Reaper's Top 30 (plus Honorable Mentions) Favorite Albums of 2010

[Reaper16]

This year, a very deep year for music, I will post a top 30, complete with descriptions and YouTube embeds to a song I really like from each album.

My top 30 isn't quite complete yet. I anticipate posting everything for that list tomorrow. But in the meantime, this thread will begin with a handful of Honorable Mentions, listed alphabetically, for people to mull over.

Honorable Mentions:
Brotha Lynch Hung - Dinner and a Movie
Enforcer - Diamonds
Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier
LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
Manticora - Safe
Oceansize - Self Preserved While the Bodies Float Up
Overkill - Ironbound
Pain of Salvation - Road Salt pt. 1
Sleigh Bells - Treats
Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz
Tech N9ne - Collabos: The Gates Mixed Plate
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Mojo
Bobby Watson - The Gates BBQ Suite
Kanye West - G.O.O.D. Fridays


Top 30:
30.) The National - High Violet
29.) Kutt Calhoun - Raw and Un-Kutt
28.) Joanna Newsom - Have One on Me
27.) Gayngs - Relayted
26.) Johnny Cash - American Recordings VI: Ain't No Grave
25.) Burzum - Belus
24.) Blind Guardian - At the Edge of Time
23.) High on Fire - Snakes for the Divine
22.) Karnataka - The Gathering Light
21.) Ihsahn - After
20.) Das Racist - Sit Down, Man
19.) Kvelertak - Kvelertak
18.) Enslaved - Axioma Ethica Odini
17.) Heathen - The Evolution of Chaos
16.) Briton Rites - For Mircalla
15.) Glasser - Ring
14.) Big Boi - Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
13.) Borknagar - Universal
12.) Sigh - Scenes from Hell
11.) Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here
10.) Alcest - Écailles de Lune
09.) Robyn - Body Talk
08.) Ces Cru - The Playground
07.) Triptykon - Eparistera Daimones
06.) Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid
05.) The Lord Weird Slough Feg - The Animal Spirits
04.) Angra - Aqua
03.) Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
02.) Dessa - A Badly Broken Code
01.) Agalloch - Marrow of the Spirit

Thanks for reading/listening! Feel free and discuss the albums mentioned or the albums snubbed.

[Reaper16]

27.) Gayngs - Relayted:
Ryan Olsen, of Minneapolis hardcore band Building Better Bombs, got together a who’s who of Minneapolis indie-rock to make an indie project heavily inspired by 1980’s soft rock, taking that inspiration and spinning into it modern electronic sensibilities. Everyone in Minneapolis indie-rock plays on this album: Bon Iver, Solid Gold, Megafaun, etc. Even Doomtree rappers P.O.S. and Dessa appear on the album. The songs are very tightly constructed. Soft rock saxophone is redeemed when paired with indie-rock guitar swells and tasteful electronic loops. It’s hard to pick an album highlight, but I’ll go with “Faded High.” This indie sex jam has one of the catchiest keyboard & bass riffs of the year, paired with gorgeous singing from Dessa (among many others).



26.) Johnny Cash - American Recordings VI: Ain't No Grave:

Is this second posthumous American Recordings album from The Man in Black necessary? Yes and no. The world does not need this album, though the world should be glad that we got it. Cash’s voice has never sounded as frail. But that physical weakness only allows the strength of his spirit to shine, and boy does it ever. Opening track “Ain’t No Grave” kicks ass, and add the cover of Sheryl Crow’s “Redemption Day” to the list of songs that Cash ruined for their original artists. Rick Rubin’s production has perhaps too much Southern Gothic darkness to it, but guitarist Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench on the piano & organ (both members of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers) ground the album in some legit musicianship that lets Cash be the focus. As it should be. This album fits right in with the rest of the American Recordings series; if you liked those albums then you will want this one.

[Molitoth]

Oceansize is one of my top 10 favorite bands of all time.... although I admit, I agree with the assessment of this latest album.

