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My friend Jim, AKA DJ Hiem, and singer from Rein[Forced] recently recovered from cancer. He decided to turn his experience around and help others with the awful disease. He put the word out and gathered 83 artists in the industrial scene to put together a 5 disc compilation, the proceeds from which, will be donated to help cancer research. The comp releases 2/9/10, and can be pre-ordered now from Metropolis Records, pressing is limited to 2500 copies, so get yours before they are all gone!

http://www.metropolis-mailorder.com/product.php?prodnum=MET+630
http://electronicsaviors.com

Disc 1-Diagnosis and Insurance

1.SMP-Stay Sick
2.Stromkern-Notes From A War
3.Boole-Smoking Gun
4.Interface-Never Say Farewell
5.Chemlab-Solar Max(The Jimmy Sextex Coil)
6.Bow Ever Down-Goodbye
7.The Gothsicles-Jim, Let Me Know When You Can Drink Again(Extreme Party Stylezz)
8.Terrorfakt-Painkiller
9.16 Volt-Things Unkind
10.Rein[Forced]-Malignancy (Pancreatitis Mix)
11.Ego Likeness-Save Your Serpent(Light As A Feather Mix)
12.Burikusu!!!-7 Dimensional
13.Inure-Rapture
14.Cesium 137-Endure(Encoder Mix)
15.Cyanotic-Axiome(Post Affliction Mix Feat 16 Volt)
16.Silent Auction-Deliverance
17.Terror Firma Sky-Cancerous Catalyst Converter

Disc 2-Chemotherapy and Radiation

1.The Dark Clan-Beat it, Kill it
2.The Azoic-Search and Destroy(Savior Mix)
3.genCAB-Version 2(Aesthetic Perfection Mix)
4.Christ Analogue-The Fight
5.Prometheus Burning Feat Jimmy Semtex of Rein[Forced]-Malignant Disco
6.Boxed Warning-Run First
7.Assemblage 23-Impermanence(Flight AC-112 Mix)
8.I:Scintilla-From A Wasteland To A Dream
9.Imperative Reaction-Giving In To The Change(Assemblege 23 Mix)
10.ThouShaltNot-Sick
11.Combichrist-Nosepad
12.Sonik Foundry-Stigmata
13.XuberX-Fear Is Fear
14.Mindless Faith-Into The Wind
15.Cyber Strukture-Some Sorta Rhythmic Machine
16.vircon-Count Backwards From Ten
17.Jordan Decay-The Great War

Disc 3-Surgery

1. Deathline International-Breaking
2. Encoder featuring Jimmy Semtex of Rein[Forced] and Patricia Wake-Jim’s Song
3. Vicious Alliance-Right Beside You (Save Me Now Mix)
4. backandtotheleft-Maybe Today
5. Nachtmahr-Katharsis(Purification Mix)
6. Null Device-Under the Gun (Immune Response Mix)
7. Suicide Commando-Until We Die (Winter Edit)
8. Agnes Wired For Sound-Don’t Worry (We’ll Meet Up Again)
9. System Syn-Blood (2009 Edit)
10. Acumen Nation-The Juice of Rotted Fruit
11. Aesthetic Perfection-The Ones (genCAB Mix)
12. Dismantled-Not Me
13. FGFC820-Children Of Decay (Northborne Mix)
14. Everything Goes Cold-I've Sold Your Organs on the Black Market to Finance the Purchase of a Used Minivan (I Don't Want Those Organs If There's Cancer in Them Mix)
15. Leæther Strip-The Scalpel song (Neoplasm edit)
16. Mordacious-Sleeping Beauty
17. Flesh Field-Detritus of Reason

Disc 4-Recovery

1. Noisuf-X-White Noise (Gift Mix)
2. Hardwire-I Am Forever
3. The Atomica Project-Transmission
4. Massiv In Mensch featuring Mind.In.A.Box-Supermassive Gravity (Endanger Mix)
5. SD6-Free (Interface Mix)
6. Obscenity Trial-Here and Now (Banging Mix by XP8)
7. Alter der Ruine VS Premeditated Light-Dawn
8. NoLongerHuman-Survival
9. Iris-Imposter (ThouShaltNot Remix)
10. debutante-Alive
11. Andraculoid-You Tried To Kill Me, But I Killed You First
12. Deviant UK-Access Denied (Rotersand Mix)
13. hypefactor-The Sweetest Soul(Rex Mix)
14. Freezepop-Duct Tape My Heart (Chinese Theatre Remix)
15. Spahn Ranch-In the Aftermath (Moroder Mix)
16. Caustic-Jim Made Cancer His Bitch

Disc 5-Bonus Medication(Digital Download)

1. WreckCreation-Incomplete Me (Remix)
2. Borderlines-Visualization
3. aimonia-Three
4. Beloved Dead-Twist of Fate
5. Derek C. F. Pegritz-Please Let Me Go
6. MoleculeParty-Riser
7. Patricia Wake-Peaceful Shores
8. Neurobash-Left 4 Dead
9. Jon Zaremba-The Best Way to Tear Anything Down is to Blast!
10. Less Like Flesh-Virus Free
11. EVP-Schrödinger
12. Surviving The Odyssey-Dissolving the Sanity
13. Retar-D2-EXTRA LIVES!
14. The Hose Face-Dread
15. Sachem Orenda-Evident Product of Effort
16. TowerOpensFire-With Heavy Hands

Ok, so following on from my rundown of my top 100 tracks of the decade (see previous entries linked below), it's now time for my top fifty albums of the decade, which starts today and will be concluded next week (I wanted this done by Whitby, and the end of the month).

Previously:
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.01: 100 to 81
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.02: 80 to 61
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.03: 60 to 41
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.04: 40 to 21
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.05: 20 to 01


50
Marilyn Manson
The Golden Age of Grotesque
2003

Maybe it was the company, maybe it was the gorgeous (now ex-)wife, maybe it was just an accident of timing. Whatever happened, for the first time in a while the artist Brian Warner dresses up as and taunts Middle America with had an album of quality tunes to match the scandal and image. Yes, mOBSCENE was overplayed, but it wasn't as if it was the only track to filled the club here. Every track without exception up to track nine (ignoring the intro) is pretty much MM at the top of his game, and while it dips a little for the second half, it's this first half that carries it through. It has malice, it has sneering humour, and it has sleaze in spades. In fact, pretty much MM always should have been, but with the exception of Antichrist Superstar never really carried it off apart from this. Obviously, things went seriously downhill since, but I'm happy to stick with this.

49
Killing Joke
Killing Joke
2003

A vicious, take-no-prisoners kind of comeback that was the sign of a reconvened band chomping at the bit to take things further. A very, very loud production suited this album fine, as the only way to appreciate it was to play it just as loud. There aren't any bad songs, but some are certainly head and shoulders above others. Like opener The Death & Resurrection Show, whose menacing opening is swept away by that monstrous, tribalesque drumming. I've not been mad-keen on the material since, but I'd love to hear some of the older stuff recorded with this kind of power and production...

48
Alice in Chains
Black Gives Way To Blue
2009

I thought long and hard about including this, with it being so new, but repeated listens have simply confirmed what I thought the first time around - this is one of the most extraordinary comback albums I've ever heard. It simply bristles with defiance, of respect for what came before but also of what can happen now, and is a surprisingly positive sounding album in light of what the core of the band have been through. And then, the new vocalist, William DuVall, fits perfectly into the mix. There aren't really highlights here, as all of it is. In time, I'm sure I'll place this higher, but for now it deserves it's place here.

47
Mastodon
Leviathan
2004

This should never have worked. "Prog-influenced, ultra-technical metallers release concept album based around Moby Dick" should, really, have had punters running for the hills, but then we all heard lead single Blood and Thunder, and all bets were off. How they pulled this off I'll never know, but the concept works, and pretty much all of the songs stand on their own, too, which is always the sign of a concept album that was a success.

46
The Dillinger Escape Plan
Ire Works
2007

Sell out? Hardly. A couple of songs here may have sounded a little less abrasive (Black Bubblegum was nearing pop), but one listen to the vicious fury of opener Fix Your Face should have been enough to remind you who exactly we are dealing with here. Their infinitely complex "math-rock"/hardcore hybrid is still present and correct, just perhaps with a better set of actual songs rather than just blasts of noise as they have occasionally done in the past.

45
Nine Inch Nails
Year Zero
2007

The best NIN release in years, this, and also the beginning of Trent Reznor's various experiments in widening the appeal of the band by being more creative with marketing the album, and by simply offering more to the fans - the clever, multiple websites and USB stick tricks being notable at the time. The other notable thing about this album, of course, was a different lyrical angle - rather than the dark introspection of previous albums, this was, in the main, a thinly veiled attack on the Bush administration - and the fury this invoked helped to shape a great album.

44
Daft Punk
Discovery
2001

Four years on from the techno-house mastery of Homework, Discovery surprised a lot of people, including me. Not quite what I was expecting, really - lead single One More Time was euphoric, vocal house music, and much of the rest of the album had 70s AOR-influences all over it. It's perhaps a credit to the musical skill of Daft Punk that they managed to pull this off, and it perhaps makes all the more sense when you watch Interstella 5555, which the album soundtracks (in order).

43
Apoptygma Berzerk
Welcome to Earth
2000

Perfect timing, maybe, but following 7 a few years before, Stefan Groth took things into a far more electro territory than the gothic/darkwave leanings of before, and hit upon his best album by miles. Basically eight songs linked by a number of lengthy soundscapes, much of the album had a space or alienation theme, and even managed to take in Metallica and the Twin Peaks theme along the way. It also probably features three of Apop's greatest songs (the incredible opening one-two of the trance-futurepop masterpieces of Starsign and Eclipse, and then the lengthy Paranoia), not to mention probably their best-loved ballad in Kathy's Song (Come Lie Next to Me). Groth's desire to move on musically has seen him leave this kind of material far behind, and while his keenness to try other things is admirable, it's never been the same.

42
The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls
2004

Sounding like no-one else before or since musically, lyrically and vocally Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls is much like many female-singer songwriters, in that many of the songs are extraordinarily confessional. But to add to that well-thumbed book comes a wicked sense of humour and that very different musical backing, and a set of songs that are memorable for many different reasons. It's not hard to see why the band have gained such a devoted set of fans, that's for sure.

41
Imperative Reaction
As We Fall
2006

IR had always been good, but nothing more, in my opinion - until an early version of the title track from this arrived on a Das Bunker compilation, and suddenly it was IR taking their sound to another level entirely. The thing is, when the album arrived there were a number of other songs on it that plainly and simply knocked the title track into the shade. They don't do anything too unusual - dancefloor-friendly electro-industrial (or hard EBM, if you wish) - but what they do, they do very, very well indeed. The follow-up album to this - Minus All - continues in the vein of high quality, too.

40
Combichrist
Everybody Hates You
2005

Love it or hate it - and I'd say of people I know there are probably equal numbers of each - this was Combichrist's breakthrough album, moving a little from the aggressive, heavy-duty, and mainly instrumental, industrial of debut album The Joy of Gunz towards a more accessible, more vocal-based dancefloor attack, and it paid off in spades. I can think of few other albums in the wider industrial scene where of thirteen songs, no less than ten of them will fill the club dancefloors still, four years after release. Yes, bits of it are grossly overplayed, and people in clubs could really do with requesting other things once in a while, but perhaps this never-ending torrent of requests for tracks from it suggests one thing, at least - Andy La Plegua delivered exactly what the punters on the dancefloor wanted, and that was pounding industrial-electro to dance to, and not to have to think about too much while doing so.

39
Rotersand
Truth Is Fanatic
2003

This album - in fact, the band - kinda snuck up on me and a fair number of others, as many of us discovered them as support for Assemblage 23 way back in the mists of time. They were quite a find, too - somehow balancing the fine line of heavy-duty club beats with a sense of melody and songcraft that had tripped up so many in the past. And pre-Dalek-sampling days, they were still a fascinating proposition, with a debut album full of dancefloor epics that frequently actually engaged brain as well as body, a rare commodity in the scene nowadays, sadly. I could take or leave the acoustic ballads, frankly, but rest of the album is so sodding good that I'm beginning to wonder if they will ever top it - and that's saying something seeing as they've barely put a foot wrong since, either.

