Well, finally I managed to finish my flippin' list. As before, it's not ranked but structured.
First off, there are all the EP ́s I enjoyed over the year in alphabetical order:
Best EPs
Anthrocide (USA) - Dissection Of The Abhorrent
Great debut! TDM from Colorado.
Black Hole Deity (USA) - Lair Of Xenolich
Slightly Blackened DM from Alabama - and yes no Banjo jokes here. Hope to have a full
album from them soon!
Bösedeath (GER) - Cantona Facekick Festival
This is one of those fun acts that deliver some serious shit. Highly entertaining BDM!
Brodequin (USA) - Perpetuation Of Suffering
This is actually the release which made me cheer the most when I discovered it and I
wasn't disappointed at all after hearing it. No other band comes even close to the sheer
intensity of the almighty Brodequin. Let ́s all thank god for Brodequin!
Chiliasm (FIN/POL/CAN) - Flesh Over Finite
Neoclassical / Technical DM as MA states. The production sounds a lot like good old
Swanö, but actually that guy seemingly only ever recorded this album. Be sure to check that
one out if you ́re into Spawn Of Possession or the first 2-3 Dark Tranquility albums.
Damnation (IDN) - Confessed To Denounce
Very old-school BDM from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. I just realized that somehow lot ́s of
releases this year have a strong 90 ́s vibe in their production, which makes me feel a bit less
old...
Descensum (USA/EGY) - Conjure Possession
Normally when I see symphonic in the description I am a bit concerned, but here it is
executed perfectly. The symphonics (in the way of synths, of course) are not used constantly,
but rather very well placed and they don't take away anything of the ferocity of the sound.
Devil ́s Reef (USA) - A Whisper From The Cosmos
If anything the 90 ́s influence is even stronger here. Lots of Death and old Pestilence on
here.
Estuarine (USA/SWE) - Nyarlathotep
This one is hard to classify, I ́ll go with what MA writes: Experimental/Technical
DM/Grindcore. Most tracks are well under the one-minute mark, yet they are far from feeling underdeveloped. The production is also pretty awkward with very little distortion on the guitars and a somewhat muffled sound to the whole still, it fits perfectly to the music delivered and just
fits the overall aesthetic perfectly. This manages to be avant-garde and punk at the same time...I dig it!
Fulci (ITA) - Exhumed Information
Well, this is a weird one. Initially, I didn't know where to put it. Technically it's a full-
length, but actually it ́s more like what Defeated Sanity did with Dharmata - it's like a split with themselves, or two EP if you like. The first half, or side A if you're on vinyl, is some top-notch old-school brutality much in the vein of Mortician, the other half is some eerie 70/80 ́s style Synth Wave, much of the sort you would find in an actual Fulci movie.
Hideous Divinity (ITA) - LV-426
They just never disappoint me. More of the high-quality TBDM I came to expect of them
over the years. Possibly a bit more atmospheric than their previous stuff.
Obvurt (CAN) - The Beginning
TDM from Quebec, Canada - I guess I could stop here and you ́d have quite a good idea of what to expect, and so I do stop here.
Stillbirth (GER) - Strain Of Gods
Don't get fooled by the admittedly goofy artwork. There ́s some very good BDM with both tech and some very well-placed slam-riffs and bass drops.
Supreme Conception (CZE) - Empires Of The Mind
Actually, I cannot say what exactly it is, that makes any of these Technical/Classical DM bands stand out of the bulk of them all, but this one does. Can ́t put my finger on it, but this kicks some serious ass.
Unfathomable Ruination (UK) - Decennium Ruinae
For some reason, I never liked UR too much, but this one is genuinely bad-ass. I just feel these songs are better written than their older stuff. Just don't care much for the mix - the vox are way too loud and the guitars especially are way too silent and hence don ́t pack much of a punch.
As a second I ́d like to present my honourable mentions in alphabetical order. Much of which might have been among the best, if only I had more time to properly let them sink.
