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The HMO Top Albums of 2017

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Twelve whole months of your human time have passed. An entire year of metal releases that have all been building up to one thing: The HMO Top Albums of 2017!

And what a year it was. I reckon the overall standard in this year’s list is the highest since I started doing these, with albums in the lower reaches that would have ranked higher in a less competitive year. Consequently, there was also a bunch of very deserving albums that just missed the cut:

Formicarius – Black Mass Ritual, Contaminated – Final Man, Power Trip – Nightmare Logic, Full Of Hell – Trumpeting Ecstasy, Vampire – With Primeval Force, Demon Head – Thunder In The Fields, Spectral Voice – Eroded Corridors of Unbeing

All of these were favourites of mine that would very likely have made the list any other year and I’d heartily recommend all of them. But there can be only ten…

NUMBER TEN: Satyricon – Deep Calleth Upon Deep

The black metal duo returned with this powerful and deceptively simple set of cold, bleak, groovy and progressive black metal hymns. Following frontman Satyr’s recovery from illness, the album was heralded as “day one of a new chapter”. But it’s no reinvention, just the sound of a band knuckling down with fresh dedication and commitment.

NUMBER NINE: The Obsessed – Sacred

Doom icon Wino returns with a new lineup of his old band The Obsessed and an album that lives up to their classics of old. Hefty biker doom riffs with ace songwriting, soulful maturity and vintage musicianship. Wino’s voice and guitar slinging are as badass as ever. He sings “I was born with my heart on my sleeve” and, 56 years later, he’s still wearing it well.

NUMBER EIGHT: Artificial Brain – Infrared Horizon

No AOTY list would be complete without some death metal in space and this year’s guttural cosmic travellers are Long Island’s Artificial Brain. Post-humanity, cyborgs ponder life and their predecessors and the wonderfully ambient blend of tech death, beautiful dissonance and filthy vocals suits the theme perfectly. Also… might be the only album in my collection that features the word “urinals”.

NUMBER SEVEN: The King Is Blind – We Are The Parasite, We Are The Cancer

The King Is Blind make the HMO Top Ten for the second year in a row. No mean feat. This sequel to their debut album Our Father, brings that album’s biblical tale into the modern day with harrowing results. The UK headbangers bash out an intelligent, raging and monolithic slab of metal that fuses a whole bunch of styles into a crushing, grooving whole that grows in stature with each listen.

NUMBER SIX: Immolation – Atonement

No big back-story, concept or narrative to talk about here. Just straight-up quality death metal from a veteran act that’s still hungry. As with other releases this year, it’s definitely got a whiff of the end-times about it. But instead of dishing out the political rage, Immolation deal out a restrained, ominous and dark indictment of our times. Crushing, twisted, authoritative and destructive from beginning to end.

NUMBER FIVE: Midnight – Sweet Death And Ecstasy

Hooded demon Athenar returns with his third full-length album of black thrash hooliganism. No zeitgeist-y vibes here: just Satan, shagging and Venom-worship. But there’s a lot of creativity crammed into this album’s short running time and its bookended by two epics that push the band’s stylistic (long)boat out: swashbuckling, scything mid-tempo metal that invokes the legends of old… the legends of Ye Olde Bathory and Manowar. It’s that good.

NUMBER FOUR: Cradle Of Filth – Cryptoriana: The Seductiveness Of Decay

The loved-or-loathed British institution continues a late-career renaissance that finds them tipping the balance firmly in the loved direction. Themed around the Victorian obsession with death, Cryptoriana… is a darkly fabulous romp of hard-hitting gothic metal delivered with expertise and passion. It’s atmospheric, cinematic, galloptastic and just tons of fun with a vocal turn from Dani Filth that cements his place as the veritable metal legend that he is.

