Top albums of 2007

[Dustin]

I can't do a top 5 or top 10 albums.... but here are some that I listened to the most this year, or I would consider the most memorable.



Anubis Gate - Andromeda Unchained
Behemoth - The Apostasty
Circus Maximus - Islate
Deliverance - As Above So Below
Devin Townsend - Ziltoid the Omnicient
Evidence One - The Sky is the Limit
Heart of the Sun - s/t
Kaipa - Angling Feelings
Machine Head - The Blackening
Malevolent Creation - Doomsday X
Nocturnal Rites - The 8th Sin
Paradise Lost - In Requiem
Pathosray - s/t
Poverty's no Crime - Save My Soul
Primal Fear - New Religion
Raintime - Flies and Lies
Saxon - Inner Sanctum
StarCastle - Song of Times
Symphony X - Paradise Lost
Threshold - Dead Reconing
UDO - Mastercutor
Volbeat - Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil

 

[Ascension]

How it lined up for me:

1 - Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos
2 - Iced Earth - Framing Armegeddon
3 - Dark Water - Calling the Earth to Witness
4 - Redemption - The Origins of Ruin
5 - Labyrinth - 6 Days to Nowhere
6 - DGM - Different Shapes
7 - Sun Caged - Artemisia
8 - Spheric Universe Experience - Anima
9 - Jorn - Live in America
10 - Vanishing Point - The 4th Season

 

[Pelata]

Top 10 2007
Candlemass - King Of The Grey Islands
Allen/Lande - The Revenge
Down - Over the Under
Porcupine Tree - Fear Of A Blank Planet
Paradise Lost-In Requiem
Redemption - The Origins Of Ruin
Pink Cream 69 - In10sity
Trouble – Simple Mind Condition
Amorphis - Silent Waters
Symphony X - Paradise Lost

Honorable Mention:
Novembers Doom - The Novella Reservoir
Entombed - Serpent Saints
Foo Fighters - Echoes, Silence...
David Readman - David Readman
Silent Force - Walk The Earth

The albums by Darkwater, Behemoth, Iced Earth & Nocturnal Rutes are all also very good...

 

[JazzMX5]

Alphabetical makes it easier, although as usual my list will be shorter than I'd like...

After Forever - After Forever
Darkestrah - Epos
Epica - The Divine Conspiracy
Katagory V - Hymns of Dissension
Ministry - The Last Sucker
New Model Army - High
Nightwish - Dark Passion Play
Rush - Snakes & Arrows
Within Temptation - The Heart of Everything

And the soundtrack album for Mass Effect.

 

[Pelata]

I just heard the new Nightwish over the weekend...I liked it...I think I was expecting it to be more "commercial" than it is...cool stuff...

 

[JazzMX5]

Yeah... obviously Anette has a very different style to Tarja, not nearly so operatic, but her range, control and tone are excellent and she fits like a glove. The album absolutely blew me away; nice to be able say as a Nightwish fan of many years' standing.

By comparison, what I've heard of Tarja's solo material has left me rather cold. Seems soulless, somehow.

 

[Pelata]

I haven't heard Tajra's solo album...not really all that interested to hear it...it took me this long to hear the Nightwish...haha! But Annette sounds very good on it...

 

[Dustin]

I'm still trying to absorbe the new Nightwish - I love Annettes vocals, and the songs are great, but it's taking some time to really appreciate.

I am actaully more pleased with hearing Marco singing leads on more of the material, but I'm a Marco fanboy, and love his voice, especially in his band Tarot

 

[Pelata]

I am actaully more pleased with hearing Marco singing leads on more of the material, but I'm a Marco fanboy, and love his voice, especially in his band Tarot

I love that too...TAROT kicks ass!!

 

[JazzMX5]

I'm still trying to absorbe the new Nightwish - I love Annettes vocals, and the songs are great, but it's taking some time to really appreciate.

I am actaully more pleased with hearing Marco singing leads on more of the material, but I'm a Marco fanboy, and love his voice, especially in his band Tarot

Yeah, Marco is on top form on this album. Love his voice, and what a phenomenal bassist as well!

It took me a few listens to get into the album, but I've noticed that's a consistent Nightwish trait. It didn't take long for all the pieces to fall into place, though. Probably my overall top album of '07, no joke.

