Mass’ 2019 Albums Of The Year

Written by Mass

Album of the Year 2019 Ranking followed by the top 10 spotlight.

Rank	Band Name	Album Title	Country	Genre
50	Cult Of Luna	A Dawn To Fear	Sweden	Atmospheric Sludge
49	Pretty Maids	Undress Your Madness	Denmark	Hard rock – Heavy Metal
48	Abbath	Outstrider	Norway	Black Metal
47	Atrium Carceri And Cities Last Broadcast	Black Stage Of Night	USA – Sweden	Dark Ambient
46	Hate	Auric Gates of Veles	Poland	Blackened Death Metal
45	Joep Beving	Henosis	The Netherlands	Neo-classical – Ambient
44	Nurez	Sonnensterben	Germany	Atmospheric Black Metal – Progressive Black Metal
43	Wolcensmen	Fire In The White Stone	England	Dark Folk – Darkwave – Neo-folk
42	Helheim	Rignir	Norway	Viking Metal – Black Metal
41	Sleep Dealer	This Winter was Somber	Russia	Post Rock – Experimental
40	Carcariass	Planet Chaos	France	Progressive Melodic Death Metal
39	Ofdrykkja	Gryningsvisor	Germany	Atmospheric Black Metal – Black Metal – Doom Metal
38	The Elysian Fields	New World Misanthropia	Greece	Helenic Black Metal – Symphonic Blackened Death Metal
37	Crows in the Rain	Sorrow for an Unfinished Dream	Iran	Post Rock – Ambient
36	Numenorian	Adore	Canada	Post Black Metal – Blackgaze – Atmospheric Black Metal
35	Eternal Storm	Come the Tide	Spain – Scotland	Melodic Death Metal
34	Tenebra Arcana	Martiri dell’odio	Italy	Symphonic Black Metal
33	Brymir	Wings of Fire	Finland	Symphonic/Melodic Death Metal – Pagan Metal
32	Aukai	Reminiscence	USA	Ambient
31	Null	Lore of a Sleeping Forest	USA	Atmospheric Black Metal
30	Deer Park Ranger	Wolf	USA	Post Rock
29	White Ward	Love Exchange Failure	Ukraine	Experimental Metal – Post Black Metal – Avant-garde Metal
28	Hanging Garden	Into that Good Night	Finland	Melodic Doom Death Metal
27	Daigo Hanada	Ouka	Japan	Neoclassical – Ambient – Minimalist
26	Illyria	The Carpathian Summit	Australia	Atmospheric Black Metal -Blackgaze – Post Metal
25	Iapetus	The Body Cosmic	USA	Melodic Death Metal – Progressive Extreme Metal
24	Misery Index	Rituals Of Power	USA	Death Metal – Grindcore
23	Veldes	Flameless	Slovenia	Atmospheric Black Metal
22	Slow	VI Dantalion	Belgium	Atmospheric Funeral Doom Metal
21	Alaskan Tapes	Views From Sixteen Stories	Canada	Ambient – Chillout
20	Rotting Christ	The Heretics	Greece	Melodic Black Metal
19	Laveya	Fortvilelse	?	Ambient – Atmospheric Black Metal
18	The Hu	The Gereg	Mongolia	Folk Rock – Folk Metal – Hunnu RockFOLK ALBUM OF THE YEAR
17	Suldusk	Lunar Falls	Australia	Dark Folk – Neofolk – Post Rock – Atmospheric Black MetalDARK FOLK NEOFOLK ALBUM OF THE YEAR
16	Shadow Of Intent	Melancholy	USA	Symphonic/Melodic DeathcoreDEATH METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR
15	Ludovico Einaudi	Seven Days Walking Project (Day 1 – 7)	Italy	Neoclassical – Ambient – Minimalist
14	Netherbird	Into The Vast Uncharted	Sweden	Symphonic/Melodic Black Metal
13	Hugar	Varda	Iceland	Ambient – Post Rock – Neoclassical
12	Sabaton	The Great War	Sweden	Power MetalPOWER METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR
11	Vukari	Aevum	USA	Black Metal
10	April Rain	7 Summer Days Noir OST	Russia	Post Rock – AmbientPOST ROCK ALBUM OF THE YEAR
09	Amon Amarth	Berserker	Sweden	Melodic Death Metal
08	Sun of the Dying	The Earth Is Silent	Spain	Atmospheric Doom Metal – Doom Death Metal
07	Vorna	Sateet Palata Saavat	Finland	Melancholic Metal – Melodic Black Metal
06	Tyr	Hel	Faroe Islands	Viking Metal – Folk Metal – Progressive Metal
05	Wormwood	Nattarvet	Sweden	Melodic Black Metal
04	Death Angel	Humanicide	USA	Thrash Metal
03	Soen	Lotus	Sweden	Progressive Metal
02	Insomnium	Heart Like a Grave	Finland	Melodic Death Metal
01	Swallow the Sun	When a Shadow is Forced into the Night	Finland	Melodic Doom Death Metal

