Origin: Kotka, Finland
Release date: 11/5/2021
Personnel: Jukka Pelkonen-vox, Markus Vanhala-guitar, Mikko Kivisto-bass, Aapo Koivisto-keyboards, Tuomo Latvala-drums
And we venture into the Top 10 for 2021. Hopefully you are still hanging out and waiting around with baited breath for each album drop. Next up are a band that plies their trade in Scandinavian melodic death metal that actually hails from Scandinavia (unlike yesterday’s pick). The OG boys are one of the premier bands in this important subgenre and they always manage to deliver a consistently solid product. Even though there were some lineup changes for this latest album (new bassist and drummer and the loss of a second guitarist), their sound has remained the same and Origin has resulted in one of their stronger releases in recent years. They continue to work in a good deal of clean vocals on this one as a balance to the harsh death vocals.
4.5 flip flops out of 5
The list so far:
10. Omnium Gatherum-Origin
11. Be’Lakor-Coherence
12. Hooded Menace-The Tritonus Bell
13. Quicksand-Distant Populations
14. Harakiri For the Sky-Maere
15. Converge and Chelsea Wolfe-Bloodmoon: I
16. At The Gates-The Nightmare of Being
17. The Vintage Caravan-Monuments
18. Nervosa-Perpetual Chaos
19. Baest-Necro Sapiens
20. Agrypnie-Metamorphosis
DISPATCHES FROM THE VOID 