38
Opeth
Ghost Reveries
2005

This release, much like the rest of Opeth's output, was met with euphoric reviews, but this album deserved them more than any other they've done. Despite the album's vast length, not a second is wasted, and the songs move effortlessly between sections and genres without any jarring. The return to the crunching guitars from the mellow middle-section of Ghost of Perdition is one perfect example (the soaring guitar solo that follows is simply glorious), but there are any number of moments that have you just mouthing "wow", and everything - while musically complex - seems so effortless. Not noly that, it may be verging on prog, but it's an utter joy to listen to.

37
Rammstein
Mutter
2001

It's taken until their comeback this year - and three albums - to even come close to matching the enormity of this album. By the time this album was released, anticipation was, to put it mildly, pretty fucking high. It had been nearly four years since the release of Sehnsucht which had brought the band worldwide attention and notoriety for their spectacular, fiery live show, and the great thing was that Mutter delivered on every level. It had the crunching, stadium-sized metal tracks, it had the ballads without sounding too twee, and then it had tracks like Zwitter that reminded us of their wickedly dark sense of humour. Probably one of the few bands to crack America while rarely straying from singing in their native German, that very fact perhaps speaks volumes about their appeal, and this album is without a shadow of a doubt the place to start if you've not really heard them before. But then you need to work back to the early material, before coming back to the new one...

36
Glasvegas
Glasvegas
2008

It took me ages before I really paid much attention to this band - having long been wary of "indie" bands being hyped to a ridiculous degree by the music press - but by the time I did I was kicking myself for not having paid attention sooner. Somewhere between Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine's more melodic moments and sixties doo-wop, the entire album is an enthralling listen, it's gritty tales of life in Glasgow all really quite affecting. Top moments? The impossibly sad tale of the boy who hasn't come home in Flowers And Football Tops, never mind it's use of You Are My Sunshine, Geraldine's tale of a social worker, and most of all, the devastating, withering Daddy's gone, that in some respects I can relate to far too much (although more about my mother, obviously). Quite how they follow this, of course, is another question...

35
Gogol Bordello
Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike
2005

An album so unhinged at points that it's a wonder that it doesn't all fall apart, the majority of this album sounds like it was recorded at one of the best parties of all time. And that's one of the things that is so great about this band - a motley gang that sound like they are having the time of their lives, and the songs simply jump out of the speakers at you and drag you into the maelstrom. Obviously material like this is best experienced in the live environment, but even on record it's a whole bag of fun, and at points - Start Wearing Purple, I'm looking at you - it's madder than a box of frogs, too...

34
Explosions in the Sky
The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place
2003

One of the more interesting "post-rock" bands, and arriving a little later than many of their peers, this lot could have been written off as mere copyists were it not for the fact that so much of their material is so heart-stoppingly gorgeous. Working within the confines of the usual "rock" set-up of guitar-bass-drums, they somehow create lengthy soundscapes that evoke strong emotions, admittedly mainly of sadness and loneliness, but there are parts that are sheer, total joy. But it's that almost wilful manipulation of emotions that is the most remarkable thing here - proof perhaps this is music that really does transcend it's humble origins and make you feel part of it. And all without vocals.

33
Goldfrapp
Black Cherry
2003

I mentioned the other week that this was the band's real breakthrough to the mainstream, and in retrospect it's filthy lyrics and sound make it somewhat miraculous that it wasn't censored in some way. But then, the overt sexuality of the album it part of the attraction, and, er, stripped of it this album wouldn't be half as good, or as fun. It's the full-on, uptempo electro numbers that are the core of the album (the domination/submission of Strict Machine, the sexual demands and orgasmic heights of Twist, the barely disguised innuendo of Train, for starters), but the ballads are equally deserving of your attention.

32
ohGr
welt
2001

It's worrying me to realise just how old this is, particularly as, I seem to recall, that many songs on this album had been kicking around for a few years previously, too. One of those classic examples of an album ahead of it's time, perhaps, freed from the confines of Skinny Puppy nivek ogre and Mark Walk clearly let things take some very different directions to the parent band. This is, at least in part, extremely twisted synthpop, and up to the point of it's release sounded like pretty much nothing SP had done. Subsequent album SunnyPsyOp was not half as rewarding as this, but then, little else has been since either: there is simply so much going on that it's fun going back and listening again and again. Quite a trick, really.

31
Tool
Lateralus
2001

It was a long, long time coming, this, but it was worth it in the end. A staggering technical achievement, of course, but the songs are what made it so good, not just the musical mastery on show. It's not just a rehash of Ænima, either, instead having a very different atmosphere and feel and perhaps that is what made it so successful as an album. Like all Tool material, it rewards repeated listening to the whole album, rather than individual songs, trying to get your head around the songs, their complex construction, the insane time signatures (Lateralus itself is apparently based around the Fibonacci sequence both musically and lyrically!) and deep lyrical detail. So, not one for the casual listener, but worth it all the same...

30
Interlock
[album artist=Interlock]Crisis%252F%252FReinvention
2005

Call them a British Fear Factory if you must, but Interlock were always perhaps a little more varied than that tag might have suggested. Despite something of an unstable lineup in their later years - and then splitting for good on the eve of the second album's release (which never did ever see the light of day, sadly) - the one full album they did deliver is awesome. From the full-on industrial roar of Skinless and Straight to the surprisingly tender ballad of This Waking Moment, they managed to cover far more bases than I ever would have expected, and as a result ended up with an album that was pretty special. Nowadays, by the way, my favourite track is the last one - the stomp of In Stasis that gets better with every listen. Gone, and missed, this lot.

29
Draconian
Turning Season Within
2008

A glorious album of romantic doom metal, that didn't put a single foot wrong and perhaps was never quite as appreciated in the UK as it should have been. A shame, really, as it was easily a match for anything the homegrown kings of the genre have put out in recent years, and indeed went one step further by including dual vocalists, with the sweet tones of the female vocalist being used to spectacular effect and adding that extra dimension that many of their peers so sorely lacked.

