My S.A.D. been actin up again, so here's some Depressive Suicidal Black Metal, a genre where Sturgeons' Law is in full effect. Recs welcome as always, and an album does not have to necessarily be labeled as a DSBM album to count, only containing the themes.

NOTE: This user does not recommend suicide as an alternative, though recognizes it as a person's right to choose. There are other options, of course. Perhaps you could try going to the zoo.

1.Anti - The Insignificance Of Life

2.Austere - To Lay Like Old Ashes

3.Bethlehem - Dictius Te Necare

4.ColdWorld - Melancholie²

5.Forgotten Tomb - Songs To Leave

      View entire list ››

Here are albums (ordered by subgenre) that I want to listen to, but haven't yet.
For some albums, I've heard one or two songs, but not the entire album. Therefore, these albums still await my judgement!
Recommendations are always welcome!

1.

2.Frail Body - Artificial Bouquet

3.Ulterror - Transcendent Origins

4.Mastiff - Deprecipice

5.Verberis - The Apophatic Wilderness

      View entire list ››

Do you know this feeling when you stumble across a random word, and then suddenly that name pops up just about everywhere? That specific term haunting yours truly has long been "Portland, Oregon". It seems to me that every new discovery was founded in Portland, apparently every other album was mastered at Brad Boatright's Audiosiege Studio in Portland, and every single of my favorite bands had, at some point, performed on a stage somewhere in Portland.

In the 1980s, LA was undeniably the world's glam metal capital, alongside with San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal as a counter development. Then we witnessed the death metal boom of the early 90s, with Tampa, Florida as its global hotspot. Not to forget the New York punk and hardcore scene (NYHC), the rise of sludge metal from the swamps of New Orleans during the late 80s, grunge from Seattle gaining mainstream prominence in the early 90s...
Apparently, there has always been a tendency in the US towards rapidly developing, locally restricted music scenes, in whose environment a completely new style or genre could develop in order to have a lasting impact on the global musical landscape within a few years.

So I just had to find out if my mind was playing tricks on me or if Portland really is the current capital of the US for heavy music and extreme metal - hence this list.

Inclusion criteria:
featured on Metal Strom and
established in Portland or
a long-term creative phase in Portland or
still active and currently based in Portland
(that's why Leviathan is here but Lurker Of Chalice isn't)

Only one album (preferably the most recent full-length album) per band.

By the way, according to this article, Portland harbors the highest amount of active metal bands per capita in the US. Quite a surprise, isn't it?

While we are at it, what's your favorite Portland band?

1.Abhorrent Affliction - Forever Will He Reign

2.Acathexis - Acathexis

3.Ænigmatum - Deconsecrate

4.Ævangelist - Dream An Evil Dream III

5.Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere

      View entire list ››

All the albums released in 2019 that i have listened to, ranked from best to worst. This is of course my opinion. Recommendations are always welcome.

1.Abigail Williams - Walk Beyond The Dark

2.Misþyrming - Algleymi

3.Tool - Fear Inoculum

4.Alcest - Spiritual Instinct

5.Esoteric - A Pyrrhic Existence

      View entire list ››

I will most likely look back at this decade as the dark ages of popular music. A time where mainstream music was largely dominated by talentless pop/hip hop music with less memorable songs than the previous decade. However, that doesn't mean that metal music followed the same path. While it was largely dominated by metalcore during the beginning of the decade, I started to grow to love more music in this decade for metal music than I initially did during the beginning of the decade. This was the decade where I became a metalhead, where I became who I am today and started expanding my horizons musically and learn to appreciate a lot of metal music released during this decade and that will be something I will look back at fondly. As the 2010's comes to a close, I decided to make a list of the top 50 metal albums of the decade that I would consider the best. NOTE: this list might change if I discover more music from this decade that I thought are amazing.

1.Trees Of Eternity - Hour Of The Nightingale

2.Kauan - Sorni Nai

3.Angellore - La Litanie Des Cendres

4.Les Discrets - Ariettes Oubliées...

5.Woods Of Ypres - Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light

      View entire list ››

This is a work in progress. Not official until around January 1, 2020. Most of these albums were listened to in August as I lost interest during March. I did not really listen to anything between then to the beginning of August. I've missed out on a lot but I'm hoping to come across that hidden gem few know about. Anyways, enjoy the list. I've checked a few lists on here and they may or may not have been influential. My ratings go as high as 100.0%. You have to at least get a 60.1% to make it on this list.

1.Pensées Nocturnes - Grand Guignol Orchestra

2.Inculter - Fatal Visions

3.Ossuarium - Living Tomb

4.Anti-Hero - Rolling Thunder

5.Suffering Hour - Dwell

      View entire list ››

1.Flesh Of The Stars - Mercy

2.Soen - Lotus

3.Cult Of Luna - A Dawn To Fear

4.Frostveil - Ephemeral Visions

5.Thank You Scientist - Terraformer

      View entire list ››

TOP 20 ALBUMS IN 2019

1.Kalmankantaja - Kaski

2.Together To The Stars - An Oblivion Above

3.Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult - Mardom

4.Mesarthim - Ghost Condensate

5.Mist Of Misery - Unalterable

      View entire list ››

My personal picks of 2019, in no particular order (so far).

1.Advent Sorrow - Kali Yuga Crown

2.Numenorean - Adore

3.Mephorash - Shem Ha Mephorash

4.Bewitcher - Under The Witching Cross

5.Vale Of Pnath - Accursed

      View entire list ››

2019. Oh shit, time flies... yada yada. Here is my top list!

1.Elizabeth Colour Wheel - Nocebo

2.Nasheim - Jord Och Aska

3.Flesh Of The Stars - Mercy

4.Façade - The Eternal Dance

5.Esoteric - A Pyrrhic Existence

      View entire list ››

1.Esoteric - A Pyrrhic Existence

2.Wormlust - Kosmískur Hryllingur [Collaboration]

3.Decoherence - Ekpyrosis

4.Kwade Droes - Onder De Toren

5.Abyssal - A Beacon In The Husk

      View entire list ››

My favorite albums. Includes EPs and 1 compilation. Anything ouside the top 20 or so could be up or down several places. Constantly subject to change.

1.Saviour Machine - Saviour Machine II

2.Ayreon - The Human Equation

3.Stolen Babies - There Be Squabbles Ahead

4.Billy Idol - Cyberpunk

5.Within Temptation - The Unforgiving

      View entire list ››