The best albums of ‘07 according to Pete

It's my top 10 of 2007.

This has probably been the hardest list I've ever made seeing how there were so many stellar releases last year (not to mention the CDs I still haven't picked up/listened to yet). I will give honourable mentions to the bands that released good stuff this year at the end of the list, just so you have more good stuff to go out and buy.

10. Amorphis
Silent Waters
This is the second release from this long-standing and amazing band featuring Tomi Joutsen on vocals. Is it as amazing as Eclipse? I personally don't think so, but that doesn't mean it's not one of the best this year. I hope they go back and re-master this in the next few years and bring up the vocals…it's one of the only things from making this disc go farther up on the list.

9. Foo Fighers
Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace
Yeah, my review on this one a couple months ago wasn't that positive and I'm still pissed off that this is probably the weakest Foo Fighers disc to date. This disc grows on you with time and half of the songs on here that are amazing make this a justifiable purchase and worthy of numerous spins. Just make sure you have your remote ready to skip the last couple songs on the album.

8. Clutch
From Beale Street to Oblivion
What can you say about Clutch that hasn't been said before? These guys know how to take groove, intertwine it with numerous blues and ‘70s rock influences and spice it up with a tad bit of metal/hard rock. I want these guys to come back to London again so I can hear some of these ones live. I wish the music business gave bands the money they're worth, because these guys would be millionaires. Support them…don't download.

7. Chimaira
Resurrection
Their self-titled disc that came out before this (that Roadrunner did f-all with) ruled. With Anders back on the drum kit, these guys take the tunes of the previous album and add even more fuel to their fire. You can hear and feel the anger caused by label and inner-band turmoil in the songs and that is what makes this disc so good.

6. Megadeth
United Abominations
Same goes for this release - The System Has Failed was Megadeth's return to form and Mustane and the boys upped the ante with this one. I don't even mind the re-recording of “A Tout Le Monde.” I'll be at the JLC in April to see them again. Mustane must be laughing at Metallica…

5. Dillinger Escape Plan
Ire Works
I know I haven't gotten around to a full-fledged review of this one yet, but I've been following the band since their Calculating Infinity days and this one just made me stop what I was doing and yell, “WHAT THE HELL?” Not only were some of the songs shocking in their approach and mixing of genres, but to hear CLEAN vocals and more melodic melodies mixed in with computer effects just made my jaw drop…for the better. This is, hands down, the best Dillinger ever. I agree with the band: there's only so much math-metal you can do before you get bored. There is some of that here, but the end product is so, so much more. Let's hope the next one doesn't take them as long.

4. Behemoth:The Apostasy
Nile: Ithyphallic
I'm so sorry! I just can't decide which one is better. These two bands impressed me so much this year and have brought death metal to new heights. I love Behemoth's straightforward attack, but I also adore Nile's Egyptian influence. Both bands topped their previous releases and delivered some of the best metal of the year. I'm not putting one band over the other here. Get both.

3. Porcupine Tree
Fear of a Blank Planet
I feel really embarrassed for saying this, but this was my first taste EVER of Porcupine Tree and it tasted really, really good. So good, in fact, that I'm spending some huge coin on Ebay to get their back catalogue. This disc blends metal, prog and brilliant songwriting into a package that makes me wonder why this band is one of the best out there but doesn't get the press it deserves. This stuff should be filling up the radio waves.

2. Type O Negative
Dead Again
My favourite band in the whole world delivers once again with a CD of grand proportions. Everything on this disc is solid and worth your time (except for the first two minutes or so of “The Profits of Doom.”) You can NEVER go wrong buying a Type O Negative CD and here's another reason why. Like Clutch (and the other bands on this list), these guys should be making the millions for writing innovative and captive music. Just brilliant.

1. Silverchair
Young Modern
I know, I know. I never would have seen it coming, either. A band that beats the Foos and Type O (two my faves, ever) in the top spot? A release that isn't metal that takes the top spot? Well, people…it happened.

Silverchair gets props for being the band that blew me totally away this year with one masterpiece of an album. I said it in my review: the last track blows but hitting “stop” early is easy enough to do. Besides that last track, every song here is skillfully crafted, memorable and pure genius. If you haven't heard this one yet, go out and buy the disc.

It was a great year for music and this list is still very short. Honourable mentions for great discs this year go to:

Aborted, Beneath the Massacre, Cephalic Carnage, Daath, Despised Icon, Dimmu Borgir, Dying Fetus, Entombed, Machine Head, Ministry, Nightwish, Obituary, Ozzy, Pig Destroyer, Vital Remains and Ween.

2008 looks to be a good year as well. We have releases (not 100 per cent confirmed in all cases) from the following bands: Opeth, In Flames, Children of Bodon, The Dandy Warhols, Metallica, Mastodon, Slipknot, Anthrax, Judas Priest, Cattle Decapitation, Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, God Forbid, Gojira, The Cavalara Conspiracy, Unearth (and hopefully a Nothingface disc).

I'd like to hear your thoughts for the year in music. Send in your comments to me via my email and I'll share them in print or you can post online.