The year is finishing and is time of reviewing all the good music. What are your favourite metal albums of 2007?

Some favourites of mine are:

Victory Songs - Ensiferum

What's in Your Head - Diamond Head

The Inner Sanctum - Saxon

Gambling with the devil - Helloween

Clay People, Waking the Dead

Tristania, Illumination

Sirenia, Nine Destinies and a Downfall

Within Temptation, Heart of Everything

Dream Theater, Systematic Chaos

Therion, Gothic Kabbalah

Virgin Black, Requiem: Mezzo Forte

Still need to hear and/or obtain (I.E. "contenders"...I suspect):

Nightwish, Dark Passion Play

November's Doom, Novella Reservoir

Paradise Lost, In Requiem

Samael, Solar Soul

Dark Tranquility, Fiction

Mnemic, Passenger

Amorphis, Silent Waters

...the usual qualifications -- I have by no means heard all metal titles, so leave open the ability to add to and/or change my list for years to come.

A preliminary top ten list:

1 ) Symphony X - Paradise Lost

2 ) Therion - Gothic Kabbalah

3 ) Nightwish - Dark Passion Play

4 ) Allen/Lande - The Revenge

5 ) Dark Tranquillity - Fiction

6 ) Devin Townsend - Ziltoid the Omniscient

7 ) Helloween - Gamling with the Devil

8 ) Threshold - Dead Reckoning

9 ) Vision Divine - The 25th Hour

10 ) Gamma Ray - Land of the Free II

And the two albums whose crappiness really pissed me off:

Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos

Iced Earth - Framing Armageddon

I thought Nightwish's Dark Passion Play could have been better. Not exactly disappointing, it was still good, but I'd rate Epica's The Divine Conspiracy which came out around the same time higher. I'd suggest Lacuna Coil's Karmacode too although it seems it was just a 2006 album I was late discovering. I've certainly not heard a lot of metal this year but I think I'll be checking out those mentioned in this thread.

And the two albums whose crappiness really pissed me off:

Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos

Iced Earth - Framing Armageddon

didn't feel the new DT huh?

Hmmm, FWIW I've never been particularly obsessed with Tarja, it's always been Tuomas' great sense of melody and songwriting that has attracted me to Nightwish. And I think this album is his best yet in that regard. Not to say that Tarja probably isn't a better singer, but I'll generally take better songs over a better singer, assuming both are competent and expressive. I've got that Epica album, I just haven't found a listen for it yet...

I did not feel Paradise Lost along with Systematic Chaos. They got some nice remixing of the old stuff there really, nothing new.

didn't feel the new DT huh?

Not really. It's sad, but quite factual. And aside from a few listens when I first got it, I really haven't felt compelled to waste much time on it. Really sad, considering how much I like a lot of what they've done. BTW you can read a short review of it that I wrote if you scroll down a bit on this page.

Not really. It's sad, but quite factual. And aside from a few listens when I first got it, I really haven't felt compelled to waste much time on it. Really sad, considering how much I like a lot of what they've done. BTW you can read a short review of it that I wrote if you scroll down a bit on this page.

your thoughts pretty much echo mine, although i've felt that the album is pretty good overall. i liked how they got back to the guitar solos and extended melodies, which i felt was lost on 8varium.

Hmmm, FWIW I've never been particularly obsessed with Tarja, it's always been Tuomas' great sense of melody and songwriting that has attracted me to Nightwish. And I think this album is his best yet in that regard. Not to say that Tarja probably isn't a better singer, but I'll generally take better songs over a better singer, assuming both are competent and expressive. I've got that Epica album, I just haven't found a listen for it yet...

Yes, there's certainly nothing wrong with Annette Olson's vocals. She probably isn't as technically as good as Tarja's, her voice seems more that of a soubrette soprano, but I liked it. Some Nightwish fans are being a bit harsh on her I think. For me I just didn't find the album really stood out in any way. It is possible it will grow on me though as it took a while for me to really appreciate and enjoy "Once" as well.

I did not feel Paradise Lost along with Systematic Chaos. They got some nice remixing of the old stuff there really, nothing new.

Hmm, see I'm not the type to really care if a band puts out something new sounding every time (as evidenced by having bands like Iron Maiden and Running Wild amongst my favorites). So long as it's exciting/compelling, and not completely derivative, I'm in for the ride. And Paradise Lost is a face-melter in my book. I would say I prefer the more melodic side of SX, but the heavy side seen on most of PL and a good chunk of the Odyssey is pretty nice too.

Hmm, see I'm not the type to really care if a band puts out something new sounding every time (as evidenced by having bands like Iron Maiden and Running Wild amongst my favorites). So long as it's exciting/compelling, and not completely derivative, I'm in for the ride. And Paradise Lost is a face-melter in my book. I would say I prefer the more melodic side of SX, but the heavy side seen on most of PL and a good chunk of the Odyssey is pretty nice too.