28
Alter der Ruine
The Giants From Far Away
2009

There was a marvellous sleight-of-hand pulled off by ADR here. The previous album State of Ruin was dark, and pre-occupied in part with a bleak present and future. The follow-up, going on press releases and apparent theme, seemed to suggest more of the same, so it was something of a surprise to say the least when it turned out to be a blast of bouncing, *fun* noisy electro-industrial, riddled with humorous and cleverly-placed samples - oh, and the best use of Chris Morris in music for a while, too. And along the way, they've managed to widen their fanbase, too, if the reaction to this band's material in clubs (and my girlfriend loves this album, too, which was a little bit of a surprise) is anything to go by...

27
16Volt
FullBlackHabit
2007

Nine years had elapsed by the time this, the follow-up to Supercoolnothing finally arrived, and remarkably, perhaps, it was well worth the wait. More electronics, more crunch, more tunes, in fact it was the archetypal "turn up to 11" that worked in spectacular style. Ok, so there were a couple of tracks that I wasn't especially keen on, but an album where I like every song on it is bloody rare. Either way, it's worth it alone for tracks two through to four, which are probably three of the best industrial rock tracks ever recorded.

26
Icon of Coil
Serenity is the Devil
2000

Back in the days BC (that's, Before Combichrist), Icon of Coil were one of the most thrilling of the "Futurepop" bands by some distance, and this reputation was plainly and simply thanks to the early singles and the extraordinary first album. Starting out with the lengthy, Strange Days-sampling intro to Activate, the icy, detached vocals perfectly matched the smooth, sleek music that at points was nearing trance-techno, but always had that extra gear to shift into that set so many of the songs apart. The use of female vocals (in the form of the sultry tones of Computorgirl) on a handful of songs was a good move, too, as it provided some variety (even if the single version of Situations Like These, remixed with a slamming beat and Andy on vocals, was even better). None of La Plegua's projects have sounded as unique, or as brilliant, as this since.

Next week: My top 50 albums 2000-09 Pt.02: 25 to 01

And now, onto the final instalment of my tracks of the decade. This took ages to compile, write about and in particular decide on this final top twenty. Obviously, I'd love to know what you, the reader, thinks are your favourite track(s) of this decade.
Next week will see the start of my top fifty albums of the decade.

Previously:
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.01: 100 to 81
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.02: 80 to 61
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.03: 60 to 41
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.04: 40 to 21

20
W.A.S.T.E.
Suburban Crime Scene
Violent Delights
2007
Full-on, rhythmic-industrial noise seems to be in short-supply nowadays, so thank god W.A.S.T.E. are here to assault our ears. Just about everything they have released so far seems to have declared war on my speakers, my ears, and dancefloors if I dare play them when DJing, and I fucking love it. Bring a level of industrial rage that few other acts seem to even dare aspire to, this track is the centrepiece of the Violent Delights EP, with a writhing mass of samples that fill the gaps behind a jackhammer beat that could quite likely rip holes in the floor. Oh, and add to that the high-pitched squeals that some find desperately uncomfortable (I'm all but banned from playing this in my girlfriend's presence)...and you have one hell of a confrontational track. But then, isn't this what this genre is supposed to be about?

19
The Strand
I Hate My Fucking Job (Rmx by Imperative Reaction)
Rmx01
2004
A curious lot, this band - slightly odd industrial with the band choosing to pursue a steampunk image (just check this live version of the original of this track). The lyrical theme, as the title suggests, is rather more rooted in the present, a seething tirade at shitty, dead-end jobs - and features unexpected sample use from Red Dwarf episode Timeslides. While the original is interesting, it's the Imperative Reaction remix that gets the nod, for it's beefing up of the beats and generally tweaking the track to make it much, much more snappy and immediate...

18
Ladytron
Destroy Everything You Touch
Witching Hour
2005
The one time this band have reached near-perfection, this icy synthpop track was one of those rare tracks that seemed to appeal right across the spectrum. Shorn of the experimentalism that the band are sometimes guilty of indulging in on their albums, this was simply a straight-up pop song that mystifyingly never became a massive hit (despite being re-released). Some people have no taste, clearly...

17
A Perfect Circle
Magdalena
Mer De Noms
2000
There was more than a little fuss when this band first appeared, mainly I think down to the appearance of Maynard James Keenan as vocalist. Needless to say, his vocals are immediately recognisable, but what he brings here is very different to his work in Tool, and in other subsequent side-projects. There was a dark, gothic heart to many of the songs, and in addition the lyrics were a little less cryptic and perhaps more nakedly emotional. That said, debate still appears to rage over what this particular song is about - I'm going with the religious imagery/allegory explanation, myself - but whatever it is about, its an astonishingly tense lesson in musical control, as the verses are reserved, before a whole torrent of emotion is unleashed for the chorus and the climax of the song, too. Not only the best APC track by a country mile, it's probably up in the top handful of tracks Maynard has ever been involved with, as far as I'm concerned.

16
Emperor
Thorns On My Grave
Prometheus: The Discipline Of Fire and Demise
2001
The last recorded word by the greatest black metal band of them all, this was the staggering closing track to their most experimental album, an album that probably gained them a whole lot of new fans in their quest to expand their sound. It wasn't in vain, either, in my view - this was the best Emperor ever sounded, a dense, orchestral-Black Metal sound that at the same time never allowed any element to be buried in the mix, and when you ended up with songs like this, it was hard not to want to bow to it and salute what a fucking amazing job they had done.

15
Neurosis
Stones From the Sky
A Sun That Never Sets
2001
The jaw-dropping, bleak closer of A Sun That Never Sets, this is the deepest, darkest blues updated as only Neurosis can - complete with the tolling of a funeral bell heralding the opening of the track, before the riffs rain down from the black clouds that gather over them. Many have problems categorising Neurosis, and it's not hard to see why. Not quite doom metal, not quite blues, not quite stoner metal, hell, they even include industrial electronics and production methods at points. Whatever they are, though, they stand alone above so many other bands who have never quite nailed the sheer depth of emotion and reach of their musical experimentation, and for me, with this track in particular, they remain utterly, utterly peerless.

