Record o’ the Month

Record(s) o’ the Month – September 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – September 2014

“Record(s) o’ the Month here at Angry Metal Guy can be tricky. This is partially because I hold on to the right to dictate them with an iron fist despite being busy, and partially because… no, that’s pretty much it. I’m a busy guy, Record(s) o’ the Month take time, and I refuse to let anyone else actually do them. You might wonder why, and I’ll tell you: are you aware of how many positive reviews Jørn Lande has gotten at AngryMetalGuy.com? I assure you, this hellhole of subjectivity we call “AMG” for short is a hive of gibbering Jørn fanboys-and-girls. It’s absurd, I know! But with that in mind it should be easy to understand how difficult it is be for me to relinquish control over the sacred Record o’ the Month post. Nay, certainly doing such a thing is a greater threat to the sanctity and continued credibility of Angry Metal Guy than most anything.” Will Angry Metal Guy maintain a shred of credibility, or will the Jørn apologists win again!?

Record(s) o’ the Month – August 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – August 2014

It’s that time again. Record(s) o’ the Month for August has been a most contentious process at the Angry Metal Guy offices. Fortunately, for those of us who happen to be the dictatorial owner of this website, the winner was obvious. But as I shredded the symbolic votes of my lovely, naïve staff of indentured servants, I was struck by what a good month August has been. This is the first month with two 5-star records ever on this website (I think), and that says something right there. Given that the rest of 2014 has been a tour of disappointment and dismay punctuated by a few pleasant, if sparse, surprises from bands no one’s heard of, it was nice that some established bands and rising stars releasing the records we expect of them. And while I can only choose one Record o’ the Month, we do runners-up for one reason: so that the winner knows who to direct their gloating at. However, a second reason could be because some months it’s pretty hard to choose and we want to recognize the things that we felt shone bright during the last month.

Record(s) o’ the Month – July 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – July 2014

What? It’s October already!? Just in time for the Record(s) o’ the Month, July edition! Now, you may be asking yourself “but did anything come out in July?” and the answer would be: “dude, do you even metal?” Hell yes it did. And we’re not even going to fuck around, we’re just going to jump right into the joy of bringing you the July’s best metal records (that we reviewed and also liked).

I’m tired.

Record(s) o’ the Month – June 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – June 2014

“Since we’re all busy people, I’ll cut to the chase. June was another big ass month for metal with a plethora of satisfying releases and one in particular that really bowled over multiple AMG staffers. Since that happens less than you might think, eyebrows were raised, fingers were pointed and notes were furiously scribbled.”

Record(s) o’ the Month – May 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – May 2014

“May was a pretty righteous month for metal with many legitimate nominees for Album o’ the Month. There were at least six albums that could have taken the honor without triggering rioting in the streets and cries for reform. As responsible adults, we opted for a fair and democratic selection process (i.e. authoritarian decree from AMG and angry complaining by the underlings) and lo and behold, decisions were made!”

Record(s) o’ the Month – April 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – April 2014

“Just in time for the Record(s) o’ the Month for May, we proudly present the Record(s) o’ the Month for April! And here you thought that beige background would NEVER go away! April was an interesting month in music, with a whole bunch of quality “extreme” albums dropping. Even so, there was much less staff infighting this time to determine what the big burrito was.” You say burrito, we say this is a bit late.

Record(s) o’ the Month – March 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – March 2014

Oh shit! Record(s) o’ the Month for March are only running a couple weeks late. You know, when I wrote that post about how this year “might” be a bit of a rough year for music reviewing for Ye Olde Angrye Metale Guye, I wasn’t fucking wrong. It hasn’t been rough. It’s been brutal. I am up to my fucking neck in shit to do, and most of that doesn’t involve “listening to heavy metal” or “telling the Internet why it’s wrong about the new _insert band_ record.” So, be glad that I am even taking the time to deign give you my now extraordinarily expensive, state-funded time. Because, when the Swedish state isn’t paying me to produce research that helps us better understand the world, I should be drinking beer, getting laid, playing video games, or watching sports. But no, here I am writing a Record(s) o’ the Month post for AngryMetalGuy.com. Show me your thanks via Flattr, people. We need to move hosts soon.

And without further ado…

Record(s) o’ the Month – February 2014

Record(s) o’ the Month – February 2014

“I think we can all admit January was a less than spectacular month for metal. There were some solid albums, but no big, slobberknocking titans of terror. Lest we fear 2014 would be another off year, February came and kicked our collective asses with one huge release after another. This naturally led to internal strife at AMG over what album deserved the top spot and let’s just say, tempers flared and dishes were thrown (I’ve long been an advocate of removing all dishes from the AMG office). Now that decisions have been made, china has been broken and feelings bruised, we deliver to you the sweet, tangy fruits of our labor.”

Records o’ the Month – January 2014

Records o’ the Month – January 2014

If it’s late February, it must be time for the Records o’ the Month for January! Yep, new year, same dawdling around with the Records o’ the Month. You see, when you listen to music as hard as we do at AMG, sometimes it takes a while to recover and reflect on all the things we heard. Other times we’re just busy, but mostly we suffer from the fourth deadly sin (look it up or go watch Seven).

Record(s) o’ the Month – November 2013

Record(s) o’ the Month – November 2013

“Since you’ve already been gifted with end of 2013 lists from the AMG staff and know exactly where we stand on the year in music, hopefully you’ll all be too pacified and complacent to notice how late this post is. Though the back end of 2013 was awash with quality releases, November saw that flow reduced to a trickle as the record industry began to wind things down for the year. That said, there were some bright spots that deserved attention and recognition, and in the interest of being complete and meeting the expectations of our ever demanding readers, we present the Records o’ the Month for November.”