ROLLING TOP TEN - 2023
ROLLING TOP TEN - 2023
1. Lo! - The Gleaners
2. Johnny The Boy - You
Blackened Rock I suppose – it is a challenge to compare this to another band. The vocals are spine chilling! The riffs infectious and every single second of this draws you into their world. This is one of those records that can change your day! It is a crime that this will probably be overlooked by a lot of people This is my number 2 for a good reason. Killer stuff! Season of Mist have struck gold here.
3. RUIM - Black Royal Spiritism
This is a masterclass, an absolute masterpiece of extreme metal. The songwriting here is next level, absolutely every second is engaging. – the 47 minutes flies by! Hooks galore, the passion is dripping like the blood of Christ Tracks build and ebb and flow and everything is mixed perfectly. This was my number one for a long time.
4. The Amenta - Plague of Locus
5. Drugoth - Battles May Cease but War is Forever
6. Dying Fetus - Make Them beg for death
I wasn’t surprised that DF could do this, but I was surprised for it to be arguably their best release yet. Everything about this is killer, including the artwork, it is off the charts amazing. Relentless, powerful and catchy. This is serial killer stuff. It is almost amusing at times, it should not put a smile on my face, but it does.
7. SIK - Cast Below to Rise Above
8. Godflesh - Purge
It was a year full of amazing metal, from the underground with bands like Nightmarer and Werewolves killing it to the more established bands like Cannibal Corpse and Cattle Decapitation delivering monstrous albums, yet Purge was a release that was on regular rotation. It is an infectious release that stays with you, and Godflesh do this with their repetitive industrial earworms. It is dark, ominous, and catchy and that is a killer combination. Probably not among their elite albums, but glorious enough to hit this list in a very competitive year.
9. Marduk - Memento Mori
Oh, what a glorious unearthing of worms and bones. Every track here is memorable and the whole experience will beat you senseless until your rat-nest is in order, because remember, you must die! Shovel Beats Sceptre is a highlight, but Memento Mori is on fire from start to finish. Carpe fuck you, the son of maggots, the grave of God rotting bosom, I mean it does not get much better than that. The atmosphere created here is killer, a little rawer sounding album than Viktoria, and just plain better! Memento Mori flows like a waterfall of corpses; Rosten’s performance is first class – so much conviction. The riffs are dripping with blood, the drum performance is relentless, and the bass tone sounds like it has been pulled from a coffin. One of Marduk’s best.
10. Swans - The Beggar
What a career Gira has had! Very few weaknesses in their varied discography. The Beggar is not as heavy sonically as some of their other releases, but it is heavy emotionally with Gira looking very much inward. Michael is Done is quite a disturbingly dark moment. 2 hours and 2 minutes tests the patience but sticking with it pays dividends.