//EDIT
Find this exact same note on facebook, the links actually work without me having to go back and work on each one, which I'm not going to do most likely because I've already spent far too much time on this thing.//
I did it for two years because I think that includes more bands, and I put 5 of each because I was also really disappointed with a few albums these past two years as well.
As always I warn you about the swearing and the lewd references, enter at own risk.
I have linked my favorite song or just one that has a video that I could find and likewise on the bottom I've linked a song I'm disappointed with wholly and an earlier song as to why.
TEH GOOD
5. Richard Marx|Matt Scannell- Duo (2008) (Acoustic) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRA9MD3RxZ8)
Why? Well, I'm not a huge of of Richard Marx, but his songs on here are actually pretty decent, and anyone who knows me probably knows I have a secret obsession with Vertical Horizon and I consider Everything You Want to be one of the best albums that exists, so slowed acoustic versions of VH songs will get a big thumbs up from me regardless. I actually highly recommend the Duo album to everyone, and it's the only recently made non-hardcore/metal album I bought, all the other non-heavy CDs have been stuff like old Foo Fighters and Gin Blossoms and etc. 90s bands (that sadly don't qualify here).
++++++++++
4. Once Nothing- First Came The Law (2008) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vDdMHbVF7U)
Why? Well, I appreciate a band that tries things it's own way, Once Nothing mixes comedy, death metal, and grooviness. Oh yes, grooviness. They have somehow made some songs that you can actually dance, non-mosh dance, to. Its pretty weird, and some of their lyrics are bizarre, but I really, truly enjoy this album, it's kind of just purely for fun in its own way.
++++++++++
3. Misery Signals- Controller (2008) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnxtFZzgMEc)
Why? Well the funny thing here is that I haven't been listening to them for very long, but I instantly and absolutely loved them the very first listen. They sound much like August Burns Red, but they have slightly more of a melodic sound and less of a brutality musically, but they have more guttural and brooding vocals and lyrics than ABR. A few songs sound similar, but the bands are largely quite different. Misery Signals fairs a more happy, bright sound mixed with muddy, detuned guitars. They've gotten gradually better over the years, half of their 2nd album isn't that impressive, but their first album features a singer most people don't prefer (although his lyrics are some of the most inspirational and personal I've ever read). This album absolutely blew me away, and I've been obsessed with it since I got it. I shall note here that I absolutely love the album art for the album as well.
Bonus points; acoustic version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FJDdgN_HTk&feature=related)
++++++++++
2. August Burns Red- Constellations (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GALmUe-jPHo)
Why? Well, the album is a logical progression from Messengers, I personally like the first album Thrill Seeker the best, but both of the other albums are..well..amazing. Doesn't hurt that the video is one of the most original I've ever seen, even if Jake the singer insists on his crazy stretchy leg dance moves (with epic facial expressions). Yeah, he does that shit live too. I'd be surprised to learn he hasn't fallen off of a stage at some point.
++++++++++
1. 36 Crazyfists- The Tide And Its Takers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Loxgz8-oQwc)
Why? Well, they kept getting a little heavier, a little moodier, a little more artsy, and more creative. And for one of the most creative sounding bands I've heard of in metal, that's a great thing. Also, enjoy the serene landscape of their native homeland of Alaska in the video. I've seen 36CF live three times, if they keep making albums like this, I'm just going to see how much money they can get from me. Also, I must nerdalert myself here, this IS my favorite band, I DO have their entire catalog including covers and rarities, I have five shirts with their name on it, and I'm probably getting a tattoo at some point. So, it is with extreme and unfair bias that this is my favorite album of the last two years.
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TEH HORRORZ
I think all of these are metal bands because that's what I listen to most, but some of these you just have to check out because they've become so AWFUL, especially Emmure. At the very least, watch that first video, its accidentally the funniest damn thing ever.