10. I am usually not a big fan of OST (official soundtrack) albums. I find them out of context and mostly lacking relevance; that would be even worse when I have not watched the film or played the game. This year however, we had some amazing soundtrack for movies and games which were released and made me have second thoughts. The Icelandic Hildur Guðnadóttir (Joker, Chernobyl) was the one who impressed me and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross did great on Watchmen. But it was this simple postrock band from Saint-Petersburg who even outperformed their previous and superb albums and created a piece so magnificent that even I, a big fan of them, was astonished. Truly a remarkable music album (and not just OST). POST ROCK ALBUM OF THE YEAR

09. It may have been uninspiring to some fans, but to me, it was Amon Freaking Amarth and it was damn cool. If it weren’t for this damn geographical determinism, I would have been a Viking and chanting songs along these guys on long boats drinking mead and raising shields and stuff, you know. So, I hugely enjoyed this album and that’s why it is this high on my list. 

08. Sun of the Dying was a big surprise for me. This year had gone pretty bland in the Doom domain and their album, which was released late in November, was a pleasant and gloomy gift for my winter. It is a pretty solid album where world class musicianship meets vocal prowess and lyrical ingenuity. DOOM METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR

07. Vorna was a band that I listened to actually after the year was through and it made things more challenging for me as I had to rearrange my picks of 2019 so I could fit this gem in. That’s how extraordinary this album was. It propelled its way right to the top 10 and without doubt, this band is one of those which I will return to and expect much of in the coming years. The Finnish beasts have done a great job on this album. 

06. Tyr has been a favorite since more than a decade ago. It was back in the 2008, 2009 that I discovered these Faroese Vikings and their progressive brand of melodic death which is filled with Viking lore and myths. I don’t know which came first: my love for Tyr the metal band or Tyr the ill-fated, self-sacrificing Norse god of war and justice. That is of no significance now as they both reside in the halls of the depths of my heart. VIKING METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR. 

05. This band was the major discovery of my year. Nattarvet is only Wormwood’s sophomore release and it has such an epic impact on the listener that it nothing grander can be expected. I mean this is a pinnacle just a few bands can reach; even veterans may not be able to produce such robust and haunting music. The musicianship is at its highest and lyricism is of aesthetic value indeed. BLACK METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR. 

04. Death Angel is my favorite American thrash metal band. Way higher than the so-called “big 4” and slightly above Testament, this band creates the brand of thrash I care much for. Humanicide is the best they have produced to date and it is a full-fledged thrash masterpiece with speedy riffs, bombastic drumming, uplifting soloes and ruthless vocals. THRASH ALBUM OF THE YEAR HANDS DOWN. 

03. Honestly I was rather disheartened when the first singles were released a few months before, but upon release and with a dramatic turn of events, it catapulted itself among the top albums of the year. The more I listened to this album, the more I learnt to enjoy it and the more I could appreciate its grandeur. It is profound, innovative, masterly, and in the meantime, immensely gratifying. PROGRESSIVE METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR 

02. Wow! Wow! Wow! I have listened to this album more than 20 or 30 times and I just can’t get enough of it. Insomnium has been one of my top 5 bands for more than a decade. Across the Dark was my serious gateway album to melodic death and ever since I have remained totally hooked on this genre and specifically this band. I cannot possibly say how contented I was after listening to this masterpiece. To tell you the truth, it was my AOTY up until maybe a few days ago and it would have been on the top spot, had it not been challenged by the next one on the list. It is a praiseworthy and heart-winning (if not award-winning; who cares about them anyway?) album which sweeps the listener off their feet and takes them to the frigid Fennoscandian dead-lands. Heart Like a Grave sits so high and mighty on a top shelf within my heart. MELODIC DEATH METAL ALBUM OF THE YEAR

01. When a Shadow is Forced into the Night is up here, situated on top with a minuscule margin of superiority over Heart Like a Grave, for two reasons: its enduring impactfulness and the appreciable undertone of grief underlying the whole album. I assume it was this level of sorrowfulness and the personal relevance I felt towards this work that made it stand atop the rest, not to mention the fact that I was still moved by every single track of this album even after about a year-long interlude between the last time I had listened to it last winter and this time, though it was always on my mind. They have always had an aura of loss and despair around them and they have used such motifs as the main subject matter of their lyrics and the message behind their music. This album, however, is on a higher plateau and is a true, invaluable gem of these Finnish gods of melodic doom. ALBUM OF THE YEAR