Austin Weber's Top 5 Albums Of 2017 (Thus Far)
Dodecahedron – Kwintessens
For those that enjoy the technical, avant-garde, and chaotic side of modern black metal, Dodecahedron is a group who are rightfully revered in such circles. Their 2012 self-titled debut was, at the time, the best thing to come from the scene since Deathspell Omega in my opinion. While I’ve heard some people mention the band as sole worship of Deathspell Omega, even so, that can hardly be said to be true regarding their 2017 album, Kwintessens. The album is a strange evolution of their already pitch black and horrific sound, somehow more fucked up sounding while also exploring more light moments and atmospheric-led passages at the same time. So far this year, Kwintessens is my most listened to, and favorite, 2017 black metal album.
Artificial Brain – Infrared Horizon
Like a lot of people, I was pretty curious and anxious as to the direction Artificial Brain would go in after 2014’s Labyrinth Constellation melted my brain and became a frequently addictive substance I still haven’t stopped spinning. Against the normal odds, the band’s new album, Infrared Horizon, is not the common sophomore tale of diminishing returns. Instead, it’s every bit as creative and intricate as what they did before, with new upgrades and flourishes to their sound that give this album it's own identity and feeling. Artificial Brain throws more sick ideas in a single song on Infrared Horizon than many death metal bands capture throughout an entire record. Believe the hype, this time it’s warranted.
Exist – So True, So Bound
While Baltimore, Maryland progressive metal gods Exist aren’t a new act, their new album So True, So Bound is definitely most people’s first introduction to the band. Even for longtime fans such as myself, the new album offers quite a different experience than their 2013 debut, Sunlight.If you’re new to Exist, they reside somewhere between progressive death metal, mechanical groove territory, and fusion inspired metal a la Cynic, with some meaty Death style influence as well. So True, So Bound is a powerful and rewarding album, one that could only come from the unification of all the unique and brilliant musical minds that make up Exist. As of right now, this is the progressive metal album for 2017 to beat as far as I’m concerned.
Bufihimat – I
In the wrong hands, overly chaotic and frenetic death metal can quickly dissolve into uninspired and dull music. But in the right hands, this formula can yield incredibly memorable results, and that definitely applies to Bufihimat and their 2017 album, I. This Russian trio came out of nowhere for most of us, and I has quickly become one of the most interesting technical death metal releases I’ve heard in awhile. The group’s sound is amorphous and ever-shifting, sounding like a mix between Wormed, Origin, Gorguts, Psyopus, Cattle Decapitation, and Maruta. In spite of that being a real clusterfuck of opposing elements, the end result is a finely tuned engine, none of the music comes across as messy or ill-conceived. Throughout I you get the best of both worlds between tech-death and technical grindcore, and each song has something different to offer. If you haven’t heard I yet, you’re fucking up.
John Frum – A Stirring In The Noos
Usually, I can tell pretty quickly early on how I feel about an album, but for whatever reason, I couldn’t come to a solid verdict initially with A Stirring In The Noos. The album is such a sensory assault, so absolutely maddening and disorienting, that it’s taken me a lot longer than normal to understand how I feel about this release. As it stands now, A Stirring In The Noos has grown on me a lot, and I can’t stop listening to it. This is quite a challenging album to listen to, and John Frum has delivered on the potential that their extremely talented line-up teased at upon the project being announced. This indescribable vortex of unearthly black/death isn’t for the faint of heart, but for those who like their death metal unorthodox, skronky, and chaotic, I suspect you’ll enjoy A Stirring In The Noos a lot.
