Machine Music Presents – The Best Metal of 2019

שלום לכם ולכן קוראים נאמנים ונאמנות, סיכום שנת 2019, אחת המשוגעות במוזיקה ובחיי אני, הגיע. הנה הוא פה. הפעם הפורמט יהיה מעט שונה: אני אציג את הקטגוריות השונות, שבכל אחת יהיו משהו כמו חמישה אלבומים, אני אבחר את הטובים מכל קטגוריה, ואז בסוף אני אכתוב סיכום, גם באנגלית וגם בעברית, על הנבחרים שלי להשנה. האתר גדל מיום ליום, ויותר ויותר אנשים שלא קוראים עברית הופכים לחלק ממנו, אז חשבתי שאני אעשה משהו שיהיה אחלה בחלה גם לאלו שם מעבר לים וגם לכם, אנשים שמיים ואוהבים שלי. מקווה שזה לא יהיה מסורבל מדי. וזה הזמן לומר: הנה שלל מקומות שאפשר לעקוב אחר המתרחש במוחי הקודח: פייסבוק, אינסטגרם, ספוטיפיי, פטראון. זהו. אה, וכמובן שאלבום האוסף הכי טוב של השנה הוא זה.

So, the most amazing year of music in recent memory is coming to a close, and here I am summarizing the shit out of it in my version of the "best albums" sweepstakes. The first part will be comprised of my favorite albums in each made-up category I have in my mind when I listen to music, without much description, and me choosing my top picks from each category. At the bottom of this lost, annoying, yet emotionally gratifying part, you'll find the top top picks with a little more written about them and my reasons for choosing them. Still not sure I'll pick just one album (Vastum) and might keep it in a kind of best-of-the-best list, but we'll see. Regardless, two very important points: All of the albums in this post are incredible, amazing, earth-shatteringly great. If anyone wanted to argue that anyone of these albums, in all the different categories, is their AOTY, I would have absolutely no problem with that. This is more about me, the music I love, and my thoughts, in general. The second point is that while that first part will be made up basically of names and some tunes, the second, more elaborate part, will be bi-lingual. That is because I love and appreciate my new English-speaking readership while adoring all those Hebrew-reading maniacs that have stuck with me this far (almost 10 years now). This would be the place to add, just before a short intro, that there is a plethora of ways to follow us in our various ventures: Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, and Patreon. Great. Oh, and I'm already giving out the award for best compilation album – here it is.

PART I – THE CATEGORIES

BEST ALBUMS FOR HYPERACTIVE PEOPLE WHO LIKE A LOT OF SHIT HAPPENING

Xoth – Interdimensional Invocations (Independent)

Vimur – Triumphant Master of Fates (Boris Records) – TOP PICK

Blood Incantation – Hidden History of the Human Race (Dark Descent Records) – TOP PICK

Midnight Odyssey – Biolume Part 1 – In Tartarean Chains (I, Voidhanger Records)

Mo'ynoq – Dreaming in a Dead Language (Independent)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR PEOPLE WHO LIKE DARK ROOMS THAT KIND OF STINK

Ossuarium – Living Tomb (20 Buck Spin)

Witch Vomit – Buried Deep in a Bottomless Grave (20 Buck Spin) – TOP PICK

Tomb Mold – Planetary Clairvoyance (20 Buck Spin)

Vastum – Orificial Purge (20 Buck Spin) – TOP PICK

Nothingness – The Hollow Gaze of Death (Independent)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR CAVEMEN WHO ENJOY CAVES

Defacement – Deviant (Independent)

Abyssal – A Beacon in the Husk (Profound Lore Records)

Mortiferum – Disgorged From Psychotic Depths (Profound Lore Records) – TOP PICK

Mylingar – Döda själar (20 Buck Spin)

Coffins – Beyond the Circular Demise (Relapse Records)

Rattenfänger – Geisslerlieder (Dark Essence Records / Van Records)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR PEOPLE WHO TALK TO TREES AND HUG BIRDS

Enisum – Moth's Illusion (Avantgarde Music)

Kaatayra – No Ruidar da Mata que Mirra (Independent) – TOP PICK

Vukari – Aevum (Vendetta Records)

