**BONUS - Review of Days 3&4 aboard 70,000 TONS of METAL

Sneak peek - not a spoiler - seems like we have two A+'s on our hands this episode as Phil gave Alex the Skyforger masterpiece by Amorphis and Alex asked Phil to review Ayam by Disillusion.

Two radically different sounding albums but both so equally excellent in their own right!

Support Amorphis HERE

Support Disillusion HERE

Australian Prog Death Metallers Be'lakor, represented by Steve Merry (piano/keys), join the boys to chat about the band's remarkable 20-year career and give us a glimpse of what's to come in the future.

From where we sit this band can do NO WRONG!!!!!  If you like GREAT heavy music, then you will love Be'lakor!

Visit belakorband.com - sign up for their newsletter - and a BIG TIME thank you to Steve for stopping by!

It's that beautiful time of year again - the air is crisp, we exchange presents, and thank GOD that it's time to go on the heavy metal cruise again!!!!!  Join Alex, Phil, Slowskies, Mark, Gabe the babe and KP as they discuss this year's upcoming metal cruise aboard 70000 tons of metal!!!!

It's gonna be EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Year end list time ladies and gents and 2023 did NOT disappoint!

Alex's list is:

Albums of the Year - 

1 - Kalmah - Kalmah
2 - Fires in the Distance - Air not Meant for Us  
3 - Moonlight Sorcery - Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
4 - Scar Symmetry - The Singularity (Phase II - Xenotaph)
5 - Isole - Aneisidora

Top five Songs of the Year that are NOT on the best albums of the year - 

1 - Crowne - Super Trooper off of Operation Phoenix 
2 - BlackBraid - Moss Covered Bones on the Altar of the moon off of Blackbraid II
3 - Angus McSix - Master of the Universe off of Angus McSix and the Sword of Power
4 - UADA - Crepuscule Natura from the album by the same name
5 - Marduk - Shovel Beats Sceptre off the Memento Mori album

Honorable Mention: Vesuvian - Emergence

Phil's list is actually pretty good this year, surprisingly, and it is:

Albums of the Year - 

1 - Kalmah - Kalmah
2 - Fires in the Distance - Air Not Meant for Us  
3 - Scar Symmetry - The Singularity (Phase II - Xenotaph)
4 - Cattle Decapitation - Terrasite
5 - Krigsgrav - Fires in the Fall

Top five Songs of the Year that are NOT on the best albums of the year - 

1 - Sermon - Wake the Silent off the album Of Golden Verse
2 - Sulphur Aeon - Hammer From the Howling Void off of Seven Crowns and Seven Seals
3 - Tomb Mold - Will of Whispers off of The Enduring Spirit
4 - Earthside - But What if We're Wrong off of Let the Truth Speak
5 - Theocracy -  Liar, Fool, or Messiah off of Mosaic

Here they are, on the final day of the year - delivering to you sweet listener, the BEST heavy albums of the fourth quarter of 2023.

Alex's list is:

5 - Shylmagoghnar - Convergence 

4 - Tales - Night Crowned

3 - Vanishing Kids - Miracle of Death

2 - Wayfarer - American Gothic

1 - *Moonlight Sorcery - Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle - *technically released on Sep 28, dont f'ing care.

HM - Helga - Wrapped in Mist

Phil's list is:

5 - Theocracy - Mosaic

4 - Earthside - Let the Truth Speak

3 - Xoth - Exogalactic

2 - SIGIR - Rainmaker 

1 - Wayfarer - American Gothic

HM - Panopticon - The Rime of Memory

In this proper episode of the GREAT Heavy Music Podcast Alex and Phil take a listen to the 2008 stellar doom metal release by the Swedes; Draconian - Turning Season Within and the 2010 black metal release by fellow countrymen Istapp - Blekinge.

Which album do you prefer?

If you're a Draconian fan - support them HERE

And if you prefer Istapp - support them HERE

Another three months have come and gone and some DAMN fine heavy music has gone with it.

Alex and Phil pluck out their favorites are give them to you fine people FREE OF CHARGE!

Phil and Alex's Honorable Mentions:

Voyager - Fearless in Love

Mutoid Man - Mutants

Spirit Adrift - Ghost at the Gallows

Graveyard - 6

Aetherian - At Storm's Edge

Blut Aus Nord - Dishamonium - Nahab

Urne - A Feast on Sorrow

Primordial - How it ends

AND NOW - Alex's Top five - (you have to listen to find out the order)

_______________________________________

Marduk - Memento Mori

UADA - Crepuscule Natura

Soen - Memorial

Blackbraid - Blackbraid II

Fleshvessel - Yearning: Promethean Fates Sealed

______________________________________

PHIL COLLINS' top five below

Outer Heaven - Infinite Psychic Depths

UADA - Crepuscule Natura

Baroness - STONE

Tomb Mold - The Enduring Spirit

Skalmold - Ydalir

_____________________________________

If we missed your favorite - write us at Thegreatheavymusicpodcast@gmail.com

Phil has Alex review "It Hates You" by American rockers He is Legend and Phil takes a deep dive into "The Judas Table" by UK prog metal/rock outfit by the legendary Mick Moss - Antimatter.

Next up - The Turning Season within by Draconian and Bleking by Istapp

Dynamic lead singer and guitarist Benjamin Gleason and outstanding drummer Justin Mirarck of the AWESOME prog metal band Source drop by the GREAT heavy music podcast to give us an update on their latest album, upcoming tour and all good things SOURCE!

Stay in touch and up to date with the band on www.listentosource.com

They can ( and SHOULD ) be followed on Facebook as well - https://www.facebook.com/listentosource/

And instagram - https://www.instagram.com/listentosource/?hl=en

The second and maybe better of the two 01011001 albums?  Which track is the highlight for you?  Tons of good stuff on this album and if you haven't heard it yet, MAKE A POINT to check it out as soon as possible!