Marcos "Metal Mark" Garcia's Top Ten Albums of 2018
December 15, 2018
No. 10:
Band: Witchery
Album: I Am Legion
Genre: Thrash/Black Metal
General Info:
Year of formation: 1997
Label: Century Media Records
Powerful and aggressive as always, the Swedish Thrash/Black Metal quintet creates another great piece of extreme Metal on this album. The main way of their music didn't change, but the brutality is on a new level, as you can hear on "True North", "Of Blackened Wing", "Amun-Ra" and "An Unexpected Guest". Their previous work was to be on my 2017's Top 10 list, and now, my lack of memory is corrected.
No. 9:
Band: Saxon
Album: Thunderbolt
Genre: New Wave of British Heavy Metal
General Info:
Year of formation: 1998
Label: Silver Lining Music
One of the greatest legends of NWOBHM era, the English quintet shows on this album how to fit in modern days (due a careful production and powerful sound) without losing their musical identity. Maybe it can be a new classic, maybe not, but "Thunderbolt" is truly another Heavy Metal Thunder that stroke the Metal scene this year.
No. 8:
Band: Kamala
Album: Eyes of Creation
Genre: Thrash Metal
General Info:
Year of Formation: 2003
Label: Independent
The Brazilian Thrash Metal trio came back for one more round with this fine piece of Metal. Their brutal and aggressive insight on Thrash Metal is the same, but some elegant and simple musical arrangements entered on their work. Still savage, still positive, still one of the best albums of this year.
No. 7:
Band: Dimmu Borgir
Album: Eonian
Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
General Info:
Year of Formation: 1993
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
After eight years without releasing a full length, the Norwegian legend came back for another assault. With a polite and simple insight on their melodies, but holding ground on opera/orchestral elements, it's a great hit, maybe a rescue of their past with elements from the present opening ways for a great future.
No. 6:
Band: Creye
Album: Creye
Genre: AOR
General Info:
Year of Formation: 2001
Label: Frontiers Records SRL
AOR is a musical genre from the past that gained new life on the hands of this Swedish sextet. Lovely, charming and easy to hear (and get caught in their musical web of melodies), it's just the beginning of a new time, And CREYE can take you to the future, of course.
No. 5
Band: Judas Priest
Album: Firepower
Genre: Classic Metal
General Info:
Year of Formation: 1970
Label: Sony Records
As always, the Metal Gods saw, came and conquered. Obviously their main genre is untouched; it's a classic JUDAS PRIEST album in the same vein of "British Steel" and "Screaming for Vengeance", but with a modern outfit created by the production.
No. 4:
Band: The Night Flight Orchestra
Album: Sometimes the World Ain't Enough
Genre: AOR/Funk/Soul
General Info:
Year of Formation: 2012
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Well, it's another great masterpiece from these Swedish madmen that dare to bring back the old AOR with Funk/Soul Music influences from the 70s. And let's be honest: if SOILWORK and WITCHERY lose important members, we can blame them for this, for this amazing album!
No. 3:
Band: Amorphis
Album: Queen of Time
Genre: Melodeath
General Info:
Year of Formation: 1990
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
One of the greatest bands of Finland, the sextet has come to expand frontiers with this album. It bears their main musical way with its personal features, but using for the first time an orchestra, creating something charming, hypnotic, emotive and seductive, and one of the best albums of their career.
No. 2:
Band: Riot V
Album: Armor of Light
Genre: American Metal
General Info:
Year of Formation: 1975
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
These guys really came to ravage the land and break necks with this album! The quintet shows a never ending and unstoppable tsunami of melodic aggressiveness, creating amazing songs! This is not an album, but a statement: age means nothing when Metal is the talk, and if you're not up to offer such wonderful music like them, you must give up of playing!
No. 1:
Band: Orphaned Land
Album: Unsung Prophets
Genre: Progressive/Oriental Metal
General Info:
Year of Formation: 1992
Label: Century Media Records
This album will be a classic. Their blend of Oriental Metal with Progressive Metal influences, and telling how Pluto's cave is not a mere idea, but a reality that imprisons us all, the quintet came to change our conceptions about the world and life. This album changed my life, so let it change yours.
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