Numenorean – Adore (Seasons of Mist)

Alcest – Spiritual Instinct (Nuclear Blast Records)

Fen – The Dead Light (Prophecy Records)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR PEOPLE WHO LIKE MÖTLEY CRÜE, DARKTHRONE, LATER EMPEROR ALBUMS, AND WHITE SNEAKERS

Funereal Presence – Achatius (Sepulchral Voice Records/The Ajna Offensive)

Departure Chandelier – Antichrist Rise to Power (Hospital Productions) – TOP PICK

Ossomancer – Artes Magickae (Pacific Threnodies)

GARSDGHASTR – Slit Throat Requiem (Profound Lore Records)

SÜHNOPFER – Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes (Debemur Morti Productions)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR PEOPLE WHO THINK TOO MUCH

Bergraven – Det framlidna minnet (Nordvis)

An Isolated mind– I’m losing myself (I, Voidhanger/Vigor Deconstruct)

Liturgy – H.H.Q.Q. (Independent)



NEDXXX – NEDXXX (Norma Evangelium Diaboli)

Skaphe + Wormlust – Kosmískur hryllingur (Mystiskaos)

Kvelgeyst – Alkahest (Vendetta Records) – TOP PICK

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BEST ALBUMS THAT KILLED ME AND NOW MY TORTURED GHOST IS WRITING YEAR-END POSTS LIKE ANYONE GIVES A SHIT AS A FORM OF CRUEL PUNISHMENT

Drastus – Le Croix de Sang (Norma Evangelium Diaboli) – TOP PICK

Mayhem – Daemon (Century Media)

Darkthrone – Old Star (Peaceville Records)

Vanum – Ageless Fire (Profound Lore Records)

Scáth Na Déithe – Pledge Nothing but Flesh (Vendetta Records)

Gruzja – Jeszcze Nie Mamy Na Was Pomysłu + I iść dalej (Godz Ov War Productions)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT ARE BASICALLY ONE DISSONANT SONG THAT IS A CLOUD OF BLACK STATIC THAT CHASES YOU DOWN THE BEACH LIKE THE BLOB

Imperial Cult – Spasm of Light (Amor Fati)

Suffering Hour – Dwell (Blood Harvest) – TOP PICK

MSRBLFLR – A Pig's Head on a Stick (Stanalone Complex)

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BEST VERSIONS OF WHAT IT MEANS TO MAKE DOOM MUSIC IN 2019

Werian – Animist (Eisenwald)

Waste of Space Orchestra – Syntheosis (Svart)

Esoteric – A Pyrrhic Existence (Seasons of Mist) – TOP PICK

Zerersh – Farewell (999 CUTS)

Zad – Followers of Tann (Anthrazit Records)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT ARE POST EVERYTHING (AKA THE ANNUAL AWARD FOR PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY'RE ABOVE LISTENING TO METAL)

Cult of Luna – A Dawn to Fear (Metal Blade Records)

Pijn and Conjurer – Curse These Metal Hands (Holy Roar)

Downfall of Gaia – Ethics of Radical Finitude (Metal Blade Records)

White Ward – Love Exchange Failure (Debemur Morti Productions)

Schammasch – Hearts of No Light (Prosthetic Records) – TOP PICK

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BEST ALBUMS THAT KILL YOU AND THEN CRY THAT YOU’RE DEAD BECAUSE THEY'RE SENSITIVE, AKA: I'M NOT GOING TO PICK ONE OUT OF THESE BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL PERFECT, FIGHT ME

LINGUA IGNOTA – Caligula (Profound Lore Records) – TOP PICK

Immortal Bird – Thrive on Neglect (20 Buck Spin) – TOP PICK



Mizmor – Cairn (Gilead Media) – TOP PICK

Weeping Sores – False Confession (I, Voidhanger Records) – TOP PICK

Yellow Eyes – Rare Field Ceiling (Gilead Media) – TOP PICK

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BEST ALBUMS TO LISTEN WHILE YOU RIDE OUT WEST AND WRESTLE WITH THE OPPRESSIVE IMAGE OF THE MOUNTAINS AND/OR YOUR OWN MORTALITY

