage - Power of the Night
Scar Symmetry - Pitch Black Darkness
Sceptic - Unbeliever's Script
Septic Flesh - Sumerian Daemons
Sepultura - Against
Sepultura - Chaos A.D.
Sepultura - Roots [Digipack]
Sentenced - The Cold White Light
Shadows Fall - The Art of Balance
Shadows Fall - Destroyer of Senses
Shadows Fall - Threads of Life
Shakra - Fall
Sigh - Imaginary Sonicscape
Six Feet Under - Bringer of Blood [Digipack]
Six Feet Under - Graveyard Classics 2
Six Feet Under - Maximum Violence
Six Feet Under - True Carnage
Skinlab - Nerve Damage
Skinless - Foreshadowing Our Demise
Skinless - Trample the Weak, Hurdle the Dead
Slayer - Christ Illusion
Slayer - Diabolus in musica
Slayer - Divine Intervention
Slayer - God Hates Us All
Slayer - Haunting the Chapel
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Slayer - Seasons in the Abyss
Slayer - Show No Mercy
Slayer - South of Heaven
Slayer - Undisputed Attitude
Slipknot - Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat.
Soilent Green – Confrontation
Soul Demise - In Vain
Soundgarden - A-Sides
Staind - Dysfunction
Static-X - Beneath... Between... Beyond
Static-X - Cannibal
Static-X - Cult of Static
Static-X - Machine
Static-X - Shadow Zone
Static-X - Start a War
Static-X - Wisconsin Death Trip
Stone Sour - Stone Sour [DigiPack]
Strapping Young Lad - Alien
Strapping Young Lad - SYL
Strapping Young Lad - The New Black
Suffocation - Blood Oath [Limited Blood Red Edition]
Suffocation - Souls to Deny
Suffocation - Human Waste
Suffocation - Suffocation
Superjoint Ritual - A Lethal Dose of American Hatred
Sworn Enemy - Sworn Enemy
Testament - First Strike Still Deadly
Testament - The Gathering
Testament - Low
Testament - Practice What You Preach
Testament - The New Order
Throwdown - Venom & Tears
Today is the Day - In the Eyes of God
Tool - Ænima
Tool - Lateralus
Type O Negative – Life is Killing Me
Unleashed - Viking Raids
Vader – Blood/Reign Forever World
Vader - The Art of War
Vader - The Ultimate Incantation
Venom - Black Metal [Reissue]
Venom - Metal Black
Vital Remains - Dechristianize
Vital Remains - Icons of Evil
Voivod - Voivod
Voivod - War and Pain
Vomitory - Terrorize Brutalize Sodomize
Warbringer - War Without End
Watch Them Die - Watch Them Die
Wednesday 13 - Transylvania 90210
White Zombie - Astro Creep: 2000
White Zombie - La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol. 1
White Zombie - Supersexy Swingin' Sounds
Winds of Plague - Decimate the Weak
Zimmers Hole - When You Were Shouting At The Devil...We Were In League With Satan

515 Albums
Itunes Stats:
Songs-9456 Songs
Playing Time-26 Days, 16 Hours, 03 Minutes, 43 Seconds
Size- 45.79gb

So 2009 is nearing its end and I think it's time that I started my end of year conclusion.

First of all let's take a look at the albums I purchased (physically) from this year (in alphabetical order)

1. Between the Buried and Me-The Great Misdirect (Deluxe Edition)
2. Dashboard Confessional-Alter The Ending (Deluxe Edition)
3. A Day to Remember-Homesick (Deluxe Edition)
4. The Devil Wears Prada-With Roots Above And Branches Below
5. Dream Theater-Black Clouds & Silver Linings (Deluxe Edition)
6. Every Time I Die-New Junk Aesthetic (Deluxe Edition)
7. Isis-Wavering Radiant (Vinyl)
8. Moneen-The World I Want To Leave Behind

Secondly, let's go through the new, notable bands I discovered this year who released a new disc this year(in alphabetical order)

1. As Tall as Lions-You Can't Take It With You
Although this band is definitely not new, I only took the time to check them out this year and I was really impressed with their nice blend of experimental and indie music. Go check out Duermete.

2. In Fear and Faith-Your World on Fire
I started the year 2009 constantly listening to this new disc by this relatively young band. They perform some of the best post-hardcore I've come across. Amazing vocals, beautiful soaring vocal melodies, destructive breakdowns, huge metalcore riffs all combined to make one hell of a sick album. Go check out Relapse Collapse.

3. Manchester Orchestra-Mean Everything To Nothing
I checked this band out after the 5/5 rating they got in AP, although I wouldn't personally give them a 5/5 on their latest disc, I must admit that they are one of the best indie bands I have heard. Go check out I Can Feel a Hot One.

4. Owl City-Ocean Eyes
I found out about this artist in May this year, yes before everyone knew about fireflies and it hit #1 on the billboard. I was immediately captivated by the sweet and catchy hooks of Adam Young (The man behind Owl City). And although there is much controversy about Young using auto-tuned vocals and making computer-based music, I still have huge amounts of respect for this man who, in the end, is clearly a great composer and an innovator in his field. Go check out West Coast Friendship.