14
Left Spine Down
U Can't Stop The Bomb
Fighting for Voltage
2008
So, maybe, this is what cyberpunk actually is, in sonic terms. Punk song structures and attitude, with a sleek industrial production and effects. Oh, and kick-ass songs like this, too. With links to various other north american industrial bands, they've got themselves quite a fanbase in a short space of time, and it's not hard to see why. When they are done releasing a seemingly endless set of remixes of their songs - and notably, perhaps, this track has been released a lot less than some of their other output - their next new material should be worth hearing. But if you need somewhere to start with this band, you need to start with this.

13
Mastodon
Blood and Thunder
Leviathan
2004
It was definitely this track that made me really sit up and notice what Mastodon were doing. The first album was good, solid metal, but it was Leviathan where the staggering scope of Mastodon's influences and aims were laid bare. And it was the opening track, Blood and Thunder - surely the first metal track ever about Ahab and his hunt for the great whale - that stormed into being one of the most played metal tracks in some time. With good reason, too - it's storming, driving metal with an unusually clear narrative, and a massive, massive whale-sized chorus. Although for reasons probably best known to the band, the video involves a lot of clowns.

12
Collide
Euphoria | Emirian Mix
Vortex
2004
Collide are one of those bands that many people have heard of, but may not have actually heard. At least, that used to be the way. Nowadays they seem to have a little more of a profile, and there can be no doubt that it is this track that has had a significant hand in that. The original, languid version on Some Kind of Strange was good, but once Charlie Clouser got it's hands on it, it was transformed into a slow-burning, sensual epic that brought to mind all kinds of fun things, and also helpfully summed up all that was great about this band. More based around atmosphere than anything else, their intricately constructed tracks are frequently soundscapes that reward repeated listening, and this was exactly that - this remix, though, just helped to make it that much more accessible. The subsequent video edit is pretty much a merging of elements of the Emirian mix and the original, too, hence why I'm linking to that here.

11
Pendulum
Blood Sugar
Blood Sugar Single
2007
Inexcusably shorn of it's trademark voiceover intro for the re-release of Hold Your Colour, I've seen this titanic, armour-plated track obliterate dancefloors in clubs all over the place, from drum'n'bass clubs to metal clubs, industrial/goth clubs, indie clubs...this and the act's appeal seemed limitless to start with once they caught on, but it never quite seemed right once they turned into a full band and started adding vocals. Nothing on In Silico comes close to the mastery of Hold Your Colour, but then this is one step further on from that too. Pure fun-loving, jump-up drum'n'bass with a horrendously catchy - and yes, cheesy - synth hook, I now know what "the sonic re-creation of the end of the world" sounds like - this.

10
Stromkern
Terrorist
Armageddon
2001
Stromkern may have finally got the recognition they deserved with the highly-political album Light It Up a few years later (and in particular the single Stand Up), but those who were already fans surely most have known what was to come following tracks like this. A devastating critique of the suicide bomber, asking whether it is really worth killing yourself for a belief, it literally explodes - pun intended - into the chorus. Probably Stromkern's most nakedly hip-hop moment, too, it was also the opener for their set at Infest 2006, and was just as effective then.

9
Rico
Forward Motion
Violent Silences
2004
Five years have now elapsed since the last recorded output from Rico, and while the website and myspace remain live there has been precious little word to suggest that there might be more material coming. More's the pity, as his second album was even stronger than the first, even if it didn't seem like it at the time. An album that grew and grew in stature, revealing it's many charms listen by listen, it was also unusual in that all of the strongest tracks - without exception - were in the second half of the album, almost as if the tracklisting was back to front. It culminated in this slowly unfurling call to grasp the here-and-now and do something, anything, before you waste your life wishing it away. An unusually uplifting track from Rico, in some respects, if this was the last word, it's an impressive way to finish. On the flipside, closing on a high like this only makes me hope all the more that another release will follow.

8
Front Line Assembly
Buried Alive
Artificial Soldier
2006
By 2006, and the impending arrival of this album, I was not alone in fearing that FLA were a spent force. It had been years since they have released a decent album, with only the odd hint that they still had something worth listening to. This album changed my view - along with the staggering live shows that accompanied it - but more than anything it was this immense track. FLA finally picked up on drum'n'bass, having barely even looked at it previously, and created one of their most anthemic tracks ever based around a thumping, urgent beat that had fucktons of bass, too. A new album is now in the works, apparently, and if Bill Leeb's interviews from a year or two back are to be believed, this could be a last hurrah. Well, if it reaches anywhere close to this, it's going to be a hell of a way to go...

7
Covenant
Call the Ships to Port
Northern Light
2002
In the end, it was a straight decision as to whether to include this or We Stand Alone, and I think that in terms of pure impact it really has to be this. It may be a stretch to say that it revitalised their career, but what it did do was to make many realise that there was much, much more to them than trashy electropop like Dead Stars. This was deep, thoughtful stuff, with lyrics alluding to Greek myth and legend, pounding, club-bound beats and a synth hook that was simply divine - the step up through the gears after the first chorus, particularly in the live version, has to be seen/heard to be believed. Endlessly played and requested since, but it never feels like a trial to listen to it again and again - instead it's always a pleasure.

6
65daysofstatic
Aren't We All Running?
The Fall of Math
2004
It's amazing to think that it's only five years since I first discovered 65DoS (thanks, Kelly!), and I've been an avid fan ever since. As they have progressed, and added more and more electronic textures, though, I'm still finding my preferred listening being their first album, which is a fantastic mix of post-rock, glitch and electronics. Amongst the many great moments, though, it's this - the closing track - that is still the unassailable peak. Opening with a mournful, but urgent piano melody, before twinkling electronics and the merest hint of guitar join in...and then a gulp of air before the whole, majestic track comes crashing in - a trick pulled more than once. It's the ending, though, that gets me every time. The gulp of air is stretched out for four, five seconds, before it rips back in one more time, then stopping dead and leaving you, the listener, to contemplate just how a band that are almost entirely instrumental could ever get so utterly thrilling to listen to.

