1.Edge Of Sanity - Crimson

2.Empyrium - Songs Of Moors And Misty Fields

3.Saturnus - Paradise Belongs To You

4.Opeth - Still Life

5.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

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A little list series where I list my top 20 favorite metal albums every year starting from the year I was born in.

1996 was a very soild year, even though in the mainstream metal/rock started to go down hell around this time (well for me at least), but still a lot of great releases especially in black metal and gothic metal, oh and also my favorite metal genera symphonic metal started to become it's own thing around this time.

1.Therion - Theli

2.Katatonia - Brave Murder Day

3.Vinterland - Welcome My Last Chapter

4.Theatre Of Tragedy - Velvet Darkness They Fear

5.Edge Of Sanity - Crimson

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Plus my top three favourite tracks from each release. \m/

Honourable mentions:
Stratovarius - Episode (Power)
Marduk - Heaven Shall Burn... When We Are Gathered (Black)
Cannibal Corpse - Vile (Death)
Korn - Life Is Peachy (Nu)

Non-Metal mentions:
The Exploited - Beat The Bastards (Punk)
Velvet Acid Christ - Church Of Acid (Industrial)

1.Burzum - Filosofem

2.Moonspell - Irreligious

3.Gorgoroth - Antichrist

4.Satyricon - Nemesis Divina

5.Marilyn Manson - Antichrist Superstar

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The purpose of this list is not to find and record which albums are the best but to define Dark Metal. We will try to specify which albums are the definitive examples of Dark Metal. "Dark Metal" is what we would call a "post-subgenre". An album that's not quite Black, not quite Death, sometimes a little Doom or Gothic, other times just Melodic or Symphonic or even "Atmospheric", anything that could fall somewhere in between some or all of these categories, that could probably be a "Dark Metal" album, as long as the tone is somewhat dark.

1.Rotting Christ - Sanctus Diavolos

2.Celtic Frost - Monotheist

3.Nightfall - At Night We Prey

4.Septicflesh - Sumerian Daemons

5.Behemoth - I Loved You At Your Darkest

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All my favourite songs ranked in order best down.

1.Rush - 2112

2.Deep Purple - In Rock

3.Jethro Tull - Aqualung

4.Rainbow - Rising

5.Black Sabbath - Paranoid

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Plus whatever Goth Rock I have that was available...

1.Fields Of The Nephilim - Mourning Sun

2.Moonspell - Night Eternal

3.Paradise Lost - Obsidian

4.Moonspell - Wolfheart

5.Tristania - Beyond The Veil

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Must Listen: The First 8

1.Angra - Holy Land

2.Anathema - Eternity

3.Type O Negative - October Rust

4.Stratovarius - Episode

5.Grave Digger - Tunes Of War

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**Trigger warning**

Albums and EPs rated 8.6+ from 100+ votes which I've given an 8 or lower to.

I've listened to and rated every album on MS that meets this criteria (at time of most recent update) - some of them multiple times - so I feel I can give my honest opinion.

The purpose of this is to list and order the albums that I simply don't "get" and to try re-listening to them in the hope of understanding why they've received so many 9 and 10 votes.

Ordered by my rating then MS rating then number of votes.

Updated: 03-Jan-24

My other lists:
Top 500 Albums (ordered & rated)
Top 25 EPs (also ordered & rated)
Top 200 Overlooked Albums (with genres)
So I Heard You Like Wintersun... (Time II find new bands)

1.Anathema - Judgement

2.Paradise Lost - Draconian Times

3.Anathema - Alternative 4

4.Motörhead - Ace Of Spades

5.Motörhead - Overkill

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Yes, I decided to do another gothic metal list because it been rapidly changing since my last two lists. I love revisiting this kind of list because of how different my tastes have changed withing this genre of music I'm passionate about.

1.Anathema - Eternity

2.Draconian - Arcane Rain Fell

3.The Foreshadowing - Days Of Nothing

4.Monumentum - In Absentia Christi

5.Tiamat - Wildhoney

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1.Moonspell - Irreligious

2.Theatre Of Tragedy - Velvet Darkness They Fear

3.Paradise Lost - Draconian Times

4.Rotting Christ - A Dead Poem

5.Tristania - Beyond The Veil

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No particular order

1.Graveworm - As The Angels Reach The Beauty

2.Graveworm - Scourge Of Malice

3.Dimmu Borgir - For All Tid

4.Dimmu Borgir - Stormblåst

5.Dimmu Borgir - Enthrone Darkness Triumphant

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Suggestions are always welcome

1.Paradise Lost - Draconian Times

2.Theatre Of Tragedy - Velvet Darkness They Fear

3.Draconian - Arcane Rain Fell

4.The Sins Of Thy Beloved - Lake Of Sorrow

5.Tristania - Widow's Weeds

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Stuff that got me hooked in the course of the years, from my very first blurred memories as a toddler to the present day.
Lots of catchy tunes, some cheese, very few flowers.
Songs that had a big impact on me and influenced my taste in music.
Stuff to let it all hang out, songs for campfire sing-alongs and soundtracks to slit your wrists to.

1.Queen - Jazz

2.Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast

3.Dio - Holy Diver

4.Metallica - Ride The Lightning

5.Einstürzende Neubauten - Halber Mensch

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1.Moonspell - Wolfheart

2.Heavenwood - Diva

3.Desire - Infinity... A Timeless Journey Through An Emotional Dream

4.Moonspell - Irreligious

5.Bizarra Locomotiva - Bestiário

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1.Moonspell - Wolfheart

2.Moonspell - Under The Moonspell

3.Moonspell - Night Eternal

4.Moonspell - Memorial

5.Moonspell - Irreligious

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