5. We Came As Romans-To Plant A Seed
I started off by listening to this band's 4 song EP in the summer of this year and really liked it so I decided to give their full length a spin. I was really really impressed by this new effort by this young band. They were named the top unsigned band of 2009 by AP and with good reason! Their new album reflects post-hardcore at its finest with amazing moments of soaring vocals, pianos and crazy riffs, a definite must! Go check out Roads That Don't End And Views That Never Cease

6. within the ruins-Creature
My jaw literally dropped after hearing this band's first full length; rarely have I ever come across a band that plays technical music at such high speeds with such precision. On record, at least, I have yet to see them live to finalize my opinion. Definitely a great record for fans of technical music in the vein of Protest The Hero and Between The Buried And Me. Go check out Arsenal

Now let's take a look at the comebacks of the year, what I mean by this is the bands that have pulled themselves back up after a disappointing or nowhere-near-as-great previous release (in alphabetical order):

1. Born of Osiris-A Higher Place
Now putting this band in here, I am not saying that their previous album was bad, on the contrary, they were one of the bands that had captured my interest in 2007. However, this new release is miles above their previous album, all musicians have refined their skills and the composition is amazing, incorporating synth into progressive deathcore, something you don't see a lot of in these days' deathcore bands. The result is some of the most interesting, beautiful and brutal progressive/technical music I have heard all year! Go check out Now Arise.

2. Converge-Axe To Fall
Once again, putting this album in here I am not saying that I was disappointed with 2006's "No Heroes", it was an album that I really liked. But the level of this album really caught me off guard. On this effort, Converge keep the signature mathcore sound that they have carefully crafted throughout their career, however, one thing I noticed is the incorporation of much more developed song structure. Indeed, on No Heroes, many songs were under the 1:30 mark and I had difficulty remembering which songs were which etc. On this album, one will notice that most of the songs are well above the 2:30 mark and have a much more defined structure, a factor of this album which made me enjoy it all the more. Go check out Dark Horse.

3. Dashboard Confessional-Alter The Ending
I was a little skeptic as I was going through my first listen of the band's new album. After the album was over, I was not convinced, so I turned to the acoustic disc of the deluxe edition and gave that a spin. And holy shit was it worth it, the acoustic disc is an absolute marvel. It really feels like all the songs on this disc were written as acoustics and should have been left that way, the full band versions aren't bad but they are nowhere near the level of emotion that can be felt in the acoustic versions. Unlike 2007's The Shade Of Poison Trees, I didn't only enjoy a few tracks from the album, I loved this new album in its entirety! Welcome back Mr.Carrabba! Go check out Belle Of The Boulevard (Acoustic).

4. The Dear Hunter-Act III: Life and Death
I'd Thoroughly enjoyed this band's 2006 EP and for some reason I hadn't checked out their second release. Somehow I got around to listening to their third album and I am immensely glad I did. On this third disc, The Dear Hunter have taken the sound that they had begun to develop in their EP and have literally perfected it, thereby creating some of the most innovative and original music I have ever heard. It's the perfect mix of progressive rock, experimental and indie! Go check out In Cauda Venemum.

5. Drop Dead, Gorgeous-The Hot N' Heavy
As much as I loved 2006's In Vogue, I had been really disappointed by 2007's Worse Than A Fairy Tale. But this time around they really came back in my good graces! The new album is filled with the brutality, the screeching vocals and the melodies you have come to expect of the band. But what this new album has that others did not are hooks and a greater emphasis on vocal melodies. Almost every track has a memorable chorus with beautiful vocals and intriguing vocal harmonies. And just like all their other albums, the disc ends with a superb, long and epic track that leaves you wanting more after it's over. Go check out Two Birds, One Stone.

6. The Number Twelve Looks Like You-Worse Than Alone
Two words: Holy Shit. I really didn't like Nuclear. Sad. Nuclear and I really liked Mongrel but this album was just out of the planet. They took the experimentation of Mongrel cubed it and multiplied the whole thing by latin/funk music. There is brutality, complexity, jazz/latin/funk sections in practically all the song, there are clean vocals, something that was lacking on mongrel. And as a drummer, this album particularly speaks to me because the drumming on this disc is phenomenal! Some of the best drumming I've heard all year, if not in my life! Go check out Marvin's Jungle.

7. The Used-Artwork
Now I'm a huge The used fan, I've been listening to them since I was 13 and they're one of the bands that kind of pushed me in the direction of heavy music. I had loved their self titled, fallen in love with In Love And Death but I was pretty disappointed when Lies For The Liars came out, an album that was way overproduced. Because of that, I wasn't expecting much of this new release. But The Used delivered, the threw away all that overproduction and stripped back down to their old days using only guitars, bass, drums, piano and vocals. And the result is an amazing album that reminds of their of their older days but with more mature lyrics, more developed songwriting and greater musical ability. Undoubtedly one of the best discs I've heard all year. Go check out Kissing you goodbye

Now let's take a little look at the more disappointing albums of the year (in alphabetical order):

1. Alexisonfire-Old Crows/Young Cardinals
It wasn't a bad album at all, in fact I listened to it several times but after the jewel that was Crisis I expected more out of the band. Go check out Accept Crime.