Honourable Mentions
A Man Named Oniguma (USA) - The Ritual Nectar
The name sort of gives it away, this is a one-man "band" from Springfield, Missouri. Pretty technical stuff going on here!
Anakim (UK) - The Elysian Void
Very good and varied TDM, alas not all tracks do it for me.
Anal Stabwound (USA) - The Visceral Sovereign
I can ́t believe this guy is only 16 years old! This is some quality TBDM, looking forward to more from this boy in the future.
Antropofago (FRA) - A Propensity for Violence... Cruelty Enslavement
A fantastic album, but somewhat cheating. Actually, this is their 2018 EP plus some new tracks, and the cover version of Machine Head ́s "Davidian" unfortunately is not very good.
Athanatos (USA) - Biogenesis
I feel this one probably deserved a place on the BOTY list but I just didn't ́t listen to it enough to really justify that. Nonetheless this is some high-quality atmospheric TDM much in the vein of Inferi and the likes.
Blightmass (USA) - Harbinger Of Lucidity
Very old-school sounding blackened DM. Reminds me a lot of ye olden swedes of Dissection and the likes.
Bloodphemy (NED) - Blood Sacrifice
This is some great 90 ́s sounding OSDM from the home of our buddy DDM. I suppose most of you will enjoy it a lot, if you didn't ́t do that already.
Broken Glass Sanctuary (USA) - A Kingdom Below
Lots of variation, mostly entertaining. Not all tracks cut it for me, though, but still a very
honorable mention.
Carcass (UK) - Torn Arteries
I think it was defleshed who pointed out that this one is a grower, and I totally agree. While my first impression wasn't ́t bad, by any means, I like it more with every spin. I might have given it a 8 or 9 out of 10 back in 1996, but today it ́s still a solid 7. I Absolutely love the cover art of this one, btw.
Cathexis (USA) - Untethered Abyss
Well, this is their 3rd full length, yet I never heard of them before (which I will definitely make up for). Some highly intriguing TDM with some Morbid Angel and even Gorguts vibes. Might also have ended upon the BOTY list, if only I would have given it some more spins.
Cognitive (USA) - Malevolent Thoughts Of A Hastenend Extinction
MA lists them as TDM/Deathcore, I ́d say it ́s much more sludgy than Deathcore. Very interesting stuff mostly mid-tempo.
Colossus (USA) - Degenesis
(not too) techy DM from Illinois. Some pretty eerie atmosphere going on here. Highly entertaining stuff. Looking forward to hearing more from them in the future.
Dead Exaltation (IND) - Despondent
I only know a handful of bands from India, but the ones I do know are pretty damn solid, DE is no exception. Again some 90 ́s style technical DM with some very good riffs and great vocals.
Fatuous Rump (TWN) - Perceptions of the Dark Ornaments
Slammy BDM from my man Larry Wang (that name might actually be taken directly from Shadow Warrior - I actually did look it up, the protagonists name is Lo Wang), but actually it ́s not a one-man project anymore but a complete band with Kane from Maggot Colony on the drums.
Helgast (GRE) - Tentacled Divinity
Very good and atmospheric slab of blackened DM also quite reminiscent of Dissection and the likes. This is one highly prolific one-man project, having released 7(!) full-lengthsand one EP since 2018 - which I never heard, but I am gonna make up for that as soon as this list is done.
Inferi (USA) - Vile Genesis
Inferi have always been a bit too heavy on the doodly-side of TDM, however, this is the darkest they ever sounded and (therefore?) a worthy hon men - although there ́s so much TDM stuff that just appealed way more to me...
Inhman Devotion (JAP) - Inhumanized
Ultra-fast BDM from Tokyo. At times they really try to sound like Origin (maybe even a bit too much), although they don't (yet) quite manage to pull that off, this is a very good album (and this sentence is a fucking mess!) I know a certain person that would be pretty much turned off by the dual-vox, but then I
don't think this will be Carl ́s cup of tea, anyways!
