Good musical pieces are those that initiate an emotional reaction or a subconscious shift of your subjective perception. The best music are those that elicit the most positive or dramatic of changes to our psyches. This is a list that I return to occasionally for these effects.

It is subjective of course.

1. Agalloch - The Mantle

2. Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

3. Amon Amarth - Twilight Of The Thunder God

4. Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors

5. Atoma - Skylight

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Take a look at the Top Album lists of recent years and you'll notice an obvious trend. In 2005 the average rating of the top 25 albums is 8.76. Jump to 2014 and the average among the top 25 has dropped to 8.26. An almost linear decrease is observable for the 10 years in between.

I was curious to see what a Top 100 for 2000-2014 would look like if I factored the votes to account for the 'rating decline'. I hope you find it interesting.

1. Agalloch - The Mantle

2. Opeth - Blackwater Park

3. Blindead - Affliction XXIX II MXMVI

4. Aquilus - Griseus

5. Nevermore - Dead Heart In A Dead World

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AtoZ (Album)

1. Insomnium - Above The Weeping World

2. Death Angel - Act III

3. Devin Townsend - Addicted

4. Ihsahn - After

5. Sentenced - Amok

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1. ...And Oceans - The Symmetry Of I - The Circle Of O

2. A Forest Of Stars - Beware The Sword You Cannot See

3. Ahab - The Call Of The Wretched Sea

4. Akercocke - Choronzon

5. Alcest - Écailles De Lune

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So here we are again . After many years of dedication and love to this music that we call progressive metal, here are some of the best albums that ever existed and made the earth a better place . Give to these albums the attention and the respect they deserve and you will be fully awarded. I think i will try and limit this list to 3 cd's maximum per band to make this thing more challenging .

1. Dan Swanö - Moontower

2. Cynic - Traced in Air

3. Cynic - Focus

4. Enslaved - Axioma Ethica Odini

5. Enslaved - Ruun

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A collection of the most original, insane and head spinning albums from the weirdest side of metal. Suggestions are welcome.

1. A Forest Of Stars - Beware the Sword You Cannot See

2. Angizia - Das Schachbrett Des Trommelbuben Zacharias

3. Akphaezya - Anthology II: Links From The Dead Trinity

4. Arcturus - La Masquerade Infernale

5. Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors

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My best of 2009

1. Epica - Design Your Universe

2. Trail Of Tears - Bloodstained Endurance

3. Wine From Tears - Through The Eyes Of A Mad

4. Be'lakor - Stone's Reach

5. Novembers Doom - Into Night's Requiem Infernal

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1. Kalisia - Cybion

2. Thy Catafalque - Róka Hasa Rádió

3. Karnivool - Sound Awake

4. Finsterforst - ...zum Tode hin

5. While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

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1. Devin Townsend - Ocean Machine: Biomech

2. Lost Horizon - A Flame To The Ground Beneath

3. Wintersun - Wintersun

4. Empyrium - Songs Of Moors And Misty Fields

5. Mors Principium Est - The Unborn

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1. Novembre - Wish I Could Dream It Again

2. Primordial - The Gathering Wilderness

3. Metallica - ...And Justice For All

4. Novembre - Arte Novecento

5. Metallica - Ride The Lightning

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Here are my top 25 of 2009, going to try to get more years done as I get more free time.

1. Be'lakor - Stone's Reach

2. Baroness - Blue Record

3. Amorphis - Skyforger

4. While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

5. Mastodon - Crack The Skye

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Call me easily impressed or what, but 2009 has been an amazing year for metal releases for me. Being well into 2010, I had the chance to let everything sink in and the more memorable albums stand out more while certain release that had initially escaped attention could also be "auditioned". Having listened to over 230 releases, just narrowing down a list of top 30 has already been a challenge, but for an annual list to go over 20 kind of loses its purpose of recommendation, so I just tried even harder. At the same time, I allowed myself to cheat a little bit by using another list of overlooked albums and influential albums. Some that didn't quite make the cut: Bloodbound, Artillery, Delain, Fairyland, Dark Moor, Vomitory, Immortal, Paradise Lost, Amesoeurs, Skyfire, The 11th Hour, Process Of Guilt and Anaal Nathrakh

1. Thy Catafalque - Róka Hasa Rádió

2. Amorphis - Skyforger

3. Samael - Above

4. Sun Of The Blind - Skullreader

5. While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

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1. Arckanum - ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ

2. Excoriate - On Pestilent Winds...

3. Onirik - After Centuries of Silence

4. Oranssi Pazuzu - Muukalainen Puhuu

5. Dishammer - Vintage Addiction

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Limited to only those albums featured on Metal Storm.

1. Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick

2. King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King

3. King Crimson - Red

4. Rush - Moving Pictures

5. Opeth - Still Life

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