2. All Time Low-Nothing Personal
All Time Low is one of my few guilty pleasures, there's just something about So Wrong, It's Right that made me fall in love with every single song on that album. Because of that, I had huge expectations for this album, but I was rather disappointed, none of the tracks have that hook factor or that young innocence in the lyrics that So Wrong, It's Right had, a lot of throwaway tracks here. Go check out Weightless.

3. Maylene and the Sons of Disaster-III
I had absolutely loved their previous album and so got my hands (figure of speech) on this one as soon as it came out. Three tracks in I was sold, they were all amazing, but after those three tracks the album seems to go downhill with no signs of picking back up, better luck next time! Go check out Just A Shock.

4. A Skylit Drive-Adelphia
Their 2007 EP She Watched The Sky was one of my albums of the year, 2008's Wires... took me a while to get into but I eventually came to love it. But this release really didn't cut it for me. Jag's vocals sound forced like he's trying to sing as high as possible as opposed to where it feels comfortable and there are no hooks or beautiful sections like their other two albums had. Go check out Those Cannons Could Sink A Ship

Now let's take a closer look at all the other albums that were worth a mention that didn't fit any of the above categories (in alphabetical order):

1. Between the Buried and Me-The Great Misdirect
So my favourite band released a new album this year, which I went to buy the day it came out in stores. After the first listen I had my hmm moments where I wasn't convinced of certain things that they'd done. But for some reason I kept going back to the disc just because somehow my brain was telling me to and the more I came back to it, the more I got into it. BTBAM have really pushed their boundaries and explored new aspects of music, such as with the avant-garde intro of Fossil Genera, or the latin/jazz sounding Mirrors, the country-like ballad of Desert Of Song, the Pink Floyd-like interlude of Disease, Injury, Madness and the Asian melodies/crazy progressive sections of Swim To The Moon. And now after having sat through the entire disc 13 times (this number will keep on increasing dramatically) I have come to the conclusion that it is definitely not at the level of Colors but it is still an amazing progressive metal album and definitely one of the best of 2009. Go check out Disease, Injury, Madness.

2. Brand New-Daisy
So I'm a huge Brand New fan, have been for many years now, but I still haven't decided whether I like this new record or not. So far it seems that with every listen I've been getting more and more into it, I reckon a couple more focused listens and I'll be sold. Go check out Bed.

3. The Devil Wears Prada-With Roots Above And Branches Below
I've been listening to these guys ever since their first album and so I was really able to witness their progression through their albums. And because of this, I can safely say that this is the best and most amazing album TDWP could have written at this time. It is an absolutely flawless melodic metalcore disc and it is a huge step forward from their previous discs. One notable thing is the introduction of click tracks in their recording, this has just improved the production massively. The vocals are just as amazing as they were on Plagues, although I have yet to hear these live. The vocal melodies and harmonies have been pushed and perfected once again, for example in Sassafras where the chorus switches from a minor key to a major key for a single bar solely through the use of vocal harmony. Granted, the riffs aren't the most original aspect of TDWP's music but on this album, the songwriting, the musicianship, the brutality and the beauty have all increased extraordinarily from their previous cds. Go check out Ben Has A Kid.

4. Every Time I Die-New Junk Aesthetic
On this album ETID have kind of lost the 'fun' edge they had on their two previous discs and changed it to an even more brutal sound. The vocals on this album are really really good and you can hear that vocal melodies have been crafted with much more care on the disc. Another very strong point of the album are Keith Buckley's lyrics which are phenomenal in this new release especially in songs like Host Disorder. Go check out Wanderlust.

5. Moneen-The World I Want To Leave Behind
I had absolutely loved The Red Tree and this release only reinforced my love for this band, they deserve to become huge...seriously. This band writes some of the most heartfelt, beautiful, while at the same time somewhat complicated songs I have ever heard. Go check out Hold That Sound.

And now it's time to declare my final top albums of the year 2009:

10. Converge-Axe To Fall

9. Born of Osiris-A Higher Place

8. In Fear and Faith-Your World on Fire

7. The Dear Hunter-Act III: Life and Death

6. The Number Twelve Looks Like You-Worse Than Alone

5. Dashboard Confessional-Alter The Ending

4. Moneen-The World I Want To Leave Behind

3. The Used-Artwork

2. The Devil Wears Prada-With Roots Above And Branches Below

1. Between the Buried and Me-The Great Misdirect

Once again, the album of the year goes to Between The Buried And Me, there's just no other band that compares to them!

Hope you enjoyed reading this, and please comment!

