Best Albums of 2014

Right, we're practically halfway through the year now and quite a lot of albums have been released across genres, so I want to round up the best of the best. Everyone can contribute. I will not be rating these albums, at least not yet.

Munarheim - Nacht und Stürme werden Licht

Genre: - Symphonic black metal
What's good about it? Everything. At the risk of counting my chickens before we've even reached the midpoint of the year, I cannot deny that I doubt any album due to come out will be able to top this. I have heard a lot of symphonic metal in my time, but nothing has the resonance or emotional impact of this album. The musicianship is purely astonishing. The band writes the most refreshing symphonic music in the metal scene, thanks to their virtuoso-talent and their ability to draw inspiration from both romanticism and bombastic neo-classical film scores and a great sum of traditional folk, and they merge these seamlessly with adrenaline-fueled black metal. Truly, this is one of the most engaging and narcotically addictive albums I have ever listened to. You would have to be tone deaf to not get at least a few shivers from listening to this album, either from the soaring symphonic melodies, the sumptuous acoustic passages or the soothing voices of the choir sections. Hanz Zimmer wishes that he wrote this album. I bet Chopin would have wished he had too. And people who do not appreciate this album, are not the kinds of people you need in your life. I don't do this often, and I won't be rating the rest of the albums, but let me make it clear that this is a 10/10 album.

What is not so good about it? Picky listeners that aren't into any forms of extreme metal may not like the black metal shrieks, however if they are a hindrance for anyone, they are not people you need in your life either.

Best Song? Every piece of music here is not only good, but actually terrifically meticulous and incredibly entertaining and moving. But if I had to choose one, Nachtmelody

Trobar - Charivari

Genre: - Folk metal
What's good about it? Upbeat, groovy and powerful, with a vast range of folk elements across the 12 tracks. You can tell they have faith in their dynamic musicianship, when they ditch the grunted vocals and distorted guitars and descend into pure folk. There is also a prevalent use of piano in the album, which adds another dimension to their music that is not really tapped into by other folk metal acts.

What's not so good about it? Some songs have rather generic chugging but this does not distract from the overall quality of the album.

Best song? Dans un Autre Monde

Insomnium - Shadows of the Dying Sun

Genre: - Melodic death metal
What's good about it? With every Insomnium album you expect a solid melodic death metal album and you always get just that. Previous Insomnium albums consisted of around 60% stunning odes to melancholy and around 40% still very amicable but somewhat less memorable "fillers" if you like. Their last outing, however was notably less refined and sounded oddly amateurish and bland. They have thankfully fixed this with their sixth opus although, while harmonious, is notably less delicately melancholic and more akin to empowering melodeath a-la Catamenia. There are still a lot of atmospheric and gentle passages, and they are back on top of their game with more of that signature Insomnium elegant touch, while combined with a much needed progression in their musical approach.

What's not so good about it? Once again we see the return of a few filler tracks, however even within these less inspired tunes there are moments of excellence. Also there are a few sequences with "industrial"-sounding synth, however these are so few and far between that they do not distract from an overall great album.

Best song? Revelation

Anyone want an album review from yours truly (seeing as I obviously am the most intellectual and experienced in this area   )?
In all seriousness, I've got a bunch of 2014-releases that I've been listening to (and believe it or not they aren't all metal!! well... 4 of them aren't...) and am always buying and listening to new albums so if you hear about an album you're interested in, I'll happily give ma thoughts.