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40466 scrobbles by 24th December 2008. Due to technical reasons I didn’t start scrobbling properly until 25th Dec 2007 and my play count was pretty negligible before then, so here’s how my top 200 looked after a full year of scrobbling in the form of chart position – artist – play count. By 9th Jan 2009 the top 50 artists all had playcounts over 200. I’m a sucker for stats. :)

1. Rome 3,176

2. Tiamat 1,552

3. Current 93 1,516

4. Anathema 1,221

5. Tom Waits 937

6. Of the Wand and the Moon 920

7. Death in June 879

8. Agalloch 734

9. My Morning Jacket 598

10. Summoning 548

11 Nauthisuruz 539

12 Dark Sanctuary 511

13 Van Morrison 500

14 Allison Crowe 464

15 Alcest 414

16 Drudkh 409

17 H.E.R.R. 401

18 Godspeed You! Black Emperor 393

19 Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds 385

20 Sol Invictus 364

21 Judge 363

22 Ordo Rosarius Equilibrio 360

23 Empyrium 349

24 Hatebreed 339

25 Spirit Caravan 334

26 Volksweerbaarheid 298

27 My Dying Bride 296
…

My Doom Radio


Revelling in tension, despair, and dread, Doom Metal prizes atmosphere more than many of Metals other primary subgenres. Doom uses plodding tempos, repeated chords, and thick, distorted, down-tuned guitars to attempt to envelope the listener in a wash of desperate foreboding that can commonly last to the ten minute mark and beyond. Instruments generally keep to the standard guitar, bass, and drums, but it is not unusual to add keyboard passages and backdrops.

Doom vocals can be in any of the predominant Metal styles, but all share a determined attempt to invoke emotional hopelessness and mental anguish. This is further amplified by the lyrical themes of grief, depression, fear, resentment, and suffering that are hallmarks of the style.

The roots of Doom Metal are considered to have been planted in the early 70s work of Black Sabbath. In the early and mid-80s, European artists like Witchfinder General and Candlemass adopted the Doom sound as a full fledged genre unto itself…

DOOM METAL
Aglarond - Embraced By Darkness (gothic/death doom) – 7.5/10
Amenra - Mass IIII (sludge) – 8.75/10
Blindead - Autoscopia - Murder in Phases (doom/sludge) – 8/10
Capricorns – River, Bear Your Bones (instrumental sludge) – 8.75/10
Cult of Luna – Eternal Kingdom (sludge) – 8.5/10
Dantesco - Pagano (epic doom) – 7.25/10
Darkflight - Perfectly Calm (doom/black) – 9.5/10
Daylight Dies - Lost to the Living (death doom) – 9/10
Dissolving of Prodigy – Štvanice (death doom) – 7.5/10
Electrozombies - He Visto (sludge) – 6.25/10
Esoteric - The Maniacal Vale (funeral doom) – 10/10
Fall of the Idols - The Séance (doom) – 9.25/10
Forest of Shadows - Six Waves of Woe (death doom) – 9/10
Funeral - As the Light Does the Shadow (melodic death doom) – 6/10
GrimFaith - Grime (gothic/doom) – 6/10
Karysun – Interceptor (sludge) – 7.25/10
Mar De Grises - Draining the Waterheart (death doom) – 9.25/10
Mourning Beloveth - A Disease for the Ages (death doom) - 8/10
Nortt - Galgenfrist (black/funeral doom) – 8.5/10
…

1. Revelation - Release
2. Faustcoven - Rising From Below The Earth
3. Dead Congregation - Graves of the Archangels
4. Arghoslent - Hornets of The Pogrom
5. The Gates of Slumber - Conqueror
6. Necrovation - Breed Deadness Blood
7. Apostle Of Solitude - Sincerest Misery
8. Eldrig - Mysterion
9. Valkyrie - Man of Two Visions
10. Ereb Altor - By Honour
11. Evocation - Dead Calm Chaos


12. Morbosidad - Profana la Cruz del Nazareno
13. Fall of the Idols - Seance
14. Blasphemophagher - Nuclear Empire of Apocalypse
15. The Lamp of Thoth - Portents, Omens & Dooms
16. Dismember - Dismember
17. Hail of Bullets - …Of Frost And War
18. Manilla Road- Voyager
19. Ogre - Plague of the planet
20. Ironsword - Overlords Of Chaos



21. Father Befouled - Profano Ad Regnum
22. Father Befouled - Obscurus Nex Cultus
23. Proclamation - Messiah of Darkness and Impurity
24. Portrait - Portrait
25. Grave Desecrator - Sign of Doom
26. Mgla - Groza
…

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v194/Kharis/WFG-Resurrected.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v194/Kharis/FoTI-Seanec.jpg

I honestly could not choose which recent release to pick for the coming week so I said what the hell and will play them both.

First is the old school proto-doom band Witchfinder General back from the proverbial grave with their first release in over 22 years Resurrected. Phil Cope has brought back 2 of the 3 members he played with on their Live '83 album. Sadly Zeeb Parkes did not come back to the fold but Gary "Gaz" Martin was recruited to fill his slot. I really enjoy hearing someone else handle the vocals and his fit well. This is solid doom. It is a nice return to form for a band that was forgotten before they broke up back in 1984... welcome back from dead Witchfinder General!

And up next is new school doomsters Fall of the Idols from Finland. Packing more punch than 10 herds of elephants their latest The Séance is absolutely one of the best of 2008. …

Instead of one album this week I have decided to do a week long tribute to Finland...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v194/Kharis/finland.gif

here's what will be played this week:

Amorphis
Fall of the Idols
Impaled Nazarene
Jean Sibelius
Nightwish
Minotauri
Orne
Reverend Bizarre
Shape of Despair
Skepticism
Spiritus Mortis
Thergothon

I guess I'll list them for fun. Legend: Band - liveshow1 (country); liveshow2 (country); liveshow(n) (country); etc.

List updated 22 March 2008

Ajattara [1] - Jalometalli Festival 2006 (FIN)
Amorphis [1] - Tuska Festival 2006 (FIN)
Anathema [1] - Tuska Festival 2006 (FIN)
Apocalyptica [1] - Ruisrock Festival 1999 (FIN)
Arch Enemy [1] - Tuska Festival 2006 (FIN)
Black Label Society [2] - Tampere 2005 (FIN); Helsinki 2007 (FIN)
Black Sabbath [1] - Helsinki 1999 (FIN)
Charon [1] - Monttarock Festival 2001 (FIN)
Children of Bodom [1] - Tuska Festival 2007 (FIN)
Clawfinger [1] - Helsinki 2001 (FIN)
CMX [1] - Tornio 1995 (FIN)
Deathchain [2] - Jalometalli Festival 2007 (FIN); Oulu 2007 (FIN)
Deathstars [1] - Tuska Festival 2006 (FIN)
Diablo [1] - Tuska Festival 2006 (FIN)
Dismember [1] - Jalometalli Festival 2006 (FIN)
Drain S.T.H. [1] - Helsinki 1999 (FIN)
Dream Theater [1] - Helsinki 2007 (FIN)
Emperor [1] - Tuska Festival 2007 (FIN)
…