Dumb & Dumber + Inception score = WIN

The above title pretty much explains it all folks. The hyper dramatic score increases the lulz 10x.


...and now I really wanna go to Aspen.

The Big Four

Better late than never?

So today, tickets went on sale for "The Big Four" of thrash metal's only U.S. concert, held the week after the Coachella festival, at the exact same spot as Coachella. Aside from this event's lofty price tag ($100 a ticket, gas for the drive, lodging, weekend off of work, etc) I'm really wondering if it's worth attending.

As I wrote in my previous Anti-Coachella rant, I'm vehemently opposed to watching musicians play before massive crowds, appearing as ants on a stage from mile away. There are only a handful of bands I could enjoy in a setting like that (Rage Against The Machine @ Coachella 2007 was one). I'm sure Metallica will slay the massive crowd, they do epic shows like this all the time, and Slayer are easily the most solid band on the bill, but what about the other two?

MEGADETH:

R.I.P. Rust In Peace era Megadeth

If the Rust In Peace era Megadeth was playing. I'd say yes without hesitation. Not that Megadeth's new hired guns (rotating drummer/lead guitarist) aren't any good, it's just that Dave Mustaine himself has now ruined Megadeth to the point of An Hero status. His vocals have gone to shit (although to be fair, they always kind of sucked), his Born Again Christianity has had the reverse effect and made his ego/erratic behavior even worse. The dude is bringing his own band down. His Affliction style shirt proves my point.

Hello me...meet the real me, and my douchebag way of life.

ANTHRAX:
And Anthrax? Oh boy, I don't even know what to say here. I saw John Bush era Anthrax and they killed. I saw the Joey Belladonna reunion tour era Anthrax, and they killed. So what the hell happened? That other singer they got for 5 mins after the Bush/Belladonna All My Children drama started came and went already. I honestly don't know who their singer is right now. I don't really care either. If they ever complete that new album they've been working on for most of the 00's I'm sure it won't live up to the decade of hype. I never thought I'd say this, bring back the mullets, short shorts and bright colors guys! You need em'!

Metallica's gonna pay us right?

SLAYTALLICA: If I do decide to put up the cash for this event, and manage to convince my buddy to make the trek with me, it will be to watch SLAYER and METALLICA pwn 60,000 people. They may be older, wealthier (lazier) and released some questionable albums (in Tallica's case, horrible!) but both these bands still have it as far as I'm concerned. It may be 20 years late but Metallica and Slayer thrashing together is always appreciated.

The Hottest Tour of 1991...in 2011!

Glad I found...GRIND TIME

Oh the magical world of YouTube. I came across a video this weekend that changed my life for the better. Grind Time Now is, according to their website, "The World's Largest Hip Hop Battle League," where emcees from across the country battle each other to advance in rank/tier. Almost all of these battles are pre-written, as in NOT spontaneous off the top freestyles, but in each match the battling emcees do feed off each other and come up with some on the spot rebuttals. This wasn't the first Grind Time battle I watched, but this was the one that made me click favorite and then subscribe to the channel. These two guys have a history competing against each other and are two of the top ranked dudes in the league.



I've spent WAY more time than I should have these past few days watching different Grind Time battles. I think I might just make this a regular feature on my ol' blog to highlight some of the awesome match ups and talented emcees I've stumbled across. I'm curious what you guys think of this...

Female Obsession: Kelly Brook

Happy New Year!

Yes, the replacement for my 2010 The Big Lebowski calendar has finally arrived. You're looking at January 2011 my friends, the first of many awesome months in my new Kelly Brook 2011 calendar.