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5. Protest the Hero- Fortress (2008)
Why? Their 2005 album, Kezia, is without a doubt one of the best records I've ever listened to. Period. They are one of the most creative and technically skilled groups of people you will ever hear make music in your life. People who don't like metal love Protest the Hero's album Kezia. Because even when you take away the amazing musical quality, the album TELLS A STORY WITH THOUGHTFUL LYRICS. The first album was a concept album, 4 parts, part one is about a prison guard, part 2 is about a reverend, and part 3 is about the thoughts of this girl, Kezia, and the final portion is in summation of the album. The album is basically about a girl that was taken into some sort of prison and was executed and the thoughts and feelings of her and the people surrounding her, its an album that deals with taking orders you know are wrong and how people can change something and how the system can corrupt and so many of these complex issues, you could read into it endlessly, and that's what good art is.
The second one is much much more abstract, it talks about goddess worship and its based on pillaging and whatnot, "Ghengis Khan and old Irish mythology" is what one member states. The lead singer himself says he thinks most people wouldn't like the album as much because it's so obscure. For me, he was dead one the mark. I just can't digest this thing even remotely. A few songs are pretty good, it even looks like technically some songs are far more advanced, but overall, it doesn't come near Kezia, and for that reason it was severely dissatisfying for me.
New PTH: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypCdGNe3Bvs) <- If the singer looks totally batshit crazy, that's only because he is. Old PTH: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAutUObokCM&feature=PlayList&p=95975250841B2EFC&index=0&playnext=1) <- One of my favorite videos of all time. ---------- 4. The Acacia Strain- Continent (2009)
Well, I never thought this would happen, but I was severely disappointed with the new Acacia Strain album. I've always sort of taken the band with a grain of salt because of the lyrics, which aren't the worst I've heard, but pretty damn close. It's not that they are poorly written or stupid, it's just the fact that there is a lot of things like that which I do not approve of. If you've ever read any interviews or have seen/met the lead singer in person, you realize he's not a crazed psycho, but more of a dude with an incredibly black sense of humor and a bit of a misanthrope. I totally get all of that, but still the death metal aspect is what keeps this band from being my favorite, because in sound, oh hell yeah. I personally believe them to be the sludgiest and most heavy of heavy bands that exist, and lots of bands (Emmure Emmure Emmure) emulated the sound and made it a tad more common, so the band proceeds to change it up every album, and a band should. The problem here is they changed the clean-yet-distorted and detuned sound into a distorted-yet-more distorted sound, and everything sounds so muddled it becomes totally incomprehensible even to me, and I can usually make out everything the guy says. I was so disappointed with the production itself that I just can't listen to it, it physically makes me hurt to hear a band that can make music like that sound so shitty because of the production, and the fact that they had the biggest production budget to date makes me that more dissatisfied.
New TAS: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2Xs-pzRyi8)
20pts for not taking yourself too seriously, rumor is, they are dressed and acting like douches because they are supposed to symbolize how Emmure rips them off which is why they get up and sing the other peoples song at the end (when the band is the nerdy white guys).
Old TAS: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIUdFuY74ek)
Hooray pretending to play their own instruments to a song they wrote themselves...yeah.
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3. All That Remains- Overcome (2008)
Why? Well, the previous album The Fall of Ideals was AMAZING and it was featured on Guitar Hero and lots of people really love the song Six, which was one of their heavier tunes. So, thinking 'our fans generally like our heavier songs more' they then decided to make an album that was DRASTICALLY more mellow and down right mediocre sounding in comparison. I honestly didn't see this coming for ATR. And its not that the songs are bad, they just aren't nearly as good.
New ATR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRrU2RFX3_U
Old ATR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdaOeAxy0GU
Even Older ATR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkB8L0wNckw&feature=fvw
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2. Killswitch Engage- Self Titled (2009)
Why? They used to be heavy, and used to be my favorite band, until they changed to more of a rock/new wave metal sound. Their first two albums were really heavy, the 2nd actually changed the face of metal and hardcore with very well done melodic singing and lyrics that were positive and were in some cases coming out against death metal and negativity (Fixation on the Darkness). Hell, they taught me that just because its brutal and heavy it doesn't have to be about death and loss, it can be about life and gain. Something like that.
Anyway, the new lyrics and sound are just more rock than hardcore and more mediocre than I could care for. The album isn't awful, it's just nothing special.
KSE is 2 on this list because I expected much, much more from the progenitors of modern metalcore.
