Terça-feira 26 Jun 2007, 9h:56
This was sort of a difficult journal entry to write for a few reasons. I haven't heard anywhere near the expanse of death metal that several other have, nor do I have the motivation to go out seeking new albums that may interest me because most death metal is boring as hell. Thus what you see here I learned about from others, not my own initiative. This list is based on several things - technicality, composition, originality, innovation, influence, and just plain "how it sounds" to name some. Not all of these are albums I would listen to more than a few times, but I feel they are the best.
1. Lykathea Aflame - Elvenefris
http://i12.tinypic.com/62riygz.jpg
This is not an easy album to process. Depending on who you ask it is either underrated-as-hell by the metal community or overrated-as-hell by the metal community. Notable for many things such as the length, themes, lyrics, and unusual song composition, Elvenefris stands out mostly for its sheer uniqueness. There is no album like it and there likely never will be. Even the precursor band Appalling Spawn does not come anywhere close to what this album achieves. It took about 15 years from its conception for death metal to achieve perfection, and that is Elvenefris.
2. Gorguts - Obscura
http://i8.tinypic.com/6f7cps0.jpg
There are tags like "technical" and "brutal" often added to "death metal" to further categorize it, but not often does a band come along that defies any sub-genre yet manages to encompass nearly all of them. Gorguts is that band, and their opus Obscura set out to prove that. Destroying any prior notions about "progression" and "structure" within death metal, Obscura laughs in the face of anything released before it. An amazing release of audio hell.
3. Possessed - Seven Churches
http://i12.tinypic.com/4v6vd4o.jpg
The first is one of the best. Not much more needs to be said, though this band probably didn't invent death metal they sure had an impact on it. Music that makes you want to stop doing anything productive and bang your head.
4. Atheist - Unquestionable Presence
http://i14.tinypic.com/53tusfl.jpg
One part thrash, one part death metal, one part jazz playing, this album is a landmark in genre fusion. Oh, and it's amazingly musically too.
5. Demilich - Nespithe
http://i19.tinypic.com/4ttd2zd.jpg
I can't even talk about this album. Above all, it's weird. It's also a free download from the band's website, so there's no reason not to have it.
Albums that almost made it:
Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
!T.O.O.H.! - Rad a Trest