Jon Sevastra's Top 10 Albums of 2005

Jon Sevastra’s Top 10 Albums of 2005

Music is my lifeblood and guides my mind and heart. This year has proven to be the most life-altering for me personally and these are the albums that made the year so memorable for me. Do I need to mention that these are all great musical works or could you surmise that from the fact that they are the best of the year? Yes, this is my first annual Top 10 and you should all pay very close attention. Ready? Good. Class is in session.

1.
Still RemainsOf Love and Lunacy

We should all be grateful for musicians who challenge us with their meanings and force us to relate what the songs mean to us. This is metalcore that stands out among the influx. This band is determined to make you take notice with their fresh new take on preceding aggressive music trends from across the board. Still Remains are the real deal folks! A powerful, crushing, and blindsiding kick in the teeth that feels so good you’ll thank them for the new gap. They’ll even leave a dollar under your pillow. Check out my review and read more about my number one pick for 2005.

2.
CopelandIn Motion

Mmmm, tasty. This album is so thick with feeling and emotion that I can taste it. The smoothness and sensual vocals make for a straight up good feeling album. Everyone has music in their life that they feel certain emotional ties too. Whether it was the lyrics, the music, or memories tied to the music. This CD dropped the week before I moved to NYC and changed my life forever. This album was in perpetual rotation and kept me grounded through the rough times. Besides that, the music is fantastical. Yeah, it’s good enough to use a made up word.

3.
RamallahKill a Celebrity

If you care about the state of the world and society as a whole, you need to listen to this album. If the state of the world right now isn’t enough to boil your blood, listening to this album will do it for you. In my many years as a hardcore fan, I’ve never had the poignancy of a hardcore song damn near drive me to tears, let alone two. “Just Walk Away” and “A Day In The Life” must be recognized! Regardless of the hardcore genre, I have never heard a more compelling and challenging entire record in my life. Read the rest of my review here.

4.
Pro-PainProphets of Doom

This is by far the best of Pro-Pain’s 10 studio releases. For these old schoolers who’ve meandered to the darkside of adulthood, meeting cries of criticism along the way, the need to prove themselves yet again burns deep within them. This fire has provoked them to script undoubtedly their most brutal and well honed album yet. I am very impressed by the production of this album and that might just be because every bit of the production was done by the band. Bottom line, Pro-Pain are one of the best hardcore metal bands that this country just seems to ignore. To any critics who still question Pro-Pain’s validity, I say come take a good hard listen to this hardcore masterpiece and then come and talk to me.

5.
BenzosMorning Stanzas

Benzos satiate a need for something new and original that is done well. We’ve all seen and heard attempts before and most of them leave much to be desired. This band simply has the talent to make it work. If you like to hear talented musicians push the envelope and expand their, and your, sense of aurally appealing music, this album will satisfy. There’s a little bit of everything for every taste. If you want to learn a little more about these up and comers, check out this review of the album and also read an interview I did with the singer.

6.
ChimairaChimaira

With their third release, Chimaira have really upped the ante in the bet saying that the new wave of American heavy metal is the next big thing. This is a complete reinvention of the band and with new blood fueling the fire, it sounds like they are part of the movement reinventing metal as we know it. The production is fierce and the epic song structure makes for a killer must have album.

7.
Mobius BandLoving Sound of Static

Laden with matured lyrical content and a beautifully crafted fresh sound, this album sets the stage for the next big, unfound, thing. This may be the sleeper album of the year in the elctro synth indie pop rockers genre that is bubbling up right now. There are no rules here but they make it sound right. This album will definitely grow on you. This trio earned its spot on my top 10 with their live performance. They might just be some of the most talented musicians I’ve seen live in a number of years. Check them out a little more in this review.

8.
Dropkick MurphysWarriors Code

I have always been a diehard Dropkicks fan. I’ve seen them live close to 10 times and met the band. But I have found that I’ve fallen victim to the old-school-fan syndrome. Don’t get me wrong, I love this album. I love every Dropkick Murphy’s album that comes out. But I have found that as the band gets bigger and bigger, I feel less and less connected. The music is great but there’s a different edge. It’s still DKM but with a slight TRL feel to it. If you haven’t heard these guys, you need to. But do yourself a favor and start at the beginning.

9.
Avenged SevenfoldCity of Evil

Welcome to controversy of a band who’s changed. For the droves of fans they earned with their second release, this musical revolution of A7X has caused a rift in the expectant masses. Singer M. Shadows has gone the Axl Rose route of scripting the bands future and I think it’s working. Set aside the fact their whole sound has changed at the expense of saving the singers moneymaker vocal chords, the album is fantastic. It is a stretch from their prior works but well worth the calisthenics. Now that the world is all too familiar with “Bat Country” it’s time for you all to get well acquainted with the rest of the album. Weighing in at 72 minutes, it’s a real heavy hitter.

10.
Nine Inch NailsWith Teeth

Being a diehard Nine Inch Nails fan for about 13 years, I am somewhat biased to any new NIN release. With the years of anticipation between each album, I think I get too hyped up for the new material. This album is not, in my very humble opinion, the best of Trent’s work but I do appreciate it for what it really is. This is the product of a changed man. Want to know how Trent and NIN have changed? Listen to the album and you surely find out.

Honorable Mentions:

Fear FactoryTransgression

Decent addition to their catalog but not a definitive release.

Agony SceneDarkest Red

Sheer, perfectly fierce deathmetalcore aggression brilliantly executed.

Sinai BeachImmersed

A sonic brew that incorporates the best of metal’s past, present and future combined with a hardcore-scene bred work ethic and an undeniably heartfelt spiritual conviction.

TriviumAscendancy

No metal collection can be considered complete without this very unique album.

BeckGuero

Guero feels like a retrospective album covering Beck’s past but gives a fresh updated flavor.

Jonathan Widro is the owner and founder of Inside Pulse. Over a decade ago he burst onto the scene with a pro-WCW reporting style that earned him the nickname WCWidro. Check him out on Twitter for mostly inane non sequiturs