Pierre

USA [19]
Nine Inch Nails
Isis
Tool
Metallica
The Dillinger Escape Plan
Dream Theater
A Perfect Circle
Cynic
OSI
Rishloo
Deftones
Thursday
Misery Index
Marilyn Manson
Mastodon
At the Drive-In
Baroness
WHY?
Neurosis

UK [9]
Anathema
Porcupine Tree
Antimatter
Mogwai
Archive
Radiohead
Frank Turner
65daysofstatic
Muse

France [6]
Nihil
Empyr
Saez
Year of No Light
Mihai Edrisch
Noir Désir

Japan [6]
Dir en grey
Motoi Sakuraba
Envy
Heaven In Her Arms
MUCC
Akira Yamaoka

Sweden [5]
Opeth
Katatonia
Cult of Luna
Pain of Salvation
Draconian

Poland [3]
Riverside
Indukti
Lunatic Soul

Canada [2]
Alpha Galates
Harmonium

Amon Amarth
Anathema
Apocalyptica
Arch Enemy
Avenged Sevenfold
Before The Torn
Blacksunrise
Bonded By Blood
Comeback Kid
Converge
Devil In Me
Dimmu Borgir
Down
DragonForce
Dream Theater
Echidna
Engel
Eternal Bond
Gama Bomb
If Lucy Fell
Iron Maiden x2
Judas Priest
Keep Walking
Lamb of God
Lauren Harris
Lostland
Machine Head x2
Marduk
Mastodon
Megadeth
Metallica x2
MG15
Moonspell x2
Nightwish
Pain
Pendragon
Portishead
Ramp x2
Simbiose
Slayer
Slipknot
Switchtense
Sworn Amongst
Testament
The Cure
We Are The Damned
..and a few more in some pubs but i don't remember their names.

Metallica with Machine Head (February 26th 2009 at M.E.N. Arena)
First gig of 2009, what a way to begin! I thought they were slightly better at Leeds festival, but they still played amazing here. I loved the stage layout, the fact we were just feet away from the stage, and the setlist. Played a lot of the new album, plus the classic songs and a few ones i didn't expect (such as Blackened :D). Great great gig. [10/10]

Marmaduke Duke with Airship (March 1st 2009 at The Deaf Institute)
First time i'd been to a gig there, and i loved it there! I think more bands should play gigs there, i think someone like Radiohead doing a tiny gig there would be just incredible. Anyway, Marmaduke Duke were fucking great, probably the loudest gig i've ever been to, and one of the craziest. I hope to see them again someday. [9/10]

Franz Ferdinand (March 6th 2009 at Manchester Academy 1)
They were a bit of a disappointment to be honest. The setlist was short, they missed out some of my favourites by them, and generally didn't sound that great. Went on a great night out afterwards though ;P [5/10]

Yeah Yeah Yeahs (April 22nd 2009 at Manchester Academy 1)
Damn, i arrived late to this gig and missed most of the first song, Heads Will Roll, which is my favourite song off their new album :(. Ahh well, the gig took a few songs to get going, but they got better and better as they went on. Unfortunately the gig was only 70 minutes long, and only had a 2 song encore... far too short for my liking, but they were still very impressive. [8/10]

Cancer Bats (May 3rd 2009 at Manchester Academy 3)
This was a really good gig, not the sort of gig i'd normally go to so it was good to see someone a little bit different. The crowd was pretty fucking crazy, i don't think i've seen that much crowdsurfing and stage diving in my entire life at a gig! (Though i have seen Kylie Minogue live, and she runs them a close second) ;). The set was pretty short, but that's to be expected as they've only done 2 albums of pretty short songs. I was a bit disappointed i missed the support bands, as i got there during the last song by The Plight, and they sounded pretty good. Anyway, still an enjoyable gig! [7/10]

Gallows with Every Time I Die (May 6th 2009 at Manchester Academy 1)
Pretty good gig again, they sounded good and really got the crowd going, but i think the venue was way too big for them to be playing in. It was only 2/3 sold out, and i think their sound would much better suit a small venue like Academy 2 or 3. That's my only complaint though, it was still a thoroughly enjoyable gig. I almost nearly got knocked over by the guitarist too, who came running off the stage to the back of the room during the encore, and was inches away from running straight into me! Was pretty funny, but well cool how they ran right to the back of the academy and carried on playing the song! [7/10]

Saw the following at Download Festival 2009:
- Hollywood Undead
They were the first band on the main stage, and i thought they sounded alright, though their performance was pretty boring compared to many of the bands that followed them. [6/10]
- Billy Talent
Unfortunately only caught the last half of their set so i can't really fully judge them. They played very well though, and played a lot of my favourites by them, but the singers voice sounded a bit annoying live. [7/10]
- Killswitch Engage
These really impressed me! I only knew 2 or 3 songs by them so wasn't that arsed about watching them, but they blew me away and were one of the best bands of the weekend for me. The singer was very impressive and the guitars sounded heavy as fuck :P [8/10]
- Limp Bizkit
I feel so glad to be able to say that i've seen these live now! They were one of my favourite bands when i was about 12 years old, so seeing them live was a bit of a nostalgia trip. They played brilliantly and the crowd was really into them, and seeing everyone doing that dance during Rollin' was an impressive sight. [8/10]
- Opeth
Caught only about 10 minutes of these. They sounded really boring to me, and the singer even joked that a lot of the people in the crowd were just there cos they were waiting for Motley Crue to come on stage... which was probably true. I reckon they probably would have sounded good to any fan of them, but as i don't know any of their songs, they just didn't sound good at all. [4/10]
- Faith No More
Was SO excited to be seeing these live, they've been one of my favourite bands since i was about 15, and i never thought i'd get the opportunity to see them live. They didn't disappoint me either, they played a near perfect set, with only the Black Sabbath cover War Pigs missing. The crowd was a little bit dead where i was stood, which is my only complaint, but aside from that they blew me away and left me with a big smile on my face. [10/10]

