~~~ 15 YEARS OF ILM POLL!!! ~~~ (Metal & Heavy Rock [+ related sub-genres] Edition) RESULTS & DISCUSSION THREAD

173 Esoteric - Paragon Of Dissonance 137 Points, 5 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/zH4fNL3.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/6LXzs2hsUrEryy3qOx0eTy
spotify:album:6LXzs2hsUrEryy3qOx0eTy

i discovered this album over the last 3 days and have listened to it obsessively, putting it high up my ballot. absolutely incredible music. slowly encircling, then spectacularly crushing. a showstopper.

yay I voted for that Esoteric. It's really good. So is that Mgla album but I gues it didn't make it onto my ballot.

172 Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage 138 Points, 4 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/zH4fNL3.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/6bvhgwuygNJJ60VHqz5DEi
spotify:album:6bvhgwuygNJJ60VHqz5DEi

oops

172 Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage 138 Points, 4 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/AnAg0gF.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/6bvhgwuygNJJ60VHqz5DEi
spotify:album:6bvhgwuygNJJ60VHqz5DEi

Imago I do wish you would check out all the other Esoteric albums. Some of the very best Funeral Doom has to offer

I never really got into WITTR. they just don't do it for me I guess.

Next one up is the last for the evening

171 Tool - 10000 Days 139 Points, 4 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/sLUZLI5.jpg

ugh

Slipknot shoulda placed higher than this!

I like Tool but did not vote for this

Whoa, Isolation sounds great so far (based on the last two tracks). I wonder if he played better when he only had 12 frets/octave to deal with. The solo on the last track is awesome.

I only like Wings for Marie/10000 Days from this. It's got some real deplorables, especially in the second half.

RECAP 300-171

300 Have A Nice Life - Deathconsciousness 72.33333333 3 0
299 Amon Amarth - Twilight of the Thunder God 72.33333333 4 0
298 Slipknot - Iowa 73 3 0
297 Devil - Time to Repent 73.52777778 4 0
296 Melechesh - Sphynx 73.625 4 0
295 Ghost - Infestissumam 74.33333333 3 0
294 Sannhet - Revisionist 74.75 4 0
293 Cleric - Regressions 75 2 0
292 Drudkh - Blood In Our Wells 75 3 0

291 Glaciation - Sur les falaises de marbre 75.47826087 3 0
290 Cloud Rat - Qliphoth 75.625 3 0
286 Black Bananas - Rad Times Xpress IV 76 2 0
286 Blood Ceremony - Living With The Ancients 76 2 0
286 Panopticon - Roads to the North 76 2 0
286 Pissed Jeans - Shallow 76 2 0
285 Darkspace - Dark Space I 76.75 3 0
283 Murmuüre - Murmuüre 77 2 0
283 Oneida - Rated O 77 2 0
282 Opeth - Deliverance 77 3 0

279 Catacombs - In the Depths of R'lyeh 78 2 0
279 Kvelertak - Kvelertak 78 2 0
279 Sunn 0))) - ØØ Void 78 2 0
278 Mournful Congregation - Book Of Kings 78 3 0
277 Nightwish - Wishmaster 78.625 3 0
276 Bardo Pond - Bardo Pond 79 3 0
275 Zu - Carboniferous 79.33333333 4 0
273 Cough - Ritual Abuse 80 2 0
273 Raventale - After 80 2 0
270 Neurosis - Given To The Rising 80 3 0
270 Vektor - Outer Isolation 80 3 0
270 maudlin of the Well - Bath 80 3 0

268 Jamie Saft - Black Shabbis 81 2 0
268 Panopticon - Kentucky 81 2 0
267 Skepticism - Ordeal 82 2 0
266 Opeth - Watershed 82 3 0
265 Sunn 0))) - White 2 82.625 3 0
263 EyeHateGod - Confederacy of Ruined Lives 82.625 4 0
263 Inquisition - Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm 82.625 4 0
261 Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - La Novia 83 3 0
261 Nails - Abandon All Life 83 3 0

259 Sunn 0))) - Flight Of The Behemoth 86 3 0
259 The Devil's Blood ‎ - The Thousandfold Epicentre 86 3 0
258 Gojira - From Mars to Sirius 86.75 4 0
256 Dawnbringer - Into the Lair of the Sun God 87 3 0
