2012 has been such a great year for metal releases. So in honor of that, here is my personal favourite Albums of 2012.

1. Indesinence - Vessels Of Light And Decay

2. Faal - The Clouds Are Burning

3. In The Silence - A Fair Dream Gone Mad

4. Enochian Theory - Life... And All It Entails

5. Eternal Deformity - The Beauty Of Chaos

      View entire list ››

Because I reached the word limit on the previous list, and don't want to lose my quite excellent in-depth descriptions. Those without descriptions are from my other list.

1. Sylosis - Monolith

2. Be'lakor - Of Breath And Bone

3. In The Silence - A Fair Dream Gone Mad

4. Abigail Williams - Becoming

5. Enslaved - RIITIIR

      View entire list ››

1. Diablo Swing Orchestra - Pandora's Piñata

2. OSI - Fire Make Thunder

3. Beyond the Bridge - The Old Man and the Spirit

4. Katatonia - Dead End Kings

5. Devin Townsend - Epicloud

      View entire list ››

Note; Anything I rate lower than 8 I deem underwhelming. Sure, I might even acknowledge some of them as being rather enjoyble, but considering the "bigger picture of things", I find them unsatisfactory (in varying degrees, depending on their rating).

Partially ordered (the ones with descriptions). The rest are arranged alphabetically.

1. Sybreed - God Is An Automaton

2. Gorod - A Perfect Absolution

3. The Faceless - Autotheism

4. Ihsahn - Eremita

5. A Million Dead Birds Laughing - Xen

      View entire list ››

While I'm slightly disappointed the world didn't end this year, I thought I'd share my musical tastes from throughout the year by arbitrarily ranking other people's art. When the year began I was really into sludge and stoner but as the year has worn on, it's been the black metal releases which by and large have won my attention and appreciation.

1. Royal Thunder - CVI

2. Ancestors - In Dreams and Time

3. Merrimack - The Acausal Mass

4. Hail Spirit Noir - Pneuma

5. Hidden Orchestra - Archipelago

      View entire list ››

Well, it's been a terrific 2012 for metal fans. I listened to hundreds of albums and I'd like to share my favs with you. Although it was very difficult I have narrowed down my top 20.

1. Sunpocrisy - Samaroid Dioramas

2. Downfall Of Gaia - Suffocating In The Swarm Of Cranes

3. Rush - Clockwork Angels

4. Adrift - Black Heart Bleeds Black

5. Constants - Pasiflora

      View entire list ››

This list will further remind me of those awesome musics from this awesome year.

1. Beyond The Bridge - The Old Man And The Spirit

2. Adrenaline Mob - Omertá

3. Serj Tankian - Harakiri

4. Stone Sour - House Of Gold And Bones - Part 1

5. Sonata Arctica - Stones Grow Her Name

      View entire list ››

Other good lists with some melodic metal in them:
strade's - R'Vannith's - Unhealer's - Lkoturnindrin's

Will only add 7.5+ releases, so this won't be a gargantuan list... last year saw maybe forty or so releases I thought of as 7.5+'s, a lot of them rated only at the end of the year, and some not rated at all due to the extensiveness of pre-MSA listening sessions... if you want to stalk my "bad" ratings, they're all in my album votes.

1. Enochian Theory - Life... And All It Entails

2. Dissona - Dissona

3. Big Big Train - English Electric 1

4. Headspace - I Am Anonymous

5. Beyond The Bridge - The Old Man And The Spirit

      View entire list ››

1. Wintersun - Time I

2. Sybreed - God Is An Automaton

3. Atoma - Skylight

4. Mors Principium Est - ...And Death Said Live

5. Circus Maximus - Nine

      View entire list ››

My list of favourites and interests for this year ordered roughly in descending order. My new years resolution is to branch out a bit and listen to new and unfamiliar genres, metal and non-metal.

Edit: Anything above about a 7/10 I'll keep here. Now with approximate rating in a .5 scale and ordered according to **replay value** i.e how often I listen to them. AND now with some comments, adding them gradually.

1. Enslaved - RIITIIR

2. Pharaoh - Bury The Light

3. Anglagard - Viljans Öga

4. Overkill - The Electric Age

5. The Foreshadowing - Second World

      View entire list ››