Welcome to Part 2 of my list of the year’s most infectious extreme metal songs. Each day (more or less) until the list is finished, I’m posting at least two songs that made the cut. For more details about what this list is all about and how it was compiled, read the introductory post via this link. To see the selections that preceded the two I’m announcing today, click here.
VREID
Vreid’s 2013 album Welcome Farewell made Andy Synn’s list of the year’s Great Albums as well as his Personal Top 10. It was one of my favorites as well. In Andy’s words: “This is music that deserves to be conquering arenas around the world. Still black as pitch, but with song-writing that goes above and beyond the call of duty, it grooves with grim intent, soars with bleak majesty, and blasts away with freezing, fractured ferocity. Insidiously catchy and ruthlessly aggressive, it thunders away with perfectly focussed, primal force.”
“The Reap” is the catchiest song on Welcome Farewell, and one of the most infectious of the year in my humble opinion. And it was also the subject of one of the year’s best music videos, animated by the wonderful Kim Holm. Enjoy it all over again next, as we add “The Reap” to this list.
ROTTING CHRIST
Rotting Christ’s 2013 album Κατά τον δαίμονα εαυτού (“True To His Own Spirit”), which we reviewed here, has also appeared on its fair share of year-end lists at NCS. It represents a shift from the more esoteric, more folk-oriented patterns evident on its predecessor Aealo. While it would go too far to say that it’s a return to the sound of Non Serviam or even Theogonia, it does feel heavier, sharper, more aggressive, more driven, more wrapped in a black metal aesthetic.
Perhaps no song on the album triggers this feeling more than “Grandis Spiritus Diavolos”, and no song will give your neck quite as good a workout. Its bombastic, repeating riffs compel headbanging, and unless you’re wound too tight, you’ll want to join in the chant as well. It may not be the best song on the album, but it’s one hell of an infectious track, and deserving of a place on this list.
9 Responses to “OUR LIST OF 2013’S MOST INFECTIOUS EXTREME METAL SONGS: PART 2”
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saw Vried play in Oslo this summer. Their energy onstage is so incredible and all the songs on this album are catchy as hell. Good choice!
For some reason beyond the realm of stupidity, I have not bought nor listened through that new Rotting Christ album. I really need to do that.
Vreid’s a nice ditty too.
Yeah seriously, almost the whole album is rocking tunes like this one. I can’t believe this was my first introduction to Rotting Christ; after hearing the pre-release tracks I immediately bought their previous one Aealo while waiting for this album to drop, but still need to go back further.
“The Reap” is a good song, right choice!
“The Reap” is pretty awesome, good pick!
The Reap made it to my list as well, but I chose In Yumen-Xibalba from RC’s new album!
Yumen-Xibalba was the other one I thought hard about — though in earlier stages I had 2 other tracks from the album on my list of candidates too.
That would have been my choice too, mainly because of the heavy play it got on SonicTap.
“The Reap” is easily one of the best songs of the year. Excellent choice. I just started listening to the Rotting Christ track and realized I was already tapping my fingers on my laptop about a minute in. I am certainly looking forward to the rest of this list again.