We hope that over the last 10 weeks you have made some great new album discoveries due to this absolute monster of all decade-ending lists. Better yet, we hope you have formed some new obsessions. We here at Metal Review did not put this together to be definitive or authoritarian; we did this because we love these bands and albums, and we hope that you will share that with us. Use this list for discovery and for expanding your library, and please, by all means, argue the shit out of it all below.
So now, without further ado: The Final Volume. And what better way to bookend everything than with Iron Maiden?
Returning after a
nearly decade-long hiatus, Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith re-energize this
legendary band; Maiden finally putting the blandness of the Bayley
years behind them and returning to show us kids today what metal really sounds like. Steve Harris’ gift for epic songwriting is
still intact, but it’s lead single (and shortest track) “The Wicker Man” that
will forever define Maiden’s comeback, that soaring chorus being exactly what we wanted to hear from Eddie and Co after all those wasted years. [EMI, 2000]
In many ways, Terria is Devin Townsend’s most musically
accomplished work; in others, it’s his most head-scratching. Whichever way you
see it, songs like “Earth Day” and the beautiful “Deep Peace” showcase
everything that makes Townsend’s music so distinctive and great; dense layers
of ambient guitars and vocals supplement deceptively poppy core structures,
with Townsend’s emotional vocals and stream-of-consciousness lyrics delivering
hooks so bizarre its hard to believe how incredibly catchy they are. Deep,
memorable, and undoubtedly unique, Terria takes you on a musical
journey that you’ll want to revisit again and again. [InsideOut, 2001]
Immortal - Sons of Northern Darkness
A few
years after the dramatic sonic makeover first revealed on the landmark album At
the Heart of Winter, Immortal finally broke into mainstream metal consciousness
with Sons of Northern Darkness. Neither
with symphonic bombast, nor with extracurricular shenanigans did Immortal win
the masses’ favor, rather it was with a cold, steely attack as sharp as the
spikes on Abbath’s gauntlets. From the
galloping thrash of “One by One’, to the epic lament of “Beyond the North
Waves,” SoND saw Immortal ending their career (temporarily) in top form.
[Nuclear Blast, 2002]
A quintessential
masterpiece. Universally praised by fans, musicians, and critics both in and
out of the metal scene, Blut Aus Nord’s most successful attempt at twisting and
reinventing black metal into a warped new design has already taken its place in
the timeless halls of the mighty. Instead of just trying to sound disturbing,
The Work…actually is perversely alien and otherworldly, eliminating all
boundaries while changing the way many people listen to music. Its brilliance
is undeniable. [Appease Me.../Adipocere, 2003]
A younger, more violent sibling to Slayer’s
Reign In Blood--in style, if not in stature--and the most direct release in
their catalog. The sound of forced vomiting heralds nine sadistically fast,
insanely vocalized pieces of utter musical carnage. Cleaner and more focused
in their delivery, tracks such as “The Oblivion Gene” and “The Final Destruction Of
Dignity” are prime examples of music designed to terrorize anyone within
earshot. Dynamics be damned, this is a full-on bloodbath of the highest order.
[Season of Mist, 2004]
Right place, right time? Or just that fucking good? Well, Arsis' debut was a killer combination of both. In a world starved of MDM heroes, this upstart duo's worship-combo of Heartwork, ...AFJA, and Storm of the Light's Bane was as refreshing as it was opportune. James Malone's championship riffing (2:30 of "The Face of My Innocence," anyone?) and jaw-dropping soloing was the cocaine-coated candy to starving, withdrawn melodeathsters. ACoG stands as one of the most impressive, energizing debuts ever. [Willowtip, 2004]
That rare album that
would be the Number One Album of Year if it were released each year, Alaska
stands as one of the true testaments to extreme musical creativity and skill.
Though some saw their scattershot precision and unpredictability as unnerving and
unfocused, most saw the album as a brave, genre-defying melting pot. "All Bodies" and "Selkies" fused
grindcore, power metal, acoustic beauty and death metal into one elegant,
eloquent and extreme foray into envelope-shattering brilliance that even
with 2008's magnificent follow up, Colors, the band has yet to match. [Victory,
2005]
Dark/thrash/prog/power/whatever metal band Nevermore ride Warrel Dane’s
singularly bombastic vocals and Jeff Loomis’ endless array of solid shred riffs
to metallic glory on this one, redeeming themselves from the admittedly
problematic Enemies Of Reality. This
Endeavor is a snarling, dense masterwork of desperation, anger, and intensity the likes of which only Nevermore could create, with a musical depth and
aggression matched only by the lyrics. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, Nevermore does cerebral
moodiness better than most--and never better than this. [Century Media, 2005]
Drudkh’s fourth opus was the first in a line of divisive releases. Some fans saw it as a dull and clumsy reiteration of the fiery passion of their earlier albums; others saw it as a bold, highly rewarding take on epic black metal. Whether you loved it or hated it, Drudkh threw everyone for a loop with this album’s deliberate pacing (with nary a blastbeat to be found), surprisingly emotional vocal work, and some of the most scorching guitar solos ever to surface on a black metal record. The album’s deviation from expected norms still doesn’t sit right with many listeners, but Blood In Our Wells proved Drudkh’s ability to step outside of black metal’s boundaries into something even more mammoth in scope. [Supernal, 2006]
Californian tech-death
outfit Decrepit Birth topped Metal Review’s Best of 2008 list with this
jaw-dropping, head-spinning display of melodic leads, bone-breaking riffs,
machine-precise drumming, and surprisingly catchy songcraft. Guitarist Matt
Sotelo leads the charge, as nearly every split-second of this is drenched in
shredtastic guitar wheedle...but don’t let that turn you off. Diminishing Between Worlds is a rarity, a
dizzying display of technicality that is as enjoyable to fans of bare-bones
death metal as it is to the muso types. [Unique Leader, 2008]
There you have it. 100 Essential Albums from a sprawling, ambitious decade in heavy metal. Raise 'em up.
Posted
10-04-2009 8:36 AM
by
Rev