Who is Kelly Brook? Why is she hanging on my door? From what I can gather, Kelly was a model and TV personality in Britain before trying her hand at acting. Unfortunately the most prestigious roles she's landed was a brief stint on the that Superman teen show Smallville and some softcore, destined for Cinemax flick with her ex-Billy Zane called Survival Island. Luckily, the fates have smiled upon us and gave Kelly her biggest break yet in last summer's uber raunch/gore fest, Piranha 3D. This might sound lame but I actually enjoyed her performance in that movie. I'm not just talking about her nude underwater swim scene either. Something about Kelly exudes charisma. This trait shines through in both her sexy photo shoots and more candid/natural shots. Her smile just knocks me on my ass every time. I didn't think it was possible for Brits to have a grill like that (haha). Her voice/accent is even more adorable. Case in point, the first few minutes of this interview. Her laugh is infectious! Too bad the interviewer is dull as paste....


Kelly is also a spokeswoman for Reebok EasyTone shoes. I don't know how smart this was on the part of Reebok. Having Kelly on a billboard like that is bound to cause car accidents and create negative publicity.

                                              Here's MOAR Kelly Brook:

she even looks "smashing" at the airport.

For those of you who haven't seen Piranha 3D yet, I implore you to do so ASAP. It's campy and violent as hell, like Death Proof & Hostel on steroids, with more blood, guts and awesomely gratuitous nudity than should be allowed. Of course the best part, is Miss Kelly Brook. Happy 2011 everyone!

THOR

So I was walking into some Hawaiian BBQ  place for lunch last week when this older fellow (late 40's/early 50's perhaps) commented on my shirt as we crossed paths in the parking lot. He said, "Now THAT's a hero." That's the shirt I was wearing ^^^.

Yes, the mighty Thor, the Odinson himself. He's been my favorite comic character for, oh close to 20 years now. My little 7 year old mind was forever changed when my older cousin let me read Marvel Comic's short series, The Infinity Gauntlet back in the early 90's. For you non-geeks, a quick summary of the series is this: a purple faced villain named Thanos gathers the six infinity gems that control all aspects of the cosmos and becomes GOD. The Marvel Universe assembles and tries to stop him. Of all the Earth heroes (Wolverine, Spiderman, etc), Thor was regarded as the most badass. Of course there was no way in hell they could stop Thanos but that sure didn't stop Thor from trying.

I hunted down all kinds of Thor related comics after that. I came to realize that Thor was Marvel Comics equivalent of Superman only, without the lameness. He's the most powerful dude that everyone else relies when SHIT GETS REAL. Hulk went crazy again and just tore the Fantastic Four & Avengers to pieces? Someone better call Thor. Galactus is trying to eat Earth again? Where the hell is Thor?!

Thor is the Asgardian God of Thunder. He possesses superhuman strength and near invulnerability while his enchanted hammer Mjolnir allows him to control the weather (Thunder God, duh), open inter-dimensional portals, and fly. He's been kicking ass for thousands of years and he's arrogant as fuck. Not only because he's one badass mofo, but because his father is Odin, ruler of Asgard and one of the most powerful forces around. Perhaps Thor's greatest trait IMO is his ego. He will literally fight himself to death just to preserve his and his father's honor...no matter what the circumstance. Thor always reminded me of Doc Holiday from Tombstone, or Sonny from The Godfather. Sort of crazy but always ready to kick some ass when needed. I never seriously collected any of Thor's monthly comics, since I was a kid with no real income aside from birthday/Christmas money, but always rooted for him whenever he popped up in major cross over events. I stopped following the comics world sometime in the early 00's, but I've never lost my affinity for Marvel Comic's resident Asgardian ass kicker. Here are some of my favorite Thor related comic book covers:

Cool Fight Bro

AWESOMENESS

So now Thor is getting his own movie. How will the Hollywood rape machine portray my favorite comic character on the big screen? Here's the official trailer below. I must say, I'm not too horrified by this and am crossing my fingers the movie is more along the lines of Spider Man 2 and not the godawful Spider Man 3. 

Trap Them/Black Breath/Mammoth Grinder @ The Roxy, Hollywood. 1/9/11.

As I've mentioned before in a previous post, the good folks/opportunists at Scion automobiles are kind enough to sponsor free metal/extreme music concerts from time to time. My first show of the year was a Scion event, featuring Trap Them, Black Breath and Mammoth Grinder (in case you didn't read the flyer above ^^).

