Best of 2020

5) Sweven - The Eternal Resonance

I think it's fair to say any metalhead worth his salt who grew up near or around the 90's was aware of Opeth and Edge of Sanity, two of the most dynamic bands led by two of the most charismatic and visionary musicians. Up until their discovery I was gravitating to the more extreme of music, the blatantly offensive grind-core bands and blasphemous black metal in hopes of disturbing my parents and teachers with shows of petty rebellion. Opeth and Edge of Sanity were both writing thrillingly dynamic music, records that challenged preconceived notions of what music could be. After this discovery I was now seeking intellectually challenging music and the heavy metal community has been delivering ever since.

Sweven led by Robert Andersson is continuing this tradition of highly dynamic, highly complex progressive death metal. The Eternal Resonance is not just an album, it's a place, with its own sights and sounds, its own textures. Listening to this over the past few months has been an odd experience for me. As different as the music sounds compared to other releases this year it very quickly starts to sound familiar. Re-spins are rewarded with a feeling similar to returning to a secret place only you know about, a place that will grow larger as Robert Andersson's career continues.