 

[Dustin]

Well, musically, it most definately is Nightwish - what is for certain!

speaking of Nightwish, has anyone had a chance to check out Brother Firetribe? It's Emmpu' AOR/Melodic Rock sideproject... really good stuff!

And speaking of AOR/Melodic Hard Rock - Mr. Luna, did you happen to see my latest haul post and what one of the purchases were? ... you would be very impressed that I fianlly bought this particlular UK bands material after your recommendations! good stuff!

 

[JazzMX5]

Holy shit, Dustin, where'd you find those?

I still don't have Tough It Out on CD. Nice finds!

 

[Dustin]

...wasn't easy.

It's a 2-on-1 for both albums and was re-released a few years back. It has been getting plenty of spins too.

Ironiclly, here is a funny story and timeline concerning the underated UK band FM:

They did the ending theme song for a saturday morning cartoon called Galaxy Rangers back in 88'-89' - I never knew who did it up until a few years ago, but LOVED that song since I was a kid, I even have it on my iPod! It has one of the best vocal hook in the chourus with this stomping bass line! I spent hours one weekend several years ago trying to find out who it was that sang that song and to see if they ever had any real albums, but came up empty handed outside of finding and MP3 of that particluar song from the cartoon. For years all I had was this warbaly, overly compressed Galaxy Rangers song on a cassette that I had recorded by holdiong a boom box to the T.V. speaker when it came on... remember that was 1988. The MP3 I found online was much, much better, but still a bit garbled and compressed.

Here's the song/video on youtube:

After explaining my secret love of all things melodic and AOR oriented to Mr. Luna around 2003-2004, he recommends a band called FM - He tells me that they are everything and more and that I would LOVE them! alrighty, I'll keep that in mind!

I bought a studio/project album from a AOR/Melodic rock group called Radioactive around 2005 and the album was simply titled "Yeah!". It has a different singer for each song, and I bought it mainly because it had Ex-Toto singer Fergie Fredrikson on it (still one of my favorits!). The track called "Lies Feed on Lies" comes on and the voice was SSSOOOoooooo familiar... it took a few listens, but I realized it was the Galaxy Rangers guy!

I look up the singer in the booklet.. Steve Overland! Eureka! The voice finally has a name!

But who is he and who does he sing for? well, I find out it is FM! that band Mr. Luna recommened to me! What a coincidence!

So, I was finally able to track downthis 2-on-1 CD with these albums... and after 20 years, a question was finally answered and my life is now complete!

Sadly, the full-length version of the Galaxy Rangers song has never surfaced, and according to FM's fansite, is possibley lost forever outside of the shortened version on the actual DVD's of the cartoon. I have even considered on contacting Mr. Overland and asking him to try and dig it up somehow- whatever it took - find that full length version!!!

 

[JazzMX5]

I remember hanging out with Steve Overland over a pint of Beamish at the bar in Norwich Oval after FM's show there in late 1994 (jeez, almost fourteen years ago!). Very nice guy... actually, the whole band were; I'd showed up early for the gig, the trunk of my car painted up in FM livery (I'd spent two days recreating the cover of the Only The Strong 'Best Of' album - long story, I did this sort of thing a few times with that car), got some CDs signed (which I still have) and the car signed too (which I don't), and they put me on the guest list for their show at London Astoria the following month. Bassist Merv Goldsworthy, in particular, liked what I'd done as he was a bit of a car nut. I'll have to try and find the photos, I know I've got 'em somewhere.

Of course, since Andy Barnett had joined the band they'd adopted a more hard rock, blues-based sound but lost none of their melodic sensibilities. They really were a terrific band (look at their reviews from the era; 5/5 reviews were COMMON for them!) and it still saddens me that any noteworthy success eluded them as it did, especially with Steve's incredible voice.

And, as a dyed-in-the-wool Iron Maiden fan, their connections with Maiden were always interesting: Maiden covered the FM song That Girl on the B-side of Stranger in a Strange Land; Andy Barnett and Adrian Smith were good mates and actually played together in The Entire Population of Hackney and, if I recall correctly, Urchin as well; and drummer Pete Jupp used to play in the infamous Maiden breeding-ground, Samson. Funny, innit?

 

[Dustin]

Dude... you suck!

I had no idea about the connections there!

Actaully, it all makes sense to me now.... especially when Adrian went and did that ASAP album!

 

[JazzMX5]

Okay, there's my "oops"... Andy Barnett was also part of ASAP!