Top 10 albums of 2009 - Lucas Aykroyd

by Lucas Aykroyd on December 9th, 2009 at 4:45 PM

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I had a great 2009, which may put me out of step with the Zeitgeist. Keep that in mind if you seek a deeper meaning in this often sunny, often Scandinavian hard-rock and metal list. In the immortal words of April Wine, it means I like to rock.

Leverage
Circus Colossus
Cinematic in its ambition (“Movie Gods”) and epic in its realization (“Wolf and the Moon”), this Finnish sextet’s third album delivers prog-tinged, synth-blessed heavy rock at its finest. If anyone penned a more inspirational anthem than guitarist-songwriter Tuomas Heikkinen’s “Rider of Storm” this year, I’d like to hear it.

Leverage's "Rider Of Storm".

HammerFall
No Sacrifice, No Victory
Like hockey’s Sedin twins, the Swedish power-metal songwriting duo of axeman Oscar Dronjak and vocalist Joacim Cans delivers pure chemistry year after year, not always lauded, but always reliable. Seven albums in, HammerFall still brings a knack for optimistic, defiant sing-alongs (“Life Is Now”), ultra-catchy riffs (“Punish and Enslave”), and colourful covers (“My Sharona”).

HammerFall's "No Sacrifice No Victory".

Amorphis
Skyforger
From the folkloric reveries of “Highest Star” to the soaring cadences of “Course of Fate”, the 20-year metal veterans rhapsodize and roar their way with style through the follow-up to 2007’s Silent Waters. Lyrically, it’s great PR for Ilmarinen, the creator-blacksmith of Finnish legend.

Amorphis' "Sky Is Mine".

W.E.T.
W.E.T.
Ex–Yngwie Malmsteen singer Jeff Scott Soto rebounds nicely here after getting fired from his retirement-fund gig fronting Journey. His cascading-waterfall vocals propel this brand-new trio’s glistening, ’80s-style hard rockers like “One Love” and “Invincible”.

W.E.T.'s "One Love".

3 Inches of Blood
Here Waits Thy Doom
When Cam Pipes shrieks in his Rob Halford–esque falsetto, “Beware the preacher’s daughter,” you wonder if it’s about a night of passion gone wrong in Abbotsford. The Vancouver metal traditionalists unapologetically ram out ’70s chord changes and humorous D&D lyrics on an album that’s a grower.

3 Inches of Blood's "Rock In Hell".

Stratovarius
Polaris
A return to classic form for Finnish power metal’s most enduring institution. Long-time songwriter Timo Tolkki is gone, but the operatic vocals of Timo Kotipelto and helter-skelter fills of drummer Jí¶rg Michael are showcased here in their dramatic, wintry glory.

Stratovarius' "Falling Star".

Europe
Last Look at Eden
Nobody dubbed Europe environmental crusaders when they released “The Final Countdown” in their hair-spray heyday, but this month they rocked the UN climate-change summit. Evidently, the modern-yet-gripping pop bombast on their third reunion album since ’04 isn’t depleting their credibility.

Europe's "New Love in Town".

Echoes of Eternity
As Shadows Burn
As Shadows Burn is even bigger and bolder than the female-fronted, L.A.–based melodic metal quintet’s 2007 debut, The Forgotten Goddess. Pumped-up production enhances drummer Kirk Carrison’s intricately thrashy beats, while Francine Boucher warbles mythic lyrics in full-bodied splendour.

Echoes of Eternity's "Ten Of Swords".

KISS
Sonic Boom
Apparently, shamelessly revisiting your old sound and rehashing ’80s demos can result in your hookiest album, track for track, in more than 25 years. Eddie Van Halen, are you paying attention?

KISS' "Sonic Boom" (samples).

Lynch Mob
Smoke and Mirrors
Former Dokken riffmonger George Lynch stages a guitar clinic with his solo band’s first all-original studio album since 1999’s rap-metal experiment Smoke This. Capable of pleasing Deep Purple and Gary Moore fans alike, and featuring the return of original belter Oni Logan, this 13-track outing is even more surprising in its success than the new KISS.

Lynch Mob's "Smoke and Mirrors".