2009 was an interesting year in music, it rekindled my obsessive love for black metal with the new
Cobalt and
Amesouers, as well as the long awaited
Funeral Mist album.
Yoggi's Albums of the Year; 2009 Edition
The biggest surprise came from formerly black and doom, and now decidedly doom metal band, Woods of Ypres. Their 4th full length, The Green Album was one i had been waiting for since spring, and it still knocked my socks off. It is a rare occaison in which a band can completely evolve and change their sound, and yet still be very distinctly themselves, but once again David Gold has managed to pull the next evolution of woods out of his hat without losing the plot. Where the first album was love songs from a bleak wintery perspective, the second album was songs of loss and heartbreak, with the third referencing the anger and frustration of a mundane, lonely life. After spending a year in Korea, Gold has added the next chapter, of escape to a far away place to run from troubles, only to find more problems than solutions.
The Green Album has been a step up in production, as well as the quality of Davids vocals. From deeply sung passages, to the old growls and screams, and even a spoken monotone passage in "Dirty Window of Opportunity..." he pulls all off flawlessly. The lyrical quality to the album is as top notch and poetic as ever, with non traditional song structure, which makes for an interesting and challenging listen. The two most surprising changes on this album are Gold's relinquishing of his drum throne to Evan Madden (Woe, The Green Evening Requiem) in an attempt to broaden the creative influences. Also included on this album are Shane Madden on Bass, and performing the first ever solo's in woods history, Bryan Belleau plays the albums leads.
All around amazing, though at 78 minutes long, it begs still to be longer, it goes by in what feels like minutes each listen. This is by far the best metal release of the year.
Moving on to my other musical mistress, Post-Rock, this year was not the most fruitful, but still had some notable offerings, most notably Russian Circles - Geneva, several new releases from nadja as per usual, including an excellent split with A Storm of Lights, who also released their second album this year. Animals As Leaders' self titled album was also rather strong.
Yoggi's Albums of the Year; 2009 Edition
One album however, put all else to shame. Japanese Orchestral Post Rock band Mono released their 5th studio album, and it is the single most emotionally inspiring peice of instrumental music i have ever listened to. This album flows perfectly from end to end, from "Ashes in the Snow"'s lilting introduction, to the tremelo storm of closer "Everlasting Light", the album peaks and drops, ever moving, its a lot like listening to an ocean if it was a peice of music.
Mono perfectly blend a full orchestra with a fairly large rock band, and the interplay between the strings of violins and the soaring tremelo of guitars is breathtaking. Piano lines come to the forfront, but the humming of guitars is always there in its own small way, setting the mood throughout the album.
This work of art is one of the hardest i've ever tried to put words to, so i'm going to stop hurting my brain and leave you with this. If you've ever wanted to hear perfection in instrumental form, this is the album for you.
links:
Woods of Ypres:
http://www.myspace.com/woodsofypresMono:
http://www.myspace.com/monojp