- Hatebreed
I randomly caught the end of their set. Don't know any of their stuff but they sounded quite good, though i reckon i'd have to be in the right sort of mood to enjoy their music. [7/10]
- Down
I thought they were quite disappointing, as i was really looking forward to seeing them despite only knowing a few songs. To be fair i was stood quite far back, and also spent quite a bit of their set walking around trying to find the drinking water taps! If i'd been stood closer to the front and had had more energy, i probably would have enjoyed it. [6/10]
- DragonForce
2nd time seeing them live, and i was bored by them. I was feeling really ill and tired at this point, and actually fell asleep for a bit in the middle of their set :P All their songs just sound the same, and they sound way better on record than they do live. Fair enough though, some of their stuff is going to be pretty difficult to perfectly replicate live. [4/10]
- Pendulum
I was really looking forward to seeing these, as i've had 2 opportunities to see them live before but couldn't make it to either of them. Unfortunately i was feeling so knackered and like i was just gonna collapse with exhaustion at this point of the day that i ended up going back to my tent after a couple of songs. They sounded really good, but i didn't have the energy to enjoy them, especially when everyone else was dancing around me... I swear next time i get the chance to see them i'm gonna go, and i'm gonna enjoy it! [6/10]
- The Prodigy
Only saw the first song they played. The sound was terrible, from where i was stood you could barely even hear them playing. I reckon for the people right near the front it would have been great, but where i was stood you could only hear people chanting "turn it up!". Dissapointing :(. [3/10]
- Slipknot
Fucking amazing, they tie as the best band of the weekend along with Faith No More. I was just lying behind the big screen watching them and just relaxing, so i didn't experience being in the lively sections of the crowd, but from where i was sat it still sounded incredible! They played a great set, playing mainly songs that i know by them, and even the songs i didn't know sounded impressive. I'd probably put them in the top 5 bands i've ever seen live. [10/10]

- Pulled Apart By Horses
They were the first band i watched on Sunday, and also the only band i properly watched in the Tuborg tent. I only know one or two songs by them but they played a really good set, i'm definately gonna see them again when i get the chance (Leeds festival!). [8/10]
- Black Stone Cherry
Black Stone Kerry were pretty good, i caught the last few songs they played, and to me they sounded like a good version of Nickelback :P. I loved the cover of Voodoo Child they did at the end too :D [7/10]
- Journey
Unfortunately i didn't enjoy these :( I thought the singer was good, but everything else about the performance was just bland at best. They turned most of the songs into extended versions with too many long outros and crowd singing sections. One of the big disappointments of the weekend. [5/10]
- Volbeat
Technically i didn't see these, but i could hear them playing as i was walking down the pathway towards the arena. They played the cover of I Only Wanna Be With You by Dusty Springfield, which i think is a brilliant cover. From where i was walking they sounded great, wish i'd caught their set properly. [7/10]
- Dream Theater
Caught the last 10 minutes of these (so only saw one song being played by them :P). They looked very impressive, especially the bass guitarist with his 6 string bass. However, i definately don't think they are a festival band (songs are waaay too long to be played in a 50 minute set!), and from what i've heard off a few people, the vocals apparently didn't sound too good. [6/10]
- ZZ Top
I was completely starstruck watching these! Billy Gibbons is a legend, probably the best guitarist i've ever seen live, and he's cool as fuck too (the whole band is actually). They played a perfect set list, and i got a good spot right near the front next to some massive speakers, where the sound was so great and their songs were so funky sort of sounding that you couldn't help but dance to them. [9/10]
- Whitesnake
I thought these were good, but not as good as what i was expecting. They had similar troubles to Journey, as in they played most of their songs for too long, and had massive sing-a-long bits in the middle of songs which bored me and most of the crowd around me. The guitar duelling bit in the middle of their set was my favourite part, but even that began to get boring after a bit when it just seemed to carry on for ages :\ Still a pretty good performance overall though. [7/10]
- Therapy?
I only saw the last 2 or 3 songs of these when i was walking around bored waiting for Def Leppard to come on. Wasn't really paying attention to their music, but it didn't remotely grab my attention, so they were a bit meh. [5/10]
- Def Leppard
I watched half of their set before heading back to my tent due to it getting cold and me being bored and tired from sitting around by myself watching bands for most of the day hahaha. They sounded good though, and the songs i recognised by them sounded good. They didn't engage me to the full extent that i thought they would have done, though i put that down to me being too knackered to sing along rather than them playing badly. [7/10]
___________________________________

Nine Inch Nails/Jane's Addiction with Mew (July 14th 2009 at M.E.N. Arena)
Mew were the support band, who didn't sound too bad, but i didn't like the singers vocals. Their music also seemed a bit out of place compared to the music of the two bands that followed. [6/10]
Jane's Addiction were on second, and played a set around 1 hour long. They were pretty amazing, and played the perfect setlist (the only other song i would have liked to have seen was Just Because, but ahh well!). Dave Navarro's guitar playing was particularly impressive, and the rhythm section played perfectly. Good stuff [9/10].
I thought NIN wouldn't be able to beat Jane's Addiction's performance, after all i am a bigger JA fan than NIN... but i was wrong! They blew me away, played an amazing set containing a lot of stuff i knew by them, and even did i spectacular Bowie cover. [9/10] Feel so privaleged to have been at this gig, to see 2 bands that i will probably never see again, both playing as good as they possibly could.