Inter Arma – Sulphur English (Relapse Records)

Dead to a Dying World – Elegy (Profound Lore Records) – TOP PICK

Haunter – Sacramental Death Qualia (I, Voidhanger Records) – TOP PICK

Dreadnought – Emergence (Profound Lore Records)

Lord Mantis – Universal Death Church (Profound Lore Records)

Ashbringer – Absolution (Prosthetic Records)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT KILL ANNOYING NEIGHBORS AND JUST GENERALLY PEOPLE WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN YOU WHOM YOU CAN'T ACTUALLY KILL BUT CAN SUBLIMATE ALL THAT DEADLY ENERGY INTO JUST CHILLING ON THE BUS WITH HEADPHONES ON

Fawn Limbs – Harm Remissions (Sludgelord Records)

Meth. – Mother of Red Light (Prosthetic Records)

Takafumi Matsubara – Strange, Beautiful and Fast (GCBT Records)

Serpent Column – Mirror in Darkness (Mystiskaos) – TOP PICK

Pissgrave – Posthumous Mutilation (Profound Lore Records)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT KILL NEIGHBORS AND FEEL KINDA BAD ABOUT IT, BECAUSE MAYBE THE NEIGHBORS HAVE THEIR REASONS

Intercourse – Bum Wine (Corpse Flower Records)

Shin Guard – 2020 (Independent) – TOP PICK

Austerity Program – Bible Songs I (Controlled Burn Records)

Cloud Rat – Pollinator (Artoffact Records)

Coilguns – Watchwinders (Humus Records)

Ithaca – The Language of Injury (Holy Roar Records)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT ARE CREEPY NEIGHBORS THAT HAVE BODIES IN THEIR BASEMENT BUT ARE SUPER NICE AND LOAN YOU SHIT YOU NEED

Lurid Panacea – The Insidious Poisons (Independent)

dai​-​ichi – dai​-​ichi (Fólkvangr Records)

Deterioration – The Unnatural Mind (Independent)

Jig-Ai – Entrails Tsunami (Independent)

Full of Hell – Weeping Choir (Relapse Records) – TOP PICK

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BEST ALBUMS THAT PROBABLY OWN VERY LARGE DOGS

Judiciary – Surface Noise (Closed Casket Activities)

Enforced – At the Walls (WAR Records)

Flouride – Disentanglement (Nerve Altar) – TOP PICK

MASTIFF – Plague (APF Records).

TORPOR – Rhetoric of the Image (Sludgelord Records)

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BEST ALBUMS TO BE A NERD TO

Opeth – In Cauda Venenum (Nuclear Blast) – TOP PICK

Arch / Matheos – Winter Ethereal (Metal Blade Records)

Pharaoh Overlord – 5 (Ektro Records)

Borknagar – True North (Century Media)

Chrome Ghost – Diving Bell (Independent)

Kayo Dot – Blasphemy (Prophecy Productions)

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BEST MUSIC FROM HEAVEN, WHICH IS ACTUALLY HELL

Mamiffer – The Brilliant Tabernacle (Sige Records)

Pelted Shell – A Run at the Funnel (Independent)

Some Become Hollow Tubes – Keep It in the Ground (Gizeh Records) – TOP PICK

Wreck and Reference – Absolute Still Life (The Flenser)

Have a Nice Life – Sea of Worry (The Flenser)

Marissa Nadler and Stephen Brodsky – Droneflower (Sacred Bones Records)

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BEST ALBUMS BY ARTISTS WHO PROBABLY OWN A PHYSICAL COPY OF A SKINNY PUPPY ALBUM

Uniform and The Body – Everything That Dies Someday Comes Back (Sacred Bones Records)

Consumer – In Computers (The Flenser)

Vous Autres – Champ du Sang (Independent)

A Constant Knowledge of Death – Vol. III (Independent) – TOP PICK

YERÛŠELEM – The Sublime (Debemur Morti Productions)

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BEST ALBUMS YOU DIDN’T HEAR THIS YEAR*

Moulin Banal – Le Rythme du maréchal ferrant (Corde Raide Productions)

Ceremony of Silence – Oútis (Willowtip Records)

Terence Hannum – Brutalism (ANNIHILVS POWER ELECTRONIX)

Verminn – Giver/Taker (Orgasmatron Records)

*The top pick in this category is in fact the top pick in the "talking to trees" category.

