Hellbound.ca’s TOP 20 ALBUMS OF 2010, Part Four
Ladies and gentleman, the TOP 5 METAL ALBUMS OF 2010 according to the contributing writers of Hellbound.ca..
Adam Wills
Dimmu Borgir / Enslaved / Blood Red Throne / Dawn of Ashes @ The Sound Academy, Toronto ON, December 12 2010
“The intense lighting, dominated by greens and purples lancing through the heavy smoke, gave the impression of the underworld crossed with an alien landscape. Their sound was massive and heavy, reverberating straight through me. Shagrath’s vocals were mixed quite low from where I was standing (front and centre), but the intense, symphonic instrumentation more than compensated.”
Natalie Zed absorbs the recent performance from Dimmu Borgir, Enslaved and more at Toronto’s Sound Academy on December 12th. Concert photos by Adam Wills.
Blind Guardian / Holy Grail / Seven Kingdoms @ Kool Haus, Toronto ON, November 26th 2010
“The moment the overture of “At the Edge of Time” began, the Kool Haus erupted. The audience was no longer a collection of discrete individuals; the room was suddenly occupied by a single entity, one cacophonous voice entirely at Blind Guardian’s mercy for the entire two-hour set. Very few shows can inspire this kind of intense, unifying energy, but this was such an event.”
Natalie Zed reviews the recent Toronto performance from power metal legends Blind Guardian, who were joined by Holy Grail and Seven Kingdoms.
Skeletonwitch/ Withered/ Landmine Marathon @ Club Absinthe, Hamilton, ON, November 25, 2010
“Vocalist Chance Garnett is a natural born frontman and knows how to entice a crowd. He paces back and forth, holding invisible oranges to the sky while guitarists Scott Hedrick and N8 Feet Under take turns demonstrating their fret board mastery.”
Hellbound’s Renee Trotier reviews the recent Hamilton, Ontario appearance by Skeletonwitch, supported by Landmine Marathon and Withered with photos by Adam Wills.
The Devin Townsend Project / TesseracT @ the Mod Club, Toronto ON, November 3, 2010
“Everything about this show was carefully planned out, meticulously orchestrated. The sound was excellent and the lighting choices novel and interesting. Every aspect was carefully chosen to enhance the experience. Devin had a stark white light pointing upwards toward his face, catching every crease and shadow, emphasizing every ridiculous expression he contorted his unique features into. I’ve never before seen a man who could appear so scrumptiously handsome one moment then so cartoonishly grotesque the next.”
Natalie Zed reviews the recent Toronto appearance from The Devin Townsend Project, supported by UK’s TesseracT.
Photo Gallery: Devin Townsend @ The Mod Club, Toronto ON, Nov. 3, 2010
“This past Wednesday, Toronto was treated with a live performance from Canada’s own, Devin Townsend. Easily the most charismatic and photogenic front man that I’ve had the pleasure of shooting, Devin put on one of the most memorable performances that I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing.”
Hellbound’s Adam Wills visually documents Devin Townsend’s appearance in Toronto this past Wednesday at Toronto’s Mod Club.
Nevermore / Warbringer / Blackguard @ The Opera House, October 22 2010
Above all, I was profoundly impressed by how satisfying it was to sing along to their music with a room full of rabidly passionate metalheads. It felt like I was participating in a kind of full-contact crowd karaoke, especially during “The Heart Collector” and “Inside Four Walls.””
Natalie Zed documents Nevermore’s recent visit to Toronto accompanied by Warbringer and Blackguard.
STAFF PLAYLISTS: October 2010
Hellbound’s staff give our picks for Halloween-themed songs to coincide with one of our favourite holidays.
Unexpect / Stream of Passion / Manahil / Modified / Half Past Four @ Sneaky Dee’s, October 19 2010
“Nearly impossible to describe, they hit me like a crazy gothic metal version of cabaret/gypsy music, which a great deal of dark, psychotic carnival thrown in the mix as well. The violin took centre stage for me, running the gamut from classical trills and traditional Roma fiddling to dark, screeching black-metal wailing.”
Natalie Zed witnessed the recent Toronto stop of Montreal’s Unexpect, with Stream of Passion, Manahil and more.
Triptykon / 1349 / Yakuza / Sylvus @ the Wreckroom, Toronto ON, October 11 2010
“Visually the band’s performance style is understated, but the smaller venue allowed them to overwhelm the space. Alongside the expected Triptykon material, sounding much like it does on record, the set list was Celtic Frost-heavy, songs like “Procreation (of the Wicked)” snarled out with vicious intensity.”
Laura Wiebe reviews the recent Toronto performance of Triptykon, who were joined by 1349, Yakuza and Sylvus.