5
Primordial
The Coffin Ships
The Gathering Wilderness
2005
There is a not a single song in this list that comes even remotely close to the sheer emotional punch that this song possesses, and I'll be surprised if I ever hear another that does. A lengthy, elegaic track about the humiliation the band's Irish forefathers suffered in attempting to escape the Irish Potato Famine, it's powerful sweep never fails to send shivers down my spine. A band that, perhaps, have never quite got the coverage they deserved in the metal scene in the UK at least, they nowadays are a slightly more restrained doom-folk-metal band, quite a difference from their black metal roots, but at times the fury and anguish they unleash is staggering - and this is one of those tracks.

4
Amanda Palmer
Astronaut: A Short History of Nearly Nothing
Who Killed Amanda Palmer
2008
The shooting, screaming star of AFP's solo album, and as far as I'm concerned still the best moment she's put on record so far - and that includes all of The Dresden Dolls stuff, too, hence why this comes in higher than my DD inclusion in this list. Written while a relationship was/had disintegrated/ing - although the full story is far more complex than that - having more than just vocals, piano and drums makes AFP sound like the larger-than-life, brash and ballsy star that she really should be. Shamefully Roadrunner Records fucked her over in a big way, barely promoting the album and leaving it to die, but a massive online following and AFP's happy involvement with them seems to have done far more good. Anyway, this track is awesome, and if you haven't heard it, shame on you - and watch the video.

3
Cyanotic
Order Out Of Chaos
Transhuman
2005
Some of you may be surprised to see this not at number one in this chart, but there is no doubt that it deserves it's place in the top three. This was the first track by the band that I heard, after I bought the album without hearing it following a glowing review on Music Non Stop. "That sounds just like the kind of band I'm looking for", I thought - and so it proved. Four years on, it's still a staple track in my DJ sets, and is probably the one track I play that I get asked "what is this" more than any other. If you've been reading my blog for all this time and still don't know what it sounds like, here's a quick version - stomping, drum'n'bass-infused industrial metal with Slayer-esque breakdowns that sounds like an awesome apocalyptic future. Now you know, and if you like, go watch the video and perhaps even order a copy of the second version of the album...

2
Battles
Atlas
Mirrored
2007
A still extraordinary track even now, well over two years since release, that unveiled Battles as a band that were doing something very different to just about everyone else. A infectious, technicolour blast of *fun*, built around, of all things, the Glitter beat, it was probably the catchiest song of the year and most other recent years, and yet was light years away from being mainstream pop. Which is probably a good thing, as these guys are far too good to lose to the mainstream, right? Electronic music played live, with an endless sense of invention and curiosity, I'm never going to get tired of this.

1
Seabound
Scorch The Ground (Version)
Double Crosser
2006
I debated long and hard as to what the top track on this list was going to be, and certainly the number one slot only got decided for sure earlier today, when I heard this track again. I've already mentioned how brilliant Seabound are, but this is their standout moment. A mid-paced, electro-pop track with a heart of pitch black, this is a tale of revenge, of wanting to be every perceived threat and fear to whoever it is that inspired this song. The tune is memorable in itself, but it would be nothing without the lyrics and the vocal delivery - Frank Spinath's air of calculated calm throughout the song is, perhaps, a little unnerving. But then, that is most certainly the aim, at least if you are the subject. To me, it's simply the most well-rounded, and therefore best, song of this decade.

Next week: My top 50 albums 2000-09 Pt.01: 50 to 25

Continuing from last week, it's time to move onto the third stage of my rundown of the last decade. Also, as this autumn marks twenty years of my being "into" alternative music, after this decade's rundown there will be a similar one to follow for the 90s (for which the "draft" list we pulled together over the weekend consists of nearly 300 tracks!)...

Previously:
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.02: 100 to 81
My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.02: 80 to 61

60
The Dillinger Escape Plan
Come to Daddy
Irony Is a Dead Scene
2002

The only cover of Aphex Twin that I can think of, and who else but a band with the sheer level of technical ability that Dillinger have - with Mike Patton offering a truly demented and terrifying lead vocal - could even give this a go? Doesn't add a lot to the original, not that it really needed to, but for the sheer gleeful malevolence of it, it is well worth a listen. Thankfully, though, it doesn't have a video like the original...

59
theSTART
The 1234
Death Via Satellite
2003

Aimee Echo's second band were something of an about-turn from the first - rather than the dark, grinding metal of Human Waste Project, theSTART were (and are) exuberant new-wave-pop-punk that seems to fit Aimee much, much better. This track - released on an EP after their second album, as I recall - is by far their best moment yet, a joyous explosion of lust apparently about a new boyfriend...of sorts.

58
Ashbury Heights
Penance
Three Cheers for the Newlydeads
2007

Probably not the first guilty please I'll admit to, and it won't be the last, either. A glorious piece of synthpoppy electro that introduced a new band that I'd never heard of (and subsequently went out and bought the album, and EP, that followed), this wasn't anything particularly original, it was just done very, very well indeed.

57
Red Harvest
Warthemes
A Greater Darkness
2007

Red Harvest's intense, brutally heavy industrial-black metal hybrid has left them a little bit on the fringes, perhaps, but latest album A Greater Darkness swept in a pitch-black, neo-gothic ambience to add to the brute force, to spectacular effect. However the standout track was something else entirely - a martial, march to war that nearly swept away everything the band had done before, and instead introduced sampled orchestras, tribal drumming and a climax that sounds like an entire army charging forward into battle - and it is utterly, utterly awesome (as always in these cases, listen to it very, very loudly for the maximum effect).

56
IAMX
The Negative Sex
The Alternative
2007

It's still bizarre to think that Chris Corner used to the shy one in the shadows of Sneaker Pimps, what with his outrageous flamboyance in IAMX. While the first album had a few good songs, second album The Alternative was absolutely stuffed with them, and the echoing, pounding, stadium-sized stomp of this track - with a killer chorus - was for me the pick. The only reason it falls down the list a bit? It's cut too bloody short.

55
Rabbit Junk
The Big Push
Reframe
2006

A wildly inventive second album, that certain brought JP Anderson's latest project to a wider audience (his previous band The Shizit weren't as, er, colourful as this), hurling in influences and genres to the mix as and when he sees fit. Other songs saw black metal, or cartoonesque themes, this mental track saw marching bands, punk rock, nursery rhyme-style verses, and a huge sing-a-long chorus. It sounds a mess "on paper", but it's immense fun when you listen to it...