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THE MACHINE MUSIC AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN BEING CATTLE DECAPITATION

Cattle Decapitation – Death Atlas (Metal Blade Records) – TOP PICK

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THE MACHINE MUSIC AWARD FOR YET ANOTHER TIME DJEVEL DROPS A PERFECT ALBUM AND NO ONE SEEMS TO GIVE A SHIT

Djevel – Ormer til armer, maane til hode (Aftermath Records) – TOP PICK

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BEST ALBUMS THAT CAME OUT IN THE LAST TWO YEARS BUT I ONLY FOUND OUT ABOUT THEM IN 2019

Totenmesse – To (Pagan Records)

Hexer – Cosmic Doom Ritual (Vendetta Records)

Wytch Hazel – II: Sojourn (Bad Omen Records)

Wolvennest – Void (Van Records)

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BEST ALBUMS FOR PEOPLE WITH SHORT ATTENTION SPANS (EPs) AKA YET ANOTHER CATEGORY WHERE EVERY SINGLE RELEASE IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT THUS ANOTHER ONE IN WHICH I SHALL CHOOSE NONE AKA THIS IS THE FUTURE OF MUSIC AKA OK WORMED IS THE BEST WAIT NO IT'S GOD'S BASTARD WAIT NO ITS KRALLICE WAIT, NEVERMIND, SAD EMOJI

Woe – A Violent Dread (Vendetta Records)

Panopticon – The Crescendo of Dusk (Independent)

Portrayal of Guilt – Suffering is a Gift (Closed Casket Activities)

Wormed – Metaportal (Independent)

Rosetta – Terra Sola (Independent)

God’s Bastard – Last Standing Village (Independent)

Krallice – Wolf (Independent)

BÖLZER – Lese Majesty (Lightning & Sons)

NŪR – Light Emerges (Suicide Records)

Sleepwalkers (夢遊病者) – Ѫ (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)

Dold Vorde Ens Navn – Gjengangere i hjertets mørke (Soulseller Records)

Decoherence – Decoherence (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)

KLUVIM – Melech Met (Shalosh Cult)

xServitudeX – Bringing Your Hell (Independent)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT ARE IN FACT SPLITS

Un / Coltsblood (Independent) – TOP PICK

Future Dystopian Movies / Grave Lines (Independent)

Soft Kill / Portrayal of Guilt (Closed Casket Activities)

Time Lurker/Cepheide (Les Acteurs de L'Ombre Productions)

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BEST ALBUMS THAT ENCAPSULATE THE DESIRE TO MAKE MUSIC THAT WILL POISON YOUR FOOD AS IT MAKES LOVE WITH YOU (DEMOS)

Undeath – Demo 19 (Caligari Records)

Blood Spore – Fungal Warfare Upon All Life (Independent) – TOP PICK

Karst – The Sword and the Martyr (Independent)

Sedimentum – Demo (Iron Bonehead Productions)

Bolgia – Altars (Independent)

SCUD – SCUD (Independent)

Deathsiege – Cannibalistic Patricide (Independent)

Ulcerot – Necuratu (Independent)

Karkait – Yekum//Kiyum (Independent)

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THE FIRST ANNUAL MACHINE MUSIC WILD CARD ENTRY TO THE LIST THAT YOU'RE ABOUT TO READ SINCE THERE'S NO WAY I'M NOT INCLUDING THIS ALBUM IN SAID LIST

Leather Glove – Perpetual Animation (Sentient Ruin Laboratories) – TOP PICK

PART II – THE LIST

AMAZING FUCKING ALBUMS

25. Djevel – Ormer til armer, maane til hode (Aftermath Records)

24. Schammasch – Hearts of No Light (Prosthetic Records)

23. Opeth – In Cauda Venenum (Nuclear Blast)

(-). Full of Hell – Weeping Choir (Relapse Records)

