The Year 2012 and the sounds it makes.

[killer_roach]

Pretty much my thought on the new Ihsahn. It's very good, but it's not After.

Nice find on Abyssal. Sounds pretty impressive, downloading the album now.

[ULS_980]

This Abyssal album is fantastic.
Definitely see the Mitochondrion/Portal similarities, although I'd say cleaner production and less avant-garde. Maybe my memory is misplaced, but I also hear some Gorguts influences (particularly from Gorguts' debut) here.
Don't really see the Blut Aus Nord, but I hear a lot of Deathspell Omega in the guitar tone in some sections.
Anyways, really loving this album.

[afterstasis]

New LP's by Wet Hair and Beau Navire really need more attention.

[Mega-Tallica]

New Rise To Fall sounds like an In Flames rip-off.

Haven't heard their first album in a long time, so that might just be what they're going for.

[Mystlyfe77]

I'd say Abyssal is closer to Impetuous Ritual, Ruin Lust, Muknal, and to a lesser extent Timeghoul than anything mentioned so far. Though Mitochonrdion and early Gorguts are definitely in the same general area, though I'd say Abyssal is closer to Incantation worship than they are to Gorguts worship.

[Lady Siara]

Purity Ring was somehow better than I was expecting. Stellar.

Also, went into Nile's latest thinking it wasn't going to be that great but something about it really caught my attention. Not sure what it is, but I think the songs are more catchy than they used to be because I found myself having bits and pieces stuck in my head throughout the day.

[Mega-Tallica]

The new P.O.D. album is pretty solid and finally P.O.D. uses some vulgarity in the lyrics on "I Am" which I believe is a first and is very uncharacteristic of a Christian band. Aside from their self-titled, I can see this album being the only other one that I can listen to all the way through without skipping songs and maybe with a few more listens, could turn out to be my favorite P.O.D. album over-taking their self-titled.

[Rocket2Russia]

http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/...ear,ss.rd/2012

think Ullmann might be my AOTY so far

[thatmarkguy]

... I had not realized Anglagard (sorry, Änglagård) was back together again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEDhBJynbvo

The original release of Hybris is the only "perfect album" to me - an album where every single track is a five-star masterpiece (the reissue gummed things up by adding a fifth track that was not up to par).

After well over a decade of silence (18 years, actually!) I had assumed they were done for good.

[killer_roach]

I had heard that they had reformed and had an album coming out, just hadn't heard when exactly that was. Will have to keep my eyes open for it.