September 2009 Best Heavy Metal CDs

Megadeth’s career arc has been on the rise the past few years, and Endgame cements the legendary thrash band’s current relevancy. Dave Mustaine never seems to run out of riffs or anger, and this CD is packed with both. “Dialectic Chaos” kicks off the album, a shredding instrumental setting the stage for what’s to come.

What follows are guitar heavy thrash tunes that are unmistakably Megadeth. Songs like “44 Minutes” and “This Day We Fight” are intense, groovy, catchy with multiple guitar solos. Along with the lyrics, the CD booklet even lists who does which solo, so you can keep up with Mustaine and new guitarist Chris Broderick’s dual guitar wizardry.

Where can you start when there is so much goodness crammed into less than an hour? Right at the beginning, with the powerful riff of “Chaos Calling.” “The Doom of Aceldama” reverts back slightly to Conqueror, but the strength is the strong’s minimalism; there are times of near silence where the band will let a stand-alone riff and staccato drumming tell the story.

Frontman Karl Simon likely wouldn’t call himself a gifted vocalist but there are levels of nuance an expression in his voice only hinted at earlier. While there are a few songs that stretch the ten-minute limit, Hymns Of Blood & Thunder is more compact than Conqueror, and Simon seems to flourish when working with co nventional song lengths.

Existence Is Futile is a blow of crippling velocity; one which is destined to send shockwaves and fallout amidst all those who hear it’s sickeningly savage sense of urgency. Seriously, this album is a riff-lovers wet dream, with the band’s vocalist and sole guitarist Dave Davidson tossing up enough dizzying fret-gymnastics on this one album to rival other, lesser acts’ entire discographies.

With such a perfect attack, Existence Is Futile seems destined to usher in—finally—a new breed of extreme metal: one which manages to sound current and vital, while still taking influence from the elder giants who came before them, treading the footsteps and paving the way.

Hatebreed kicks off with “Become The Fuse,” an anthemic rager that’s destined to become a staple of live shows. The album is packed with up-tempo, aggressive and cathartic tracks that are both intense and catchy. Jamey Jasta has a knack for writing lyrics that aren’t necessarily poetic or subtle, but are direct and instantly memorable.

However, Hatebreed shows more diversity on this CD than on their previous effort Supremacy. In addition to Jasta’s usual speaking/shouting style vocals, he also sings on songs such as “In Ashes They Will Reap” and “Every Lasting Scar.” He’s no Rob Halford, but Jasta’s singing fits the music just fine.

It’s been quite a while since a record honestly and truly scared me to death. The Dread Magnificence Of Perversity, fourth full length effort from the Dutch noise terrorist act known as Gnaw Their Tongues has done exactly that…which is no small feat.

This record is a difficult one, that’s for sure. On one hand, All The Dread Magnificence Of Perversity benefits from a high replay value, which is rare for something this aesthetically violent and loathsome. It’s almost as if Mories, the sole visionary behind Gnaw Their Tongues, is daring the listener to return to their nightmares over and over again, facing their fears and discovering new, fetid corridors within this sonic sewer.