Most listened albums in Google Music Compositional quality of the album as a whole. Personal, historical attachment to the band or album. Comparison to other albums that are being considered.
- Intronaut - Direction of Last Things
What can I say, I'm crazy about Intronaut. I found this album in 2015, just after getting back in to programming, so it has a bit of recent sentimentality to it for me too. It's also just a fantastic album.
- TesseracT - Altered State
This one I also found around the same time as Direction of Last Things. Altered State is just an amazing piece as a whole.
- The Contortionist - Language
When we saw them play with BTBAM back in 2015, it was like my eyes were open to a whole new kind of music. I bought the CD right away.
- David Maxim Micic - Bilo 3
Micic gets so much freakin emotion out of his music. Had to put this on the list. There's just nothing else like it.
- Strawberry Girls - French Ghetto
As far as all the instrumental bands go, I really think Strawberry Girls are the best at building a whole album. French Ghetto is a whole package, and its a great one. This just beat out American Graffitti because it's a bit more focused as a whole album.
- Hail The Sun - Wake
Another 2015 find for me. Needed something to fill the void that At The Drive In left, and these guys are great. Crazy lyrics, heavy post-hardcore style, and great live.
- Elder - Lore
It's an epic album.
- Sanguine Hum - Weight Of The World
This super unknown album from a super unknown English prog rock band made the list. The composition is fantastic. I nearly put their later album, Now We Have Light, on here, but really I think Weight of the World is better as a whole.
- Rivers of Nihil - Where Owls Know My Name
It was a bit of a surprise to me that this got on here, but as far as new prog-death-metal goes, I think this is the best album I've heard in a while. It does all the things I want, and it does them well. When it came down to comparisons, this rose to the top.
- Thank You Scientist - Terraformer
I was going to put Maps Of Nonexistent Places, the album that got me in to TYS in the first place, on here, but honestly I think Terraformer is just better. They've gotten a lot better as a band, so although I have a more significant history with their first album, their newest gets the spot.
Did I make this section just so I could cheat and have more than 10 things in my top 10? Yes. Yes I did.
- Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues
BTBAM had to be on the list, but all my favorite albums from them are pre-2010! Paralax II is a great album, but as a whole, I think it misses in some places, so it ended up not making the cut.
- Circa Survive - Appendage
I've got a lot of history with Circa Survive, and I've listened to this EP a lot. Their newer releases aren't quite top-10 worthy for me though, but I can at least give Appendage a well-earned EP spot.
- Yvette Young - Acoustics
This is just... wow man. Yvette Young puts some emotions into her stuff.
- Black Crown Initiate - Song of the Crippled Bull
I came really close to putting Selves We Cannot Forgive on the top 10, but I do sorta think this EP is a better composition.
- Thank You Scientist - The Perils of Time Travel
It's TYS, they get to be on here twice. I've also listened to this more than any other album on Google Music (3 of the 5 tracks are #1 #2 and #3 most listened), so I feel like deserves mention.
- David Maxim Micic - Eco and Ego
Two EP's! They totally could go together and just be an album, but here they are as two separate releases. Do they beat out Bilo III? Maybe, its a tough call. In the end, I had to put them here.
- A Novelist - Folie
This is a fantastic album, both technically on each song and as a whole album. I love these guys' sound too. But it's still a pretty new release, and they're a small band.
- Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction
Devin is a god. I want him to be on my top 10 for sure, but one of my considerations for the list was a personal connection with the album. Now I love Deconstruction, but I don't really have a history or a memory with it like I do the rest of these
- Rolo Tomassi - Time Wil Die and Love Will Bury It
Rolo Tomassi deserve some sort of recognition from me. They're just so freaking good. In the end they do miss the top 10 though.
- Circa Survive - Blue Sky Noise
It's really good, and it does bring back a lot of memories when I listen to it. One of the first several albums I anticipated the release of.
- Chon - Chon
Their last album is certainly their best. Considering their albums as a whole though, Strawberry Girls wins in this genre.
- Little Tybee - For Distant Viewing
I've actually listened to this album more than some that are in the top 10. So why isn't it up there? I can't really say. When making the comparisons, it just didn't make the cut.