Three Awesome 2009 Albums Based On Packaging ALONE

Okay, so I was teetering on three albums for my Top 13 Metal Albums of 2009 list. It wasn’t easy to exclude these, but since they all had great packaging, I thought I’d make a separate post.

3. sunn 0))) – Monoliths And Dimensions [Southern Lord] … The experimental drone duo of Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson recorded arguably their most ambitious work this year. Before you even heard a note, you were presented with a pit of fathomless black on the front, and monochrome intricacies on the reverse. The printed interior paper was robust, and it was covered with a translucent outer shell. As far as variations on “standard” CD packaging go, it was gorgeous.

2. Isis – Wavering Radiant [Ipecac] … There are plenty of albums released every year with double-gatefold sleeves, but usually they’re on vinyl. If these albums find their way onto CD as well, you’re lucky to find them as durable as this. The thickest cardboard I’ve ever seen for a CD is printed with Aaron Turner’s van Gogh-inspired artwork, and the disc itself comes with it’s own protective sleeve. Nice work, guys!

1. Clutch – Strange Cousins From The West [Weathermaker] … It was really, really hard to keep this album out of the Top 13 list. If it had been the exemplary From Beale Street To Oblivion there would be no question, but as good as this was, it wasn’t quite all-killer-no-filler. Now while I enjoyed the illustrations in their last release, I was never expecting what they’d unleash for the first Clutch album on their own label. A die-cut layout, unique printing on the inside and outside of the outer sleeve (which is normally extraneous), and beautiful liner notes made for one of the finest looking albums I’ve ever seen!

So that’s it. I’d include Coalesce‘s OX in here as well, if it wasn’t already in my Top 13 of 2009 (cuz it also had some sweet die-cuts). But this has gotta stop. The lineups have been compiled, and it’s time to face forward to 2010. I’ll see ya there!