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Better late than never.

…or so they say? Well, it is kinda late, but then again, I was too greedy – wanted to rat—I mean, listen to so much music, hence the delay.

Note that my rating scale may (and probably will) differ from yours. Short summary:
9 – amazing
8 – very good, recommended for everyone
7 – not bad, if you like the genre/band very much, you might give it a try…
6 – well, you CAN listen to it, but there’s no point. Boring/annoying for some reason. Not recommended (maybe if you’re a fanboy of the band – but in that case you’d already own the album)
Anything below 6 – no. Just no.

2/10
This Or The Apocalypse – Dead Years // I’d rather have the Apocalypse…

5/10
All That Remains – A War You Can Not Win

5,5/10
As I Lay Dying – Awakened
Ektomorf – Black Flag
Every Time I Die – Ex Lives

6/10
Arthemis – We Fight
At Vance – Facing Your Enemy
Cradle of Filth – The Manticore and Other Horrors
Delain – We Are the Others
DragonForce – The Power Within
Eluveitie – Helvetios
…

Thu 29 Nov – Luca Turilli's Rhapsody, Freedom Call, Orden Ogan, Vexillum

Čtvrtek 29.11.2012 - Praha, Klub Matrix

Tak nějak začínám přicházet na kloub všem těm řečem, které jsou opředeny kol povahy našeho národa. Výsostně český jev, shazování sebe sama, sice dost přerůstá své hranice - jenže, ono na tom sebemrskačství něco bude. K jedněm takovým kocourkovským humnům zavítal na sklonku listopadu soubor 4 kapel, jedoucích pod hlavičkou Luca Turilli's Rhapsody evropské turné. Vítejte v klubu Matrix, zastrčeném pod mohutnou skulpturou Jana Žižky z Trocnova.

Zatímco pražské střechy a vížky tiše úpěly pod bičem podzimního deště, v žižkovském podzemí zahájila koncertní soaré první z kapel, Vexillum. Typicky italský sound (powerový základ s výpravami do hájemství flétniček a houslí) byl lehkým předkrmem, navozující chutě na hlavní protagonisty večera. Vytknout Toskáncům nebylo moc co, ono totiž jejich produkce, podobná mimochodem té z dílny krajanů Elvenking, neobsahuje žádnou přidanou hodnotu. …

I meant to have this posted over a week ago, but I've been sitting on it this entire time because of the #10 spot. There were so many choices for it, and I kept listening to each option over and over trying to decide which I prefer. Ultimately, I ended up picking the current #10 just because it has the prettiest cover. This kind of confusion tells me 2012 has been a good year for music overall. Out of all the albums I found even slightly disappointing, only one of them got a fairly low rating. More importantly, this has been a stellar year for new artists. Two of these albums are debut albums, and one of the albums that fought for #10 is one too.

Commence list.

http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa209/Zadion_Apocalaya/2012%20Albums/SwallowtheSun-EmeraldForestandtheBlackbird_zpsc033e36f.jpg

Honorable Mention: Swallow the Sun - Emerald Forest and the Blackbird
As with last year, this year's honorable mention isn't a tremendous album worthy of top 10. Rather, this is one of the two albums that surprised me the most. …

So, yet another issue of the Year End Summary is about to amuse and bewilder you. It was an awesome year for music, and it was also a totally magnificent year for my other passion, cinema, but that's not the place to speak about it. Anyway, for quite some time I've had this thought that this summary business is kinda stupid – suddenly in December you realise how many potentially awesome albums you've missed and then you desperately try to make up for it by listening as much as you can, neglecting your work, studies, family, girlfriend, cat or whatever you've got to care for. Not that I intend to drop doing this or something, I guess I just like doing pointless stuff nobody cares about. Oh well, I start to blabber here. So, let's get ready to rumble!


3/10:
This Or The Apocalypse – Dead Years (The Worst Album of the Year and The Disappointment of the Year; it's actually really, really sad how this band managed to stoop so low after two great releases...)
…

In a way, these lists are annoying to make. Every time I come to my "Top Songs of 2012" playlist, songs keep changing positions depending on my mood. This was definitely a better year overall than last year, and as such there was even more great songs that definitely deserve mention. As with last year, only one song per album:

#10: "Sacrimony (Angel of Afterlife)" - Kamelot
This song and this album can be summed up in three words: it gets better. While I wasn't overly keen on this at first (and I definitely didn't see how everybody was acclaiming this as a "return to form" for Kamelot), it kept growing on me with each listen until it became a major highlight of the year. It's bombastic, got great melodies, and it's super catchy - just like how I love my Kamelot songs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvWT-7l6vJU

#9: "Passing Of The Crimson Shadows" - Barren Earth
This is one of those songs that nails a perfect spot between moody, melodious, and progressive. …

1. Kamelot – Silverthorn
Didn’t expect Kamelot to sound that genuine after Roy Khan’s departure but Tommy fully delivered on several levels. Thankfully, the ‘new’ style is closer to what they did in the older days (welcome back, solos!) rather than the artificial sound on the last two efforts. All this, together with memorable melodies, breathtaking vocals and a haunting concept story, is more than enough to bring Youngblood’s brainchild back in the game and make Silverthorn its best output since the shadow of The Black Halo.

2. Finsterforst – Rastlos
One of the very few albums of late that I can listen to from start to finish without an urge to skip a song or two. The line-up change led to a complete makeover and resulted in tightly produced moody epics which are surprisingly nowhere near being over the top. Despite taking notes from bands even a deaf person can distinguish, Rastlos is a damn worthy release in an overly-rehashed scene which rarely strikes me as exciting.

3. Moonspell – Alpha Noir
…

This year I'm going to start off by making reference to the last paragraph of last years entry. I ended the article with a quick mention of the albums I expected to be released in 2012 and how I also hoped for a few surprises to fight for the top spot in this years chart. Well, 2012 didn't see the release of any new Labyrinth, Nocturnal Rites or Adagio (AGAIN?!) but there were plenty of nice surprises to make up for that! (Enough to make up for the few really good albums of last year) Did any of them make my top 10 of 2012? Let's find out...

10. Dreamscape - Everlight

9. Kamelot - Silverthorn

8. Luca Turilli's Rhapsody - Ascending Into Infinity

7. Dünedain - Magica

6. Threshold - March of Progress

5. Circus Maximus - Nine

4. Saratoga - Nemesis

3. Sonata Arctica - Stones Grow Her Name

2. Saurom - Vida

...And so my number one slot this year goes to the new Mägo de Oz album "Hechizos, Pocimas y Brujeria". …

Arjen Anthony Lucassen - Lost in the New Real
Delain - We Are the Others
Luca Turilli's Rhapsody - Ascending To Infinity
Epica - Requiem for the Indifferent
Xandria - Neverworld's End
Moonspell - Alpha Noir
Sabaton - Carolus Rex
Alcest - Les voyages de l'Âme
Katatonia - Dead End Kings
The Gathering - Disclosure
Kamelot - Silverthorn
Lacuna Coil - Dark Adrenaline

Best debut:
Atoma - Skylight

Disappointments:
Sonata Arctica - Stones Grow Her Name
Wintersun - Time I