My Top 50 of 2016

[PureXul]

I was one of the biggest Gothenburg melodic death fans back when it was thriving....kinda seems like it dried up a bit

2016 has been a banner year for melodeath, albeit not entirely in the narrower Gothenburg sound. Insomnium's "Winter's Gate" is my album of the year and Be'Lakor, Witherscape, and Omnium Gatherum are all in my top ten. Whispered, Countless Skies, and Solution .45 also put out damn good albums this year, with Dark Tranquillity's newest being my only real disappointment from the genre this year (I no longer pay attention to In Flames so they don't even count as a disappointment).

Perhaps none of these albums are what you're looking for out of melodeath, but there are still bands doing a tremendous job of moving the style forward.

 

[Formerly known as Chris F5]

Gah
Forgot about Solution 45 and Insomnium..

To iTunes I go

 

[Diamond45]

Love this list as always. Looking for new music to buy and this list really helps! (It's also great for Christmas lists!)

My favorite this year was Myrath's "Legacy". Nothing so far in 2016 has topped that.

 

[Mardoch]

Of the stuff I popped out here are my thoughts:

Utopia - a bit of an odd duck over all, but good. I'll be picking this up.
Be'lakor - A bit more dark and gloomy than I would prefer for a daily listener. When I'm in that space, though, hell yes.
Eternal Deformity - Good, but a bit too...not even sure how to form that opinion into words. It doesn't quite fit my tastes, but I wouldn't be upset about it being played somewhere that I was.
Whispered - It's like a Japan-infused Children of Bodom. If what they're aiming for is fun music then they've nailed it.
Theocracy - I will admit that artifacts of my upbringing caused me to unfairly toss them to the side as "too overt." Mea culpa, the music crushes. I've got this one in my cart at Laser's Edge waiting for the next round of buying.

I'll have to make another pass over the list soon and see if there's more that I didn't catch the first time through. I'm perhaps more in sync with the list this year than I have been in a while, which at least makes the end of year purchasing burden lighter.

 

[Riceloft]

Gonna sit down with the YouTube playlist tomorrow.

 

[Oblivion Ocean]

Whispered and Fractal Cypher caught my ear as things I had not really heard of yet. Going to dig in to them some more today.

This year was a weird one for me. There were a lot of bands I think were poised to take it to the next level that stumbled a bit. None of them put out bad albums, but just did not capitalize on the promise of their previous amazing release(s). I would put Myrath, Dynazty and Circus Maximus into that category. One the whole I think the Myrath and Dynazty albums are strong, but not better than the last album when they had a chance to really shine. Circus Maximus, well the less we talk about that the better (don't hate it, just disappointed). I know Glenn probably can't really say much, but I think the fact that Havoc did not make his top 50 is as big a news as any of the albums that made the top 10.

Also for me, I was happy to enjoy Evergrey again. I think there was more diversity in the writing this time and it broke Tom out over relying too heavily on the mid-temp somber tune without a memorable chorus. This one had some great heavy tunes and hooks to spare.

 

[espz]

So much good stuff, but I was floored by Wilson/Wakeman's Weir Keeper's Tale (thank you Piffle!). You have to be in a mood for it, with no drums or bass, but it's just painfully beautiful. From Glenn's list I feel like I'm pretty up on them, but Heaven's Below is blowing me away at the moment. I usually miss everything after September, because I'm trying to learn the new roster's bands. So next year's bands, like Serentity, Dynatzy, Pain, Katatonia (which I'm still not getting), Sunburst (LOVE!), Lord's of Black, Haken and Myrath are already all on heavy play. There is just too much good stuff coming out right now! My wish list is now overloaded once again, so thanks for that, Glenn!

 

[oldboy]

Almanac, and Spellcaster look promising.

 

[hoodaman]

Ok. I checked everything out that I wasn't already aware of. My thoughts:

Noveria. Good prog is good.
Whispered. It's like Oriental Children of Bodom. Really cool
Eternal Deformity. Really like the lushness of the music.
Utopia. THIS is what I'm talkin about. It had my undivided attention from the first note till the last.
Fractal Cyber. This is going to be some good car music. Very chunky and fun.
Southern Empire. Someone pick me up off the floor. I guess since I can't have a new Toto album every year this is the next best thing. Shit that was tasty.

Of the stuff I liked this year that didn't make your list was Solution .45, Seven Impale, Gojira, Textures and Witherscape (I so want to see Swano at PPUSA)

 

[Pitiless Wanderer]

The best releases this year have come from Obscura, Mithras, Deathspell Omega, Schammasch, An Abstract Illusion, Grave Miasma, Death Fortress, etc

 

[MelbCro]

The best releases this year have come from Obscura, Mithras, Deathspell Omega, Schammasch, An Abstract Illusion, Grave Miasma, Death Fortress, etc

The new Mithras is incredible, my fav prog/tech death metal album in 2016.

 

[Pitiless Wanderer]

The new Mithras is incredible, my fav prog/tech death metal album in 2016.

Yes it's a stunning album.

I do wish there was more good power prog stuff this year. I didn't find much. Last year I remember being sronger for these genres.

 

[Justin G]

Nice to see some love for Spellcaster and Striker. Those albums kicked ass. That Heaven Below was a major surprise for me as well.

 

[hypk]

Never heard of Pervy Perkins until this post, but aside from the weirdness of it all, it's actually really really good! Definitely the best surprise from your list.

I'm torn over the Fallujah "Dreamless" album. While I don't think it's a bad album, it doesn't offer anything new for me. The sound is exactly like the previous one and the songs didn't captivate my like they did on "The Flesh Prevails".

 

[Pitiless Wanderer]

Anyone else heard the new Eternol Idol record? It's super impressive...

 

[Pitiless Wanderer]

I'll just post some love for some releases that didn't make the list, namely Cloudscape,
2016 has been a fantastic year.

Just getting into this thanks to a rec from Coverkillernation. Stunning album so far. Power/prog done properly.

Edit: Came back to mention that the outro guitar melody in the last song is majestic and epic and awesome.

 

[Liquid Tension]

Edensong's new disc is my favorite for the year..

 

[Liquid Tension]

I was surprised not to see the new one from Giraffe Tongue Orchestra on the list...

https://giraffetongueorchestra.bandcamp.com/releases

 

[WBS]

Glenn,
Always love this post as it is one of my favs from you every year. My styles have changed as I have gotten older but there is always something for me to find on here. This year - Blind Ego and Southern Empire really sound good so will be getting those 2 very soon. Also - never really gave Theocracy a chance before but looks like this new CD is killer so will check it out as well.

Thanks for taking the time to do write this for all of us fans. I am sure we all have more than a few new bands on our radar now.

Brand

 

[Riceloft]

Finally stopped listening to Similitude of a Dream long enough to get through the list. Aside from bands on this year's roster that I hadn't heard and am picking up discs for (lords of black, katatonia, etc), Blind Ego and Fractal Cypher really stuck out. They're definitely on the 'to buy' list now! Thanks for putting this together every year, Glenn!