22. A Constant Knowledge of Death – Vol. III (Independent)

21. Leather Glove – Perpetual Animation (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)

20. Flouride – Disentanglement (Nerve Altar)

19. Suffering Hour – Dwell (Blood Harvest)

18. Cattle Decapitation, Death Atlas (Metal Blade)

17. Kvelgeyst – Alkahest (Vendetta Records)

16. Shin Guard – 2020 (Independent)

ALMOST ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

16. Serpent Column – Mirror in Darkness (Mystiskaos)

(-) Haunter – Sacramental Death Qualia (I, Voidhanger Records)

15. Departure Chandelier – Antichrist Rise to Power (Hospital Productions)

14. Mortiferum – Disgorged From Psychotic Depths (Profound Lore Records)

13. Some Become Hollow Tubes – Keep It in the Ground (Gizeh Records)

(-) Witch Vomit, Buried Deep in a Bottomless Grave (20 Buck Spin)

12. Weeping Sores – False Confession (I, Voidhanger Records)

11. Drastus – Le Croix de Sang (Norma Evangelium Diaboli)

10. Mizmor – Cairn (Gilead Media)

9. Blood Incantation – Hidden History of the Human Race (Dark Descent Records)

8. Esoteric – A Pyrrhic Existence (Seasons of Mist)

7. Yellow Eyes – Rare Field Ceiling (Gilead Media)

6. Vimur – Triumphant Master of Fates (Boris Records)

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ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

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5. Dead to a Dying World – Elegy (Profound Lore Records)

ראוי אולי להתחיל פה באזהרה: האלבום של DTADW הוא הכי פחות מושלם מהאלבומים שנמצאים ברמה הכי גבוהה של אלבומים ברשימה הזו. יש פה שירים חצי אפויים, רעיונות שלא לחלוטין גוהצו עד הסוף לפני שהגיעו לגרסה הסופית שלהם, ואיזו תחושה כללית של תפסת מרובה לא תפסת. אממה, מה שכן החברים האלה מטקסס תופסים הם תופסים חזק מאוד. במידה רבה של חוסר הוגנות, ועד כמה שההשוואה לא במקומה, האלבום הזה הרבה יותר קרוב למה שהייתי רוצה שהאלבום החדש של Inter Arma ייעשה, ועשה רק חלקית. שזה יציקת עולם רגשי מוחלט ועצום תוך שימוש לסירוגין ברכות כמעט בלתי נסבלת וכובד מטורף. "Empty Hands, Hollow Hymns" הוא לא רק אחד מהשירים הגדולים של השנה, הוא משירי הפוסט-שקרכלשהוא של העשור. יצירת מופת, חלקית ככל שלא תהיה, אבל יצירת מופת.

This entry should best begin with a caveat: Out of the top of the top of this list the latest from Dallas' Dead to a Dying World is the most flawed. Some songs are not as finalized as others, and some ideas would have used another two or three go-grounds before making final cut. However, the parts that do hit hit very, very hard. As unfair as this comparison may seem this album feels closer to the kind of spaciness I expected from the new Inter Arma, and got only partially (I should say this is not a final judgement on Sulphur English, which is already an amazing album, since my history with IA albums is that they take a few years to grow on me). But regardless of that comparison, DTADW fuse crushing emotion, searing tenderness, with amazingly heavy and dynamic music on this album. Not only is "Empty Hands, Hollow Hymns" one of the better songs of the year, it's probably one of the better post-whateveryouwanttocallit songs this decade. A masterpiece, despite, perhaps because, of its flaws.