Mammoth Grinder was first. I never heard of these guys before and didn't know what to expect but was not disappointed by their punishing grind/punk attack. It seemed like this trio produced more noise at a louder decibel onstage than either of the acts that followed. Crusty D-beats with doom inspired breakdowns, here's a clip for ya'll to hear Mammoth Grinder for yourselves:


Black Breath came out next. This was the most "metal" band on the bill (with actual long hairs) although they also implored lots of D-beats and an overall DIY aesthetic. Although 2nd on the lineup, Black Breath played to the largest crowd and received the wildest reaction. Their brand of thrashy, punk inspired metal got the stage divers into a frenzy. I quickly lost count of the number of kids doing swan dives. Black Breath's unexpected cover of Sepultura's "Desperate Cry" was the highlight of their set. Not that their own original music is weak or anyhting, just that they totally ripped that classic song a new ass.


Once Black Breath finished playing, a good number of people took off, leaving Trap Them to play to a smaller crowd than I would have expected. No matter, I'm sure Trap Them would play with the same intensity to crowd of 5 or 500. Grindcore, punk rock, metal, whatever you want to call Trap Them, one thing all would agree on is, INTENSE. Their frontman's vocal delivery is pure venom and for being scrawny as fuck, dude is intimidating. One second the band is going full throttle blasting your face off, the next they're slogging through a dirty funeral dirge, with that ungodly guitar sound haunting the back of your skull. Trap Them really is the best at what they do. Too bad all those dudes left after Black Breath...their loss really.

The Answer Is....

P.T. Anderson's Boogie Nights, 1997.

Looks like The Angry Lurker won the grand prize for naming Boogie Nights as the answer to yesterday's top secret mystery question. The prize being my instant respect and a cyber high five/bro fist. So BOOYAH and congrats again.

THE MAN

Boogie Nights, easily one of the best films of the 1990's and on the short list of Jim Fear's favorite movies of all time. It has the madcap insanity of a Tarantino flick but with characters you actually give two shits about. I first discovered Boogie Nights in the early 00's on late night cable (lets just say Show Time), hoping for some softcore/TV-MA boobs, I ended up watching a near two & 1/2hour long chronicle of the San Fernando Valley's  1970's-80's porn scene, that featured very little porn, lots of cocaine and some of the best one-liners I'd ever seen in a movie. With Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, and There Will Be Blood, Paul Thomas Anderson has proven to be one of the finest directors in Hollywood today but no matter what he accomplishes in the the future (or that his last work, There Will Be Blood is my favorite film ever) I will always go back to cocaine fueled first impression he left on me with Boogie Nights.

Here is the scene from Boogie Nights that incorporates Charles Wright & The Watts 103 Street Rhythm Band's song from yesterday, "Do Your Thing."
WARNING: This video is kind of a spoiler, so if you haven't seen Boogie Nights...

Take a Guess

Can any of you bloggers tell me what movie features this awesomely bodacious song?


Feel free to answer below in the comments section. Please refrain from using google/wikipedia/browsing the youtube comments to find the answer...cheating gets you nowhere! I'll post the answer tomorrow (or the next time I update) and the winner gets my total movie nerd respect.

Coahella Lineup Announced...eh

Last night the interweb was ablaze after the Coachella 2011 lineup was announced. I saw more than enough "OMG" facebook posts for me to head over and investigate myself. The verdict...eh.

There's a handful of bands listed that I really like but I've already seen (or plan to see shortly) them play recently. There's a bunch of other acts I wouldn't mind seeing but not for the monstrous 3-day/million dollar price tag that comes with it.

Truth be told, I'm really not too found of paying a shit ton of money to watch bands play from miles away amongst crowds of thousands. Call me spoiled, but I'm so accustomed to watching my favorite metal acts play in venues the size of my apartment and then have conversations with the dudes afterward, I don't think waiting two hours for Kanye West's lighting rig to be installed onstage sounds too appealing in comparison.