Saw the following at Leeds festival 2009:
- Airship
First band i saw all weekend, who i watched on the Thursday evening. They are a local band, who i also saw supporting Marmaduke Duke earlier this year. They were pretty good too, i can definitely see why people are saying they're going to be big. [7/10]

- Mariachi El Bronx
This band was bizarre! Went to the main stage randomly to kill some time before Pulled Apart By Horses and caught the last few songs of these. I was stood quite far band and couldn't hear them very loudly, but they sounded pretty good/funny. Very very random for a punk band to do something as different as this! [7/10]
- Pulled Apart By Horses
A good gig, ruined by bad sound. The band played with lots of energy and people down the front seemed to enjoy it, but the back half of the tent just couldn't hear them very well. In between each song there were chants of "turn it up!" from many of the people around me. :\ [6/10]
- Municipal Waste
One of the best bands of the weekend! They just destroyed the tent with their energy, speed and the amount of fun in their songs. Such a fun band, i love them! [9/10]
- Them Crooked Vultures
They are a supergroup comprised of Josh Homme from QOTSA, Dave Grohl of Nirvana and the Foo Fighters, and John Paul Jones from LED ZEPPELIN!! Two of my all time musical dreams have been to see Led Zeppelin live, and to see Dave Grohl play drums live, and i got to see them both here (well, i know it's not Led Zeppelin, but seeing a member of them live is still pretty fucking amazing). So this meant a LOT to me. I didn't know any of the songs (though nobody knows any of their stuff yet), but they were still brilliant. So glad i got to see them. [9/10]
- The Prodigy
My biggest let down of the weekend. I had been massively looking forward to them, but i ended up really upset and annoyed while watching them. I was very drunk by the point i saw them, and really wanted to get right up to the front. But it was so stupidly busy there and filled with annoying 16 year old chavvy pillheads that i couldn't get anywhere within about 100ft of the stage. And the sound was terrible everywhere i stood. In the end i gave up watching them and went to the toilets and to the bar instead. [2/10]
- Arctic Monkeys
Now i was even drunker by this point! I don't remember much of watching them, and ended up leaving about 2/3 of the way through as they were playing too many new songs i wasn't familiar with. However, i still really enjoyed all the old classics (if you can call them that!) and a few of the new songs, so overall it was an ok effort. [7/10]

- Lethal Bizzle
I really enjoyed this! I went to the toilets near the radio 1 stage and could hear Lethal Bizzle playing my favourite song by him (Police On My Back) while i was sat in the portaloo (haha), so went and watched the rest of his set. I didn't know any of the songs, but it was still really enjoyable. He is a brilliant rapper, and the dj was playing some absolutely sick samples (Smells Like Teen Spirit was probably my favourite one). [8/10]
- Frank Turner
He was sooo good live. This was really enjoyable, i was right near the front, and the whole gig was just one big happy sing and dance along. Another one of my highlights of the weekend. [9/10]
- Vampire Weekend
Missed the first half of their set from sitting around the tents listening to the football (Bolton predictably losing :\), so i only caught the last 5 or 6 songs. They sounded good though, very tight playing and the new songs (i assume they were new anyway) sounded just as good as the old ones. [8/10]
- Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Unfortunately they were another disappointment to me. The sound for them wasn't too great, the set list was poor, too much of the gig was spent with them playing random noisy bits in between songs, and they did a dire reworking of Maps, their biggest and best song. Ahh well, i hope they play better when i see them again in a few months. [6/10]
- Bloc Party
They played the exact same spot they played last year, and once again were one of the best bands of the weekend. The vocals were possibly a bit too quiet, but the rest of the band sounded great, and they played a very good setlist. The crowd was a bit annoying though, i was stood right near the front, and twice during the gig there were big cruses that caused about 50 people to fall over on top of each other (including me). It was pretty dangerous and i thought someone could have been crushed to death. :\ [8/10]
- Radiohead
Just as i expected, they totally blew me away. I don't think i'll EVER be able to see another band live and fully enjoy it after watching this. Radiohead just put so much effort into getting the sound perfect, they just put every other band i've heard live to shame (including Metallica). The setlist was very good, despite them missing off a few of their biggest songs (Karma Police, Fake Plastic Trees, My Iron Lung etc) and i was gutted to hear that they played Creep at Reading! However, i have to say they are the best band i've ever had the pleasure to see live. [10/10]

