We have to say that 2019 was the year of Black Metal for us, not only did we reviewed the most albums of this genre, but we also found the progress made in the scene quite amazing. These are our favorite releases of the year.
Filled with amazing releases, 2019 comes to a close as one of the best years in Metal. With a bunch of solid releases in each genre, we had quite a hard time picking the best ones.
Being huge fans of Symphonic/Melodic Black Metal, 2019 produced some excellent release that embrace old-school elements of timeless bands like Limbonic Art and early Emperor, and add a modern production and edge to them.
Being quite a year for Atmospheric/Post-Black Metal releases, it was quite hard to select just a few to showcase. We do have to agree that the bar keeps getting higher and higher every year.
With over 500 promo submissions in 2019, we received a fair share that are not quite metal. From Post-Rock to Psychedelic Rock to Shoegaze, these releases were the most interesting and engaging to us.
The releases that make up our list have unleashed some of the most emotionally charged albums in the last few years, making our job of ranking them quite hard
2019 was great year of crafty Melodic/Technical Death Metal featuring plenty of killer headbanging melodies and just the right amount of guitar acrobatics
These releases do not subscribe to traditional standards, and push the limits of what we consider Metal music.
After many years of almost no good Death/Doom and Funeral Doom releases, this year we had a great deal of them, making it an interesting year. We also mixed other subgenres of Doom in this list for simplicity.
|
|
Black Metal bands unleashed some of the most unholy and ravaging albums in 2018. Here are the ones we think stand out from the rest.
|
|
Zeal & Ardor - Baroness - Deafheaven
March 8th, 2019 - Houston, Texas
Ensiferum - Septicflesh - Arsis
January 28th, 2019 - Atlanta, Georgia
November 2nd & 3rd, 2018 - Brooklyn, NY
Eye of Solitude - Marche Funebre - Catapult the Dead
March 13th, 2018 - Oakland, California
Enslaved - Wolves in the Throne Room - Myrkur - Khemis
March 9th, 2018 - San Francisco, California
November 6th, 2017 - Atlanta, Georgia
October 29th, 2017 - Rotterdam, Netherlands
October 28th, 2017 - Rotterdam, Netherlands
Brujeria + Powerflo + Pinnata Protest
October 23rd, 2017 - San Francisco, CA
Orphaned Land + Pain + Voodoo KungFu
September 20th, 2017 - Oakland, California
August 16-19th, 2017 - Dinkelsbühl, Germany
August 10th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
August 11th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
August 12th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
July 28-29th, 2017 - Germany
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Children of Bodom + Abbath + Exmortus + Oni
12/05/2016 - The Regency, CA
Sonata Arctica + Leaves' Eyes + Omnium Gatherum
12/02/2016 - Slim's - San Francisco, CA
Epica + Arkona + Fleshgod Apocalypse + The Agonist
11/18/2016 - Social Hall - San Francisco, CA
Fallujah + Between The Buried And Me + Devin Townsend Project
10/05/2016 - Regency Ballroom - San Francisco, CA