Marasmus (USA) - Necrotic Overlord
Ultra-fast old-school DM from Missouri. They have Trynt Kelly from Unmerciful on the drums, so that may give you an idea of the pace this album has at times, but there are also some slower, more atmospheric parts in here.
Nephren-Ka (FRA) From Agony To Transcendence
Very good TDM. Not a big fan of the new vocalist, though - too much "wheeee-breeeee" for my tastes. Nonetheless a very entertaining album, that might have scored higher for me if it wasn't for the vox.
Lyrically it seems to revolve around Frank Herbert ́s Dune, despite the band name being an invention of ye olde gent H.P. Lovecraft.
Noctambulist (USA) - The Barren Form
Great Black / Death from Denver, Col. with a heavy emphasis on the Black Metal part. Never would have thought Denver would be so damn cold.
Ominous Ruin (USA) Amidst Voices That Echo In Stone
TBDM from San Francisco, though they ́re more T than B in my opinion. Lots of variation here. Again this is a grower, so it would ́ve probably landed on the BOTY list if I gave it more time.
Phirimerial (IDN) - Rotten Exclamation Schemes
A rather young band from Indonesia with lots of potential. Old-school BDM the NY way.
Pleasure Of Mutilate (ECU) - Descendants Of Nibiru
Very good and brutal TDM that suffers a bit from the not-so-good production.
Saprobiontic (GER) - Apocalyptic Retribution
Most of you will know, that I always liked and also promoted them quite a bit, but for some reason this one didn't quite do it for me, initially. With time it grew on me, and now I have to say: while probably not as good as the previous stuff, this is still a damn fine DM album.
Solstice (USA) - Casting The Die
Not as good as "To Dust" was, but probably more true to what they were "back in the days", meaning very aggressive Thrash with a lot of NYHCish anger.
Swelling Repulsion (USA) - The Severed Path
This one is a strange beast. According to MA it ́s Progressive/Melodic DM and that's not wrong but there's much more to it. Firstly the whole thing is very '90s, from the aesthetics to the production and the tone. It's quite awkward initially but I got used to it rather quickly and learned to enjoy their style. What helped for me is the very compact length of the tracks - no 10min+ prog excesses here, instead the length ranges from 1:53 to 4:06, which is rather remarkable for the given (sub-)genre and a good thing in my book.
Vospison (IDN) - Diethlamide
More Indonesian greatness. The vocals are very burpy and way too much in front of the mix but there are some genuinely great moments on this album.
Werewolves (AUS) - What A Time To Be Alive
Very good aggressive Technical Brutal Black/Death Metal (phew, those sub-sub-sub genres!). Again the mix holds it back a bit, with the guitars and the bass being buried underneath the rest of it.
And now for the real meat of this list. Here come my favourite albums of 2021 - a really good year in DM, as I ́d like to point out! - in alphabetical order:
Best Of 2021
3rd War Collapse (BRA/FIN) - Damnatus
Very good slab of old-school brutality from Brazil and Finland (don ́t think I ́ve seen a collabo like that before). There ́s some old Deeds Of Flesh and some NY-style BDM on display, kind of reminding me of all those Indo BDM bands I learned to love over the last couple of years - but more on that later down the line.
Abandonment (SPA) - Focused to Imminent Desolation
Highly entertaining BDM with some surprisingly melodic moments. I think maybe Thorne might like ́em a bit.
Abominable Putridity (RUS/USA) - Parasitic Metamorphosis Manifestation
AP is back with probably their best album, so far. Very well crafted TechBDM. It ́s only fault may be the overly "Russian" production, sounding completely artificial.