[Reaper16]

25.) Burzum - Belus:

Oh, Varg Vikernes. Count Grishnackh. Your murderous ass finally gets released from prison and puts out an album that picks up right where Filosofem leaves off. Belus is about (what else?) Norse mythology! Varg does his usual thing where he mixes raw Black Metal with ambient electronics and folk melodies.Varg’s Burzum albums were always trendsetters. Varg was 15 years ahead of everyone else back in the early-to-mid 90’s. Now, though, Black Metal has caught up with him. Belus is by no means ahead of the curve, if anything it is behind the times. He was in prison, he couldn’t be expected to know how much the scene has grown up. It is a testament to the strength of this album that it sounds like it should have come out in 1999, yet still seems vital in 2010. Burzum influenced not just the Black Metal scene, but also electronic music. It’s hard not to listen to, say, Fever Ray, and believe that Karin is unfamiliar with Burzum. If you like ambient electronic, if you like atmospheric music of any sort, you owe it to yourself to listen to this album.




24.) Blind Guardian - At the Edge of Time:

Blind Guardian have done a lot of experimenting these past 15 years. Since their last pure power metal album in 1995, they have released a folk-tinged album inspired by Tolkien, a bombastic, over-produced album inspired by, well, Opera (and Queen), and lastly a rock album with power metal attitude and influence. The masters of German power metal decided in 2010 to make a power metal album again, replete with the furious riffs and soaring solos that make them such a joy to listen to. At the Edge of Time leaves that rock bullshit behind, and returns to a sound that should have followed up 2002’s A Night at the Opera. There’s some orchestral flourish here still (especially on the excellent album opener, “Sacred Worlds”) but tracks like “Tanelorn (Into the Void)” and “A Voice in the Dark” sound like they could have been on 1992’s Somewhere Far Beyond. This return to form is indicative of everything that there is to love about Blind Guardian. Power ****ing Metal is not dead, people.

[Reaper16]

23.) High on Fire - Snakes for the Divine:
Matt Pike is a genius. His trio, High on Fire, makes some the dirtiest, most powerful whiskey-sloshed stoner/doom metal around. This album sees High on Fire doing a bit of experimentation. They’re playing some more traditional metal stuff here. The songs seem a bit more… polished than in the past. The guitar tone is almost as raunchy as you’d expect, the riffs almost as skull-crushing as you’d like. This is High on Fire’s weakest album; the usual blast of metal has been weakened in impact somewhat by the more intricate songwriting. They don’t seem entirely comfortable in these new clothes. It’s still plenty good; it is a High on Fire album after all. Pike’s lead guitar playing has never been better; it’s as if he sobered up to record the solos. The drums beat you into hamburger. If you’re looking for some heavy shit, you’ve ****ing found it.




22.) Karnataka - The Gathering Light:
Man, I listened to this album a lot. A straight-up progressive (soft) rock album with folk influences. You’ve got acoustic guitars and xylophones and harps and multiple keyboards going everywhere, but they all play balanced, affecting melodies. I love the ballsy choice to have the first two tracks of the album, ten minutes combined, be completely instrumental. It really sets up the musical themes of the album and catches you by surprise when the rest of the album is album is absolutely anchored by Lisa Fury’s crystal clear, nearly operatic vocals. I can’t really describe this album. It isn’t heavy prog, but it is intricate. It isn’t baby-soft, but it’s pretty delicate. Whatever it is, I think that it’s beautiful. Listen to the album-closing title track and try to disagree.

[Reaper16]

21.) Ihsahn - After:
Ihsahn, former frontman for Emperor, releases some strange solo material. This is a Black Metal album, through and through, but in spirit only. There’s lots of clean singing. There are keyboards. The songs roll along like lapping waves. The atmosphere at once evokes Norway and the ocean. There’s a large emphasis on water here, and the album sounds like it, sounds like cold winds and drowning men. There’s also something entirely unexpected in an album like this: saxophone. You can’t just put saxophone into a metal album and expect it to work; that sort of thing can sound like a joke really easily. It absolutely works on this album. The saxophone’s unexpectedness gives off all sorts of eerie vibes to start, yet slowly it works on you and it becomes one of the few points of warmth, of comfort, in this emotionally cold album. This is the kind of metal album that you just want to lay on the couch and listen to, doing nothing else.




