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MY TOP 20 OF FEBRUARY 2024

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I only enjoyed February releases a little. Honestly, it was difficult to put the twenty into this list here. Some obvious favorites, but the rest of the calendar was mediocre. Even some albums that were praised by many, they didn't move me. I probably won't take many of the below releases with me through the year and that speaks clearly about how I feel. I don't really have a lot to say about February 2024. The month came and it's already gone.  I should mention that the list features some names/genres that usually don't appear on this blog. However you all know about my pretentious mainstream poser elitist taste, so here I am. I really enjoy a bit calmer tunes most lately, because of all of the tension at the Grinding wheel. Busy times indeed. That's why this list looks like one long mix tape. Oh well... So let's go through it. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do today. Cheers! SPECTRAL VOICE - Sparagmos Release date: 9 February Bandcamp SOLBRUD - IIII

MY TOP 20 OF JANUARY 2024

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The new year started with a kick in the ass. It's like 2023 never existed or everything merges in one big whole. The time is merciless. It is already the end of January and it is that time again when I usually post my favorite new releases of the respective month. January'24 could have been more inspiring, or after THAT 2023, now everything seems weaker? I do believe a lot of the below-listed albums are going to drown and I won't return much to them in the year. Still, few are going to be on my AOTY list.  What else? We have to be very grateful that in 2024 we have Saxon at full speed and they are releasing this good album. Naturally, it is my album of the month, closely followed by some very good UG releases. If you know, you know. If not, just check them and who's behind. I wanted to make the list with 20+1 albums so I didn't include a few more that I liked, but so what? They won't be missed dearly. Then, I believe if we look only at this point in time, withou

TOP 40 DOOM ALBUMS OF 2023

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  A genre that I am not usually into and not big in. You won't see most of these on my AOTY list. However, over the past two months, I listened to more doom/stoner/psych albums than I listened to in the past 4 years probably... Therefore this list comes now to remind me of my current flavors... It reflects how I feel about these albums, wondering about tomorrow. If I missed something important, let me know so I can catch up with... 1. Restless Spirit - Afterimage 2. Spirit Adrift - Ghost At The Gallows 3. Dozer - Drifting in the Endless Void 4. Marthe - Further In Evil 5. High Priest - Invocation 6. Hail the Void - Memento Mori 7. Church of Misery - Born Under a Mad Sign 8. Godthrymm - Distortions (Bonus Track Version) 9. Green Lung - This Heathen Land 10. Acid Magus - Hope Is Heavy 11. WALLOWING - Earth Reaper 12. Tribunal - The Weight of Remembrance 13. Wolfnaut - Return Of The Asteroid 14. Aiwass - The Falling 15. Graveyard - 6 16. Yawning Balch - Volume Two 17. Yawning Balch -

COUNT VLAD'S AOTY LIST OF 2023

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  The pretentious mainstream hipster elitist poser's AOTY list of 2023 is here. The ultimate list that makes them all lists. My favorite releases of the year 2023. It features everything that I enjoyed the most throughout this already-dead and-gone year.  When I was preparing this list I looked into all my notes, went through all the monthly lists that I published here and revisited quite a lot of albums. And I must admit that basically, everyone could have a spot in the AOTY lists. It has been a really crazy year - an enormous amount of releases, thousands of bands, and very good albums shortlisted. Literally, almost every band on Earth put out a new album! I already published My Top 50 Death Metal Albums of 2023 and My Top 50 Black Metal Albums of 2023 . Of course, there are some omissions, I realize this. The good news is that I can return to my monthly selections anytime and revisit the good ones. Every time I find a forgotten gem there. You should do the same.  While preparin

MY TOP 50 BLACK METAL ALBUMS OF 2023

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Awww, the nice peaceful inclusive and beautiful part of our favorite music - black metal. 😈 Of course for some time black metal is not what it was/is supposed to be. However, some monsters were released in 2023, trying to prove me wrong. To be honest, I am not sure what will be their staying power, but I enjoyed the below 52 - in this dying year now. (In my opinion for another year in a row Death Metal for instance is performing better). What did I miss? This is the eternal question valid for every list. Of course, if you want to go into details for every month of 2023, just go through the other articles. There is more BM available.  Naturaly, there are dAnGeRoUs and sKetChy bands in this list. What did you expect, ah? At the end of the day, it is my list and after almost 35 years spent with this music, I easily can spot the good and the bad MUSIC . And most of all I can listen to whatever I want . Get real.  So here is my selection of peaceful tunes to light up your Christmas. The bl

MY TOP 50 DEATH METAL ALBUMS OF 2023

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  There you go, another year dead. So what better way to start the celebrations than to list here my most favorite DEATH METAL albums of the year! It is a simple list that corresponds to the way the artworks are ordered on the collage. If you want to dig beyond this list, you can always go back month by month through my selections. You will find there more pretty damn good death metal too.  Death metal album of 2023? It is AFTERBIRTH's In But Not Of. 🔥🔥🔥 And below you can check the full list of those 50 albums. 💀💀💀 1. Afterbirth - In But Not Of ( Bandcamp ) 2. Sulphur Aeon - Seven Crowns & Seven Seals ( Bandcamp ) 3. FlesheR - Tales of Grotesque Demise ( Bandcamp ) 4. Dying Fetus - Make Them Beg for Death ( Bandcamp ) 5. Horrendous - Cult of Shaad'oah ( Bandcamp ) 6. Suffocation - Hymns From the Apocrypha ( Bandcamp ) 7. VoidCeremony - Threads Of Unknowing ( Bandcamp ) 8. GROTESQUERIES - Vile Crematory ( Bandcamp ) 9. Disguised Malignance - Malignant Visions ( Bandcam

MY TOP LIST OF NOVEMBER 2023

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This is the last monthly list of 2023. The ones that will follow will be my AOTY lists. Still hesitating whether to pull out a death metal list, a black metal list or an all-rounder AOTY list only. I have a couple of more weeks to figure it out. I think I already have it in my head, and the No.1 was clear when it was only announced for release last year... November was good. Some very nice albums were released that I liked a lot. I made the below shortlist out of too many albums released and listened to. I tried to be much more selective this time and to cut the edge to what really made a difference to me. This is how the present 20+2 list was done. It turned out to be a really HEAVY selection, to be honest. I'll take very few of these into my AOTY list probably. Not on very high positions, but still.  As always, this list is in no particular order. Suffocation kinda made it the album of the month for me, and all the rest I quite like. Enjoy and bang the head that doesn't bang!