Aeon (SWE) - God Ends Here
Back after 9 years, they deliver their, hands down, best album yet! To me, they always were "the Swedish Deicide", but here they added a nice dose of Cannibal Corpse in the riffing, and the result is amazing - that ́s what I expected when Jack Owen joined Deicide, but let ́s just not talk about that...Speaking of Deicide, the only negative is the lyrics. Don ́t get me wrong, I hate the church like the next man, but these lyrics are the dullest thing this side of Glen Benton!
Alchemy Of Flesh (USA) - Ageless Abominations
OK, I know this is a blatant Morbid Angel rip-off, from the Name, the titles, the cover art, but they do it both: Dave-Vincent-era MA and Steve-Tucker-era MA, and they do it damn well, so it ́s a BOTY to me.
Asphyxiate (IDN) - Altar Of Decomposed
Here comes the first Indonesian band on this list. They play some highly atmospheric, slamming BDM somewhat akin to Australia ́s Disentomb.
Blood Red Throne (NOR) - Imperial Congregation
I followed this band since "Affiliated With The Suffering" but they stopped to amaze me after "Come Death" until I almost lost interest in them. But that new one is a real killer!
Cambion (GER/USA) - Conflegrate The Celestial Refugium
This actually is my discovery of the year. They are around since 2013 but this is their debut full length. Excellent technical blackened DM from Bavaria with Chason Westmoreland of (among others) Equipoise fame on the drums. I fucking love this album, a lot!
Cenotaph (TUR) - Precognition To Erradicate
Stellar new release from my favorite Turks. Strong emphasis on disharmonics and overall very chaotic, but in a good way.
Cerebral Effusion (SPA) - Ominous Flesh Discipline
Another fantastic album from these guys. Honestly, I could hardly tell the difference between their three releases, but that only speaks of how good all of them are. The vox are very much on the burpy side of things, so that might not be for everyone.
Devil ́s Reef (USA) - Chosen By The Sea
A great new discovery for me this year, and as a bonus they released this in January and then an equally great EP in October. They too have a strong 90 ́s influence in the production as well as in the songwriting. Very impressive for such young guys (at least judging from their MA pic).
Drawn And Quartered (USA) - Congregation Pestilence
While initially, I was not very fond of this one I learned to appreciate and even love the chaotic vibe of this album. Alas, the production still sucks ass!
Dysmorphic Demiurge (USA) - Derealization
Excellent BDM with a lot of Broken Hope vibes. Very groovy, without overly relying on the same old slam tropes. They released an album in 2020, too, which I apparently completely missed.
Erebor (UK) - Inherent Malevolence
Haven ́t seen a band with a name from Tolkien in quite a while, yet here is Erebor. Tech/Prog DM from Durham, England. Very well composed and refreshingly different from the typical high-speed neoclassical stuff most TDM bands play nowadays.
Eximperitus (BLR) - Sahrartu
Very atmospheric, mostly mid to downtempo DM with lots of dark and eerie melody but they still manage to sound heavy a.f.
Fixation On Suffering (SPA/ITA) - Desmoterion
The 2nd full-length from them and it ́s just as great as the debut. More kick-ass tech brutality with Paolo Chiti on vox.
Gore Dimension (TUR) - Ethereal Realm
And more old-school brutality with some tech in it. They remind me of Corpsegrinder-era Monstrosity as well as Sorcery/Temples..-era Kataklysm ( you know, when they actually were great).
Gore Infamous (TWN) - Excaeco Deconception
Ultra-fast BDM with really good songwriting and great vox. I love the pace of that record!
In Asymmetry (CHL) - Ashes Of Dead Worlds
Well, this band confronts me with the old "ghost-prates or pirate-ghosts" question (let ́s see who gets this reference)- are they rather technical BDM or brutal TDM?! I suppose I ́ll go for the latter, anyways this is some insanely technical stuff!
Infiltrated Mankind (CH/RUS/UKR) - Inside The Apelike
This is when sub-genres reach their limits - dark and atmospheric, brootal, highly technical and proggy DM. There ́s so much going on here it just blows my head off! A definite grower, getting bigger and better with every minute you listen.
