2010, Looking Forward

Nothing has come out recently, but 2010 is going to be quite a year. Here's what to look forward to:

Jan 25, Orphaned Land- ORwarriOR
Feb, Eluveitie- Everything Remains
Feb 17, Finntroll- Nifelvind
Feb 22, Borknagar- Universal
March 1, Dark Tranquillity- We Are the Void
March 22, Kamelot- TBA
April, Kiuas- TBA
April 1, Nevermore- The Obsidian Conspiracy
May, ReVamp (Floor Jansen)- TBA
Sept 20, Dragonland- The Return

My most anticipated releases are also those without any dates yet:

Pain of Salvation- Road Salt
Circus Maximus- TBA
Blind Guardian- TBA
WINTERSUN- TIME

what am i missing?
addendum:
Royal Hunt- X
Agalloch- TBA
Symphony X- TBA

Swallow the Sun, "New Moon"

Swallow the Sun's fourth album released november 4th. they supposedly had no idea they were naming and releasing their album close to the new twilight movie. i'm sure it didn't hurt sales, though. I must admit i've never listened to swallow the sun before so i have no expectations. Kai Hahto is their new drummer, should be exciting. also, it was just announced swallow the sun would be touring the U.S. with Finntroll and Moonsorrow in the spring as part of the 'Finnish Metal Tour'.

1.these woods breathe evil- a pretty heavy doom metal song with growled vocals and occasional doomy spoken parts. lyrics are in english. guitar work at times is cold and atmospheric, other times brutal. from this brief introduction to swallow the sun, they sound like a mix of moonsorrow and agalloch-- a very pleasing match.

2.falling world- the main riff is extremely melodic and catchy. the verses are disorientating with atmospheric alternate picking. most of the lyrics are sung in a clean voice. the singer is weak but decent enough to not detract from the music.

3.sleepless swans- a slow brooding song for the first couple minutes. in no part of the song are there any noticeable melodies, so there is little memorable about it. as such, it seemed a bit long and boring-- the doom was too much for me i guess :)

4. ...and heavens cried blood- nice piano accents over thick, slowly growled vocals. this goes for most of the song. it ends with a guitar lead followed by solo piano.

5.lights on the lake (horror pt. III)- a truly great song and an instant favorite. it opens with a completely haunting and mesmorizing melody with harmonics on one guitar and clean rhythm on another. the female vocals are beautiful and spectral, perfectly matching the lyrics. the song picks up with a a lead guitar playing the main melody. the lyrics deal with a father who's drowned her daughter in a lake. after a haunting interlude, the drums go nuts with double bass and several fills. the songs ends after several final choruses.

6.new moon- similar to sleepless swans, but more eventful and at a faster tempo. the chorus is a little epic, more like an ode...har har har

7.servant of sorrow- at this point my attention is waning and i'm hearing little of anything worth mentioning that hasn't already been said.

8.weight of the dead- slightly better, more melodic. the drums are more active. ahh yes, this is definitely kai hahto. the verse, though, is unbearably slow and heavy. a nice little guitar solo is found midway in. after, there is a nice vocal chorus effect complimented with guitar harmonic strumming. it ends with a more epic version of the verse/main riff.

some true gems are to be found, but other songs are quite lackluster. a great album on the whole and worth listening more to.