20.) Das Racist - Sit Down, Man:
This is probably the funniest album I’ve heard all year. You will be, or should be, laughing all throughout this album. But it isn’t a joke. They’re not joking. Just joking. They are joking. Just joking. I’m not joking around here. This is a serious rap album. Sort of. In their own words, Das Racist are “kind of like rap-noisepop.” Unique indie-rock inspired beats, delirious flows, a lyrical exposition of racial prejudice. But it’s all wrapped up in a hilarious package. Rap gets criticized often for being creatively moribund. These people aren’t paying enough attention. The rappers in this group drop all kinds of jokes, meta-rap references, rap parody, comedic asides, and Chappelle-like observations of casual racism over creative samples (like the one that alters Jay-Z’s voice so that he’s saying “All Tan Everything”). Album highlight? “hahahaha jk?,” a song that sees Das Racist drop lines like “Call me Dwight Schrute the way that I eat beats” and numerous 4^th-wall breaking asides over a beat that samples the theme from the soap opera, Days of Our Lives. This album is a must-have, especially because it’s a free release. This is really smart stuff, in an insane sort of way.

[Direckshun]

Love a few of your picks.

I think Age of Adz was probably the best album of the year. The 27-minute indie-prog piece at the end of the album was epic.

I've been a big Gayngs fan for a while. And Joanna Newsom's album probably deserves a Top 10 slotting, but I don't do Teh Metal.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Love a few of your picks.

I think Age of Adz was probably the best album of the year. The 27-minute indie-prog piece at the end of the album was epic.

I've been a big Gayngs fan for a while. And Joanna Newsom's album probably deserves a Top 10 slotting, but I don't do Teh Metal.

Totally agree on "Impossible Soul." It's a song that bears listening to again and again and again. Lots of movements and lots happening in that song. Plus... the dance "Boy We Can Do Much More Together" section is just ridiculous fun.

[Bowser]

Eddie Trunk talks up Overkill every week on his satellite show. Claims their new album is one of the best rock albums of the year.

[Reaper16]

Originally Posted by Bowser

Eddie Trunk talks up Overkill every week on his satellite show. Claims their new album is one of the best rock albums of the year.

It's a terrible rock album. Pretty kick-ass metal album though.

[Reaper16]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Love a few of your picks.

I think Age of Adz was probably the best album of the year. The 27-minute indie-prog piece at the end of the album was epic.

I've been a big Gayngs fan for a while. And Joanna Newsom's album probably deserves a Top 10 slotting, but I don't do Teh Metal.

Originally Posted by NewPhin

Totally agree on "Impossible Soul." It's a song that bears listening to again and again and again. Lots of movements and lots happening in that song. Plus... the dance "Boy We Can Do Much More Together" section is just ridiculous fun.

I'm reasonably sure that in a couple of years I'm going to regret not having The Age of Adz way higher on my list. It'll probably grow into a top 20 album for me; I can see it now.

But again, this is a list of personal favorites, not a list of objective best albums.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by Reaper16

I'm reasonably sure that in a couple of years I'm going to regret not having The Age of Adz way higher on my list. It'll probably grow into a top 20 album for me; I can see it now.

But again, this is a list of personal favorites, not a list of objective best albums.

Hey, totally understand. My list of personal favorite albums from 2010 would be filled with Baroness, Agalloch, Between the Buried and Me, Atheist, Sigh, etc.. etc.. because this was the year I really dug into metal. Unfortunately, none of those albums (besides the new one from Agalloch) were released this year. But they're still my personal favorite albums of the year that I listened to non stop (along with Sufjan, Local Natives, Kanye, POS, Eminem, and a few others).

