Best of 2011

I don´t know if this is the best or not, but this is what I´ve enjoyed more. There is no order and there are a lot of good records left behind, I know... If I´d do the list the next week probably it would be diferent.  Thank you all for comment and read the blog! See you next year!

Amplifier - Octopus

Arbouretum - The Gathering

Graveyard - Hisingen Blues

Norska - Norska

Between The Buried And Me - The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues

Jack And The Bearded Fishermen - Places To Hide

Sólstafir - Svartir Sandar

Of The Wand And The Moon - The Lone Descent

Universe217 - Familiar Places

Primus - Green Naugahyde

Toxic Holocaust -Conjure And Command

Ghoul - Transmission Zero

Black Cobra - Invernal

Integrity - The DestroyORR

Ramon Zarate - Oyster

Jardín De La Croix - Ocean Cosmonauts (2011)

1. Blacksnout Seasnail (7:38)
2. Vostok (5:31)
3. Island Of Atlas (9:57)
4. Maelstrom (6:59)
5. Challenger (5:28)
6. Math Of Vortex (8:26)
7. Caronte (6:35)
8. Japanese Rockets (4:40)

Wonderful work of this quartet of musicians from Madrid. Second album of a high quality instrumental progressive/math rock. Very good songs, well executed and technically outstanding compositions. Very enjoyable work. One of the last surprises for this year. 

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Necro Deathmort - Music Of Bleak Origin (2011)

1. Jaffanaut
2. In Binary
3. Temple Of Juno
4.Überlord
5. For Your Own Good
6. Devastating Vector
7. Blizzard
8. The Heat Death Of Everything
9. Moon

New album of this duo of London. A very good mix between drone/doom sounds and electronics and industrial passages. 

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Infidel - King Of Cynical Control (2011)

01. No News, Good News 07:53
02. The Pessimist 07:16
03. King Of Cynical Control 09:33
04. Song For The Black Sheep 05:54
05. III-Your Falacy 06:49
06. Shades Of Solitude 09:25

Another great band from Greece, wich offers to us an interesting album of doom wrapped in progressive and heavy metal  sonorities. The powerful production gives strength and energy, and the clear voices, a sort of mix between  the vocal registers of Ozzy and Fondelius (Count Raven), give to this album an epic touch, making it at the end, an excellent work.   

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Yamantaka//Sonic Titan - YT//ST (2011)

1.- Racoon Song 1:10

2.- Queens 3:50

3.- Oak Of Guernica 2:44

4.- Reverse Crystal/Murder Of A Spider 6:41

5.- Hoshi Neko 4:43

6.- A Star Over Pureland 7:00

7.- Crystal Fortress To The Sea Of Trees 5:03

Delicious piece of psychedellic weirdness. These guys of  Montreal with an asian roots, don´t play the "typical" psychedelia, here there is much more. From the ritualistic rock/doom sound of Jex Thoth that wrap all the album until the sludge of "A Star Over Pureland", and even some pop sonorities like in "Hoshi Neko", makes a really interesting album.The hypnotic female vocals really helps to get into their music. Highly recommended.
You can buy a physical copy here.

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Vektor - Black Future (2009)

1. Black Future 5:03
2. Oblivion 4:54
3. Destroying The Cosmos 6:47
4. Forests Of Legend 10:16
5. Hunger For Violence 5:30
6. Deoxyribonucleic Acid 4:45
7. Asteroid 6:49
8. Dark Nebula 10:28
9. Accelerating Universe 13:31

I know that I´m late with this album. Everybody talks about them, and I had not heard them until three weeks ago or so... This is a little masterpiece!!! The revival of thrash metal gives us this very welcome breath of fresh air. Very young band with a huge talent, heirs of the technical and progressive sound of bands like Voivod, Coroner, Watchtower, Death and many others. It sounds old school, but It sounds fresh. Must have discography!

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New Risen Throne - Loneliness Of Hidden Structures (2011)

1. Lungs Into Declining Structure 6:14

2. Echoes From The Loss 5:28

3. Loneliness New Risen Throne 9:17

4. (I) 4:38

5. Lands Filled With Silence And 10:36

6. (II) 6:54

7. A Vision Of The Hidden 8:32

8. (III) 4:40

9. Breath Of Growing Structures 8:57

Currently the best and most terrifying band of dark ambient that I´ve ever heard. These romans really know how to build the sound of fear itself. Turn the lights off and prepare to feel the darkness. This is not for beginner ears. 

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Blotted Science - The Animation Of Entomology (2011)

01. Ingesting Blattaria
02. Cretaceous Chasm
03. Vermicular Asphyxiation
04. A Sting Operation

An album of technical virtuosity of this bunch of amazing musicians. Ron Jarzombek (Watchtower, Spastik Ink, Gordian Knot), Alex Webster (Cannibal Corpse) and Hannes Grossman (Obscura) . Crazy and complex structures, surgically executed with and unbelievable technic giving as result  a sonic orgy. Great sutff. I leave you a funny video of "cretaceous chasm" and the remake of King Kong, wich synchronizes the audio and the images.

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Vargton Projekt - ProgXpriMetal (2011)

01. Jaipur 05:27
02. Ujevkoszonto 00:47
03. Uggarderojr 06:33
04. Rjoredraggu 02:45
05. Birka Trilogy I – The Gathering 01:50
06. Birka Trilogy II – Rendition 04:01
07. Birka Trilogy III – Defender & Believers 08:56
08. Norrsken 05:28
09. Lvorna 07:47
10. Capriccio 01:07
11. U Playin On My Drum 05:05
12. Outrott 01:07
13. Allegro Vivace 03:08
14. Digerrojr 01:40
15. Vargton 06:49
16. Naudljaus 04:17
17. Tokeri 1 05:02
18. Tokeri 2 03:08

Mats Hedberg (guitars), Morgan Ägren (drums) and Björn  Jansson (vocals) are the core of this project. Progressive metal with some rock fusion and jazzy influences. Totally amazing the work of guitars and percussion, but the voices are truly dispendables to me. A long album with a lot of details needed of more than a couple of listenings.

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Windhand - Windhand (2011)

1. Black Candles 06:11
2. Libusen 08:23
3. Heap Wolves 04:52
4. Summon The Moon 10:51
5. Winter Sun 11:39

Fantastic first full lenght of Windhand, in the line of his demo, in fact their two songs are included here. This is one of a few groups that does not boring me between the bands that follow the Electric Wizard sound. It has something special that hooks you up. Amongst the ultra-saturated doom scene, this is a really worthy band.  

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