Entertainment Earth

12/31/2017

The 20 Best Hard Rock & Metal Albums of 2017, Pt. 1: 20-11

2017 was a fucking awesome year for heavy music. Especially, for those into death metal, as it was rightfully declared the "Year of Death Metal" by Decibel magazine. Both new and old death metal bands put forth some great material. But, it was also another great year for thrash metal. As always making this list took a lot of thinking and, of course, the hearing of a lot albums. So let us not waste anymore time and get to it!

Honorable Mentions
Kobra and the Lotus- Prevail I
Overkill- The Grinding Wheel
Municipal Waste- Slime and Punishment

20. Necrot- Blood Offerings- An old school death metal album by a new band, that results in the best debut of 2017. My full review: http://themastergio.blogspot.com/2017/06/necrot-blood-offerings-album-review.html

19. Fit For An Autopsy- The Great Collapse- Fit For An Autopsy have delivered an angry and driving deathcore that showcase the subgenre at its very best. The music has a powerful and crushing grove and sounds like the soundtrack to complete and utter destruction.


18. Satyricon- Deep Calleth Deep- Heavy, hateful, and dark, this almost hypnotically sounding piece of black metal is best album of this style for 2017. Featuring the slow and driving sound that band has perfected in their last couple of releases it is the perfect music to listen as you are being dragged you into the very depths of hell!



17. Obituary- Obituary- The latest album from these death metal gods is one of their best in years. It features some great riffs that are catchy and have a really great groove to them. Some of these songs rank among the fastest and catchiest songs, the band has written in many a moon.

16. Kreator- Gods of Violence- The latest offering from Germany's greatest thrash metal export is crushing and devastating music. Some of the year's very best and most memorable songs come from here including the driving "Satan Is Real" and the anthemic  "Hail to the Hordes". Gods of Violence is one that I played a lot since the moment that I got it.

15. Winds of Plague- Blood of My Enemy- It's great to see a band genuinely seen as being rather silly, by some, like Winds of Plague mature and grow. Especially when the end result is the very best album of their career, thus far, and then some. Blood of Me Enemy is a more serious and musically complex work than their previous, but still enjoyable, output. and  Heavy and aggressive, it doesn't feel as interested in reminding just how cool or tough they are. Instead, the music speaks for itself and delivers multiple swift steel boots to your fucking teeth.

14. Cannibal CorpseRed Before Black- Red Before Black is Cannibal Corpse's best album since Torture, possibly since Kill. It is a solid and heavy, slab of death metal that is unrelenting and uncompromising. Songs like "Code of the Slashers" and "Heads Shoveled Off" are some of the coolest and most memorable extreme metal songs of the year. In fact, this might be the most straight up fun death metal of 2017.

13. Suffocation- ...Of the Dark Light- Holy fuck this is one unrelenting and brutal release! Determine to pummel your fucking head with savage death metal, Suffocation continue to churn out some of the finest releases in death metal. From the very opening of the blistering "Clarity through Depravity" and beyond this is uncompromising and technical assault as your likely hear at this level of spectacular quality.



12. Darkest Hour- Godless Prophets and the Migrant Flora- Anyone who thinks that there are no more classic albums to be made in the metalcore world needs to get a listen to this major ass kicker. Darkest Hour have pulled all the stops and made rollicking and vicious release with great musicianship and pounding breakdowns. This fucker is guaranteed to kick your ass from here to the next fucking continent. Songs like "This Is the Truth" and "The Flesh and the Flowers of Death" are some of the most badass songs of the year!


11. Cradle of Filth- Cryptopia: The Seductiveness of Decay- While, I greatly liked the last Cradle of Filth album, Hammer of the WitchesCryptopia: The Seductiveness of Decay blows it away. It is is without question the finest album CoF has made since Nymphetamine. The album is a dark and fully enrapturing piece of extreme gothic/ symphonic black metal. It takes all the things that make the band great and gives to us in droves. Honest to Satan, this is the first Cradle of Filth album that keep going back to listen to in ages and helped to remind me why I absolutely adored them many years ago. And, can I say that "Heartbreak and Seance" is one of my favorite extreme metal singles of the year? Another thing that is one of my favorites for this year is the amazing cover art! It is so fucking cool!

I would like to take this time to thank you all for your support in this year! May you all have a happy, fun, and safe New Year's! Stay tuned for the top ten albums of 2017!

3/31/2015

The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 16: 10-1

Finally! Here it is! The top 10 heavy metal album covers of all time! I'm sorry for the delay. Anyway, let's get to them, without any further adieu!

10. Iron Maiden- The Number of the Beast- Man is a puppet to the Devil who, in turn, is a puppet to Eddie, the Maiden mascot in this classic cover by Derek Riggs. It's one of the greatest and most iconic covers to one of THE greatest and most iconic albums ever, made. Also, it proves that Eddie is more powerful and awesome than Satan! And, don't forget this is the first album with Bruce Dickinson as the signer!!! A landmark album in every way shape and form!




9. Obituary- The End Complete- This amazing cover is for the third and best selling Obituary album, ever. Everything is amazing on it. From the desolate place it depicts to dragonizied version of the already cool Obituary logo!








 
8. Judas Priest- Metal Works 73-93- This compilation of Priest songs released at their 20th anniversary has a beautiful, exciting, and kick ass collage of the band's album covers as drawn by Mark Wilkinson. The battle between the Painkiller and the Hellion at top are breathtaking and badass to the max!






