2020 Metal ’n’ Heavy Rock Poll: VOTING & FURTHER CAMPAIGNING thread (open until March 5)

ahhhhhh

Horisont album sounds good.

Deep Purple and BÖC albums were v good for anyone who didn't hear them. Purp has a lot of psych and prog elements, including quoting most of the prelude to BWV1006 in "Nothing At All".

Dan Weiss album = virtuoso jazz players doing legit heavy hyper-intricate progressive compositions. I think it's actually better than the previous album; Monder shreds more on this one.

I enjoyed the Horisont as well, very buoyant. Thanks for that.

The Dan Weiss is great but not trve enovgh for my ballot, that’s just how it is. Still, anyone who likes heavy jazz ought to hear it.

I had listened to the Wytch Hazel some time ago and enjoyed it p well.

I had stopped keeping up with Krallice, probably just because I didn't think they could top Years Past Matter, but I'm really impressed by Mass Cathexis. They've managed to preserve everything that was good about them without simply rehashing what they were doing; they seem to have gone further in a progressive direction. "Feed on the Blood of Rats" is really fantastic: what a great riff. Wonderful breakdown in "Aspherance".

I had to turn it off bc I couldn't hear it over the construction but the first five tracks from the Colour Haze were really good - is it an ineligible 2019 release, though?

I'm glad for the extension. It will give me more time to check out these suggestions. So far I'm digging the Mamaleek and Angel Morgue.

We could extend it again if anyone thinks it would help to hear more albums before voting.

It was worth it to finish the Colour Haze album.

The Wobbler album is super fun retro-prog pastiche, like a lost classic from 1972. Catchy, whimsical, full of worshipful nods to Yes and Gentle Giant. It's not heavy or metal, but sufficiently geeky for the poll I'd say.

Imperial Triumphant - Alphaville

Using the Alphaville computer voice in a metal song is such a neat and in retrospect very obvious move. Has it been done before? Anyway I really dig this record. It's odd seeing it described as "chaotic", the songs make a great deal of sense to me. Probably cos it's basically Zeuhl.

Black Stream album was p good. "Reflection of Death" seemed like a highlight to me. "Upwards" had me nodding my head.

Glad you liked it.

The Wobbler album jmm mentioned is another case of 'too vntrve for this poll' in my book but it's a really solid pastiche and I think you'd enjoy it as well.

Yeah, the Wobbler was not bad, some cool rhythmic things going on. Not sure if it's something I'd buy. What did people think of the Behold the Arctopus album? I listened to it a couple of times last year and again now. It was quite singular, I thought: something like a Marston-metal take on contemporary chamber music, like the flipside of the Dan Weiss album - it's less nuanced and compositionally ambitious but heavier and intense. There were no cymbals and a wide range of mallet percussion instead. Pretty mathy and virtuosic.

Kaatayra – Toda História pela Frente was a pretty album I listened to a lot.

...something like a Marston-metal take on contemporary chamber music

I said something like that last year and felt kind of silly about it, glad to have the backing of someone who knows a lot more about theory! It's a great album and I'm not particularly into their previous stuff. I also found the acoustic Kaatayra album a lot better than the electric one.

I’m stupidly biased against instrumental metal but I thought the Behold the Arctopus LP was pretty decent, yeah.

I mentioned this before and nominated it but I loved the Arctopus LP. saw them play it live too, the drumkit looked like something out of hellraiser with pipes, planks and chimes. sounded great.

Our dear Neechy is feeling a bit sick lately and needs more time to prepare for the rollout, so we’re going to extend the deadline yet again, to the 5th of March. I hope this works for everyone.

A few years ago I was blown away by the Mastery album VALIS which I thought never really got a proper follow up. But I just recently discovered he has a ton of projects, one being Ulthar whose album I slept on and ultimately didn't vote for but its pretty damn good in hindsight. Glad he's still making music because VALIS is still one of the more mind bending albums I've ever heard. Providence (which is nominated) isn't quite on that level imo but pretty killer in its own right.

it's uhh voting day! I will vote!

We extended it further, to March 5, but you can certainly vote now! I should do so myself, in fact, before I forget.

It's really true that quarantine has resulted in a greater utility for chill vibes. But I will punch vibes in the face for this poll.

I had to turn it off bc I couldn't hear it over the construction but the first five tracks from the Colour Haze were really good - is it an ineligible 2019 release, though?

Think we covered it in the original nomination thread, but landed on it being good because as far as it seems, the physical release didn't come until 2020.

Lol Simon, that's the spirit :)

I'll have a ballot in before the deadline, I promise!

Our dear Neechy is feeling a bit sick lately and needs more time to prepare for the rollout, so we’re going to extend the deadline yet again, to the 5th of March. I hope this works for everyone.

This would be fantastic! I had hoped to get a ballot slapped together, but real life and work insanity intruded. This will help me a lot and, more importantly, I hope it gives Oor Neechy time to recover properly.

I'm revisiting Neptunian Maximalism. I like it reasonably well but tbh I think I have a harder time hearing this as metal than I do Dan Weiss.

It's simply, really. The Bandcamp page for Natural Selection only features a generic mention of 'metal' among the keywords, whereas the page for Éons has 'metal', 'black metal', 'death metal', 'doom metal', 'drone metal', 'jazz metal' and 'stoner metal'. QED.

*simple

vöted

Haha, fair enough, pom.

voted

Voted.

I just voted, but I regret not listening to a band called HWWAUOCH before doing so.

You still have until Fri night/Sat morning to vote (or revote)

HWWAUOCH is amazing but their first two LPs are even better.

Just a reminder voting ends Friday night/Saturday morning.

Just voted.

I think my favourite metal album of the year was Victory Over the Sun's A Tessitura of Transfiguration. Really nice compositions at the intersection of black metal and modern chamber music, with the first two tracks in 17edo.

I'm revisiting the Ulcerate album now and remembering why I listened to this multiple times last year. Satisfyingly heavy.

I revisited it again today and liked it better the third time around, maybe because I began thinking of it as a heavy Sonic Youth offshoot rather than a metal album proper. I still find the drumming a bit weaksauce, which is a recurrent problem with one-person bands, but it's competent enough, and the songwriting more than makes up for it.

(The Victory Over the Sun, that is. I can't imagine a world where Jamie Saint Merat's drumming could be described as 'weaksauce' lol.)

couple of days to get your votes in

Dumb question, if we do a weighted list do we just paste the albums in order from best to worst?

That’s how I’ve always done it so I sure hope so!

Ha, thanks! I assumed so, but I wanted to check first. Time to go finish up my ballot.

voted!

Just imagine how different the poll results could have been in the past!

Have a ballot. Will digest and post. Was gonna leave a few things out for tactical reasons but looks like honour will prevail

I just stopped second guessing myself and plowed through it. There were definitely a few choices that I would never have considered metal and never would have thought to vote for them here, but they were nominated and I love 'em, so in they go.

I hope you are all excited

Won't be able to listen along because I'm at work, but at least I can follow the rollout since I'm working from home.

Starting in 30 mins or so. Stay tuned.

Very excited! Working until half 6, but I'll be checking in sporadically.

And so it begins:

2020 Metal ’n’ Heavy Rock/Heavy Music Poll: RESULTS – Top 100 Countdown

Thanks all, re: above <3

Hope you're ok, LBI.

Feel free to join us in the rollout, of course (if you feel like it!).

Onward and upward for me, thank you Pom.