Interminable Corruptions (RUS/ITA) - Abysmal Revelation
Another outstanding slab of technical BDM (quite sure about the ghost-pirates in this case). Again Paolo Chiti on vox, this guy does the vox for so many great bands!
Meshum (TUR) - Enigmatic Existential Essence
And another ghost-pirate. One-man project by Eren Öztürk of former Cenotaph fame (among others). As this list is not ranked I have to point out how excellent this album is in words. It ́s super fast, super technical, well-produced, superbly composed, the vox are fantastic...just check it out yourselves!
Metharoma (US/GER) - Pipe Dreams
Great BDM featuring, among others, Jacob Schmidt from Defeated Sanity and Brian Forgue of Syphilic. Whilst not being remotely as complex as neither Def. San. nor Syphilic, there ́s still some decent amount of technicality at display here. Soundwise definitely closer to Syphilic.
Pathology (USA) - The Everlasting Plague
To me, Pathology always stuck out of the regular Slam Death mass for their simple but very groovy riffs. Starting with their 2019 release they added some very cool old-school and even melodic riffs and what shall I say - I fuckin ́ love it! This one is really high up there, probably a 2nd/4th place, depending on how you read it.
Sleep Terror (USA) - Above Snakes
If you know Sleep Terror you know what to expect - blazing fast, ultra-technical DM riffs contrasted with some wild jazzy, funky, Latino weirdness thrown in. This one, as the cover already suggests is more "Spaghetti-Western" than Latino, though. It ́s a fucking blast!
Solus Ex Inferis (USA/IND/AUS/CHL) - Daemones Ceramici
Stellar Technical/Blackened DM from all around the world. I cannot say much but check it out if you are even slightly into that kind of shit!
Stheno (GRE) - Wardance
Well, MA says Grindcore/Black Metal/Crust, throw in a healthy dose of high-speed Thrash and you get fairly close to describing the sheer audial assault that is Stheno. Listen and behold (maybe not to directly - Stheno, in Greek mythology is a sister of Medusa)!
Tombstoner (USA) - Victims Of Vile Torture
Great no-frills-Death-fucking-Metal with a strong NYHC influence.
Vomit The Soul (ITA) - Cold
Finally back from the dead and they still kick some major ass! Sick Italian TBDM with very well-used slam parts.
The Unholy Triumvirate
The last three share 1st place. Even if I ranked my list, I could not pick a single one of these as a sole no. 1.
Archspire (CAN) - Bleed The Future
I assume I don't have to say much about their style, at this point. I still think their last album was not quite as good as "The Lucid Collective" was, but this one is at least as good. Technical, progressive yet still brutal AF - I don't know many bands that manage to achieve this in such an amazing way.
Cannibal Corpse (USA) - Violence Unimagined
Well, I guess this one will be on most of your lists. CC has always been one of my favourite bands and this is one of their top 3 albums (the others being "The Bleeding" and "The Wretched Spawn" - again completely on the same level of greatness). Eric Rutan is the perfect addition - even without Pat going
full nutter they should have recruited him! Jokes aside this one is definitely going to be an all-time classic - and it was obvious from the very first spin.
First Fragment (CAN) Gloire Éternelle
Despite their lyrics being all "crazy gibberish!" (let ́s try another reference and see who get ́s it - please comment below and don't forget to activate that bell!) this album is just fantastic. It ́s simply ...uplifting, I guess - a joy to behold if you will. I ́m not kidding, look at the vid to "Pantheum" - the faces these guys make, or look at the fat grin on Dominic Lapointe ́s face during his bass playthroughs - this is the face I make when listening to these guys. Speaking of Lapointe, this is the single best bass player in DM, period! He reminds me a lot of Les Claypool, granted he, of course, is much quicker than old Les, but in terms of creativity and technique, I can ́t think of anyone else that remotely comes close.