I had a really magical time with the Sufjan album while commenting on student papers, sitting outside a coffee shop in St. Louis, while the wife was doing bridal party crap with her best friend... and that was when that album sunk in for me. I've listened to it quite a few times since then, and I just really enjoy it. My wife (who loves Sufjan) thinks it's bizarre and tedious.

[Reaper16]

19.) Kvelertak – Kvelertak:
Look at that cover art! OWLS, MOTHER****ER. This album is perhaps the most pure fun I’ve had listening to music this year. Kvelertak combine black metal with punk rock with rock and roll with powerpop. It’s fast-paced, raucous, frenetic, and irresistible. I’m pretty sure that the lyrics are about Owl People, but I don’t understand Norwegian. Black metal fans are going to love the drums, punk fans are going to love the energy, rock and roll fans are going to love the pure ability this album has to pump you up. This is driving music, this is go-out-and-have-fun music for metal kids. I usually hate it when rock and metal are combined in the same sound, but this absolutely works. Funfunfufnfunfunfunfufnfun I should just type the word FUN over and over.



18.) Enslaved - Axioma Ethica Odini:
Enslaved are one of my favorite bands on the planet. I like to call them the Pink Floyd of Black Metal (man, this is a Hell of a year for Black Metal, isn’t it? Death Metal got punked in 2010). In fact, no band today is closer to the spirit of Pink Floyd. Every Enslaved album is unfailingly progressive and forward thinking, but each time in very fresh, new ways. This new album sees the band doing something very expiramental for them: dialing back the psychedelic material and replacing it with a straight callback to their early days. This is Enslaved’s most overtly metal album since the late 90’s, which isn’t a good or bad thing, just a new wrinkle. This is metal at the level of dynamism that people who don’t listen to metal never expect. The new aggressiveness is balanced by use of clean vocals that has never been more prominent in the band’s repertoire. This is a very similar album to Ihsahn’s After, only better across the board. Listen to how unexpected the song “Lightening” is, how it surprises you at every turn. At how engrossing Enslaved’s music almost always is.

[Reaper16]

17.) Heathen – The Evolution of Chaos:
Heathen are the best thrash metal band you’ve never listened to. They put out two albums in the late 80’s/early 90’s that rank among the very best thrash ever put out. They were every bit the rival of Megadeth and Metallica. Alas, they never got a major label deal. Time forgot them. They reunited in 2005, putting out a three-song demo that stands as the very best thrash recording of last decade. Fans have been waiting for this album ever since that demo, ever since the immeasurable awesomeness of the songs “Dying Season” and “Arrows of Agony.” It was delayed and delayed until finally, in January of 2010, it released. And it disappointed a bit, yeah. The new songs on the album, while plenty kick-ass, were not as good as the aforementioned two demo songs. Thankfully, those two songs are also on this album. Really, the only major missteps this album has are two songs: an overdone, 11-minute song that isn’t epic, and a clunky ballad dedicated to people serving in the U.S. military that brings the unintentional funny. The rest? More riffs than you can jack yourself off to in a single marathon session of jacking it. This album, like all great thrash albums, is exhausting in the best way possible. Just… just listen to “Dying Season.” You’ll understand. You will jack it and you will understand.




16.) Briton Rites – For Mircalla:
Who are these guys and how did they get so heavy? This is straight-up traditional Doom Metal. The legacy of Black Sabbath lives on in lots of Drone/Doom bands, but there are few legit bands playing solely Doom Metal these days. Briton Rites has taken up the mantle and delivered unto us syrup-thick guitar tone, solos that Tony Iommi would be proud of, and slow riffs so catchy that you don’t mind that they comprise the entire song. Doom purists will call this band “midpaced” in the Doom world, but hey, so was Sabbath. This isn’t just a Sabbath cover band, though. They know how to write songs. Heavy, catchy songs. This album is tight, even though the songs average 8 minutes in length. This is an album that feels much shorter than its actual running time. You will revisit this album again and again and again if you love this most heaviest of heavy metal subgenres. Great stuff.

