It's always changing.

1.Moonsorrow - V: Hävitetty

2.Moonsorrow - Verisäkeet

3.Equilibrium - Sagas

4.Týr - Ragnarok

5.Finsterforst - Rastlos

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Here are my favourite releases (8+ ratings) from 2016! This year, my preferences are ranked in order of how I'd rate them. I didn't manage to listen to an exceptional amount of new music this year, so please feel free to recommend and share some releases I may not have gotten to.

Impression about 2016: A terrible year for prog and alternative metal, if I had to be honest, mostly because my expectations were sky-high for releases from Headspace, Haken, Third Ion and Dissona. On the other hand, Vektor revitalized the stagnant genre of thrash with an incredible release. It was a decent year for post-metal or post-influenced things (Départe, Moanaa, Bossk, Blindead), but it was tough to top some of the gems from 2015 (mainly, Sunpocrisy's Eyegasm, Hallelujah! album). Finally, the combination of krautrock with metal in 2016 tantalized me frequently earlier in the year (exemplified by the music of ZÖN and Vaults of Zin).

1.Départe - Failure, Subside

2.40 Watt Sun - Wider Than The Sky

3.Gorguts - Pleiades' Dust

4.Aluk Todolo - Voix

5.Vektor - Terminal Redux

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1.Insomnium - Winter's Gate

2.Gojira - Magma

3.Twilight Force - Heroes Of Mighty Magic

4.Dark Oath - When Fire Engulfs The Earth

5.40 Watt Sun - Wider Than The Sky

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I have never attempted to create a complete end of the year list so far, but here it is. It consists of the albums that I have either purchased myself throughout the year (most of them), or that I still spent enough time listening to to get a more or less complete impression (a few). I know that there are countless albums out there that I haven't paid any attention to so far and I might change the list a bit in the coming months because of that. Since I am mostly listening to Black Metal, expect to see a lot from that genre in my list.

1.Forteresse - Thèmes Pour La Rébellion

2.Mare Cognitum - Luminiferous Aether

3.Schammasch - Triangle

4.Inquisition - Bloodshed Across The Empyrean Altar Beyond The Celestial Zenith

5.Anaal Nathrakh - The Whole Of The Law

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2016 - What An amazing year for Metal!

End of the year list for the bands & albums I heard this year - sorted In alphabetical order. List is WIP.

1.Abbath - Abbath

2.Alcest - Kodama

3.Ancient - Back To The Land Of The Dead

4.Antimatter - Welcome To The Machine

5.Borknagar - Winter Thrice

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1.SubRosa - For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages

2.Vektor - Terminal Redux

3.Khemmis - Hunted

4.Ill Wicker - Untamed

5.Alcest - Kodama

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1.Alcest - Kodama

2.Amon Amarth - Jomsviking

3.Be'lakor - Vessels

4.Dark Tranquillity - Atoma

5.Darkthrone - Arctic Thunder

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Most wanted albums to get right here and now. Ranked from Most to More liked +++.

1.Thy Catafalque - Meta

2.Cult Of Luna - Mariner [Collaboration]

3.Moonsorrow - Jumalten Aika

4.Oranssi Pazuzu - Värähtelijä

5.Crippled Black Phoenix - Bronze

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1.Epica - The Holographic Principle

2.Thy Catafalque - Meta

3.Alcest - Kodama

4.Ignite - A War Against You

5.Anthrax - For All Kings

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Very late starting on this one, been rather unable to keep up with releases over the summer so will try to catch up on as many cool releases as possible in the last couple of months of the year. Be prepared for pithy reviews

1.Ortega - Sacred States

2.Riverside - Eye Of The Soundscape

3.Oathbreaker - Rheia

4.Devin Townsend - Transcendence

5.Allegaeon - Proponent For Sentience

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1.Cult Of Luna - Mariner [Collaboration]

2.Insomnium - Winter's Gate

3.Trees Of Eternity - Hour Of The Nightingale

4.Ihsahn - Arktis.

5.Haken - Affinity

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Favourite albums of 2016 (including only those which I would rate 7+)

1.Vektor - Terminal Redux

2.Slice The Cake - Odyssey To The West

3.Animals As Leaders - The Madness Of Many

4.Gardenjia - Arkestral

5.Hypno5e - Shores Of The Abstract Line

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https://fullblackreviews.blogspot.com
My blog if you want to read some reviews.

1.Meshuggah - The Violent Sleep Of Reason

2.Schammasch - Triangle

3.Oranssi Pazuzu - Värähtelijä

4.Bethlehem - Bethlehem

5.Ulcerate - Shrines Of Paralysis

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I guess the preference order is just for the moment i wrote it... It's ok, but it could be different.

1.Throane - Derrière-Nous, La Lumière

2.Urfaust - Empty Space Meditation

3.Darkher - Realms

4.Astronoid - Air

5.Arx Atrata - Spiritus In Terra

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Here we go again. This time around though I probably won't end up listening to as many albums as previous years. Time will tell.

1.Trees Of Eternity - Hour Of The Nightingale

2.SubRosa - For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages

3.La Torture Des Ténèbres - Civilization Is The Tomb Of Our Noble Gods

4.Fvnerals - Wounds

5.Cult Of Luna - Mariner [Collaboration]

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