New KSE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJdpY0cAbuA)
Old KSE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJLRomwvJr4&feature=PlayList&p=1A34BFEA7888ABD0&index=0)
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1. Emmure- The Respect Issue (2008) and Felony (2009)
Why? Well, the album(s) is(are) total shit. I kind of liked the 1st album although they blatantly rip off The Acacia Strain. Their first EP was actually pretty good, no copying or stealing, but they've gotten progressively worse every year. I should also mention they've released 4 cds in 4 years. And most of the tracks on all of the albums are filled with sound effects or just nothing at all. IE terrible.
Oh and the new videos? TERRIBLE BEYOND COMPREHENSION.
Notice how most of the song NOTHING IS HAPPENING. But to make up for this they show SKULLS and FIGHTING and FAKE BOOBS. EXTREME.
Newer Emmure: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59rnVGzRmZo)
Older Emmure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eN0FDoNHsnM
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Honorable mentions;
I totally disagree with Zach on this, and that's fine, but I really was not impressed with the new Bury Your Dead album. They did exactly the same thing as ATR and KSE and tried for more of a rock sound, they sound exactly the fucking same as Sevendust now.
-1. Bury Your Dead- It's Nothing Personal.
This band has changed so many times its impossible to nail down exactly when they went sour, but it started with the new lead singer Myke, he isn't awful, but the older songs just seemed to mean a lot more to the old vocalist, and they were more personal and about life lessons than...whatever the hell Myke was writing about on this new album (I have no idea) but there are a couple songs that are pretty damn great actually, but overall, it doesn't make up for the 4-5 songs that are not impressive, 2 of which I absolutely hate and won't listen to at all.
New BYD : (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD-FCeMatus) <--Chorus is great, nothing else is, though. Old BYD (current singer) : (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlxSQGPzb2k) Older BYD (former singer) : (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hd7-lTHUtQ) <--I love that ~~~~~~~~~
-2. Corpus Christi- The Darker Shades of White
Why? Well, I, like many people, received a random 3-song EP at an All That Remains concert, and...well...I LOVED IT. The singer was guttural, the music was sludgy, and although the band was a Christian band (usually affects and atheists choice of lyrics) the lyrics were pretty good. In fact, in Marilyn, I loved them. The song is about a woman losing her family and it was an emotional song and made a good metal song too, a rare combo. What went wrong? Well, they got a dif lead singer, which is fine. But then they made all of their songs faster. Then they made all of their songs longer. Then they signed to victory records (death sentence). All of the purity and magic that made those 3 songs on that little EP is FUCKING GONE. I was ANGRY when I heard the new versions.
New CC (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTvg9jZpldk)
Old CC (CANNOT FIND A LINK!)
~~~~~~~~~
-3. Norma Jean- The Antimother (2008)
Why? Well, Bless The Martyr and Kiss the Child was a huge deal when it came out, but they changed the lead singer and the music style. Album 2, "O' God, The Aftermath", was pretty damncrazmazing (crazy and amazing). It has all these neat little weird details thrown in every song and it has an overall pummeling quality to it that I've never heard before, or after unfortunately.
There is no screaming in some songs on Antimother. The new stuff is catchy, and I still think it's actually a not bad album, but many songs on the album just don't go anywhere. The band has officially completely changed their sound twice within 4 albums, and from the looks of it no one is happy, and going more melodic has actually cost the band record sales. I guess the south is no longer on fire.
Newer Stuff (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdqYUDbjFJQ)
Older Stuff (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9720uHPsWY)
Even Older Stuff (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCQsSt0HHHk)
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Well that concludes my thoughts on the past two years as far as my favorite music goes. I wish I could have included Chevelle, Third Eye Blind, and Breaking Benjamin in the line-up, but it looks like all three of those albums didn't turn out the way I'd hoped as well. It looks like in conclusion these bands set the bar up so high initially that they can't outdo themselves later, but actually if I made this note a few years ago I think Chevelle's Vena Sera didn't disappoint in the least, I love that album, and Phobia by Breaking Benjamin was pretty good in my opinion as well. Another note is that I didn't include Evan's Blue because I've only heard one song off of the new album, but so far I really hate their new lead singer. Anyway, I'll probably make a separate, non-metal version if I feel like it and if anyone reads this one.
Just thought I'd clear up any questions before they were asked.
-K
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