Well, i have been writing my article for Metalwhore on the top 10 of 2004. Almost done. BUt, i figure, i'll post mine, and anyone else that has some, post theres. Or, said in true UM fashion, i'll show you mine, you show me yours 
So, here is my list...not in order, until it gets to number 1.
10. Amon Amarth-Fate of Norns: A kickass album overall. I love Amon Amarth's sound, they seemed to stay pretty fuckin vicious here.
9. 1349-Beyind the Apocalypse: When it coems to black metal, this is probably the fastest band you will ever find, courtesy of the drumming black god Frost. Better produced than their earlier album, letting you hear all the goodness.
8. Megadeth-The System has Failed: Personally, I thought this cd was a great comeback for the band. I was so happy to hear it. After Risk i was afraid for Megadeth's future but this brought back my hope for one of my favorite bands.
7. Wintersun-Wintersun: Jari's solo album, with the help of Kai Haito on drums, kicks a lot of ass. A great mix of speed, folk, and thrash metal. Great guitar work and production!
6. Impaled Nazarene-All that you Fear: The gods of Nuclear Metal put out one hell of cd this year. Great production, some blazing guitar work, tight drums, and of course Luttinen's insane vocals. Oh yeah.
5. Finntroll-Nattfödd: Finntroll always release a great album when they do, and they did it yet again. Wilska takes over the vocals very well, and there is no shortage of accordions, banjos, and the like. Great drinking album of course!
4. Decapitated-The Negation: Technical death from Poland, and not even 23 years old yet, this band always did rule, and this album brings out even more in them. A little more straightforward than their last effort but nonetheless impressive as fuck.
3. Ensiferum-Iron: This album is a gorgeous blend of folk metal, growling vocals, clean vocals, thrashy guitars, and the whole nine. This is another one of those must buy albums this year, even if you have to order it online.
2. Necrophagist-Epitaph: Gutiars that will make you cry, tight drums, brutal vocals. This is technical death metal at its best. Seriously, anyone who is a fan of the genre...needs to hear this cd.
And the number one album this year, in my opinion....
Norther-Death Unlimited.
I loved Dreams of Endless War, I loved Mirror of Madness, and Death Unlimited just shows how much the band grew. Sure i migh take flak from giving the 'bodom ripoffs' as everyone calls them(if i hear it again, person is going to get a bottle of lonkero thrown at them) the number one spot, but frankly i don't care what people say. This album, after listening to it a couple of times, completely sinks in. It isn't instantly satisfying like Mirror was...but after a few listens, its true brilliance shines through. Great riffing and song structure, amazing vocals, even tighter drums, strong production, the whole nine went into this album. Norther are one of, IMO; the most underrated bands out there, in the US they are hard to find, and some people blow them off too quick as a ripoff band. If they keep going in this direction, I can forsee them blowing a lot of bands out of the water, because its rare that a band gets better and better and better three albums consectutively. They already managed to blast a few out of the water. So congrats to my friends in Helsinki/Espoo, you manged to grab Metalwhore's top honor of the year. Sure it ain't Metal Maniacs or Terrorizer, but it shows the little guys out there really do know who you are.
alrighty, what about youse? There were many other great albums this year that didn't quite make top 10 which i'll be going over in the full article.
So, here is my list...not in order, until it gets to number 1.
10. Amon Amarth-Fate of Norns: A kickass album overall. I love Amon Amarth's sound, they seemed to stay pretty fuckin vicious here.
9. 1349-Beyind the Apocalypse: When it coems to black metal, this is probably the fastest band you will ever find, courtesy of the drumming black god Frost. Better produced than their earlier album, letting you hear all the goodness.
8. Megadeth-The System has Failed: Personally, I thought this cd was a great comeback for the band. I was so happy to hear it. After Risk i was afraid for Megadeth's future but this brought back my hope for one of my favorite bands.
7. Wintersun-Wintersun: Jari's solo album, with the help of Kai Haito on drums, kicks a lot of ass. A great mix of speed, folk, and thrash metal. Great guitar work and production!
6. Impaled Nazarene-All that you Fear: The gods of Nuclear Metal put out one hell of cd this year. Great production, some blazing guitar work, tight drums, and of course Luttinen's insane vocals. Oh yeah.
5. Finntroll-Nattfödd: Finntroll always release a great album when they do, and they did it yet again. Wilska takes over the vocals very well, and there is no shortage of accordions, banjos, and the like. Great drinking album of course!
4. Decapitated-The Negation: Technical death from Poland, and not even 23 years old yet, this band always did rule, and this album brings out even more in them. A little more straightforward than their last effort but nonetheless impressive as fuck.
3. Ensiferum-Iron: This album is a gorgeous blend of folk metal, growling vocals, clean vocals, thrashy guitars, and the whole nine. This is another one of those must buy albums this year, even if you have to order it online.
2. Necrophagist-Epitaph: Gutiars that will make you cry, tight drums, brutal vocals. This is technical death metal at its best. Seriously, anyone who is a fan of the genre...needs to hear this cd.
And the number one album this year, in my opinion....
Norther-Death Unlimited.
I loved Dreams of Endless War, I loved Mirror of Madness, and Death Unlimited just shows how much the band grew. Sure i migh take flak from giving the 'bodom ripoffs' as everyone calls them(if i hear it again, person is going to get a bottle of lonkero thrown at them) the number one spot, but frankly i don't care what people say. This album, after listening to it a couple of times, completely sinks in. It isn't instantly satisfying like Mirror was...but after a few listens, its true brilliance shines through. Great riffing and song structure, amazing vocals, even tighter drums, strong production, the whole nine went into this album. Norther are one of, IMO; the most underrated bands out there, in the US they are hard to find, and some people blow them off too quick as a ripoff band. If they keep going in this direction, I can forsee them blowing a lot of bands out of the water, because its rare that a band gets better and better and better three albums consectutively. They already managed to blast a few out of the water. So congrats to my friends in Helsinki/Espoo, you manged to grab Metalwhore's top honor of the year. Sure it ain't Metal Maniacs or Terrorizer, but it shows the little guys out there really do know who you are.
alrighty, what about youse? There were many other great albums this year that didn't quite make top 10 which i'll be going over in the full article.
