43. Hellripper – "Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags"

I expect this to top lists all over the shop as this has been Metal’s word-of-mouth smash of the year. Yet here is another one-person vehicle, this highly aggressive thrash metal from Scotland. It has been receiving plaudits because it so well constructed. 

Good Metal is an intricate balancing act between precession musicianship and uncontrolled brutality. No matter what the uninitiated think, the last thing it is is incoherent noise. 

To create great metal everything needs to be on the edge. It should sound unchained and raw, but that rawness needs to be under a tight leash so that it doesn’t become messy and untamed. James McBain has concocted a wonderful mix of well-constructed songs that feel like the last word in molten anger. It is organised chaos at its best and it sounds divine.