Favorite Release this year so far, 2008?

O M G !

this albums is F a n t a s t i c ! recommended. :hails:
JEFF LOOMIS's solo work.

i've never heard any style as this is. i always wanted hear how does it feel to listen only guitars of Metal music wout singing. and that's it !
sound great, this is something new for me.

have you know more this style of music ?

Another great Thrash release for 08, Warpath-Damnation.

I've spent an absurd amount of time, energy and thought on this list. Here it is:

1)Avantasia - The Scarecrow - It was hard to not make this #1. This is brilliant. So much talent collected and used with skill. Jorn's best vocals ever.

2)Theocracy - Mirror Of Souls - 3rd biggest surprise of 2008. Amazing!! So catchy!! So well done!!

3)Saint Deamon - In Shadows Lost From The Brave - Perfect. Everything about this is perfect. This could have been #1 as well. This is a Pelata suggestion.

4)Crom - Vengeance - 2nd biggest surprise of 2008. Never even heard of them. Haunting Epic/Viking/Pagan stuff.

5)Dreamtide - Dream And Deliver - Super smooth and melodic. Never heard of them either.

6)Falconer - Among Beggars and Thieves - Typically stellar release. They don't disappoint.

7)Rage - Carved In Stone - A big surprise. I liked Speak Of The Dead, I love this.

Whitesnake - Good To Be Bad - Great comeback. So many good songs.

9)Metallica - Death Magnetic - Another great comeback. Surprise #4.

10)Edguy - Tinnitus Sanctus - Very melodic & catchy. Just good, good stuff. Not super fast powermetal of old.

11)Once Dead - Visions Of Hell - Another big surprise. Brutal with a great sound. I like Thrash like this.

12)Sabaton - The Art Of War - Unique and super catchy Powermetal

13)Firewind - The Premonition - They can't make a bad alubm. Melodic and catchy.

14)Testament - The Formation of Damnation - First 6-7 songs amazing. Speedy, melodic and good vocals. Great Thrash!

15)Tesla - Forever More - What a great comeback.

16)Cain's Dinasty - Legacy Of Blood - My #1 Surprise of 2008. Got this in a trade. Never expected such good Powermetal for a first time album.

17)The Sword - Gods Of The Earth - Awesome heavy metal (Stoner?). Nice fat riffs.

18)Templar - Preaching To The Preverted - Very unique. Great sound. A big surprise.

19)Lonewolf - Made In Hell - Surprisingly good rough German Powermetal

20)Pyramaze - Immortal - This could/probably would be higher with more time. Blasphemy alert! Best thing Barlow's ever done.

21)Battlelore - The Last Alliance - Very good female fronted/beauty and the beast vocals Viking/Pagan metal.

22)Pharaoh - Be Gone - One of my recent favorite bands. With time this could rise higher. It's very good traditional heavy metal.

23)Saint - Crime Scene Earth - My first Saint. I was pleasantly surprised. More Kramer!

24)House Of Lords - Come to My Kingdom - Could be higher, but very good & well done. I actually expected this to be higher with the good reviews. Time might tell.

25)Brainstorm - Downburst - So hard to follow one of my favorite metal albums of all time - Liquid Monster - but this is still a good album.


That's always hard. The top-5 could all have been mixed around, but Theocracy made me say "Wow!" the most.

Then the middle area 11-20 is sort of a crap shoot.

These are the rest of my 2008 thoughts:

Martyr's Shrine - S/T - Closest to Top-25 that didn't make it.

Warbringer - War Without End - Next closest to Top-25 that didn't make it.

Dragonforce - Ultra Beatdown - I like it and it's solid, but just not enough wow factor for top-25

Wolf's Moon - Unholy Darkness - This was also hard to leave off the list. This would probably get there in a different year. SO many great albums in 2008. This is very good traditional heavy metal.

Alestorm - Capatain Morgan's Revenge - Great ideas and great music, but the vocals are flat and don't carry their own weight.

Holy Blood - The Patriot - Not a bad album, but not striking.

Becoming The Archetype - Dichotomy - Not enough time to absorb this. Also, hard to match against the brilliant Terminate Damnation.

Stormwarrior - Heading Northe - Some GREAT songs, and then some so-so ones.

Blessed By A Broken Heart - Pedal To The Metal - This belongs to my kiddo - but I like it too. Good, catchy music...but I only like small doses.

Sencirow - The Nightmare Within - Power/Thrash that could have contended with more time OR with a couple songs that get stuck in my head. In any case, very good and speedy metal.

Driver - Sons Of Thunder - This is good, but out of the top-25 based on it just lacking that little something. All of RR's solo, Warrior, his Impellitteri and other stuff are better to me. This is good, but not his best.

Lordi - Deadache - Another one that belongs to my kiddo. Good and catchy, but not up to The Arocalypse.

Dark Empire - Humanity Dethroned - Disappointment #4. Their incredible EP - Distant Tides - had me pumped. This isn't bad, but it's inconsistant and I expected more.

Battleroar - To Death And Beyond - decent Traditional heavy metal.

Evergrey - Torn - My #2 disappointment for 2008. I love MMA so much, I was bummed this didn't stick.


Special category:

Deliverance - Weapons Of Our Warfare (re-issue). Doesn't count for 2008.
Deliverance - Deliverance (same story)

Thrash Clash - Vol 1,2,3,4 - Interesting two band Thrash comps with killer artwork, but not in the running for top-25 consideration. Vol. 4 was my disappointment #4. I'd been loving this series, but the lyrics of Vol. 4 are so pervasively Satan drenched that I can't listen to it. Oh, well.


Iced Earth - Crucible Of Man - Listened twice - SOLD. My #3 disappointment of 2008.

I gotta agree with your assessment of the new Iced Earth.

I understand now why you sold it to me.



I'd add the new Lordi to my disappointment list as well. I'm currently spinning Monsterican Dream and the songwriting on this is so much better than Deadache IMO.

And I think the new Edguy sucks! These songs just aren't memorable at all for me. The first couple are decent but after that...more

That Crom bored me too after 3 or 4 songs.

On the positive side, the new Sabaton is high on my list for 2008 as are Theocracy and Firewind.

I'd also add Lechery and Gemini 5 to my list of Best Ofs for 2008

tohostudios wrote:

I gotta agree with your assessment of the new Iced Earth.

I understand now why you sold it to me.

I listened to this album twice today as I travelled through Chicago in crap conditions from last night's snowfall, and I must also agree with the two of you, this album just isn't very good. I'm trying to get into it, and I just can't, with the exception of three/four songs.

Quote :

That Crom bored me two after 3 or 4 songs.

Sorry to hear that. I love that album.

The new Theocracy seems to be faring well on everyone's lists on all the boards I visit.

Now we have to come up with the best ones from 2008 and do a new post for the albums for 2009

This year could be better than 2008. So far I know albums from
heaven and hell, saxon, ultimatum, tankard, and kreator.

2008 got me a huge list of must have.

So far these are the albums that I can mention

Whitesnake - Good To Be Bad
ac/dc - black ice
Theocracy - Mirror Of Souls
Ayreon - 01011001
Driver - Sons Of Thunder
Testament - The Formation of Damnation
motorhead - motorizer
journey - revelation
deliverance re-releases

Alice Cooper-Along Came A Spider
Judas Priest-Nostradamus
Metallica-Death Magnetic
Jesse James Dupree and Dixie Inc.-Rev It Up And Go Go
Sevendust-Chapter 7: Hope and Sorrow
Motorhead-Motorizer
Whitesnake-Good To Be Bad

what about JOP- Global Warning? I loved it