[Reaper16]

15.) Glasser – Ring:
I don’t know a lot about electronic pop, even less about straight up electronic music. I lack the context to ascertain whether or not this album is objectively good. All I know is that I find it almost incomparably beautiful. Glasser, aka Cameron Mesirow, wrote these songs on her computer. This is total garage band stuff (both the general term and the Apple software program). From the folk-meets-tribal percussion to the synth lines that don’t care for labels, to the song structure that doesn’t give a shit about typical verse-chorus-verse sensibility, to Cameron’s strong vocals that anchor the whole shebang, this album is quite the achievement to my ears. “Home” sounds like Bat For Lashes played through the sound track to Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Story. “Mirrorage” sounds like Florence + The Machine, but as ghosts breezing past icicles that are made of bass lines. My only critique is that this album sounds like a lot of debut albums in that it is more of a collection of songs than a single cohesive project. This album is astounding to me in a lot of ways, and I’m curious as to why it hasn’t been placing higher on other year-end lists. Again, maybe I’m not supposed to be impressed by this. Whatever, I’m going to treasure it anyway.




14.) Big Boi – Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty:
It always annoyed me when people referred to Big Boi as “the other guy from OutKast.” Yeah, everyone knows Andre 3000 but BIG BOI IS NO “OTHER GUY” GODDAMNIT. He’s an incredibly talented musician in his own right. This album is something else. It was mostly completed in 2007, with the record company sitting on it for years (something Lupe Fiasco is suffering through right now). Yet, somehow, this three-year old record released in 2010 sounds years ahead of its time. A gigantic list of producers each turn in songs that sound vaguely futuristic but familiar. This album sounds like how the city of Atlanta must be like in the cartoon Futurama. Southern swag meets android architecture. That last sentence doesn’t even make sense, but that’s what this album feels like. Despite the tremendous diversity, this album doesn’t have a lot of subject matter to discuss. Big Boi is basically wrapping about partying and sex the entire time, boasting of his prowess like he’s the last human **** machine in a city of robots. My only beef with the album is that it doesn’t feel like an album so much as a collection of songs (not uncommon in rap), but moreover that it loses a bit of steam towards the end of the record. Are the songs in their best possible track order? I don’t know. I do know that Sir Luscious Left Foot was basically the album of the summer for me and a lot of people.

[Reaper16]

13.) Borknagar – Universal
Borknagar are a long-standing progressive/black metal super group, featuring throughout the years members of Solefad, Ulver, Arcturus, Enslaved, and Vintersorg, among others. Their music is all blastbeats, guitars that craft clouds of melodies, folk chanting, and lots of vocal hooks. Vintersorg is the band’s current vocalist, and his influence is felt throughout this release (Vintersorg, if you’re reading this, please release a new album. It’s been a while). The best aspect of this album, apart from the soaring choruses, are the keyboards. Synths, pianos and organs aggressively compliment everything on this album. The whole package is beyond impressive. This is the sort of album that seems scientifically calculated to get me to love it.




12.) Sigh – Scenes from Hell:
Sigh are from Japan. They write some of the craziest albums that metal has ever seen. I could talk all day about what genres the band has mashed together in the past. I recommend that every human listen to their albums Hail Horror Hail and Imaginary Sonicscape. This new album is, well, it’s a lot of things. It takes German thrash (think Kreator or Sodom) and mixes it with Wagner and throws even more horns on top of that. Add in some organs and some saxophone (2010: year of the metal saxophone) from new band member Dr. Mikannibal and you’ve got an album that doesn’t let up for once second with interesting, unexpected sounds. Dr. Mikannibal is also a wonderful new vocal presence for the band; she trades off vocal lines with lead guitar/vocalist Mirai throughout the album, which allows the vocal lines to mirror the drum beats (i.e., incessant assault). Sigh albums usually make my top 5 of a given year, and this album is by no means a step down for them. So why is it outside of the top 10? Well, this is a very strong year for music, and I also just found myself listening to this less and less as the months went on (this came out in January). I might regret leaving it outside the top 10 in a few years. Really, this is a fantastic album. A must-listen, as all of the albums are from here on out.