256 Skepticism - Farmakon 87 3 0
255 Stargazer - A Great Work of Ages 87.625 3 0
254 Deafheaven - New Bermuda 87.75 4 0
253 Deathspell Omega - Paracletus 88.625 3 0
251 Iron Maiden - Brave New World 89 3 0
251 Ne Obliviscaris - The Aurora Veil 89 3 0
250 Nachtmystium - Addicts: Black Meddle Part 2 89.52777778 4 0

249 Sigh - Imaginary Sonicscape 89.625 5 0
248 The Lord Weird Slough Feg - Traveller 90 3 0
247 Portal - Vexovoid 90 4 0
246 Sunn 0))) - White 1 90.625 3 0
244 Comets on Fire - Comets on Fire 92 3 0
244 Kayo Dot - Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue 92 3 0
243 Primordial - Redemption At The Puritan's Hand 92.625 3 0
242 Atlantean Kodex - The White Goddess 92.75 3 0
241 Satan - Atom By Atom 93 3 0
240 Opeth - Damnation 94 4 0

239 Summoning - Oath Bound 95 3 0
236 Sarpanitum - Blessed Be My Brothers 95.625 3 0
235 Peste Noire - Ballade Cuntre Lo Anemi Francor 96 3 0
233 Enslaved - Isa 97 3 0
233 Pallbearer - Sorrow and Extinction 97 3 0

229 Enslaved - Mardraum - Beyond the Within 98 3 0
229 Thumpermonkey - Sleep Furiously 98 3 0
229 Toxic Holocaust - Hell on Earth 98 3 0
229 Tribulation - The Children of the Night 98 3 0
228 Devin Townsend - Addicted 98.625 3 0
227 Blut Aus Nord - 777 - Cosmosophy 99 3 0
226 Virus - The Black Flux 99 5 0
225 KEN Mode - Success 100 3 0
223 Gojira - The Way of All Flesh 100 4 0
223 Gris - À l'âme enflammée, l'âme constellée... 100 4 0
221 Spectral Lore - III 103 3 0
221 Summoning - Let Mortal Heroes Sing Your Fame 103 3 0

220 Metallica - St. Anger 104 3 0
219 Motörhead - Inferno 105 4 0
217 Oneida - Secret Wars 106 3 0
216 mclusky - mclusky Do Dallas 106.625 6 0
215 Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss 106.9583333 4 0
214 Wolves in the Throne Room - Two Hunters 107 4 0
213 Oranssi Pazuzu - Valionielu 108.40625 4 0
212 Babymetal - Babymetal 109 3 0
211 Satan - Life Sentence 110 4 0

210 Krallice - Years Past Matter 110.625 3 0
209 Morbus Chron - Sweven 110.625 6 0
208 Yob - Elaborations of Carbon 111.9583333 4 0
207 Jess and the Ancient Ones - Jess and the Ancient Ones 112 3 0
206 Yob - The Illusion of Motion 112.625 3 0
205 Pig Destroyer - Prowler in the Yard 112.625 4 0
204 Asva - Presences of Absences 113.625 4 0
202 Opeth - Ghost Reveries 114 5 0
201 Baroness - Purple 114.9583333 5 0

200 Yob - Atma 115.9583333 4 0
199 Darkspace - Dark Space II 116 4 0
198 Liturgy - The Ark Work 116.75 4 0
197 Zombi - Spirit Animal 117.3333333 4 0
196 Mastery - VALIS 118 4 0
195 Slough Feg - Hardworlder 120 4 0
194 Electric Wizard - Let Us Prey 120.4861111 5 0
193 Xasthur - Subliminal Genocide 122 5 0
192 Electric Wizard - Time To Die 122.4861111 6 0

190 Fall Out Boy - Folie a Deux 123 3 0
190 Thy Catafalque - Rengeteg 123 3 0
188 Liturgy - Aesthetica 123 4 0
188 Mastodon - Blood Mountain 123 4 0
187 Solstafir - Otta 124.625 4 0
186 Morbid Angel - Gateways to Annihilation 124.625 5 0
185 My Chemical Romance - Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge 125.625 5 0
184 Shape of Despair - Shades Of... 126 4 0
183 Jute Gyte - Isolation 126.625 5 0

180 Yellow Swans - Going Places 128.40625 4 0
179 Les Discrets - Septembre Et Ses Dernières Pensées 129.5277778 4 0
178 Reverend Bizarre - II - Crush The Insects 131 4 0
177 Pig Destroyer - Terrifyer 131.625 5 0
176 Cultes des Ghoules - Henbane 133 4 0
174 Mgla - Exercises In Futility 135.625 5 0
173 Esoteric - Paragon Of Dissonance 137 5 0
172 Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage 138 4 0
171 Tool - 10000 Days 139 4 0

Cant believe St Anger placed

Ha, I didn't notice that 777: Cosmosophy had placed already, and so low. That was my #3. Rated O and lol FOB were in my top 20 too. Secret Wars was top 25. Portal was in the unranked portion of my ballot.