NUMBER THREE: Memoriam – For The Fallen

Featuring ex-members of Bolt Thrower and Benediction, Memoriam were formed as a tribute to Bolt Thrower’s late drummer Martin ‘Kiddie’ Kearns and what a tribute it is: crusty, primitive old-school death metal with a sense of tragedy and loss. But it’s not a total downer, there’s enough carnage here to please Bolt Thrower fans. Vocalist Karl Willetts performs with charisma and heart while the band unleashes the kind of filthy, strafing riffage that’s guaranteed to have you running for cover.

NUMBER TWO: Paradise Lost – Medusa

2015’s The Plague Within was a welcome return to growlier death/doom fare but I don’t think anyone could have expected Paradise Lost to dredge the depths of misery like they have with this near-flawless album of gothic gloom. Anthemic hooks, crusty riffing, mournful harmonies and a fearless vocal performance from Nick Holmes put Medusa right up there with the band’s best work. No small feat, considering the number of innovative and essential albums that make up this legendary band’s discography.

NUMBER ONE: Akercocke – Renaissance In Extremis

The great comeback of 2017 was the return of these much-missed British Satanists with their most progressive, personal and accessible album to date. But the blackened malevolence of old remains and the fact that this album could well lure fans of more classic fare into a more extreme musical realm suggests these suave Londoners are still doing the devil’s work. The eclectic variety, complex structures and dreamy introspection make for a fascinating, rewarding listen and the intense, dynamic, neck-snapping skill of the band’s performance is the stuff of metal gods.

HMO TOP ALBUMS BY YEAR

2017: Akercocke – Renaissance In Extremis

2016: Darkthrone – Arctic Thunder

2015: My Dying Bride – Feel the Misery

2014: Voices – London

53 thoughts on “The HMO Top Albums of 2017”

  1. Congrats on being the first to drop the TOP 10 List….
    This is Heavy stuff Fella and you again retain the World Title of Heavy Metal Overload by the look of this list!

    Great stuff as always Scott…look forward to the reads in 2018 and beyond!

    Deke

    Liked by 2 people

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  2. Though not a huge fan of the music, the album covers are pretty dang fantastic. I love the ones by Memoriam and Artificial Brain. Genuine artwork! I am actually proud of myself as I do know two of these album with Cradle of Filth and Paradise Lost. I listened to them as I am trying to broaden my horizons.

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. When are you going to stop fawning all over this suck-ass corporate rock?! There’s a world of good, underground music out there if you’d only look past the stuff in the charts.

    Liked by 5 people

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  4. 6 cover boobs this year. Do you have figures on the number of cover boobs in your list since 2014? that way you could map the trend.

    I really rather fancy the Obsessed and Memoriam LPs.

    Liked by 2 people

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      9. Whit!? No way, man! It’s my band and I can do what I want… there’s no way I wasted time trying to think up a band name, album and 9 songs.

        Anyhoo, next year you’ll have Juggernaut Johnson & The Great Destroyer on your list.

        Liked by 1 person

  8. What a list of evil, sir. Some of it way too heavy for my fragile Homme & Co. friendly ears, but I’m mighty interested in Paradise Lost and The Obsessed.

    I’m fairly impressed with the quality of the covers here, too… they’re mostly outstanding. And frightening. And somewhat unsuitable for viewing at work!!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Obviously, this is more catered towards my Homme-unfriendly lugs! PL and The Obsessed are well worth a listen for sure. Good choices!

      Good point about the covers… serves you right for skiving anyway! I’m obviously too busy to be checking… umm… comments n’ stuff… ahem.

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thank you! I think it just proves what a strong year it was when there’s so little crossover between lists. I saw Solitary and Havok on your lists. Great picks… And quite a lot of stuff there I don’t know so plenty of great recs for me too!

      Like

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  11. I am very pleased to see you and your Canadian soulmate Dr Dave with so many titles in common!

    I gave Akercocke a listen again today. quite great metal. I’m starting to enjoy the vocals almost as if they’re an instrument.

    I have a dream that one day you and Dr. Dave shall meet, and the world will be at peace.

    Liked by 1 person

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