54
Queen Adreena
Kitty Collar Tight
Drink Me
2002

All too frequently, I'm straining a little to work out what the hell Katie Jane Garside is on about, and here she appears to making things a little easier. A snapping, rough kickabout of a track, that bizarrely, is verging on the anthemic despite it's raw sound.

53
Edge of Dawn
Elegance
The Flight [Lux]
2005

In Seabound, Frank Spinath sings about emotions, feelings, and creates atmospheres quite like any other band - and his work in Edge of Dawn seems to reveal a more primal, raw side, where the often only-implied sexuality in Seabound is laid bare. Nowhere is this more obvious than here, where he puts the female subject on a pedestal, the "mistress of elegance", and invites her to do what she will with him. The, yes, elegant, electronics that back him up are simply the icing on the cake.

52
Arcade Fire
Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
Funeral
2004

God, I was late to the party with this lot. I'd missed any mention or play of them for a good two years following the release of this, somehow, and I spent a while playing catch-up, and got my dad into them along the way. I've listened to this album a lot since, too - way more than Neon Bible, actually, as I prefer Funeral by far - but if I want one song to sum up why I now adore this band, it's this song. The quiet-but-simmering yearning as Win Butler tells a tale of hiding in the snow with a young love, digging tunnels through it to hide from the parents. At once old beyond it's years, and burning with young ambition, it's life-affirming, elegant and something truly special.

51
Caustic
Booze Up and Riot
Booze Up And Riot
2007

Big, dumb, and bloody great fun, Matt Fanale's Caustic is, frankly, a breath of fresh air in an industrial scene that is (rightly) castigated sometimes for taking itself far too seriously. A hugely popular addition to the Infest 2007 lineup with a great live show, the album that came out that year was stuffed with great tunes, in-jokes, funny samples, and was opened (after Jared Louche's rant) with this three minute blast of industrial punk. Not suggesting insurrection, just a suggestion to get wasted and have some fun. Sounds a plan to me, Matt...

50
VAST
Turquoise
Turquoise
2004

The changes in VAST's output over the decade or so since they first appeared have been, er, vast. From the striking, sample-heavy-gothic-tinged rock of the first album, to the acoustic meanderings of the latest album MeAndYou, Jon Crosby has certainly been prolific - and to his great credit he's also been another trailblazer in taking his work directly to fans, releasing loads of collections of demos and works-in-progress for reasonable prices in advance of the albums proper. This release - a companion called Crimson also arrived - was a superb collection of songs that rather than sounding like demos, frankly sounded like the finished article, and the opening title track was a staggering statement of intent. A huge-sounding gothic-rock track with a killer chorus, it sums up nicely everything that has always been great about VAST. (It should be noted that a selection of tracks from these two releases ended up on the album Nude, although in some cases were somewhat over produced - and I don't think it is an accident that Turquoise and Crimson were subsequently released properly as a double-CD set)

49
Six By Seven
Eat Junk Become Junk
The Closer You Get
2000

I'm sure I've looked back at this not too long ago, but anyway, let's recap. Six By Seven were one of the more interesting "indie-rock" bands that appeared in the late-90s, merging shoegaze, post-rock, and unbelievably intense emotions into a sound that made them somewhat unique, and rather underappreciated, too. For the second album, they added a pulsing electronic undercurrent, and this opening track was a short, sharp punch in the face that left you breathless and agape after it's two-and-a-half minutes. An astonishing statement of intent that only got even more interesting as the album went on...

48
Skinny Puppy
Pro-Test
The Greater Wrong of the Right
2004

The jury is still out, perhaps, on just how successful the SP reformation has been since this, but at just the odd moment at least, it was all worthwhile. One of the first tracks to really catch the attention from the "comeback" album was this - a bass-heavy, dancefloor-bound track that to many listeners surprise, saw ohGr rapping. By far the most popular track from the album in the years that followed, and it's not really surprising. The breakdancing video was good fun, too...

47
Daft Punk
Harder Better Faster Stronger
Discovery
2001

Kanye West ain't got nothing on this one, that's for sure. He may have appropriated it for a single a year or two back, but it's the original that wins every single time. A brilliantly constructed track that adds everything a layer at a time, before having great fun deconstructing and rebuilding the sounds and vocals like a sliding puzzle by the end. For me, this album (and even more so Human After All) is not a patch on Homework as a whole, but moments like this run it close.

46
Miocene
9mm High And Rising
Refining the Theory
2000

Yet another UK metal band that just for a short while got the full glare of press attention, then were ignored while the next big thing took their place. Somewhat unfairly, perhaps, pigeonholed as the "British Tool", on this first album they were awesome. Yes, a little like Tool at points, with lengthy, complex songs, but much less crypic lyrically and a whole lot rawer sounding. This juddering, raging beast of a track was a perfect example of why they were so fantastic - and tragically ignored by many. Clearly keen on avoiding their pigeonhole, they followed this up by adding masses of electronics and heading down more mellow, trippy routes - but still with the savage riffs to remind us they were still metal every now and again.

45
Seabound
Transformer
Beyond Flatline
2004

I mentioned Seabound earlier, and the flipside to Frank Spinath's work in Edge of Dawn is here. The gleaming, shiny electronics of this track provide a punchy backbone to lyrics riddled in metaphor, and yet again with a killer chorus. And as good as the album as a whole is, it can't hold a candle to the majesty of this track.

44
And One
Military Fashion Show
Bodypop
2006

I've had something of a love-hate relationship with this band's output, with some of their stuff being pretty abominable, as far as I'm concerned. But when they get it right…christ. As here - a track that doesn't sound like much, to start with, other than the opening synth line that identifies it instantly. But by the time the second chorus comes around, the track is a skyscraping work of pop genius.

43
Killing Joke
Asteroid
Killing Joke
2003

This was, let's be honest, one hell of a comeback. Most of the original band were involved, with Dave Grohl lending a hand with a drumming performance that could only be termed "immense" (the B-side to one of the singles was a brutal rework of Wardance (ultimate version) that Grohl finally gave the track the massive drum sound it always deserved). Probably the most immediate track was this, rather than initial single Loose Cannon. Yet more end-of-the-world theories from Jaz Coleman, but musically it fits this perfectly - this is the soundtrack as the world goes up in flames.