I voted for these:

Kvelertak - Kvelertak
Satan - Atom By Atom
Tribulation - The Children of the Night
KEN Mode - Success
Gojira - The Way of All Flesh
Opeth - Ghost Reveries

I'm surprised especially to see the Kvelertak place so low, since I thought their album this year was crossing over to a wider audience, and their first album is pretty similar, except maybe a bit more metal.

I am very pleased that Domains beat St Anger

wait where did it go

I count ten from my ballot so far, I think. Surprised both those Gojira albums are so low.

Nine from mine, I think. Relistening to Mastery now - a violent way to start the week.

Ok looking my ballot over: Rated O was my #5 & Secret Wars my #12. Rad Times Xpress IV was my #11. Carboniferous - #17. Valonielu - #19. Comets on Fire - #21.

Bardo Pond and La Novia were further down, so can't complain there...

I liked Cotar Todo, but this Zu album is something else! Inexhaustibly intricate.

Celestial Lineage being that far above Two Hunters is a bit of an eyebrow raiser to me, especially since I prefer the latter by far.

holy fuck, the opening track of Rengeteg is AMAZING

Crush the Insects is not unenjoyable.

The rest of Rengeteg is less good, but what an opening track!

Too bad both Summoning records placed low, although I guess they'll always be a bit of a niche thing.

Nokturnal Mortum was my #1 btw, could say a lot more but I don't think many people really want to hear about them.

that's actually the thing i'm going to listen to next, so please do say more

Too bad both Summoning records placed low, although I guess they'll always be a bit of a niche thing.

i rated let moral heroes super high and was hoping for a better placement, oh well

oh my word this is wonderful

OK well Nokturnal Mortum's an intriguing band. They're like the Ukrainian version of Emperor, started out around the same time too. Had a couple of good records in the style of In The Nightside Eclipse with slavic folk bits, but kind ran into the ground around the end of the 90s through a combination of blatant nazi themes and increasingly shitty incoherent music. Band is left for dead for about five years, main dude fires all the other members and restarts the whole thing with much more of a Bathory/Moonsorrow vibe, pushes out one decent album and disappears again. Then out of nowhere The Voice Of Steel pops up at christmas 2009, which is fucking amazing by turning everything about prog/viking/folk metal up to eleven, and includes some oddball stuff like psychedelic blues rock solos. The aryan/nazi stuff is traded in for a mainstream Ukrainian nationalist agenda and all looks rosy again, but their part of Ukraine gets invaded/liberated by Russian militias. The band can't record much, but they play benefit gigs for the Ukrainian army & manage to travel out sporadically to play metal festivals around Europe.

yeah this is full-technicolour metal glory. with blues solos

the rollout! Many surprises so far -- biggest one for me is the low placing of Cultes des Ghoules' Henbane. One of my favorite old-school black metal releases of the 21st C for sure.

Also surprised those Satan albums placed so low.

thanks for the context siegbran, i actually want to listen to that album now

I voted for both Satan albums. That's one of the best bands in the world right now, imo.

same!

170 A Forest of Stars - Beware the Sword You Cannot See 139 Points, 5 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/ZXhXEe8.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/10M9bimNf1sm0paabLv8Av
spotify:album:10M9bimNf1sm0paabLv8Av

this is another brilliant album, northern england's answer to ukrainian black metal ;)

This fell just out of my top 100, love the album cover tho.

Although what's that skeletal C3PO doing there?

Awww this album is fantastic! In my top 20 somewhere. Super melodic without being saccharine. Very fuzzy and magical, though that might be in part because his spoken vocals remind me of David Tibet.

xp He looks like he made a wrong turn at the ouroboros.

They're kind of metal's answer to steampunk, but they carry it well

And their songs are awesome

169 ASG - Blood Drive 139.6 Points, 4 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/gJfObIv.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/7AdrkC8Ul8z9dBtxsHbwra
spotify:album:7AdrkC8Ul8z9dBtxsHbwra

Beware The Sword... is great, yeah. Wasn't my highest-rated AFOS album but I don't think that will appear.

168 The Mars Volta - Frances The Mute 140 Points, 4 Votes
http://i.imgur.com/KDbhJwP.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/47gm8wkdx7eA2yGzLXCRN5
spotify:album:47gm8wkdx7eA2yGzLXCRN5