 
7. Type O Negative- Bloody Kisses (Digipak cover)- While, the original version of this cover of the third album from these Brooklyn metal masters was sexy and cool, the digipak version is ever HOTTER. The two girls actually locking lips in a delicious image. Metalhead boys and girls were immediately turned on, even more than before. The album, itself, is a 90 metal masterpiece!!!






6. Megadeth- Rust in Peace- The fourth album by Megadeth is their finest moment and a thrash metal classic! The sci-fi/ political cover has Eddie, an energy stone, an alien, and then leaders of the world. Not only is their finest moment, but Vic Rattlehead (the band mascot) as well!!







 
5. Obituary- Cause of Death- This classic death metal album is the second by the band. The cover is done Michael Whelan and was originally going to be used on Sepultura's Beneath the Remains, which instead used different art by the same artist. This cover would also be used on an HP Lovercraft collection.






 
4. Judas Priest- Painkiller- The twelfth and, in my humble opinion best, album by these British gods of metal features truly kick ass and exciting art with the Painkiller himself. He's riding off to whoop some fucking ass, surely! He seems triumphant as hell. So, maybe he already whooped some ass!






3. Iron Maiden- Live after Death- This classic live album, one of the genre's very best might I add, by Iron Maiden has such amazing art by Derek Riggs. It continues the story of Eddie, who is resurrected after being lobotomized in Piece of Mind. He also still has the chains from the Powerslave tour. The tombstone has a quote from HP Lovercraft, that reads as follows:
"That is not dead which can eternal lie
Yet with strange aeons even death may die."
It also reads Eddie's full name: Eddie T. H., referring to The Head, with the last name being obscured.
An all, this art is something straight out of a zombie movie and awesome for that!

2. Sepultura- Arise- The fourth album by the Brazilian thrash gods is their masterpiece on of the finest thrash/ death metal crossover albums, ever. The Lovecraftain/ sci-fi/ nightmarish cover is one of the coolest, most complex, and original covers ever. And, hence it gets the runner up award.






1. Iron Maiden- Somewhere in Time- The greatest cover ever is this, the studio sixth album by Maiden. Derek Riggs give us a kick ass  Blade Runner type futuristic world for Eddie to walk through with his gun. Allusions to other Maiden albums and songs abound in the complex, colorful, and eye-catching background.The use of the iconic Eddie, the setting, the richness and complexity, all amounts to it winning my top stop!

The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 15: 20-11

The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 14: 30-21


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 13: 40-31

 The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 12: 50-41

The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 11: 60-51


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 10: 70-61


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 9: 80-71


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 8: 90-81 


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 7: 110-101 


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 6: 120-111 


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 5: 130-121


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 4: 140-131 


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 3: 150-141


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 2: 160-151


The 175 Greatest Heavy Metal Album Covers of all Time Pt. 1: 175-16

12/03/2014

Death and Obituary- Live at Best Buy Theatre 11/30/14

 
Over on MetalSucks.com, I had entered a contest to see a death metal concert at the Best Buy Theater in NYC, featuring Death (AKA Death (DTA)) and Obituary. I really didn't think I would win. In fact, after a while, I had written it off completely. Then I got some great news last week, just when I could use some awesome news. I had fuckin won!! Woohoo!!! And, so on Nov. 30, 2014, a Sun night, I was off to the show.

First off was Obituary, the Tampa, FLA death metal legends, who have recently released their newest album, Inked in Blood, their best since Back from the Dead, I think. They played a couple off of that killer album as well as a couple of classicks from their back catalog, like "Chopped in Half" and "Slowly We Rot". I've been a huge fan of the band since college, when World Demise came out. They were the first death metal band that I ever got the complete discography of. As such, it was great to finally see them live!

And, man did they ever deliver!! They sound just as good live as they do on their albums!! The band was tight and brutal. They fucking tore up the stage. Meanwhile, signer John Trady, always one of my favorite death metal vocalists, had that fucking classic raspy growl of his at full throttle. He sounded awesome as hell. And, looked fucking cool with long as fuck hair. Obituary are must see live band, for fans of death metal, for sure!

 
 
 
 
 
 

But, then it was time for Death to come on. Now, as you probably know, Death are legends in the metal world. They are the world's first true death metal band. Founded by the late/ great Chuck Schuldiner, legendary guitarist and vocalist of the band, he would go on to become one of the most beloved and respected men in the history of extreme metal, if not metal in general. It was a truly sad moment in metal music, when he passed away, due to complications from his battle with brain cancer. Death are my favorite death metal band of all time. The current incarnation known as Death (DTA which stands for Death To All) tours in honor of his memory.

I had my doubts about how Death can play sans Chuck, by holy fuck did they ever deliver!! Props has to be given to the amazing band, including drum god Gene Hoglan. He is a monster on the drums!! This is second time that I have seen him play. Last time I saw him live was when he preformed with Testament. But, of course, you need a great frontman that has the balls and the talent to play and sign Chuck's stuff. That man was Max Phelps of Cynic, who most definitely delivered on all that was needed. He totally shredded on guitar and had the clear, growl style that made Chuck one of my all time favorite vocalists in extreme metal. This dude deserves all the props in the world!

They played music from all their albums, ripping through classics like "Open Casket", "Symbolic", "The Philosopher", "Zombie Ritual", and many more. The night ended with two final classicks in the form of "Crystal Mountain" and a KILLER performance of the masterful "Pull the Plug". And, all of this was done with loving tribute to Chuck, as we fans chanted his name all night. In the end, all this amounted to what was one of the most energetic, fun, and kick ass shows that I have been to all year long, and beyond. All hail Death! All hail Chuck!