Top 20 of 2010: 6 - 10

Day two of the top 20. Again these are in no real order, other then alphabetical. It was almost impossible to trim it all down to 20, let alone rank them. These are the 20 Best of 2010, if you haven't heard these yet, make sure they are the first thing you do in 2011!

6. Fireball Ministry - Fireball Ministry (See Review)
Simply superb, one of Fireball Ministry's more solid efforts. While it doesn't contain the usual mix of great songs with so-so songs, this release does deliver for the full album-length. Longtime fans of the group may find this album a bit boring or repetitive, but I see an act that has discovered what is their 'core' sound and has decided to push that forward. As I said (both here and in my short review), does not have songs that stand far beyond the rest, all of the songs are of like quality and style. Instead of a mix of all the sub-genres of stoner, Fireball Ministry (album) is filled with the fuzziest, groove-laden stoner rock that you have ever heard. Every song is filled to the brim with moving bass lines, rocked out guitars (and the fuzz), and solid drum beats. The vocals are all above average; in style, content and delivery. In all possible aspects, this album delivers.

5 Quick Album Reviews

Because there isn't enough time!

Amplifier - The Octopus

I was looking forward to this one, way back when I made the Retrospective for Amplifier, but I thought it came out in 2011, not late this year, so I was very happily surprised! The Octopus continues the group's trend of changing their style a bit with each release. While with their latest release, the EP Eternity, I wasn't sure where the future was with the band - with what direction they would head - The Octopus points the direction clearly; the arrow points directly to prog! This is by far their most genuine progressive rock sounding album so far, with almost all of the alternative sounds of the previous releases vanishing. This album is two discs and two hours long, with many songs over seven minutes in length. It also walks hand-in-hand with psychedelic music; most songs have a very trance-feeling guitar/bass/drum section bleeding into the vocal passages. It's a very interesting direction and feel, given the band's history of only touching the progressive elements a bit. This is a swan dive into the pool! The Octopus has become my favorite Amplifier album so far; it's new direction is something I love. I now await an EP in 2011 to steer the group into yet another direction, followed by an LP in 2012 or 2013 (if the trend continues), pushing that direction even further. Amplifier is a band that is continuously re-inventing themselves, and they are damn good at it!