Maybe if I was a little more like these folks I wouldn't mind so much...



(video stolen Amber's blog, Blah Coo Coo Blah)

Movie Review: True Grit

True Grit is the latest Coen Brothers film. What else needs to be said? Go see it. Ha, I could have easily just ended my review right there but I'll provide a little more info for kicks I suppose. This isn't a remake of John Wayne's 1969 film, no this is the Coen's adaptation of Charles Portis' novel True Grit. I've never seen the 1st version, but the Coen's take is being heralded as more true to the novel and all around....grittier (ziiiiing).

awkward posse

As usual, the Coen's directing is masterful. The cinematography and wide shots are gorgeous and really make the harsh western/frontier environment seem almost pleasant. Jeff Bridges is great as the disheveled (drunk) Rooster Cogburn, although he requires subtitles in some parts of the film, but the breakout star of True Grit is newcomer Hailee Steinfeld who plays the film's protagonist Mattie Ross. I'm always amazed when child actors like her, and that little dude from There Will Be Blood, can hold their own against veteran actors like Jeff Bridges (or Daniel Day Lewis in the other case) when it's their first time making a movie! Matt Damon is kind of annoying at first but eventually his character becomes the strange comic relief that you can't help but root for.

Top notch performances, superb directing. Suspense up the ass (well for those who haven't seen the original or read the book), what more can you ask for? My only complaint is that the film was too short. Before I knew it the damn thing was over. I guess time flies when you're having fun right? Oh yeah, and Josh Brolin, but Barry Pepper especially, has the whole down and dirty outlaw cowboy thing down pat. I'm glad I'm not the only one who picked up on the irony going on in the film's climax between Matt Damon and Barry Pepper. Entertainment Weekly.com writes:

Those who recall that initial meeting (Damon was trying to hold a French bridge against some tanks while Pepper was picking off Nazis with his rifle from the temporary shelter of a church tower) might appreciate the irony of their final violent confrontation in True Grit.

Good job Entertainment Weekly. For once.

The Home Alones

I found this video during the Holiday season wasting time on Youtube. It just might be the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life:

A song dedicated to perhaps the most underrated character in the Home Alone saga, Fuller. FINALLY! Some dudes from Chicago crafted a handful of late 90's/early 00's skate punk songs about various elements of Home Alone. Their name? The Home Alones. Genius.

Keep the change...ya filthy animal.

HAIL SCION

Scion automobiles (Toyota, whoever runs your company)....I LOVE YOU.
For the past few years, the good folks at Scion have taken pity on us poor extreme music fans and have decided to finance a series of bi-coastal free concerts, featuring both well established and up and coming metal, hardcore, and grind bands. Now they have crafted the sweetest metal festival of the year 30 mins away from my house, and its FREE!

May I present to you with grateful hands (and a raging boner), the lineup for the 2011 ScionRockFEST.

This is kind of a big deal for anyone who loves loud/obnoxious music, particularly us SoCal metal heads. That, and it's free!

MOAR PANTHER...

looks like my Steel Panther post from Tues was a hit. Pretty much unanimous praise from the comments section and a Mr. Kevin (whose blogger account I can't access) was cool enough to post my write up on Steel Panther's fan site, bringmetalback.com. Since you bloggers seemed to enjoy them so much, here's another Panther related post to hold you over.

Although Steel Panther bring the lulz, make no mistake these dudes are wicked musicians. Take their guitarist Satchel for example. Satchel, real name Russ Parrish, once taught at Hollywood's Musicians Institute, played in Rob Halford's post-Judas Priest band, Fight, and also played the role of some obscure guitarist named Eddie Van Halen in The Atomic Punks, the worlds biggest Van Halen Tribute band. So aside from cracking wise ass jokes on stage and bringing hair metal back into the national zeitgeist....the dude can SHRED:

Movie Review: The Fighter

 I knew I was going to love this movie the second I first heard about it. David O. Russell, the director of Three Kings (one of my favorite films from the 90's) working with Christian Bale (Patrick Bateman/American Psycho)and Mark Wahlberg (Dirk Diggler/Boogie Nights) = awesomeness.  I had no idea just how awesome the final result would be.

The Fighter is based on real life story of boxing brothers Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund. Dicky was once the pride of Lowell, Massachusetts, an amazing boxer who has withered away due to years of drug abuse but he and his family are convinced they can help his younger brother Micky achieve the successful boxing career that passed him by. The conflicts Micky faces on every corner, between his junkie brother, his overbearing family, his new girlfriend trying to help him turn his life around, all this strife motivates Micky to kick some ass in the ring and he finally earn a shot at the championship he's yearned for his whole life.

The film's plot is gripping, and the fact that it's based on real life people/events makes it even more riveting, while O. Russell's direction feels more akin to the fly on the wall HBO Sports documentary that takes place within the film than a traditional Hollywood movie. The thing that pushes The Fighter from good movie to great, are the performances. Virtually every actor on screen is amazing in this film, including the seven actresses portraying Micky's boisterous sisters, but no performance stands out as much as Christian Bale's stellar transformation into the strung out Dicky Eklund. Bale has been one of my favorite actors for years, although he'll always be Patrick Bateman in my eyes, his performances in The Machinist, The New World, Rescue Dawn, 3:10 To Yuma and The Prestige were all amazing...I honestly think his work as Dicky in The Fighter tops them all. Amy Adams is pretty amazing as Micky's girlfriend Charlene, I'm almost certain both her and Bale will be nominated for Best Supporting Actor/Actress this year. I'm hoping they win.

STEEL PANTHER...rawr.

Can you feel the steel?

I spent New Year's Eve with my GF, several hundred drunks and the mighty Steel Panther, at The House of Blues in Hollywood. Who or what is Steel Panther you ask? Allow me to explain...

Steel Panther (formerly Metal Skool, formerly Metal Shop, formerly Danger Kitty) are a 1980's hair metal tribute band that have rocked Monday nights in Hollywood (first at the Viper Room, then The Roxy, then the Key Club and now The House of Blues) for nearly a decade. They first appeared in a Discover Card commercial back in the day that some of you old folks might remember.

Their shtick is simple enough, professional musicians dress up in spandex and blaze through now "classic/nostalgic" 1980's anthems from Guns N' Roses, Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Van Halen, etc. Of course the best thing about this band is the humor. As a joke band, they are free to exaggerate all the stereotypical excess's of the 80's hair metal scene. Drugs, booze, women...their onstage banter is down right hilarious. You never know what might happen at a Steel Panther show in Hollywood. Guest musicians jump onstage all the time to do random cover songs and any celebrities spotted in the crowd usually get dragged onstage to sing or just get humiliated.

Of course the best thing about a Steel Panther show are the girls. Case in point:

and that's about as G-rated as I've seen. You can almost always count on boobs getting flashed, girls making out and more.

The band has gotten bigger over the years, playing shows across the country and releasing albums of original material. Their major label debut Feel The Steel is a pretty rocking album. It's campy/tongue and cheek, but wildly entertaining.


As for the New Years Eve show, it was rad. They're starting to play a lot more of their own material into their shows these days, which didn't bother me since I liked their album, but kind of kills some of the crowd's energy who doesn't really know the material by heart yet. Whenever the crowd started to drop, the band would just bust into "Shout Out The Devil" to wake everyone back up, or throw some girls onstage and flash their goods. Sadly, my GF didn't appreciate me using her camera to photograph girls making out and getting wild onstage =/ I don't think (G)oogle would appreciate that it either. Here's some normal pics from the show:

So if you like 80's metal, sexist/racist/raunchy humor, and hot girls making fools of themselves you might want to check out STEEL PANTHER next time you're in LA or Las Vegas. They do random shows across the country sometimes, so keep an eye out.

Female Obsession: Maria Menounos

ALL HAIL

As much as I love to bash the tenets of organized religion and long for the day when society comes to its senses and leaves Christianity back in the Middle Ages where it belongs...every time I see Maria Menounos I stop and realize that God must exist. A creature of such beauty must surely be the work of our divine creator. In other words, I say OH LAWD!

Menounos, a teenage beauty pageant contestant turned journalist, spent most of the past decade working for Access Hollywood and other sleazy tabloid programs, while nabbing roles in the occasional shitty film like Fantasic Four or Kicking It Old School and hosting various award/reality shows. This always saddens me, because Menounos ( I love saying her last name) is smart, funny, athletic and insanely gorgeous. IMO, she should be queen of the damn universe, but alas, she wallows in mediocrity. Thankfully, the power of the interweb allows me to worship at the altar of Menounos any time I please.
Here are some photos Menounos being amazing.

I even love the way she pumps gas

This is the legendary Maria Menounos/Howard Stern tickle chair video. Warning, EPIC JIGGLING AHEAD:

Howard Stern- Maria Menounos: kitzeln - MyVideo


Menounos body is what you might call a "double threat." She's in possession of both features that men crave like rabid Nazi Zombies....

DAT EVERYTHING

Maria's looks coupled with her intellect and non-bitchy disposition earn her a high spot on my list of Female Obession's. Praise the LAWD.

*(not so)BREAKING NEWS

Despite her futile attempts in this video, the world has now seen the glory that is Maria Menonous' vagina. View the uncensored pics of this miraculous gift HERE.

Top 5 Films of 2010

So here's my top 5 favorite films of 2010. I usually like to gauge my favorites by story/plot (the more bizarre the better!), acting performance then technical stuff like cinematography, special effects, camera shots, etc. The most important thing however, is how long each film stayed with me after...or how long until I could stop thinking about what I had just saw. Interesting note, I saw four of these movies twice in the theater.

Black Swan- directed by Darren Aronofsky
This is the movie that best embodies all the criteria listed above. From the insane story arch, great acting and most of all, Aronofsky's use of handheld cameras during the dance sequences, Black Swan ruled 2010.

The Social Network- directed by David Fincher
In my original review of The Social Network I said: "Is this my favorite film of the year? Definitely not. Is it a damn good movie worth seeing? Yes." Well, I'm now comfortable removing the "definitely not" line and replacing it with "almost." The plot is interesting but kind of "eh," it's everything else about this movie that's amazing.

The Fighter- directed by David O. Russel
Christian Bale. Christian fuckin' Bale. Dude steals the show, brings the house down, knocks it out of the park, etc etc. He and Amy Adams are bound to be nominated (and damn well better win) for Best Supporting Actor/Actress for their roles in The Fighter. Watching these two on screen is worth the price of admission alone.

Toy Story 3- directed by Lee. Unkrich
I swear until the Oscar buzz movie blitz took place in Nov., Toy Story 3 was my favorite film of the year. Black Swan was the only other film to leave me as drained as Woody and Buzz Lightyear's last hurray on the big screen. I like to consider myself a pretty desensitized bastard, but I'm not afraid to admit Toy Story 3 had me damn close to tears, TWICE. Nostalgia aside, it's still a damn fine escape/chase movie.

Inception- directed by Christopher Nolan
Nolan's steps up his usual cinematic mind-fuckery to a whole new level. This film makes his earlier head scratchers like Memento and The Prestige  seem as simplistic as a Dumb and Dumber. Too bad the film's style (amazing visuals and score) overshadows some of the film's substance (some wooden performances...Rubik's cube plot). Despite this, it's still a must see, jaw dropping film.

Top 5 Concerts of 2010

Out of the 24 concerts I attended in 2010 (real professional/touring bands not friends or locals) here are my 5 favorite shows from last year:

Weezer @ The Gibson Amphitheatre, Universal City. 11/27/10.
I just posted a lengthy review of this show last week. TLDR, Weezer played their album Pinkerton all the way through and I shat bricks.


Converge/Coalesce/Gaza @ Chain Reaction, Anaheim, 5/17/10.
I went to both SoCal stops on this tour but Chain Reaction's show was INSANE. Watch the clip below and see the wave of stage divers and dudes literally walking on other dudes. First time seeing Gaza live also =p


The Black Dahlia Murder/Obscura @ The Roxy, Hollywood. 3/6/10.
I marveled at Obscura's amazing technical musicianship, and lost my mind (old guys can't stage dive....can we?!) during BDM's high energy set.


Interpol @ Space 15 Twenty, Hollywood. 9/7/10.
Their new album may have sucked, but watching a huge band like Interpol play a free show in a parking lot is something that doesn't happen too often.


Suffocation/Goatwhore @ The House of Blues, Hollywood. 2/12/10.
Both bands were opening acts for some lame metal band I shall not name, but man, combined they put on one hell of a show! This was the best Suffocation performance I'd seen in years and Goatwhore got a huge response from the crowd. This quality of this clip is horrible, but I like seeing myself looking retarded near the front of the stage so I'm gonna go ahead and post it.

Top 10 Albums of 2010

Here's the listing of my favorite albums from 2010. Not necessarily the best or greatest but the ones that left the biggest impact on me and warranted the most repeated listens. Not ranked in numerical order, all rule pretty hard (IMO). I selected a few youtube clips of some of the less extreme stuff for all you normal people to (try and) enjoy. Feel free to take listen:

The Dillinger Escape Plan- Option Paralysis

Dillinger's trademark math metal attack is more refined, while their avant-garde Mike Patton-isms shine even brighter. New drummer Billy Rhymer does not disappoint.


Nails- Unsilent Death


















Raw and dirty powerviolence tinged grindcore. Less than 15 mins long, but epic as fuck.

Starkweather- This Sheltering Night

Mind-bending. Amazing musicianship coupled with the most insane vocal performance of the year. THIS is what it sounds like when those invisible insects start crawling under your skin.

Julie Christmas- The Bad Wife


















The singer for Made Out of Babies solo debut. At times it's heavy, beautiful and a tad bit creepy. Everything I've come to love about Julie. Here's her cover of a Dusty Springfield classic:


Withered- Dualitas

A haunting slab of sludgy black metal. This album confirms it, Withered deserve to be much higher in the current pantheon of Georgia based metal bands.

Daughters- Daughters

If Danzig hijacked a circus while on acid, it would sound like Daughter's self titled album.


Clinging To The Trees of a Forrest Fire- Songs of Ill Hope and Discontent

Easily, the nastiest, most pissed off album of the year. Re-read the album's title (or the band's name for that matter) and take the first horrid image that comes to mind and multiply that 10x...but with blast beats and growls/shrieks over it.

Triptykon- Eparistera Daimones

Tom G. Warrior strikes again! For those of you who liked (or remember) my Crunch Time: Celtic Frost post, you might fancy Tom's latest project's debut album. Dark, heavy and full of future Crunch Time riffs for sure.


Immolation- Majesty and Decay

One of the most consistent/innovative death metal bands around, Immolation continue their streak of releasing astoundingly heavy yet thought provoking slabs of brutality. Really, where do they get these time signatures and melodies from?

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs

I am rarely able to rank my favorite albums during these compilations but this record was the closest I've come to "ALBUM OF THE YEAR" in a while. If it weren't for the two filler songs toward the end, this would have been a flawless front to back album. Arcade Fire are huge so feel free to search the interwebz for the heaps of critical acclaim The Suburbs has received.

*Special Note*
There were a lot of great EPs released this year but two of them tied for my favorite:
Torche- Songs For Singles
&
Beneath the Massacre- Maree Noire
both of which I've already blogged about. Click the links for my previous posts about these awesome EPs.