We asked you what your favourite releases of 2019 were, and you made it clear! Both Album Of The Year and EP Of The Year winners stood out above the pack in the votes, and were releases we thoroughly enjoyed too.
Album Of The Year 2019
With the top three being Northlane‘s Alien, Bring Me The Horizon‘s amo, and Thornhill‘s The Dark Pool, the winner was:
As the debut album for Melbourne’s Thornhill, The Dark Pool took the instrumental and vocal tones, emotion, and atmosphere of Butterfly and turned it up a significant notch. Coming across as a stretching and expansion for the band, the album showed what Jacob Charlton, Ethan McCann, Ben Maida, Nick Sjogren, and Matt Van Duppen are capable of, and inspired ripples of “wow” from its release onward.
Book-ended by soaring cinematic sounds, The Dark Pool quickly revealed a new angle of Thornhill; beyond impressive technical metalcore, this was a band that were unafraid to try new things and chase their creative inspirations. Cuts like “Netherplace” and “All The Light We Don’t See” added unexpected beauty, and fan favourites “Lily & The Moon” and “Coven” carried an infectious punch with important meaning behind them.
A love for tales of superheroes and synth combined in this creation, making for an album with an otherworldly mystique about it, as well as an undercurrent of meaningful connection. It is unsurprising that The Dark Pool has become a favourite for many!
Read our review | Our interview with Jacob about The Dark Pool | Spotify
EP Of The Year 2019
With the top three being Yours Truly‘s Afterglow, Weighbridge‘s Limbic Resonance, and Dealer‘s Soul Burn, the winner was:
As relative newcomers, Weighbridge are clearly onto something great with their collective musical talents. Sean Ross, Ethan Taylor, Josh Godwin, and Jake Leahy impressed listeners from the start with the release of singles “Use” and “Gaunt”, but the unleashing of their Limbic Resonance EP cemented it; Weighbridge are incredible.
It was easy to give full marks in our review to an EP that combined infectious bounce and groove with raw emotional force and malleable timing. Heart-wrenching at times, defiant at others, and captivating throughout, Limbic Resonance is a triumph for the Melbourne band. It is unsurprising that this collection of songs – as well as being able to deliver them in a live setting – has sparked the opportunity to appear on the line-up for Unify Gathering, despite forming in 2018.
Thank you all for your votes! We also appreciated your helpful feedback about what we do with Depth and what more you’d like to see in 2020.