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4. Immortal Bird – Thrive on Neglect (20 Buck Spin)

יודעים כמו מה אימורטל בירד, הלהקה המעולה הזו משיקגו, נשמעים? אה נכון, הם לא נשמעים כמו אף אחד. שילוב רעיל ומתמיר נשמות של גריינד, דת׳, בלאק, הארדקור, וכל מה שלא יהיה שהם רוצים להשתמש בו כדי להגיד איתו משהו. וזה העניין עם Immortal Bird: הם בשליטה. כל הז׳אנרים החמודים האלה שאנחנו מדברים עליהם, הם הקלידים והאנשים המוכשרים האלה מנגנים עליהם איך שרק בא להם. ועד כמה שהאלבום הקודם שלהם היה נהדר, האלבום הזה, לדעתי, ממצב אותם בתואר היוקרתי: ״יורשי Cobalt״, שזה אומר, היורשים של הרוח שמניעה את הצמד ההוא מקולורדו: להמציא מוזיקה כבדה מחדש. עד כדי כך.

Do you know what the Chicago wrecking crew that goes by the name of Immortal Bird sounds like? That's right, they sound like nothing you've ever heard. A toxic and life-giving (hmm, kind of like the "water of life" in Dune) mix of death, grindcore, black metal, hardcore, and whatever it is they feel like using in order to say something. And that's kind of the thing: they're in control. All those quaint sub-genres we keep mentioning are the keys on Immortal Bird's board, and they do whatever they want with them at any given moment. And as great as their previous album was, Thrive on Neglect cements their violent idiosyncrasy in a way that reminds me of another genre-shattering band – Cobalt. A like that Denver duo (alliterations are assaulting me) they are breaking heavy music apart and putting it back together.

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3. LINGUA IGNOTA – Caligula (Profound Lore Records)

עד יום מותי אני אדע איפה הייתי ומה עשיתי כששמעתי את האלבום הזה לראשונה במלואו, ויש לי הרגשה שזה המצב עם הרוב המוחלט של האנשים ששרדו האזנה מלאה ליצירה הפוצעת והנפצעת הזו של קריסטן הייטר. אני הייתי בהכנות לראיון איתה במסגרת אלבומי העשור, חושב בתמימותי שאני הולך לראיין אותה בזכות All Bitches Die המבריק שלה. ואז הפעלתי את Caligula וכל הגוף שלי התכווץ. האלבום הזה של הייטר הוא לא רק אחד מאלבומי השנה, ולא רק אחד מאלבומי העשור, אלא אירוע מוזיקלי שקשה להפריז בחשיבות שלו. לאן עולם המוזיקה יילך מעכשיו, לטוב או לרע, נראה כבר אחר כך. וגם זה די מרגש.

Until the day I die I will remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard this album in full for the first time, and I have a feeling that may be the case with most of the people who made it through Kristin Hayter's wounded and wounding masterwork. I was preparing to interview her as part of the Albums of the Decade series, innocently thinking I was going to be talking about her wonderful All Bitches Die from the year before. And then I set Caligula off in my headphones and my whole body and being contracted. This isn't just one of the best albums of the year or the decade, but a musical event that cannot be overestimated. Whether or not an event for good or evil remains to be seen. That's pretty exciting too.

2. Kaatayra – No Ruidar da Mata que Mirra (Independent)

אולי זה העשור הנגמר, אולי משבר אמצע החיים, אולי הכל ביחד, אבל הרבה מהרשימה הזו קשור בצורה שבה אני רואה את העתיד של המוזיקה המוזרה הזו שאני שומע. זה תקף לציפור האלמותית, תקף ללינגואה איגנוטה, ותקף במידה רבה לאלבומים אחרים ברשימה כמו האחרון של Yellow Eyes, אלבום הבכורה של Weeping Sores, והחדש של Blood Incantation. אבל במידה רבה אלבום הבכורה של פרוייקט הבלאק הברזילאי Kaatayra הוא הוא העתיד שאני פה מקשקש אודותיו. לא מבט לכיוון העתיד, לא רמיזה לגבי האפשרות של דברים שעוד ייקרו, אלא העתיד בכבודו ובעצמו. ובצורה מעט יותר פשטנית: אלבום הפולק-בלאק הכי טוב מאז השיא של Agalloch, וכתב אותו עלם ברזילאי לבדו, ביצע אותו לבדו, והשאיר אותי המום לבדו לבדו.

