Best 2010 Albums

2010??

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To be fair there is a fundamental flaw in your understanding of the opinions being put forth; a lot of people (me including) seem to be discussing the visual aspects of the art, not the "emotional" significance of whatever riffs, songwriting, etc. there are in a song (or album, more likely). No one disagrees (who isn't an idiot anyway) that just listening to a riff and going "hm sounds riffy" without trying to understand the emotional or intellectual aspect behind the creation of said riff is stupid.

Rather, it seems that most people putting forth the opinion that music is not necessarily to be judged by the satellite aspects (the visual art and lyrical content, mainly) are saying that the "music" is all that matters in the end, when judging the work. They do not (again, necessarily) discount the possibility of a riff or section of a song having emotional significance. However, it is entirely likely (though assumptive) that these same people are the people who don't consider the emotional and intellectual power of a song and see them as just collections of riffs interpolated by other little musical flourishes. I'm not saying this is right (lol quite the opposite, being an art major) but I'm maybe trying to provide some perspective, because your post may or may not be attacking a straw man.

just out of interest andy did you purposefully try to make this post impossible to read or was it just an inevitable, natural byproduct of this shitheap of a discussion?
 
V5 pretty much nailed it. Music certainly has emotional aspects, and it definitely creates some mental imagery when you listen to it (for me at least) My point is simply that the "extras" that come along with the music such as lyrics, artist information ("omg i can't listen to burzum because varg is an evil evil man") and as cool as it can often be, cover art. They are secondary considerations when placed beside the quality of the actual music itself. Lyrics certainly have literary value, information on the artist a social/political value, and cover art certainly has visual artistic value, but in the end the music itself is infinitely more important than any of these.
 
why do you act like we put every haul in that thread? and you just started buying cds a few months or whatever ago, so whenever you have access to your mom's purse you buy cds..
 
Brad, I know that you probably buy more than me and that you're not a pedestrian fan at all. The comment I made was motivated by the fact that you were implying it's a negative thing to stick to a few essential albums instead of amassing a bunch of average, disposable shit.
 
Well dude, you'll never know what is worth listening to if you don't check it out. If you confine yourself to a small selection you will miss out on other things surely. That's why I try and check out as much as possible, and buy whatever I like out of it.

@rms: whatever you say sunshine. try and keep up.
 
But by taking in so much at one time, you're bound to give merely surface treatments to things that will reveal much more upon further scrutiny. As a general principle, it's better to know a few particulars inside and out than to have surface knowledge of EVERYTHING.
 
Buying albums in large quantities doesn't mean you don't intend to give each one the time and effort it deserves.

I can't believe people are arguing over this shit.
 
But by taking in so much at one time, you're bound to give merely surface treatments to things that will reveal much more upon further scrutiny. As a general principle, it's better to know a few particulars inside and out than to have surface knowledge of EVERYTHING.

Entirely possible, but it's also possible by checking out a lot of things I'll find more music I am interested in that I will give more listens to in the future rather than not knowing it exists.
 
Buying albums in large quantities doesn't mean you don't intend to give each one the time and effort it deserves.

I can't believe people are arguing over this shit.

The bickering thus far hasn't concerned anything beyond the alleged habits of a specific person (Brad). I don't think anyone said anything about generalities. The "taking in so much at one time" implied the ongoing habit of swiftly passing judgment based on cursory listens. The way the discussion has gone thus far is pretty silly, but I think the issue itself is entirely relevant.

Brad: A fine point, but my problem is that I find it hard to believe, mathematically, that you can seriously claim to digest almost one album per day while still going back and revisiting works that have already proven themselves worthy based on past listens. In the end, the way you listen to music and assess it is simply a matter of personal preference; but it just doesn't seem like a very rewarding one.

Edit: On topic, Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm just might dethrone Incendiary for the top spot of this year. I'm leaning toward the position that it's the best Inquisition album, but I still need to "piece" the album together completely before I go ahead and take that stand.
 
Just different views on how to go through the myriad of great releases we find I guess. I wouldn't say either one is wrong, I just prefer to seek out and listen to a lot of stuff and then go back to it at a later time if I enjoyed my first listen.

Related to this 2010 albums discussion: Fenriz's list of best releases from 2010 is pretty solid. I love the enthusiasm for metal that guy has and his attitude towards it.
 
As usual, I didn't listen to a massive volume of metal this year, but I was surprised to see that Dawnbringer turned up on so few lists, especially on lists that went pretty deep. Did no one listen to it? Or was the response just underwhelming? It had good press in a lot of places, and I probably listened to it 15+ times myself. Usually pan-genre metal like that has a wide appeal, and it was on Profound Lore and presumably easy to find.

Also surprised to see Kylesa, Ludicra, Krieg, and Twilight go more or less ignored in spite of generally favorable opinions. Then again, this seems like one of the deeper years in recent memory.
 
As usual, I didn't listen to a massive volume of metal this year, but I was surprised to see that Dawnbringer turned up on so few lists, especially on lists that went pretty deep. Did no one listen to it? Or was the response just underwhelming? It had good press in a lot of places, and I probably listened to it 15+ times myself. Usually pan-genre metal like that has a wide appeal, and it was on Profound Lore and presumably easy to find.

Also surprised to see Kylesa, Ludicra, Krieg, and Twilight go more or less ignored in spite of generally favorable opinions. Then again, this seems like one of the deeper years in recent memory.


I'm just not a fan of most traditional/heavy metal. I really tried to get into that Dawnbringer album, but it's just not for me. As for the new Kylesa album I liked it initially, but now I think it's totally average. Pisses me off, because they are one of my favorite bands. The new Ludicra was also my least favorite thing they have done so far. The new Krieg & Twilight are awesome though.
 
I quite enjoyed Nucleus. It is a bit uneven, but I suppose that's got to be the nature of it when it borrows from so many different influences. I do think that the vocals detract a bit, it would definitely benefit from a stronger vocal style. However Pendulum is absolutely stunning, a perfect closer.