- Madina Lake
Wasn't really listening to these much, plus i don't know who they are. :P I guess they sounded alright for an emo band though. [6/10]
- Alexisonfire
I was just chilling on the grass watching these and eating cheese and chips, so wasn't paying much attention to these either. They sounded alright though. [6/10]
- Deftones
I only knew 3 of the songs these played in the end. Had been looking forward to them, and they were alright, but nothing spectacular. [7/10]
- The Aggrolites
I only caught the last 2 songs of these, but i thought they were awful. It just seemed to be really bland ska music, and they ended with a cover of one of the Beatles worst songs (Don't Let Me Down). Didn't like them at all i'm afraid. [3/10]
- Leftover Crack
These were good, though i was too knackered to even stand up while i was watching them. The singer's voice was too quiet, but they played fun songs with a lot of energy in them, and the crowd up at the front seemed to love it. [7/10]
- Placebo
Place Bo i watched while eating a burger (that was a tasty burger!). They were good, but played waaay too many new songs. :\ The only song they played that i really liked was The Bitter End, which they didn't play until 2 songs to the end. [7/10]
- Faith No More
My final band of the weekend, and a very good way to end. I got right to the front this time, unlike at Download festival, and it was just sooo much fun. Everyone was jumping around, singing and really enjoying it. They played an absolutely incredible setlist, with the exception of the last 3 songs (quiet, slower songs that i don't like much). The only disappointing thing was that they didn't get enough time to play a fully great setlist. They even ran out of time at the end and couldn't play an encore, which was a bad note to end on. So overall not as good as their Download performance, but still very very good. [9/10]
___________________________________

Skindred (October 2nd 2009 at Manchester Academy 2)
I got there quite late so missed the support bands, but Skindred were all i really needed to see to make it a good night! The whole room was bouncing and going absolutely crazy from start to finish, and they played a really good even set of their songs. They're definitely one of the most fun bands i've ever seen live. [9/10]

Muse (November 5th 2009 at Liverpool Echo Arena)
Took a trip all the way to Liverpooool for this one, cos they didn't play in Manchester! :( Anyway, the trip there was well worth it, and they were just as good as i'd expected and hoped for them to be. I've been a huge Muse fan since i was 14, and have always wanted to see them live, so to finally get to see them after many years was really important to me. We were in seating quite far back from the stage, which was pretty crap (i blame Seetickets for that!), but despite that it was still amazing. I wish they had played more older songs (would absolutely kill to see Citizen Erased, Bliss, Sunburn, Micro Cuts etc live) but the set they did play was very good anyway. All of the new songs translated very well live, apart from Undisclosed Desires which is probably my least favourite off their new album, and they played Plug In Baby, Hysteria, Stockholm Syndrome, Time Is Running Out, New Born, Knights Of Cydonia... basically all of their biggest hits. I'm hoping that when they play in Manchester next year on their stadium tour they do a longer set with more of a mix of new and old songs... and also that i can get in standing! Brilliant gig anyway. [9/10]

Biffy Clyro with Manchester Orchestra and Pulled Apart By Horses (November 7th 2009 at Manchester Apollo)
In terms of the overall quality of all 3 bands that played this gig, i'd say this is one of the best gigs i've ever been to! I got there mid-way through PABH's set, seeing them for the 3rd time this year, and this was the best performance of them i'd seen so far. The new songs sounded really good too! [8/10] Manchester Orchestra were also very good, their songs perfectly written so they sound amazing live... I think i've seen them before at a Kings Of Leon gig a few years ago, but i can't remember watching them that time. :P [8/10]

Biffy Clyro were the main attraction, and they definitely didn't disappoint. I was a bit worried that the setlist would be entirely stuff off their new album and Puzzle, which although i love that album, i've heard pretty much everything off it live at least a couple of times. They did play most of Puzzle (11 of the 13 tracks as i recall), and played about 1/2 of their new album, but they also stuck in a good half dozen older tracks, including my favourite (JAGGY SNAKE!!) and one i just wasn't expecting (Liberate The Illiterate). Just hearing Jaggy Snake live made my night... :D [9/10]

The Flaming Lips (November 16th 2009 at Manchester Academy 1)
Just got back from this gig a couple of hours ago, and i'm still in awe at many of the things that happened at the gig! I actually very nearly forgot that i'd got a ticket for this, only remembering this morning, and i almost couldn't be bothered going... But i'd payed over £25 for the ticket, so i decided i must go. I only know 1 album by them, and wouldn't call myself a big fan of theirs, but i've heard about how their live shows are supposed to be really good, so i decided many months ago when tickets went on sale for this gig that i'd give them a try.

Overall the gig was pretty amazing. To begin with, the lighting, confetti, balloons, videos, costumes etc were more impressive than at any other gig i've ever been to, including bands like Muse! I loved the man sized bubble which singer Wayne Coyne was bounced across the crowd in at the start, and the way that literally hundreds of balloons and tons of confetti were released into the crowd at the start of the first song. Most impressive and exciting beginning to a gig i think i've ever seen. The lighting on some of the songs was very impressive, sometimes almost excessive... I was actually worried i was going to somehow develop a seizure when the lights were at their most intense... no wonder there was a warning at the start!

...Anyway, onto the music. (ahh, almost forgot about that :P). As i mentioned i don't know many songs by them, but i still very much enjoyed most of the songs they played. The band was very good live musically, though i think sometimes the over the top nature of the stage theatrics and lighting detracted and distracted from their performance. I also wasn't very happy with the big gaps between songs, and points where the singer was talking for too long or trying to get the crowd to clap more. If they had just got on with the music a bit quicker, they could have probably fit another 2 or 3 songs into the set! But that's only a minor complaint... Overall, the gig was pretty fuckin' awesome! So glad i went! [8/10]

Take nine bands that should play at your show and determine their set lists:
- The first one plays 5 songs.
- The second one plays 5 songs.
- The third one plays 5 songs.
- The fourth one plays 7 songs.
- The fifth one plays 7 songs.
- The sixth one plays 10 songs.
- The seventh one plays 10 songs.
- The eighth one plays 12 songs.
- The ninth one plays 16 songs, with a 3 song encore.

Okay, this would clearly be some kind of all day show...and possibly the biggest collection of sheer win in one place, ever.


1. Dream Theater
The Root of All Evil
These Walls
Pull Me Under
Octavarium
The Count of Tuscany

2. Sunn O)))
Báthory Erzsébet
Aghartha
Big Church [megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért]
Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia)
Alice

3. Steven Wilson
Harmony Korine
Insurgentes
Abandoner
Veneno Para Las Hadas
Collecting Space

4. Meshuggah
Future Breed Machine
Stengah
Straws Pulled at Random
I
New Millenium Cyanide Christ
Bleed
Dancers to a Discordant System

5. Devin Townsend
ZTO
Earth Day
Regulator
Bastard
Storm
Depth Charge
Travelling Salesman

6. Kamelot
Regalis Apertura
Forever
Ghost Opera
Center of the Universe
Abandoned
Pendulous Fall
Memento Mori (Mikael Åkerfeldt growling)
The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)
Epilogue
March of Mephisto (Åkerfeldt growling again)

7. Porcupine Tree
Even Less
Blackest Eyes
Slave Called Shiver
The Rest Will Flow
Arriving Somewhere but Not Here
The Incident
Shesmovedon
Strip the Soul
Anesthetize
Trains

8. Opeth
Ghost of Perdition
Burden
The Moor
The Baying of the Hounds
Deliverance
Windowpane
Hope Leaves
The Lotus Eater
When
Blackwater Park
The Grand Conjuration
Demon of the Fall

9. Rush
Part I
Dreamline
Bravado
Emotion Detector
The Camera Eye
Territories
The Spirit Of Radio
Natural Science
The Main Monkey Business

Part II
Animate
Earthshine
La Villa Strangiato
A Farewell To Kings
Subdivisions
Time Stand Still
Drum Solo
Vapor Trail

Encore
One Little Victory
Red Tide
YYZ


Total playing time would be approx 11 hours

I'm a proud owner of these albums:

Last updated: November 19th, 2009

Aerosmith - Get A Grip
Bloody Six - In The Name Of Blood (LP)
Dream Theater - Images and Words
Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt 2: Scenes From a Memory
Dream Theater - Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
Dream Theater - Octavarium
Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos
Heathen - Victims Of Deception
Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden - Killers
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden - Piece of Mind
Iron Maiden - Powerslave
Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
Iron Maiden - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
Iron Maiden - Brave New World
Iron Maiden - Dance of Death
Iron Maiden - A Matter of Life and Death
Judas Priest - Screaming for Vengeance
Judas Priest - Defenders of the Faith
Judas Priest - Painkiller
Judas Priest - Living After Midnight
Kamelot - Karma
Kamelot - Epica
Kamelot - The Black Halo
Kamelot - Ghost Opera (Ltd. Edition)
Kreator - Hordes of Chaos
Machine Head - The Blackening
Megadeth - Endgame
Metallica - Kill 'em All
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Metallica - ...And Justice for All
Metallica - Metallica (meh)
Metallica - Load (Yes, I CAN enjoy it)
Metallica - Garage Inc.
Metallica - S&M
Nuclear Assault - Survive (CD, Original '88 pressing!)
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Sepultura - Beneath the Remains
Testament - The Formation of Damnation (Ltd. Edition)
The Batallion - The Batallion (EP)
Vio-Lence - Eternal Nightmare (Re-issue with live disc)
Vio-Lence - Oppressing the Masses/Torture Tactics

...

Albums I do own, but are not proud over due the fact that I've lost the interest of them:

Black Tide - Light From Above
Bullet For My Valentine - Scream Aim Fire (Ltd. Edition)
Children of Bodom - Blooddrunk
In Flames - A Sense of Purpose (Ltd. Edition)
Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake
Metallica - Reload
Metallica - St. Anger
Metallica - Death Magnetic (Ltd. Edition)
Trivium - Ascendancy
Trivium - The Crusade
Trivium - Shogun

Hopefully will JUST the first part of this list grow, and not the second part.