Maybe it's the waning decade, maybe it's a midlife crisis, maybe all those things at once, but a lot in this list has to do with what I see as the future of this strange music I have latched my life to. It's there in Immortal Bird, there in LINGUA IGNOTA, and to a large extent relevant to other forward-thinking albums on this list such as the latest from Yellow Eyes, Weeping Sores, Blood Incantation, and others. But the debut album from Brazilian one-man black metal project Kaatayra is that future. Not a glance at the future, but the future made flesh. And a little more directly: it is the best folk black metal album since peak Agalloch, and it represents the debut recording of one person who wrote, played, and recorded the whole thing. Managing, in doing so, to stun me every time I listen to this album, all by himself. A release of historical proportions. You can read a short interview I did with Kaatayra.

1. Vastum – Orificial Purge (20 Buck Spin)

כבר עסקנו בעתיד, הנה נעסוק גם קצת בעבר. וכשאני מדבר על העבר אני מדבר עליו במושגים של מורשת. ישנן להקות עבר שאין להן מורשת, וזאת משום העובדה שהן היו כל כך ייחודיות, כל כך משונות ויצירתיות, שלאחר לכתן לא קם אמן אחד, לא אמנית אחת, והרימו את מה שהיה שם. היה רק להתפעל. אז כבר מצאנו ברשימה הזו את העתיד דרך ירושה של אמנות העבר דרך הקשר שהמצאתי לי בין Immortal Bird ל Cobalt. ועכשיו הגיע התור ללהקה שכרגע מזכירה לי יותר מהכל את השילוב הכמעט בלתי אפשרי של אינטיליגנציה (גאונות, למעשה) וגועל נפש שהשתיתה בעולמנו להקה צנועה בשם Carcass. לקח זמן להכרה הזו לנחות, כי אני שומע ומעריך את Vastum מאז אלבומם הקודם והנהדר, Hole Below. אבל משהו בהפקה הצלולה של האלבום החדש, בהידוק של הביצוע, בהידוק של כתיבת השירים, שפתאום הביאו לי משבי רוח מסריחים ומלודיים של Carcass בואך Nectorism ו – Heartwork. חוש מופרע לכתיבת שירים, חוש מופרע למלודיה, שמשולב בצורה כמעט חסרת תקדים מבחינתי עם הסרחון הכי גדול שאפשר לייצר עם גיטרות וגרון. זו אולי נשמעת מוזיקה פשוטה, זה אולי נשמע כמו תרגיל קטן, אבל כדי ליצור וללטש את הדברים הכי קטנים ולכאורה פשוטים לעיתים דרוש המוח החד ביותר. וזה המוח שיצר את האלבום הכי טוב של 2019 (ראיינתי את סולנית הלהקה ליילה עבדול ראוף במסגרת פרוייקט אלבומי העשור תוך התרכזות באלבום זה, אני מאמין שהראיון ייצא יחסית בקרוב).

We've dealt with the future, now lets dabble in the past. And when I say "past" I mean here in terms of heritage. There's a special breed of great bands that have no heritage, because they were so unique, so weird, and so creative that once they were gone that mode of making music was gone. There wasn't a single artist that took up the mantle, or could take it, and all there was to do was remain in awe. I've already mentioned this heritage of weird genius when I referenced Immortal Bird's link to Cobalt. But now it's time to discuss the band that has, to me, taken up one of the most impossible tasks in extreme metal, which is the fusing of intelligence and disgust that was established by a little band called Carcass. It took some time for that realization to dawn, because I've loved and have been listening to Vastum since their wonderful 2015 Hole Below. But something about the crisp production of their newest release Orificial Purge, something about the incredible tight performances, and ever righter songwriting, that brought with it the smelly breeze of albums like Necrotism and Heartwork. An uncanny ability to write catchy, immediate songs, an otherworldly sense of harmony and melody, combined with the biggest stink you can conjure with filthy riffs and two disgusting vocalists. This may seem like simple music, this may seem like a small exercise, but it takes the sharpest of minds to create and polish these seemingly small things that make up the new Vastum. The minds that have created what is to me without a doubt the best album of the year (I interviewed Vastum guitarist/vocalist Leila Abdul Rauf about this album as part of the Albums of the Decade series, and I expect that interview to be published sooner rather than later).