What are You Listening to Right Now?

[Kong Wen]

I really wish I could, Vic! I only listened to one album in 2018.

[VictorViper]

I really wish I could, Vic! I only listened to one album in 2018.

How does this happen? :O

[VictorViper]

I really wish I could, Vic! I only listened to one album in 2018.

How does this happen? :O

[Sharecrow]

You’d said 3-5 albums. I’d prefer 5 - I realized I have quite a few to choose from but can narrow it down to 5 without too too much difficulty.

[Sharecrow]

I'm going to do these separately and in no particular order. This is my first nomination of I think five.

In 2017, Devildriver announced they would be releasing an album with a dozen or so outlaw country cover songs and a number of special guests. Fast forward to July of 2018 and 'Outlaws 'til the End: Vol 1' was released. There's a few things I love about this album. First, cover songs are good and it's always interesting to see another band's take on someone else's song. What's even more interesting to me, though, is those covers that cross genres. I heard a death metal cover of a Bon Jovi song once and it was so intriguing to me that, despite the disparate styles, it still worked. What we have here is heavy metal versions of classic country songs. The lead singer of Devildriver, Dez Fafara, remarked in an interview that he had always viewed country music as heavy. I'd never heard that before or thought of it that way, but a lot of the themes do overlap between the genres. The overlap isn't complete (but is it ever, really?), but there's definitely some shared concepts of solitude, life being rough, and the classic 'drinking and lying and cheating' tropes, which goes hand-in-hand with a rough life.

Second, the songs range from sources such as Hank Williams Jr. to Johnny Cash to George Jones to Willie Nelson. The guests, of which there are a couple dozen or more involved in the album, feature Randy Blythe, the Lamb of God vocalist, Glen Danzig, vocalist of Danzig, and Hank Williams III, who contributes vocals to the cover of his own song.

Third, I'm tickled pink that the album is called 'Volume 1', suggesting, if not outright commiting to, at least one more volume.

So grab some whiskey, sit back and put your feet up, and take off your boots or leave them on - it doesn't matter. And enjoy some country metal. I linked YouTube here for convenience - I think it would go along and play the full album as they should be queued but I haven't tested that. All of the songs are on YouTube though.

Cover art: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outlaws_% ... _Cover.jpg

[Sharecrow]

Okay, album number 2 of I think 5 is going to be a death metal album. Sorry guys but this is Sharecrow here. Try to keep an open mind. The album is brief.

I nominate Tribulation's "Down Below." This is a band that is relatively new to me. I came across them listening to Sirius XM and they really grew on me. There's a couple of things that make this band stand out from other death metal bands. First: the vocals. Although it has growling much like most death metal bands do, the voicing is unique. He's talking really rather than shouting. Most bands are venting at the top of their lungs but this one has more of a quiet certainty that still resonates with the strength and energy death metal is known for. Secondly, they aren't afraid to be melodious. Most death metal bands center themselves on intense drumming and chugging, relentless guitar riffs. Although those elements are here as well, the riffs have more of a classic thrash flair to them at times. And they're not afraid to slow it down, which gives their music a breadth and variety that is refreshing. Turn this one up.

I'm posting the full album this time and the cover art is included as well.

[Sharecrow]

For my third of I think five nominations, I'm nominating the latest entry from my favorite band, Ministry. AmeriKKKant. I've always thought of Ministry as environmental music where the albums stand out to me more than individual songs do. Al Jourgensen is liberal politically and often inspired to create music by prominent conservatives. When George W. Bush was president, he released three albums often referred to as the Bush trilogy, where he lambasted him and his policies. Trump appears to have inspired this entry, as it has some themes and sampling in it that is linked to the presidency. It also has another TV song, of which there have been three others previously. The first couple during George H. W. Bush's tenure, a third one released sometime later - can't recall who was president at the time. He also feels very strongly about voter participation and the struggles of the middle class under the apathetic gaze of the wealthy.

Al Jourgensen had previously nearly retired but came back out of retirement. He had had a near death experience with I think a lacerated ulcer (due to excessive drinking). He's released some very strong albums after his return from retirement, and this one is no exception. Enjoy!

I can't find a full album youtube video of this one, sadly. Cover art can be seen here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AmeriKKKa ... _cover.jpg

Here's the tracks:

[VictorViper]

Alright Share, I'll get some 2018 picks going this weekend. I'll tailor things to you specifically though, as I think we're going to include 2016-18 releases into the fold.

Might be smart just to stay a year behind for this kind of thing anyway. So, to recap:

We will be putting up our best album picks of 2016 through 2018. Who's in?

[Sharecrow]

Okay now for number 4 of I think 5 or so. I nominate Parkway Drive's "Reverence." This is an instant classic heavy metal album that those in my music circles will be talking about for a long time. It still grows on me more and more the more I hear it. And more! I heard these guys first on Sirius XM and one of the tracks from this album made their top 12 songs for the year. They've been around for a while but this was really my first exposure to them. I understand from reading other folks' thoughts that their work has been getting better and better as the band matures. I'm looking forward to their next entry in a year or two if that's the case.

I grabbed a youtube link that should stream the whole album this time:


And let's not forget the cover art:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverence ... erence.jpg

[Sharecrow]

Okay now this is getting interesting. I'm nominating an EP for my last best "album" of 2018. Since it is roughly half an album weighing in at 18 minutes, it's kind of like I have 4.5 albums as best of 2018. Anyway, that is pedantic and silly - on to the good stuff. On to the music.


Let me first say that more bands should do collaborative works like this. This album combines the punk rock intensity of Iron Reagan with the relentless death metal music of Gatecreeper - one of the best new death metal bands out there right now. Seriously, they are good. They only have three tracks on this EP, but their name is what brought me to buy this. I have tremendous respect for them and love their music. Iron Reagan has eight tracks on this EP, but they are punk-length so they go quick. One of them weighs in at 43 seconds or something like that I think. The styles of the music are very different but they go together quite well. The EP is a cohesive work. Turn this one up, too. It's incredible.


I got the full EP in one stream for this one. The cover art is included in the video: