Top 20 of 2010: Wrap up, Honorable Mentions, Conclusions
Well, here it is, New Year’s Eve, and we’re finished, as promised. Before we do anything else, let’s recap the full top 20:
1. Solace, A.D.
2. Grinderman, Grinderman 2
3. Hypnos 69, Legacy
4. Fatso Jetson, Archaic Volumes
5. Enslaved, Axioma Ethica Odini
6. Ufomammut, Eve
7. Clamfight, Volume I
8. Asteroid, II
9. Yawning Man, Nomadic Pursuits
10. Kylesa, Spiral Shadow
11. The Brought Low, Third Record
12. Brant Bjork, Gods and Goddesses
13. Dopefight, Buds
14. Wovenhand, The Threshingfloor
15. The Wounded Kings, The Shadow Over Atlantis
16. Earthride, Something Wicked
17. Triptykon, Eparistera Daimones
18. Zoroaster, Matador
19. Melvins, The Bride Screamed Murder
20. Electric Wizard, Black Masses
Apparently everybody saw the number one pick coming. Congratulations. I certainly didn’t. Given a mood change, just about any of the top seven picks was ahead of the others. What it really came down to was what I listened to most.
Disappointment at my own predictability aside, the only business left with the top 20 of 2010 is the honorable mentions. If you heard the last podcast, a lot of them are in there (and a lot more to come in the second part of that this weekend), but I think they’re worth an extra mention here as well:
2010 Honorable Mentions:
Apostle of Solitude
Aquilonian/Sollubi
Arc of Ascent
Astrosoniq
Black Rainbows
Cathedral
Conan
Crippled Black Phoenix
The Devil’s Blood
Les Discrets
Droids Attack
Elliott’s Keep
The Giraffes
Gozu
Herba Mate
High on Fire
Hooded Menace
Humo del Cairo
The Kings of Frog Island
Man’s Gin
Negura Bunget
Quest for Fire
Ramesses
Red Giant
Samsara Blues Experiment
Sasquatch
Slough Feg
Swans
Void Generator
Wino
There. 30 should do it. I kept a running list all year long, and it’s amazing to me how much music there was to enjoy. Even among the honorable mentions, with records like Gozu‘s Locust Season or Samsara Blues Experiment‘s Long-Distance Trip, there were a few really great debuts from bands who have the potential to shape the heavy underground in the years to come. I never understand people who bitch that there’s nothing good out there. Open your fucking ears. I just listed 50 records and bands who released awesome albums in 2010. That’s almost one a week! In fact, here’s two more:
Cough
Karma to Burn
Now the list has an album to represent every single week of this year. If you heard none of this stuff, you could take the entirety of 2011 and discover new, interesting, and killer sounds. Of course, then you’d be a year behind, but you get my point. There are amazing and creative things happening around us all the time. It is a beautiful sight to witness.
Well, that’s it. I’m all listed out. Before I start pathetically keeping track of the New Year’s albums, I want to say thank you as always for your support, reading and comments through this month’s countdown. I know it got drudging there for a bit (how many ways are there to say, “Gosh, I sure did like this album?”), but we made it all the way to number one, and if no one had been paying attention, I can almost certainly guarantee I wouldn’t have bothered. So yeah, much appreciated. Here’s to a killer 2011.
Tags: Top 20 of 2010
Cheers to you and a great 2011
Many more than 52 great albums were released in 2010. That number barely scratches the surface. There is so much stoner/doom/sludge/BM/psych worth checking out live and recorded, it’s virtually impossible to keep track of it all. Fortunately, this web site and others (the swamp, thee big black, sleeping shaman, robust fellow, city of devils, etc., etc.) are here to help. Big thanks to these passionate heralds of the heavy. Support the scene, visit the blogs, BUY the music, and rejoice.
Great list. I got lots to check out. Turns out I passed a ton of great music on to my other writers, and never listened to it myself. So I got some catching up to do!
Thanks for everything this year, my friend. Hope to turn you on to some more great music next year.
Peace,
Racer
Yeah, kudos. Great list. I’ve only heard half the stuff, so I got some catching up to do. Especially on the Grinderman and Hypnos 69 stuff, apparently. It was definitely a better than average year for new music.
great year! great job! & many many thanks!!!
dd