{"id":120889,"date":"2023-12-18T11:00:50","date_gmt":"2023-12-18T17:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/toiletovhell.com\/?p=120889"},"modified":"2023-12-18T12:00:03","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T18:00:03","slug":"top-albums-ov-2023-w-spear-and-rolderathis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toiletovhell.com\/top-albums-ov-2023-w-spear-and-rolderathis\/","title":{"rendered":"TOP ALBUMS OV 2023 W\/ SPEAR AND ROLDERATHIS!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dumplings, it is LISTMANIA 2K23 DAY 4<\/strong>. Your wallet lies tattered; your body is beset by jackals; your BC wishlist bloats, and your funds are impotent. Me and my bud Spear\u00a0<\/strong>are here to drag your savings to the block of slaughter with some of our favorite releases of the year.<\/p>\n

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Spear<\/span><\/h2>\n

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I probably say this every year, but damn was it hard picking a top 10 for 2023. I started with 35 albums as contenders for the list this year, and each cut I had to make stung. Fortunately, some of those cuts were because the albums in question made it to other people’s lists (specifically\u00a0Dawn of Ouroboros<\/strong>,\u00a0Hellripper<\/strong>,\u00a0Majesties<\/strong>,\u00a0Nightmarer<\/strong>,\u00a0Sulphur Aeon<\/strong>, and Tomb Mold<\/strong>). Others simply had to go for logistics.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, there are two other bands I cut for less than ideal reasons that I’m gonna call out right here.\u00a0Massive Gun<\/strong> had an early banger with their self-titled album, but the use of AI art was an instant disqualification. Don’t fucking do that. The other is\u00a0Alkaloid<\/strong>; on top of being labelmates with a couple white supremacist acts, Christian Muenzner made the brilliant move of outing himself as a shithead back during the 2020 elections, lauding Trump for “bann[ing] critical race theory.” These guys dropped one of the best prog-death albums ever written this year, and it’s sullied by one of their members not being able to just shut the fuck up. Unless something has changed and the guy’s turned over a new leaf recently, they are de facto disqualified from this prestigious position.<\/p>\n

[ADDENDUM: I went back to find the statements in question at the behest of DF, and the post appears to have been deleted. Whether this means he’s retracted those beliefs somewhat or has in fact just learned to shut the fuck up is hard to say, but I’m leaving this as is. –Spear<\/em>]<\/p>\n

Anyway, let’s get to the good shit.<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a>Battlemaster<\/strong> –\u00a0Greedgripped & Spellspoilt<\/em>
\nIndependent<\/p>\n

Battlemaster riffs continue to make me warlike into 2023. These dudes have got to be some of the most creative in their particular sphere of the metal world; every time you think you’ve got a song pegged, they throw you a curveball<\/del> Delayed Blast Fireball<\/em> that takes you completely off guard without slowing the momentum at all. They’ve got a chaotic energy that is entirely singular, and it’s fun as hell.<\/p>\n