2014 was a good year for music, with major releases encompassing all types of music, though for me rock was the main interest. Anyway, here are my favourite albums of 2014. There were many more I could have added but these are the ones that particularly stuck in my memory.
Alcest – Shelter
As is obvious when you take the artwork for Shelter and compare it to that of their past material this is a change of path; the striking image and simple white outline are a big difference from the dark intricate paintings of their last two albums. For many fans, this album was a misstep, an abandoning of the post metal ‘black-gaze’ (black metal and shoegaze) sound that Alcest had built up and pretty much called their own. Yes it is true that this is quite different in tone, however, what is not gone is the quality. Lead single Opale is joyous sounding thing, with equally colourful video, and the guest-sung (Neil Halstead of Slowdive) Away, their first English song, is simply lovely. Though in truth it is not so different, several songs (Shelter especially) could easily be from their 2012 release Les Voyages De L’Âme, and for all the complaining Alcest only actually have five definite ‘metal’ songs. The sound is a step up from previous releases, being very clear and sharp, with Neige’s vocals really taking centre place for once. Yes it is true that by dropping the ‘black’ from their sound it could be argued Alcest have lost some of their identity, but when it’s this lovely to listen to I hardly think it matters.
Anathema – Distant Satellites
Continuing on from 2012’s critically acclaimed Weather Systems this album sees Anathema continuing their unique brand of melancholic emotionally charged rock. Opener The Lost Song part 1 is the nearest to a stamp along rock song you get, which leads into the much slower part 2 bringing second vocalist Lee Douglas’s beautiful voice to the front. The middle set of songs continue in a similar style, slow building songs that combine the dual male/female vocals to good effect. After the exceptionally lovely Anathema comes a bit of a change; the short You’re Not Alone consists mainly of those words on repeat while a discordant guitar riff plays. After a short instrumental, which leads into Distant Satellites, the band offer something new to their sound, programmed electronics; The final two songs drop real drums in favour of electronic, which sounds weird at first with the gentle music being played, but with a few listens it works really well. This is not an album to cheer you up, as much of it veers toward tearjerker territory, but the emotions sound genuine and have an air of beauty to them. Anathema have done it again.
Autumn’s Dawn – Gone
You can hardly go expecting a band who’s members are called Sorrow and Anguish to be a cheery one; but then what you might not expect are catchy choruses and upbeat songs. Don’t get me wrong, the lyrics are as deeply depressing as the song titles suggest (Into the Cold, Blank Stare Dead Eyes) but much of the lyrics are clean sung and even the screams are mostly understandable, in contrast with the vocal extremity of their debut EP (and Sorrow’s previous works). Many of the songs have nice little musical interludes in them, that help to provide a bit of variety, and album closer Gone slows the pace down (at first) with a nice rich sounding acoustic verse (my main criticism of the album would be a lack of bass). Given the style shift from their EP to this, I’m deeply curious as to what the next release will be.
Lantlôs – Melting Sun
Lantlôs share some similarities with Alcest, not least because they shared singers for a time, but also in that they’re both former extreme metal bands. Though where Alcest were more in the dreamy shoe-gaze sphere, this German group dabbled with cold atmospheric black metal sounds. With Neige gone now they’ve had to adapt, and now Lantlôs themselves have moved into shimmering post-metal sounds. While the screaming is gone they still retain a heavy wall of sound style, which means this won’t be getting played on mainstream radio anytime soon. Melting Sun consists of six parts; the songs have long instrumental sections, with vocal passages being relatively minimal. Nine-minuter Cherry Quartz is perhaps the closest to their old sound, with a massive riff cutting through the intro and outro. The sound on the album is good, bass heavy and clear and while the vocals may not be the most melodic they suit the sound. Of course many fans weren’t happy, but I for one have no complaints if they carry on down this road.
Opeth – Pale Communion
The follow up to 2011’s Heritage, Pale Communion continues Opeth’s journey away from their death metal past. The focus is still on fuzzy 70s jazzy prog, however, good as Heritage was, that felt more like a deliberate attempt to do something different, whereas here it feels a lot more natural and fluid. The songs flow well and are a joy to listen to; from the jazzy overtones of opener Eternal Rains Will Come, to the gentle acoustics of the almost folky River; it all sounds good, with a nice warm sound. Mikael’s voice is as lovely as ever – hard to believe such a fragile sounding voice is capable of such monstrous growls. Of course, Mikael being the guy he is, we have no way of knowing what the next album will sound like, but it’s eagerly anticipated whatever it is.
Winterfylleth – The Divination of Antiquity
Several of the bands on this list share something in common; they’re all former extreme metal bands who have slowly (or suddenly) dropped screamed/growled vocals for melodic clean singing. Winterfylleth have not gone down this route; this is straight up black metal done with perhaps more ferocity than their previous works. What sets Winterfylleth apart from other bands, though, is their inclusion of folk and history, sometimes dubbed ‘pagan metal’.Their songs deal with Anglo-Saxon England and have acoustic passages and chants interwoven with the extreme. That remains the same here and the songs flow well, from the gentle guitars in Whisper of the Elements to the calm chants of instrumental The World Ahead. The album doesn’t add anything particularly new to their sound but then it didn’t need too; they’ve practically perfected it here and if they can keep it up like this then that will be fine by me.
2015 looks set to be a fine year too – already in the first quarter we have releases from Enter Shikari, Steven Wilson, Funeral for a Friend, The Prodigy and Enslaved, but will they make the best-of cut next year? We’ll have to wait and see.
And as a bonus, here are my songs of the year.
Anathema – Ariel: A beautiful song made by the male/female vocal interplay, with the haunting chorus reprise ‘A love so strong it hurts’.
Alcest – Voix Sereine: This translates as ‘Serene Voice’, and that is exactly what you get. A slowly building song focusing on Neige’s brilliant voice.
Autumns Dawn – Grace of the Grave: A foot-stompingly catchy metal song, with an electrifying brief drop into black metal after the first chorus.
Gong – Thank You: Ridiculously catchy track, as a thank you to their fans. Possibly their swansong.
Lantlôs – Melting Sun II: Cherry Quartz: The first half of this 9 minute track is instrumental, contrasting shimmering softness with straight out heaviness.
Opeth – River: The first section is a lovely relaxing almost folk-like listen, leading into some organ-soaked 70s prog.
Skindred – Kill the Power: Opening with a sample from the House of Pain classic Jump Around this includes everything from metal to dub to catchy pop.
State of Mind/Black Sun Empire – Unconscious: A thumping DnB song, with no vocals; just a sample and hard hitting beat.
Scott Walker/Sunn O))) – Bull: Dark almost opera like track, with drone metal.
Winterfylleth – Whisper of the Elements: Opening with typical black metal heaviness, this track has a surprisingly catchy chorus riff and a beautiful mid song instrumental passage.
Temple of Noise 