Jeroen\’s Albums of the Year 2017

Another year has passed and we are nearing the fifth anniversary of our amazing organisation. A lot has happened for Grimm and everyone that is a part of it, in Belgium as well as in other parts of Europe where we are getting more and more active. It also marks the fourth year as my role as the editor in chief for this site but I could have never done it without the help of our amazing team and especially Vaim who has put a lot of effort and work in the site as a whole. 2017 was in particular a very good year when it comes to releases, old and high valued bands have re-emerged, new ones have sprouted up and some have probably been lacking the attention they deserve because of the absolute abundance of albums, EP\’s, splits and demo\’s that have seen the light of day. Yet we can only try to give everyone as much attention as possible and try to give equal chances to every artist out there. My personal efforts in this matter resulted in the following top 10 of the past year.

10-6

5-2

1

Honourable mentions

1. Blut aus Nord – Deus Salutis Meae

After more than two decades Blut aus Nord is one of those bands that still brings something new to order and keeps surprising everyone with the direction the new release has taken. Experiment has always been the keyword in the whole of the BaN discography and with Deus Salutis Meae this is no different. One who has never heard of the band and would listen to this album for the first time might be inclined to call this a doom metal album even though this is surely not the case. It does however contain a lot of doom elements just as the 777 trilogy contained lots of electronic influences without being an electronic record. The purpose of the different songs is to bring the listener to contemplation, self awareness and a kind of meditative state. Blut aus Nord has always been a very spiritual band and this no different with their latest strike, even the title (God of my Salvation) shows that it is meant to elevate the listening experience to a higher level and bring the fan to a godlike state in which it is connected with the vastness and most outstretched corners of the universe. This has been a very successful endeavor and this is why Deus Salutis Meae gets to be my number one of 2017!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufzxB24ibyw