Underrated albums?

[nack_]

Veles - Night on the Bare Mountain. I don't really see much mention of it around, great album surging with spirit.

[Stranger]

Mortems' "Decomposed by Possesion" is the best metal album to have come out of South America. It's not the most influential album as it's an older release, but it's basically the culmination of all that is good from the South American scene. It's a pretty underrated album as well. Only Prozak and a few others have reviews on the album.

Not surprisingly, many underrated albums are from outside the U.S. and Europe. I will add the following:

Cenotaph - Riding our Black Oceans, Epic Rites
All releases from The Chasm
Xibalba - Ah Dzam Poop Ek

[FIAT]

I liked "Gloomy Reflections of Our Hidden Sorrows" the best from Cenotaph.

[death]

In my opinion Ophiolatry's Anti-Evangelistic Process is the best metal output from Brazil and one of the best modern Death Metal albums, continuing where Deicide left off with Legion. To my knowledge Repulsion isn't that well known either, although together with Terrorizer they're probably the only grind bands worth listening to (although if there are more bands like them, I'd like to hear of them).  

[Apostate]

Mortems' "Decomposed by Possesion" is the best metal album to have come out of South America. It's not the most influential album as it's an older release, but it's basically the culmination of all that is good from the South American scene. It's a pretty underrated album as well. Only Prozak and a few others have reviews on the album.

Not surprisingly, many underrated albums are from outside the U.S. and Europe. I will add the following:

Cenotaph - Riding our Black Oceans, Epic Rites
All releases from The Chasm
Xibalba - Ah Dzam Poop Ek
 

ALL HAIL MORTEM! Terrific band that plays high quality Death metal.

[FIAT]

Mortem's great. Who has heard their new album?

[Big Cock Beelzebub]

Mm, I should check out Mortem. Ophiolatry are quite cool, I can't say I rate them that highly. Cenotaph are rather good, but each of their albums seems flawed in one way or another which just about keeps it below the level required to keep me really interested.

[FIAT]

Mm, I should check out Mortem. Ophiolatry are quite cool, I can't say I rate them that highly. Cenotaph are rather good, but each of their albums seems flawed in one way or another which just about keeps it below the level required to keep me really interested.

You definitely should check out Mortem. They've been playing classic death metal since the mid-eighties, and each time they put out a new album--the first of which came out in 1996--they rerecord some of their early demo material. If I'm not mistaken, I believe with this newest release they've now put all of their back catalogue demo material to disc. In any case the band is highly recommended.

I agree with your critique of Centotaph. Their first full-length album was their best, even if it was a bit disjointed at times. After subsequently dabbling in melodic metal they declined a bit.

[ray ban]

I've always found Mortem to be pretty fucking boring. However, I only speak from knowledge of Decomposed By Possession. I'd be open to hearing their earlier material.

I think my main contribution this evening to this thread will have to be Vile - Depopulate. Beautifully intricate crushing new school Death Metal. Almost never hear it mentioned. This album succeeds where their first album failed.

As always, thanks Apostate for gracing us with your unparalelled metal knowledge and highly refined taste.

Updated list:

Mortal Decay - Sickening Erotic Fanaticism, Forensic
Throne of Ahaz - Nifelheim
Eucharist - A Velvet Creation
Monstrosity - Millennium
Adramelech
Vile - Depopulate

and... tell me what you think about these:

Alghazanth - Thy Aeons Envenomed Sanity
Birkenau - In The Falling Snow
Obtained Enslavement -  Centuries Of Sorrow, Witchcraft, Soulblight
Varathron - Walpurgisnacht
Valar - Magic And Wyrmfire
Weltmacht - And To Every Beast Its Prey
Blut Aus Nord - Mystical Beast Of Rebellion, The Work Which Transforms God
Ohtar - Woodland Desolation
Belketre - Ambre Zuetki Vuordravartre
Arcturus - Aspera Hiems Symfonia
Axis Of Advance - Strike
Brutal Truth - Need To Control
Dub Buk - Misyac Pomsty
Finntroll - Midnattens Widunder
Forest - Like A Blaze Above The Ashes

just some random stuff off the top of my head.

[fraction]

Arcturus do leave a taste of that kind of (musical) stance look-we-are-playing-"abstract"-stuff aka "avantguarde", which puts me off. Music that doesn't say sth. without essence to it - to me at least.

Of most others there I know the names but no idea. Varathron are boring.

Sort Vokter's Folkloric Necro Metal would be an underrated album, although not here.

[FIAT]

I've always found Mortem to be pretty fucking boring. However, I only speak from knowledge of Decomposed By Possession. I'd be open to hearing their earlier material.

The earlier the better for Mortem; "Demon Tales" is easily their best I'd say.

Varathron - Walpurgisnacht
 Axis Of Advance - Strike

I love all of Varathron's material from their first decade of activity, so that one's recommended--great doomy, heavy metal influnced black metal. Their earliest material is actually death metal, and is quite interesting for comparison.

Axis of Advance have proven themselves to be stalwarts over a relatively short period of time. The principle of chronological entropy still holds, however, and this is probably their best album.

[Apostate]

The earlier the better for Mortem; "Demon Tales" is easily their best I'd say.


I love all of Varathron's material from their first decade of activity, so that one's recommended--great doomy, heavy metal influnced black metal. Their earliest material is actually death metal, and is quite interesting for comparison.

Axis of Advance have proven themselves to be stalwarts over a relatively short period of time. The principle of chronological entropy still holds, however, and this is probably their best album.

Agreed on all points. You have excellent taste. Unfortunately, Axis of Advance come across as ignorant, ridiculously obtuse meatheads in their recent intervciew with Psicoterror magazine. I regretted reading that interview, as it's hard at times to take music too seriously after reading how boneheaded a band's members are. Some of Varg's interviews tend to have the same effect on me.

[Big Cock Beelzebub]

"With Fear I Kiss The Burning Darkness" is horrendously underrated, in that the first half (particularly 2-5) is pure organic genius, better than any of their other work (and trust me, this opinion isn't down to ignorance, I know the debut album intimately and adore it).

Of course, the second half is best left forgotten, I highly recommend listening to the first 5 tracks as an EP.

[ice-t]

Overall one of my favorite albums too (again, for the first half, atleast), though hideously midrange heavy in the mix; it becomes grating at even moderate levels on headphones.

The second half isn't terrible by any means, just less painstaking in its craftsmanship- structurally it's not as coherent and the riffs just aren't particularly musical, especially compared to the beautiful harmonizing lines that preceded them.

[Big Cock Beelzebub]

Agreed, though I actually like the production a lot, it's grating at first but repeated listens reveal an alluring and unique organic flavour.