BravePicks 2017 - ICED EARTH's Incorruptible #2
December 30, 2017, 6 years ago
Another gruelling year of heavy metal mastery is almost over! And all the votes are in and the compiling is complete! It's time to celebrate the winners and call out the not-so winners! So who will be our #1? You’ll find out as we count down the BravePick Of 2017 throughout December! And once again our devout scribes put their collective metal minds together to build the ultimate lists including individual Top 20s (new studio albums ONLY), Top 5 Brave Embarrassments, Top 3 Concerts, What/Who Needs To Stop In 2018? and Metal Predictions For 2018. All will be showcased come the New Year!
'Tis the season to commence the good, bad and ugly of 2017! Let’s rock!
BravePicks 2017
2) ICED EARTH – Incorruptible (Century Media)
In defiance of authority forever is Iced Earth. Jon Schaeffer has been waving the black flag for almost 30 years and with these icy devils there will also be galloping riffs, mid-paced anthems, and melancholic ballads. Over the years the quality has ebbed and flowed like a crazy roller coaster, but American metallers have found new peaks since former Into Eternity vocalist Stu Block entered the fold.
Incorruptible is a testament to the what the band has become to this point – thrashy American power metal, including a pirate romper “Black Flag”, inspiring Celtic war track “Clear The Way (December 13th, 1862)”, tribal beating instrumental “Ghost Dance (Awaken The Ancestors)”, the fist-pumping “Raven Wing”, and the savagery “Seven Headed Whore”. A marked improvement over 2014’s Plagues Of Babylon, Incorruptible is undoubtedly a top album of the year!
BW scribe Mark Gromen raved about Incorruptible in his review saying, “Taking a page from Iced Earth history, as well as a nod to fellow tour mates, Sabaton, ‘Clear The Way (December 13th, 1862)’ recalls the decimation of the Irish Brigade, in the Battle Of Fredericksburg, during the American Civil War. If ‘Raven Wing’ is the premier slower song, this one is the album's overall stand-out. After intro, enlivened by an almost punky vibe, nearly as adrenaline fueled as its namesake charge into battle. Midway through, there's the echo of pipes and battle noises, before returning to the hardened guitars. Can't wait to hear it live!”
BravePicks 2017 Top 30
1)
2) ICED EARTH - Incorruptible (Century Media)
3) KREATOR - Gods Of Violence (Nuclear Blast)
4) ENSLAVED - E (Nuclear Blast)
5) OBITUARY - Obituary (Relapse)
6) THRESHOLD - Legends Of The Shires (Nuclear Blast)
7) WEDNESDAY 13 - Condolences (Nuclear Blast)
8) COMMUNIC - Where Echoes Gather (AFM)
9) STONE SOUR - Hydrograd (Roadrunner)
10) EUROPE - Walk The Earth (Hell & Back)
11) ARCH ENEMY – Will To Power (Century Media)
12) IMMOLATION - Atonement (Nuclear Blast)
13) ACCEPT - The Rise Of Chaos (Nuclear Blast)
14) PRONG - Zero Days (Steamhammer / SPV)
15) AYREON – The Source (InsideOut)
16) CANNIBAL CORPSE - Red Before Black (Metal Blade)
17) ANNIHILATOR - For The Demented (Silver Lining)
18) DECAPITATED - Anticult (Nuclear Blast)
19) GRAVE DIGGER - Healed By Metal (Napalm)
20) WITCHERY - I Am Legion (Century Media)
21) CAVALERA CONSPIRACY - Psychosis (Napalm)
22) MOONSPELL - 1755 (Napalm)
23) L.A. GUNS - The Missing Peace (Frontiers)
24) SEPULTURA - Machine Messiah (Nuclear Blast)
25) JAG PANZER - The Deviant Chord (SPV)
26) GOATWHORE - Vengeful Ascension (Metal Blade)
27) FIRESPAWN - The Reprobate (Century Media)
28) FIREWIND - Immortals (AFM)
29) VENOM INC. – Avé (Nuclear Blast)
30) THE HAUNTED - Strength In Numbers (Century Media)