Well then I am not sure how you evaluated Dark Eternal Night. Annoying vocals Labrie's may be, but the riffing on that thing is monstrous.

Edit: saw link to your review.

...I'd rate Epica's The Divine Conspiracy which came out around the same time higher...

Yeah, see, there's already one I missed, and that one definitely ranks pretty highly on my list.

I'll add Devin to my must-hear list -- I like pretty much everything he's associated with (self, Vai, SYL, etc.).

Yeah, see, there's already one I missed, and that one definitely ranks pretty highly on my list.

I'll add Devin to my must-hear list -- I like pretty much everything he's associated with (self, Vai, SYL, etc.).

Devin's stuff is much closer to SYL, but alot more 'epic' in a sense.

Devin's stuff is much closer to SYL, but alot more 'epic' in a sense.

I meant the new one. I'm familiar with his older material, and would agree with your assessment.

I meant the new one. I'm familiar with his older material, and would agree with your assessment.

Oh hm...ya I'll get around to that sometime too...

top honors:

Portal - Outre

Reverend Bizarre - III: So Long Suckers

Elend - A World in Their Screams

decent, some good ideas:

Root - Daemon Viam Invenient

Semargl - Manifest

Sear Bliss - The Arcane Odyssey

The Angelic Process - Weighing Souls With Sand

Grayceon - Grayceon

flops that are still way better than dream theater:

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - In Glorious Times

Deathspell Omega - Fas...

Wotanorden - Aryan Culture Preservation

Darkthrone - F.O.A.D. (just for the cover, really)

still need to hear the new Graveland. iirc, Beherit are reforming. haven't heard the new Immolation enough to judge it. Still need to hear the new Nest, Primordial, M?tiilation, Peste Noire, and Master releases. looking forward to Ildjarn Is Dead coming in the mail.

lots of stuff to sift through, considering i'm still recovering from a harddrive crash.

I've been listening to some of the albums mentioned here. Therion - Gothic Kabbalah (great album), Symphony X - Paradise Lost and Nightwish - Dark Passion Play are my favourites. The last one surprised me because I'm not a big fan of Nightwish at all

You should also try: Epica, Sirenia, Within Temptation, and Lacrimosa (LichtJahre, albeit a live album, did come out in 2007, though I haven't heard it yet).

The Roundhouse Tapes (Opeth) is one of the better live albums I've heard recently.

-edit- looks like I go for a bit different variety of metal than most here...couple bands I haven't heard of, either

I don't think I purchased much new metal this year (I have a lot of great stuff from '06, though), but I do have some decent stuff:

Between the Buried and Me - Colors (one of my favorite bands, has to be mentioned )

Total Fucking Destruction - Zen and the Art of Total Fucking Destruction (i want more from these guys, now!)

Despised Icon - The Ills of Modern Man

Psyopus - Our Puzzling Encounters Considered

The Chariot - The Fiancee (i couldn't get this cd out of my player for months)

Heavy Heavy Low Low - Everything's Watched, Everyone's Watching

Ion Dissonance - Minus the Herd

My Bitter End - The Renovation

Between the Buried and Me - Colors (one of my favorite bands, has to be mentioned )

Total Fucking Destruction - Zen and the Art of Total Fucking Destruction (i want more from these guys, now!)

Despised Icon - The Ills of Modern Man

Psyopus - Our Puzzling Encounters Considered

The Chariot - The Fiancee (i couldn't get this cd out of my player for months)

Heavy Heavy Low Low - Everything's Watched, Everyone's Watching

Ion Dissonance - Minus the Herd

My Bitter End - The Renovation

Can you describe some of these? I've not heard of a single one of them.

Sure, I'll describe them in broad terms, and I can describe any in more detail if anyone is interested.

BtBaM, Despised Icon, Psyopus, My Bitter End, and Ion Dissonance are all part of a sub-genre mostly called death-core (one of my favorite genres of music, though it's often attacked by other metal purists), which I would describe as a mix between death metal, hardcore/metalcore, and often some grind or math thrown in.

Total Fucking Destruction and Heavy Heavy Low Low are both variations of grind, mostly. Total Fucking Destruction has 3 or 4 acoustic tracks on their CD, and I've been trying to find other stuff like it because I love it.

The Chariot is metalcore, I guess, but I like it.

Some of my favorite new albums for the year:

Epica - Divine Conspiracy

Samael - Solar Soul

Lacrimosa - Lichtjahre

Sirenia - Nine Destinies and a Downfall

Tristania - Illumination

Visions of Atlantis - Trinity

Dimmu Borgir - In Sorte Diaboli

After Forever - After Forever

Battlelore - Evernight

Can you describe some of these? I've not heard of a single one of them.

loud and unremarkable.