IN ROTATION 666: Our most played albums in H1 2019

KMaN CHAINED TO THE RACKS – JUNE 2019

Wow, talk about Floods of Metal! I’ve listened to tons of 2019 albums in the first 6 months. But of course, this is nowhere near enough, hey? It never is. Outside of new releases, I’ve spent quite a bit of time with early 90’s metal in the form of Sepultura, My Dying Bride, WASP, Cathedral and grunge legends The Screaming Trees. But for this feature, I figure I’d focus on the 2019 albums that I kept coming back to over the past 182 and ½ days. As we track towards the back end of this year (and decade for that matter) it’s important that we don’t let these releases drown or be forgotten among the throng of what is to come…and let me just say, there is much more to come…

EVERGREY – “The Atlantic”

My album of the month for January and it still holds up. For some reason, I keep playing the opening two tracks on repeat. As is standard for Evergrey, its the emotional depth of this album that I love the most.

OVERKILL – “Wings of War”

It’s been a rather passé 6 months for Thrash Metal. Lot of really cool Old School stuff, but yeah, it’s kind of caught in its own little cul-de-sac. Thank fukk for Overkill. Utterly professional, unbowing and delivering the goods. Who would of thought that at the end of 2019, Wings of War would stand up as one of their strongest since Ironbound. My album of the month of February.

SOEN – “Lotus”

I’m a major Progressive Metal fan, but nothing has really stuck on my Deth Dekk like Soen’s ‘Lotus’ album. I adore the percussion element of this album – yeah, the riffs are tight and modern, but that lower/back end of bass and drums works a treat. Add those smooth melodic vocals and this is a truly captivating album.

TWISTED TOWER DIRE – “Wars in the Unknown”

I created a Spotify playlist called ‘The NWOUGHM’ – it features all of these killer Underground true/traditional/classic heavy metal acts that are doing the rounds – all brilliant. As an example, go straight to Twisted Tower Dire’s ‘Light the Swords on Fire’ from this album released back in March. I dare you not to hit repeat! This album has not left my Deth Dekk.

THE LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG – “New Organon”

For me, anything from Mike Scalzi and Slough Feg is an event. Only released late June, this is on high rotation at the moment. New Organon continues TWSF penchant for writing riffs outside of any predictable formula and structure, yet they are still able to capture the listener’s ear. You have to work hard with Slough Feg, repeated sessions keep revealing intricate nuances you didn’t hear previously. Always a great sign. It’s called depth!

ZIG ZAGS – “They’ll Never Take Us Alive”

Released in May, I had no clue about this band. However, the cover art was intriguing enough to take a listen. I was blown away! What a record. Ripping Punk/Metal hybrid of the highest quality. So enamoured I bought the vinyl. Cue up the opening track ‘Punk Fucking Metal’ and witness Fire!