42
Imperative Reaction
Giving Up
Minus All
2008

I was a little harsh on this album to begin with, and it took five or six complete listens before I realised that I was totally wrong. Ok, so there are a couple of duff moments, but the highs easily brush those away. Tracks four, five and six are the bulletproof centrepiece, though, and Giving Up is the track that begins this run. The harsh, unusual electronics that open it are a call to arms, before the stomping, marching beat kicks in and quickly gathers pace to form the backbone of the best track IR have released yet.

41
Laibach
Tanz Mit Laibach
Wat
2003

Laibach may have long since acknowledged that Rammstein helped themselves to Laibach's sound and took into far more commercially popular realms than the Slovenians ever were willing to, but they did have a pretty good go at commercial success themselves in 2003 with WAT. Tanz... - itself a nod to DAF (Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft) - was the bulldozing single, built around a simple 1-2-3-4 beat that made up for it's simplicity with brute force, an ultra-catchy chorus, choral backing vocals that all resulted in one of the biggest industrial dancefloor hits I've ever seen. Proof of the track's immortality, perhaps, came from some army-outfitted kittens...

Next week: My top 100 tracks 2000-09 Pt.04: 40 to 21

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1. Iambia - Obsessed
2. Imperative Reaction - Minus All
3. Menschdefekt - Menschenfresser [Valium Era remix] **req**
4. Ext!ze - Hellektrostar [Reaper remix]
5. camping im keller - Interessant
6. Vicious Alliance - Where Soldiers Fall
7. Save the Robot - Irobot **req**
8. Grendel - Chemicals And Circuitry [Studio-X Hard Dance remix]
9. Phosgore - Killerhertz **req**
10. Acylum - Raise Your Fist
11. Left Spine Down - Reset [MELT remix by Sebastian Komor]
12. Dexy Corp_ - Proselytes
13. We Got This Far - Like Dying
14. Dust is Noise - Fractured
15. God Module - Telekinetic
16. Shiv-R - Parasite
17. NOVAkILL - Demonizer [Force Fed remix by Inside Agitator]
18. Ad Inferna - Rédemption
19. Razorfade - Pale Shelter
20. Xentrifuge - Pathogen
21. Surrealizt - The Centre For Better Business
22. Tilt! - Rats **req**
23. Der Blaue Reiter - The Fall Of Light

Wed 16 Sep – Psyclon Nine,

The Masquerade Theater fucking rules, if I lived in Atlanta I would go to that theater all the time despite some bands that would play there.

I hate going to these sorts of shows with a bunch a tinibopper-wanabe-gothic- kids that think that they are badass and think that they know what pure evil is. Trying to get a gothic kid to mosh is kinda like forcing my cat to roll over and play dead. I like to support all genres of music including ones with gay ebm groups. The front person (not sure if it was a boy or girl) of Psyclon Nine liked to spit on the people standing at the stage. Felt like he/she was telling the fans to fuck off and he/she didn't care for them showing up to support them. All in all I thought Psyclon Nine was brutal and evil.

Imperative Reaction is trance group with some metal influence in its sound. I did not like them one bit. My friends and I had a blast making fun of them though. I have to say that was one of the highlights of the show. Forget about moshing to that crap.....

P.S.
I know that the front person for Psyclon Nine is a male, it's just that he was wearing a skirt or something and he had of a waddle in his step LOL<__> ebm groups are a strange brew, I prefer death metal shows were people are them selves......

Figured I'd make a list, for the sake of convenience. I won't include bands I didn't like, openers and whatnot, this is just a list of gigs I'm PROUD of attentinding...

[:SITD:]
The Academy Is...
Aerosmith x2
Aesthetic Perfection x2
AFI
Agnes Wired For Sound x2
The Atomica Project x2
The Azoic
Babyland
Bauhaus
Bella Morte
The Birthday Massacre x2
Boxed Warning x2
The Burning Path x3
Caustic
Combichrist
The Cruxshadows
The Cult
The Dark Clan
Das Ich
Dismantled
Emilie Autumn
Flyleaf
Freezepop
Funker Vogt
The Gothsicles
Hellblinki Sextet
HorrorPops
I:Scintilla x2
Iggy Pop
Imperative Reaction x2
In This Moment
Interface
It Dies Today (actually, they're kind of terrible, that was a good while ago.)
Jim Gaffigan
Julien-Kx2
Lamb of God
Lewis Black
Marilyn Manson
Mindless Self Indulgence x2
Misfits
Morrissey
Motley Crue x2
Nine Inch Nails x3
Ozzy Osbourne
Prometheus Burning
Psyclon Nine
Rabbit in the Moon
Rein[Forced] x3
Revolver Modele
Slick Idiot
Static-X
Stone Temple Pilots
Velvet Revolver x2
Voltaire x2
Wednesday 13

PLAYLIST February 28th 2009 @ tp
Current mood: pensive


Set I (23h00 - 0h00)
The Ludovico technique - This Life
Detroit Diesel - Made Of This
Rotersand - Exterminate Annihilate Destroy
Imperative Reaction - Minus All
Faderhead - TZDV
God Module - Inside out
Miss Construction - Fuck me too *
Combichrist - Without Emotions
Animassacre - Apathy (Remixed By Ginger Snap5)
Reaper - Daemon (Gudfried Remix by Heimaterde) *
Straftanz - Straftanz Süd (Feat. Reaper)
Suicide Commando - Bind Torture Kill
Modulate - Hard and Dirty (SAM Mix)


Set II (1h00 am – 2h00 am)

Dioxyde - Cae la presion (Tactical Sekt)
Uberbyte - You Don't Get it (We Don't Care)
Komor Kommando - Triggerfinger
Wumpscut - War *
[.Godtarget.] - Districk
Combichrist - blut royale
Painbastard - Nyctophobia (Remixed by Straftanz)
Noisuf-X - Hit Me Hard (Club Mix)
Nachtmahar - I Believe in Blood
Grendel - Harsh Generation
[x]-Rx - Stage 2
Angelspit - Skinny Little Bitch *
Client - Der Amboss (with Die Krupps)

* request